WO2004071667A1 - Crusher and medical waste disposal system using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A medical waste disposal system provided with a sterilizer for infectious medical waste discharged from medical facilities, and a crusher for sterilized waste. The sterilizer has a package opening mechanism; thus, even if a packaged waste is dumped into a sterilizing tank, the waste is released from the package by the package opening mechanism, so that the waste is thoroughly subjected to the sterilizing atmosphere. And the crusher is provided with a pressing mechanism having an arcuate guide member cooperating with a rotary cutter to define a wedge-like waste receiving space therebetween. This arcuate guide member is driven by a driving mechanism to heavily press the waste against the rotary cutter as the rotary cutter is rotated. The provision of this pressing mechanism ensures that the waste is finely crushed both by compression cutting and by shear crushing.

Description

Crushing equipment and medical waste treatment system using it

 The present invention relates to a crushing device for crushing waste, particularly a crushing device for finely crushing waste discharged from a medical facility such as a hospital, and a medical waste treatment using the crushing device.

It is related to a physical system.

Background technology ''

 Ministry

 In recent years, waste discharged from medical facilities, especially waste that has become infectious due to bacteria or viruses (hereinafter referred to as infectious waste, medical waste, or simply waste), is referred to as “natural environment”. Society is demanding treatment without pollution. Known methods of treating infectious waste include sterilizing the infectious waste with high-temperature steam or chemicals, removing it by incineration or melting, and burying it in the ground. ing. Even if landfilled with decontaminated waste is buried underground, large amounts of waste require large amounts of land and increase the disposal costs borne by medical institutions. It is necessary to reduce the number.

 As a medical waste treatment system for meeting such demands, a system employing a system configuration combining a sterilizer and a crusher is known.

Medical waste treatment systems that combine a sterilizer and a crusher include a system that performs a sterilization process first and a system that performs a crush process first. Systems for performing the sterilization process prior to the crushing process are disclosed in JP-A-8-131153, JP-A-11-128334, and JP-A-2001-162244, and systems for performing the crushing process prior to the sterilization process. Are disclosed in JP-A-6-78983 and JP-A-2003-1130. In the documents listed above, as a crushing device, a single-shaft shearing crushing device (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Hei 8-131531 and 2002-85996), a twin-shaft shearing crushing device (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. ), A screw (screw) type crusher (see JP-A-2001-162244), and a poling mill-type crusher (see JP-A-2003-1130). It is shown. .

 Among the crushing devices described in these documents, the uniaxial shearing type is a device in which a fixed blade is provided facing a rotary blade, and waste is sheared and crushed between the fixed blade by rotating the rotary blade. It is. In the biaxial shearing method, two rotating blades are set to a predetermined value, two rotating blades are arranged in parallel, and waste is engaged with the rotating blades to shear and crush. It is. In the screw type, a helical (screw) cutter is placed on the surface of a long shaft, and the shaft provided with the helical cutter is rotated to cut waste into small pieces. In the polling mill method, a plurality of cutters are provided on a disk surface of a disk-shaped member, and the cutters are relatively rotated with respect to the waste, thereby cutting the waste into small pieces.

 By the way, infectious waste discharged from medical facilities includes paper, cloth, cotton, rubber, plastic, adhesive tape, glass, and metals (for example, piping materials such as needles, scalpels, forceps, fittings, etc.). Etc.), which are separated or unsorted and mixed and discharged.

 The crushing devices disclosed in the above-mentioned documents, in particular, the single-shaft shearing type, the twin-shaft shearing type, and the screw type, in which waste is cut with a screw, are described above. It is considered difficult to finely crush waste mixed with various materials. Also, in the above-mentioned polling mill type, a mechanism for pressing the waste to the power cutter is attached, but the pressing mechanism only presses the waste to the cutter in a plane, so the cutter is used for the waste. It is thought that it is not suitable for crushing waste mixed with materials of various materials as described above because it is crushed in a short time.

Further, the crushing device disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-85996 in the uniaxial shearing type has a mechanism for pressing the waste to the rotary blade, and a pressing member of the pressing mechanism is a rotary member of the rotary blade. Since the pressing member has a curvature approximately equal to the radius, the pressing member presses the waste at regular intervals anywhere on the rotating circumference of the rotary blade. Therefore, it is considered that the effect of the pressing member is almost the same as that of the boring mill type. Next, the sterilizer will be described. The sterilizer contacts the patient with absorbent cotton, gauze, bandages and needles, and sterilizes bacteria and viruses. It is. As a method of sterilization treatment, a method in which infectious waste is exposed to a high-temperature atmosphere for a predetermined time, a method in which it is exposed to high-temperature and high-pressure steam for a predetermined time, and a method in which it is exposed to ultraviolet light have been proposed.

 When infectious waste is left in the sterilization environment described above, it is difficult to sterilize all the waste in a short time. For this reason, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 8-500259 discloses that all waste is sterilized by stirring the waste in a sterilization treatment environment. In the technology disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 8-500259, even if infectious waste is stored in a plastic bag, the plastic bag melts under high temperature and the waste exposed from the plastic bag is stirred. It is said that waste can be sterilized throughout.

 However, the technology disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 8-500259 does not seem to assume the case where the waste is stored in a material that is difficult to break at the sterilization temperature, such as a paper bag or a cardboard box. .

