Tube holder

Abstract

To provide a tube holder that can be applied to diversified shapes and a wide range of outer diameters of tube containers without complex operations, while suppressing the oscillation of the tube containers and ensuring stable holding.SOLUTION: A tube holder 1 comprises: a tube body support section 3 made of a disk-shaped member arranged to contact an upper end surface 5a of a holder main body 4; a fixing section 2 securing the tube body support section 3 to an upper end of the holder main body 4; and a cap supporting section 9 including a recess part formed on an inner bottom surface of the holder main body 4. At least a part of an inner peripheral surface of the holder main body 4 is formed to gradually reduce in diameter from an axial upper end side toward an axial lower end side, and the disk-shaped member has a plurality of slits extending radially outward from a radial center of the disk-shaped member and a support end defined by the adjacent slits.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a tube holder. More specifically, the present invention relates to a tube holder useful for holding a tube container when filling a tube container with a filling material and sealing the tube container after filling.

Background Art

[0002] When filling a tube container with a filling material and sealing the tube container after filling, a tube holder is used to convey the tube container in the vicinity of the nozzle and the sealer of the tube filling machine (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The tube holder has a cylindrical internal space with the same inner diameter over the axial direction for fitting and holding the tube container. Further, the inner diameter of the internal space of the tube holder is adjustable.

[0003] FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory view showing the usage state of a conventional tube holder, and in the tube holder described in Patent Document 1, the structure other than the cylindrical internal space is simplified and shown. The tube holder 50 shown in FIG. 6 has a cylindrical internal space 51a with the same inner diameter over the axial direction for fitting and holding the tube container 100. The tube container 100 includes a tube body 101 having the same outer diameter over the axial direction and a cap 102 having a tapered shape whose diameter gradually increases downward in the axial direction in FIG. 6. In a state where the tube container 100 is fitted into the internal space 51a of the tube holder 50, only a part of the cap 102 of the tube container 100 is in contact with the inner peripheral surface 51b of the tube holder 50, so that the tube container 100 is likely to swing. Therefore, the conventional tube holder has a drawback that it is difficult to stably hold a tube container having a cap with a tapered portion, etc., and thus the applicable tube containers are limited.

[0004] Furthermore, in the tube holder described in Patent Document 1, since the inner diameter of the cylindrical inner space is adjusted according to the outer diameter of the applicable tube container, there is a drawback in that a complicated operation for adjusting the inner diameter is required when filling the tube container with the filling material and sealing the tube container after filling.

[0005] Therefore, there is a long-awaited tube holder that can be applied to tube containers of various shapes and tube containers with a wide range of outer diameters without performing complicated operations, and that can suppress the rocking of the tube container and stably hold the tube container.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0006]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above prior art, and an object thereof is to provide a tube holder that can be applied to tube containers of various shapes and tube containers with a wide range of outer diameters without performing complicated operations, and that can suppress the rocking of the tube container and stably hold the tube container.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] The present invention is (1) A tube holder used in a tube filling machine for filling a tube container having a tube body and a cap attached to one axial end of the tube body with a filling material, and for detachably holding the tube container, a holder body comprising a bottomed cylindrical body having an opening that opens upward in the axial direction and a bottom at the axial lower end, It is composed of a disc-shaped member made of a flexible material arranged to contact the upper end surface of the holder body, and a tube body support portion for supporting the tube body. It is arranged to contact the upper end surface of the tube body support portion, and a fixing portion for fixing the tube body support portion to the upper end portion of the holder body. It is composed of a concave portion continuously formed on the inner peripheral surface of the holder body, and a cap support portion for supporting the cap. It is provided with At least a part of the inner peripheral surface of the holder body is formed so as to gradually decrease in diameter from the upper end side in the axial direction toward the lower end side in the axial direction. The disc-shaped member has a plurality of slits formed so as to extend radially outward from the center in the radial direction of the disc-shaped member, and support end portions defined by adjacent slits. A tube holder characterized by the above, and (2) The tube holder according to (1) above, wherein the plurality of slits are formed such that the radius of a circle passing through the radially outer end points of each of the plurality of slits is substantially the same as the inner diameter of an opening formed at the upper end portion in the axial direction of the holder body. Relates to.

