Belt cleaner

Abstract

To suppress contamination of a semi-finished product that is sandwiched and pressed by a belt.SOLUTION: A belt cleaner 10 includes: a belt 11 that circulates around a track 16 including an area 16X that moves along a conveying direction of a semi-finished product 51 in a state in which a sealing agent is coated or stacked on a part of a paper base material that wraps a content and the part is superimposed on another part of the paper base material, is pressed against the semi-finished product 51 in a direction in which the part thereof is superimposed on the other part while moving in the area 16X of the track 16, and is pressed against the semi-finished product in the direction, thereby seals the semi-finished product 51 by attaching the part to the other part with the sealing agent; and a cleaner 12 that wipes a portion pressed to the semi-finished product 51 in the belt 11 that is circulating in another area 16Y of the track 16 excluding the area 16X.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[[Technical Field]]

[0001] The present invention relates to a belt cleaner that wipes dirt adhering to a circulating belt with a cleaner. [[Background Art]]

[0002] As one of the technologies using a circulating belt, a pair of belts that sandwich and process a workpiece while conveying the same is known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which a semi-finished product wrapped in a packaging sheet folded into a combined wrap (so-called "caramel fold") shape is used as a workpiece, and the combined wrapped portion of the semi-finished product is sandwiched between belts and pressed to achieve bonding. [[Prior Art Literature]] [[Patent Literature]]

[0003] [[Patent Document 1]] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 57-86412 [[Summary of the Invention]] [[Problem to be Solved by the Invention]]

[0004] In the technique of Patent Document 1, since the combined wrapped portion of the semi-finished product is in contact with the belts in a state where the semi-finished product is sandwiched between a pair of belts, if dirt adheres to the belts, the dirt on the belts may adhere to the semi-finished product. However, in the technique of Patent Document 1 which does not take into consideration the dirt on the belt and the removal of the dirt, adhesion of dirt on the belt may cause contamination of the semi-finished product. In particular, a semi-finished product using a paper packaging sheet (paper base material) is more susceptible to adhesion of belt dirt than a case where a film packaging sheet is used, for example, and the adhered dirt is difficult to remove. Therefore, it tends to easily cause contamination of the semi-finished product. Therefore, there is room for improvement in suppressing contamination of the semi-finished product that is sandwiched and pressed by the belts.

[0005] This invention was conceived in light of the above-mentioned problems, and one of its objectives is to suppress contamination of semi-finished products. However, beyond this objective, the actions and effects derived from each configuration shown in the "Modes for Carrying Out the Invention" described later, which cannot be obtained with conventional technology, can also be considered other objectives of this invention. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The belt cleaner in this case comprises a belt that circulates along a track that includes a region that moves along the transport direction of a semi-finished product in which a sealant is applied to or laminated on a part of a paper substrate that encloses the contents, and the part is superimposed on another part of the paper substrate, and as the belt moves along the track, the part is pressed against the semi-finished product in the direction in which it is superimposed on the other part, thereby sealing the semi-finished product by bonding the part to the other part with the sealant, and a cleaner that wipes the part that has been pressed against the semi-finished product on the belt that circulates in the other region of the track excluding the region. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to this case, by clamping and pressing the semi-finished product with a belt, damage to the semi-finished product can be suppressed when sealing it. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is an explanatory diagram of the seal section where the belt cleaner of this embodiment is provided. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a manufacturing line equipped with the belt cleaner shown in Figure 1. [Figure 3] (a) to (d) are explanatory diagrams illustrating the packaging procedure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes an embodiment for implementing the belt cleaner. The belt cleaner in this embodiment is attached to a packaging manufacturing line. The packaging is an article manufactured on the manufacturing line and wrapped in a packaging sheet. The packaging sheet is a paper material (paper base material) that wraps the contents of the packaging. Specific examples of contents include toilet rolls and kitchen paper. In this embodiment, we will take as an example a belt cleaner installed on a manufacturing line for a packaging in which four (or more) toilet rolls are wrapped together in a packaging sheet in a so-called "caramel fold" shape.

[0010] Furthermore, the directions used in the description of this embodiment are defined as follows: The direction in which the packaging manufacturing process progresses from upstream to downstream is the MD direction (Machine Direction, indicated as "MD" in the drawings). The direction along the direction in which gravity acts is downward (indicated as "D" in the drawings), and the opposite direction to downward is upward (indicated as "U" in the drawings). The direction perpendicular to both these vertical directions and the MD direction is the CD direction (Cross Direction).

