JPS6340404Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] (Field of industrial application) The invention is a method for storing sterile fillings, such as sterile foods, into bags whose interior has been sterilized in advance and a cap is attached to the spout in order to maintain good sterility. This invention relates to a weighing and filling machine that can fill a fixed amount while being held.

(Prior art) By the way, as a prior art to the present invention,
There is something like the one described in Publication No. 2395.
The technology described in this publication involves storing a collection unit and a filling unit in a sterile chamber, and then using the collection unit to first collect a bag from which the inside has been sterilized and a cap is attached to the spout. The cap is removed, the contents are filled into the bag from the filling unit, and then the cap is inserted into the spout again using the collection unit to seal the bag. Regulations are based on weight measurements using weighing machines. However, when measuring weight, since the bag's spout is fixed to the filling machine, accurate measurement is difficult, especially when the bag is stored in a box and filled. be.

Therefore, the present applicant proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 163101/1983 that the contents of the bag on the weighing platform should be filled in two parts from the spout. In this method, the filler opening of the bag is pulled upwards toward the filling nozzle, making it difficult to accurately detect the contents of the bag on the weighing platform, and then increasing the amount by an amount relatively close to the predetermined filling amount. Primary filling is performed at a flow rate, and then secondary filling is performed at a small flow rate to complete filling up to the final predetermined amount.

According to this prior art, after the primary filling is completed, the nozzle hole of the filling nozzle and the spout of the bag are disengaged, and after the spout is released from being pressed against the nozzle hole, the secondary filling is performed. In addition, the bag to be filled is transported with its spout supported by the spout metal support of the horizontal transport chain, and stopped midway through the transport to receive temporary and secondary filling. There is. All equipment, including the filling nozzle and conveyance chain, is housed in a sterile room.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) In the above-mentioned conventional weighing and filling machine, the spout of the bag sent by the conveyance chain can only be moved along the horizontal trajectory of the conveyance chain. The horizontal path through which the spout passes, which must be kept in a sterile atmosphere at the time of filling, must also be located within the sterile chamber, which increases the size of the sterile chamber and increases costs. Furthermore, since the spout cannot be moved out of the horizontal trajectory, the filling nozzle must be raised during secondary filling to separate the nozzle hole from the bag's spout. Therefore, in order to move the filling nozzle up and down, an air cylinder for vertical movement, which is easily contaminated, must be provided in the sterile chamber, which makes it more difficult to maintain the sterility of the sterile chamber.

The present invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to make the sterile room smaller because only the filling nozzle part needs to be kept in the sterile room, and to prevent secondary filling. Because there is no need to raise the filling nozzle itself and only need to fix it, there is no need for a vertically moving cylinder for the filling nozzle inside the sterile chamber, making it easier to prevent contamination inside the sterile chamber. It's about getting.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention is based on the known weighing and filling machine of the type described above, in which a filling nozzle is fixedly provided, and the bottom of a sterile chamber having positive pressure sterile air is used as a weighing machine to support a bag. The nozzle hole of the filling nozzle is located above the platform and an opening is formed at the bottom of the platform, and the nozzle hole of the filling nozzle is located above the opening in the sterile chamber, and a spout is provided between the opening and the weighing platform so as to be movable vertically and horizontally. A transfer arm is provided, the arm has a portion that is engageable with the spout, and the spout transfer arm is spaced downwardly from the nozzle hole from a position where the spout contacts the nozzle hole of the filling nozzle during secondary filling. The apparatus includes means for lowering the spout transfer arm so as to move it into position.

(Function) With the above configuration, during secondary filling into the bag, the spout transfer arm descends to separate the spout from the lower end of the filling nozzle, so there is no need for the filling nozzle itself to move. In addition, by vertically moving the spout transfer arm in this way, the transport trajectory of the spout can be freely determined, and the sterile chamber can be made small enough to accommodate the filling nozzle.

(Embodiments) Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a bag with a spout used in the filling machine of the present invention.

In the figure, 10 and 12 are upper and lower films of the bag, 14 is a spout, and 16 is a cap. The bag is constructed by sealing a film on four sides, for example, and the lower flange 18 of the spout is heat-sealed around a hole drilled in the bag, and the inside is sterilized in advance and sealed with a cap 16. ing.

Furthermore, flanges 20 and 22 are formed at the center of the spout and the cap, respectively.

