Labeling device and labeling method

Abstract

To provide a labeling device which can reliably apply a label to a cap body with high accuracy and increase a speed of a labeling step to improve producibility.SOLUTION: A labeling device includes: tab position adjustment means 50 which adjusts an orientation of a cup container 2 transported by a transportation conveyor 40; and label supply means which is located at the downstream side of the tab position adjustment means 50 and temporarily applies a label to a top surface of the cup container 2. Through holes 41 are provided at a position on the transportation conveyor 40 where the cup container 2 is placed. The tab position adjustment means 50 has: an air supply part which blows air E from an area below the transportation conveyor 40 to an area above the transportation conveyor 40 through the through holes 41 to lift the cup container 2 from the transportation conveyor 40; and contact rollers 52 which are located at left and right sides of the cup container 2 lifted by the air E and rotate the lifted cup container 2 around a container axis O to change the orientation of the cup container 2. The contact rollers 52 rotate a tab 22A to a position deviated from a position where the tab 22A faces in a lateral direction Z.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a label application device and a label application method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a cup container having a configuration including a cylindrical cup body with a bottom in which contents are contained and a tab member that closes the opening of the cup body, as shown in, for example, Patent Document 1. For such a cup container, there is a label attachment device that attaches a label from the tab member of the cup container to the upper outer peripheral surface of the cup body.

[0003] This type of label application device is provided with a transport conveyor that transports cup containers in one direction, each of which has a content contained therein and a cup body closed with a tab material, and a label supplying means that supplies a label to the upper surface of the cup container transported by the transport conveyor, and the supplied label is affixed to the tab material and the upper outer peripheral surface of the cup body. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-249121 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The label supply means of the conventional labeling device rotates a rotatable brush around the conveyance direction of the cup container as the center of rotation, and moves the brush back and forth in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction to affix the label by smoothing it onto the cup body. However, in this case, there is a risk that the label will be attached to the cup container in a misaligned state due to friction or contact between the brush and the label.

[0006] In addition, in the conventional labeling device, when a label is placed so as to overlap the position of the tab of the tab material of the cup container, the label may be misaligned or may float, resulting in poor label attachment. Moreover, defects caused by floating labels are difficult to detect by image inspection, and there is a risk that the label cannot be removed as a defective product and may be shipped as a defective product.

[0007] Furthermore, in the conventional label supplying means, the conveyance of the cup container is temporarily stopped before labeling is performed. In other words, the cup containers being conveyed during production are conveyed discontinuously, which limits mass production of the product. It is therefore necessary to perform the labeling work during continuous conveyance, and there is room for improvement in this regard.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and has an object to provide a label application device and a label application method that can accurately and reliably apply a label to a cup body, even in a cup container equipped with a tab material having a tab, and that can improve production efficiency by speeding up the label application process. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] A first aspect of the present invention is a label application device for applying a label from the tab material of a cup container to an outer peripheral surface of the cup body in a cup container having a bottomed cylindrical cup body in which contents are contained and a tab material that closes the opening of the cup body, the label application device comprising: a transport conveyor that transports the cup container with the cup body closed by the tab material in one transport direction; tab position adjustment means that adjusts the orientation of the cup container transported by the transport conveyor to match a tab that serves as an opening operation portion of the tab material; and label supply means that is arranged downstream of the tab position adjustment means and temporarily attaches the label to a top surface of the cup container, the transport conveyor having a through hole at a position where the cup container is placed, the tab position adjustment means being arranged in an air blowing section set at a predetermined position below the transport conveyor, and blowing air from below onto the transport conveyor to float the cup container from the transport conveyor through the through hole. and a cup direction changing section which is located on both sides of the cup container transported by the transport conveyor in the same region in the conveying direction as the air blowing section, and which changes the orientation of the cup container by coming into contact with the tab of the cup container floated by the air supply section, thereby rotating it about the container axis, and when the through hole moves to the air blowing section, air blown out from the air supply section through the through hole imparts to the cup container on the transport conveyor a buoyancy of such an extent that there is no ground friction with the surface of the transport conveyor, and the cup direction changing section, on both sides of the cup container in the conveyor width direction, while the air supply section blows out the air to the cup container which is continuously moved by the transport conveyor, thereby changing the orientation of the cup container by coming into contact with the tab of the cup container about the container axis, and rotating the tab to a position away from the position facing in the conveyor width direction.

