Heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11273941-B2
Application number	US-201515317263-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2015
Priority date	Jun 27, 2014
Publication date	Mar 15, 2022
Grant date	Mar 15, 2022

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels which is capable of uniformly heat shrinking a shrink label covering a portion or the entirety of an article, and which is capable of completing heat shrinking in a state in which water drops are not deposited on the article and the surface of the shrink label. Accordingly, the present invention is provided with: a heat treatment chamber (2) having, provided therein, a steam discharge unit (12) for discharging superheated steam in order to heat shrink a cylindrical label (L) fitted to a container (PC), and a heated air blowing unit (14) for causing deposited water drops to evaporate by blowing heated air on the container (PC) after the cylindrical label (L) has been heat shrlUlk; a superheater (22) which heats steam generated by a steam boiler (20), to generate the superheated steam; a preheating lUlit (27) which uses the surplus steam inside the heat treatment chamber (2) to preheat air used to generate the heated air; a heated-air-generating heat exchanger (15) which uses steam to heat the preheated air to a prescribed temperature; and a condensing heat exchanger (31) for condensing the surplus steam.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels, comprising a heating treatment chamber which, comprises a cover surrounding a conveyance path of a label covered body in which a part of or a whole of an article is covered by a shrink label, a heat-shrinking zone for heating by superheated steam so as to heat-shrink the label being covered to the label covered body and a drying zone for blowing heated air in order to evaporate water drops deposited on the label covered body to which the label is attached by heat-shrinking,
the heat-shrinking apparatus further comprising:
a steam supply device for supplying superheated steam into a steam discharge unit being provided in the heat-shrinking zone of the heating treatment chamber and positioned in the cover surrounding the conveyance path, in order to heat-shrink the shrink label on the label covered body passing through the steam discharge unit;
a heated air blowing device being provided in the drying zone in order to evaporate water drops by blowing the heated air to the label covered body on the periphery thereof onto which the water drops are deposited due to passage through the steam discharge unit to which the superheated steam is supplied; and
a heated air generating device for generating heated air at a predetermined temperature which are blown by the heated air blowing device,
the heated air generating device including a heated-air generating heat exchanger for generating the heated air at the predetermined temperature from air introduced into the heated-air blowing unit, and
the cover having a region on an inner surface thereof immediately above the conveyance path of the label covered body and at least another region on the inner surface thereof that is curved immediately above the steam discharge unit, the cover having a dome shape and a sectional shape in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the label covered body is a shape such that an upper part is curved as a semi-arc shape, and a sectional shape of the cover in the conveyance direction of the label covered body is a shape including upper-end corner parts on both end portions, which when the cover is viewed in a side elevational view in the longitudinal direction, have corner parts that are curved in an arc shape to prevent the water drops from dropping into the label covered body,
wherein at least one of the curved corner parts is above at least a portion of the steam discharge unit in an upstream side of the steam discharge unit, and
wherein the portion of the steam discharge unit is provided so that a part of the superheated steam discharged therefrom is capable of flowing towards at least one of the curved corner parts and is capable of preventing generation of condensation on the upstream side in the cover.

2. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a steam condensing device that condenses the surplus steam in the heating treatment chamber by cooling.

3. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 2 , further comprising:
a preheating unit for preheating air by the surplus steam in the heat-shrinking zone.

4. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 3 ,
wherein a temperature of the superheated steam being supplied into the steam discharge unit in the cover is 160 to 180° C., and
wherein a controller supplies the label covered body into the cover after 10 minutes after a point of time when the temperature in the cover reaches 160° C.

5. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 2 ,
wherein a temperature of the superheated steam being supplied into the steam discharge unit in the cover is 160 to 180° C., and
wherein a controller supplies the label covered body into the cover after 10 minutes after a point of time when the temperature in said cover reaches 160° C.

6. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a preheating unit for preheating air by the surplus steam in the heat-shrinking zone.

7. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 6 ,
wherein a temperature of the superheated steam being supplied into the steam discharge unit in the cover is 160 to 180° C., and
wherein a controller supplies the label covered body into the cover after 10 minutes after a point of time when the temperature in the cover reaches 160° C.

8. The heat-shrinking apparatus for shrink labels according to claim 1 ,
wherein a temperature of the superheated steam being supplied into the steam discharge unit in the cover is 160 to 180° C., and
wherein a controller supplies the label covered body into the cover at a starting time after 10 minutes after a point of time when the temperature in the cover reaches 160° C.

Assignees

• Yakult Honsha Kk
• Toho Shoji Kk
• Fuji Seal Inc

Inventors

• Uetsuki Akira
• Sekiguchi Osamu
• Harada Toshiyuki

Classifications

• B65B53/063 Primary

  Tunnels · CPC title

• B65B53/06 Primary

  supplied by gases, e.g. hot-air jets · CPC title

• B65B61/202

  for attaching articles to the outside of a container (B65B61/205 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B65C3/14

  the container being positioned for labelling with its centre-line vertical · CPC title

• B65C9/24 Primary

  by heat · CPC title