JP2002145391A - Clamping facility for plastic cap in production line of beverage bottle product - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To determine whether a desired clamping angle can be obtained in advance to allow appropriate measures to be taken subsequently when a plastic cap is to be clamped on a mouth of a bottle filled with a beverage with constant torque by a plug closing machine. SOLUTION: The clamping facility for plastic caps comprises a tank 1 including a heating means 3 for a received plastic cap 2, a transfer means 4 for transferring the cap received in the tank to an arranging machine 5, and a cap supply means 6 for supplying caps which are arranged by the arranging machine in a constant posture and fed to the plug closing machine 7, wherein the closing machine clamps the cap on a mouth of a bottle 8 filled with a beverage with constant torque. The cap supply means is equipped with a radiation thermometer 9 for measuring a temperature of the cap.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tank provided with means for heating a plastic cap housed therein, a transfer means for transferring the cap housed in the tank to an aligner, and a fixed attitude by the aligner. And a cap supply means for supplying a cap which has been aligned and fed to the capping machine, wherein the capping machine tightens the cap at a constant torque around the bottle mouth of the bottle filled with the beverage by the capping machine. And a device for tightening plastic caps in a production line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In this kind of winding equipment, a cap to be wound around a bottle mouth is made of plastic, and the expansion and contraction due to a temperature change is remarkable. Temperature of the cap greatly affects the tightening angle of the cap (the angle of rotation of the cap from the time when the female screw of the cap starts screwing into the male screw of the bottle mouth until the cap is tightened to a constant closing torque by the stopper). Will give. The degree of the effect differs depending on the material of the cap and the size of each part, and differs depending on the cap manufacturer, production lot, and the like.

For example, the relationship between the cap temperature and the tightening angle of a plastic cap of a certain manufacturer was confirmed by an experiment, and the result shown in FIG. 5 was obtained. The numerical value indicating the tightening angle in the figure is the angle at which the cap has rotated once to a position where it stops at a predetermined closing torque after one rotation, and for example, 160 degrees is 360 degrees + 160 degrees (total 520 degrees). Means.

According to FIG. 5 described above, the cap temperature when the cap is tightened with a constant torque by the capping machine is:
For example, when the temperature is 20 ° C., the tightening angle is about 143 on average.
When the temperature and the cap temperature are 45 ° C., the tightening angle is about 177 ° on average, and it can be seen that the tightening angle increases as the cap temperature at the time of winding tightening increases.

The magnitude of the tightening angle affects the sealing performance of the cap and the opening torque. That is, in the case of a beverage bottle product in which a plastic cap is tightly wound with a stopper at a constant torque, if the tight angle of the cap is insufficient, the sealing property is deteriorated, causing liquid leakage. Is good, but the torque required for opening is increased, making it difficult for consumers of the beverage bottle product to open the cap. In particular, beverage bottle products are usually stored in a refrigerator and the cap temperature is usually lower than when the cap is closed. If the cap temperature is low, the cap shrinks and the opening torque is further increased. Become.

[0006] Accordingly, in a device for tightening a plastic cap in a beverage bottle product production line,
Consideration is made so that the opening torque is substantially constant, in other words, when the cap is tightened by the stopper with a constant closing torque, the tightening angle is substantially constant.

In order to make the tightening angle substantially constant,
Since it is necessary to keep the temperature of the cap immediately before tightening substantially constant, a large amount of caps manufactured by a cap manufacturer are stored in the tank, and then heating means (for example, hot air feeding) provided in the tank is used. Therefore, the cap moving path to the stopper, that is, the moving means via the transfer means (for example, a pneumatic device for transferring the cap with air) to the aligner, the aligner, and the cap supply means (for example, the chute) Once heated to a temperature that takes into account the temperature drop due to heat release, the temperature of the cap is set to a set range at the time when it is supplied to the stopper (this depends on the type of beverage bottle product, but the hot-packed beverage bottle In the case of a product, it is generally set to 30 ° C. to 35 ° C.).