Effect of the Invention

[0009] The tube holder of the present invention can be applied to tube containers of various shapes and tube containers with a wide range of outer diameters without performing complicated operations, and has an excellent effect of suppressing the swinging of the tube container and stably holding the tube container.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing a tube holder according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan explanatory diagram showing the tube body support portion of the tube holder shown in FIG. 1.

[0012] The tube holder 1 shown in FIG. 1 is used, for example, in a tube filling machine for filling a filling material into a tube container. The tube filling machine includes, for example, a sensor for acquiring information regarding the quality of the tube container, a storage section for storing the filling material, a filling material conveyance section for conveying the filling material stored in the storage section to a nozzle, a nozzle for discharging the filling material conveyed by the filling material conveyance section into the tube container, a sealer section for sealing the tube container, a tube conveyance section for conveying the tube container to the vicinity of the sensor, the nozzle, or the sealer section, and a control section. The control section controls the storage section, the filling material conveyance section, the nozzle, the sealer section, the tube conveyance section, etc. based on the information acquired by the sensor, thereby controlling the amount of the filling material conveyed by the filling material conveyance section, the timing of conveying the filling material by the filling material conveyance section, the amount of the filling material discharged from the nozzle into the tube container, the timing of sealing the tube container, the conveyance speed of the tube container conveyed by the tube conveyance section, etc. On the upper surface in the vertical direction of the tube conveyance section, a holder fixing section for fixing the tube holder 1 is provided. Examples of the holder fixing section include a cylindrical holder fixing section that can be fixed by fitting the tube holder 1 therein, but the present invention is not limited only to such examples. The tube holder 1 is used to detachably hold the tube container when the tube container is conveyed by the tube conveyance section. According to the tube filling machine, usually, after an unfilled tube container is held by the tube holder 1, the tube container is conveyed by the tube conveyance section to the vicinity of the sensor, the nozzle, or the sealer section, and quality inspection of the unfilled tube container, filling of the filling material into the unfilled tube container, sealing of the filled tube container, etc. are performed. Further, in the tube filling machine, the sealed tube container is detached from the tube holder 1 and recovered.

[0013] As shown in Fig. 1, the tube holder 1 has a cylindrical fixing portion 2, a tube body support portion 3 made of a disc-shaped member, and a holder body 4 made of a bottomed cylinder. The fixing portion 2, the tube body support portion 3, and the holder body 4 have the same outer diameter and are overlapped coaxially. The fixing portion 2, the tube body support portion 3, and the holder body 4 are overlapped in order from the upper side to the lower side in the axial direction of the tube holder 1 and are integrally fastened together by a screw 7 (see Fig. 2).

[0014] It is preferable to appropriately determine the outer diameters of the fixing portion 2, the tube body support portion 3, and the holder body 4 according to the outer diameter of the tube container, the size of the holder fixing portion, etc. For example, when the holder fixing portion has a cylindrical shape, the outer diameters of the fixing portion 2, the tube body support portion 3, and the holder body 4 are usually substantially the same as the inner diameter of the holder fixing portion or are about 0.1 to 0.4 mm smaller than the inner diameter of the holder fixing portion, and are not particularly limited. For example, preferably, they are 50 to 70 mm, more preferably 55 to 65 mm.

[0015] As shown in Fig. 2, at least a part of the fixing portion 2 is arranged to contact the upper end surface 3a of the tube body support portion 3, and it is a member that fixes the tube body support portion 3 to the upper end portion of the holder body 4. The outer diameter of the lower end portion 2a of the fixing portion 2 is the same as the outer diameter of the upper end surface 4a of the holder body 4, that is, the outer diameter of the upper end surface 5a of the upper holder body 5. The inner diameter of the lower end portion 2a of the fixing portion 2 is the same as the inner diameter of the upper end surface 4a of the holder body 4, that is, the inner diameter of the upper end surface 5a of the upper holder body 5.

