JP3078284B1 - Continuous container cleaning equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract: PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a continuous cleaning apparatus for containers which can hygienically and effectively wash the inside of each container which is continuously conveyed, and can continuously perform drying up to drying. SOLUTION: A receiving conveyor for receiving a container into a cleaning chamber, a container received by the receiving conveyor in the cleaning chamber is raised together with the receiving conveyor to a cleaning position, and further, the cleaned container is moved to an initial position together with the receiving conveyor. An elevating mechanism for lowering, a clamp inverting mechanism for inverting the container upside down while holding the container raised to the washing position together with the conveyor by the operation of the elevating mechanism, and an inverted mechanism by the clamp inverting mechanism. It has a washing mechanism for washing the inside and outside of the container with hot water and rinsing, and an air blow mechanism for draining the inside and outside of the container after the washing by the washing mechanism.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a container cleaning apparatus for cleaning a large number of pharmaceutical and chemical food containers formed of, for example, glass, porcelain, ceramics, resin, metal, etc. The present invention relates to a continuous cleaning apparatus for containers which can clean the inside of each of the containers in a sanitary and effective manner and can continuously perform drying and drying.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Pharmaceutical chemical food containers (hereinafter simply referred to as containers).
As the cleaning device referred to as containers), in the conventional known ones diverse. A general continuous cleaning apparatus capable of continuously cleaning containers that are continuously transferred therein is provided with a transfer means such as a net conveyor for placing and transferring the containers to be cleaned, and a transfer means such as a net conveyor. Cleaning means for injecting a cleaning liquid into the mounted container, and when cleaning the container, the outer surface and the inner surface of the container are kept in a state of being mounted on a net conveyor or the like. Cleaning is performed by spraying a cleaning solution on the side.

[0003]

When a cleaning liquid is sprayed from a nozzle disposed outside the container onto a container placed on a transfer means such as a conveyor, the cleaning blind spot by the conveyor is used. When the cleaning liquid is sprayed from the outside of the container to the inside of the container through the opening of the container, a washing blind spot occurs due to the opening edge of the container, and both the outer surface and the inner surface of the container to be cleaned are formed. However, there was a problem that it was difficult to efficiently clean.

Further, when a cleaning liquid is sprayed on a container with the opening surface of the container to be cleaned lying on a conveyor, vibrations caused by the spray of the cleaning liquid act on the container,
Due to the vibration of the container, there is also a problem that the opening edge of the container directly contacting the conveyor is easily damaged.

[0005] Further, in a conventional washing apparatus, a means for washing and draining a container with the container placed on a transfer means such as a conveyor is used, for example, when there is a dent toward the upper surface of the container. There was also a problem that the drainage of the container was poor and the drying efficiency of the container after the washing treatment was also poor.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve each of the disadvantages of the conventional continuous cleaning apparatus.
Both the outer surface and the inner surface of the container conveyed by the transfer means can be effectively cleaned without causing a blind spot, and the container can be rinsed and cleaned after the cleaning. It is a first object of the present invention to provide a continuous cleaning apparatus capable of performing continuous cleaning of a container as an apparatus.

It is a second object of the present invention to provide a continuous cleaning device capable of continuously draining and drying the washed container.

[0008]

To achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a receiving conveyor for receiving a conveyed container to be cleaned into a cleaning chamber, and receiving the container in the cleaning chamber by the receiving conveyor. Raising and lowering the container with the receiving conveyor to the cleaning position, and further lowering the container after cleaning to the initial position with the receiving conveyor, and the container raised to the cleaning position together with the conveyor by the operation of the lifting and lowering mechanism A clamp inversion mechanism that inverts the container upside down while holding the container from both sides, an inner cleaning nozzle that is inserted into the container inverted by the clamp inversion mechanism and sprays cleaning water on the inner surface of the container, The outer cleaning nozzle that sprays cleaning water on the outer peripheral surface, and the volume after cleaning by the inner cleaning nozzle and the outer cleaning nozzle. A cleaning mechanism including an inner rinsing nozzle inserted into the container for rinsing and cleaning the inner surface of the container, an outer rinsing nozzle for rinsing and cleaning the outer surface of the container, and the inner and outer surfaces of the container that has been cleaned by the cleaning mechanism. It is a continuous washing apparatus for containers having an air blow mechanism for draining water.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the second object, the container after the cleaning water is drained in the cleaning chamber is placed outside the cleaning chamber of the continuous cleaning apparatus according to the first aspect. It is characterized by being a continuous cleaning device for containers adjacent to a hot air drying chamber for drying.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of a continuous cleaning apparatus.
Is a washing room, and an introduction conveyor 3 for supplying containers 2 such as cans, bottles, dishes made of ceramics, porcelain, etc. to be washed into the washing room 1 outside the washing room 1.
And a take-out conveyor 4 for taking out the container washed in the washing room 1 is provided nearby. At the inner bottom of the cleaning chamber 1 is provided a receiving conveyor 5 for receiving the container 2 carried by the introduction conveyor 3 into the cleaning chamber 1.

The receiving conveyor 5 is configured to be able to move up and down by the lifting mechanism 6 while maintaining the horizontal level in the washing chamber 1. The structure of the lifting mechanism 6 is the front and rear of the receiving conveyor 5. Each of the hanging screw rods 7 for hanging both ends in the direction, a support 8 for supporting the hanging screw rods 7 in a vertical state, and a means for rotating the hanging screw rods 7 in the forward or reverse direction. It has a drive motor 9 that can rotate forward or reverse, and the rotational force of the drive motor 9 is applied to the suspension screw rod 7 via the chain 10 and the chain wheel 11.
Can be rotated.

A container 2 is provided at a position facing the inside of the washing chamber 1.
Of the pair of clamp reversing mechanisms 12 for holding the left-right symmetric position
The configuration of these clamp reversing mechanisms 12 includes a container pressing plate 13, a cylinder 14 for moving the container pressing plate 13 forward in the direction of the container 2 or returning the container pressing plate 13 in the direction opposite thereto, and The motor 15 is capable of rotating the container pressing plate 13.

At the inner bottom of the cleaning chamber 1, an inner cleaning nozzle 16 and an inner rinsing nozzle 1
The inner cleaning nozzle 16 and the inner rinsing nozzle 17 are supported integrally with a frame (not shown) of the receiving conveyor 5 and move up and down as the receiving conveyor 5 moves up and down. Is done. A cylinder 18 for moving the nozzles 16 and 17 up and down is connected to each of the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 and the inner surface rinsing nozzle 17.

An outer surface cleaning nozzle 19 and an outer surface rinsing nozzle 20 are provided at appropriate places inside the cleaning chamber 1.
Each of the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 and the outer surface cleaning nozzle 19 communicates with a hot water tank 22 via a cleaning pump 21. Further, each of the inner surface rinsing nozzle 17 and the outer surface rinsing nozzle 20 is connected to the pure water container 2 via a valve 23.
It leads to 4. In addition, in FIG. 1, 25 is a heat exchanger,
26 denotes a mist collector.

The configuration of the continuous cleaning apparatus according to the first embodiment has been described above. Next, the operation will be described. First, hot water used for cleaning the container 2 is stored in the hot water tank 22. At the same time, pure water for rinsing (finish cleaning) is prepared in the pure water container 24. Then, the cleaning of the container 2 transported by the introduction conveyor 3 is started, and the procedure of the container cleaning will be described with reference to FIGS.

When the container 2 to be washed carried by the introduction conveyor 3 is supplied to the center of the washing chamber 1 by the receiving conveyor 5, the drive motor 9 of the elevating mechanism 6 rotates forward, and the receiving conveyor 5 is rotated. Rises and the container 2 on the receiving conveyor 5 is raised. When the container 2 is raised in the cleaning chamber 1, the cylinder 1 of the clamp reversing mechanism 12
4 operates to hold the symmetrical position of the container 2 between the two container pressing plates 13.

When the container 2 is thus clamped, the receiving conveyor 5 is lowered and restored, and then the clamp reversing mechanism 12 starts a reversing operation, and the container clamped by the clamp reversing mechanism 12 is reversed by 180 degrees. The opening of the container 2 faces downward (see FIG. 4D). Subsequently, after the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 is erected by the operation of the cylinder 18, the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 is raised with the rise of the receiving conveyor 5, and the tip of the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 is located at the center of the inside of the container 2. (See (e) diagram).