 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and a crushing device capable of finely crushing various kinds of medical waste as described above, and a medical waste using the crushing device. An object of the present invention is to provide a material processing system. Disclosure of the invention

 The crushing device according to the present invention is a crushing frame device that shears and crushes waste by a rotating blade and a fixed blade, wherein a circular surface formed when the rotating blade rotates, and a rotating blade and a fixed blade. A guide member for forming a wedge-shaped waste accommodating space whose section gradually narrows toward the shearing portion between the rotating blade and the guide member is provided opposite to the rotating blade. When the waste stored in the wedge-shaped waste storage space is pushed into the tip of the wedge-shaped space, the pressure increases at that point, and the pressure increases, and the waste is compressed and cut by the rotary blade. An effect (this is called a wedge effect) occurs. Thereby, the waste is finely broken by compression cutting and shearing.

The guide member is preferably a member having an arcuate cross-section, and is rotationally driven by a driving source around a rotation axis provided at a position different from the rotation center axis of the rotary blade, and Characterized by forming a wedge-shaped space between You. The strength of the wedge effect can be changed by rotationally driving the arc-shaped guide member.

 Two fixed blades of the crushing device of the present invention are provided with the rotary blade interposed therebetween, and the rotary blade has blades formed in both forward and reverse rotations. The frame is broken by bidirectional rotation with reverse rotation.

 Two arc-shaped guide members forming a wedge-shaped space between the rotary blade and the rotary blade are also provided, and their rotation is controlled in the same direction as the rotary blade.

 The rotary blade is formed by arranging a plurality of unit force cutters without any gap in the direction of the rotation axis, and the blade positions of the unit force meters are sequentially shifted by a predetermined angle. As a result, the waste is finely crushed by the length of the unit rotary blade in the rotation axis direction.

 Further, the unit rotating blade is formed with a predetermined twist angle, and the blade portion is intermittent between adjacent unit rotating blades.

 Further, the unit rotary blade is provided with two power meters opposed to each other via a blade mounting member mounted on a rotary shaft.

 The medical waste treatment system of the present invention includes a sterilizer for sterilizing infectious waste to the crushing device of the present invention, and a transport device for transferring waste sterilized by the sterilizer to the crushing device. It consists of.

 The sterilization apparatus is provided with a package cutting means for cutting a package of waste. The infectious waste packed in cardboard boxes and plastic bags by this package opening means is exposed from the package in the sterilizer. This exposes the packaged infectious waste throughout the sterile atmosphere. Furthermore, the waste disposal operator can perform sterilization without touching the waste. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of the medical waste treatment system of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a sterilizer of the present invention in a partial cross section. FIG. 3 is a piping diagram of a sterilization system in the sterilization apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the transfer device of the present invention. Figure 5 shows the crushing unit, waste input unit, and press of the crushing device. It is sectional drawing which shows the detail of a mechanism part. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the entire configuration of the rotary blade cutter. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the shape of a single cutter. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the shape of the fixed blade. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the shape of the rotary drum and the positional relationship between the rotary drum and the rotary blade in detail. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an initial position of the rotating drum. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an intermediate position of the rotating drum. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the final position of the rotating drum. FIG. 13, FIG. 14, and FIG. 15 are explanatory diagrams of the wedge effect generated between the rotary drum and the rotary blade. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

 Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

 FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an entire configuration of a crushing apparatus as one embodiment of the present invention and a medical waste treatment system using the same. As shown in FIG. 1, the medical waste treatment system according to one embodiment of the present invention is disposed of after being brought into contact with waste discharged from a medical institution such as a hospital, in particular, skin or body fluid of a patient. A sterilizer 100 for processing to kill bacteria and viruses attached to infectious waste, and a transport for storing waste sterilized by the sterilizer 100 and transporting the waste to a frame breaker described below. apparatus

200, and a crushing device 300 for finely crushing the sterilized waste. .

 The sterilization apparatus 100 includes a sterilization tank 110, a support table 120 for supporting the sterilization tank 110 at a predetermined height on the floor, and a tilting mechanism 130 for tilting the sterilization tank 110 on the support table 120. A stirring mechanism 140 provided in the sterilization tank 110 for stirring the waste, a packing cutting mechanism 150 for cutting and packing the waste, and a sterilization processing system 160 (FIG. 1) for generating an atmosphere for performing sterilization described below. Is described as a block.

The transfer device 200 stores the waste that has been sterilized in the sterilizer 100 and throws the stored waste into the crusher 300. The transport device 200 is a trolley (cart) 210 that moves the stored waste, lifts the trolley 210 upward (lifts up), and tilts the trolley 210 at a predetermined height to crush the waste. An input mechanism 220 for inputting the waste into the 300 waste input ports is provided. The crushing device 300 finely crushes the waste input by the transfer device 200. The crushing unit 300 includes a crushing unit 310, a waste input unit 320, a pressing mechanism 330 for pressing the input waste to a cutter unit in the crushing unit 310, a driving mechanism 340 of the crushing unit 310, and each of these. It has a base part 350 that supports the mechanism and a take-out part 360 that takes out crushed waste.

