JP5961966B2 - Capsule manufacturing apparatus and capsule manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a capsule manufacturing apparatus, a medical capsule, and a capsule manufacturing method.

  A capsule produced by covering a core substance (core) with a film (shell) is known. Among such capsules, a microcapsule having a particle size of the order of micrometers is called a microcapsule (microsphere, gel bead), and has been developed in recent years. The microcapsule can have various functions by appropriately selecting a material for forming the core or shell. For example, it can have a function to protect the core from the external environment and a function to adjust the speed at which the core is released to the external environment. Currently, the functional material is used in various fields such as food and medicine. Applied.

  As a method for producing such a microcapsule, a method for producing a capsule by coating a core material with a shell material using a core material that forms a core of the capsule and a shell material that forms a shell (both are liquid). There is. For example, the shell material is formed in a liquid film shape and held so that the shell material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the core material is floated on the liquid surface formed by the core material. Then, bubbles are generated and ruptured near the interface between the core material and the shell material (below the core material liquid surface). A method has been proposed in which a microcapsule is generated by discharging the core material to the liquid film side of the shell material by the pressure generated when the bubbles burst and covering the core material with the shell material. (For example, patent document 1).

JP 2005-224647 A

According to the method of Patent Document 1, it becomes easy to generate microcapsules having a uniform shell thickness.
However, in Patent Document 1, once the liquid film of the shell material is formed, the liquid film is not sufficiently managed during the capsule generating operation. For example, when the surface area of the liquid film is large, the shell material forming the liquid film evaporates over time, and the thickness of the liquid film may be reduced. However, such a change in the thickness of the liquid film is not considered.

  If the thickness of the liquid film of the shell material changes when producing the capsule, it is considered that the thickness of the shell covering the core also changes, and it becomes difficult to keep the thickness of the shell uniform. Therefore, care must be taken to ensure that the reduced amount of shell material is properly replenished and the thickness of the shell material liquid film is kept constant during the capsule generating operation.

  An object of the present invention is to produce a capsule while appropriately replenishing the shell material in a capsule manufacturing apparatus that produces a capsule by a core passing through a liquid film-like shell material.

A main invention for achieving the above object is to provide a first liquid ejecting unit that ejects a droplet of the first liquid, a liquid film holding unit that retains the second liquid in a film shape, and the second liquid A liquid replenishing unit for replenishing the liquid film with the second liquid, the liquid replenishing unit having a second liquid ejecting unit for replenishing the second liquid by ejecting the second liquid by an inkjet method; A control unit that controls the second liquid ejecting unit, and when the droplet of the first liquid penetrates the liquid film of the second liquid held in the liquid film holding unit, The first liquid droplet is covered with a second liquid to form a capsule having the first liquid droplet as a core material and the second liquid as a shell material, and the control The injection amount is adjusted by the control of the unit, and the second liquid injection unit A capsule manufacturing apparatus for ejecting body, the liquid film holding portion is used, the number a first region droplets of the first liquid is injected, and a second region in which the second liquid is replenished The liquid film holding portion further includes a connection region that connects the first region and the second region to form a flow path for the second liquid from the second region to the first region. In the capsule manufacturing apparatus , the width of the flow path in the connection region is narrower than the width of the liquid film of the second liquid held in the first region and the second region. is there.

  Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

It is a conceptual diagram of a capsule. It is a figure which illustrates roughly the operation | movement at the time of a shell being formed. It is the schematic explaining the basic composition of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 in 1st Embodiment. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of the ejection head 11. FIG. It is a figure showing the flow of the process of producing | generating a capsule using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 in 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of a sodium alginate. It is explanatory drawing which shows the intermediate | middle aspect which changes from sodium alginate to a calcium alginate gel. It is explanatory drawing of a calcium alginate gel. It is the schematic explaining the basic composition of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 in the modification of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure explaining an example of the liquid film of the shell material formed in the modification of 1st Embodiment. It is the schematic explaining the basic composition of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 in 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining an example of the liquid film of the shell material formed in 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure showing the flow of the process of producing | generating a capsule using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 in 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure showing the flow for judging whether core material injection is possible in a core formation process (S201). It is the schematic explaining the basic composition of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 3 in 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining an example of the liquid film of the shell material formed in 3rd Embodiment.

  At least the following matters will become clear from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

A first liquid ejecting unit that ejects a droplet of the first liquid that forms the core, and a liquid film holding unit that holds the second liquid that forms the shell in a film shape, the second liquid being held A liquid film holding portion for forming a shell containing the core by covering the core with the second liquid when the core penetrates the liquid liquid film; and the liquid film of the second liquid And a second liquid ejecting unit that replenishes the liquid film with the second liquid by ejecting the second liquid.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, a capsule can be generated while appropriately replenishing a shell material when generating the capsule. Thereby, since the capsule can be generated while suppressing the variation in the thickness of the liquid film of the shell material, it becomes easy to form a shell having a uniform thickness.

In this capsule manufacturing apparatus, the liquid film includes a portion for replenishing the second liquid, a portion through which the core penetrates, and a portion through which the second liquid is replenished and a portion through which the core penetrates. Preferably, the width of the connecting portion is the same as or narrower than the width of the portion for replenishing the second liquid and the portion through which the core passes.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, the surface area can be reduced in a portion other than a portion (a portion through which the core material is penetrated and a portion where the film thickness is measured) that needs to secure a predetermined region on the liquid film. Thereby, it is difficult to evaporate the shell material from the liquid film and it is difficult to destroy the shell material.

In this capsule manufacturing apparatus, it is preferable to include a measurement unit that measures the thickness of the liquid film of the second liquid held in the liquid film holding unit.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, since the thickness of the shell material liquid film can be accurately measured during the capsule generating operation, it becomes easy to keep the thickness of the liquid film constant. By keeping the liquid film thickness constant, capsules with uniform shell thickness can be produced.

The capsule manufacturing apparatus includes a control unit that ejects the first liquid from the first liquid ejecting unit and ejects the second liquid from the second liquid ejecting unit, and the control unit includes: When the result of measuring the thickness of the liquid film is smaller than a predetermined value, the liquid film is replenished with the second liquid, and the result of measuring the thickness of the liquid film is a predetermined value It is desirable to eject the first liquid. The predetermined value is a value of a liquid film thickness within a penetrable liquid film thickness corresponding to the speed of the core material droplet and a desired shell thickness can be obtained. The shell thickness of the capsule is very much related to the liquid film thickness. That is, the capsule shell thickness can be set to an arbitrary dimension by increasing the liquid film thickness when it is desired to produce a capsule with a thick shell, and reducing the liquid film thickness when it is desired to produce a capsule with a thin shell thickness.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, capsules can be generated while adjusting the film thickness according to the measurement result of the film thickness. That is, when the film thickness is thinner than a predetermined thickness, it is easy to keep the thickness of the liquid film uniform by replenishing the liquid film with a shell material. Thereby, it is possible to generate a capsule having a uniform shell thickness while eliminating waste of the shell material.

In this capsule manufacturing apparatus, the first liquid ejecting section includes a nozzle row in which a plurality of nozzles ejecting droplets of the first liquid are arranged, and the second liquid formed along the nozzle row It is desirable to eject a plurality of droplets of the first liquid from the nozzle row toward the liquid film.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, since a plurality of core materials can be ejected from the nozzle row at a time, a plurality of capsules can be produced at a time. That is, the capsule can be mass-produced efficiently.

