JP2641729B2 - Method and apparatus for treating object to be cleaned - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial application field) A cleaning treatment apparatus for an object to be cleaned according to the present invention efficiently and automatically cleans an object to be cleaned generated in hospitals, various research facilities, and even industries. Use when processing.

(Prior Art) In hospitals and various research facilities, it is necessary to carry out an operation of washing a toilet bowl, a surgical tool, a laboratory tool, or the like used by a patient before reusing the toilet bowl, surgical tools, or experimental instruments. In a factory or the like, a product such as a metal mold or the like immediately after production and with oil or the like adhered thereto must be cleaned before shipment.

Such a cleaning process uses a soap solution, a disinfectant solution, and an organic solvent to remove dirt and bacteria adhered to the object to be cleaned, and also removes oil, and the cleaning operation accompanying the cleaning operation. A rinsing operation for washing away soap water, a disinfecting solution, an organic solvent or the like adhering to the object, and a drying operation for drying the object to be cleaned wet by the cleaning operation and the rinsing operation are sequentially performed as necessary.

Such cleaning work is conventionally performed manually,
This was also done automatically using a washing device.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, in the case of a conventionally known and used cleaning device, it requires humans at necessary places, or has a complicated structure and many failures. There were some inconveniences.

That is, in the conventional automatic cleaning device, for example,
In the case where all processing operations including drying of an object to be cleaned are automatically performed as in the apparatus described in JP-A-51-45857,
After supplying and discharging the cleaning liquid into the cleaning container containing the object to be cleaned,
A structure in which rinsing is performed in the washing container and a drying operation is further performed in the washing container has to be employed, or a structure in which a large amount of heat escapes to the surroundings during drying has to be adopted.

For this reason, even if there are many types of objects to be cleaned and it is not preferable to wash them together, in the case of urgency, these objects to be cleaned should be washed at once or run costs should be reduced. Cleaning equipment has to be used or separately by hand.

The object-to-be-cleaned cleaning apparatus of the present invention eliminates any of the above-mentioned disadvantages.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention relates to a pallet for moving a plurality of sets of an upper casing and a lower casing, which form a closed space by closely contacting the upper and lower sides of a pallet provided with through holes, by a moving means. In the upper and lower cover case set on the front side in the pallet traveling direction, the cleaning liquid is supplied to and discharged from the sealed space, and the cleaning operation is performed. Heating the enclosed space on the pallet traveling direction side,
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problem by obtaining an apparatus for cleaning an object to be cleaned, which is evacuated to perform a drying operation.

When cleaning, rinsing, and drying of the object to be cleaned are all performed, a plurality of upper and lower casings are provided in series over the moving direction of the pallet by the moving means, and both upper and lower covers are provided on the front side in the moving direction. The casing is provided with a supply / drainage device for supplying / discharging the cleaning liquid into the space surrounded by the inner peripheral surface of the through hole and the inner surfaces of the upper and lower casings. A nozzle that sprays the processing liquid onto the object to be cleaned supported above the hole, and a drainage device that discharges the processing liquid that has flowed down into the lower housing, are attached to the upper and lower housings on the rear side in the moving direction. Exhaust means for exhausting air in a space surrounded by the inner peripheral surface of the through hole and the inner surfaces of the upper and lower cover cases.

As a moving means for moving the pallets, a conveyor may be used. In addition to moving the pallets placed on the conveyor, the pallets may be moved in a horizontal direction while rotating about a vertical axis.

(Operation) When the object to be cleaned is processed by the apparatus for treating an object to be cleaned according to the present invention configured as described above, the object to be cleaned is supported above the through holes provided in the pallet. Be able to move by moving means. However, in this state, both the upper and lower cover cases are separated from the upper and lower surfaces of the pallet.

The pallet moved by the moving means stops after the through hole moves between the upper cover case and the lower cover case, and then moves the lower edge of the upper cover case around the through hole on the upper surface of the pallet and the lower cover. The upper edge of the casing is brought into close contact with the periphery of the through hole on the lower surface of the pallet, and the space enclosed by the inner peripheral surface of the through hole and the inner surfaces of the upper and lower casings is airtight and liquid tight. Separate while holding.

