WO2005077646A1

WO2005077646A1 - Packaging machine

Info

Publication number: WO2005077646A1
Application number: PCT/JP2005/000646
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kazuo Abe
Original assignee: Shikoku Kakoki Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2004-02-17
Filing date: 2005-01-20
Publication date: 2005-08-25
Also published as: JP2005231045A

Abstract

A packaging machine, wherein a container bottom molding device (12) is disposed at the start end of the carrying route of a container carrying conveyor (11). The container bottom molding device (12) comprises a turn table (21) and a plurality of mandrels (22) and (23) installed, at specified intervals, on circumferences about the rotating axis of the turn table (21) in a suspended state. The packaging machine is disposed so that the carrying route of the container carrying conveyor (11) and mandrel moving routes in the turn table (21) are connected to each other as viewed from the upper side. The mandrels (22) and (23) are rotatable relative to the turn table (21) about the axes of the mandrels or axes parallel with the axes of the mandrels. Thus, the overall height of the packaging machine can be lowered, and the layout of the container carrying conveyor (11) and the container bottom molding device (12) can be set arbitrarily.

Description

Specification

Packaging machine

Technical field

[0001] The present invention relates to, for example, a packaging machine, in particular, a rectangular cylindrical blank is closed at one end to form a bottomed cylindrical container, the container is filled with contents, and then the container is sealed. It relates to packaging machinery used as finished containers.

Background art

Conventionally, as a packaging machine of this type, a container bottom forming apparatus that forms and seals the bottom of a rectangular cylindrical container to form a bottomed rectangular cylindrical container, and a portion below the container bottom forming apparatus as a starting end of a transport path. A conveyor having a filling section for filling the bottomed rectangular cylindrical container with contents along the transport path and a container top forming section for forming and sealing the top of the contents-filled container. It is known.

[0003] As a container bottom forming device of the packaging machine, a vertically rotating type in which mandrels are radially provided at regular intervals in a rotor having a horizontal rotating shaft (see Patent Document 1), and a mandrel is used. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a horizontally rotating type turntable having a vertical rotation axis, which is provided in a hanging manner at regular intervals on a circumference around the rotation axis (see Patent Document 2).

[0004] In general, a packaging machine equipped with a vertical rotation type mandrel is provided with a plurality of rows of radial mandrels on the same horizontal rotation axis as a container bottom forming device, so that a plurality of pitch feeds or a plurality of rows of conveyors are provided. It is easy to combine with, and is widely used for high-capacity packaging machines. However, this type of packaging machine was said to be high and poor in maintainability.

[0005] On the other hand, a packaging machine equipped with a horizontal rotation type mandrel can maintain a low height and thus has good maintainability. However, due to its structure, the layout of the container bottom forming apparatus and the conveyor is limited, and a plurality of packaging machines are required. It was difficult to combine pitch feeds and multi-row conveyors, making them unsuitable for increasing the capacity of packaging machines.

[0006] As a packaging machine having a horizontally rotating type mandrel, the starting point of a container transport path of a conveyor A container bottom forming device is disposed in the turntable, and the container bottom forming device is provided in a turntable in a hanging manner at regular intervals on a circumference around a rotation center of the turntable. A plurality of mandrels, a turntable is disposed at a distance from the start end of the container transfer path when viewed from above, and a swing arm for transferring the container has a tip end above the start end of the container transfer path and the mandrel. There are also known ones that are arranged so as to be able to move back and forth alternately horizontally so as to be able to swing back and forth (see Patent Document 3).

[0007] In this packaging machine, by providing a swing arm, restrictions on the layout of the container bottom forming apparatus and the conveyor are eliminated, and the ability of the packaging machine to be enhanced by arranging the plurality of rows of the conveyors is tried. The transfer of containers by the reciprocation of the arm hindered the packaging machine from becoming more powerful, and the swinging space of the swing arm hindered keeping the height of the entire packaging machine low.

Patent Document 1: JP-A-54-161476

Patent Document 2: Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 59-11841

Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Publication No. 60-55369

Disclosure of the invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

[0008] Accordingly, as a result of intensive research to solve the above problems, the present inventor has found that the mandrel conventionally fixed to the rotating body can be rotated with respect to the rotation of the rotating body. Have found that these problems can be solved, and have completed the present invention.

[0009] That is, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems, to reduce the height of the entire packaging machine, and to freely set the layout of a group of devices constituting the packaging machine. It is to provide a packaging machine which can be used.

Means for solving the problem

[0010] In the packaging machine according to the present invention, the container bottom forming device is disposed at the start end of the container transport path of the conveyor, and the container bottom forming device is provided with a turntable and a circular shape centered on the rotation center of the turntable. A plurality of hangers provided at regular intervals The turntable is disposed so as to connect the container transport path and the mandrel movement path when viewed from a plane, and is intermittently driven so as to stop the mandrel at the connection section. It is rotatable around the mandrel axis or an axis parallel to the turntable.

[0011] In the packaging machine according to the present invention, when the container put on the mandrel is pulled out at the intersection of the container transport path and the mandrel movement path, the container is directly transferred from the mandrel to the conveyor. Therefore, a container such as a swingarm of the prior art is not required for the transfer of the container, the space between the mandrel and the conveyer can be reduced to the utmost, and the height of the packaging machine can be reduced. Can be. In addition, since the direction of rotation of the mandrel with respect to the turntable can be freely set, the layout of a group of devices constituting the packaging machine can be freely set.

[0012] Furthermore, a radial straight line extending from the rotation center of the turntable to the rotation axis of the mandrel stopped at the connection portion may be held at a predetermined angle with respect to the container transport path.

[0013] Further, a container transfer station is provided at the connection portion, and a blank supply station for stopping the mandrel is provided at a predetermined distance from the container transfer station, and the blank supply station is also provided with a container transfer station. Rotating means to rotate the mandrel in the forward direction to narrow the same angle while the mandrel is moved to the container transfer station and rotate the mandrel in the reverse direction while the mandrel is moved to the blank supply station With this, the mandrel can be automatically rotated with respect to the turntable.

[0014] Further, a rotating means is fixed to the support member and has a cam surface, a roller rolling on the cam surface and mounted on the mandrel at a distance from the rotation axis, and a roller on the cam surface. When the mandrel is urged so as to press and the spring is provided, the rotation means can be simply configured by utilizing the rotation of the turntable.

The invention's effect

[0015] According to the present invention, the height of the entire packaging machine can be reduced, the layout of a group of devices constituting the packaging machine can be set freely, and it is possible to cope with higher performance. It comes out.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

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

In the following description, the front and rear refer to the left of FIG. 1 as a front and the right thereof as a rear with reference to FIG. 1, and the left and right refer to the left and the right as viewed from the rear. I do.

FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a starting point of a transfer path of a container transfer conveyor 11 and a container bottom forming device 12 disposed here.

[0019] The conveyor 11 has first and second transport paths 13 and 14 extending forward and in parallel with each other at an interval on the left and right, and intermittently moves by two pitches along each of the transport paths 13 and 14. It has a number of first and second holders 15, 16 which are adapted to be mounted. As shown in detail in FIG. 2, each of the holders 15 and 16 is composed of an L-shaped corner piece 17 having a horizontal cross-section which is fitted to each of four corners of the rectangular cylindrical container C, and moves the container C in the horizontal direction. Is a restraining force. Vertical movement is free. A rail 18 for receiving and guiding the bottom of the container C is provided below the holder moving path!

[0020] The container bottom forming apparatus 12 is composed of a horizontal disk-shaped turntable 21 and 24 pieces provided in a hanging manner at regular intervals on a circumference centered on the rotation center of the turntable 21. , With 48 outer and inner mandrels 22, 23 at the front.

The first to twelfth stations S1 to S12 are provided so as to correspond to positions at which the turntable 21 is equally divided into 12 parts in the circumferential direction. The rotation center force of the turntable 21 is a first station S1 that is directed straight left, and second to twelfth stations S2 to S12 are arranged in this order in a counterclockwise direction from the first station S1.

[0022] The first to fourth stations are S1 to S4 blank supply stations, and first to fourth blank feeders 31 to 34 are arranged in these stations. The following devices (not shown) are arranged in the fifth to twelfth stations S5 to S12. A primary heater is provided at the fifth station S5, and a secondary heater is provided at the sixth station S6. In the seventh station S7, a breaker force is arranged in the eighth station S8. The first transfer device is arranged at the ninth station S9, and the second transfer device is arranged at the eleventh station S11. Container transfer stations are available at stations 9 and 11 Station Sll. The tenth and twelfth stations S10 and S12 are idle stations.

