Labeling device and labeling method

Abstract

To provide a labeling device which can reliably apply a label to a cup body with high accuracy even if a cup container includes a tab material having a tab and increase a speed of a labeling step to improve producibility.SOLUTION: A labeling device includes: label supply means which temporarily applies a label 3 to a top surface 2a of a cup container 2 transported by a transportation conveyor 40 with its longitudinal direction oriented in a lateral direction Z of the transportation conveyor 40; and labeling rollers 71 which are provided at both sides in the lateral direction Z at the downstream side of the label supply means and which rub end parts 3a of the labels 3 on areas, each of which ranges from a flange part 23 of the cup container 2 to an upper outer peripheral surface 21c, to apply the end parts 3a of the labels 3 to the multiple cup containers 2, to which the labels 3 are temporarily applied by the label supply means, simultaneously. Each labeling roller 71 is controlled so as to conduct movement in a vertical direction Y and movement in a transportation direction X simultaneously and follow transportation of the cup container 2 when rubbing the end part 3a of the label 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

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, the 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; label supply means that temporarily attaches the label to the top surface of the cup container transported by the transport conveyor, with the longitudinal direction facing the conveyor width direction of the transport conveyor; and downstream of the label supply means: Between the conveyor At least one of the conveyor width directions One side and the other sideand a plurality of laminating rollers for simultaneously laminating the longitudinal end of the label to the plurality of cup containers to which the labels have been temporarily attached by the label supplying means by smoothing the longitudinal end of the label from the outer periphery of the tab material to the outer periphery of the cup body, the plurality of laminating rollers being arranged along the conveying direction. The one side and the other side For the drive shaft each a plurality of application rollers arranged coaxially and rotatably and integrally, all of said application rollers operating simultaneously on said drive shaft; Symmetrical when viewed from the conveying direction The multiple application rollers are linked by their operating posture and are controlled to move vertically and in the conveying direction simultaneously when smoothing the end of the label, so as to follow the conveying movement of the cup container.

[0010] Another aspect of the present invention is a labeling method for attaching a label from the tab material to an outer peripheral surface 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, the method comprising the steps of: temporarily attaching the label to a top surface of the cup container, the top surface being transported in one transport direction by a transport conveyor, the top surface being closed by the tab material, with the longitudinal direction of the label facing the conveyor width direction of the transport conveyor; and attaching ends of the labels temporarily attached to a plurality of the cup containers, The conveyor is provided on at least one side and the other side in the conveyor width direction, with the conveyor being sandwiched between the conveyor. and using a plurality of laminating rollers to smooth the outer periphery of the tab material to the outer periphery of the cup body, the plurality of laminating rollers being aligned along the conveying direction. The one side and the other side For the drive shaft each a plurality of application rollers arranged coaxially and rotatably and integrally, all of said application rollers operating simultaneously on said drive shaft; Symmetrical when viewed from the conveying direction The multiple laminating rollers are linked by their operating postures, and when smoothing the end of the label, they are controlled to move vertically and in the conveying direction simultaneously so as to follow the conveying movement of the cup container.

[0011] According to the above aspect, a label is temporarily attached to the top surface of a cup container conveyed in one direction by a conveyor with its longitudinal direction facing the conveyor width direction of the conveyor, and then the ends of the labels temporarily attached to the multiple cup containers can be smoothed and attached from the outer periphery of the tab material to the outer periphery of the cup body using multiple attachment rollers. When smoothing the ends of the labels using multiple attachment rollers, the attachment rollers can be controlled to move in the vertical direction and the conveying direction simultaneously to follow the conveying movement of the cup container. Thus, according to this aspect, the ends of the labels can be attached to multiple cup containers at the same time without stopping the conveying movement of the cup container on the conveyor. Therefore, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved by speeding up the label attachment process.

[0012] In addition, according to this aspect, the application roller is configured to follow the cup container as it is transported, and the time for smoothing the edge of the label can be increased, so that the edge of the label can be accurately and reliably applied to the cup body. Furthermore, according to this aspect, in a cup container equipped with a tab material having a tab, even if a label overlaps the tab, the application roller presses down the tab at the same time as the end of the label, thereby preventing the label from shifting or floating due to the tab stiffness.

