JP6898541B2 - Germ-free animal breeding device with fasteners - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a germ-free animal breeding device, more specifically a germ-free animal breeding device provided with a fastener.

Conventionally, a germ-free animal breeding device has been used for the purpose of breeding germ-free animals and the like. Germ-free animal breeding equipment is also called an isolator, a vinyl isolator, or the like. Vinyl isolators typically include an air supply port, a breeding room, and an exhaust port. The air in the vinyl isolator needs to be aseptic, and for that reason, the air supplied from the air supply port generally removes microorganisms, viruses, etc. by a filter to realize sterility.

It is important that the vinyl isolator is hermetically sealed, and it is not desirable for the outside air to flow into the vinyl isolator because it causes contamination of microorganisms and viruses. Further, the outflow of air in the uncontrolled vinyl isolator to the outside causes an unexpected decrease in internal air pressure and airtightness, which may cause a subsequent inflow of outside air, which is not desirable.

Since ensuring airtightness is important for vinyl isolators, it is preferable that there are few openings and attachment ports for inserting and removing objects such as food and animals from the outside, and it is better that they are small. In addition, the openings and attachment ports need to be sealed when things are not taken in and out. Therefore, the number of openings and attachment openings should be small, and the physical size thereof should also be small. In a typical small vinyl isolator with a width of about 1 m, a height of about 50 cm, and a depth of about 50 cm, the opening for inserting and removing an object is usually about 30 cm in diameter.

On the other hand, if you want to put a large animal in the vinyl isolator, or if you want to put a large measuring device, etc., it is necessary to physically enlarge the opening and the attachment port. However, this is not desirable from the viewpoint of ensuring airtightness, and there is a physical contradiction. For example, when the opening of the device has a diameter of about 30 cm, it is difficult to put in and take out an object having a diameter larger than this, and it is necessary to attach a larger opening, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of ensuring airtightness.

An object of the present invention is to provide a germ-free animal breeding device that solves the above-mentioned problems, is airtight, and is easy to put in and take out.

First, the present inventors have established a simple method for detecting air leakage by applying a pressure change of a vinyl isolator (Experimental Animal Technology Vol. 51, No. 2, 41-46 2016). Since vinyl as a material expands and contracts when pressurized, it is difficult to establish an air leakage test method, and this method was established after several years of trial and error. Using this method, it has become possible to quantitatively evaluate air leakage from vinyl isolators.

Next, using this method, the airtightness of the vinyl isolator to which the member was attached was evaluated. As a result, even if the airtight fastener was attached to the vinyl isolator, surprisingly, air leakage occurred even when measured quantitatively. We found that there was no such thing and completed the present invention. That is, the present invention includes the following embodiments.

