Patents by Inventor Atsushi Hayakawa

Atsushi Hayakawa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240246803
    Abstract: A sterilization line comprising upstream-side and downstream-side tanks for storing liquid which are connected by a conduit for transferring the liquid, holding tubes for sterilizing the liquid which are disposed in an intermediate section of the conduit, heating units for heating the liquid in stages which are disposed in a section of the conduit from the upstream-side tank to the holding tubes, and cooling units for cooling the product liquid in stages which are disposed in a section of the conduit from the holding tubes to the downstream-side tank. A swing bend is used to perform switching between a section of a liquid flow path located on the upstream side of multiple intermediate piping systems and a cleaning solution path for a cleaning-in-place operation and switching between a section of the liquid flow path located on the downstream side and the cleaning solution path for the cleaning-in-place operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2024
    Publication date: July 25, 2024
    Applicant: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi HAYAKAWA
  • Publication number: 20240245820
    Abstract: To provide a sterilizer gasification apparatus that gasifies a sterilizer with reliability, improves the concentration of the sterilizer in the gas and is compact and a sterilizer gasification method. A helical metal pipe that meets at least one of conditions that a pitch of the helical pipe is equal to or greater than 1.0 mm and equal to or smaller than 30.0 mm and that an angle of the helix is greater than 0 degrees and equal to or smaller than 30 degrees with respect to a plane perpendicular to a central axis of the helix, a solidified molten metal layer in which the helical metal pipe is embedded in a casting process, a heating body that heats an outer surface of the solidified molten metal layer, and a nozzle that is at one end of the helical metal pipe and sprays a sterilizer into the helical metal pipe are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 13, 2022
    Publication date: July 25, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Atsushi HAYAKAWA, Yoshinori SATO, Yasuhiro KAWAI
  • Patent number: 12043534
    Abstract: Even when the filling speed increases, the surface temperature of a molded bottle falls within a constant range, and a sterilizer adequately sterilizes the bottle. A preform is heated, the heated preform is sealed in a mold, the preform sealed in the mold is blow-molded into a bottle, the surface temperatures of a neck portion, a body portion, and a bottom portion of the molded bottle are measured, and the mold temperatures of a neck portion, a body portion, and a bottom portion of the mold is so adjusted that the measured surface temperature of the bottle falls within a specified temperature range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Hayakawa, Yoshinori Sato, Seiji Kuwano
  • Patent number: 12017899
    Abstract: A sterilization line comprising upstream-side and downstream-side tanks for storing liquid which are connected by a conduit for transferring the liquid, holding tubes for sterilizing the liquid which are disposed in an intermediate section of the conduit, heating units for heating the liquid in stages which are disposed in a section of the conduit from the upstream-side tank to the holding tubes, and cooling units for cooling the product liquid in stages which are disposed in a section of the conduit from the holding tubes to the downstream-side tank. A swing bend is used to perform switching between a section of a liquid flow path located on the upstream side of multiple intermediate piping systems and a cleaning solution path for a cleaning-in-place operation and switching between a section of the liquid flow path located on the downstream side and the cleaning solution path for the cleaning-in-place operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Patent number: 12012325
    Abstract: A preform is sterilized by a preform sterilizer. The preform is blow-molded by a blow-molding device to manufacture a container. Next, the container is filled with a culture medium by a filling device without sterilizing the container by a container sterilizer, and the container is plugged by a plugging device. Thereafter, it is verified how much microorganism survive or propagate in the culture medium in the container. A degree of sterilization in the container sterilizer is adjusted on the basis of a verification result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Patent number: 11993503
    Abstract: Provided is an aseptic filler that includes no other sterilization apparatus for producing aseptic water than a sterilization apparatus for sterilizing a content, and a method for cleaning the same. An aseptic water supply apparatus that supplies aseptic water, which is sterilized by a content sterilization apparatus that sterilizes a content, to at least a filling portion chamber is provided, and rinsing aseptic water for washing away a sterilizer when performing an SOP treatment of each chamber is supplied to each chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Hayakawa, Shuta Ito
  • Publication number: 20240075177
    Abstract: In the COP treatment and the SOP treatment of the interior of a chamber of an aseptic filler, any cleaning liquid or aseptic water remaining in the chamber is quickly removed before spray of a sterilizer containing peracetic acid or hydrogen peroxide. A transfer device for transferring a container in the chamber of the aseptic filler is driven to remove the cleaning liquid sued for the COP treatment or the aseptic water used for the SOP treatment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2023
    Publication date: March 7, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Atsushi HAYAKAWA
  • Publication number: 20240059541
    Abstract: A content-filling system (10) includes a water sterilization line (50) that sterilizes water without heating, an undiluted-solution sterilization line (70) that heats and sterilizes a product undiluted solution, and a filling device (20) that is connected to the water sterilization line (50) and the undiluted-solution sterilization line (70) and that fills the water and the product undiluted solution in bottles (100).