However, for some reason, for example,
If the production line stops, caps that are stagnant in the cap moving path of the wind-up equipment are affected by the outside temperature,
When supplied to the stopper, the cap temperature may be lower than the set range. In addition, the cap temperature may decrease due to poor adjustment of the heating means provided in the tank, and conversely, a portion of the cap group housed in the tank may be exposed to hot air and the cap may be heated to a high temperature. Thus, when the cap temperature is supplied to the stopper, the cap temperature may exceed the upper limit of the set range.

In winter, when the temperature is falling,
If the production line shuts down, the cap temperature will drop extremely, so it is sufficient to remove the cap that has stagnated in the movement path, return it to the tank, and reheat it.However, the temperature of the working environment and the production line downtime In some cases, it is not possible to determine whether the cap temperature is out of the set range, and there is a high possibility that defective products will be produced and shipped. Therefore, a sampling inspection (destructive inspection) of the product is performed at regular intervals,
Judge whether the actual tightening is properly performed,
The fact is that process management is performed.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and is intended for use in a facility for tightening a plastic cap in a beverage bottle product production line by using a stopper. A first object of the present invention is to determine in advance whether a desired tightening angle can be obtained when a cap is wound around a bottle mouth with a constant torque and to perform an appropriate treatment thereafter. It is a second object of the present invention to be able to eliminate or significantly reduce the production of defective beverage bottle products having abnormal closing angles.

[0011]

The technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above object are as follows.
That is, the invention according to claim 1 provides a tank provided with a heating means for a plastic cap housed therein, a transfer means for transferring the cap housed in the tank to the aligner, and a fixed attitude by the aligner. And a cap supply means for supplying a cap which has been aligned and fed to the capping machine, wherein the capping machine tightens the cap at a constant torque around the bottle mouth of the bottle filled with the beverage by the capping machine. And a cap thermometer for measuring the temperature of the cap in the cap supply means.

According to the above arrangement, the cap temperature can be checked immediately before the cap is tightened by the stopper. Therefore, when the cap is wound around the bottle mouth with a constant torque by the stopper, a desired tightening angle can be obtained. No, in other words, it can be determined in advance whether or not the opening torque falls within a desired range, and appropriate measures thereafter, for example, discard a beverage bottle product (defective product) having an abnormality in the tightening angle of the cap. Dispose,
Pull out the cooled cap, return it to the tank,
It is possible to take measures such as reheating. Further, since the radiation thermometer is used, the cap temperature immediately before tightening can be confirmed even in a high-speed production line such as several hundred pieces to 1,000 pieces per minute.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, by continuously recording the measured value of the cap temperature and the measurement time, the beverage bottle product of any production lot has a problem in the tightening angle of the cap. Can be accurately determined at any time. For example, by checking the recording result every day before shipping, it is possible to prevent defective products from being shipped as they are.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, an alarm is issued or the production line is automatically stopped as in the fourth aspect of the present invention. With such a configuration, no human error is caused in confirming that the cap temperature has changed, and a prompt response can be made thereafter, thereby reducing the production of defective products.

[0015] In particular, when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range as in the invention of claim 5,
If the beverage bottle product closed with the cap at that temperature is configured to be automatically removed from the production line, there is no need to stop the production line even if the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range. It is also possible to omit the sampling inspection (destructive inspection) of the product, which has been performed at regular intervals to check the torque.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tank provided with a heating means for a plastic cap housed therein, a transfer means for transferring the cap housed in the tank to an aligner, and a fixed means provided by the aligner. A cap supply means for supplying a cap which has been drawn out in alignment with a posture to a capping machine, wherein the capping machine tightens the cap at a constant torque around a bottle mouth of the bottle filled with the beverage by the capping machine. In a facility for tightening a plastic cap in a product production line, the cap supply means includes a radiation thermometer for measuring the temperature of the cap, and a temperature control means for the cap which is controlled based on a measurement result by the radiation thermometer. When the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the temperature of the cap is set by the temperature adjusting means. It is characterized in that so as to adjust to the inner.