In the medical waste treatment system configured as described above, when the infectious waste discharged from the medical site and packed in a cardboard box or a plastic bag is transported to the sterilizer 100, the waste is transferred to the operator. Is put into the sterilization tank 110 of the sterilization apparatus 100 while being packed. After the lid of the sterilization tank 110 is locked, the sterilization tank 110 is inclined so that the lid side is raised. Then, the waste put into the sterilization tank 110 is stirred by the stirring mechanism 140. In the course of this stirring operation, the packing of the damper box and the vinyl bag is cut by the packing cutting mechanism 150 which operates simultaneously with the stirring mechanism 140. As a result, the waste that has been packed or opened is exposed to high-temperature and high-pressure steam, and bacteria that have adhered to the waste die to a high level, for example, a sterilization rate of 10 to ¹⁸ (Bacillus bacteria). Let me do.

 When this sterilization treatment is completed, the waste is subjected to a drying treatment, and then discharged from the sterilization tank 110 by the operation of the stirring mechanism 140 in the opposite direction to the stirring and the operation of the sterilization tank 110 inclining. It is accommodated in the moving carriage 210 of the transfer device 200. The cart 210 containing the waste is lifted up and inclined by the input mechanism 220 of the transfer device 200, and the waste is injected into the inside from the waste input section 320 of the crushing device 300.

The waste input from the waste input section 320 is pressed by the pressing mechanism 330 to the cutter section of the crushing section 310. Although the details will be described later, the pressing mechanism 330 operates so as to press more strongly to the part closer to the cutter part than the opening part of the waste input part 320, so that the waste added to the cutter surely goes to the shear part. Sent and then finely chopped. Then, the chopped waste is discharged to the container of the take-out unit 360. Next, each of the above devices constituting the medical waste treatment system will be described in more detail. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a partial cross section of the outline of the configuration of the sterilizer 100 shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 110 denotes a sterilization tank. The sterilization tank 110 has a cylindrical tank 111 having an opening at one end and a spherical wall formed at multiple ends, and an opening at the opening of the tank 111. And a lid 112 provided. The sterilization tank 110 is given a strength enough to withstand high-temperature and high-pressure steam inside or even when the inside is vacuumed. The sterilization tank 110 is disposed on a support 120 framed by a steel member. A tilting mechanism 130 for tilting the sterilization tank 110 is provided between the support table 120 and the sterilization tank 110. The tilting mechanism 130 tilts the sterilization tank 110 when inputting waste, stirring the waste, and discharging the waste, and includes a connecting mechanism 131 that rotatably connects the support table 120 and the tank 111. And a moving mechanism 132 provided between the support table 120 and the tank 111. As the moving mechanism 132, for example, a linear moving mechanism using a motor 133 and a screw 134 as shown in FIG. The inclining mechanism 130 is configured so that the lid side is lowered by 5 ° when charging and discharging the waste into and from the sterilization tank 110, and the lid side is raised when the waste is broken or sterilized. The operation is controlled by the control circuit so as to be in the closed state.

A stirring mechanism 140 for stirring waste is provided inside the sterilization tank 110. The stirring mechanism 140 includes a motor 141, a shaft 142, an arm 143, a stirring spiral port 144, and a stirring / crushing linear rod 145. The shaft 142 is a central axis penetrating the spherical wall of the tank 111, and the shaft 142 is rotatable by a bearing provided on the spherical wall, and is kept airtight between the shaft 142 and the bearing. Supported. For this reason, the bearing portion supporting the shaft 142 is sealed to ensure airtightness. The end of the shaft 142 located outside the tank 111 is connected to the motor 141 via a belt mechanism or a chain mechanism. An arm 143 is attached to an end of the shaft 142 located inside the tank 111. The arm 143 is provided so as to extend in the diameter direction of the tank 111, and has a stirring spiral port 144 at one end and a stirring / crushing linear rod 145 attached to the other short part. I have. The stirring spiral opening 144 and the stirring / crushing rear rod 145 are arranged at a predetermined distance close to the inner surface of the tank 111. The stirring spiral port 144 provided on one side of the arm 143 is formed in a spiral shape that rotates by half a turn in the tank, and its end is connected to the end of the stirring / crushing linear rod 145 as shown in the figure. Are linked. These two rods 144 and 145 Although it has the function of stirring, the mouth 145 also plays another major role in crushing the packaging of waste put into the tank. For this purpose, the rod 145 is provided with a plurality of cutters 146 each having a blade protruding from a mouth in the circumferential direction of the rotation. In FIG. 2, three cutters 146 are provided at equal intervals in the length direction of the tank 111, but the number and the installation interval can be changed according to the size of the tank and the size of the package to be put. . Further, the case where the power 146 is provided so that the blade protrudes from one side surface of the mouth 145 has been described, but the power 146 may be provided in various directions of the cross section of the rod 145, or the power 146 may be provided on the side of the rod 145. The blade may be provided so as to project in all circumferential directions.

 On the other hand, in addition to the function of stirring the waste, the mouth 144 serves to discharge the sterilized waste from the tank 111 to the outside. Since there is a gap between the mouth 144 and the inner surface of the tank 111, rotation of the rod 144 alone does not discharge small waste. For this purpose, in order to fill the gap and discharge small wastes, a material having excellent heat resistance and flexibility, for example, a fluororesin or a rubber plate coated with a fluororesin is applied to the opening 144. Waste removal plates 151 to 157 are provided. In this embodiment, the waste removing plate is divided into a plurality of pieces, but may be integrally formed.

 The motor 141 may be of a type having a single rated rotation speed or a type having two pole number conversion type rotation speeds. If one type of motor with a single rated speed is used, the stirring mechanism 140 will stir the waste at a constant speed.If a motor that can switch between high speed and low speed is used, when the package is cut open, When the motor is operated at high speed and the waste is stirred, it is possible to operate the motor at low speed.

