JP3711675B2 - Container delivery device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a container delivery device, and more particularly to a container delivery device that delivers a container that has been transported while being suspended by an air transport conveyor on a lower conveyor.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When filling a container with a liquid, the liquid to be filled and the container must be sterilized for quality control. Conventionally, in order to perform this sterilization, hot filling in which the filling liquid is filled in a container at a high temperature so as to sterilize both the liquid and the container has been mainly performed. In such hot filling, the container must be heat-resistant, and there are problems such as deterioration of taste and aroma because the filling liquid is heated.
[0003]
Therefore, in recent years, aseptic filling that fills in an aseptic atmosphere by storing devices such as fillers (filling machines) and cappers in a sterile space, and conveying conveyors for supplying and discharging containers to each of these devices. Widely practiced. Such aseptic filling can be performed at room temperature, and accordingly, a non-heat resistant container can be used.
[0004]
In the aseptic filling, since the container is transported in an aseptic space sealed by the chamber, there is a problem that the release operation is troublesome when trouble such as collapse occurs, and the operation rate is lowered. The operation of removing the fallen bottle in the aseptic chamber is usually performed as follows. Since the aseptic atmosphere is not broken in the aseptic chamber, workers cannot enter directly. Grab a bottle from outside using aseptic gloves and move it to the sterilized first intermediate chamber. And then sterilize the first intermediate chamber again. Because the above work must be done, it is necessary to avoid collapse as much as possible.
[0005]
In particular, if a light and unstable container such as a PET container is transported by a normal transport conveyor, there is a high possibility of collapse, and high speed operation is impossible. Therefore, when using a PET container, the container is supplied to a container processing apparatus such as a decapper (unplugging machine), a filler (filling machine), and a capper (plugging machine) by an air conveyor that does not cause collapse. In addition, it is designed to discharge.
[0006]
In a general configuration of an air conveyor, a flange-like engaging portion provided at the mouth of a container is engaged with two parallel support rails so that the container is suspended, and the container is suspended in the air duct. By blowing the introduced air onto the container, the air is slid on the support rail and conveyed to the downstream side. When the containers that have been transported while being suspended on the support rail are supplied to the decapper, filler, capper, and other devices, they are delivered to a normal transport conveyor such as a belt conveyor that supports and transports the bottom of the container. There must be. At the time of delivery of the container, the bottom surface of the container being conveyed by the air conveying conveyor and the conveying surface of the lower conveying conveyor must be the same height and landed in a stable state.
[0007]
If the aseptic filling device is a device that only fills containers of a single size, set the height of the support rail of the air conveyor and the height of the lower conveyor according to the size of the container. If the aseptic filling device is used to fill containers of different sizes, the height between the conveyors must be adjusted to deliver the containers from the air conveyor to the normal conveyor below. Requires a special structure to do.
[0008]
An apparatus capable of adjusting a plurality of types of containers so that they can be transferred from the air conveyor to the lower conveyor is already known (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 5-58435 and 5). -221515). The former (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-58435) has a rotatable structure in which switching parts having guide rails on three sides are installed between an air conveyance conveyor and a lower belt conveyor, and the size of the conveyance object. The rotatable structure is rotated in response to the change of the above, and the optimum guide rail among the three guide rails is made to coincide with the support rail of the air conveyor. In the latter device (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-221515), a plurality of connecting guide rails having different slopes are provided in parallel in two or more rows, and the guide rails are arranged in parallel when changing the standard of an article. By moving it, the optimum guide rail is connected to the air conveyor.
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In any of the devices described in both publications, a movable member (a rotatable structure or a plurality of connecting guide rails) that is separate from the support rail of the air conveyor is rotated or moved, It is designed to be connected to the tip of the support rail. Therefore, a seam is formed between the front end (downstream end) of the support rail of the air conveyance conveyor and the upstream end of the movable member of the delivery unit. When there is a seam like this, there is a possibility that the container which is pushed by the air pressure and slid on the support rail is caught.