[0011] [I. One Embodiment] In the following explanation, the overall configuration of the manufacturing line equipped with a belt cleaner is outlined in section [1], and the configuration of the belt cleaner is described in detail in section [2]. Then, the effects of the configurations in sections [1] and [2] are described in section [3].

[0012] [1. Overall Structure] As shown in Figure 2, the upstream side of the manufacturing line 100 is provided with a feeding unit 110 for transporting and supplying contents and a paper feeding unit 120 for transporting and supplying packaging sheets. The feeding unit 110 is the part that supplies four toilet rolls as contents, bundled together in a predetermined arrangement. The paper feeding unit 120 is the part that sequentially cuts the strip-shaped base paper (base paper) unwound from a roll into sheet-shaped packaging sheets, and supplies the cut packaging sheets.

[0013] A preparation unit 130 is provided downstream of the feeding unit 110 and the paper feeding unit 120. The preparation unit 130 is the part that wraps the packaging sheet transported from the paper feeding unit 120 around the contents transported from the feeding unit 110 and supplies it to the folding unit 140. The folding section 140 is the part that folds down the extended portion (hereinafter referred to as the "flap") of the packaging sheet that was wrapped around the contents in the preparation section 130.

[0014] The folding section 140 can utilize a mechanism in which a packaging sheet is mechanically folded and wrapped together (a so-called caramel fold) to package the toilet rolls, as shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 57-86412. Furthermore, the folding section 140 can be modified to incorporate various known packaging mechanisms, not limited to this particular mechanism.

[0015] In this embodiment, the state in which the packaging is being manufactured, where the flaps of the packaging sheet wrapped around the contents are folded down and the flaps are not yet glued together, is referred to as a "semi-finished product." Figures 3(a) to 3(d) are explanatory diagrams showing an example of the procedure A1 to A4 (packaging procedure) for folding down the flaps at the folding section 140. Note that each end of the flap 52 in the CD direction is folded down in the same way, and one end is omitted from the illustration in Figures 3(a) to 3(d).

[0016] Procedure A1: As shown in Figure 3(a) before folding, a semi-finished product 51 having flaps 52 extending from the contents 50A is supplied to the folding section 140. The flaps 52 are part of the packaging sheet and are portions that extend outward in the CD direction from both ends of the contents 50A in the CD direction. Procedure A2: As shown in the first folded state in Figure 3(b), the front flap 53A, located on the upstream side in the MD direction of the flap 52, and the rear flap 53B, located on the downstream side in the MD direction of the flap 52, are folded down. As the front flap 53A and rear flap 53B are folded down, the packaging sheet is folded into a double layer in the upstream and downstream portions in the MD direction of the lower flap 54A and upper flap 54B, respectively.

[0017] Step A3: As shown in the second folded state in FIG. 3(c), the lower flap 54A located at the lower part of the flaps 52 is folded over. Step A4: As shown in the third folded state in FIG. 3(d), the upper flap 54B located at the upper part of the flaps 52 is folded over. At the end of the semi-finished product 51 in the CD direction (hereinafter, also simply referred to as "the end of the semi-finished product 51"), the upper flap 54B (a part of the paper base material) is in a state of being superimposed on the lower flap 54A (another part of the paper base material).

[0018] In this semi-finished product 51, a sealing agent is preliminarily applied or laminated on the upper flap 54B. The sealing agent includes a heat sealing agent (adhesive) for bonding the upper flap 54B to the lower flap 54A, a thermoplastic resin layer laminated on the upper flap 54B, and the like.

[0019] In FIG. 2, the sealing unit 150 is a part that seals the semi-finished product [reference numeral 51 in FIG. 3(d)] fed from the folding unit 140 to manufacture a package. The sealing unit 150 is provided with a conveying mechanism for conveying the semi-finished product and a sealing mechanism for sealing the semi-finished product being conveyed by the conveying mechanism. The belt cleaner (reference numeral 10 in FIG. 1) of the present embodiment is provided in the sealing unit 150. The reversing mechanism 160 is a part that turns over the package fed from the sealing unit 150 and feeds it to the rear-stage part 170. The rear-stage part 170 is a part that performs various post-processes such as inspection of packages and packing of a plurality of packages while conveying the packages to the downstream side. An example of an inspection part for inspecting packages in the rear-stage part 170 is a part that inspects the quality of the packaging state of the package by visual inspection means such as visual inspection by an operator or a camera.

