Thermoforming apparatus

Abstract

The object of the present invention is to provide a thermoforming device capable of precisely trimming a pulp molding material to which a laminate film is adhered. [Solution] A thermoforming device 100 is provided with heating means (upper surface heating means 151 and lower surface heating means 152) for heating a resin film (laminate film F) and a conveying means (conveying chuck 143) for conveying the laminate film F, and adheres the laminate film F to a fiber molding (substrate W) that serves as the substrate. The device is also provided with a receiving mold (laminate receiving mold 131) that holds the substrate W on its upper surface, a moving means (ball screw, servo motor 136) that moves the laminate receiving mold 131 laterally to the forming position St3, and a cutting means 160 that cuts the substrate W to which the laminate film F has been adhered, and cuts the substrate W and the laminate film F together at the position where the laminate film F was adhered to the substrate W at the forming position St3.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technology that contributes to improving the productivity of a thermoforming device that bonds a laminate film onto a pulp molding material. [Background technology]

[0002] Thermoforming machines use heaters to heat objects such as resin sheets before forming them, but they are also used to bond laminate films onto molded pulp materials. A recent trend is to use molded pulp materials for food containers and product packaging. Molded pulp materials, which biodegrade even after disposal, are considered effective in preventing environmental pollution, but they are not resistant to moisture or oil. For this reason, products with laminate films attached to their surfaces are increasingly being used.

[0003] When bonding a laminate film to the surface of such molded pulp material, adhesives can be used, or the laminate film can be softened and attached by thermoforming. When using a welding method using a thermoforming device, the laminate film is heated and pressed against the surface of the molded pulp material, causing the softened laminate film to become entangled with the fibers on the surface of the molded pulp material, thereby bonding it.

[0004] However, when a laminate film is bonded to a pulp molded material in this way, there are problems with misalignment between the pulp molded material and the laminate film, and with precision during trimming. For example, to reduce production costs, a pulp molded material that can be used in multiple production runs is often supplied, a laminate film is attached on top of it, and then trimming is performed. In this process, there are cases where misalignment of the laminate film or misalignment during trimming occurs.

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses an invention related to a thermoforming device. The thermoforming device uses a radiant heating device to soften and bond a resin film (corresponding to a laminate film) onto a fiber molding (corresponding to a pulp molding material) that serves as a base. The thermoforming device includes a pressure reducing device for creating a vacuum between the fiber molding and the resin film, and an exhaust speed adjusting unit for adjusting the exhaust speed for the vacuum suction of the pressure reducing device. Before the heating and bonding processes, the resin film is bonded to the outer periphery of the bonding surface of the fiber molding, and the resin film is cut to a shape that follows the contour of the outer periphery. The exhaust speed adjusting unit adjusts the speed in two stages during thermoforming, thereby improving trimming accuracy. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7249070 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, when using the method of Patent Document 1, it is necessary to adhere the laminate film to the pulp molded material in advance, cut the resin film, and then perform thermoforming. In addition, the pulp molded material that serves as the base material must also be cut to a fixed shape in advance, so it cannot meet the need to trim the entire pulp molded material after adhesion.

[0008] Some clients purchase multi-cavity pulp molded materials and want to thermoform them, but trimming the pulp molded material first and then thermoforming it would be costly. For this reason, a method was sought in which a laminate film was attached to the multi-cavity material and then trimmed with precision.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a thermoforming device that is capable of precisely trimming a pulp molding material to which a laminate film is adhered when thermoforming a resin sheet. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to achieve the above object, a thermoforming apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention has the following features.

[0011] (1) A thermoforming device that includes a heating means for heating a resin film and a conveying means for conveying the resin film, and that adheres the resin film to a fiber molded body that serves as a substrate, a receiving mold for holding the fiber molded body on its upper surface; a cutting means for cutting the fiber molding to which the resin film is adhered, the cutting means cuts the fiber molding held by the receiving mold and having the resin film adhered thereto at the molding position to separate it as an adhered molding; It is characterized by:

[0012] The above-described aspect (1) allows for improved trimming accuracy of molded products. This is achieved by arranging the position where a resin film (laminate film) is bonded to a fiber molding (pulp molding material) and the position where the fiber molding is cut together with the resin film by a cutting means at the same position. When cutting the fiber molding together with the resin film bonded to its surface at the molding position, the fiber molding is supported by a receiving mold, and the receiving mold does not move during the process from molding to cutting.

