Patent ID: 8222614

Claim:
An electron beam irradiation apparatus for open-mouthed containers comprising: an irradiation processing chamber; a rotating body provided rotatively in the irradiation processing chamber; a plurality of retaining mechanisms installed on the outer face of the rotating body at a regular interval; an irradiation area being a predetermined area in a conveying path formed between the irradiation processing chamber and the rotating body; and an electron beam generating means arranged above the irradiation area, in which open-mouthed containers are rotatively conveyed being held by the retaining mechanisms, and insides and outsides of the open-mouthed containers are sterilized in the irradiation area by irradiation of electron beam, the electron beam being emitted from the electron beam generating means and passed through irradiation windows of the irradiation processing chamber, wherein the rotating body has a rotary shaft that penetrates airtightly into the electron beam generating means, the rotary shaft has a grid plate of an electron beam source of the electron beam generating means rotatively installed thereon, the grid plate has a plurality of emission holes at an interval equal to the interval of the retaining mechanisms installed on the rotating body, and the emission holes and the irradiation windows of the irradiation processing chamber and the retaining mechanisms that hold open-mouthed containers are aligned approximately on the same axes in the irradiation area.