JPS6153111B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for controlling the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed in a container sterilizer, and the present invention relates to a method for controlling the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed in a container sterilizing apparatus, and the present invention relates to a method for controlling the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed in a container sterilizing apparatus, and a method for controlling the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed in a sterilizing packaging system. Its purpose is to configure the

Various sterilization packaging systems have already been proposed. Among other things, the present invention is characterized in that a pre-formed container is placed in a chamber, a spray is injected into the container from a nozzle, and the spray is taken out after a certain period of time, and then the sterilizing solution adhering to the container is dried with hot air, and the food is then sterilized in advance. This method attempts to control the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed in a method in which a container is filled with sterilizing liquid and a continuous lid material that has been previously sterilized is then sealed at the container opening.

By the way, in all conventional sterilization packaging systems, little consideration has been given to spraying of sterilization liquid. For this reason, the sterilizing liquid excessively adheres to the container, and the subsequent drying process takes a considerable amount of time.

That is, since the amount of sterilizing liquid adhering to the container cannot be detected, no matter which method is used, a somewhat larger amount of sterilizing liquid is sprayed to ensure complete sterilization of the container. As a result, conventionally, the number of stations used in the drying process of the sterilizing liquid in sterilizing packaging has been increased, or the transport of containers has been slowed down. However, this not only wastes the sterilizing solution but also leads to a decrease in productivity.

Furthermore, if the sterilizing liquid is supplied too frequently, the sterilizing liquid may remain in the container even after the drying process. Since the sterilizing liquid is not good for the human body, it is necessary to regulate the supply process so that the amount of the sterilizing liquid is not supplied in excess of the ability to remove the sterilizing liquid in the drying process.

On the other hand, it is also conceivable that an insufficient amount of the sterilizing liquid will be supplied due to some kind of problem, such as when air bubbles are generated in the sterilizing liquid pipe. Then, the amount of spray becomes too small, resulting in insufficient sterilization of the container.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems. That is, the present invention recognizes the amount of sterilizing liquid adhering to a container based on the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed around the container. Specifically, the spray near the container is irradiated with light, and the amount of transmitted light is measured at certain time intervals. Integrate the time, use the integrated value as the test time count number, and use these as the preset standard and auxiliary time count numbers.
A comparison is made with the standard and auxiliary integral values, and a spray supply stop signal or a spray supply increase signal is issued based on the comparison results, and the supply amount of the sterilizing liquid spray is controlled using this signal.

The embodiments shown in the drawings will be described below.

The aseptic packaging machine includes, for example, a container accumulation and holding section, a container supply section, a container sterilization section, a sterilizing solution drying section, a filling section, a lid sealing section, a lid supply supply section, a lid sterilization section, a lid drying section,
It consists of a cutting section and a product discharging section, and performs a series of processes from sterilization to filling and discharging for pre-formed containers, i.e., containers made of materials that can be formed into containers, such as A1, paper, thermoplastic resin, or composite materials thereof. It is now done in the process.

Here, the sterilizer is as shown in Figure 1.
It comprises an upper chamber 10 and a lower chamber 12, which constitute a container holder 1 constituting a conveyor for conveying containers 14 to be sterilized.
They are fixed so as to face each other across the travel path of No. 6.

A spray nozzle 18 for sterilizing liquid is installed in the upper and lower chambers 10, 12, respectively.
These nozzles are of a two-fluid type that uses airflow to create a spray, and as shown in Figure 2, there is an annular slit 20 at the tip that constantly jets heated sterile air.
By supplying compressed air to the cylinder cavity 24 and opening the needle valve 28 against the spring 26 inside the cavity, the sterilizing fluid is jetted out as a spray 30 by the jetting action of sterile air. I'm starting to do that.

Sterile air is generated by atmospheric air passing through the filter 32, then passing through the heater 34, the flow regulating valve 36, and then the annular slit 2.
It is constantly gushing from 0.

On the other hand, the sterilizing liquid is, for example, hydrogen peroxide solution, chlorine water, etc., which is preheated in the tank 38 by a heater 40 and further heated by a heater 42 to reach the nozzle hole 22.