In such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, it is desirable that the shell formed by the second liquid is brought into contact with the third liquid to cause a chemical reaction to cure the shell. The chemical reaction includes a polymer reaction, a polymerization reaction, a cross-linking reaction, and the like. Further, the term “curing” as used herein means that the viscosity of a liquid is increased or that a liquid is changed to a solid. In particular, it is not limited to the intensity change specific to the solid.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, a capsule having an appropriately hardened shell can be generated.

In this capsule manufacturing apparatus, the second liquid is an aqueous solution containing polysaccharides and proteins, the third liquid is an aqueous solution containing a polyvalent metal salt, and the second liquid and the third liquid It is desirable to cure the shell by bringing it into contact with a liquid to cause a crosslinking reaction.
According to such a capsule manufacturing apparatus, a capsule that is harmless to the human body and highly applicable to the medical field or the like can be generated. In addition, since a shell made of a hydrophilic gel can be formed, a capsule having high water retention performance and easy adjustment of osmotic pressure through the shell between the external environment and the capsule can be generated. it can.

Moreover, the medical capsule manufactured with this capsule manufacturing apparatus becomes clear.
According to such a medical capsule, a microcapsule having a desired size and hardness can be manufactured. Thus, like a DDS (drug delivery system), a core such as a drug and a shell covering the core are configured. It is possible to reach the affected area without being absorbed and decomposed on the way, and to release the drug at the affected area.

  Further, the first liquid is ejected toward the liquid film of the second liquid held in a film shape to form a core, and when the core penetrates the liquid film of the second liquid The core is covered with the second liquid to form a shell that encloses the core, and the liquid is ejected onto the liquid film of the second liquid, thereby Replenishing the membrane with the second liquid reveals a capsule manufacturing method.

=== Overview ===
<What is a capsule?>
In FIG. 1, the conceptual diagram of the capsule produced | generated by this embodiment is shown. The capsule in the present embodiment is constituted by a “core” (inclusion) and a “shell” covering the capsule as shown in the figure, and has a spherical outer shape. The core material forming the “core” is a substance containing an active ingredient (for example, hydroquinone, ceramide, bovine serum albumin, γ-globulin, lipiodol, bifidobacteria, vitamins, hyaluronic acid, IPS cells, etc.). The core material includes those in which the active ingredient is dissolved, those in which the active ingredient is dispersed, and those in which the active ingredient is present in a solid or gaseous state. Such capsules are used in various fields such as foods, quasi-drugs, and pharmaceuticals, and the size of capsules (capacity of inclusions) and the thickness of shells vary depending on the application. .

<Capsule production method>
An outline of a method for generating a capsule having a core and a shell as described above will be briefly described. In the present embodiment, capsules are generated using a plurality of types of liquids as raw materials. It is assumed that the first liquid is used as the core material that forms the core, and the second liquid is used as the shell material that forms the shell. As the first liquid and the second liquid, optimum liquid materials are selected according to the function and application of the capsule to be generated.

  When the capsule is generated, a droplet of the core material (first liquid) serving as the core of the capsule is made to enter the shell material (liquid film made of the second liquid) formed in a thin film shape. Then, when the core material penetrates the liquid film of the shell material, the shell material (second liquid) covers the entire core material so as to cover the entire core material, thereby forming a shell.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating the operation when the shell is formed. (A)-(D) of a figure represents the mode when a core material penetrates a liquid film in time series order. In the figure, it is assumed that the core material enters vertically from the vertically upward direction with respect to the liquid film (shaded portion) held horizontally.

  (A) First, the core formed by the droplets of the core material (first liquid) has a predetermined speed (speed that can penetrate the liquid film) in the liquid film formed by the shell material (second liquid). Rush in. (B) The core in contact with the liquid film continues straight ahead and tries to penetrate the liquid film. On the other hand, the liquid film is deformed so as to wrap the core. The first liquid and the second liquid are different in properties such as composition, specific gravity, viscosity, surface tension, and the like, and liquids that are difficult to mix with each other are selected. For example, by selecting a liquid that is a combination of a liquid that forms an interface, such as an aqueous liquid and an oily liquid, the liquids are not immediately mixed even when they come into contact with each other. (C) The core continues straight while being wrapped in the liquid film. At the stage where the core passes through the position of the initial liquid film, most of the core is covered with the liquid film (second liquid). In the portion where the core has passed, the liquid film is in a state where a hole is formed in the liquid film. However, the second liquid moves from the periphery of the hole to close the liquid film and return to the state without the hole. Try to. (D) When the core completely penetrates the liquid film, the entire core is covered with the second liquid, and a shell is formed so as to enclose the core. Further, the hole opened in the liquid film by the penetration of the core is closed by the second liquid.

  Through such an operation, a capsule having a structure in which a core is covered with a shell is generated.

  In the state shown in FIG. 2D, the capsule shell remains liquid (second liquid). For this reason, the shell may be very unstable with respect to the external environment, and the shell may be destroyed by simply touching the generated capsule. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the formed shell (second liquid) is brought into contact with the third liquid as a shell curing material to cause a chemical reaction. Capsules that are strong against the external environment are produced by curing the shell to an appropriate hardness by chemical reaction. Details of the chemical reaction between the second liquid and the third liquid will be described later. Curing includes that the viscosity of the liquid is increased and that the liquid is changed to a solid, and is not particularly limited to a change in strength unique to the solid.

=== First Embodiment ===
As a form of the capsule manufacturing apparatus for carrying out the invention, a capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 using a liquid ejecting apparatus will be described as an example.

  The capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 manufactures (generates) a capsule having a desired size while freely adjusting the size of the capsule and the thickness of the shell by ejecting droplets using an inkjet method. In addition, by ejecting a small amount of liquid droplets by an ink jet method, it is possible to generate a micro-sized capsule having a capsule diameter on the nanometer (nm) order or micrometer (μm) order. For example, a so-called microcapsule (microsphere) having a capacity of about 0.1 to 500 pl (picoliter) can be produced.

  In the present embodiment, as described with reference to FIG. 2, capsules are generated by penetrating the ejected droplets of the core material through the liquid film of the shell material. At this time, the thickness of the liquid film (film thickness) is kept constant by appropriately replenishing the liquid film of the shell material with the shell material. By managing so that the thickness of the liquid film does not fluctuate greatly through the capsule generating operation, it becomes easy to generate a capsule having a uniform shell thickness. Details of the film thickness management will be described later.

<Configuration of capsule manufacturing apparatus 1>
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a basic configuration of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment. The capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 includes a first liquid ejecting unit 10, a second liquid ejecting unit 20, a liquid film holding unit 30, and a liquid contact unit 50.

  For the sake of explanation, as shown in FIG. 3, a coordinate axis composed of an X axis, a Y axis, and a Z axis is set. The Z axis is a vertical direction (a downward direction in FIG. 3), the X axis is a direction perpendicular to the Z axis, and the Y axis is a direction perpendicular to the Z axis and the X axis. In FIG. 3, the first liquid ejecting unit 10, the liquid film holding unit 30, and the liquid contact unit 50 are arranged in a straight line along the Z-axis direction, but these positional relationships are changed. Is also possible.

(First liquid injection unit 10)
The 1st liquid injection part 10 is a core formation part which forms the core of a microcapsule by injecting the 1st liquid (core material). The first liquid ejecting unit 10 includes an ejecting head 11 and a first liquid tank 12.

