Filling apparatus

Abstract

The problem is to provide a filling apparatus with a simple structure that can achieve improvement in production efficiency when filling a syringe with a paste-like material. As a solution, a filling apparatus according to the present invention is a filling apparatus filling a syringe with a paste-like material from a first opening provided in the syringe and includes a stage, a rotating table provided rotatably on top of the stage and removably holding the syringe and positioning the syringe at a predetermined position by a rotational movement, and a material supply unit supplying the material, wherein the stage has a supply port communicating to the material supply unit and wherein, as the predetermined position, a first position where the syringe is installed on the rotating table and a second position where the first opening of the syringe communicates to the supply port are set.

1 . A filling apparatus filling a syringe with a paste-like material from a first opening provided in the syringe, the filling apparatus comprising:
 a stage;   a rotating table provided rotatably on top of the stage and removably holding the syringe and positioning the syringe at a predetermined position by a rotational movement; and   a material supply unit supplying the material, wherein   the stage has a supply port communicating to the material supply unit, and   as the predetermined position, a first position where the syringe is installed on the rotating table and a second position where the first opening of the syringe communicates to the supply port are set.   
     
     
         2 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a vacuum generation unit generating a vacuum, wherein   the stage has a suction port communicating to the vacuum generation unit, and   as the predetermined position, a third position where the first opening of the syringe communicates to the suction port is set between the first position and the second position.   
     
     
         3 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an up-and-down movement mechanism moving the rotating table up and down in an axial direction so as to move the rotating table closer to the stage when stopping as the syringe is positioned at the predetermined position and so as to move the rotating table away from the stage when rotationally moving as the syringe moves away from the predetermined position.   
     
     
         4 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an adaptor which a screw part provided in the first opening of the syringe is spirally engaged with and the syringe is thus coupled to, wherein   the adaptor has, at a bottom face, a circulation port communicating to the first opening of the syringe in a coupled state, and   the rotating table has a fitting hole in which the adaptor is removably fitted, and is configured in such a way that the adaptor with the syringe coupled thereto is fitted in the fitting hole, thus holding the syringe via the adaptor.   
     
     
         5 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 4 , wherein
 the adaptor has a check valve regulating circulation of a gas moving from the circulation port toward the first opening of the syringe.   
     
     
         6 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the material supply unit has a reservoir unit storing the material, a piping unit allowing the material to circulate, and a pressurizing unit applying a pressure and thus sending the material out of the reservoir unit to the piping unit, and   the reservoir unit is arranged at a lateral position of the rotating table.   
     
     
         7 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the material supply unit has a reservoir unit storing the material, a piping unit allowing the material to circulate, and a pressurizing unit applying a pressure and thus sending the material out of the reservoir unit to the piping unit, and   the reservoir unit is removably arranged at a position directly below the rotating table.   
     
     
         8 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein
 the pressurizing unit has a movement mechanism moving the reservoir unit up and down, and is configured to move the reservoir unit up by the movement mechanism, causing a pressure plate arranged at a position directly below the rotating table to press a top face of the material inside the reservoir unit, thus applying the pressure.   
     
     
         9 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein
 the piping unit is formed using a straight pipe having, at both ends, a key-like part extending in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction.   
     
     
         10 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 7 , further comprising:
 a position sensor arranged at a position directly above the rotating table and detecting a top face position of the material inside the syringe installed on the rotating table, wherein   the position sensor is also used as a position sensor detecting a top face position of the material inside the reservoir unit, and   a setting unit for detection for setting the reservoir unit when the position sensor detects the top face position of the material inside the reservoir unit is provided above the stage.   
     
     
         11 . The filling apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a degassing mechanism discharging a gas remaining in an upper space and in the piping unit in the state where the reservoir unit is accommodating a predetermined amount of the material, wherein   the degassing mechanism has a degassing adaptor installable on and removable from the rotating table and provided with a flow path inside,   the degassing adaptor has an inlet port communicating to the flow path, at a lower part, and a discharge port communicating to the flow path, at an upper part,   the rotating table has a second fitting hole in which the degassing adaptor is removably fitted, and   the inlet port of the degassing adaptor and the supply port of the stage are configured to communicate to each other in the state where the degassing adaptor is fitted in the second fitting hole and arranged at the second position.