JPH11334866A - Vessel treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a vessel from tumbling in good performance. SOLUTION: A vessel transporting conveyor 3 is equipped with a number of sprockets S1-S20 and two belts 13A and 13B set over them. At the sides of these belts 13A and 13B, supply conveyors 4 and 4' are installed adjoiningly. The sprockets S1 and S20 adjoining to the supply conveyors 4 and 4' are arranged not movable in the axial direction of the drive shaft 11, while the other sprockets S2-S19 are movable in the axial direction of the drive shaft 11. If the two belts 13A and 13B expand thermally in the direction across the width when a vessel 2 is to be washed with hot water, the thermal expansion takes place from the side toward a gap 10 in the central part. Accordingly the gaps between the sides of the belts 13A and 13B and the supply conveyors 4 and 4' in their adjacent positions remain unchanged, so that the vessel 2 will never tumble.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a container processing apparatus, and more particularly to an improvement in a container transport conveyor in a container cleaning apparatus for cleaning a container while transporting the container.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a container processing apparatus having the following configuration is known. That is, a container transport conveyor for transporting containers, a pair of left and right supply conveyors provided adjacent to both upstream side portions of the container transport conveyor for supplying containers to the container transport conveyor, and containers transported by the container transport conveyor. Processing means for performing a required heat treatment on the container transport conveyor, a pair of rotating shafts rotatably provided maintaining a predetermined interval, a plurality of sprockets fitted to each of the rotating shafts, Made of resin,
It is spanned over the sprockets of both rotating shafts,
2. Description of the Related Art A container processing apparatus including a belt on which containers are placed and transported is known (for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 60-119016). Further, in the above-described conventional apparatus, two sets of sprockets at adjacent positions, which are located at the center in the width direction of the container conveyor, cannot move in the axial direction with respect to both rotation shafts. The sprocket can move in the axial direction with respect to both rotation shafts. Thereby, the belt of the container conveying conveyor can expand and contract from the center in the width direction to both sides.

[0003]

By the way, when the processing by the processing means is washing of the container with hot water,
The belt of the container transport conveyor expands and contracts in the width direction of the container transport conveyor due to heat. As a result, the gap between the pair of left and right supply conveyors and the two side portions of the belt at adjacent positions fluctuates. Therefore, when the container is transferred from the supply conveyor onto the belt, there is a disadvantage that the container is easily overturned due to the gap. Such a drawback has also been pointed out when the containers are discharged from the belt of the container transport conveyor to discharge conveyors provided on both sides of the belt.

[0004]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In view of such circumstances,
The present invention provides a container transport conveyor that transports containers, a pair of left and right supply conveyors that are provided adjacent to both upstream sides of the container transport conveyor and supply the containers to the container transport conveyor, and the container transport conveyor transports the containers. Processing means for performing a required heat treatment on the container to be carried out, the container transport conveyor comprises a pair of rotating shafts rotatably provided maintaining a predetermined interval, and a plurality of sprockets fitted to each of the rotating shafts ,
In a container processing apparatus comprising a synthetic resin, which is stretched over the sprockets of the two rotation shafts, and a belt for mounting and transporting the container, the belt is maintained at an interval in the center in the width direction. At least two sets of sprockets, which are divided into two parts on the left side and the right side, among the sprockets of the two rotating shafts, are located adjacent to or near each of the supply conveyors. In addition to being fixed so as not to move in the axial direction, a sprocket other than these fixed sprockets is configured to be movable in the axial direction of the two rotating shafts. The divided belt is configured to thermally expand toward the center in the width direction of the container conveying conveyor. Further, a second invention is a container transport conveyor for transporting containers, a pair of left and right discharge conveyors provided adjacent to both sides on the downstream side of the container transport conveyor for discharging containers from the container transport conveyor, A processing unit for performing a required heat treatment on the containers transported by the transport conveyor, wherein the container transport conveyor is fitted to a pair of rotating shafts rotatably provided at a predetermined interval and the rotating shafts. In a container processing apparatus including a plurality of sprockets and a belt made of synthetic resin, which is stretched over the sprockets of the two rotating shafts, and which carries a container for mounting and transporting the container, the belt is disposed at the center in the width direction. The sprockets of the two rotating shafts are divided into two at the left side and the right side while maintaining an interval. Also, two sets of sprockets are fixed so as not to move in the axial direction of the two rotating shafts, and sprockets other than the fixed sprockets are configured to be movable in the axial direction of the two rotating shafts. When performing the heat treatment,
The belt is divided so as to thermally expand toward the center in the width direction of the container conveyor.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the invention, when the left and right belts expand in the width direction of the container conveying conveyor due to heat, they move from the side portions on both supply conveyor sides to the center side on the boundary between both belts. Thermal expansion. As a result, the gap between the side portions of the belts on the left and right sides and the two supply conveyors adjacent thereto does not fluctuate. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the container transferred from the supply conveyor to the container transport conveyor from falling over due to the gap. According to the second invention, when the left and right belts expand in the width direction of the container transport conveyor due to heat, the belts are directed from the side portions on both discharge conveyor sides to the center side on the boundary between both belts. Thermal expansion. Thereby, the gap between the side portions of the belts on the left and right sides and the two discharge conveyors adjacent thereto does not fluctuate. Therefore, when the container is discharged from the container transport conveyor to the discharge conveyor, it is possible to prevent the container from falling over due to the gap.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the illustrated embodiment. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a container cleaning device, which can clean a large number of containers 2 with a cleaning liquid while transporting the containers. The container cleaning device 1 includes a container transport conveyor 3 that circulates and travels in the direction of an arrow to transport containers, and a container transport conveyor 3 that transports containers.
And a pair of discharge conveyors 5 provided adjacent to both downstream sides of the container transport conveyor 3.
5 ′ and a conventionally known cleaning means 6 for spraying a cleaning liquid onto the container 2 transported by the container transport conveyor 3.
The containers 2 in the upright state are sequentially supplied onto the container conveyor 3 by the pair of supply conveyors 4, 4 '. Further, the containers 2 which have been washed by being sprayed with the cleaning liquid by the cleaning means 6 while being transported to the downstream side by the container transport conveyor 3 are discharged from above the container transport conveyor 3 by the discharge conveyors 5 and 5 '. . Also,
As shown in FIG. 1, a V-shaped guide for guiding the containers 2 from above the container conveyor 3 onto each of the discharge conveyors 5 and 5 'is provided at a position substantially above the downstream end of the container conveyor 3. A member 7 is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the container conveyor 3 has a drive shaft 11 and a driven shaft 12 which are rotatably supported at predetermined intervals, and which are fitted to and opposed to each other. 20 sets of sprockets S1 and S2
0 and a plurality of sets of sprockets S1 to S
It is constituted by a belt-like belt 13 stretched over 20. More specifically, the belt 13 is composed of a plurality of chains spanning each set of sprockets at opposing positions, and the chains at adjacent positions are swingably connected by a common component. A belt in which adjacent chains are connected to each other to form a belt shape is conventionally known. The above sprockets S1 and S2
The chains constituting the belt 0 and the belt 13 are all made of synthetic resin. When the drive shaft 11 is rotated by a drive source (not shown), the belt 13 circulates in a predetermined direction so that the container 2 placed on the belt 13 is conveyed downstream. ing. Thus, of the sprockets S1 to S20, both supply conveyors 4, 4 '(discharge conveyors 5, 5')
Sets of sprockets S1 and S20 located adjacent to
Are fixed to the outer peripheral portions of the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 so as not to move in the axial direction. On the other hand, the sprockets S2 to S19 located on the center side of the sprockets S1 and S20 have the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12
Is configured to be able to move in the axial direction. Further, in the present embodiment, the belt 13 is divided into a left belt 13A and a right belt 1 with the center in the width direction (lateral direction) of the container conveyor 2 shown in FIG.
3B. That is, the left belt 13
A is spanned from sprockets S1 to S10,
The belt 13B on the right side is formed from sprockets S11 to S2.
It spans zero. A slight gap 10 is formed at the boundary between the belts 13A and 13B, and a plate-like guide member 14 is fixedly provided near and above the belt along the longitudinal direction of the chains C1 to C20. ing. The belts 13A, 13B
The upper part of the gap 10 generated between them is almost completely closed.

Since the container conveyor 3 of this embodiment is constructed as described above, the two supply conveyors 4, 4 '(the two discharge conveyors 5, 5') and the two belts 13A, The gap with the side of 13B does not fluctuate. Therefore, in the case where the container 2 is washed by injecting hot water from the washing means 6, when the two belts 13A and 13B expand in the width direction by the hot water, the two belts 13A and 13B are connected to the two supply conveyors 4 and 4 '. (Both discharge conveyors 5, 5 ') from the side to the center (gap 10).
Side). Therefore, the gap between the side portions of the two belts 13A and 13B and the two supply conveyors 4 and 4 '(the two discharge conveyors 5 and 5') at adjacent positions does not change. Therefore, the containers 2 supplied onto the container conveyor 3 by the supply conveyors 4, 4 'do not fall over due to the gap, and the container conveyor 3 (belts 13A, 13B) can be smoothly supplied from the supply conveyors 4, 4'. ) Supplied above. Further, the container 2 which has been washed by the hot water while being conveyed by the container conveyor 3 is smoothly discharged from the container conveyor 3 (belts 13A, 13B) onto the discharge conveyors 5, 5 'without falling over. The belts 13A and 13B thermally expand in the width direction toward the gap 10. However, since the guide member 14 is provided above the gap 10, the container 2 The bottom does not get stuck, so
This gap 10 prevents the container 2 from falling over.

In contrast to this embodiment, the conventional container transport conveyor 3 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 has two sets of sprockets S10 and S1 at adjacent positions at the center in the width direction.
1 does not move in the axial direction with respect to the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. On the other hand, other sets of sprockets S1 to S9 and S12 to S2
Numeral 0 is such that it can move in the axial direction with respect to the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. The sprockets S1 to S1 of the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12
In this case, a single belt 13 is stretched over 20. In the conventional container transport conveyor 3 having such a configuration, when the belt 13 expands and contracts in the width direction due to heat,
Feed conveyor 4, 4 '(or discharge conveyor 5, 4)
5 ') and the gaps between both sides of the belt 13 adjacent to them were fluctuated. It has been pointed out that when the gap fluctuates in this way, the bottom of the container 2 fits into the gap and easily falls over. In contrast to such a conventional apparatus, as described above, in the present embodiment, the supply conveyors 4, 4 '(or the discharge conveyors 5, 4) are used.
Since the gap between 5 ′) and the side portions of both belts 13A and 13B adjacent thereto does not fluctuate, it is possible to prevent the container 2 from tipping over better than in the conventional case.

