JP4780389B2 - Liquid filling apparatus and liquid filling method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid filling apparatus and a liquid filling method for filling a paper container with a liquid such as liquor, juice or milk at high speed.

  2. Description of the Related Art A paper container filling and sealing device is known in which after a liquid such as liquor, juice, milk, and other soft drinks is filled in a gobeltop type paper container or a flat top type paper container, the filling port is heat sealed. The filling unit of the paper container filling and sealing device includes a machine frame, a conveyor that sequentially and intermittently stops the paper containers, a filling device, and a supply unit that supplies a filling liquid to the filling device. It has been known.

  Such a paper container filling and sealing apparatus often produces products that are consumed in large quantities, and an improvement in filling capacity is desired, and a high-speed liquid filling apparatus has been developed. When the filling speed is increased, the operation cycle of the liquid filling device is shortened, the time for filling the paper container with the liquid while the paper container is stopped is shortened, and the predetermined content is stored in the paper container within a short time. The amount needs to be filled. For this purpose, for example, in the case of a quantitative filling type by reciprocating movement of the filling piston, it is necessary to shorten both the suction time and the discharge time. As a result, the liquid flow rate becomes faster during fixed filling, and if the suction time is shortened, the liquid suddenly becomes negative pressure when the liquid passes through the check valve from the filling tank, and the liquid is filled at a high temperature. In some cases, the phenomenon that the temperature of the liquid rises and boils occurs, damages the quality of the contents, and if the discharge time is shortened, liquid foaming or splashing occurs in the paper container, There arises a problem that the filling port of the paper container cannot be heat sealed well.

In the conventional system in which liquid is filled with one filling piston / filling cylinder and one filling nozzle (one cylinder and one nozzle system), there is a limit in solving the above problem. For this purpose, two filling stations are provided, each of which has a filling piston, a filling cylinder and a filling nozzle, and adopts the method of filling twice (two cylinders and two nozzles), and sucks and discharges the liquid. A method is used in which the flow rate is not significantly increased (see, for example, Patent Document 1). However, the two-cylinder two-nozzle method requires a double-packing device, which increases the cost. Further, there is a problem that the liquid is splashed at the second filling, and the liquid adheres to the filling port of the paper container, so that good heat sealing cannot be performed.
JP 10-194390 A

  The present invention provides a liquid filling apparatus and a liquid filling method capable of performing high-speed liquid filling without causing foaming or splashing of liquid in a paper container.

As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventor has found that a two-cylinder one-nozzle system can be used for high-speed filling, and has completed the present invention. That is, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that a filling tank and a pair of filling cylinders are connected via respective inlet pipes, and each of the inlet pipes and the filling nozzle connects each pipe. A device for filling a liquid into a paper container, wherein an upper check valve for opening and closing each inlet pipe is provided, and a lower check valve for opening and closing each pipe to the filling nozzle is provided, comprising means for the upper check valve and the lower check valve is interlocked with the operation of the pair of filling cylinders, wherein the liquid in which the filling cylinder is filled by the reciprocating motion of the built and piston filling piston by quantitative see write sent to the filling nozzle, it is characterized in that to fill the liquid into the paper container from the filling nozzle.

The invention according to claim 2 is a method for filling a liquid into a paper container using the liquid filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reciprocating motion of each filling piston built in the pair of filling cylinders is provided. The phase is shifted and the paper container is filled with a liquid.

  The present invention has a pair of filling cylinders, and one filling cylinder feeds a predetermined internal volume of one paper container to the filling nozzle, and while filling the paper container, the other filling cylinder Next, a predetermined amount of liquid in the paper container to be filled can be sucked in, the liquid discharge time and the suction time can be sufficiently secured, and the liquid can be filled without significantly increasing the flow rate due to the suction and discharge. There is no foaming or splashing of the liquid, and there is an effect that a predetermined amount of liquid can be filled at high speed.

  There is one filling nozzle, and there is an effect that the apparatus cost is lower than that of the 2-cylinder 2-nozzle system.