[0010] Another aspect of the present invention is a label attachment method for attaching a label from the tab material of a cup container to an outer peripheral surface of the cup body, the method including the steps of: blowing air from below the cup container, which is continuously transported in one direction by the transport conveyor and has the cup body blocked by the tab material, in an air blowing section set at a predetermined position below the transport conveyor; in a state in which the air is blown out on both sides in the conveyor width direction of the cup container which is continuously moved by the transport conveyor, contacting the tab of the cup container with cup direction changing parts arranged on both sides in the conveyor width direction of the cup container, thereby rotating the cup container around the container axis to change the orientation of the cup container, and rotating the tab, which serves as an opening operation part of the tab material, to a position away from the position facing in the conveyor width direction; and adjusting the orientation of the cup container to match the tab, and then temporarily attaching the label to a position on the top surface of the cup container which does not overlap the tab.

[0011] According to the above aspect, the air supply unit of the tab position adjustment means blows air from below the conveyor through the through hole toward the conveyor, thereby lifting the cup container from the conveyor. Then, in the cup direction changing units located on both sides of the conveyor width direction, the cup container lifted by the air can be rotated around the container axis to change the orientation of the cup container. Therefore, the tab of the cup container transported on the conveyor can be rotated to a position away from the position facing the conveyor width direction. According to this embodiment, even in a cup container equipped with a tab member having a tab, the tab can be shifted from the label attachment position, which prevents the tab and the label from being attached in an overlapping state, allowing the label to be attached to the cup body accurately and reliably. In addition, according to this embodiment, the orientation of the cup containers moving in the conveying direction by continuous operation can be changed without stopping the conveying movement of the cup containers on the conveyor, which increases the speed of the label attachment process and improves production efficiency.

[0012] In the label application device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the cup direction changing section is a contact roller that has a rotation axis in the vertical direction and contacts the tab that protrudes outward from the cup body in the conveyor width direction.

[0013] According to this configuration, when the tab of the cup container protrudes outward in the conveyor width direction, the tab comes into contact with the contact roller, and as the contact roller rotates, the cup container can be easily guided to change its orientation, so that the orientation of the cup container can be shifted from the label attachment position to a position where the tab is offset. Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to the label sticking device and label sticking method of the present invention, a label can be stuck to a cup body with high precision and reliability even in the case of a cup container equipped with a tab material having a tab. Furthermore, according to the labeling device and labeling method of the present invention, the labeling process can be performed at a high speed, thereby improving production efficiency. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a plan view of a label application device according to an embodiment of the present invention, as viewed from above; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the label attachment device shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a label has been temporarily attached to a cup container. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] 5 is a plan view of the tab position adjusting means shown in FIG. 4 as viewed from above. [Figure 6] 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA shown in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] 13 is a side view for explaining the operation of the tab position adjusting means. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is a plan view of the label folding and spreading means seen from above. [Figure 9] 9 is a front view of the label folding and spreading means shown in FIG. 8 as viewed from the conveyance direction. [Figure 10] FIG. [Figure 11] 13 is a side view for explaining the operation of the laminating roller of the label folding and spreading means. FIG. [Figure 12] 13 is an enlarged front view of a main part for explaining the operation of the laminating roller of the label folding and spreading means. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 4 is a plan view of the label pressing means as viewed from above. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, in which an X-axis, a Y-axis, and a Z-axis that are mutually orthogonal as necessary are shown.