In this state, the inside of the space is processed according to the processing operation, and the object to be cleaned supported above the through hole is processed.

When performing a cleaning operation, a cleaning liquid is supplied into the space by a supply / drainage device, and the cleaning liquid is ultrasonically vibrated by an ultrasonic vibrator. (Using an ultrasonic vibrator enables efficient cleaning. However, an agitating blade can be used in place of this, and in the case of an object to be cleaned which does not like vibration, only immersion is performed.)

When performing a cleaning operation or a rinsing operation, the processing liquid is sprayed from the nozzle onto the surface of the object to be cleaned, and the dirt or the cleaning liquid attached to the surface of the object to be cleaned is washed away, and the lower cover is covered through the through hole. The processing liquid that has flowed down into the housing is discharged by a drainage device.

Furthermore, when performing the drying operation, the exhaust means
The air in the space is exhausted to reduce the pressure in the space. As a result, the boiling point of the liquid lowers, the liquid adhering to the object to be cleaned boils and evaporates, and the object to be cleaned is dried.

Along the moving direction of the pallet by the moving means, a processing device having an upper and lower casing that performs each processing of washing, rinsing, and drying is arranged, and if each processing device is operated in synchronization, a plurality of All the processing operations from washing of the object to be washed to drying can be automatically performed continuously.

(Example) Next, the present invention will be described in more detail while describing the illustrated example.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment in a cleaning stage of the cleaning object cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

A through hole 2 is formed in the center of a pallet 1 formed of a synthetic resin or metal in a thick plate shape.
It is formed in a ring shape or a frame shape. A porous mounting plate 3 such as a wire mesh or punching metal is stretched over the through hole 2 so that fluid can freely flow through the through hole 2. The object to be cleaned 4 can be supported upward.

A large number of roller conveyors 5 are arranged at equal intervals, except for a part provided with upper and lower housings 6 and 8, which will be described later. Is placed on the pallet 1 so that the pallet 1 can be transferred horizontally (from left to right in FIG. 1).

When performing the cleaning operation, the upper cover 6 covering the upper part of the object to be cleaned 4 is formed into an inverted bottomed cylindrical shape having a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the through hole 2 and smaller than the outer diameter of the pallet 1. The air cylinder 7 allows the air cylinder 7 to move up and down above the roller conveyor 5.

When the processing operation is performed, the lower cover 8 that covers the lower part of the mounting plate 3 on which the object to be cleaned 4 is mounted has a diameter larger than the inner diameter of the through hole 2 and smaller than the outer diameter of the pallet 1. Is formed in a cylindrical shape with a bottom and can be moved up and down by an air cylinder (not shown).

One end is connected to the lower cover 8, and the other end of the drainage pipe 10 provided with the solenoid valve 9 on the way communicates with the upper part of the cleaning liquid tank 11 via the flexible pipe 12.

The cleaning liquid 13 stored in the cleaning liquid tank 11
Can be heated by a heater 14, and further connected to one end of a lower part of the cleaning liquid tank 11, and the other end to a discharge pipe 16 connected to a suction port of a liquid feed pump 15, and to a discharge port of the liquid feed pump 15. A liquid feed pipe 29 having one end connected and a flexible pipe 17 provided in the middle.
Thereby, it can be sent to a nozzle 18 provided inside the upper part of the upper cover 6.

Further, ultrasonic vibrators 19, 19 are fixed on the outer surface of the upper casing 6, and the cleaning liquid 13 is placed in a space 20 surrounded by the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 2 and the inner surfaces of the upper and lower casings 6, 8. If you fill
The cleaning liquid 13 is vibrated so that the dirt adhering to the cleaning object 4 can be efficiently removed. However, the ultrasonic transducer 19,
19 may be fixed to the outer surface of the lower housing 8, or may be provided inside the upper or lower housing 6, 8.

When the object to be cleaned is cleaned by the apparatus for cleaning an object to be cleaned of the present invention configured as described above, the object 4 to be cleaned is placed on the upper surface of the mounting plate 3 fixed to the pallet 1, and 1 is placed on the front end of the roller conveyor 5 (the left end in FIG. 1). At this time, the rod 7a of the air cylinder 7 is pulled up to raise the upper cover 6, and the lower cover 8 is lowered by pulling down the rod of the air cylinder (not shown) to lower the lower edge of the upper cover 6 and the lower cover. The distance from the upper edge of the housing 8 is widened.