[1] A germ-free animal breeding device (vinyl isolator) equipped with an airtight fastener.
[2] The airtight fastener 100 includes a pair of fastener stringers, the first fastener stringer 271 and the second fastener stringer 272, the slider 140, the first fastener 171 and the second fastener 172.
The first fastener stringer 271 and the second fastener stringer 272 have a plurality of clamp elements 250, and the meshing head 230 of the plurality of meshing elements 210 is projected to the outside, and the base portion of the meshing element 210 is bent to be airtight. The plurality of clamp elements 250 are substantially U-shaped, wrapping and sandwiching the sex tape 110 via one side edge.
The slider 140 wraps around the clamp element 250 and is movably inserted so that the meshing element 210 can be engaged and disengaged.
The first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172 are integrally fixed to the terminal portion of the fastener stringer 270, respectively, and can stop the movement of the slider 140.
The first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172 have a block body 180 and a high-frequency welded portion 190, respectively, and the high-frequency welded portion 190 is formed on a surface around the first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172, respectively. The device according to 1, wherein the device is superposed on the airtight tape 110 and closely fixed.
[3] The spread according to 2, wherein at least a part of the peripheral portion of the high-frequency welding portion 190 in the airtight fastener 100 has a spread necessary for closely fixing to the opening / closing end portion of the mounted product attached to the airtight tape 110. apparatus.
[4] The apparatus according to 3, wherein the high frequency welded portion 190 of the airtight fastener 100 is manufactured from a flexible material.
[5] A second backing tape piece 292 is arranged on the second stopper 172 side of the airtight fastener 100, and a convex portion 300 having a triangular cross section is formed on the upper surface of the second backing tape piece 292. It is provided so as to be sandwiched between the left and right airtight tapes 110.
On the lower surface of the slider 140, a ∧-shaped projecting piece is vertically hung along the longitudinal direction of the tape.
Here, between the convex portion 300 and the ∧-shaped projecting piece, when the slider 140 is brought into contact with the second stopper 172, the convex portion 300 is located between the ∧-shaped projecting portion on the lower surface of the slider 140. The device according to any one of 2 to 4, wherein the protrusion 300 and the airtight tape 110 are fitted and configured to be in close contact with each other.
[6] The device according to any one of 1 to 5, which has no air leakage.
[7] A germ-free animal breeding method using the apparatus according to any one of 1 to 6.
[8] A method for detecting air leakage in a vinyl isolator, which includes the following steps:
(i) Make two or more parts that imitate air leak holes with a diameter of 0.01 mm to 1.0 mm.
(ii) Attach the part to be tested to the vinyl isolator and pressurize it.
(iii) The pressure in the chamber of the vinyl isolator is continuously measured for a certain period of time with a multi-environmental measuring instrument (measuring instrument).
(iv) After pressurizing at a constant pressure, measure the pressure drop in the chamber for a certain period of time.
(v) Create a calibration curve from the hole size and pressure drop value,
(vi) For the vinyl isolator to be evaluated, after pressurizing at the same pressure as in (iv) above, the pressure drop in the chamber is measured for the same fixed time as in (iv) above.
(vii) Determine if there is an air leak,
(viii) If there is an air leak in the above (vii), the size of the air leak hole is determined by further comparing the measurement result of the above (vi) with the calibration curve of (v).
The detection method.
[9] A method for evaluating whether or not a fastener can be used in a germ-free animal breeding apparatus, which comprises using the method according to 8, the following steps.
(i) Prepare candidate fasteners,
(ii) Attach the candidate fastener to the vinyl isolator and then pressurize it.
(iii) The pressure in the chamber of the vinyl isolator is continuously measured for a certain period of time with a multi-environmental measuring device.
(iv) After pressurizing at a constant pressure, measure the pressure drop in the chamber for a certain period of time.
(v) Determine if there is an air leak,
(vi) If there is no air leak in the step (v), it is judged that the candidate fastener can be used for a germ-free animal breeding device, and if it is judged that there is an air leak in the step (v). Determines the size of the air leak hole by comparing the measurement result of the step (iv) with the calibration curve of the step 8 (v). Judge that it can be used for germ-free animal breeding equipment,
The method.
[10] A method for manufacturing a germ-free animal breeding apparatus, which comprises attaching a fastener determined to be usable for the germ-free animal breeding apparatus to the germ-free animal breeding apparatus as a result of evaluation by the method according to 9.

Since the device of the present invention is provided with a fastener, by opening and closing the fastener without removing the members and connecting parts connected to the attachment port one by one, objects, reagents, and the like can be quickly and easily contained in the germ-free animal breeding device. You can put in and take out measuring instruments and animals. After that, by closing the airtight fastener, air leakage can be prevented.

It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure of the fastener which can be attached to the apparatus of this invention. It is a photograph of the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention equipped with an airtight fastener. It is a photograph of the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention equipped with an airtight fastener. It is a photograph of the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention equipped with an airtight fastener. It is a photograph of the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention equipped with an airtight fastener. This is a picture of a vinyl cap with an airtight fastener. It is a photograph of the back side (inside) of a vinyl cap equipped with an airtight fastener. A part of the vinyl cap with the airtight fastener is cut off. This is a picture of a vinyl cap with an airtight fastener. This is a picture of a vinyl cap with an airtight fastener. This is a picture of a vinyl cap with an airtight fastener. It is a photograph of a water leak test. It is a photograph of a water leak test.

The present invention provides a germ-free animal breeding device equipped with an airtight fastener. The fastener used in the device of the present invention is an airtight fastener, and in the closed state, it is possible to prevent air leakage from the germ-free animal breeding device.

In the present specification, the airtight fastener means a fastener that does not substantially leak air even when a germ-free animal is bred for a long period of time. In the present specification, the airtight fastener may be referred to as an airtight fastener, an airtight waterproof fastener, an airtight waterproof fastener, an airtight slide fastener, or an airtight slide fastener. Whether or not there is air leakage from the attached fastener can be evaluated by an air leakage evaluation method. As a result of the evaluation, if the air leakage of the fastener is below a certain level, the fastener can be used as an airtight fastener in the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention.

In one embodiment, the fact that germ-free animals are bred for a long period of time without substantial air leakage means that a germ-free animal breeding device with a fastener is pressurized, for example, 300 Pa, and then for a certain period of time. No air leaks or lower air leaks from holes with a diameter of 0.01 mm when the chamber pressure is continuously measured, for example, every minute for 30 minutes with a multi-environmental measuring instrument (testo-435). It means that only leaks are shown.

