JP2577875Y2 - Heat sterilizer - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a heating sterilization apparatus for sterilizing an object to be sterilized such as various kinds of chemicals contained in a container such as a glass bottle, and to cooling the object to be sterilized after the sterilization. The operation cost is reduced by reducing the amount of water required.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When sterilizing a medical solution used in a hospital or the like in a container such as a glass bottle or the like, a sterilization operation is performed by a heat sterilization apparatus as schematically shown in FIG. The heat sterilization apparatus is provided on a sterile container 2 which can be hermetically sealed in a state in which articles 1 and 1 such as glass bottles filled with a chemical solution are housed, and on an inner surface of the sterile container 2 such as a ceiling surface or left and right side surfaces. A jet nozzle 3, 3 having a configuration like a shower and capable of spouting water toward the objects 1, 1, an end at the bottom of the sterilization container 2, and another at the suction port of the water supply pump 4. A discharge pipe 6 whose end is connected to a discharge pipe 5 connected to the discharge port of the water supply pump 4, and a discharge pipe 6 whose other end is connected to the jet nozzles 3, 3, respectively. A water supply pipe 7 for supplying water, a water supply valve 8 provided in the middle of the water supply pipe 7, and an overflow pipe 1 for discharging excess water existing in the sterilization container 2
And 5. A trap (not shown) is provided in the middle of the overflow pipe 15.

A downstream end of a steam supply pipe 10 provided with a steam valve 9 in the middle of the feed pipe 6 is connected.
When the steam valve 9 is opened, high-temperature steam is fed into the water sent toward the jet nozzles 3 and 3 through the feed pipe 6, and the water in the feed pipe 6 is heated. That is, the steam supply pipe 10 is connected to the objects 1, 1 through the jet nozzles 3, 3.
And heating means for heating water spouting toward.

[0004] Sterilization of the objects to be sterilized 1 and 1 by the heat sterilizing apparatus configured as described above is performed as follows.

[0005] First, the objects to be sterilized 1 and 1 are stored in a sterilization container 2, and when the sterilization container 2 is sealed, the water supply valve 8 is opened for a predetermined time as shown in the left end of FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, a desired amount of water 11 is fed into the bottom of the sterilization container 2. Next, the water pump 4 which has been stopped is operated, and the steam valve 9 which has been closed is opened. As a result, water (hot water or hot water) which is taken out from the bottom of the sterilization container 2 through the take-out pipe 5 and whose temperature has been raised by feeding high-temperature steam in the middle of the feed pipe 6 is
The jet nozzles 3, 3 squirt into the sterilization container 2 to heat the sterilization container 2 and the objects 1, 1 to be sterilized. By this operation, the temperature in the sterilization container 2 changes as shown by a solid line a in FIG. 3, and the temperatures of the objects 1 and 1 change as shown by a broken line b in FIG.

When the temperature of the objects 1 and 1 has risen sufficiently, the opening and closing of the steam valve 9 is controlled to keep the temperature of the container 2 and the objects 1 and 1 constant. The temperature holding operation is performed by opening and closing the steam valve 9 based on a signal from a temperature sensor (not shown) that detects the temperature of the objects 1 and 1 to be sterilized. That is, a sample article 13 having the same configuration as that of the objects 1 and 1 is provided in the sterilization container 2, and the temperature of the sample article 13 can be detected by a temperature sensor (not shown). Then, a controller (not shown) controls the opening and closing of the steam valve 9 so that the temperature in the sample article 13 changes as desired.

[0007] When the objects 1 and 1 are sterilized at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined time, the objects 1 and 1 whose temperature has risen during the sterilization are cooled, and then the contents of the sterilization container 2 are removed. Take out from. In this cooling operation, the water supply valve 8 is opened while the operation of the water supply pump 4 is continued after the steam valve 9 is closed. At this time, the water supply valve 8 is, as shown in FIG.
In addition to being left open, there is also a case where the door is opened for a predetermined time at fixed time intervals as shown in FIG.