According to the configuration of the present invention, when the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the radiation thermometer detects this, and
By operating the temperature control means to adjust the temperature of the cap to within the set range, the production of defective beverage bottle products with abnormal cap tightening angles can be eliminated or significantly reduced, and the measured value of the cap temperature can be reduced. There is no need to stop the production line when it deviates from the set range, which is very economical.

The above-described invention can be implemented by providing one radiation thermometer at one position of the cap supply means. A first radiation thermometer and a second radiation thermometer for measuring the temperature of the cap are provided at different positions in the supply direction, and between the first radiation thermometer and the second radiation thermometer,
A cap temperature control means controlled based on a measurement result by the first radiation thermometer is provided, and the temperature control means is operated when the measured value of the cap temperature by the first radiation thermometer deviates from a set range. It is preferable that the cap temperature is adjusted so that the measured value of the cap temperature by the second radiation thermometer falls within the set range.

[0019]

Embodiments of the first invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an outline of a plastic cap winding apparatus in a beverage bottle product production line. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a tank for accommodating a plastic cap (for example, a pill fur proof cap made of plastic) 2, which is provided with heating means 3 for the cap 2 accommodated therein.
Can be heated to an arbitrary temperature (for example, 40 ° C.) in consideration of a heat radiation loss in the subsequent movement route. As the heating means 3, for example, a means by blowing hot air is employed.

4 is a cap 2 housed in the tank 1
Is transferred to the aligner 5, and as the transfer means 4, for example, a pneumatic device that transfers the cap 2 together with the air 4a is adopted. The aligner 5 aligns a large number of caps 2 placed therein in a fixed posture and sequentially feeds out one by one. For example, the aligner 5 has a known structure using a vibration and a posture restricting tool. Reference numeral 6 denotes a cap supply unit that supplies the cap 2 that has been aligned and drawn out in a fixed posture by the aligner 5 to the stopper 7.
It is composed of a chute that slides down while maintaining a constant posture.

The stopper 7 has a known structure.
A rotating plate 7a for holding a fixed number of bottles 8 filled with beverage in a concave portion on the outer periphery and rotating the same around a vertical axis, and the bottle 8 having been rotated to the end position of the cap supply means 6;
The cap 2 supplied to the top of the bottle is wound around with a predetermined preset closing torque.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a radiation thermometer 9 for measuring the temperature of the cap 2 is provided at a position near the stopper 7 of the cap supply means 6. Radiation thermometer 9
The measurement value and the measurement time of the cap temperature are continuously recorded on the recording device 10 shown in FIG. 1 during the operation of the production line, and the measurement value of the cap temperature is digitally displayed on the display unit of the recording device 10. It has become.

By simply providing the recording device 10, it is possible to accurately determine at any time which of the production lots of the beverage bottle products has an abnormality in the tightening of the cap. By checking the recording result beforehand, it is possible to prevent the defective product from being shipped as it is, which is very effective. However, in the illustrated example, the following configuration is further added. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range (for example, 30 ° C. to 35 ° C.), the alarm device 11 such as the buzzer 11 a and the flashing light 11 b issues an alarm. At the same time, control signals a, b, c,
The production line is automatically stopped by d and e. In the figure, a is a control signal for stopping a beverage filling device (not shown), b is a control signal for stopping the bottle conveying device 13 and the unloading conveyor 14, and c is a control signal for stopping the stopper machine 7. , D indicate a control signal for stopping the aligner 5, and e indicates a control signal for stopping the transfer unit 4.

According to the above configuration, since the cap temperature immediately before the closure by the closure machine 7 can be confirmed, when the cap 2 is wound around the bottle mouth of the bottle 8 with a constant torque by the closure machine 7, a desired fastening angle is required. Can be determined in advance, in other words, whether or not the opening torque falls within a desired range. In addition, since the radiation thermometer 9 is used, the cap temperature immediately before tightening can be confirmed even in a high-speed production line such as several hundred pieces to 1,000 pieces per minute.