Next, an aseptic filling machine for filling the contents into the bag with spout will be explained based on FIGS. 2 to 9.

In FIG. 2 which is a diagram of the principle, 24 is a sterile chamber, 26 is a weighing platform of a measuring instrument, 28 is a collection unit for attaching and detaching the cap 16 of the bag spout, and 3
0 is the filling nozzle.

The sterile chamber 24 is fixed to a machine frame (not shown), and a heated sterile air supply device 34,
Further, an opening 40 is provided in the lower part. The heated sterile air supply device 34 includes a blower 42, a conduit 44 connecting the blower and the chamber, a heater 46 provided in the middle of the conduit, a filter 48, and the like.

Next, the scale 26 of the scale is installed horizontally below and opposite the opening 40 of the chamber. Although the scale body is not shown, the scale 26
It has a built-in proximity switch that detects various levers connected to the weighing platform and the movement of the levers, and the proximity switch detects the load caused by filling the bag placed on the weighing platform and generates an electrical signal. It's getting old.

The collector unit 28 has a cap retaining member 58 at its lower end, which member 58 is shown in detail in FIGS. 3, a plan view, and 4, a side view.
As is clear from the figure, it is normally located directly above the opening 40.

In FIG. 4, 60 is a cap holding member 58.
62 is an air cylinder, and 64 is a frame that holds the air cylinder fixedly. The frame 64 is fixed to the bottom wall of the chamber 24, and the operation of the air cylinder 62 causes the cap holding member 58 to vertically move up and down in and out of the chamber 24 through the opening 40.

As shown in FIG. 6, the cap holding member 58 is formed of a flat plate as a whole, and has a recess 66 having a semicircular planar shape on the lower surface, and is open toward the front at the upper end of the recess. A groove 68 is provided. Flange 22 (first
) is fitted into this groove 68 by the operator and fixed.

The filling nozzle 30 also has a nozzle hole 70 in the opening 40.
It is held perpendicularly in the chamber 24 with the tip thereof facing.

In Figures 3, 4, and 5, 72 is the filling nozzle 3.
0 support arm 74 is a content supply pipe communicating with the inside of the filling nozzle.

The tip of the nozzle hole 70 is positioned slightly above the opening 40 so as not to come into contact with the outside air.

FIG. 7 shows details of the filling nozzle 30.
In the figure, a valve rod 80 is passed through the center of the nozzle 30, and a valve body 82 for opening and closing the nozzle is fixed to the lower end of the valve rod, and a piston 84 is fixed to the upper end of the valve rod.

The valve stem 80 is divided into an upper valve stem 80a and a lower valve stem 80b, which are connected by a threaded portion 88, where they can be connected and separated. A portion of the lower valve stem 80b and the upper valve stem 80a, which are divided into two parts, are covered with a cylinder 92, and the upper valve stem is slidably held by a holding cylinder 94. The inside of the cylinder is covered with a bellows 96. The bellows is supported by an upper flange 98, a middle flange 100, and a lower flange 102, the upper flange 98 being clamped between the holding cylinder 94 and the cylinder body 92, and the middle flange 100 simply being inserted into the valve stem. The lower flange 102 is clamped between the upper valve stem 80a and the lower valve stem 80b.

A content supply port 104 is provided on the side surface of the cylindrical body 92, and the content supply port 104 is connected to the content tank 76 by a conduit 105 via a pump or the like. The tank 76 has a conduit 106 coming from a device for sterilizing its contents.
A heated steam pipe 108 is connected to this pipe via a valve 110.

On the other hand, the upper end of the upper valve rod 80a is connected to the cylinder 11
2, and below the cylinder 112 is a retaining cylinder 9
Between the cylinder 112 and the nozzle 114, a middle block 118 and a cylindrical body 119 are provided. The top of the cylinder 112 is closed by a cylinder head 120.
The block 118 and head 120 are provided with compressed air supply and exhaust holes 122, 124, respectively.

The piston 84 is constantly pressed downward by the compression spring 126, which holds the valve body 82 via the valve stem 80 in the closed position shown. On the other hand, when compressed air is supplied to the lower side of the piston 84 from the supply/discharge hole 124, the piston 84 is moved by the spring 126.
The valve element 82 therefore opens the nozzle hole 70.

