JP2007099337A - Packing method and apparatus therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To cover an individual viscous substance to be packed with a plastic-made flexible film and also seal it so that it is easily unsealed manually. <P>SOLUTION: A packing apparatus of the invention includes: a conveyer 1 for mounting an article to be packed; a covering mechanism 2 for covering the article with the flexible film; a seal forming roller 31 having a plurality of protrusions arranged on its peripheral surface; and a contact 32 coming into contact with the roller 31. The covering mechanism 2 sandwiches the article between two flexible films to cause the two films to overlap around the article. The conveyer 1 causes the overlapping films covering the article to pass between the roller 31 and the contact 32. The roller and the contact 32 pinch the overlapping films at a room temperature to make a pattern of the protrusions for forming a sealed part. Thus, the flexible films are physically sealed without an adhesive or welding, allowing it to be unsealed without breakage. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a packing method and a packing apparatus, and more particularly to a packing method and a packing apparatus suitable for packing sticky materials.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-81902 JP-A-11-240562

In general, in the production of sticky products such as margarine, butter, other foods, or soap, these sticky products formed into sheets as semi-finished products are stacked and packed in cardboard boxes etc. for final processing. To be transported.
About each of the said sheet-like mucilage laminated | stacked in the cardboard box, the film of soft plastics, such as polyethylene and a vinyl, is applied to the upper surface and lower surface so that the said mucilage may not adhere (patent document 1). ).
On the other hand, from the viewpoint of hygiene management, it is necessary to avoid direct contact between packaging paper such as cardboard and food such as margarine.
However, the contact between the side of the sticky material and the inner surface of the cardboard box is unavoidable only by applying the above-mentioned films separately on the upper and lower surfaces of the sticky material, and foreign matter such as a piece of packing paper from the side of the sticky material. There is a risk of contamination.

In order to avoid such a problem in terms of hygiene, it is conceivable to bond the peripheral edges of the film applied to the upper and lower surfaces of the sticky material by heat sealing or the like.
However, when the above-mentioned upper and lower films are bonded using an adhesive, or when the film is melted and welded, at the final processing plant, when the unsealed sticky film is opened, One had to pull the film with force. For this reason, the sticky substance in a film deform | transforms, and the problem that the piece of a piece of a broken film adheres to a sticky substance arises.

For example, in attaching a lid to an easy open container shown in Patent Document 2, a film (lid) is welded to a flange portion of a synthetic resin container (plastic case), and the film is peeled off from the container. Therefore, it is necessary to perform the opening by destroying the welded part.
Such a sealing means is not a synthetic resin container (case) and a film, but a seal between the above films, that is, a sheet-like sticky material to be stacked and packed, and a cardboard box used for packing. For the purpose of avoiding contact, even if it is simply used to seal the upper and lower soft films together, by applying the force necessary for breaking, the shape of the soft sticky material is destroyed, or the film that has been broken by breaking There is a risk that a piece will be mixed into the margarine. In addition, if it is necessary to apply a large force to the opening, the efficiency of the opening operation is reduced for the operator.

In addition, in the above, in order to avoid tearing by hand, it is conceivable to cut and open the end of the film using scissors, but the cut end by scissors and food such as margarine which is the package Such contact with the scissors is not preferred, and from the viewpoint of hygiene, opening with such scissors is out of the question.
After all, at present, it is possible to prevent the sticky material that is to be packed from coming into contact with the packing material, and the paper dust and pieces of the packing paper from being mixed into the sticky material. It has been dominant among those skilled in the art that there is no means for easily performing this work.

  Therefore, the present invention has the above-mentioned problem that it is possible to seal each sticky substance with a plastic soft film and easily openable with a hand for sticky substances stacked and packed in a cardboard box. It is intended to solve this problem.

The first invention of the present application is to pack a plurality of objects to be packed having stickiness such as food on a packing paper such as cardboard, and before the packing, The following configuration is adopted for a packing device that covers a soft film such as a film and seals the film.
That is, the packing device includes a conveyor that sequentially carries the above-described objects to be packed, a coating mechanism 2 that covers the objects to be packed on the conveyor with the soft film, and one or a plurality of protrusions on the peripheral surface. The sealing forming roller 31 provided with 30... 30 and the contact portion 32 that contacts the sealing forming roller 31 are provided. The covering mechanism 2 is configured such that the object to be packed m is sandwiched between at least two of the soft films and the two soft films are overlapped around the object to be packed m, or The packaged object m is wrapped with a soft film, and the end portions of the soft film are overlapped with each other. The conveyor passes the overlapped portion of the soft film covering the article to be packed m between the sealing forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32. The sealing forming roller 31 and the abutting portion 32 sandwich the overlapping portion of the soft film with a temperature that is room temperature or higher than the room temperature and lower than the melting temperature of the soft film. A sealing portion is formed by attaching the mold of the projections 30 to 30 to the combined portion, thereby physically sealing the soft film so that the soft film can be opened without breaking.
The soft film referred to here includes plastic sheets, especially soft plastic sheets such as polyethylene and vinyl, and paper such as sulfate paper and soft plastic coated paper.

In the second invention of the present application, in the first invention of the present application, the soft film is a soft plastic or sulfuric acid paper, and a protrusion height h of each protrusion 30 from the surface of the seal forming roller 31 is The width w of the base of the protrusion 30 in the rotation direction of the sealing forming roller 31 is larger than the thickness of the overlapped soft film, and does not exceed twice the protrusion height h. The surface of the contact portion 32 is formed of an elastic member such as rubber having elasticity, and the protrusions 30 to 30 are recessed into the surface of the contact portion 32 by contact with the seal forming roller 31. Thus, a plurality of deformed portions having the same shape or a plurality of penetrating portions that fit into the respective corresponding positions of the stacked films are formed as the sealing portions.
The elastic member of the contact portion 32 includes rubber, urethane, vinyl chloride, fluororesin, and silicone.

  In the third invention of the present application, in the first or second invention of the present application, at least each of the protrusions 30 to 30 of the sealing forming roller 31 is formed of metal. Each of the protrusions 30... 30 is a mountain-shaped projecting portion that tapers toward the top 30a by including at least two inclined surfaces 30b and 30b that intersect each other. Degree.

  In the fourth invention of the present application, in the invention of any one of the first to third applications of the present application, the coating mechanism 2 supplies an upper film f2 that covers the upper part of the article m to be packed placed on the conveyor. A covering mechanism 22 and a lower covering mechanism 21 that supplies a lower film f1 that covers a lower portion of the article m to be packed placed on the conveyor are provided. The width of the upper film f2 and the lower film f1 supplied by the upper coating mechanism 22 and the lower coating mechanism 21 in the direction intersecting with the transfer direction of the conveyor is larger than the width of the packaged object m. The lower covering mechanism 21 puts the lower film f1 on the placing surface of the conveyor 1 before placing the article to be packed m on the conveyor, and places the article to be packed m on the conveyor, thereby placing the lower film f1 on the conveyor. It is possible to lay under the article to be packed m. The upper covering mechanism 22 supplies the upper film f2 on the lower film f1 on which the object to be packed m is placed on the conveyor so as to cover the upper film f2, and the upper covering mechanism 22 A portion where the upper film f2 and the lower film f1 are overlapped is provided on at least one of the left and right sides. The sealing forming roller 31 continuously forms the sealing portion on the overlapped portion of at least one of the left and right sides of the packaged object in the transfer direction of the conveyor along the transfer direction of the conveyor belt. To do.

  According to a fifth invention of the present application, in any one of the first to fourth inventions of the present application, a front conveyor 12, a film cutting mechanism 5, and a sub-sealing mechanism 4 different from the above conveyor are provided. The front conveyor 12 sequentially transfers the objects to be packed m to the conveyor. The conveyor conveys the object to be packed m at a speed higher than that of the front conveyor 12, so that when the object to be packed m is delivered from the front conveyor 12, the conveyor is spaced from the subsequent object to be packed m. Open and transport. The covering mechanism 2 supplies a strip-shaped soft film to the plurality of objects to be packed m... M, and covers the plurality of objects to be packed m arranged in the transfer direction of the conveyor with a continuous soft film. The film cutting mechanism 5 includes a blade 51 disposed above the conveyor so as to intersect with the transfer direction of the conveyor, and swings the blade 51 from above to allow the front and rear packages m to be spaced apart. , M, a continuous soft film is cut, and the soft film is cut into a predetermined number of items to be packed m. The sub-sealing mechanism 4 forms a sub-sealing portion that seals the overlapping portion of the soft film along the cutting direction or the planned cutting direction in the space m and m between the front and back packages to be spaced apart. To do.

