JP6848751B2 - Extruder cleaning equipment and cleaning method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cleaning device and a cleaning method for removing dirt adhering to the inner wall of the barrel of an extruder.

Since one extruder that kneads stabilizers, pigments, etc. into a resin material produces a plurality of types of resin pellets, the material is frequently changed. The inner wall of the barrel of the extruder is cleaned so that the materials used in the previous manufacture do not affect the later manufacture.

In the conventional cleaning work, for example, one end of a rod having a length equal to or longer than the barrel length is attached to the hand drill, a wire brush is attached to the other end (tip) of the rod, and an operator holding the hand drill moves back and forth. The rotating wire brush was repeatedly reciprocated in the longitudinal direction of the barrel to remove the resin remaining on the inner wall of the barrel. However, the hand drill is heavy and vibrates, and there is a limit to the time during which the cleaning work can be continuously performed. When there is only one worker, the washing work is performed while taking a break, so it takes time to complete the washing, which hinders the improvement of the operating efficiency of the extruder. It is conceivable that a plurality of workers take turns performing the cleaning work, but this requires human cost.

Patent Document 1 proposes a cleaning device in which a brush is attached to the tip end side of a rotating shaft, the base end side of the rotating shaft is attached to a motor serving as a rotation driving means, and the motor is mounted on an installation support base. A caster as a traveling means is provided at the lower end of the installation support base. The screw port and the like are cleaned by moving the installation support base and inserting it from the front side to the rear side of the screw port of the barrel while rotating the rotating shaft. In this cleaning device, since the motor is mounted on the installation support base, the burden on the operator can be reduced as compared with the cleaning work in which the hand drill is held by hand. However, in order to clean the inner wall of the barrel, the operator needs to move the installation support back and forth, which requires manpower and is costly.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-40415 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 61-43533 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 6-328542 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-2474737

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional conditions, and an object of the present invention is to provide an extruder cleaning device and a cleaning method capable of quickly cleaning the extruder barrel and reducing human costs.

The cleaning device of the extruder according to the present invention is a cleaning device for cleaning the inner wall of the barrel of the extruder, and supports the cleaning rod having a brush attached to the tip and the base end side of the cleaning rod to support the cleaning rod. The cleaning is performed between the rear support portion that rotates and moves along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning rod, the front support portion that rotatably supports the cleaning rod, and the rear support portion and the front support portion. It is provided with an intermediate support portion that rotatably supports the rod and moves along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning rod.

In one aspect of the present invention, the rear support portion and the intermediate support portion move in the same direction, and the moving speed of the intermediate support portion is slower than the moving speed of the rear support portion.

In one aspect of the present invention, the intermediate support portion is arranged at an intermediate point between the rear support portion and the front support portion, and the moving speed of the intermediate support portion is 1/2 of the moving speed of the rear support portion. It has become.

In one aspect of the present invention, a power source for moving the rear support portion is provided in the rear support portion, power is transmitted to the intermediate support portion via a roller chain, and the intermediate support portion moves.

In one aspect of the present invention, the two cleaning rods are provided in parallel, and the first brush attached to the tip of the first cleaning rod and the second brush attached to the tip of the second cleaning rod. Are arranged so as to be displaced back and forth in the longitudinal direction.

In one aspect of the present invention, the front support portion, the intermediate support portion, and the rear support portion are provided with replaceable bearings that rotatably support the first cleaning rod and the second cleaning rod, respectively. The first brush and the second brush are interchangeably attached to the tips of the first cleaning rod and the second cleaning rod.

In one aspect of the present invention, the position of the front support portion is fixed.

In one aspect of the present invention, the rear support portion, the intermediate support portion, and the front support portion are housed in a case, and an opening through which the cleaning rod is passed is provided on the front end surface of the case. ing.

In one aspect of the present invention, the case is provided with a supply port for supplying cold air and an exhaust port for discharging the air in the case.

In one aspect of the present invention, a lid that can be opened and closed is provided on the upper surface of the case, and the operation is stopped when the lid is opened.

In one aspect of the present invention, a control mechanism that accepts the setting of the moving range of the washing rod is further provided.