  The ejection head 11 ejects the first liquid as droplets. The liquid ejecting operation by the ejecting head 11 will be described later. The first liquid tank 12 is a tank that stores a first liquid as a raw material of the core, and supplies the first liquid to the ejection head 11 via a liquid transmission path (not shown). The operation of the ejection head 11 is controlled by a control unit HC (not shown). The control unit HC generates a drive signal that is a voltage waveform signal for driving the ejection head 11 and applies it to a piezo element PZT described later, thereby ejecting the first liquid. The control unit HC also determines whether or not the first liquid can be ejected. Details will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of the ejection head 11. The ejection head 11 includes a nozzle 111, a piezo element PZT, a liquid supply path 112, a nozzle communication path 114 (corresponding to a volume chamber), and an elastic plate 116 (corresponding to a diaphragm).

  The first liquid stored in the first liquid tank 12 is supplied to the nozzle communication path 114 via the liquid supply path 112. A voltage signal having a plurality of pulses generated by the control unit HC is applied as a drive signal to the piezoelectric element PZT which is a piezoelectric element. When a drive signal is applied, the piezo element PZT expands and contracts in accordance with the drive signal, causing the elastic plate 116 to vibrate. Then, the volume of the nozzle communication path 114 is changed, and the first liquid supplied into the nozzle communication path 114 is moved so as to correspond to the amplitude of the drive signal.

  The movement of the first liquid will be specifically described. The piezo element PZT of the present embodiment has a characteristic of contracting in the vertical direction of FIG. 4 when a voltage is applied. When a voltage larger than a certain voltage is applied as a drive signal, the piezo element PZT contracts in the vertical direction in FIG. 4 and deforms the elastic plate 116 in a direction to expand the volume of the nozzle communication path 114. At this time, the liquid surface in the nozzle 111 moves toward the inside of the nozzle 111 (upper side in FIG. 4). Conversely, when a smaller voltage is applied from a certain voltage, the piezo element PZT extends in the vertical direction in FIG. 4 and deforms the elastic plate 116 in a direction to reduce the volume of the nozzle communication path 114. At this time, the liquid surface of the nozzle 111 moves in the direction of the outside of the nozzle 111 (the lower side in FIG. 4). As described above, when the volume of the nozzle communication path 114 is changed, the pressure in the nozzle communication path 114 varies, and the liquid filled in the nozzle communication path 114 can be ejected from the nozzle 111. The ejected first liquid becomes spherical (droplet) due to its surface tension. That is, by changing the amplitude (voltage magnitude) of the drive signal applied to the piezo element PZT, it is possible to adjust the size (liquid amount) of the ejected droplets. Thereby, the capsule core of a desired size can be accurately formed.

  If oxygen molecules are dissolved in the first liquid, bubbles are generated in the nozzle communication path 114 during the pressure fluctuation. Therefore, it is desirable that the first liquid used in the present embodiment is deaerated beforehand using a hollow fiber or the like.

  In the present embodiment, the nozzle 111 has a diameter of 20 μm, for example, and can eject the first liquid at an ejection frequency of 10 Hz or more. Moreover, the injection frequency can be changed by changing the frequency of the drive signal, and the capsule (core) generation efficiency can be changed. In addition, the diameter of the nozzle is not limited to this, and the diameter of the nozzle is actually related to the diameter of the core, and the diameter of the core is related to the diameter of the microcapsule. Therefore, when producing microcapsules of 1 to 1000 μm, it is desirable to use a nozzle diameter corresponding to that, that is, a nozzle diameter of 1 to 1000 μm.

(Second liquid injection unit 20)
The second liquid ejecting unit 20 ejects the shell material (second liquid) toward the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid) held by the liquid film holding unit 30, so that the shell material is applied to the liquid film. It is a shell material replenishment part which replenishes. The configuration of the second liquid ejecting unit 20 is basically the same as that of the first liquid ejecting unit 10. That is, it has an ejection head 21 and a second liquid tank 22. The ejection head 21 ejects the second liquid as droplets. The liquid ejecting operation by the ejecting head 21 is substantially the same as the operation of the ejecting head 11 of the first liquid ejecting unit 10 described above. The second liquid tank 22 is a tank for storing a second liquid as a raw material of the shell. The operation of the second liquid ejecting unit 20 is also controlled by a control unit HC (not shown). The controller HC generates a drive signal for driving the ejection head 21 and applies it to the piezo element PZT, thereby ejecting the second liquid from the nozzle (see FIG. 4).

(Liquid film holding unit 30)
The liquid film holding unit 30 includes a liquid film holding member 31.
The liquid film holding member 31 is a plate-like member that holds the second liquid (shell material), which is a raw material for forming the shell, in a thin film shape. A circular hole as shown in FIG. 3 is formed in the liquid film holding member 31, and the second liquid is supplied to the circular hole. The supplied second liquid spreads in a thin film shape with the circular hole as an outer edge, and forms a liquid film so that the area of the liquid surface (interface) becomes as small as possible. That is, the second liquid is held in the form of a film by surface tension in a circular region provided in the liquid film holding member 31. By being held by the surface tension, the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film can be made very thin, and the core material ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 can be easily penetrated. This makes it possible to increase the efficiency of capsule generation.

  The shape of the hole provided in the liquid film holding member 31 is not limited to a circle, but may be an ellipse or a rectangle. That is, it is only necessary to form a predetermined closed region that constitutes the outer edge of the liquid film. However, if the shape of the hole is circular as shown in FIG. 3, the energy required to hold the liquid film is reduced, so that the liquid film can be held stably.

  The material of the liquid film holding member 31 is not particularly limited as long as it can hold the liquid film. In this embodiment, the liquid film holding member 31 is made of metal (for example, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, gold, silver, brass, titanium, carbon steel, white steel). Etc.) or resin (for example, acrylic, polyurethane, silicon resin, epoxy resin, melamine resin, phenol resin, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, etc.) can be used. The thickness of the liquid film holding member 31 is determined in consideration of the thickness of the liquid film to be held. In the present embodiment, since the liquid film of the shell material is formed extremely thin so that the droplets of the core material can penetrate, the liquid film holding member 31 is also capable of holding such a thin film. .

  The liquid film holding member 31 is not limited to a plate-like member, and may be a frame-like member that holds the liquid film by forming an outer edge of the liquid film. For example, a ring-shaped frame may be created with a member such as a wire, and the liquid film of the second liquid may be held by the ring-shaped frame. The shape of the frame may be any shape that can hold the liquid film by being formed of a so-called closed curve (here, a rectangle formed by a straight line is also included in the closed curve) such as an ellipse or a rectangle.

  The liquid film holding unit 30 supplies a second liquid (shell material) that is a raw material for the liquid film to the liquid film holding member 31 to provide a liquid film forming mechanism (not shown) that can form a liquid film. You may have. Alternatively, the liquid film of the second liquid may be formed by an external device and held by the liquid film holding member 31. If the liquid film can be freely formed, the liquid film can be immediately re-formed even if the liquid film is damaged or broken during the capsule generation operation (details will be described later). As a result, time can be saved and capsules can be generated efficiently.

(Liquid contact part 50)
The liquid contact part 50 stores the third liquid (shell hardener) in a liquid state, and contacts the third liquid (shell hardener) and the second liquid (shell material) in the liquid contact part 50. Causing a chemical reaction to harden the shell.