In the sixth invention of the present application, in the fifth invention of the present application, the conveyor is constituted by a front conveyor and a rear conveyor following the front conveyor. The front conveyor receives the article to be packed m from the front conveyor and transfers it to the rear conveyor. The sub sealing mechanism 4 includes a lower roller disposed between the front conveyor and the rear conveyor, an upper roller disposed above the lower roller and spaced from the lower roller, and an upper roller. A pressing mechanism capable of supporting and moving the upper roller downward and pressing the lower roller against the lower roller. The lower roller rotates about the direction intersecting the transfer direction of both the front and rear conveyors as an axial direction, and backs the packing object sent from the leading conveyor and the upper and lower films covering the packing object. Send to conveyor. One of the lower roller and the upper roller is a sub-sealing roller, and the other of the lower roller and the upper roller is a contact roller 42. The sub-sealing roller 41 has a plurality of protrusions 40... 40 distributed or arranged on its peripheral surface, and the peripheral surface of the contact roller 42 is formed of an elastic member such as rubber. The upper film f2 and the lower film f1 sandwiching the object to be packed m pass between the lower roller and the upper roller and are sent from the preceding conveyor to the rear conveyor. When the package m passes over the lower roller, the pressing mechanism moves the upper roller downward to press the upper roller against the lower roller, thereby forming the sub-sealed portion.
The elastic member such as rubber includes rubber, urethane, vinyl chloride, fluororesin, and silicone.

  In the seventh invention of the present application, in the fifth invention of the present application, the sub sealing mechanism 4 is provided in the circulation drive unit 400 disposed above the conveyor, the circulation drive unit 400, and the above And at least one sealing member 401 that seals the overlapping portion of the soft sheets. The circulation driving unit 400 circulates the sealing member 401 above the conveyor, and brings the sealing member 401 into contact with the placement surface of the object to be packed m in the middle of the circulation path. The sealing member 401 includes a plurality of protrusions arranged in a direction intersecting with the transport direction of the conveyor, and sandwiches the overlapping portion of the soft film between the placement surface of the conveyor by the above contact, The sub sealing portion is formed.

In the eighth invention of the present application, in order to avoid direct contact with the packing paper on the packing object having a stickiness such as food, which is packed in a packing paper such as cardboard, the food before packing For the packaging method of covering the surface with a soft film such as plastic and sealing the film, the following means is adopted.
That is, in this method, at least two rollers made of the same material are used by using at least one roller 31 having one or more protrusions on the peripheral surface and a contact portion 32 that contacts the roller 31. The object to be packed is sandwiched between soft films, and the two soft films are overlapped around the object to be packed, or the end of the soft film is wrapped with one soft film. The overlapped portions of the soft films covering the items to be packed are passed between the roller 31 and the contact portion 32. In the above passage, the roller 31 and the abutting portion 32 cause the soft film to overlap at a room temperature or a temperature higher than room temperature and lower than the melting temperature of the soft film. A sealing portion is formed by attaching the mold of the protrusion to the overlapped portion, thereby physically sealing the soft film and opening the soft film without destroying it. .

Each of the first to eighth inventions of the present application covers and seals a separate plastic soft film on an object to be packed which is packed in a packing paper such as cardboard. Physically, it is performed by attaching a mold of the projection of the sealing forming roller to a portion where the soft films are overlapped with each other. For this reason, unlike the case where the sealing part of the soft film is integrated at the material level exclusively by welding or adhesive, it does not require a large force for opening, and it is not accompanied by destruction of the sealing part. The soft film can be peeled off (opened).
Especially for sheet-like sticky products such as margarine and butter, which are semi-finished products, in order to avoid direct contact with the packaging material (cardboard) or mixing of paper dust or shards of the packaging material due to hygiene issues As described above, it is necessary to form a sealing portion on a plastic soft film and seal the soft film, but it is necessary to open the semi-finished product at a processing factory in order to process it as a final product. . In the present invention, in the above, the opening operation can be performed easily and efficiently without applying an excessive force to the above-described sheet-like viscous material that is easily deformed.
In other words, it is not necessary to seal completely (airtightly sealed), and it is easy to open and quickly, and to avoid damage to the contents at the time of opening. Sealing suitable for avoiding this can be performed.
However, it is possible to use an adhesive having an adhesive strength that does not cause breakage of the soft film at the time of opening unless the material is bonded at the material level.

In the second and third inventions of the present application, the soft film provides a more specific means suitable for forming a sealing portion on the soft film.
Furthermore, the fourth invention of the present application provides more specific means for continuously covering an object to be packed with two soft films.
The fifth invention of the present application makes it possible to form the above-mentioned sealing portion for each side around the soft film. In particular, the sixth and seventh inventions of the present application provide such sealing to each side. More specific means suitable for forming the part were provided.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 to 10 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an overall schematic side view showing an embodiment of a packaging device according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a main part of the covering mechanism of FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of a main part of the covering mechanism of FIG. 4 is a more specific schematic side view of the main part of the covering mechanism of FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of the sealing mechanism of FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a use state of the sealing mechanism of FIG. FIG. 7A is a schematic perspective view of the main part of the sealing mechanism of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7B is a schematic side view of the main part. 8 and 9 are exploded perspective views of main parts of the sealing mechanism. FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view of the sub-sealing mechanism of FIG.

In each figure, for convenience of explanation, U is the upper side, S is the lower side, F is the front in the transfer direction of the packaged object (transfer destination), B is the rear of the packaged object in the transfer direction (transfer source), Each shows.
As shown in FIG. 1, the packaging device includes a transfer device 1, a covering mechanism 2, a sealing mechanism 3, a sub-sealing mechanism 4, and a film cutting mechanism 5.
Hereinafter, the configuration of each unit will be described in detail.

The transfer device 1 is a conveyor that carries the item to be packed m and sequentially transfers it (from left to right in FIG. 1). As shown in FIG. 1, the transfer device 1 includes a first conveyor 11, a second conveyor 12, a third conveyor 13, a fourth conveyor 14, a fifth conveyor 15, and a sixth conveyor in order from the rear B to the front F. And a conveyor 16. The first to sixth conveyors 11 ... 16 constitute a series of transfer lines. Moreover, the 1st-6th conveyors 11 ... 16 each circulate the cyclic | annular belt hung on the some rotating shaft containing a drive shaft, and the thing put on the belt is forward from the back B side. It is a belt conveyor which transfers to the F side. In each of the first to sixth conveyors 11 ... 16, a flat belt is adopted as the conveyor belt. Further, as the conveyor belt, it is possible to adopt a rubber belt generally called a black rubber conveyor belt for transporting heavy objects. In particular, as the conveyor belt, a resin conveyor belt suitable for transporting lightweight objects can be employed. As the resin conveyor belt, urethane, vinyl chloride, fluororesin, or silicone can be used.
About the direction which cross | intersects the transfer direction of the transfer apparatus 1 (1st-6th conveyor 11 ... 16), each mounting surface (belt) of the 1st-6th conveyor 11 ... 16 is the said to-be-packaged goods m. The third conveyor 13 has a mounting surface (belt) that is larger than the width of the article to be packed m in the crossing direction.

Each part of the apparatus will be described in order along the arrangement of the conveyors.
Said 1st conveyor 11 is arrange | positioned under the discharge nozzle n of the viscous material used as the to-be-packaged object m, carries the viscous material m discharged from the discharge nozzle n, and transfers it toward the 2nd conveyor 12. . The discharge nozzle n discharges a manufactured product (sticky material) onto the first conveyor 11 from an apparatus for manufacturing a viscous food such as margarine or butter, or soap.
Above the first conveyor 11, a cutting device 7 for an object to be packed m is provided. The cutting device 7 cuts a series of discharged materials discharged from the discharge nozzle into a predetermined length. The cutting device 7 includes a blade that cuts the discharged material, a mechanism that operates the blade toward the discharged material, and a sensor 71. The mechanism swings the blade down on the discharged material. Then, when the sensor 71 detects that the discharged material is cut and the cut portion has been transferred and advanced by a predetermined width, the mechanism operates the blade again to perform the next cutting. By such an operation, the cutting device 7 processes the discharged material as an object to be packed having a predetermined length. The sensor 71 may be a sensor provided with a phototube that emits light such as infrared rays and a light receiving portion thereof. Such a cutting device 7 can be implemented by employing a known one.