  Also, only one filling nozzle and one filling station are required, and the two-cylinder two-nozzle system can shorten the length of the filling device and save space compared to the need for two stations. There is an effect.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view for explaining an embodiment of a liquid filling apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an embodiment of a liquid filling apparatus according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid filling apparatus of the present invention is used in-line with a paper container liquid filling line for filling liquid such as sake, juice, milk, and soft drinks into a paper container. A liquid filling device 1 and a carrier device 3 having a carrier holder 2 and intermittently driven are provided.

  By the operation of the transport device 3 in one cycle, the paper container 4 whose bottom is assembled on the front line (not shown) and has an opening at the top is held by the carrier holder 2 and is transported intermittently by one pitch. It is a mechanism that is carried into A and stops.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid filling apparatus 1 includes a filling nozzle 10 disposed above the paper container 4 and filling pistons 20a and 20b, and the liquid is recirculated by the reciprocating motion of the filling pistons 20a and 20b. A pair of filling cylinders 21a and 21b are provided to be fed into the filling nozzle 10 in fixed amounts.

  The filling nozzle 10 is provided in a vertical cylindrical shape with a nozzle body 12 having an upper door shape upward and an upper end of the nozzle body 12 in order to prevent the filled liquid from flowing down due to its own weight. The lower mesh valves 14 a and 14 b are provided in the mesh 13 and the nozzle upper portion 11 of the nozzle body 12. The lower check valve 14a is interlocked with the operation of the filling cylinder 21a, and the lower check valve 14b is configured to be interlocked with the operation of the filling cylinder 21b. The filling cylinders 21a and 21b have built-in filling pistons 20a and 20b, and are connected to the nozzle body 12 by pipes 22a and 22b at the upper side. Further, vertical inlet pipes 30a and 30b are connected to the upper portions of the filling cylinders 21a and 21b, and upper check valves 31a and 31b are provided in the inlet pipes 30a and 30b. The outlet ends of the supply pipes 32a and 32b are connected to the middle of the inlet pipes 30a and 30b, and the inlet ends of the supply pipes 32a and 32b are connected to the filling tank 40. Further, the upper check valves 31a and 31b are configured to operate in conjunction with the filling cylinders 21a and 21b, and the filling pistons 20a and 20b are lowered to fill the filling cylinders 21a and 21b with the liquid filled in the filling tank. In the case of suction from 40, the filling pistons 20a and 20b are lowered to cause negative pressure in the filling cylinders 21a and 21b, and the upper check valves 31a and 31b are opened to allow liquid to flow into the filling cylinders 21a and 21b. . Two outlets are provided in the lower part of the filling tank 40 and are connected to supply pipes 32a and 32b, respectively.

  Next, a liquid filling method using the liquid filling apparatus 1 of the present invention will be described. By rotating the servo motor (not shown) forward and backward, the filling piston 20a reciprocates. When the filling piston 20a is lowered, the inside of the filling cylinder 21a becomes negative pressure, the lower check valve 14a is closed, and the upper check valve 31a is opened. The liquid filled from the filling tank 40 flows into the filling cylinder 21a (hereinafter referred to as suction). When the filling piston 20a rises, the inside of the filling cylinder 21a is pressurized, the upper check valve 31a is closed, the lower check valve 14a is opened, and the liquid filled in the filling nozzle 10 is sent from the filling cylinder 21a. An amount corresponding to the amount is discharged from the filling nozzle 10 into the paper container 4 held by the carrier holder 2 (hereinafter referred to as discharge). The paper container 4 held by the carrier holder 2 and transported to the filling unit A is pushed up toward the filling nozzle 10 by a paper container lifting device (not shown) and then filled with the liquid from the filling nozzle 10. Ne, while preventing foaming, the paper container 4 is lowered while the paper container 4 is filled with a liquid to shorten the time per cycle.

