JP7621063B2 - Sealing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a can-sealing device that packs beverages and other items into aluminum cans, steel cans, etc., and that is characterized by the structure of a can-mounting unit that places the cans in the can-sealing device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a seaming device is known that includes a can mounting unit on which a can filled with a beverage or the like is mounted, a chuck unit provided opposite the can mounting unit, and a seaming unit that seams a lid onto the can.
A known seaming device, as shown in Patent Document 1, for example, includes a seaming turret (1) that performs the seaming process of cans and lids, an input conveyor (supply conveyor 7) that supplies cans before seaming to the seaming turret, a lid transport turret (supply turret 3) of a lid supply unit that supplies lids, a discharge turret (discharge turret 5) that transports the cans from the seaming turret after seaming, and an output conveyor (discharge conveyor 8) that further transports the cans from the discharge turret to the outside.

The seaming turret, the discharge turret and the lid transport turret are each provided with pockets (fitting recesses 2, 4, 6) on the outer periphery for individually storing and transporting cans and lids.
Each pocket of the seaming turret is provided with a can placement unit (lifter 17) on which a can is placed, a chuck unit (seaming chuck device 10) disposed opposite the can placement unit, and seaming rolls (18, 19) that wrap the lid around the can.
In a seaming device configured in this manner, the speed and timing of each turret and conveyor are adjusted using gears, and the operation of the can loading units, chucks of the chuck units, and seaming rolls arranged in each pocket are linked to the rotation of the seaming turret using gears, cam mechanisms, etc., so that cans and lids transported at high speed can be continuously seamed while being passed on and off.
In addition, in a known seaming device, as shown in Patent Document 2, for example, a table 2 rotates around a central axis 1, and a central tube 4 of the lower part of a lifter 3, which is arranged to move up and down by a lowering cam follower 7 and a raising cam follower 8, is arranged at equal angular intervals on the outer periphery of the table 2, which rotates around a central axis 1, so as to revolve and rotate on its own axis by a bearing 5, and an outer gear 4a of the central tube 4 of this lifter 3 meshes with a sun gear 6 supported on the central axis 1.
The lifter 3 revolves due to the rotation of the central shaft 1 and its table 2, and the lifter 3 rotates due to the meshing of the sun gear 6 with the gear 4a of the central tube 4. The rotation of the central tube 4 is transmitted to the spindle 10 via the engagement parts 11 and 12, to the top spindle 13 via the engagement parts 14 and 15, and is then transmitted to the lifter plate 16 via the through hole 13b of the upper flange 13a and the pin 29. The lifter plate 16 is also elastically supported by the elastic force of the spring 23 via the nut 22, screw 21, and bolt 20.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-244537 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 9-122801

In such known seaming devices, can loading units (lifters) provided in each pocket of a seaming turret that rotates by engaging with a central axis consisting of a single center shaft extending in the vertical direction via splines, keys, etc., each rises and falls in conjunction with the rotation of the seaming turret.
When a can is supplied to each pocket of the seaming turret, a can placement unit (lifter) is raised and the can and lid are clamped between the can and a chuck, which is a holding member, and the lid is seamed.
Since the can loading unit (lifter) rotates on its axis, when it is transported from the can transport unit in a non-rotating state, a sudden rotational force is applied, which may cause the lid placed on the top of the can to shift, the contents of the can to fly out, or the can to tip over.
In particular, when the can is transferred to the lifter plate, which is rotating at high speed, the can is shaken, and the center of rotation is shifted, causing the body of the can to come into contact with the side guide members, etc., resulting in dents and scratches on the can. There was also a risk that the centering performance of the lid by the chuck, which serves as the holding member, would be reduced.
Furthermore, if the can itself becomes miscentered, there is a risk that the can will buckle when the can placement unit (lifter) is raised and the can and lid are clamped between the chuck, which is a holding member.

The present invention aims to solve the above problems by providing a tightening device that prevents the lid placed on the top of the can from shifting, the contents of the can from scattering, and the can from tipping over, reduces the shift in the center of rotation of the can to prevent dents and scratches on the can caused by contact between the body of the can and side guide members, and also improves the centering performance of the lid using the holding members.

The seaming device of the present invention is a seaming device comprising a can mounting unit on which a can is placed, a chuck unit arranged opposite the can mounting unit, a holding member arranged on the chuck unit to position and rotate a lid placed on the top of the can, and a seaming unit that seams the lid onto the can, wherein the can mounting unit has a lifter that moves up and down and is driven to rotate, and a lifter plate arranged on the lifter on which the can is placed, and the lifter plate is arranged to be freely rotatable relative to the lifter and is configured to rotate at a different rotational speed from that of the lifter , thereby solving the above-mentioned problem.