 In addition to the stirring mechanism, the sterilization tank 110 is provided with an inlet and an outlet for high-temperature and high-pressure steam and an outlet for condensed water accumulated in the tank. Further, a planar heater 160 is provided inside the tank 111 so as to be in contact with about the lower half peripheral surface of the tank 111. As will be described later, the heater 160 is provided for heating the waste and for drying the wet waste by contacting with steam.

Next, the structure of the high-temperature, high-pressure steam, vacuum, The configuration will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 410 denotes a boiler that generates steam of high temperature and high pressure (121 ° C. or higher, for example, 140 ° (0.5 MPa)), 420 denotes a steam discharge pipe that discharges steam to the outside, and 430 denotes a steam discharge pipe in the sterilization tank 110. Vacuum pressure gauge that measures pressure, 440 is a vacuum pump, 450 is a vacuum buffer tank, 460 is a condensed water tank that stores condensed water discharged from the sterilization tank 110, 470 and 480 are the sterilization tank 110 and heater It is a thermometer that measures the temperature inside 160. In Fig. 3, Bn is a valve, Sn is a strainer, STn is a steam trap, and although not shown in Fig. 3, a vacuum pump is used. A cooling device for cooling the 440 and the buffer tank 450, for example, a cooling tank is provided.

 Next, the configuration of the transfer device 200 that transfers the waste sterilized by the sterilizer 100 to the crusher 300 will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the structure and operation principle of the transfer device 200. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 210 denotes a trolley, a container 211 for storing waste discharged from the sterilization layer 110, a plurality of casters 212 provided at the bottom of the container, and a handle 213 attached to the outside of the container. A connection tool 213 for connecting the container 211 and the charging mechanism 220 is provided. A slit having a predetermined width is formed in the connecting member 213, and a connecting arm 223 described later is fitted into the slit. Reference numeral 220 denotes an injection mechanism that raises the cart 210 and then tilts the cart 210 to throw the waste in the container into the crusher 300. The input mechanism 220 includes a support frame 221, a guide mechanism 222 provided along each of the two supports of the support frame 221, and a connection arm 223 that is moved along the guide mechanism 222. It has a chain mechanism 224 provided between the upper end and the lower end of the column, and a motor 225 for driving the chain mechanism.

The chain mechanism 224 includes sprockets provided at the upper end and the lower end of the two columns, respectively, and a chain wound between the sprockets via the connecting arm 223. The guide mechanism 222 includes two guide members provided along the column. One of the two guide members is a linear guide member 222a arranged along the column from the lower end to the upper end of the column, and the other has a long side parallel to the linear guide member 222a. The L-shaped guide member 222b is disposed and has a short side protruding toward the crushing device 300. The connecting arm 223 has a vertical height. Two pulleys are provided at different positions according to the left and right columns, respectively, and they are guided by linear guide members 222a and L-shaped guide members 222b. Although not shown in the drawing, a limit switch for setting the upper limit position and the lower limit position of the movement of the connecting arm 223 is provided on the support.

 Next, the crushing section 310, the waste input section 320, the pressing mechanism section 330, the driving mechanism 340, the base section 350, and the unloading section 360 constituting the crushing apparatus 300 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5. I do. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the crushing unit 310, the waste input unit 320, and the pressing mechanism 330 of the crushing device 300 in detail. Fig. 5 is a view of Fig. 1 viewed from behind. As shown in FIG. 1, the base 350 of the storm system 300 and the waste take-out unit 360 are arranged on the floor. The base section 350 is a frame structure in which a space for accommodating the take-out section 360 is partially formed. The motor of the driving mechanism 340 of the crushing section 310 and the driving source of the pressing mechanism 330 are arranged on the base section 350.

 The unloading unit 360 stored in the base unit 350 is a container for storing the waste finely crushed in the crushing unit 310 and taking out the waste, and is preferably a container with a caster. Above the base section 350, a crushing section 310, a pressing mechanism 330, and a waste input section 320 are mounted. ,

 The crushing unit 310 includes a casing 311, a rotary blade (rotary cutter) 312, and a fixed blade 315 and a force. The casing 311 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape in appearance and a base plate.

311a. It is composed of side frames 311b and 311c, a front frame 311d, a rear frame 311e, and a top plate 311f. The front frame 311d is formed with an opening for inspecting the inside, and a cover 311g is attached to the opening so as to be openable and closable with screws or hinges.

The rotating blade 312 includes a rotating shaft 312a rotatably supported by bearings provided to face the side frames 311b and 311c, a rotating member 313 fixed to the rotating shaft 312a by a key, and Consists of a cutter 314 screwed to a rotating member 313. The rotating shaft 312a is a shaft having a circular cross section, and both ends are supported by bearings. The bearing for supporting the rotating shaft 312a may be either a pole bearing type or a sliding bearing type. The rotation shaft 312a is driven to rotate at a predetermined rotation speed by a motor 341 provided on the base section 350. In this embodiment, ten pairs of cutters 314 are provided in the longitudinal direction of the shaft. The pair of cutters is fixed to one rotating member 313. Therefore, ten rotating members 313 are also fixed to the shaft 313a by keys. The rotating member 313 has two force turret mounting surfaces formed symmetrically with respect to the axial center, and the cutter 314 is mounted on each of the mounting surfaces.

