JPH076864B2 - Method and apparatus for detecting gas leak in gas-containing liquid container - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for detecting gas leakage from a seal portion at a mouth portion of a gas-containing liquid container, particularly a carbonated gas-containing beverage container such as a beer barrel. .

[Prior Art] A carbonated gas-containing beverage container such as a beer barrel is constructed by attaching a fitting to an opening formed in an upper portion of a metal body. Then, a seal portion configured as a rubber packing is provided at a fitting portion between the fitting and the main body to prevent gas from the inside from leaking to the outside. However, such a seal portion causes a seal failure due to aging of the rubber packing caused by repeated use over a long period of time, and leakage of carbon dioxide gas or beverage inside occurs. In order to detect such a gas leak, a method of injecting water into a recess formed in the mouth of a container and visually observing bubbles rising in the water has been conventionally practiced. However, this method requires a worker to perform careful observation work at all times, and has the problem of compelling the worker to work excessively. In addition, when the water injected into the recess has ripples or swirls, small bubbles that rise in the water Since it becomes invisible, it is necessary to wait until the water in the recess is completely stopped before observing, and there is also a drawback that the work efficiency is not good.

In order to eliminate such drawbacks, a detection head is fitted to the mouth of the container, the detection head is connected to a suction type gas measuring instrument, and the gas concentration in the atmosphere of the mouth is measured and measured from the mouth. Have been proposed for detecting gas leaks. For example, see Japanese Patent Application No. 61-171837.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] This improved method does not force an operator to perform heavy labor such as observing bubbles, and does not wait until the water poured into the recess of the mouth is stationary, and the gas It also helps to improve the speed of leak detection work. However, gas leakage from the container often accompanies leakage of the beverage, and the beverage leaking from the container is stored in the recess. In this state, when the detection head is fitted into the recess of the mouth as in the prior art and an inspection is performed, not only the gas in the atmosphere but also the beverage is sucked together by the detection head, and the detection head and the gas measuring device from the detection head. Up to the measurement and attachment of the beverage to the piping system occur. In this case, even if the gas leak of the container can be detected, it becomes impossible to continue the detection work of the container thereafter. That is, if the measurement is continued with the beverage adhering to the detection head or the pipe, etc., gas will be generated from the adhering beverage for a considerably long time, and it will be impossible to distinguish it from gas leakage from the mouth of the detected container. Because. As a process in such a case, a very troublesome work of purging the detection device with clean air to remove the attached beverage or to replace the parts of the detection head itself is required.

Further, in the conventional inspection method, when the detection head is fitted to the mouth of the container and the atmosphere of the recess is sucked, the atmosphere of the recess is in a depressurized state. When the condition is warm, the surrounding atmosphere easily flows into the mouth, and especially in the carbonated beverage manufacturing plant, the concentration of carbon dioxide gas in the surrounding atmosphere is often high. Errors may occur. In the prior art, the detection head is fitted to the mouth through an elastic sealing member such as a rubber packing so that an error may occur due to the flow of the surrounding atmosphere, and the measurement is performed in a state where the sensing head is sealed from the surrounding atmosphere. However, in this case, in order to suck the atmosphere of the recess to the measuring instrument, a suction device that can withstand a considerable degree of pressure reduction is required, and the gas in the device becomes diluted, so the sensitivity of the measuring instrument is substantially reduced. There is a problem that it becomes worse and a small amount of gas leakage cannot be detected.

Further, according to the conventional technique, even if gas leaks from a plurality of seals in the recess of the mouth of the container, it is impossible to detect the gas leaks separately. If a gas leak is detected, it is necessary to perform repairs such as replacing the rubber packing used for the mouth seal, but the conventional technology cannot detect the leak location, so it is detected as a gas leak. There is an inconvenience that a double operation of pouring water into the concave portion of the mouth and visually observing the container is required.

[Means for Solving the Problem] A gas leak detection method of the present invention introduces an atmosphere sampled from a sealed mouth of a gas-containing liquid container to a detection region,
In the gas leak detection method for detecting the gas in the atmosphere, the first step is to collect the atmosphere from the mouth of the gas-containing liquid container, with the mouth open to the outside and upward from the mouth. The first stage gas leak detection was performed from the atmosphere taken with the mouth open to the outside, and it was determined by the first stage gas leak detection that there was no gas leak. In this case, the atmosphere is collected from the mouth of the gas-containing liquid container in the second stage with the mouth sealed to the outside, and the presence or absence of gas leakage is detected.

