JP7303529B2 - Filling device and filled container manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a filling device for filling a container with a material, and a method of manufacturing a material-filled container using the filling device.

An apparatus for stirring and degassing a material contained in a container (rotation/revolution type stirring/degassing device) is known (see Patent Document 1). This apparatus is used to manufacture electronic component materials such as solder paste and liquid crystal panel sealant.

By the way, the electronic component material is usually filled in a container called a syringe container (including a barrel container; the same shall apply hereinafter), and is precisely applied and discharged by a dispenser. However, in the above apparatus, materials are generally processed collectively from the viewpoint of efficiency and the like. Therefore, the collectively processed material must be separately filled into a plurality of containers such as syringe containers.

Perhaps in view of this situation, Patent Document 2 discloses a filling device that fills a container such as a syringe with materials that have been collectively processed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-271465 JP 2014-12535 A

Here, among the above materials, there are materials with high viscosity. In principle, the filling device disclosed in Patent Document 2 fills a syringe container or the like with a material by turning a handle by the user. It can be difficult to do. This is due to the large force required to turn the handle under the influence of the viscosity of the material.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. It is an object of the present invention to provide a filling device capable of efficiently filling a syringe container or the like with even a highly viscous material, and a method for manufacturing a filled container using the filling device.

The present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems includes the matters specifying the invention or the technical features described below.

That is, the invention according to a certain aspect includes an arrangement portion capable of arranging a first container capable of containing a material, a support portion rotatably supporting the arrangement portion, and an opening of the first container which is insertable, While rotating the pressing portion capable of pressing the material inside the first container, the holding portion formed in the pressing portion and holding the second container filled with the material, and the pressing portion, an operation part that moves toward the bottom part of the first container, the holding part that communicates the internal space of the first container and the internal space of the second container, and the placement part that moves the pressure Rotates the first container at less than a predetermined rotational speed as the portion moves toward the bottom of the first container, the predetermined rotational speed causing the material to rotate due to the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container. is the rotation speed at which a substantial bias of the starting point occurs, and the pressing portion moves toward the bottom portion of the first container, thereby moving the material contained in the first container through the holding portion to , filling the second container.

Moreover, in the above-described filling device, the support section may further include a regulation mechanism that regulates rotation of the placement section.

Moreover, in the above filling device, the first container may be rotated following the rotation of the pressing portion.

Further, in the above filling device, the rotational speed of the first container may be different from the rotational speed of the pressing portion.

Further, in the above filling device, the rotation speed of the first container can be equal to the rotation speed of the pressing part.

Moreover, in the above-described filling device, the filling device may further include a driving section that rotates the first container.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a material-filled container manufacturing method for manufacturing the second container filled with the material using the filling device.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a filling device capable of efficiently filling a syringe container or the like even with a highly viscous material, and a filled container manufacturing method using the filling device.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a filling device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing a material-filled container according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a filling device according to one embodiment of the invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiments described below are merely examples, and are not intended to exclude various modifications and application of techniques not explicitly described below. The present invention can be implemented in various modifications (for example, by combining each embodiment) without departing from the scope of the invention. In the description of the drawings below, the same or similar parts are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals. The drawings are schematic and do not necessarily correspond to actual dimensions, proportions, and the like. Even between the drawings, there are cases where portions with different dimensional relationships and ratios are included.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a material filling device according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the filling device 1 includes an arrangement portion 10, a support portion 20, a pressing portion 30, an operation portion 40, a first container 50, a second container 60, a base portion 70, and a vacuum chamber. and a holding portion 80 .

The arrangement portion 10 is supported by the base portion 70 via the support portion 20, and is configured to be rotatable about a rotation axis L that is an imaginary straight line. In addition, the arrangement unit 10 arranges the first container 50 so that the center line C, which is an imaginary straight line passing through the center of the first container 50, coincides with the rotation axis L, and rotates together with the first container 50. do. In addition, the placement section 10 may include fixing means (not shown) for fixing the first container 50 to itself. Note that the fixing means may be, for example, a known suction mechanism. In addition, the fixing means may be any mechanism.

The support portion 20 is fixed to the base portion 70 and supports the placement portion 10 so as to be rotatable about the rotation axis L. As shown in FIG. The support portion 20 includes bearings and the like.

The pressing portion 30 includes a main body 32 , a holding portion 34 and a sealing member 36 . The pressing part 30 is configured to be insertable into the internal space 58 of the first container 50 from the opening 56 of the first container 50 . Further, the pressing portion 30 is fixed to the shaft 44 of the operating portion 40, and when the handle 42 of the operating portion 40 is rotated, the pressing portion 30 rotates about the rotation axis L toward the bottom portion 54 of the first container 50. configured to be movable. By moving toward the bottom portion 54 of the first container 50 , the pressing portion 30 can press the material M contained in the internal space 58 of the first container 50 .