By continuously recording the measured value of the cap temperature and the measurement time, it is possible to determine which production lot of the beverage bottle product has a problem with the tightening angle of the cap 2. Prevents shipping of bottled beverage products with defective corners (defective products) as they are. In addition, if the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, an alarm is issued and the production line is automatically stopped. This eliminates human error in confirming that the cap temperature has fluctuated, enables prompt measures to be taken thereafter, and reduces the production of defective products.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment, in which the measured value of the cap temperature by the radiation thermometer 9 deviates from the set range, so that the beverage bottle product closed with the cap 2 at that temperature (defective product). Is transferred to a predetermined position on the unloading conveyor 14, a path switching means (for example, unloading conveyor 1) operated by a control signal from a control unit (not shown)
The configuration is such that the scraper 15 protruding above 4 switches the transfer path of the defective beverage bottle product and automatically removes it from the production line. FIG.
Reference numeral 16 denotes a defective product discharge conveyor, and reference numeral 17 denotes a beverage filling device (not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2).

In this case, even if the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the production line is not automatically stopped, but the operation of the recording device 10 and the alarm device 11 is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to FIGS. Is the same as

According to this configuration, when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the beverage bottle product closed with the cap at that temperature is automatically removed from the production line, so that the production line is stopped. It is not necessary to perform the inspection, and it is possible to omit the sampling inspection (destructive inspection) of the product, which is performed at regular intervals in order to confirm the opening torque.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of the second invention. This embodiment includes a tank 1 provided with a heating means 3 for a plastic cap 2 housed therein, a transfer means 5 for transferring the cap 2 housed in the tank 1 to an aligner 4,
A cap supply means 6 for supplying the cap 2 which has been aligned and pulled out in a predetermined posture by the aligner 5 to a capping machine 7, and the cap 2 attaches the cap 2 to the bottle opening of the bottle 8 filled with the beverage by the capping machine 7. In a plastic cap tightening facility in a production line for beverage bottle products in which is tightened at a constant torque, the position of the cap supply means 6 in the vicinity of the stopper 7 is changed in the supply direction, and the temperature of the cap 2 is changed. First radiation thermometer 9a for measuring
And a second radiation thermometer 9b are provided in this order from the upper side in the supply direction, and a first radiation thermometer 9a and a second radiation thermometer 9b are provided.
The temperature control means 18 of the cap 2 controlled based on the measurement result by the first radiation thermometer 9a is provided between the first and second radiation thermometers 9a, and the measurement value of the cap temperature by the first radiation thermometer 9a is set within a set range (for example, , 30 ° C. to 35 ° C.), the temperature adjusting means 18 is operated, and the temperature of the cap 2 is set so that the measured value of the cap temperature by the second radiation thermometer 9b falls within the set range. It is characterized in that it is configured to perform adjustment.

The measurement value and the measurement time of the cap temperature by the second radiation thermometer 9b are continuously recorded on the recording device 10 during operation of the production line, and the measurement value of the cap temperature is displayed on the recording device 10. Digitally displayed on the unit. Then, due to a failure of the temperature adjusting means 18 or the like,
When the measured value of the cap temperature by the second radiation thermometer 9b deviates from the set range, the alarm device 11 such as the buzzer 11a and the flashing light 11b issues an alarm, and at the same time, the path is switched by the control signal from the control unit 12. The means 15 operates,
Defective products are automatically removed from the production line and transferred to a conveyer 16 for discharging defective products.

The temperature adjusting means 18 shown in the figure is a heater (for example, by blowing hot air) 1 which operates when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates to the lower temperature side of the set range.
8a and a cooler 18b that operates when the temperature deviates to the high temperature side of the setting range (for example, by blowing cool air), but the measured value of the cap temperature deviates only to the low temperature side of the setting range. It is sufficient to provide only a heater 18a as the temperature adjusting means 18 in the tightening equipment expected. In the tightening equipment expected to deviate only to the high temperature side with respect to the set range, the temperature adjusting means As 18, only the cooler 18 b may be provided. The configuration and operation of the tank 1, the heating means 3, the transfer means 4, the aligner 5, the cap supply means 6, the stopper 7 and the like are the same as those in the embodiment of FIGS.

