JP4367595B2 - Printing waste removal mechanism of labeling device and labeling device provided with printing waste removal mechanism - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a printing waste removal mechanism provided in a labeling device that laser-prints a production date, expiration date, expiration date, production number, and the like on a label and continuously affixes the label to a bottle-like container, and the like The present invention relates to a labeling device having a printing waste removal mechanism.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in the packaging process of various products, the date of manufacture, the expiration date, the expiration date, the production number, etc. are printed on a label and affixed to the container of the product at the time of packaging. It is obliged to display the expiration date (expiration date), serial number, etc. In this case, since the expiration date (expiration date), production number, etc. cannot be printed on the label in advance, it is printed on the label at the time of packaging the product, and laser printing is performed on the labeling device as this printing means. An apparatus is attached, and the label is labeled with an expiration date (expiration date), a manufacturing number, and the like at the time of labeling. As a labeling apparatus provided with such a laser printing apparatus, the apparatus shown in FIG. 3 can be exemplified.
[0003]
The labeling apparatus shown in FIG. 3 laser-prints an expiration date and serial number on a label, and continuously affixes the label to a bottle b filled with eye drops or the like. The supply disk 2 to be aligned, the intermediate disk 3 for delivering the bottle b, the labeling disk 4 for applying a label to the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b, and the bottle b held and transported by the labeling disk 4 A transfer belt 5 for attaching a label and a discharge disk 6 for discharging the bottle b with the label from the apparatus are provided.
[0004]
The supply disk 2 is a thick disk having a peripheral edge formed in a substantially serrated shape and holding and transporting the bottle b in a number of recesses 21 provided in the substantially serrated peripheral edge. As shown in the figure, the bottle b is held and transported from the tray 22 in the concave portion 21 formed on the outer peripheral edge by rotating in the clockwise direction in the drawing at a predetermined speed.
[0005]
In addition, the intermediate disk 3 is provided between a plurality of disks, and a plurality of holding rollers (not shown) are erected between the two disks at predetermined intervals so as to be freely rotatable. Yes, it rotates at a predetermined speed counterclockwise in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the intermediate disk 3 rotates in synchronization with the supply disk 2 to receive the bottle b from the supply disk 2 between the holding rollers (not shown). The bottle b is delivered to the labeling disk 4.
[0006]
Next, the labeling disk 4 is erected between two relatively large-diameter disks so as to be rotatable at a predetermined interval between the plurality of holding rollers 41 at the periphery of these disks. Is. The labeling disk 4 rotates at a predetermined speed clockwise in FIG. 3, receives the bottle b from the intermediate disk 3 between the holding rollers 41, and holds and conveys the bottle b.
[0007]
The rolling belt 5 that rotates along the outer peripheral surface of the labeling disk 4 is disposed at a predetermined rotational angle position of the labeling disk 4. As shown in FIG. 3, the transfer belt 5 is stretched between three rollers 51, and is driven by one roller 51 so as to circulate and rotate in the direction of the arrow in the figure. In this case, a part of the belt 5 is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b conveyed by being held by the labeling disk 4 with a predetermined pressure.
[0008]
Further, the discharge disk 6 is a thick disk having a large number of arc-shaped recesses 61 provided continuously on the outer peripheral surface, and as shown in FIG. 3, it rotates at a predetermined speed in the counterclockwise direction in the figure. By doing so, the bottle b to which the label is attached is received from the labeling disk 4 to the concave portion 61, sucked and held in the concave portion 61, and introduced into the discharge path 62. In this case, a defective discharge path 63 is provided in the middle of the bottle conveyance range by the discharge disk 6 to discharge the bottle b ′ in which the label sticking failure has occurred to another path.
[0009]
Furthermore, the labeling apparatus feeds the label sheet a from a sheet roll (not shown) in which a label sheet a having a large number of labels affixed in an easily peelable state on a belt-like mount is wound. A label transport unit 7 composed of a plurality of rollers (not shown) is provided, and the label sheet a transported by the label transport unit 7 has an outer periphery of the labeling disk 4 as shown in FIG. Only the mount is folded back at an acute angle by a folding plate 71 disposed in the vicinity of the place where the surface and the transfer belt 5 abut.
[0010]
The labeling operation by this labeling device is performed as follows.
First, bottles b filled with eye drops or the like are randomly supplied to the tray 22 by a belt conveyor (not shown) or the like, and held in the recesses 21 on the outer peripheral surface of the supply disk 2 one by one. 2 is rotated and aligned, transferred from the supply disk 2 to the intermediate disk 3, transferred from the intermediate disk 3 to the labeling disk 4, and a holding roller for the labeling disk 4. The bottles b are held one by one between 41 and are conveyed in alignment to the arrangement position of the transfer belt 5 by the rotation of the labeling disk 4.