 FIG. 6 shows the overall configuration of the cutter 314. As shown in FIG. 6, ten pairs of cutters 314 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the shaft, and cutters adjacent in the axial direction are closely arranged. FIG. 6 also shows the center line of each pair of cutters, and the cutters of each pair are arranged so that adjacent ones in the axial direction are sequentially shifted by 18 °. The reason for this will be described later in relation to the fixed blade 315.

FIG. 7 shows the cutter 314 alone in triangulation. 7A is a plan view, and FIG. 7B is a right side view. As shown in FIG. 7B, the cutter has a cross-sectional shape protruding in a substantially arc shape with respect to the mounting surface, and has twisted blades 3141 to 3146 formed on the circumferential surface side. These six twisted blades are divided into forward and reverse rotations according to the direction of rotation. The torsion angle 0 n is good at any angle, but it is good to set it in the range of 0 ° to 8 °, preferably 3 ° to 8 °. This torsion angle θ n corresponds to the shear angle of a shearing machine of a machine tool. Concave portions 3147, 3148, 3149 are formed between the twist blades 3141 and 3146, between 3142 and 3145, and between 3143 and 3144. The rake angle 0 s of the blade is formed at an obtuse angle, preferably 95 ° to 105 °. Even if the rake angle of the blade is set in the range described above, it is possible to cut a small metal piece, for example, a metal piece of about ψ5 mm, and thereby shear the metal between the cutter and the fixed blade. It is possible to prevent the blade of the power cutter from being damaged due to the impact when performing the operation. In FIG. 7, the distance between the torsion blades 3141 and 3146 and the distance between the torsion blades 3143 and 3144 are referred to as land widths. It can respond flexibly to materials. In addition, 3150 is a stop hole machined for a hexagon socket head bolt for attaching the power meter to the rotating member 313. Referring again to FIG. 5, the fixed blade 315 is screwed to a fixed base in the casing 311 so as to face the rotary blade 312 therebetween. FIG. 8 is a view showing the shape of the fixed blade 315, FIG. 8A is a plan view, and FIG. 8B is a side view. Fixed blade 315 has predetermined thickness It is made from a steel material with a blade formed on one end surface in the length direction. The blade

It has a clearance angle of 0 m between 10 ° and 20 °. The fixed blade 315 has at least two holes 3151 and 3152 for screwing. The length of the fixed blade 315 is the force S corresponding to the entire length of the power cutter 314 of the rotary blade 312, and the force of the fixed blade 315 is a single force. It is possible to select in consideration of the nature. The fixed blade 315 described above is aligned with a straight line passing through the center of rotation of the rotary blade 312 by adjusting the gap between the fixed blade 315 and the tip of the rotary blade so that the edge tip of the fixed blade 315 coincides. Screwed to a fixed base in casing 311.

 The screen 316 is provided below the rotary blade 312 described above. The screen 316 is used for sieving the crushed waste, and is formed by forming a large number of mesh holes such as wire mesh or punched metal. The screen 316 is formed in a substantially semi-cylindrical shape so as to have a small gap between the screen 316 and the rotary blade 312, and is attached below the fixed blade 315.

 Next, the configuration of the pressing mechanism 330 provided for effectively shearing waste will be described with reference to FIGS. The pressing mechanism 330 of the crushing device 300 includes a rotating shaft 331 rotatably supported by bearings provided on the side frames 311c and 311d, a rotating drum 332 fixed to the rotating shaft 331 by a key, and the rotating shaft. 331 and a driving source 331 for providing a driving force to the 331. In this embodiment, the rotating shaft 331 is located above the rotating shaft 312a of the crushing unit 310. The rotating shaft 331 is driven by a driving source 333, for example, a hydraulic cylinder or an air cylinder, or a motor. When the drive source is a hydraulic cylinder or air cylinder, a method can be adopted in which the arm 334 is attached to the rotating shaft 331 and this arm 334 is rotatably connected to one rod of the cylinder.If the drive source is a motor, the rotating shaft is A system in which the rotating shaft 331 is driven by a belt via a reduction gear between the 331 and the motor can be adopted.

The rotating drum 332 includes a boss 332a fitted on the rotating shaft 331, two arc-shaped members 332b and 332c for pressing waste, and a semi-cylindrical drum member 332d for holding the arc-shaped members behind. Become. The arc-shaped members 332b and 332c of the rotary drum 332 generate a wedge effect with the rotary blade 312 of the crushing unit 310. In the present embodiment, the shape of the arc is determined as follows for that purpose. (1) The diameter of the arc of the arc-shaped member is larger than the radius of the rotary blade 312.

 ② The center of the arc where the arc-shaped member is closest to the rotary blade is almost on the horizontal center line of the rotary blade 312.

 By determining the shape of the arc-shaped member in this manner, the distance between the arc-shaped surfaces of the arc-shaped members 332b and 332c and the rotary blade 312 increases as the distance from the shearing portion increases. That is, a space having a wedge-shaped cross section is formed between the arc surfaces of the arc members 332b and 332c and the rotary blade 312. The operation of the space formed in the wedge shape will be described in detail in the operation description later.

 The rotary drum 332 is reciprocated one or more times within a predetermined angle range by a driving source 333. The torque applied to the rotary drum 332 for the operation may be constant or variable, but preferably, the torque applied to the rotary drum 342 is limited until a wedge shape is formed between the rotary drum 332 and the rotary blade 312. It is desirable that the applied torque be larger than after the wedge shape is formed. The reason is that there is no wedge effect until a wedge shape is formed between the rotary drum 332 and the rotary blade 312, so that waste is pressed against the rotary blade 312 with only the pressing force of the rotary drum 332 to cut. This is because it must be performed.

