JP6010914B2 - Method for producing containerized food - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for producing a food in a container .

  A sealed container in which a container made of a synthetic resin is filled with contents and then the opening of the container is closed with a film is widely used. Conventionally, in this type of container package, various techniques for welding a film made of a synthetic resin to an opening of a container have been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In FIG. 2 of Patent Document 1, the tray (1) (the numbers in parentheses indicate the symbols described in Patent Document 1. The same applies hereinafter) is placed on the lower mold (5), and the synthetic resin film (2) A heat sealing technique is disclosed in which the sheet is pressed by the upper mold (6) and heat-bonded to the flange (3) of the tray (1). According to this technique, the inside of the tray (1) can be sealed with the film (2) welded to the flange (3), and the food filled in the tray (1) can be stored in a sealed state. Can do.

  By the way, in recent years, further weight reduction has been demanded for containers and packaging from the viewpoint of reducing environmental burden. For this reason, the weight reduction of a film (2) is calculated | required and the thinning of a film (2) is anticipated as the countermeasure.

JP 2005-138458 A

  However, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the film (2) is simply thinned, the finish of the film (2) is deteriorated. That is, since the thin film (2) has low rigidity, the form is not stable when it is welded to the tray (1), and the film (2) is loosened or wrinkled. As a result, the product looks worse.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a containerized food production method and a container that can realize a thin film and obtain a product with high cosmetics. It is to provide food containing.

The present invention is grasped by the configuration shown below.
(1) A container package comprising a container molded in a concave shape with a synthetic resin, and a synthetic resin film for closing the opening of the container, and after filling the container with food, the opening A method for producing a container-filled food product that seals the container by welding the film to a collar provided on the periphery of the film, wherein the synthetic resin film has a thickness of 30 μm or less and can hold the container Using a heat welding apparatus having a holding body, an annular heating body facing the holding body, and a space portion surrounded by the heating body and opened to the holding body side, and holding the container on the holding body Then, after the film having heat shrinkability is disposed between the container and the heating body, the heating body is aligned with the holding body, and the flange portion and the heating element are aligned on the mating surface of the holding body and the heating body. Weld with film At the same time, air in the space is heated by heat from said heating body, characterized in that the inner region of the film which are surrounded by the collar portion and to deflate by the heat of the space portion.

  According to the present invention, even in a thin film having low rigidity, the inner region of the film is stretched by heat shrinkage and becomes flat. Therefore, a thin film can be realized and a product with high cosmetics can be obtained.

It is a perspective view of the container package concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing of the welding apparatus used for the manufacturing method of the foodstuffs containing a container concerning embodiment. FIG. 3 is a view taken in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 2. It is a figure explaining the manufacturing method of the foodstuffs containing a container concerning an embodiment, and is a figure showing the process of arranging a container and a film in a welding device. It is a figure explaining the manufacturing method of the foodstuffs containing a container concerning an embodiment, and is a figure showing the process of welding a film to a container with a welding device. It is a figure explaining the shrinkage | contraction effect | action of the film by a space part, (a) is a figure which shows the state which the film has not shrunk, (b) is a figure which shows the state which the film shrunk. It is a figure explaining the effect | action of the container package concerning embodiment. (A) is a figure which shows the example of a change of FIG. 7, (b) is a figure which expands and shows the cross section of the C section of (a).

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the same number is assigned to the same element throughout the description of the embodiment.

  Prior to the description of the method for producing a container-containing food according to the embodiment, the configuration of the container and film welding apparatus used in this production method will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the container package 10 includes a synthetic resin container 11 opened upward and a film 20 that closes the opening 12 of the container 11, and is made of tofu, cooked rice, noodles, side dish, A food storage container for packaging various foods such as frozen food for cooking.

  The container 11 is molded by an arbitrary resin molding method such as compressed air molding, vacuum molding, or press molding. The container 11 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped storage portion 15 that is formed in a concave shape and can store the food contents 13. On the peripheral wall of the storage portion 15, the concave stripe portions 16 and the convex stripe portions 17 are formed alternately in the circumferential direction. By these concave stripe part 16 and convex stripe part 17, the rigidity of a peripheral wall increases and the conveyance property of the container 11 in a production line, or the compression resistance and impact resistance of the container 11 at the time of transportation and storage are improved. . A substantially rectangular collar 18 is formed on the periphery of the opening 12 in plan view.

  The material of the container 11 can be selected from any synthetic resin material such as polyolefin resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene. Further, the container 11 may have either a single layer structure or a laminated structure. However, in consideration of frozen storage, frozen distribution, heating by a microwave oven, and the like, the container 11 is preferably made of cold-resistant polypropylene that can be used in a wide temperature range from low temperature to high temperature. However, in consideration of easy opening (so-called easy opening), at least the welding surface of the container 11 and the film 20 can be made of a microscopically different material so that it can be easily peeled off by cohesive peeling at the time of opening. It is desirable to do so. For example, the container 11 is made of a mixed resin of two or more polyolefin resins having different melting points, the film 20 is made to have a polyethylene sealant layer, the welding strength between the container 11 and the film 20 is set small, and the film 20 It is desirable to facilitate peeling.