[0011]
On the other hand, in the label transport unit 7, the label sheet a is intermittently fed from the sheet roll (not shown) and transported, and the expiration date (expiration date) and the production number are displayed on the label sheet a during the transport. Printed on the label. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, a label paper is formed by irradiating a dark solid print portion e provided on a label c on which a trade name, an effect, a component, and the like are previously printed with laser light to peel off the ink. The white background is exposed, and the expiration date and the production number are printed on this dark solid print portion. Then, after laser printing, the label c is transported to the outer peripheral portion of the labeling disc 4 and is affixed to the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b held and transported by the outer peripheral portion of the labeling disc 4.
[0012]
The label c is attached as shown in FIG. That is, the label c is mounted near the outer peripheral portion of the labeling disk 4 at a sharp angle by the folding plate 71 and the label d is pasted onto the label d at the time. The label c is peeled off from the mount d and is inserted between the bottle b held on the outer periphery of the labeling disk 4 and the transfer belt 5. In this case, the transfer belt 5 circulates and rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4, and the bottle b also rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The label b is fixed on the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b by being rolled while being wound around the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b, and further conveyed while being rotated while being pressed by the transfer belt 5. Affixed to bottle b.
[0013]
The bottle b with the label c attached in this way is further conveyed by the rotation of the labeling disk 4 and received in the recess 61 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the discharge disk 6 as shown in FIG. Then, it is sucked and held in the recess 61, conveyed by the rotation of the discharge disk 6, and discharged from the discharge path 62 to the outside of the apparatus.
[0014]
Although not specifically shown, the labeling device includes a liquid amount sensor for inspecting the amount of eye drops filled in the bottle b, a print inspection camera for inspecting laser printing, and a label application state. 3 is provided with a defective sticking detection camera to be inspected, and as shown in FIG. 3, the bottle b ′ in which the defect is detected is discharged and removed to the defective product discharge path 63 in the middle of the conveyance by the discharge disk 6. It is supposed to be.
[0015]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in this labeling apparatus, the label c may be soiled by printing waste generated during the laser printing. That is, in this labeling apparatus, the laser beam is applied to the dark solid print portion e of the label c by irradiating the laser beam to peel off the ink, so that the laser beam is scraped off along with the printing. The printed waste is generated, and the printed waste adheres to the transfer belt 5 and the printed waste stains the white background portion (non-printed portion) of the subsequent label, increasing the incidence of defective products. There is a problem.
[0016]
The printing waste will be described in further detail. Most of the labels are made of paper, but printing on the paper label with a laser means that the ink or coat layer on the paper surface is peeled off with laser light. It is to express characters and the like. In this case, however, the ink film and paper fiber elements (printing waste) are relatively long, so that the fiber elements remain fuzzy around the peeled image line. However, the belt or roller that presses the label to the container when the label is attached to the container is easily transferred and accumulated on the surface by the strong pressure. Then, when the fiber (printing waste) adhered and accumulated on the belt or roller reaches the saturation point, secondary contamination occurs in which it re-transfers to the subsequent label surface or container and adheres as a band-like dirt.
[0017]
Thus, in the conventional labeling device using laser printing, there is a problem that the label is soiled by the printing waste. For this reason, the device is stopped to remove the printing waste, and the worker can move the transfer belt. 5 must be cleaned, which causes a reduction in work efficiency. Further, it is practically impossible to almost completely eliminate the occurrence of printing waste stains no matter how often cleaning is performed.
[0018]
Here, an apparatus using a label sheet (generally referred to as “tack label”) on which a large number of labels are pasted on a mount is shown, but the label is not preliminarily glued and immediately before the label is pasted. Applying adhesives in the process, labels commonly called “glue labels”, and heat-seal type labels that are pre-applied with a hot melt adhesive that melts by heating and develops adhesive force and heats at the time of application In this case, the same problem as described above will occur as long as printing is performed with a laser beam and sticking is performed with a belt-shaped or roller-shaped transfer member.
[0019]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is a labeling device that laser-prints the date of manufacture, expiration date, expiration date, serial number, etc. on a label and continuously affixes the label to a bottle-like container or the like. Provided is a printing waste removal mechanism that automatically removes printing waste generated by laser printing and prevents the occurrence of defects due to printing waste dirt as much as possible, and a labeling device equipped with the printing waste removal mechanism The purpose is to do.