The main body 32 is formed in a cylindrical shape, faces the bottom portion 54 side of the first container 50 , and has a first surface 32 a that serves as a pressing surface for the material M, and a back surface of the first surface 32 a that serves as the shaft of the operation portion 40 . 44 and an outer peripheral surface 32c to which the seal member 36 is attached.

The holding portion 34 is formed on the main body 32 . More specifically, the holding part 34 is configured to pass through the first surface 32a and the second surface 32b of the main body 32 and hold the second container 60 on the second surface 32b side. The holding part 34 can hold (fix) the first opening 64 side of the second container 60 using, for example, a known screw mechanism (not shown). The holding portion 34 communicates the internal space 58 of the first container 50 with the internal space 68 of the held second container 60 when the pressing portion 30 is inserted into the first container 50 . The number of holding parts 34 corresponding to the number of second containers 60 is provided.

The seal member 36 is attached to the outer peripheral surface 32c of the main body 32 and is composed of an annular elastic member such as an O-ring. The sealing member 36 fills the gap generated between the main body 32 and the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50, and maintains airtightness between the main body 32 and the first container 50 when the pressing portion 30 moves. .

The operating section 40 includes a handle 42 , a shaft 44 and a driving section 46 .
The handle 42 is configured to be rotatable around an axis, which is a predetermined imaginary straight line (not shown). The handle 42 can be rotated by the user.
One end of the shaft 44 is fixed to the main body 32 of the pressing portion 30 .

Drive portion 46 is coupled to handle 42 and shaft 44 and secured to base portion 70 . By rotating the handle 42 in the first direction, the driving part 46 rotates the pressing part 30 fixed to the shaft 44 about the rotation axis L and moves it toward the bottom part 54 of the first container 50. Let In addition, the driving section 46 rotates the pressing section 30 fixed to the shaft 44 about the rotation axis L by rotating the handle 42 in a second direction opposite to the first direction. , away from the bottom 54 of the first container 50 . In addition, the drive unit 46 includes, for example, a known ball screw mechanism or the like.

The first container 50 is a bottomed container having a side surface portion 52 that extends cylindrically along the center line C, a bottom portion 54 formed on one end side, and an opening portion 56 provided on the other end side. The 1st container 50 is comprised so that the material M can be accommodated in the internal space 58. As shown in FIG. Note that the first container 50 may be placed in the placing section 10 after the material M is processed by being mounted on an apparatus as shown in Patent Document 1.

The second container 60 has a side surface portion 62 that extends cylindrically along a center line (not shown) that is an imaginary straight line, has a first opening 64 on one end, and a second opening on the other end. 66 is a container. The second container 60 is generally configured such that the first opening 64 has a smaller diameter than the second opening 66 and the inner space 68 can be filled with the material M. As shown in FIG. The second opening 66 may be a syringe container or the like.

The base portion 70 supports the support portion 20 and the drive portion 46 of the operation portion 40 and determines their positional relationship. Due to this, the base part 70 makes the placement part 10 (first container 50) and the pressing part 30 rotatable about the rotation axis L. As shown in FIG.

The vacuum holding section 80 includes a regulating section 82 and a sealing section 84 .
The restriction part 82 is attached to the second opening 66 of any one of the second containers 60 . Moreover, the regulation part 82 is configured to be connectable to a vacuum pump (not shown). The regulating portion 82 allows the internal space 58 of the first container 50 and the internal space 68 of each second container 60, which are in communication with each other via the holding portion 34 of the pressing portion 30, to be evacuated by the vacuum pump, It prevents gas such as air from flowing into the space. The restricting part 82 includes, for example, a check valve.

The sealing portion 84 is attached to the second opening 66 of the second container 60 other than the second container 60 to which the restricting portion 82 is attached. The sealing portion 84 prevents gas such as air from flowing into the internal space 58 of the first container 50 and the internal space 68 of each second container 60, which are in communication with each other via the holding portion 34 of the pressing portion 30. to prevent

In the vacuum holding part 80, the internal space of the first container 50 is communicated with each other via the holding part 34 of the pressing part 30 by the vacuum pump by configuring the regulating part 82 and the sealing part 84 as described above. 58 and the interior space 68 of each second container 60 to be evacuated and maintain the vacuum in that space even after the vacuum pump is stopped and/or removed from the restriction 82. .

In addition, the vacuum holding unit 80 may include a stop mechanism (not shown) that stops the rotation of the first container 50 . The stop mechanism stops rotation of the first container 50 while the internal space 58 of the first container 50 and the internal space 68 of each second container 60 are being evacuated by the vacuum pump. Further, the vacuum holding unit 80 accommodates at least the pressing unit 30, the first container 50, and the second container 60 in the internal space instead of the restricting unit 82 and the sealing unit 84, and evacuates the internal space. and a chamber (not shown) capable of maintaining a vacuum.

