JP5011783B2 - Rotary filling machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rotary filling device that fills a liquid from an upper filling means while rotating and conveying a container with a container supporting means provided on a rotating body.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a conventional general rotary filling device includes a plurality of filling means (filling valves) 130 provided on the outer periphery of the rotating body 128 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and each of the filling means 130. Container support means 148 such as a neck gripper provided on the lower side for supporting the container 2, and with the rotation of the rotating body 128, the container 2 is rotated and conveyed to open the liquid valve 146. The container 2 is filled with a liquid. In such a rotary filling device, in the case of a high-capacity device in which the rotating body 128 rotates at a high speed, the filling liquid 150 discharged from the filling means 130 is affected by the centrifugal force, and the rotating body 128 is moved radially outward. It will be shaken towards.

  Since the filling liquid passage 134 of the filling means 130 and the axis O11 of the container 2 supported by the container support means 148 are parallel to the rotational axis O12 of the filling device, the liquid discharged from the filling means 130 is The container 2 comes off the center of the bottom surface 2c of the container 2 and hits the peripheral edge of the bottom surface 2c. Then, the filling liquid flows along the rear side wall 2d after hitting the bottom surface 2c of the container 2, and returns to the bottom surface 2c again. There was a problem that. Accordingly, a rotary filling device that can prevent foaming by applying a liquid filled in the container 2 to the center of the bottom surface 2c of the container 2 has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1). reference).

  In this Patent Document 1, a plurality of filling means provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on a rotating body, and a container stand provided corresponding to each of these filling means and supplied with a container via a supply star wheel And a rotary filling device provided on each of these container bases and having a neck gripping means for gripping the neck portion of the supplied container and a trunk support means for supporting the trunk section, the bottom of the container is set to the radius of the rotating body. A configuration is described in which the tilting means for tilting outward in the direction and the nozzle of the filling means are arranged offset from the central axis of the container mouth to the center side of the rotating body.

  According to the configuration of the invention described in Patent Document 1, the filling liquid shaken toward the outside of the rotating body by centrifugal force can be applied to the center of the bottom surface of the container at the time of filling. There is no drawback of the conventional apparatus that entrains air by flowing along the side wall, and generation of large bubbles can be prevented.

In addition, there is known a filling device in which a container is conveyed while being inclined (see Patent Document 2). The cited document 2 states that “a container having an opening at its upper end is moved in a circular motion, liquid food is filled in the container that has been moved in a circular motion, and a lid is placed on the upper end of the container in a circular motion. And the lid is sealed to the upper end of the container, and the circularly moved container is tilted in accordance with the rotational speed of the circular movement. Yes.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-63594 (page 2-4, FIG. 5) JP-A-8-156905 (page 2-3, FIG. 1)

  In the filling device, a rinser or the like for cleaning the container is arranged on the upstream side, and a container processing device such as a capper for capping the container after the liquid is filled is arranged on the downstream side. If the container is transported while being inclined, there arises a problem that it is difficult to deliver the container to the rinser or the capper. In recent years, PET bottles have been widely used as containers for beverages and the like. However, in such PET bottles, the neck is supported by a neck gripper and is transported in a suspended state. It is impossible to apply the configuration of the disclosed invention.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there are formed supply means for supplying the container to the rotating body, and a liquid valve which is provided in the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction and which opens and closes the filling liquid passage. A plurality of filling means, container support means provided corresponding to each of the filling means, discharge means for discharging the filled containers downstream, driving means for rotating the rotating body, A rotary filling unit that is provided in the supply means so as to be able to move forward and backward, has a stopper that engages with the container and stops the supply of the container to the rotating body, and fills the liquid while rotating and conveying the container at a predetermined filling speed. In the apparatus, when the rotating body is driven to rotate at a predetermined filling speed by arranging the axial center of the filling liquid passage of the filling means to be inclined inward with respect to the rotating shaft of the rotating body, Discharged from the filling means The filling liquid is reached in the vicinity of the center of the container bottom perform filling, at the time of the downstream side of the container full of abnormality of the filling device, to stop the supply of containers to the rotary body by advancing the stopper, the rotation The container in the body is filled and discharged, and when the operation is resumed, the stopper is retracted to restart the supply of the container to the rotating body and the rotation until the container is filled. The body is rotated at a predetermined filling speed.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the filling liquid passage of the filling means is arranged in parallel with the rotation axis of the rotating body, the filling means of the filling liquid passage of the filling means is disposed in the filling means. The filling liquid discharged from the container is arranged so as to be inclined at an angle substantially equal to the angle at which the filling liquid is swung outward by centrifugal force.