[0010]
The present invention has been made to eliminate the above-described drawbacks, and provides a container delivery device that can smoothly deliver containers without being caught when the containers are delivered from an air conveyor to a lower conveyor. It is for the purpose.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The container delivery device according to the present invention directs the same conveying direction from an air conveying conveyor that blows air to a container supported in a suspended state on a support rail and conveys it downstream. The container is handed over to a conveyor that supports and conveys the bottom of the container, and in particular, the support rail is made of a flexible material, and a lifting means is provided at the downstream end of the support rail. And the height of the downstream end of the support rail is adjusted by deforming the support rail according to the height of the container to be delivered.
[0012]
Further, the container delivery device according to the second invention includes a main body portion of an air duct that blows air to a container supported on the upstream side of the support rail on the downstream end portion of the support rail that is lifted and lowered by the lifting means. Is equipped with an independent air duct, this independent air duct is connected to the main body via a flexible tube, and the air introduced from the air duct main body is blown to the container supported on the downstream end. It is.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of a container delivery device (indicated by reference numeral 1 as a whole) according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a lower conveyor, and FIG. 3 is a front view. In the figure, 2 is an air conveyor on the upstream side (that is, the container delivery side) of the container delivery device 1, and 4 is a downstream side (that is, a container receiver) arranged in series with the air conveyor 2 below the air conveyor 2. The downstream end 2a of the air transfer conveyor 2 and the upstream end 4a of the lower transfer conveyor 4 overlap in the vertical direction, and the containers 6 are delivered between them.
[0014]
As shown in FIG. 4, the air conveyor 2 includes two parallel support rails 8, 9 arranged at a predetermined interval, and an air duct provided above the support rails 8, 9 and sealed inside. The pressure air introduced from an air supply source (not shown) into the air duct 10 is blown out in the downstream direction into the passage 12 through which the mouth portion 6a of the container 6 passes. It has become. On the other hand, the container 6 has a flange-like engaging portion 6b formed in the mouth portion 6a, and the engaging portion 6b is supported in a state of being suspended between the two support rails 8 and 9. The air blown into the passage 12 from the air duct 10 is blown onto the mouth 6a of the container 6 so that the container 6 slides on the support rails 8 and 9 and is conveyed downstream. Both the support rails 8 and 9 are made of a flexible material such as a synthetic resin and can be deformed up and down.
[0015]
This embodiment shows an example in which the container delivery device 1 is applied to an aseptic filling device, and the downstream portion of the air transfer conveyor 2 is inserted into a sealed aseptic chamber 14. The air duct 10 is blocked before the downstream end portions 8a and 9a of the support rails 8 and 9, and is sealed except for the passage 12 through which the mouth portion 6a of the container 6 passes. Mounting plates 16 are fixed to both sides of the front end portion of the air duct 10, and brackets 18 are respectively attached to the most distal end portions 8b and 9b of the support rails 8 and 9. The mounting plates 16 and the brackets 18 on both sides are mounted. Are connected by two upper and lower links 20, 21 respectively. Therefore, the downstream end portions 8a and 9a of the support rails 8 and 9 can be swung up and down with the position where the mounting plate 16 is fixed as a fulcrum.
[0016]
A swingable downstream end 8a. An air duct 22 independent of the main body of the air duct 10 is provided on 9a. The independent air duct 22 is connected to the main body portion of the air duct 10 via a flexible tube 24, and the air introduced from the main body portion of the air duct 10 passes through the outlet of the container 6 from the outlet facing in the downstream direction. It is sprayed toward 6a, and this container 6 is conveyed downstream. In addition, it is necessary to supply air from the main body of the air duct 10 to the independent air duct 22 provided on the swingable downstream ends 8a and 9a of the support rails 8 and 9 via the flexible tube 24. Instead, pressure air may be introduced through another pipe.