[0020] [2. Detailed Configuration] Next, the detailed configuration of the belt cleaner 10 provided in the sealing unit 150 will be described. The sealing section 150 shown in Figure 1 is provided with a belt 11 as an element (conveying mechanism and sealing mechanism) for sealing the semi-finished product 51 while it is being conveyed along the conveying path 15, and a cleaner 12 is attached to the belt 11 for wiping off any dirt that adheres to it. The belt cleaner 10 of this embodiment includes a belt 11 and a cleaner 12. The belt 11 is used to seal a semi-finished product 51 (workpiece). The cleaner 12 is used to remove dirt from the belt 11 and to prevent contamination of the semi-finished product 51 caused by dirt adhering to the belt 11.

[0021] The transport path 15 is a route for transporting semi-finished products 51 from the upstream side to the downstream side in the MD direction. Semi-finished products 51 are placed on the transport path 15 in a state where the upper flap 54B is overlapped with the lower flap 54A (third folded state). In the transport path 15 shown in Figure 1, the semi-finished product 51 is positioned with its end in the CD direction, that is, the end where the upper flap 54B overlaps the lower flap 54A, facing outwards in the CD direction. Multiple semi-finished products 51 are transported sequentially in the transport path 15.

[0022] The sealing section 150 is provided with one belt 11 on each side in the CD direction of the transport path 15, and a cleaner 12 is provided corresponding to each pair of belts 11. The pairs of belts 11 have the same configuration except for their arrangement, and each cleaner 12 also has the same configuration except for its arrangement. In the following description, when the pairs of belts 11 are not distinguished, they will simply be referred to as belt 11.

[0023] The pair of belts 11 are arranged facing each other across the conveyor path 15, with a portion of their strip-shaped surface extending in the MD direction and the TD direction. The semi-finished products 51 on the conveyor path 15 are held between the pair of belts 11. In the pair of belts 11 that hold the semi-finished product 51, a portion of the opposing surfaces is in surface contact with the end of the semi-finished product 51 in the CD direction, more specifically with the upper flap 54B of the semi-finished product 51.

[0024] The belt 11 is an endless strip-shaped member wrapped around rollers R1 and R2 provided on the downstream and upstream sides of the transport path 15, and its width direction is aligned with the TD direction. By rotating at least one of the rollers R1 and R2, the belt 11 wrapped around the rollers R1 and R2 revolves around a predetermined track 16. The rotation of the belt 11 transports the semi-finished product 51, which is held between the pair of belts 11, in the MD direction. The rollers R1 and R2 are rotated in a direction that transports the semi-finished product 51, which is held between the pair of belts 11, in the MD direction. Note that the rotation direction of the rollers R1 and R2 on one of the pair of belts 11 is opposite to the rotation direction of the rollers R1 and R2 on the other belt 11.

[0025] In this embodiment, the region of the track 16 in which the belt 11 moves along the MD direction (the direction in which the semi-finished product 51 is conveyed) is referred to as the first region 16X (region), and the region excluding the first region 16X is referred to as the second region 16Y (other region). The first region 16X is the region where the belt 11 makes surface contact with the end of the semi-finished product 51 in the CD direction. The second region 16Y is the region where the belt 11 does not come into contact with the semi-finished product 51.

[0026] Each belt 11 is pressed inward in the CD direction against the end of the semi-finished product 51 in the CD direction as it moves through the first region 16X. That is, the pair of belts 11 are arranged to be pressed inward in the CD direction against the end of the semi-finished product 51 sandwiched between the belts 11. The distance between the pair of belts 11 in the CD direction is set such that the semi-finished product 51 placed on the conveyor path 15 can be sandwiched between the belts 11, and the belts 11 are pressed against the ends of the semi-finished product 51 toward the inside in the CD direction.

[0027] The direction in which each belt 11 presses against the semi-finished product 51 while moving through the first region 16X corresponds to the direction in which the upper flap 54B is superimposed on the lower flap 54A. Therefore, while the belt 11 moves through the first region 16X, the upper flap 54B is pressed against the lower flap 54A in the direction in which it is superimposed (i.e., inward in the CD direction). Each belt 11 is provided with a heater 13. The heater 13 is a heating element for melting and bonding (heat welding) the sealant of the upper flap 54B. Heat is applied to the semi-finished product 51 via the moving belt 11 in the first region 16X by the heater 13.

[0028] In this embodiment, the belt 11, through pressing (pressure) by each of the belts 11 described above and heating by the heater 13, adheres the upper flap 54B to the lower flap 54A with the sealant on the upper flap 54B, thereby sealing the semi-finished product 51 and obtaining a package. From the viewpoint of suppressing the adhesion of melted sealant, paper dust, or other debris to the belt 11 due to heating and pressurizing, it is preferable that the belt 11 be coated with a fluororesin.

[0029] The seal portion 150 illustrated here is provided with a housing 14 that surrounds each belt 11. This housing 14 is a case body that surrounds the belt 11 in a state where the first region 16X is exposed and the second region 16Y is covered. The housing 14 shown in Figure 1 covers the entire belt 11 that circumfers the second region 16Y and is formed in a U-shape in plan view. This housing 14 is fixed (attached) at a position spaced apart from the belt 11 that circumfers the second region 16Y. Therefore, a gap is formed between the housing 14 and the belt 11 that circumfers the second region 16Y.

[0030] The cleaner 12 is a wiping member for wiping away dirt adhering to the belt 11. More specifically, it is provided for wiping the surface (part) of the belt 11 that is pressed against the semi-finished product 51 as it circulates in the second region 16Y. The dirt on the belt 11 that the cleaner 12 wipes away includes sealant, paper dust, or other dust adhering to the belt 11. In Figure 1, the cleaner 12 is held in place by being sandwiched in the gap between the housing 14 and the belt 11 that circles the second region 16Y. In other words, in this embodiment, Figure 1 illustrates a case where a part of the housing 14 is used as a fixing structure for holding the cleaner 12. The placement of the cleaner 12 is such that, from the viewpoint of removing dirt from the belt 11 without hindering the transport of the semi-finished product 51, the cleaner 12 does not come into contact with the belt 11 as it moves through the first region 16X, but the cleaner 12 makes surface contact with the belt 11 as it circles through the second region 16Y.

[0031] The cleaner 12 in Figure 1 is positioned between the belt 11, which is wrapped around the roller R2 on the downstream side in the MD direction, and the downstream wall portion of the housing 14 in the MD direction. This positioning of the cleaner 12 is preferable because it is located immediately after the belt 11 has finished moving through the first region 16X, allowing for immediate wiping of any dirt that has accumulated on the belt 11 during its movement through the first region 16X. Furthermore, this positioning of the cleaner 12 is preferable because when the cleaner 12 is pressed against the belt 11, the circumferential surface of the roller R2 provides support, preventing the belt 11 from bending and ensuring that the cleaner 12 is securely pressed against the belt 11. In other words, anywhere other than where the belt 11 is wrapped around roller R1 or R2, there is a risk that the cleaner 12 may not be securely pressed against the belt 11 due to the bending of the belt 11. The cleaner 12 is made of a material suitable for removing dirt adhering to the belt 11. From the viewpoint of reliably removing dirt, it is preferable that the cleaner 12 be made of felt, cotton cloth, horsehair, nonwoven fabric, or rubber.

[0032] [3. Action and Effects] Since the belt cleaner 10 of this embodiment has the above-described configuration, the following actions and effects can be obtained. (1) The belt 11 is equipped with a cleaner 12 for wiping the surface that is pressed against the semi-finished product 51, so even if dirt such as sealant, paper dust or dust adheres to the belt 11, the dirt can be wiped off by the cleaner 12.

[0033] In conventional technology that does not take into account belt contamination, if dirt adheres to the belt, and the semi-finished products are sequentially sealed by the belt, the dirt may re-adhere from the belt to subsequent semi-finished products, potentially contaminating the packaging. In contrast, the belt cleaner 10 of this embodiment allows the cleaner 12 to wipe away the dirt, so when the semi-finished products 51 are sequentially sealed by the belt 11, the re-adhesion of dirt is suppressed. Therefore, contamination of the sealed semi-finished product 51 (i.e., the packaging) can be suppressed. As a result, the occurrence of defective products is suppressed, contributing to improved productivity.

[0034] Furthermore, in the sealing portion 150 described above, the semi-finished product 51 is sealed by welding the sealant through heating by the heater 13 in addition to the pressure of the belt 11. This configuration tends to cause the heat-melted sealant to adhere to the belt 11 more easily compared to a configuration without heating. In addition, when heat-welding the folded portion of the flap 52 of the paper packaging sheet as in this embodiment, it is necessary to apply high heat to ensure proper welding. As a result, the heat-melted sealant tends to adhere to the belt 11, leading to a higher likelihood of defective products. Therefore, suppressing contamination of packaging materials with the belt cleaner 10 of this embodiment contributes to improving productivity.

