JPH08217023A - Tube container holder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a tube container holder, which can be easily manufactured and can firmly hold a tube container when contents are filled into it and in which even if a metal tube container is used, no compression trace is shown due to a skirt bending process and even after the skirt bending process, the tube container can be held in an upright state. CONSTITUTION: In a tube container holder, a cylindrical holder body 3, into which a head 2 of a tube container 1 is inserted, is provided, and a plurality of movable pieces 5 are provided along a side wall 6 of the holder body 3 to laterally support a body portion 4 of the container 1 at a level above the body 3, and each of the pieces 5 is urged toward the center of the holder body 3.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tube container holder for holding a tube container in a filling machine for filling a gel-like object such as a drug into the tube container.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A tube container is used to fill a gel-like object such as an ointment, and has a cap provided with an openable and closable cap, and a shoulder part that is uniformly inclined downward from the head.
It is general that a cylindrical body portion is provided below the shoulder portion. For the contents, after loading an empty tube container head down on the tube container holder of the filling machine,
The opening of the tube container that has been filled by press-fitting through the nozzle from the end opening of the body part, for example, in the case of a metal tube container, is doubled with the end of the body part that is flatly overlapped facing the head part. Alternatively, it is sealed by folding it in three layers (hereinafter referred to as hem folding processing).

Conventionally, when a plurality of fixed tube container holders 27 are provided and selected according to the diameter and length of the tube container and mounted on a filling machine, the maximum width of the body is fold-folded as shown in FIG. In the case of using a metal tube container, there is a problem in that a compression mark is generated on the body part that is in contact with the tube container holder 27. Even if the holding portion of the tube container holder 27 is set low and the vicinity of the head where the increase in maximum width due to the hem folding process is small is held as shown in FIG. 10, problems due to runout of the core and inclination of the tube container remain.

As a tube container holder for solving these problems, there is one disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-9293. In this tube container holder, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a plurality of fitting portions spaced apart in a vertical direction are cut out from a cylindrical holder body 14 having a container insertion port 13 on the upper end side. The holding members 15 are fitted in the fitting portions so as to be displaceable in the radial direction of the holder body 14, and the holding members 15 are attached to the outer peripheral surfaces of the holder body 14 and the holding members 15 of the holder body 14. An annular elastic member 16 that urges toward the center in the radial direction is integrally stretched. According to this tube container holder, when the tube container 17 is inserted downward from the container insertion port 13 of the holder main body 14, the tube container 17 is supported by the holding members 15 urged by the annular elastic member 16, and It was also possible to prevent damage to its outer surface.

[0005]

However, in this tube container holder, since the fitting portion for fitting the holding member 15 has to be cut out, the manufacturing process is extremely complicated. Moreover, since each holding member 15 is separated in a vertical shape, it is difficult to support the tube container that has been formed into an elliptic cylinder by the hem folding process in an upright state.
It also causes a problem in a later process.

In view of the above situation, the present invention can reliably hold the tube container when filling the contents, and even when a metal tube container is used, it does not leave a pressure mark due to the hem folding process and folds the hem. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a tube container holder that reliably supports the tube container in an upright state even after the process and is easy to manufacture.

[0007]

A tube container holder according to the present invention made to solve the above problems is provided in a cylindrical holder body for loading a tube container from its head.
A plurality of movable pieces that laterally support the body of the tube container above the holder body are provided along the side wall of the holder body, and each movable piece is urged toward the center of the holder body. It is characterized by consisting of. An annular retaining groove may be provided on the outer surface of the side wall of the holder body, and a retaining portion that engages with the annular retaining groove may be provided on the inner surface of the lower end of each movable piece. The upper end of the holder body evenly protrudes from the inner surface of the holder body toward the center without being separated from each other beyond the side wall of the holder body, and a container insertion port having a smaller diameter than the opening portion is formed above the opening of the holder body. The structure may be different, or they may face each other and form a pair. In addition, a round hole into which the cap of the tube container can be loosely fitted may be provided at the center of the bottom of the holder body.