[0017]
The aseptic chamber 14 is composed of an inlet-side partition wall 14a, an outlet-side partition wall 14b, both side walls 14c and 14d, a bottom wall 14e, and a top plate 14f. On the top plate 14f, the support rails 8 and 9 are provided. Elevating means 26 for swinging (elevating and lowering) the downstream end portions 8a and 9a is provided. The elevating means 26 is connected to the support rails 8 and 9 via the elevating rod 28 and the connecting plate 30, and the support rails 8 and 9 can be swung up and down by the operation of the elevating means 26. The downstream end portions 8a and 9a of the support rails 8 and 9 are in a substantially horizontal state when no load is applied from above by the elevating means 26, and are forcedly depressed by the operation of the elevating means 26 to be inclined downward. Can do. As the elevating means 26, a conventionally known mechanism such as an air cylinder or an electric motor can be used. Further, a manual handle may be provided and operated manually. Since the elevating rod 28 is inserted from the outside of the aseptic chamber 14, in order to keep the inside and outside of this insertion part airtight, a loose 32 is mounted around the elevating rod 28, and the elevating rod 28 is inserted. The part is sealed.
[0018]
A transport conveyor 4 that supports and transports the bottom 6c of the container 6 is disposed inside the aseptic chamber 14 and below the downstream end 2a of the air transport conveyor 2. In the conveyor 4, the upstream end 4 a overlaps below the downstream end 2 a of the air conveyor 2, and extends toward the downstream side in the conveying direction (arrow A) of the air conveyor 2. On both sides slightly above the conveying surface 4b of the conveying conveyor 4, guide bars 34 for guiding both side surfaces of the container 6 received from the air conveying conveyor 2 are arranged, and further, on the downstream side of the guide bar 34, continuous A pair of upper and lower screws 36 and 37 are arranged to adjust the spacing of the many containers 6 conveyed in a predetermined pitch. The containers 6 delivered from the air conveying conveyor 2 to the lower conveying conveyor 4 are pitched at predetermined intervals by the screws 36 and 37 while being conveyed by the conveying conveyor 4, and a decapper (unplugging machine) (not shown) is cut. ). The transport conveyor 4 and the screws 36 and 37 extend to the outside of the sterile chamber 14 through the partition wall 14b on the downstream side of the sterilization chamber 14, and the partition conveyor 14b, the screws 36 and 37, and Needless to say, a notch through which the container 6 passes is formed.
[0019]
Next, the operation of the container delivery device 1 according to the above configuration will be described. The container 6 is supported in a state in which flange-like engagement portions 6b formed in the mouth portion 6a are suspended on the support rails 8 and 9 on both sides of the air conveyor 2 and are passed from the air duct 10 to the passage 12. The pressure air blown into the inside is blown to the mouth portion 6a of the container 6 so as to be conveyed from the upstream side (left side in FIG. 1) toward the downstream side. The containers 6 transported by the air transport conveyor 2 pass through the notch formed in the partition wall 14a on the inlet side and are transported into the aseptic chamber 14.
[0020]
The container 6 that has moved on the support rails 8 and 9 reaches the downstream ends 8 a and 9 a of the support rails 8 and 9. The heights of the downstream end portions 8a and 9a of the support rails 8 and 9 are adjusted according to the height of the container 6 to be applied by operating the elevating means 26 in advance. That is, the height (H ₁ ) from the lower surface of the flange-like engagement portion 6b formed in the mouth portion 6a of the container 6 to the bottom surface 6c of the container 6 is lower than the most distal portions 8b and 9b of the support rails 8 and 9. The support rails 8 and 9 downstream end portions 8a and 9a are pushed down and inclined so as to substantially coincide with the distance (H ₂ ) between the conveyor 4 and the conveyor surface 4b.
[0021]
The container 6 that has reached the downstream ends 8a, 9a of the support rails 8, 9 once exits from the main body of the air duct 10, and then enters an independent air duct 22 provided on the downstream ends 8a, 9a. Air is blown again from the air duct 22 and gradually descends on the inclined downstream ends 8a and 9a. When the container 6 reaches the most distal end portions 8b and 9b of the support rails 8 and 9, as described above, the height (H ₁ ) of the lower portion from the flange-like engaging portion 6b of the container 6 and the upper portion Since the distance (H ₂ ) between the support rails 8 and 9 and the transport surface 4b of the lower transport conveyor 4 is substantially the same, the container 6 smoothly lands on the transport conveyor 4 and is delivered to the transport conveyor 4. Is done.
