JP5238291B2 - Pusher in packaging equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a pusher used in a packaging apparatus for obtaining a packaged product by inserting a package body from an opening end of a bag.

A device that uses a pusher to push a package body into a bag having one end portion closed and an opposite end portion open, and then closes the open end to obtain a package. Is well known in the art. For example, in the high-speed packaging machine described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-160002 (Patent Document 1), heat sealing is performed by using a plurality of horizontal sealers and cutting devices for a cylindrical plastic film. A bag having a closed end and an open end opposite the closed end. A pusher is used to insert a predetermined number of packages into the bag, and then the open end is heat-sealed to obtain a package. Further, in such a packaging machine, air suction ports are formed on both sides of the pusher, and when the pusher that has entered the bag while pressing the package is withdrawn from the bag, It is also known as a prior art that air is sucked to form a town at the opening end of the bag and the opening end is heat-sealed to be in a closed state.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-160002

  In such a conventional technique, the inside of the bag is likely to be in a reduced pressure state when the pusher leaves the bag. On the other hand, if the packaged body is a flexible material such as a disposable diaper or a sanitary napkin, and the bag is also formed of a flexible sheet material such as a plastic film or paper, the pressure is reduced. The package body may be deformed as the bag is deformed. As a result, the packaged body may have a reduced function during use or a poor appearance. In addition, the package may be difficult to stack in an orderly manner at a store or the like due to the irregular shape.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to improve the pusher used in the packaging apparatus so that such problems in the packaged body and the package can be solved.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is directed to a case where a package body is pushed into a bag having a closed end portion and an open end portion which is the opposite end portion from the open end portion, and then the open end portion. It is a pusher for pushing in the said to-be-packaged body used in the packaging apparatus which closes the said opening edge part and forms a package from the said bag and the said to-be-packaged body, forming a town on both sides of a part.

In such a pusher, the present invention is characterized as follows. The pusher reciprocates in the direction in which the packaged body is pushed in and in the opposite direction, and is a front end portion that enters the bag while being pressed against the packaged body, and an opposite end portion thereof. A head portion having a rear end portion and both side portions extending in parallel with each other in a direction in which the package body is pushed in between the front end portion and the rear end portion; Each of the both side portions of the head portion has a V-shaped groove extending from the front end portion toward the rear end portion. The head portion has an air supply port at the front end portion thereof, which can ventilate the inside and outside of the bag through the pusher when the front end portion is inside the bag. , to its said sides, to allow the the gusset is formed in the open end of the bag when the front end on the inside of the bag is moved to the opposite direction of the V-shaped groove An air suction port is provided at the bottom, and when the head portion is retracted from the bag, air inside the bag is sucked from the air suction port and air is supplied from the air supply port to the inside of the bag. To do.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, the air supply port at the front end portion of the head portion is between the front end portion and the rear end portion, and is located behind the rear end portion and the rear end portion. Is open to the atmosphere.

  In another embodiment of the present invention, pressurized air can be supplied into the bag from the air supply port at the front end of the head portion.

  Since the pusher according to the present invention has an air supply port at the front end of the head portion and an air suction port at both side portions, when the head portion finishes pushing the packaged body and exits from the bag, Even if the air inside the opening end is sucked from the air suction port to form a town at the opening end of the bag, the central part of the bag into which the packaged body is pressed is unlikely to be in a reduced pressure state, and the town is formed. This can prevent the deformation of the packaged body.

  The details of the pusher in the present invention used in the packaging device will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings as follows.

  FIG. 1 shows a bag 2 to be used by the pusher 1 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) in the present invention, and a package to be packaged in the bag 2, that is, a plurality of sanitary napkin individual packages 3 formed. It is a figure which shows the aggregate | assembly 15. The bag 2 is formed of, for example, a flexible and non-breathable plastic film, and includes a closed end 4 on which a heat seal 2d is formed, and an open end 5 that is the opposite end of the closed end 4. Have Between the closed end portion 4 and the open end portion 5, there is a pair of side surface portions 7 in which a town 6 is formed. The individual wrapping body 3 is obtained by enclosing sanitary napkins (not shown) in individual bags 3a formed of a flexible sheet material such as a plastic film or a nonwoven fabric. The assembly 15 is formed in an orderly arrangement in the machine direction A (see also FIG. 2) and the intersecting direction B perpendicular thereto.