  The liquid contact part 50 has a liquid storage tank 51. The liquid storage tank 51 is a container that can store a liquid. In the present embodiment, the third liquid is stored in a liquid state to form a liquid phase as represented by the hatched portion in FIG. The upper part of the liquid storage tank 51 is an opening, and the capsule covered with the second liquid (shell material) enters the third liquid by penetrating the liquid film holding unit 30. Then, the second liquid (shell material) comes into contact with the third liquid (shell hardener) to cause a chemical reaction in the liquid storage tank 51 and harden.

  The liquid storage tank 51 may include a recovery mechanism (not shown) for recovering the capsule after coming into contact with the third liquid. As the recovery mechanism, for example, a filtration device or the like for filtering out the generated capsule from the third liquid is provided. In this case, the liquid contact part 50 also has a function as a capsule collection part.

<About capsule generation operation>
Next, a specific operation when generating a capsule using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a process of generating a capsule using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, a capsule is produced | generated by three processes, a core formation process (S101), a shell formation process (S102), and a shell hardening process (S103).

  As described with reference to FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the core material is passed through the liquid film of the shell material, and the capsule is generated by covering the core material with the shell material. Therefore, when the appropriate thickness cannot be maintained due to evaporation of the liquid film of the shell material held in the liquid film holding unit 30 (that is, when the thickness is reduced), a shell having a uniform thickness is formed. There is a risk that it will not be possible. In addition, the shell itself may not be formed. Therefore, capsules are generated while keeping the liquid film at an appropriate thickness by appropriately supplementing the reduced amount of the shell material to the liquid film of the shell material.

S101: Core Formation Step First, a capsule core is formed by droplets (dots) of the core material (first liquid) ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10. As the core material, a substance (aqueous solution) containing an active ingredient (for example, hydroquinone, ceramide, bovine serum albumin, γ-globulin, lipiodol, bifidobacteria, vitamins, hyaluronic acid, IPS cells, etc.) is used. The same applies to each of the following embodiments.

  In the present embodiment, the first liquid ejecting unit 10 is provided vertically above the liquid film holding unit 30 (see FIG. 3), and the first liquid is ejected in the Z-axis direction. That is, the core material is jetted from a direction perpendicular to the liquid film of the shell material held parallel to the XY plane. However, the core material does not necessarily have to be injected in a direction perpendicular to the liquid film of the shell material, and may be injected in an oblique direction with respect to the liquid film of the shell material.

  The liquid ejection amount when ejecting the core material is determined according to the size (capacity) of the core of the capsule to be generated. This is because the droplets of the ejected first liquid directly become the core. In other words, the size of the capsule to be generated (core size) can be freely set by controlling the amount of the core material to be injected. As described above, the amount of the core material (first liquid) ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 can be adjusted by changing the voltage of the drive signal.

  This also means that the yield of the core material (first liquid) is very high. That is, since all the injected core material is used to form the core, the core material is hardly wasted. Therefore, the raw material cost of the capsule can be reduced. In particular, it is very effective when a very expensive substance must be used as the core material (for example, when a medical material is used as a core when producing a medical capsule). In addition, since the amount of wastefully discarded liquid is minimized, it is also effective from the viewpoint of environmental protection.

  The liquid jet speed when jetting the core material is set to a speed that can penetrate the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid) in the shell forming step (S102) of the next step. That is, the ejected core material droplet is set to have a momentum large enough to penetrate the liquid film. The speed to be set varies depending on the thickness of the liquid film to be penetrated, the viscosity of the liquid film material (shell material), the surface tension of the liquid film, the injection amount and density of the core (first liquid), and the like. The conditions also differ depending on the positional relationship (distance) between the first liquid ejecting unit 10 and the liquid holding unit 30. Therefore, by conducting an experiment in advance under conditions where capsules are actually generated, the minimum core material injection speed that can penetrate the liquid film of the shell material is checked, and the speed is set as a predetermined speed. deep. For example, a predetermined speed is set for each size of the core to be generated and each liquid material to be used. The controller HC drives the piezo element PZT with reference to the set predetermined speed, and ejects the first liquid so as to be equal to or higher than the predetermined speed.

S102: Shell Formation Step The core formed in S101 enters the liquid film of the shell material held by the liquid film holding unit 30. When the core penetrates the liquid film, the shell is formed by covering the core with a shell material (second liquid) (see FIG. 2).

  In this embodiment, as the shell material (second liquid), polysaccharides or proteins (for example, sodium alginate, calcium alginate, potassium alginate, ammonium alginate, ethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, pectin, gellan gum, chitosan, collagen, fibrinogen, etc. ) -Containing substance (aqueous solution) is used. Alginates are almost harmless to the human body, and the range of applicability of capsules is widened by using them as capsule shell materials. The same applies to each of the following embodiments.

  As described above, the shell material (second liquid) and the core material (first liquid) are selected as liquids that are difficult to mix with each other. In other words, a liquid material that can maintain a state in which the first liquid and the second liquid are separated for a certain period of time may be selected. For example, if the core material is an oily liquid, the shell material may be an aqueous liquid. In the capsule manufacturing apparatus of the present embodiment, since material selectivity is wide as described above, many types of liquids can be used as the shell material (second liquid).

  The liquid film holding unit 30 is installed horizontally, and the position thereof is adjusted so that the core material (first liquid) droplets ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 land on the liquid film. By allowing the core to enter perpendicularly to the liquid film, it becomes easy to form a uniform shell with little thickness unevenness. However, if the liquid film can be held, it is possible to form a shell that covers the core even if the liquid film holding unit 30 is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane.

  Further, it is desirable that the distance between the position where the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid) is held and the first liquid ejecting unit 10 (distance in the Z-axis direction in FIG. 3) is small. If the core material (first liquid) is ejected and then moved a long distance in the air, the core material formed by evaporation of the core material during the movement may be smaller than expected. It is. In particular, when producing a capsule having a small size as described above (for example, a microcapsule), care must be taken because the core material easily evaporates during movement. In addition, when the diameter of the microcapsule is less than 100 μm, it is advantageous that the distance between the two is short in order to prevent the speed for penetrating the liquid film from being reduced by air resistance. Therefore, in this embodiment, the liquid film holding | maintenance part 30 is arrange | positioned so that the distance from a core material being jetted to landing to the liquid film of a shell material may be about 10-10000 micrometers. In particular, a distance in the vicinity of 10 to 5000 μm is more desirable because it is advantageous from the viewpoint of velocity attenuation and droplet evaporation. Furthermore, when the diameter of the microcapsule is 100 μm or more and 1000 μm or less, the liquid film holding unit 30 is set so that the distance from when the core material is ejected to landing on the liquid film of the shell material is about 1 to 1000 mm. Is placed. In particular, a distance in the vicinity of 1 to 300 mm is desirable because it is greatly related to velocity attenuation and droplet evaporation. It should be noted that the evaporation of the droplets is preferably performed in a windless environment in order to prevent the landing accuracy from being lowered. Further, in order to suppress evaporation, the droplet flight environment is preferably humid.

  In the present embodiment, the shell of the capsule is formed using the shell material (second liquid) as a raw material. Therefore, it is considered that the shell material is consumed while the capsule generating operation is repeated, and the thickness of the liquid film is reduced. Further, if the surface area of the liquid film being held is large, the shell material forming the liquid film gradually evaporates over time, so that the thickness of the liquid film may be reduced. In such a case, the thickness of the formed shell may not be kept uniform, or the liquid film itself may be easily broken.