A gas leak detection device for a gas-containing liquid container according to the present invention is a transportation means for transporting a detection-gas-containing liquid container, and sampling of an atmosphere of a sealed mouth portion of the detection-gas-containing container at a predetermined station along the transportation means. The first sampling means for opening the mouth to the outside and at a position spaced upward from the mouth, sampling the atmosphere of the mouth of the container containing the gas to be detected at a predetermined station along the conveying means. By means of a second sampling means for sealing the mouth with the outside sealed, a sensing means for sensing the gas in the atmosphere sampled by the first sampling means and the second sampling means, and a first sampling means A control means is provided for controlling the atmosphere to be sampled by the second sampling means when no gas is detected in the sampled atmosphere.

According to the present invention, a sampling device for fitting a sealed mouth portion of a gas-containing liquid container to seal the mouth portion from the outside to sample gas for detecting leakage is provided at the mouth portion of the container. A head fitted individually to a plurality of annular seals,
Each head is configured to be individually movable to independently seal each seal from the outside, and each head has a gas inlet connected to a carrier gas supply source and a gas outlet connected to a means for detecting gas. It is characterized by having.

[Action]

In the process of the gas leakage detection method, in the first step, the mouth of the container is opened to the outside, and the atmosphere is sampled at a position separated upward from the mouth. In this state, the atmosphere at the mouth of the container is sampled, the leak of the gas in the sampled atmosphere is detected, and if the leak is detected, the second stage detection is not performed. Only if no leaks are detected, the following second stage of detection will occur,
The atmosphere is sampled with the container mouth sealed to the outside, and the gas in the atmosphere is detected.

In the operation of the gas leak detection device, when the container to be detected is sent on the conveying means and reaches a predetermined station, the atmosphere of the mouth portion is opened from the outside by the first sampling means and is separated upward from the mouth portion. The sample is sampled at a position, and then the atmosphere of the mouth part is sampled in a sealed state to the outside by the second sampling means. The detection means detects gas leakage in the atmosphere sampled by the first sampling means and the second sampling means, but the control means detects gas leakage in the atmosphere sampled by the first sampling means. Only when there is not, the atmosphere is sampled by the second sampling means.

At the time of collecting the atmosphere by sealing, each independently movable head of the sampling device individually seals the leakage point, and each atmosphere sealed by each head is supplied from the carrier gas supply source. Together with the carrier gas that is introduced into the individual gas detection means without mixing the ambient atmosphere of the container.

[Embodiment] FIG. 1 shows a detection head and a container 9 of a leakage inspection apparatus according to the present invention.
It shows the mouth of a beer barrel as an example.

The barrel mouth 10 is made of a metallic material and has an opening 10a at the upper end.
The fitting 12 is detachably attached to the opening 10a and can be replaced when it is determined that the defective product causes gas leakage. As is well known, the fitting 12 has a plurality of parts, that is, a central member 12-1, an annular member 12-2 around the central member 12-1, and a plug 12-which is disposed around the central member 12-1 and is screwed into the opening 10a of the mouth 10 of the barrel. It has 3 and.
Since the fitting 12 is composed of these three independent members 12-1, 12-2, 12-3, between the members 12-1 and 12-2 (hereinafter, the inner leakage portion X), the member 12- An annular gap (hereinafter referred to as an outer leakage portion Z) is formed between the member 12-3 and the barrel mouth portion 10 between 2 and 12-3 (hereinafter referred to as an intermediate leakage portion Y), and a sealing means for these gaps is formed. It is provided. However, if the sealing performance deteriorates due to deterioration of the seal due to continued use for a long period of time, gas leakage may occur. In this invention, the device described below is added so that the leakage of gas from each seal portion can be individually detected.