When the pallet 1 is placed on the roller conveyor 5, the stopper 22 is protruded above the roller conveyor 5 by supplying compressed air to the air cylinder 21 provided immediately after the upper and lower casings 6, 8. , Facing the pallet 1 backward,
Move from left to right in FIG.

When the pallet 1 moves between the upper casing 6 and the lower casing 8, the front edge of the pallet 1 stops against the stopper 22. In this state, the roller conveyor 5 and the lower surface of the pallet 1 slip.

As described above, when the pallet 1 on which the article 4 to be cleaned is placed stops between the upper housing 6 and the lower housing 8, the upper housing 6 is then lowered, and the lower housing 8 is raised. Then, the lower edge of the upper cover 6 is placed on the upper surface of the
The upper edge of the lower casing 8 is brought into close contact with the peripheral portion of the through hole 2 on the lower surface of the pallet 1 so that the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 2
The space 20 surrounded by the inner surfaces of the lower housings 6 and 8 is separated from the outside while maintaining airtightness and liquid tightness.

A sealing material such as packing is attached to the lower edge of the upper casing 6 and the upper edge of the lower casing 8 as necessary.

As described above, when the space 20 around the object 4 is separated from the outside, the liquid supply pump 15 is operated with the electromagnetic valve 9 provided in the middle of the drain pipe 10 closed, and the inside of the cleaning liquid tank 11 is removed. Cleaning liquid 13
Is ejected from the nozzle 18.

By this ejection, a large one of the dirt adhering to the surface of the object 4 to be cleaned placed on the center of the upper surface of the pallet 1 is washed away. If the nozzle 18 is of a rotary type, the cleaning liquid 13
Can be sprayed evenly on the object 4 to be cleaned.

When the cleaning liquid 13 is filled in the space 20 by ejecting the cleaning liquid 13 from the nozzle 18, the ultrasonic vibrators 19, 19 provided on the outer surface of the upper casing 6 are energized,
The cleaning liquid 13 in the space 20 is ultrasonically vibrated to remove even dirt attached to the object 4 to be cleaned, including fine ones. At the time of this cleaning operation, a stirrer (not shown) provided in the upper casing 6 or the lower casing 8 replaces the ultrasonic oscillators 19, 19 or forms a space with the ultrasonic oscillators 19, 19 together. By agitating the cleaning liquid in 20, the cleaning operation can be performed efficiently. However, when the object to be cleaned 4 is weak against an impact force such as vibration, cleaning is performed simply by immersion.

By continuing to energize the ultrasonic transducers 19, 19 for a predetermined time,
When the dirt adhering to the surface of the cleaning object 4 is washed away, the electromagnetic valve 9 is opened with the liquid supply pump 15 stopped, and the cleaning liquid 13 in the space 20 is discharged. At this time, the outside air is sucked into the space 20 through an intake pipe communicating with the atmosphere by opening a solenoid valve (not shown) so that the cleaning liquid 13 is efficiently discharged.

When the cleaning liquid has been discharged from the space 20, the upper enclosure 6
, The lower cover 8 is lowered, the gap between the edges of the two covers 6, 8 is opened, and then the stopper 22 is lowered by the air cylinder 21 to move the pallet 1 rearward (right in FIG. 1). One).

FIGS. 2 and 3 show a pallet 1 and three sets of the upper casing 6 and the lower casing 8 as described above, in which a washing operation, a rinsing operation and a drying operation are sequentially performed. 1 shows an embodiment of a cleaning processing apparatus for a cleaning object.

In the case of this embodiment, the upper and lower casings 6 and 8 are moved in the transport direction of the roller conveyor 5 so that the operations of cleaning, rinsing, and drying the object to be cleaned can all be performed during a series of flows. , And three in each case.