[0017] As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a label application device 1 according to this embodiment is a device that applies a label 3 to a tab material 22 that closes an opening of a cup container 2 that contains contents such as pudding, yogurt, or jelly.

[0018] 3, the cup container 2 includes a bottomed, tubular cup body 21 for accommodating contents, and a tab member 22 for closing an opening of the cup body 21. The cup body 21 is formed in a bottomed, tubular shape that is circular in cross section. Hereinafter, the straight line passing through the center of the circular cross section is referred to as the container axis O. The side of the tab material 22 (opening end 21a) along the container axis O is referred to as the upper side, and the bottom side of the cup body 21 is referred to as the lower side. Additionally, the direction perpendicular to the container axis O in a plan view seen from the direction of the container axis O is referred to as the radial direction, and the direction going around the container axis O is referred to as the circumferential direction.

[0019] The diameter of the cup body 21 gradually decreases from the top to the bottom. The cup body 21 has a substantially cylindrical body portion 21A and a cup bottom 21B that closes the lower end of the body portion 21A. The opening end 21a of the cup body 21 has a flange portion 23 that protrudes radially outward over the entire circumference. A tab material 22 made of a lid member is attached to the upper surface of the flange portion 23 to seal the opening end 21a. In other words, the cup body 21 containing the contents is sealed by the tab material 22. The cup body 21 is formed of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, or polyethylene terephthalate.

[0020] The tab material 22 attached to the open end 21a of the cup body 21 has a brim-like opening tab 22A that protrudes radially outward from a portion of the outer circumferential edge 22a in the circumferential direction. In this embodiment, the tab material 22 is made of a sheet-like transparent film, and may have decorations, text information, or the like printed thereon. The tab 22A is provided to facilitate the opening operation of the cup container 2, and has a contour shape that protrudes in the center in the left-right direction to ensure ease of opening.

[0021] A strip-shaped label 3 is attached to the cup container 2 from the tab material 22 to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21. The label 3 has a label center portion 31 extending in the longitudinal direction, and label enlarged portions 32 whose width dimension is enlarged at both longitudinal ends 3a of the label center portion 31. The label 3 is attached to the cup container 2 by the label attachment device 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2 at a position shifted in the circumferential direction with respect to the tab 22A of the tab material 22.

[0022] The procedure for attaching the label 3 is as follows: first, the label center portion 31 is temporarily attached to the upper surface of the tab material 22 (the top surface 2a of the cup container 2). At this time, both end portions 3a, 3a of the label 3 are not folded toward the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21. Next, both end portions 3a, 3a of the label 3 are folded downward and attached to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21.

[0023] The labeling device 1 is a device for attaching a label 3 to a cup container 2. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the label application device 1 includes a transport conveyor 40, a tab position adjustment means 50, a label supply means 60, a label folding and smoothing means 70, and a label final pressing means 80.

[0024] The transport conveyor 40 moves from the right side to the left side of the paper in FIGS. The direction along the movement direction at this time is defined as the transport direction X, and the front side of the movement direction in the transport direction X is defined as the upstream side, and the rear side is defined as the downstream side. In addition, the left-right direction perpendicular to the transport direction X as viewed from above in the up-down direction Y is defined as the left-right direction Z. The tab position adjusting means 50, the label supplying means 60, the label folding and smoothing means 70, and the label final pressing means 80 are disposed in this order from upstream to downstream in the conveying direction X of the transport conveyor 40.

[0025] 2, the transport conveyor 40 moves at a constant speed and continuously transports a plurality of cup containers 2 with the cup bottoms 21B facing down from upstream to downstream in the transport direction X. The transported cup containers 2 are supplied at predetermined intervals in the transport direction X. The transport conveyor 40 is wound around a drive pulley 42 and a driven pulley 43 and is formed into an endless shape.

