Apparatus for continuously sterilizing flat flexible packages

Claim 1

A continuous sterilization apparatus comprising: a casing having a laterally extending portion with a vertical dimension less than that of the remainder of said casing, and the lateral end wall of said extending portion having an opening therein; a thermally insulating separating member extending in a generally horizontal direction across said remainder of said casing and dividing said remainder of said casing into a heating section in the upper part of said remainder of said casing and a cooling section in the lower part of said remainder of said casing; a heating medium filling said heating section and cooling water substantially filling said cooling section, said separating member having downwardly depending portions defining paths for articles to be sterilized, the lower ends of said depending portions extending downwardly into said cooling water for defining pockets between the surface of said cooling water and the underside of said separating member and said heating section and said cooling section being in contact with each other only in a limited contact region constituted by said paths; a partition wall depending from the top of said casing at the junction between said laterally extending portion and said remainder of said casing, the laterally extending portion being filled with cooling water; carriers for articles to be sterilized; a conveyer in said remainder of said casing and having a plurality of carrier receivers for removably and rotatably receiving said carriers for causing said carriers to be maintained in a horizontal position at all times during conveying by said conveyer, said conveyer extending from a position adjacent said partition wall and along said paths and through said heating and cooling sections and back to said position adjacent said partition wall; means for moving said conveyer successively through said heating section and said cooling section; a rotary valve in said opening in said lateral end wall of said extending portion of said casing; substantially horizontally extending carrier supporting feed members extending across said laterally extending portion of said casing from adjacent said rotary valve to adjacent said conveyer and substantially horizontally extending carrier supporting removal means extending across said laterally extending portion of said casing from adjacent said conveyer to adjacent said rotary valve, rotating levers having the ends movable along said carrier supporting members for moving said carriers along said carrier supporting members, and means for rotating said rotating levers in synchronism with the rotation of said rotary valve.