JP7292585B2 - filling equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to filling installations. More particularly, it relates to filling equipment for filling flexible container bags with powder such as nickel powder, cobalt powder and manganese powder.

When transporting a large amount of nickel powder, cobalt powder, and manganese powder, a flexible container bag (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a flexible container) is used. This flexible container is made into a bag shape using a flexible material that can be folded, and has a bag-shaped container portion to be filled with powder and a suspension portion for lifting the container portion. ing. In addition, the container part has an opening for charging the powder at the top and a discharge port for discharging the powder provided at the bottom.

When powder is put into this flexible container, the powder often scatters from the opening of the flexible container, resulting in loss of the powder filled in the flexible container. Moreover, there is a possibility that the work environment will deteriorate due to scattering of the powder. For this reason, there is a demand for a filling facility that can minimize the amount of powder that scatters from the opening when powder is put into the flexible container.

For example, Patent Literatures 1 and 2 disclose techniques for preventing leakage of powder by using a double pipe as a filling cylinder (filling cylinder) for charging powder into a flexible container. In this technology, the inner cylinder of the filling cylinder is used for filling, and by sucking air from the space between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder, the powder leaking from the opening of the flexible container is prevented from scattering to the outside. .

In addition, in Patent Document 2, a cover is provided around the filling cylinder to cover the opening of the flexible container, and by sucking the air in the cover, the powder that could not be sucked by the filling cylinder is prevented from scattering outside. A technique for doing so is also disclosed.

JP-A-56-4501 JP-A-2002-87407

By the way, in the case of the technique of Patent Document 2, when the powder in the flexible container is finished, the suction of air from the space between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder is stopped so as not to suck the powder in the flexible container. Must. In the technique of Patent Document 2, although a cover is provided around the filling cylinder to cover the opening of the flexible container, an opening that communicates between the outer cylinder of the filling cylinder and the inside of the cover is provided to allow the gas in the cover to pass through the outer cylinder of the filling cylinder. It is configured to suck For this reason, after the powder has been put into the flexible container, the suction of the gas inside the cover is also stopped, so the powder that scatters when closing the opening of the flexible container cannot be sucked. In other words, the technique of Patent Document 2 cannot recover the powder that scatters after the powder is put into the flexible container, so it may not be possible to sufficiently prevent the loss of powder and the deterioration of the working environment. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a filling facility capable of preventing loss of powder and deterioration of the working environment in the work of charging powder into a flexible container.

The filling equipment of the first invention is equipment for filling powder into a flexible container, comprising a filling cylinder inserted into an opening of a container part of the flexible container to supply powder into the container part, and the filling cylinder in which the filling cylinder is inserted. A cover part provided around the filling cylinder so as to cover the opening of the container part of the flexible container, and a suction part for sucking gas in the filling cylinder and the cover part, wherein the filling cylinder an inner cylinder for supplying powder; and an outer cylinder arranged around the inner cylinder so as to have a gap between the inner cylinder and the filling cylinder. a dust collection opening communicating between a gap between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder and the container part of the flexible container when the suction part is inserted into the opening of the container part; A first suction pipe communicating with the space between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder, a second suction pipe communicating with the space surrounded by the cover portion, the first suction pipe and the second suction pipe a dust collector communicated with a pipe; and a suction flow rate adjustment unit provided in the first suction pipe and controlling the flow of gas in the first suction pipe , and the front cover part is a container of a flexible container The side wall is provided with a notch extending upward from the lower end of the side wall, and the notch covers the notch. (2) a plurality of sheet members having upper ends attached to the side walls ;
The filling equipment of the second invention is characterized in that, in the first invention, the suction flow rate adjusting section operates in accordance with the operation of the powder flow rate adjusting section that controls the powder supply provided in the inner cylinder of the filling cylinder. characterized by being controlled.
In the filling equipment of the third invention, in the first or second invention, the first suction pipe communicates with the second suction pipe at a portion upstream of a connection position with the dust collector in the second suction pipe. It is characterized by

According to the first invention, when the flexible container bag is filled with the powder, it is possible to prevent the powder from scattering around. Moreover, by adjusting the suction of the gas from the first suction pipe by the suction flow rate adjusting section, it is possible to effectively prevent the scattering of the powder and also prevent the loss of the powder. Moreover, it becomes easier to attach and detach the flexible container to and from the filling tube.
According to the second invention, it is possible to enhance the effect of preventing scattering of powder and the effect of preventing deterioration of the yield of powder.
According to the 3rd invention, since the dust collector can be made into one, the structure of an installation can be simplified.

