JP3890670B2 - Sterilizer - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a sterilization apparatus, for example, a sterilization apparatus for sterilizing the outer surface of a container before supplying the container to a filler (filling machine) in an aseptic filling line.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, aseptic filling has been widely performed in which food containers such as drinking water, medicines, and the like are filled in containers in an aseptic atmosphere surrounded by a sealed chamber. In such an aseptic filling line, since a person cannot enter and exit the aseptic space during operation, it is necessary to prevent a fatal conveyance trouble from occurring. For this purpose, it is necessary to prevent the container from falling over during conveyance in the chamber as much as possible.
[0003]
Conventionally, a normal transport conveyor such as a top chain type conveyor is used for transporting containers in the aseptic filling line. In such a general transport conveyor that is generally used, the container is transported upright on its transport surface, so lightweight containers such as PET bottles are unstable and fall over during transport. Cheap. Further, even with other containers, it is difficult to improve the processing capability because they are easily overturned when transported at high speed.
[0004]
In order to prevent the container from falling over as described above, a lightweight container such as a plastic bottle may be conveyed by an air conveyance conveyor. However, in the air conveyance conveyor, air is blown to the container, and the container is slid and conveyed on the support rail supporting the neck etc. In some cases, it is transported in close contact with each other, and it is impossible to transport the container with an appropriate interval between the containers.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the aseptic filling line is provided with a sterilizing device for sterilizing the inside and outside of the container before filling with the filler. This container sterilization apparatus uses a hydrogen peroxide solution (H) in the form of a mist while a container carried into a sterilization chamber is continuously conveyed by a conveying means. ₂ O ₂ The sterilization liquid is sprayed on the entire surface of the container, and sterilization is performed by drying the adhered sterilization liquid during subsequent transport. Therefore, if the container is continuously conveyed in contact with the container, the sterilizing liquid cannot be attached to the contacted part, and a part that is not sterilized remains on a part of the outer surface of the container.
[0006]
As described above, when containers are transported by an air transport conveyor, the containers may be transported in a state where the distance between the containers is random and in close contact with each other. In such a case, since the sterilizing liquid cannot be attached to the portions of the container that are in contact with each other, a portion that is not sterilized remains in a part of the container. For this reason, it has been difficult to sterilize containers while transporting containers using an air transport conveyor in an aseptic filling line equipped with a sterilizer.
[0007]
The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. By using an air conveyance conveyor, it is possible to convey an unstable container such as a PET bottle, and the container falls down even if high-speed conveyance is performed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sterilization apparatus that eliminates the risk of sterilization and that can completely sterilize the entire outer surface of the container.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A sterilization apparatus according to the present invention includes a bottle separator that separates containers conveyed by an air conveyance conveyor, a sterilization chamber into which a container separated by the bottle separator is carried, and a sterilization chamber that is disposed in the sterilization chamber. The container is separated by a bottle separator, a conveying means that grips and conveys the container, a first sterilizing liquid spraying means that is disposed in the sterilization chamber and sprays and attaches the sterilizing liquid to the container conveyed by the conveying means. Before the container is gripped by the conveying means, a second spraying means for spraying and adhering a sterilizing liquid to the gripped portion of the container in advance is provided.
[0009]
In the sterilization apparatus, the containers conveyed by the air conveying conveyor are separated by the bottle separator and then loaded into the sterilization chamber, so that the containers are not in contact with each other. As a result, the sterilizing solution is not attached and no part is sterilized. In addition, since the sterilizing liquid is sprayed in advance on the portion gripped by the conveying means by the second spraying means, the gripped portion of the container can be completely sterilized.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention will be described below with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an entire aseptic filling system including a sterilizing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Inside the clean room 2 that accommodates the entire aseptic filling system, an aseptic zone that is partitioned from the environment of the surrounding clean room 2 by a series of sealed chambers 4 and that maintains a high degree of sterility is provided. The container B (see FIG. 4) supplied from the outside into the clean room 2 by the conveyor 6 is carried into the chamber 4 constituting the sterilization zone via the air transfer conveyor 6. The series of sealed chambers 4 forms a sterilization zone by sealing the conveyance path of the container B from the bottle separator 8 described later to a container processing apparatus such as a filler (filling machine) 28 on the downstream side. Yes.
