JP2008162618A - Container inspecting method and container inspecting device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a container inspecting method and a container inspecting device capable of correctly inspecting the quality of each container. <P>SOLUTION: The container inspecting method comprises a step for conveying containers 14 in parallel by a conveying means 33 continuously, a step for disposing a distance sensor 30 to a predetermined position so that the sensor 30 comes close to the top wall 21 of each of the containers conveyed in a predetermined direction, a step for measuring the distance of the top wall of the container by the distance sensor 30 oriented toward the fin joined to the container top wall 21 and/or toward the vicinity of the fin, and a step for determining whether the container is satisfactory or not by a determining means 31 based on the detected distance. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to an inspection method and an inspection apparatus for containers filled with beverages and the like.

In some containers filled with liquid foods such as juice and milk, a web-shaped packaging laminate material having a predetermined crease line is formed into a tube shape, and vertically sealed in the vertical line direction of the tube. A horizontal sealing zone formed by filling food in, sealing with a transverse seal in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, cutting in the middle of the transverse sealing zone to obtain a pillow-shaped preform, and folding it along the crease line Are joined to the container top wall, the container side wall, and the container bottom to obtain a final shaped container.
An outline of an example of a paper container filling and packaging machine is shown in FIG. In the filling machine shown in this example, the paper-containing packaging material web 1 having a thermoplastic material layer in the inner and outer layers and wound in a roll is unwound, conveyed inside the filling machine by a roller, and a sealing tape (not shown) is provided. A sealing tape applicator (not shown) is joined to one end of the packaging material web, the packaging material web is sterilized by passing it through the sterilant tank 4, and the sterilizing agent is removed by an air knife (not shown). The tube is placed in a sterilization chamber (not shown), formed into a tube shape by the forming roller 6, and the liquid food 5 is filled into the tube 2 from the filling pipe 7.

Next, the vertical seal elements 8 are formed on both edges of the tube by the vertical seal element 8, and the tube 2 is sandwiched by the horizontal seal device 10 while being sent downward by a length corresponding to one packaging container, Two transverse seal zones 11 are formed by transverse sealing in the transverse direction, and simultaneously formed into a pillow-shaped preform 12 at the same time. It leaves, cut | disconnects with a knife etc. and cut | disconnects to each pillow-shaped preform 12, and the upper and lower flaps of the pillow-shaped preform which were cut | disconnected in the final shaping | molding apparatus are bend | folded, and it shape | molds in the package filling container 14 of the last form.
The packaging and filling container 14 is continuously translated and conveyed by a conveying means such as a belt conveyor, and is packed by a certain quantity through a straw applicator or the like that sticks the straw to the container wall.

A mode in which the pillow-shaped preform 13 is folded by the final molding apparatus is shown in FIG. The pillow-shaped preform 13 is sealed with a vertical seal portion 26 and two upper and lower horizontal seal zones 23, and has a side wall 22 divided by a crease line. (See Fig. 4 (A))
As shown in FIG. 4 (B), the body portion of the pillow-shaped preform is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape along the crease line, and fins 23 and flaps 24 of the lateral seal band are provided at the edge of the ridge side. It is formed to stand upright from the wall. The fins 23 in the lateral seal zone stand upright from the bottom surface 20 and the top surface 21, and the flap 24 communicates integrally with the container wall via the edge 25.
Next, as shown in FIG. 4 (C), the fins 23 in the lateral seal zone are folded into the bottom surface 20 (shown upside down as a container in FIG. 4) and the top surface 21, and then the flap is centered on the edge. , The container top side flap 24 is folded into the side wall 22, and the container bottom side flap 24 is folded into the bottom surface 20.
FIG. 3A shows an external perspective view of a brick-type liquid food-filled paper container. The container has folded side seal zone fins 23, flaps 24, bottom and top walls, and container sidewalls. The fins 23 are folded into the container front wall surface 22a side opposite to the vertical seal portion 26. Further, the flap 24 is folded into the side wall via the ridge.