The second conveyor 12 is cut by the cutting device 7, and the articles m... M that are sequentially sent from the first conveyor 11 are placed thereon and transferred toward the third conveyor 13. The covering mechanism 2 is disposed on the third conveyor 13.
The coating mechanism 2 is a device that coats the surface of the above-described packaged objects m ... m with a soft film. In this embodiment, description will be made assuming that a polyethylene sheet is used for the flexible film.
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the covering mechanism 2 includes a lower covering mechanism 21 that supplies a lower film f <b> 1 that covers a lower portion of an object to be packed placed on a conveyor, and an object to be packed placed on the conveyor. And an upper covering mechanism 22 for supplying an upper film f2 covering the upper portion of the upper portion. The lower covering mechanism 21 is disposed below the third conveyor 13 of the transfer device 1, and the upper covering mechanism 22 is disposed above the third conveyor 13 of the transfer device 1.
The transfer speed of the first to sixth conveyors 11 to 16 is preferably 1 m / min to 40 m / min.
Further, the transfer speed of the third to sixth conveyors 13 to 16 is set higher than the transfer speed of the second conveyor 12. With this setting, an interval can be provided between the preceding packed object m and the subsequent packed object m of the packed object m with respect to the transfer direction. That is, the 2nd conveyor 12 is equivalent to the "front conveyor" of Claim 5, and the 3rd-6th conveyors 13-16 are equivalent to the "conveyor" of Claims 1-5.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the lower covering mechanism 21 includes a lower holding shaft 23 that fixes a roll around which the lower film f <b> 1 is wound. That is, the lower holding shaft 23 holds a roll wound with a belt-like polyethylene film as the lower film f1. The lower film f <b> 1 is pulled out from the lower holding shaft 23 and is put on the third conveyor 13 from the rear end of the third conveyor 13. The objects to be packed m transferred from the second conveyor 12 are sequentially placed on the lower film f1 on the third conveyor 13, and are transferred forward together with the lower film f1 by the third conveyor 13. In this manner, the lower film f1 is pressed onto the belt of the third conveyor 13 by placing the article to be packed m, and is sequentially pulled out from the lower holding shaft 23 as the article to be packed m is transferred. go.

Similarly to the lower coating mechanism 21, the upper coating mechanism 22 includes an upper holding shaft 23 a that fixes a roll around which the upper film f <b> 2 is wound. That is, the upper and lower part holding shaft 23a holds a roll wound with a belt-like polyethylene film which is the upper film f2. The upper film f2 is pulled out from the upper holding shaft 23a and placed on the lower film f1 on the third conveyor 13 from the rear end of the third conveyor 13.
In addition to the above, the upper covering mechanism 22 includes a drooping roller 22a and a pressing portion 22b. As shown in FIG. 1, the drooping roller 22 a is urged downward toward the third conveyor 13 by using an actuator (not shown) due to its own weight, spring, or fluid pressure. The upper film f2 is forcibly pressed onto the third conveyor 13 by the downward urging of the drooping roller 22a.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the drooping roller 22a is in contact with the upper film f2, and rotates by receiving a force from the upper film f2 by the movement of the upper film f2 (the drooping roller 22a is axially held and held). The means are omitted to avoid complication of the drawing).
In the above-mentioned lower film f1, it is possible to prevent lifting from the conveyor belt by the weight of the article m to be put on the film, but the upper film f2 is arranged on the article to be packed m. Therefore, as described above, the upper film f2 is pressed against the conveyor by the hanging roller 22a.
About the direction which cross | intersects the transfer direction of the 3rd conveyor 13, the width | variety of the lower film f1 and the upper film f2 which said lower coating mechanism 21 and the upper coating mechanism 22 supply is larger than the width | variety of the to-be-packaged goods m. And on the 3rd conveyor 13, the to-be-packaged object m is put on the center of the lower film f1 by the 2nd conveyor 12 about the direction which cross | intersects the transfer direction of the 3rd conveyor 13. FIG. In the direction intersecting with the transfer direction, the upper film f2 is overlaid on the lower film f1 by the upper covering mechanism 22 so that the left and right ends of the lower film f1 are substantially at the same position.

As shown in FIG. 2, the pressing portion 22 b is configured to hold the upper film f <b> 2 on the lower film f <b> 1 so as not to float on the left and right (left and right as the transfer direction is front and rear) of the packaged object m. That is, the holding portion 22b is arranged in a section that forms a surface on which the object to be packed m of the belt of the third conveyor 13 is placed, and the holding table 22c that contacts the lower surface of the belt, and the object to be packed on the third conveyor 13 On the left and right sides of m, there are pressing rollers 22d and 22d in contact with the pressing table 22c on the opposite side of the pressing table 22c, that is, the upper surface of the belt. The pressing rollers 22d and 22d are in contact with the upper film f2 on the belt of the third conveyor 13, and are rotated by receiving a force from the upper film f2 as the upper film f2 moves (in FIG. The means for holding the axes 22d and 22d is omitted to avoid complication of the drawing).
By sandwiching the lower film f1 (and the belt of the third conveyor 13) and the upper film f2 between the pressing rollers 22d and 22d and the pressing table 22c, the upper film f2 is reliably prevented from being lifted, With respect to the transfer direction on the third conveyor 13, left and right sides of the object to be packed m are secured on the overlapping portions of the upper film f1 and the partial film f2.

As shown in FIG. 3, in addition to the above-described drooping roller 22a and pressing portion 22b, by providing an upper pressing device 22e, the upper film f2 can be prevented from being lifted and more reliably placed on the upper surface of the object to be packed m. The film f2 can be brought into contact (in FIG. 3, the pressing rollers 22d and 22d and the pressing table 22c shown in FIG. 1 are omitted).
The upper pressing device 22e includes actuators 22f and 22f and urging rollers 22g and 22g that can be urged downward by the actuators 22f and 22f. For the actuators 22f and 22f, a conventionally known device, for example, a device constituted by a piston rod provided with a biasing roller 22g at the tip and a hydraulic cylinder for operating the rod can be adopted. As shown in FIG. 3, the urging roller 22g is disposed above the third conveyor 13, and is displaced downward by the operation of the actuator 22f, so that the upper surface of the article m to be packed on the third conveyor 13 is moved. follow. Thereby, the drooping roller 22a of the upper covering mechanism 22 presses the upper film f2 applied above the object to be packed m against the upper surface of the object to be packed m, and the upper surface of the object to be packed m and the preceding packed object are packed. The upper film f2 is pressed onto the lower film f1 between the object m and the subsequent packaged object m. By such an operation of the urging roller 22g, the upper film f2 is prevented from being lifted, and the lower film is interposed between the upper surface of the packaged object m and the preceding packaged article m and the subsequent packaged article m. The overlapping part of f1 and upper film f2 can be ensured reliably.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the upper pressing device 22e includes two urging rollers 22g and 22g on the front and rear sides in the conveying direction of the conveyor. However, the number of urging rollers 22g and 22g can be one or three or more. Further, of the urging rollers 22g and 22g, the urging roller 22g provided on the rear B side in the conveyor transfer direction is as shown in FIG. 3 with respect to an actuator 22f (cylinder) that supports the urging roller 22g. It is desirable to arrange the urging roller 22g (piston rod tip) so that it is located on the front F side in the transfer direction (without directing the rod tip directly under the cylinder, the rod tip is placed on the conveyor rather than the cylinder). (It is preferable to arrange on the front F side in the transfer direction).
However, it is possible to carry out without providing the pressing portion 22b and the upper pressing device 22e.

In the above description, if there is no remaining film held on the holding shafts 23 and 23a of the upper and lower covering mechanisms 21 and 22, it is necessary to stop the line and replenish the roll of film.
However, by adopting the configuration shown in FIG. 4, the film can be replenished without requiring such a line stop.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the lower covering mechanism 21 includes, in addition to the lower holding shaft 23, a sub-lower holding shaft 24 that holds a roll wound with a separate lower film f <b> 1 (band-shaped polyethylene film), The lower holding roller 25 that presses the lower film f1 drawn from either the lower holding shaft 23 or the sub-lower holding portion 24 and smoothly pulls it upward is wound around the lower holding shafts 23 and 24. In addition, a sensor (hereinafter referred to as film sensors 26 and 26) for detecting that the remaining amount of the lower film f1 has decreased to a predetermined amount, an exchange device 27, and a feed adjustment device 25a are provided.
As shown in FIG. 2, the lower film f <b> 1 drawn out from the lower holding shaft 23 is placed on the placement surface of the article m to be packed of the third conveyor 13 from the rear end of the third conveyor 13, that is, on the conveyor belt. Go. The article m to be packed that has moved from the second conveyor 12 to the third conveyor 13 is placed on the lower film f1 and transferred forward toward the fourth conveyor 14 together with the lower film f1. With this transfer, the lower film f1 is sequentially pulled out from the lower holding shaft 23.

