JP2001112852A - Spraying type sterilizer with drying mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a spraying type sterillizer provided with a drying mechanism, which can shorten the drying period of time by realizing an efficient hot air drying, and can reduce the device cost by eliminating a connecting- sticking device for the feeding of hot air. SOLUTION: At the time of drying, a rotating body 3 is continuously or intermittently rocked in the range wherein trays 2 are at approx. 45 to 135 deg. to horizontal, and, under this state, hot air is fed to the rotating body 3 from the top, and the rocking-drying is performed. At the upper end sections and the lower end sections on one side of the trays 2 which are stack-housed in the rotating body 3, two sheets of baffle plates 21 are provided extending over the total length. Then, hot air is introduced into the rotating body 3 from a hot air introducing space 22 which is partitioned by the baffle plates 21. Also, at the upper end sections and the lower end sections on the other side of the trays 2 which are stack-housed in the rotating body 3, two sheets of baffle plates 24 are provided extending over the total length as well. Then, hot air is introduced into the rotating body 3 from a hot air introducing space 25 which is partitioned by the baffle plates 24 as well.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a spray-type sterilizer with a drying mechanism used for sterilizing retort foods, pharmaceuticals in packaging containers, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a spray-type sterilizer having a drying mechanism of this kind, a tray on which products are placed is stacked and stored on a rotary body rotatably installed in a cylindrical sterilizer body. After hot water is sprayed from a spray nozzle placed toward the gap between the trays stacked and stored, the product is heated and sterilized, and then the cooling water is sprayed from the spray nozzle to cool the product. Rotate the tray 90 degrees from the position (the position where the tray is horizontal) and move the tray 9 degrees from the horizontal.
A device in which the product is dried by spraying hot air from a spray nozzle at an angle of 0 ° is already known (for example, see Japanese Patent No. 266899).

[0003]

By the way, in the conventional apparatus, in the drying step, after the rotating body is rotated by 90 ° from the initial position (the position where the tray is horizontal), the hot air supply pipe is connected to the header by a connecting / adhering device. By connecting to the pipe, hot air is blown out from the spray nozzle through the header pipe into the gaps between the trays stacked and stored in the rotating body, forming a hot air flow from top to bottom on the surface of each tray It is designed to dry. However, the speed of the hot air immediately after being ejected from the spray nozzle is usually 1 unit.
Because of the high speed of 0 to 30 m / sec, the hot air short-passed a part of the tray surface, and a part of the product was hardly hit by the hot air, and the drying time was long. In addition, connection
The hot air supply pipe and header pipe are connected by a contact device.
Since the structure is such that hot air is supplied from the hot air supply pipe to the header pipe in close contact, the hot air supply pipe and the header pipe need to be strictly aligned, and the hot air supply pipe and the header pipe during hot air supply must be The positional relationship is fixed, and the flow of hot air is limited to one direction of 90 ° to the horizontal. Hot air is applied to the product from only one direction, and the drying effect is low. Furthermore, in addition to the connection / adhesion device for supplying hot water and cooling water and the connection / adhesion device for supplying compressed air used for the tray holding device, a connection / adhesion device for supplying hot air is required, resulting in an increase in equipment costs. .

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to realize efficient hot-air drying to shorten the drying time, and to reduce the cost of the apparatus by eliminating the need for a connection / contact device for supplying hot air. It is an object of the present invention to provide a spray-type sterilizing apparatus with a drying mechanism capable of performing the above-mentioned.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises stacking a cylindrical sterilizer main body and a tray rotatably installed inside the sterilizer main body and on which a product is placed. A rotating body to be housed in a state, a rotation driving means for rotating the rotating body in normal and reverse directions, a plurality of spray nozzles provided on the rotating body aiming at a gap between trays stacked and housed in the rotating body, and communication with each spray nozzle The introduction pipe provided on the rotating body, the medium supply pipe provided on the side of the sterilizer main body and configured to be connectable to and close to the introduction pipe, and the hot air supply pipe provided on the upper part of the sterilizer main body And hot air supply means for supplying hot air to the hot air supply pipe, and a hot air discharge pipe for exhausting the hot air introduced into the sterilizer main body to the outside. Approximately 45 ° to 135 °
Swings continuously or intermittently at fixed time intervals in the range of
In this state, hot air is supplied from above to the rotating body so that swing drying can be performed.

Further, according to the present invention, two baffle plates are provided at the upper end and the lower end on one side of the trays stacked and housed in the rotating body over the entire length in the longitudinal direction of the rotating body. The hot air is introduced into the rotating body from the hot air introduction space partitioned by.