[0011]
The container B carried into the chamber 4 is further transported by the air transport conveyor 6 and sent to the bottle separator 8. As will be described later, the air conveying conveyor 6 blows air onto the container B and slides it on the support rail by this air pressure, so that the distance between the containers B is random and the container B is in contact with each other. May be. In such a case, since the sterilizing solution cannot be attached to the contacted part, sterilization is impossible. Therefore, each container B is separated at a predetermined interval by the bottle separator 8 to constitute the sterilizing apparatus 1. It carries in in the sterilization chamber 10 (refer FIG. 2 thru | or 4) to perform.
[0012]
As shown in FIG. 2, the inside of the sterilization chamber 10 has upper and lower partition walls 12, 13, 14, 15 (FIG. 5 and FIG. 5) disposed respectively upstream and downstream of the sterilization chamber 10. 6), the upper part 16 is divided into the central sterilization part 18 and the downstream part 20. Needless to say, the partition walls 12, 13, 14, and 15 are formed with notches through which the container B and the container holding and conveying means 22 described later pass.
[0013]
In the sterilization unit 18 at the center of the sterilization chamber 10, a container holding and conveying mechanism 22 that grips and conveys the container B separated by the bottle separator 8 at a predetermined interval, and the holding and conveying mechanism 22 holds and conveys the container B. Hydrogen peroxide solution (H ₂ O ₂ The sterilizing liquid spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D are provided for spraying a sterilizing liquid such as) in the form of a mist to adhere to the outer surface thereof. The length of the sterilizing unit 18, particularly the length after the position where the sterilizing liquid is sprayed by the sterilizing liquid spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D, takes into account the attachment time of the sterilizing liquid necessary for sterilization and the conveyance speed. However, in the case of pneumatic conveyance, the container B cannot be conveyed at a constant speed, and therefore, the holding and conveying mechanism 22 grips and conveys the sterilization so as not to vary.
[0014]
Further, in the upstream portion 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, air is blown by the continuous air transport conveyor 6 from the bottle separator 8 side so that the container B is transported. A sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 for attaching the sterilizing liquid to a portion gripped by the holding and conveying mechanism 22 of the sterilizing unit 18 is provided.
[0015]
Further, the container B to which the sterilizing liquid is adhered in the sterilization unit 18 is released from the holding and transporting mechanism 22 again in the downstream unit 20, transported by the air transport conveyor 6, and sent out of the sterilization chamber 10. The container B in which the sterilizing liquid is attached to the entire outer surface is dried and sterilized while being transported through a series of chambers 4 sealed by the air transport conveyor 6. The container B, which has been dried and sterilized while being transported by the air conveyor 6 in the sealed chamber 4, is a decapper (plugper) 26, a filler (filler) 28, and a capper (striking), which are the next steps. After being sent to a container processing apparatus such as a plugging machine 30 and processed, it is carried out of the clean room 2.
[0016]
Next, the structure of the air conveyance conveyor 6 will be described with reference to FIG. 7 showing a cross section taken along the line VII-VII in FIG. 2 and FIG. The air conveyor 6 includes two parallel support rails 32 and 33 that support the container B. In addition, the container B transported by the air transport conveyor 6 according to the present embodiment has a flange-shaped engagement portion Bb formed at the mouth portion Ba, and the both support rails 32 and 33 are formed at the mouth of the container B. They are arranged in parallel at intervals slightly wider than the outer diameter of the portion Ba and at intervals narrower than the outer diameter of the flange-like engagement portion Bb. Therefore, each container B is supported by the two support rails 32 and 33 on the lower surface side of the flange-like engagement portion Bb and is conveyed in a suspended state.
[0017]
An air duct 34 composed of a top surface, both side surfaces, and a bottom surface is disposed above the two support rails 32 and 33, and air is introduced into the air duct 34 from an air supply source (not shown). In addition, a passage 36 having a size through which the mouth portion Ba of the container B can pass is formed above the space formed between the two support rails 32 and 33 inside the air duct 34. The passage 36 through which the mouth portion Ba passes is covered with both side plates and a top plate, and a large number of air blows opening toward the front side (downstream side) in the traveling direction at predetermined intervals. An outlet 38 (see FIG. 2) is formed, and the air introduced into the air duct 34 is blown from the outlet 38 toward the mouth Ba of the container B. It slides on the support rails 32 and 33 and is fed forward (in this embodiment, to the right in FIG. 2).