According to the seaming device of claim 1, the can loading unit has a lifter that moves up and down and a lifter plate on which cans are placed, and the lifter plate is freely rotatable relative to the lifter and configured to rotate at a different rotational speed from that of the lifter.As a result, when a can entering without rotating is placed on the lifter plate, which rotates slowly, sudden rotational force is prevented from being applied to the can, preventing the lid placed on the top of the can from shifting, the contents of the can from scattering, and the can from falling over.In addition, by reducing the shift in the center of rotation of the can and suppressing the vibration of the can, it is possible to prevent dents and scratches on the can due to contact between the body of the can and components such as side guides and pockets, and it is also possible to improve the centering performance of the lid by the holding member.
In addition, since the lifter plate can rotate freely, there is no twisting of the can due to the difference in rotation with the spindle during seaming.

According to the configuration described in claim 2, after the rotation speed increases due to friction between the lifter plate and the lifter, the chuck is pressed against the top of the can, causing the rotation speed to increase to that of the holding member.However, since the rotation speed of the lifter is lower than or equal to the rotation speed of the holding member, the can is prevented from being subjected to a sudden rotational force even after it is placed on the lifter plate.
According to the configuration described in claim 3, by having a brake that slows down the rotation of the lifter plate, the rotation speed of the lifter plate when a can enters can be reliably slowed down, further preventing sudden rotational force from being applied to the can.
According to the configuration described in claim 4, the lifter and the holding member are driven by different driving mechanisms, making it possible to change the rotation speed of the lifter independently, and the rotation speed can be easily adjusted to an optimum value in response to changes in operating conditions.
According to the configuration described in claim 5, the rotational speed of the holding member when the cans are transferred from the can transporting unit to the plate of the can mounting unit is 2800 rpm or less, so that the rotational speed of the cans increases more smoothly.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a seaming device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a configuration of a seaming device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a configuration of a can mounting unit of a seaming device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention will be described in detail below.
As shown in Figure 1, the seaming device 100 of one embodiment of the present invention is equipped with a seaming turret 101 that performs the seaming process of the can C and the lid F, an input conveyor 102 that transports and supplies the can C before seaming to the seaming turret 101 in an unrotated state, a lid supply device 104 consisting of a lid separation unit 210 and a lid transport turret 250 that supply the lids F, a discharge turret 107 that transports the can CM after seaming from the seaming turret 101, and an output conveyor 108 that further transports the can CM from the discharge turret 107 to the outside.
The seaming turret 101, the discharge turret 107 and the lid transport turret 250 each have pockets P on their outer periphery for individually storing and transporting cans C, cans CM and lids F, and the input conveyor 102 is provided with attachments 103 for individually engaging with and transporting cans C.
The rotational speeds of the seaming turret 101, the discharge turret 107 and the lid transport turret 250, the moving speed of the attachment 103 of the input conveyor 102, and the interlocking timing of each pocket P and attachment 103 are designed to be adjustable so that cans C, cans CM and lids F are transferred smoothly between each turret and conveyor.

As shown in FIG. 2, the seaming turret 101, which performs the seaming process of the can C and the lid F, is equipped with a can placement unit 350 that places and rotates a can C in each pocket P, a chuck unit 320 that is provided opposite the can placement unit 350 and has a chuck 321 that positions the lid F placed on the top of the can C and a knockout pad 322 that is vertically movable within the chuck 321 to press the lid F placed on the top of the can C, and a seaming unit 410 that has seaming rolls 451, 452 that seam the lid F to the can C.

The seaming turret 101 is rotatably disposed around the center shaft 109 with the central axis X extending in the vertical direction, and is rotationally driven by a drive mechanism 151 for the seaming turret 101 .
The lid separation unit 210, the lid transport turret 250, and the carry-in conveyor 102 are mechanically driven by the drive mechanism 151 of the seaming turret 101 via a transmission mechanism.

