JP3501507B2 - Equipment for manufacturing multiple cup containers - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container in which a plurality of cup containers are put together for sale. [0002] Conventionally, foods such as yogurt, pudding, natto and the like are often sold in cups each containing one serving. For convenience of bulk purchase, for example, as shown in FIG. Two or three cup containers C are put together and a lid material H for connection is used.
The multiple type bundled with is used. Cup container C
Are made of plastic or paper cups, and the lid H is made of paperboard. As an apparatus for manufacturing such a multiple cup container, a retainer provided with a plurality of holes for mounting the flange portions of the cup container C is intermittently arranged in a multi-row state in a transverse direction with respect to the traveling direction. The cup container is sequentially supplied to each of these retainers while being conveyed, and after filling the contents into the cup container C that moves on each retainer, the lid material H is supplied, and then the sealing member is moved. It is known that a predetermined number of cup containers C are simultaneously closed and connected by heat sealing the inner surface of the lid member H to the flange portion of the cup container C. [0003] In the seal portion of the above-mentioned manufacturing apparatus, usually, a lid material is formed by a hot plate of a sealer.
One or two heat seals and then one
I try to press twice. In order to make the entire apparatus as compact as possible and to minimize the liquid sway during the transfer of the retainer, the pitch of the intermittent transfer is set short, but the air cylinder which is the drive unit of the sealer is larger than this pitch. For this reason, in the case of double sealing, an empty station is provided between each sealer at present. By the way, since the lid of the multiple cup container also serves as a holder for connection, it is thicker than a normal lid. Therefore, if there is an empty station between the sealers, the heat applied to the lid material will be lost due to heat radiation during movement. As a result, it is necessary to considerably reduce the manufacturing capacity. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to minimize the heat radiation loss during sealing many times while maintaining the size of the entire device. An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container which can increase the sealing effect by holding down and can operate without reducing the manufacturing capacity. [0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a retainer provided with a plurality of holes for mounting a flange portion of a cup container in a row in a transverse direction with respect to a traveling direction. A retainer conveyor that intermittently transports each retainer in a state of being mounted in multiple rows, a cup supply unit that supplies cup containers to each retainer that is intermittently transported, and filling the contents into cup containers that move on each retainer A filling section,
A lid material supply unit for supplying a paperboard connecting lid material to the cup container moving on each retainer, and pressing the lid material by a seal head against the cup container moving on each retainer; And a seal portion for heat sealing the inner surface of the cup container to a flange portion of the cup container, wherein the seal portion includes a strong sealer having a large-diameter air cylinder as a driving portion and a small-diameter air. A weak sealer having a cylinder as a drive unit is arranged alternately in the traveling direction without forming an empty station for intermittent conveyance between the sealers. In the apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container having the above-described structure, the strong sealer and the weak sealer are alternately arranged in the seal portion without forming an empty station, so that the retainer is intermittent. There is no need to increase the transport pitch, so that the apparatus can be compactly assembled without increasing the overall size. In addition, a sufficient sealing pressure is secured by the strong sealer, and heat dissipation is prevented by the weak sealer, so that a desired sealing strength of the lid material to the cup container can be obtained without increasing the pressing time of each sealer. . An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 2 and 3 show an apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the whole, and FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view. In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes a retainer conveyor composed of a chain, in which retainers 2 shown in plan and side views in FIGS. 4 (a) and 4 (b) are mounted in multiple rows transversely to the traveling direction. Each retainer 2 is transported intermittently.