It is a schematic explanatory drawing of the filling equipment 1 of this embodiment, Comprising: It is the figure which showed the cross section of the principal part. It is a schematic external view of the filling equipment 1 of this embodiment.

The filling facility of this embodiment is a facility for filling powder into a flexible container, and is characterized in that it can effectively prevent scattering of powder to the surroundings when filling powder. ing.

The powder to be filled into a flexible container (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a flexible container) by the filling equipment of this embodiment is not particularly limited. Powders such as nickel powders, cobalt powders, and manganese powders can be used as the powders to be filled into the flexible container by the filling equipment of the present embodiment.

<Filling equipment 1 of the present embodiment>
As shown in FIG. 1, the filling equipment 1 of the present embodiment includes a pedestal 2 on which a flexible container F (hereinafter referred to as a flexible container F) filled with powder M is placed, and the powder arranged above the pedestal 2. and a filling unit 3 which is a device for filling.

<Pedestal 2>
The pedestal 2 has a function of measuring the weight of the flexible container F. Based on the signal from the pedestal 2, the filling section 3 controls supply and stop of the powder M to the flexible container F. As shown in FIG. That is, after the flexible container F is placed on the pedestal 2, when the operator instructs the control unit 4 of the filling unit 3 to start filling, the control unit 4 controls the powder flow rate adjustment unit 13, which will be described later. The powder M is supplied from the filling part 3 to the flexible container F. When the weight reaches a predetermined value, the pedestal 2 sends a signal to stop the supply of the powder M to the control unit 4 of the filling unit 3 , and the control unit 4 controls the powder flow rate adjustment unit 13 so that The supply of the powder M to the flexible container F is stopped.

Alternatively, only weight information may be transmitted from the pedestal 2 to the control unit 4 of the filling unit 3 . In this case, when the control unit 4 of the filling unit 3 detects that the predetermined weight has been reached, the powder flow rate adjustment unit 13 described later is controlled by the control unit 4 to stop the supply of the powder M to the flexible container F. be.

In addition, both the supply of the flexible container F before filling to the base 2 and the work of carrying out the filled flexible container F from the base 2 may be performed manually by the operator. Further, although the flexible container F before filling is supplied to the pedestal 2 manually by an operator, the work of carrying out the flexible container F after filling from the pedestal 2 may be performed by a conveyor or the like.

<Filling part 3>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the filling unit 3 includes a filling cylinder 10 that supplies the powder M to the flexible container F, a cover part 20 provided around the filling cylinder 10, the filling cylinder 10 and the cover part 12 and a suction unit 30 for sucking the gas inside.

<Filling cylinder 10>
The filling cylinder 10 includes a cylindrical inner cylinder 11 and a cylindrical outer cylinder 12 arranged to surround the inner cylinder 11 .

In addition, the cross-sectional shape of the inner cylinder 11 and the outer cylinder 12 is not necessarily limited to circular, and may be square or triangular, and is not particularly limited.
In addition, the inner cylinder 11 and the outer cylinder 12 may have similar shapes or may have different shapes.

<Inner cylinder 11>
The inner cylinder 11 is arranged such that its axial direction is substantially vertical, and its upper end communicates with a supply device such as a hopper for supplying the powder M through a pipe or the like. That is, the space 11h penetrating the inner cylinder 11 in the vertical direction serves as a flow path for supplying the powder M to the flexible container F.

The inner cylinder 11 is provided with a powder flow rate adjusting section 13 for adjusting the flow rate of the powder M flowing in the space 11h. By operating the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13, the flow rate of the powder M supplied to the flexible container F through the space 11h of the inner cylinder 11 can be adjusted. In addition, the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13 is, for example, an electromagnetic valve or the like, and its operation is controlled by the control unit 4 of the filling unit 3 .

<Outer cylinder 12>
The outer cylinder 12 is provided so as to cover the side surface of the inner cylinder 11 and is provided so that a gap 12h is formed between the outer surface of the inner cylinder 11 and the inner surface of the outer cylinder 12 . For example, when the cross sections of the inner cylinder 11 and the outer cylinder 12 are circular, if the outer diameter of the inner cylinder 11 is about 30 to 60 mm, the outer diameter of the outer cylinder 11 is set to about 50 to 80 mm. ing.