[0018]
The containers B that are continuously conveyed by the air conveyor 6 and sent to the bottle separator 8 are separated one by one by the bottle separator 8 that conveys the body portion Bc of the containers B from both sides, and is spaced from each other. And is carried into the sterilization chamber 10. As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, the bottle separator 8 includes horizontally rotating rollers 41, 42, and 43 that are arranged in pairs on both sides of the conveyance path of the containers B conveyed by the air conveyance conveyor 6. , 44 and endless belts 45, 46 wound around the pair of rollers 41, 42 and 43, 44, respectively. These belts 45 and 46 are provided with elastic bodies 45a and 46a on the outer surface side in order to hold a lightweight and flexible container B such as a PET bottle. The elastic bodies 45a and 46a attached to the belts 45 and 46 on both sides hold the container B conveyed by the air conveyor 6 from both sides, and the belts 45 and 46 travel to move the containers B together. Transport while separating the books one by one. The container B separated at a predetermined interval is carried into the aseptic chamber 10 connected to the downstream side.
[0019]
Of the pair of left and right horizontally rotating rollers 41, 42, 43, 44, the driving side rollers (the rollers located on the right side in FIG. 10) 41, 43 are respectively a drive transmission rod 47, 48 and a gear box (not shown). Are connected to a motor 52 (see FIG. 12) through the like, and the rotation of the motor 52 is transmitted to cause both the rods 47 and 48 to simultaneously rotate in the opposite directions, so that both rollers 41 and 43 are also opposite to each other. Rotate. Due to the rotation of the rollers 41 and 43, the belts 45 and 46 on both sides run in the same direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 10). As shown in FIG. 11, a bellows 51 is mounted around the portion inserted into the chamber 4A at the upper ends of the rods 47 and 48 so that the atmosphere outside the clean room 2 is inside the chamber 4A. Preventing intrusion.
[0020]
The bottle separator 8 is configured such that the belts 45 and 46 on both sides can be moved in a parallel state so that the distance between the bottle separators 8 can be adjusted so that the bottle separator 8 can be used for different sizes of containers B. A mechanism for adjusting the distance between the belts 45 and 46 on both sides constituting the bottle separator 8 will be briefly described. Each pair of rollers 41, 42, 43, 44 and belts 45, 46 respectively disposed on both sides of the air conveyor 6 are mounted on separate support plates 59, 60 so that they can be moved separately. It has become. Two cylindrical bodies 61, 62, 63, 64 are provided on the lower surfaces of the support plates 59, 60, and short shafts 65, 66, 64 are provided in the cylindrical bodies 61, 62, 63, 64, respectively. 67 and 68 are rotatably fitted. Further, below these short shafts 65, 66, 67, 68, they are fitted into guide cylinders 72, 73, 74 (one not shown) fixed upright on the machine casing 70. Long shafts 75, 76, 77, 78 that are rotatably supported are arranged, and these short shafts 65, 66, 67, 68 and long shafts 75, 76, 77, 78 are shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG.
[0021]
Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the two long shafts 76 and 78 positioned on the upstream side (left side in FIG. 10) are rotated by the rotation of the gears 79 and 80, respectively. The two gears 79 and 80 mesh with each other. When one of the gears 79 is rotated by the operation of the handle 82, the other 80 rotates in the opposite direction. Then, both the long shafts 76 and 78 rotate in reverse to each other. Further, the rotations of the two long shafts 76 and 78 on the upstream side are transmitted to the two long shafts 75 and 77 on the downstream side, and are rotated in the same direction. Accordingly, by rotating the gear 79 by operating the handle 82, the pair of support plates 59 and 60 that support the rollers 41, 42, 43, and 44 are moved in a state parallel to the air conveying conveyor 6 to each other. Can be approached or separated.