As shown in the figure, the retainer 2 is a long plate having six holes 21 for mounting the flange portion of the cup container in a line at equal intervals. The retainers 2 are located at the middle of each hole 21 and outside the holes 21 at both ends. The positioning pins 22 of the connecting lid material are provided upright at equal intervals along both sides in the longitudinal direction. Holes 23 are provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction, and the retainers 2 are attached to the chain of the conveyor 1 by using the holes 23 with an L-shaped member or the like. Also,
Support pins 24 are screwed in the vicinity of both ends, and the support rods 24 abut a support member of a filling machine or a sealer in a filling section or a sealing section described later to stably perform a filling operation or a sealing operation. It is for. In the present embodiment, a disc-shaped pedestal portion 22b and a shaft portion 22c eccentric to the lower portion of the tapered pin portion 22a as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B are used as the positioning pins 22. As shown in FIG. 6, a pedestal portion 22b and a shaft portion 22c are fitted into upper and lower portions of a hole 25 provided in the retainer 2, respectively, and the lower end of the shaft portion 22c is swaged. The positioning pin 22 is attached to the retainer 2. In addition, the shape and the mounting method of the positioning pin 22 are not limited to this. Reference numeral 3 denotes a cup supply unit which supplies the cup containers set in six rows in a stacked state on the stocker 4 to the retainer 2 by the cup supply unit 5. That is, after transferring the six bundled cup container group at the forefront of the stocker 4 from the stocker 4 to the cup feeder 5 by the swinging arm member 5a,
Six holes 21 in each retainer 2 conveyed intermittently
Then, the cup container is suctioned and dropped one by one from the bottom in order from the cup feeder, so that the flange portion of the cup container is placed on the edge of the hole 21. When the cup container in the cup feeder 5 runs out, the next container group is detected by the sensor and transferred from the stocker 4 by the swing arm 5a. Reference numeral 6 denotes a detector provided with a photoelectric sensor, a proximity switch, and the like for checking whether or not a cup container is in each hole 21 of the retainer 2.
If the detector 6 determines that there is no cup container in 1, the control is performed in conjunction with a filling unit and an unloading device, which will be described later, to control the filling of the empty retainer, the separation of non-defective products from defective products, and the like. 7 is a dust removing device that removes dust by blowing air to a cup container that moves on each retainer 2.
Reference numeral 8 denotes a filling unit for filling the contents into a cup container that moves on each retainer 2, and 9 denotes a cover material supply that supplies a lid material for connection onto the filled cup container that moves on each retainer 2. Department. FIGS. 7 and 8 are a side view and a front view, respectively, of the cover material supply section 9. FIG. In the figure, reference numeral 91 denotes a paper feeding device,
As shown by the dotted line in FIG. 7, the support rod 91b is extended by the air cylinder 91a, and the lowermost one of the lid members H set on the stocker 92 is sucked and held by the six octopuses 91c. After pulling out the lid material H from the stocker 92 by shrinking 91b,
The cover member H is turned downward by rotating the rotating shaft 91d, and in this state, the support bar 91b is extended by the air cylinder 91a to release the suction of the octopus 91c, so that the cover member H is removed from the cup container C on the retainer 2. Supply on the flange. As shown in FIG. 9, the stocker 92 has a cover H
Guides 92a and rails 92b are provided on both sides of the space for setting the bundles, and a plurality of claws 92d are provided above and below the outlet 92c. Rail 9
Reference numeral 2b guides a notched portion (described later) of the lid member H. The claw 92d holds the lid member H in the stocker 92. After the octopus 91c of the sheet feeding device 91 sucks the lowermost lid member H, the lid member H gets over the claw 92d and is pulled out. It has become. In FIG. 9, a circle A indicated by a dotted line represents six octopuses 91 c of the sheet feeding device 91.
Indicates the position where the lid material H is adsorbed. In FIG. 7, reference numeral 93 denotes a pressing member for pressing the bundle of the cover members H set in the stocker 92 from behind, and reference numeral 94 denotes a suction duct for sucking and removing the dust from the cover members H. is there. As described above, the lid member H is supplied from the side opposite to the direction in which the retainer 2 moves, and the suction duct 94 for dust removal is provided, so that dust can be contained in the cup container C before the lid member H is covered. I try to prevent entry as much as possible. In FIG. 7, reference numeral 95 denotes a blocking prevention device, which includes an air cylinder 95b mounted on a rotating shaft 95a via an L-shaped member, and an octopus 95c mounted so as to move forward and backward by the air cylinder 95b. It is configured with. The anti-blocking device 95 is arranged so as to move without interfering with the paper feeding device 91, and rotates toward the stocker 92 while the lid member H is placed on the cup container C as described above. Then, the lowermost lid member H is sucked by the octopus 95c and pulled out slightly forward. When the cover material H is pulled out of the stocker 92 without blocking by the sheet feeding device 91 alone, there is no need to use the blocking prevention device 95. In the lid supply section 9, a lid having a length corresponding to the number of cups connected is supplied onto the flange of the cup container. For example, when the number of connections is three, two lid members H3 are placed as shown in FIG. 10, and when the number of connections is two, _three lid members H3 are placed as shown in FIG. ₂ is placed. Further, the lid member H ₁ in the six shown in Figure 12 is placed in the case of the lid separately. Reference numeral 10 denotes a seal portion for pressing the lid member against the cup container moving on each retainer 2 and thermally sealing the inner surface of the lid member to the flange portion of the cup container. FIG. 14 is a partial side view, and FIG. 14 is a front view of one sealer in the seal portion. The seal portion 10 of the present embodiment includes four sealers 101 to 104 and two coolers, and has first to fourth seal rings 10a to 10d having ring-shaped seal heads 10a to 10d.