In one embodiment, the germ-free animal breeding device with the airtight fastener of the present invention has a diameter when the chamber pressure is continuously measured with a testo-435 measuring device for 11 minutes every minute after pressurizing 300 Pa. It is a device that shows less air leakage than air leakage from a 0.01 mm hole. In certain embodiments, the device of the present invention provides substantial air leakage in the closed state of the fastener, even after the fastener has been opened and closed many times, for example 1 to 10000 times, for example 1 to 100 times.

The size and dimensions of the fastener are not particularly limited as long as they can be used in a normal germ-free animal breeding device. Fasteners can be attached to the device by convention. In certain embodiments, the fasteners can be attached to germ-free animal breeding equipment by adhesive processing with a high frequency welder. In certain embodiments, the fasteners can be attached to a germ-free animal breeding device using an adhesive or the like. After attaching the fastener, the vinyl portion covered by the fastener can be cut off from the inside of the device. In certain embodiments, the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention may include one or more fasteners.

The performance evaluation of the fastener can be evaluated by an air leakage evaluation test. In certain embodiments, the air leak assessment test can be performed in the following procedure:
(i) Make parts that mimic air leak holes (0.01 mm, 0.05 mm, 0.1 mm, 0.2 mm, 0.3 mm, 0.5 mm, 0.6 mm, and 1.0 mm in diameter).
(ii) Attach the parts to be tested to the chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve, which are the parts that make up the isolator, and pressurize them.
(iii) The pressure of each part is continuously measured every minute for 30 minutes with, for example, a multi-environmental measuring device (testo-435).
(iv) For example, after pressurizing 300 Pa, measure the degree to which the pressure in the chamber decreases in inverse proportion to the size of the hole in a certain period of time. The vinyl cap and sleeve can be evaluated in the same manner after pressurization at 100 Pa or the like. Plot the relationship between hole size and pressure drop.

Next, the candidate fastener is attached to the vinyl isolator, and measurement is performed under the same conditions. That is,
(i) Prepare candidate fasteners.
(ii) Attach the candidate fastener to the vinyl isolator and pressurize it.
(iii) The chamber pressure is continuously measured every minute for 30 minutes, for example, with a multi-environmental measuring device (testo-435).
(iv) Evaluate the presence or absence of air leakage, the presence or absence of holes, or the size of holes based on the presence or absence of reduced pressure.

The fastener confirmed to be free of air leakage by the above test can be used in the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention.

In certain embodiments, the fastener attached to the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention is the fastener disclosed in WO 2012/160643, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. In another embodiment, a modification of the fastener disclosed in WO 2012/160643 or an equivalent of the disclosed fastener can be used. In another embodiment, fastener equivalents disclosed in WO 2012/160643 can be used. In another embodiment, fasteners that are more airtight than the fasteners disclosed in WO 2012/160643, such as improvements, may be used. For example, fasteners sold by YKK Corporation as the PROSEAL® series may be used.

In certain embodiments, the fastener attached to the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention may be that described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-321547 (Patent No. 3901662). In certain embodiments, the fasteners may be those described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-000309. In certain embodiments, the fasteners may be those described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-36657. All of them are incorporated herein by reference.

In certain embodiments, fasteners attached to the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention include commercially available airtight fasteners, such as YKK Corporation's PROSEAL® catalog numbers 4TZ, 8TZ, and 12TZ. Not limited to. For these fasteners, three types of tape are supplied: PVC, CR, and PU. AFHR2 or BFSHR2 is used as the slider. According to the product catalog, these air densities are 0.2 or more to 1.0 or more (kgf / cm2), and any of them can be used in the present invention. In another embodiment, the fastener attached to the germ-free animal breeding apparatus of the present invention includes other commercially available airtight fasteners. Whether or not a commercially available airtight fastener or watertight fastener can be used in a germ-free animal breeding apparatus, that is, whether or not there is air leakage when attached, can be evaluated and confirmed by the above test method. In certain embodiments, the Aquaseal® (YKK Corporation) fasteners are removed from the fasteners used in the apparatus of the present invention.

As an example, the airtight fastener disclosed in JP-A-2004-321547 will be described below with reference to the detailed description and drawings of the invention of JP-A-2004-321547.

The airtight fastener comprises a pair of fastener strings 271 and 272, a slider 140, a first stop 171 and a second stop 172. The meshing element 210 has a flange 215, a rectangular column portion 220, and a meshing head 230. The pair of fastener stringers 271 and 272 have a plurality of clamp elements 250, and the meshing head 230 of the plurality of meshing elements 210 is projected to the outside, and the base portion of the meshing element 210 is placed on one side of the airtight tape 110. Wrap it through the edge and pinch it. The plurality of clamp elements 250 are substantially U-shaped. Further, the clamp element 250 has a plate-shaped holding piece 260, a connecting portion 265, and a protruding portion 267. The slider 140 is movably inserted so as to wrap around the clamp element 250, and the meshing element 210 can be engaged and disengaged. The first stopper 171 is integrally fixed and attached to the terminal portions of the fastener stringers 271 and 272, and can stop the movement of the slider 140.