[0008]

By arranging a plurality of movable pieces around the side wall of the holder body, the body portion of the tube container can be supported in a well-balanced manner even if the tube container is formed into an elliptic cylinder by the hem folding process. By engaging the annular locking groove on the side wall of the holder body with the locking portion of each movable piece, the fulcrum of the movement of the movable piece is stabilized. In addition, the upper end of the movable piece uniformly protrudes from the inner surface of the side wall of the holder body toward the center, and a container insertion port having a smaller diameter than the opening of the holder body is formed at the center of the opening. Since it is not necessary to provide a notch for loading the movable piece on the side wall of the holder body, the shape of each member including the holder body is simplified. Furthermore, by arranging the movable pieces so as to face each other and form a pair, the body of the tube container can be supported in a better balance, and the cap of the tube container can be loosely fitted in the center of the bottom of the holder body. By providing the core of the tube container to be held, the variation in the upright state is reduced.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An example of a tube container holder according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a cylindrical holder body 3 for loading the tube container 1 from the head 2 is used.
In addition, a plurality of movable pieces 5 that laterally support the body portion 4 of the tube container 1 above the holder body 3 are provided along the side wall 6 of the holder body 3, and each movable piece 5 is held by the holder. It is biased toward the center of the main body 3.

The holder body 3 has a cylindrical shape with a large opening of synthetic resin, and a hollow portion 18 in which the portion from the head portion 2 to the body portion 4 of the tube container 1 can be loosely fitted is formed in a concentric cylindrical shape. It is a thing. A circular hole 12 into which the cap 19 of the tube container 1 can be loosely fitted is provided in the center of the bottom portion 11 of the holder body 3, and the edge of the circular hole 12 is chamfered like a mortar to taper the tube container 1. The center axis of the tube container 1 and the center axis of the holder body 3 intersect at least at the bottom portion 11 of the holder body 3 by sliding down the formed shoulder portion 20.

An annular retaining groove 7 having a uniform width and depth is horizontally provided on the outer surface of the lower portion of the side wall 6, and a connecting portion 21 for mounting on the filling machine is provided from the lower end of the side wall 6. It is extended integrally. The connecting portion 21 may have a flange shape having a fixing bolt hole depending on the filling machine to be mounted, or may form a fitting portion that fits into a recess or a hole provided in a table or the like of the filling machine. May be. The shape of the holder body 3 may be a polygonal cylindrical body other than a cylinder, but generally a rotary body can be formed more easily.

The movable piece 5 is formed by integrally molding a plate-shaped standing portion 22 that comes into contact with the outer surface of the side wall 6 and an abutting portion 23 that supports the body of the tube container from synthetic resin. One surface of the upright portion 22 is an inner surface that is concavely curved in the width direction with the same curvature as the outer surface of the side wall 6, and the surface in the opposite direction is an outer surface that is convexly curved with a larger curvature than the outer surface of the side wall 6 in the width direction. That is, the cross-sectional shape of the upright portion 22 is arcuate, and a predetermined number of the same movable pieces 5 are continuously connected in succession to the arc so that a cylinder that can be in contact with the outer surface of the side wall 6 is formed.

On the other hand, the abutting portion 23 is provided at the upper end portion of the upright portion 22 so as to project toward the inner surface side in a tapered manner like a tip portion of a hook, the lower surface thereof is a smooth surface, and the upper surface thereof is The inclined surface 24 is formed so as to descend from the middle portion toward the front portion.
The vicinity of the inclined surface 24 including the tip of the upright portion 22 is chamfered to provide an appropriate roundness, so that the tube container 1
It is in a state where it is less likely to get scratches and is less likely to get scratched.
The abutting portion 23 has a cross-sectional shape in the shape of a fan with a lacking central portion, and a predetermined number of the same movable pieces 5 are continuously arranged side by side in the fan shape, so that the upper portion of the opening 9 of the holder main body 3 is above. Then, the container insertion port 10 having a diameter smaller than that of the opening is formed.

Since the tip of the abutting portion 23 of the movable piece 5 has the inclined surface 24 which goes downward from the intermediate portion toward the front, the container insertion port 10 formed by the abutting portions 23 forming a mortar is mortar-shaped. Therefore, the head portion 2 of the tube container 1 can be suitably guided to the center of the holder body 3. The protruding length of each contact portion 23 is set to be larger than the thickness of the side wall 6, and the container insertion port 10 formed by the tip of the contact portion 23 has a diameter equal to that of the body portion 4 of the tube container 1 in a steady state. It is preferable that they are substantially equal to each other, but the size of the container insertion port 10 may be slightly large so that the tube container 1 does not significantly shake, or the tube container 1 becomes difficult to load or is movable. It does not matter if the movable width of the piece 5 is a little small so as not to cause a shortage.

Further, on the outer surface of the standing portion 22 of each movable piece 5,
A plurality of grooves 25 extending in the circumferential direction are provided in parallel,
Each groove 25 becomes an annular shape by continuously connecting the same movable piece 5 in a circular arc shape of the upright portion 22 and horizontally. In this groove 25,
An annular elastic body 26 for urging each movable piece 5 toward the center
However, due to the presence of the groove 25, the force of the annular elastic body 26 is always applied to a fixed position of the movable piece 5, and by providing a plurality of pieces, the centripetal force of the movable piece 5 can be increased or decreased. it can.