The cleaning device of the extruder according to the present invention is a method of cleaning the inner wall of the barrel of the extruder using the cleaning device of the present invention, in which the cleaning rod is aligned with the barrel and the cleaning rod is rotated. The brush is made to enter the barrel, and the cleaning rod is advanced or retracted to clean the inner wall of the barrel.

According to the present invention, the extruder barrel can be washed safely and quickly, and the operating efficiency of the extruder can be improved. In addition, the human cost required for barrel cleaning can be reduced.

It is a perspective view of the cleaning apparatus by embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram of a barrel. It is a top view of the cleaning apparatus according to the same embodiment. It is a side view of the cleaning apparatus according to the same embodiment. It is a side view of the cleaning apparatus according to the same embodiment. It is a perspective view of the support part of a cleaning rod. It is a figure which shows the position of the support part of a cleaning rod, (a) shows the start of cleaning, and (b) shows the middle of cleaning.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cleaning device according to the present embodiment. The cleaning device cleans the inner wall of the barrel 80 as shown in FIG. 2 by moving forward / backward while rotating two cleaning rods 10a and 10b having brushes 12a and 12b (wire brushes) attached to the tips. The inner wall cross-sectional shape of the barrel 80 is 8-shaped, and the cleaning rods 10a and 10b are inserted and removed from the opening ends 82 and 82. The length of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b is equal to or greater than the length of the barrel 80.

The rotary movement mechanism for rotating and moving the cleaning rods 10a and 10b is housed in a transparent resin case 1. An opening 1a is formed in the front end surface 1b of the case 1, and the cleaning rods 10a and 10b advance and retreat through the opening 1a. In the present embodiment, the direction in which the cleaning rods 10a and 10b protrude from the case 1 is the front.

A plurality of connecting rods 7 are vertically hung from the end surface 1b of the case 1, and a backing plate 2 is attached to the other end of the connecting rods 7. An opening 2a is formed in the backing plate 2, and the cleaning rods 10a and 10b advance and retreat through the opening 2a.

The case 1 is placed on the support base 3 via the elevating mechanism 5. The rotary handle 5a is connected to an elevating jack (not shown) via a rotary shaft 5b, and the height of the case 1 can be adjusted by turning the rotary handle 5a.

A caster 4 is provided at the lower end of the support base 3. Further, the support base 3 is provided with a control panel 6 so that the operation of the cleaning device can be set.

Next, the configuration of the rotary movement mechanism for rotating and moving the cleaning rods 10a and 10b will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the rotational movement mechanism. FIG. 4 is a side view of the rotational movement mechanism seen from the direction of arrow Y1 in FIG. FIG. 5 is a side view of the rotational movement mechanism seen from the direction of arrow Y2 in FIG.

The rotary movement mechanism supports the base end side (rear end side) of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b, rotates the cleaning rods 10a and 10b on the rear support portion 20 for rotating the cleaning rods 10a and 10b, and rotates the cleaning rods 10a and 10b on the front side in the case 1. The longitudinal direction of the front support portion 40 that freely supports, the intermediate support portion 30, the roller chain 50, and the cleaning rods 10a and 10b that rotatably support the cleaning rods 10a and 10b between the rear support portion 20 and the front support portion 40. A rack 60 or the like extending along (front-back direction) is provided.

The rear support portion 20 and the intermediate support portion 30 move in the front-rear direction. The position of the front support portion 40 is fixed.

In the rear support portion 20, the base end portion of the cleaning rod 10a is gripped by the grip portion 27a and can be rotated by the motor 21a (rotation drive portion). Similarly, the base end portion of the cleaning rod 10b is gripped by the grip portion 27b and can be rotated by the motor 21b. The grip portions 27a and 27b are rotatably supported by bearings 26a and 26b.

The cross-sectional shape of the inner wall of the barrel 80 to be cleaned has an 8-shaped shape in which a part of two circles overlaps, and the cleaning rod 10a and the cleaning rod 10b need to be arranged close to each other. Therefore, the motor 21a and the motor 21b cannot be arranged side by side in the left-right direction (direction orthogonal to the front-rear direction), and the motor 21a and the motor 21b are arranged so as to be shifted back and forth.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the motor 21a is arranged behind the motor 21b. Further, the bearing 26a is arranged on the rear side of the bearing 26b. The motor 21a and the grip portion 27a are connected by a rotating shaft 28.