When the remaining amount of the lower film f1 wound around the lower holding shaft 23 is reduced to a predetermined amount, the film sensor 26 on the lower holding shaft 23 side detects this decrease (a predetermined value is reached). In response to the detection of the film sensor 26, the exchanging device 27 adheres the lower film f1 of the sub-lower holding shaft 24 to the lower film f1 drawn from the lower holding shaft 23 and replaces it with the lower holding shaft 23. Then, the lower film f1 wound around the sub-lower holding shaft 24 is pulled out.
Specifically, the replacement device 27 includes bonding rollers 28 and 28 provided on known actuators 29 and 29 such as hydraulic cylinders, respectively. One of the bonding rollers 28 is in contact with the lower film f1 drawn from the lower holding shaft 23, and the other of the bonding rollers 28 is in contact with the lower film f1 drawn from the auxiliary lower holding shaft 24. Touching. Then, when the film sensor 26 detects the remaining amount of the lower film f1 on the lower holding shaft 23, the actuators 29 and 29 are operated to bring the two adhesion rollers 28 and 28 closer to each other. Each of the bonding rollers 28 and 28 includes a heater (not shown), and the roller is heated by the heater. The heated bonding rollers 28 and 28 are brought close to each other, and the leading end of the film f1 of the sub-lower holding shaft 24 is brought into contact with the film f1 drawn from the lower holding shaft 23. Thus, by sandwiching the lower films f1 and f1 between the heated bonding rollers 28 and 28, the lower film f1 of the sub-lower holding shaft 24 is drawn from the stock holding shaft 23 at the tip of the lower film f1. The lower film f1 that is bonded to f1 and drawn from the lower holding shaft 23 is cut. After this operation, the actuators 29 and 29 are operated, and the bonding rollers 28 and 28 are moved back to their original positions.

In the above, the rear end of the lower film f1 already drawn out from the lower holding shaft 23 is connected to the tip of the lower film f1 drawn out from the sub-lower holding shaft 24. Thereafter, the lower film f1 is connected to the sub-lower holding shaft 24. What is wound around is pulled out and placed on the third conveyor 13. The operator can replenish the lower holding shaft 23 that has become free as described above (mounting a new roll of the lower film f1). When the film sensor 26 of the sub-lower holding shaft 24 detects a decrease in the remaining amount of the lower film f1 of the sub-lower holding shaft 24, the replacement device 27 is operated, and the sub-lower holding shaft is operated in the same manner as described above. The lower film f <b> 1 drawn out from 24 is replaced with the lower film f <b> 1 of the lower holding shaft 23.
By adopting the above configuration, the lower film f1 can be automatically supplied to the conveyor line without interruption.
Although not shown, the upper covering mechanism 22 can also have the same configuration as the lower covering mechanism 21.

Further, the feed adjusting device 25a rotates the auxiliary roller 25b that comes into contact with the lower film f1 fed to the third conveyor 13, the driving roller 25c, and a support member (not shown). An electric motor 25d and an actuator 25e are provided. The support member holds the drive roller 25c and the electric motor 25d, and is connected to the actuator 25e.
The drive roller 25c is disposed on the opposite side of the auxiliary roller 25b with the lower film f1 interposed therebetween. In a normal state, the driving roller 25c is disposed so as not to contact the lower film f1, and when the film sensor 26 detects that the remaining amount of the film has decreased to a predetermined amount, the operation of the replacement device 27 is performed. Prior to this, the actuator 25e operates to bring the drive roller 25c closer to the auxiliary roller 25b. Then, the driving roller 25c and the auxiliary roller 25b sandwich the lower film f1, and the electric motor 25d rotates the driving roller 25c to pull out the lower film f1 at a speed higher than the transfer speed of the third conveyor 13. As a result, the lower film f1 is loosened to secure a margin for the drawer by the transfer of the third conveyor 13, and the exchanging device 27 exchanges the lower film f1 of the lower holding shaft 23 and the lower film f1 of the auxiliary lower holding shaft 24. It is possible to secure time for performing.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, the sealing mechanism 3 is provided between the third conveyor 13 and the fourth conveyor 14. The sealing mechanism 3 includes a sealing roller 31, a driving unit (not shown) of the sealing roller 31, contact parts 32 and 32, and a shaft 36 provided with the contact parts 32 and 32. And a support body 35 that rotatably supports the shaft 36. FIG. 5 shows a state where the soft film and the member to be packed m are not flowing on the conveyor, and FIG. 6 shows a state where the soft film and the member to be packed m are flowing.
The driving unit supplies power for rotating the roller 31. The drive unit is a known power source, and for example, an electric motor can be adopted. In addition to the one in which the electric motor as the power source and the direct sealing roller 31 are connected, the rotation from the power source to the sealing roller 31 is performed using known power transmission means such as a gear, a chain, a pulley and a belt. It can also be implemented as a power supply. The diameter of the sealing forming roller 31 is preferably 5 to 20 cm. In particular, the diameter of the sealing forming roller 31 is preferably about 10 cm.

FIG. 7A shows the surface of the sealing forming roller 31, and FIG. 7B shows the protrusion 30 provided on the surface of the sealing forming roller 31.
As shown in FIG. 7A, a plurality of protrusions 30... 30 are distributed or arranged on the peripheral surface of the sealing forming roller 31. In this embodiment, the protrusions 30 to 30 are arranged on the peripheral surface of the seal forming roller 31 in a grid pattern along the thrust direction (axial direction) and radial direction (circumferential direction) of the seal forming roller 30. Has been. Each of the protrusions 30 has a pyramid shape, that is, a quadrangular pyramid shape (regular quadrangular pyramid shape) including four inclined surfaces 30b... 30b tapering toward the top portion 30a. As shown in FIG. 7B, the protrusion width (protrusion height h) of the protrusion 30 from the outer peripheral surface of the sealing forming roller 31 is preferably 1 to 8 mm. Further, the protruding height h of each protrusion 30 from the surface of the sealing forming roller 31 is larger than the thickness of the superimposed soft film (the total thickness of the lower film f1 and the upper film f2). The width w of the base of the projection in the rotation direction of the sealing forming roller 31 (the radial direction of the sealing forming roller 31) does not exceed twice the protruding height h. In addition, the angle θ between the opposing inclined surfaces of the protrusion 30 is preferably 10 to 90 degrees, more preferably 30 to 60 degrees, and still more preferably 45 degrees.

In this embodiment, the sealing forming roller 31 is disposed between the third conveyor 13 and the fourth conveyor 4, receives the object to be packed m from the third conveyor 13, and passes it to the fourth conveyor 14. The contact portion 32 is a roller having an elastic member on the surface in this embodiment. For this elastic member, rubber, urethane, vinyl chloride, fluororesin, or silicone can be employed, and urethane rubber is particularly suitable. Hereinafter, description will be made assuming that urethane rubber is employed for the elastic member.
In this embodiment, the contact portion 32 and its shaft 35 are disposed above the seal forming roller 31, and the contact portion 32 contacts the seal forming roller 31.
In the above, the abutting portion 32 is obtained by providing urethane rubber on the surface of a metal shaft. The diameter of the contact portion 32 is preferably 5 cm to 20 cm (including the elastic member). In particular, the diameter of the contact portion 32 is preferably 10 cm. The urethane rubber preferably has a Rockwell hardness of 60 to 120, more preferably 80 to 100, still more preferably a Rockwell hardness of 50 to 100, and particularly preferably a Rockwell hardness of 90. The thickness of the urethane rubber is preferably 5 mm to 20 mm, and particularly preferably 10 mm. The above Rockwell hardness is A scale (test load 90 kg).

As for the positions of the seal forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32, the urethane rubber of the contact portion 32 does not inhibit the rotation of the seal forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 (the protrusions 30. It is preferable that the protrusion 30 of the sealing forming roller 31 is disposed so as to be recessed to the base thereof on the condition that it does not reach the metal shaft. However, if it is possible to attach the mold of the protrusion 30 to the film at a depth of 1 to 8 mm by setting the length of the protrusion 30, the protrusion 30 is turned up to the base portion against the urethane rubber of the contact portion 32. It is also possible to carry out without including it.
About the soft film (lower film f1 and upper film f2) sent with the to-be-packaged object m from the 3rd conveyor 13, the overlapping part of the said film located in the right and left of the to-be-packaged object m with respect to the transfer direction is described above. The sealing forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 that take the positional relationship are sandwiched, and the molds of the projections 30... 30 of the sealing forming roller 31 are continuously attached to the upper and lower films f1, f2 (along the transport direction). . In this way, the mold of the projections 30..., That is, a deformed portion along the surface of the projections 30... 30 is formed as a sealing portion on both the films f1 and f2.

Since the sealing forming roller 31 rotates by itself and continuously forms the sealing portions x and x on the left and right of the soft film sent from the third conveyor 13 together with the contact portion 32 as described above. is there.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, the sealing forming roller 31 includes a portion of the surface of the metal roll provided on one rotating shaft and the portions of the both sides of the film m to be packed of the films f1 and f2 that are overlapped with each other. The protrusions 30 to 30 are formed in an annular shape along the peripheral surface of the roller 31 at corresponding positions (at least two positions separated from each other in the width direction of the package m in the axial direction of the metal roll). Can be implemented. Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, the abutting portion 32 abuts at two places on the shaft 36 in correspondence with the positions where the projections 30... 30 group are formed in the axial direction of the sealing forming roller 31. (As shown in FIG. 8, in this embodiment, both abutting portions 32 and 32 are provided on one shaft 36. However, it is also possible to provide them on separate shafts. Is possible).