[0022]
In the sterilization chamber 10 into which the containers B separated by the first-stage bottle separator 8 are carried, a container holding and transporting mechanism 22 for gripping and transporting these containers B from both sides is disposed. The container holding and conveying mechanism 22 is disposed in the upstream portion 16 of the sterilization chamber 10 and is supported by a horizontal shaft 84 and rotates in a vertical plane, and a pair of idle sprockets 86 and 87 (see FIGS. 2 and 3), A pair of drive sprockets 90 and 91 (see FIGS. 2, 3 and 7) disposed in the downstream portion 20 and supported by the drive shaft 88 and rotating in a vertical plane, and the upstream and downstream sprockets. 86, 90 and 87, 91 are provided with endless chains 92, 93, respectively. A grip member 94 made of a synthetic resin such as silicon and having a kamaboko shape as shown in FIG. 13 is continuously attached to the opposite surfaces of the chains 92 and 93 on both sides (FIGS. 2 and 14). reference).
[0023]
Guide rails 96 and 97 for guiding the travel of the chains 92 and 93 are disposed outside the both chains 92 and 93. As shown in FIG. 2, the guide rails 96 and 97 on both sides are arranged between the upstream idle sprockets 86 and 87 and the downstream drive sprockets 90 and 91. The distance is smaller than the distance between the sprockets 86, 87 and 90, 91 on both sides (see FIG. 3). When the chains 92 and 93 are directly supported by the sprockets 86, 87 and 90, 91 on both sides, the gap of the grip member 94 is larger than the outer diameter of the container B as shown in FIG. The distance between the grip members 94 when the chains 92 and 93 are supported by the guide rails 96 and 97 is slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the container B as shown in FIGS. In addition, the portions of the chains 92 and 93 that run on the upper side of the sprockets 86, 87, 90, and 91 coincide with the height of the trunk portion Bc of the container B suspended by the support rails 32 and 33. ing. Therefore, while the both chains 92 and 93 are guided by the guide rails 96 and 97 and are running, the grip members 96 and 97 can carry the body Bc of the container B from both sides. It has become.
[0024]
In the upstream part 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, as shown in FIG. 2, an air outlet 38 of an air duct 34 that constitutes the air transport conveyor 6 is provided, and the container B separated by the bottle separator 8 is this When it is carried into the upstream portion 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, air is blown to the mouth Ba of the container B, and these containers B are transported toward the downstream side and delivered to the container holding and transporting mechanism 22. In the sterilization unit 18 at the center of the sterilization chamber 10, the container B is held and transported by the holding and transport mechanism 22, and is not transported by air. Therefore, only the support rails 32 and 33 on both sides for supporting the flange Bb provided in the mouth portion Ba of the container B are provided, and the air outlet 38 for blowing air to the mouth portion Ba is not provided. In addition, the support rails 32 and 33 provided in the sterilization part 18 are attached to the bars 98 and 99 (refer to FIG. 2, FIG. 8, FIG. 9, etc.) extended in the longitudinal direction arranged above.
[0025]
On the inlet side of the upstream portion 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, a hydrogen peroxide solution (H ₂ O ₂ A sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 for spraying a sterilizing liquid such as) in the form of a mist is provided. The sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 is opened at a height that substantially coincides with the conveying side (the portion that travels above) of the endless chains 92 and 93, and is suspended and conveyed by the air conveying conveyor 6. The sterilizing liquid is sprayed and attached to the position of the container B to be gripped later by the grip member 94 of the container holding and transporting mechanism 22.
[0026]
A plurality of sterilizing liquid spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D are arranged in the central sterilization section 18 partitioned by the front and rear partition walls 12, 13, and 14, 15 with different heights of the air outlets. Has been. In this embodiment, four spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D are arranged in order from the upstream side, and the spray duct 24A near the upstream partition walls 12, 13 is located at the lowest position, that is, from the bottom of the container B. Is also open downward (see FIGS. 2 and 16). Further, an air injection nozzle 100 is disposed at almost the same height as the outlet of the spray duct 24A near the upstream partition walls 12 and 13 and directly below the transport path of the container B (see FIG. 15 and FIG. 16). Air is supplied to the air nozzle 100 via a pipe 102, and the sterilizing liquid sprayed from the spray duct 24A near the upstream partition walls 12 and 13 is sprayed toward the bottom surface Bd of the container B. .