The chuck units 320 are rotatably arranged at equal angular intervals around the center shaft 109, facing the can placement units, with the central axis X extending in the vertical direction, and an outer gear 323 of a rotating shaft supporting the chuck 321 at its lower end meshes with a sun gear 324 supported on the center shaft 109. The chuck unit 320 revolves with the rotation of the center shaft 109 and the center column, and the chuck 321 rotates on its axis due to the meshing of the sun gear 324 with the outer gear 323.
The chuck 321 is fixedly disposed in the vertical direction but is rotatable. As shown to the right of the central axis X in Figure 2, the can mounting unit 350 is raised to clamp a can C with a lid F placed on it between the knock-out pad 322 and the can mounting unit 350, while engaging the outer peripheral surface of the lower end of the chuck 321, thereby centering the lid F.
The seaming unit 410 performs double seaming by means of seaming rolls 451 and 452 pivotally mounted so as to rotate on both ends of a seaming lever 450 whose center is fixed to the lower end of the revolving roll swing shaft 132 .
In the double seaming process, a primary seaming process is performed in which the curled portion of the lid F is wrapped around the flange portion of the can C by a seaming roll 451, and then a secondary seaming process is performed in which the curled portion is crimped and joined by tightening with a seaming roll 452 to maintain the seal.

The basic operation of the thus configured seaming device 100 will be described.
The cans C before the lids F are seamed are engaged with each attachment 103 of the carry-in conveyor 102 and conveyed toward the seaming turret 101 which is rotated by the drive mechanism 151 of the seaming turret 101 .
On the other hand, the lids F are cut out one by one from the lid separation unit 210 and transferred to each pocket P of the lid transport turret 250, and are directed toward the seaming turret 101 by the rotation of the lid transport turret 250 (see FIG. 1).
The speed and timing of the input conveyor 102 and the lid transport turret 250 are adjusted to match the speed and timing of the seaming turret 101 so that the centers of the can C and the lid F coincide at the junction G, and the can loading unit 350, whose rotation is controlled via appropriate gears, cam mechanisms, etc. by a drive mechanism 151 powered by a drive source not shown, is raised at the junction G to place the lid F on the can C placed on the lifter plate 360.
The can loading unit 350 then rises further, and the knockout pad 322 in the chuck 321 presses down on the lid F. The chuck 321, whose rotation is controlled by the drive mechanism 151 via appropriate gears, cam mechanisms, etc., engages with the lid F to center the lid F, and the can C with the lid F placed on it is clamped between the lifter plate 360, the chuck 321, and the knockout pad 322 with a constant axial load required for seaming.
Then, the seaming turret 101 rotates further, and before the clamped lid F and can C reach the seaming section E shown in FIG. 1, the lifter plate 360 and the chuck 321 accelerate to the rotational speed required for seaming.
While passing through the seaming section E, the seaming lever 450 fixed to the lower end of the roll swing shaft 132 of the seaming unit 410 is swung, and two seaming rolls 451, 452 for primary seaming and secondary seaming, which are pivotally mounted so as to rotate at both ends, are sequentially pressed from the side against the flanges of the can C and the lid F placed on top of it toward the chuck 321, thereby performing double seaming.
After the seaming is completed, the can CM is transferred from the seaming turret 101 to the discharge turret 107, and then transferred from the discharge turret 107 to a discharge conveyor 108, and is transported to the next process such as inspection and packaging.

The can placement units 350 are rotatably arranged at equal angular intervals around a center shaft 109 driven by a drive mechanism 151 with a central axis X extending in the vertical direction as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the can placement unit 350 also has a lifter 370 that is movable up and down by a lowering cam follower 357 and a lifting cam follower 358 .
The lifters 370 are provided at equal angular intervals via bearings 355 so that their lower lifter central shafts 371 rotate on the outer periphery of a lifter table 353 which serves as an orbital part that rotates around the central axis X of the seaming turret 101 .
Each lifter 370 is revolved by a lifter table 353 .
An outer gear 354 is provided on the outer surface of the lifter central shaft 371 so as to be in sliding contact with the outer surface of the lifter central shaft 371 and be capable of moving up and down. The outer gear 354 is meshed with a sun gear 356 supported by the center shaft 109 so as to be rotatable.
A plunger 373 is fitted onto the upper portion of this lifter central shaft 371 so as to transmit a rotational force.
A top spindle 361 is rotatably fitted onto the plunger 373 via a bearing 362 such as a ball bearing, integrally with the lifter plate 360 .
The rotational force of the lifter 370 is not transmitted except by friction of the bearings, etc. In this embodiment, the gear ratios of the outer gears 323, 354 and the sun gears 324, 356 are made different from each other, so that the rotational speed (rotational speed) of the lifter 370 is made equal to or lower than the rotational speed (rotational speed) of the chuck 321 in the chuck unit 320.
As an example of the rotation speed, when a can C is transferred from the input conveyor 102 to the lifter plate 360, the rotation speed (rotation speed) of the chuck 321 of the chuck unit 320 is 2800 rpm, and at this time, the rotation speed (rotation speed) of the lifter 370 is 1800 rpm.
In order to make the rotation speeds (autorotation speeds) of the lifter 370 and the chuck 321 different, the center shaft 109 may be divided into upper and lower parts, for example, and the lifter 370 and the chuck 321 may be driven by different drive sources.