The outer cylinder 12 is closed at its upper end, and is provided such that a dust collection opening 10b is formed between its lower end and the side surface of the inner cylinder 11 . That is, the outer cylinder 12 is provided so that the gap 12h between the outer surface of the inner cylinder 11 and the inner surface of the outer cylinder 12 communicates with the outside through the dust collection opening 10b.

In FIG. 1, the dust collection opening 10b is provided at the lower end of the outer cylinder 12, that is, at the lower end of the filling cylinder 10. Not limited. As will be described later, when the lower end of the filling cylinder 10 is inserted into the container part FB from the opening Fa of the flexible container F, the dust collection opening 10b is located at a place where the gas in the container part FB can be sucked. It is sufficient if it is provided.

One end of a first suction pipe 31 of a suction unit 30, which will be described later, is connected to the outer cylinder 12 so that the gas in the gap 12h can be sucked. The suction unit 30 will be described later.

<Cover part 20>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a cover portion 20 is provided so as to surround the filling tube 10 described above. The cover portion 20 has a top plate portion 21 provided in a flange shape on the side surface of the outer cylinder 12 of the filling cylinder 10 and a side wall 22 extending downward from the periphery of the top plate portion 21 . A side wall 22 of the cover portion 20 surrounds the outer cylinder 12 of the filling cylinder 10 and a space 20h is formed between the outer cylinder 12 and the side wall 22 of the filling cylinder 10 . Specifically, the side wall 22 is provided so that the worker can set the flexible container F in the filling tube 10 in the space 20h. For example, if the outer diameter of the outer cylinder 12 of the filling cylinder 10 is about 50-80 mm, the side wall 22 is provided so that its inner diameter is about 400-600 mm.

Moreover, the side wall 22 of the cover part 20 is provided so that the lower end thereof is located below the opening Fa of the flexible container F in the state where the powder M is filled. For example, if the side wall 22 of the cover part 20 is provided so that the lower end thereof is positioned below the lower end of the filling tube 10, the above condition can be satisfied.

In addition, the side wall 22 of the cover part 20 may be provided so as to be positioned below the position of the opening Fa of the flexible container F in that state when the opening Fa of the flexible container F is attached to the filling cylinder 10. The lower end does not necessarily have to be located below the lower end of the filling cylinder 10 . However, if the lower end of the side wall 22 of the cover part 20 is positioned below the lower end of the filling cylinder 10 (preferably the lower end of the inner cylinder 11), the opening Fa of the flexible container F can be positioned outside the filling cylinder 10. Even when this is done, it is possible to arrange the opening Fa of the flexible container F within the space 20 h of the cover part 20 . Then, even if the powder M scatters when the opening Fa of the flexible container F is removed from the filling cylinder 10, the powder M can be retained in the space 20h.

<Sheet member 25>
As described above, if the lower end of the side wall 22 of the cover portion 20 is positioned below the lower end of the filling tube 10, the function of retaining the powder M within the space 20h can be enhanced. On the other hand, when the operator attaches or removes the opening Fa of the flexible container F to or from the filling tube 10, the presence of the side wall 22 may make it difficult to perform the operation.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, a notch 22g may be provided in a part of the side wall 22 of the cover portion 20. As shown in FIG. Specifically, a notch 22g extending upward from the lower end of the side wall 22 may be provided. If such a notch 22g is provided, the inside can be visually recognized through the notch 22g portion, and work can be performed by inserting a hand into the space 20h of the cover portion 20 through the notch 22g. Then, the work of attaching and detaching the opening Fa of the flexible container F to and from the filling cylinder 10 becomes easier.

On the other hand, when the notch 22g is provided, the powder M may scatter outside from the notch 22g, so it is desirable to provide the sheet member 26 so as to cover the notch 22g. For example, the upper ends of the plurality of sheet members 26 are fixed to the side wall 22 above the notch 22g. Moreover, the plurality of sheet members 26 are arranged such that the side ends of the adjacent sheet members 26 overlap each other. Then, since the hand can be put into the space 20h from between the plurality of sheet members 26, the opening Fa of the flexible container F is attached to and removed from the filling cylinder 10 compared to the case where there is no notch 22g. becomes easier.

Although the sheet member 26 is not particularly limited, a transparent material is desirable. If the sheet member 26 made of a transparent material is used, the inside of the space 20h of the cover portion 20 can be confirmed through the sheet member 26, so workability can be further improved.