The material M may have a high viscosity as long as it behaves as a fluid, and its composition and application are not particularly limited. The material M may be, for example, a solder paste or a liquid crystal panel sealant.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing a material-filled container using a filling device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Such a material processing method is performed using the filling device 1 .

First, the user arranges the first container 50 containing the material M in the arrangement section 10 . At the same time, the user causes the holding portion 34 of the pressing portion 30 to hold the second container 60 (S201). The first container 50 is arranged such that the center line C coincides with the rotation axis L. As shown in FIG. As a result, the first container 50 is rotatable about the rotation axis L together with the placement section 10 . The second container 60 is held by the holding portion 34 so as to be positioned on the second surface 32b side of the pressing portion 30 with the first opening 64 side inserted into the holding portion 34 .

Next, the user attaches the regulation part 82 of the vacuum holding part 80 to the second opening 66 of any one of the second containers 60 . At the same time, the user attaches the sealing portion 84 of the vacuum holding portion 80 to the second opening 66 of the second container 60 other than the second container 60 to which the restricting portion 82 is attached (S202).

Next, the user confirms that the pressing portion 30 is inserted into the first container 50 and that the inner space 58 of the first container 50 and the second containers 60 of the respective second containers 60 are connected via the holding portion 34 . The handle 42 of the operation unit 40 is rotated so as to establish the state of communication (that is, the state shown in FIG. 1) (S203).

Next, the user connects a vacuum pump (not shown) to the regulating portion 82, and the internal space 58 of the first container 50 and the respective second containers communicated with each other via the holding portion 34 of the pressing portion 30 by the vacuum pump. The internal space 68 of the second container 60 is evacuated (S204). The user stops the vacuum pump and/or removes the vacuum pump from the regulation section 82 after completing the evacuation.

Next, the user rotates the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 to move the pressing unit 30 toward the bottom 54 of the first container 50 while rotating about the rotation axis L (S205). At this time, the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50 and the main body 32 of the pressing portion 30 are in contact with the first container 50 via the sealing member 36 of the pressing portion 30, and the viscosity of the material M (especially when the material M has a high viscosity), a rotational force driven by the pressing portion 30 around the rotation axis L acts. Since the arrangement portion 10 is rotatable around the rotation axis L by the support portion 20, the first container 50 follows the pressing portion 30 and rotates around the rotation axis L together with the arrangement portion 10. Rotate. Note that the rotational speed of the first container 50 at this time is basically the same as the rotational speed of the pressing portion 30 . However, the rotation speed of the first container 50 is between the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50 and the sealing member 36 of the pressing portion 30 and/or between the first surface 32a of the pressing portion 30 and the material M. , the rotational speed of the pressing portion 30 may be slower than that of the pressing portion 30 due to slippage or the like.

Here, the rotation speed of the first container 50 needs to be less than the rotation speed S, which is a predetermined rotation speed. This is because when the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container 50 causes the material M to be substantially biased toward the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50, the material M causes the bottom portion 54 of the first container 50 and the A force that presses the first surface 32a of the pressing portion 30 is generated on the opposite side. This is because an additional force for turning the handle 42 of the operating portion 40 (additional force for moving the pressing portion 30 toward the bottom portion 54 of the first container 50) may be required. Therefore, the rotational speed S is such that the material M is substantially biased toward the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50 due to the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container 50, and the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 is rotated. the rotational speed at which additional force is required to In other words, the rotation speed S causes the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container 50 to substantially bias the material M toward the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50, and rotate the handle 42 of the operation unit 40. It can be said that the rotation speed of the first container 50 reaches a value (hereinafter referred to as "predetermined value A") at which an additional force is required for the rotation. The predetermined value A is a value determined based on the properties of the material M (viscosity, etc.). Therefore, for the rotation speed S, first, a predetermined value A is calculated based on the characteristics of the material M, and then the rotation speed at which the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container 50 becomes the predetermined value A is set to the first container 50 can be obtained by calculating based on the radius of Further, the rotation speed S is set so that the material M is substantially biased toward the side surface portion 52 of the first container 50 due to the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container 50, and the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 is rotated. It can also be obtained by actually measuring the rotation speed of the first container 50 at which the additional force starts to be required. Note that the rotation speed of the first container 50 is usually less than the rotation speed S at the speed at which the user rotates the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 . This is because the drive unit 46 of the operation unit 40 sets the rotation speed of the pressing unit 30 when the user rotates the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 to be equal to or less than the rotation speed S, which is the rotation speed of the first container 50. This is because it is configured to However, in order to ensure that the rotation speed of the first container 50 is less than the rotation speed S, the support portion 20 may be provided with a regulation mechanism such as a brake (not shown) that regulates the rotation of the arrangement portion 10. .