[0007] Further, the present invention also provides that the upper and lower ends of the other side of the trays stacked and stored in the rotating body are also provided with two
A plurality of baffles are provided over the entire length in the longitudinal direction, and hot air is introduced into the rotating body also from a hot air introduction space partitioned by the baffles.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the apparatus of the present invention comprises a rotating body (3) for accommodating stacked trays (2) inside a cylindrical sterilizer body (1). It is configured to be rotatably supported. The openings on the inlet side (left side in FIG. 2) and the outlet side (right side in FIG. 2) of the sterilizer body (1) are closed by lids (4) and (5) that can be opened and closed, respectively.

A rotary drive means (not shown) for rotating the rotary body (3) forward and reverse, for example, a motor with a small sprocket and a speed reducer, is provided outside the sterilizer body (1). And the rotating body (3) are connected via appropriate rotation transmitting means (for example, large and small sprockets and chains). Usually, the center rotating plate (8)
A large sprocket will be installed at Thus, when the rotation driving unit is driven forward and backward, the rotating body (3) integrally rotates forward and backward.

The rotating body (3) has a plurality of disk-shaped rotating plates (8) arranged vertically at appropriate intervals in the longitudinal direction of the sterilizer body (1), and the outer periphery of each rotating plate (8). In the vicinity of the part, a plurality of rod-shaped connecting members (9) are connected to the sterilizer body (1).
And is configured to be inserted and fixed in the longitudinal direction. Then, the stacked trays (2) are stored in a space sectioned by the rotating plate (8) and the connecting member (9). A tray holding device (10) composed of, for example, an air cylinder, a spring, a fixing wedge, or the like is disposed above the rotating body (3), and the trays (2) stacked in the rotating body (3) are arranged. After being stored, the uppermost tray (2) is pressed from above by a tray presser (10), thereby fixing the stacked and stored trays (2) so as not to move up, down, front and back.

A plurality of header pipes (11) are erected at appropriate intervals on both sides of the rotating body (3), that is, in a direction orthogonal to the stacked trays (2). A plurality of spray nozzles (12) are provided in the header pipe (11) toward the center of the stacked trays (2), and each spray nozzle (12) is provided in the stacked tray (2). They are arranged at equal intervals on the header pipe (11) in the direction along 2) and aiming at the gap.

The plurality of header pipes (11) are connected to a pair of communication pipes (13) arranged on both sides of the rotating body (3) over the entire length thereof. One of the communication pipes (13) (left side in FIG. 1) is one of the communication pipes (13),
The other (right side in FIG. 1) communication pipe (13) communicates with each header pipe (11) disposed on the middle left side, and the header pipe (11) disposed on the right side in FIG. 1 of the rotating body (3). Communicate. At a substantially central portion of the communication pipe (13), an introduction pipe (15) with the introduction port (14) directed outside the sterilizer main body (1) is provided.

A medium supply pipe (16) connected to a heat exchanger (not shown) and a hot water / cooling water pump is provided on both sides of the center of the sterilizer main body (1). Media supply pipe (16)
Suitable driving means such as an air cylinder (17)
Connection / adhesion device (18) that moves forward and backward in the horizontal direction due to
Is slidably inserted, and the connecting / adhering device (18) is advanced by an air-cylinder (17) to introduce the introduction pipe (15).
When the heating medium (hot water) or the cooling medium is connected to the header pipe (11) from the medium supply pipe (16) through the introduction pipe (15) and the communication pipe (13) by being connected to and tightly attached to the inlet port (14). (Cooling water).

A plurality of hot air supply pipes (19) are disposed at an appropriate interval in the longitudinal direction of the sterilizer main body (1) at the upper part of the sterilizer main body (1). Each hot air supply pipe (19) is connected to a communication pipe (20) arranged above the sterilizer main body (1), and the communication pipe (20) is a hot air supply means (not shown) such as a hot air generator and a hot air blower. And so on. Thereby, hot air is supplied from the hot air supply pipe (19) into the sterilization tank (1) through the communication pipe (20) by the hot air supply means.

At the upper end and lower end of one side (right side in FIG. 1) of the trays (2) stacked and stored in the rotating body (3), two baffle plates (21) are provided. ) Is disposed over the entire length in the longitudinal direction of the two baffle plates (2).
Hot air is introduced into the rotating body (3) from the wide space (hot air introduction space) (22) partitioned by 1).

