JP2001009220A - Manufacturing method of filter element - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for manufacturing a filter element in which an adsorbent inside does not fall off from an end portion, and which is easy to handle and excellent in workability. SOLUTION: The laminate 20 sent from a supply means is provided.
Stops when the predetermined portion 20a enters the target of the substantially conical ultrasonic horn 30 connected to the ultrasonic transducer. Horn 3 soon after the laminate 20 stops
0 is vertically moved to apply a static pressure in the laminating direction to the laminated body 20 and is horizontally moved in the cutting direction at a predetermined speed while vibrating in the same direction at a frequency in the ultrasonic range. Thus, the filter element 10 in which the laminate 20 is cut to a predetermined size and whose end 10a is welded and sealed is formed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a filter element.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, multifunctional filter elements having a special structure (hereinafter, filter elements) have become widespread. This filter element not only removes dust and dirt from the air but also efficiently removes odors such as harmful substances, and is resistant to temperature changes and can be used for a long period of time.For example, it is used for ventilation systems in automobiles, etc. I have. As shown in a schematic cross-sectional view in FIG. 2, the conventional filter element 10 has a structure in which an adsorbent 14 such as activated carbon is sandwiched between sheet-like filter media 12 such as paper and nonwoven fabric. The end 10a of the filter element 10 is cut by a metal cutter and is in an open state.

[0003] The filter element 10 having this structure
Ventilation is performed by sending contaminated air in the stacking direction.
If a is in an open state, air flows out from here, and the efficiency of removing dust and odor is significantly reduced. To avoid this, the end 10 of the filter element 10
A resin frame (not shown) is integrally injection-molded in a, and the inside of the filter element 10 is prevented from leaking out of air by the frame to secure the internal sealing property.

[0004]

However, when the conventional filter element 10 is fitted into a molding die for injection-molding the frame, the end 10a of the filter element 10 is in an open state. Adsorbent 14
Is likely to fall from the end 10a into the molding die. Even if the filter medium 12 and the adsorbent 14 are firmly adhered to each other by the adhesive, the adsorbent 14 near the end 10a is damaged by the above-described cutting by the cutter, and the fragments 14a may fall off. There is. Further, when the filter element 10 is subjected to corrugated processing to increase the reaction surface area, physical stress is applied to a curved portion by the processing, so that the adsorbent in that portion is damaged, and in this case, the curved portion is also damaged. The fragments 14a of the adsorbent 14 may fall off from the end 10a. Therefore, in any case, there is a concern that the dropped pieces 14a of the adsorbent 14 may damage the molding die or shorten its life.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and has as its object to provide a filter element in which an adsorbent in a filter element does not fall off from an end portion, and is easy to handle and excellent in workability. It is to provide a method of manufacturing the.

In order to achieve the above object, a method of manufacturing a filter element according to the present invention comprises a step of laminating a plurality of sheet-like filter materials with a gap therebetween and a step of adding a granular or powdery adsorbent material to the gap. Loading, forming a laminated body, and, simultaneously with or after welding the sheet-like filter material at a predetermined location, cutting the predetermined location to form a bag shape containing the adsorbent, It was characterized.

In the method for manufacturing a filter element, a predetermined portion of the laminate is pressed in a laminating direction and ultrasonic vibration is applied in the same direction, so that the predetermined portion is welded and cut at the same time. You may.

Further, in the method of manufacturing a filter element, the predetermined portion of the laminated body is welded by applying ultrasonic vibration to the predetermined portion, and after the welding is completed, the predetermined portion is cut by a predetermined cutting means. You may make it cut | disconnect.

[0008]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG.
(A)-(c) is a schematic flowchart for demonstrating one Example of the manufacturing method of a filter element. First,
Two sheet-like filter media 12 are supplied by supply means (not shown).
A stacked body 20 in which a granular or powdery adsorbent 14 is loaded in the gap between them is sent from the right side of the figure.

The filter medium 12 constituting the laminate 20 is made of a thermoplastic non-woven filter paper or a paper material of 60%.
It is appropriate to use a thermoplastic filter paper obtained by mixing synthetic fibers at a ratio of about 80%. In addition, two filter media 1
Activated carbon, zeolite, silica gel, or the like is suitable as the adsorbent 14 to be charged in the gap 2. Here, the filter medium 12 is formed using an adhesive that does not impair the gap of the filter medium 12.
The adsorbent is bonded to the adsorbent so that the adsorbent does not fall off during the conveyance.

In this embodiment, a single-layer gap is provided by using two filter media 12. However, the present invention is not limited to this. By using three or more filter media 12, two or more gaps can be formed. It may have a multilayer structure. In the case of such a multilayer structure, it is more effective to load an adsorbent having different properties into each layer. For example, in the case of a two-layer structure, it is effective to load activated carbon on the first layer and load the adsorbent on the second layer. That is, the second-layer impregnated adsorbent can completely remove odorous substances and harmful substances that cannot or cannot be easily removed by the first-layer activated carbon by a chemical reaction.

In the feed path of the laminated body 20, two substantially conical ultrasonic horns (ultrasonic cutters) 30 are installed so as to be vertically opposed to each other with the laminated body 20 interposed therebetween.
Means that the predetermined portion 20a to be welded has two horns 30
(See FIG. 1 (a)). The horn 30 is connected to an ultrasonic vibrator (not shown), and the horn 30 has a frequency of an ultrasonic range.
It vibrates in parallel with the zero stacking direction.

Shortly after the stack 20 stops, the two horns 30 move vertically in a direction approaching each other, and the stack 2
Even if the tip 30a of the horn 30 comes into contact with the zero, the horn 30 continues to move vertically. At this time, the horn 30
Starts vibration and continues vertical movement while pressing the laminated body 20 in the laminating direction.
Are both stopped (see FIG. 1B).

