Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6656100
-
Patent Number
6,656,100
-
Date Filed
Friday, September 22, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, December 2, 200321 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Kim; Eugene
- Tawfik; Sameh
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 493 52
- 493 62
- 493 68
- 493 69
- 493 70
- 493 71
- 493 72
- 493 79
- 493 80
- 493 81
- 493 93
- 493 95
- 493 96
- 493 100
- 493 110
- 493 125
- 493 126
- 493 131
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International Classifications
-
Abstract
An integrated apparatus for forming folded containers comprising a film attaching unit, a fold/glue unit, and a common transport system coupling the film attaching unit to the fold/glue unit. The film attaching unit can have a pattern glue applicator for applying a pattern of glue to a blank and a film applicator operatively coupled to the pattern glue applicator to apply a film to the blank. The fold/glue unit is configured to receive the blank directly from the film attaching unit, and the fold/glue unit can have a plurality of fold-members for folding portions of the blank and at least one glue gun for applying glue to portions of the blank. The blank transport system can comprise a synchronized carrier to transport the blank through a portion of the film attaching unit and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers to transport the blank through the film attaching unit and/or the fold/glue unit without removing the blank from the transport system. In one embodiment, the synchronized carrier and the non-synchronized carriers are configurable in at least one of (a) a bypass configuration in which the blank bypasses the pattern glue applicator and the film applicator, (b) a pattern glue configuration in which the transport system is synchronized with the pattern glue applicator to apply the pattern of glue to the blank without applying a film, and/or (c) a film application configuration in which the transport system is synchronized with the pattern glue unit and the film applicator to attach a film to the blank.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to finishing graphic containers. More specifically, several aspects of the invention are directed toward methods and apparatus for forming folded containers with or without thin film coverings.
BACKGROUND
Containers, such as cartons and boxes for a variety of uses, are generally made from paper products or other types of materials. The containers are typically folded and glued so that they can be shipped to a product manufacturer in a flat configuration and then expanded to receive a product. Several types of containers have openings covered by thin transparent films to create windows (e.g., toy containers) or access openings (e.g., tissue boxes), but other types of containers are solid and do not have thin transparent films. In either application, a container “blank” is formed from a sheet with graphics and/or text by stamping the sheet to (a) cut the sheet into a desired pattern and (b) form fold lines on the sheet. The blanks are then subject to a finishing process to attach a thin transparent film to window openings, apply glue to selected areas of the blank, and fold the blank into a finished container.
Conventional processes for finishing graphic containers with transparent films use a window patch machine for attaching the film to the blank and a separate fold/glue machine for folding and gluing flaps or panels of the blank. Conventional window patch machines have a feeder, a timed-chain carrier for transporting blanks from the feeder, a pattern glue applicator synchronized with the timed-chain carrier, and a film applicator synchronized with the pattern glue applicator. Conventional window patch machines are initially configured to accommodate a particular blank, and then all of the blanks for a particular container are processed through the window patch machine to attach the transparent film to the blanks. The blanks to which the transparent film patches have been attached are then stored at a separate location to await processing through the fold/glue machine.
The fold/glue machine typically has another feeder, a plurality of belt drives, a plurality of fold panels, and a plurality of glue guns. The fold/glue machine has a pre-folding section, a back-folding section, and a final-folding section that each have a different configuration of belt-drives, glue guns, and fold plates for folding and gluing the flaps and/or panels of the blanks. The conventional window patch machines and conventional fold/glue machines accordingly operate completely independent from one another because they are separate machines that use separate feeders and separate transport systems to feed and convey blanks through each of the machines.
One concern of finishing graphic containers with transparent films is that conventional processes require two runs to produce a single finished container. It is time-consuming to use two separate runs because the window patch machines and the fold/glue machines must be configured separately before running the blanks through the machines. After processing the blanks through the window patch machine, the blanks are also manually transported and loaded into a separate feeder for processing through the fold/glue machines. Additionally, if both the window patch machines and the fold/glue machines are operated simultaneously, conventional processes generally require two operators to configure and operate the two separate machines. Therefore, conventional processes for finishing graphic containers with separate window patch machines and fold/glue machines are time consuming and inefficient.
Another manufacturing concern of conventional processes for finishing graphic containers is that they require a significant amount of floor space. Because the window patch machines and the fold/glue machines are separate from one another, the blanks are stored in separate stacks to await processing the separate window patch and fold/glue machines. The window patch and fold/glue machines must also have individual feeders dedicated to each machine. As a result, a significant amount of floor space is occupied by the additional stacks of blanks and the duplicity of feeders for the separate window patch and fold/glue machines.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
FIG. 1
is a side elevation view of an integrated apparatus for forming folded containers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention,
FIG. 2
is a top elevation view of the integrated apparatus of FIG.