[0023] All the mandrels 22, 23 are arranged on a radial line dividing the turntable 21 into 12 equal parts in the circumferential direction, corresponding to four stations S1 to S12. The two outer mandrels 22 outside each radial line form an outer mandrel row, and the two inner mandrels 23 inside the outer mandrel rows form an inner mandrel row. The outer mandrel row corresponds to the first container transport path 13, and the inner mandrel row corresponds to the second container transport path 14.

FIG. 2 shows the mounting structure of the outer mandrel 22 to the turntable 21 in detail. An upwardly projecting vertical outer guide cylinder 35 is provided in a required portion of the turntable 21 in a vertically penetrating manner, and an outer movable body 41 is supported by this. The outer movable body 41 includes a thick horizontal disk-shaped outer body 42 rotatably fitted in the outer guide cylinder 35, and a bottom and a top surface of the outer body 42 fixed to the outer guide cylinder 35, respectively. The outer bottom plate 43 and the outer top plate 44 are sandwiched. Two outer mandrels 22 are fixed to the lower surface of the outer bottom plate 43 so as to be aligned with the vertical rotation axis of the outer body 42 interposed therebetween. The pitch of the two outer mandrels 22 is equal to the pitch of the holders 15,16. An outer arm 45 is physically provided on the outer top plate 44. A horizontal outer roller 46 is attached to the tip of the outer arm 45. The outer roller 46 is in contact with the outer cam surface 52 of the outer cam 51. The outer cam 51 has a U-shaped cross section with a downward opening cross section having an inner surface as an outer cam surface 52, and is fixed to the outer support member 53. Although the mounting structure of the inner mandrel 23 is not shown in detail, the inner guide cylinder, the inner movable body 61, the inner body 62, the inner bottom plate, the inner top plate, the inner arm 65, the inner roller 66 and the inner cam corresponding to the outer mandrel 22 are shown. 71 etc.

Referring to FIG. 3, the outer arm 45 is directed to the upstream side in the mandrel movement direction, and the inner arm 65 is directed to the downstream side in the mandrel movement direction. The outer arm 45 and the inner arm 65 are urged inward by an outer spring 82 and an inner spring 81, respectively. The outer cam 51 has a rail shape extending in the direction of movement of the outer mandrel from the eighth station S8 to the ninth station S9, and has an outwardly bulging portion 51a in the middle of its length. The inner cam 71 is similar in shape to the outer cam 51, and has an outwardly bulging portion 71a extending from the eleventh station S11 to the twelfth station S12 in the inner mandrel moving direction.

[0026] The first feeder 31 stores blanks B folded flat so that they can be opened in a rectangular tube shape. Take out the first magazine 91 and one blank B each from the first magazine 91, open them in the shape of a rectangular tube, and out of the two outer mandrels 22 stopped at the first station S1, And a first picker 92 to be fitted over the outer mandrel 22. The blank B fitted on the outer mandrel 22 has an end to be a bottom protruding downward from the outer mandrel 22. The second to fourth feeders 32 to 34 are configured in accordance with the first feeder 31, and include second to fourth magazines 93 to 95 and second to fourth pickers 96 to 98. The blank B is supplied by the second feeder 32 to the inner outer mandrel 22 of the two outer mandrels 22 stopped at the second station S2. Of the two inner mandrels 23 stopped at the third station S3 by the third feeder 33, a blank is supplied to the outer inner mandrel 23, and stopped by the fourth feeder 34 at the fourth station S4. The blank B is supplied to the inner inner mandrel 23 of the two inner mandrels 23. The primary heater and the secondary heater heat the lower protruding end of the blank B sequentially. The end is folded flat by the breaker. The flat folded end is crimp-sealed by a sealing device. Thereby, the bottomed rectangular cylindrical container C is completed.

Immediately before the outer mandrel 22 holding the container C is stopped from being carried into the ninth station S9, the outer roller 46 is brought into contact with the outer cam 51, and the outer roller 46 is pushed outward. As a result, the outer body 42 is rotated counterclockwise in plan view with the center as the rotation axis. The rotation angle at this time is a radial straight line L1 extending from the rotation center Ol of the turntable 21 to the rotation axis 02 of the outer movable body 41 stopped at the ninth station S9, the first container transport path 13 and Is equal to θ1. Therefore, the two outer mandrels 22 after the rotation are arranged in the same direction as the two first holders 15 at the start ends of the first container transport path 13 and are respectively positioned directly above the holders 15. The container C fitted on the outer mandrel 22 is pulled out vertically downward by the first transfer device and transferred from the outer mandrel 22 to the first holder 15. When the outer mandrel 22 is carried out of the ninth station S9, the outer mandrel 22 is rotated in a direction opposite to that before being carried in from a state in which the outer roller 46 is restrained by the outer cam 51, and is returned to its original state by an outer spring 82. Returned to posture.