The lengths of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b are the same, and the tip of the cleaning rod 10a is located slightly behind the tip of the cleaning rod 10b. The brush 12a is arranged slightly behind the brush 12b.

The motors 21a, 21b, bearings 26a, 26b, etc. are mounted on the base 24. A motor 22 is further provided on the base 24. A toothed wheel 23 is attached to the motor 22 via a rotating shaft 22a. The toothed vehicle 23 travels on the rack 60. The motor 22, the toothed wheel 23, and the rack 60 are so-called rack and pinions. The base 24 slides back and forth on a rail (not shown).

A roller chain 50 is provided on the opposite side of the base 24 from the rack 60. The roller chain 50 (endless chain) is wound around a plurality of sprockets 51. A sprocket 25 extending from the base 24 is wound around the roller chain 50, and the roller chain 50 rotates as the rear support portion 20 moves.

The intermediate support portion 30 includes bearings 32a and 32b that rotatably support the cleaning rods 10a and 10b, and a base 34 on which the bearings 32a and 32b are placed. Side walls 34a and 34b rise substantially vertically from both left and right ends of the base 34. The bearing 32a is arranged slightly behind the bearing 32b. The base 34 slides back and forth on a rail (not shown).

A rotating shaft 37 is rotatably provided through the side walls 34a and 34b, a toothed wheel 33 is attached to one end of the rotating shaft 37, and a sprocket 36a is attached to the other end of the rotating shaft 37. .. The toothed vehicle 33 travels on the rack 60. Sprockets 36b and 36c are provided on the side wall 34b, and the roller chain 50 is wound around the sprockets 36a to 36c. The rotation of the roller chain 50 is transmitted to the toothed wheel 33 via the sprocket 36a and the rotating shaft 37, and the toothed wheel 33 travels on the rack 60 so that the intermediate support portion 30 moves back and forth and rearward. It has become.

The diameter of the toothed wheel 33 is smaller than the diameter of the toothed wheel 23. The intermediate support portion 30 moves in the same direction as the rear support portion 20. Further, the moving speed of the intermediate support portion 30 is slower than the moving speed of the rear support portion 20.

The front support portion 40 includes bearings 42a and 42b that rotatably support the cleaning rods 10a and 10b, and a base 44 on which the bearings 42a and 42b are placed. The bearing 42a is arranged slightly behind the bearing 42b. The position of the front support portion 40 is fixed, and is arranged in the vicinity of the end surface 1b of the case 1.

As the bearings 32a, 32b, 42a, 42b, in addition to the ball bearings as shown in FIG. 6, known bearings such as slide bearings can be used. The same applies to the bearings 26a and 26b.

The operation of the cleaning device can be controlled by operating the control panel 6. For example, the rotation speed, rotation direction (forward / reverse), movement speed, etc. of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be set. Further, the forward time, the backward time, the number of times of repeating the forward and backward cycles of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be set.

In the method of the present invention, the rotation speed of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b to which the brushes 12a and 12b are attached is preferably 1500 to 3000 rpm, and the rotation of the toothed wheel 33 of the intermediate support portion 30 is not limited. The speed (moving speed) is preferably 3 to 6 rpm.

By operating the control panel 6, the condition setting for manual operation / automatic operation can be changed, and the conditions for the reciprocating motion (forward, reverse time, and number of times) of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be arbitrarily set. With the hand switch, manual operation / automatic operation switching, each manual operation, and start / stop / emergency stop operations can be performed. It is also possible to stop the movement at any place and continuously wash the same place.

When cleaning the inner wall of the barrel 80, the cleaning device is moved, the heights of the barrel 80 and the cleaning device are adjusted by the elevating mechanism 5, the backing plate 2 is brought into contact with the flange 81 of the barrel 80, and the inner wall of the barrel and the cleaning rod are cleaned. Align with 10a and 10b. When the control panel 6 is operated and the cleaning work is started, the motors 21a and 21b rotate the cleaning rods 10a and 10b.

When the motor 22 rotates the toothed wheel 23, the cleaning rods 10a and 10b move forward, and the brushes 12a and 12b enter the barrel 80 from the opening ends 82 and 82. The rotating brushes 12a and 12b move back and forth in the barrel 80 to remove dirt adhering to the inner wall of the barrel.