A 3-position on-off valve 128 is provided in the middle of the pipe 105.
is provided. This on-off valve 128 can take three positions: a fully open position, a half open position, and a fully closed position. The three positions are provided by a three-position cylinder arrangement 130.

As shown in FIG. 8, this cylinder device 130 has a lower first cylinder 132a and an upper second cylinder 132b coaxially. 1st
A first piston 134 is provided inside the cylinder 132a.
Further, a second piston 134b is provided inside the second cylinder 132b so as to be slidable up and down. An intermediate block 136 is located between both cylinders.
However, a lower block 138 is provided at the lower end of the first cylinder 132a, and a cylinder head 140 is provided at the upper end of the second cylinder 132b. The intermediate block 136 has compressed air supply and discharge holes 142 and 144.
However, a similar supply/discharge hole 146 is provided in the lower block 138.
However, similar supply and discharge holes 148 are formed in the cylinder head 140, respectively. A compression spring 150 is provided in the first cylinder 132a to lower pressure on the first piston 134a, and a stroke adjustment screw 152 is screwed into the cylinder head 140. The aforementioned supply and discharge holes 142, 144, 146, 1
48 by supplying compressed air to either the first piston 134a or the second piston 134.
b can be individually displaced up and down.

A common rod 154 is provided on the pistons 134a and 134b, and the lower end of this rod 154 is connected to the on-off valve 128 (FIG. 7).
The stroke of the first piston 134a is larger than the stroke of the second piston 132b.

In the position shown in FIG. 8, both pistons 134a, 134
b is pressed downward by the force of the spring 150 and is at the lower limit position, and in this position the on-off valve 128 is in a fully closed state. Next, when the second piston 134b is raised to its upper limit position, the on-off valve 128 assumes a half-open position, and when the first piston 134a is raised to its upper limit position, the rod 154 is further displaced upward to open and close it. Valve 128 assumes a fully open position. Note that the rod 15 is connected to the first piston 134a.
4 is fixed, but the rod 154 is slidably inserted into the second piston 134b, and when the rod 154 is lowered, the nut 156 at its upper end contacts the upper surface of the piston 134b, and the rod 154 is lowered. Sometimes, the stepped portion 158 in the middle of the rod contacts the lower surface of the piston 134b.

In FIGS. 3 to 5, 32 is a spout transfer arm. This arm 32 is installed horizontally between the bottom of the sterile chamber 24 and the weigh platform 26.

In those figures, 162 is the weighing platform 26
a frame member fixed thereon; 164 a bracket fixed to the frame member; 166 an air cylinder rotatably supported by the bracket;
8 is a block fixed to the piston rod of the air cylinder, 170 is a round bar provided perpendicularly to the block, and 172 is a stopper fixed to the round bar.

The spout transfer arm 32 has one end connected to the round bar 1.
70 and its movement is restricted.

Further, its central portion is fixed to a rod 176 of an air cylinder 174 via a thrust bearing 178 so as to be rotatable on a horizontal plane. The air cylinder 174 is installed on another frame member 180 further fixed on the frame member 162.

Therefore, the spout transfer arm 32 moves up and down vertically by the operation of the cylinder 174, and the rod 1 of the piston 174 moves up and down by the operation of the cylinder 166.
The rotation of the axis 76 is horizontal.

Rotation of the arm takes place within a range between the solid line position and the dashed line position as shown in FIG.
The shape and size of the sterile chamber opening 40 and the position of the collection unit 28 and filling nozzle 30 are determined in relation to the angle of rotation of the tip of the arm 32.

The tip of the arm 32 is shaped so that it can fit between the two flanges 18 and 20 at the spout 14 of the bag and support the spout. In other words, two arcuate pieces 182, 1 sandwiching the cylindrical part of the spout.
84 is formed, and only one arcuate piece 184 is at the fulcrum 1.
Lever 1 that can rotate horizontally around 86
It is formed at the tip of 88.

Note that the sterile chamber 24 is further extended to the right in FIG. 3, and a plurality of pairs of the collection unit 28 and filling unit 30 are provided therein, and a spout transfer arm 32 and a metering device are provided for each pair. By doing so, it may be possible to perform filling operations on a large number of bags at the same time.

The arrangement of the 3-position on-off valve 128 and the 3-position cylinder device 130 for operating it described with reference to FIG. 7 is as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5. A content supply pipe 74 extends rearwardly from the fill nozzle 30 through the wall of the chamber 24 and
An opening/closing valve 128 is provided at the rising portion 74A at the end of the opening/closing valve 128. A pipe line 105 leading to the content tank 76 is connected to the side surface of the on-off valve 128 .

Next, the operation of the filling machine will be explained with further reference to FIG.

First, in order to sterilize the filling nozzle 130, an exhaust pipe (not shown) is connected to the outlet of the nozzle hole 70, and
In addition, a pressure regulating valve is installed in the exhaust pipe (not shown).
Then, the valve 110 shown in FIG.
Lead to 0. At this time, pressurized air is introduced into the cylinder 112 from the air supply hole 124, and the valve 82 opens the nozzle hole 70. In addition, the on-off valve 12
8 is also fully open. Therefore, the heated steam flows into the cylindrical body 9.
2, passes through the nozzle hole 70, and escapes to the outside world through the exhaust pipe. During this escape, the pressure regulating valve is closed to increase the internal pressure. By increasing the internal pressure, the steam temperature can be increased, which can completely kill the high temperature bacteria inside.

After this nozzle sterilization process, the valve 110 is closed, the air supply to the cylinder 112 is released, and the valve body 8
2, the nozzle hole 70 is closed and the exhaust pipe etc. are removed from the nozzle.

Next, the inside of the sterile chamber 24 is sterilized by spraying a suitable sterilizing agent such as H ₂ O ₂ water from a nozzle (not shown) provided inside the chamber.

Thereafter, the air heated by the blower 42 is constantly flowed out of the chamber from the opening 40 of the chamber, and the inside of the chamber is maintained at a positive pressure.

Pre-sterilization is completed as described above, the tank 76 is filled with the contents, and the filling operation is started.

First, the flattened bag is placed in the sterile chamber 2 by the operator at position A, as also shown in FIG.
The spout transfer arm 3 is inserted between the bottom wall of the spout 4 and the measuring stand 26, and is inserted between the flanges 18 and 20 of the spout.
The two arcuate pieces 182 and 184 are fitted, and the flange 22 of the cap 16 is fitted into the recess of the cap holding member 58 of the collection unit. Note that it is preferable that a lock (not shown) be provided on the arcuate piece to secure the two pieces together so that the spout 14 does not fall off inadvertently.

Air cylinder 174 is then actuated and cylinder 62 is opened so that arm 32 is raised to position B and spout 14 is retracted through opening 40 and into chamber 24 . Then, chlorine water is sprayed from a nozzle (not shown) installed near the opening, and the spout 1 is sprayed by hand.
The fungi adhering to 4 are sterilized.

Thereafter, the cylinder 62 is actuated to further lift the cap holding member 32 and remove the cap 16.
is removed from spout 14. Then, the cylinder 166 (FIGS. 3, 4, and 5) operates, and the arm 32
Rotate from the chain line position to the solid line position in Figure 3,
Move the spout from position B to position C. Further, the cylinder 174 is actuated to raise the arm 32 from the C position to the D position, and the spout 14 is connected to the filling nozzle 30.
bring it into contact with.

Thereafter, the piston 84 of the filling nozzle 30 moves to raise the valve body 82, and the first piston 134a of the cylinder device 130 moves up to fully open the on-off valve 128 and begin primary filling of the contents.

Since the amount filled into the bag must be kept constant, measurement is performed during filling, but during the primary filling, the spout 14 is in contact with the nozzle hole 70 (the flow of the contents during filling is If outside air is drawn into the bag, foaming may occur.
The contact is strong to prevent outside air from entering. ), and since the arm 32 supporting the spout 14 is supported on the weighing table 26, the predetermined filling amount is determined not by the measuring meter but by a timer or flow meter controlling the solenoid valve for the first cylinder. is regulated.

When the primary filling is completed, the air cylinder 17
4 operates in reverse to lower the spout 14 from the D position to the C position, separating the spout a little from the nozzle 70. As a result, the weighing device is able to measure the weight of the bag and its filling, and only the second piston 134b of the cylinder device 130 rises, causing the on-off valve 128 to be in a half-open state and shifting to a secondary small filling operation. I will do it.