The material M is pressed against the first surface 32 a of the main body 32 by moving the pressing portion 30 toward the bottom portion 54 of the first container 50 . Thereby, the material M flows into the internal space 68 of the second container 60 via the holding portion 34 of the pressing portion 30 (see FIG. 3). Therefore, the second container 60 is filled with the material M.

The user stops rotating the handle 42 of the operation unit 40 when the second container 60 is filled with a predetermined amount of material M (S206). Then, the user removes the second container 60 from the pressing portion 30 . Thereby, manufacturing of the second container 60 filled with the material M is completed.

Here, with a conventional filling device, it may be difficult to fill the second container with the material M, especially when the material M has a high viscosity. This is due to the fact that the first container is fixed so that it cannot rotate against the rotational force that tends to follow the pressing part, and a large force is required to turn the handle of the operation part. It's for.

On the other hand, the filling device 1 is configured so that the first container 50 can rotate about the rotation axis L as described above. As a result, in the filling device 1 , the first container 50 rotates about the rotation axis L based on the rotational force that the pressing portion 30 tends to follow. Therefore, in the filling device 1, even when the viscosity of the material M is high, a large force is not required when turning the handle 42 of the operation section 40. FIG. Therefore, even if the material M has a high viscosity, the filling device 1 can efficiently fill the second container 60 with the material M while reducing the burden on the user.

Each of the above embodiments is an example for explaining the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention only to these embodiments. The present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the gist thereof.

For example, in the methods disclosed herein, steps, actions or functions may be performed in parallel or in a different order without conflicting results. The steps, acts and functions described are provided as examples only and some of the steps, acts and functions may be omitted or combined together without departing from the scope of the invention. one, and other steps, operations, or functions may be added.

Further, the filling device 1 may be configured so that the rotational speed of the pressing portion 30 and the rotational speed of the first container 50 can be reliably set to different values. The filling device 1 can fill the plurality of second containers 60 with a more uniform amount of material M by setting the rotation speed of the pressing part 30 and the rotation speed of the first container 50 different.

In the filling device 1, for example, a brake mechanism (not shown) is provided in the support portion 20 to reduce the rotation speed of the placement portion 10, thereby ensuring that the rotation speed of the first container 50 is lower than that of the pressing portion 30. can be slowed down. In addition, the filling device 1 is provided with a driving mechanism including an electric motor (not shown) that actively rotates the placement section 10 using the support section 20 , so that the rotation speed of the first container 50 is controlled by the pressing section 30 . It is possible to arbitrarily set the rotation speed, such as making it faster or slower than the rotation speed of . Even in these cases, the filling device 1 makes the rotational speed of the first container 50 less than the rotational speed S.

In addition, although various embodiments are disclosed in this specification, specific features (technical matters) in one embodiment may be added to other embodiments or Certain features in the embodiments can be substituted and such forms are included in the gist of the invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be widely used in the field of filling devices.

1: filling device, 10: placement portion, 20: support portion, 30: pressing portion, 32: main body, 32a: first surface, 32b: second surface, 32c: outer peripheral surface, 34: holding portion, 36: sealing member , 40: operation part, 42: handle, 44: shaft, 46: drive part, 50: first container, 52: side part, 54: bottom, 56: opening, 58: internal space, 60: second container, 62: Side portion, 64: First opening, 66: Second opening, 68: Internal space, 70: Base portion, 80: Vacuum holding portion, 82: Regulating portion, 84: Sealing portion, A: Predetermined value , C: center line, L: rotation axis, M: material, S: rotation speed

Claims (7)

an arrangement section capable of arranging a first container capable of accommodating a material;
a support portion that rotatably supports the placement portion;
a pressing part that can be inserted from the opening of the first container and can press the material inside the first container;
a holding portion that is formed in the pressing portion and holds a second container filled with the material;
an operation unit that rotates and moves the pressing unit toward the bottom of the first container;
including
The holding part communicates the internal space of the first container and the internal space of the second container,
The placement unit rotates the first container at a speed less than a predetermined rotation speed when the pressing unit moves toward the bottom of the first container,
The predetermined rotation speed is a rotation speed at which the material begins to be biased due to the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the first container,
The filling device, wherein the pressing portion moves toward the bottom portion of the first container to fill the second container with the material contained in the first container via the holding portion. 2. The filling device according to claim 1, wherein the support section further includes a regulation mechanism that regulates rotation of the placement section. The filling device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first container rotates following rotation of the pressing portion. The filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the rotational speed of the first container is different from the rotational speed of the pressing portion. The filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the rotation speed of the first container is equal to the rotation speed of the pressing portion. The filling device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a driving part that rotates the first container. A material-filled container manufacturing method for manufacturing the second container filled with the material using the filling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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