  In view of this, the liquid film is prevented from changing in thickness by replenishing the liquid film with the reduced amount of shell material at a predetermined timing during the capsule generating operation. Specifically, the shell material (second liquid) is ejected from the second liquid ejecting unit 20 toward the liquid film. The jetted shell material forms droplets and land on the shell material (second liquid) liquid film held by the liquid film holding unit 30. Since the jetting speed of the shell material droplets is adjusted so as not to penetrate the liquid film, the landed droplets are diffused into the liquid film as they are to form a liquid film. If the liquid film is held horizontally (on the XY plane), the shell material droplets that have landed on the liquid film diffuse evenly in the liquid film.

  The amount of shell material injected from the second liquid injection unit 20 when the liquid film is replenished is determined in consideration of various conditions. For example, it can be determined based on the total injection amount of the core material by the liquid injection unit 10 and the duration of the capsule generation operation. When capsules are generated continuously, the amount of shell material consumed increases with the size of the capsule and the drive frequency, so the amount of core material consumed (depends on the size of the core material, the frequency at which it is driven, etc. ) And shell material consumption should be correlated. Therefore, the amount of the shell material forming the liquid film can be kept constant by obtaining the correlation in advance and determining the replenishment amount of the shell material according to the size and the amount of the capsule. The consumption amount of the shell material mentioned here indicates an amount that decreases per unit time. Furthermore, in practice, since there is a portion that evaporates from the liquid film per unit time, it is possible to replenish a more accurate amount of shell material by considering the amount of evaporation of the shell material per unit time.

  When the shell material is ejected in a large amount, small droplets are ejected from the second liquid ejecting unit 20 in a plurality of times, so that the impact when the shell material droplets land on the liquid film is minimized. Thus, the liquid film surface is prevented from fluctuating due to ripples or the like.

  In this embodiment, it is possible to replenish the shell material by a minute amount by ejecting the shell material by an ink jet method. That is, it is possible to accurately cope with a slight change in the film thickness due to the consumption of the shell material or evaporation accompanying the shell formation, and to keep the film thickness uniform.

S103: Shell curing step After the shell covering the core is formed in S102, the shell is cured at the liquid contact portion 50. In the present embodiment, the liquid storage tank 51 of the liquid contact unit 50 is installed below the first liquid ejecting unit 10 and the liquid film holding unit 30 (see FIG. 3), and ejected in the Z-axis direction (vertically downward). The core material (first liquid) thus made penetrates the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid) and then enters the liquid storage tank 51 as it is. Then, the shell hardening material (third liquid) and the shell material (second liquid) stored in the liquid storage tank 51 come into contact with each other to cause a chemical reaction, thereby hardening the shell. Since the hardened capsule is precipitated in the liquid phase of the third liquid as it is, it is easy to collect the completed capsule.

  In addition, the distance (Z-axis direction distance) between the liquid film holding | maintenance part 30 and the liquid storage tank 51 is maintained at about 1-15 cm. This is because if the moving distance of the capsule from penetrating the liquid holding unit 30 to the liquid storage tank 51 is too long, the shell material (second liquid) evaporates during the movement.

  In the present embodiment, a calcium chloride aqueous solution or a calcium acetate aqueous solution containing calcium ions is used as the shell hardener (third liquid). The same applies to each of the following embodiments.

  Then, the sodium alginate aqueous solution (second liquid) comes into contact with the calcium chloride aqueous solution (third liquid) to cause a chemical reaction, whereby the sodium alginate aqueous solution (shell) is gelled and hardened. Here, “curing” includes a state in which the viscosity is increased.

<About chemical reaction>
Here, a chemical reaction (gelation) that occurs when a sodium alginate aqueous solution is used as the second liquid (shell material) and a calcium chloride aqueous solution is used as the third liquid (shell hardener) will be described. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of sodium alginate. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an intermediate state of changing from sodium alginate to calcium alginate gel. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a calcium alginate gel.

As shown in FIG. 6, sodium alginate (C ₆ H ₇ O ₆ Na) has monovalent sodium ions bound to alginic acid. When this sodium alginate comes into contact with a calcium chloride (CaCl ₂ ) aqueous solution, divalent calcium ions (Ca ²⁺ ) are replaced with sodium alginate sodium ions (Na ⁺ ), thereby causing gelation (FIG. 7). ). At this time, the sodium ion (Na ⁺ ) is monovalent and the calcium ion (Ca ²⁺ ) is divalent, and therefore one calcium ion (Ca ²⁺ ) with respect to two sodium ions (Na ⁺ ). Is replaced. That is, between two sodium alginate, two sodium ions (Na ⁺ ) are eliminated and replaced with one calcium ion (Ca ²⁺ ) that is a divalent metal ion (FIG. 8). Then, cross-linking condensation that bridges the two alginic acids occurs and gels. Such a chemical reaction is also called a crosslinking reaction. The reaction equation is considered as follows.
_{2C 6 H 7 O 6 Na +} CaCl 2 = (C 6 H 7 O 6 -Ca-C 6 H 7 O 6) + 2NaCl

  Incidentally, FIG. 8 shows a region surrounded by a broken line. In the calcium alginate gel, water molecules move from the inside of the gel to the outside through the region surrounded by the broken line, or the water molecules move from the outside to the inside. Thus, the elastic gel is realized by the presence of water molecules in the region surrounded by the broken line. The inflow and outflow of water molecules in the gel are balanced. In the present embodiment, by forming a gel-like shell having hydrophilicity, a capsule having high biocompatibility can be produced when ingested by the human body. Moreover, since it is a hydrophilic shell, there also exists an advantage that adjustment of the osmotic pressure through this shell becomes easy between a core and an external environment.

  In addition, when glycerin is added to sodium alginate, the balance between the inflow and outflow of water molecules is lost, and water molecules are more likely to flow out. Although glycerin is also present in the region surrounded by the broken line in FIG. 8, when the glycerin flows out to the outside, the mesh in the region surrounded by the broken line contracts. Then, since the density of calcium alginate increases, the gel becomes hard. In addition, glycerin is considered to contribute to increasing the reaction rate of gelation, and it is also considered that the gel is hardened.

  Glycerin is advantageous as an additive in producing a gel containing a drug because it has little influence on the human body. In addition, glycerin has a high density and tends to sink in water. Therefore, when a gel containing glycerin is produced, the time required for sedimentation is shortened, and the capsules after production are easily collected. Further, since the gel settles in a short time, it becomes easy to continuously generate capsules, so that productivity is improved.

  In the present embodiment, it is possible to adjust the hardness of the shell by utilizing the property of such a chemical reaction (crosslinking reaction in the above example). For example, the hardness is adjusted by changing the contact time between the second liquid (shell material) and the third liquid (shell hardener). First, it is assumed that the capsule in which the shell is formed by penetrating the liquid film of the second liquid enters the third liquid stored in the liquid storage tank 51 and then immediately collects the capsule. In this case, since the contact time between the second liquid and the third liquid is short, the chemical reaction proceeds on the surface of the shell (second liquid), but does not sufficiently proceed inside the shell. Thereby, a capsule with a thin shell and low hardness can be produced. On the contrary, when the capsule that has penetrated the liquid film of the second liquid enters the liquid storage tank 51 and is recovered after a sufficient time has elapsed, the chemical reaction reaches the inside of the shell (second liquid). Capsules that are fully advanced, thick shells and high hardness can be produced. Further, since the progress rate of the chemical reaction is also affected by the concentration of the liquid and the like, the curing rate of the shell can also be changed by adjusting the concentrations of the second liquid and the third liquid. That is, the hardness can be adjusted in a desired time.