[0016] Examples of the material constituting the fixing portion 2 include ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, polyoxymethylene, polytetrafluoroethylene, etc., but the present invention is not limited only to such examples. Among these materials, from the viewpoint of enhancing the holding force of the tube container by the tube holder 1 and sufficiently ensuring the durability of the tube holder 1, preferably ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene and polyoxymethylene, more preferably polyoxymethylene.

[0017] The inner peripheral surface of the fixing portion 2 has a tapered surface 2b that gradually increases in diameter from the upper end side to the middle portion of the fixing portion 2 as shown in FIG. 2 so as to facilitate insertion of the tube container into the tube holder 1. The inclination angle α of the tapered surface 2b with respect to the axis is not particularly limited, but is usually preferably 30 to 60° from the viewpoint of facilitating insertion of the tube container into the tube holder 1. Note that the inner peripheral surface of the fixing portion 2 may not have the tapered surface 2b.

[0018] The inner diameter of the lower end portion 2a of the fixing portion 2 may be within a range that allows the tube container to be inserted into the tube holder 1. From the viewpoint of facilitating insertion of the tube container into the tube holder 1, the inner diameter of the lower end portion 2a of the fixing portion 2 is usually preferably larger than the maximum outer diameter of the tube container. The difference between the maximum outer diameter of the tube container and the inner diameter of the fixing portion 2 is usually preferably 0.2 to 30 mm.

[0019] The maximum axial thickness L1 (see FIG. 2) of the fixing portion 2 is not particularly limited, but is usually 6 to 10 mm.

[0020] The tube body support portion 3 is a member that supports the outer peripheral surface of the tube container. The tube body support portion 3 is disposed so as to be in contact with the upper end surface 4a of the holder body 4. Since the tube holder 1 according to the present embodiment has the tube body support portion 3, it is possible to effectively suppress displacement of the tube container in the radial direction when the tube container is held.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3, the tube body support portion 3 includes a support portion main body 30 that is a disk-shaped member having a plurality of slits 31 and support end portions 32 defined by adjacent slits 31, 31. The plurality of slits 31 are formed so as to extend radially outward from the center 31a of the support portion main body 30.

[0022] FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view showing the state of the tube holder when a tube container is held by the tube holder shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 4, when the tube container 100 is inserted into the tube body support portion 3, the support end portion 32 bends forward in the insertion direction of the tube container 100 according to the outer diameter of the tube container 100 and is in surface contact or line contact with the outer peripheral surface 101 a of the tube body 101. Thereby, the support end portion 32 suppresses the displacement of the tube body 101 in the radial direction and stably supports the tube body 101.

[0023] The hardness (Shore hardness) of the material constituting the tube body support portion 3 is preferably 50 Hs or more, more preferably 55 Hs or more, from the viewpoint of effectively suppressing the displacement of the tube container in the radial direction, and suppresses the deformation of the tube body when holding the tube body. From the viewpoint of facilitating the discharge of the tube container from the tube holder 1 after sealing the tube container, it is preferably 70 Hs or less, more preferably 65 Hs or less. The Shore hardness can be measured according to JIS Z 2246.

[0024] Examples of the material constituting the tube body support portion 3 include urethane rubber and silicone rubber, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. Among these materials, urethane rubber and silicone rubber are preferable, and urethane rubber is more preferable because it can suppress damage to the tube container and has excellent durability and handleability. In addition, from the viewpoint of suppressing the coloring of the tube container, it is desirable that the tube container is other than black.

[0025] The axial thickness L2 of the tube body support portion 3 (see Fig. 2) is not particularly limited. For example, from the viewpoint of effectively suppressing the displacement of the tube container when filling the tube container with the material to be filled or sealing the tube container, it is preferably 1 mm or more, preferably 1.3 mm or more. From the viewpoint of suppressing the deformation of the tube body when holding the tube body and facilitating the discharge of the tube container from the tube holder 1 after sealing the tube container, it is preferably 3 mm or less, more preferably 2.5 mm or less.