[0020]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention conveys a label sheet having a large number of labels attached to a strip-like mount in an easily peelable state at a predetermined speed, and prints each label with a laser beam during the conveyance. Thereafter, the label is peeled from the mount, and the labeling object conveyed in an aligned state and the belt-type or roller-shaped transfer member rotating in contact with the labeling object with a predetermined pressure are peeled off. A printing waste removal mechanism that is provided in a labeling device that inserts a label and attaches a label to a labeling object, and removes printing waste adhered to the surface of the transfer member, and has an adhesive outer peripheral surface as described above. A scraper roller that abuts on the surface of the transfer member at a predetermined pressure and rotates in accordance with the rotational movement of the transfer member, and is attached to the surface of the transfer member by the adhesiveness of the outer peripheral surface of the scraper roller. Providing printing debris removal mechanism of labeling apparatus, which comprises separating and removing debris.
[0021]
In addition, the present invention provides a labeling device having the above-described printing waste removal mechanism in an object transporting unit that continuously transports a number of labeling objects aligned and a labeling object transported by the object transporting unit. A belt-shaped or roller-shaped transfer member that rotates in contact with a predetermined pressure, and a label sheet on which a number of labels are easily peeled on a belt-like mount are conveyed at a predetermined speed, and the label is printed at a predetermined position. Is peeled from the mount and inserted between the labeling object and the transfer member, and the label surface conveyed by the label carrier is irradiated with laser light to print on the label. In a labeling apparatus having a laser printing section for applying a scraping roller, an outer peripheral surface of the scraping roller having adhesiveness is rotatably disposed in contact with the surface of the transfer member at a predetermined pressure. The scraping roller is driven and rotated by the rotational movement of the transfer member, so that the printing waste adhering to the surface of the transfer member is peeled and removed due to the adhesiveness of the outer peripheral surface of the scraping roller. A characteristic labeling device is provided.
[0022]
That is, the printing waste removing mechanism and the labeling apparatus of the present invention have an outer peripheral surface that adheres to a transfer member such as a transfer belt or transfer roller that transfers a label to a labeling object such as a bottle that is conveyed in an aligned manner. The scraper roller having the property of rotating is brought into contact with a predetermined pressure so that the scraper roller is driven to rotate along with the rotation of a transfer member such as a transfer belt and a transfer roller. The printing waste adhering to the surface of the transfer member due to adhesiveness is removed.
[0023]
Therefore, according to the printing waste removing mechanism and the labeling device of the present invention, it is possible to immediately remove the printing waste attached to the transfer member such as the transfer belt and the transfer roller by the scrap removing roller, and to perform printing. Since scrap removal and cleaning are continuously performed, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of defective products due to printing dust stains as much as possible and to greatly improve the yield.
[0024]
As for maintenance, the surface of the transfer member can always be kept clean by a very simple operation of simply replacing a roller having a reduced adhesive strength (cleaning power). Compared with the case where the transfer member is cleaned, the time for stopping the apparatus is shorter and the labeling can be performed efficiently. Further, for example, as in the embodiments described later, a plurality of scraping rollers are arranged in parallel along the peripheral edge of the turntable so that one of the scraping rollers is brought into contact with the transfer member. Thus, the scraper roller that contacts the surface of the transfer member can be replaced by rotating the turntable at a predetermined angle at any time or every predetermined time. As a result, it is not necessary to stop the device for replacing the roller, and the scraping roller with reduced adhesive strength (cleaning power) is removed from the turntable after the roller for scrapping is replaced with another roller, and a new roller is removed. Or by refreshing the roller surface, it is possible to operate continuously for a long time without stopping the apparatus at all.
[0025]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
EXAMPLES Hereinafter, an Example is shown and this invention is demonstrated more concretely.
1 and 2 show a printing waste removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. This printing waste removal mechanism is provided in the above-described labeling apparatus shown in FIGS.
[0026]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the printing waste removing mechanism is configured such that a plurality of (eight in the figure) scraping rollers 12 are evenly erected along the peripheral edge on a disc-shaped turntable 11. The printing waste removing device 1 is configured.
[0027]
The turntable 11 is rotated by a predetermined angle at predetermined intervals. The scraper roller 12 is erected on the turntable 11 so as to be freely rotatable. The outer peripheral surface of the scraper roller 12 has adhesiveness, and the eight scraper rollers 12 erected on the turntable 11. One of these contacts the surface of the transfer belt (transfer member) 5 with a predetermined pressure.
[0028]
Each of the scraping rollers 12 is one in which an adhesive tape is wound around the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical base that is rotatably mounted on a shaft 13 that is erected on the turntable 11, and the surface layer is peeled off. By doing so, a new adhesive surface is exposed on the surface. Further, a roller formed of a resin or rubber having surface adhesiveness can be used as the scraping roller 12, and a roller obtained by simply winding a double-sided tape around the outer peripheral surface of an appropriate roller may be used.