  Thus, the capsule corresponding to various uses can be produced | generated by adjusting the thickness and hardness of the shell formed freely. For example, when applying capsules to the medical field, by adjusting the strength (hardness) of the shell, the time from when it is taken by the human body until the shell breaks and the internal substance (core) is exposed is selected. Will be able to. Specifically, a capsule composed of a core made of a drug and the like and a shell covering the core is generated. According to such a capsule, after being ingested by the human body, the drug (core) reaches the affected part without being absorbed or decomposed in the middle, and the drug is released when it reaches the affected part. System).

  The capsule with the hardened shell is recovered by a recovery mechanism provided in the liquid contact part 50.

<Modification>
When the liquid film of the shell material held in the liquid film holding unit 30 is a large circle as shown in FIG. 3, the shell material (second liquid) evaporates from the liquid film because the surface area of the liquid film is large. Cheap. That is, the film thickness of the liquid film held in the liquid film holding unit 30 becomes thinner as time passes. In this case, it is necessary to replenish the shell material (second liquid) for the amount that evaporates, which increases the cost of the shell material, which is problematic.

  Therefore, as a modification, an example in which the shape of the liquid film holding member 31 is changed to a shape in which the shell material does not easily evaporate will be described. In FIG. 9, the schematic explaining the basic structure of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 in a modification is shown. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a liquid film of a shell material formed in the modification.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the liquid film holding member 31 of this modification has a shape in which circular portions (holes) at both ends are connected by a connecting flow path. Two liquids (shell material) are hold | maintained at a film form. The circular portions at both ends are symmetrical with respect to the center of the liquid film. One circular part is a part for covering the core material with the shell material by entering and penetrating the core material ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 (point A in FIG. 10). The other circular portion is a portion for replenishing the shell material to the liquid film with the shell material (second liquid) ejected from the second liquid ejecting portion 20 (point B in FIG. 10). Since the two circular portions are connected by the connecting flow path, if the liquid film holding member 31 is installed horizontally (on the XY plane), the replenished shell material is evenly distributed in the liquid film. To spread. Therefore, the liquid films held in both circular portions are in substantially the same state (the same thickness).

  The reason why the shape of the liquid film is as shown in FIG. 10 is to make the surface area of the entire liquid film as small as possible in order to prevent evaporation and destruction of the shell material. The diameters of the circular portions at both ends of the liquid film are such that even if a slight deviation occurs in the landing positions of the core material ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 or the shell material ejected from the second liquid ejecting unit 20. It is determined so that it can land within the circular part (within the range of the liquid film). Further, the size is determined so that the core material is firmly covered by the shell material when penetrating the liquid film. Desirably, when the droplet diameter is d and the liquid film diameter is D, the droplet diameter and the liquid film diameter are set such that 1 <α <1000 with the ratio α defined by D / d. The liquid film is almost surely landed and is firmly covered with the shell material, but is not particularly limited to this value of α.

  On the other hand, the width of the connecting flow path is determined to be as small as possible so as not to prevent diffusion (movement) of the replenished shell material. Desirably, the liquid film diameter and connection channel width are set such that 1 <β <10 with a ratio β defined by D / Δt, where D is the liquid film diameter and Δt is the width of the connection channel. By doing so, the movement of the shell material is not hindered, but the value of β is not particularly limited.

  In this way, the width of the connection flow path of the liquid film is made narrower or the same as the width of the portion where the shell material is replenished to the liquid film and the portion where the core penetrates, thereby making the shell material relative to the liquid film. It becomes possible to suppress evaporation and destruction of the shell material while appropriately replenishing (second liquid). Thereby, the cost of shell material can be made small and the capsule with uniform thickness of a shell can be produced | generated efficiently.

<Summary of First Embodiment>
In the capsule manufacturing apparatus of the present embodiment, the liquid film of the second liquid (shell material) held by the liquid film holding unit 30 is appropriately supplemented with the shell material while keeping the film thickness uniform. Create a capsule.

  In a state where the film thickness of the shell material liquid film is kept uniform, the core is formed by ejecting the first liquid (core material) from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 toward the liquid film. And when a core penetrates a liquid film, the core which encloses a core is formed by coat | covering a core with a 2nd liquid (shell material). And a shell is hardened by making it contact with the 3rd liquid (shell hardening material) stored in the liquid contact part 50, and producing a chemical reaction, and produces | generates a capsule.

  In the capsule manufacturing apparatus of the present embodiment, the shell material can be appropriately replenished with respect to the shell material liquid film, so that the thickness of the liquid film can be easily kept constant. Thereby, since the thickness of the shell of the capsule formed becomes uniform, it becomes easy to ensure the quality of the capsule (shell) to be generated. At that time, by adjusting the injection amount of the first liquid (core material) and the liquid film thickness of the second liquid (shell material), a capsule having a desired size can be generated with high accuracy. The capsule generation efficiency is freely adjusted by changing the ejection timing when ejecting the first liquid by changing the frequency of the drive signal for driving the first liquid ejecting section 10 (ejection head 11). be able to.

  Moreover, since the injected 1st liquid forms a core as it is, the yield of a core material is very high. And the liquid film hold | maintained at the liquid film holding member 31 is comprised by the part which core material plunges, the part which replenishes a shell material, and the connection part which connects both parts, and the surface area of the whole liquid film is made as small as possible. By doing so, evaporation and destruction of the shell material can be suppressed. Thereby, the cost of the core material and shell material at the time of producing a capsule can be suppressed low.

  Also, by adjusting the contact time between the second liquid (shell material) and the third liquid (shell hardener), the thickness and hardness of the shell are appropriately adjusted according to the intended use and required function of the capsule. Capsules can be produced while adjusting. And since the shell of the capsule is hardened in the liquid phase, the completed capsule can be easily recovered by settling in the liquid phase.

=== Second Embodiment ===
In the second embodiment, the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film of the second liquid (shell material) held in the liquid film holding unit 30 is measured to accurately detect the reduction amount of the film thickness. Then, the shell material is replenished to the liquid film as much as it is to be replenished, so that the thickness of the liquid film is kept substantially constant during the capsule generating operation. Since the thickness of the shell material liquid film can be managed more accurately, capsules having a uniform shell thickness can be easily generated.

<Configuration of capsule manufacturing apparatus 2>
In the second embodiment, capsules are generated using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 2. In FIG. 11, the schematic explaining the basic structure of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 in 2nd Embodiment is shown. The capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 includes a first liquid ejecting unit 10, a second liquid ejecting unit 20, a liquid film holding unit 30, a liquid film thickness measuring unit 40, and a liquid contact unit 50. The capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 is different from the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment in that the shape of the liquid film held by the liquid film holding unit 30 and the liquid film thickness measuring unit 40 are provided. Other components are almost the same as those in the first embodiment. Hereinafter, a description will be given focusing on differences from the first embodiment.