Moreover, it is desirable that the sheet member 26 is formed of a soft material. If the sheet member 26 made of a soft material is used, the sheet member 26 can be easily brought into close contact with the operator's hand when the hand is put into the space 20h of the cover part 20 from between the plurality of sheet members 26. - 特許庁Become. Then, when a hand is put into the space 20h from between the plurality of sheet members 26, the gap communicating between the inside of the space 20h and the outside can be reduced. It becomes easier to prevent leakage.

<Suction unit 30>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the suction section 30 has a second suction pipe 32 that communicates with the space 20h of the cover section 20 at one end. The other end of the second suction pipe 32 is communicated with a dust collector 35, and when the dust collector 35 operates, the air in the space 20h of the cover portion 20 and the powder M floating in the space 20h are sucked. is now possible.

The suction part 30 also has a first suction pipe 31 that communicates with the gap 12h of the filling tube 10 at one end. The other end of the first suction pipe 31 communicates with the second suction pipe 32 . That is, when the dust collector 35 operates, it is possible to suck not only the space 20h of the cover part 20 but also the air in the gap 12h of the filling cylinder 10 and the powder M floating in the gap 12h. there is

Moreover, the first suction pipe 31 is provided with a suction flow rate adjusting section 34 . The suction flow rate adjusting section 34 is, for example, an electromagnetic valve, and its operation is controlled by the control section 4 . That is, by controlling the operation of the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 by the control section 4, the suction of gas or the like from the gap 12h of the filling cylinder 20 through which the first suction pipe 31 is passed can be controlled.

For example, in a state where the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13 is operated so as to stop the supply of the powder M to the flexible container F, the suction flow rate adjusting unit 34 is controlled to close the first suction pipe 31 . In other words, the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 and the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 are controlled to be in the closed state at the same time. Conversely, when the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 is operated to supply the powder M to the flexible container F, the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 is controlled to close the first suction pipe 31 . In other words, the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 and the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 are controlled to be open at the same time. Moreover, the suction flow rate adjusting unit 34 opens the first suction pipe 31 slightly before opening the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13, and closes the first suction pipe 31 slightly after the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13 is closed. controlled as With this control, the gas in the container part FB of the flexible container F can be sucked before the powder M is supplied to the flexible container F, so the supply of the powder M to the flexible container F becomes smooth. Further, when the opening Fa of the flexible container F is removed from the filling cylinder 10, the powder M scattered inside the flexible container F can be sucked. Then, when the opening Fa of the flexible container F is removed from the filling cylinder 10, the possibility that the powder M leaks from the opening Fa of the flexible container F and scatters around can be reduced.

In addition, in the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 and the suction flow rate adjusting section 34, the timing for switching between the closed state and the open state is not limited to the timing described above.
Alternatively, the gas may always be sucked from the gap 12h of the filling tube 10 without providing the suction flow rate adjusting section 34. FIG. In this case, since the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 can be eliminated, the number of parts of the facility can be reduced.

<Work of Filling Powder M>
The operation of filling the flexible container F with the powder M by the filling equipment 1 as described above will be described.
First, the dust collector 35 is operated to draw air from the space 20 h of the cover portion 20 . In this state, both the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 and the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 are closed.

The operator places the flexible container F on the pedestal 2 and attaches the upper part of the container part FB of the flexible container F to the plurality of hanging members H. In other words, the container portion FB of the flexible container F is held by a plurality of hanging members H so that the flexible container F is stretched to some extent.

When the container part FB of the flexible container F is held by the plurality of suspension members H, the operator covers the opening Fa of the container part FB from the lower end of the filling tube 10 . That is, the lower end of the filling tube 10 is inserted into the container portion FB from the opening Fa of the container portion FB (see FIG. 1). In this state, the operator arranges a mounting member B such as a band around the opening Fa of the container part FB and fixes the opening Fa of the container part FB to the filling tube 10 .

When the opening Fa of the container part FB is fixed to the filling tube 10, the supply of the powder M to the flexible container F is started.

First, the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 is opened, and then the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 is opened. Then, the powder M can be smoothly supplied into the container portion FB of the flexible container F.

As the supply of the powder M progresses, the weight of the flexible container F increases, and the pedestal 2 detects that it has reached a predetermined weight. Then, the control unit 4 first closes the powder flow rate adjusting unit 13 to stop the supply of the powder M, and shortly thereafter closes the suction flow rate adjusting unit 34 .