[0026] The transport conveyor 40 is provided with a cup container supply section S, and cup containers 2 with tab material 22 (see FIG. 3) already attached to the open end 21a of the cup body 21 are supplied from the upstream side of the cup container supply section S. The supplied cup containers 2 are positioned in the center of the left-right direction Z of the transport conveyor 40. The circumferential orientation of the cup containers 2 is not particularly restricted when supplied to the cup container supply section S. In other words, the orientation of the tabs 22A of the cup containers 2 transported in the cup container supply section S varies in the circumferential direction.

[0027] As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the transport conveyor 40 has a number of through holes 41 penetrating the conveyor at positions where the cup containers 2 are placed. The through holes 41 extend long along the transport direction X, and a number of (four in this example) through holes are arranged in the left-right direction Z. The cup containers 2 continuously supplied onto the surface 40a of the transport conveyor 40 in the cup container supply section S (see Figures 1 and 2) are placed on at least one of the through holes 41 and transported.

[0028] In Figure 5, for ease of viewing, a through hole 41 is only provided in the portion where the second cup container 2 from the left on the page is placed, but through holes 41 are provided to accommodate all cup containers 2 placed on the transport conveyor 40. The shape of the through hole 41 is not limited to a long hole extending in the conveying direction X as in this embodiment, but can be set to any shape such as a circle, a rectangle, a porous shape (mesh shape), etc., that can blow air E from below to above the conveying conveyor 40. Moreover, the area in which the through holes 41 are provided is preferably arranged so that air E from an air supply unit 51 described below hits the cup bottom 21B of the cup body 21 of the cup container 2 evenly, as shown in FIG.

[0029] The tab position adjusting means 50 is disposed downstream of the cup container supply section S, and adjusts the orientation of the cup container 2 to a direction shifted from the position where the label 3 is attached. As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the tab position adjustment means 50 has an air supply unit 51 that blows air E from below the conveyor 40 through the through hole 41 toward the conveyor to lift the cup container 2 being transported above the surface 40a of the conveyor 40, and a number of contact rollers 52 (cup direction changing units) that are located on both sides of the left-right direction Z of the cup container 2 being transported and rotate the cup container 2 that has been lifted by the air E blown out by the air supply unit 51 around the container axis O (in the direction of arrow F1 shown in Figure 5) to change the orientation of the cup container 2 (see Figure 7).

[0030] The air supply unit 51 is configured to blow air E continuously from the multiple through holes 41 in a predetermined section for floating the cup container 2. The air supply unit 51 is connected to a pressure pump such as a compressor (not shown) so that the air E is ejected at an appropriate blowing pressure. The blowing pressure of the air E is set so that the floating cup container 2 floats slightly so that there is no friction with the ground. As shown in Fig. 7, in the section where the orientation of the cup container 2 is adjusted, the cup container 2 floats, moves downstream in the transport direction X, and leaves the section where the air E is blown out, touches the surface 40a of the transport conveyor 40, and is transported downstream.

[0031] As shown in Figs. 4 to 7, the contact roller 52 rotates and shifts the position of the tab 22A of the tab material 22 in the cup container 2 floated by the air supply unit 51 to a position away from the position facing the left-right direction Z. The contact roller 52 has a rotation shaft 52a facing the up-down direction Y, and is provided so as to be rotatable about the rotation shaft 52a. The contact roller 52 is provided so as to be able to come into contact with the tab 22A protruding in the left-right direction Z of the cup container 2. The contact rollers 52 are arranged alternately on the left and right of the transport conveyor 40 along the transport direction X. As shown in Fig. 6, the contact roller 52 is located on the side of the flange portion 23 of the cup container 2 being transported, in a position that does not contact the flange portion 23 and the outer peripheral edge 22a of the tab material 22, and is provided so as to be able to come into contact with the tab 22A protruding in the left-right direction Z as described above.

[0032] In the tab position adjustment means 50, when the tab 22A of the tab material 22 in the cup container 2 that moves in the transport direction X on the transport conveyor 40 and is lifted by the air E of the air supply unit 51 and loses ground friction, comes into contact with the contact roller 52, the tab 22A rotates around the container axis O to change its orientation in the circumferential direction. As a result, the tab 22A faces upstream in the transport direction X and is at least positioned away from a position facing the left-right direction Z.

