JP2547228B2 - Powder filling device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial field of application) The present invention relates to powder filling capable of filling powder such as toner used in an image forming apparatus into a predetermined container at high speed and high density. Regarding the device.

(Prior Art) Toner used in an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine is usually filled in a bottle-shaped or cylindrical container and transported or stored. Conventionally, such filling of the toner in the container has been performed by positioning the container below the toner supply device and allowing the toner in the toner supply device to naturally drop into the container.

In such a method, the toner is not dropped into the container at a high speed due to the air existing in the container, and the toner falling into the container is mixed with the air in the container, so that the bulk density is reduced. It becomes smaller and is not packed densely. Therefore, it is impossible to fill a predetermined amount of toner into the container by one natural drop, and for example, about half the toner amount to be filled in the container is once filled by natural drop.
A method of filling the remaining toner after a lapse of a predetermined time for the toner to settle is adopted. In such a method, the toner cannot be efficiently filled in the container,
The work efficiency was very poor.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 60-68201 discloses a device capable of filling powder particles in a package at high speed and with high density. In the filling device disclosed in this publication, a filling casing that can be sealed is provided below the powder and granular material feeder, and the inside of the filling casing is depressurized while the package is held in the filling casing. By this, the inside of the package is decompressed at the same time as the filling box, and in this state, the granular material feeder drops the granular material into the package inside the filling case to fill the granular material into the package. Is.

The filling device has the advantage that the powder can be filled into the package at a high speed and at a high density because the inside of the package is in a reduced pressure state.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) In the filling device disclosed in the above publication, since the powdery or granular material is filled in the deformable package, the package held in the filling casing is in the filling casing. At the same time, it is in communication with the inside of the filling casing through the opening through which the powder is introduced so that the pressure is reduced. A filter is disposed around the charging port of the powder / granular material feeder located in the filling casing and the opening of the packaging, and the inside of the filling casing is decompressed to simultaneously package the packaging via the filter. The inside is decompressed to deform the packaging. Further, the filter prevents the powder particles from scattering into the filling casing when the powder particles are fed into the package from the powder particle feeder.

However, when a fine powder toner is filled in a bottle-shaped or cylindrical container, if such a filling device is used, the toner scatters when the toner is dropped into the container, and the toner is filtered by the filter. May cause clogging. If the inside of the container is in a depressurized state, the toner abruptly drops into the container, so that a large amount of toner is scattered from the opening of the container and the filter is abruptly clogged. If the filter is not clogged, the pressure inside the container cannot be quickly reduced through the filter, and the work efficiency of toner filling is significantly reduced.
In addition, since the bottle-shaped or cylindrical container is usually made of a material such as synthetic resin that cannot be deformed, if the filter is not clogged, the inside of the container will be decompressed by decompressing the inside of the container to decompress the container. Since the inside of the filling casing, which is the outside of the container, is not depressurized but is depressurized, a pressure difference may occur between the inside and the outside of the container, and the container may be damaged. Even when the toner is charged into the depressurized container, if the circumference of the container is in a depressurized state, there is a possibility that the container may be damaged due to the pressure increase in the container due to the toner charging.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide powder such as toner at a high speed without damaging the container in a container made of a material such as a synthetic resin that does not deform. An object of the present invention is to provide a powder filling device capable of filling with high density.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a powder filling device having a relatively simple structure.

Still another object of the present invention is that when the powder in the powder feeder is filled into the container, there is no risk of the powder adhering to the pipeline through which the powder flows, and therefore the powder is filled into the container. It is an object of the present invention to provide a powder filling device capable of remarkably improving the yield of powders.

(Means for Solving Problems) A powder filling device according to the present invention comprises a powder feeder capable of feeding powder in predetermined amounts, and an inlet for powder fed from the powder feeder. A state in which the decompression casing whose inside is kept airtight and a container filled with powder in the decompression casing are in a state where the opening of the container is airtightly fitted into the powder charging port, and the opening The container holder for raising and lowering the part so as to be separated from the powder charging port, and the powder charging port provided inside so that the opening of the container and the powder charging port can be fitted in an airtight manner. A fitting portion having an inverted truncated cone shape protruding from the upper surface of the decompression casing toward the lower surface, and a decompression device for decompressing the inside of the decompression casing,
Pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure in the decompression casing from a decompressed state, wherein the pressure raising means equilibrates the pressure inside the container and the decompression casing when the powder is filled in the container. The atmosphere can be introduced into the decompression casing while maintaining the above, whereby the above object is achieved.

(Example) Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to Examples.

The toner filling device, which is the powder filling device of the present invention, includes the first
As shown in the figure, a toner supply device 10 capable of supplying a predetermined amount of fine powder toner, and a container 80 provided below the toner supply device 10 and filled with toner are held inside. And a decompression case 20.

The toner supply device 10 is, for example, a toner cutout device (not shown) capable of cutting out a predetermined amount of toner from a tank, and a toner hopper connected to the toner cutout device and capable of storing a predetermined amount of toner cut out by the toner cutout device. The toner hopper 11 has an opening / closing valve 12 disposed at a toner dropping port of the toner hopper 11. When the opening / closing valve 12 is opened, a predetermined amount of toner is dropped from the toner hopper 11.