  FIG. 2 is a side view of the packaging device 10 in which the pusher 1 according to the present invention is used. The packaging device 10 includes a first supply step 11 for intermittently supplying the bag 2, a second supply step 12 for intermittently supplying the assembly 15 formed by the individual package 3, the bag 2, And a bagging step 13 for obtaining a package 14 (see also FIG. 3) comprising the assembly 15.

  In the first supply step 11 of FIG. 2, the bag 2 in which the town 6 is formed is intermittently supplied from the left side of the drawing with the open end 5 facing forward. In the bag 2, the upper and lower surfaces 8, 9 (see FIG. 1) of the bag 2 are sucked by the pair of upper and lower expansion suction plates 16, and the opening end 5 is in the expanded state as shown in FIG. 1. The suction plate 16 is moved horizontally in the direction of the arrow C to cover the opening end portion 5 that is widened on the bucket 21a of the plurality of buckets 21, and then returns to the illustrated position away from the opening end portion 5. . The bucket 21 maintains the open end portion 5 in an expanded state. In the figure, the bag 2 covered by the bucket 21a of the bucket 21 is shown as a virtual line bag 2a. The bucket 21 is also attached to a disk 22 that rotates intermittently clockwise or counterclockwise, and the bag 2a placed on the bucket 21a rotates 180 ° together with the disk 22 so that the upper side of the figure. Move down. In FIG. 2, the bag 2a thus moved is shown as a virtual line bag 2b, and the bucket 21a is shown as a bucket 21b.

  In the second supply step 12 of FIG. 2, the assembly 15 is placed on the transporter 17 and moved in the direction of arrow D, and is transferred to the lifter 18 included in the transporter 17. The lifter 18 moves up and down, and the assembly 15 placed thereon can be moved upward as indicated by an arrow E. In the figure, the aggregate 15 thus moved is shown as an aggregate 15a. In the transporter 17, a plurality of pins 17b are attached to the endless belt 17a that intermittently moves in the direction of the arrow D at regular intervals, and are slidably mounted on a support base (not shown) in the transporter 17. The assembly 15 is pressed by the pin 17b from the right side of the drawing, that is, from the direction of the arrow D, and the assembly 15 is moved in the direction of the arrow D.