  In the rotary type filling apparatus of the present invention, the filling liquid passage of the filling means is disposed inwardly with respect to the rotating shaft of the rotating body, so that the filling liquid shaken outward under the influence of centrifugal force is stored in the container. It can be applied to the center of the bottom surface of the foam, and foaming can be prevented from occurring. Moreover, since the container is held in an upright state without being inclined, the container can be smoothly delivered to the upstream rinser and the downstream capper.

  Filling means having a filling liquid passage and a liquid valve for opening and closing the filling liquid passage are provided in the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and container support means are provided corresponding to each filling means, and the filling means The filling liquid passage is arranged at an angle corresponding to an angle corresponding to the angle at which the filling liquid is swung outward by centrifugal force, so that the filling liquid discharged from the filling liquid passage is centrifuged. The object of preventing the container from coming off from the center of the bottom of the container due to the influence of force is achieved.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing the configuration of the entire filling line equipped with a rotary filling device according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows the main part of the rotary filling device according to one embodiment of the present invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view shown expanding.

  The container 2 filled with the liquid in the filling apparatus according to this embodiment is a PET bottle, and in this filling line, the neck 2a is supported while being suspended while being supported by the neck 2a, and each processing apparatus such as a filling apparatus is used. The inside is conveyed and filling and other processes are performed. The containers 2 are supplied by an air conveyor 6, separated by a screw 8 at a predetermined interval, and delivered to a supply star wheel 10. After these containers 2 are supplied to the rinser 12 via the supply star wheel 10 and cleaned while being rotated and conveyed, they are related to an embodiment of the present invention via the intermediate wheel (first intermediate wheel) 14. It is supplied to the rotary filling device 16. In the rotary filling device 16, the container 2 filled with the liquid while being rotated and conveyed at a predetermined filling speed is sent to the capper 20 through the second intermediate wheel 18 to be capped. Thereafter, each container 2 is delivered to the discharge side air conveyor 24 via the outlet star wheel 22 and sent to the next step.

  A stopper 26 for temporarily stopping the conveyance of the container 2 is arranged upstream of the rinser 12 (in the air conveyor 6 on the supply side in this embodiment). For example, when an abnormal signal such as insufficient supply of the container 2 on the upstream side of the rinser 12 or that the downstream side of the capper 20 is full is input, the stopper 26 is operated to stop the supply of the container 2, The containers 2 already introduced into the rinser 12, the rotary filling device 16 and the capper 20 are all dispensed after being subjected to processing such as filling. Further, when the abnormal state is resolved and the operation is started again, the stopper 26 is retracted and the supply of the container 2 is resumed. The container 2 is transported at a low speed at the start of operation, but it is transported to the rotary filling device 16 via the supply star wheel 10, the rinser 12, and the intermediate wheel 14 until normal filling. (The predetermined filling speed) has been reached.

  Next, the configuration of the rotary filling device (the rotary filling device of the first embodiment is indicated by reference numeral 16A) will be described with reference to FIG. A plurality of filling means 30 are attached to the outer peripheral portion of the rotating body 28 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. These filling means 30 have a filling liquid passage 34 formed inside a cylindrical valve body 32, and are sent from a filling liquid tank (not shown) into the filling liquid passage 34 via a supply pipe 36. The filled liquid is discharged from the discharge port 34 a of the filling liquid passage 34 and filled into the container 2. The rotary filling device 16 according to this embodiment is so-called non-seal filling, and fills the liquid without sealing the mouth of the container 2.