The opening / closing valve 12 is connected to the upper end of a connecting pipe 30 arranged substantially vertically, and the toner input port at the lower end of the connecting pipe 30 is connected.
Reference numeral 31 is located inside the decompression casing 20. The toner that drops from the toner hopper 11 through the opening / closing valve 12 drops into the decompression casing 20 through the connecting pipe 30.

The decompression casing 20 can be divided into an upper half body 21 and a lower half body 22, and the lower half body 22 is lifted and lowered by an air cylinder 70 so as to be joined to and separated from the upper half body 21. The lower half 22 is joined to the upper half 21 by raising the lower half 22 by the air cylinder 70.
Sealing members 21a and 22a made of, for example, soft rubber are provided at the portions where the two are joined, and the lower half body 22 is joined to the upper half body 21 by the air cylinder 70, so that each sealing member 21a And 22a are airtightly engaged with each other, and the inside of the decompression casing 20 is in an airtight state. A guide member for guiding the seal member 22a of the lower half body 22 to join with the seal member 21a of the upper half body 21 when the lower half body 22 is lifted and joined to the lower outer surface of the upper half body 21. 23 are provided.

The upper half body 21 of the decompression casing 20 is fixedly attached to the lower part of the connecting pipe 30. When an inverted frusto-conical fitting portion 21b protruding downward is provided on the upper surface of the upper half body 21, the lower end of the connecting pipe 30 is inserted into the fitting portion 21b. The toner inlet 31 of the connecting pipe 30 is located in the upper half 21.
A packing 21c made of, for example, soft rubber is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 21b.

A container holder 60 that holds, for example, a cylindrical container filled with toner is provided in the lower half 22 of the decompression casing 20. The container holder 60 has an air cylinder 61 attached to the bottom surface of the lower half body 22, and a support base 62 attached to the tip of the piston rod 61a of the air cylinder 61.
The air cylinder 61 is mounted so that the piston rod 61a extends upward. The support base 62 is fitted to, for example, the lower portion of a cylindrical container 80 to hold the container 80 in a substantially vertical state. The container 80 is raised and lowered by raising and lowering the air cylinder 61. The container 80 is positioned in the lower half 22 in a state where the lower half 22 is lowered and separated from the upper half 21, and is placed on the support table 20.

The container 80 has, for example, a cylindrical shape, and an opening 81 is formed on the upper surface thereof. Then, the container 80 is a support table 62.
When the air cylinder 61 is driven so that the piston rod 61a moves upward with the upper half 21 and the lower half 22 of the decompression casing 20 airtightly joined, the opening 81 of the container 80 Fits into the fitting portion 21b provided on the upper surface of the upper half body 21. At this time, the opening 81 of the container 80 and the fitting portion 21b are made airtight by the packing 21c, so that the connecting pipe 30
The toner inlet 31 is fitted into the opening 81 of the container 80 in an airtight state.

On the upper surface of the upper half body 21 of the decompression casing 20, the decompression conduit
One end of 41 is attached in communication with the inside of the upper half 21. The other end of the decompression pipe 41 is connected to a vacuum pump 44 which is, for example, a decompression device, and an opening / closing valve 42 is interposed in the decompression pipe 41.

Further, one end of an atmosphere introducing pipe 51 is attached to the upper surface of the upper half body 21 in the decompression casing 20 so as to communicate with the inside of the upper half body 21, and the other end of the atmosphere introducing pipe 51 is It is opened to the atmosphere via the on-off valve 52 and the flow rate adjusting valve 53.

By the filling device of the present invention having such a configuration, the toner is filled in the container 80 as follows. First, the on-off valve 12 arranged below the toner hopper 11 is closed.
Air cylinder to lower the lower half 22 of the decompression cabinet 20
The lower half 22 is separated from the upper half 21 by operating 70. In this state, the container 80 filled with toner is
The container 81 is placed on the support base 62 of the container holder 60 arranged in the lower half 22 such that the opening 81 is located on the upper side. Next, the air cylinder 70 is operated to raise the lower half body 22 so that the seal member 22a of the lower half body 22 and the seal member 21a of the upper half body 21 are airtightly joined. When the lower half body 22 and the upper half body 21 are joined, the on-off valve 52 interposed in the atmosphere introduction pipe 51 is closed, and the inside of the decompression casing 20 is made airtight.

In this case, the container 80 held in the lower half body 22 has the opening 81 separated from the fitting portion 21b in the upper half body 21, and the inside of the container 80 is the inside of the decompression casing 20. Communication is established.

In this state, the on-off valve 42 installed in the pressure reducing line 41
Is opened and the vacuum pump 44 is driven. As a result, the air inside the decompression casing 20 is sucked and the inside of the decompression casing 20 is decompressed, and at the same time, the inside of the container 80 is decompressed.