Incidentally, the containers may be run in a single line, but preferably they are run in multiple lines.
Accordingly, the upper and lower chambers 10, 12 are sized to cover the entire width of the container 14, and a plurality of nozzles 18 are provided corresponding to each row of containers (not shown).

The needle valve 28 interrupts the supply of sterilizing liquid to the nozzle 18, and this operation is performed when the container 14 is present between the upper and lower chambers. That is, in the figure, the motor 44, speed reducer 46, Geneva gear 48, and sprocket 50 move the pedestal 16 intermittently in synchronization with the supply and filling of the container.
A signal is taken out from this system using a gear 52, a cam 54, a switch 56, etc. to open and close the solenoid valve 58.
The solenoid valve 58 may be shared by all nozzles, or may be provided for each nozzle or for each nozzle group.

Incidentally, in order to prevent excess spray from remaining in the chambers 10 and 12, exhaust pipes 60 and 62 are provided in each chamber. Negative pressure is applied to the exhaust pipe, and the surplus spray is discharged from the chamber within the time required for the container 14 to move between the chambers for escape, such as by using the solenoid valve 64 using the signal.

Further, since the heater 42 is provided, even when the sterilizing liquid is not being sprayed, the liquid leaving the tank 38 can be smoothly supplied or sprayed without getting cold. Moreover, since these heaters are close to both the upper and lower chambers, the chambers 10 and 12 are also heated, and even if the spray contacts the inner wall of the chamber, it is difficult to form droplets. Even if droplets are generated, the upper chamber 10
Since a flange-like protrusion 66 is provided at the lower end and a groove 68 is provided therein, the liquid does not drip into the container 14.

In this way, the spray is ejected from the upper and lower nozzles 18 each time the container 14 arrives, and even when the container 14 is not being ejected, the spray is appropriately heated by the constantly ejected heated sterile air, so that the spray is more uniform and fine. It adheres well to the entire surface of the container and has good sterilization properties.

The container onto which the sterilizing liquid has been sprayed as described above is then sent to a sterilizing liquid drying section. The drying section is configured to spray sterile heated air through a nozzle toward the container.

Once the sterilizing liquid has been dried off, the container 14 is then sent to a filling station.

In the filling section, contents such as completely sterilized food are filled in a fixed amount into the container 14 from a filling nozzle.

Next, as a lid for the container 14, A1, plastic,
A lid material such as a laminate of plastic and paper is supplied and sealed by matching it to the flange. Of course, the lid material is also sterilized and dried beforehand. Thereafter, if the container, the lid material, or both are continuous, a cutting blade cuts them into individual products on the container holder 16.

Through the above steps, a sterile airtight container filled with the contents is produced and transported to the product discharge section by a conveyor.

Here, the following measures have been taken to detect the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed inside the chamber and provide control of the spray amount 30, alarm, etc. That is, in order to detect the amount of spray, as shown in FIG. There is. In the present invention, the detection of excess or deficiency in the amount of spraying is also the detection of excess or deficiency in the amount of sterilizing liquid adhered to the container. Therefore, the light beam is preferably set to pass near the container. Note that it may also be provided under the container 14 as shown in the figure.

When the transmitted light hits fog particles in the chamber, losses such as reflection and absorption occur, and the loss increases or decreases depending on the density of the fog. You can know the amount of spray inside. However, since the chamber is a nearly closed system, the spray will add up over time. It is believed that this addition occurs within the sterilization time of each container or even within the sterilization time of a certain lot of containers.

Therefore, it is not possible to determine the appropriate amount of mist for sterilization by detecting the amount of transmitted light in a moment. Therefore, in the present invention, we consider the total amount within a certain time, and calculate the amount of spray by integrating the amount of transmitted light within a certain time and comparing the integrated amount with the integrated amount for a desired amount of fog measured in advance. We are trying to recognize whether there is too much or too little sterilizing liquid, or even too little sterilizing liquid adhering to the container.

3, 4 and 5 represent specific means for performing such operations. In the figure, 74 and 76 are opposed small holes provided in the chamber, and 78 and 80 are small cavities that respectively connect the holes and the light emitting/receiving section. The small cavities are provided to allow air curtains 82 and 84 to pass through. The air in the air curtain is as sterile air as it is supplied to the nozzle 18, and when it passes through the slots 86 provided above and below the small cavity, it becomes a curtain and the spray adheres to the glass plate 88 in front of the floodlight. prevent it from happening.

