JPH0249658A - Steam sterilizer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the outflow of various bacteria from a sterilizing treatment system by guiding the steam supply end part of a steam flow passage into a drain pot to heat the drain in a pot by the steam discharged from said end part and supplying the generated steam to a sterilizing tank. CONSTITUTION:A drain pot 12 is provided on the upstream side of the valve G of the drain discharge pipe 11 connected to a sterilizing tank 1a and the steam supply end part 18' of a steam flow passage 18 is guided into the drain pot 12 to heat the drain in the pot by the steam discharged from said end part while the generated steam ia supplied to the sterilizing tank 1a through a drain discharge passage. When a solenoid valve B is opened at this time, steam is sent in a steam chamber 1b from a steam inlet 2 through a steam supply passage 3 to preheat the sterilizing tank 1a. After the sterilizing tank 1a is sufficiently heated, a solenoid valve E is opened and the air in the sterilizing tank 1a is discharged through a discharge route 6 and a filter route 7 by driving a vacuum pump 9. Subsequently, the solenoid valve E is closed and the solenoid valves A, F on the way of a steam flow passage 15 are opened for a short time to introduce steam into the sterilizing tank 1a from the steam chamber 1b through steam flow passages 16, 17, 18. This discharge and the introduction of steam are alternately repeated several times.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] This invention is a steam sterilizer for sterilizing medical equipment, clothing, etc., which is designed to prevent various germs from flowing out of the sterilization system. It is something.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, a steam sterilizer consists of a sterilization tank (1a) for storing objects to be sterilized and a steam chamber (1b) provided surrounding this sterilization tank, as illustrated in FIG. A suction path Q0 including a vacuum pump (9) and an air flow path (5) including an air filter (4) are connected to the steam chamber, and a steam supply path (3) for introducing steam into the chamber is connected to the vapor chamber at one end. It is used with the other end of the steam flow path 05) connected to the sterilization tank connected, and its operation is generally as follows.

That is, the steam supplied from the outside is first passed through the steam chamber (
lb) and warm the sterilization tank (1a).

Then, the air in the sterilization tank is discharged by driving the vacuum pump (9), and then the solenoid valve (L
) is opened for a short time to send the steam in the steam chamber to the sterilization tank. After this vacuum process is completed, the steam from the steam chamber is introduced into the sterilization tank through the q steam channels, the sterilization tank is filled with steam, and the sterilization process moves on to sterilize the object to be sterilized in the inner cylinder. Thereafter, an exhaust process and a drying process follow, and after all processes are completed, the objects to be sterilized are taken out of the sterilization tank.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in most cases, various bacteria that have contaminated the objects to be sterilized remain alive in the air and steam discharged outside the tank during the vacuum process, or in the condensed drain. However, in conventional devices, these are discharged without being sterilized, which causes problems such as germs being spread outside or remaining in the vacuum pump or each piping and multiplying. For this reason, some methods include collecting the waste in a tank for post-processing or installing a filter in the middle of the piping, but these methods lead to insufficient sterilization in the middle of the piping and increase equipment costs. The current situation is that it only leads to problems and is not sufficient.

[Means to solve the problem]

That is, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problems by providing a drain outlet on the upstream side of the valve in the drain outlet connected to the sterilization tank in the steam sterilizer to prevent various germs from flowing out of the sterilization treatment system. A drain pot is provided, and the steam supply end of the steam flow path is guided into the drain pot, and after directly or indirectly heating the drain inside the pot by the steam released from the end, the drain discharge path is It is characterized by having a structure in which steam is supplied to the sterilization tank through the sterilization tank.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings. In Figures 1 to 3, (1) is a can body, and this can body is 2
It has a heavy-duty can structure, and has a sterilization tank (1a) inside and a steam chamber (1b) surrounding it outside. The sterilization tank (1a) is provided with an entrance and exit for objects to be sterilized with a pressure-resistant door (not shown), and by closing the pressure-resistant door, the sterilization tank can be completely sealed. (
2) is a steam inlet connected to an external steam source, and when valve (B) is opened, steam passes through the steam supply path (3) to the steam chamber (
1b).