FIG. 2 shows a side view of a leakage inspection system for an inspection container (for example, a beer barrel) according to an embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 20 denotes a conveyor, and the conveyor 20 should be subjected to a leakage inspection. The gas-containing liquid container 9 is conveyed.
In this embodiment, a first stopper 22 is arranged on the upstream side in the moving direction (arrow A) along the conveyor, and a second stopper 24 is arranged on the downstream side. The first stopper 22 operates so as to stop the flow of the container so that two or more containers are not accumulated at the position of the second stopper 24 on the downstream side. The switch is turned on soon after the first stopper 22 is released, and the pre-stage inspection is started. The second stopper 24 defines the individual inspection position, and when the container to be inspected arrives at this position, the switch is turned on and the container 9 is temporarily stopped at this position. The switch remains on while it is stopped.

An inspection device 30 is provided near the individual inspection position. The inspection device 30 is fixed on the frame 31, the sampling part 32 for sampling the atmosphere of the mouth of the container 9, and the frame 31, and is lowered so that the sampling part 32 can be fitted to the container mouth at the time of individual inspection. A pneumatic cylinder 34 that is driven, a position adjuster 36 that connects the sampling unit 32 and the cylinder 34, and a gas detection device 40 that is fixed to the helem 31 and that detects gas in the atmosphere sampled by the sampling unit 32. To do.

In FIGS. 3 and 4 showing the detailed configurations of the sampling unit 32 and the position adjuster 36, the sampling unit 32 includes an inner head 42 and an intermediate head.
44 and an outer head 46, which are independently movable as will be described later. The intermediate head 44 is formed in a tubular shape and has a hole 44a at the center, and the inner head 42 is inserted into this hole 44a. Similarly, the outer head 46 is cylindrical, has a hole 46b in the center, and the intermediate head 44 is inserted therein. A pressing plate 48 is fixed to the upper end of the outer head 46 with a bolt 50. The holding plate 48 has a hole 48a formed at the center, and the support rod 52 is inserted into the hole 48a. The flange portion 52a at the lower end of the support rod 52 is fixed to the upper end of the intermediate head 44 by a bolt 54. The outer head 46 is formed with a guide opening 46a that spreads in a conical shape at the lower end, and the guide opening 46a ensures that the head 46 ensures that when the sampling device 32 descends toward the mouth of the container 9 to be detected. It is intended to be introduced into the mouth (see Fig. 1).

The first annular packing 56 is provided in the recessed portion of the outer head 46.
Is installed. The packing 56 forms an annular recess 56a having a size that straddles the outer leakage portion Z shown in FIG. 1, and is formed between the recess 56a and the seal portion Z at the time of individual detection as will be described later. Leakage gas is sent to the cell together with the carrier gas through the annular space. For rapid detection, it is desirable that the volume of this annular space be as small as possible.
The recess 56a is connected to the detection device via the detection passage 60 and the union 62 in the outer body 46. As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of unions 62 are provided at diametrically opposite positions. The second annular packing 64 is the intermediate head
It is attached to the tip of 44. The packing 64 forms an annular recess 64a sized to extend over the intermediate leakage portion Y shown in FIG. 1, and is formed between the recess 64a and the seal portion Y at the time of individual detection as will be described later. Leakage gas is sent to the cell together with the carrier gas through the annular space. As described above, it is desirable that the volume of this annular space is as small as possible for quick detection. The recess 64a is connected to the detection device via the detection passage 68 and the union 70 in the intermediate body 44. The outer head 46 is a union 70 as shown in FIG.
A pair of grooves 46e for escaping the above are formed. The third annular packing 72 is mounted in the annular groove in the tip portion of the inner head 42. The packing 72 has such a size that it can be fitted into the member 12-1 shown in FIG. 1 and seals the inner leaking portion X from the outside, so that the leaking gas from the portion X together with the carrier gas becomes the leaking portion X. It is sent to the cell through the space between the packing 72. This space is the detection passage 73 in the inner body 42, the union
Connected to the sensing device via 74. As shown in FIG. 4, the aligned grooves 44f and 46f for the escape of the union 74 are provided in the head 4
It is formed at 6,44.

In FIG. 3, the spring 80 urges the inner head 42 downward via the presser bar 58, and the shoulder portion 42a is moved to the intermediate head 44.
Further downward displacement is stopped by hitting. The spring 82 urges the outer head 46 downward via the pressing plate 48, and further downward displacement is stopped by the pressing plate 48 hitting the flange portion 52a. The spring 82 serves to define the contact pressure of the outer head 46 against the container 9, and the spring 80 serves to define the contact pressure of the inner head 42 against the container. The contact pressure of the intermediate head 44 with respect to the container is defined by the air pressure of the air cylinder 34.