[0013] In other words, by cutting the fiber molding and the adhesively molded resin film together at the molding position on the receiving mold and separating the adhered molding, it is possible to reduce the risk of misalignment occurring due to transportation after molding, and to increase the yield rate of molded products.

[0014] (2) In the thermoforming device according to (1), the heating means is disposed at a preheating position adjacent to the molding position, and includes an upper surface-side heating means disposed above the resinous film and a lower surface-side heating means disposed below the resinous film, a traversing means for moving the upper surface heating means from the preheating position to the molding position, a heat shielding means disposed at the preheating position between the resinous film conveyed by the conveying means and the upper surface heating means, the conveying direction of the resin film and the moving direction of the heating means overlap; the upper surface heating means is moved to the molding position by the traversing means and used to heat the resin film during molding; is preferred.

[0015] The above-described aspect (2) allows for a compact device layout. In the aspect (1), cutting is performed by the cutting means at the molding position, and therefore the cutting means is disposed above the receiving mold. In this case, the upper surface heating means for heating the resin film from the upper surface during molding must have a traversing means for moving from the molding position to the preheating position, which serves as a shelter when the cutting means is used.

[0016] At this time, the upper surface heating means moved to the waiting position is provided with a temperature blocking means at the waiting position so as not to heat the resin film at the pre-heating position. In other words, the temperature blocking means is disposed between the upper surface heating means and the resin film. It is possible to position the upper surface heating means at a location other than the pre-heating position, but the pre-heating position is provided with a lower surface heating means, and there is space above it. For this reason, by positioning the waiting location of the upper surface heating means at the pre-heating position, it is possible to make the device layout compact.

[0017] (3) In the thermoforming apparatus according to (1) or (2), the receiving mold has a first positioning function capable of positioning a positioning jig, the cutting means has a second positioning function that can position the cutting means relative to the receiving mold using the positioning jig; is preferred.

[0018] According to the aspect described in (3) above, the position of the cutting means relative to the receiving mold can be determined using the positioning jig, which makes it possible to improve the yield when manufacturing paper containers. This is because, when performing maintenance on the cutting means, if the positional relationship with the receiving mold changes, this can cause misalignment, and this can be eliminated using the positioning jig.

[0019] (4) In the thermoforming device according to (3), the cutting means comprises a Thomson blade and a chuck for holding the Thomson blade; using the positioning jig to replace the Thomson blade, positioning it relative to the receiving die, and holding the Thomson blade at the positioned position by the chuck; is preferred.

[0020] The aspect described in (4) above makes it possible to prevent the cutting position from shifting relative to the receiving mold when replacing the Thomson blade, thereby improving the yield when manufacturing paper containers. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus layout according to the present embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing the flow of thermoforming in the present embodiment. [Figure 3] 2 is a view taken along the arrow AA of the present embodiment, including a molding position and a preheating position during molding. FIG. [Figure 4] 2 is a view taken along the arrow AA of the present embodiment, including a molding position and a preheating position during cutting. FIG. [Figure 5] 1 is a view taken along the arrow BB of the thermoforming device according to the present embodiment, including a molding position and a product removal position. [Figure 6]FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a substrate is being introduced into a thermoforming device in the present embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the movement and molding of a laminate receiving mold in this embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a paper container being removed from the thermoforming device in this embodiment. [Figure 9] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of alignment between a laminate receiving mold and a Thomson blade in this embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] First, an outline of the configuration of a thermoforming apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the apparatus layout of the thermoforming apparatus 100 according to this embodiment. The thermoforming apparatus 100 has a function of bonding a resin laminate film F to the surface of a pulp-molded substrate W, which is a fiber molded body. The thermoforming apparatus 100 is provided with a substrate supply position St0, a substrate rotation position St1, a product removal position St2, a forming position St3, a preheating position St4, and a removal position StE.