The upper and lower housings 6, 8 on the front side in the moving direction (the left side in FIGS. 2 and 3) are provided with the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 2 formed in the pallet 1 and the upper and lower housings 6, 8, respectively. A supply / drain pipe 24 for supplying / discharging the cleaning liquid into / from a space 20 surrounded by the inner surface of the
Ultrasonic vibrators 19 and 19 for ultrasonically vibrating the cleaning liquid supplied into the space 20 through 24 are provided so that dirt attached to the cleaning object 4 placed on the upper surface of the central portion of the pallet 1 can be removed. ing.

In addition, the upper part of the upper casing 6 among the upper casing 6 and the lower casing 6 in the middle part is provided with the water of the object 4 to be cleaned placed on the upper surface of the placing plate 3 fixed to the center of the pallet 1. Alternatively, a nozzle 25 for spraying a rinsing liquid such as an organic solvent is provided, and the lower end of the lower casing 8 is connected to an upper end of a drain pipe 30 for discharging the rinsing liquid flowing down into the lower casing 8. ing.

Furthermore, the inner peripheral surface of the through-hole 2 and the upper and lower portions of the upper and lower housings 6 and 8 on the rear side in the moving direction (right side in FIGS. One end of an exhaust pipe 27 leading to a vacuum pump 26 for discharging air in a space 20 surrounded by the inner surfaces of the upper housings 6 and 8 is connected.
The object to be cleaned 4 in the space 20 can be heated freely by attaching the object 28.

When a cleaning operation is performed by the processing apparatus of the first embodiment, first, a cleaning liquid is supplied into the space 20 containing the article 4 to be cleaned through the supply / drain pipe 24, and the ultrasonic vibrators 19 and 19 supply the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid is ultrasonically vibrated to remove dirt attached to the object 4 to be cleaned. Thereafter, the cleaning liquid in the space 20 is discharged through the supply / discharge pipe 24.

After the washing operation is completed, the upper and lower casings 6, 8 are separated,
The stopper 22 is lowered, and the pallet 1 on which the cleaned object 4 is placed is sent rearward by the roller conveyor 5 and moved between the upper and lower housings 6 and 8 in the intermediate portion. The end is brought into close contact with the pallet to prepare for the rinsing operation following the cleaning operation.

When performing the rinsing operation, a rinsing liquid is sprayed onto a surface of the object 4 to be cleaned from a nozzle 25 provided at an upper portion of the cover 6 to wash away the cleaning liquid adhering to the surface of the object 4 and to remove the pallet. The rinsing liquid that has flowed down into the lower housing 8 through the center mounting plate 3 is discharged through a drain pipe 30.

After the rinsing operation is completed, the upper and lower casings 6 and 8 are separated, the stopper 22 is lowered, and the pallet 1 on which the object 4 to be cleaned is placed is sent rearward by the roller conveyor 5, It is moved between the upper and lower casings 6, 8 at the rear end, and the casings 6, 8 are lowered to prepare for a drying operation following a rinsing operation.

When the drying operation is performed, the object to be cleaned 4 in the space 20 is heated by the heater 28, and
The pressure in the space 20 is reduced by discharging the air in the space 20. As a result, during the rinsing operation, the boiling point of the rinsing liquid attached to the object to be cleaned 4 decreases, and the rinsing liquid attached to the object to be cleaned 4 evaporates and the object to be cleaned 4 dries. The operation of drying the object to be cleaned 4 can also be performed by blowing warm air into the space 20 or by blasting air toward the object to be cleaned 4 from an air nozzle provided in the space 20.

A plurality of pallets 1 placed on a roller conveyor 5;
1 is an arrow a, a on the roller conveyor 5 shown in FIG.
As shown by, since the paper is sent while being circulated, if the worker performs the work of replacing the processed object and the unprocessed object on the side of the roller conveyor 5, various types of the object to be cleaned can be obtained. Processing can be performed efficiently.

In the above-described embodiments, the conveyor 5 is used to move the plurality of pallets 1, 1.
Instead, as in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the pallets 1, 1 are fixed to the distal ends of the support arms 32, 32 extending in the radial direction from the vertically rotatable vertical shaft 31. The pallets 1 and 1 are moved while rotating, and furthermore, as in the third embodiment shown in FIG. The pallets 1 can be used to perform washing, rinsing, and drying operations at a plurality of locations on one pallet 1.

