JPH072507B2 - Food container manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for producing a food container, and more particularly to a plastic container containing food, an air-conditioning agent or seasoning, such as an oxygen scavenger or a desiccant, and a sauce. The present invention relates to a method for producing a small bag in which additives to foods, such as foods, are enclosed and which can be easily taken out of the container when heated in a microwave oven before eating.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, in order to prevent the oxidation of food in the container due to the air remaining in the head space of food containers, it is widely practiced to put an oxygen scavenger such as iron oxide in a breathable pouch and put it in the container. There is. For foods that require drying, a small bag containing a desiccant is placed in the container to prevent the food from absorbing moisture.

There is a problem in food hygiene to directly put a small bag containing such an oxygen absorber and a desiccant on the food in the container.
It is not preferable because it may be mistaken for food by a child and put in the mouth. In the case of an oxygen absorber, if the food in the container contains water, such as cooked rice, place the sachet containing the oxygen absorber directly on the food and However, it cannot be used because it penetrates into the pouch and the oxygen absorber deteriorates and loses its effectiveness.

Therefore, in order to deal with such a problem, various methods have been proposed for fixing the oxygen scavenger or the like to the upper lid, such as adhering a small bag containing the oxygen scavenger or the like on the inner surface of the container upper lid with an adhesive. .

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

With the recent widespread use of microwave ovens, various types of foods in containers have been provided that can be heated in a microwave oven before meals. However, it is not preferable to heat the food container in a microwave oven with a small bag containing the oxygen scavenger, etc. because the oxygen scavenger may burst. Since a small bag encapsulating etc. is fixed to the upper lid with adhesive etc. so that it cannot be removed, in order to prevent rupture of oxygen scavenger etc., there is no choice but to warm the container in the microwave with the upper lid removed. Foods containing water, such as rice, are too dry and lose their original taste. Therefore, the conventional food containers of the type in which the oxygen absorber or the like is fixed to the upper lid have a problem in that they cannot be warmed in a microwave oven before eating.

Therefore, the present invention has been conceived of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and when warming a food container filled with food in a microwave oven, open the upper lid to adjust the atmosphere in the package such as an oxygen absorber or the like. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a food container in which a pouch containing an additive to food such as seasonings can be easily taken out of the container and then closed with an upper lid to be warmed in a microwave oven.

[Means and Actions for Solving Problems]

In order to achieve the above object, the method for producing a food container according to the present invention, the upper lid forming film that is intermittently fed substantially vertically downward at a predetermined pitch, the perforated pocket forming film. A pocket is formed by feeding, and a small bag in which an atmosphere regulator in the package or an additive to food is enclosed is dropped by its own weight and stored, and then the upper lid forming film is horizontally fed. Then, the upper edge of the container body is heat-sealed.

According to the manufacturing method of the present invention, the pocket is automatically formed in the upper lid by a series of steps, and the pouch containing the oxygen scavenger or the like is automatically inserted into the pocket, and then the upper lid is heat-sealed to the container body. It

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 (a) is a side view of a food container according to the present invention,
Figure (b) is a plan view thereof.

The food container 1 includes a container body 2 made of plastic or the like and an upper lid 3. The container body 2 is filled with food up to a predetermined level, and the upper lid 3 is heat-sealed to the upper edge 2a of the container body 2. The container body 2 is made of, for example, polypropylene, polyethylene, or a laminated body thereof, or a laminated body having a saponified product of an ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer sandwiched therebetween, and the like, and the upper lid 3 is, for example, a three-layer laminated body of upper, middle and lower layers. The upper layer is made of polyester or nylon, the middle layer is made of saponified ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer or aluminum, and the lower layer is made of polyethylene or polypropylene.

The upper lid 3 has a pocket 4 made of a film material that is heat-sealed in a portion 3c thereof. Reference numeral 4a indicates a bottom seal portion of the pocket 4, and reference numerals 4b and 4b indicate side seal portions. In this pocket 4, a breathable pouch 5 containing a deoxidizer such as iron oxide is inserted. The length 1 of the pouch 5 in the insertion direction is set to be larger than the depth d of the pocket. Therefore, one end of the pouch 5 projects outward from the opening edge 4c of the pocket to form the knob 5a. ing.
The protrusion length of the knob portion 5a is 3 to 25 mm, preferably 5 to 20 mm
Set to. If the projecting length is less than 3 mm, the pouch is difficult to pinch, and the projecting length exceeding 25 mm is unnecessary, and the upper inner end edge 2d of the container body 2 may be too close, which is not preferable. The pouch 5 is formed to have a size that substantially prohibits movement within the pocket 4 except in the direction in which the pouch 5 is pulled out.