  On the other hand, the filling piston 20b is 180 degrees out of phase with the filling piston 20a, and similarly reciprocates by the servo motor. When the filling piston 20a is in the "suction" stroke, the filling piston 20b is in the "discharge" stroke, and the filling piston 20a During the “discharge” stroke, the filling piston 20b is in the “suction” stroke. That is, the liquid filling the filling nozzle 10 is alternately sent from the filling cylinder 21a and the filling cylinder 21b. By adopting such a configuration, it becomes possible to shorten the time per cycle without significantly increasing the discharge speed and the suction speed. Theoretically, the time per cycle at the conventional discharge speed and suction speed can be shortened. Is ½ and the filling speed is doubled, and the liquid filling speed can be increased. Also, since the suction speed is not increased, the flow rate of the liquid does not increase during filling, and when the liquid passes through the upper check valves 31a and 31b from the filling tank 40, the inside of the pipe suddenly becomes negative pressure. In addition, the rise in the temperature of the liquid can be suppressed, the quality of the contents can be ensured, and air biting and foaming at the upper chuck valves 31a and 31b can be prevented. In addition, since there is no need to increase the discharge speed, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of liquid foaming and splashing in the paper container. It can be secured. FIG. 2 shows a state in which the filling piston 20a is in the “discharge” stroke, and the filling piston 20b is in the “suction” stroke. The mesh line in the figure indicates the liquid in the “discharge” stroke, and the hatched dotted line is in the “suction” stroke. Indicates liquid. As a liquid filling method, there is a method in which the suction time of the filling cylinders 21a and 21b is set to ½ of a predetermined filling amount into the paper container 4 and operated in the same phase, thereby shortening the suction time and increasing the speed. The method in which the phases of the filling piston 20a and the filling piston 20b are shifted by 180 degrees and the liquid is alternately sent to the filling nozzle 10 is faster and more preferable.

  Next, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the following examples. The machine was equipped with the liquid filling device 1 with the conveying device 3 for the paper container 4 as one line. The paper container 4 used was a rectangular cylinder with a side of 85 mm square and an internal capacity of 1800 ml. Sake was used as the liquid to be filled, and the paper container 4 was filled by a method in which the sake was alternately sent from the filling cylinders 21 a and 21 b to the filling nozzle 10. As a result, a paper container of 4500 nozzles / hour could be filled. In the conventional liquid filling apparatus, the limit is 3000 nozzles / hour, and the filling capacity is improved by 1.5 times.

  As described above, according to the liquid filling apparatus and the filling method of the present invention, the time per cycle can be shortened without increasing the liquid suction speed and the discharge speed, and high-speed liquid filling becomes possible.

It is a front view explaining one Embodiment of the liquid filling apparatus concerning this invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows one Embodiment of the liquid filling apparatus concerning this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Liquid filling apparatus 2 Carrier holder 3 Conveying apparatus 4 Paper container 10 Filling nozzle 11 Nozzle upper part 12 Nozzle main body 13 Mesh 14a, 14b Lower check valve 20a, 20b Filling piston 21a, 21b Filling cylinder 22a, 22b Piping 30a, 30b Inlet pipe 31a 31b Upper check valves 32a, 32b Supply pipe 40 Filling tank A Filling section

Claims (2)

Filling tank and a pair of filling cylinders are connected via the inlet tube of each filling nozzle and inlet pipe of the each is connected via a respective pipe, a device for filling a liquid into a paper container, wherein each An upper check valve is provided to open and close the inlet pipe of the
The filling nozzle is provided with a lower check valve for opening and closing each pipe, and the upper check valve and the lower check valve are provided with means for operating the pair of filling cylinders, and the filling cylinder has a filling piston. It built and the liquid to be filled by the reciprocating motion of the piston by quantitative seen write sent to the filling nozzle, the liquid filling apparatus characterized by filling liquid into the paper container from the filling nozzle. A method for filling a liquid into a paper container using the liquid filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the phase of reciprocating movement of each filling piston built in the pair of filling cylinders is shifted, and the liquid is filled into the paper container. A liquid filling method characterized by filling the liquid.

Images