[0026] The number of slits 31 is not particularly limited. For example, from the viewpoint of effectively suppressing the displacement of the tube container when filling the tube container with the material to be filled or sealing the tube container and ensuring the durability of the tube body support portion 3, it is usually preferably 8 to 32.

[0027] From the viewpoint of ensuring the durability of the slit 31, it is preferable that the radius 31a - 31b of the circle O passing through the radially outermost end portion 31b of the tube body support portion 3 (see Fig. 3) is the same as the radius of the radially lower opening of the fixing portion 2 and the radius of the radially upper opening of the holder body 4.

[0028] In the present invention, instead of the tube body support portion 3 shown in Fig. 3, the tube support portion 303 shown in Fig. 5 may be used. The tube support portion 303 has a radius smaller than the radius of the circle O and has the same configuration as the tube body support portion 3 except that it has a hole portion 35 formed concentrically with the circle O. Since the tube support portion 303 has an arcuate notch radially inward of the support end portion 32a, according to the tube support portion 303, the insertion and discharge of the tube container can be performed more easily as compared with the tube body support portion 3.

[0029] As shown in Fig. 2, the holder body 4 is composed of a bottomed cylindrical body. The holder body 4 of this embodiment is composed of an upper holder body 5 and a lower holder body 6. The lower end surface 5c of the upper holder body 5 and the upper end surface 6a are in contact with each other, and the cylindrical inner peripheral surface 5b and the tapered surface 6b are arranged so as to continuously form the inner peripheral surface 4b. The holder body 4 is configured to be separable into the upper holder body 5 and the lower holder body 6, but may be integrally formed. An O-ring 8 is disposed on the outer periphery of the holder body 4. The O-ring 8 suppresses the displacement of the tube holder 1 with respect to the tube conveying portion of the tube filling machine.

[0030] The upper holder body 5 has a cylindrical shape, and its inner peripheral surface is composed of a cylindrical inner peripheral surface 5b centered on the axis C. The inner diameter of the cylindrical inner peripheral surface 5b of the upper holder body 5 is the same as the inner diameter of the lower end portion 2a of the fixing portion 2. The material constituting the upper holder body 5 is the same as the material constituting the fixing portion 2.

[0031] The upper holder body 5 can be used as a spacer for adjusting the axial length of the tube holder 1 according to the axial length of the tube container. Therefore, the axial length L3 (axial thickness; see Fig. 2) of the upper holder body 5 can be appropriately determined according to the axial length of the tube holder 1. The axial length L3 (axial thickness) of the upper holder body 5 is usually preferably 1 to 30 mm.

[0032] As shown in Fig. 2, the lower holder body 6 has a bottomed cylindrical shape, and its inner peripheral surface is composed of a tapered surface 6b centered on the axis C and formed to gradually decrease in diameter from the upper part to the lower part in the axial direction of the lower holder body 6, and a cylindrical inner peripheral surface 6c that is continuously formed on the tapered surface 6b and centered on the axis C. In this embodiment, since the lower holder body 6 has the tapered surface 6b, according to the tube holder 1, the tube container can be easily inserted into the tube holder 1.