Cup container C by each of the four sealers 101-104
After applying heat pressure to the lid material four times on the flange portion, the press member is pressed twice by two coolers having solid plate-shaped or ring-shaped cooling heads 10e and 10f, and cooled. Here, the first sealer 101 and the third sealer 1
03, a weak sealer using a small-diameter air cylinder as a driving unit 105, and a second sealer 102 and a fourth sealer 1;
A strong sealer using a large-diameter air cylinder as a drive unit 106 is used for the sealer 04, and as shown in FIG.
4 is provided so that an empty station for intermittent transport is not created. If an attempt is made to dispose a sealer driven by a large-diameter air cylinder as a drive unit without creating an empty station, it is necessary to increase the pitch of the intermittent conveyance of the retainer. When the pitch is increased in this way, the contents of the cup container C may be spilled by the liquid shake during the intermittent conveyance, and a problem arises that the entire apparatus is enlarged. In addition, if an empty station is made by reducing the pitch of the intermittent conveyance of the retainer, heat radiation loss occurs at the time of sealing many times, and each sealer requires a long sealing time and the production capacity is reduced. Therefore, in the seal portion 10 of the present embodiment, the above-described configuration is adopted. After the first sealer 101 preheats the heat, the second sealer 102 heat seals the heat, and the third sealer 103 maintains the heat retaining state. The fourth sealer 104 heat seals again. Thus, each sealer 1
Since there is no vacant station between 01 and 104, heat dissipation loss at the time of sealing many times is minimized.
By performing heat sealing four times in each of the sealers 101 to 104, the sealing time per one time is reduced,
The production capacity of the machine does not decrease. Thereby, even if the lid material is a thick paperboard, the lid material can be completely sealed to the flange portion of the cup container C. Incidentally, six seal heads 10a to 10d in each of the sealers 101 to 104 are provided at right angles to the direction in which the retainer is conveyed, and these seal heads 10a to 10d are long via four springs 107, respectively. It is elastically supported by the scale-shaped lower member 108. Also,
The drive units 105 and 106 of each of the sealers 101 to 104 are mounted on a frame 109, and the cylinder rod is mounted on the frame 1
09 is fixedly connected to the center of the upper portion of the elongated upper member 110 through the hole of the linear member. The members 112 are respectively attached so as to pass through holes of the frame 109. And
The lower member 108 and the upper member 110 are rolled against a rail member 113 (shown by oblique lines in FIG. 13) having an H-shaped cross section.
Slidably in the length direction. That is, it is possible to pull out the rail member 113 by half the length with respect to the upper member 110 and further to pull out the lower member 108 by half the length with respect to the rail member 113, which facilitates maintenance of the seal head. You can do it. In FIG. 14, reference numeral 115 denotes a locking member for fixing the lower member 108 and the upper member 110 to the rail member 113 at a predetermined position. Reference numeral 116 denotes a lock bar for fixing the upper member 110 during maintenance of the seal head. Is the support pin rod 2 of the retainer 2
4 is a support member for abutting on 4 to stably perform a sealing operation. Reference numeral 118 denotes an adjusting member provided on the upper member 110, which is provided at four locations as shown in the figure, and serves to finely adjust the inclination of the seal head. The cup container, which is closed by the lid member at the seal portion 10 and is connected at the same time or in a state of being connected one by one, is lifted by suctioning the upper surface of the lid member by the take-out device 11. Are transferred onto the discharge conveyor 12. Then, the discharged multiple cup container or the cup container with one lid is coated with a hot melt adhesive on an upper portion of the opposing side surface of the cup container in a subsequent step, and both sides of the lid material are bent so that the cup container is bent. It is in a state of being bonded to both side surfaces of. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 13 denotes a cleaning tank, which is cleaned by an appropriate means when each retainer 2 conveyed by the retainer conveyor 1 passes therethrough. FIG. 15 shows the structure manufactured as described above.