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2023
    Publication date: February 22, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Atsushi HAYAKAWA, Yukinori YAMAMOTO, Yuiko WADA, Junichi MURAKAMI, Takahiro FUJINO, Yoshitaka INOUE
  • Publication number: 20240051809
    Abstract: A beverage filling system for filling a container with a carbonated beverage includes beverage supply piping that supplies the carbonated beverage, a beverage filling machine that is coupled to the beverage supply piping, and a controller that controls the beverage filling system. The beverage filling machine includes a filling nozzle and a beverage supply line, a counter gas line, and a snift line each of which is coupled to the filling nozzle. The controller causes a first piping channel including the beverage supply line to be performed CIP processing, and causes a second piping channel including the counter gas line to be performed CIP processing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2021
    Publication date: February 15, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Atsushi HAYAKAWA, Takaharu HIROOKA
  • Publication number: 20240051808
    Abstract: A beverage filling system for filling a container with a beverage includes: beverage supply piping that supplies the beverage; a beverage filling machine that is coupled to the beverage supply piping; CIP circulation piping that is coupled to the beverage filling machine, that feeds a cleaning liquid flowed out from the beverage filling machine during CIP processing toward the beverage supply piping, and that circulates the cleaning liquid; and a controller that controls the beverage filling system. A heater that heats the cleaning liquid that flows through the CIP circulation piping and a holding tube through which the cleaning liquid heated by the heater passes are provided in the CIP circulation piping. The cleaning liquid heated by the heater is set in such a way as to pass through the holding tube while spending a predetermined residence time or longer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2021
    Publication date: February 15, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Atsushi HAYAKAWA, Takaharu HIROOKA
  • Patent number: 11897742
    Abstract: A cap sterilization device (50) includes a sterilant spraying chamber (52) in which a sterilant is sprayed onto a cap (33) and an air-rinsing chamber (53) in which the cap (33) onto which the sterilant has been sprayed in the sterilant spraying chamber (52) is subjected to air-rinsing. A sterilant spraying wheel (74) that conveys the cap (33) while rotating the cap (33) is disposed in the sterilant spraying chamber (52). An air-rinsing wheel (75) that conveys the cap (33) onto which the sterilant has been sprayed while rotating the cap (33) is disposed in the air-rinsing chamber (53). The air-rinsing chamber (53) is disposed vertically above the sterilant spraying chamber (52).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Hayakawa, Seiji Kuwano, Yoshinori Satou
  • Patent number: 11884529
    Abstract: A filling valve that has a high temperature due to an SIP is cooled in a short time. An aseptic water is blasted to an outer surface of the filling valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Publication number: 20240031499
    Abstract: A document scanner includes a casing and a document cover disposed above the casing. The casing includes a document glass and houses an image scanner. The document cover has one end portion and the other end portion opposite to the first end portion in a first direction and is configured to pivotally move about the one end portion between a closed position in which the other end portion covers the document glass and an open position in which the other end portion uncovers the document glass. The other end portion has an end surface that intersects, when the document cover is at the closed position, with an upper surface of the document glass. The end surface has an indication indicating a location to which an external device is to be brought into proximity to establish short-range wireless communication between the document scanner and the external device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Atsushi HAYAKAWA
  • Patent number: 11872323
    Abstract: A device capable of stably obtaining gas of a sterilizer containing hydrogen peroxide for a long time is provided. A cleaning device that cleans a heating surface that gasifies a sterilizer of a gasifier for a sterilizer is provided, and after an operation for a fixed time period, the heating surface is cleaned.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Atsushi Hayakawa, Masatoshi Takagi, Kazufumi Suzuki, Hidenori Tanaka, Hayato Akiyama
  • Publication number: 20240010520