 Next, the waste input section 320 will be described with reference to FIG. The waste input section 320 has a trapezoidal pyramid shape, and has a hopper 321 formed with openings at the top and bottom, a partition plate 322 attached to the top plate 311f of the crushing section 310, and attached to the top surface of the top plate 311f. Hopper turning mechanism 323. The hopper 321 receives the waste input from the moving carriage 210 of the transfer device 200, and the partition plate 322 separates the waste input to the hopper 321 so as not to cross the drum member 332d of the rotary drum 332. It is. The hopper swivel mechanism 323 is for operating the hopper 321 at the time of replacing the rotary blade 312 and the fixed blade 315 or performing maintenance and inspection. Next, the operation of the waste disposal system configured as described above will be described. First, infectious waste discharged from a medical facility is packed in a dumpling box or a plastic bag and transported to the sterilization apparatus 100.

Before the waste is put into the sterilization apparatus 100, the sterilization apparatus 100 is warmed up (ゥ ohm-up). It is started by operating the air operation start switch. When the warm-up operation start switch is pressed, the steam supply valve B3 and the sterilization tank pressure reducing valve B5 are opened, then the sterilization tank electric valve B4 is opened, and then the heater inlet electric valve B9 is opened. Then, high-temperature and high-pressure steam flows from the boiler 410 into the sterilization tank 110 and the heater 160. The high-temperature and high-pressure steam heats the inside of the sterilization tank 110 and the heater 160, and based on the outputs from the temperature sensors 470 and 480, detects that the temperatures in the tank 110 and the heater 160 have reached the set temperatures. Then, the sterilization tank electric valve B4 is closed, and then the heater inlet electric valve B9 is also closed. Next, the condensed water accumulated in the condensed water tank 460 is drained, and the sterilization tank opening valve B6 is opened to reduce the pressure in the sterilization tank 110 to the atmospheric pressure. After the pressure in the sterilization tank 110 reaches the atmospheric pressure, the sterilization tank release valve B6 is closed. Thus, the warm-up operation is completed. If the waste is sterilized several times in succession, the warm-up operation only needs to be performed during the first treatment.

 After the warm-up operation is completed, a process of sterilizing infectious waste is performed. First, the operator operates the opening switch of the lock mechanism of the lid 112 of the sterilization tank 110. As a result, the lock mechanism is released, so that the operator manually opens the lid 112 and puts the packed waste into the sterilization tank 110. When the opening switch of the lip mechanism is pressed, the control circuit is configured so that the tilting mechanism 130 of the sterilization tank operates and the two operations are linked so that the lid 112 side of the sterilization tank 110 is lowered. Even good. The tilting of the sterilization tank at the time of waste input can be handled according to the installation height of the sterilization tank or the height of the operator.

After putting the waste, the operator closes the lid 112 and operates the closing switch of the lock mechanism on the operation panel. With this operation, the lid 112 is locked to the main body of the sterilization tank 110. Next, the operator operates the automatic operation switch for sterilization. When this operation is performed, the sterilizing tank electric valve B4 and the heater inlet electric valve B9 are opened, high-temperature high-pressure steam is supplied to the sterilizing tank 110 and the heater 160, and the motor 141 of the stirring mechanism 140 is turned on. Driven. At this time, the rotation of the motor 141 is controlled in such a direction that the stirring spiral port 144 of the stirring mechanism 140 feeds waste into the sterilization tank 110 in the depth direction. In addition, by operating the automatic operation switch, the waste is stored in the sterilization tank 110 inside the sterilization tank 110. (The left side of the sterilization tank becomes lower in the figure). Then, when the motor 141 rotates, the arm 143, the stirring spiral rod 144, and the stirring and crushing opening 145 are rotated. Then, a power cutter 146 provided in the stirring / crushing linear opening 145 cuts out the waste packaging. When the package is cut open, the infectious waste is released or discharged from the package, exposed to the high temperature and high pressure steam filled in the sterilization tank 110, and the surface heated to the high temperature of the heater 160. To be sterilized. The waste is continuously stirred by the stirring spiral port 144 and the stirring and crushing linear rod 145. This stirring is performed for a predetermined time, for example, 20 minutes. ) State. Thus, sterilization rate 10- ⁸ (Bacillus) is achieved. If the infectious waste is packed in a dump box, a control sequence is established to operate the stirring mechanism 140 and supply high-temperature, high-pressure steam so that the dump box is opened before the dump box contains steam. But it's fine.

 After the waste is exposed to high-temperature and high-pressure steam for 20 minutes, the operation of the stirring mechanism 140 is temporarily stopped, the electric valve B4 for the sterilization tank is closed, and the electric valve B9 for the heater inlet is also closed. Then, the sterilization tank opening valve B6 is opened, and the pressure in the sterilization tank 110 is reduced to the atmospheric pressure. The drainage of condensed water in the buffer tank 450 in the vacuum pump system is performed by operating a valve (not shown).