  The film 20 is a biaxially stretched film made of a polyolefin-based resin that is welded to the upper surface of the flange portion 18 and has heat shrinkability. The film 20 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape according to the shape of the collar portion 18 and has a knob portion 21. The knob portion 21 is a portion floating from an arbitrary portion (here, a corner portion) of the collar portion 18 or a protruding portion, and is used at the time of opening.

  The material of the film 20 is preferably a so-called shrink film (stretched film that is not heat-fixed), and is a single layer or multilayer film made of a polyolefin resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene having a film thickness of 30 μm or less. is there. In addition, the film 20 can be appropriately mixed with known additives in order to make the film 20 a material having excellent anti-fogging property that prevents water droplets from sticking to the surface or a highly transparent material.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the welding apparatus 30 includes a bucket (holding body) 31 and a seal unit 32 provided above the bucket 31 so as to face the bucket 31. The bucket 31 has a holding recess 33. The holding recess 33 is formed in accordance with the form of the storage portion 15 (see FIG. 1) of the container 11. The seal unit 32 includes a metal seal bar (heating body) 36 that includes a heat source (here, an electric heater) 35 and a rod 37 that raises and lowers the seal bar 36 in the direction of a white arrow. The heat source 35 is not particularly limited to an electric heater, and can be changed according to the material of the container package 10 (see FIG. 1), heat seal conditions, and the like. The position is arbitrary.

  The seal bar 36 has a base portion 36a to which the rod 37 is fixed, and a heat seal portion 36b that is provided on the lower surface of the base portion 36a and projects annularly downward. The heat seal portion 36 b faces the upper surface of the bucket 31 and is formed in an annular shape (here, substantially rectangular) outside the holding recess 33. The heat seal part 36 b is heated by the heat source 35. The temperature of the heat seal part 36b is controlled within a predetermined range (for example, 150 ° C. to 160 ° C.).

  As shown in FIG. 3, a space 38 for contracting the film 20 (see FIG. 1) is provided at the center of the seal bar 36. The space portion 38 is a substantially rectangular shape that opens to the bucket 31 (see FIG. 2) side, and is a recess that is not in contact with the film 20 during heat sealing, and is surrounded by the heat sealing portion 36b. The air in the space 38 is heated by the heat from the heat seal part 36b. In addition, although the space part 38 was made into the substantially rectangular shape here, it can change according to the shape of the opening part 12 (refer FIG. 1) of a container, and the external shape of the film 20 (refer FIG. 1), and the film 20 ( The shape is arbitrary as long as it is a space that can be contracted (see FIG. 1).

  Then, the manufacturing method of the foodstuffs containing a container using the container package 10 and the welding apparatus 30 is demonstrated based on FIGS. The manufacturing method of the foodstuff in a container consists of the arrangement | positioning process which arrange | positions the container 11 and the film 20 in the welding apparatus 30, and the welding process which welds the film 20 to the container 11. FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the arranging step, the container 11 filled with the contents 13 is fitted and held in the holding recess 33. Further, the film 20 is disposed between the container 11 and the seal bar 36. At this time, the film 20 may be placed on the upper surface of the flange portion 18 of the container 11 or may be floated between the container 11 and the seal bar 36.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the welding step, the seal bar 36 is lowered to approach the bucket 31, and the flange 18 and the film 20 are sandwiched between the mating surfaces of the bucket 31 and the heat seal portion 36 b. Thereby, the outer peripheral part of the film 20 is welded to the upper surface of the collar part 18. The film 20 may be cut into a predetermined size in advance, but in this case, since positioning with the flange portion 18 of the container 11 is necessary, the film is larger than the width of the container 11 drawn from a roll or the like. 20 is disposed and cut at the outer peripheral position of the flange 18 simultaneously with or after the heat sealing.

  At the same time, as shown in FIG. 6A, the inner region (the region indicated by the symbol A in the drawing) of the film 20 surrounded by the flange portion 18 is heated by the heat of the space portion 38. Since the inner area A of the film 20 is a floating part that is not welded, it is slightly loosened, but when heated by the heat of the space 38, as shown in FIG. It becomes flat. When the film 20 is sufficiently contracted, the container package 10 is conveyed to the next trimming process. In the trimming step, the excessive portion of the collar portion 18 and the excessive portion of the film 20 are cut, and the form of the container package 10 is adjusted.