Here, it is assumed that a certain container 14 is supported by the pedestal 16 and enters the chamber. Then, a signal from switch 56 (FIG. 1) causes spray 30 to be fired into the chamber. At the same time, the start/stop circuit 90 causes the light projector 70 to emit light, or closes the gap between the light receiver 72, which is always receiving light, and the amplifier 92. Therefore, if the spray is supplied within a predetermined period of time during which the container is stopped within the chamber, the amount of light transmitted will rapidly decrease later for the reasons mentioned above. When this permeation amount is inverted by the inversion circuit 94, it becomes a spray amount, which corresponds to a change in the amount of spray, that is, the density, at each time within a predetermined period of time.

At the same time, the amount of transmitted light is divided by the pulse generator 96 and successively integrated by the integrating circuit 98.

The integral value thus obtained is as shown in FIG. 6, and is used as a test integral value and compared with another reference integral value and an auxiliary integral value by a comparator 100.

In Figure 6, a indicates excessive spraying, b indicates proper spraying, and c
If is insufficient, the integral value of b after the elapse of a predetermined spraying time can be set as the reference integral value XO, and the predetermined spraying time can be set as the reference time count number to.

Then, the time count number and integral value corresponding to a certain amount of sterilizing liquid spray during and after the elapse of the reference time count number are respectively defined as the test time count number t and the test integral value X, and each of the above-mentioned reference If one or both of the time count number to and the reference integral value XO are greater than or equal to the reference value, a spray supply stop signal shall be issued. In other words, t<
to, t=to, t<to and X<Xo, X=Xo, X>Xo
When the combination is other than t<to, X<Xo,
This will stop the spray supply. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the time counter 102 starts counting at the same time as the start of spraying, and sends the counted number to the comparator 100a as the test time count number. The verification integral value is also sent from the integrating circuit to the comparator 100a. A reference integral value Xo and a reference time count number to corresponding thereto are stored in advance in the comparator 100a. As a result of processing in the logic circuit of the comparator 100a,
As described above, except when t<to and X<Xo, if the test value exceeds the reference value, a spray supply stop signal is issued from the comparator 100a. Note that it is also necessary when the amount of spray is insufficient (for example, t=to, X<Xo), when it is appropriate (for example, t=to, X=Xo), and when it is too large (for example, t<to, X>Xo). Accordingly, each display signal is generated from the comparator.

The spray supply stop signal is used to stop spraying the sterilizing liquid from the nozzle 18. This signal is transmitted to the needle valve 2 as shown in FIG.
The air is sent to another valve (electromagnetic valve) 104 that is connected to the valve 58 that cuts off and on the working air of No. 8. As a result, the needle valve is no longer supplied with compressed air, and the nozzle hole 22 is closed by the action of the spring, cutting off the supply of sterilizing liquid. In addition, a switch device 106 may be provided in the signal path for opening and closing the valve 58, and the switch device 106 may be cut off by the above-mentioned spray supply stop signal (FIG. 1). As a result, the needle valve will stop supplying the sterilizing liquid, similar to the above.
Further, a valve may be provided in the sterile air supply path through which the sterilizing liquid is led out from the nozzle or in the sterilizing liquid supply path before the needle valve to cut off the sterile air supply path.

In addition, in response to the display signal, a lamp or a buzzer, etc. provided on the display 108 corresponding to excessive, appropriate, or insufficient spray supply amount is operated.

Further, if t>to, a time count abnormality signal is generated to notify the operator that spray is still being emitted from the nozzle even after the reference time has elapsed. On the other hand, the integral value of b before the elapse of the predetermined spraying time is the auxiliary integral value X ₁ , and the time is the auxiliary time count number t ₁
By setting it as , the shortage of spray supply is detected early and a supply increase signal is generated.

That is, when t=t ₁ and X<X ₁ an increase spray supply signal is generated, thereby increasing the spray supply to the container. in particular,
As shown in FIG. 5, X ₁ and t ₁ are stored in the comparator 100b and compared with the test values X and t from the time counter 102 and the integrating circuit 98. As a result, t=t ₁ and X<X If ₁ , comparator 1
A spray supply increase signal is issued from 00b.