In any case, by supplying low-temperature water from the water supply pipe 7 into the sterilization container 2 with the opening of the water supply valve 8, the water 11 accumulated at the bottom of the sterilization container 2 The temperature of the water jetted from the jet nozzles 3 and 3 toward the objects to be sterilized 1 and 1 gradually decreases. This temperature change of the water is almost the same as the temperature change in the sterilization container 2 and decreases as shown by the solid line a in FIGS. Along with this, the temperature of each of the objects to be sterilized 1 and 1 decreases as shown by a broken line b in each figure.

[0009]

However, in the case of the conventional heat sterilizer configured as described above, when cooling the objects 1 to be sterilized after the sterilization process, the water jetted from the jet nozzles 3 and 3 is cooled. Regardless of the temperature, keep the water supply valve 8 open,
Alternatively, since the water supply valve 8 is always opened only for a predetermined time, the use amount of the cooling water may increase in some cases, and it is inevitable that the operation cost increases.

That is, in the cooling step of cooling the objects 1 and 1 after the sterilization process, each of the objects 1 and 1 is cooled by the heat capacity that changes depending on the amount of the objects 1 and 1 stored in the sterilization container 2. , As well as the rate of fall of the water temperature. Then, when the heat capacity is small, the temperature of the water is lower than that of the materials 1 and 1, for example, as shown by the solid line a and the broken line b in FIG. And a large difference occurs between the temperature of the objects 1 and 1 and the temperature of the water. In such a state, the time required for the cooling process can be shortened to some extent, but a large amount of water is discarded without sufficiently transferring the heat energy of the objects 1 and 1 to the water. For this reason, a large amount of water is used. For example, when the place where the heat sterilization apparatus is used is in an urban area, a water charge and a sewerage charge are increased, and it is inevitable that the running cost of the heat sterilization apparatus increases.

If the difference between the temperatures of the objects 1 and 1 and the temperature of the water to be sterilized is reduced by reducing the amount of water sent into the sterilization container 2 through the water supply pipe 7, the above disadvantage can be solved. Since the rate at which the temperature of the objects 1 and 1 decreases varies depending on the amount of the objects 1 and 1, the temperature of the objects 1 and 1 is maintained while the cooling water is continuously supplied. It is very difficult to keep the difference between the temperature of the water and the temperature small, and it is inevitable that the water consumption cannot be sufficiently saved, or the time required for the cooling process becomes too long.

The heat sterilization apparatus of the present invention solves any of the above-mentioned disadvantages.

[0013]

As shown in FIG. 1, the heat sterilization apparatus of the present invention, as in the conventional heat sterilization apparatus of the present invention, accommodates sterile objects 1, 1 such as glass bottles filled with a chemical solution. A sterile container 2 that can be hermetically sealed in a state, and is provided on a ceiling surface or an inner surface such as a left and right side surface of the sterile container 2 and has a configuration like a shower, and jets water toward the above-mentioned sterilized objects 1 and 1. A freely ejecting nozzle 3, one end of the sterilization container 2 at one end, a suction pipe 5 connected to the suction port of the water supply pump 4 at the other end, and one end at the discharge port of the water supply pump 4. A feed pipe 6 having the other end connected to each of the jet nozzles 3, 3, a water supply pipe 7 for supplying low-temperature water into the sterilization container 2, and a water supply valve provided in the middle of the water supply pipe 7. 8 for discharging excess water present in the sterilization container 2 And a Bafuro tube 15.

In the middle of the feed pipe 6, the downstream end of a steam supply pipe 10 provided with a steam valve 9 in the middle is connected to the articles 1 to be sterilized from the jet nozzles 3, 3. And heating means for heating the jetted water. However, in the case of a small heat sterilizer, a heater can be provided by disposing a heater at the bottom of the sterilization container 1 instead of the steam supply tube 10.

Further, in the heat sterilizer of the present invention,
The water supply valve 8 is opened / closed by a command from the controller 12, such as a motor valve, an air valve communicating with a compressed air source via an electromagnetic valve, or the like. The controller 12 has a function of opening the water supply valve 8 at predetermined time intervals. or,
For example, in the middle of the feed pipe 6, the feed pipe 6
A temperature sensor 14 for detecting the temperature of water flowing through the inside,
The temperature of the water jetted from the jet nozzles 3, 3 toward the objects 1, 1 can be detected.