[0013] In addition, the label application device of the present invention is provided with a label pressing means for pressing an end of the label that has been smoothed and attached to the cup body by the application roller, and it is preferable that the label pressing means is controlled so that when pressing the end of the label, it moves in the vertical direction and the transport direction simultaneously to follow the transport movement of the cup container.

[0014] According to this configuration, the label pressing means further presses the end of the label that has been pasted onto the cup body by the pasting roller, so that the end of the label can be more reliably pressed onto the cup body. At this time, the label pressing means is controlled to move in the vertical direction and the conveying direction simultaneously to follow the conveying movement of the cup container, so that the end of the label can be further pressed onto the cup body without stopping the conveying movement of the cup container on the conveyor. Therefore, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved by speeding up the label pasting process.

[0015] In the label application device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the label pressing means has a pressing portion formed in the same curved shape as the outer circumferential surface of the cup body.

[0016] According to this configuration, the shape of the pressing surface of the pressing portion is the same as the curved shape of the outer circumferential surface of the cup body, so that more effective final pressure bonding is possible. Effect of the Invention

[0017] 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 accuracy 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]

[0018] [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 seen from above. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] 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.

[0020] 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.

[0021] 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.

[0022] The cup body 21 is gradually tapered from the top to the bottom. The cup body 21 has a substantially cylindrical body 21A and a cup bottom 21B that closes the bottom end of the body 21A. The open end 21a of the cup body 21 has a flange 23 that protrudes radially outward over the entire circumference. A tab member 22 made of a lid member is attached to the upper surface of the flange 23 to seal the open end 21a. In other words, the cup body 21 containing the contents is sealed by the tab member 22. The cup body 21 is formed of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, or polyethylene terephthalate.

[0023] 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.

[0024] 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.

[0025] 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.

[0026] 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.

[0027] 1 and 2, the transport conveyor 40 moves from the right side to the left side of the paper. The direction along the moving direction at this time is the transport direction X, and the front side of the moving direction in the transport direction X is the upstream side, and the rear side is the downstream side. In addition, the left-right direction perpendicular to the transport direction X as viewed from above with the up-down direction Y is 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.

[0028] 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.

[0029] 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.

[0030] 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.

[0031] 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 holes 41 is not limited to a long hole extending in the transport direction X as in this embodiment, and can be set to any shape such as a circle, a rectangle, a porous shape (mesh shape), or the like that allows air E to be blown out from below to above the transport 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.

[0032] 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).

[0033] 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.

[0034] 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.

[0035] 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.

[0036] In the air supply section 51 of the tab position adjustment means 50, air E is blown from below the transport conveyor 40 through the through holes 41 toward the top of the transport conveyor 40, thereby lifting the cup container 2 from the transport conveyor 40. Then, in the contact rollers 52 located on both sides in the left-right direction Z, the cup container 2 in the lifted state by the air E is rotated around the container axis O, thereby changing the orientation of the cup container 2.

[0037] 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.

[0038] 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).

[0039] 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.

[0040] 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.

[0041] 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.

[0042] 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.

[0043] 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.

[0044] 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.

[0045] 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.

[0046] 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.

[0047] 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.

[0048] 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.

[0049] 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.

[0050] 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.

[0051] 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.

[0052] 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 (pressing portion) 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.

[0053] 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 .

[0054] 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.

[0055] 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.

[0056] 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. In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 4 to 7, a label 3 is temporarily attached to the top surface 2a of a cup container 2 transported in one direction by a transport conveyor 40 by a label supply means 60, with the longitudinal direction facing the left-right direction Z of the transport conveyor 40, and then the ends 3a of the labels 3 temporarily attached to multiple cup containers 2 can be smoothed and attached from the outer peripheral edge 22a of the tab material 22 to the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21 using multiple application rollers 71 of a label folding and smoothing means 70.

[0057] When smoothing the end 3a of the label 3 with the multiple application rollers 71, the application rollers 71 can be controlled to move in the vertical direction Y and in the transport direction X simultaneously to follow the transport movement of the cup container 2. Thus, according to this embodiment, the end 3a of the label 3 can be applied to multiple cup containers 2 simultaneously without stopping the transport movement of the cup container 2 on the transport conveyor 40. Therefore, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved by speeding up the label application process.

[0058] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the application roller 71 is configured to follow the cup container 2 as it is transported and moved, and the time for smoothing the end 3a of the label 3 can be increased, so that the end 3a of the label 3 can be accurately and reliably applied to the cup body 21. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, in a cup container 2 equipped with a tab material 22 having a tab 22A, even if the label 3 overlaps the tab 22A, the application roller 71 presses down the tab 22A at the same time as the end 3a of the label 3, thereby preventing the label 3 from shifting or floating due to the tab stiffness.

[0059] 13, the label pressing means 80 further presses the end 3a of the label 3 pasted on the cup body 21 by the pasting roller 71, so that the end 3a of the label 3 can be more reliably pressed against the cup body 21. At this time, the label pressing means 80 is controlled to move in the vertical direction and the conveying direction simultaneously to follow the conveying movement of the cup container 2, so that the end 3a of the label 3 can be further pressed against the cup body 21 without stopping the conveying movement of the cup container 2 on the conveyor 40. Therefore, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved by speeding up the label pasting process.

[0060] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the shape of the pressing surface 84a of the pressing plate 84 of the label pressing means 80 is the same as the curved shape of the upper outer peripheral surface 21c of the cup body 21, making it possible to perform more effective pressing.

[0061] 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.

[0062] For example, in this embodiment, the label folding and spreading means 70 is configured to have five laminating rollers 71, but the number of laminating rollers 71 is not limited to five, and it is sufficient that a plurality of laminating rollers are arranged, and can be set as appropriate.

[0063] In this embodiment, the label pressing means 80 having a pressing portion (pressing plate 84) is provided downstream of the label folding and smoothing means 70, but this label pressing means 80 may be omitted. Also, the pressing portion may be formed such that the shape of the joining roller 71 of the label folding and smoothing means 70 is the same curved shape as the outer circumferential surface of the cup body 21. In this case, the joining roller 71 can smooth the end 3a of the label 3 and simultaneously perform the final pressing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0064] 1 Labeling device 2 cup container 2a Top 3. Labels 3a end 21 Cup body 21c Upper outer circumferential 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 (pressure part) 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 one conveying direction; a label supplying means for temporarily attaching the label to the top surface of the cup container conveyed by the conveyor, the label being oriented in a longitudinal direction of the top surface of the cup container in a width direction of the conveyor; a plurality of application rollers provided downstream of the label supply means on at least one side and the other side of the conveyor in the width direction of the conveyor, the application rollers simultaneously applying the labels to the plurality of cup containers to which the labels have been temporarily applied by the label supply means by smoothing the longitudinal ends of the labels from the outer periphery of the tab material to the outer periphery of the cup body; Equipped with the plurality of joining rollers are integrally provided so as to be coaxially rotatable with respect to the drive shafts on the one side and the other side along the conveying direction, and all of the plurality of joining rollers operate simultaneously on the drive shafts and are linked together in symmetrical operating positions as viewed from the conveying direction; The label application device, wherein the multiple application rollers are controlled to move vertically and in a transport direction simultaneously when smoothing the end of the label, so as to follow the transport movement of the cup container.

2. A label pressing means is provided for pressing an end of the label that has been pasted onto the cup body by the pasting roller, 2. The label application device according to claim 1, wherein the label pressing means is controlled so as to move in both the vertical direction and the conveying direction simultaneously when pressing the end of the label, so as to follow the conveying movement of the cup container.

3. 3. The label sticking device according to claim 2, wherein the label pressing means has a pressing portion formed in the same curved shape as an outer circumferential surface of the cup body.

4. 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 temporarily attaching the label to a top surface of the cup container, the top surface being closed by the tab material and transported in one transport direction by a transport conveyor, with the label being attached in a longitudinal direction in a conveyor width direction of the transport conveyor; a step of smoothing the end portions of the labels temporarily attached to the plurality of cup containers from the outer periphery of the tab material to the outer periphery of the cup body using a plurality of attachment rollers provided on at least one side and the other side of the conveyor in the width direction of the conveyor; having the plurality of joining rollers are integrally provided so as to be coaxially rotatable with respect to the drive shafts on the one side and the other side along the conveying direction, and all of the plurality of joining rollers operate simultaneously on the drive shafts and are linked together in symmetrical operating positions as viewed from the conveying direction; The label application method is characterized in that the multiple application rollers are controlled to move in both the vertical and transport directions simultaneously when smoothing the end of the label, so as to follow the transport movement of the cup container.

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