Patent ID: 8371840

Claim:
A blow molding apparatus comprising: N rows of holding plates, N being an integer equal to or larger than 2, each of the N rows of holding plates holding a plurality of neck molds, to be transferred along a transfer direction; a support-transfer member that transfers the N rows of holding plates, the support-transfer member supporting the N rows of holding plates so that a row pitch of the N rows of holding plates can be changed; an injection molding station that injection-molds a plurality of preforms, the injection molding station including N rows of injection cavity molds that are clamped to the plurality of neck molds that are held by each of the N rows of holding plates; a temperature control station that includes N rows of temperature-controlled pot molds that are disposed on a downstream side of the injection molding station in the transfer direction, and performs a temperature control operation by disposing the plurality of preforms held by the N rows of holding plates in the N rows of temperature-controlled pot molds; a blow molding station that includes N rows of blow molds that are disposed on a downstream side of the temperature control station in the transfer direction, and blow-molds the plurality of preforms held by the N rows of holding plates into a plurality of containers; and a row pitch change section that changes the row pitch of the N rows of holding plates so that P1<P3<P2 is satisfied, P1 being the row pitch of the N rows of holding plates when they hold the plurality of preforms that have been injection-molded, P2 being the row pitch of the N rows of holding plates when they hold the plurality of containers that have been blow-molded, and P3 being the row pitch of the N rows of holding plates when the N rows of holding plates hold the plurality of preforms that are transferred to the N rows of blow molds that are opened.