When the powder flow rate adjusting section 13 and the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 are stopped, the operator removes the mounting member B and removes the opening Fa of the container section FB from the filling cylinder 10 . At this time, since the powder M scattered in the container part FB of the flexible container F is sucked through the first suction pipe 31, it scatters when the opening Fa of the container part FB is removed from the filling cylinder 10. The amount of powder M can be reduced. Moreover, since the opening Fa of the container portion FB is positioned within the space 20h of the cover portion 20, even if the powder M scatters when the opening Fa of the container portion FB is removed from the filling tube 10, the powder The body M is sucked into the dust collector 35 through the second suction pipe 32 together with the air in the space 20h of the cover portion 20 .

The opening Fa of the container portion FB removed from the filling cylinder 10 is closed by the operator. It is possible to prevent the body M from scattering around.

As described above, according to the filling equipment 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to effectively prevent the powder M from scattering around when filling the flexible container F with the powder M, thereby preventing deterioration of the working environment. can.
Moreover, since the scattered powder M is collected by the dust collector 35, the collected powder M can be reused, and loss of the powder M can be prevented.

<Regarding Suction Unit 30>
The numbers of the first suction pipes 31 and the second suction pipes 32 are not particularly limited. One may be sufficient and multiple may be provided. In particular, if a plurality of the second suction pipes 32 are provided at certain intervals, the efficiency of collecting the powder M scattering in the space 20h of the cover portion 20 can be improved.

The other end of the first suction pipe 31 of the suction part 30 does not necessarily have to be connected to the second suction pipe 32 , and may be connected to a dust collector different from the second suction pipe 32 . In this case, the first suction pipe 31 does not necessarily need to be provided with the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 . By controlling the operation of the dust collector connected to the first suction pipe 31, it can be made to function in the same manner as when the suction flow rate adjusting section 34 is provided. However, if the other end of the first suction pipe 31 is connected to the second suction pipe 32 and the first suction pipe 31 is provided with the suction flow rate adjusting section 34, the dust collector 35 can be made into one. Equipment configuration can be simplified.

The filling equipment of the present invention is suitable for equipment for filling flexible container bags with powder such as nickel powder, cobalt powder and manganese powder.

1 filling equipment 2 pedestal 3 filling part 10 filling cylinder 10b dust collection opening 11 inner cylinder 12 outer cylinder 12h gap 13 powder flow rate adjusting part 20 cover part 20h space 30 suction part 31 first suction pipe 32 second suction pipe 34 suction flow rate Adjustment part 35 Dust collector F Flexible container FB Container part Fa Opening M Powder

Claims (3)

A facility for filling powder into a flexible container,
a filling cylinder inserted into the opening of the container part of the flexible container and supplying the powder into the container part;
a cover part provided around the filling cylinder so as to cover the opening of the container part of the flexible container into which the filling cylinder is inserted;
a suction part for sucking gas in the filling cylinder and the cover part,
The filling cylinder is
It has an inner cylinder for supplying powder, and an outer cylinder arranged around the inner cylinder so as to have a gap between the inner cylinder and the inner cylinder,
In the filling cylinder,
A dust collection opening is provided that communicates between a gap between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder and the container part of the flexible container when the flexible container is inserted into the opening of the container part,
The suction unit is
a first suction pipe communicating with the space between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder;
a second suction pipe communicating with the space surrounded by the cover;
a dust collector in communication with the first suction pipe and the second suction pipe;
a suction flow rate adjusting unit provided in the first suction pipe and controlling the flow of gas in the first suction pipe ,
The front cover is
It has a side wall arranged around the opening of the container part of the flexible container,
The sidewall is
A notch that extends upward from the bottom end is provided in a part of it,
In the notch,
A plurality of sheet members having upper ends attached to the side walls are provided so as to cover the cutouts.
A filling facility characterized by: The suction flow rate adjusting unit is
2. The filling equipment according to claim 1, wherein the operation is controlled in accordance with the operation of a powder flow rate adjusting section for controlling the supply of powder provided in the inner cylinder of the filling cylinder. The first suction pipe,
3. The filling facility according to claim 1, wherein the second suction pipe is communicated with the second suction pipe at a portion upstream of a connection position with the dust collector in the second suction pipe.

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