According to the above configuration, even if the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the temperature control means 18 is operated without stopping the production line to bring the temperature of the cap 2 to within the set range. Because of the adjustment, the production of defective beverage bottle products with abnormal cap tightening angles can be eliminated or significantly reduced, which is very economical.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the cap temperature immediately before closing by the stopper can be confirmed.
When tightening the cap around the bottle mouth with a constant torque by the stopper, whether or not a desired tightening angle is obtained, in other words, whether or not the opening torque falls within a desired range, can be determined in advance. The following effects can be obtained. According to the second invention, when the cap temperature deviates from the set range, the radiation thermometer detects this and activates the temperature adjusting means to adjust the temperature of the cap to within the set range. The production of certain defective beverage bottle products can be reduced or eliminated significantly, and there is no need to shut down the production line when the measured cap temperature deviates from the set range, which is very economical. effective.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a plastic cap winding facility in a beverage bottle product production line according to a first invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a main part.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part showing another embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a plastic cap winding facility in a beverage bottle product production line according to the second invention.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing a relationship between a cap temperature and a closing angle.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Tank, 2 ... Cap, 3 ... Heating means, 4 ... Transfer means, 5 ... Aligner, 6 ... Cap supply means, 7 ... Closing machine,
8: bottle, 9: radiation thermometer.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tadayoshi Takashima 2-21, Hamamatsubara-cho, Nishinomiya-shi, Hyogo Japan Yamamura Glass Co., Ltd. F term (in reference) 2G066 AC16 CA15 3E080 AA07 DD02 DD12 DD22 EE08 EE10

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A tank provided with a heating means for a plastic cap housed therein, a transfer means for transferring the cap housed in the tank to an aligner, and the aligner aligns the cap in a fixed posture and is fed out. And a cap supply means for supplying the cap to a stoppering machine, wherein the stoppering machine tightens the cap at a constant torque around the bottle mouth of the bottle filled with the beverage. In the cap winding apparatus, a radiation thermometer for measuring a temperature of the cap is provided in the cap supply means, wherein the plastic cap is wound on a production line for a beverage bottle product. 2. The apparatus for tightening a plastic cap in a beverage bottle product production line according to claim 1, wherein the measurement value and the measurement time of the cap temperature are continuously recorded. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an alarm is issued when the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from a set range.
Or a device for tightening plastic caps in a production line for beverage bottle products according to item 2. 4. The plastic in a beverage bottle product production line according to claim 1, wherein the production line is automatically stopped when a measured value of the cap temperature deviates from a set range. Equipment for winding caps. 5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the measured value of the cap temperature deviates from a set range, so that the beverage bottle product closed with the cap at that temperature is automatically removed from the production line. A device for tightening a plastic cap in a production line for beverage bottle products according to the present invention. 6. A tank provided with a heating means for a plastic cap housed therein, a transfer means for transferring the cap housed in the tank to an aligner, and the container is aligned and discharged in a fixed posture by the aligner. And a cap supply means for supplying the cap to a stoppering machine, wherein the stoppering machine tightens the cap at a constant torque around the bottle mouth of the bottle filled with the beverage. In the cap tightening equipment, the cap supply means is provided with a radiation thermometer for measuring the temperature of the cap and a temperature control means for the cap which is controlled based on the measurement result by the radiation thermometer, and measures the cap temperature. When the value deviates from the setting range,
The plastic cap cap tightening equipment in a beverage bottle product production line, wherein the temperature of the cap is adjusted to be within a set range by the temperature adjusting means. 7. A first radiation thermometer for measuring the temperature of the cap and a second radiation thermometer which are provided at different positions in the supply direction, and the first radiation thermometer and the second radiation thermometer are provided in the cap supply means. Between the radiation thermometer and the radiation thermometer, there is provided a cap temperature control means controlled based on the measurement result by the first radiation thermometer, and the measured value of the cap temperature by the first radiation thermometer deviates from the set range. 7. The beverage according to claim 6, wherein the temperature adjusting means is operated to adjust the temperature of the cap so that the measured value of the cap temperature by the second radiation thermometer falls within a set range. Equipment for tightening plastic caps in bottle product production lines.