A plurality of hot air discharge pipes (23) are arranged at appropriate intervals in the longitudinal direction below the sterilizer main body (1), and the hot air introduced into the sterilizer main body (1) is discharged by a hot air discharge pipe. Discharge from (23) to the outside.

The present invention is configured as described above, and the operation will be described next. First, the lid (4) on the inlet side is opened with the lid (5) on the outlet side of the sterilizer body (1) closed,
In a state where the trays (2) on which the products in the packaging containers are placed are stacked, the rotating body (3) is driven by a carry-in conveyor or the like (not shown).
In order. Then, when the trays (2) stacked in the entire inside of the rotating body (3) are stored, the lid (4) on the entrance side is closed, and the sterilizer main body (1) is sealed. Next, the uppermost tray (2) is pressed from above by a tray pressing device (10) using compressed air from the outside, for example, and the rotating body is moved so that the stacked and stored trays (2) do not move up, down, front and back. Fix to (3). In this state, the connecting / adhering device (18) of the medium supply pipe (16) is advanced by the air cylinder (17) and connected / adhered to the inlet (14) of the inlet pipe (15). The heated hot water is supplied to the medium supply pipe (1
From 6), it is supplied to the header pipe (11) via the introduction pipe (15) and the communication pipe (13). The hot water supplied to the header pipe (11) is sprayed from both sides in the horizontal direction from the spray nozzle (12) into the gap of the tray (2) stacked and housed in the rotating body (3), and is sprayed on the tray (2). Heat sterilize the product in the packaging container placed in the container.

After a predetermined sterilization time has elapsed, the heat exchanger is switched to the cooling side to cool the hot water, and this cooling water is supplied from the medium supply pipe (16) to the introduction pipe (15) and the communication pipe (1) in the same manner as described above.
3) The liquid is supplied to the header pipe (11) via the spray nozzle (12) and sprayed from both sides in the horizontal direction into the gap of the tray (2) stacked and housed in the rotating body (3) from the spray nozzle (12). The packaged product placed on top is cooled.

When the cooling is completed, the supply of the cooling water is stopped, and then the connecting / adhering device (18) of the medium supply pipe (16) is retracted by the air cylinder (17) to introduce the introduction pipe (15).
From the inlet (14). Next, the rotation drive means is driven to rotate the rotating body (3) in the sterilizer body (1) counterclockwise with respect to the initial position (the position shown in FIG. 1) 90 degrees from the entrance side.
And tilt the trays (2) stacked and stored in the rotating body (3) from a horizontal state to a vertical state (see FIG. 4). Accordingly, most of the cooling water adhering to the tray (2) and the product in the packaging container flows downward and is removed.

Next, the rotary driving means is driven forward and reverse to rotate the rotating body (3) left and right in the sterilizer main body (1) as viewed from the inlet side of the sterilizer main body (1), thereby rotating the rotating body (3). The trays (2) stacked and stored in () are swung within a predetermined angle range (see FIGS. 5 and 6). At this time, the swing angle of the tray (2) is approximately four to the left and right from the vertical position of the tray (2).
5 °, that is, approximately 45 ° to the horizontal position of the tray (2)
The range is 135 °. The swinging operation of the rotating body (3) is performed continuously or intermittently at fixed time intervals. In this state, the hot air supply pipe (19) is opened, and hot air is supplied from the hot air supply means to the sterilizer body (1) through the communication pipe (20) from the hot air supply pipe (19). The supplied hot air flows into the rotating body (3) from the hot air introduction space (22) partitioned by the two baffle plates (21) disposed on the rotating body (3), and the rotating body (3) The cooling water adhering to the tray (2) and the product in the packaging container by flowing into the gap between the trays (2) stacked and stored therein is dried. The used hot air that has passed through the gap of the tray (2) is exhausted from the hot air discharge pipe (23) to the outside of the sterilizer main body (1).

When the drying is completed, the supply of hot air is stopped,
Subsequently, the rotation driving means is driven again to return the rotating body (3) to the initial position. Thereafter, the tray holding device (10) is opened, and the trays (2) stacked and stored in the rotating body (3).
Release the lock. Next, the lid (5) on the outlet side of the sterilizer main body (1) is opened, and the trays (2) stacked and stored in the rotating body (3) are pulled out from the sterilizer main body (1), and are taken out of the conveyor (not shown). Transfer up. Then, while closing the lid (5) on the outlet side of the sterilizer body (1),
The lid (4) on the entrance side is opened, and new trays (2) are sequentially stored in the rotating body (3) in a stacked state, and the same procedure is repeated thereafter.