However, in general, the restoring force of the annular elastic body 26 changes according to the amount of extension thereof, and as a result, the centripetal force differs depending on the opening degree of the movable piece 5. If the change causes a problem in holding the tube container 1, the annular elastic body 26 is loaded in the groove of the movable piece 5 near the fulcrum with little movement (the groove 25 located at the bottom of the movable piece), It is desirable to suppress the change in radial force as much as possible.
Further, when it is desired to adjust the centripetal force of the movable piece 5, the annular elastic body 26 itself is appropriately replaced.

As the annular elastic body 26, a steel wire may be formed into a spring shape to have elasticity, or a material such as rubber having elasticity may be formed into an annular shape. Further, the movable piece 5 may be made to have elasticity without using the annular elastic body 26, and the lower end portion of the movable piece 5 may be fixed to the lower portion of the holder body 3. Since the coefficient can be made uniform over the entire length, it is preferable in that the force for holding the tube container is well balanced.

This embodiment is constructed as described above, and due to the presence of the round hole 12 in the bottom portion 11 of the holder main body 3, the central axis of the tube container 1 and the central axis of the holder main body 3 are aligned with each other as described above. The body 4 of the tube container 1 is held in the center of the opening 9 of the holder body 3 above the holder body 3 by the movable piece 5 while intersecting at the bottom 11. Thus, the central axis of the tube container 1 and the central axis of the holder main body 3 are substantially aligned with each other, and an accurate standing state is maintained.

In this embodiment, eight (4 pairs) movable pieces 5 are provided around the holder main body 3 to form the container insertion port 10 above the opening 9 so as to be movable separately. If the number of the movable pieces 5 is small, the standing state after the hem folding step becomes unstable, and if the number is too large, the manufacturing process becomes complicated, so about 6 to 12 is desirable. Further, if the movable pieces 5 are provided so as to face each other, even in the case of an elliptic tube container, the supporting force for each pair is balanced and stable holding is possible.

[0020]

As described above, when the tube container holder according to the present invention is used, the tube container can be securely held when the contents are filled, and even when the metal tube container is used, the hem folding process is performed. No pressure marks. Moreover, since the inclination of the tube container is extremely small even after the hem folding step, the movable state of the automatic machine to the subsequent packaging step becomes good especially in the production line, which contributes to the improvement of yield and productivity. Further, in this tube container holder, the shapes of the respective constituent members can be set extremely simply and the assembling thereof is also simple, so that the tube container holder can be easily manufactured and the cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view in a steady state showing an example of a tube container holder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the tube container holder.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the tube container holder when it is used.

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the tube container holder when it is used.

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view of the tube container holder according to the present invention when in use.

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view of a tube container holder according to the present invention when in use.

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional view when using a conventional tube container holder.

FIG. 8 is a plan view when using a conventional tube container holder.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a problem of a conventional fixed tube container holder.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing a problem of a conventional fixed tube container holder.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Tube Container 2 Head 3 Holder Body 4 Body 5 Movable Piece 6 Side Wall 7 Annular Locking Groove 8 Locking Part 9 Opening 10 Container Insertion Port 11 Bottom 12 Round Hole

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A cylindrical holder body (3) into which a tube container (1) is loaded from a head (2), and a body portion (4) of the tube container (1) above the holder body (3). )
A plurality of movable pieces (5) for supporting the side portions are provided along the side wall (6) of the holder body (3), and each movable piece (5)
A tube container holder characterized by being urged toward the center of the holder body (3). 2. An annular retaining groove (7) is formed on the outer surface of the side wall (6) of the holder body (3), and the annular retaining groove (7) is formed on the inner surface of the lower end of each movable piece (5). ) The tube container holder according to claim 1, characterized in that a hooking portion (8) is provided for hanging. 3. The movable piece (5) has its upper end portion evenly protruding beyond the side wall (6) of the holder body (3) toward the center from the inner surface of the side wall without being separated from each other. The tube container holder according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a container insertion port (10) having a smaller diameter than the opening (9) is formed above the opening (9) of the holder body (3). . 4. The tube container holder according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the movable pieces (5) face each other and form a pair. 5. The bottom part (11) of the holder body (3)
A round hole (1) into which the cap of the tube container can be loosely fitted
2) is provided, Claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 characterized by the above-mentioned.
Tube container holder as described.