In the fastener, the stopper 170 has a block body 180 and a high frequency welded portion 190. The high-frequency welding portion 190 is formed by welding an injection-molded fin portion with a high frequency or the like. The high-frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 is superposed on the airtight tape 110 and firmly fixed to the peripheral surface of the stopper 170. Even if the high-frequency welded portion 190 or at least a part of the peripheral portion of the fin portion for forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 has a spread necessary for closely fixing to the opening / closing end portion of the mounted product attached to the airtight tape 110. Good. Although not shown in FIG. 1-7, in a certain embodiment, after the high-frequency welding portion 190 is closely fixed, an adhesive or the like is further applied from above, or another material is superposed and applied, and then the other material is applied. It can also be welded to increase the airtightness of the fastener (see, eg, FIGS. 14 and 15).

In certain embodiments, the high frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high frequency welded portion 190 may be manufactured from a flexible material. The same applies to the first stop and the second stop.

In certain embodiments, the peripheral surface of the fastener 170 is composed of a front surface portion 170a-1, a rear surface portion 170a-2, and first and second side surface portions 170a-3 and 170a-4. It can be cubic in shape. In this case, the high-frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 may extend outward from the tape side edge of the first and second side surface portions 170a-3 and 170a-4.

In a certain embodiment, the high frequency welding portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high frequency welding portion 190 is continuously provided over the other side surface portions 170a-2 to 4 except for the side surface portion 170a-1 on the slider contact surface side of the stopper 170. It may have been. In a certain embodiment, the high frequency welding portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high frequency welding portion 190 is provided on the side surface portions 170a-2 to 4 of the stopper 170, and one of the side surface 170a-1 on the slider contact surface side. It may also be provided in the section. For example, a high-frequency welding portion 190 or a fin portion for forming the high-frequency welding portion 190 may be provided so as to fit in the notch space portion 185 of the block body 180.

In certain embodiments, the maximum width dimension of the slider 140 of the airtight fastener may be set smaller than the dimension of the opening width formed between the opening and closing ends 280 of the mounted product 240. The opening / closing end 280 shown in FIG. 5 is an example.

The form of the stopper is not particularly limited, and may be a cubic shape, a cylindrical shape, a square cylinder shape having a polygonal cross section, or the like. The position of forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 is appropriately determined according to the length and width of the fastener, the tape material, the size of the clamp element, the form and size of the fastener, the structure and the material, and the like. Can be set. In one embodiment, each member is configured so that the tape portion present at the outer boundary of the high frequency welded portion 190 does not peel off when the fastener is bent in the longitudinal direction.

The fastener can be attached to the device by high frequency welding, adhesive, ultrasonic welding or the like. The coating agent for the fastener tape may be a thermoplastic resin or a polyurethane resin. Other thermoplastic synthetic resin materials may also be used.

As an example, the airtight fastener disclosed in International Publication No. 2012/160643 will be described below with reference to the detailed description and drawings of the invention of International Publication No. 2012/160643. Such fasteners can also be used in the apparatus of the present invention. In certain embodiments, the fasteners are a first fastener stringer 271 and a second fastener stringer 272 to which a plurality of elements 135 are attached to opposite tape bends 115 (tape side edges) of a pair of airtight tapes 110. A backing tape piece 290 (first backing tape piece 291 and second backing tape piece 292) fixed to one end of the first and second fastener stringers across a pair of airtight tapes 110, and a plurality of backing tape pieces. It comprises a slider 140 arranged so that it can slide along an element row 137 consisting of fastener elements 135, and a first stop 171 and a second stop 172 arranged at the end of the element row 137. There is. The stopper 170 may have an expansive high frequency welded portion 190 or a fin portion for forming it. The spread of the high-frequency welded portion 190 or the fin portion for forming the high-frequency welded portion 190 can be arbitrarily selected. For example, it can be as wide as in FIGS. 3 and 5. The fin portion may have a notch portion as described in JP-A-2004-321547.