[0023] Here, the substrates W are pulp-molded in an array so that a plurality of paper containers P can be obtained as products, and in this embodiment, the array is 6 columns and 2 rows. In other words, 12 paper containers P can be obtained from one substrate W. The paper containers P are roughly rectangular, vessel-shaped, adhered molded bodies in which a laminate film F is bonded to the surface of a pulp molded material, and are designed as product packaging.

[0024] The laminate film F is a thermoplastic film material such as polypropylene (PP). An adhesive layer made of a heat sealant or the like may be provided on the surface of the laminate film F that is to be adhered to the substrate W. This laminate film F is configured to be unwound from an unwinding section 141 and wound up by a winding section 142, as will be described later. The wound laminate film F is unwound from the unwinding section 141, and the winding section 142 winds up the ladder-shaped waste material after trimming. The waste material is collected with the scraps of the substrate W adhered to the laminate film F.

[0025] First, the layout of the thermoforming apparatus 100 will be described. At the substrate supply position St0 shown in Fig. 1, a first input box 111 and a second input box 112, into which the substrates W are supplied in a stacked state, can be arranged side by side. At the substrate rotation position St1, a turntable 120 is arranged, which can rotate two substrates W side by side by 90 degrees. At the product removal position St2, one end of a moving table 130 is arranged. The moving table 130 has the function of holding and moving a laminate receiving mold 131, which corresponds to a receiving mold.

[0026] The laminate receiving mold 131 has a plurality of recesses, specifically, the recesses are formed in 6 columns and 4 rows, with two sheets of base material W arranged in 6 columns and 2 rows, and are separated by cross bars arranged in a grid pattern, and one paper container P is placed in each recess. Therefore, 24 paper containers P can be formed at one time per laminate receiving mold 131. And, because the paper containers P are separated on the laminate receiving mold 131 (cross bars), the cross bars of the laminate receiving mold 131 are positioned so that they can support the periphery of the paper container P.

[0027] Although not shown, an air intake pipe is provided inside the laminate receiving mold 131, and the configuration allows air to be drawn in through holes provided in the recesses separated by each crosspiece so as to open into the crosspiece portion. Therefore, these opening holes in the crosspiece portion have the effect of preventing misalignment of the substrate W. In addition, since the Thomson blade 162, which will be described later, comes into contact with the surface (crosspiece portion) of the laminate receiving mold 131 to cut the substrate W, it is not prohibited to provide a replaceable plate in the portion where the Thomson blade 162 comes into contact.

[0028] The other end of the movable table 130 is positioned at the molding position St3. In other words, the movable table 130 is positioned so as to straddle the product removal position St2 and the molding position St3. The laminate receiving mold 131 held on the upper surface of the movable table 130 is configured to be moved by the movable table 130 to two positions, from the product removal position St2 to the molding position St3, and to be held in a predetermined position. In addition, a cutting means 160 that can be raised and lowered is provided above the molding position St3, and is configured to be able to cut the substrate W held by the laminate receiving mold 131.

[0029] The preheating position St4 is provided with an upper surface heating means 151, a lower surface heating means 152, and a water jacket 153 as heat shielding means. The upper surface heating means 151 and the lower surface heating means 152 use high-speed tracking heaters that are capable of rapid response and radiant heating, making it possible to quickly heat the laminate film F. The upper surface heating means 151 is equipped with a traversing means (not shown) and is configured to move from the preheating position St4 to the molding position St3.

[0030] The laminate film F is configured to be unwound from the unwinding section 141, pass through the preheating position St4 and the forming position St3 in that order, and be wound up by the winding section 142. The wound laminate film F is unwound from the unwinding section 141, and the ladder-shaped waste material after trimming is wound up in the winding section 142. Therefore, the waste material is collected with the scraps of the substrate W adhered to the laminate film F. The laminate film F is transported while being held by a transport chuck 143 (not shown). A take-out conveyor 170 is arranged at the take-out position StE and is used to transport the molded paper container P.

[0031] Next, the configuration of the devices arranged at each position will be described. Fig. 2 shows a view taken along the arrow AA of the thermoforming device 100, including the forming position St3 and the preheating position St4. The view taken along the arrow AA of Fig. 1 shows an outline of the forming position St3 and the preheating position St4 of the thermoforming device 100 during forming. Fig. 3, unlike Fig. 2, shows an outline of the forming position St3 and the preheating position St4 during cutting as a view taken along the arrow AA.

[0032] The top heating means 151 is provided as a means for heating when bonding the laminate film F to the top surface of the substrate W, and as described above, is provided with a heater for radiant heating. It is also provided with a moving means that can move horizontally from the preheating position St4, which serves as a waiting area, to above the laminate receiving mold 131, which has been moved to the molding position St3, as shown in FIG. 2. During molding, the top heating means 151 heats the top surface of the laminate film F at the molding position St3. Meanwhile, during cutting, as shown in FIG. 3, it must be retracted to the preheating position St4.

[0033] The water jacket 153 is disposed between the laminate film F and the upper surface heating means 151 when the upper surface heating means 151 is on standby at the pre-heating position St4. A pipe (not shown) for circulating cooling water is connected to the water jacket 153, and the water jacket 153 has the function of blocking the transfer of heat from the upper surface heating means 151 to the laminate film F.

[0034] The bottom-side heating means 152 is configured to be movable between a standby position (shown in FIG. 2) and a heating position (shown in FIG. 3), and is supported by a rotatable support arm 154, and can be switched between the two positions (standby position and heating position) by a retracting cylinder (not shown). As mentioned above, the bottom-side heating means 152 is provided with a heater for radiant heating, and is configured to be able to heat the laminate film F from the bottom side, and moves to the standby position when not heating.

[0035] The cutting means 160 is configured to hold a Thomson blade 162 with a Thomson holding chuck 165, and the Thomson blade 162 is raised and lowered by a cutting cylinder 163 at the forming position St3. When the Thomson blade 162 is lowered, it abuts against the upper surface of the laminate receiving mold 131 and cuts the substrate W on whose upper surface the laminate film F has been adhered and molded. At this time, the Thomson blade 162 simultaneously cuts and separates the laminate film F and the substrate W. In other words, the entire periphery of the paper container P is cut off from the laminate film F.

[0036] 4 shows a view seen from the arrow BB including the molding position St3 and the product removal position St2 of the thermoforming device 100. At the product removal position St2, the laminating mold 131 is inserted, the substrate W is placed onto the laminating mold 131, and the product, a paper container P, is removed from the laminating mold 131. The laminating mold 131 is fixed to a mold base 133 held on a linear guide 132. The mold base 133 is configured to be movable between the product removal position St2 and the molding position St3.

[0037] The receiving mold base 133 is held on a four-strand linear guide 132 arranged on a lower base 135, and is moved laterally by a driving ball screw and servo motor 136 (not shown) as a moving means, and the laminate receiving mold 131 can be stopped at any position. The lower base 135 is guided by an elevation guide (not shown) and has the function of being raised and lowered by an elevation cylinder 134. At the forming position St3, the laminate film F is thermoformed onto the substrate W.

[0038] Next, the procedure for manufacturing a paper container P using the thermoforming device 100 will be described. Fig. 5 shows a conceptual diagram illustrating the flow of thermoforming. Note that Fig. 5 shows the conceptual configuration, and for convenience of explanation, the viewpoint is changed for each configuration. Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the state in which the base material W is introduced. Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the movement and forming of the laminate receiving mold 131. Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the state in which the paper container P is removed.

[0039] First, as shown in Fig. 6, the first input box 111 and the second input box 112 are set at the substrate supply position St0. A predetermined number of substrates W are stacked in each of the first input box 111 and the second input box 112. By arranging the first input box 111 and the second input box 112 at predetermined positions, the substrates W can be removed side by side. The substrates W are transported from the first input box 111 and the second input box 112 to the substrate rotation position St1 using the transport head 115.

[0040] The transport head 115 is configured with a plurality of suction pads arranged thereon, and the suction pads are connected to a negative pressure pump (not shown). The transport head 115 has a transfer mechanism, and is configured to be able to transport the substrate W by suction by moving the transport head 115 laterally and raising and lowering it at predetermined locations. The transport head 115 can transport two substrates W by suction at the same time.

[0041] The transported substrate W is rotated 90 degrees at substrate rotation position St1. The 90-degree angle change is performed for layout reasons, and the angle change is performed using turntable 120. The substrate W whose angle has been changed at substrate rotation position St1 is transported to product removal position St2 by transport head 115. As shown in FIG. 4, a laminate receiving mold 131 has been loaded into product removal position St2 in advance from outside the thermoforming apparatus 100 and is fixed to a receiving mold base 133. The laminate receiving mold 131 is fixed to the upper surface of the receiving mold base 133, and two substrates W are placed on the upper surface of the laminate receiving mold 131 in this state by transport head 115.

[0042] Next, as shown in Figure 7, the substrate W with the laminate receiving mold 131 placed on it is moved to the molding position St3. The laminate receiving mold 131 is moved to the molding position St3 by moving the receiving mold base 133 to its fixed position, and the substrate W is placed under the laminate film F. The laminate film F has been heated at the preheating position St4 using the bottom heating means 152 as shown in Figure 3, and at the molding position St3 the laminate film F is heated and molded by the top heating means 151. As a result, the laminate film F is adhered to the top surface of the substrate W. Although not shown, vacuum suction is performed from the bottom of the laminate receiving mold 131.

[0043] During molding, the lower base 135 is raised using the lifting cylinder 134, bringing the substrate W close to the laminate film F. After molding, at molding position St3, the Thomson blade 162 is lowered using the cutting cylinder 163, cutting the laminate film F while it is still adhered to the substrate W. As a result, the paper container P is separated from the laminate film F side.

[0044] Next, as shown in Figure 8, the cut paper container P is transported to the product removal position St2 by moving the receiving base 133 while it is placed on the laminate receiving mold 131. After the laminate receiving mold 131 has been moved to the product removal position St2, the paper container P is moved onto the removal conveyor 170 using the transport head 115. The removal conveyor 170 is positioned at the removal position StE and is used to remove the paper container P.

[0045] The thermoforming apparatus 100 of this embodiment has the above-described configuration and therefore provides the following advantageous effects.

[0046] First, it is possible to precisely trim the substrate W to which the laminate film F is adhered. This is because the thermoforming device 100, which is equipped with heating means (upper surface heating means 151 and lower surface heating means 152) for heating the resin film (laminate film F) and conveying means (conveyor chuck 143) for conveying the laminate film F and which adheres the laminate film F to the fiber molded product (substrate W) that serves as the substrate, is equipped with a laminate receiving mold 131 that holds the substrate W on its upper surface, movement means (ball screw, servo motor 136) for moving the laminate receiving mold 131 laterally to the forming position St3, and cutting means 160 that cuts the substrate W to which the laminate film F is adhered, and cuts the substrate W and the laminate film F together at the position where the laminate film F was adhered to the substrate W at the forming position St3.

[0047] In other words, because forming and cutting are performed at forming position St3, the substrate W with the laminate film F adhered thereto can be cut without misalignment. The substrate W is held by the laminate receiving mold 131 and moved to forming position St3, and the laminate film F is passed through the top of the laminate receiving mold 131 at forming position St3, resulting in the state shown in FIG. 2 in which the laminate film F is placed on top of the substrate W. At this stage, the laminate film F is heated from above by the upper surface heating means 151 while air is sucked out through an air intake formed inside the laminate receiving mold 131 (not shown) to perform vacuum forming, thereby adhering the laminate film F to the top of the substrate W.

[0048] Then, as shown in Figure 3, the cutting means 160 is lowered to perform cutting. The cutting means 160 uses a Thomson blade 162 and a cutting cylinder 163 located above the forming position St3 to cut the substrate W placed on the laminate receiving mold 131 together with the laminate film F. In this way, forming and cutting are performed at the same position, and the entire periphery of the paper container P is cut off as described above, making it possible to manufacture paper containers P with reduced misalignment. As a result, the yield when manufacturing paper containers P can be improved.

[0049] At this time, the substrate W is cut together with the laminate film F on the laminate receiving mold 131, and a paper container P is obtained with the entire periphery cut off from the laminate film F, so no equipment for knocking out is required after the molding position St3, which leads to cost reduction. In addition, cutting off the entire periphery leaves no uncut parts or thorny residue on the paper container P, so this part does not become the starting point for peeling of the laminate film F, which also leads to an improvement in the yield when manufacturing the paper container P.

[0050] The heating means is also arranged at a preheating position St4 adjacent to the molding position St3, and includes an upper surface heating means 151 arranged above the laminate film F and a lower surface heating means 152 arranged below the laminate film F, and has a traversing means for moving the upper surface heating means 151 from the preheating position St4 to the molding position St3.

[0051] The laminate film F is transported by the transport means (transport chuck 143) and the upper surface heating means 151, and a water jacket 153 is provided as a heat insulating means that is arranged at the pre-heating position St4. The transport direction of the laminate film F and the movement direction of the upper surface heating means 151 overlap, and the upper surface heating means 151 is moved to the molding position St3 by the lateral movement means and used to heat the laminate film F during molding.

[0052] Because a relatively thin laminate film F is selected for adhesion to the upper surface of the substrate W, it is necessary to prevent drawdown due to overheating. Therefore, when the laminate film F is unwound from the unwinding section 141, passes through the preheating position St4, and is transported to the forming position St3 by the transport chuck 143, if the laminate film F is also heated at the preheating position St4 by the top heating means 151, it will be overheated. Therefore, a water jacket 153 is provided at the preheating position St4. The top heating means 151 must be heated at a high output for use in thermoforming. However, because the cutting means 160 is provided above the forming position St3, the top heating means 151 must be retracted somewhere when the cutting means 160 is lowered.

[0053] For this reason, the top surface heating means 151 is retracted to the pre-heating position St4, and a water jacket 153 is provided as a heat shield to prevent the laminate film F from being heated from the top surface at that time. The water jacket 153 can block the heat generated by the top surface heating means 151. This makes it possible to prevent the laminate film F from being overheated. Furthermore, because there is no need to lower the temperature when the top surface heating means 151 is retracted, there is no need to ensure heating time, which can contribute to shortening the takt time.

[0054] Next, the alignment structure and method will be described. Figure 9 shows a side view illustrating the positioning of the Thomson blade. The jig 175 used as a positioning jig is provided with a plurality of positioning pins 175a that protrude from the top and bottom, i.e., from the side that is positioned with the laminate receiving mold 131 and the side that is positioned with the cutting means 160. It is desirable to have a top-bottom structure in which the pins protrude from the same positions on the top and bottom (i.e., the positioning pins 175a that protrude from the top and the positioning pins 175a that protrude from the bottom are arranged coaxially), but this does not prevent them from protruding from different positions as necessary.

[0055] In contrast, the laminate receiving mold 131 is provided with a positioning hole 131b corresponding to the first positioning function, and a base plate 162a on the cutting means 160 side is provided with a positioning hole 162b corresponding to the second positioning function. The Thomson blade 162 is held by the base plate 162a, which is fixed to the cutting base 161. The cutting base 161 is provided with a Thomson holding chuck 165, which can hold the base plate 162a so as not to slip.

[0056] With this configuration, the replacement and positioning of the Thomson blade 162 is performed in the following procedure. First, the jig 175 is placed with the laminate receiving mold 131 fixed to the receiving mold base 133, and the Thomson blade 162 is positioned on top of it. Then, the Thomson blade 162 is held at the forming position St3 by the Thomson holding chuck 165 provided on the cutting base 161, whereby the base plate 162a of the Thomson blade 162 is held by the cutting means 160.