[0029]
The labeling device of this example provided with the printing waste removing device 1 is configured to remove the printing waste attached to the transfer belt 5 by the waste removing roller 12. The operation will be described below.
[0030]
The labeling device of the present example attaches the label c to the outer peripheral surface of the bottle b filled with eye drops or the like by the above-described operation described with reference to FIGS. As shown, one of the scraping rollers 12 abuts on the outer peripheral surface of the transfer belt 5 at a predetermined pressure, rotates following the circulation rotation of the transfer belt 5, and the surface of the transfer belt 5. The printing waste adhering to the surface is peeled and removed from the surface of the transfer belt 5 by the adhesive force of the surface of the scraping roller 12.
[0031]
That is, the printing waste generated by the laser printing described above is conveyed while adhering to the surface of the label c, and the label to which the printing waste adheres is transferred to the transfer belt 5 and the bottle b as shown in FIG. When the printing waste is transferred from the label c to the transfer belt 5 and the transfer belt 5 passes the label affixed portion to the bottle b (the area where the belt 5 is pressed against the surface of the bottle b), The printing waste is immediately peeled off from the surface of the transfer belt 5 by the scraping roller 12, and the surface of the label c is not soiled again at the label application portion.
[0032]
Here, although not particularly limited, a belt having moderate adhesiveness on the surface is used as the transfer belt 5, and the printing waste is positively transferred from the label surface to the transfer belt 5. The printing waste may be removed by the scraping roller 12 so that after the label is attached, the printing waste remaining on the surface of the label is a label attached to another bottle b, the bottle b itself, or a labeling device. It is possible to reliably prevent the soiling.
[0033]
If the labeling operation is continued while removing the printing waste in this way, the printing waste accumulates on the surface of the scraping roller 12 and the adhesive force of the scraping roller 12 decreases. 11 is rotated at a predetermined angle every predetermined time or at any time to replace the scraping roller 12 that contacts the surface of the transfer belt 5 for scraping, and always prints the surface of the transfer belt 5 with a good adhesive force. Remove debris. Then, the scraper roller 12 with reduced adhesive strength is peeled off by one turn on the surface of the adhesive tape to expose a new adhesive surface, or is replaced with a new scraper roller 12 having good adhesiveness. In addition, the scraping roller 12 is brought into contact with the surface of the transfer belt 5 again by the rotation of the turntable so as to remove the printing waste satisfactorily. The turntable 11 can be rotated automatically every predetermined time, and in some cases, the turntable 11 may be manually operated at any time.
[0034]
As described above, in the printing waste removing mechanism and the labeling apparatus equipped with the removing mechanism of this embodiment, the printing waste attached to the transfer belt (transfer member) 5 is removed immediately after being attached by the scrap removing roller 12. In addition, since the printing waste removal cleaning is always performed continuously, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of defective products due to the printing dust stain as much as possible and to greatly improve the yield.
[0035]
As for maintenance, the surface of the transfer belt 5 is always clean by simply rotating the turntable 11 automatically or manually and replacing the scraping roller 12 whose adhesive force (cleaning force) has been reduced. Therefore, it is not necessary to stop the apparatus for cleaning the transfer belt, and labeling can be performed very efficiently as compared with the case where cleaning is performed every time the dirt becomes severe. In addition, by replacing or refreshing the scraping roller 12 with reduced adhesive strength (cleaning power) after the turntable 11 is rotated, the scraper roller 12 can be continuously operated for a long time without stopping the apparatus at all. .