In this embodiment, the supply conveyors 4 and 4 are used.
Since the gap between 4 '(or discharge conveyors 5, 5') and the side portions of both belts 13A, 13B adjacent thereto is not fluctuated, the temperature of the hot water jetted from cleaning means 6 to container 2 is reduced. Can be set freely. Further, when washing the container 2 by injecting warm water from the washing means 6, even if both belts 13A and 13B thermally expand in the width direction, the container transport conveyor 3 can be run, so that each is made of synthetic resin. The two belts 13A and 13B, each composed of a plurality of chains, can be washed with warm water and can be kept in a clean state. In the above-described embodiment, the supply conveyors 4, 4 'are used.
And the discharge conveyors 5, 5 'are disposed on both the upstream and downstream sides of the container transport conveyor 3, but instead of the supply conveyors 4, 4' or the discharge conveyors 5, 5 ', instead of the conveyor, a conventional conveyor is used. Other known supply means or discharge means can be employed. If the gap formed at the boundary between the left and right belts is set to, for example, about 10 mm, the guide member 14 can be omitted when the container to be processed is a large one such as a beer bottle. Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to the container cleaning apparatus 1 has been described.
The present invention can also be applied to a warmer that is heated with hot water, or a pastelizer that sterilizes a container with hot water. In the above embodiment, the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 are provided with 20 sprockets, respectively, and each set of sprockets is opposed to each other. However, the following configuration may be adopted. That is, 20 sprockets are fitted to the drive shaft 11, while the driven shaft 12 is provided with 15 sprockets that are positioned at the center in the axial direction but with a large pitch. Then, as in the above-described embodiment, the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12
The set of sprockets may be arranged facing each other and fixed to the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. Further, the sprockets other than the two sets of fixed sprockets are configured to be movable in the axial direction with respect to the drive shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. Even with such a configuration, the same operation and effect as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

[0011]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an effect that the container can be properly prevented from tipping over.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a main part showing a conventional technique.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container washing apparatus 2 Container 3 Container transport conveyor 4 Supply conveyor 4 'Supply conveyor 5 Discharge conveyor 5' Discharge conveyor 6 Cleaning means 11 Drive shaft 12 Follower shaft 13 Belt 13A One belt 13B The other belt S1 to S20
sprocket

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI B65G 47/16 B65G 47/16

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A container transport conveyor for transporting containers, a pair of left and right supply conveyors provided adjacent to both upstream sides of the container transport conveyor for supplying containers to the container transport conveyor, and a container transport conveyor comprising: Processing means for performing a required heat treatment on the container to be transported, wherein the container transport conveyor comprises a pair of rotating shafts rotatably provided at predetermined intervals, and a plurality of sprockets fitted to the respective rotating shafts. And a belt made of a synthetic resin and stretched over the sprockets of the two rotating shafts, and a belt for placing and transporting the container, wherein the belt is maintained at an interval at a central portion in the width direction. And at least two sets of the sprockets of the two rotating shafts located adjacent to or adjacent to the respective supply conveyors. Are fixed so as not to move in the axial directions of the two rotating shafts, and sprockets other than the fixed sprockets are configured to be movable in the axial directions of the two rotating shafts, and the container is subjected to heat treatment by the processing means. At this time, the container processing apparatus is characterized in that the left and right divided belts are thermally expanded toward the center in the width direction of the container transport conveyor. 2. A container transport conveyor for transporting containers, a pair of left and right discharge conveyors provided adjacent to both sides on the downstream side of the container transport conveyor for discharging containers from the container transport conveyor, and a container transport conveyor comprising: Processing means for performing a required heat treatment on the container to be transported, wherein the container transport conveyor comprises a pair of rotating shafts rotatably provided at predetermined intervals, and a plurality of sprockets fitted to the respective rotating shafts. And a belt made of a synthetic resin and stretched over the sprockets of the two rotating shafts, and a belt for placing and transporting the container, wherein the belt is maintained at an interval at a central portion in the width direction. And divided into two parts, a left side and a right side. At least two sprockets of the two rotating shafts, which are located adjacent to or adjacent to the respective discharge conveyors, The set of sprockets is fixed so as not to move in the axial direction of the two rotating shafts, and sprockets other than the fixed sprockets are configured to be movable in the axial direction of the two rotating shafts. A container processing apparatus characterized in that the belt divided into two parts, left and right, thermally expands toward the center in the width direction of the container conveyor when applying. 3. The container according to claim 1, further comprising a guide member for guiding the container along a direction in which the container is conveyed, at a position which is a boundary with the belt divided into two right and left parts. A container processing apparatus as described in the above.