Then, the cleaning pump 21 is driven, and cleaning water (hot water) is sprayed from the inner cleaning nozzle 16 and the outer cleaning nozzle 19 toward the inner and outer surfaces of the container 2 to clean the inner surface of the container 2 and the vicinity of the opening. Effective cleaning without blind spots.

When the washing of the container 2 is completed, the washing pump 21 is stopped, and when the jetting of washing water is stopped, the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 is lowered together with the receiving conveyor 5, and the inner surface cleaning nozzle 16 is tilted in the horizontal direction. It is.

Next, when the inner rinsing nozzle 17 is raised by the operation of the cylinder, the receiving conveyor 5 rises again, and the leading end of the inner rinsing nozzle 17 is positioned in the center of the inside of the container 2 as the receiving conveyor 5 rises. Is done.
Then, when the valve 23 is opened, the pure water in the pure water container 24 is sprayed from each of the inner surface rinsing nozzle 17 and the outer surface rinsing nozzle 20 toward the inner and outer surfaces of the container 2. As a result, the finish (rinse) cleaning of the container 2 is performed. Made effective.

When the rinsing of the container 2 is completed, the valve 23 is closed to stop the jet of pure water, and then the inner rinsing nozzle 17 is lowered together with the receiving conveyor 5, and the inner rinsing nozzle 17 is turned over in the horizontal direction. . Thereafter, the clamp reversing mechanism 1 while holding the container 2 is held.
In the case 2, since the motor 15 is rotated, the container 2 rotates together with the container pressing plate 13, whereby the water attached to the container 2 is drained.

The container 2 thus drained is
Hot air is supplied into the cleaning chamber 1 while relaxing the rotation or performing intermittent rotation to dry the container with hot air. After the completion of the hot-air drying, the receiving conveyor 5 is lifted to receive the container 2 on the receiving conveyor 5 and the clamping force of the container 2 by the container pressing plate 13 is released. As a result, when the receiving conveyor 5 is lowered, the cleaned container 2 is lowered to the inner bottom of the cleaning chamber 1, and when the receiving conveyor 5 is operated in the horizontal direction, the cleaned container 2 is moved out of the cleaning chamber 1. Derived to
It is conveyed to an appropriate position by the delivery conveyor 4.

As is clear from the above description, in the above embodiment, the container 2 carried into the cleaning chamber 1 is subjected to cleaning, rinsing, draining and drying in the same cleaning chamber 1. Therefore, the entire structure of the continuous cleaning device can be made compact. The container 2 conveyed into the cleaning chamber 1 is clamped on its outer surface and is located at a position separated from the receiving conveyor 5. Further, the inner cleaning nozzle 16 and the inner rinsing nozzle 17 are provided in the center of the container 2. Can be inserted at the insertion position, so that the above-mentioned container does not form a washing blind spot and can be extremely effectively washed. In addition, since there is no contact between the container 12 and the conveyor 5 at the time of washing, vibration during washing can be achieved. In this way, problems such as damage to the container 2 can be prevented beforehand, and sanitary container cleaning can be performed.

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the cleaning chamber 1 shown in the first embodiment is provided adjacent to the container outlet side. Hot air drying room 27
In the hot air drying chamber 27, the moisture contained in the air sucked from the hot air drying chamber 27 is removed by the filter 28, and the hot air having a low humidity is returned to the hot air drying chamber 2.
7 for circulation supply.

The receiving conveyor 5 installed in the cleaning chamber 1 is configured to be able to move down from the reference position where the container 2 is supplied by the operation of the cylinder 29.

Therefore, according to the second embodiment, since the hot-air drying chamber 27 is provided following the cleaning chamber 1, the hot-air drying chamber 27 is used to dry the cleaned container. In addition, the reliability and quickness of the hot air can be further improved, and the hot air sent into the hot air drying chamber 27 is supplied as hot air by a circulation system. Drying becomes possible.