The position adjuster 36 serves to help ensure that the sampling device 32 fits into the mouth of the container to be detected, even if the position of the air cylinder 34 relative to the container to be detected changes within tolerances. The position adjuster 36 includes a lower stage 88, an upper stage 90, a lower plate 92, and an upper plate 94. The lower stage 88 is screwed to the holding plate 52 of the sampling device 32, and the upper stage 90 is connected to the piston 34a of the air cylinder 34 by the pin 34b. Bottom plate 92
Forms an opening 92a that is freely inserted into the lower stage 88, while the upper plate 94 forms an opening 94a that is freely inserted into the upper stage 90. Bottom plate 9
2, the bolt 98 is screwed into the upper plate 94 via the free bolt hole 92b, and the spring 99 is arranged between the head of the bolt 98 and the plate 92, so that the lower stage 88
And the upper stage 90 are connected to each other, and when there is some deviation between the axis of the cylinder and the axis of the mouth of the container to be detected, the lower plate of the lower stage 88 is used to suck this.
The relative movement in the horizontal direction with respect to 92, the displacement of the axis of the cylinder from the axis of the mouth of the container to be detected, and the rotation of the upper plate 94 with respect to the pin are allowed, and the sampling portion 32 is fitted into the mouth of the container. Then, in order to smoothly perform the position adjustment by such horizontal movement and rotation of the position adjuster 36, between the lower plate 92 and the lower stage 88, between the lower stage and the upper stage 90, and the upper stage. 90 and top plate 94
Bearings 100, 102, and 104 are arranged between and. Further, the upper stage 90 has a conical shallow groove 90a formed on the lower surface thereof, and a ball urged by a spring 108 into this groove 90a.
110 is arranged, and the function of returning the self-centering position of the position adjuster 36 is secured. That is, relative to the horizontal relative movement of the position adjuster 36 that occurs when the sampling device 32 is fitted into the mouth of the container, the sampling device 32 is operated by the cylinder after gas sampling.
When is lifted, the external horizontal force applied to the position adjuster 36 is removed, and the force applied from the ball 110 to the conical shallow groove 90a operates to align the axis of the sampler 32 with the axis of the cylinder. .

FIG. 5 is a piping diagram showing the gas detector 40 in relation to the sampling unit 10. The detector 120 of the gas detector 40 is composed of four sets of carbon dioxide detectors 120-1, 120-2, 120-3, by infrared gas analysis method.
Each detector includes a plurality of detection cells as a space having a predetermined small volume. The cell 121 is for detection in the previous stage, and the cells 122-1, 122-2, 122-3 are installed for individual detection. The clean air source 124 is connected to the pipes 131-1, 131-2, 131-3 via the pressure reducing valve 125, the opening / closing valve 126, and the throttle 128, and the pipe 131-1 is the detecting passage 7 in the inner head 42 of the sampling unit 32.
3 is connected to one of the unions 74 (FIGS. 3 and 4), and the other of the unions 74 is selectively connected to the cell 121 or the cell 122-1 via the pipe 134-1 and the switching valve 136. To be done. The pipe 131-2 is connected to one of the unions 70 leading to the detection passage 68 in the intermediate head 44 of the sampling unit 32, and
The other side of 70 is connected to the cell 122-2 via a pipe 134-2.
The pipe 131-3 is connected to one side of the union 62 reaching the detection passage 60 in the outer head 46 of the sampling section 32, and the other side of the union 62 is connected to the cell 122-3 via the line 134-3. A suction pump 140 is arranged in front of the cell 121 for detecting the former stage. Cell 121,122-1,122-2,122-3 is piping 135,137-1,137-2,137-3
Communicates with the atmosphere.

The switching valve 142 is for switching up and down of the pneumatic cylinder 34, and its inlet side is connected to the air source 124 via the pressure reducing valve 144 and selectively connected to the pipes 146-1 and 146-2, and the pipe 146-1.
The cylinder 34 is lowered when the air pressure is introduced into the pipe 146-2, and the cylinder 34 is raised when the air pressure is introduced into the pipe 146-2. The throttles 147 and 148 control the moving speed of the piston. FIG. 6 shows output response waveforms of the respective detectors when gas is introduced into the gas detector.