[0022]
The container 6 delivered from the upper air conveying conveyor 2 onto the conveying surface 4b of the lower conveying conveyor 4 is conveyed while being guided by guide bars 34 on both sides and being pitch-cut by screws 36 and 37 at a predetermined interval. It is carried out from the sterilization chamber 14 and sequentially sent to a container processing apparatus such as the decapper, filler and capper, and a series of filling steps is performed.
[0023]
When the size of the container applied to the aseptic filling apparatus is different from that of the container 6, the elevating means 26 is operated to further lower the downstream end portions 8a, 9a of the support rails 8, 9, or the illustrated position. The distance (H ₂ ) from the conveying surface 4 b of the conveying conveyor 4 is made substantially equal to the height (H ₁ ) below the flange portion 6 b of the container 6. In this way, the height of the downstream end 2a of the upstream side air conveyor 2 can be freely changed, and the distance (H ₂ ) from the lower conveyor 4 can be adjusted according to the size of the container 6. Therefore, even if it is the container 6 of any size, delivery from the air conveyance conveyor 2 to the lower conveyance conveyor 4 can be performed stably. In addition, since the support rails 8 and 9 are made of a flexible material and the downstream end portions 8a and 9a that can be swung are also integrated, the horizontal transfer portion of the air transfer conveyor 2 and the container transfer portion (downstream) There is no seam between the end portions 8a and 9a), and troubles such as the container 6 being caught do not occur.
[0024]
In the above embodiment, the case where the container delivery device is applied to an aseptic filling device has been described. However, it goes without saying that this container delivery device is not limited to an aseptic filling device and can be applied to other devices.
[0025]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the present invention has the same conveying direction from the air conveying conveyor that blows air to the container supported in the state suspended from the support rail and conveys it downstream. In the container delivery device that delivers the containers to a conveyor that supports and conveys the bottom of the container, the support rail is made of a flexible material, and lifting means is provided at the downstream end of the support rail. The height of the downstream end of the support rail is adjusted by deforming the support rail according to the height of the container that is connected and delivered, so even if it is applied to containers of different sizes, Can be moved smoothly, and stable delivery is possible.
[0026]
In the second invention, an air duct independent from the main body is provided on the downstream end of the support rail that moves up and down, and air is introduced into the independent air duct from the main body via a flexible tube and sprayed onto the container. Since it did in this way, an air duct can also be provided also in the movable part (downstream end part) of a support rail, and it can blow and urge air to a container until the last stage which delivers a container to a lower conveyor.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view of a container delivery device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a conveyor disposed below the container delivery device.
FIG. 3 is a front view of the container delivery device.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an air conveying conveyor constituting the container delivery device.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container delivery apparatus 2 Air conveyance conveyor 4 Conveyor 6 Container 8 Support rail 9 Support rail 8a Downstream end 9a of support rail 10 Downstream end 10 of support rail Air duct 22 Independent air duct 24 Flexible tube 26 Elevating means

Claims (2)

From the air conveyor that blows air to the container supported in the state suspended from the support rail and conveys it downstream, it is placed below this air conveyor with the same conveying direction and supports the bottom of the container In the container delivery device that delivers the containers to the conveyor
The support rail is made of a flexible material, and an elevating means is connected to the downstream end portion of the support rail, and the support rail is deformed according to the height of the container to be delivered, thereby downstream of the support rail . A container delivery device characterized by adjusting an end height. On the downstream end of the support rail, an air duct that is independent of the main body of the air duct that blows air onto a container supported on the upstream side of the support rail is provided, and the independent air duct is connected to the main body through a flexible tube. The container delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the container delivery device is connected to the container delivery device.

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