Liquid food containers are continuously manufactured from a filling and packaging machine, and the appearance is inspected by an inspector. In addition, it is periodically extracted by machine operators and quality-inspected for various items. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2)
JP 2004-123184 A JP 2002-307575 A

However, if the containers that are continuously transported and the containers that are periodically removed are manually operated by the workers, even if they are the same worker due to individual differences among the workers, the difference will appear and the inspection results Is uncertain. Accurate test results are desired.
In the appearance inspection, when there is an inconvenience in the flap portion and the fin portion of the container, the visual inspection by the inspector is likely to be overlooked.
The present invention meets the above-described needs and desires, and an object thereof is to provide a container inspection method and a container inspection apparatus capable of accurately inspecting a container.

According to the container inspection method of the present invention, a web-like laminated packaging material having a predetermined crease line is formed into a cylindrical shape, and both edges of the packaging material are overlapped to form an overlap. Sealed to form a vertical seal zone, the cylindrical packaging material is filled with contents such as food, the packaging material is pressed in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, and sealed by a horizontal seal to form a horizontal seal zone A pillow-shaped preform is obtained by cutting in the middle of the transverse seal zone, and flaps and fins formed by folding along the crease line are joined to the container top wall, container side wall and / or container bottom. A method for inspecting a container,
A step of transporting the container by continuously translating the container with a transport means; a step of disposing a distance sensor at a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall of the container transported in a predetermined direction; A step of measuring a distance from the top wall of the container toward the fin and / or the vicinity thereof with a distance sensor, and a step of determining whether the container is good or bad based on the detected distance. .

In a preferred embodiment of the container inspection method according to the present invention, the method further includes a step of discharging the defective product from the obtained container by the discharge unit based on the output from the determination unit.

In a preferred aspect of the container inspection method according to the present invention, the determination step uses a storage processing step for storing a distance measurement value measured with the measurement step in the measurement recording unit, and a comparison distance value for comparing the distance measurement value. A step of conversion processing by the conversion processing unit, a storage processing step of storing the distance reference value in the reference recording unit, a determination processing step of determining the quality of the container by comparing the comparison distance value and the distance reference value, and a determination processing unit A discharge instruction step for instructing discharge of defective products from the conveying means based on the quality determination in the determination processing step.

In the container inspection apparatus of the present invention, a web-like laminated packaging material having a predetermined crease line is formed into a cylindrical shape, and both edges of the packaging material are overlapped to form an overlap. Sealed to form a vertical seal zone, food is filled in the cylindrical packaging material, the packaging material is pressed in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, sealed by a horizontal seal to form a horizontal seal zone, and a pillow by cutting A container inspection apparatus obtained by joining a flap and a fin formed by folding along a crease line to a container top wall, a container side wall and / or a container bottom,
Conveying means for continuously translating and transporting the container, and a top wall of the container disposed in a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall of the container transported in a predetermined direction toward the fins and / or the vicinity thereof A distance sensor that measures the distance to the container, a determination unit that determines the quality of the container based on the detected distance, and a discharge unit that discharges a defective product from the container based on an output from the determination unit.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the determination means stores a measurement recording unit that stores a distance measurement value with the top wall measured in the measurement step, a conversion processing unit that converts the distance measurement value into a comparison distance value that can be compared, and A reference recording unit for storing the distance reference value, and a determination processing unit for determining whether the container is good or bad by comparing the comparison distance value and the distance reference value, and instructing discharge of defective products from the transport unit based on the good / bad determination .

In the container inspection according to the present invention, the following containers are inspected.
The container to be inspected according to the present invention is formed by forming a web-shaped laminated packaging material having a crease line into a cylindrical shape, overlapping both edges of the packaging material to form an overlap, and longitudinally sealing in the vertical line direction with the overlap. Forming a vertical seal zone, filling the cylindrical packaging material with contents such as food, pressing the packaging material in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, and sealing with a horizontal seal to form a horizontal seal zone. A pillow-shaped preform is obtained by cutting in the middle of the seal zone, and flaps and fins formed by folding along the crease line are joined to the container top wall, container side wall and / or container bottom.
This container can be manufactured continuously. It is continuously translated and transported by a transport means such as a belt conveyor, and is packed in a certain quantity through a straw applicator or the like for sticking the straw to the container wall.

In the characteristics of the container inspection according to the present invention, the container is continuously translated by the conveying means and conveyed.
In this invention, the quality of the container is judged from the pattern / profile by measuring / detecting the shape of the container, particularly the fins on the top wall of the container and the uneven pattern / profile in the vicinity thereof. It is container conveyance that enables such measurement / detection. In this embodiment, the detector does not scan the containers in batches, but conveys the containers by continuously translating them while maintaining a constant posture.