  A rod 38 that can be moved up and down is inserted into the filling liquid passage 34 and is moved up and down by a lifting air cylinder 40 attached above the valve body 32. A valve body 42 fitted with a seal member is formed at the lower end portion of the elevating rod 38, and the valve body 42 and the valve seat 44 provided on the inner surface of the lower end portion of the filling liquid passage 34, A liquid valve 46 that cuts off the communication of the filling liquid passage 34 is configured. When the rod 38 is moved up and down by the operation of the lift air cylinder 40 and the valve body 42 is lowered and seated on the valve seat 44, the filling liquid passage 34 is closed and the valve body 42 is lifted and the valve seat 44 is lifted. When the seating is separated, the filling liquid passage 34 is opened and filling is performed. The lifting rod 38 has the same large diameter over its entire length, and a gap between the outer peripheral surface of the lifting rod 38 and the inner peripheral surface of the valve body 32 constitutes a filling liquid passage 34, The filling liquid is rectified in the process of passing through the filling liquid passage 34 and is discharged in a state close to natural fall.

  The flow rate of the filling liquid supplied from the supply pipe 36 and filled into the container 2 through the filling liquid passage 34 is measured by a flow meter (not shown) provided in the liquid supply pipe 36. When the flow rate is measured, the liquid valve 46 is closed by the operation of the air cylinder 40, and the filling is completed.

  Below each filling means 30, container support means 48 for supporting the lower surface side of the flange 2b formed on the neck 2a of the container 2 is provided, and the rotary filling device is provided from the supply star wheel 10. The container 2 supplied to 16A is supported and rotated. The container 2 is in a suspended state with the neck portion 2a supported by the container support means 48, so that the container 2 maintains a vertical posture, and its axis O1 is parallel to the rotation axis O2 of the rotating body 28. Yes.

  On the other hand, in the valve body 32 of the filling means 30 in which the filling liquid passage 34 is formed, the axis O3 of the filling liquid passage 34 is inward (radially inward) with respect to the rotation axis O2 of the rotating body 28. It is attached in a state inclined by a predetermined angle θ. This tilt angle θ is the same as the conventional filling device shown in FIG. 5, that is, a rotary filling device having a configuration in which the axis O13 of the filling liquid passage 134 of the filling means 130 is arranged in parallel to the rotation axis O12 of the rotating body 128. Is operating at an angle substantially equal to the angle at which the filling liquid 150 discharged from the filling liquid passage 134 is swung outward by the centrifugal force, the rotational speed of the rotating body 28, and the rotation radius of the filling means 30. It is determined by the size of the container 2 and the like. For example, when filling tea with a filling device having a diameter of 3.2 meters and a capacity of 1200 bottles (pet bottles) per minute, the filling liquid flows about 10 degrees by centrifugal force. Is inclined outward, so that the filling liquid passage is inclined 10 degrees inward. As described above, the angle θ is obtained in advance from conditions such as the capacity of the filling device and the size of the container 2, and the filling means 30 is inclined by this angle θ and attached to the rotating body 28.

  In the rotary filling device 16A according to this embodiment, the central axis O3 of the filling liquid passage 34 formed in the valve body 32 passes through the center of the discharge port 34a of the filling liquid passage 34 (the vertical axis O4 (rotating body 28). Since the tip end side is inclined by θ degrees toward the radially inward side with respect to the rotation axis O2, the liquid valve 46 is opened and liquid is supplied from the filling liquid passage 34 (in FIG. 2). Immediately after being discharged), it is directed in the extending direction of the central axis O3 of the filling liquid passage 34, but as it flows downward, it is shaken radially outward by centrifugal force, When reaching the bottom surface 2c of 2, the container 2 comes into contact with the center of the bottom surface of the container 2. Therefore, foaming generated when the liquid filled in the container 2 wraps around along the side wall 2d can be suppressed. Moreover, in this embodiment, unlike the conventional configuration, the container 2 is not inclined, so that the delivery of the container 2 to the upstream rinser 12 and the downstream capper 20 can be performed normally.