This secondary filling is to fill the difference between the specified filling amount and the primary filling amount, and the valve body 82 is kept in the open position. Upon completion of filling the bag, when the metering device issues a signal indicating the specified filling amount value, the piston 84 of the nozzle 30 is operated in the opposite direction and the valve 82 is closed, thereby completing the filling operation. .

Thus, when filling is completed, the cylinder 166 (Figures 3, 4, and 5) is operated in the opposite direction, the arm 32 returns to position B, and the cylinder 6
Cap 1 is lowered by the lowering of the holding body 58 due to the reverse operation of 2.
6 is fitted into the spout 14, and the cylinder 1 is further fitted into the spout 14.
74 and release of cylinder 62 causes arm 3 to
2 is lowered to position A.

Finally, the lock is released by the operator's hands, the arcuate pieces 182 and 184 are opened, and the spout 14 and its cap 16 are released from the collection unit 28. New bags and filled bags are placed on the weighing platform 2.
After being removed from 6, it is immediately attached and the filling operation is repeated in the same manner as described above.

(Effects of the invention) In this invention, the filling nozzle maintains the same open state whether it is temporary filling or secondary filling.
Switching between primary and secondary filling is done by three points upstream of the filling nozzle.
This is done by switching the position release valve from fully open to half open, so compared to the case where the filling nozzle itself is switched between fully open and half open, the sudden change in flow and pressure caused by switching is less likely to occur in the hole of the filling nozzle. Because it does not act directly and only changes the amount of outflow, there is a problem that the material will scatter even if the bag's spout is removed from the filling nozzle immediately after the primary filling is completed and the secondary filling begins. Of course, there is no such thing, but during secondary filling, instead of raising the filling nozzle itself, the spout transfer arm supporting the bag's spout can be lowered to separate the spout from the nozzle hole. Therefore, there is no need to install an air cylinder in the sterile chamber for raising the filling nozzle, and sources of contamination can be removed from the sterile chamber, making it easier to maintain a sterile state. The spout transfer arm, which can move up and down and left and right, allows the spout to move along a free trajectory, so that the sterile chamber can be moved by the spout conveying device in order to maintain a fixed trajectory for transporting the spout. It is no longer necessary to make the container large enough to cover the container, which allows the weighing and filling machine to be made smaller.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway vertical sectional view of a bag used in the weighing and filling machine of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the weighing and filling machine of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway plan view of the weighing and filling machine, FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway left side view, and FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway rear view. 6A and 6B are a plan view and a sectional view taken along the line B--B of the cap holding member of the collection unit, respectively. FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the filling nozzle. FIG. 8 is a vertical sectional view of the three-position cylinder device. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the weighing and filling machine of the present invention. 14... Bag spout, 16... Spout cap, 18, 20, 22... Flange, 24... Sterile chamber, 26... Weighing stand, 30... Filling nozzle, 40... Opening, 32... ... Outlet transfer arm, 60 ... Cap holding member, 62 ... Air cylinder, 70 ... Nozzle hole, 82 ... Valve body, 11
2... Cylinder, 76... Content tank, 128
...3 position on-off valve, 130...3 position cylinder device, 134a...first piston, 134b...second piston, 154...rod.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A bag support device for supporting a bag with a spout to be filled, a downwardly directed filling nozzle located above the device, a sterile chamber providing a sterile atmosphere during filling, and between the filling nozzle and a source of filling material. an on-off valve that can take three positions: fully open, half open, and fully closed; a means for keeping the nozzle hole and spout of the filling nozzle in a mutually pressed state; and a means for keeping the nozzle hole and spout of the filling nozzle vertically relative to each other. The on-off valve is fully opened to perform primary filling into the bag through the filling nozzle, and then the on-off valve is half-opened and the nozzle hole and spout are separated vertically to perform secondary filling. In the weighing and filling machine, the filling nozzle is fixedly provided, the sterile air in the sterile chamber is made to have a positive pressure, and the bottom of the chamber is positioned above the weighing table constituting the bag support device. An opening is formed and the nozzle hole of the filling nozzle is located above the opening in the sterile chamber, and a spout transfer arm is installed between the opening and the weighing platform so as to be movable vertically and horizontally. A spout transfer arm is provided with a portion that can engage with the outlet, and the spout transfer arm moves the spout from a position where the spout contacts the nozzle hole of the filling nozzle to a position downward away from the nozzle hole during the secondary filling. A weighing and filling machine characterized by having a means for lowering an arm.