(4) is an air filter, (5) is an air flow path connected to the air filter via a solenoid valve (C), and the other end is:
Connected to the sterilization tank mentioned above. Similarly, the exhaust route (6) connected to the sterilization tank is branched in the middle, and one end is connected to a solenoid valve (E
) and a filter (8), and the other leads to a direct connection path q■ that only has a solenoid valve (D), and then joins to connect a backflow valve (H) and a vacuum pump ( 9) and reaches the discharge port 03).

On the other hand, the steam passage 05), one end of which is connected to the steam chamber (lb), branches into three directions via a solenoid valve (8). One flow path (Q) after branching is steam flow path 0
ω is directly connected to the sterilization tank (1a), another flow path (P is connected to the flow path (1 (+) as the steam flow path G force, and furthermore, the air flow path (5) and the exhaust path are connected in the middle) (6
) and are connected to. The remaining one flow path (Q) becomes the steam flow path 00, and is configured to be guided into the drain pot θ via a solenoid valve (F) on the way.

(11) is a drain outlet connected to the bottom of the sterilization tank;
This includes the drain pot (12), solenoid valve (G),
It is connected to the discharge port side via a check valve (I).

The steam drain bot Q21 has a structure that can temporarily store the drain flowing down from the sterilization tank (1a).
) is internally divided into two sides (see Figure 2), one end (18a) of which is open near the bottom of the pot so that the remaining condensate can be sufficiently heated.
The other side opens in the drain discharge path (It).

Note that the steam flow conditions in each steam flow path 06), 07), and θ marks differ due to differences in pressure loss, etc., but this can be alleviated by providing a flow rate regulating means such as an orifice in the middle of each sound, if necessary. be.

Also, a path θ9) with one end connected to the bottom of the steam chamber
is connected to the outlet side via a steam trap (J) and a check valve (K).

The operation under the above configuration will be explained in order (hereinafter, an answer is considered to be closed unless explicitly stated as open).

First, after carrying the objects to be sterilized into the sterilization tank (1a), the entrance/exit door is closed.

1) When the preparatory step solenoid valve (B) is opened, the steam supply path (3) is opened from the steam inlet (2).
) is fed into the steam chamber (1b) to preheat the sterilization tank (1a). The steam is supplied to the steam chamber throughout the entire process, and the condensate condensed in the steam chamber is discharged to the outlet Q3) through path 09).

2) Vacuum process After the sterilization tank (1a) has been sufficiently warmed by the above-mentioned preparation process,
Enter the vacuum process. First, the solenoid valve (E) is opened, and the air in the sterilization tank (Ia) is discharged through the discharge path (6) and the filtration path (7) by driving the vacuum pump (9). At this time,
Since the air inside the tank is filtered through the filter (8), contamination caused by fungi attached to the objects to be sterilized is removed by the filter (8).
The air that accumulates in the air and is discharged from the outlet side is purified.

Next, the solenoid valve (E) is closed, and the solenoid valves (A) and (F) in the middle of the steam flow path 05) are opened for a short time, and the steam chamber (l
b) Steam is introduced into (1a) through steam passages Q6), Or), 08) (in this case, solenoid valve CF) is closed and steam is introduced from steam passages 06), Q7). may be introduced). By repeating this evacuation and steam introduction several times alternately, the air contained in the object to be sterilized is sufficiently exhausted and uneven heating of the steam during the subsequent sterilization process is reduced. Drain generated in the sterilization tank (1a) at this time passes through a drain discharge path 00 and is collected in a drain bot 0.

3) After the sterilization process has sufficiently removed the air in the sterilization tank, close the solenoid valve (8) again.
, (F) and open the steam flow paths 06), 07), 08)
The inside of the sterilization tank (1a) is filled with high-temperature and high-pressure steam. Thereafter, when the inside of the sterilization tank (1a) reaches the set sterilization temperature, a sterilization process begins. The temperature inside the tank may be measured by any known measuring means, such as the temperature of the drain discharged from path 01) or the temperature of the atmosphere inside the tank.