When the atmosphere from the sampling unit is introduced into the cell at the start of detection, if the gas leaks, the output of the sensing unit changes as shown in Fig. 6, and its peak changes according to the degree of gas leakage. There is. Therefore, it is possible to detect the presence or absence and the degree of gas leakage from each leakage portion introduced into each cell from the peak level.

In FIG. 2, the control circuit 170 is configured as a sequence circuit or a microcomputer that controls the operation of the system described above. The control circuit 170 includes a peak hold circuit 170a for recording the peak of the output of each detector described with reference to FIG. 6, and a comparator 170b for comparing the peak with a predetermined leakage judgment level. ing. The gas leak detection operation by the control circuit 170 will be described below with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. When the engine is started, the purge process is performed after warming up (step 172) (step 17).
Four). The valve 126 is opened for purging, air is introduced for a predetermined time, and the residual gas inside the pipe is replaced with air. The switch is turned on by the container to be detected transferred on the conveyor 20 (step 176), and the pre-stage detection is started (step 178). FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of the upstream detection. In the preceding stage detection, the switching valve 136 is connected to the cell 121 side (step 178-1), the suction pump 140 is started to operate (step 178-2), and the stopper 24 is operated (step 178-3). At this time, it is assumed that the air pressure is switched by the switching valve 142 so that the cylinder 34 is raised. The conveyor 20 continues the movement of the container 9 after the start detection. The container is stopped when it reaches the position of the sampling unit 32, and the suction action of the pump 140 causes the atmosphere at the mouth of the container to be separated from the container by a passage in the sampling unit 32.
The output level of the detection unit 120-1 is changed depending on the presence or absence of gas leakage by being sucked into the cell 121 via the other of the 72 and the union 74, the pipe 134-1 and the switching valve 136. The suction by the pump 140 is continued for 1 to 2 seconds after the switch is turned on and the container is stopped by the stopper 24, then the determination of the preceding stage detection is made by the comparator 170b (step 178-4), and the pump is stopped (step 178-4). 178-5), switching valve 136 off (step 178-
6) In the former stage detection, the mouth of the container 9 is located apart from the sampling unit 32, and therefore does not respond to a slight gas leak. However, even if the mouth of the container 9 in which a large amount of gas is leaking is located away from the sampling unit 32, or even if the atmosphere is located away from the sampling unit 32, the atmosphere is collected. It can be sampled and detected because it drifts to the part 32. There is a possibility that the beverage itself has leaked to the mouth of a container with a large amount of leakage, and the beverage may be introduced into the pipe when the following contact type individual detection is executed. Such dangerous leaking containers can be checked and eliminated in advance.

If there is a leakage as a result of the previous stage detection (Y in step 182
es), the flag NG indicating the previous stage failure is set (step 18)
Four). If there is no omission as a result of the previous stage detection, flag NG
Are reset (step 186). Then, individual detection is executed (step 188). Details of the individual detection are as shown in FIG. The switching valve 142 for the individual detection is the sampling unit 3
2 is switched to descend (step 188-1). Since the lower end 46a of the head 46 is widened during this lowering, even if there is some misalignment between the sampling part 32 and the container mouth part, the sampling part 32 is introduced and guided to the container mouth part. . Then, the seals X, Y, Z of the container are sealed from the outside by the packings 72, 64, 56 attached to the respective heads 42, 44, 46, leaving a very small annular space. When the airtightness is completed (step 188-2), the switching valve 126 is then operated (step 188-3), air is supplied to the pipes 131-1, 131-2, 131-3, respective annular spaces, and pipes 134-1, 134- Cell 122 through 2,134-3
-1,122-2,122-3, and is discharged through the pipes 137-1,137-2,137-3. This discharge time is set to 0.7 seconds (step 188-4). When this time elapses, the switching valve 126 is turned off (step 188-5), the introduction of air is stopped for a while, and the process waits until leak gas is collected in the sealed annular space near each seal. When this gas retention time (1 second) elapses (step 188-6), the switching valve 126 is turned on again and air is supplied, and as a result, the atmospheric gas in the sealed annular space of each seal portion X, Y, Z is released. It is pumped to each cell 122-1, 122-2, 122-3 (step 188-7), while the peak hold circuit 170
a starts the peak hold of the gas detection signals from the detectors 120-2, 120-3, 120-4 (step 188-8), and holds the peaks of the detection signals individually corresponding to the intensity changes of the infrared rays passing through the respective cells. To be done. The gas concentration in each closed annular space can be known from the size of this peak. When a sufficient time (0.7 seconds) for detecting a change in gas concentration has elapsed (step 188-9), the switching valve 126 is turned off (step 18).
8-10), the switching valve 142 is turned off (step 188-11), and the cylinder 34 rises. In the present invention, since the respective seal portions X, Y, Z are individually sealed, it is possible to accurately detect gas leakage from each seal by distinguishing them.
And because it is closed, it is difficult to sample the gas by suction such as in the previous stage detection, but since it is the operation of pushing in the air as the carrier gas from the air source, it is easy to introduce the gas in the sealed space. You will get it.