As described above, the apparatus of the present invention supplies hot air from above the sterilizer main body (1) toward the rotating body (3),
Two baffles (21) with the hot blast arranged on the rotating body (3)
Since the hot air is introduced into the rotating body (3) from the hot air introducing space (22) partitioned by the above, the hot air spreads evenly throughout the rotating body (3), and the trays ( The product in the packaging container placed in 2) is uniformly dried.

Further, in the apparatus of the present invention, since the hot air is supplied from above the sterilizer main body (1) and rocked and dried while rocking the rotating body (3), the apparatus is stacked and stored in the rotating body (3). The angle of the surface inclination and the direction of the gap of the tray (2) are changed, and a wind direction switching effect similar to a damper operation performed by a general blower is obtained, so that the hot air hits a portion where the hot air is difficult to hitherto. And drying is promoted. In addition, by oscillating the rotating body (3), the moisture remaining on the contact surfaces of both the packaged product and the tray (2) is easily dried, and a further improvement in the drying effect can be expected.

In the above description, one side (the right side in FIG. 1) of the trays (2) stacked and stored in the rotating body (3).
Baffles (21) are provided at the upper end and lower end of the
In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7, two baffle plates (24) are also provided on the other side (the left side in FIG. 7) of the rotating body (3), and the baffle plate is inverted by turning the rotating body (3). Hot air may be introduced into the rotating body (3) from the hot air introduction space (25) partitioned by (24).

In the above description, hot water is used as the heating medium, but other heating media such as steam may be used as well.

[0026]

According to the present invention, when the product is dried, the rotating body is swung continuously or intermittently at regular time intervals within a predetermined angle range, and in this state, the hot air is directed to the rotating body from above. The hot air can be distributed evenly to the entire rotating body, and the hot air can be applied to the parts where the hot air is difficult to hit. Hot air drying can be performed and the drying time can be shortened. Further, since the hot air is supplied from above the rotating body, a connection / contact device for supplying the hot air is not required, and the cost of the device can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a spray sterilizer with a drying mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the spray-type sterilizer with a drying mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion A in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing a dry state of the spray-type sterilizer with a drying mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the spray-type sterilizing apparatus with a drying mechanism of the present invention, showing a state in which the rotating body is swung during drying.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the spray-type sterilizing apparatus with a drying mechanism of the present invention, showing a state in which the rotating body is swung during drying.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the spray-type sterilizing apparatus with a drying mechanism of the present invention in which a baffle plate is also attached to the other side of the rotating body.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sterilizer main body 2 Tray 3 Rotating body 8 Rotating plate 10 Tray holding device 11 Header pipe 12 Spray nozzle 15 Inlet tube 16 Medium supply tube 18 Connecting / adhering device 21 Baffle plate 22 Hot air introduction space 23 Hot air discharge tube 24 Baffle plate 25 Hot air Installation space

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A sterilizer body having a cylindrical shape, a rotary body rotatably installed inside the sterilizer body and accommodating stacked trays on which products are mounted, and rotating the rotary body forward and backward. Rotating drive means, a plurality of spray nozzles provided on the rotating body aiming at a gap between the trays stacked and housed in the rotating body, an introduction pipe provided on the rotating body in communication with each spray nozzle, and a sterilizer main body Provided on the side of the, the medium supply pipe configured to be able to connect and adhere to the introduction pipe, a hot air supply pipe provided at the top of the sterilizer body, a hot air supply means for supplying hot air to the hot air supply pipe, A hot air exhaust pipe for exhausting the hot air introduced into the sterilizer main body to the outside;
With a drying mechanism characterized in that it oscillates continuously or intermittently at fixed time intervals in the range of up to 135 °, and in this state, hot air is supplied from above to the rotating body to enable oscillating drying. Spray sterilizer. 2. A baffle plate is provided at the upper end and the lower end on one side of the trays stacked and stored in the rotating body over the entire length in the longitudinal direction of the rotating body, and is partitioned by the baffle plates. The spray type sterilizer with a drying mechanism according to claim 1, wherein hot air is introduced into the rotating body from the hot air introduction space. 3. A baffle plate is also provided over the entire length in the longitudinal direction at the upper end and the lower end on the other side of the trays stacked and housed in the rotating body, and hot air introduced by the baffles is introduced. The spray-type sterilizer with a drying mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, wherein hot air is introduced into the rotating body also from a space.