[0033] The maximum inner diameter of the tapered surface 6b is the inner diameter of the upper end surface 6a on the upper side in the axial direction of the lower holder body 6 that contacts the upper holder body 5, and is the same as the inner diameter of the cylindrical inner peripheral surface 5b of the upper holder body 5. Since the minimum inner diameter of the tapered surface 6b varies depending on the use of the tube holder 1 and the like and cannot be determined generally, it is preferably determined as appropriate according to the use of the tube holder 1 and the like.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 2, a cap support portion 9 is formed at the bottom 6d of the lower holder body 6, which is a recess formed by a cylindrical inner peripheral surface 6c and an inner bottom surface 6e on the inner side in the axial direction of the lower holder body 6. As shown in FIG. 4, when the tube container 100 is inserted into the tube body support portion 3, the cap support portion 9 supports the cap 102 by at least making surface contact with the axial end surface 102a of the cap 102. Since the tube holder 1 has both the cap support portion 9 and the tube body support portion 3, when the tube container 100 is inserted into the tube holder 1, it can be in surface contact with the body portion and the tip portion of the tube container and firmly support them. Therefore, according to the tube holder 1, the displacement of the tube container 100 in the radial direction and the rocking of the tube container 100 can be effectively suppressed, and the tube body 101 can be stably supported, so that the tube container 100 can be stably held.

[0035] Since the inner diameter of the cylindrical inner peripheral surface 6c varies depending on the use of the tube holder 1 and the like and cannot be determined generally, it is preferably determined as appropriate according to the use of the tube holder 1 and the like.

[0036] Since the axial depth of the recess (L5 in FIG. 2) varies depending on the use of the tube holder 1 and the like and cannot be determined generally, it is preferably determined as appropriate according to the use of the tube holder 1 and the like. The axial depth of the recess is usually preferably 2 to 10 mm.

[0037] On the lower end side of the bottom 6d of the lower holder body 6, as shown in FIG. 2, a cylindrical hole 10 is formed that communicates from the lower part in the axial direction to the upper part in the axial direction of the lower holder body 6, has an inner diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the inner peripheral surface 6c of the cylinder, and is centered on the axis C. The hole 10 is configured to allow the insertion and removal of a pushing member for discharging the sealed tube container from the tube conveying section. Since the inner diameter of the hole 10 varies depending on the inner diameter of the pushing member and the like and cannot be determined unconditionally, it is preferably determined appropriately according to the inner diameter of the pushing member and the like. The inner diameter of the hole 10 is usually preferably 10 to 20 mm, more preferably 14 to 16 mm, and even more preferably 14.5 to 15.5 mm.

[0038] According to the tube holder 1 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the radially inner tip 32a of the tube body support portion 3 contacts the side surface 101a of the tube body 101 of the tube container 100 to support the tube body 101, and the cap support portion 9 contacts the side surface and the axial end of the cap 102 to support the cap 102. Therefore, it is possible to effectively suppress the radial displacement of the tube container 100 and the rocking of the tube container 100 when holding the tube container 100, and accurately hold the tube container 100.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0039] 1 Tube Holder 2 Fixing Portion 3 Tube Body Support Portion 4 Holder Body 4a Upper End Surface 4b Inner Peripheral Surface 9 Cap Support Portion 31 Slit 32 Support End 100 Tube Container 101 Tube Body 102 Cap

Claims

1. A tube holder used for a tube filling machine for filling a filling material into a tube container having a tube body and a cap attached to one axial end of the tube body, for detachably holding the tube container, comprising: a holder body formed of a bottomed cylindrical body having an opening opening upward in the axial direction and a bottom at the lower end in the axial direction; a tube body support portion formed of a disk-shaped member made of a flexible material disposed in contact with the upper end surface of the holder body for supporting the tube body; a fixing portion disposed in contact with the upper end surface of the tube body support portion for fixing the tube body support portion to the upper end portion of the holder body; a cap support portion formed of a recess continuously formed on the inner peripheral surface of the holder body for supporting the cap; characterized by comprising: at least a part of the inner peripheral surface of the holder body is formed to gradually decrease in diameter from the upper end side in the axial direction toward the lower end side in the axial direction; the disk-shaped member has a plurality of slits formed to radially extend from the center in the radial direction of the disk-shaped member toward the outside in the radial direction, and support end portions defined by adjacent slits; a tube holder characterized by the above.

2. The tube holder according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of slits are formed such that the radius of a circle passing through the outer radial ends of the plurality of slits and the inner diameter of the opening formed at the upper end portion in the axial direction of the holder body are substantially the same.

Images