In FIG. 7, after the individual detection, the result of the individual detection is determined in step 190, and when it is determined that there is no individual leakage in each seal, the leak flag NG is reset (step 192), and there is leakage. If it is determined, the flag NG is set (step 193). If it is determined that there is no omission, the process returns to the beginning and the above processing is repeated unless the inspection is completed (Yes in step 194).

If there is a leak, the leak amount including the leak in the previous stage is instructed (step 196), and the abnormality lamp is turned on (step 198). After the reset switch is pressed (Yes in step 120), the flag NG is reset (step 122).

Regarding the control of the stopper, the stopper 22 is released when the individual detection of the preceding container is completed and the switch is turned off,
The movement of the container 9 on the conveyor 20 is permitted. When the switch is turned on by the movement of the container, the stopper 22 is turned on again to stop the next container. At this time, the stopper 24 is turned on at the same time. When the container moves to the position of the stopper 24, the switch is turned on to determine the previous stage detection, and if there is no leakage at this time, the individual detection is executed. Stopper only if there is no leakage as a result of front stage detection or individual detection or if the reset switch is pressed even if there is leakage
24 is released, the container moves and the switch is turned off. The above is repeated unless the inspection is completed.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart of the main operation of the first embodiment described above. When the switch is turned off at time t ₁ (b), the stopper 22 is released (l), the container is moved and the switch is turned on. (B), the preceding stage detection is started (C), and at the same time, the stopper 24 is turned on (E). The container stops at time t _2.
When it is moved to the position stopped by 24, the switch is turned on (b), and when it is determined that there is no previous stage leakage due to the previous stage detection signal (d) from the detection unit 120-1 (in step 182 in FIG. 7). (No) At time t ₃ , individual detection is started (f), and the cylinder is lowered (g). At this time, when there is no individual leakage due to the detection signals (h) from the detection units 120-2, 120-3, 120-4, individual detection ends at time t ₄ , the cylinder rises, and immediately after that, the second stopper 24 retracts. (T ₄ ′). After that, the container moves, the switch is turned off (t ₄ ″), the stopper 22 is released, and the next container is inspected. When the detection signal of the detection unit 120-1 exceeds the judgment reference level l (D) When the front stage NG signal is output at time t ₅ and the reset switch is pressed at time t ₆ (n), the second stopper 24 is released, and the preparation for the front stage detection of the next container is made. When (h) detects a gas leak exceeding the judgment reference level 1 ′, an individual NG signal is output at t ₇ (re), and when the reset switch is pressed at time t ₈ (n), the second stopper 24 Is released, the container moves, the switch is turned off, the stopper 22 is released, and the next container is inspected.

FIG. 11 is a piping configuration diagram similar to FIG. 5 of the second embodiment. Differences from FIG. 5 will be mainly described. Parts that achieve the same function are assigned the same reference numerals and explanations thereof are omitted. In the first embodiment, the pre-stage inspection was performed by sucking the atmosphere through the pipe 134-1 formed in the head 42, but in this embodiment, a dedicated pipe 300 is provided, and one end of the cell is connected via the pump 140. Connected to 120. Piping 300
The other end of the container opens slightly above the passage of the mouth of the container in the first station. Dedicated piping for front stage detection
Since 300 is provided, the pipe 134-1 of the cell 122-1 is always connected to the packing 72 of the head 42.
In the second embodiment, the flow direction of the container is shown to be opposite for convenience of description of the drawings.

In addition to the above, in this embodiment, the outlet side piping 137-1,137-
2, 137-3 are collected and communicated with the vacuum chamber 306 via the opening / closing valve 302 and the orifice 304. A suction pump 308 is connected to the vacuum chamber 306, and the vacuum chamber is driven by the pump 308.
306 has some decompression. This embodiment is to solve the following problems in the first embodiment.
That is, in the individual inspection, each seal part X, Y, Z
The air is sealed from the outside by 6, 64, 72, and the air from the pressurized air source 124 is pumped to the annular sealed chamber, at which time the gas leaked from the seal portions X, Y, Z is supplied to each cell 122-1, 122-2, 122-3. When optically detected by means of air, the air as a carrier gas from the pressurized air source 124 has a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure when it is introduced into the sealed space, so that the gas enters the sealed portion in the sealed space. Being pushed in. Therefore, it takes some time for the gas to return from the seal portion, and there is a problem that the measurement time must be lengthened to wait for it. In this embodiment, since the vacuum chamber 306 is installed and communicates with each sealed space through the cell, the opening / closing valve 126 on the pressurized air source 124 side and the opening / closing valve 302 on the vacuum side are simultaneously turned on for a predetermined time. By
The pressure rise in the sealed space of the seal part can be eliminated. That is, if the throttle valve 128 and the orifice 304 are adapted so that the flow rate of air to be pumped and the flow rate of air to be sucked into the vacuum chamber are approximately equal, the sealed space can be maintained at approximately atmospheric pressure. Since the gas is prevented from entering the seal portion, the leaked gas can reach the cell earlier and the detection time can be shortened as much as possible.

In addition to the above, in this embodiment, a dedicated pipe 300 for the front stage detection is used.
Therefore, there is an advantage that the system is simplified as compared with the one in which the pre-stage detection and the individual detection are connected as in the first embodiment. The operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. The operation of the front stage detection is schematically shown in FIG. 12. When the container 9 arrives at the first station, the switch is turned on to detect this (step 300), and the first stopper 22 is driven (step 302).
Pre-stage detection is executed (step 304). If there is no leakage, the first stopper 22 is released and the next pre-stage detection is executed unless the inspection is completed (step 307). If there is a previous leak (Yes in step 306), the leak amount is instructed (step 309), the lamp is turned on (step 310),
When the release switch is turned on (step 312), the inspection is restarted. The operation of the individual detection is schematically shown in FIG. 13, and when the container arrives at the second station, the switch is turned on (step 320) and the individual detection is executed (step 324). If there is no leakage, the second stopper 24 is released (step 330) and the next individual detection is executed unless the inspection is completed (step 328). If there is an individual leak (Yes in step 326), the leak amount is instructed (step
332), the lamp is turned on (step 334), and when the release switch is turned on (step 336), the inspection is restarted.

In the system of the second embodiment, since the front stage detection and the individual detection are controlled at independent timings, there is no need to wait for the front stage detection to perform the individual detection. There is an advantage that the processing speed can be improved in comparison.

〔effect〕

According to this invention, at the time of leak detection of the gas-containing liquid container, the atmosphere at the mouth of the container is first sampled in a non-contact manner to detect gas, and only the container in which no leak is detected is brought into contact with the mouth. The atmosphere is sampled and gas is detected. Therefore, since the non-contact and leaky containers with large leaks are removed in advance and the contact-type detection in the second stage is performed, the leaked liquid is prevented from entering the piping of the device, Therefore, cleaning or replacement work is not required.