  The bag filling process 13 of FIG. 2 includes the pusher 1, a pair of upper and lower press plates 31, a pair of upper and lower seal plates 32, and an endless belt 33. The pusher 1 has a head portion 36 on the left side in the machine direction A, and a rod portion 37 on the right side. The rod portion 37 drives the pusher 1 to reciprocate forward and backward in the machine direction A. The pusher 1 is connected to a mechanism (not shown) and is in a retracted position. In the bag filling step 13, the bag 2b, the bucket 21b covered with the bag 2b, the assembly 15a moved upward, and the pusher 1 are aligned in the machine direction A. The pusher 1 moves forward to the left in the machine direction A, the head portion 36 presses against the assembly 15a, and pushes the assembly 15a into the bucket 21b. The head portion 36 further advances, and the aggregate 15a is pushed into the bag 2b, and then the bag 2b is pushed leftward through the aggregate 15a to be removed from the bucket 21b and placed on the endless belt 33. Thereafter, the head portion 36 retracts toward the right in the machine direction A so as to exit from the bag 2b. At this time, the pair of presser plates 31 move so as to approach each other in the vertical direction, thereby preventing the bag 2b from moving to the right. When the head portion 36 is withdrawn from the bag 2b, the pair of heated seal plates 32 approach in the vertical direction to form the heat seal 2e (see FIG. 3) sandwiching the opening end portion 5 of the bag 2b. Thereafter, when the pair of seal plates 32 returns to the state shown in the drawing, the package 14 including the aggregate 15 is obtained. The package 14 is carried to the left by the endless belt 33.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing details of the bag filling process 13, but the lifter 18 and the disk 22 are not shown. In FIG. 3A, the bucket 21b covered with the bag 2b, the aggregate 15a, and the pusher 1 are aligned in the machine direction A. The head portion 36 of the pusher 1 has a front end portion 41 and a rear end portion 42 opposite to the front end portion 41. A pair of side surface portions 43 and a pair of upper and lower surface portions are provided between the front end portion 41 and the rear end portion 42. 44 and 45 are formed. Further, a front surface 46 (see FIG. 4) that is brought into contact with the assembly 15a is formed at the front end portion 41, and a rear surface 47 to which the rod portion 37 can be connected is formed at the rear end portion 42. A V-shaped groove 51 extending from the front end portion 41 toward the rear end portion 42 is formed in the side surface portion 43, and an air suction port 52 is formed at the bottom of the V-shaped groove 51. The air suction port 52 is connected to an air suction source (not shown) such as a vacuum pump, and can suck the air in the bag 2b at a predetermined time in the bag filling process 13. Further, an air supply port 53 (see FIG. 4) is formed in the front surface 46. The air supply port 53 is in a state opened to the atmosphere via a pipe (not shown) extending inside the head portion 36 or connected to a pressurized air supply source (not shown) such as a compressor. It is in. When opened to the atmosphere, the pipe has an open end between the front end portion 41 and the rear end portion 42 of the head portion 36, or at a rear end portion 42 or a portion behind the rear end portion 42.

  In FIG. 3 (b), the head portion 36 moves forward and pushes the assembly 15a into the tunnel-like bucket 21b and then pushes it into the bag 2b. The bag 2b is detached from the bucket 21b.

  In FIG. 3C, the head portion 36 in FIG. 3B begins to retract so as to retract from the bag 2b, while the pair of presser plates 31 begin to approach. Further, in the head portion 36, suction at the air suction port 52 starts, and the side surface portion 7 of the bag 2 b is deformed so as to follow the shape of the V-shaped groove 51 in the vicinity of the opening end portion 5. (See (e)) is starting to be formed. When the front end 41 is inside the bag 2b, the head portion 36 is in a state where the air supply port 53 is always open to the atmosphere or when the head portion 36 moves backward, Since the inside and the outside of the bag 2b can be ventilated while being supplied to the inside, it is possible to prevent the central portion of the bag 2b from being in a reduced pressure state due to the backward movement of the head portion 36 or the vacuum suction action. be able to. The assembly 15 is pushed into the central portion. When the sanitary napkin included in the individual package 3 has an elastic compression recovery force, the assembly 15 is in a compressed state when the pusher 1 is advanced and pressed, and the volume becomes small. When the pusher 1 is retracted, the compressed state is released and the volume increases, and the bag 2b may be in a reduced pressure state. However, the pusher 1 has the air supply port 53, so that the reduced pressure state is obtained. Can be prevented.

  In FIG. 3D, a pair of heated seal plates 32 approach each other with respect to the bag 2b after the head portion 36 has retracted, and the heat seal 2e (see FIG. 3E) ) Is formed.

  FIG. 3E shows the package 14 obtained in the bagging process 13. A heat seal 2e is formed on the package 14 in addition to the heat seal 2d. Towns 56 and 57 are formed in the vicinity of the heat seals 2d and 2e on the side surface portion 7 of the bag 2 in the package 14.