In the above description, the sealing forming roller 31 is provided with the projections 30... 30 group at two locations in the axial direction, but the projections 30... 30 can also be provided between the two locations. (Not shown). Moreover, it is also possible to carry out by providing the projections 30... 30 on the entire peripheral surface of the sealing forming roller 31.
Thus, by providing the protruding portions 30... 30 in the axial direction of the sealing forming roller 31 over a range larger than the axial width of the contact portion 32 (for example, the entire outer peripheral surface of the sealing forming roller 31). In addition, by changing the distance between the two contact portions 32, 32, it is possible to easily cope with the change in the dimension of the article m to be packaged.
As shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9, the abutment portion 32 is not limited to two, but three or more (for example, two in the right hand of the package and two in the left hand in the direction crossing the transfer direction). One abutment portion 32, two on the right hand, two on the left hand, or three on the right hand and three on the left hand).

The steps generated between the third conveyor 13 and the sealing forming roller 31 and the steps generated between the sealing forming roller 31 and the fourth conveyor 14 are eliminated, so that the article m and the film can be smoothly transferred. 5 and 9 is preferably disposed between the third conveyor 13 and the fourth conveyor 14 (the contact portion 32 is omitted in FIG. 9). ) The blind plate 33 includes a window 34 that exposes a portion that contacts the contact portion 32 of the seal forming roller 31 and covers other portions than the contact portion. In FIG. 9, the means for supporting the blindfold plate 33 is omitted, but the blindfold plate 33 is in the above position, and the third and fourth conveyors 13, 14, and the sealing forming roller 31, It is attached so as not to contact the abutting portions 32 and 32. Moreover, it is also possible to carry out without providing the blindfold 33.
The seal forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 can be implemented even if the above-described positional relationship is reversed. The contact portion 32 is provided with an elastic member on the surface, but is a metal roller having no such elastic member, and a plurality of recessed portions that mesh with the protrusions 30 to 30 of the sealing forming roller 31. It is also possible to have a surface provided with In this case, both the sealing forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 can be formed of an iron material such as SUS.

The temperature of the sealing forming roller 31 is preferably the same as the room temperature (particularly, it is preferable to carry out without heating). Here, about room temperature, 0-35 degreeC is assumed. However, the present invention can also be implemented by providing a heater on the sealing forming roller 31 to heat the surface of the sealing forming roller 31, that is, the protrusions 30 ... 30. When performing such heating, it is preferable that the temperature be equal to or lower than the melting temperature of the soft sheet. Specifically, it is preferable that the temperature of the surface of the sealing forming roller 31 by heating is 60 ° C. or less.
However, it is not limited to such temperature conditions. For example, when a soft sheet having a melting point higher than that of polyethylene or vinyl is used, the sealing forming roller 31 is heated to a temperature higher than the above temperature. Can also be implemented.
Under the above temperature conditions, the lower film f1 and the upper film f2 whose left and right sides are sealed by the sealing portion by the embossing of the protrusions 31 ... 31 are easily pulled by hand when the packaged object m is taken out. Can be peeled off. This unsealing can be performed without breaking (breaking) both films, and there is no fear of deforming the packaged object m which is a soft material.

In the above description, the protrusions 30 ... 30 have a quadrangular pyramid shape, but may be formed in other polygonal pyramids (for example, a triangular pyramid, a pentagonal pyramid, a hexagonal pyramid). It is also possible for the projections 30 ... 30 to be conical or hemispherical.
In addition, when the mold to be attached to the soft film is penetrated from the lower film f1 to the upper film f2, there is no problem with the above configuration, but when both the films f1 and f2 are deformed without being penetrated, the protrusions 30 to 30 are formed. The top portion 30a is preferably rubbed 1 to 5 times with emery paper 50 to 100 to round the tip.
Note that, as described above, the sealing portion can be carried out with no penetration, but the sealing portion follows the shape of the protrusions 30 to 30 on the lower film f1 and the upper film f2. It is also possible to form as a deformed portion and implement the deepest portion of the deformed portion (the portion corresponding to the top of the protrusion 30) as a penetrating portion.
Moreover, when forming a sealing part as a penetration part, what seals a film by the edge of a penetration part engaging about the said sealing part is preferable.
However, whether or not the penetrating part is formed, the part of the overlapped part of the film deformed along the shape of one projection 30 is fitted into the other deformed part. Those that physically seal the film are preferred.

As shown in FIG. 1, the object to be packed m and the upper and lower films f <b> 1 and f <b> 2 placed on the fourth conveyor 14 are transferred toward the fifth conveyor 15. The sub sealing mechanism 4 is provided between the fourth conveyor 14 and the fifth conveyor 15.
That is, the third to fourth conveyors 13 and 14 correspond to the “front conveyor” of claim 6, and the fifth to sixth conveyors 15 and 16 correspond to the “rear conveyor” of claim 6.
The sub-sealing mechanism 4 is a portion where the lower film f1 and the upper film f2 are overlapped between the preceding packed object m and the packed object m immediately behind the packed object m on the conveyor. (Furthermore, the leading end side of the first article to be packed m, the rear end side of the last article to be packed m, and the overlapped portion) are sealed.
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the sub-sealing mechanism 4 includes a sub-sealing roller 41, a driving device (not shown) for the sub-sealing roller 41, and a sub-abutting portion 42 (claims). 6), a holding frame 43 on which the auxiliary contact portion 42 is fixed, an actuator 45 (corresponding to the pressing mechanism of claim 6), and the actuator 45 are formed as a secondary seal. And a support frame 46 supported above the roller 41.
The sub seal forming roller 41 is provided between the fourth conveyor 14 and the fifth conveyor 15. The actuator 45 includes an operating rod 44 whose tip is directed downward, and the operating rod 44 can be operated up and down. A known device can be used for this actuator. For example, a hydraulic cylinder device having the operating rod 44 as a piston rod can be employed as the actuator 44 described above.
The holding frame 43 is fixed to the tip (lower end) of the operating rod 44. The holding frame 43 has a sub-abutting portion 42 that is pivotally disposed above the sub-sealing roller 41.
Then, by the operation of the operating rod 44, the auxiliary contact portion 42 can be lowered on the surface of the auxiliary seal forming roller 41 and can be pressed against the surface of the auxiliary seal forming roller 41. And by the action | operation of the said operating rod 44, the subcontact part 42 raises again and returns to the original position. As shown in FIG. 8, also in the sub sealing mechanism 4, in order to eliminate the step between the fourth conveyor 14 and the sub sealing forming roller 41 and the step between the sub sealing mechanism roller 41 and the fifth conveyor 15. In addition, a subfolder plate 47 is provided above the subsealing roller 41 between the fourth conveyor 14 and the fifth conveyor 15. Similar to the above-described blindfold plate 34, the secondary blind plate 47 is provided with a window 48 that exposes a portion that contacts the secondary contact portion 42 of the secondary seal forming roller 41.
However, it is also possible to carry out without providing such a subfolder 47.

The sub-sealing roller 41 is provided with a plurality of protrusions 40... 40 on its outer peripheral surface, similar to the sub-sealing roller 41 described above. However, in the sealing forming roller 31 described above, a group of protrusions 31 is provided at two positions with an interval in the axial direction. However, the auxiliary sealing forming roller 41 is provided over the entire area in the axial direction. It is formed continuously.
The sub-abutting portion 42 is a roller having an elastic member on the surface, and is a single roller having a width corresponding to the protrusion group of the sub-sealing forming portion 42 described above. In this embodiment, description will be made assuming that urethane rubber is adopted as the elastic member.
Other configurations, dimensions, and temperature conditions of the sub-sealing forming portion 41, the protrusion 40, and the sub-abutting portion 42 are the same as those of the sealing forming roller 31 and the abutting portion 32 described above.
The actuator 45 can actuate the operating rod 44 downward by a force that the protrusions 40... Specifically, the actuator 45 preferably presses the sub-contact portion 42 against the sub-sealing roller 41 with a force of 20 to 400 kg, more preferably 150 to 250 kg, and 200 kg. More preferred. However, if it is possible to attach the mold of the protrusion 40 to the film at a depth of 1 to 8 mm by setting the length of the protrusion 40, the protrusion 40 is extended to the base against the urethane rubber of the sub-contact portion 42. It is also possible to carry out without embedding.
FIG. 11A shows a plan view of the soft film on the conveyor line in which the sealing portions x and x and the sub-sealing portions y... Y are formed.
As shown in FIG. 11A, the subsealing device 4 makes the subsealing portions y ... y intersecting the sealing portions x and x formed by the sealing device 3 on the films f1 and f2. Can be formed.
This sub-sealed portion y can also be easily peeled off manually, and there is no risk of damaging the packaged object m upon opening.