[0035] (2) The cleaner 12 can be easily retrofitted by simply inserting it between the housing 14 and the belt 11. Therefore, it can wipe away dirt adhering to the belt 11 with a simple structure. In addition, the installation and replacement of the cleaner 12 is easy. (3) Since the cleaner 12 can be fixed using the housing 14, the cleaner 12 can be attached (so to speak, retrofitted) by sandwiching it between the existing housing 14 and the belt 11. Therefore, the cleaner 12 can be provided at a low manufacturing cost. Furthermore, since the housing 14 in the above embodiment surrounds the belt 11, it contributes to improving the protection of the inside of the device and the safety of the worker.

[0036] (4) When the cleaner 12 is made of felt, cotton cloth, horsehair, nonwoven fabric, or rubber, the ability to wipe away dirt adhering to the belt 11 is improved depending on the material used in the cleaner 12. (5) By coating the belt 11 with fluororesin, the adhesion of dirt to the belt 11 can be suppressed.

[0037] [II. Variant Examples] The embodiments described above are merely illustrative, and there is no intention to exclude various modifications or applications of techniques not explicitly stated in these embodiments. Each configuration of these embodiments can be modified in various ways without departing from their spirit. Furthermore, they can be selected and combined as needed.

[0038] For example, the fixing structure of the cleaner 12 is not limited to a structure that uses a housing 14 that covers the entire belt 11 that circulates the second region 16Y, but may also be a structure that is separate from the housing 14. An example of such a fixing structure is a structure that covers only a part of the belt 11 that circulates the second region 16Y. Furthermore, in the belt cleaner 10, any known structure can be used for the cleaner 12, as long as the cleaner 12 is attached in such a way that it can wipe the portion of the belt 11 that is pressed against the semi-finished product 51. The placement of the cleaner 12 is not limited to the arrangement exemplified in Figure 1; it can be set to any position as long as it is in contact with the belt 11 that circulates in the second region 16Y.

[0039] The order in which the lower flap 54A and the upper flap 54B are folded down is not limited to the above; the upper flap 54B may be folded down first, followed by the lower flap 54A. In this case, the semi-finished product 51 will be in a state where the lower flap 54A (part of the paper substrate) is superimposed on the upper flap 54B (other parts of the paper substrate), and the lower flap 54A will have a sealant applied or laminated to it beforehand. Furthermore, the belt cleaner 10 is not limited to being provided in a seal section 150 on the manufacturing line 100, but may also be provided in a seal section 150 independent of the manufacturing line 100. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 10 Belt Cleaner 11 belts R1, R2 Laura 12 Cleaner 13 Heater 14 Housing (fixed structure) 15 Conveyor path 16 orbit 16X First area (area) 16Y Second area (other areas) 50A Contents 51 Semi-finished products 52 Flap 53A Front flap 53B Rear flap 54A Lower flap 54B Upper flap 100 production lines 110 Feeding section 120 Paper feed section 130 Preparation Department 140 Folding section 150 sealing part 160 Reversing Mechanism 170 Remaining section

Claims

1. A pair of belts are arranged facing each other, sandwiching a semi-finished product in which a sealant is applied to or laminated on a portion of a paper substrate that encloses the contents, and the portion is overlapped with another portion of the paper substrate. The belts revolve around a track that includes a region that moves along the transport direction of the semi-finished product while sandwiching the semi-finished product, and as the belt moves within the region of the track, the portion is pressed against the semi-finished product in the direction in which it overlaps with the other portion, thereby sealing the semi-finished product by adhering the portion to the other portion with the sealant. A cleaner for wiping the portion of the belt that is pressed against the semi-finished product in the belt that is circulating in the region other than the region mentioned above, The fixing structure is fixed at a distance from the other area and secures the cleaner by sandwiching it between the belt and the fixing structure. A belt cleaner characterized by the following features.

2. The fixing structure includes a housing that surrounds the belt in a state where the region is exposed and the other region is covered. The belt cleaner according to feature 1.

3. The belt is an endless strip-shaped member wrapped around rollers provided on the downstream and upstream sides in the conveying direction, The cleaner is positioned between the belt wrapped around the downstream roller and the housing. The belt cleaner according to feature 2.

4. The cleaner used was made of felt, cotton cloth, horsehair, nonwoven fabric, or rubber. A belt cleaner according to any one of the features 1 to 3.

5. The aforementioned belt is coated with fluororesin. A belt cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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