Further, when the upper housing 6 and the lower housing 8 are moved up and down, the upper and lower housings 6 and 8 may be moved relatively far and near, and both the upper and lower housings 6 and 8 can be moved up and down. It is also possible to fix the upper and lower positions of the housing 6 so that only the lower housing 8 can be moved up and down, or to fix the upper and lower positions of the lower housing 8 so that only the upper housing 6 can be moved up and down. However, any of the enclosures 6,
When the vertical position of the pallet 8 is fixed, it is necessary that the pallet 1 can be slightly raised and lowered.

As a means for supporting the object 4 to be washed above the hole 2, the mounting plate 3 is used as in the illustrated embodiment.
The object 4 to be washed is supported at the outer peripheral edge of the through hole 2 formed smaller than the object 4 to be washed, or the through hole 2 is formed as a set of a number of small holes, and is covered on the set. The cleaning object 4 can be placed.

(Effect of the Invention) Since the cleaning object cleaning apparatus of the present invention is configured and operates as described above, the cleaning, rinsing, and drying operations of the object 4 can be performed regardless of the simple configuration. Not only is it possible to automatically and efficiently process all objects, but it is also possible to process objects to be cleaned in small batches. It can be done quickly, automatically and automatically.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic vertical side view illustrating the outline of the configuration of the upper and lower casings and a pallet in a cleaning stage, FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically illustrating the overall configuration of a first embodiment of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention,
FIG. 3 is a schematic longitudinal perspective view showing a main part of this embodiment, and FIGS.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the outline of the second and third embodiments of the present invention using a pallet which rotates and moves about a vertical axis. 1: Pallet, 2: Through hole, 3: Mounting plate, 4: Object to be cleaned, 5: Roller conveyor, 5a: Roller, 6: Upper enclosure, 7: Air cylinder, 7
a: Rod, 8: Lower enclosure, 9: Solenoid valve, 10: Drain pipe, 11: Cleaning liquid tank, 12: Flexible pipe, 13: Cleaning liquid, 14: Heater, 15: Liquid pump, 16: Discharge pipe , 17: flexible tube, 18: nozzle, 19: ultrasonic transducer, 20: space, 21: air cylinder, 22: stopper, 23: air cylinder, 24: supply / discharge tube, 25: nozzle, 26: vacuum pump , 27: exhaust pipe, 28: heater, 29: liquid feed pipe, 30: drain pipe, 31: vertical axis, 32: support arm.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-58-58181 (JP, A) JP-A 63-193587 (JP, U) JP-A 57-5883 (JP, U) JP-A 51-58 45857 (JP, U) JP 2-48382 (JP, B2) JP 58-9686 (JP, Y2) JP 52-28206 (JP, Y2) JP 3-37754 (JP, Y2) Japanese Utility Model Showa 62-46519 (JP, Y2) Japanese Utility Model Showa 63-31740 (JP, Y2)

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pallet which can freely support an object to be cleaned and communicate with the upper and lower surfaces so as to avoid the object to be cleaned and is movable by a moving means in a horizontal direction. The pallet has a plurality of upper and lower casings which are opposed to the upper and lower sides of the pallet and which can move up and down to cover the through holes and closely contact the upper and lower faces of the pallet. A liquid supply device for supplying a cleaning liquid to a closed space formed by the upper and lower casings being in close contact with the pallet is connected to the upper casing, and a drain pipe is connected to the lower casing facing the upper casing, A liquid supply pipe for spraying a rinsing liquid onto the object to be cleaned and performing rinsing is connected to the upper casing located in the middle part of the pallet moving direction, and a drain pipe is connected to the lower casing opposite thereto. A heater is provided on the upper casing that is connected and Cleaning apparatus of the cleaning object that is freely communicating with a vacuum pump to lower Kutsugaekatami opposed to. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving means for driving the pallet is a conveyor for placing and moving the pallet. 3. The apparatus for cleaning an object to be cleaned according to claim 1, wherein the moving means for driving the pallet is an apparatus for rotating and moving the pallet about a rotation axis.