    Abstract: A water sterilizer (60) includes a foreign-material removal filter (61) that removes foreign material in water, a first sterilizer (62) that is disposed downstream of the foreign-material removal filter (61), a first sterile filter (63) that is disposed downstream of the first sterilizer (62), a second sterilizer (64) that is disposed downstream of the first sterile filter (63), and a second sterile filter (65) that is disposed downstream of the second sterilizer (64). The first sterilizer (62) and the second sterilizer (64) sterilize the water by using an ultraviolet ray.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 25, 2023
    Publication date: January 11, 2024
    Applicant: DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Atsushi HAYAKAWA
  • Patent number: 11857690
    Abstract: In the COP treatment and the SOP treatment of the interior of a chamber of an aseptic filler, any cleaning liquid or aseptic water remaining in the chamber is quickly removed before spray of a sterilizer containing peracetic acid or hydrogen peroxide. A transfer device for transferring a container in the chamber of the aseptic filler is driven to remove the cleaning liquid sued for the COP treatment or the aseptic water used for the SOP treatment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Patent number: 11834315
    Abstract: A carbonated beverage aseptic filling system (10) comprises: a filling nozzle (72) for filling a carbonated beverage; a carbonated beverage filling tank (75) connected to the filling nozzle (72) via a carbonated beverage supplying pipe (73) and a counter pressure pipe (74); a snift pipe (78) connected to the filling nozzle; and an aseptic chamber (13) enclosing the filling nozzle (72), at least part of the carbonated beverage supplying pipe (73), and at least part of the counter pressure pipe (74). The carbonated beverage supplying pipe (73) and the counter pressure pipe (74) are attached to the aseptic chamber (13) by a rotary joint (77). A discharging valve (79) is provided in the snift pipe (78) inside the aseptic chamber (13), and gas from the snift pipe (78) is discharged into the aseptic chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2023
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Patent number: 11831825
    Abstract: A document scanner includes a casing and a document cover disposed above the casing. The casing includes a document glass and houses an image scanner. The document cover has one end portion and the other end portion opposite to the first end portion in a first direction and is configured to pivotally move about the one end portion between a closed position in which the other end portion covers the document glass and an open position in which the other end portion uncovers the document glass. The other end portion has an end surface that intersects, when the document cover is at the closed position, with an upper surface of the document glass. The end surface has an indication indicating a location to which an external device is to be brought into proximity to establish short-range wireless communication between the document scanner and the external device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2023
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Atsushi Hayakawa
  • Publication number: 20230356269
    Abstract: In an aseptic filling machine including content supply piping for feeding a content to a filler via a heat sterilization portion, CIP and SIP of the inside of the content supply piping is performed by circulating a cleaning liquid, SIP is performed by heating the cleaning liquid to a required temperature for sterilization from the start of the CIP or during the CIP, the overall heat transfer coefficient of the heating piping is calculated, it is determined that the CIP is completed when the overall heat transfer coefficient calculated reaches a target value, temperatures are measured by a plurality of temperature sensors provided, a lowest temperature is selected from the measured temperatures, F values are calculated for the selected lowest temperature, the calculated F values are accumulated, and it is determined that the SIP is completed when the accumulated F value reaches a target value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 8, 2021
    Publication date: November 9, 2023
    Applicant: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Atsushi HAYAKAWA
  • Patent number: 11806437
    Abstract: A device capable of stably obtaining gas of a sterilizer containing hydrogen peroxide for a long time is provided. A cleaning device that cleans a heating surface that gasifies a sterilizer of a gasifier for a sterilizer is provided, and after an operation for a fixed time period, the heating surface is cleaned.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: DAI NIPPON PRINTING, LTD.
    Inventors: Atsushi Hayakawa, Masatoshi Takagi, Kazufumi Suzuki, Hidenori Tanaka, Hayato Akiyama