Further, since the structure of the head for contact type detection can be independently moved with respect to each seal portion of the container, the atmosphere of each seal portion can be detected independently of each other, and only the defective seal portion is identified. Because it is possible, it is convenient to repair the container. And since each seal is sealed independently, the volume of the space for collecting leaked gas can be reduced, fast reaction can be detected, and the speed of the conveyor of the container production line can be increased. You can

Furthermore, since the atmosphere of the sampled mouth is introduced into the gas detection unit by the carrier gas, accurate detection is possible without being affected even when the same gas as the leak gas is included in the surrounding atmosphere of the inspection device. Become.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to effectively and accurately carry out the leakage inspection of the gas-containing liquid container.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view for explaining the positional relationship between the inspection head and the container mouth. FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the inspection apparatus of the present invention viewed from the side. FIG. 3 is a detailed sectional view of the sampling unit and the position control device (see FIG.
It is shown along the line III-III in the figure. ). FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. FIG. 5 is a view showing an air piping system of the device of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the relationship between the time after aeration of the cell and the output level of the detection unit. 7 to 9 are flow charts for explaining the operation of the control device of the first embodiment. FIG. 10 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the control device of the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a view showing the air piping system of the second embodiment. 12 and 13 are flow charts for explaining the operation of the control device of the second embodiment. 9 ... Container (beer barrel), 10 ... Barrel opening 12 ... Fitting, 20 ... Conveyor 22, 24 ... Stopper, 30 ... Inspection device 32 ... Collection unit, 34 ... Air cylinder 36 ... … Position adjuster, 40 …… Detecting device 42 …… Inner head, 44 …… Intermediate head 46 …… Outer head, 56 …… First packing 60 …… Detecting passage, 62 …… Union 64 …… Second Packing, 68 …… Detection passage 70 …… Union, 72 …… Third packing 73 …… Detection passage, 74 …… Union 80,82 …… Spring 88 …… Lower stage, 90 …… Upper stage 92 …… Lower plate, 94 …… Upper plate 100,102,104 …… Bearing, 120 …… Sensor 121,122-1,122-2,122-3 …… Cell 126 …… Opening valve, 140 …… Suction pump 142 …… Switching valve, 170 …… Control circuit 170a …… Peak hold circuit, 170b …… Comparator

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (72) Hideo Harada Hideo Harada 1127-1 Shimonoge, Takatsu-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Hikari Meikagaku Corporation Tamagawa Plant (72) Takashi Kawaguchi 1127-1, Shimonoge, Takatsu-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Komei Rikagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. Tamagawa Plant (56) Reference JP-A-56-142437 (JP, A) JP-A-63-29225 (JP, A) JP-A-48-6790 (JP, A)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A gas leak detection method for introducing an atmosphere sampled from a sealed mouth of a gas-containing liquid container to a detection area and detecting gas in the atmosphere, the atmosphere from the mouth of the gas-containing liquid container. As a first step, the sampling is performed at a position where the mouth is open to the outside and at a position separated upward from the mouth, and the first is selected from the atmosphere collected with the mouth open to the outside. If the gas leak detection in the stage is performed and it is determined that there is no gas leak in the gas leak detection in the first stage, the sampling of the atmosphere from the mouth of the gas-containing liquid container in the second stage is performed outside the mouth. A method for detecting gas leakage in a gas-containing liquid container, characterized in that the presence or absence of gas leakage is detected in a sealed state. 2. A gas leak detection device for a gas-containing liquid container comprising the following components, a conveying means for conveying the detected gas-containing liquid container, and a seal for the detected gas-containing container at a predetermined station along the conveying means. First sampling means for sampling the atmosphere of the mouth part at a position separated from the mouth part with the mouth part open to the outside, and containing a gas to be detected at a predetermined station along the conveying means. Second sampling means for sampling the atmosphere in the mouth of the container with the mouth sealed to the outside, detection for detecting gas leakage in the atmosphere sampled by the first and second sampling means Means, control means for controlling the second sampling means so as to sample the atmosphere by the second sampling means when no gas is found in the atmosphere sampled by the first sampling means. 3. A sampling device for fitting a sealed mouth portion of a gas-containing liquid container and sealing the mouth portion from the outside to collect gas for detecting leakage, and the mouth portion of the container. Is equipped with a plurality of annular seals, which are gas leakage points, and the sampling device is provided with a head that fits into each annular seal individually, and each head individually seals each seal from the outside. Gas of a liquid-containing liquid container, wherein each head has a gas inlet connected to a carrier gas supply source and a gas outlet connected to a means for detecting the gas. Sampling device.