As shown in FIG. 1, a sub-hanging roller 15 a is provided above the fifth conveyor 15.
The auxiliary sag roller 15a follows the upper surface of the upper film f2 so that the upper film f2 does not float upward with respect to the object to be packed m and the upper film f2 transferred by the fifth conveyor 15. The upper film f2 is pressed against the upper surface of the object to be packed m, and the upper film f2 is pressed against the lower film f1 between the preceding object to be packed m and the subsequent object to be packed m.
Then, as shown in FIG. 1, the film on which the sub-sealed portion is formed and the object to be packed m are transferred from the fifth conveyor 15 toward the sixth conveyor 16.
The film cutting mechanism 5 is provided between the fifth conveyor 15 and the sixth conveyor 16, and cuts the films f1 and f2 at the center of the sub-sealed portion y in the transfer direction. The film is cut back and forth (with respect to the transfer direction) for each item m to be packed.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the film cutting mechanism 5 includes a blade 51 provided on an actuator (not shown), a receiving blade 52, and a sensor (not shown). The receiving blade 52 is provided between the fifth conveyor 15 and the sixth conveyor 16, and the blade 51 is disposed above the receiving blade 52. As the sensor, a sensor capable of detecting the position (in the transfer direction) of the object m to be packed, such as an optical sensor typified by an infrared sensor or a pressure-sensitive sensor, can be adopted. When the soft film covering the article to be packed m moves from the fifth conveyor 15 to the sixth conveyor 16, the position of the article to be packed m is detected by the above-described sensor, and the preceding article to be packed m and the subsequent packed article m are detected. The actuator of the blade 51 operates the blade 51 and swings it down toward the lower receiving blade 52 with respect to the center position (transfer direction) of the sub-sealed portion y between. By this operation, the film is cut at the center position (transfer direction) of the sub-sealing portion y. That is, at the above position, the film on the conveyor is cut before and after in the transfer direction. And as shown to FIG. 11 (B), the film is made into the state isolate | separated for every to-be-packaged object m.
In the above-described embodiment, the four sides of the film are sealed (by the sealing portions x and x and the sealing portions y and y) with respect to the packaged object m having a rectangular shape in plan view. It was. However, it is also possible to provide only the sealing portions x and x, seal only the left and right, and open the front and rear. In this case, the auxiliary sealing mechanism can be implemented without providing. In contrast to the above, the present invention can be implemented by opening the left and right sides and sealing only the front and rear.

Although not shown, this packing apparatus includes a packing mechanism in addition to the above. The packing mechanism is an apparatus that collects and packs the individual items to be packed m... M into a box such as a cardboard box after the film is cut by the film cutting mechanism 5 described above.
In this way, a plastic box, a paper box other than a cardboard box, a wooden box, or a metal box can be adopted as the box for packing the articles m to be packed m.
Further, from the viewpoint of hygiene, the above-mentioned objects to be packed m... M are not stored directly in the packing box, but in a state where a predetermined quantity is stored in the bag. It is preferable to pack. A polyethylene bag or a plastic bag can be adopted as the bag.

For example, the above-mentioned bag body is inserted into the above-mentioned packing box body, and the bag body is opened by hooking the edge of the bag body to the mouth of the opening at the top of the box body. If m is accumulated in the box, it can be stored in the bag at the same time as the packing object m ... m is packed in the box.
In addition, the storage in the bag body is performed separately from the packaging work in the box body, and the bag body is inserted into a frame body in which separate upper and lower sides are opened and only the front, rear, left and right sides are provided. The present invention can also be implemented by hooking the edge of the bag body to the upper mouth of the frame body and accumulating the objects to be packed m in the bag body. In this case, after the articles to be packed are accumulated in the bag, the frame is removed and the box is packed. When such a frame is used, even when only bagging is performed without boxing, accumulation into the bag can be performed smoothly.
In the above-described packing mechanism, for example, packing in a box body and accumulation in a bag body are described in, for example, JP-A-16-42931, JP-A-9-66913, JP-A-7-31342, and JP-A-1 It is possible to employ apparatuses shown in Japanese Patent No. 5-35610 and Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 5-10205.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 10, the sealing forming roller 31 is provided with the pyrid type protrusions 30... 30, but as shown in FIG. It is also possible to carry out by forming the protrusions 30 to 30 in a continuous state in the axial direction of 31. Also, the projections 40... 40 of the above-described subsealing formation 41 can adopt the same shape as the projections 30... 30 shown in FIG.
In the above embodiment, the contact portion 32 is a roller. However, as shown in FIG. 12B, the contact portion 32 includes a metal base 37 and a conveyor belt. Can also be implemented. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 12B, the sealing mechanism 3 is formed in place of the pressing portion 22b (FIG. 2). Specifically, the two sealing forming rollers 31 on the left and right with respect to the transfer direction are pivoted above the third conveyor 13 (the means for supporting the sealing forming roller 31 is omitted) and contacted with the upper surface of the conveyor belt. Touch. The table 37 is provided on the opposite side of the seal forming roller 31 with the conveyor belt interposed therebetween so as to contact the back surface of the conveyor belt. In this embodiment, the conveyor belt serves as an elastic member on the surface of the contact portion 32 described above.
As described above, a rubber belt can be adopted as the conveyor belt. Further, a urethane, vinyl chloride, fluororesin or silicone resin conveyor belt can be adopted as this conveyor belt, and the same urethane rubber as that of the contact portion 32 can be adopted.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 13A, in the apparatus shown in FIG. 12B, the protrusion 30 shown in FIG. 12A can be formed on the sealing forming roller 31. Further, in this case, as shown in FIG. 13B, two sealing forming rollers 31, 31 are arranged on each of the left and right sides of the object to be packed m with respect to the transfer direction, and the sealing portions are respectively left and right. However, it can also be implemented as one formed in Nijo.

Further, as shown in FIG. 14A, the protrusions 30 of the sealing forming rollers 31, 31 are formed so as to project continuously in a ring shape (in a flange shape) along the radial direction of the rollers. It is possible.
As shown in FIG. 14 (B), the sub-sealing mechanism 4 is also arranged so that the sub-sealing roller 41 contacts the upper surface of the conveyor belt, and on the opposite side of the sub-sealing roller 41 with the conveyor belt interposed therebetween, It can be carried out by providing a sub-base 49 that comes into contact with the conveyor belt. Also in this case, the above-mentioned conveyor belt that comes into contact with the upper surface of the sub table 49 serves as urethane rubber (elastic member) on the surface of the sub contact portion 42 described above. Further, in this embodiment, the protrusions 40... 40 of the sub sealing forming roller 41 are formed continuously in the axial direction of the roller and have substantially the same cross-sectional shape from the base to the tip. In the radial direction of the seal forming roller 41, an interval is provided between adjacent protrusions 40, 40 (circumferential intermittent portions 40b... 40b are provided).

In addition, as shown in FIG. 15 (A), the protrusions 40... 40 include a portion that is continuous in the longitudinal direction of the sub-sealing roller 41 and an intermittent portion (axially intermittent portions 40a and 40a). It is also possible to implement as
FIG. 15B shows sub-sealed portions y... Y formed using the apparatus of FIG. In FIG. 15B, z represents a planned cutting line (virtual line).
12 (B), 13 (A), (B), and 14 (A), the number of sealing forming rollers 31 is limited to the two illustrated (four in FIG. 13 (B)). It can be implemented even if there are three or four or more. Also, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B and FIG. 14A, as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, the contact portion 32 can be formed as a roller. . In this case, the contact portion 32 may be disposed below the seal forming roller 31, but it can also be performed upside down from the seal forming roller 31.
Further, also in the sub sealing mechanism 4 shown in FIGS. 14B and 14A, the sub contact portion 42 can be implemented as a roller similar to the embodiment shown in FIGS. Further, in this case, the sub-abutment portion 42 may be disposed below the sub-sealing forming roller 41. However, the sub-sealing roller 41 may be upside down. In addition to the above, the sub-sealing roller 41 has a plurality of flange-like projections 40 arranged in the axial direction, similar to the projections 30... 30 provided in the sealing roller 31 shown in FIG. Can also be implemented.
Further, the sub-abutting portion 42 also has no elastic member on the surface, is formed as a metal cylindrical body as a whole, and has a plurality of dent portions on the surface that mesh with the protrusions 40... It is also possible to implement as.
In addition, in the sealing forming roller 31 shown in FIG. 12A in which each protrusion 30 has two inclined surfaces, each of the protrusions 30... 30 is not in the thrust direction of the roller as shown in FIG. It is also possible to carry out it as what continues in a radial direction (not shown). The protrusions 40... 40 of the sub-sealing forming roller 41 are also constituted by two inclined surfaces and can be implemented as being continuous in the radial direction of the roller (not shown).

In addition, it is sufficient that only the sealing portion x can be peeled off without tearing, and the sub-sealing portion y may be torn using the apparatus shown in FIGS. 16 (A) and 16 (B). It can also be implemented as a stop.
The sub-sealing mechanism 4 is provided in the film cutting mechanism 5 and includes a plurality of metal claws 40a. The nail 40a can be heated to a temperature higher than the melting temperature of the film by a well-known means (not shown) such as a heater, and is swung down on the film together with the blade 51 of the film cutting mechanism 5, and Heat-welded film.
FIG. 17 shows the subsealed portion y formed as described above. In FIG. 17, the film is not drawn in a state of being cut into individual packages m... M, but z indicates an actual cutting line, not a virtual line.

As shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B, the sub-sealing mechanism 4 includes a circulation driving unit 400 disposed above the conveyor 1, a circulation driving unit 400, and the circulation driving unit 400. And a sealing member 401 for sealing the overlapping portion.
The circulation drive unit 400 is a belt conveyor that is separate from the transfer device 1 described above, and the sealing members 401... 401 are provided on the belt surface at intervals. The sealing member 401 is a plate-like body having a plurality of protrusions 40... 40 arranged in a direction crossing the circulation direction of the conveyor belt. The sealing member 401 is circulated above the transfer device 1 (belt conveyor), and the sealing member 401 is brought into contact with the belt mounting surface of the transfer device 1 in the middle of the circulation path. Due to the above-mentioned contact, the sub-sealed portion is formed with the overlapping portion of the soft film sandwiched between the placing surface of the conveyor 1. A sub-base 49 is provided on the lower surface of the belt of the conveyor 1 in correspondence with the position where it comes into contact with the sealing member 401.

In the above, the soft film is a laminate of the lower film f1 and the upper film f2. In addition, it is also possible to use the packing apparatus shown in FIG. 19 to cover the object to be packed m with a single film.
In this apparatus, the covering mechanism 2 includes a holding shaft 23 that is disposed below the third conveyor 13 and fixes a roll wound with a belt-like polyethylene film, which is a soft film f, and a third holding film from the holding shaft 23. A plurality of guide rollers 201... 201 that guide the third conveyor 13 from the rear side of the conveyor 13, regulation plates 202 and 202 provided on the left and right of the third conveyor 13, and a pressing portion 22 b are provided.
As in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, as shown in FIG. 19, the objects to be packed m are sequentially placed on the soft film f of the third conveyor 13 from the second conveyor 12.

The left and right widths with respect to the transfer direction of the third conveyor 13 are smaller than the left and right widths of the soft film f. The restricting plates 202 and 202 are plate-like bodies arranged in a state where they are raised up and down on the left and right of the third conveyor 13.
The portions of the soft film f that are drawn out from the holding shaft 23 and guided onto the third conveyor 13 by the guide rollers 201... 201 are projected to the left and right on the third conveyor 13. By 202, it is pushed and bent upward. In this apparatus, the pressing portion 22b is composed of two rollers arranged with the rotation axis up and down, the rollers abut each other, and the end of the film f that has been pushed and bent above between the rollers. By passing the portion, the end portion of the film f can be overlapped.

Also, this apparatus has a sealing roller 31 and an abutment portion 32 (roller) above the transfer device 1 (belt conveyor), with the rotation shafts extending vertically (extending along the vertical direction). And are provided. As shown in FIG. 19, the seal forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 are disposed in contact with each other. The covering mechanism 2 places an object to be packed m on a single film f, and overlaps the left and right ends of the film f with rollers on the upper surface of the object to be packed m. Then, the sealing forming roller 31 and the contact portion 32 sandwich the overlapping portion, and attach a projection type provided in the sealing forming roller 31 to form the sealing portion x.
About this apparatus, except providing said sealing mechanism 3, it can implement by employ | adopting a conventionally well-known packing apparatus.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 19 as well, matters not particularly mentioned, for example, the form of the protrusions 30... 30 of the seal forming roller 31 and the elastic member of the contact portion 32 are shown in FIGS. This is the same as the embodiment shown in FIG.
An object to be packed sealed with this apparatus is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 20 (A), this packing apparatus seals a film on the upper surface of an object to be packed m. However, in such an apparatus, by arranging the rotation shafts of the sealing forming roller 31 and the abutting portion 32 horizontally, in addition to this, as shown in FIG. It is also possible to implement so as to stop.
Further, in the film f shown in FIGS. 20A and 20B, the auxiliary stopper portions y and y are formed in addition to the sealing portion x. The formation of the sub-sealing portions y and y can be performed by employing any of the sub-sealing mechanisms 4 shown in the above-described embodiments. Moreover, it is also possible to carry out without providing such secondary stop portions y and y.

  Further, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, since the thickness of the packaged object m is assumed to be as thin as about 1 cm, the lower film f1 and the upper film f2 are left and right (relative to the transfer direction). There is no problem with the same width. However, when the thickness of the object to be packed m becomes larger than the above, in the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 2, the left and right widths of the upper film f <b> 2 are the thickness of the object to be packed m as shown in FIG. Is significantly shorter than the lower film f1. Accordingly, the overlapping portions of the upper and lower films become narrower by that amount (in the left-right direction). Therefore, the arrangement of the rollers to be brought into contact with the overlapping portions such as the sealing rollers 31, 31 (in the left-right direction) is to be packed m. It is necessary to devise such as moving to the side. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 21 (B), separate belt conveyors (sub-conveyors 1a, 1a) parallel to the conveyor are arranged on the left and right of the transfer device 1 (conveyor), and the belt conveyors (sub-conveyors 1a, 1a) are arranged. ) Is higher than the placement surface (upper surface) of the transfer device 1, the left and right edges of the lower film f1 and the left and right widths of the upper film f2 can be matched. In this case, it is assumed that the width of the placing surface of the conveyor of the transfer device 1 is smaller than the left and right widths of the films f1 and f2 in the transfer direction.

Further, as described above, when a plurality of individual objects to be packaged m ... m covered with a film are packed together and packed in a vinyl or polyethylene bag f3, as shown in FIG. Also for the mouth of f3, it is possible to carry out by forming a sealing portion similar to the above-described sealing portion of both the films f1, f2 of the individual packages m.
One embodiment of a bag sealing device for sealing such a bag f3 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 22 (A), this bag sealing device 300 has a contact plate that presses from the outside of the bag f3 against the mouth of the bag f3 accommodated in a state in which the items to be packed m. 302, a seal forming member 301 that presses the outside of the bag f3 from the side opposite to the contact plate 302, a cylinder part 303, and a piston rod part 305 provided in the cylinder part 303.

The piston rod portion 305 is provided with the sealing forming member 301 at the tip thereof, and the cylinder portion 303 presses the sealing forming member 301 toward the contact plate 302 as described above to open the mouth of the bag f3. Are sandwiched together with the contact plate 302.
The seal forming member 301 includes a guide rail portion 306, a sliding body 307 fitted to the guide rail portion 306, and a rodless cylinder (not shown) that slides the sliding body 307 along the guide rail portion 306. ), And a roller 308 fixed to the sliding body 307. As described above, the seal forming member 301 slides along the guide rail portion 306 by the operation of the rodless cylinder with the contact plate 302 and the mouth of the bag f3 sandwiched therebetween. As described above, when the mouth of the bag f3 is sandwiched, the guide rail portion 306 is disposed along the edge of the mouth of the bag f3, and the roller 308 is moved to the mouth of the appendix f3 by the sliding of the sliding body 207. Follow the edge. The surface of the roller 308 is provided with a projection 30 similar to that of the seal forming roller 31 described above, and the contact surface of the contact plate 302 is provided with an elastic member similar to that of the contact portion 32 described above.
By such an operation, the above-described bag f3 can be sealed by forming the same sealing portion as the film for coating the individual objects to be packed m.
Moreover, as shown in said FIG. 22, the bag sealing apparatus 300 is provided with the clamping mechanism 304 other than the above. This clamping mechanism 304 includes an elastic member 309 such as a spring, and is opposed to the contact plate 302 of the bag f3 toward the contact plate 302 prior to the contact of the seal forming member 301 with the bag f3. It approaches from the side and presses the outside of the mouth of the bag f3. By such an operation of the clamping mechanism 304, the sealing portion of the bag f3 can be pressed and the sealing of the bag by the sealing member 301 can be performed smoothly. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 22A, as described above, the roller 308 that forms the seal slides on the rodless cylinder, and therefore it is necessary to move the bag f3 during the sealing of the bag f3. Absent. However, in this case, the bag f1 can be moved with respect to the roller 308 as in the sealing mechanism 3 shown in FIGS.

  Further, in each of the above embodiments, an adhesive is not used for the sealing portion, but it has an adhesive strength that does not break the film or bag f3 that covers the packaged object m when opened. If there is, it is also possible to apply it to the sealing portion. When the packaged item is food or soap, the above-mentioned adhesive should be used for the purpose of hygiene and human health.