[0028] The manner in which the inner mandrel 23 holding the container C is rotated before being carried into the eleventh station S11 is the same as the case of the outer mandrel 22. The rotation angle in this case is It is equal to the angle Θ2 between the radial straight line L2 extending from the rotation center Ol of the bull 21 to the rotation axis 03 of the inner movable body 61 stopped at the eleventh station S11 and the second container transport path 14, The direction of rotation is opposite to that of outer mandrel 22 and is clockwise.

[0029] Since the mandrel is rotated while the turntable is rotating, the mandrel is in a position parallel to the conveyor transport path at the time of stoppage with no loss in machine operation, so that the mandrel can be smoothly moved from the mandrel to the conveyor. Containers can be transferred.

As means for rotating the mandrel, instead of urging the roller with a spring, the roller may be restrained by a cam over a required section of the roller moving path without using a spring. Further, a known method may be used as the driving method of rotating the mandrel by an air cylinder or a servomotor. Considering the simplicity of the cost and mechanism of the device, the driving by a cam and a roller can be suitably exemplified.

[0031] In the above description, the outer mandrel row and the inner mandrel row force also supply the container C to the left and right container transport paths. The mandrel row that separates from the two mandrel rows is one row, The mandrel mounting position and number of mandrels arranged in the mandrel moving direction from one mandrel row to the left and right container transport paths are not limited to this.

[0032] The shape of the turntable is, for example, a circle. A force such as a polygon or a star may be used. The turntable may be horizontal and inclined. In addition, the center of rotation of the turntable and the center of the mandrel movement path do not need to coincide with each other. Furthermore, the mandrel may be eccentric with respect to the turntable, in other words, the mandrel axis may not be parallel to the center of the turntable.

In addition, when viewed from the front, it is considered that the mandrel may be arranged in a substantially square shape in the design of the machine. The “axis parallel to the mandrel axis” is “force substantially parallel to the mandrel axis”. Axis parallel to ”and includes such cases.

[0034] Further, the mandrel movement path and the container transport path may not be crossed, and the former movement path may be in contact with the latter movement path. Industrial applicability

[0035] The packaging machine according to the present invention is, in particular, closed at one end of a rectangular cylindrical blank, molded into a bottomed cylindrical container, filled with the contents of the container, and then sealed and completed the container. Suitable to achieve a container.

Brief Description of Drawings

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a packaging machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a part of a turntable of the packaging machine.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view showing a part of the turntable.

Explanation of symbols

[0037] 11 Comparator

12 Container bottom forming device

21 turntable

22, 23 Mandrenore

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] A container bottom forming device is placed at the beginning of the container transport path of the conveyor, and the container bottom forming device hangs on the turntable and a circle around the rotation center of the turntable at regular intervals. A plurality of mandrels provided in the container.The turntable is arranged so as to connect the container transport path and the mandrel moving path when viewed from a plane, and is intermittent so as to stop the mandrel at the connection part. A packaging machine that is driven in a rotational manner and is rotatable around the mandrel axis or an axis parallel to the mandrel axis for each mandrel turntable.

[2] The radial straight line extending from the rotation center of the turntable to the rotation axis of the mandrel stopped at the connection portion is held at a predetermined angle with respect to the container transport path. Packaging machine.

[3] A container transfer station is provided at the same connection, and a blank supply station for stopping the mandrel is provided at a predetermined distance from the container transfer station. The mandrel is moved from the blank supply station to the container transfer station. A rotating means for rotating the mandrel in the forward direction to narrow the angle while moving the mandrel, and rotating the mandrel in the opposite direction while the mandrel is moved to the blank supply station with the force of the container transfer station. The packaging machine according to claim 2, comprising:

[4] A rotating means is fixed to the support member and has a cam surface, a roller rolling on the cam surface and mounted on a mandrel at a distance from the rotation axis, and pressing the roller against the cam surface. 4. The packaging machine according to claim 3, further comprising a rudder spring for urging the mandrel to rotate.