Liquid filling method

Details Liquid filling method Liquid filling method

2002-10-09

2004-06-29

Douglas, Steven O. (Department: 3751)

Fluent material handling, with receiver or receiver coacting mea

With conveying means to supply successive receivers

C141S172000, C141S275000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06755222

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a liquid filling method capable of filling liquid such as juice, milk and the like into containers at a rate of as high as 3500 container
ozzle·hour (2-pitch feed), and a high-speed liquid filling machine used in said method.
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
Hitherto, a high-speed liquid filling machine provided with a filling station as shown in
FIG. 1
, for example, has been known as a high-speed liquid filling machine for filling liquid such as milk, juice and the like into paper containers. Said high-speed liquid filling machine is provided with a machine frame
1
which has a filling station, a carrying conveyor
2
capable of carrying a container such that it is sequentially stopped at the filling station, a rotative body
4
having a radial mandrel
3
which is disposed upward of the starting end of the carrying route of said carrying conveyor
2
, a filling apparatus
8
having a filling tank
5
, a quantifying cylinder
6
and a filling nozzle
7
and a container raising-lowering apparatus
9
which are disposed at the filling station in the midpoint of the carrying route, a heat-sealer
10
disposed at the latter half of the carrying route, and the like.
The filling and packing by using the high-speed liquid filling machine mentioned above comprises the steps of: first, a container material (carton blank) is retrieved while spreading into a tetragonal cylinder shape from a magazine
11
which retains a container material capable of forming into a tetragonal cylinder shape and is sequentially inserted to a mandrel
3
, then the end portion which is to become the bottom of the container is heated by a bottom heating apparatus
12
, the end portion around the container which had been heated is evenly interfolded by a container end portion interfolding apparatus
13
, the aforementioned end portion which had been evenly interfolded is pressed and made to a tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom by a container bottom pressing apparatus
14
, and said tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom is transferred from the mandrel to a container holder attached to a chain
15
. The aforementioned carrying conveyor
2
is comprised of a chain
15
that is linked with said multiple container holders and a pair of sprockets
16
and
17
that is each provided at the starting end and finishing end of the carrying route which the chain
15
is bridged.
The tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom, which had been transferred to the carrying conveyor, is intermittently carried above a rail
18
that takes and guides the bottom of the container by the container holder attached to chain
15
. Said container reaches the filling station via a preparatory interfolding apparatus
19
that puts a crease so that the top portion of the tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom can easily be interfolded into a roof-shape, and a sterilizing apparatus
20
that sterilizes the interior of the container by spraying hydrogen peroxide solution and/or ultraviolet irradiation. After the tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom which is intermittently carried and stops at the filling station is pushed up by the container raising-lowering apparatus
9
and reaches the upper dead point, the filling of liquid from the filling nozzle
7
is started. The filling while lowering continues until the tip of the filling nozzle
7
comes off from the container by the lowering of the container, and carrying of the container is started almost at the same time as the completion of the filling. The tetragonal cylinder shaped container with a bottom in which liquid had been filled passes through a main interfolding apparatus
21
that eventually interfolds the top portion of the container which a crease had been put to a roof-shape, and through a container top portion heating apparatus
22
that heats the sealed surface of the top portion of the container which had been interfolded, and the top portion of the container is heat-sealed by a heat-sealer
10
that presses the top portion of the container, followed by printing of the date or the like by a printing apparatus
23
, and is discharged as a product of a package filled with liquid.
To date, in a filling method of liquid such as milk, juice or the like into paper containers that had been carried by an intermittently driving conveyor and stops sequentially at the filling station by using the aforementioned high-speed liquid filling apparatus, a method had been adopted wherein filling is started from the filling nozzle where its tip is adjacent to the bottom of the container, at the time the container is pushed up by the container raising-lowering apparatus and reaches the upper dead point, and filling is conducted while lowering the container so that the liquid filled does not contact the tip of the tip of the filling nozzle, in order to prevent foaming, spattering and shaking of the liquid. Further, the maximum flow rate of the filling could be reduced in order to prevent foaming, spattering, and shaking of liquid effectively, which occur when filling liquid into a paper container. Since it is necessary to make the fill time as long as possible in order to reduce the maximum flow rate of the filling when the filling amount is constant, filling was continued also when the tip of the filling nozzle is withdrawn from the container in the above-mentioned conventional manner of filling only during the lowering of the container. In such case, the distance between the tip of the nozzle and the fill level became large, causing problems such as foaming of the liquid, and the sealed surface which is heat-sealed after the filling being contaminated due to spattering of the liquid.
Further, as a result of extending the fill time, the timing for draining in the filling nozzle became slow, and the liquid was adhered to the sealed surface, and the liquid surface immediately after the filling became unstable, causing a problem which had a bad effect on high-speed filling due to the shaking of liquid or the like when carrying. In addition, since the filling at the point it reaches the upper dead point starts where the container is empty, the distance between the tip portion of the nozzle and the bottom of the container is set to an adjacent distance of 5 to 10 mm in view of the spattering and foaming, and therefore, the filling amount near the upper dead point cannot be increased. Therefore, the maximum flow rate for filling had to be increased in order for the filling to be conducted within a given period of time, which often caused foaming, spattering, and shaking of liquid. Extending the fill time can be considered in order to improve said situation of filling. However, in that case, the time for lowering the container becomes long, causing the time the intermittently carrying conveyor is stopped to become longer, inevitably making the transport time of the conveyor shortened when speed up is planned. Consequently, the shaking of liquid becomes harder as the acceleration flow rate when transporting increases, and there was a concern that the sealed surface would be contaminated and cause seal defection.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Planning of the speed up of machine is concerned in order to improve the filling capability in a filling machine. The more the speed up is planned, the more the operation cycle of the machine becomes shorter, thereby making the fill time required for one container shorter, and liquid corresponding to the inside capacity of the container is filled within a limited time of about one second, and is necessary to carry to the next process. In order to do so, the discharge flow rate during the filling has to be increased, however, increasing the flow rate generates foaming, spattering, and shaking of liquid. The filling capability is determined according to the generation of said foaming, spattering, and shaking of liquid, and to date, it could not exceed 3000 containers
ozzle·hour (2-pitch feed). An object of the present invention is to provide a liqui

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