JP2017176044A - Method for producing edible sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide: a method and apparatus for producing an edible sheet, which can suppress variation in thickness of the edible sheet; and a method for producing a soft capsule using the sheet.SOLUTION: The method for producing an edible sheet comprises the steps of: supplying a liquid gelling agent-containing composition to a coating tool having a manifold and a slit-like outlet that communicates with the manifold based on control of a supply amount by a pump; discharging the gelling agent-containing composition via the manifold and the outlet onto a cooling member subject; and forming an edible sheet by moving the gelling agent-containing composition together with the cooling member subject while cooling the composition on the cooling member subject.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an edible sheet manufacturing method, a soft capsule manufacturing method using the same, an edible sheet manufacturing apparatus, and a soft capsule manufacturing apparatus.

  Patent Document 1 discloses that an aqueous gelatin solution is supplied to a spreader box, the aqueous solution is discharged in a thin film, and then cooled on a cooling drum to form an edible sheet. More specifically, a gelatin aqueous solution whose viscosity is adjusted to about 20,000 cps at 60 ° C. with deionized water and glycerin is accommodated in a gelatin tank, and the gelatin aqueous solution is supplied from the gelatin tank to the spreader box. In the spreader box, the gelatin aqueous solution is discharged by its own weight.

  Patent Document 1 also discloses that soft capsules are manufactured using the edible sheet thus formed. That is, a pair of edible sheets are sandwiched between a pair of die rolls having recesses formed on the surface, half shells are formed on each edible sheet, and these half shells are joined to form a capsule shell. ing. In the process of joining the half shells, the content liquid is injected into the capsule shell. Further, along with the joining of the half shells, the capsule shell is cut out from the edible sheet by a cutting blade at the periphery of the recess to form a soft capsule containing the content liquid.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 05-088143

  However, the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has the following problems. In the spreader box, since the level of the gelatin aqueous solution is controlled by a float or the like and discharged onto the cooling drum only by its own weight, there is a problem that it is difficult to control the variation in the thickness of the edible sheet to be produced. In particular, as the thickness of the edible sheet becomes smaller, this problem becomes more prominent and has become a quality problem such as tearing. In general, in order to form a sheet having a small variation in thickness, it is preferable that the viscosity of the discharged composition is small. However, if the temperature is too high to reduce the viscosity, the gelling agent such as gelatin deteriorates. Therefore, when the composition to be discharged contains a gelling agent, particularly gelatin, even if it is made liquid by heating, it is discharged in a state having a certain degree of viscosity. For this reason, it was very difficult to obtain an edible sheet in which variation in thickness was suppressed by discharging a composition containing a gelling agent.

  In addition, when a soft capsule having a small thickness is manufactured by the method described in Patent Document 1, tearing may occur from a portion having a small thickness, and leakage of the content liquid may occur. Moreover, when the thickness of the joining part of a half shell becomes small by dispersion | variation, joining of a half shell will not be performed appropriately but a content liquid may leak from a joining part.

  The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and an edible sheet manufacturing method, a manufacturing apparatus, and a soft capsule manufacturing method using the edible sheet, which can suppress variations in the thickness of the edible sheet, And it aims at providing the manufacturing apparatus of a soft capsule.

  According to the edible sheet manufacturing method of the present invention, a liquid gelling agent-containing composition is applied to a coating tool having a manifold and a slit-like discharge port communicating with the manifold based on control of a supply amount by a pump. A step of supplying, a step of supplying the gelling agent-containing composition onto the cooling member, and moving the gelling agent-containing composition together with the cooling member while cooling the cooling agent on the cooling member, Forming an edible sheet.

  According to this configuration, since the liquid gelling agent-containing composition can be supplied to the coating tool while using a coating tool having a manifold and controlling the supply amount by a pump, the coating tool accurately A gelling agent-containing composition with a proper thickness can be discharged. Therefore, the thickness of the edible sheet formed on the cooling drum can be prevented from varying. In particular, the edible sheet targeted by the present embodiment has many factors that affect the thickness, such as the viscosity changing due to deterioration, and therefore, it is advantageous to use the manufacturing apparatus as described above.

  In the edible sheet manufacturing method, the cooling member can have various configurations. For example, the cooling member is constituted by a cooling drum whose axis extends in the forming direction of the discharge port, and the gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the coating tool is cooled on the cooling drum while the cooling agent is being cooled. The edible sheet can be formed by being moved together with the rotation. This makes it possible to reduce the size of the cooling member while obtaining the same distance for cooling the edible sheet as compared to the case where a plate-like cooling member is provided.