The distance L ₁ between the opening edge 4c of the pocket 4 and the opposing inner upper edge 2d of the container body 2 is set so that the pouch 5 containing the oxygen scavenger does not separate from the pocket and drop onto the container contents. It is set. 5 small bags when putting the container in the microwave
The opening edge 4c of the pocket 4 is provided with the upper lid 3 for easy removal.
It is preferable to provide it close to the opening 3d. Further, in order to prevent the tip of the pouch 5 from being bitten into the heat sealing device during heat sealing, the distance between the tip of the pouch 5 and the inner upper edge 2d of the container body 2 is set to 3 to 20 mm. . In addition, it is preferable that the printed portion 3b such as characters and figures is arranged at a position not overlapping the pocket.

When the food container 1 configured in this way for warming the food contents before meals is put in the microwave oven, the consumer uses the lid 3
The opening 3d is opened to partially open the upper lid 3, and the knob 5a of the pouch 5 containing the oxygen absorber is pinched to remove the pouch 5 from the pocket 4. After that, the consumer may close the top cover 3 again and insert the container 1 into the microwave oven.

Next, one embodiment of a method for manufacturing the food container will be described with reference to FIGS.

The apparatus schematically shown in FIG. 2 is a food container 1 according to the present invention.
It is a device that automatically manufactures the product with the contents filled. In this apparatus, the upper lid forming film 10 is vertically downwardly moved while performing an intermittent motion at a predetermined pitch in the arrow direction, for example, a pitch substantially corresponding to the size of the container 1.

In the stopped state, the pocket forming film 11 is provided with perforations for pocket cutting at a pitch corresponding to the length of the pocket by the perforation cutting device 12.

At the first stage of the pocket forming process, the lower end of the pocket forming film 11 is a pocket bottom heat seal device.
It is in a position to be heat-sealed by 13.

Next, the pocket-forming film 11 is heat-sealed by the pocket bottom heat-sealing device 13 with respect to the upper lid-forming film 10 at the portion which will be the bottom sealing portion 4a (FIG. 1) of the pocket of the pocket-forming film 11 in the stopped state. It

After the bottom seal part 4a is heat-sealed, each film 10,1
While 1 is in a stopped state, the sachet 5 containing the oxygen scavenger falls along the guide 14 by its own weight, and is supported by the bottom seal portion 4a so that the upper lid forming film 10 and the pocket forming film 11 are It is arranged in the space formed between them. The films 10 and 11 in this state are shown in FIG. 3A.

Next, when the film 10 advances, the film 11 whose lower end is heat-sealed to the film 10 also advances by being pulled by the film 10. When the lowermost perforation of the film 11 reaches the vicinity of the heat seal device 13, when the perforation is released and the brake 15 is pressed to press the film 11, the portion forming the pocket 4 from the pocket forming film 11 is a pocket. It is cut out along the perforation which becomes the opening edge 4c of the No. 4. Note that this position is the position where the pocket forming film 11 is next heat-sealed by the heat-sealing device 13.

Thus, the bottom seal portion 4a of the pocket forming film portion
The film 10 is guided by the guide 16 while the pouch 5 is supported at
Proceed inside to the side seal device 17. Guide 16
As can be seen from the front view shown in FIG. 4, a pressing plate portion 16a and side wall parts 16b, 16b are formed into a U-shaped section 16A and a narrow pressing plate portion 16B connected to the portion 16A. The reason why the width of the holding plate portion 16B is narrowed is that the side sealing device 17 operates so as to straddle the holding plate portion 16B when the side sealing portion is formed. 20 is an air cylinder that holds the guide 16.

When the film 10 is transferred to the side sealing device 17 and stopped, the side sealing device is activated and both side portions 4b, 4b of the film portion forming the pocket 4 with respect to the film 10 for forming the upper lid.
Heat seal. This state is shown in FIG. 3B.