[0033] As shown in Fig. 2, two label supplying means 60 are arranged at a distance from each other downstream of the tab position adjusting means 50 in the transport direction X. The label supplying means 60 includes a label supplying section 61 that supplies a label 3 with its longitudinal direction facing the left-right direction Z to the top surface 2a of the cup container 2 whose orientation has been adjusted by the tab position adjusting means 50 and which is transported by the transport conveyor 40. That is, as shown in Fig. 3, the label 3 affixed to the top surface 2a of the transported cup container 2 has both longitudinal ends 3a, 3a protruding outward from the cup container 2 in the left-right direction Z (see Fig. 1).

[0034] The label supply unit 61 moves toward and away from the top surface 2a of the cup container 2 being conveyed while holding the label 3. In the label supply unit 61, while holding the label 3, the label supply unit 61 moves the adhesive surface of the label center portion 31 of the label 3 toward the top surface 2a while holding the label 3, presses the label 3 against the top surface 2a to stick it, and then moves the label away from the top surface 2a. The label supply unit 61 then holds the label 3 to be supplied to the next cup container 2, and the above supply operation is repeated.

[0035] In this embodiment, the labels 3 are supplied so as to be temporarily affixed to the cup containers 2 continuously transported in the transport direction X by two label supplying means 60, but a single label supplying means 60 may be used as long as it has the supply capacity to accommodate the cup containers 2 being transported.

[0036] As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the label folding and spreading means 70 are provided on both the left and right sides of the transport conveyor 40 downstream of the label supplying means 60 in the transport direction X. As shown in FIG. 3, the label folding and smoothing means 70 folds the end 3a of the label 3 that is temporarily attached to the top surface 2a of the cup container 2 into the flange portion 23 of the cup body 21 and smooths and attaches it to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c.

[0037] As shown in Figures 8 to 10, the label folding and spreading means 70 is equipped with a plurality of (five in this embodiment) spreading rollers 71 that are arranged to spread the longitudinal end 3a of the label 3 downward from the flange portion 23 (upper end) to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c (outer peripheral surface) of the cup body 21 simultaneously to a plurality of cup containers 2 to which labels 3 have been supplied and temporarily attached by the label supply means 60, and a tracking drive unit 72 that causes the multiple spreading rollers 71 to follow the cup containers 2 that are continuously transported and moved.

[0038] 9 and 10, the joining roller 71 is rotatably provided at a tip 73a of a support arm 73 supported by a follower drive unit 72. A rotation shaft 71a of the joining roller 71 is oriented in the conveyance direction X.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 10, the follow-up drive unit 72 includes a support arm 73 that rotatably supports the joining roller 71 around a rotation axis 71a, a horizontal slider 74 that is guided along a horizontal guide rail 741 extending in the conveying direction X, an extendable cylinder 75 that is fixed to the horizontal slider 74 and extends and retracts in the vertical direction Y, a drive shaft 76 that is fixed to a tip 75a of the extendable cylinder 75 and extends toward the conveying direction X, and a power unit 77.

[0040] The power unit 77 drives the support arm 73, the horizontal slider 74, and the telescopic cylinder 75. The support arm 73, the horizontal slider 74, and the telescopic cylinder 75 are controlled by a control device (not shown) so that the five application rollers 71 follow the respective corresponding cup containers 2 and smooth and apply the end 3a of the label 3.