Since the cleaning rods 10a and 10b having a length equal to or longer than the barrel length are supported at three locations, the rear support portion 20, the intermediate support portion 30, and the front support portion 40, bending and shaft shake of the cleaning rods 10a and 10b are suppressed. , The rotated cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be stably moved in the front-rear direction.

The size of the toothed wheel 33 is adjusted so that the moving speed of the intermediate support portion 30 is half the moving speed of the rear support portion 20, and as shown in FIG. 7A, the intermediate support portion 30 at the start of cleaning is performed. It is preferable that the initial position of is near the midpoint between the rear support portion 20 and the front support portion 40.

As shown in FIG. 7B, when the toothed wheel 33 rotates and the rear support portion 20 advances by a distance L, the intermediate support portion 30 provided with the toothed wheel 33 advances by a distance L / 2. The distance between the rear support portion 20 and the distance between the intermediate support portion 30 and the front support portion 40 are always the same during cleaning, and the cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be held in a stable posture. it can.

Further, in the present embodiment, since the cleaning device automatically rotates, advances, and retracts the cleaning rods 10a and 10b after the cleaning operation is started, it is not necessary for the operator to constantly monitor the cleaning rods 10a and 10b, and the human cost can be suppressed. Can be done. The cleaning work can be performed continuously, the time until the cleaning is completed can be shortened, and the operating efficiency of the extruder can be improved.

The time required for cleaning the barrel when the cleaning device according to this embodiment is used, and the barrel by the conventional cleaning work in which a rod with a wire brush attached to the tip is rotated by a hand drill and the operator holding the hand drill moves back and forth. An example of comparison with the required cleaning time is shown in Table 1 below.

The resin to be cleaned includes a composition containing polybutylene terephthalate resin as a main component (abbreviated as PBT non-reinforced) and a composition containing 30% by mass of glass fiber mixed with polybutylene terephthalate resin (PBT reinforced). (Omitted) and a composition (abbreviated as PPE) containing a polyphenylene ether-based resin as a main component were used.

At the time of cleaning, the rotation speed of the brush was 1500 rpm, and the rotation direction was rotation 1 motor (control panel side): forward rotation, rotation 2 motor (anti-control panel side): reverse rotation. Further, the moving speed of the intermediate support portion 30 is 775 rpm (30 Hz) × 1/120 (reduction ratio) drive, and there are 20 gears and 40 gears of the rear indicator portion 20, and the moving speed of the intermediate support portion 30 is the rear support portion. It was set to 1/2 of the moving speed of 20.

Further, the length of the washed barrel was the entire total length of the barrel in PBT reinforced and non-reinforced, and in PPE, it was set between the barrel opening end 82 and the point 90% of the total length of the barrel.

In this embodiment, the cleaning operation can be continuously performed. Further, when the cross-sectional shape of the inner wall of the barrel is 8-shaped, in the conventional cleaning work, it is necessary to insert a wire brush from each of the opening ends 82 and 82 to clean the inner wall of the barrel one by one. Then, two cleaning rods 10a and 10b can be used for cleaning at the same time. Therefore, the cleaning time (time required from the start to the completion of cleaning) can be significantly shortened.

The length of the barrel to be cleaned may be a part of the barrel to clean only the dirty part, or it may be the total length of the barrel to clean the whole barrel, but the barrel is preferable. It is 80% or more, more preferably 90% or more of the total length of the barrel from the opening 82 of the barrel.

In the above embodiment, the upper surface of the case 1 may be composed of a plurality of divided lids, and each lid may be removable. An interlock function such as a limit switch may be attached so that the operation of the cleaning device is stopped when the lid is opened, that is, the cleaning rods 10a and 10b are not rotated or moved.

One of the two cleaning rods 10a and 10b may be removed and the cleaning operation may be performed with one cleaning rod.

By attaching / detaching / replacing the bearing frame (bearings 26a, 26b, 32a, 32b, 42a, 42b) and the brushes 12a, 12b, it is possible to support barrels of various sizes.

