JPH0259739B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Purpose of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a material whose surface is partially adhered to other members (so-called blocking state) due to transfer of plasticizer etc. by heating. This invention relates to a device for loosening tubes. More specifically, the present invention provides an apparatus for disassociating tube portions that have become blocked due to heat sterilization of plastic containers with tubes (hereinafter simply referred to as containers) such as blood bags or infusion bags. Regarding.

(Prior Art) Medical plastic bag containers such as blood bags and infusion bags are generally sterilized before being shipped. As the sterilization treatment, heat sterilization using heated steam, such as autoclave sterilization, is generally used, since there is no risk of material deterioration, and it is inexpensive and easy to operate. Conventionally, in this heat sterilization process, there were no suitable trays or jigs for holding plastic bag containers with tubes, so they were manually loaded one by one into the heat sterilization equipment. There is.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, in this heat sterilization process, even if a highly heat-resistant synthetic resin is used, so-called blocking, where overlapping parts of the container surface stick to each other, tends to occur. . For this reason, it is not possible to sterilize containers with stacked containers, resulting in poor workability. In addition, when heat sterilization is performed repeatedly,
After sterilization, it is necessary to loosen each blocked part by hand, which is time-consuming and disadvantageous due to the possibility of contamination.

Therefore, a large number of containers can be stacked and placed on one tray, and can be taken in and out of the heat sterilization processing equipment, heat sterilized, and transported in that state, thereby automating the heat sterilization process and increasing efficiency. The inventors considered this.

However, the root portions of tubes branching from the same position in stacked containers tend to overlap, and if they are relatively long, they have to meander, wind, or bend on the tray due to space constraints, preventing them from overlapping. It cannot be avoided. For this reason, blocking of the tube part, especially the root part, is likely to occur, which makes it difficult to realize automation.

As part of this automation, the present invention aims to provide a device for loosening blocked tubes.

Structure of the Invention (Means for Solving Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the tube disassembly device of the present invention has a tube disassembly device in which tube tip sides of a plurality of tube-equipped containers are arranged in parallel at regular intervals. A mounting table that can be held at one end and on which container parts can be stacked and placed on the other end side, and a plurality of tube loosening tools movable in parallel to each other in the axial direction while in contact with the tube, are provided. The movement of the ingredients loosens and separates the tubes that are stuck to each other. Further, the tube disassembly device of the present invention is characterized by having a clamping tool that moves in the opposite direction to the loosening tool and grips and pulls the tip of the tube. Further, the tube disassembling device of the present invention is characterized in that the loosening tool is a chuck that can be opened and closed. Further, the tube disassembly device of the present invention is characterized in that the loosening tool is U-shaped.

(Function) Therefore, according to this tube disassembly device,
If the container after heat sterilization is placed on the tray and set in the predetermined position of the loosening device, the tubes of the multiple loosening tools surrounding the tips of the tubes arranged in parallel at regular intervals can be placed in the direction of the tube base. By mutual parallel movement, the tubes are arranged parallel to each other at a constant interval, and the tubes in the blocking state are separated one by one.

(Example) Hereinafter, the configuration of the present invention will be described in detail based on an example shown in the drawings.

The tube disassembling device of the present invention has a tray 2 on which a container 1 is placed and fixed in preparation for heat sterilization, and a plurality of loosening tools 4 that move parallel to each other, and the loosening tools 4 are arranged along the tray 2 described above. The tube disassembling device 3 holds the tray 2 in a positional relationship so as to move along with the tube, and loosens the blocked tube portion 1B after heat sterilization by moving the loosening tool 4.

The tube disassembly device 3 mainly consists of a pedestal 5, a plurality of loosening tools 4 supported by the pedestal and moved linearly in the horizontal direction, and a clamping tool 6 that grips the tube tip side and applies a slight tension to the tube portion 1B. It is composed of

The pedestal 5 is equipped with a loosening tool 4, a clamp tool 6, and a drive mechanism for these.
The clamping tool 6 and the tray 2 on which the container 1 is placed are supported in a fixed positional relationship, and are arranged at regular intervals to form a movement path for the loosening tool 4 and the clamping tool 6. It is formed by connecting a book mouth-shaped vertical frame 5A with a plurality of horizontal frames 5B. The tray receiver 5C of this pedestal 5 is designed to position the tray 2 in a positional relationship in which the above-mentioned loosening tool 4 and clamping tool 6 move in parallel along the tray 2.
A seat part that supports the tray 2 at a constant height and a side part that positions the tray 2 in the front, back, left, and right directions are located at least at a position corresponding to a corner part of the tray 2, and the tray 2 is placed so as to fit therein. It is provided so that it can be automatically positioned by.