During the above sterilization process, the steam supply into the sterilization tank (1a) is as follows:
Steam flow path θth, QT), (17a), air flow path (5
), steam flow paths 05), 07), (17b)
, Piping connecting the discharge route (6), Steam flow path 05), Piping connecting 0ω and steam flow path 05)08), Drainbot Ow
1. Since this is done from both the piping connecting the drain discharge path (II), each piping valve must be thoroughly sterilized, and the solenoid valve (C)
Air flow path (5) connecting the and sterilization tank, solenoid valve (D), (
E) Contamination due to bacteria adhering to objects to be sterilized in each piping connected to the sterilization tank, such as the exhaust path (6) connecting the sterilization tank and the drain outlet path (11) connecting the solenoid valve (G) and the sterilization tank. teeth,
Sterilization through steam prevents this. In addition, the steam flowing into the drainbot Oz from the steam flow path side is
As shown in the figure or FIG. 3, the tip of the steam flow path 0FfI is opened at the bottom of the drain bot (+21), so that it is ejected into the drain and serves to heat and sterilize the drain in the drain bot Q21. Sufficiently sterilize any bacteria that may be living in the initial drain generated during the vacuum process etc. mentioned above.In addition, the drain should be spouted from one spout (18b) of the end (18") in Fig. 2. Steam is drained from drain outlet 0
Heat sterilization in step 1) is performed, but the pressure drop in the piping is adjusted using an orifice or the like so that sufficient steam is ejected from the steam outlet (18a) to prevent a steam short bath.

4) After the exhaust stroke sterilization stroke, the solenoid valves (A) and (F) are closed,
Steam supply to the sterilization tank is stopped. Next, the solenoid valve (G
) is opened, and the steam in the sterilization tank (1a) and the drain in the drain bot (12) are discharged from the outlet side. Note that this drain and steam are obtained after the sterilization process has been completed, so there is no need to worry about them containing any viable germs.

5) Drying process After the pressure in the sterilization tank (1a) is lowered to near atmospheric pressure by the exhaust process, the solenoid valve (G) is closed and the drying process begins.

First, the solenoid valve (D) is opened, and the vacuum pump is driven to bypass the exhaust route (6) and filter (8) and directly connect the route O.
n) is bypassed to reduce the pressure in the sterilization tank (1a) and remove moisture from the object to be sterilized (vacuum drying).

Next, open the solenoid valve (C) for a moment and open the air filter (4).
through which clean air is temporarily introduced into the sterilization tank (1a).

Repeat this operation to thoroughly dry the object to be sterilized.

6) After the removal and drying process, open the solenoid valve (C) and remove the sterilization tank (1a).
) is communicated with the outside through an air filter (4) to maintain the same pressure as atmospheric pressure. Further, the solenoid valve (B) is closed and the supply of steam to the steam chamber (1b) is stopped.

After this, the door of the sterilization tank (1a) is opened and the objects to be sterilized are taken out and the entire process is completed.

〔Effect of the invention〕

This invention has the above-mentioned configuration, and can sterilize all areas that may be contaminated with fungi by removing the solenoid valve ([rito filter (8)], and eliminates the contaminants adhering to objects to be sterilized. It is possible to prevent contamination of the inside of the steam sterilizer due to sterilization, and the release of germs to the outside due to the waste generated during each process.This makes it possible to perform sterilization extremely safely and easily, and prevents secondary contamination. In addition, since the drain is stored in the drainbot and can be directly heated by the steam supplied to the sterilization tank, the drain can be efficiently sterilized by heating and the device itself can be made more compact.

If the above-mentioned electromagnetic valve (E) and filter (8) are made into a unit to facilitate handling, it is possible to obtain a system that is free from contamination by bacteria including secondary contamination.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a pipe diagram showing an embodiment of the steam sterilizer of this invention;
FIGS. 2 and 3 are enlarged explanatory views of a portion thereof, and FIG. 4 is a pipe system diagram showing a conventional steam sterilizer.

Claims (1)

[Claims] In the steam sterilizer, a drain pot (
12), while the steam supply end (1
8') into the drain pot, the drain inside the pot is directly or indirectly heated by the steam released from the end, and then steam is supplied to the sterilization tank through the drain discharge path. A steam sterilizer characterized by: