Vertical pillow packaging machine

Abstract

To provide a vertical pillow packaging machine which can completely prevent a packaged article from being caught between packaging materials by rebounding caused by an impact of dropping the packaged article charged into a cylindrical packaging material or by a fact that the packaged article that takes a long time to fall do not fall completely.SOLUTION: A vertical pillow packaging machine control part 60 includes a heater block operation control part that controls operations of heater blocks 18a and 18b. After a packaged article is charged by a packaged article input device 80, the heater blocks 18a and 18b are completely closed to start a lateral seal before the packaged article reaches a bottom part of a cylindrical packaging material, the heater blocks 18a and 18b is lowered when the packaged article reaches the bottom part of the cylindrical packaging material, and the heater block operation control part controls the operations of the heater blocks 18a, 18b so that the heater blocks 18a, 18b continue to lower at least while the cylindrical packaging material is being filled with the packaged article.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vertical pillow packaging machine that prevents the rebound of packaged items due to the impact of the packaged items falling and the packaged items from getting caught in the packaging due to the packaged items not falling completely. [Background technology]

[0002] A vertical pillow packaging machine is a packaging machine that feeds packaging material vertically (vertically) to form it into a tubular packaging material, supplies the packaged products vertically and fills them into the tubular packaging material one by one, and then seals the tubular packaging material vertically in the top and bottom directions and horizontally in the left and right directions (horizontally) and cuts it to produce a package. In this vertical pillow packaging machine, the tubular packaging material is horizontally sealed while the packaged item is sandwiched between the material, which can cause it to become pinched.To prevent this, a squeezing device is used to squeeze the part of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal will be applied, just before the horizontal seal is applied. However, there is a wide variety of snack foods and other products to be packaged, and their shapes, sizes, weights, etc. vary greatly depending on the type of product. Therefore, simply squeezing the part of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal is applied with a squeezing device cannot completely prevent jamming. Therefore, various proposals have been made to prevent jamming by devising various ideas for the position and operation of the horizontal seal.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent No. 4966440) discloses an intermittent operation vertical form-fill-seal-seal machine in which both edges of a packaging film are sealed vertically to form a packaging tube, and the film is lowered into the packaging tube by a film feeding device, and a horizontal seal (end seal) cutting device seals the top edge of the packaged item filled into the packaging tube and the bottom edge of the next packaged item to be dropped into the packaging tube, and then cuts the middle; the machine temporarily stops the descent of the film during the horizontal sealing, and performs horizontal sealing while stopped for a certain period of time, and continues lowering the film for a short period of time even after the horizontal sealing while the descent is stopped, and the next packaged item is dropped in while the film is lowering, and then completes the horizontal sealing.

[0004] In the vertical form-fill-seal packaging machine of Patent Document 1, the start position of the horizontal seal can be adjusted depending on the shape and properties of the contents to be filled, and the film continues to descend for a short period of time while the horizontal seal continues, and the next packaged item is dropped while the film is descending, thereby mitigating the rebound caused by the impact of the dropped packaged item and preventing it from getting caught. However, in the vertical form-fill-seal machine of Patent Document 1, horizontal sealing is performed while the descent of the film is temporarily stopped, and then the film is lowered for a short period of time while horizontal sealing continues, and the next packaged item is dropped.This shortens the time from when the packaged item is dropped to when the squeezing of the next cycle begins, and depending on the type of packaged item, for example, if the packaged item is a light, flat item (such as potato chips) that falls slowly, the packaged item may not have fallen completely before squeezing begins in the next cycle and may become caught in the film, making it impossible to completely squeeze the packaged item.

[0005] Next, Patent Document 2 (JP 2019-189249 A) ​​describes a packaging material feeding device that feeds a strip-shaped packaging material that is bent so as to surround a filling tube in the vertical direction, a vertical sealing device that sandwiches both side edge portions of the strip-shaped packaging material together and applies vertical seals to the both side edge portions to form the strip-shaped packaging material into a tubular packaging material, and a horizontal sealing device that sandwiches the tubular packaging material and applies horizontal seals to form a subsequent bag while sealing a bag that has been previously formed from the tubular packaging material and into which a product has been placed through the filling tube, and In a vertical form-fill-seal packaging machine that continuously produces bag packages in which the product is contained and packaged, the packaging material feed device feeds the strip-shaped packaging material vertically in two passes, consisting of a first pass that feeds a portion of the vertical length of the bag and then a second pass that feeds the remaining vertical length of the bag, and while the packaging material feed device is making the second pass, the horizontal seal is applied to the tubular packaging material, and the vertical sealing device applies the vertical seal to both side edge portions while operating vertically in synchronization with the second pass by the packaging material feed device.

[0006] In the vertical form-fill-seal packaging machine of Patent Document 2, while the horizontal sealing block is completely closed and horizontal sealing is being applied to the tubular packaging material, the vertical sealing device moves down without moving the horizontal sealing device vertically to feed the packaging material, or the horizontal sealing device moves vertically and the vertical sealing device moves down at a faster speed to feed the packaging material, creating slack in the tubular packaging material and encouraging the product (packaged item) to sink to the bottom of the bag. However, the vertical movement of the horizontal sealing device and the downward movement of the vertical sealing device to form slack in the tubular packaging material, as in the vertical form-fill-seal-seal machine of Patent Document 2, not only cannot sufficiently mitigate the rebound caused by the impact of the packaged item falling, but also because the product (packaged item) is added while the horizontal sealing block is completely closed and applying a horizontal seal to the tubular packaging material, similar to Patent Document 1, the time from when the product (packaged item) is dropped to when squeezing in the next cycle begins is short, and if the product is a light, flat item that falls slowly, the product may not have completely fallen and may become caught in the film before squeezing in the next cycle begins, resulting in the problem that the packaged item cannot be completely squeezed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4966440 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-189249 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] The problem that the present invention aims to solve is to completely prevent packaged products from becoming pinched and trapped in packaging material in a vertical pillow packaging machine due to rebounding caused by the impact of the packaged product being dropped into a tubular packaging material, or when a packaged product that takes a long time to fall does not fall completely. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The invention of claim 1 is a vertical pillow packaging machine comprising: packaging material feeding means for feeding packaging material in a vertical direction; tubular packaging material forming means for forming the packaging material fed by the packaging material feeding means into a tubular packaging material; packaged product filling means for supplying packaged products input by packaged product input means and filling the tubular packaging material; vertical sealing means for applying a vertical seal to the tubular packaging material in a vertical direction; and horizontal seal cutting means for applying a horizontal seal to the tubular packaging material in a left-right direction and cutting the tubular packaging material that has been vertically sealed by the vertical sealing means; and vertical pillow packaging machine control means for controlling the vertical pillow packaging machine main body, wherein the horizontal seal cutting means comprises heater block opening / closing means for opening and closing a pair of heater blocks, and heater block lifting / lowering means for lifting / lowering the pair of heater blocks, the vertical pillow packaging machine control means includes heater block operation control means for controlling the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting / lowering means, The heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting means so that the pair of heater blocks perform two closing operations and two lowering operations in one cycle, which is the period during which the vertical pillow packaging machine produces one package; the pair of heater blocks start a first closing operation after a certain time has elapsed since the start of the one cycle, the pair of heater blocks start a first lowering operation while the pair of heater blocks are performing the first closing operation, the pair of heater blocks finish the first closing operation while the pair of heater blocks are performing the first lowering operation, and the pair of heater blocks start a second closing operation after a certain time has elapsed; After the packaged product is put in by the packaged product putting means, before the packaged product reaches the bottom of the tubular packaging material The second closing operation is performed The pair of heater blocks are completely closed to start the horizontal sealing, When the pair of heater blocks are performing a second closing operation, the pair of heater blocks finish their first lowering operation, and after a certain time has elapsed since the start of the horizontal sealing, the pair of heater blocks start their second lowering operation, When the packaged product reaches the bottom of the tubular packaging material or just before that, the pair of heater blocks In the second lowering operation The pair of heater blocks descend so that the descending speed is constant, and the pair of heater blocks remain in the heating state at least while the packaged products are being filled into the tubular packaging material. The second descent operation The above-mentioned problem is solved by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting / lowering means so as to continue the above.

[0010] The invention of claim 2 is characterized in that the transverse seal cutting means is provided with a squeezing means for squeezing the portion of the tubular packaging material to which the transverse seal is applied, and the packaged product introduced by the packaged product introduction means reaches and is filled into the tubular packaging material. In state , The first closing operation and the second lowering operation The pair of heater blocks are brought close to each other and lowered to squeeze the portion where the horizontal seal is to be applied by the squeezing means, and then the pair of heater blocks The second closing operationThe above problem is solved by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting means so that the pair of heater blocks continues to close completely and the horizontal seal is applied.

[0011] The invention of claim 3 solves the above problem by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the horizontal seal cutting means is equipped with a shutter means that closes the upper side of the portion of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal is to be applied when the pair of heater blocks are completely closed.

[0012] The invention of claim 4 solves the above problem by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the shutter means is equipped with a receiving plate that receives the packaged product that has been inserted by the packaged product insertion means and reached the bottom of the tubular packaging material.

[0013] In the invention of claim 5, the vertical sealing means opens and closes a pair of vertical seal blocks. Vertical seal block opening and closing means and a vertical seal block lifting means for raising and lowering the pair of vertical seal blocks, wherein the vertical pillow packaging machine control means is equipped with a vertical seal block operation control means for controlling the operation of the vertical seal block opening / closing means and the vertical seal block lifting means, and the vertical seal block operation control means controls the operation of the vertical seal block opening / closing means and the vertical seal block lifting means so that the pair of vertical seal blocks are closed and the vertical seal is applied before the horizontal seal is started by the horizontal seal cutting means, and the vertical seal block is lowered in synchronization with the descent of the pair of heater blocks while the vertical seal is being applied, thereby solving the above-mentioned problem.

[0014] The invention of claim 6 solves the above problem by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the descending distance of the pair of vertical seal blocks is greater than the descending distance of the pair of heater blocks.

[0015] The invention of claim 7 solves the above-mentioned problem by providing a vertical pillow packaging machine in which the vertical pillow packaging machine control means is equipped with a packaging material feed operation control means that controls the operation of the packaging material feed means, and the packaging material feed operation control means controls the operation of the packaging material feed means so that after the horizontal seal cutting means starts to cut the horizontal seal, the packaging material is fed vertically in synchronization with the descent of the pair of heater blocks and the descent of the pair of vertical seal blocks. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] In the vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 1, after the packaged products are inserted by the packaged product insertion means, the pair of heater blocks close completely and initiate the horizontal sealing before the packaged products reach the bottom of the tubular packaging material, the pair of heater blocks descend so that the descending speed of the pair of heater blocks is constant when the packaged products reach the bottom of the tubular packaging material or just before that, and the pair of heater blocks continue to descend at least while the packaged products are being filled into the tubular packaging material.This reduces the impact caused by the packaged products being dropped into the tubular packaging material and suppresses their rebound, and the filling of the tubular packaging material with the packaged products is completed while the pair of heater blocks are descending, ensuring that the packaged products have finished falling before the squeezing of the next cycle begins, completely preventing the packaged products from becoming pinched in the packaging material.

[0017] In the vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 2, furthermore, after the packaged product fed by the packaged product feeding means reaches and fills the tubular packaging material, the pair of heater blocks are lowered close to each other to squeeze the portion where the horizontal seal will be applied by the squeezing means, and then the pair of heater blocks continue to be lowered so that the pair of horizontal heater blocks completely close and apply the horizontal seal, thereby achieving the effect of completely preventing the packaged product from being caught in the packaging material.

[0018] The vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 3 further has the effect of preventing the packaged product inserted by the packaged product insertion means from reaching the portion of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal is applied and becoming pinched.

[0019] The vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 4 further has the effect that the receiving plate receives the packaged product that has been inserted by the packaged product insertion means and reached the bottom of the tubular packaging material, thereby preventing the tubular packaging material filled with the packaged product from bulging outward.

[0020] In the vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 5, the vertical seal block is lowered in synchronization with the descent of the heater block while the vertical seal is being applied, thereby achieving the effect of smoothly lowering the pair of heater blocks.

[0021] In the vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 6, a bulge (slack) is formed in the bottom of the tubular packaging material, which has the effect of improving the efficiency of filling the packaged products.

[0022] In the vertical pillow packaging machine of the invention described in claim 7, further, after the horizontal seal cutting means begins to seal the packaging material, the packaging material is fed in the vertical direction in synchronization with the descent of the heater block and the descent of the vertical seal block, thereby achieving the effect of smoothly forming a bulge (slack) at the bottom of the tubular packaging material. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a vertical pillow packaging machine of the present invention. [Figure 2] 2 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of the vertical pillow packaging machine body shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the horizontal seal and cut section shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a front view of the heater block, the block holder, and the ironing unit. [Figure 5]5A and 5B are a bottom view and a plan view of the heater block, the block holder, and the ironing unit shown in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 and an operation panel 70. FIG. [Figure 7] 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of a product parameter table stored in a storage unit 62. FIG. [Figure 8] 10 is a timing chart showing the timing of the feeding operation of the film Fi, the opening / closing and raising / lowering operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b, and the opening / closing and raising / lowering operation of the heater blocks 18a and 18b in one cycle. [Figure 9] 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation state showing states A and B shown in FIG. 8. FIG. [Figure 10] 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation state showing states C and D shown in FIG. 8. FIG. [Figure 11] 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation state showing states E and F shown in FIG. 8. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0024] [Configuration of vertical pillow packaging machine] Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vertical pillow packaging machine of the present invention, which is a schematic front view of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body combined with a block of the control section, Figure 2 is an oblique view showing the overall configuration of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is an oblique view of the horizontal sealing and cutting section shown in Figure 2. In the figure, 1 is a vertical pillow packaging machine, 10 is a vertical pillow packaging machine main body, 11 is a film (packaging material) supply section, 12 is a tension adjustment section, 12a is a rotating arm, 12b is a fixed roller, 13 is a date printing section, 13a is a date printing device, 13b is a lifting roller, 14 is a packaged product supply section, 14a is a hopper, 14b is a filling tube, 15 is a tube making section, 15a is a tube making machine (former), 15b is a pressing member, 15c is a slide roller, 16 is a film feeding section, 16a is a pulley, 16b is a feeding belt, 16M is a servo motor, 17 is a vertical sealing section, 17a, 17b indicates a vertical seal block, 18 indicates a horizontal seal and cutting section, 18a and 18b indicate heater blocks, 18c and 18d indicate ironing plates, 18e and 18f indicate shutter plates, 18g and 18h ​​indicate receiving plates, 19 indicates a package discharge section, 19a indicates a belt conveyor, 20 indicates a horizontal seal device, 20M indicates a servo motor, 20Ma indicates a rotating shaft, 21 indicates a block holder, 21a indicates a guide hole, 22 indicates a block holder, 23 indicates an opening / closing toggle mechanism, 23a indicates a rotating arm, 23b and 23c indicate driven arms, 24 indicates a holder drive block, 25 indicates a support block, 25a and 25b indicate frame sections , 25c is a connecting portion, 26a and 26b are connecting rods, 27A and 27B are ironing portions, 28A and 28B are shutter portions, 29 is a cutting device, 29a is a support plate, 29b is an air cylinder, 29c is a piston rod, 29d is a slider, 29e and 29f are guide rods, 30 is a lifting device, 30M is a servo motor, 31a and 31b are brackets, 32 is a timing belt, 32a is a belt gripping member, 33 is a connecting plate, 34 is a driving pulley, 34a is a pulley shaft, 35 is a driven pulley, 35a is a pulley shaft, 36a and 36b are lifting Guide rod, 40 is a vertical seal block opening and closing device, 40M is a servo motor, 50 is a lifting device, 50M is a servo motor, 60 is a vertical pillow packaging machine control unit, 70 is an operation panel, 80 is a packaged product input device, CL is a communication line, Fi is film (packaging material), gr is a guide roller, MF is a winding film, Pc is a packaging body, TFi is a tubular film (tubular packaging material), ts is a vertical seal portion, ys is a horizontal seal portion, and in the figure, X is the left-right direction, Y is the up-down direction, and Z is the front-to-back direction. In Figure 1, the film portion is represented by a two-dot chain line. The vertical pillow packaging machine 1 is composed of a vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10 that produces a package Pc by unwinding film Fi from a winding film MF and packaging the packaged product, a vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 that controls the operation of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10, and an operation panel 70 that operates the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10. Furthermore, packaged product input device 80 is equipped with a weighing machine and the like, and is controlled by a packaged product input device control unit (not shown).

[0025] The vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10 is composed of a film (packaging material) supply section 11, a tension adjustment section 12, a printing section 13, a packaged product supply section 14, a tube making section 15, a packaging material feed section 16, a vertical sealing section 17, a horizontal sealing and cutting section 18, a package discharge section 19, etc. The film (packaging material) supply unit 11 includes a rolled packaging material supply device (not shown) that holds the rolled film MF, and pays out the film (packaging material) Fi from the rolled film MF. The winding film support device includes a shaft (not shown) and a servo motor 11M which serves as the winding film rotating means of the present invention. The servo motor 11M rotates the shaft, thereby rotating the winding film MF attached to the shaft. The tension adjusting unit 12 is composed of a pair of rotating arms 12a, a dancer roller rotatably held by the rotating arms 12a, a fixed roller 12b, a rotating rod, etc., and the rotating arms 12a rotate to adjust the film (packaging material) Fi. The date printing unit 13 includes a date printing device 13a, an elevating roller 13b, etc., and prints the date on the film Fi. The packaged product supply section 14 is equipped with a filling tube 14b with a hopper 14a at the top, and packages such as snacks fed from the packaged product feeding device 80 are received by the hopper 14a and filled into the filling tube 14b. The tube making section 15 is equipped with a tube making device 15a, a pressing member 15b, a slide roller 15c, etc., and the film Fi that has been unwound from the film supply section 11 and has the date printed by the date printing section 13 is guided by the slide roller 15c, formed into a cylindrical shape by the tube making device 15a, and pressed against the outer surface of the filling tube 14b by the pressing member 15b, thereby forming the film Fi into a tubular film TFi. The film feed section 16 has a pair of film feed mechanisms equipped with a pulley 16a, a feed belt 16b, a servo motor 16M, etc., which are arranged on both sides of the filling tube 14b, and the servo motor 16M rotates the pulley 16a to move the feed belt 16b, thereby feeding the film Fi wrapping around the outer surface of the filling tube 14b downward by a certain length. The vertical sealing section 17 is equipped with vertical sealing blocks 17a, 17b, a heater (not shown), a vertical sealing block opening / closing device 40 driven by a servo motor 40M, and a lifting device 50 driven by a servo motor 50M, and applies vertical seals to both end portions of the tubular film TFi that is wrapped around the outer surface of the filling tube 14b and overlapped to form a vertical seal portion ts. The horizontal sealing and cutting section 18 is equipped with a horizontal sealing device 20 having a pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b, squeezing sections 27A, 27B each having a pair of squeezing plates 18c, 18d, shutter sections 28A, 28B each having a pair of shutter plates 18e, 18f and a pair of receiving plates 18g, 18h, etc., a cutting device 29, and a lifting device 30 (details will be described later), and applies a horizontal seal to the vertically sealed tubular film TFi filled with the packaged goods to form a horizontal seal portion ys, and cuts the center of the horizontal seal portion ys to generate a packaged body Pc filled with the packaged goods. The package discharge section 19 includes a belt conveyor 19a and the like, and discharges the package Pc by the belt conveyor 19a. In FIG. 2, the squeezing units 27A and 27B and the shutter units 28A and 28B are omitted.

[0026] [Horizontal sealing device 20, cutting device 28, lifting device 30] The horizontal sealing device 20, the cutting device 29, and the lifting device 30 that constitute the horizontal sealing and cutting section 18 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the horizontal sealing device 20 comprises a pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b, a servo motor 20M, block holders 21, 22, an open / close toggle mechanism 23, a holder drive block 24, a support block 25, and connecting rods 26a, 26b. In the horizontal sealing device 20, heaters (not shown) are embedded in the heater blocks 18a and 18b, the heater block 18a is attached to the right side of the block holder 21, and the heater block 18b is attached to the left side of the block holder 22. The block holder 21 is connected to a holder drive block 24 by connecting rods 26a and 26b, and the block holder 22 is connected to the holder drive block 24 via an open / close toggle mechanism 23 and is slidably supported by the connecting rods 26a and 26b. The support block 25 is an integral block in which U-shaped frame portions 25a and 25b are connected by a connecting portion 25c, and connecting rods 26a and 26b are slidably supported by the frame portions 25a and 25b. In the opening / closing toggle mechanism 23, the servo motor 20M is attached to the underside of the connecting portion 25c of the support block 25, the rotating shaft 20Ma of the servo motor 20M is inserted through the connecting portion 25c and fitted into the shaft hole of the rotating arm 23a, one ends of the driven arms 23b and 23c are rotatably attached to both ends of the rotating arm 23a, the other end of the driven arm 23b is rotatably attached to the block holder 22, and the other end of the driven arm 22c is rotatably attached to the holder drive block 24. In the horizontal sealing device 20, when the rotary shaft 20Ma of the motor 20M is rotated to rotate the rotary arm 23a of the open / close toggle mechanism 23, the block holder 22 moves along the connecting rods 26a, 26b via the driven arm 23b. At the same time, the holder drive block 24 moves via the driven arm 23c, and the connecting rods 26a, 26b move along the frames 25a, 25b of the support block 25, and the block holder 21 moves in the opposite direction to the block holder 22. This causes the heater block 18a and the heater block 18b to open and close (connect and disconnect). In this case, the servo motor 20M, block holders 21 and 22, open / close toggle mechanism 23, holder drive block 24, support block 25, and connecting rods 26a and 26b constitute the heater block open / close means of the present invention. In FIG. 3, the squeezing units 27A and 27B and the shutter units 28A and 28B are omitted.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a front view of the heater block, block holder, and ironing unit, and FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b) are a bottom view and a plan view of the heater block, block holder, and ironing unit shown in FIG. 4. In the figures, 18am and 18bm are central grooves, 27a1, 27a2, 27a3, 27a4, 28a1, 28a2, 28a3, and 28a4 are moving rods, 27at1, 27at2, 27at3, and 27at4 are movable rods. 7at4, 28at1, 28at2, 28at3, and 28at4 are tsuba (guards), 27b1, 27b2, 27b3, 27b4, 27c1, 27c2, 27c3, 27c4, 28b1, 28b2, 28b3, 28b4, 28c1, 28c2, 28c3, and 28c4 are retaining plates, and 27s1, 27s2, 27s3, 27s4, 28s1, 28s2, 28s3, and 28s4 are springs. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5(a), squeezing unit 27A and squeezing unit 27B are paired and have the same structure, with squeezing unit 27A attached to the underside of heater block 18a and squeezing unit 27B attached to the underside of heater block 18b. In the squeezing unit 27A, a pair of moving rods 27a1 and 27a2 are attached to the left side of the squeezing plate 18c. The moving rod 27a1 has a flange 27at1 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 27b1 and 27c1 attached to the block holder 21, with a spring 27s1 attached between the flange 27at1 and the holding plate 27b1. The moving rod 27a2 has a flange 27at2 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 27b2 and 27c2 attached to the block holder 21, with a spring 27s2 attached between the flange 27at2 and the holding plate 27b2. In the squeezing section 27B, a pair of movable rods 27a3 and 27a4 are attached to the right side of the squeezing plate 18d. The movable rod 27a3 has a flange 27at3 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 27b3 and 27c3 attached to the block holder 22. A spring 27s3 is attached between the flange 27at3 and the holding plate 27b3. The movable rod 27a4 has a flange 27at4 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 27b4 and 27c4 attached to the block holder 22. A spring 27s4 is attached between the flange 27at4 and the holding plate 27b4. The ironing plate 18c protrudes to the right (X direction) from the heater block 18a, and the ironing plate 18d protrudes to the left (X direction) from the heater block 18b. As a result, the squeezing units 27A and 27B move together with the heater blocks 18a and 18b. When the heater blocks 18a and 18b approach each other, the squeezing plates 18c and 18d also approach each other. Before the opposing surfaces of the heater blocks 18a and 18b come into contact, the opposing surfaces of the squeezing plates 18c and 18d come into contact. When the heater blocks 18a and 18b approach each other further, in the squeezing units 27A and 27B, the springs 27s1, 27s2, 27s3, and 27s4 are compressed while the opposing surfaces of the squeezing plates 18c and 18d are in contact, and the heater blocks 18a and 18b can approach each other until their opposing surfaces come into contact.

[0028] As shown in Figures 4 and 5(b), shutter section 28A and shutter section 28B are paired and have the same structure, with shutter section 28A attached to the upper side of heater block 18a and shutter section 28B attached to the upper side of heater block 18b. The shutter sections 28A and 28B have the same structure as the squeezing sections 27A and 27B except for the shutter plates 18e and 18f and the receiving plates 18g and 18h. That is, in the shutter section 28A, a pair of movable rods 28a1 and 28a2 are attached to the left side of the shutter plate 18e, the movable rod 28a1 has a flange 28at1 attached to it and is inserted into holding plates 28b1 and 28c1 attached to the block holder 21, and a spring 28s1 is attached between the flange 28at1 and the holding plate 28b1, and the movable rod 28a2 has a flange 28at2 attached to it and is inserted into holding plates 28b2 and 28c2 attached to the block holder 21, and a spring 28s2 is attached between the flange 28at2 and the holding plate 28b2. In the shutter section 28B, a pair of movable rods 28a3 and 28a4 are attached to the right side of the shutter plate 18f, the movable rod 28a3 has a flange 28at3 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 28b3 and 28c3 attached to the block holder 22, and a spring 28s3 is attached between the flange 28at3 and the holding plate 28b3, and the movable rod 28a4 has a flange 28at4 attached thereto and is inserted into holding plates 28b4 and 28c4 attached to the block holder 22, and a spring 28s4 is attached between the flange 28at4 and the holding plate 28b4. A V-shaped receiving plate 18g is attached to the upper right end surface of the shutter plate 18e, and the shutter plate 18e and receiving plate 18g protrude rightward (in the X direction) from the heater block 18a. Similarly, a V-shaped receiving plate 18h is attached to the upper left end surface of the shutter plate 18f, and the shutter plate 18f and receiving plate 18h protrude leftward (in the X direction) from the heater block 18b. As a result, shutter sections 28A, 28B move together with squeeze sections 27A, 27B and heater blocks 18a, 18b, and when heater blocks 18a, 18b approach each other, shutter plate 18e / receiving plate 18g and shutter plate 18f / receiving plate 18h also approach each other, and before the opposing surfaces of heater blocks 18a, 18b come into contact, the opposing surfaces of shutter plate 18e / receiving plate 18g and shutter plate 18f / receiving plate 18h come into contact. Furthermore, when heater blocks 18a, 18b approach each other, in shutter sections 28A, 28B, springs 28s1, 28s2, 28s3, and 28s4 compress in a state in which the opposing surfaces of shutter plate 18e / receiving plate 18g and shutter plate 18f / receiving plate 18h are in contact, and heater blocks 18a, 18b can approach each other until their opposing surfaces come into contact.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 3, the cutting device 29 is composed of a support plate 29a, an air cylinder 29b, a piston rod 29c, a slider 29d, guide rods 29e and 29f, and the like. In the cutting device 29, an air cylinder 29b is attached to the left side of the support plate 29a, and guide rods 29e and 29f are attached to the right side of the support plate 29a. The guide rods 29e and 29f are inserted into a slider 29d, and their tips are attached to the wall surface (not shown) of the guide hole 21a of the block holder 21. The slider 29d is slidably held by guide rods 29e and 29f, and the tip of the piston rod 29c of the air cylinder 29b is attached to its left side. By operating the air cylinder 29b, the slider 29d slides along the guide rods 29e and 29f and moves within the guide hole 21a of the block holder 21. A T-shaped cutting knife (not shown) is attached to the upper center of the back right side of the slider 29d. Then, when the horizontal sealing device 20 is operated and the heater blocks 18a, 18b are closed with the cylindrical film TFi sandwiched therebetween, the air cylinder 29b of the cutting device 29 is actuated to move the slider 29d. As a result, the cutting knife protrudes from the central groove 18am of the heater block 18a and enters the central groove 18bm of the heater block 18b, thereby cutting the cylindrical film TFi.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 3, the lifting device 30 is composed of a servo motor 30M, brackets 31a and 31b, a timing belt 32, a connecting plate 33, a driving pulley 34, a driven pulley 35, lifting guide rods 36a and 36b, and the like. In the lifting device 30, brackets 31a and 31b are arranged facing the rear right side of the horizontal sealing device 20 and are attached to the frame (not shown) of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10, a servo motor 30M is attached to the upper back surface of bracket 31a, the pulley shaft 34a of the drive pulley 34 is rotatably held at the upper part of brackets 31a and 31b, and the pulley shaft 34a is connected to the rotating shaft of the servo motor 30M, the pulley shaft 35a of the driven pulley 35 is rotatably held at the lower part of brackets 31a and 31b, and a timing belt 32 is stretched between the drive pulley 34 and the driven pulley 35. A connecting plate 33 is attached to the right side of the frame 25a of the support block 25 of the horizontal sealing device 20, and a timing belt 32 is held in the upper part of the connecting plate 33 by a belt holding member 32a. Furthermore, lift guide rods 36a and 36b are attached to the frame of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10, and support blocks 25a and 25b are fitted into the lift guide rods 36a and 36b. When the servo motor 30M in the lifting device 30 is rotated, the drive pulley 34 rotates, the timing belt 32 moves, and the support block 25 together with the connecting plate 33 gripped by the timing belt 32 rises and falls along the lifting guide rods 36a, 36b, and the heater blocks 18a, 18b of the horizontal sealing device 20 also rise and fall, and the lifting distance of the heater blocks 18a, 18b is proportional to the rotation angle of the servo motor 30M. In this case, the servo motor 30M, brackets 31a and 31b, timing belt 32, connecting plate 33, drive pulley 34, driven pulley 35, lift guide rods 36a and 36b, etc. constitute the heater block lifting means of the present invention.

[0031] [Vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60, operation panel 70] Figure 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 and the operation panel 70, in which 61 is an arithmetic control unit, 61a is a drive equipment control unit, 61b is a film feed control unit, 61c is a vertical seal block operation control unit, 61d is a heater block operation control unit, 62 is a memory unit, 63 is a transmission / reception unit, 71 is a computer, 71a is an operation timing setting unit, 71a1 is a film feed timing setting unit, 71a2 is a vertical seal opening / closing timing setting unit, 71a3 is a vertical seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit, 71a4 is a horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit, 71a5 is a horizontal seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit, 73 is a transmission / reception unit, and 74 is an input / display unit. The vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 includes an arithmetic control unit 61, a memory unit 62, and a transmission / reception unit 63, and the arithmetic control unit 61 includes a drive equipment control unit 61a, a film feed control unit 61b, a vertical seal block operation control unit 61c, and a heater block operation control unit 61d.

[0032] The drive equipment control unit 61a controls the operation of the drive equipment (excluding servo motors 16M, 20M, 30M, 40M, and 50M) of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10, such as the various heaters in the vertical sealing unit 17 and the horizontal sealing and cutting unit 18, based on parameters registered in the product parameter table in the memory unit 62 for the product set on the operation panel 70 (numeric values ​​representing the production capacity, bag length, heater temperature, etc. set for each product produced by the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10). The film feed control unit 61b controls the operation of the servo motor 16M of the film feed unit 16 based on the timing set by the film feed timing setting unit 71a1. The vertical seal block operation control unit 61c controls the operation of the servo motor 40M that drives the vertical seal block opening and closing device 40 and the operation of the servo motor 50M that drives the lifting device 50 based on the timing set by the vertical seal opening and closing timing setting unit 71a2 and the vertical seal lifting and lowering timing setting unit 71a3. The heater block operation control unit 61d controls the operation of the servo motor 20M that drives the horizontal sealing device 20 and the operation of the servo motor 30M that drives the lifting device 30 based on the timing set by the horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a4 and the horizontal seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a5. The memory unit 62 stores a product parameter table, a production information table, etc., and the product parameter table stores the No. (registration number), product name, production capacity, bag length, heater temperature, operation timing, etc. for the products produced by the vertical pillow packaging machine 1, while the production information table stores production results for the products actually produced, such as output, empty bags, lost bags, operating rate, operating time, stop time, and standby time. The transmitter / receiver unit 63 communicates with the transmitter / receiver unit 73 of the operation panel 70 via the communication line CL, transmits various data from the calculation control unit 61 to the transmitter / receiver unit 73 of the operation panel 70, and also receives various data transmitted from the transmitter / receiver unit 73 and sends it to the calculation control unit 61.

[0033] The operation panel 70 includes a computer 71 , a transmitting / receiving unit 73 , and an input / display unit 74 . The computer 71 includes a calculation processing unit and a memory unit, and is loaded with a dedicated program compatible with the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10, and performs various processes and controls the operation panel 70 in an integrated manner. The calculation processing unit of the computer 71 has an operation timing setting unit 71a, which has a film feed timing setting unit 71a1, a vertical seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a2, a vertical seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a3, a horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a4, and a horizontal seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a5. The operation timing setting unit 71a sets the operation timing of each driving device in one cycle (the period for producing one package). Specifically, the film feed timing setting section 71a1 sets the timing at which the servo motor 16M in the film feed section 16 rotates to start feeding the film Fi, and the timing at which the servo motor 16M stops to end feeding the film Fi. The timing setting of this film feed timing setting unit 71a1 is performed automatically based on the numerical values ​​input from the input display unit 74, or the production capacity and bag length registered in the product parameter table, and also the timing at which the heater blocks 18a and 18b rise as set by the horizontal seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a5.

[0034] The vertical seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a2 rotates the servo motor 40M to operate the vertical seal block opening / closing device 40, and sets the timing to open the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b (the timing to start opening and the timing to end opening) and the timing to close the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b (the timing to start closing and the timing to end closing). The timing setting of this vertical seal opening / closing timing setting section 71a2 is performed based on a numerical value input from the input / display section 74, or the timing set by the film feed timing setting section 71a1, or the like. The vertical seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a3 rotates the servo motor 50M to operate the lifting device 50, and sets the timing at which the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b rise (the timing at which they start rising and the timing at which they end rising) and the timing at which the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b fall (the timing at which they start falling and the timing at which they end falling). The timing setting by the vertical seal lifting / lowering timing setting section 71a3 is performed based on a numerical value input from the input / display section 74, or the timing set by the vertical seal opening / closing timing setting section 71a2.

[0035] The horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a4 rotates the servo motor 20M to operate the horizontal seal device 20, and sets the timing to open the heater blocks 18a and 18b (the timing to start opening and the timing to end opening) and the timing to close the heater blocks 18a and 18b (the timing to start closing and the timing to end closing). The timing setting by the horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting section 71a4 is performed based on a numerical value input from the input / display section 74, or the timing set by the film feed timing setting section 71a1. The horizontal seal lifting and lowering timing setting unit 71a5 rotates the servo motor 30M to operate the lifting device 30, and sets the timing at which the heater blocks 18a, 18b rise (the timing at which they start to rise and the timing at which they end to rise) and the timing at which the heater blocks 18a, 18b fall (the timing at which they start to fall and the timing at which they end to fall). The timing setting of this horizontal seal lifting / lowering timing setting unit 71a5 is based on the numerical value input from the input display unit 74, or the timing set by the film feed timing setting unit 71a1, or further the timing set by the horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a4, etc. The input display unit 74 has a touch panel display screen and displays various screens created by a dedicated program installed in the computer 71, such as an operation screen for inputting the timing set by the operation timing setting unit 71a (film feed timing setting unit 71a1, etc.).

[0036] FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the product parameter table stored in the storage unit 62. As shown in FIG. The product parameter table shown in Fig. 7 has registered therein No. (registration number), product name, production capacity, bag length, timing (film feed 1 start, film feed 1 end, etc.), etc. However, the item names themselves, such as "No. (registration number)," "product name," "production capacity," "bag length," "timing," "film feed 1 start," and "film feed 1 end," are not registered; only the parts excluding the item names are registered. The No. is a number that identifies the product that the vertical pillow packaging machine 1 (vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10) produces, and is available in the range of 01 to 99. The No. and product name are entered from the product name registration screen displayed on the input display unit 74 of the operation panel 70, and are transmitted from the transceiver unit 73 to the vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 via the communication line CL, received by the transceiver unit 63, and registered in the product parameter table in the memory unit 62. The numerical values ​​for production capacity, bag length, etc. are parameters that indicate the conditions for operating the drive equipment (motors, etc.) of the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10. For example, the "production capacity" parameter "100" means that 100 units (bags) are produced per minute, and the "bag length" parameter "120" means that the length of the package Pc (one bag) is 120 mm. This product parameter table registers the timing of film feed 1 start, film feed 1 end, film feed 2 start, film feed 2 end, vertical seal opening operation start, vertical seal opening operation end, vertical seal closing operation start, vertical seal closing operation end, vertical seal rising start, vertical seal rising end, vertical seal lowering start, vertical seal lowering end, horizontal seal opening operation start, horizontal seal opening operation end, horizontal seal closing operation 1 start, horizontal seal closing operation 1 end, horizontal seal closing operation 2 start, horizontal seal closing operation 2 end, horizontal seal rising start, horizontal seal rising end, horizontal seal lowering 1 start, horizontal seal lowering 1 end, horizontal seal lowering 2 start, horizontal seal lowering 2 end.

[0037] The start and end of film feed 1, and the start and end of film feed 2 are the operation timings of the servo motor 16M that feeds the film Fi downward in the film feed section 16, and are set by the film feed timing setting section 71a1. As a result, the film feeding operation of the film feeding section 16 is carried out in two separate steps. The start and end of the vertical seal opening operation are the operation timings of the servo motor 40M that moves the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b in the opening direction in the vertical seal block opening and closing device 40, and the start and end of the vertical seal closing operation are the operation timings of the servo motor 40M that moves the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b in the closing direction in the vertical seal block opening and closing device 40, and both are set by the vertical seal opening and closing timing setting unit 71a2. The start and end of the vertical seal rising are the operation timings of the servo motor 50M that raises the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b in the lifting device 50, and the start and end of the vertical seal falling are the operation timings of the servo motor 50M that lowers the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b in the lifting device 50, both of which are set by the vertical seal rising and falling timing setting unit 71a3.

[0038] The start of the horizontal seal opening operation and the end of the horizontal seal opening operation are the operation timings of the servo motor 20M that moves the heater blocks 18a, 18b in the opening direction in the horizontal sealing device 20, and the start of the horizontal seal closing operation 1 and the end of the horizontal seal closing operation 1, and the start of the horizontal seal closing operation 2 and the end of the horizontal seal closing operation 2 are the operation timings of the servo motor 20M that moves the heater blocks 18a, 18b in the closing direction in the horizontal sealing device 20, and all of these are set by the horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting unit 71a4. As a result, the operation of closing heater blocks 18a and 18b in horizontal sealing device 20 is performed in two stages, with heater blocks 18a and 18b approaching each other at the start and end of the first horizontal seal closing operation 1, and heater blocks 18a and 18b completely closing at the start and end of the second horizontal seal closing operation 2, performing horizontal sealing. The start of horizontal seal lift and the end of horizontal seal lift are the operation timings of the servo motor 30M that lifts the heater blocks 18a and 18b in the lifting device 30, and the start of horizontal seal descent 1 and the end of horizontal seal descent 1, and the start of horizontal seal descent 2 and the end of horizontal seal descent 2 are the operation timings of the servo motor 30M that lowers the heater blocks 18a and 18b in the lifting device 30, all of which are set by the horizontal seal lift timing setting unit 71a5. As a result, the operation of lowering the heater blocks 18a and 18b in the lifting device 30 is performed in two stages, the first lowering operation being performed to squeeze the upper part of the tubular film TFi filled with the packaged goods in the squeezing sections 27A and 27B, and the second lowering operation being performed when the packaged goods are filled into the tubular film TFi with the lower end sealed horizontally.

[0039] [Operations of film feeding unit 16, vertical sealing unit 17, and horizontal sealing and cutting unit 18] FIG. 8 is a timing chart showing the timing of each operation of feeding the film Fi, opening / closing and raising / lowering of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b, and opening / closing and raising / lowering of the heater blocks 18a and 18b in one cycle for the product name "AAAA" shown in FIG. 7. In the figure, TC1 is a timing chart of the feeding operation of the film Fi (film feeding operation), TC2 is a timing chart of the opening / closing operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b (vertical seal opening / closing operation), and TC3 is a timing chart of the raising / lowering operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b. TC1 is a timing chart of the opening and closing operation of heater blocks 18a and 18b (horizontal seal opening and closing operation), TC2 is a timing chart of the opening and closing operation of heater blocks 18a and 18b (horizontal seal opening and closing operation), and TC3 is a timing chart of the raising and lowering operation of heater blocks 18a and 18b (horizontal seal raising and lowering operation). The vertical axis represents the speed of each operation, the horizontal axis represents time, and the scale shown at the top represents the cycle time obtained by dividing one cycle (one cycle is 0.6 seconds in the timing chart of Figure 8) into 100 parts, and t0 to t16 represent the elapsed time of one cycle. In this case, the film feed control section 61b controls the operation of the servo motor 16M so that the film Fi is fed in accordance with the timing chart TC1. In addition, the vertical seal block operation control unit 61c controls the operation of the servo motor 40M so that the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b open and close in accordance with timing chart TC2, and the vertical seal block operation control unit 61c controls the operation of the servo motor 50M so that the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b move up and down in accordance with timing chart TC3. Furthermore, the heater block operation control unit 61d controls the operation of the servo motor 20M so that the heater blocks 18a and 18b are opened and closed in accordance with timing chart TC4, and the heater block operation control unit 61d controls the operation of the servo motor 30M so that the heater blocks 18a and 18b are raised and lowered in accordance with timing chart TC5.

[0040] 9 to 11 are operation state explanatory diagrams showing the states of each operation at the main timings shown in FIG. 8 (FIG. 9 shows states A and B, FIG. 10 shows states C and D, and FIG. 11 shows states E and F). In the figures, P0 to P3 are the positions of the central grooves 18am and 18bm of the heater blocks 18a and 18b in the up-down direction (Y direction), P0 is the position (lowest position) when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are at their lowest, P1 is the position (highest position) when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are at their highest, P2 is the position when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are at their lowest in the downward movement 1, P3 is the position when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are at their highest in the downward movement 2, Q0 and Q1 are the positions of the lower ends of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b in the up-down direction (Y direction), and Q0 is the vertical Q1 is the position (lowest position) when the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b are at their lowest, Q2 is the position (highest position) when the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b are at their highest, R0 to R2 are the left-right (X-direction) positions of the left end of the heater block 18a, R0 is the position when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are completely closed, R1 is the position when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are at their most open, and R2 is the position when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are closed by closing operation 1 (heater block 18b is located symmetrically to heater block 18a with respect to the left-right center position of the tubular film TFi), CP is the product to be packaged, and in the figure, the horizontal dashed line at the top of the tubular film TFi is the bottom end of the filling tube 14b, and the vertical seal portion of the tubular film TFi is omitted. The operations of film feeding section 16, vertical sealing section 17, and horizontal sealing and cutting section 18 will be described below with reference to FIG. 8 and FIGS.

[0041] Figure 9(a) shows state A in Figure 8, which shows the state at time t0 when the production of one packaging body Pc is completed and the production of the next packaging body Pc begins, i.e., the start of one cycle. FIG. 9(b) shows state B of FIG. 8, which shows the state at time t5 (time "30") when the first feeding operation of the film Fi (feeding operation 1) has ended. The operation from state A (time t0) to state B (time t5) will be explained below. Regarding the film feeding operation, the first feeding operation (feeding operation 1) of the film Fi starts at time t0 (time "00"), and feeding operation 1 ends at time t5 (time "30"). At this time, in the feeding operation 1, the feeding of the film Fi increases from the start, becomes a constant speed, and then decelerates and stops just before the end. The same applies to other operations. Regarding the vertical seal opening and closing operation, the opening operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b that started in the previous cycle ends at time t1 (time "15"), and the closing operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b starts at time t3 (time "20"). Regarding the vertical seal lifting operation, the lifting operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b starts at time t0 (time "00") and ends at time t2 (time "18"). Regarding the horizontal seal opening and closing operation, the opening operation of heater blocks 18a and 18b that started in the previous cycle ends at time t3 (time "20"), and then the first closing operation (closing operation 1) of heater blocks 18a and 18b starts at time t4 (time "25"). Regarding the horizontal seal lifting operation, the heater blocks 18a and 18b start lifting at time t0 (time "00") and end at time t5 (time "30"). In this case, heater blocks 18a and 18b move in the vertical direction (Y direction) from the lowest position P0 to the highest position P1, a distance y1 away, heater block 18a moves in the horizontal direction (X direction) to position R1, a distance s1 to the left of position R0, and vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b move in the vertical direction (Y direction) from the lowest position Q0 to the highest position Q1, a distance yq away. The cylindrical film TFi descends while being filled with the packaged products CP.

[0042] Figures 10(a) and (b) show states C and D in Figure 8, where state C shows the state at time t9 (time "60") when the first lowering operation (lowering operation 1) of heater blocks 18a and 18b is completed, and state D shows the state at time t10 (time "64") when the second closing operation (closing operation 2) of heater blocks 18a and 18b is completed. The operation from state B (time t5) to state D (time t10) will be explained below. Regarding the vertical seal opening and closing operation, the closing operation of the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b, which started at time t3 (time "20"), ends at time t6 (time "32"). As a result, vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b are completely closed, and a vertical seal is applied to tubular film TFi. Regarding the horizontal seal opening and closing operation, closing operation 1 of heater blocks 18a and 18b, which started at time t4 (time "25"), ends at time t7 (time "50"), and immediately thereafter at time t8 (time "51"), the second closing operation (closing operation 2) of heater blocks 18a and 18b starts, and closing operation 2 ends at time t10 (time "64"). Regarding the horizontal seal lifting operation, the first lowering operation (lowering operation 1) of the heater blocks 18a and 18b starts at time t5 (time "30"), and lowering operation 1 ends at time t9 (time "60"). In this case, heater blocks 18a and 18b move in the vertical direction (Y direction) to position P2, which is a distance y2 away from the top position P1, and heater block 18a moves in the horizontal direction (X direction) via position R2, which is a distance s2 to the right of position R1 (a distance s3 from position R0), to position R0. As a result, the squeezing plates 18c and 18d clamp the lower tubular film TFi of the heater blocks 18a and 18b, and the shutter plates 18e and 18f clamp the upper tubular film TFi of the heater blocks 18a and 18b, and the squeezing plates 18c and 18d and the shutter plates 18e and 18f descend together with the heater blocks 18a and 18b, and the upper portion of the tubular film TFi filled with the packaged product CP is squeezed by the squeezing plates 18c and 18d. Furthermore, when closing operation 2 is completed, heater blocks 18a and 18b are completely closed, and a horizontal seal is formed on cylindrical film TFi. As shown in Figure 10(b), at the time when the heater blocks 18a, 18b are completely closed and horizontal sealing begins (time t10), the packaged product CP inserted from the packaged product insertion device 80 is inside the filling tube 14b or the hopper 14a and has not yet reached the bottom of the tubular film TFi.

[0043] Figures 11(a) and (b) show states E and F in Figure 8, where state E shows the state at time t12 (time "66") when the descent speed of the second descent operation (descent operation 2) of heater blocks 18a and 18b becomes constant, and state F shows the state at time t14 (time "90") when the second descent operation 2 of heater blocks 18a and 18b ends. The operation from state D (time t10) to state F (time t14) will be explained below. With regard to the film feeding operation, the second feeding operation (feeding operation 2) of the film Fi starts at time t11 (time "65"), and feeding operation 2 ends at time t14 (time "90"). Regarding the vertical seal lifting and lowering operation, the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b start to lower at time t11 (time "65") and this lowering operation ends at time t14 (time "90"). Regarding the horizontal seal raising and lowering operation, the second lowering operation (lowering operation 2) of heater blocks 18a and 18b begins at time t11 (time "65"), the lowering speed of lowering operation 2 becomes constant at time t12 (time "66"), and lowering operation 2 ends at time t14 (time "90"). That is, at time t11, immediately after time t10 when the heater blocks 18a and 18b are completely closed and horizontal sealing begins, the heater blocks 18a and 18b begin to descend 2, and in synchronization with this descending operation 2, the film Fi feed operation 2 and the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b begin to descend, and when the heater blocks 18a and 18b descend 2 is completed, the film Fi feed operation 2 and the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b begin to descend in synchronization. In this case, the heater blocks 18a and 18b move in the vertical direction (Y direction) from position P2 to position P3, a distance y3 away, at time t12 (time "66"), and move to the lowest position P0, a distance y4 away from position P3, at time t14 (time "90"), and the vertical seal blocks 17a and 17b move in the vertical direction (Y direction) from the highest position Q1 to the lowest position Q0, a distance yq away.

[0044] Then, as shown in Figure 11(a), the packaged product CP inserted from the packaged product insertion device 80 reaches the bottom of the tubular film TFi at time t12 when the descending speed of the descending operation 2 becomes constant, and the packaged product CP is filled into the tubular film TFi, and the filling of the packaged product CP is completed at time t13 (time "80") while the descending operation 2 is continuing. While the packaged goods CP are being filled, the shutter plates 18e and 18f block the bottom of the tubular film TFi (the upper part of the heater blocks 18a and 18b), preventing the packaged goods CP from being pinched between the horizontal seal parts of the tubular film TFi, and the receiving plates 18g and 18h ​​receive the packaged goods CP that reach the bottom of the tubular film TFi, preventing the lower part of the tubular film TFi (the upper part of the heater blocks 18a and 18b) from bulging outward significantly due to the accumulation of the filled packaged goods CP. In addition, the lowering operation 2 reduces the impact of the packaged product CP being dropped into the tubular film TFi, suppressing its rebound, and the filling of the packaged product CP into the tubular film TFi is completed during the lowering operation 2. Furthermore, the distance yq by which the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b descend is greater than the distance (y3+y4) by which the heater blocks 18a, 18b descend due to the descending operation 2, and when the descent of the vertical seal blocks 17a, 17b and the heater blocks 18a, 18b is completed, a bulge (slack) is formed at the bottom of the tubular film TFi as shown in Figure 10(b), thereby improving the filling efficiency of the packaged products CP. The timing (time) at which the packaged product CP reaches the bottom of the tubular film TFi may be just before or just after time t12 at which the descent speed of the descending operation 2 becomes constant, and the timing (time) at which the filling of the packaged product CP ends may be any time while the descent speed of the descending operation 2 of the heater blocks 18a and 18b becomes constant.

[0045] Here, the packaged item insertion device 80 is controlled by a packaged item insertion device control unit separate from the vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60, but the time for one cycle of the packaged item insertion device control unit is set so as to be synchronized with one cycle of the vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60. The timing of feeding the packaged product CP into the packaged product supply section 14 (hopper 14a) and the timing of starting the horizontal seal descent 2 are set so that the packaged product CP fed from the packaged product feeding device 80 reaches the bottom of the tubular film TFi at time t12 when the descent speed of the descent operation 2 of the heater blocks 18a and 18b becomes constant. Specifically, the time it takes for the packaged product CP fed from the packaged product feeding device 80 to reach the bottom of the tubular film TFi is 0.3 to 0.6 seconds, and the feeding timing of the packaged product CP in the packaged product feeding device 80 is set so that the packaged product CP reaches the bottom of the tubular film TFi after time "60" in one cycle, and the timing of the lowering operation 2 of the heater blocks 18a, 18b, etc. is set based on this feeding timing.

[0046] As described above, the vertical pillow packaging machine 1 includes the vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10 and the vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60. The vertical pillow packaging machine main body 10 includes a film feeding unit 16 that feeds the film Fi in the vertical direction, a tube forming unit 15 that forms the film Fi into a tubular film TFi, a packaged product supply unit 14 that supplies packaged products CP that are input by a packaged product input device 80 and fills them into the tubular film TFi, a vertical sealing unit 17 that applies a vertical seal to the tubular film TFi, and a vertically sealed tubular film TFi. The vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 60 is equipped with a heater block operation control unit 61d that controls the operation of the horizontal sealing device 20 and the lifting device 30, and after the packaged product CP is input by the packaged product input device 80, the packaged product CP is inserted into the tubular film TFi. Before the packaged product CP reaches the bottom, the pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b close completely and begin horizontal sealing to the tubular film TFi; when or just before the packaged product CP reaches the bottom of the tubular film TFi, the pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b descend so that the descending speed of the pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b is constant; and the heater block operation control unit 61d controls the operation of the horizontal sealing device 20 and the lifting device 30 so that the pair of heater blocks 18a, 18b continue to descend at least while the packaged product CP is being filled into the tubular film TFi. This reduces the impact caused by the fall of the packaged product CP inserted into the tubular film TFi and suppresses its rebound; and the filling of the packaged product CP into the tubular film TFi is completed while the heater blocks 18a, 18b are descending, so that the fall of the packaged product CP is reliably completed before the squeezing of the next cycle begins, completely preventing the packaged product CP from being pinched between the film Fi and becoming trapped. [Industrial Applicability]

[0047] The vertical pillow packaging machine of the present invention can completely prevent the packaged product from being pinched and trapped in the packaging material due to rebounding caused by the impact of the packaged product being dropped into the tubular packaging material, or the packaged product taking a long time to fall not falling completely, and can be used in vertical pillow packaging machines equipped with a squeezing device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 1 Vertical pillow packaging machine 10 Vertical pillow packaging machine body 11 Film (packaging material) supply section 12 Tension adjustment section 12a Rotating arm 13 Date printing section 13a Date printing device 13b Lifting roller 14 Packaged product supply section 14a Hopper 14b Filling cylinder 15. Cylinder manufacturing section 15a Cylinder maker (former) 15b holding member 15c slide roller 16 Film feed section 16a pulley 16b Feed belt 16M Servo Motor 17 Vertical seal 17a, 17b Vertical seal block 18 Horizontal seal and cutting section 18a, 18b heater blocks 18am, 18bm center groove 18c, 18d ironing board 18e, 18f shutter plate 18g, 18h backing plate 19 Package discharge section 19a conveyor belt 20 Horizontal sealing device 20M Servo Motor 20Ma rotation axis 21 Block holder 21a Guide hole 22 Block holder 23 Opening and closing toggle mechanism 23a Rotating arm 23b, 23c Follower arms 24 Holder drive block 25 Support Block 25a, 25b frame 25c connection part 26a, 26b Connecting rod 27A, 27B Stroking section 28A, 28B shutter section 27a1, 27a2, 27a3, 27a4, 28a1, 28a2, 28a3, 28a4 Moving rod 27at1, 27at2, 27at3, 27at4, 28at1, 28at2, 28at3, 28at4 Tsuba 27b1, 27b2, 27b3, 27b4, 27c1, 27c2, 27c3, 27c4, 28b1, 28b2, 28b3, 28b4, 28c1, 28c2, 28c3, 28c4 Retainer plate 27s1, 27s2, 27s3, 27s4, 28s3, 28s4, 28s1, 28s2 springs 29 Cutting device 29a Support plate 29b Air cylinder 29c piston rod 29d slider 29e, 29f guide rod 30 Lifting device 30M Servo Motor 31a, 31b bracket 32 Timing belt 32a Belt clamping member 33 Connecting plate 34 Drive pulley 34a Pulley shaft 35 driven pulley 35a Pulley shaft 36a, 36b Lifting guide rod 40 Vertical seal block opening and closing device 40M Servo Motor 50 Lifting device 50M servo motor, 60 Vertical pillow packaging machine control unit 61 Calculation control unit 61a Drive equipment control section 61b Film feed control section 61c Vertical seal block operation control section 61d heater block operation control unit 62 Memory section 63 Transmitter / Receiver 70 Operation Panel 71 Computer 71a Operation timing setting section 71a1 Film feed timing setting unit 71a2 Vertical seal opening / closing timing setting part 71a3 Vertical seal lift timing setting part 71a4 Horizontal seal opening / closing timing setting part 71a5 Horizontal seal lift timing setting part 73 Transmitter / Receiver 74 Input display section 80 Packaged product loading device CL communication line CP packaged product Fi film (packaging material) gr guide roller MF winding film PC packaging TC1~TC4 timing chart TFi cylindrical film (cylindrical packaging material) ts Vertical seal part ys Horizontal seal part

Claims

1. a vertical pillow packaging machine body including packaging material feeding means for feeding packaging material in a vertical direction, tubular packaging material forming means for forming the packaging material fed by the packaging material feeding means into a tubular packaging material, packaged product filling means for supplying packaged products input by packaged product input means and filling the tubular packaging material, vertical sealing means for applying a vertical seal to the tubular packaging material in a vertical direction, and horizontal seal cutting means for applying a horizontal seal to and cutting the tubular packaging material that has been vertically sealed by the vertical sealing means; a vertical pillow packaging machine control means for controlling the vertical pillow packaging machine main body; A vertical pillow packaging machine comprising: the transverse seal cutting means includes heater block opening / closing means for opening and closing the pair of heater blocks, and heater block lifting means for lifting and lowering the pair of heater blocks; the vertical pillow packaging machine control means includes heater block operation control means for controlling the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting / lowering means, the heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting means so that the pair of heater blocks perform two closing operations and two lowering operations in one cycle, which is the period during which the vertical pillow packaging machine produces one package; After a certain time has elapsed since the start of one cycle, the pair of heater blocks start a first closing operation, the pair of heater blocks start a first lowering operation while the pair of heater blocks are performing their first closing operation, the pair of heater blocks finish their first closing operation while the pair of heater blocks are performing their first lowering operation, and after a certain time has elapsed, the pair of heater blocks start a second closing operation, and after the packaged product is loaded by the packaged product loading means, the pair of heater blocks performing the second closing operation completely close and start the horizontal sealing before the packaged product reaches the bottom of the tubular packaging material, and the pair of heater blocks finish their second closing operation. the pair of heater blocks finish their first lowering operation while the closing operation of the tubular packaging material is being performed, and start their second lowering operation a certain time after the start of the horizontal sealing, the pair of heater blocks descend so that the lowering speed of the pair of heater blocks in the second lowering operation is constant when the packaged goods reach the bottom of the tubular packaging material or just before that, and the heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting means so that the pair of heater blocks continue their second lowering operation at least while the packaged goods are being filled into the tubular packaging material.

2. 2. The vertical pillow packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal seal cutting means includes a squeezing means for squeezing the portion of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal is to be applied, and when the packaged product introduced by the packaged product introduction means has reached and filled the tubular packaging material, the first closing operation and the second lowering operation bring the pair of heater blocks close together and lower them to squeeze the portion where the horizontal seal is to be applied by the squeezing means, and then the heater block operation control means controls the operation of the heater block opening / closing means and the heater block lifting / lowering means so that the second closing operation of the pair of heater blocks is continued to completely close the pair of heater blocks and apply the horizontal seal.

3. 2. A vertical pillow packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal seal cutting means is provided with a shutter means that closes the upper side of the portion of the tubular packaging material where the horizontal seal is to be applied when the pair of heater blocks are completely closed.

4. 4. A vertical pillow packaging machine according to claim 3, wherein the shutter means is provided with a receiving plate for receiving the packaged product that has been inserted by the packaged product inserting means and reached the bottom of the tubular packaging material.

5. The vertical sealing means includes a vertical seal block opening / closing means for opening and closing a pair of vertical seal blocks, and a vertical seal block lifting / lowering means for lifting and lowering the pair of vertical seal blocks, The vertical pillow packaging machine control means includes a vertical seal block operation control means for controlling the operation of the vertical seal block opening / closing means and the vertical seal block lifting / lowering means, The vertical pillow packaging machine of claim 1, characterized in that the pair of vertical seal blocks are closed to apply the vertical seal before the horizontal seal cutting means begins the horizontal seal, and the vertical seal block operation control means controls the operation of the vertical seal block opening / closing means and the vertical seal block lifting means so that the vertical seal block is lowered in synchronization with the descent of the pair of heater blocks while the vertical seal is being applied.

6. 6. The vertical pillow packaging machine according to claim 5, wherein the distance that the pair of vertical seal blocks are lowered is greater than the distance that the pair of heater blocks are lowered.

7. The vertical pillow packaging machine control means includes packaging material feeding operation control means for controlling the operation of the packaging material feeding means, 6. The vertical pillow packaging machine according to claim 5, wherein after the horizontal seal cutting means starts the horizontal sealing, the packaging material is fed vertically in synchronization with the descent of the pair of heater blocks and the descent of the pair of vertical seal blocks, by a packaging material feed operation control means.

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