The loosening tool 4 includes a large number of chucks 7 surrounding the tube portion 1B of the container 1, a plate 8 that supports the chucks 7, a fluid pressure cylinder 9 that supports the plate 8 in a movable manner, and a hydraulic cylinder 9 that supports the cylinder 9. a guide rod 1 that supports the slide block 10 slidably in the axial direction of the tube 1B and is attached to the pedestal 5.
1 and a fluid pressure cylinder 12 for moving the slide block 10 toward the bag/container portion 1A, so that after the chuck 7 surrounds the tube 1B, it can be moved horizontally in the axial direction of the tube 1B as a whole in that state. It is provided. The chuck 7 is connected to the tube 1B in the closed state as shown in FIG.
It has a recess 13 that forms a circular hole slightly larger than the diameter of the mating surface, and opens and closes around the pin 14.

Although the opening and closing of this chuck 7 is not shown,
This is accomplished in a known manner, such as by using a rack and pinion gear combination or link, to convert the movement of a hydraulic cylinder (not shown) into rotation and transmit the rotation. In this embodiment, the loosening tool 4 is driven by moving a slide block 10 sliding on a guide rod 11 forward or backward by a fluid pressure cylinder 12.
The present invention is not limited to this, and it is also possible to use a feeding mechanism using a screw rod instead.

The operation of this loosening tool is normally carried out by the fluid pressure cylinder 12.
It is stopped by the operation of limit switches (not shown) installed at both stroke ends. The slide block 10 is supported by a guide rod 11 fixed to the pedestal 5, and when closed, connects the piston rod of a fluid pressure cylinder 12 fixed to the pedestal 5, so that the slide block 10 is moved along the guide rod 11 by the operation of the cylinder 12. slide.

The clamp tool 6 includes a large number of chucks 15 surrounding the tube portion 1B, similar to the loosening tool 4 described above.
and a plate 16 that supports this chuck 15.
and a fluid pressure cylinder 17 that is supported so as to be movable up and down.
A slide block 18 supporting the cylinder 17
Then, the guide rod 11 and the slide block 18 are attached to the pedestal 5 to slidably support the slide block 18 in the axial direction of the tube 1B.
The chuck 15 moves the tube 1 toward the tip side of the tube.
The tube 1B is provided so that the entire tube 1B can be horizontally moved in the axial direction in that state.
This clamp tool 6 differs from the above-described loosening tool 4 in that it moves in the opposite direction and acts to pull the tube 1B by applying an extremely weak tension. Therefore, in principle, a chuck-like device that can lightly clamp the tube 1B is used as the clamp tool 6, but in this embodiment, the presence or absence of the blood sampling needle 1C attached to the tip of the tube 1B is used. Since the chuck also serves as a device for detecting the tube 1B, a chuck having a hole slightly larger than the tube 1B, like that of the loosening tool 4, is used. In this case, check 1
5 is in contact with the flange portion 1D at the boundary between the blood collection needle 1C and the tube 1B to prevent the tube 1B from coming off, so when the chuck 15 stops moving when the tube 1B is stretched, the blood collection needle 1C When the chuck 15 reaches the stroke end of the fluid pressure cylinder 20, the blood sampling needle 1C
It can be determined that there is no such thing. Therefore, a limit switch (not shown) is provided near the stroke end of the fluid pressure cylinder 20 to notify this.

A push plate 21 is provided on the depth side of the pedestal (upper right side in FIG. 1) for pressing the bag container portion 1A of the container 1 and effectively loosening the tube 1B. The push plates 21 are attached to the piston rods of the fluid pressure cylinders 24 which are installed downward on the support plate 23, and are attached to the vertical frame 5A of the pedestal 5.
It is suspended via a rod 22 and is provided so that it can be moved up and down by the operation of a fluid pressure cylinder 24.

In addition, the tray 2 includes a floor portion 2A that mainly supports the container portion 1A of the container 1, a clamp tool 2B that fixes the tip side of the tube portion 1B, and a clamping tool 2B that surrounds them to enable stacking with other members. It consists of a frame part 2C and a blocking-resistant plate 2D that can be turned over so as to cover the container part 1A.

The floor 2A is made of a breathable material or structure so as not to block the heat sterilization atmosphere, and in this embodiment, stainless steel punched metal is used to allow the flow of heated steam. Moreover, this floor part 2A has a structure in which two protrusions 2E are provided at appropriate intervals so that a part of the tube 1B is suspended in the air. Of course, although not shown in the drawings, it is also possible to form the entire floor 2A into a corrugated shape or a myriad of uneven shapes to prevent the tube portion 1B and the container portion 1A from coming into close contact with each other. Note that the floor portion 2A is at least the container portion 1A.
It is sufficient if the tube portion 1B is placed in the area where the tube portion 1B is placed, but it is preferable to have a structure that also supports the tube portion 1B as in this embodiment.

The clamp portion 2B is for fixing the tip end of the tube to prevent the tube portion 1B from tangling, and in this embodiment, a substantially U-shaped notch is adopted. The number of notches is sufficient to fix at least the tips of all the tubes 1B of the containers 1 on which the tray 2 is placed. In the case of this embodiment, the clamp part 2B consists of two plates in which a large number of U-shaped notches are provided at regular intervals, which are arranged side by side on a receiving plate 2F on which the blood collection needle part 1C at the tip of the tube is placed. It is provided so that it can be suspended in the air and stretched so that it can be easily grasped by the chucks 7 and 15 of the loosening tool 4 and the clamping tool 6. In addition to the above-mentioned notch, a clip or hook using a leaf spring or the like, a tightening band, etc. can also be used as the clamp part 2B.

The frame 2C has a peripheral wall structure surrounding the floor 2A in order to form an internal space in which the containers 1 can be stored in several stacked layers and to enable stacking with other members. A handle piece 2G is provided on a side portion of the frame 2C so as to protrude laterally in order to facilitate transportation and stacking of the tray 2. Note that the receiving plate 2F and the two plates forming the clamp portion 2B consisting of a notch constitute a part of the frame 2C.

The anti-blocking plate 2D is inserted between the container portions 1A of the containers 1 stacked on the floor 2A to prevent the containers 1A from directly touching each other, and is at least the same as or greater than the container portion 1A. It is made of anti-blocking material that has a large area and is not sticky to the container material. Anti-blocking materials include materials that do not show stickiness to plastic containers under heat and/or pressure, such as metals, ceramics, heat-resistant plastics,
Preferably, a metal or a ceramic is used, and a corrosion-resistant metal that is stable under superheated steam, such as stainless steel, is preferably used.
For example, in the case of this embodiment, it consists of a long stainless steel punched metal plate on which six containers 1 can be placed or covered at once, each container 1 is partitioned from the adjacent container 1, and another anti-blocking plate is used. 2
A partition 2H is provided to form a gap in which the container portion 1A is accommodated between the container portion 1A and the container portion 2A.

A tongue-like piece 2I that slightly protrudes outside the tray frame 2C is provided on at least one side end, preferably on both sides, of this anti-blocking plate 2D, and the tongue-like piece 2I is moved by a driving means (not shown). It is provided so that when lifted, the anti-blocking plate 2D is raised and the container 1 can be taken in and taken out easily. The anti-blocking plate 2D is attached to the tray via a hinge 2J or a ring (not shown) so as to be able to turn over.

This blocking resistant plate 2D has at least 1
It is sufficient that the anti-blocking plates 2D have approximately the same area as the two container portions 1A, and in this case, the anti-blocking plates 2D may be independently attached to the tray so that they can be turned over and opened and closed individually. In this embodiment, stainless steel punched metal is used as the blocking-resistant plate 2D, which is stable against heated steam and does not impede its flow, but it is not limited to this. It is possible to use other heat resistant materials, preferably heat resistant and corrosion resistant materials.

Although the above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, although the loosening tool 4 of this embodiment uses a chuck 7 that can be opened and closed, it may be of any shape or structure as long as it can surround the tube 1B and separate it from other tubes. , a U-shaped fork-end rod may also be used. Further, the loosening rod 4 may surround the tube portion 2B while the container 1 is fixed to the tray 2 to loosen it, or the tip of the tube may be securely moved using a fixed clamp rod that does not move. It may be fixed.

According to the tube disassembly device configured in this way,
A blocked tube can be loosened as follows.

First, heat sterilization of the container 1 will be described prior to the tube disassembly operation. Six container portions 1A are placed on the tray 2 with anti-blocking plates 2D interposed therebetween.
A total of 18 tubes are stacked in three layers, and the containers 1 are placed by attaching the tips of the tube portions 1B to the clamp portions 2B at different locations. A large number of trays 2 on which a large number of containers 1 are placed in this manner are prepared, and the trays 2 are stacked and inserted into a heat sterilization processing apparatus (not shown) to be heat sterilized at once. After the sterilization process, the tray 2 is taken out from the sterilization apparatus by a known or new conveying means (not shown) and placed on the pedestal 5 of the tube disassembly 3.

The tray 2 is installed so that the distal end side of the tube 1B is located on the front side of the tube disassembly 3 (upper left side in FIG. 1), and is fitted into the pedestal 5. Thereafter, the pressing plate 21 is lowered to press down the container portion 1A. Next, the clamp tool 6 and the loosening tool 4 are lowered by operating the fluid pressure cylinders 9 and 17,
The tip of the tube 1B stretched over the tray 2 is gripped by chucks 7 and 15. Thereafter, the chucks 7, 1 are opened by driving the fluid pressure cylinders 9, 17.
5 and lift the tube part 1B. Then, move the loosening tool 4 to the container 1A side, and the clamp tool 6
are moved toward the blood sampling needle 1C at the tip of the tube by the operation of the fluid pressure cylinders 12 and 20, respectively. By moving the clamp tool 6, if there is a blood sampling needle 1C at the tip of the tube, it will come into contact with the flange 1D of the blood sampling needle 1C and pull it with a slight force from the tube 1B, stretching the slack tube 1B. Make it easy to loosen. At this time, if there is no component to be attached to the tip of the tube, such as the blood sampling needle 1C, or if the blood sampling needle 1C is not firmly fixed, the tip of the tube will slip through the moving chuck 15 and the tube 1B will fall. , the tube 1B sag without being pulled and cannot be loosened. This abnormal state is originally tube 1
When the movement of the fluid pressure cylinder 20 whose movement is stopped by B exceeds the stop position and reaches the stroke end, the limit switch installed there is activated, and information regarding the presence or absence of a defective product is detected. Ru. On the other hand, by the movement of the loosening tool 4, the tubes are arranged in parallel with each other at regular intervals, and the blocked tubes are loosened and separated one by one. After the blocked tube part is loosened, check 7,
15 to release the tube 1B and return it to its original position in preparation for the next operation.

Thereafter, the push plate 21 is raised to transport the tube 1 from above the tray 2 to the next process. For example, after the container portion 1A is attracted and raised with a vacuum cup (not shown) and peeled off from the anti-blocking plate 2D, the end of the container 1A is grasped with a clamp (not shown) and moved toward the subsequent packaging process. It is transported out using a transport means (not shown). In addition, the container below is made of anti-blocking material that covers the container portion 1A by pushing up the tongue-like pieces 2I on both sides of the anti-blocking plate 2D protruding from the tray 2 by using a fluid pressure cylinder and turning them around the hinge. Peel off the sexual plate 2D. Then, according to the above-described procedure, the container portion 1A is grasped and carried out to the packaging process. In order to increase work efficiency, it is preferable to carry out this carrying out operation by suctioning and holding the six containers on the tray at once.

When the tube portion 1B is relatively short and does not protrude beyond the tray 2, the loosening operation is continued with the tip of the tube fixed to the tray 2. Further, the tip of the tube may be fixed by making the hole shape of the chuck of the clamp mechanism smaller so that the tip of the tube is grasped and stopped at that position.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above description, the tube disassembly device of the present invention is capable of holding tube distal ends of a plurality of tube-equipped containers arranged in parallel at regular intervals at one end, and holding the tube distal ends of a plurality of tube-equipped containers at one end. a mounting table on which container parts can be stacked and placed; and a plurality of tube loosening tools movable in parallel to each other in the axial direction while in contact with the tubes, the movement of the loosening tools removes the stickiness of the tubes from sticking to each other. Since multiple tubes are loosened and dissociated, if the container after heat sterilization is placed on the tray and placed in the predetermined position of the loosening device, the distal end of each tube arranged in parallel at regular intervals is surrounded. By mutually parallelly moving the plurality of loosening tools toward the base of the tubes, the tubes are arranged in parallel with each other at a constant interval, so that the tubes in the blocking state are separated one by one.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the tube disassembling device of the present invention, in which Fig. 1 is a right side view, Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the - arrow in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a front view of the chuck of the loosening tool. , FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of the tray. 1... Container, 1A... Container part, 1B... Tube part, 2... Tray, 3... Tube disassembly,
4... Loosening tool, 5... Frame, 7... Chuck forming the loosening tool, 6... Clamping tool, 9... Fluid pressure cylinder forming the loosening tool, 10, 11...
...Slide block and guide rod constituting the loosening tool; 12...Fluid pressure cylinder constituting the loosening tool.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A mounting table capable of holding the tube tips of a plurality of tube-equipped containers arranged in parallel at regular intervals at one end, and stacking the container portions on the other end. , comprising a plurality of tube loosening tools movable in parallel to each other in the axial direction while in contact with the tubes, and by movement of the tube loosening tools, the plurality of tubes stuck to each other are loosened and separated. Tube dissection device. 2. The tube disassembly device according to claim 1, wherein the tube disassembly device includes a clamp tool that moves in the opposite direction to the loosening tool and grips and pulls the tip of the tube. 3. The tube disassembly device according to claims 1 and 2, wherein the loosening tool is a chuck that can be opened and closed. 4. Any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the loosening tool is U-shaped.
Tube disassembly device as described in Section.