The seaming device according to this embodiment is provided with a magnetic brake 365 that decelerates the rotation of the lifter plate 360 .
The magnetic brake 365 is provided in a position adjacent to the lifter plate 360 associated with the can loading unit 350, which is located downstream of the point at which the can CM is discharged to the discharge turret 107 after being seamed on the transport path of the can C by the seaming turret 101, and upstream of the point at which the can C is brought in from the input conveyor 102 (can-free section).
The magnetic brake 365 has a function of slowing down or stopping the lifter plate 360 , which rotates at a speed equal to the rotational speed of the chuck 321 at the point where the can CM is transported to the discharge turret 107 .

The following describes the operation of the can placement unit 350. The lifter 370 revolves due to the rotation of the central axis X and its table 353, and the lifter 370 rotates on its axis due to the meshing of the sun gear 356 and the outer gear 354 of the lifter central axis 371.
The rotation of the lifter central shaft 371 is transmitted to the plunger 373. On the other hand, the rotational force of the plunger 373 is hardly transmitted to the lifter plate 360 by the bearing 362.
However, when no external force is applied, the lifter plate 360 rotates at the same speed as the lifter 370 due to friction of the bearings and the like.
When the can mounting unit 350 rises and the knockout pad 322 and chuck 321 come into contact with the lid F placed on top of the can C, the rotation speed of the can C increases to the same speed as the rotation speed of the knockout pad 322 and chuck 321 and the can C begins to rotate.
After the lid F is tightened around the can C, the can loading unit 350 descends and the knock-out pad 322 and the chuck 321 are released from contact, and the rotation speed of the lifter plate 360 decreases toward the rotation speed of the lifter 370 due to friction of the bearings, etc., and the can C is discharged to the discharge turret 107 at the discharge point.
In the example shown in FIG. 1, a magnet brake 365 is provided, which makes it possible to reduce the rotation speed of the lifter plate 360 to a speed equal to or lower than the rotation speed of the lifter 370 .
In this state, the can placement unit 350 again reaches the point where the can C is carried in from the carry-in conveyor 102.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 Seaming device 101 Seaming turret 102 Carry-in conveyor 103 Attachment 104 Lid supply device 107 Discharge turret 108 Carry-out conveyor 109 Center shaft 122 Vertical movement mechanism 132 Roll swing shaft 133 Vertical movement mechanism 134 Vertical movement cam 135 Vertical movement cam follower 151 Drive mechanism 210 Lid separation unit 250 Lid transport turret 320 Chuck unit 321 Chuck (holding member)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 322: Knockout pad 323: Outer gear 324: Sun gear 350: Can placement unit 353: Lifter table 354: Outer gear 355: Bearing 356: Sun gear 357: Cam follower 358: Cam follower 360: Lifter plate 361: Top spindle 362: Bearing 365: Magnetic brake 370: Lifter 371: Lifter central shaft 373: Plunger 410: Seaming unit 450: Seaming lever 451: Seaming roll (primary seaming)
452 ... Seaming roll (secondary seaming)
C... Can (before lid tightening)
F... Lid CM... Can (after tightening the lid)
P: Pocket K: Spline E: Seaming section X: Center axis

Claims (5)

A seaming device comprising a can placement unit for placing a can, a chuck unit provided opposite the can placement unit, a holding member provided in the chuck unit for positioning a lid placed on the top of the can and rotating the lid, and a seaming unit for seaming the lid onto the can,
the can placement unit includes a lifter that moves up and down and is driven to rotate, and a lifter plate that is provided on the lifter and on which the cans are placed,
A seaming device, characterized in that the lifter plate is rotatably mounted relative to the lifter and configured to rotate at a rotation speed different from that of the lifter . The tightening device according to claim 1, characterized in that the rotation speed of the lifter is equal to or lower than the rotation speed of the holding member. The tightening device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it has a brake that slows down the rotation of the lifter plate. The tightening device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the lifter and the holding member are driven by different driving mechanisms. The seaming device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the rotational speed of the holding member when the can is transferred from the can transport unit to the lifter plate of the can placement unit is 2800 rpm or less.

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