[0057] Since the Thomson blade 162 is replaced in this manner, the position of the Thomson blade 162 relative to the laminate receiving mold 131 is determined, which contributes to preventing misalignment of the paper container P and improving yield. The replacement of the Thomson blade 162 depends on the characteristics of the workpiece, but it is said that replacement is necessary after about 100,000 shots. If misalignment needs to be adjusted every time the blade is replaced, work efficiency decreases and production costs increase, so the ability to use the jig 175 to improve the reproducibility of the installation position is an excellent advantage on the manufacturing site.

[0058] The thermoforming apparatus 100 according to the present invention has been described above, but it is not limited thereto, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, while the first input box 111 and the second input box 112 are described as being arranged side by side at the substrate supply position St0, modifications are possible depending on the size of the substrate W and the number of slots set in the laminate receiving mold 131. Furthermore, although the substrate rotation position St1 is provided in relation to the arrangement direction, the substrate rotation position St1 may not be provided if a mechanism for rotating the conveying head 115 is provided, or if the first input box 111 and the second input box 112 can be installed in a position where rotation is not required.

[0059] Furthermore, it is not prohibited to provide a plurality of transport heads 115 for transport. For example, by arranging two transport heads 115 side by side and transporting simultaneously, it is possible to improve transport efficiency and shorten takt time.

[0060] Additionally, the upper surface heating means 151 provided in the thermoforming apparatus 100 of this embodiment has been described as moving in the same direction as the conveyance direction of the laminate film F, i.e., from the preheating position St4 to the forming position St3. However, the upper surface heating means 151 may be provided in a standby position in the same direction as the movement of the laminate receiving mold 131, on the opposite side of the forming position St3 from the product removal position St2, i.e., at the rear side of the product removal position St2 and the forming position St3. While this increases the installation area of ​​the thermoforming apparatus 100, it eliminates the need for a water jacket 153 as a heat shield, leading to cost reduction. Therefore, it is preferable to select an appropriate position depending on the installation location. [Explanation of symbols]

[0061] W Base material F Laminate Film St3 molding position 100 Thermoforming equipment 131 Receiving type 143 Transport chuck 151 Upper heating means 152 Lower heating means 160 Cut-off methods

Claims

1. A thermoforming apparatus comprising a heating means for heating a resin film and a conveying means for conveying the resin film, and for bonding the resin film to a fiber molded body serving as a substrate, a receiving mold for holding the fiber molded body on its upper surface; a cutting means for cutting the fiber molding to which the resin film is adhered, the cutting means cuts the fiber molding held by the receiving mold and having the resin film adhered thereto at a molding position to separate it as an adhered molding; the heating means is disposed at a preheating position adjacent to the molding position, and includes an upper surface-side heating means disposed above the resinous film and a lower surface-side heating means disposed below the resinous film, a traversing means for moving the upper surface heating means from the preheating position to the molding position, a heat shielding means disposed at the preheating position between the resinous film conveyed by the conveying means and the upper surface heating means, the conveying direction of the resin film and the moving direction of the heating means overlap; the upper surface heating means is moved to the molding position by the traversing means and used to heat the resin film during molding; A thermoforming device characterized by:

2. A thermoforming device comprising a heating means for heating a resin film and a conveying means for conveying the resin film, and for bonding the resin film to a fiber molding that serves as a substrate, a receiving mold for holding the fiber molded body on its upper surface; a cutting means for cutting the fiber molding to which the resin film is adhered, the cutting means cuts the fiber molding held by the receiving mold and having the resin film adhered thereto at a molding position to separate it as an adhered molding; the receiving mold has a first positioning function capable of positioning a positioning jig, the cutting means has a second positioning function that can position the cutting means relative to the receiving mold using the positioning jig; A thermoforming device characterized by:

3. 3. The thermoforming apparatus of claim 2, the cutting means comprises a Thomson blade and a chuck for holding the Thomson blade; using the positioning jig to replace the Thomson blade, positioning it relative to the receiving die, and holding the Thomson blade at the positioned position by the chuck; A thermoforming device characterized by:

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