It is a substantially whole side view of an apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. It is a principal part schematic perspective view of the said apparatus. It is a principal part schematic side view of the apparatus shown in FIG. It is a principal part schematic side view of the apparatus shown in FIG. It is a principal part schematic perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. It is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows the use condition of the occupying apparatus in FIG. (A) is the principal part expansion perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, (B) is the principal part expansion schematic side view. It is a principal part perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. It is a principal part disassembled perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. It is a principal part perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. (A) is a schematic plan view of a soft film in which a sealing portion and a sub-sealing portion are formed by the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, and (B) after being cut by a film cutting mechanism, It is a perspective view which shows a film. (A) is a partially cutaway perspective view showing another embodiment of the sealing forming roller 31, and (B) is a schematic perspective view of a main part showing still another embodiment of the sealing mechanism 3. (A) is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment of the sealing mechanism 3, (B) is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment of the sealing mechanism 3. FIG. (A) is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment of the sealing mechanism 3, (B) is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment of the subsealing mechanism 4. FIG. (A) is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment of the subsealing mechanism 4, (B) is a schematic plan view of the film sealed with the apparatus of (A). (A) is the whole schematic side view which shows other embodiment mainly about the subsealing mechanism 4 of the said apparatus, (B) is a principal part schematic perspective view of (A). It is a schematic plan view of the film sealed using the apparatus shown in FIG. (A) is the whole schematic side view which shows other embodiment mainly about the subsealing mechanism 4 of the said apparatus, (B) is a principal part schematic perspective view of (A). It is the whole schematic perspective view which shows other embodiment about the coating | coated mechanism 2 and the sealing mechanism 3 of the said apparatus mainly. (A) is a schematic perspective view of a film sealed by the apparatus shown in FIG. 19, and (B) is a schematic perspective view of a film sealed in another embodiment of the apparatus of FIG. FIG. (A) is explanatory drawing of the apparatus which concerns on this invention about the case where the thickness of the to-be-packaged object m is large, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows other embodiment corresponding to the case. (A) is a schematic perspective view showing an embodiment for bagging the articles to be packed that have been collected after being coated in the present invention, and (B) is a view of a bag sealed by the apparatus (A). It is a perspective view.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Transfer apparatus 2 Covering mechanism 3 Sealing mechanism 4 Sub sealing mechanism 5 Film cutting mechanism 31 Seal forming roller 32 Contact part

Claims (8)

Packing a plurality of objects to be packed with stickiness such as food on a packing paper such as cardboard, etc. The surface of each object to be packed is covered with a soft film such as plastic before packing. And in a packaging device that seals the film,
A conveyor for carrying the objects to be packed and sequentially transferring the covering, a covering mechanism for covering the objects to be packed on the conveyor with the soft film, and a sealing forming roller provided with one or more protrusions on the peripheral surface A contact portion that contacts the sealing forming roller,
The covering mechanism may include a state in which an object to be packed is sandwiched between at least two soft films and the two soft films are overlapped around the object to be packed, or one soft film is used. Wrapping the item to be packaged and overlapping the ends of the soft film,
The conveyor passes the overlapped portion of the soft film covering the item to be packed between the sealing forming roller and the contact portion,
The sealing forming roller and the abutting portion sandwiched the overlapping portions of the soft film with a temperature that is room temperature or higher than room temperature and lower than the melting temperature of the soft film, A packaging device in which a sealing part is formed by attaching a mold of the protrusion to the part, whereby the soft film is physically sealed, and the soft film can be opened without breaking. The soft film is a soft plastic or sulfuric acid paper,
The protrusion height of each protrusion from the surface of the sealing forming roller is larger than the thickness of the overlapped soft film, and the width of the base of the protrusion in the rotation direction of the sealing forming roller is equal to the protrusion height. Is not more than double,
The surface of the contact portion is formed of an elastic member such as rubber having elasticity, and the contact with the sealing forming roller causes the protrusion to be embedded in the surface of the contact portion. 2. A plurality of deformed portions having the same shape or a plurality of penetrating portions that fit into each of the corresponding positions of the stacked films are formed as the sealing portions. Packing equipment. At least each of the protrusions of the sealing forming roller is formed of metal,
Each of the protrusions is a mountain-shaped protrusion that tapers toward the top by having at least two intersecting slopes, and the angle of intersection of the slopes is 10 to 90 degrees. The packing device according to claim 1 or 2. The covering mechanism includes an upper covering mechanism that supplies an upper film that covers an upper part of an object to be packed placed on a conveyor, and a lower covering mechanism that supplies a lower film that covers a lower part of the object to be packed placed on the conveyor. With
The width of the upper film and the lower film supplied by the upper coating mechanism and the lower coating mechanism with respect to the direction intersecting the transfer direction of the conveyor is larger than the width of the packaged item,
The lower covering mechanism places the lower film on the placing surface of the conveyor before the article to be packed is placed on the conveyor, and places the article to be packed on the conveyor so that the lower film is placed under the article to be packed. It is possible to lay
The upper covering mechanism supplies the upper film on the lower film on which the object to be packed is placed on the conveyor so as to cover the upper film, and at least one of the left and right of the object to be packed with respect to the transfer direction of the conveyor. In addition, a portion where the upper film and the lower film are overlapped is provided,
The sealing forming roller continuously forms the sealing portion on the overlapped portion of at least one of the left and right sides of the packaged object in the transport direction of the conveyor along the transport direction of the conveyor belt. The packing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the packing apparatus is a thing. A front conveyor different from the above conveyor, a film cutting mechanism, and a sub-sealing mechanism;
This pre-conveyor is to pass the packaged items to the conveyor sequentially,
The conveyor conveys an object to be packed at a speed higher than that of the preceding conveyor, so that when the object to be packed is delivered from the previous conveyor, the conveyor conveys the subsequent object to be packed at an interval. And
The above coating mechanism is to supply a plurality of objects to be packaged with a strip-shaped soft film and coat a plurality of objects to be packaged arranged in the transfer direction of the conveyor with a continuous soft film,
The film cutting mechanism includes a blade disposed above the conveyor so as to intersect the transfer direction of the conveyor, and by swinging down the blade from above, between the front and back packaged items that are spaced apart, The continuous soft film is cut, and the soft film is cut for each predetermined number of items to be packed.
The sub-sealing mechanism forms a sub-sealing portion that seals the overlapping portion of the soft film along the cutting direction or the planned cutting direction between the packed objects before and after being spaced apart. The packing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The conveyor is composed of a front conveyor and a rear conveyor following the front conveyor.
The above-mentioned front conveyor is to receive an item to be packed from the front conveyor and transfer it toward the rear conveyor,
The sub-sealing mechanism supports the lower roller disposed between the front conveyor and the rear conveyor, the upper roller disposed above the lower roller and spaced from the lower roller, and the upper roller. And a pressing mechanism capable of moving the upper roller downward and pressing it against the lower roller,
The lower roller rotates about the direction intersecting the transfer direction of both the front and rear conveyors as an axial direction, and backs the packing object sent from the leading conveyor and the upper and lower films covering the packing object. To send to the conveyor,
One of the lower roller and the upper roller is a sub-sealing roller, and the other of the lower roller and the upper roller is a contact roller,
The auxiliary sealing forming roller is provided with one or a plurality of protrusions on the peripheral surface, and the peripheral surface of the contact roller is formed of an elastic member such as rubber,
The upper film and the lower film sandwiching the object to be packed pass between the lower roller and the upper roller and are sent from the preceding conveyor to the rear conveyor, and the preceding packed object and the subsequent packed object are When the gap passes over the lower roller, the pressing mechanism moves the upper roller downward to press the upper roller against the lower roller to form the sub-sealing portion. The packing device according to claim 5. The sub-sealing mechanism includes a circulation driving unit disposed above the conveyor, and at least one sealing member provided in the circulation driving unit and sealing the overlapping portion of the soft sheets,
The circulation drive unit circulates the sealing member above the conveyor, and abuts the sealing member with the placement surface of the object to be packed in the middle of the circulation path.
The sealing member includes a plurality of protrusions arranged in a direction intersecting with the transfer direction of the conveyor, and sandwiches the overlapping portion of the soft film with the placement surface of the conveyor by the above-described contact. The packaging device according to claim 5, wherein the secondary sealing portion is formed. In order to avoid direct contact with the packing paper for sticky items such as food that are packed in packing paper such as cardboard, the surface of the food is softened such as plastic before packing. In the packaging method of covering the film and sealing the film,
Using at least one roller in which a plurality of protrusions are distributed or arranged on the peripheral surface, and a contact portion that contacts the roller,
At least two sheets of the soft film sandwich the package, and the two sheets of the soft film are stacked around the package, or the package is wrapped with one sheet of the flexible film. With the ends of the soft film overlapped,
Between the roller and the abutting part, let the overlapped part of the soft film covering the item to be packed pass,
During the passage, the roller and the contact portion sandwich the overlapping portion of the soft film with a temperature that is room temperature or higher than room temperature and lower than the melting temperature of the soft film, A packaging method in which a sealing portion is formed by attaching a mold of the protrusion to the overlapped portion, whereby the soft film is physically sealed, and the soft film can be opened without breaking.

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