  In the edible sheet manufacturing method, the coating tool may include a heating unit that heats the gelling agent-containing composition passing through the manifold and the discharge port. Thereby, the gelling agent-containing composition can be kept in a liquid state until the gelling agent-containing composition is discharged from the discharge port. In particular, since the viscosity of the gelling agent-containing composition changes depending on the temperature, the viscosity of the gelling agent-containing composition can also be controlled by keeping the temperature within the coating tool at an appropriate temperature. It is possible to prevent the thickness of the sheet from varying.

  Here, although the said heating means can be formed by various methods, it can be comprised with the heater embedded around the said manifold and the discharge outlet, for example.

  In the edible sheet manufacturing method, the gelling agent contained in the gelling agent-containing composition may be one or more selected from gelatin, pectin, carrageenan, starch, and pullulan.

  The soft capsule manufacturing method according to the present invention includes a step of manufacturing the first edible sheet and the second edible sheet by any one of the edible sheet manufacturing methods described above, and a plurality of recesses having cutting edges on the periphery. Is formed on the surface, and is disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the first die roll, and the step of supplying the first and second edible sheets between the first and second die rolls adjacent in parallel. While forming the capsule shell by joining the first edible sheet and the second edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the second die roll with the rotation of the two die rolls, In the process of forming the capsule shell, a step of injecting a content liquid therein, and a step of cutting the capsule shell from the first and second edible sheets together with the rotation of the two die rolls to form a soft capsule The average t of the total thickness of the first and second edible sheets supplied between the first and second die rolls is such that t> 2 × H. Is satisfied.

  According to this configuration, the following effects can be obtained. That is, due to the relationship of t> 2 × H, the edible sheet superimposed between the two drums is pressed by the surfaces of both die rolls, and a part of the edible sheet is pushed out toward the inside of the recess. And the outer edge from a capsule is pressed with the proximity | contact of both cutting blades, and when both cutting blades contact, it is cut out from an edible sheet. By this time, the edible sheet has been pushed out toward the inside of the recess, so the joint part of the half shell cut out by the cutting blade protrudes toward the inside of the soft capsule, and the thickness increases. Yes. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent leakage of the content liquid from the joining portion of the half shell.

  An edible sheet manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention includes: a coating tool having a storage section in which a liquid gelling agent-containing composition is stored; a manifold and a slit-like discharge port communicating with the manifold; and the coating tool On the other hand, the liquid gelling agent-containing composition is supplied from the container, and the supply amount of the gelling agent-containing composition can be controlled, and the liquid gelling discharged from the discharge port A cooling member for cooling the gelling agent-containing composition, to which the agent-containing composition is supplied.

  In the edible sheet manufacturing apparatus, the cooling member can have various configurations. For example, the cooling member is constituted by a cooling drum whose axis extends in the forming direction of the discharge port, and the gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the coating tool is cooled on the cooling drum while the cooling agent is being cooled. The edible sheet can be formed by being moved together with the rotation.

  The said edible sheet manufacturing apparatus WHEREIN: The said coating tool can be equipped with the heating means which heats the said gelatinizer containing composition which passes the said manifold and the said discharge outlet.

  Here, the heating means may be constituted by a heater embedded around the manifold and the discharge port.

  In the edible sheet manufacturing apparatus, the coating tool can be fixed to the cooling drum.

  The soft capsule manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention has the same configuration as any of the edible sheet manufacturing apparatuses described above, and includes a first edible sheet manufacturing unit that manufactures the first and second edible sheets, and A second edible sheet manufacturing unit, a plurality of recesses having cutting blades at the periphery are formed on the surface, the first and second die rolls that are close to each other in a parallel state, and a content liquid supply unit that supplies the content liquid. The first edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the first die roll and the second edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the second die roll. While forming the capsule shell by joining with rotation, in the process of forming the capsule shell, the content liquid is injected into the inside from the content liquid supply unit, and with the rotation of the two die rolls, the capsule shell is The first And a second edible sheet that is cut from the second edible sheet to form a soft capsule, and is supplied between a height H of the cutting blade and the first and second die rolls. The average t of the total sheet thickness satisfies the relationship t> 2 × H.

  According to the present invention, variation in the thickness of the edible sheet can be suppressed.

It is a schematic structure figure showing one embodiment of an edible sheet manufacturing device concerning the present invention. It is a side view of a coating tool. It is the sectional view on the AA line of FIG. It is a schematic block diagram of the manufacturing apparatus of a soft capsule. It is a top view of a die roll. It is sectional drawing which shows the process of manufacture of a soft capsule. It is sectional drawing which shows the process of manufacture of a soft capsule. It is sectional drawing which shows the process of manufacture of a soft capsule.

<A. First Embodiment: Edible Sheet Manufacturing Apparatus and Manufacturing Method>
Hereinafter, an embodiment of an apparatus and a method for manufacturing an edible sheet according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an edible sheet manufacturing apparatus.

<1. Edible sheet manufacturing equipment>
As shown in FIG. 1, the edible sheet manufacturing apparatus according to this embodiment includes a container 1 in which a liquid gelling agent-containing composition is stored, and the liquid gelling agent-containing composition in a thin film shape. A coating tool 2 to be discharged and a cooling drum 3 for cooling the liquid gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the coating tool 2 are provided. Moreover, the accommodating part 1 and the coating tool 2 are connected by the pipe member 4 for flowing a gelatinizer containing composition, and the pump 5 is attached to this pipe member 4 further. Hereinafter, each member will be described.

<1-1. Painting tool>
Next, the coating tool will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. 2 is a side view of the coating tool, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. In the following, the left side of FIG. 2 is the front, the right side is the rear, the direction perpendicular to the paper surface is the width direction, the upper side is the upper side, the lower side is the lower side, and the other drawings are also described according to this direction. I will do it.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the coating tool 2 is formed by superposing two parts formed of a metal such as stainless steel and brass into a rectangular plate shape, that is, a first part 21 and a second part 22. Is fixed by a plurality of bolts 23. An inclined surface 211 is formed at the lower end of the first part 21, and similarly, an inclined surface 221 is formed at the lower end of the second part 22. And both parts 21 and 22 are piled up so that the front-end | tip of the inclined surfaces 211 and 221 of both parts 21 and 22 may face each other, and, thereby, the lower end part of the coating tool 2 is formed in the mountain shape. A discharge port 24 extending in the width direction is formed at the top of the mountain shape. The width in the front-rear direction of the discharge port 24 (the length in the left-right direction in FIG. 2) can be, for example, 0.5 to 3 mm, preferably 1 to 2 mm. The length (the length in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 2) can be set to 100 to 120 mm, for example.

  In the vicinity of the upper end of the first part 21 arranged on the left side of FIG. 2, a circular injection hole 212 that penetrates from the front surface toward the rear surface is formed. A first passage 213 having a rectangular shape in plan view is formed on the rear surface of the first part 21 at a position corresponding to the injection hole 212. The first passage 213 extends from the rear surface to near the middle of the thickness of the first part 21 in the front-rear direction, and an injection hole 212 is connected to an end portion on the front surface side. And the 1st channel | path 213 is formed with the inclined surface 216 so that the width | variety of an up-down direction becomes narrow as it goes to a front surface. The inclined surface 216 is formed to be inclined downward as it goes rearward from the connection portion of the injection hole 212.

  On the other hand, the second part 22 is formed with a second passage 222 constituted by a rectangular shallow recess extending from the position corresponding to the first passage 213 of the first part 21 to the lower end. The second passage 222 is open to the outside from the lower end of the second part 22, and the open portion constitutes the discharge port 24 described above. Since the first and second parts 21 and 22 are overlapped, the flow of the gelling agent-containing composition constituted by the first passage 213 and the second passage 222 is between the parts 21 and 22. A path or manifold is formed. The coating tool 2 is arranged such that the direction from the second passage 222 toward the discharge port 24 extends in the vertical direction.

  In the first part 21, two through holes 215 penetrating in the width direction are formed below the first passage 213 so as to be aligned in the vertical direction. The second part 22 is also formed with two through holes 224 extending in the width direction and arranged in the vertical direction so as to face the through holes 215, respectively. With this arrangement, the two through holes 215 and 224 in the parts 21 and 22 are arranged so as to sandwich the second passage 222, respectively. Further, a rod-shaped heater 26 is inserted into each of the through holes 215 and 224, whereby heat of the heater 26 is transmitted to the first passage 213 and the second passage 222 over the entire width direction of the coating tool 2. Conducting and heating the gelling agent-containing composition passing through the manifold.