After the two horns 30 are horizontally moved in the cutting direction at a predetermined speed for a predetermined time while maintaining their vertical positions, the horns 30 are vertically moved away from each other (see FIG. 1 (c)). . Thus, the filter element 10 in which the laminate 20 is cut to a predetermined size and whose end 10a is welded and sealed is formed.

In the state shown in FIG. 1B, the tip 30a of the upper horn 30, the filter medium 12 on the upper surface of the laminate 20, the filter medium 12 on the lower surface of the laminate 20, and the lower horn 30 The distal end portion 30a is in close contact with each other, and a heat generation action is generated at each boundary by the compression and expansion movement. Here, since the two horns 30 are both made of metal, they have good heat conduction, but the filter medium 12 has poor heat conduction. Therefore, only the overlapping surfaces of the upper and lower filter media 12 become hot and melt,
Both are instantaneously welded through the melted portion.

Further, since the tip portion 30a of the horn 30 is sharply formed, the predetermined portion 20a can be cut only by sliding in the cutting direction while pressing the predetermined portion 20a.

The shape and the form of installation of the horn 30 are not limited to those described above.
Of the two horns 30, the lower horn 30 may be changed to a vertically movable metal cradle. In addition, the shape of the tip 30a of the horn 30 may be rounded, or the horn 30 may be separated from the laminate 20 by a predetermined distance.
Only welding may be performed by the horn 30. Further, the horn 30 is fixed in a state in which the horn 30 is pressed against the laminated body 20, and the conveying direction of the laminated body 20 and the predetermined location 20 a
The welding and cutting may be performed continuously by matching the cutting direction of the welding.

After the welding and the cutting are completed, the filter element 10 is sent to a frame forming means (not shown), where the end 10a of the filter element 10 is formed.
A resin frame (not shown) for sealing is integrally formed by injection molding.

Hereinafter, the operation and effect of the manufacturing method of this embodiment will be described. According to this embodiment, the adsorbent 14 in cutting is
In addition to the fact that the adsorbent 14 is not damaged and the adsorbent 14 is damaged by applying a special stress by the subsequent wave processing or the like, the fragments do not fall off. Thereby, when the frame is integrally molded on the outer periphery of the filter element 10, the molding die is not damaged. In addition, since the handling is facilitated, the work efficiency is improved as a whole.

Further, in this embodiment, since the distribution of stress applied to the laminate can be controlled only by changing the shape and installation form of the horn 30, it is necessary to perform welding locally or change the heat generation temperature. Easy. According to the horn 30 shown in FIG. 1, the upper and lower filter media 12 are welded in the vicinity of the center of the laminate 20 in the laminating direction, so that burrs due to this welding and subsequent cutting hardly occur.
The generation rate of defective products is reduced. In particular, in the case where the laminate 20 has the above-described multilayer structure, the end portions of the respective layers are reliably welded to each other, so that the sealing performance is excellent, and the effect of the adsorbent 14 loaded in each layer is effectively achieved. Can be demonstrated.

Further, since the welding and cutting of the end portion 10a of the laminated body 20 can be performed at the same time, the operation is greatly simplified. Further, since the adsorbent 14 near the predetermined location 20a is removed by the ultrasonic vibration, damage to the adsorbent 14 can be reduced.

It should be noted that the above-described method is effective as long as it does not depart from the characteristic part of the present invention. For example, it is conceivable to seal a cut portion with a permeable adhesive such as hot melt and then cut the cut portion with a cutter.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, in a laminated body in which an adsorbent is loaded in a gap between a plurality of sheet-like filter media, a predetermined portion of the sheet-like filter media is welded at the same time or after the welding. Since the filter element is formed by cutting the portion, not only the adsorbent is not damaged in the cutting, but also if the adsorbent is damaged by applying a special stress due to the subsequent wave processing or the like. , The fragments do not fall off. Accordingly, when the frame is integrally molded on the outer periphery of the filter element, the molding die is not damaged. In addition, since the handling is facilitated, the work efficiency is improved as a whole.

Further, by using ultrasonic vibration as a means for welding and cutting a predetermined portion of the laminated body, the distribution of stress applied to the laminated body can be controlled only by changing the shape and arrangement of the ultrasonic horn. by this,
Since it is easy to change the temperature of the heat-generating portion or to perform welding locally, it is possible to improve the sealing property at the end of the filter element and reduce the generation rate of defective products.
In addition, since welding and cutting can be performed simultaneously, the operation is greatly simplified. Further, since the adsorbent near the cut portion is removed by the ultrasonic vibration, breakage of the adsorbent can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic flow charts for explaining an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A shows a state before welding, FIG. 1B shows a state during welding, and FIG. .

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of a filter element made according to the prior art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Filter element 10a End part 12 Sheet-shaped filter medium 14 Adsorbent 14a Fragment 20 Laminated body 20a Predetermined part (cutting part) 30 Ultrasonic horn (ultrasonic cutter) 30a Tip part

Claims (3)

[Claims] A step of laminating a plurality of sheet-shaped filter media with a gap therebetween, and loading a granular or powdery adsorbent into the gap to form a laminate; and welding the sheet-shaped filter media at a predetermined location. Simultaneously or subsequently, cutting the predetermined portion to form a bag shape enclosing the adsorbent, the method comprising: 2. The method for manufacturing a filter element according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined portion of the laminate is pressed in a laminating direction and ultrasonic vibration is applied in the same direction to weld the predetermined portion. And cutting at the same time. 3. The method for manufacturing a filter element according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined portion is welded by applying ultrasonic vibration to said predetermined portion of said laminate, and said predetermined portion is welded after said welding is completed. A method for manufacturing a filter element, characterized in that said predetermined portion is cut by cutting means.