An object of the present invention is to make short a manufacturing time at a time of switching a kind of a filling drink. In a cleaning method of a drink filling system provided with a drink supply pipe line for supplying a drink to a filling machine (2) and an aseptic chamber (3) surrounding at least the filling machine, the cleaning method is performed by executing program including at least two of first, second and third programs, wherein the first program corresponds to an aseptic carbonated drink and executes a COP treatment performed for an interior of the aseptic chamber and a CIP treatment performed for an interior of the drink supply pipe line, the second program corresponds to a high acidic drink and executes the COP treatment and an SOP treatment performed for the interior of the aseptic chamber and a CIP treatment and an SIP treatment performed in the interior of the drink supply pipe line, and the third program corresponds to a low acidic drink and executes the COP treatment and the SOP treatment performed for the interior of the aseptic chamber and the CIP treatment and the SIP treatment performed in the interior of the drink supply pipe line, and wherein either one of the three programs is enabled to be selectively executed, and in a case where the drink is an aseptic carbonated drink, the first program is selected, in a case where the drink is a high acidic drink, the second program is selected, and in a case where the drink is a low acidic drink, the third program is selected, to thereby clean the interiors of the aseptic chamber and the drink supply pipe line before filling of the drink in accordance with the selected program.

Provided is a purifying method capable of deodorizing a filling device in a shorter period than the conventional purifying method. The purifying method has a sterilizing step for sterilizing at least a filling device either periodically or each time when a kind of a liquid product to be filled thereby is to be changed in an aseptic filling system having the filling device configured to fill a predetermined unit filling amount of such liquid product in an individual container. The method includes an air supplying step #3 for supplying steam to the filling device which has been emptied of the liquid product, prior to or simultaneously with the sterilizing step #5 and a liquid supplying step #4 for supplying, after the air supplying step #3, a rinsing solution or a new liquid product after product change to the filling device.

At least one of COP and SOP treatments is performed by spraying a predetermined working fluid from spray nozzles (17a, 17b) within an aseptic chamber (9) accommodated with a filler (1) in a predetermined order, when such at least one of the COP and SOP treatments is performed, the predetermined working fluid is blasted toward externally of the filler (1) in the predetermined order while moving a movable spray nozzle (17b) opposing to the filler around the filler (1) from an outer periphery thereof, thus performing the filler cleaning operation. Accordingly, downtime at the drink filling working can be reduced.

In a process valve P comprising a housing, which defines first and second seats on both sides of an intermediate chamber and which is connected to product lines and comprises a closing element with a metallic shaft and first and second valve disks having surfaces that face the product lines the surface of at least one valve disk is thermally decoupled from the valve disk to a very large extent. The process valve P with the thermal decoupling unit is installed in a node of a food treatment and/or filling plant.

A valve assembly in a product channel comprises a regulating valve, a filling valve, and an elongated actuation element that is common to both. A filling-valve element that interacts with a filling-valve seat to open and close the filling valve. The regulating valve comprises an actuation element-side regulating valve element that interacts with a regulating-valve seat to control a product quantity to be filled. Both the regulating and filling valve elements are arranged on the actuation element. A driven actuator changes a position of the actuation element relative to the regulating valve seat and the filling valve seat as part of a filling operation.

To efficiently perform CIP and SIP of an aseptic filling machine. An upstream piping portion of a drink supply piping of an aseptic filling machine that extends through a heat sterilization apparatus is provided with an upstream feedback path to form an upstream circulation path, an aseptic surge tank piping portion that includes an aseptic surge tank that stores a drink sterilized by the heat sterilization apparatus is provided with an aseptic surge tank feedback path to form an aseptic surge tank circulation path, a downstream piping portion that extends to a filling nozzle via a filler tank that stores the drink supplied from the aseptic surge tank is provided with a downstream feedback path to form a downstream circulation path, and the upstream piping portion, the aseptic surge tank piping portion and the downstream piping portion are individually subjected to CIP and SIP.

A content-filling system (10) includes a water sterilizer (60) that includes a first sterile filter (63) and sterilizes water, and a control unit (90) that controls the water sterilizer (60). When the water sterilizer (60) is sterilized, the control unit (90) measures the temperature of fluid that flows on the flow path in the first sterile filter (63) and calculates an F value, based on the measured temperature. In the case where the F value is a desired value or more, the control unit (90) causes the sterilization of the first sterile filter (63) to end.

A content-filling system (10) includes a water sterilization line (50) that sterilizes water, an undiluted-solution sterilization line (70) that sterilizes a product undiluted solution, a water-filling device (21) that is connected to the water sterilization line (50) and is disposed in a first sterile chamber (70f), an undiluted-solution-filling device (22) that is connected to the undiluted-solution sterilization line (70) and is disposed in a second sterile chamber (70h), and a control unit (90) that controls the water-filling device (21) and the undiluted-solution-filling device (22). The control unit (90) causes the inside of the second sterile chamber (70h) to be cleaned with the inside of the first sterile chamber (70f) kept sterile. The control unit (90) causes the inside of the second sterile chamber (70h) to be sterilized with the inside of the first sterile chamber (70f) kept sterile.

A cleaning method for cleaning a filling machine for filling at least to one side open packs with products is described and illustrated, wherein the filling machine has a transport device for transporting the at least to one side open packs through the filling machine. To ensure satisfactory cleaning results repeatably in a defined and/or shorter time, it is provided that a preceding plurality of at least to one side open packs is transported at least partially through the filling machine by a transport device and is filled with products, at least one nozzle for dispensing cleaning medium is transported at least partially through the filling machine by the transport device and cleaning medium is thereby dispensed for cleaning the filling machine, and after the filling machine has been cleaned, a subsequent plurality of at least to one side open packs is transported at least partially through the filling machine by the transport device and is thereby filled with products.

A sterilization process transition method of switching from an SIP process to a product sterilization process in an apparatus including piping that feeds a product into a filling machine through a heating sterilization part. The process sterilizes the piping before a filling operation, and the product sterilization process sterilizes the product to be filled. An F value is calculated from temperature and flowrate data on a fluid flowing in the heating sterilization part that are obtained from temperature sensors and flowmeters disposed in the product filling apparatus at predetermined time intervals. The temperature and flowrate at two or more predetermined positions in the product filling apparatus are adjusted from a set temperature and a set flowrate for the SIP process to a set temperature and a set flowrate for the product sterilization process while preventing the F value from becoming lower than a predetermined value.