<1-2. Cooling drum>
Next, the cooling drum 3 will be described. The cooling drum 3 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and is arranged directly below the coating tool 2 so as to be rotatable around its axis X. If it demonstrates in detail, the discharge port 24 of the coating tool 2 is arrange | positioned in the position corresponding to the uppermost part of the outer peripheral surface of the cooling drum 3, and contains a gelatinizer along the diameter direction with respect to the cooling drum 3. A composition is provided. The cooling drum 3 is arranged such that its axis X is parallel to the direction (width direction) in which the discharge port 24 of the coating tool 2 extends, and between the discharge port 24 and the surface of the cooling drum 3. Is formed with a slight distance g. Although this distance g is based also on the thickness of the liquid gelling agent containing composition discharged, it can be 0.2-0.4 mm, for example. More specifically, when the thickness of the gelling agent-containing composition at the time of coating is about 0.35 mm, it can be set to 0.25 to 0.35 mm. Further, the surface of the cooling drum 3 is formed of metal or the like, and the surface is cooled from the inside of the cooling drum. The temperature of the surface of the cooling drum 3 can be 10-30 degreeC, for example.

<1-3. Housing, pipe member and pump>
Then, the accommodating part 1, the pipe member 4, and the pump 5 are demonstrated. The accommodating part 1 is a container for accommodating a liquid gelling agent-containing composition, and the accommodating part 1 is heated by a heater or the like in order to keep the gelling agent-containing composition in a liquid state.

  The pipe member 4 is connected to the injection hole 212 of the coating tool 2, and supplies the liquid gelling agent-containing composition from the container 1 to the coating tool 2. Since the liquid gelling agent-containing composition gels when cooled, it needs to be heated. Therefore, the tube member 4 is heated with a heater or the like. Examples of the method of heating the tube member 4 include a method of heating with a band heater set at about 60 ° C. (for example, silicon rubber heater SBH2137: manufactured by Yako Electric Co., Ltd.).

  The pump 5 sucks the liquid gelling agent-containing composition from the container 1 and supplies it to the coating tool 2, and can control the supply amount of the gelling agent-containing composition to the coating tool 2. Yes. For example, it controls so that a liquid gelling agent containing composition may be supplied to the coating tool 2 by fixed quantity.

<2. Liquid gelling agent-containing composition>
Next, the gelling agent-containing composition will be described. First, as a composition, the following can be used as a raw material of an edible sheet. For example, as a gelling agent, 100 parts by weight of pork gelatin having a jelly strength of 250 g, 35 parts by weight of glycerin And a gelling agent-containing composition containing 97 parts by weight of water (viscosity at 60 ° C. is 19,000 mPa.s). In addition, as a viscosity at 60 degreeC of a gelatinizer containing composition, it is 5,000-25,000 mPa * s normally, and 7,000-25,000 mPa from a viewpoint of suppressing the dispersion | variation in the thickness of an edible sheet. · S is preferred, 10,000 to 20,000 mPa · s is more preferred, and 15,000 to 20,000 mPa · s is even more preferred. The viscosity at 60 ° C. is a value measured using a B-type viscometer (DV-II + Pro: manufactured by Nippon ST. Johnson Co., Ltd.) under a temperature condition of 60 ° C.
It is measured 30 seconds after the start of rotation at a rotation speed of 10 rpm using a 4-rotor.

  The thickness of the gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the coating tool is, for example, preferably 0.2 to 0.9 mm, more preferably 0.2 to 0.6 mm, and 0.2 to 0.6 mm. More preferably, it is 0.4 mm.

  Further, as the other gelling agent, one or more selected from gelatin, pectin, carrageenan, starch, and pullulan can be appropriately selected.

<3. Manufacturing method of edible sheet>
Next, the manufacturing method of an edible sheet using the manufacturing apparatus comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated.

  First, the liquid gelling agent-containing composition is sucked by the pump 5 and this gelling agent-containing composition is supplied to the coating tool 2 while controlling the supply amount to be constant. The supply amount of the gelling agent-containing composition to the coating tool 2 at this time is appropriately set so as to be an optimal supply amount in view of the width, thickness, and line speed of the gelling agent-containing composition to be applied. Although it is a thing and is not specifically limited, For example, it can be set as 40-100 mL / min. The gelling agent-containing composition supplied to the injection hole 212 of the coating tool 2 spreads in the width direction in the first passage 213, is formed in a thin film shape in the second passage 222, and is discharged from the discharge port 24. In this process, since the periphery of the manifold is heated by the heater 26, the coating tool 2 is discharged while maintaining the liquefied state. And the gelatinizer containing composition discharged from the discharge outlet 24 is supplied on the cooling drum 3, and is cooled. Thereby, a gelling agent containing composition solidifies in a gel form. At this time, since the cooling drum 3 is rotating, the gelling agent-containing composition is continuously supplied onto the cooling drum 3. And the cooled gelatinizer containing composition is formed in the thin film form on the surface of the cooling drum 3, and this becomes the edible sheet 100. FIG. The edible sheet 100 moves on the cooling drum while the cooling drum rotates about 270 degrees, and thereafter moves away from the cooling drum 3 and moves to another processing device via another roller.