[0036]
Note that the printing waste removing mechanism and the labeling device of the present invention are not limited to the above embodiments. For example, in the above embodiment, a plurality of scraping rollers 12 are provided on the turntable 11, and the scraping rollers 12 with reduced cleaning power are replaced by rotating the turntable 11 by a predetermined angle. The mechanism for exchanging the scraper roller 12 is not limited to the mechanism using the turntable 11, and any mechanism that sequentially replaces the plural scraper rollers 12 can be used. For example, one scraper roller 12 may be provided so as to contact the transfer belt 5 without any special mechanism, and the scraper roller may be manually replaced after the cleaning power is reduced. Further, in the above embodiment, the transfer belt 5 is used as a transfer member for attaching the label c to the bottle b. However, the transfer member is not limited to a belt-like one, but a roller-like one. There may be. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, a so-called tack label in which a number of labels c are attached to a belt-like mount d is used. However, no adhesive is applied to the labels in advance, and an adhesive is applied immediately before attaching the labels. In addition, a label generally referred to as a “glue label” or a heat seal type label that is preliminarily coated with a hot melt adhesive that melts by heating to develop an adhesive force and is heated at the time of application can be used. The method, the label peeling method from the mount d, the transporting method of the bottle b which is the labeling object, and the like can be appropriately changed according to the type of label used and the configuration of the apparatus. Furthermore, other configurations may be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention. Moreover, although the apparatus which sticks a label to the bottle b filled with eye drops etc. was illustrated in the said Example, the use is not limited to this, The printing waste removal mechanism and labeling apparatus of this invention are a paper box. It can also be suitably used when labeling containers other than bottles such as bag-like containers.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the printing waste removal mechanism of the present invention and the labeling apparatus equipped with the mechanism, the printing waste generated by laser printing is automatically and continuously removed, and the occurrence of defects due to the printing waste stains can be prevented. It can be prevented as much as possible, and can be efficiently labeled without requiring a complicated cleaning operation.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partially enlarged plan view showing a printing waste removing mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view, partly in section, showing a scraping roller and a turntable constituting the printing waste removing mechanism.
FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing an example of a labeling device.
FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged plan view showing a conventional label attaching portion of the labeling apparatus.
FIG. 5 is an enlarged plan view showing a label and a label sheet having the label affixed to a mount.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printing waste removal apparatus 11 Turntable 12 Waste removal roller 2 Supply disk 3 Intermediate disk 4 Labeling disk 5 Transfer belt (transfer member)
6 Discharge disc 7 Label transport part a Label sheet b Bottle (labeling object)
c Label d Mount

Claims (6)

A label sheet on which a number of labels are easily peeled off on a belt-like mount is transported at a predetermined speed, and after each label is printed with a laser beam during transport, the label is peeled off from the mount, A label is attached to the labeling object by inserting the label peeled between the labeling object to be conveyed in an aligned state and a belt-shaped or roller-shaped transfer member that rotates in contact with the labeling object with a predetermined pressure. Is a printing waste removal mechanism that removes printing waste attached to the surface of the transfer member,
An adhesive outer peripheral surface abuts on the surface of the transfer member at a predetermined pressure, and includes a scraping roller that rotates following the rotational movement of the transfer member. A printing waste removal mechanism for a labeling device, wherein the printing waste attached to the surface of the transfer member is peeled and removed.   A plurality of scraping rollers are rotatably arranged along the peripheral edge of the turntable rotatably arranged, and one of the scraping rollers is brought into contact with the surface of the rolling member with a predetermined pressure. 2. The printing waste removing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the turntable is rotated at a predetermined angle at any time or every predetermined time, and the scraping roller contacting the surface of the transfer member is replaced at any time or every predetermined time. An object transporting unit that continuously transports a number of labeling objects aligned;
A belt-shaped or roller-shaped transfer member that rotates in contact with a labeling object conveyed by the object conveying unit at a predetermined pressure;
A label sheet on which a number of labels are easily peeled off on a belt-like mount is transported at a predetermined speed, and the label is peeled off from the mount at a predetermined position, so that the labeling object and the transfer member are between each other. A label transport section to be inserted into the
In a labeling apparatus comprising a laser printing unit that irradiates a laser beam on the surface of the label conveyed by the label conveyance unit and prints the label,
A scraper roller whose outer peripheral surface has adhesiveness is rotatably disposed in a state where the scraper roller is in contact with the surface of the transfer member at a predetermined pressure, and the scraper roller is rotated by the rotational movement of the transfer member. Thus, the labeling device is configured to peel and remove the printing waste adhering to the surface of the transfer member due to the adhesiveness of the outer peripheral surface of the scraping roller.   A plurality of the scraping rollers are rotatably arranged in parallel along the peripheral edge of the turntable that is rotatably disposed, and one of the scraping rollers is brought into contact with the surface of the transfer member with a predetermined pressure. The labeling device according to claim 3, wherein the turntable is rotated at a predetermined angle at any time or every predetermined time, and the scraping roller contacting the surface of the transfer member is replaced at any time or every predetermined time.   The label transport unit unwinds and transports the label sheet from a sheet roll around which the label sheet is wound by a plurality of transport rollers, and folds the mount of the label sheet transported at a predetermined location at an acute angle. The labeling apparatus of Claim 3 or 4 comprised so that a label might be peeled from a base_sheet | mounting_paper and to insert between the said labeling target object and the said transfer member.   The labeling object is a bottle-shaped container, and the bottle-shaped container is configured to be wound and adhered to the outer peripheral surface of the container by rotating following the rotation of the transfer member. The labeling apparatus of any one of Claims 3-5.

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