  FIG. 4 is a view taken along line IV-IV in the head portion 36 shown in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a part of the front face 46 and the V-shaped groove 51 of the side face 43 in the head portion 36 of the pusher 1. An air supply port 53 is formed on the front face 46. The V-shaped groove 51 has a horizontal V-shape and has an air suction port 52 at the bottom. The bag 2b indicated by the imaginary line along the V-shaped groove 51 is deformed by the vacuum pressure acting through the air suction port 52, and is in a state of starting to form the town 57. However, in the pusher 1 according to the present invention, even if the vacuum suction action for forming the town 57 in the bag 2 starts, the central portion of the bag 2 is opened to the atmosphere via the air supply port 53 in the head portion 36. By being in a state where the air is being supplied or being supplied with pressurized air, the pressure is not reduced. Therefore, the individual wrapping body 3 forming the aggregate 15 is not squeezed by a bag in a decompressed state and is not distorted in shape. In addition, since the packaging body 14 itself is not distorted, it is easy to stack the packaging bodies 14 when packaging or displaying them. In the pusher 1, the start and end timings of air suction through the air suction port 52 and the start and end timings of pressurized air supply through the air supply port 53 are controlled with respect to those timings. This is made possible by installing a mechanism (not shown) in the packaging device 10. In the pusher 1, it is possible to replace the V-shaped groove 51 in the illustrated example with a U-shaped groove or other concave groove.

  FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3A, showing an example of a usage mode of the pusher 1 according to the present invention. In the bag 2b of FIG. 5, the open end 5 covers the bucket 21b, while the closed end 4 enters the bucket 21b from the left in the machine direction A. The closed end 4 is in a state where its inner surface is exposed and faces the aggregate 15a. When the assembly 15a is pushed by the pusher 1 and enters the bucket 21b, the assembly 15a contacts the inner surface of the closed end 4 of the bag 2b. As the pusher 1 moves forward, the assembly 15a enters the bag 2b, and eventually enters the state shown in FIG. In order to bring the bag 2b into the state shown in FIG. 5, the open end 5 is put on the bucket 21b, and then the compressed air is sprayed from the outside of the closed end 4 toward the bag 2b. What is necessary is just to enter 21b from the left side of a figure.

  In the embodiment of FIG. 5, when the assembly 15 a is advanced into the bag 2 b using the pusher 1, air is not trapped in the bag 2 b in front of the assembly 15 a, and the compact packaging body 14 is formed. Can be obtained.

  The pusher 1 and the packaging device 10 including the pusher 1 according to the present invention are suitable for packaging flexible and easily deformable articles such as sanitary napkins and disposable diapers, but can be used for articles that are difficult to deform. Needless to say, it can be done.

The perspective view of a bag and a to-be-packaged body. The side view of the packaging apparatus which uses a pusher. The figure which shows the detail of a bagging process by (a)-(e). IV-IV line arrow directional view in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the usage condition of a pusher.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pusher 2, 2a, 2b Bag 4 Closed end part 5 Open end part 10 Packaging apparatus 14 Packaging body 15, 15a Package body 36 Head part 41 Front end part 42 Rear end part 43 Side part 51 V-shaped groove 52 Air suction port 53 Air supply port 57 Town

Claims (3)

After the package body is pushed into the bag having the closed end portion and the open end portion which is the opposite end portion from the open end portion, the open end portion is closed while forming towns on both sides of the open end portion. A pusher for pressing the packaged body used in a packaging device for obtaining a packaged body from the bag and the packaged body,
The pusher reciprocates in a direction in which the package body is pushed in and the opposite direction, and a front end portion that enters the bag while being pressed against the package body, and a rear end portion that is the opposite end portion. And a head portion having both side portions extending in parallel with each other in a direction of pressing the package body between the front end portion and the rear end portion,
Each of the both side portions of the head portion has a V-shaped groove extending from the front end portion toward the rear end portion,
The head portion has an air supply port at the front end portion thereof, which can ventilate the inside and outside of the bag through the pusher when the front end portion is inside the bag. , to its said sides, to allow the the gusset is formed in the open end of the bag when the front end on the inside of the bag is moved to the opposite direction of the V-shaped groove The bottom has the air suction port, and when retreating from the bag, sucks air inside the bag from the air suction port and supplies air from the air supply port to the inside of the bag. The pusher.   The air supply port in the front end portion of the head portion is open to the atmosphere between the front end portion and the rear end portion, or behind the rear end portion and the rear end portion. The pusher according to 1.   The pusher according to claim 1, wherein pressurized air can be supplied into the bag from the air supply port at the front end portion of the head portion.

Images