<4. Features>
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the liquid gelling agent-containing composition can be supplied to the coating tool 2 while using the coating tool 2 having a manifold and controlling the supply amount by the pump 5. Therefore, a gelling agent-containing composition having an accurate thickness can be discharged from the coating tool 2. Therefore, the thickness of the edible sheet formed on the cooling drum 3 can be prevented from varying. When the thickness of the edible sheet is small, specifically, when the average thickness of the edible sheet at the time of coating is less than 0.5 mm, particularly less than 0.35 mm, the thickness of the edible sheet after drying When the average is less than 0.23 mm, particularly less than 0.2 mm, edible sheets are torn and leakage of content liquid when soft capsules are particularly problematic. It is possible to prevent poor quality. Moreover, since the edible sheet which this embodiment makes object has many elements which affect thickness, such as a viscosity changing with deterioration, it is advantageous to use the above manufacturing apparatuses.

  Moreover, in the said apparatus, since the gelling agent containing composition is supplied to the coating tool 2 with the pump 5, compared with the apparatus like the conventional spreader box which supplies a gelling agent containing composition by dead weight, for example. There is no restriction on the position where the device is arranged. That is, since the spreader box discharges the gelling agent-containing composition by its own weight, the discharge port must be substantially vertically downward. In the apparatus according to the present embodiment, the pump 5 causes the gelling agent-containing composition to be discharged. In order to supply and discharge, the direction of the coating tool 2 is not limited. Therefore, for example, the coating tool 2 can be arranged such that the gelling agent-containing composition is discharged from the discharge port 24 in the horizontal direction.

 In addition, when applied for a long time, the gelling agent is altered by hydrolysis and the like, and the viscosity of the gelling agent-containing composition is lowered. Although it was necessary to frequently adjust the distance g between the surface 24 and the surface of the cooling drum 3, the above-described apparatus supplies the gelling agent-containing composition to the coating tool 2 by the pump 5. No adjustment is required, or at least the number of adjustments is suppressed.

<B. Second Embodiment: Soft Capsule Manufacturing Device and Manufacturing Method>
<1. Soft capsule manufacturing equipment>
Next, the manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method of a soft capsule are demonstrated. The soft capsules targeted in this embodiment are those in which a spherical capsule shell is formed by the edible sheet described above, and a content liquid such as a chemical solution is accommodated therein. Details will be described below.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a soft capsule manufacturing apparatus, FIG. 5 is a plan view of a die roll, and FIGS. 6 to 8 are cross-sectional views illustrating steps of manufacturing the soft capsule. As shown in FIG. 4, the manufacturing apparatus includes a pair of die rolls. Here, the left side of FIG. 4 is referred to as a first die roll 61, and the right side is referred to as a second die roll 62. Both die rolls 61 and 62 are arranged so that the axial centers S1 and S2 are parallel to each other, and cutting blades, which will be described later, formed on the outer peripheral surface are in contact with each other. The edible sheets 101 and 102 are respectively supplied to the die rolls 61 and 62, and the edible sheets 101 and 102 are overlapped with each other and enter between the die rolls 61 and 62.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, a plurality of hemispherical concave portions 611 and 621 are formed on the surfaces of the die rolls 61 and 62, and the concave portions 611 and 621 of the adjacent die rolls 61 and 62 are formed on the die roll 61. , 62 together to form the spherical outer shape of the soft capsule. In addition, annular cutting blades 612 and 622 are formed on the peripheral edges of the recesses 611 and 621. The front ends of the cutting blades 612 and 622 are formed flat, and the front ends of the cutting blades 612 and 622 of the adjacent die rolls 61 and 62 come into contact with each other from the edible sheets 101 and 102 as described later. Soft capsules are cut out. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 6, the protrusion height H from the surface of the die rolls 61 and 62 of the cutting blades 612 and 622 can be set to 0.25 to 0.35 mm, for example. The protrusion height H preferably satisfies t> 2 × H as a relationship with the total thickness t of the two edible sheets 101 and 102 supplied to the die rolls 61 and 62.