If it is determined by the vacuum pressure gauge 430 that the pressure in the sterilization tank 110 has been reduced to the atmospheric pressure, a waste drying step is performed. When the drying process is started, first, the vacuum suction valve B7 is opened and the heater inlet electric valve B9 is opened. When the vacuum suction valve B7 is opened, the vacuum pump 440 is operated, and the inside of the sterilization tank 110 is suctioned. Then, the waste is heated and dried in a vacuum state by the heater 160 supplied with high-temperature and high-pressure steam. This drying process is performed for a preset time, and when the preset time has elapsed, the heater inlet valve B9 is closed, the heater outlet valve Ba is opened, and then the vacuum release valve Be is opened. By opening the vacuum release valve Be, the pressure in the sterilization tank 110 returns to the atmospheric pressure. At this point, the vacuum pump 440 is stopped and the vacuum suction valve B7 is closed. When the drying process is completed, the operator is notified of the completion of the drying process by an alarm such as a buzzer and a blinking lamp. The operator who knows that the drying process has been completed performs an operation to discharge waste. The operator positions the opening of the container 211 of the carriage 210 of the transfer device 200 below the lid 112 of the sterilization tank 110, and then operates the discharge operation switch. By this operation, the locking mechanism of the lid 112 is released, and the operator releases the lid 112. When the lid 112 is opened, the discharging operation of the sterilizer 110 starts. This discharge operation is performed by rotating the motor 141 in the reverse direction of the sterilization step and tilting the sterilization tank 110 toward the discharge side by the tilting mechanism 130. That is, when the stirring spiral opening 144 is reversed, the waste is sent out by the spiral rod 144, and this sending operation is promoted by the inclination of the sterilization tank. After confirming that the waste has been discharged, the operator stops the sterilizer.

 The cart 210 containing the waste is moved to the transfer device 200 by the operator. Then, the fitting and locking of the connecting tool 213 provided on the container 211 of the carriage 210 and the connecting arm 223 of the loading mechanism 220 are performed by the operator. Next, when the closing switch is operated by the operator, the motor 225 is driven and the closing mechanism 220 is operated. Thus, the carriage 210 connected to the connecting arm 223 by the chain mechanism 224 is raised along the guide mechanism 222. When the upper pulley of the pulleys provided on the connecting arm 223 is changed in the horizontal direction by the L-shaped guide member 222b, the bogie 210 starts to tilt. When the chain mechanism 224 further moves, only the other pulley of the connecting arm 223 rises along the linear guide member 222a, the carriage 210 is further inclined, and the waste in the container 211 is removed by the frame breaking device 300. It falls into the hopper 321 of the waste input section 320. The chain mechanism 224 moves up to the upper limit position, and when this is detected, the motor 225 is reversed and the carriage 210 is returned to the start position.

Next, the operator operates the crushing start switch of the crushing device 300. This starts the crushing of the waste. This crushing operation will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 10 shows a state in which waste is charged from the charging port of the hopper 321 when the rotating drum is located in the left space. In this state, when the motor rotates forward (clockwise in the figure) by the switch operation, the rotary blade 312 also rotates clockwise in the figure. Further, simultaneously with the switch operation or with a predetermined time delay, the pressing mechanism 330 Activated, rotating drum 332 begins to rotate clockwise. At the beginning of the rotation of the rotary drum 332, the force pressing the waste against the rotary blade 312 is weak, and the waste is pressed against the rotary blade 312 by its own weight, and crushing starts. However, cutting in this state is not performed efficiently.

 Next, the rotation of the rotating drum 332 proceeds, and the arc surface of the arc-shaped member 332 of the rotating drum 332 strongly presses the waste as shown in FIG. In this state (until the rotating radius of the rotary blade and the arc surface become parallel), the waste is strongly pressed against the rotary blade 312 and before the shearing and crushing between the rotary tooth 312 and the fixed blade 315. Then, the waste is compressed and cut at the land width. In this compression cutting, a soft cloth or resin is scraped off, and a hard object such as a piece of metal that cannot be removed by this compression cutting is sheared and crushed between the rotary blade 312 and the fixed blade 315. When the rotating drum 332 strongly compresses the waste to the rotating blade 312, the hard plastic resin is broken by compression.

 Further, as the rotation of the rotating drum 332 progresses and changes from the state shown in FIG. 11 to the state shown in FIG. 12, the space between the rotating blade 312 and the arc-shaped member 342b gradually narrows as the rotating blade advances in the rotating direction. A condition arises. That is, a wedge-shaped space is formed between the rotating tooth 312 and the rotating drum 332. The pressure acting on the waste placed in this wedge-shaped space increases as the thickness of the wedge decreases. Therefore, the waste added to the power cutter near the entrance of the wedge-shaped space is subjected to a gradually increasing pressure as the rotary blade 312 rotates, and the action of the compression cutting by the cutter alone is shown in FIG. Will receive more. (This is referred to as a wedge effect in this specification.) That is, from the state of FIG. 11 to the state of FIG. 12, the waste is subjected to both compression cutting by the Wedge effect and the shear fracture. Crushed. By the crushing action of both of these, small metal pieces can be crushed into small pieces without fail.