[0041] 9, the support arm 73 has a first arm portion 731 extending in the up-down direction Y and a second arm portion 732 extending from an upper end of the first arm portion 731 in the left-right direction Z toward the cup container 2, and is formed into a substantially L-shape when viewed from the conveying direction X. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, a support arm 73 is provided for each joining roller 71. These five support arms 73 are provided at their base ends 73b so as to be rotatable about a drive shaft 76. The five support arms 73 are supported by one drive shaft 76 and move together with the movement of the drive shaft 76.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 10, the horizontal guide rail 741 that guides the horizontal slider 74 is provided with a length that enables the end 3a of the label 3 that is temporarily attached to the cup container 2 being transported and moved by the five application rollers 71 to be smoothly attached to the cup container 2 in accordance with the transport movement. The horizontal slider 74 is guided by a horizontal guide rail 741 and reciprocates along the conveying direction X. Two horizontal sliders 74 are provided in the conveying direction X at a fixed interval.

[0043] The telescopic cylinders 75 are fixed to the horizontal sliders 74, respectively, and move the drive shafts 76, the support arms 73, and the joining rollers 71 in the vertical direction Y. The length of the telescopic cylinders 75 is set to match the length of label stroking in the vertical direction Y by the joining rollers 71.

[0044] The drive shaft 76 is fixed to the tips 75a of the pair of telescopic cylinders 75 via a support stand 78. The five support arms 73 described above are rotatably supported on the drive shaft 76 at intervals in the longitudinal direction. The intervals between the support arms 73 and the laminating roller 71 in the transport direction X are set to be the same as the intervals between the multiple cup containers 2 transported on the transport conveyor 40.

[0045] 11 and 12, the operation of the joining roller 71, which is driven and controlled by the follower drive unit 72, is to first come into contact with the flange portion 23, and then move the joining roller 71 downward while urging it so as to press it against the cup body 21. At this time, the joining roller 71 rotates at the tip portion 73a of the support arm 73, so that the end portion 3a of the label 3 is folded by the flange portion 23 (see FIG. 3), and is then joined to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21.

[0046] 1 and 2, the label pressing means 80 is provided on both the left and right sides of the transport conveyor 40 downstream of the label folding and smoothing means 70 in the transport direction X. As shown in Fig. 13, the label pressing means 80 is for further pressing the end 3a of the label 3 smoothed and pasted by the pasting roller 71 to make it adhere closely to the cup body 21.

[0047] The label pressing means 80 comprises a first base portion 81 which is movable in the left-right direction Z and the up-down direction Y, a second base portion 82 which is movable in the conveying direction X relative to the first base portion 81, a pressing arm 83 which is fixed on the second base portion 82 and protrudes toward the center of the conveyor 40 in the left-right direction Z, and a pressing plate 84 which is provided at the protruding tip 83a of the pressing arm 83 and presses the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21.

[0048] The pressing surface 84 a of the pressing plate 84 is formed into a curved shape that matches the upper outer peripheral surface 21 c of the cup body 21 .

[0049] In the label pressing means 80, the first base portion 81 and the second base portion 82 are driven by a driving means (not shown) and are controlled so as to follow the moving cup container 2. As a result, the pressing surface 84a of the pressing plate 84 presses the end portion 3a of the label 3 affixed to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21.

[0050] The label pressing means 80 is configured to control movement in the vertical direction Y and the conveying direction X simultaneously when pressing the end 3a of the label 3, so as to follow the conveying movement of the cup container 2.

[0051] Next, the operation of the above-mentioned label sticking device 1 and label sticking method will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. 4 to 7, in this embodiment, air E is blown from below the conveyor 40 through the through holes 41 toward the top of the conveyor 40 in the air supply unit 51 of the tab position adjustment means 50, thereby lifting the cup container 2 from the conveyor 40. Then, in the contact rollers 52 located on both sides in the left-right direction Z, the cup container 2 lifted by the air E is rotated around the container axis O, thereby changing the orientation of the cup container 2.

[0052] Therefore, the tab 22A of the cup container 2 transported on the transport conveyor 40 can be rotated to a position that is different from the position facing the left-right direction Z. In this manner, in this embodiment, even in the cup container 2 equipped with the tab material 22 having the tab 22A, the tab 22A can be positioned at a position shifted from the attachment position of the label 3. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the tab 22A and the label 3 from being attached in an overlapping manner, and therefore the label 3 can be attached to the cup body 21 accurately and reliably.