(Liquid film holding unit 30)
The liquid film holding member 31 of the liquid film holding unit 30 in the second embodiment measures a portion where a droplet of the core material enters, a portion for replenishing the liquid material with the shell material, and a thickness of the liquid film. And a portion for.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a liquid film of the shell material formed in the second embodiment. In FIG. 12, the liquid film holding member 31 has a shape in which circular portions (holes) arranged in three directions from the center of the liquid film are connected at the center by a connection flow path, and in this closed region Due to the surface tension, the second liquid (shell material) is held in the form of a film. The circular portions divided and arranged in the three directions have symmetrical shapes. If the liquid film holding member 31 is installed horizontally (on the XY plane), the liquid film held in the respective circular portions is arranged. The conditions are almost equivalent.

  In the present embodiment, the core material ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 enters the portion represented by A in FIG. 12 and penetrates, thereby covering the core material with the shell material. In addition, the shell material is replenished (supplied) to the liquid film of the shell material by landing the droplet of the shell material ejected from the second liquid ejecting unit 20 on the portion represented by B in FIG. Moreover, the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film of the shell material in the said part is measured by making the laser beam irradiated from the liquid film thickness measurement part 40 mentioned later inject into the part represented by D of FIG. . In the present embodiment, A, B, and D are set so that the distances from the center point C of the liquid film are equal. As shown in the example of FIG. 12, when the liquid film is symmetrical (rotationally symmetric) with respect to the center (point C), the liquid film formed at each of the points A, B, and D is uniform. It becomes thickness. Therefore, by measuring the thickness of the liquid film at point D, data equivalent to the film thickness data at point A (core material landing point) can be obtained.

  The liquid film does not necessarily have a symmetrical shape. However, when the liquid film has an asymmetric shape, the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film may become non-uniform depending on the position, so correction may be required when measuring the film thickness. .

  Further, the shape of the liquid film shown in FIG. 12 is such that the surface area of the liquid film is made as small as possible in order to suppress the evaporation of the shell material, but the liquid film shape is a large circular shape as shown in FIG. Or other shapes are possible.

(Liquid film thickness measuring unit 40)
The liquid film thickness measurement unit has a laser displacement meter 41 and measures the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film of the second liquid (shell material) held by the liquid film holding unit 30.

  The laser displacement meter 41 is a film thickness measuring device that can measure the thickness of a measurement object (a liquid film in the present embodiment), and includes a light emitting element, a light receiving element, and a controller (not shown). A part of the laser beam emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the surface of the measurement object (interface of the liquid film) and detected by the light receiving element. Part of the irradiated light is incident on the measurement object (liquid film), reflected on the back surface of the measurement object (the interface opposite to the surface on which the laser beam is incident), and detected by the light receiving element. Is done. Each detected reflected light is analyzed by the controller, and the positions where the reflection occurs (the positions of the front and back surfaces of the liquid film) are detected. Thereby, the thickness of the measurement object (liquid film) can be accurately measured.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, a laser displacement meter 41 is installed vertically above the shell material liquid film held horizontally on the XY plane, and irradiates a laser beam in the Z-axis direction. And the thickness of a liquid film is measured by analyzing the reflected light from a shell material liquid film.

  In addition, the film thickness measuring device for measuring the thickness of the shell material liquid film is not limited to the laser displacement meter 41 as described above. For example, a non-contact type measuring instrument that can measure the film thickness without affecting the liquid film of the shell material, such as a film thickness measuring instrument using X-rays, is desirable. The contact type measuring device may be used.

<About capsule generation operation>
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a process of generating a capsule using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 2 in the second embodiment. The basic flow of the capsule generating operation in the second embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment. That is, a capsule is produced | generated by a core formation process (S201), a shell formation process (S202), and a shell hardening process (S203).

  In the present embodiment, in the core formation step (S201), it is determined whether or not the core material can be injected with reference to data obtained by measuring the thickness (film thickness) of the shell material liquid film. When the measured film thickness is inappropriate (when the film thickness is thin), the shell material is replenished without spraying the core material, thereby keeping the film thickness uniform throughout the capsule generating operation. FIG. 14 shows a flow for determining whether or not the core material can be injected in the core formation step (S201).

  First, using the liquid film thickness measuring unit 40, the thickness (film thickness) of the shell material (second liquid) liquid film held in the liquid film holding unit 30 is measured (S211).

  The measured film thickness data is transmitted to the control unit HC, and the film thickness is determined (S212). A predetermined value for the film thickness is set in advance in the controller HC. The predetermined value is a film thickness value set for each core material injection condition (core material injection speed and injection amount). If the film thickness becomes thinner than this value, the liquid film cannot be maintained, The thickness of the shell to cover becomes thin. Therefore, when the measured value of the film thickness is smaller than the predetermined value (No in S212), it is determined that the core material injection is impossible. In this case, in order to set the thickness of the shell material liquid film to a predetermined value, an insufficient amount of shell material is replenished to the liquid film (S213). When the shell material is replenished, the shell material (second liquid) is ejected from the second liquid ejecting unit 20 toward the liquid film as described above. Then, the shell material that has landed on the liquid film diffuses into the liquid film, thereby increasing the thickness of the liquid film. In the liquid film having the shape as shown in the example of FIG. 12, the shell material that has landed at the point D is evenly diffused at the points A and B, so the film thicknesses at the points A, B, and D are uniform. .

  The injection amount of the shell material is adjusted according to the difference between the predetermined value of the film thickness and the measured value of the film thickness. That is, if the difference between the predetermined value and the measured value is small, a small amount of shell material is replenished to the liquid film, and therefore the amount of shell material sprayed is reduced. On the contrary, if the difference between the predetermined value and the measured value is large, the injection amount of the shell material is increased. As described above, by ejecting the shell material by the ink jet method, it is possible to accurately cope with a slight change in film thickness due to evaporation or consumption of the shell material, and to keep the film thickness uniform.

  After increasing the thickness of the liquid film by replenishing the shell material (S213), the thickness of the liquid film is measured again (S211). When the thickness of the liquid film reaches a predetermined value (Yes in S212), it is determined that the core material can be injected. When the core material can be ejected, the core material is ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10 to form the core (S214).

  Operations after the core formation (shell formation step (S202), shell curing step (S203)) are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment.

<Summary of Second Embodiment>
In the second embodiment, whether or not the core material is jetted is determined based on data obtained by measuring the film thickness of the shell material liquid film held in the liquid film holding unit 30, and when the film thickness is thinner than a predetermined value, Add shell material as appropriate. Based on the data obtained by measuring the film thickness, the film thickness can be accurately controlled by replenishing an insufficient amount of shell material by a minute amount by the ink jet method. As a result, it is possible to generate a capsule in which the shell material liquid film has a uniform film thickness and the shell covering the core has a uniform thickness.

=== Third Embodiment ===
In the third embodiment, capsules are manufactured using the capsule manufacturing apparatus 3 in which the ejection head 11 of the first liquid ejection unit 10 includes a plurality of nozzles 111. By ejecting a plurality of core materials at once by a plurality of nozzles, capsules can be generated more efficiently.

  In FIG. 15, the schematic explaining the basic composition of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 3 in 3rd Embodiment is shown. The capsule manufacturing apparatus 3 includes a first liquid ejecting unit 10, a second liquid ejecting unit 20, a liquid film holding unit 30, and a liquid contact unit 50. The second liquid ejecting unit 20 and the liquid contact unit 50 of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 3 have the same configuration as the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1, but the configurations of the first liquid ejecting unit 10 and the liquid film holding unit 30 are the same as those of the capsule manufacturing apparatus 1. Different.