In the container inspection feature of the present invention, the distance sensor is disposed at a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall of the container conveyed in a predetermined direction.
Since the container is translated and transported while maintaining a constant posture, the fins on the container top wall and the uneven pattern / profile near it are measured / detected, so that there is no obstacle or obstacle near the subject. The distance sensor is disposed at a fixed position.

In the present invention, the distance sensor or the displacement sensor is used for measuring dimensions such as the height, width and thickness of the object. It is also used for displacement measurement that measures the amount of movement when an object moves from one position to another. As a method for measuring the movement amount (displacement amount), there are a non-contact type using a magnetic field, light, or sound wave as a medium, and a contact type sensor such as a dial gauge or a differential transformer. For example, depending on the detection method, it is possible to measure a small area at a distance that can measure all materials, and it is possible to measure an optical sensor or a transparent body whose light source is a semiconductor laser or LED, and even if the color changes There are ultrasonic sensors that are not affected by the above, a contact sensor that can measure a transparent body (solid) with high accuracy, a contact sensor with a small measurement point, an eddy current sensor, and the like.
In the present invention, the distance sensor includes a so-called proximity sensor. The proximity sensor is a sensor that detects that the detection object approaches without contact. Depending on the operating principle, there are a high-frequency oscillation type using electromagnetic induction, a magnetic type using magnets, and a capacitance type using changes in capacitance.
A preferable distance sensor in the present invention is a capacitance type, an ultrasonic type, a proximity type, or the like that is not affected by light and darkness of the design of the container and metallization.

In the container inspection feature of the present invention, the distance from the top wall of the container is measured with a distance sensor toward the fins joined to the top wall of the container and / or the vicinity thereof.
Measuring / detecting the uneven pattern / profile, and based on the pattern / profile, distances to a certain region / band of the top wall of the container, but towards the fins joined to the container top wall and / or near it Measure.
The measurement area / band of the top wall can be changed according to the shape of the container and the state of fins / flaps on the top wall of the container.

In the characteristics of the container inspection according to the present invention, the quality of the container is determined by the determining means based on the detected distance.
In the container inspection of the present invention, predetermined fins are folded into the container top wall to form predetermined irregularities and steps, and distance measurement is performed for a predetermined region / band by a distance sensor. Therefore, there are a pattern / profile when the detected distance value is normal and a pattern / profile when it is not normal. In the present invention, the quality of the container is determined by the determination means based on these comparisons.

In a preferred aspect of the container inspection according to the present invention, the determination step converts the distance measurement value stored in the measurement recording unit into the distance measurement value measured in the measurement step, and converts the distance measurement value into a comparison distance value that can be compared. A conversion processing step in the processing unit, a storage processing step in which the distance reference value is stored in the reference recording unit, a determination processing step in which the determination processing unit determines the quality of the container in comparison with the comparison distance value and the distance reference value, A discharge instruction step for instructing discharge of defective products from the conveying means based on the quality determination in the determination processing step.
The determination step can accurately and automatically determine.

In the container inspection apparatus of the present invention, the defective product is discharged from the obtained container by the discharge means based on the output from the determination means.
Inspecting continuously transported containers and regularly extracted containers and automatically discharging defective products with the equipment, so there is no need for manual work by workers, there are no individual differences or differences among workers, Accurate inspection results are possible.
With this container inspection device, it is possible to accurately inspect the container.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the operation of the container inspection apparatus example of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a distance value pattern diagram of container examples and corresponding inspection apparatus examples. FIG. 3 is an external view of a container example to be inspected by the container inspection apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a molding process of a container example to be inspected by the container inspection apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a packaging and filling apparatus including a container inspection apparatus according to an embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 5, the web-like band-shaped packaging laminate material 1 is accommodated in a packaging filling device in a reel state. The packaging laminate material 1 comprises a paper base material and a flexible laminate in which polyethylene resin is laminated on both sides of the paper base material, and a barrier layer such as an aluminum foil is formed between the paper base material and the film. Then, exterior printing is performed in advance on a portion corresponding to the surface of the packaging container 14.