This increase signal is sent to the valve 36 that functions as a pressure controller for the sterile heated air reaching the nozzle 18 or to the drive unit of the stopper screw 112, which is the needle valve opening adjustment unit 110, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 4, and 5. The valve of the pressure controller is fully opened or the needle valve is opened further. The device 110 for adjusting the opening degree of the needle valve 28 is a second
As shown in the figure, a driven gear 114 and a driving gear 11 are fixed to the rear end of the stopper screw 112.
6. Equipped with a step motor 118. When the above signal is applied to the motor 118, the screw 112 is turned by a predetermined angle, the stroke of the needle valve 28 is increased, and the nozzle hole 22 is further opened by the action of the air pressure in the cylinder cavity 24.

Therefore, the amount of spray supplied increases, and the integral value rises rapidly as shown by the broken line d in FIG. 6, approaching the curve b. In addition, the degree of increase is determined based on the above standard value.
It is checked by comparing with Xo and to.

The above control is performed for each container or each row of containers, and the integration circuit 98, display device 108, etc. are cleared by the clear circuit 120 after a series of steps within the cycle time are completed, and are kept on standby until the start of the next cycle. . Further, all displays and spray supply stop operations are controlled by the start/stop circuit 90.

As described above, the present invention injects a spray of sterilizing liquid from a nozzle into a chamber containing a container that is an object to be sterilized, irradiates the spray with a luminous flux, and sequentially adjusts the species value X of the amount of transmitted light and the time. Capture the count number t and use these as the reference and auxiliary time count numbers.
to, t ₁ and reference and auxiliary integral values Xo, X ₁ , and when the result of such comparison is other than t<to and X<Xo, the injection of the sterilizing liquid is stopped, and t=t ₁ ,
The amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed is increased when X<X ₁ .

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to detect the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed inside the chamber, which could not be done conventionally, and by using this detection result, it is possible to perform control to prevent insufficient or excessive supply of the spray. . This means that it is possible to prevent sterilization defects during the sterilization process, speed up the drying process of the sterilizing solution after the sterilization process, and also prevent problems caused by residual sterilizing solution after the drying process. be. This also means that after sterilization, it is possible to save on materials such as containers.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a container sterilizer. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an example of a two-fluid nozzle. FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a sterilizing liquid spray amount detection unit applied to the sterilizing device. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the sterilizing liquid spray amount detection section in FIG. 3 together with a block diagram for processing a detection signal. FIG. 5 is a logic circuit diagram of the comparator in the above block diagram. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the relationship between the integral value of the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed and time. 10, 12...chamber, 14...container, 1
8...Nozzle, 24...Cylinder empty space, 28...
Needle valve, 30... Spray, 36... Pressure controller, 56... Timing switch, 58...
Solenoid valve, 70... Emitter, 72... Light receiver, 96
...Pulse generator, 98...Integrator circuit, 100...
...Comparator, 102...Time counter,
104... Solenoid valve, 106... Switch device, 1
10...Needle valve opening adjustment section.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A method for controlling the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed, which comprises the following items. a. Irradiating the sterilizing liquid spray injected into the chamber from the two-fluid nozzle with a light beam; b. Determining the amount of sterilizing liquid spray suitable for sterilizing the containers in the chamber as an integral value of the amount of transmitted light of the light beam within a predetermined time. , and the predetermined time and integral value shall be the standard time count number and standard integral value, respectively. The values are set as each test count number and test integral value, and compared with the above reference time count number and reference integrated value, respectively. If one or both are above the reference value, a spray supply stop signal is generated, and the above signal is used. To stop the injection of sterilizing liquid from the two-fluid nozzle d To set the auxiliary time count number and auxiliary integral value smaller than the above standard time count number and standard integral value e The above test count number is the above auxiliary When the time count is reached, the corresponding tested integral value is compared with the above-mentioned auxiliary integral value, and if it is lower than that, a spray supply increase signal is generated, and the signal increases the amount of sterilizing liquid sprayed from the above-mentioned two-fluid nozzle. 2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein the spray supply increase signal at e is sent to a pressure controller for compressed air leading to the two-fluid nozzle. 3. The control method according to claim 1, wherein the spray supply increase signal at the time e is sent to an opening adjustment section in the needle valve of the two-fluid nozzle.