Next, the upper lid forming film 10 in which the pouch 5 is inserted into the pocket 4 in this manner is horizontally transferred and superposed on the container body 2 filled with the contents supplied by the container body supply device 18. Then, the film is transferred to a known upper lid heat-sealing device 19 shown in FIG. 2 (b), and the device 19 is operated to heat-seal the upper lid forming film 10 to the upper edge portion 2a of the container body 2.

The assembly in which the upper lid forming film 10 is heat-sealed to the container body 2 in this manner is transferred to the trimming device 20, and the trimming device 20 operates to operate the upper lid forming film 10.
Is cut at the outer peripheral portion of the container body 2 to complete the food container 1.

[Modification]

Although only one pocket 4 is provided in the above embodiment of the food container, the present invention is not limited to this, and two or more pockets may be provided. Also, depending on the content of the food, two pockets are provided, one of which has the small bag 5 containing the oxygen scavenger inserted, and the other has the other material such as a desiccant depending on the intended use of the food. The pouch may be inserted.

As shown in FIG. 5, a recess 10 is formed in a part of the upper lid 3, and a large number of small holes 10a are formed in the bottom wall of the recess 10, while a small tab 10a is formed around the recess 10. The lid 11 may be heat-sealed, and the pouch 5 containing an oxygen scavenger or the like may be bonded to the inner surface of the lid 11. Before putting the container 1 into the microwave oven, the tab 11a is pinched and the small lid 11 is opened and removed, and the upper lid 3 is left in the microwave oven. Small hole 10a
Has a function of absorbing oxygen when the small lid 11 is closed, and has a function of releasing vapor of food when placed in a microwave oven. According to this modified example, it is convenient to save the trouble of opening a steam escape hole in the upper lid when putting it in the microwave oven.

As shown in FIG. 6, a part of the upper lid 3 is bent downward to form a small hole 3e, and the small lid 11 is heat-sealed so that a space is provided between the small lid 11 and the upper lid 3. The small bag 5 containing the oxygen absorber may be attached to the inner surface of the small lid 11. The tab 11a is formed on the small lid 11, and only the small lid 11 is removed before putting it into the range, as in the modification of FIG.

〔The invention's effect〕

 According to the present invention, the following various effects are exhibited.

According to the manufacturing process of the present invention, since the pocket is formed while the film for forming the upper lid is fed vertically downward, the manufacturing apparatus can be made vertical and the space can be saved. Further, since the pouch containing the oxygen scavenger or the like is allowed to drop by its own weight, a special mechanism for inserting the pouch into the pocket is not required. Further, the pocket forming film is devised so that it is cut at a pitch according to the length of the pocket, not at a pitch according to the length of the container, so that the pocket forming film is not wasted. Further, since the heat sealing of both sides of the pocket is performed in a separate process from the heat sealing of the entire upper lid to the container, the width of the pocket can be suppressed to a minimum and the material can be saved. Therefore, the food container of the present invention can be mass-produced extremely efficiently by a series of steps.

[Brief description of drawings]

In the accompanying drawings, FIG. 1 (a) is a side view showing one embodiment of a food container according to the present invention, FIG. 1 (b) is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 2 is a method for manufacturing a food container according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing one embodiment of FIG. 3, FIG. 3 is a view showing a procedure for forming pockets in the upper lid forming film, FIG. 4 is a plan view of the guide 16 in FIG. 2, and FIG. A plan view and a side view showing a modified example, and FIG. 6 are partial cross-sectional views showing still another modified example of the food container. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Food container, 2 ... Container main body, 3 ... Upper lid, 4 ... Pocket, 5 ... Small bag containing oxygen absorber.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method of manufacturing a food container, which comprises the following steps. (A) A step of making a perforation for cutting into the pocket forming film (b) A bottom portion of the pocket of the pocket forming film with respect to the upper lid forming film which is intermittently fed downward substantially vertically at a predetermined pitch. (C) A small bag in which an atmosphere regulator in the package or an additive to food is enclosed, so that the upper lid-forming film and the pocket are formed so as to be supported by the bottom of the heat-sealed pocket. (D) Cutting the film portion forming the pocket from the pocket forming film along the perforation for cutting (e) Forming the pocket on the upper lid forming film Heat sealing both sides of the film portion (f) Heat sealing the upper lid forming film to the upper edge of the container body