Then, the inside of the container 80 and a decompression casing surrounding the container 80.
When the pressure in 20 is reduced in an equilibrium state and both are brought into a substantially vacuum state, the on-off valve 42 interposed in the pressure reducing pipe 41 is closed and the driving of the vacuum pump 44 is stopped. As a result, the inside of the decompression casing 20 becomes airtight.

In this state, the air cylinder 61 inside the decompression casing 20 is operated to raise the support base 62. This allows the support base
The opening 81 of the container 80 held by 62 is airtightly fitted to the fitting portion 21b via the packing 21c as shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG.

Next, the open / close valve 12 provided below the toner hopper 11 in the toner supply device 10 is opened, and the open / close valve 52 interposed in the atmosphere introduction pipe 51 is opened. As a result, a predetermined amount of toner stored in the toner hopper 11 is collectively dropped into the container 80 in the decompression casing 20 via the connecting pipe 30. At this time, the atmosphere introduction pipe 51
From the above, the atmosphere in a predetermined flow rate regulated by the flow rate adjusting valve 53 provided in the atmosphere introducing pipe 51 flows in, and the pressure in the decompression casing 20 rises. Therefore, even if the pressure inside the container 80 rises due to the toner falling into the container 80, the pressure inside and outside the container 80 is balanced and the container 80 is not damaged.
The amount of air flowing in from the air introduction pipe 51 is
Is regulated by the flow rate adjusting valve 53 provided in the container, and the flow rate of the flow rate adjusting valve 53 is set according to the amount of toner dropped from the toner hopper 11 into the container 80.

The toner dropped from the toner hopper 11 is filled into the container 80 at a high speed because the inside of the container 80 has been depressurized in advance. Moreover, since the inside of the container 80 is in a substantially vacuum state,
The toner that has fallen into the container 80 does not contain air, and there is no fear that the bulk density of the toner will decrease. Therefore, the predetermined amount of toner to be filled in the container 80 is surely filled without overflowing the container 80.

When all the toner in the toner hopper 11 is filled in the container 80, the air cylinder 61 in the decompression casing 20 is driven,
The support 62 is lowered, and the opening 81 of the container 80 is separated from the fitting portion 21b. Next, the air cylinder 70
Is driven to lower the lower half 22 at. When the lower half 22 is separated from the upper half 21, the toner-filled container 80 is taken out of the lower half 22.

When the capacity of the container to be filled with toner is changed, the flow rate adjusting valve 53 provided in the air introduction pipe 51 is adjusted, and when the toner is dropped into the container 80, the inside and the outside of the container 80 are adjusted. The pressure is made to rise while the pressures of and are in equilibrium.

(Effect of the Invention) As described above, the powder filling device according to the present invention can depressurize the inside of the undeformed container filled with the powder in a state of equilibrium with the outside and fill the container with the powder. Since the pressure inside and outside the container can be balanced even during this, the container is not likely to be deformed or damaged, and the powder can be filled into the container at high speed and high density.

Since the decompression of the inside and outside of the container in equilibrium is realized by one decompression device, one pipe and one on-off valve, the configuration is simplified. Since the pipeline through which the powder flows is a straight pipe and it is not necessary to connect it to other pipelines,
There is no unevenness in the pipeline, and there is no risk of powder adhering to the pipeline.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an example of a toner filling device which is a powder filling device of the present invention. 10 …… Toner supply device, 11 …… Toner hopper, 12 …… Open / close valve, 20 …… Decompression housing, 30 …… Connection pipe, 31 …… Toner input port, 41
...... Decompression line, 42 …… Open / close valve, 44 …… Vacuum pump, 51 ……
Atmosphere inlet pipe, 52 …… Open / close valve, 53 …… Flow control valve, 60 …… Container holder, 61 …… Air cylinder, 62 …… Support stand, 70 ……
Air cylinder.

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A powder supply device capable of supplying a predetermined amount of powder, an inlet for the powder supplied from the powder supply device, a decompression casing in which the inside is kept airtight, and the decompression device. Container holding for raising and lowering a container filled with powder in a housing such that an opening of the container is airtightly fitted to the powder feeding port and a state in which the opening is separated from the powder feeding port So that the container, the opening of the container, and the powder charging port can be fitted in an airtight manner, and the powder charging port is provided inside so as to project from the upper surface part of the decompression casing toward the lower surface part. And a pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure inside the pressure reducing housing from a reduced pressure state, the pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure inside the pressure reducing housing. However, when filling the container with the powder, the atmosphere in the decompression casing is maintained while maintaining the pressure balance between the inside of the container and the decompression casing. It may enter, the powder filling apparatus. 2. The powder filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the depressurizing device and the depressurizing housing are connected to each other via a pipeline having an opening / closing valve. 3. The powder according to claim 1, wherein the pressure increasing means has an atmosphere introducing pipe capable of introducing atmosphere into the decompression casing and an opening / closing valve interposed in the atmosphere introducing pipe. Filling device. 4. The powder filling apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the atmosphere introducing pipe has a flow rate adjusting valve for gas flowing through the atmosphere introducing pipe.