  A supply device (content liquid supply unit) 7 for supplying the content liquid is disposed immediately above the contact position between the two die rolls 61 and 62. The supply device 7 is provided with a plurality of nozzles 71, and the content liquid is supplied from each nozzle 71. Moreover, the nozzle 71 of the supply apparatus 7 is each arrange | positioned in the contact position of both the die rolls 61 and 62 directly above the position where the recessed parts 611 and 621 of the die rolls 61 and 62 are combined to form a spherical mold. Then, the discharge timing and the discharge amount are controlled by an electromagnetic valve or the like so that the content liquid is intermittently supplied from each nozzle 71.

  In addition, two edible sheets 101 and 102 are supplied to the die rolls 61 and 62 as described above. The edible sheets 101 and 102 are manufactured by the above-described manufacturing apparatus and the like, and then are rotated by rollers. Be transported. Here, the edible sheet supplied to the first die roll 61 side is referred to as a first edible sheet 101, and the edible sheet supplied to the second die roll 62 side is referred to as a second edible sheet 102.

  Further, a pair of heating segments is arranged between the supply device 7 and the two die rolls 61 and 62 so as to sandwich the nozzle 71. Here, what is disposed above the first die roll 61 is referred to as a first heating segment 91, and what is disposed above the second die roll 62 is referred to as a second heating segment 92. A space is formed between the first heating segment 91 and the first die roll 61, and the first edible sheet 101 is disposed on the first die roll 61 while passing through this space. And in the 1st heating segment 91, the surface which faces the 1st edible sheet 101 is formed in the curved shape corresponding to the 1st edible sheet 101 which is arranged on the 1st die roll 61, and extends in the shape of a curved surface, It is composed. Thereby, the 1st edible sheet | seat 101 arrange | positioned on the 1st die roll 61 is heated. Similarly, the second heating segment 92 is similarly configured and has a curved heating surface corresponding to the second edible sheet 101 disposed on the second die roll 62. In addition, each edible sheet | seat 101,102 is heated by about 35-45 degreeC by each heating segment 91,92.

<2. Content liquid>
Examples of the content liquid in the soft capsule include a liquid vegetable oil containing a functional ingredient, a fragrance such as natural essential oil, an emulsifier, a refreshing agent, and the like. Specifically, examples of the content liquid include a mouth refreshing composition containing 80% by weight of medium-chain fatty acid triglyceride, 10% by weight of spearmint oil, 5% by weight of mint oil, and 5% by weight of menton oil.

<3. Method for producing soft capsule>
Next, a soft capsule manufacturing method using the soft capsule manufacturing apparatus configured as described above will be described. First, the first die roll 61 is rotationally driven clockwise, and the second die roll 62 is rotationally driven counterclockwise. Then, the 1st edible sheet 101 is supplied to the surface of the 1st die roll 61 from right above the 1st die roll 61, and the 2nd edible sheet from directly above 2nd die roll 62 to the surface of the 2nd die roll 62 102 is supplied. The 1st edible sheet | seat 101 arrange | positioned on the 1st die roll 61 is heated by the 1st heating segment 91, and deform | transforms along the inner wall surface of the recessed part 611 in the several location corresponding to the recessed part 611. FIG. As the first die roll 61 rotates, the first die roll 61 moves to the contact position between the two die rolls 61 and 62. Similarly, the second edible sheet 102 is also heated by the second heating segment 92 and moves to the contact position between the two die rolls 61 and 62 as the second die roll 62 rotates. At this time, the second edible sheet 102 is also deformed along the inner wall surface of the recess 621 at a plurality of locations corresponding to the recess 621 by heating. The edible sheets 101 and 102 enter between the two die rolls 61 and 62 while being overlapped as the die rolls 61 and 62 rotate.

  At this time, in the edible sheets 101 and 102, the locations along the inner wall surfaces of the recesses 611 and 621 form the hemispherical half shells 111 and 112. As these half shells 111 and 112 approach the contact position, both half shells 111 and 112 are joined from below by die rolls 61 and 62 to finally form a spherical capsule shell 80. In this process, when the lower halves of both half shells 111 and 112 are joined, the content liquid is discharged from the supply device 7 and supplied to the capsule shell 80. Since the capsule shell 80 is joined to the two half shells 111 and 112 as described above, the content liquid is sealed in the capsule shell 80. Further, as the die rolls 61 and 62 rotate, the cutting blades 612 and 622 of the die rolls 61 and 62 come into contact with each other, and accordingly, the outer edge of the capsule shell 80 is cut out from the edible sheets 101 and 102. The soft capsule 8 is formed. As for the joining, stronger joining is achieved by heating the surfaces of the edible sheets 101 and 102 by the heating segment.

  The soft capsule 8 cut out from both edible sheets 101 and 102 is guided downward as the die rolls 61 and 62 rotate, and falls downward from the die rolls 61 and 62. Thus, the soft capsule 8 is completed.

<4. Features>
According to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. First, as described above, the projection height H of the cutting blades 612 and 622 and the average t of the total thickness of the two edible sheets 101 and 102 satisfy t> 2 × H. Thus, the soft capsule 8 is formed. That is, the edible sheets 101 and 102 overlapped between the two die rolls 61 and 62 are pressed by the surfaces of the two die rolls 61 and 62, but as shown in FIG. Even if the surfaces of the edible sheets 101 and 102 are in contact with each other, the lower cutting blades 612 and 622 on the lower side of the die rolls 61 and 62 are not in contact with each other. It is pushed out toward the inside of 611,621. Then, the outer edge of the capsule shell 80 is pressed as the two cutting blades 612 and 622 come close to each other, and as shown in FIG. 8, when the two cutting blades 612 and 622 below the two die rolls 61 and 62 come into contact with each other, The lower side of the outer edge of the shell 80 is cut out from the edible sheets 101 and 102. Next, the upper cutting edges 612 and 622 on both die rolls 61 and 62 come into contact with each other, and the upper edge of the outer edge of the capsule shell 80 is cut out from the edible sheets 101 and 102. A part of the edible sheet 101, 102 is pushed out toward the inside of the recesses 611, 621, or at least toward the outside of the recesses 611, 621 by contacting the edible sheets 101, 102 with the surfaces overlapped. Is prevented from running away. In the process of cutting the capsule shell 80 from the edible sheets 101 and 102, a part of the edible sheets 101 and 102 is pushed out toward the inside of the recesses 611 and 621 or toward the outside of the recesses 611 and 621. Therefore, the joint portions of the half shells 111 and 112 cut out by the cutting blades 612 and 622 protrude toward the internal space of the soft capsule 8 and the thickness increases or at least The thickness of the joined portion is equal to or greater than the average thickness of other portions of the capsule shell 80. Therefore, it is possible to prevent leakage of the content liquid from the joining portion of the half shells 111 and 112. From the viewpoint of increasing the thickness of the joint portion, the average thickness t1 of the first edible sheet 101 and the average thickness t2 of the second edible sheet 102 satisfy t1> H and t2> H, respectively. It is more preferable.

  Moreover, in the soft capsule manufacturing method according to the present embodiment, since the edible sheet according to the first embodiment is used, variation in the thickness of the edible sheet can be extremely reduced. Therefore, the variation in the thickness of the capsule shell 80 of the soft capsule 8 can be reduced. For example, when the thickness of the half shells 111 and 112 varies, the thickness of the joint portion may be particularly reduced, which may cause the content liquid to leak. In particular, when the thickness of the half shells 111 and 112 is reduced, the risk of leakage of the content liquid increases, but in this embodiment, variation in the thickness of the edible sheet can be suppressed. Can be surely prevented.

  In addition, in the soft capsule manufacturing apparatus according to the present embodiment, two edible sheet manufacturing apparatuses shown in the first embodiment are incorporated as an edible sheet manufacturing unit, and only one edible sheet or soft capsule is included in one apparatus. It can be made manufacturable. Or an edible sheet can be manufactured with another apparatus, and the manufactured edible sheet can also be supplied to the manufacturing apparatus of a soft capsule like this embodiment.

<5. Modification>
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to this, A various change is possible unless it deviates from the meaning. The following modifications can be combined as appropriate.

<5-1>
The shape of the manifold of the coating tool is not particularly limited, and various shapes are possible according to the composition of the gelling agent-containing composition. And you may form in the position in any one of a 1st part and a 2nd part. Moreover, the position of the injection hole should just be formed in either the 1st part or the 2nd part. Moreover, the structure of the heating means for heating a coating tool is not specifically limited, What is necessary is just to be able to heat so that a gelling agent containing composition may be maintained in a liquid state. Therefore, the structure, position, and number of the heating means are not particularly limited.

<5-2>
The coating tool can be fixed to a cooling drum. For example, if the rotating shaft of the cooling drum and the coating tool are fixed via a bracket or the like, the distance between the discharge port of the coating tool and the surface of the cooling drum can be made constant. Thereby, the edible sheet | seat of uniform thickness can be manufactured.

<5-3>
The concave portions 611 and 621 formed in the die rolls 61 and 62 are not limited to a hemispherical shape, and can have various shapes. For example, the concave portions 611 and 621 that can form the capsule shell 80 having an elliptical cross section may be used.

<5-4>
In the above embodiment, the gelling agent-containing composition is supplied and cooled on the cooling drum 3, but if the gelling agent-containing composition can be cooled to form a thin edible sheet, cooling is performed. A cooling member other than the drum can also be used. For example, an edible sheet can be formed by supplying a gelling agent-containing composition onto a plate-shaped cooling member and moving the gelling agent-containing composition together with the cooling member.

1 receiving portion 2 coating tool 213 first passage (manifold)
222 Second passage (manifold)
24 Discharge port 3 Cooling drum 5 Pump 61, 62 Die roll 611, 621 Recess 612, 622 Cutting blade 7 Supply device (content liquid supply part)

Claims (12)

Supplying a liquid gelling agent-containing composition to a coating tool having a manifold and a slit-like discharge port communicating with the manifold based on control of a supply amount by a pump;
Discharging the gelling agent-containing composition through the manifold and the discharge port, and supplying the cooling agent on the cooling member;
Forming the edible sheet by moving the gelling agent-containing composition together with the cooling member while cooling on the cooling member;
A process for producing an edible sheet. The cooling member is constituted by a cooling drum having an axis extending in the forming direction of the discharge port,
The edible sheet is formed by moving the gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the coating tool along with the rotation of the cooling drum while being cooled on the cooling drum. The manufacturing method of the edible sheet | seat of description.   The said coating tool is a manufacturing method of the edible sheet | seat of Claim 1 or 2 provided with the heating means to heat the said gelatinizer containing composition which passes the said manifold and the said discharge outlet.   The said heating means is the manufacturing method of the edible sheet | seat of Claim 3 comprised by the heater embedded around the said manifold and discharge outlet.   5. The edible sheet according to claim 1, wherein the gelling agent contained in the gelling agent-containing composition is one or more selected from gelatin, pectin, carrageenan, starch, and pullulan. Production method. The process of manufacturing a 1st edible sheet and a 2nd edible sheet by the manufacturing method of the edible sheet in any one of Claim 1 to 5,
A step of supplying the first and second edible sheets between the first and second die rolls formed on the surface with a plurality of recesses having a cutting blade on the periphery and approaching in a parallel state;
The first edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the first die roll and the second edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the second die roll are rotated by the two die rolls. In the process of forming the capsule shell while forming the capsule shell by joining together, a step of injecting the content liquid into the inside, and
Cutting the capsule shell from the first and second edible sheets together with the rotation of the two die rolls to form a soft capsule;
With
The height H of the cutting blade and the average t of the total thickness of the first and second edible sheets supplied between the first and second die rolls satisfy the relationship of t> 2 × H. A method for producing soft capsules. A container containing a liquid gelling agent-containing composition;
A coating tool having a manifold and a slit-like discharge port communicating with the manifold;
A pump capable of controlling the supply amount of the gelling agent-containing composition, while supplying the liquid gelling agent-containing composition from the container to the coating tool,
A cooling member that is supplied with the liquid gelling agent-containing composition discharged from the discharge port and cools the liquid gelling agent-containing composition;
An edible sheet manufacturing apparatus.   The said cooling member is an edible sheet manufacturing apparatus of Claim 7 comprised by the cooling drum which an axis line extends in the formation direction of the discharge outlet of the said coating tool, and can rotate.   The said coating tool is a manufacturing apparatus of the edible sheet | seat of Claim 7 or 8 provided with the heating means to heat the said gelatinizer containing composition which passes the said manifold and the said discharge outlet.   The edible sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the heating unit includes a heater embedded around the manifold and the discharge port.   The edible sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the coating tool is fixed to the cooling drum. It is the same structure as the edible sheet manufacturing apparatus in any one of Claims 7-11, Comprising: The 1st edible sheet manufacturing part and 2nd edible sheet manufacture which manufacture a 1st and 2nd edible sheet, respectively. And
A plurality of recesses having cutting blades on the periphery are formed on the surface, and first and second die rolls that are close to each other in a parallel state;
A content liquid supply unit for supplying the content liquid;
With
The first edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the first die roll and the second edible sheet disposed along the surface of the concave portion of the second die roll are rotated by the two die rolls. While forming a capsule shell by joining together, in the process of forming the capsule shell, injecting the content liquid from the content liquid supply unit therein,
Along with the rotation of the two die rolls, the capsule shell is cut from the first and second edible sheets to form a soft capsule,
The height H of the cutting blade and the average t of the total thickness of the first and second edible sheets supplied between the first and second die rolls satisfy the relationship of t> 2 × H. Soft capsule manufacturing equipment.