The airtightness tape 110 can maintain airtightness by applying rubberizing or the like to the fastener tape and forming an airtight layer on the tape surface (first tape surface) of the fastener tape. In the present specification, the airtight tape is sometimes referred to as an airtight waterproof tape. The material of the tape can be polyvinyl chloride (PVC), chloroprene rubber (CR), or polyurethane (PU). In certain embodiments, the material of the tape can be PVC, which is the same material as the vinyl isolator. A plurality of fastener elements 135 are attached to the tape bent portion 115 (tape side edge portion) of the airtight tape, and each fastener element has a spear-shaped meshing element 210 having a meshing head 230 at the tip and a cross section. It has a clamp element 250 showing a U shape. See, for example, FIG.

In this case, the tape bent portion 115 of the airtight tape is bent in an Ω shape so as to hold the base end portion of the meshing element 210 with the meshing head 230 protruding outward. Further, the clamp element of the fastener element 135 is mounted on the outside of the Ω-shaped tape portion, and the clamp element is crimped inward to form the base end portion of the meshing element and the Ω-shaped tape portion inside the clamp element. Is firmly clamped and fixed. As a result, the fastener elements 135 are attached to the tape bending portion 115 of the airtight tape at predetermined intervals.

The backing tape piece 290 is attached to the tape back surface (second tape surface) side of the airtight tape 110 in the first fastener stringer 271 and the second fastener stringer 272. The backing tape piece of the first fastener stringer 271 is referred to as the first backing tape piece 291, and the backing tape piece of the second fastener stringer 272 is referred to as the second backing tape piece 292. The slider 140 has a slider body 140a, a puller holding protrusion 140b projecting from the side surface of the slider body in the tape width direction, and a puller 160. The pull tab 160 is rotatably held by the pull tab holding protrusion 140b. Inside the slider body 140a, a guide hole 150 for guiding the fastener element and the tape side edge is provided. See, for example, FIG.

The stopper 170 is arranged at the end of the element row to prevent the slider 140 from falling out of the element row and to ensure airtightness. The stopper 170 shown in FIG. 2 is referred to as the first stopper 171 and the stopper 170 shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 is referred to as the second stopper 172. The fastener 170 includes a block body 180 (block-shaped body portion) arranged so as to wrap a plurality of fastener elements 135 and a tape bent portion 115 (bent tape side edge portion), and a fastener tape in the block body 180. It has a thin fin portion arranged on the peripheral edge of the base end portion (peripheral edge of the lower end portion) on the side, and the stopper is formed by injection molding to straddle the airtight tape and the backing tape piece to form the body portion and the fin portion. It may be fixed on the lower surface of the. The fin portion may be provided as an injection molded body, and the fin portion is formed into a thin film-like high frequency welded portion 190 by applying a high frequency while pressing the fin portion to crush the fin portion and weld it to an airtight tape and a backing tape piece. be able to. In the figure, the fin portion is not shown, and only the high-frequency welded portion 190 after welding is shown. For the fin section, refer to International Publication No. 2012/160643. The thickness of the high-frequency welded portion 190 may be, for example, 0.1 mm or less, 1.2 mm or more, or 0.1 mm or more to 1.2 mm or less.

In the stopper 170, a notch space portion 185 may be formed at the lower end of the contact side surface with which the slider 140 abuts (see FIG. 2). The fin portion arranged on the side surface side of the block body 180 that comes into contact with the slider may be provided in a size that fits within the space portion. In this case, the tip of the fin portion arranged on the slider contact side surface side is located inside the position of the slider contact side surface side of the block body 180. After that, a high frequency is applied while pressing the provided fin portion as described above, and the fin portion is crushed and welded to the airtight tape and the backing tape piece to form the high frequency welded portion 190. As a result of welding, the high-frequency welding portion 190 is provided with a size that fits within the notch space portion 185 at the lower end of the front end portion 170a-1 of the stopper, or with a slight spread around the cutout space portion 185.

In a certain embodiment, the upper surface of the second backing tape piece 292 arranged on the second stopper 172 side (front end portion) of the airtight fastener 100 has a substantially triangular cross section as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The convex portion 300 may be provided so as to be sandwiched between the left and right airtight tapes 110. The convex portion 300 may be configured to fit between the ∧-shaped projecting pieces suspended from the lower surface portion (bottom portion) of the slider 140 when the slider 140 is brought into contact with the second stopper 172. ..

When the convex portion 300 is arranged, when the slider 140 comes into contact with the second stopper 172, the triangular convex portion 300 is fitted between the ∧-shaped projecting pieces arranged on the slider 140. The ∧-shaped projecting portion arranged on the slider 140 can be easily brought into close contact with the triangular convex portion 300 and the left and right airtight tapes 110 (particularly, the airtight tape 110 stands at approximately 90 degrees). It can be brought into close contact with the tape bent portion 115 that is bent so as to do so).