The unwrapped packaging laminated material 1 is continuously conveyed by a feeding device as a conveying means, is sent to a sealing tape sticking device (not shown) through a bending roller, a damper roller, etc., and is sent by a sealing tape sticking device. A sealing tape is attached along one edge of the packaging laminate material 1.
As the packaging laminate material is conveyed, the pressure roller and the counter roller are pressed and rotated while sandwiching the packaging laminate material and the sealing tape, and the sealing tape seal is bonded to the mating surface of the vertical seal portion.

Subsequently, the pulling tab of the packaging laminate material 1 is stuck by a pull tab sticking device as necessary. The packaging laminated material 1 is sent to the sterilization tank 4 and sterilized with a sterilization liquid such as hydrogen peroxide in the sterilization tank 4. The packaging laminate material 1 is sent to an air knife (not shown), dried by the air knife, and then sent to a sterilization chamber (not shown). Then, the packaging laminate material 1 is gradually deformed by the molding ring 6 into a cylindrical shape. The packaging laminate material 1 is sealed in the longitudinal direction by the longitudinal sealing device 8, and the fluid food 5 supplied via the filling pipe 7 is filled into the cylindrical packaging laminate material 2.

When both sides of the packaging laminate material formed into a cylindrical shape are pressed together with the sealing tape by a longitudinal seal device and vertically sealed, sandwiching one edge and the other edge of the strip packaging laminate material, On one side, a pressure roller is rotatably disposed and pressed, and on the other side, a counter roller is rotatably disposed so as to receive pressure from the pressure roller, and to face and hold the pressure roller. The mating surfaces are sealed.

The cylindrical packaging laminated material is guided by a roller, sent to the horizontal sealing device 10, sandwiched and sealed in the horizontal direction to form a horizontal sealing portion 11, cut with a knife or the like, and pillow-shaped preforms 12 and 13. Is formed.
As shown in FIG. 4 (A), the pillow-shaped preform 13 is sealed with fins 23 in the lateral seal zone and has side walls 22 that are divided by crease lines. Next, as shown in FIG. 4 (B), along the crease line, the main body portion of the pillow-shaped preform is formed into a rectangular parallelepiped shape. Is formed upright from the vessel wall. Finally, as shown in FIG. 4 (C), after the fins 23 of the lateral seal zone are folded into the bottom surface 20 and the top surface 21, the container top side flap 24 is on the side wall 22 and the container bottom side flap 24 is The bottom surface 20 is folded.
The pillow-shaped preform 13 is formed into a final shape by a final forming apparatus, and a packaging container 14 for containing a fluid food as shown in FIG. 3A is completed.

The example of the packaging and filling apparatus shown in FIG. 5 includes a container inspection apparatus.
The distance sensor 30 of the container inspection device measures the distance of the container continuously manufactured from the packaging filling device, and the determination unit 31 determines the quality of the container based on the detected distance, and based on the output from the determination unit 31. Then, the discharge means 32 discharges defective products from the container production line.

FIG. 1 of the conceptual diagram explaining the operation of the example of the inspection apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 of the distance value pattern diagram by the example of the container and the corresponding example of the inspection apparatus, and the external view of the example of the container to be inspected by the inspection apparatus This will be described below with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3A shows an example of a normal brick container. The container includes the fins 23 and the container walls of the folded horizontal seal zone, and the fins 23 are folded to the container front wall surface 22 a side opposite to the vertical seal portion 26. Furthermore, the flap 24 folded through the edge is provided.
FIG. 3B shows an example of a defective container. In the container, the flap 24 a is folded into the side wall, but the fin 23 a is folded into the same side as the vertical seal portion 26. The vertical seal portion may overlap, causing a large stress on the container wall to cause leakage, and the vertical seal portion is bulky, and the container appearance / shape is unsatisfactory.
FIG. 3C shows an example of a second defective container. In the container, the flap 24 is folded in the normal direction on one side wall, while the flap 24a on the other side wall is folded in the opposite direction. The fins 23 appear to be twisted at the container top 21, and particularly stand up near the vertical seal portion 26.
In this embodiment, there are mainly the above three kinds of container embodiments.

The container inspection apparatus example shown in the side view of FIG. 1 (A) and the front view of FIG. 1 (B) has a conveying means 33 such as a conveyor that continuously translates and conveys the container 14 and a fixed state in a state where the container 14 is in an upward state. It is disposed at a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall 21 of the container that is conveyed at a constant speed in the direction of travel indicated by the arrow, and with the top wall 21 of the container toward the fins 23 and / or the vicinity thereof. Based on the distance sensor 30 that measures the distance, the determination unit 31 that determines the quality of the container based on the detected distance, and the output from the determination unit 31, the container 14a that is determined to be defective is indicated by an arrow from the container manufacturing line. The discharge means 32 which extrudes from the conveyor 33 at right angles with the compressed air of an ejector as shown by and discharge | emits the inferior goods 14a is included.

The determination method will be described with reference to FIG. 2 of the distance value pattern diagram of the container examples and the corresponding inspection apparatus examples.
In the container example (A1) and distance value pattern (A2) shown in FIG. 2A, a normal container in which the fins 23 are folded into the container front wall surface 22a side opposite to the vertical seal portion 26 (FIG. 3A). ) Is an operation function when inspecting.
The distance sensor scans in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 (A1) and measures the distance from above the fins 23 on the top wall of the container. It reaches the start end of the container top wall at time t1, reaches the central vertical seal portion 26 at time t2, and further reaches the end of the container top wall at time t3. The pattern value D is a distance signal. There is a step of the vertical seal portion 26 (about 0.2 mm in a normal container), and therefore, a slight change is observed in the value D.
In such a pattern, the change component d is calculated by differentiating the distance signal. Usually, the container top wall has undulations on its surface, and there are variations in height among the containers. These variations have small values in the differential component, and the time and place where they appear are indeterminate and can be easily ignored. On the other hand, the differential component due to the step of the vertical seal portion 26 is remarkably large and regular, and can be easily determined.

The operation of the inspection apparatus example of the container example shown in FIG. 2B is an operation function when inspecting a defective container (FIG. 3B) in which the fins 23 are folded into the vertical seal portion 26 side.
The distance sensor scans the top wall 21 in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 (B1), and measures the distance from above the zone without the vertical seal portion 26 adjacent to the fin 23 on the container top wall. At the time t1, it reaches the start end of the container top wall, at the time t2, reaches the flat part of the central part (the part without the vertical seal part 26), and further reaches the end of the container top wall at the time t3. The pattern value D is a distance signal. Since there is no step in the vertical seal portion 26, the value D is changed.
In such a pattern, the change component d is calculated by differentiating the distance signal. The container top wall has undulations on its surface, height variations, etc., but these differential components have small values, and the time and place where they appear are indefinite and can be easily ignored. There is no differential component due to the level difference in the vertical seal. Therefore, even if the differential component pattern is calculated, it becomes a flat pattern and can be easily determined.

The operation of the inspection apparatus example of the container example shown in FIG. 2C is an operation function when inspecting a defective container (FIG. 3C) in which the fins 23 rise at the vertical seal portion 26 of the top wall.
The distance sensor scans the top wall 21 in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 (C1), and the flap is folded in the normal direction on the start side wall, but the flap on the end side wall is folded in the opposite direction. Rarely, the distance is measured from above the band in which the fin 23 is twisted at the container top 21 and rises in the vicinity of the vertical seal portion 26.
At the time t1, the start end of the container top wall is reached, at the time t2, the central part (vertical seal part 26) reaches the position where the fin 23 rises, and further reaches the end of the container top wall at time t3. The pattern value D is a distance signal. At the place where the fin 23 rises, the value D is greatly changed in absolute value.
Such a pattern can be easily identified without needing to differentiate the distance signal to calculate the change component d. The top wall of the container has undulations on its surface and variations in height, but the time and location at which it appears is indefinite and can be easily ignored.

The operation of the inspection apparatus example of the container example shown in FIG. 2D is an operation function when inspecting a defective container (FIG. 3C) in which the fins 23 rise at the vertical seal portion 26 of the top wall.
The distance sensor scans the top wall 21 in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 (D1), and the flap is folded in the opposite direction on the side wall on the start side, but the flap on the side wall on the end side is folded in the normal direction. Rarely, the distance is measured from above the zone where the fin 23 is twisted at the container top 21 and rises near the vertical seal portion 26.
At the time t1, the start end of the container top wall is reached, at the time t2, the central part (vertical seal part 26) reaches the position where the fin 23 rises, and further reaches the end of the container top wall at time t3. The pattern value D is a distance signal. At the place where the fin 23 rises, the value D is greatly changed in absolute value.
Such a pattern can be easily identified without needing to differentiate the distance signal to calculate the change component d. The top wall of the container has undulations on its surface and variations in height, but the time and location at which it appears is indefinite and can be easily ignored.

In this example of the container inspection apparatus, the defective product is discharged by the discharge means 18 from the line of the manufactured container, as shown in FIG. 5, based on the output from the determination means 17b.
Inspecting continuously transported containers and regularly extracted containers and automatically discharging defective products with the equipment, so there is no need for manual work by workers, there are no individual differences or differences among workers, Accurate inspection results are possible.

As demonstrated above, the container inspection apparatus and method of the present invention can accurately inspect a container.

In addition, this invention is not limited to this embodiment, Based on the meaning of this invention, various deformation | transformation is possible and they are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

By the method / apparatus of the present invention, packaging containers such as beverages such as milk, juice, mineral water, and liquid foods can be produced.

It is a conceptual diagram explaining operation | movement of the container inspection apparatus example of this invention. It is the distance value pattern figure by the example of a container of this invention, and the example of an inspection apparatus corresponding to them. It is an external view of the container example of the object which the container inspection apparatus of this invention inspects. It is a perspective view which shows the formation process of the container example of the object test | inspected with the container inspection apparatus of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view of the packaging filling apparatus provided with the container inspection apparatus of one Example.

Explanation of symbols

14 Container 30 Distance sensor 31 Determination means 32 Discharge means 33 Transport means 23 Fin

Claims (5)

A web-like laminated packaging material having a predetermined crease line is formed into a cylindrical shape, and both edges of the packaging material are overlapped to form an overlap, and the longitudinal seal is longitudinally sealed by the overlap in the vertical line direction. The cylindrical packaging material is filled with the contents, the packaging material is pressed in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, and is sealed by a horizontal seal to form a horizontal seal zone, and is cut in the middle of the horizontal seal zone The container obtained by joining the flaps and fins formed by folding along the crease line to the container top wall, the container side wall and / or the container bottom is obtained. A method for inspecting
Transporting the container by continuously translating it with transport means;
Disposing a distance sensor at a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall of the container conveyed in a predetermined direction;
Measuring the distance from the top wall of the container toward the fin and / or its vicinity joined to the top wall of the container with the distance sensor;
A step of determining the quality of the container by the determining means based on the detected distance;
Container inspection method. 2. The container inspection method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of discharging a defective product from the container by a discharge unit based on an output from the determination unit. The determination step stores a distance measurement value with the top wall measured in the measurement step in a measurement recording unit;
Converting the distance measurement value into a comparison distance value that can be compared by a conversion processing unit;
A storage processing step for storing the distance reference value in the reference recording unit;
A determination processing step in which a determination processing unit determines the quality of the container by comparing the comparison distance value with the distance reference value;
A discharge instruction step for instructing discharge of defective products from the conveying means based on pass / fail judgment of the determination processing step;
The container inspection method according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: A web-like laminated packaging material having a predetermined crease line is formed into a cylindrical shape, and both edges of the packaging material are overlapped to form an overlap, and the longitudinal seal is longitudinally sealed by the overlap in the vertical line direction. The cylindrical packaging material is filled with the contents, the packaging material is pressed in the transverse direction at predetermined intervals, sealed by a lateral seal to form a lateral seal band, and a pillow-shaped preform by cutting A container inspection apparatus obtained by joining a flap and a fin obtained by folding a body along a crease line to a container top wall, a container side wall and / or a container bottom,
Conveying means for continuously translating and conveying the container;
A distance sensor disposed at a predetermined position so as to be close to the top wall of the container conveyed in a predetermined direction, and measuring a distance from the top wall of the container toward the fin and / or the vicinity thereof;
A determination means for determining the quality of the container according to the detected distance;
Discharging means for discharging defective products from the container based on the output from the determining means;
Including container inspection equipment. The determination means stores a distance measurement value with respect to the top wall measured in the measurement step;
A conversion processing unit that converts the distance measurement value into a comparable comparison distance value;
A reference recording unit for storing the distance reference value;
A determination processing unit for determining whether the container is good or bad by comparing the comparison distance value and the distance reference value, and instructing discharge of a defective product from the transport unit based on the quality determination;
The container inspection apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising: