JPH07236865A - Food container washing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a food container washing apparatus capable of continuously and efficiently performing washing with a detergent soln. and washing with water in a small installation area. CONSTITUTION:A shower chamber 3 is arranged to the central part in a before- and-behind direction above a water tank 2 to reduce the installation area of a washing apparatus and containers 2 are held between a large number of front and rear and left and right holding levers 18 provided to an endless conveyor 10 above the rear part of the water tank to be introduced into the detergent soln. in the water tank 2 and transferred from the rear part of the water tank 2 to the front part thereof to be washed and turned back to be introduced into the shower chamber to open the front and rear holding levers 18 and the containers 22 into a V-shape. Therefore, the holding levers 18 and the containers 22 are washed with water ejected from a jet orifices 29a arranged just above them and drawn out of the rear part of the shower chamber 3 and the containers 22 are drawn out of the gaps between the left and right holding levers 18. Washing with a detergent soln. and washing with water are continuously and automatically performed by one conveyor 10 to reduce the lengths of the conveyor 10 and the water tank 2.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning device for a container for food such as cancer remedy and fried food, that is, a container for food.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, food containers contain foods such as gandomoki and tofu-fried foods manufactured in factories and transport them to stores or cafeterias, and take out the foods for sale or use. , Return the empty container to the factory,
Dirt such as oil is washed and reused repeatedly.

[0003] It is necessary for hygiene that the food containers are washed every time they are emptied and returned to the factory. Conventionally, however, an empty food conveyor is manually inserted into the water tank to After washing with the detergent solution inside, it is washed with water and reused.

[0004]

However, a great deal of labor is required for the above-mentioned manual washing and washing with water. Therefore,
It is possible to automate the washing of the food container with a device that uses a detergent solution, followed by washing with another device.
Since both the devices are installed side by side in a factory or the like, there is a problem that a large area is required.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems,
Washing with a detergent solution and washing with water can be performed automatically and continuously in a small installation area.Effective washing and washing can be performed with little labor, and these washings are particularly suitable for food containers contaminated with cooking oil. The first object is to provide the device at low cost. Also, securely hold the food container so that it can be detached, and wash these with a detergent solution.
A second object is to provide a cleaning device for a food container that can be transferred to each step of washing with water.

A third object of the present invention is to provide a container cleaning device in which different sizes of food containers can be easily cleaned and washed with a detergent solution by changing some members.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cleaning device for a food container, wherein a water tank fixed in a device frame and a front and rear surface of the water tank are provided at a central portion in the front-rear direction. The shower chamber, and an endless conveyor for container transfer, which descends from above the rear portion of the water tank, moves to the front of the water tank, rises at the front portion, and turns back through the shower chamber from the front to the rear, and this conveyor is The left and right holding rods for detachably holding the food container are pivotally attached to a large number of supporting rods arranged laterally on the left and right endless chains, and these holding rods are projected to the outer peripheral side of the endless chain. ,left,
The right holding rod is connected by a spring for urging in the closing direction, a water supply pipe extending in the left-right direction orthogonal to the endless conveyor is provided in the upper part of the shower room, and water is jetted downward in the longitudinal direction of the water supply pipe. In addition to providing a large number of jet ports, a chain bending member that supports the endless chains in the shower chamber facing the water supply pipe and bends the endless chains into a V-shape is provided, and the sandwiching rods adjacent to each other in the front and rear are arranged in a V-shape. It is designed to open in a letter shape.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for cleaning a food container according to the first aspect, each of the supporting rods of the endless conveyor is provided with an opening / closing adjusting mechanism for adjusting the turning angle of the left and right holding rods. is there.

The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2.
In the device for cleaning a food container, the left and right clamping rods have the base ends of the left and right mounting rods pivotally attached to the support rod, respectively.
The bases of the left and right mounting rods are connected by detachable tension coil springs, and the left and right opening / closing rods are detachably fixed to the tip side of the springs of the left and right mounting rods. An opening is formed so as to oppose a U-shaped cross section into which the side edge of the food container is detachably fitted, and a stopper with which one end of the container abuts is fixed to the base end.

[0010]

A washing device for a food container according to the first aspect of the present invention comprises a water tank fixed on a device frame and a shower chamber arranged in the center of the water tank in the front-rear direction. Above the rear of the water tank extending to the rear of the chamber, the food container to be cleaned is sequentially clamped between the left and right clamping rods of the conveyor rotating at a low speed, and the container is lowered to fill the water tank with the detergent. Put it in the liquid and transfer it from the rear to the front, and during this time clean the oil stains etc. adhering to the container, raise the container at the front of the water tank to take out from the detergent liquid, then fold it back and transfer it to the shower room. When passing through, wash the detergent liquid and dust adhering to the container with water ejected from a large number of jets provided along the left-right direction of the water supply pipe, and in the rear of the shower room from the left and right holding rods to the container. Pull out In, it can be automatically performed continuously and washing and cleaning with a detergent solution container.

Since the endless conveyor extends rearward from the shower room and is located above the rear part of the water tank, the above-mentioned washing and rinsing can be performed continuously by simply attaching and detaching the container to and from the left and right holding rods. , These can be done efficiently with less effort. In addition, since the detergent liquid is a hot water of a required temperature such as 80 ° C. and a detergent such as caustic soda is added thereto, oil stains are easily removed, and thus it is suitable for cleaning a container soiled with edible oil.

Further, since the shower chamber is arranged on the water tank, the installation area of the cleaning device can be reduced, and further, the endless conveyor is provided by the chain bending member arranged below the jet port provided at the upper part of the shower chamber so as to face it. The left and right endless chains are supported by bending them into a V-shape, and the clamping rods adjacent to the front and rear on the bending member and the container clamped between these are opened in a V-shape so as to clamp the clamping rods and these. Even if the space between the front and rear of the container is reduced, it is possible to reliably wash the holding rod and the container opened in a V shape with the water ejected from the ejection port, so that the length of the cleaning device and the endless conveyor in the front-rear direction can be shortened. In addition to helping to shorten the length in the front-rear direction, the length of the device frame, the water tank, and the endless chain are also shortened, and the cleaning device can be made inexpensive.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the cleaning apparatus for a food container, the opening / closing adjusting mechanism for adjusting the turning angle of the left and right holding bars is provided on each supporting rod in the first aspect of the invention.
Depending on the left-right (width) direction dimensions of the food container to be clamped by the left and right clamping rods, with the left and right clamping rods closed,
By adjusting the distance between these tips to a size that does not make it difficult to insert the container, it is a comparatively small force to insert the container into the left and right clamping rods with a sufficient length and securely clamp it. You can The opening / closing adjusting mechanism is most preferably that of the embodiment described later.

In the food container cleaning device according to the third aspect of the present invention, since the stoppers are fixed to the base ends of the left and right opening / closing rods of the left and right holding rods, the food container is inserted between the left and right holding rods. At the time of contact, by bringing one end of the container into contact with the stopper, it is possible to easily transfer the other end of the container from the rear to the front by aligning the other end with a position where it does not contact the bottom of the water tank. Since the cross section is U-shaped and these openings are opposed to each other, by fitting both sides of the container to the opening and closing rod, the container can be fitted and transferred to the opening and closing rod without rattling in the front-rear direction.

Further, since the left and right opening and closing rods are detachably fixed to the left and right mounting rods, when the shape and size of the container are different, the container for transferring the left and right opening and closing rods moves in the front-rear direction. By changing to a shape that does not rattle, it is possible to easily cope with the change in a part of members in containers having different shapes and sizes, and it is possible to clean and wash these containers without trouble. In this case, it is preferable that the tension coil springs connecting the left and right mounting rods be replaced according to the changed container.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each of FIGS. 1 to 3, 1 is a device frame, and a water tank 2 made of stainless steel is fixed in the device frame 1 in the front-rear (vertical) direction with its upper surface opened. The aquarium 2 is
The lower portions of the front and rear ends are curved, and the upper edges are substantially horizontal with the upper surface of the water tank upper frame 1a of the apparatus frame 1. A shower chamber 3 to be described later is fixed on the water tank 2 on the outer surface of the apparatus frame 1.

Bearing pedestals 4 are fixed to the front and rear outer surfaces of the left and right frames 1b of the apparatus frame 1, and bearings 5 are fixed on the bearing pedestals 4 to form rear left and right bearings. Stand 4
A drive shaft 6 is rotatably supported on the bearing 5 fixed on the upper side, and a driven shaft 7 is rotatably supported on the bearing 5 fixed on the front bearing stand 4. Left and right drive gears 8 are fitted and fixed to the drive shaft 6, and left and right driven gears 9 are fitted and fixed to the driven shaft 7, respectively.
The drive gear 8 and the driven gear 9 are engaged with the left and right endless chains 11 of an endless conveyor 10 for transferring a container.

An electric motor 12 is fixed on a machine base (not shown) arranged outside the water tank 2 in the lower front portion of the apparatus frame 1, and between the rotary shaft 12a of the electric motor 12 and the drive shaft 6, Drive shaft 6
1 is provided with a driving force transmission mechanism 13 for rotating the device in the counterclockwise direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. In this driving force transmission mechanism 13, an endless driving force transmission chain 16 is meshed with a small diameter gear 14 fitted and fixed to the rotating shaft 12a and a large diameter gear 15 fitted and fixed to the driving shaft 6.

In the endless conveyor 10, a large number of front and rear support rods 17 are laterally fixed on the outer peripheral side of each link of the left and right endless chains 11 at a predetermined small interval, and each support rod 17 has:
Left and right holding rods 18 are pivotally mounted symmetrically with respect to the center in the left-right direction, and are projected to the outer peripheral side of the endless chain 11.

The left and right holding rods 18 are provided with left and right mounting rods 19 and left and right opening and closing rods 20 fixed to them, respectively. The left and right mounting rods 19 have their base end portions pivotally attached to the support rod 17 so as to be rotatable in the left-right direction, and the projection piece 1 is attached to the tip side from the pivotal attachment portion.
9a is fixed, these projecting pieces 19a are made to oppose and project, the left and right ends of the tension coil spring 21 are detachably connected to the projecting pieces 19a of the left and right mounting rods 19, and the tip side is closed. Is urged to. The spring 21 is arranged parallel to the support rod 17 on the outer peripheral side of the endless chain 11.

The left and right opening and closing rods 20 are detachably fixed to the tip side of the protrusions 19a of the left and right mounting rods 19 and the spring 21, and as shown in FIG. The right (width) direction side edge portion is formed in a U-shaped cross section in which it is detachably fitted, and the openings are opposed to each other, and detachably fixed to the tip end side of the projection piece 19a of the left and right mounting pieces 19 and the spring 21. I am doing it. Further, the left and right opening / closing rods 20 have a stopper 20a with which one end of the container 22 abuts, which is fixed to the base end portion thereof, and the tip end portion 20b thereof is bent in a divergent manner.

An open / close adjusting mechanism 23 is provided between each of the supporting rods 17 and the left and right holding rods 18 for adjusting the turning angle thereof. The opening / closing adjusting mechanism 23 fixes a receiving metal fitting 24 at the center of the supporting rod 17 in the left-right direction by projecting to the inner peripheral side of the endless chain 11, and the receiving metal fitting 24 has a long hole extending in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the supporting rod 17. 24a is formed, and the flattened tip portions of the left and right connecting rods 25 are pivotally attached to the protruding pieces 19a provided on the attachment rods 19 of the left and right holding rods 18, respectively,
The flattened base end portion of the right connecting rod 25 is overlapped and pivotally attached to the connecting pin 26, which is slidably engaged with the long hole 24a of the metal fitting 24. Connecting rod 25 of connecting pin 26 and receiving fitting 24
And an intermediate portion located between and with the arcuate end portion 27a of the adjustment fitting 27 supported from the inner circumferential side of the endless chain 11, and the threaded portion 27b of the adjustment fitting 27 extending from the end portion 27a in the inner circumferential direction of the endless chain 11. The receiving nut 24 is slidably inserted into the receiving metal fitting 24, and a lock nut 28 is screwed into a portion of the threaded portion 27b projecting from the receiving metal fitting 24, and the setting nut 28 is brought into contact with the inner end surface of the receiving metal fitting 24. The connecting rod 2
5, the connecting pin 26 and the adjustment fitting 27 are
Displacement in the axial direction is prevented by appropriate means.

The shower chamber 3 is arranged at the center of the water tank 2 in the front-rear direction, the front and rear end faces are opened, and the bottom 3a is arranged between the upper part and the lower part of the endless conveyor 10. The bottom 3a is arranged at the center in the left-right direction. It is low and gently inclined. In the ceiling portion 3b of the shower room 3, a water supply pipe 2 extending in the entire left and right (width) direction
9 is fixed, and the water supply pipe 29 is formed with washing water spouts 29a at a number of positions in the longitudinal direction. Although not shown, the water supply pipe 29 is connected to a water supply mechanism such as a pump provided outside the shower chamber 3, and a drain pipe for discharging the cleaning water to the outside is connected to the bottom 3a of the shower chamber 3. The jet port 29a may be a jet port of a nozzle provided in the water supply pipe 29.

A chain bending member 30 is disposed below the water supply pipe 29 to support the left and right endless chains 11 on the member 30, and the upper portions of these chains 11 are connected to the drive gear 8 and It is tilted low toward the driven gear 9. The chain bending member 30 is configured such that left and right rollers 32 having small diameters are rotatably fitted to a horizontal shaft 31 which is horizontally mounted on the device frame 1, and links of the left and right endless chains 11 are connected to each other. The link pin is bent.

The left and right ends of the support rod 17 are made of a slippery synthetic resin such as fluororesin fixed to the apparatus frame 1 side. The left and right upper rails 33, the left and right lower rails 34 have drive gears 8 mounted on them. The support rod 17 is slidably supported by parts other than the driven gear 9 and the roller 32, and the left and right end surfaces of the support rod 17 are provided at the parts corresponding to the left and right lower rails 34 on the device frame 1 side. By making contact with the stopper rail 35, the displacement of the support rod 17 in the left and right directions is regulated.

As shown in FIG. 5, a food container 22
Is a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape having a length of 700 mm, a width of 465 mm, and a height of 110 mm, a wire mesh 22a is stretched on the bottom, and a handle hole 22b is formed on both end walls.

Next, the operation of the food container cleaning apparatus according to the above-described embodiment will be described. 8 in the aquarium 2
A detergent liquid 36 containing caustic soda as a main component and a surfactant added to hot water of about 0 ° C. is filled. The liquid surface 3 of the detergent liquid 36
7 Endless chain 11 of endless conveyor 10, drive,
The driven gears 8 and 9 are located.

At the insertion / removal section 38 located behind the shower chamber 3 above the rear end of the water tank 2, an empty food container 22 to be washed is pivotally attached to the support rod 17 along the lengthwise direction to hold it left and right. The left and right opening and closing rods 20 of the rod 18 are inserted from the tip end portions 20b between them, and both side edges of the container 22 are fitted into the left and right opening and closing rods 20 against the spring force of the tension coil spring 21. , One end of the container 22 is brought into contact with a stopper 20a provided at the base ends of the left and right opening / closing rods 20, and the left and right opening / closing rods 20 are biased in the closing direction by the spring force of the spring 21. Thus, the container 22 is held from both sides by these opening and closing rods 20.

The left and right opening / closing rods 20 of the container 22 described above
Since these tip portions 20b are inclined in a diverging manner during insertion into the space, the container 22 can be easily inserted, and the container 22 can be positioned in the longitudinal direction by bringing one end of the container 22 into contact with the stopper 20a. . Also,
The container 22 has left and right opening / closing rods 20 with the wire net 22a facing upward.
It is preferable to insert between.

By driving the electric motor 12 in a timely manner, the left and right drive gears 8 rotate counterclockwise via the drive force transmission mechanism 13, and the left and right endless chains 11 meshing with them also rotate counterclockwise at low speed. Since it moves, the holding rod 18 that holds the container 22 by the left and right opening / closing rods 20 supports the supporting rods 17.
At the same time, it descends along the outer periphery of the drive gear 8, the opening / closing rod 20 and the container 22 enter the detergent liquid 36 in the water tank 2 and are forwardly transferred at a low speed.

As described above, since the endless chain 11 moves at a low speed, the opening / closing rod 20 subsequent to the opening / closing rod 20 holding the container 22 at the insertion / removal portion 38 sequentially holds the container 22 and the detergent liquid. It can be put in 36 and transported forward. By performing this operation continuously, the container 22 is washed by removing the contaminants such as oil stains with the detergent liquid 36 before the container 22 reaches the front portion from the rear portion.

The washed container 22 rises along the outer periphery of the driven gear 9 together with the supporting rod 18 and the holding rod 18, and comes out above the liquid surface 37 of the detergent liquid 36 at the front portion of the water tank 2. From the back to the rear and transferred to the shower room 3
Enter from the front.

The container 22 in the shower room 3 is
The left and right endless chains 11 are bent in a V-shape by the chain bending member 30 at the center of the shower room 3, so that they are forwarded on both sides of the apex of the bent portion. Container 22 together with the adjacent holding rod 18
Open in a V shape, and water jetted from a large number of jet outlets 29a provided in the longitudinal direction of the water supply pipe 29 located directly above the bending member 30 is applied to the container 22, the holding rod 18, etc. to wash them. , Rinse away the attached detergent solution and dust.

At this time, the water may be jetted downward from the jet outlet 29a evenly, but as shown in FIG. 1, the water is diffused obliquely rearward, that is, toward the drive gear 8 side downward. It is preferable to eject it. In addition, container 2
2. The water used to wash the holding rod 18 and the like is the bottom 3a of the shower room 3.
Then, it is discharged to the outside of the cleaning device through a discharge pipe (not shown) for processing. Further, the water supply mechanism continuously supplies water to the water supply pipe 29 under pressure.

As described above, the container 22 and the holding rod 18 are continuously transferred and washed with water, and the container 22 and the holding rod 18 after the water washing are taken out from the rear portion of the shower chamber 3 and the insertion / removal portion is provided. 38, and the container 22 is pulled out from the opening / closing rod 20 of the holding rod 18, and the opening / closing rod 2
0 holds the container that needs another cleaning, and repeats the above-mentioned operation.

The detergent liquid 36 in the water tank 2 is maintained at an appropriate temperature of about 80 ° C. by an appropriate heating means, and when the detergent liquid 36 decreases, it is replenished and when the detergent liquid 36 becomes dirty, it is washed. The device is stopped and replaced with a new detergent solution, and the water tank 2 is cleaned as necessary.

As described above, in this embodiment, the container 22 to be washed is rotated at a low speed by the insertion / removal portion 38 which projects rearward of the shower chamber 3 of the endless conveyor 10 and is located above the rear portion of the water tank 2. The oil is attached to the container 22 while it is inserted between the left and right holding rods 18 of the conveyor 10 and held, and the container 22 is lowered and put in the detergent liquid 36 in the water tank 2 and transferred from the rear part to the front part. After cleaning dirt and the like, the container 22 is lifted at the front part of the water tank 2 to take out from the detergent liquid 36, and is folded back and transferred to the shower chamber 3
Of the detergent liquid 36 adhering to the container 22 by the water jetted from the jet port 29a of the water supply pipe 29 when passing through the container.
Etc. are washed with water, and the container 22 is inserted from the space between the left and right holding rods 18 at the insertion / removal portion 38 located behind the shower room 3.
By pulling out, the cleaning of the container 22 with the detergent liquid 36 and the washing with water can be continuously and automatically performed by one endless conveyor 10.

The shower room 3 of the endless conveyor 10
Since the container 22 can be continuously attached to and detached from the left and right holding rods 18 by the insertion / removal portion 38 extending rearward and located above the rear portion of the water tank 2, these can be washed and washed continuously, so that these operations can be performed with little labor. You can do it efficiently.

Further, since the shower chamber 3 is arranged on the water tank 2, the installation area of the cleaning device can be reduced, and the chain bending member 30 is arranged directly below the water supply pipe 29 provided on the upper portion of the shower chamber 3. The bending member 30 supports the left and right endless chains 11 of the endless conveyor 10 and bends the upper portions of the endless chains 11 into a heveoidal shape, and the front and rear adjacent gripping rods 18 on the bending member 30 and between them. By opening the held container 22 in a V-shape, the holding rod 18 and the container 22 can hold the V-shaped holding rod 18 and the container 22 even if the front and rear spaces of the endless conveyor 10 are reduced. Since the water can be sufficiently washed by the water jetted from the jet port 29a provided in the water supply pipe 29, the length of the washing device can be shortened, which is useful for reducing the installation area, the device frame 1, and the water tank. , And the length of the endless conveyor 10 is shortened to make them smaller, and the lower part and the upper part of the endless conveyor 10 are used for cleaning and washing with the detergent liquid 36, and the container 22 at the rear part and the front part is not cleaned or washed. Since the mere transfer section is short, the cleaning device can be inexpensive.

The open / close adjusting mechanism 23 for adjusting the turning angles of the left and right holding rods 18 is provided on a large number of support rods 17 which are horizontally mounted on the left and right endless chains 11 of the endless conveyor 10. Depending on the left-right (width) direction dimension of the container 22 held by the holding rod 18, with the left and right holding rods 18 closed, the distance between the tips of the holding rods 18 is set so that the insertion of the container 22 can be relatively small. It can be adjusted.

That is, the opening / closing adjusting mechanism 23 includes the support rod 1.
7. The threaded portion 27b of the adjustment metal fitting 27 is slidably inserted into the receiving metal fitting 24 fixed to the left and right center of the screw 7,
7b, the receiving nut 24 screwed into the portion protruding from the receiving metal member 24 to the inside of the endless chain 11
The circular arc-shaped end portion 27 of the inner end of the screw portion 27b is brought into contact with the inner end surface.
In the free state in which the connecting pin 26 is in contact with a, the left and right holding rods 18 are pivoted in the closing direction by the spring force of the tension coil spring 21, and both ends thereof are pivotally attached to these and the connecting pin 26. It is blocked by the left and right connecting rods 25.

Then, when the lock nut 28 is tightened to move the adjustment fitting 27 to the outside, the connecting pin 26 also receives the fitting 2.
By moving the elongated hole 24a of 4 to the outside, the left and right holding rods 18 are opened against the spring force of the spring 21 via the left and right connecting rods 25, and the container between the left and right holding rods 18 is opened. It becomes easy to insert 22. Further, when the locking nut 28 is loosened and the adjusting fitting 27 is moved inward, the spring force of the spring 21 closes the left and right holding rods 18, so that the container 22 can be strongly held between them.

Therefore, due to the spring force of the spring 21 and the width of the container 22, the container 22 can be inserted relatively easily between the left and right holding rods 18, and the left and right holding rods 18 can be inserted.
The container 22 can be securely held by the left,
The opening angle of the right holding rod 18 can be adjusted by moving the lock nut 28 inward and outward. The connecting pin 26 abuts the outer end of the elongated hole 24a of the receiving member 24 to prevent the left and right holding rods 18 from opening too much.

Further, the left and right gripping rods 18 provided on the respective support rods 17 which are horizontally mounted on the left and right endless chains 11,
Since the stopper 20a is fixed to the base end of the opening / closing rod 20 detachably fixed to the tip ends of the left and right mounting rods 19, one end of the container 22 is inserted when the container 22 is inserted between the left and right holding rods 18. By bringing the other end of each container 22 into contact with the bottom of the water tank 2 by bringing it into contact with the stopper 20a, the container 22 can be transferred in the water tank 2 and an accident due to insufficient insertion length of the container can be prevented.

The left and right opening / closing rods 20 have a U-shaped cross section and have openings facing each other.
By detachably fitting the left and right sides of 2, the container 2
2 can be transferred without rattling back and forth.

The left and right holding rods 18 have the base ends of the left and right mounting rods 19 pivotally attached to the support rods 17, and the left and right mounting rods 19 are attached to each other.
Since the left and right opening and closing rods 20 are detachably fixed to the
A length of 550 mm, a width of 500 mm, and a height of 12 shown by a chain line in FIG.
When washing the food container 40 having a 5 mm rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, by fixing the left and right opening / closing rods 41 having a shape and size suitable for this to the left and right mounting rods 19,
Containers 40 having different sizes can be transferred without rattling in the front-rear direction.

The shapes and sizes of the container and the opening / closing rod to be changed are not necessarily limited to those shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, but can be changed as appropriate. Also, as mentioned above,
The opening angle of the left and right holding rods 18 is adjusted by the opening / closing adjustment mechanism 23. Further, it is preferable that the tension coil spring is also changed to a spring coil having a suitable spring force, if necessary. Further, in order to removably fix the opening / closing rod 20 to the mounting rod 19, it is necessary to insert a plurality of bolts fixed to the opening / closing rod 20 into the plurality of holes provided in the mounting rod 19 and tighten them with a nad. preferable.

[0048]

As described above, in the food container cleaning apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the shower chamber is arranged in the front-rear center of the water tank, and the endless conveyor is provided above the rear portion of the water tank. Hold the food containers in sequence between the left and right holding rods, and lower them into the detergent solution in the water tank, transfer them from the rear part to the front part, and raise them in the front part to move them backward. And wash the container and the left and right holding rods with water in the shower room and put it out behind the shower room,
Since the holding rod is removed from the container, the cleaning of the container with the detergent liquid and the rinsing with water can be automatically performed continuously, and the container can be efficiently attached and detached with little labor. In addition, since the detergent liquid is a hot water of a required temperature such as 80 ° C. and a detergent such as caustic soda is added thereto, oil stains are easily removed, and thus it is suitable for cleaning a container soiled with edible oil.

Further, since the shower chamber is arranged on the water tank, the installation area of the cleaning device can be reduced, and further, the endless conveyor is provided by the chain bending member arranged below the jet port provided at the upper part of the shower chamber so as to face it. The left and right endless chains are supported by bending them into a V-shape, and the clamping rods adjacent to the front and rear on the bending member and the container clamped between these are opened in a V-shape so as to clamp the clamping rods and these. Even if the space between the front and rear of the container is reduced, it is possible to reliably wash the holding rod and the container opened in a V shape with the water ejected from the ejection port, so that the length of the cleaning device and the endless conveyor in the front-rear direction can be shortened. In addition to helping to shorten the length in the front-rear direction, the length of the device frame, the water tank, and the endless chain are also shortened, and the cleaning device can be made inexpensive.

Further, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1, the food container cleaning apparatus according to the invention of claim 2 has an opening / closing function for adjusting the rotation angle of the left and right holding rods on each support rod. Since the adjustment mechanism is provided, according to the left-right (width) direction dimension of the food container to be clamped by the left and right clamping rods, with the left and right clamping rods closed, the space between these tip portions is inserted into the container. By adjusting the dimensions so that it does not become difficult, it is possible to insert the container into the left and right clamping rods with a sufficient length and securely clamp it with a comparatively small force.

Further, in the cleaning device for a food container according to the invention of claim 3, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1 or the effect of the invention of claim 2 and the effect of the invention of claim 2, the left and right holding rods are provided. Since the stoppers are fixed to the base ends of the left and right opening and closing rods, when inserting the food container between the left and right holding rods,
By bringing one end of the container into contact with the stopper, it is easy to align the other end of the container so that it does not come into contact with the bottom of the water tank and transfer it from the rear to the front. Since the openings are formed in a letter shape and the openings are opposed to each other, the both sides of the container can be fitted into the opening and closing rod, so that the container can be fitted and transferred to the opening and closing rod without rattling in the front-rear direction.

Further, since the left and right opening / closing rods are detachably fixed to the left and right mounting rods, when the shape and size of the container are different, the container for transferring the left and right opening / closing rods moves in the front-rear direction. By changing to a shape that does not rattle, it is possible to easily cope with the change in a part of members in containers having different shapes and sizes, and it is possible to clean and wash these containers without trouble. In this case, it is preferable that the tension coil springs connecting the left and right mounting rods be replaced according to the changed container.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional side view showing a cleaning device for a food container according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a cleaning device for the food container shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

4 is a cross-sectional explanatory view taken along the line BB of FIG.

5 is a perspective view of the food container shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Equipment Frame 2 Water Tank 3 Shower Room 8 Drive Gear 9 Driven Gear 10 Endless Conveyor 11 Endless Chain 12 Electric Motor 13 Drive Force Transmission Mechanism 17 Support Rod 18 Holding Rod 19 Opening Rod 20 Opening Rod 20a Stopper 21 Tension Coil Spring 23 Food Container Opening / closing adjusting mechanism 24 Receiving metal fitting 24a Long hole 25 Connecting rod 26 Connecting pin 27 Adjusting metal fitting 27b Screw part 28 Lock nut 29 Water supply pipe 30 Chain bending member 31 Horizontal shaft 32 Roller 33 Upper rail 34 Lower rail 35 Stopper rail 40 Opening / closing rod 41 Food For container

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A water tank fixed in a device frame, a shower room arranged in the front-rear center of the water tank, the front and rear surfaces of which are open, and a water tank which descends from above the rear part of the water tank and moves to the front of the water tank. It is equipped with an endless conveyor for container transfer that rises at the front part and folds back and passes through the shower room from the front to the rear. This conveyor is provided with a large number of front and rear support rods horizontally mounted on left and right endless chains, and a food container. The left and right clamping rods for removably clamping are respectively pivoted, the clamping rods are projected to the outer peripheral side of the endless chain, and the left and right clamping rods are connected by a spring for urging in the closing direction. A water supply pipe extending in the left-right direction orthogonal to the endless conveyor is provided in the upper part of the shower room, and a large number of jet outlets for ejecting water are provided below the water supply pipe in the longitudinal direction, and the shower is opposed to the water supply pipe. Indoor endless chain An apparatus for cleaning a food container, characterized in that a chain bending member for supporting an endless chain and bending these endless chains into a V-shape is provided, and a clamping rod adjacent to the front and rear is opened in a V-shape. 2. The apparatus for cleaning a food container according to claim 1, wherein each of the support rods of the endless conveyor is provided with an opening / closing adjustment mechanism for adjusting the turning angle of the left and right holding rods. 3. The left and right holding rods pivotally attach the base ends of the left and right mounting rods to the support rod, respectively, and connect the bases of the left and right mounting rods by detachable tension coil springs. The left and right opening / closing rods are detachably fixed to the tip end side of the spring of the right mounting rod, and the left and right opening / closing rods have a U-shaped cross section into which the side edges of the food container are detachably fitted. The apparatus for cleaning a food container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the openings are formed to face each other, and a stopper with which one end of the container abuts is fixed to the base end.