[0027]
The next spray duct 24B opens slightly below the support rails 32, 33, and the two downstream spray ducts 24C, 24D open at substantially the same height above the support rails 32, 33. The mist-like sterilizing liquid is sprayed on the body Bc and the mouth Ba of the container B, respectively. Further, an air injection pipe 102 for injecting air toward the inside of the sterilization chamber 10 is provided on the downstream side of these four sterilizing liquid spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D (FIGS. 15 and 17). reference). The air injection pipe 102 prevents the sterilizing liquid sprayed from the sterilizing liquid spray pipes 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D from directly spraying on the outer surface of the container B and then diffusing to the downstream side of the sterilizing unit 18. In addition, air is sprayed from the surroundings toward the conveyance path of the container B to block the spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D side and the downstream side thereof. Of course, the air jetted from the air nozzle 100 and the air jet pipe 102 is air sterilized by a sterile filter or the like.
[0028]
The container B transported by the container holding and transporting mechanism 22 and having the sterilizing liquid attached to the entire outer surface is released from the grip member 94 of the holding and transporting mechanism 22 at the downstream portion 20 of the sterilization chamber 10 and is again in the air transporting conveyor 6. It is conveyed by the air blown from the blowout port 38 and is discharged from the sterilization chamber 10. The container B discharged from the sterilization chamber 10 is conveyed by the air conveyance conveyor 6 in the series of sealed chambers 4 and sent to the decapper 26, the filler 28, the capper 30 and the like in the next step, and the sterilizing liquid is in the meantime. dry.
[0029]
Next, the operation of the sterilizer 1 will be described. The containers B that have been continuously transported by the air transport conveyor 6 are held and transported one by one from both sides by the bottle separator 8 and are spaced apart from each other. The container B separated forward and backward by the bottle separator 8 is again carried into the sterilization chamber 10 by air conveyance. When the container B enters the upstream part 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, the sterilizing liquid is supplied from the opening of the sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 provided on the inlet side of the upstream part 16 while being transported by the air transport conveyor 6. It is sprayed and adheres to the outer surface of the container B. As described above, the sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 opens at substantially the same height as the conveyance side of the container holding and conveying mechanism 22, and is gripped by the grip member 94 of the container B and the container holding and conveying mechanism 22 later. The sterilizing solution is sprayed on the position.
[0030]
These containers B with the sterilizing liquid adhering to a part of the body part Bc are transported by the air transport conveyor 6 as they are, and in the vicinity of the position where they are carried into the sterilization part 18 from the upstream part 16 of the sterilization chamber 10, It is gripped by the grip member 94. At this time, the sterilizing liquid sprayed from the sterilizing liquid spray duct 25 of the upstream portion 16 has already adhered to the position where the grip member 94 attached to the endless chains 92 and 93 contacts the container B. .
[0031]
While being transported through the sterilization unit 20 by the container holding and transporting mechanism 22, the sterilization liquid is sprayed from the four sterilization liquid spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D provided in the sterilization unit 20, respectively. It adheres to the outer surface of the container B. From the spray duct 24 </ b> A near the upstream partition walls 12, 13, the sterilizing liquid is sprayed in the direction crossing the aseptic chamber 10 below the bottom surface Bd of the container B. The air nozzle 100 is provided at substantially the same height as the air outlet of the spray duct 24A, and the sterilized liquid sprayed from the spray duct 24A by the air jetted from the air nozzle 100 is provided on the bottom surface Bd and the lower side of the container B. Adhere to. Further, the sterilizing liquid sprayed from the next spray duct 24b adheres to the body Bc of the container B, and the sterilized liquid sprayed from the two downstream spray ducts 24C and 24D adheres to the mouth Ba of the container B. Then, the sterilizing liquid adheres to the entire outer surface other than the portion gripped by the grip member 94 of the container holding and conveying mechanism.
[0032]
When spraying a mist-like sterilizing solution in the sterilization unit 18 to adhere to the outer surface of the container B, the container B is gripped and transported by the grip member 94 of the holding and transporting mechanism 22. Although the sterilizing liquid cannot be attached to the portion where the grip member 94 is in close contact, as described above, before the grip member 94 is carried into the sterilization unit 18 and gripped by the grip member 94 of the holding and conveying mechanism 22, the grip Since the sterilizing liquid is previously attached to the position by spraying from the spray duct 25 in the upstream portion 16, the sterilizing liquid can be completely attached to the entire outer surface of the container B. Therefore, even in the aseptic filling system in which the container B is transported by the air transport conveyor 6, a sterilization apparatus that can completely sterilize the entire outer surface of the container B can be obtained.