Further, in the second embodiment, since the elevation drive mechanism of the receiving conveyor 5 is the cylinder 29, the elevation drive mechanism is different from the elevation mechanism 6 shown in the first embodiment. As a result, the configuration can be extremely simplified, which can also increase the equipment economics of the continuous cleaning device.

Further, by adjusting the position of the container pressing plate and the like of the clamp reversing mechanism in the first and second embodiments, various types of container cleaning can be performed.

[0030]

As described above, according to the container cleaning apparatus of the present invention, since the inner surface cleaning nozzle is inserted into the center of the interior of the container to be cleaned, no blind spot is produced on the inner surface of the container. Further, since the container at the time of washing is floated above the conveyor without being contacted and supported by the conveyor, the blind spot caused by contact between the container and the conveyor is eliminated, and the drainage after washing is easy. In addition, highly accurate container washing can be performed quickly and reliably.

When the container is washed as described above, the container is held in a non-contact state with the conveyor, so that friction between the container and the conveyor due to vibration or the like at the time of washing the container does not occur. This can prevent the container from being damaged.

Further, according to the present invention, by adjusting the position of the clamp reversing mechanism, particularly the container pressing plate, etc., it is possible to cope with cleaning of containers of various shapes and sizes.

Further, according to the present invention, since rinsing is performed after water washing (hot water washing), sanitary washing becomes possible, and this is particularly effective for washing foods and the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view showing a first embodiment of a continuous container cleaning apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory plan view of a lifting mechanism showing the first embodiment of the continuous container cleaning apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory view of a conveyor and a nozzle inside a cleaning chamber, showing a first embodiment of a container continuous cleaning apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory plan view of the inside of the cleaning chamber showing the first embodiment of the continuous container cleaning apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a container cleaning step according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the container continuous cleaning apparatus according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Cleaning room 2 ... Container 3 ... Introductory conveyor 4 ... Outgoing conveyor 5 ... Receiving conveyor 6 ... Elevating mechanism 7 ... Suspension screw rod 8 ... Support body 9 ... Drive motor 10 ... Chain 11 ... Chain wheel 12 ... Clamp reversing mechanism 13 ... Container pressing plate 14 ... Cylinder 15 ... Motor 16 ... Inner cleaning nozzle 17 ... Inner rinsing nozzle 18 ... Cylinder 19 ... Outer cleaning nozzle 20 ... Outer rinsing nozzle 21 ... Cleaning pump 22 ... Hot water tank 23 ... Valve 24 ... Pure water container 25 ... Heat exchanger 26 ... Mist collector 27 ... Hot air drying chamber 28 ... Filter 29 ... Cylinder

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-9-155313 (JP, A) JP-A-7-155707 (JP, A) JP-A 4-102688 (JP, U) JP-A 62-155707 61671 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B08B 3/00-9/00 A47L 15/00

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A receiving conveyor for receiving a conveyed container to be washed into a cleaning chamber, a container received by the receiving conveyor in the cleaning chamber together with the receiving conveyor to a cleaning position, and further after cleaning. An elevating mechanism for lowering the container to the initial position together with the receiving conveyor, and a clamp inverting mechanism for inverting the container upside down while holding the container raised to the washing position together with the conveyor by the operation of the elevating mechanism, while holding the container from both sides. An inner cleaning nozzle that is inserted into the container inverted by the clamp inverting mechanism and sprays cleaning water on the inner surface of the container, an outer cleaning nozzle that sprays cleaning water on the outer peripheral surface of the container, the inner cleaning nozzle, and the outer cleaning nozzle Inner rinsing nozzle which is inserted into the interior of the container after being rinsed by the rinsing and rinses the inner surface of the container A cleaning mechanism comprising an outer surface rinsing nozzle for rinsing and cleaning the outer surface of the container, and an air blow mechanism for draining the inner and outer surfaces of the container which has been cleaned by the cleaning mechanism. Continuous cleaning equipment. 2. A continuous cleaning of containers, wherein a hot-air drying chamber for hot-air drying a container after the cleaning water is drained in the cleaning chamber is provided outside the cleaning chamber of the continuous cleaning apparatus according to claim 1. apparatus.