[0053] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the orientation of the cup container 2 moving in the transport direction X by a continuous operation can be changed without stopping the transport of the cup container 2 on the transport conveyor 40. Therefore, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved by speeding up the label attachment process.

[0054] Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and configuration changes and combinations within the scope that do not deviate from the gist of the present invention are also included. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 1 Labeling device 2 cup container 2a Top 3. Labels 3a end 21 Cup body 21c Upper outer peripheral surface (outer peripheral surface) 22 Tab material 22A Tab 23 Flange 40 Transport Conveyor 41 Through hole 50 Tab position adjustment means 52 Contact roller (cup direction change part) 60 Label supply means 61 Label supply unit 70 Label fold-in and affixing means 71 Laminating roller 71a Rotating shaft 72 Follow-up drive unit 73 Support Arm 74 Horizontal Slider 75 Telescopic Cylinder 76 Drive shaft 77 Power section 80 Label Final Measures 84 Pressure plate E-Air O Container axis X conveying direction Y vertical direction Z Left / Right direction (Conveyor width direction)

Claims

1. A labeling device for attaching a label from the tab material to an outer peripheral surface of the cup body of a cup container having a bottomed cylindrical cup body for accommodating contents and a tab material for closing an opening of the cup body, comprising: a conveyor that conveys the cup container having the cup body closed by the tab member in a conveying direction in one direction; a tab position adjusting means for adjusting a direction of the cup container conveyed by the conveyor to match the tab serving as an opening operation portion of the tab member; a label supply means arranged downstream of the tab position adjustment means and configured to temporarily attach the label to the top surface of the cup container; a through hole is provided at a position on the transport conveyor where the cup container is placed; The tab position adjustment means is an air supply unit that is disposed in an air blowing section set at a predetermined position below the conveyor and blows air from below the conveyor to lift the cup container from the conveyor through the through hole; a cup direction changing section that is located on both sides of the cup container conveyed by the transport conveyor in the conveying direction in the same region as the air blowing section, and that changes the orientation of the cup container by rotating it about the container axis by contacting the tab of the cup container floated by the air supply section, When the through hole moves to the air blowing section, the air blown out from the air supply unit through the through hole imparts buoyancy to the cup container on the conveying conveyor to such an extent that ground friction with the surface of the conveying conveyor is eliminated, The cup direction changing unit is a label application device in which, while the air supply unit blows air into the cup container which is continuously moved by the transport conveyor, the cup direction changing unit contacts the tab of the cup container on both sides of the conveyor width direction, thereby rotating the cup container around the container axis and changing the orientation of the cup container, and rotates the tab to a position away from the position facing in the conveyor width direction.

2. The cup direction changing unit is a contact roller having a rotation axis in the vertical direction and contacting the tab extending from the cup body to the outside in the conveyor width direction.

2. The labeling device of claim 1.

3. A labeling method for a cup container including a bottomed cylindrical cup body for accommodating contents and a tab member for closing an opening of the cup body, the method comprising the steps of: attaching a label from the tab member to an outer peripheral surface of the cup body of the cup container, a step of blowing air from below the cup container, the cup body of which is closed by the tab material and which is continuously transported in one direction by the transport conveyor, in an air blowing section set at a predetermined position below the transport conveyor; a step of rotating the cup container around a container axis to change the orientation of the cup container by contacting the tab of the cup container with cup direction changing parts arranged on both sides of the cup container in the conveyor width direction while the air is being blown out on both sides of the cup container in the conveyor width direction, thereby rotating the tab, which is an opening operation part of the tab material, to a position away from the position facing the conveyor width direction; a step of adjusting the orientation of the cup container to match the tab, and then temporarily attaching the label to a top surface of the cup container at a position that does not overlap the tab; The labeling method according to claim 1,

Images