[0033]
An air injection pipe 102 is provided on the downstream side of the spray ducts 24A, 24B, 24C, and 24D in the sterilization unit 18 so as to surround the transport path of the container B, and the spray ducts 24A, 24B, and 24C are provided. The atmosphere of the mist-like sterilizing liquid sprayed from 24D toward the container B is blocked from being brought downstream.
[0034]
While being transported through the sterilization unit 18 by the container holding and transporting mechanism 22, the container B attached by spraying the sterilization liquid on the entire outer surface moves from the sterilization unit 18 of the sterilization chamber 10 into the downstream unit 20, It is released from the container holding and transporting mechanism 22, transported again by the air transporting conveyor 6, and transported out of the sterilization chamber 10. While being conveyed to the next step (decapper 26, filler 28, capper 30 and the like) by the air conveying conveyor 6 as they are, these containers are sterilized by drying the sterilizing liquid adhering to the outer surface of the container B. In particular, in this embodiment, the air blown from the air outlet 38 of the air conveyor 6 has a slightly elevated temperature (for example, 30 ° C. to 50 ° C.). Dry while being sent. The section in which the container B is dried while being transported by the air transport conveyor 6 can secure the time required for dry sterilization.
[0035]
The bottle separator 8 is configured such that the container B that has been continuously conveyed is separated by holding and conveying the container B by a pair of belts 45 and 46 facing each other. However, the bottle separator 8 is not limited to a belt. Other means such as a screw can also be used. Further, the container holding and conveying mechanism 22 in the sterilization chamber 10 is not limited to the above configuration. Further, the configuration of the air transport conveyor 6 is not limited to the one that blows and transports air to the mouth portion Ba of the container B as described above, and may be transported by blowing air to the body portion Bc or the like. Further, the number of the sterilizing liquid spray ducts 25, 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D and the arrangement of the openings are not limited to those shown in the figure, and the sterilizing liquid is securely attached to the entire surface of the container B. It only has to be obtained. The sterilizing solution is hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂ Of course, it is not limited to.
[0036]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, in the sterilization apparatus according to the present invention, after the container conveyed by the air conveyance conveyor is separated by the bottle separator, the container is supplied into the sterilization chamber and is conveyed by the conveying means provided in the sterilization chamber. While the container is gripped and transported, the sterilizing liquid is sprayed onto the container by the first sterilizing liquid spraying means. Further, before gripping by the transporting means, the container is placed at a gripped position. Since the sterilizing liquid is sprayed and adhered in advance by the second spraying means, it is possible to completely sterilize the entire outer surface of the container that has been transported by the air transport conveyor. Therefore, an unstable container can be transported to the aseptic filling line or the like by using an air transport conveyor, and high-speed transport can be performed to improve the processing capacity.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an arrangement of an aseptic filling system equipped with a sterilization apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a side view of the sterilization apparatus.
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the sterilization apparatus.
4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a partition plate that partitions the upstream part and the sterilization part of the sterilization apparatus.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a partition plate that partitions a sterilization part and a downstream part of the sterilization apparatus.
7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG.
8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.
9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX in FIG.
FIG. 10 is a plan view of a bottle separator.
FIG. 11 is a side view of a bottle separator.
FIG. 12 is a front view of a bottle separator.
FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a grip member of the container holding and conveying mechanism.
FIG. 14 is a plan view showing an upstream part of the sterilization apparatus and a part of the sterilization part.
FIG. 15 is a side view showing an upstream part of the sterilization apparatus and a part of the sterilization part.
16 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XVI-XVI in FIG.
17 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XVII-XVII in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
B container
6 Air conveyor
8 Bottle separator
10 Sterilization chamber
22 Transport means (holding transport mechanism)
24A Spraying means (spraying duct)
24B Spraying means (spray duct)
24C Spraying means (spray duct)
24D spraying means (spray duct)
25 Second spray means (spray duct)

Claims (1)

A bottle separator that separates the containers conveyed by the air conveyor, a sterilization chamber in which the containers separated by the bottle separator are loaded, a conveying means that grips and conveys the containers, and the conveying means A first spraying means for spraying the sterilizing liquid onto the container being transported, and a second spraying the sterilizing liquid onto the gripped portion of the container before gripping the container separated by the bottle separator by the transporting means. And a spraying means.

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