The output of the temperature sensor 14 is input to the controller 12, and the controller 12 detects a rapid change in the temperature of the water sent to each of the jet nozzles 3, 3 detected by the temperature sensor 14. In the case of, by repeating the operation of shortening the open time of the water supply valve 8 and lengthening the open time of the water supply valve 8 when the temperature change is gradual,
It has a function of cooling the objects 1 and 1 to be sterilized.

[0017]

The heat sterilizing apparatus of the present invention configured as described above raises the temperature in the sterilization container 2 through the preparatory process, and heats the articles 1 and 1 stored in the sterilization container 2. The operation at the time of sterilizing each of the articles 1, 1 is the same as that of the above-mentioned conventional heat sterilizer.

In particular, in the case of the heat sterilization apparatus of the present invention, a large temperature difference does not occur between the water and the objects 1, 1 during the cooling process, and the water is not wasted. As a result, running costs can be reduced.

That is, when cooling the sterilized objects 1 and 1 whose temperature has risen due to the sterilization process, the water supply valve 8 is set to a predetermined value as shown in FIG. Open every time interval. With the opening of the water supply valve 8, the water 11 stored at the bottom of the sterilization container 2 and the temperature in the sterilization container 2 decrease, and the objects 1, 1 are cooled. As a result of cooling the objects 1 and 1, the temperature of the water 11 increases. The degree of the increase in temperature is determined by the amount of the objects 1 and 1 and becomes large when the heat capacity is large, Conversely, when the heat capacity is small, it becomes smaller.

Therefore, when the degree of temperature rise (temperature change) of the water 1 is sharp, the opening time of the water supply valve 8 is extended,
Conversely, if the degree of temperature rise is gradual and the opening time of the water supply valve 8 is shortened, the amount of water supply can be appropriately adjusted according to the magnitude of the heat capacity. Hereinafter, the same operation is repeatedly performed until the temperature of the articles 1 and 1 (sample article 13) decreases to a predetermined value.

[0021]

In the case of the heat sterilizer of the present invention configured and operated as described above, a large difference may occur between the temperature of the object to be sterilized and the temperature of the cooling water during the cooling process. Disappears. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate waste of discarding water that does not sufficiently transfer the heat of the object to be sterilized, reduce the amount of water consumption, and reduce the running cost of the heat sterilization apparatus.
Further, since there is no large temperature difference between the object to be sterilized and the cooling water, the container can be prevented from cracking even when sterilizing glass containers or the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic circuit diagram showing a heat sterilization apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic circuit diagram showing a conventional heat sterilization apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing temperature changes in a sterilization container and an object to be sterilized by a conventional heat sterilization apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a temperature change between the inside of the sterilization container and the object to be sterilized during a cooling process of the object to be sterilized by the heating sterilization apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 To-be-steriled object 2 Sterilization container 3 Spout nozzle 4 Water supply pump 5 Outlet pipe 6 Feeding pipe 7 Water supply pipe 8 Water supply valve 9 Steam valve 10 Steam supply pipe 11 Water 12 Controller 13 Sample article 14 Temperature sensor 15 Overflow pipe

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A sterilization container which can be hermetically sealed with an object to be sterilized housed therein, a jet nozzle provided on an inner surface of the sterilization container and capable of jetting water toward the object to be sterilized, and a bottom portion of the sterilization container. A suction pipe connected to the suction port of the water supply pump at the other end, and a discharge pipe connected to the discharge port of the water supply pump at the other end, the other end to the ejection nozzle, and the sterilization pipe. A water supply pipe for supplying low-temperature water into the container, a water supply valve provided in the middle of the water supply pipe, an overflow pipe for discharging excess water present in the sterilization container, and a discharge nozzle. In a heating sterilization apparatus provided with a heating means for heating water jetted toward an object to be sterilized, a controller for opening the water supply valve at predetermined time intervals, and flowing through the take-out pipe and the feed pipe. Sent to the jet nozzle A temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the supplied water, wherein the controller shortens the opening time of the water supply valve when the temperature of the water sent to the ejection nozzle is sharp, and the temperature change is gradual. , Wherein the water supply valve is opened for a longer period of time.