<First liquid ejecting unit 10>
In the capsule manufacturing apparatus 3, four nozzles 111 are provided in the ejection head 11 of the first liquid ejection unit 10. The four nozzles 111 are arranged in series in the X-axis direction to form a nozzle row, and can simultaneously eject four core material droplets along the X-axis direction. Note that the number of nozzles provided in one nozzle row is not limited to four, and five or more nozzles may be provided. Also, a plurality of nozzle rows can be provided in one ejection head 11. When a plurality of nozzles 111 are provided for one ejection head 11, the piezo element PZT is also provided corresponding to each nozzle. A drive signal for driving the piezo element PZT is also generated for each nozzle. This makes it easy to control the droplet ejection amount and ejection speed for each nozzle. The configuration of each nozzle and the operation during droplet ejection are the same as those described in the first embodiment (see FIG. 4).

  The plurality of core material droplets ejected from the nozzle row of the ejection head 11 respectively enter the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid) held by the liquid film holding unit 30 and are covered with the shell material. Therefore, by increasing the number of droplets (cores) ejected from the first liquid ejecting unit 10, a plurality of capsules can be generated at the same time, and the capsule generation efficiency can be further increased.

<Liquid film holding part 30>
The liquid film holding unit 30 includes a liquid film holding member 31. FIG. 16 is a view for explaining an example of the liquid film of the shell material formed in the third embodiment. In the present embodiment, the liquid film holding member 31 holds an elongated liquid film formed along the nozzle row of the ejection head 11 in a predetermined closed region. In the liquid film shown in FIG. 16, circular portions (holes) are formed at points where a plurality of core materials land, and the circular portions are connected by a linear connection channel. Then, a circular portion (hole) having the same shape as the core material landing point is formed at the end portion of the liquid film (right end portion in the example of FIG. 16). To be replenished. As in the case of FIG. 10 described above, if the liquid film holding member 31 is installed horizontally (on the XY plane), the thickness (film thickness) of the liquid film held in each circular portion is substantially the same. It becomes a condition. Therefore, by replenishing the shell material at the shell material replenishment point provided at the end of the liquid film, the film thickness of each circular portion can be made uniform (thickness).

  Also in this embodiment, the surface area of the entire liquid film is made as small as possible in order to prevent evaporation and destruction of the shell material. That is, the diameter of the circular portion of the liquid film is such that the core material can penetrate the liquid film so that it can land in the circular portion even if there is a slight deviation in the landing position of the injected core material or shell material. In this case, the size is determined so as to be firmly covered with the shell material. Further, the width of the connecting flow path is determined to be as small as possible while preventing the movement of the shell material. Thereby, the cost of shell material can be made small and the capsule with uniform thickness of a shell can be produced | generated efficiently.

  However, the shape of the liquid film held by the liquid film holding member 31 is not limited to the example of FIG. 16, and may be, for example, an oval shape along the nozzle row. Regardless of the shape, the liquid film needs to be held by the surface tension in the closed region, and it is desirable to reduce the surface area as much as possible in the shape along the nozzle row.

  Further, as described in the second embodiment, a means for measuring the thickness of the liquid film (for example, the liquid film thickness measuring unit 40 of the second embodiment) may be provided.

<Capsule generation operation>
The capsule generating operation is substantially the same as in the first embodiment. That is, the thickness of the shell material liquid film is measured, and if the film thickness is appropriate, the core is formed by ejecting droplets of the core material (first liquid) from the first liquid ejecting unit 10. . The core material is covered with the shell material when penetrating the liquid film of the shell material (second liquid). Thereafter, the shell is cured by a chemical reaction by contacting the shell curing material (third liquid) at the liquid contact portion 50, thereby generating a capsule having a structure in which the shell encloses the core.

<Summary of Third Embodiment>
In the third embodiment, a plurality of core materials are ejected onto the liquid film of the shell material using a liquid ejecting unit including a nozzle row in which a plurality of nozzles are arranged in series. The liquid film of the shell material is held in a shape along the landing position of the core material, and further has a shell material replenishment point for replenishing the shell material. It can be refilled. As a result, a plurality of capsules having a uniform shell thickness can be produced at the same time, and highly efficient capsule production can be realized.

=== Other Embodiments ===
Although the capsule manufacturing apparatus as one embodiment has been described, the above-described embodiment is for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention can be changed and improved without departing from the gist thereof, and it is needless to say that the present invention includes equivalents thereof. Even the embodiments described below are included in the present invention.

<About capsule generation materials>
In the above-described embodiments, specific examples are illustrated for the first liquid to the third liquid, respectively, but capsules can be generated using capsule generating materials other than those illustrated.

<About device layout>
In each of the above-described embodiments, the liquid ejecting unit, the liquid film holding unit, and the liquid contact unit are arranged so as to be linearly arranged along the vertical direction, but the arrangement of the devices is not limited to this. For example, when the core (first liquid) is ejected in an oblique direction with respect to the vertical by the liquid ejecting unit, each device may be arranged along the moving direction (path) of the core. .

1,2,3 capsule manufacturing equipment,
10 first liquid ejecting section, 11 ejecting head, 12 first liquid tank,
20 second liquid ejecting section, 21 ejecting head, 22 second liquid tank,
30 liquid film holding part, 31 liquid film holding member,
40 Liquid film thickness measurement part, 41 Laser displacement meter,
50 liquid contact part, 51 liquid storage tank,
111 nozzles, 112 liquid supply passages, 114 nozzle communication passages, 116 elastic plates,
PZT Piezo element

Claims (2)

A first liquid ejecting unit that ejects liquid droplets of the first liquid;
A liquid film holding unit for holding the second liquid in a film shape;
A liquid replenishing unit for replenishing the liquid film of the second liquid with the second liquid,
A liquid replenishing unit having a second liquid ejecting unit for replenishing the second liquid by ejecting the second liquid by an inkjet method;
A control unit for controlling the second liquid ejection unit;
With
When the liquid droplet of the first liquid passes through the liquid film of the second liquid held in the liquid film holding unit, the liquid droplet of the first liquid is covered with the second liquid. To form a capsule using the first liquid droplet as a core material and the second liquid as a shell material,
A capsule manufacturing apparatus that adjusts an ejection amount under the control of the control unit and ejects the second liquid from the second liquid ejection unit ,
The liquid film holding unit has a first region in which droplets of the first liquid are ejected and a second region in which the second liquid is replenished,
The liquid film holding unit further includes a connection region that connects the first region and the second region to form a flow path of the second liquid from the second region to the first region, The capsule manufacturing apparatus, wherein the width of the flow path in the connection region is narrower than the width of the liquid film of the second liquid held in the first region and the second region . By ejecting the first liquid droplet toward the liquid film of the second liquid held in a film shape, the first liquid droplet is used as a core material, and the second liquid is used as a shell material. Forming a capsule with
Replenishing the liquid film of the second liquid held by the liquid film holding unit by ejecting the second liquid by an inkjet method;
Adjusting the ejection amount of the second liquid;
A capsule manufacturing method comprising :
The liquid film holding unit has a first region in which droplets of the first liquid are ejected and a second region in which the second liquid is replenished,
The liquid film holding unit further includes a connection region that connects the first region and the second region to form a flow path of the second liquid from the second region to the first region, The capsule manufacturing method, wherein the width of the flow path in the connection region is narrower than the width of the liquid film of the second liquid held in the first region and the second region.