17 are shown. 15 and 16 each show three pieces,
A multi-cup cup container in which two cup containers C are covered with lid materials H ₃ and H ₂ and connected at the same time,
The lid is provided with notches b for positioning at the perforations a for separation and at both ends. Further, FIG. 17 are those one cup containers C lid is by lid H _1, the one having a notch b at both ends of the lid. In the above embodiment, the shape of the cup container is assumed to be circular in the body and the flange. However, the shape may be, for example, a square with rounded corners. In this case, it goes without saying that the shape of the hole of the retainer and the shape of the seal head of the sealer also conform to this. As described above, according to the apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container of the present invention, a strong sealer having a large-diameter air cylinder as a drive unit and a small-diameter air cylinder are provided in the seal portion. The weak sealer, which is the drive unit, is arranged alternately in the traveling direction so as not to create an empty station for intermittent conveyance between each sealer, so the pitch of the intermittent conveyance of the retainer does not need to be large. Therefore, the size of the entire device can be maintained. In addition, since the sealing pressure at the time of sealing the lid material is secured by the strong sealer, and the heat radiation during movement is prevented by the weak sealer, the desired sealing strength can be obtained without extending the sealing time of the lid material. There is no loss of production capacity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a multiple cup container. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing an apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container as one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of FIG. 2; 4A is a plan view of a retainer, and FIG. 4B is a side view of the same. FIG. 5A is a side view of a positioning pin, and FIG. 5B is a bottom view of the same. FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 4 (b). FIG. 7 is a side view of a cover material supply unit. FIG. 8 is a front view of a cover material supply unit. FIG. 9 is a view showing a take-out port of a stocker in a cover material supply unit. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a mounting state of a lid member when the number of connections is three. FIG. 11 is a plan view showing a mounting state of a lid member when the number of connections is two. FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a state where a lid member is placed in a case where individual lids are placed. FIG. 13 is a partial side view of a seal portion. FIG. 14 is a front view of one sealer in a seal portion. FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a multiple cup container having three connections. FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a multiple cup container having two connections. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing cup containers individually covered. [Description of Signs] 1 retainer conveyor 2 retainer 21 hole 3 cup supply unit 8 filling unit 9 lid material supply unit 10 seal unit 101, 103 sealer (weak sealer) 102, 104 sealer (strong sealer) 10a to 10d seal head C cup container _{H (H 1, H 2,} H 3) lid

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-229504 (JP, A) JP-A-7-291206 (JP, A) JP-A 7-1911 (JP, U) 2463 (JP, B1) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65B 7/28 B65D 21/024

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims 1] Each retainer is provided with a plurality of retainers provided with a plurality of holes for placing flange portions of a cup container in a row in a row in a transverse direction to a traveling direction. A container conveyor that intermittently conveys, a cup supply unit that supplies a cup container to each of the intermittently conveyed retainers, and a filling unit that fills the contents into the cup container that moves on each retainer,
A lid material supply unit for supplying a paperboard connecting lid material to the cup container moving on each retainer, and pressing the lid material by a seal head against the cup container moving on each retainer; And a seal portion for heat sealing the inner surface of the cup container to a flange portion of the cup container, wherein the seal portion includes a strong sealer having a large-diameter air cylinder as a driving portion and a small-diameter air. An apparatus for manufacturing a multiple cup container, wherein weak sealers each having a cylinder as a drive unit are alternately arranged in the traveling direction without forming an empty station for intermittent conveyance between the sealers.