  As described above, according to the embodiment described above, even in the thin film 20 having low rigidity, the floating portion (inner region A) of the film 20 is thermally contracted and satisfactorily stretched. Conventionally, a laminated film having a total thickness of 50 μm to 80 μm has been adopted in order to ensure rigidity and obtain easy opening. On the other hand, in the embodiment, for example, when the film 20 is made of polyethylene, even if a film 20 having a thickness of 20 μm is used, it is possible to obtain a product that is free from wrinkles and slack and has excellent cosmetic properties and easy-openability. . That is, as shown in FIG. 7, even if the film 20 is made thin, the film 20 is formed flat and looks good, and the welding force between the container 11 and the film 20 can be adjusted to easy opening, so that the user Can easily peel the film 20 from the container 11 by pinching the knob 21.

  Furthermore, if the film 20 is made of a material excellent in antifogging property or transparency, the type and storage state of the contents 13 can be clearly recognized through the film 20.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the film 20 is thermally contracted using heat for heating the heat seal portion 36b. For this reason, the heat source for carrying out the heat shrink of the film 20 is not required separately. Therefore, the manufacturing cost can be kept low.

  Next, a modified example of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a modified example of FIG. 7, and parts that are the same as those in the configuration of FIG. 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  In the container package 10 (see FIG. 7) according to the above-described embodiment, the depth of the container 11 is relatively large, but the depth of the container 11 is arbitrary. For example, as shown in FIG. 8A, in the container package 40 according to the modified example, the container-like food manufacturing method according to the above-described embodiment is used to form a tray-like container 41 having a relatively small depth. The film 42 having heat shrinkability was welded. Also in this modified example, the same operation and effect as in the case of the container package 10 (see FIG. 7) described above can be obtained.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG.8 (b), you may provide the folding | returning part 45 folded down by the outer edge of the collar part 43 of the container 41 below. The folded portion 45 can be fitted with a general lid (not shown) having a certain thickness. That is, a film 42 or a general lid can be selectively attached to the container 41. Thereby, the container 41 can be used for a plurality of types of lids, and the cost of the container package 40 can be reduced.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using embodiment, it cannot be overemphasized that the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be added to the above-described embodiments. Further, it is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the embodiment, the method for producing a food containing a container in which one film is welded to one container has been described. However, a plurality of connected containers are sealed with a long film and then connected to each other. The container package may be appropriately separated.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,40 Container package 11,41 Container 12 Opening part 13 Contents 18,43 Gutter 20,42 Film 30 Welding device 31 Bucket (holding body)
36 Seal bar (heating body)
38 Space A Inside area of film

Claims (5)

After filling the container with food, using a container package consisting of a container molded in a concave shape with a synthetic resin and a synthetic resin film for closing the opening of the container, the periphery of the opening A method for producing a food containing a container for sealing the container by welding the film to the provided heel part,
The thickness of the synthetic resin film is 30 μm or less,
Using a heat welding device having a holding body capable of holding the container, an annular heating body facing the holding body, and a space portion that is surrounded by the heating body and opens to the holding body side,
After holding the container in the holding body, and arranging the film having heat shrinkability between the container and the heating body,
The heating body is aligned with the holding body, and the flange and the film are sandwiched by the mating surface of the holding body and the heating body, and at the same time, the air in the space is heated by the heat from the heating body. And the inner region of the film surrounded by the heel part is shrunk by the heat of the space part. The heat sent from the heating body to the space is from at least one direction,
The air in the space is heated to 150 ° C. or higher by the heat from the heating body.
The manufacturing method of the foodstuffs in a container of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The heating body is aligned with the holding body, and the flange and the film are sandwiched by the mating surface of the holding body and the heating body, and at the same time, the air in the space is heated by the heat from the heating body. The method for producing a packaged food according to claim 1, wherein the inner region of the film surrounded by the heel portion is contracted only once by heat of the space portion. . The film is made of polyethylene and has a thickness of 20 μm or less.
The manufacturing method of the foodstuffs in a container of any one of Claim 1 to 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. A container package comprising: a container formed in a concave shape with an outer edge of a collar portion provided at the periphery of an opening of a synthetic resin; and a synthetic resin film for closing the opening of the container; Use, after filling the container with food, welding the film to the buttock, thereby sealing the container,
The thickness of the synthetic resin film is 30 μm or less,
Using a heat welding device having a holding body capable of holding the container, an annular heating body facing the holding body, and a space portion that is surrounded by the heating body and opens to the holding body side,
After holding the container in the holding body, and arranging the film having heat shrinkability between the container and the heating body,
The heating body is aligned with the holding body, and the flange and the film are sandwiched by the mating surface of the holding body and the heating body, and at the same time, the air in the space is heated by the heat from the heating body. And the inner region of the film surrounded by the heel part is shrunk by the heat of the space part.

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