The case 1 may be formed with a supply port for supplying cold air from the spot cooler and an exhaust port for discharging the air in the case warmed by the operation of the motor.

In the above embodiment, the number of intermediate support portions 30 provided between the rear support portion 20 and the front support portion 40 may not be one, but may be two or more. When a plurality of intermediate support portions 30 are provided, it is preferable that the moving speed becomes slower toward the front side.

The roller chain 50 may be omitted, and a motor for rotating the toothed wheel 33 may be provided on the intermediate support portion 30.

The resin targeted by the cleaning method using the cleaning apparatus of the present invention is not particularly limited, but is thermoplastic such as polyester resin such as polyethylene terephthalate and polybutylene terephthalate, polyphenylene ether resin, polyamide resin, and polycarbonate resin. Examples thereof include resins, and polyester resins and polyphenylene ether resins are particularly preferable.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and at the implementation stage, the components can be modified and embodied within a range that does not deviate from the gist thereof. In addition, various inventions can be formed by an appropriate combination of the plurality of components disclosed in the above-described embodiment. For example, some components may be removed from all the components shown in the embodiments. In addition, components across different embodiments may be combined as appropriate.

1 Case 2 Support plate 3 Support base 5 Lifting mechanism 6 Control panel 10a, 10b Cleaning rods 12a, 12b Brush 20 Rear support parts 21a, 21b, 22 Motors 23, 33 Toothed car 30 Intermediate support parts 32a, 32b, 42a, 42b Bearing 40 Front support 50 Roller chain 51 Sprocket 60 Rack 80 Barrel

Claims (11)

A cleaning device that cleans the inner wall of the barrel of an extruder.
A cleaning stick with a brush attached to the tip,
A rear support portion that supports the base end side of the cleaning rod, rotates the cleaning rod, and moves along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning rod.
A front support portion that rotatably supports the cleaning rod, and
An intermediate support portion that rotatably supports the cleaning rod and moves along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning rod between the rear support portion and the front support portion.
It is a cleaning device of an extruder equipped with
It is characterized by providing a moving mechanism for moving the rear support portion and the intermediate support portion in the same direction and so that the moving speed of the intermediate support portion is slower than the moving speed of the rear support portion. Extruder cleaning equipment. In claim 1 , the intermediate support portion is arranged at an intermediate point between the rear support portion and the front support portion, and the moving speed of the intermediate support portion is 1/2 of the moving speed of the rear support portion. An extruder cleaning device characterized by being In claim 1 or 2 , a power source for moving the rear support portion is provided in the rear support portion, power is transmitted to the intermediate support portion via a roller chain, and the intermediate support portion moves. Extruder cleaning device characterized by. In any one of claims 1 to 3 , the two cleaning rods are provided in parallel.
An extruder characterized in that the first brush attached to the tip of the first cleaning rod and the second brush attached to the tip of the second cleaning rod are arranged so as to be displaced back and forth in the longitudinal direction. Cleaning equipment. In claim 4 , the front support portion, the intermediate support portion, and the rear support portion are provided with replaceable bearings that rotatably support the first cleaning rod and the second cleaning rod, respectively. ,
A cleaning device for an extruder, wherein the first brush and the second brush are interchangeably attached to the tips of the first cleaning rod and the second cleaning rod. The cleaning device for an extruder according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the position of the front support portion is fixed. In any one of claims 1 to 6, the rear support portion, the intermediate support portion, and the front support portion are housed in a case, and an opening through which the cleaning rod is passed is provided in the front end surface of the case. A cleaning device for an extruder, characterized in that it is provided with. The cleaning device for an extruder according to claim 7 , wherein the case is provided with a supply port for supplying cold air and an exhaust port for discharging the air in the case. The cleaning device for an extruder according to claim 7 or 8 , wherein a lid portion that can be opened and closed is provided on the upper surface of the case, and the operation is stopped when the lid portion is opened. The washing apparatus for an extruder according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , further comprising a control mechanism for receiving a setting of a moving range of the washing rod. A method of cleaning the inner wall of the barrel of an extruder using the cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 10.
Aligning the cleaning rod with the barrel,
The brush is pushed into the barrel while rotating the washing rod.
A cleaning method comprising moving the cleaning rod forward or backward to clean the inner wall of the barrel.

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