FIG. 13 to FIG. 15 are diagrams for explaining the state of the kusa effect. The Kusa effect can be explained as follows. That is, for example, in FIGS. 13 to 15, the rotating drum 332 is at the final position at the time of clockwise rotation, and in this state, the rotating blade 312 is rotating, and the arc surface 332 b of the rotating drum 332 at this time is shown. Is assumed to be 01, the center of rotation of the rotating tooth 312 is assumed to be 02, and a straight line passing through the cutting edge located at a position facing the arc surface 332b of the rotating drum 332 and the center of rotation 01, 02 is assumed. The angle between the tangent at the position of the cutting edge and the tangent at the position where a straight line from the center of the arc surface 332b of the rotary drum 332 crosses the arc surface 332b is the wedge angle. In Fig. 13, this wedge angle θ1 is about 16 °. When the rotary blade 312 rotates clockwise from this state, the wedge angle 02 becomes about 12 ° in FIG. 10, and when the rotary tooth 312 further rotates, the wedge angle 03 becomes about 4 °. As described above, the wedge angle is gradually reduced from く 1 to Θ3 according to the rotation of the rotary blade, that is, the wedge effect is exhibited, so that the waste is effectively compressed and cut. You.

 The crushed waste is sieved through the mesh holes of the screen 316, and the crushed chips smaller than the mesh holes are discharged to the discharge bucket of the outlet 330 disposed below the screen 316, and the larger crushed chips are removed. Is pushed out to the left processing space by the rotation of the rotary blade 312.

 After the above-described crushing process is completed, for example, after a predetermined time has elapsed after the rotation of the rotary drum 332 to the right (clockwise), the motor 341 and the pressing mechanism 330 are controlled to rotate in the reverse direction. As a result, the waste is pressed against the rotary blade 312 on the arc surface of the arc-shaped member 342c of the rotary drum 332, and the compression cutting is performed by the wedge effect generated between the rotary blade 312 and the corresponding cutter blade when the rotary blade 312 rotates in the reverse direction. The waste is crushed by shearing and crushing.

 The crushed waste passes through the mesh holes of the screen 316 and is discharged to the discharge bucket as described above.

 By repeating such a crushing operation a preset number of times, all the waste is crushed finely. Then, the crushed debris is taken out of the crusher and disposed of.

The crushing device described above is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. A major feature of the crushing device of the present invention is that waste is guided in a wedge shape in a shear crushing direction (tangential direction of the rotating blade) by the rotary blade and the fixed blade. It is not necessary that the two surfaces forming the shape 共 に are both phases, and one surface (the surface serving as a waste guide surface) may be a plane. For example, the guide surface may be provided perpendicular to the fixed blade. Further, in the present embodiment, the example in which the rotating drum forming the wedge is rotated is shown, but the guide surface of the waste is fixed. The reason for this is that the rotating blade holds the waste and rotates, causing an effect of increasing pressure on the waste.

Claims

A rotary blade rotatably provided to a casing and rotatably driven by a rotary drive mechanism, and a waste blade provided in the casing corresponding to the rotary blade. In the crushing device that is crushed by the fixed blade  The cross section gradually narrows toward a shearing portion between the rotary blade and the fixed blade. A crushing device, wherein a guide member that forms a wedge-shaped waste accommodating space between the rotary blade and the rotary blade is provided so as to face the rotary blade. The guide member is a member having an arc-shaped cross section, and is attached to the casing to a rotation shaft provided at a position different from a rotation center axis of the rotary blade, and a drive source having the rotation shaft as a rotation center. 2. The framing device according to claim 1, wherein the framing device is driven to rotate around the frame.  The rotary blade is formed with a blade in both directions of forward and reverse rotation, and two fixed blades are provided with the rotary blade interposed therebetween, and the waste is bidirectional rotation of the rotary blade in forward rotation and reverse rotation. The crushing device according to claim 1, wherein the crushing device is used to break the frame. -Two arc-shaped guide members forming a wedge-shaped space between the rotary blade and the rotary blade are provided, and rotational drive control is performed in the same direction as the rotary direction of the rotary blade. A crushing apparatus according to claim 1.  The rotary blade includes a plurality of unit power meters arranged in the direction of the rotation axis without gaps, and the blade positions of the unit power meters are sequentially shifted by a predetermined angle. Item 1. The device according to item 1.  The crushing device according to claim 5, wherein the blades of the unit force cutter are formed with a predetermined twist angle, and the blade portions are intermittent between adjacent unit cutters. 7. The framing device according to claim 6, wherein the unit force turret is provided with two power turtles facing each other via a blade mounting member mounted on a rotating shaft. A sterilizer for sterilizing medical waste, a transport device for transporting the waste sterilized by the sterilizer to a crusher, and a crusher for crushing the waste transported by the transport device. Medical waste treatment system consisting of  In the medical waste treatment system, the crushing device according to claim 1 is incorporated, and  A medical waste treatment system, wherein a package cutting mechanism for cutting a package of waste is provided in a sterilization tank of the sterilizer.  The package incision mechanism includes a rod member that is driven to rotate at a predetermined interval with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the sterilization tank, and a plurality of cutters provided to be exposed from the rod member. The medical waste treatment system according to claim 8, wherein  9. The medical waste treatment system according to claim 8, wherein the sterilization device includes a stirring mechanism for stirring waste released from the package cut by the package cutting means.  The said stirring mechanism is provided with the spiral member arrange | positioned at predetermined intervals with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the said sterilization layer, and the drive source which drives this spiral member rotationally, The claim characterized by the above-mentioned. Item 11. The medical waste treatment system according to Item 10.  The sterilization apparatus has a mechanism for inclining the sterilization tank, and when discharging the sterilized waste, the sterilization tank is inclined by the inclination mechanism so that the waste entrance is lower than horizontal, and the stirring is performed. 11. The medical waste treatment system according to claim 10, wherein the spiral member of the mechanism is rotated in a waste discharging direction.