In certain embodiments, the triangular convex portion 300 may be made of the same material as the second stopper 172. The convex portion 300 may be arranged with a predetermined length along the front-rear direction (longitudinal direction) of the airtight fastener 100. The convex portion 300 may be arranged so as to be connected to the side surface of the second stopper 172 in contact with the slider 140, or may be arranged at a predetermined distance from the second stopper 172. For example, in one embodiment, the convex portion 300 may be arranged on the upper surface of the second backing tape piece 292 corresponding to the first element to the seventh or eighth element counting from the second stopper 172. For example, in one embodiment, the convex portion 300 may be arranged on the upper surface of the second backing tape piece 292 corresponding to the third element to the seventh or eighth element counting from the second stopper 172. Is not limited to this.

In a certain embodiment, the triangular convex portion 300 is formed by injection molding a molded body of the convex portion 300 having a predetermined size on the second backing tape piece 292, and then applying the convex molded body to the second backing. By applying a high frequency to the lower end of the convex molded body while pressing it toward the tape piece 292, it is welded to the second backing tape piece 292. Therefore, the triangular convex portion 300 is fixed to the second backing tape piece 292 with high fixing strength.

The slider 140 includes a slider body 140a and a puller 160 rotatably held by the slider body 140a. The slider body 140a has a polygonal, for example, hexagonal upper surface portion, left and right flange portions having an L-shaped cross section hung from the left and right side edges of the upper surface portion, and left and right directions on the front end side of the upper surface portion. A guide pillar suspended downward from the center, a bottom surface (bottom surface) protruding outward at the lower end of the guide pillar, and two projecting pieces protruding diagonally downward in a ∧ shape from the bottom surface. And a puller holding protrusion 140b projecting from the outer surface of the left and right flange portions in the left-right direction (tape width direction) may be provided.

The ∧-shaped projecting pieces are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the tape, and a triangular gap is provided between the two projecting pieces so that the triangular convex portion 300 can be fitted and brought into close contact with each other. You may be.

Left and right shoulder openings are formed at the front end of the slider body 140a with a guide pillar in between, and a rear opening is formed at the rear end of the slider body 140a. Inside the slider body 140a, a substantially Y-shaped element guide path that connects the left and right shoulder openings and the rear opening is formed, and the slider 140 is slid to pass through the left and right element rows in the element guide path. By doing so, the left and right element rows can be meshed and separated.

In certain embodiments, the first stop 171 has a notched space 185. In some embodiments, the second stop 172 has a notched space 185. In certain embodiments, the first stop 171 and the second stop 172 have a notched space 185. In some embodiments, the fastener does not have a notched space 185.
Fasteners can be manufactured by the method described in International Publication No. 2012/160643 or a modification thereof.

The vinyl isolator (germ-free animal breeding device) may be of a normal size, a large size, or a small size. Fasteners can be of various dimensions depending on the purpose. In certain embodiments, the vinyl isolator is a device for large animal rearing, such as for monkeys, pigs, chickens, dogs, and cats. In certain embodiments, the vinyl isolator may be commercially available from Gic Co., Ltd., an equivalent product thereof, or an equivalent product thereof. In the past, it was necessary to make the external environment of the device sterile by covering the entire device with vinyl, and then disassemble and assemble the device, take in and out large animals, and perform additional processes and work. .. By using the device of the present invention, animals and large devices can be easily taken in and out by opening and closing the fastener.

[Example 1]
[Establishment of a simple method for detecting air leaks by applying pressure changes in vinyl isolators]
The materials and methods are as follows. In order to imitate the air leakage of the chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve, which are the parts that make up the vinyl isolator, and to verify the relationship between the size of the hole and the pressure, we created an instrument that can be attached to them (air leakage imitation instrument). .. It used a vinyl chloride pipe with an outer diameter of 25 mm and a length of 50 mm, and a transparent vinyl chloride plate with the following small holes was attached to one side of the pipe. Holes were drilled through a wire whose thickness was measured to make 0.1 mm holes, 0.2 mm holes, 0.3 mm holes, 0.5 mm holes, 0.6 mm holes, and 1.0 mm holes. Smaller holes were stopped when the needle tip was felt on the opposite side when drilling, and the water droplet drop speed was measured and calculated to be 0.01 mm hole and 0.05 mm hole. A 0.01 mm hole is one drop in about 10 minutes, and a 0.05 mm hole is one drop in about 1 minute. No hole was used as a control.

The maximum static pressure of the blower (BF10S Kyoei Tsushin Kogyo Co., Ltd.) attached to the vinyl isolator is 186 Pa, but the pressure inside the vinyl isolator becomes about 70 Pa by passing it through a sterilization filter. Pressurization of vinyl isolators and steryl locks by air spray, which is used for sterilization in general work, ranges from about 100 to 300 Pa. Therefore, after attaching an air leak mimicking device to the vinyl isolator or each part, a compressor (RYOBI, ACP-50) was used to adjust the initial pressure to them to +100 Pa or +300 Pa.