  FIG. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing a main part of a rotary filling device 16B according to the second embodiment. The rotary type filling apparatus 16B according to this embodiment is different from the first embodiment only in that the filling is performed in a state where the mouth of the container 2 is sealed, and the other configurations are the same. The same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the filling means 30 of this embodiment, the lower end portion 52 of the valve body 32 extends downward from the discharge port 34a of the filling liquid passage 34, and the extension portion 52 faces the vertical direction. On the inner peripheral side of the lower end extension portion 52, a bottle mouth packing 54 that is in close contact with the mouth portion of the container 2 and seals the inside of the container 2 is fitted. Also in this embodiment, since the container 2 is suspended by the container support means 48 and supported in a vertical state, the bottle opening packing 54 is attached in a horizontal state so as to be in close contact with the mouth portion of the container 2. . Further, an exhaust passage 56 that communicates with the inside of the container 2 when the mouth of the container 2 is sealed by the bottle mouth packing 54 is formed in the lower end extension 52 of the valve body 32. The exhaust passage 56 is opened and closed by a valve 58. At the time of filling, the air in the container 2 is discharged from the exhaust passage 56 as the sealed container 2 is filled with liquid. The

  Similarly to the above embodiment, the rotary filling device 16B according to this embodiment also has a filling liquid with respect to a vertical axis O4 passing through the center of the discharge port 34a of the filling liquid passage 34 parallel to the rotation axis O2 of the rotating body 28. Since the lower end side of the central axis O3 of the passage 34 is inclined inward in the radial direction by an angle θ, the liquid discharged from the filling liquid passage 34 into the container 2 hits the center portion of the bottom surface 2c of the container 2 and is thus filled. The bubbling of the liquid can be suppressed. The angle θ is an angle corresponding to the angle at which the liquid discharged from the filling liquid passage 34 is swung outward by centrifugal force, and is determined by the rotation speed of the rotating body 28, the rotation radius of the filling means, the size of the container, and the like. Is done.

  FIG. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing a main part of a rotary filling device 16C according to the third embodiment. The basic configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, but in the first embodiment, filling is performed. The means 30 is fixed in a state where it is inclined at a predetermined angle θ with respect to the rotation axis O2 of the rotating body 28. In this embodiment, an adjusting mechanism 60 for changing the inclination of the filling means 30 is provided. By providing such an adjusting mechanism 60, when the filling speed of the rotating body or the size of the container 2 is changed, it is not necessary to replace the filling means 30 at a different angle, and the filling means 30 is optimized by a simple operation. Can be adjusted to any angle.

It is a top view which simplifies and shows the whole structure of the filling line containing the rotary type | formula filling apparatus which concerns on one Example of this invention. Example 1 It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal part of the said rotary type | formula filling apparatus. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal part of a rotary type filling apparatus. (Example 2) It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal part of a rotary type filling apparatus. (Example 3) It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal part of the conventional rotary type filling device.

Explanation of symbols

θ Inclination angle of filling liquid passage 2 Container (PET bottle)
16 Rotary type filling device 28 Rotating body 30 Filling means 34 Filling liquid passage 46 Liquid valve 48 Container support means

Claims (2)

Supply means for supplying the container to the rotating body, a plurality of filling means provided in the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, in which a filling liquid passage and a liquid valve for opening and closing the filling liquid passage are formed, and A container support means provided corresponding to each filling means, a discharge means for discharging the filled containers downstream, a drive means for rotating the rotating body, and a supply means are provided to be able to move forward and backward. A rotary filling device that includes a stopper that engages with the container and stops the supply of the container to the rotating body, and fills the liquid while rotating and conveying the container at a predetermined filling speed.
By disposing the axis of the filling liquid passage of the filling means inward with respect to the rotation axis of the rotating body, when the rotating body is driven to rotate at a predetermined filling speed, the filling means Fill the discharged liquid until it reaches the center of the bottom of the container,
When an abnormality occurs when the container is full on the downstream side of the filling device, the supply of the container to the rotating body is stopped by advancing the stopper, and the container in the rotating body is filled and discharged,
When the operation is resumed, the stopper is retracted to restart the supply of the container to the rotating body, and the rotating body is rotated at a predetermined filling speed until the container is filled. Filling equipment.   When the axial center of the filling liquid passage of the filling means is arranged in parallel to the rotation axis of the rotating body, the filling liquid discharged from the filling means is outside by centrifugal force. 2. The rotary filling device according to claim 1, wherein the rotary filling device is disposed so as to be inclined at an angle substantially equal to an angle swung to the surface.

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