After pressurizing the chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve with the pressure probe of the multi-environmental measuring instrument (testo-435) at an initial pressure of 100 Pa or 300 Pa, the pressure change was measured every minute for 30 minutes. Air leaks were inspected for the chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve.

The experiment was performed 6 times for the chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve, and the rate of change in pressure every minute was measured by one-way ANOVA and Dunnett's test, using the initial pressure at 0 minutes after the start of the experiment as a control. Was tested. The statistically significant difference was set to 5% or less. The Dunnett's test confirmed the significant difference in pressure change between the hole sizes by the Scheffe's test at the time when there was a significant difference between the control holes without holes and all the holes, and the hole size and average at that time. The correlation with the pressure change rate was verified. The results were as follows.

At 100 Pa pressurization, 0.01 mm and 0.05 mm holes in the chamber could not be detected. In contrast, at a pressurization of 300 Pa, the chamber pressure decreased significantly in all pores 8 minutes after pressurization (P <0.05). The pressure at 8 minutes after pressurization decreased significantly in inverse proportion to the size of the pores (P <0.05 or less), and the correlation coefficient was significant (P <0.01). Pressurization of 100 Pa significantly reduced the pressure of the vinyl cap in all holes 5 minutes after pressurization (P <0.05). The pressure 5 minutes after pressurization decreased significantly in inverse proportion to the size of the pores (P <0.05 or less), and the correlation coefficient was significant (P <0.01).

Pressurization of 100 Pa significantly reduced the pressure on the sleeve in all holes 11 minutes after pressurization (P <0.05). The pressure at 11 minutes after pressurization decreased significantly in inverse proportion to the size of the pores (P <0.05 or less), and the correlation coefficient was significant (P <0.01).

In summary, holes of 0.01 mm or more, which are the cause of air leaks, can be detected in 8 minutes by pressurizing 300 Pa, and in 5 minutes and 11 minutes by pressurizing 100 Pa for vinyl caps and sleeves, respectively. Met. Furthermore, it is possible to predict the size of the hole that causes air leakage from the rate of decrease in pressure, which can be used as a guideline for repair and disposal of the vinyl isolator and its parts, as well as for the parts to be attached to the vinyl isolator. It can be used as a guideline for selection.

The conventional air leak test method for germ-free animal breeding equipment was a leak test that required overnight (about 12 hours), and the results were also qualitative. In this method, it took 24 minutes (8 minutes + 5 minutes + 11 minutes) to inspect each part, chamber, vinyl cap, and sleeve for air leakage before assembling. Furthermore, it is said that the detection limit of holes that cause air leakage in the conventional soap test is 16 μm. The method of this example was able to detect a hole of 10 μm (0.01 mm), which exceeds the conventional detection limit by 6 μm.

[Example 2]
[Manufacturing germ-free animal breeding equipment with airtight fasteners]
The airtight fastener used was PROSEAL (registered trademark) catalog number 8TZ obtained from YKK Corporation (catalog number 4TZ or 12TZ can also be used). The material of the tape was PVC and the slider was BFSHR2.

The airtight fastener was attached to the germ-free animal breeding device according to the following procedure.
1. 1. Prepare the device and airtight fastener.
2. Attach an airtight fastener to the outside of the vinyl isolator. The attachment was performed by adhesive processing with a high-frequency welder. The welder device used was the KV-3000T type from Seidensha Electronics Co., Ltd. The power used was a three-phase 200V capacity of 3KW. Welding was performed by setting the device tuner memory to 10 and setting the timer to about 1.5 seconds, and pressing it several times while visually checking the welding status of vinyl.
3. 3. Next, a part of the back side of the part of the vinyl isolator to which the airtight fastener was attached was cut off. The area to be cut is located below the tape portion 120 of the fastener.

[Example 3]
[Performance evaluation of germ-free animal breeding equipment equipped with airtight fasteners]
The air leak of the germ-free animal breeding apparatus (FIG. 8-11) equipped with the airtight fastener manufactured in Example 2 was tested. An air leak test was conducted under the conditions and procedures of Example 1 except that the germ-free animal breeding device to which the airtight fastener of Example 2 was attached was used as the device. At each time point after 1 to 11 minutes, it was measured whether or not there was a decrease in the internal pressure of the device. The results are shown in the table below. As a control, the differential pressure of the device without the fastener (untreated) was examined, and the cases where the fastener was attached but not opened / closed, the case where the fastener was opened / closed once, and the case where the fastener was opened / closed 11 times were compared.

As a result, as described above, it was surprisingly determined that even the device having the fastener did not decrease the internal pressure even after a certain period of time, and there was no substantial air leakage. That is, there was surprisingly no air leakage when the fasteners were attached to the device.

[Comparison example]
As the fastener, an Aquaseal (registered trademark) fastener obtained from YKK Corporation was used. The fastener was welded to and attached to a vinyl isolator in the same manner as described in Example 2. After that, an air leakage test was conducted under the conditions and procedures of Example 1 except that the fastener of Aquaseal (registered trademark) was used. The results are shown below.

In the case of the Aquaseal (registered trademark) fastener, it was -4 Pa after 11 minutes of pressurization of 300 Pa, and as the time passed and the number of times of opening and closing increased, the decreasing pressure increased and air leakage was confirmed. The size of the hole causing the leakage was estimated to be 0.01 mm hole from the numerical value of the model test of Example 1.

[Example 4]
[Watertightness test]
Water leaks were tested in germ-free animal breeding equipment fitted with airtight fasteners. Fasteners similar to those of Example 2 but having different lengths in the longitudinal direction were attached to vinyl caps by high frequency welder processing in the same manner as in Example 2 (FIG. 12-16). After turning this upside down and filling it with water, it was tested for a certain period of time for water leakage. As a result, no water leakage was observed (FIGS. 17 and 18).

The germ-free animal breeding apparatus provided with the fastener of the present invention can be used for germ-free animal breeding.

100 Airtight fastener 110 Airtight tape 115 Tape bending part 120 Tape part 130 Element holding part 135 Element 137 Element row 140 Slider 140a Slider body 140b Puller holding protrusion 150 Guide hole 160 Puller 170 Stopper 170a-1 to 4 Side part 171 First 1 Stopper 172 2nd Stopper 180 Block body 185 Notch space 190 High frequency welding part 210 Mating element 215 Flange 220 Rectangular pillar part 230 Mating head 240 Mounted product 250 Clamp element 260 Plate-shaped holding piece 265 Connecting part 267 Protrusion part 270 Fastener stringer 271 1st fastener stringer 272 2nd fastener stringer 280 Opening and closing end 290 Backing tape piece 291 1st backing tape piece 292 2nd backing tape piece 300 Convex part

Claims (5)

An airtight vinyl isolator with an airtight fastener
The airtight fastener 100 comprises a pair of fastener stringers, the first fastener stringer 271 and the second fastener stringer 272, the slider 140, the first fastener 171 and the second fastener 172.
The first fastener stringer 271 and the second fastener stringer 272 have a plurality of clamp elements 250, and the meshing head 230 of the plurality of meshing elements 210 is projected to the outside, and the base portion of the meshing element 210 is bent to be airtight. The plurality of clamp elements 250 are substantially U-shaped, wrapping and sandwiching the sex tape 110 via one side edge.
The slider 140 wraps around the clamp element 250 and is movably inserted so that the meshing element 210 can be engaged and disengaged.
The first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172 are integrally fixed to the terminal portion of the fastener stringer 270, respectively, and can stop the movement of the slider 140.
The first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172 have a block body 180 and a high-frequency welded portion 190, respectively, and the high-frequency welded portion 190 is formed on a surface around the first stopper 171 and the second stopper 172, respectively. It is superposed on the airtight tape 110 and fixed in close contact .
The airtight vinyl isolator has an air supply port and an exhaust port, and further has a sleeve.
The airtight vinyl isolator . At least a part of the peripheral portion of the high-frequency welding portion 190 in the airtight fastener 100 has the spread necessary for closely fixing to the opening / closing end of the mounting product 240 attached to the airtight tape 110, and the high-frequency welding of the airtight fastener 100. The airtight vinyl isolator according to claim 1, wherein the part 190 is manufactured from a flexible material. The second backing tape piece 292 is arranged on the second stopper 172 side of the airtight fastener 100, and the convex portion 300 having a triangular cross section is airtight on the left and right on the upper surface of the second backing tape piece 292. It is provided so as to be sandwiched between sex tapes 110.
On the lower surface of the slider 140, a ∧-shaped projecting piece is vertically hung along the longitudinal direction of the tape.
Here, between the convex portion 300 and the ∧-shaped projecting piece, when the slider 140 is brought into contact with the second stopper 172, the convex portion 300 is located between the ∧-shaped projecting portion on the lower surface of the slider 140. The airtight vinyl isolator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the convex portion 300 and the airtight tape 110 are fitted so as to be in close contact with each other. The airtight vinyl isolator according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which has no air leakage. A germ-free animal breeding method using the airtight vinyl isolator according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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