1
.
FIG. 3
is a side elevation view illustrating a portion of an integrated apparatus for forming folded containers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 4
is an isometric view illustrating a portion of an integrated apparatus for forming folded containers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 5
is a side elevation view illustrating a portion of an integrated apparatus for forming folded containers in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The following disclosure describes several embodiments of an integrated apparatus for forming folded containers. Many specific details of certain embodiments of the invention are set forth in the following description and in
FIGS. 1-5
to provide a thorough understanding of these embodiments. A person skilled in the art, however, will understand that the present invention may have additional embodiments, or that the invention may be practiced without several of the details described below.
A. INTEGRATED CONTAINER FINISHING SYSTEMS WITH FILM ATTACHING UNITS AND FOLD/GLUE UNITS
FIG. 1
is a side elevation view and
FIG. 2
is a top plan view of an integrated apparatus
100
for forming folded containers in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the integrated apparatus
100
includes a film attaching unit
102
, a fold/glue unit
104
, and a transport system
106
extending through both the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
. The film attaching unit
102
can apply a pattern of glue around an opening of a blank and attach a patch of a thin film to the pattern of glue. The fold/glue unit
104
can receive a blank to which the film patch has been attached directly from the film attaching unit
102
to fold and glue the blank into a finished container. The transport system
106
is common to both the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
to provide a single-pass operation in which a blank is transported directly from the film attaching unit
102
to the fold/glue unit
104
.
Referring to
FIG. 1
, the film attaching unit
102
can include a feeder
110
at a feed end of the transport system
106
, a pattern glue applicator
120
operatively coupled to one section of the transport system
106
for applying glue to a blank, and a film applicator
130
operatively coupled to another section of the transport system
106
downstream from the pattern glue applicator
120
. The pattern glue applicator
120
can have a pattern wheel
122
with a glue surface (not shown in
FIG. 1
) configured in a desired pattern for applying a pattern of glue to a blank. In one embodiment for attaching a film patch to a blank to cover an opening, the pattern wheel
122
is synchronized with the transport system to apply a pattern of glue around the perimeter of the opening in the blank. The pattern glue applicator can alternatively have glue pens or guns that deposit glue in a manner similar to a dot-matrix printer or a jet printer. The embodiment of the film applicator
130
shown in
FIG. 1
cuts and attaches a film patch to the blank. The film applicator
130
can also have several alternate embodiments. The film applicator
130
, for example, can alternatively receive pre-cut film patches that it places on the blanks. In general, the film applicator
130
is synchronized with the pattern glue applicator
120
to accurately press a patch of film onto the pattern of glue. Suitable pattern glue applicators
120
and film applicators
130
are available from P. E. Printech Equipment Inc. of British Columbia, Canada.
The embodiment of the fold/glue unit
104
shown in
FIG. 1
is configured to receive the blank directly from the film attaching unit
102
. The fold/glue unit
104
can have several different sections for folding and gluing together different panels and flaps of the blank to form a container. In one embodiment, for example, the fold/glue unit
104
includes a prefolding section
140
a
that is one part of a backfolding section, a second folding section
140
b
that is another part of the backfolding section, and a final folding section
140
c
. It will be appreciated that the fold/glue unit
104
can have other combinations of sections or a different configuration of sections. Each of these sections can have a plurality of glue-guns
142
(shown schematically) and fold-members
144
(also shown schematically), such as hooks, fold-plates and air nozzles. The glue-guns
142
and fold-members
144
in the sections
140
a-c
of fold/glue unit
104
can be configured according to the particular container to fold, glue and attach flaps or panels of the blank to one another.
Still referring to
FIG. 1
, the transport system
106
couples the film attaching unit
102
to the fold/glue unit
104
so that the integrated apparatus
100
can (a) attach a film to the blank and/or (b) fold the blank into a finished container in a single-run operation. The transport system
106
can include a plurality of non-synchronized carriers
160
and a synchronized carrier
180
. The non-synchronized carriers
160
and the synchronized carrier
180
can be configured to either pass a blank through the film attaching unit
102
without synchronizing the blank with either the pattern glue application
120
or the film applicator
130
for situations in which a film patch is not applied to the blank. The non-synchronized carriers
160
and the synchronized carrier
180
can also be configured to synchronize the blanks with the pattern glue applicator
120
for applying a pattern of glue to the blank and for attaching a film patch to the pattern of glue. In one embodiment, the synchronized carrier
180
is only in the film attaching unit
102
and the non-synchronized carriers
160
are in both the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
. The glue-guns
142
, fold-members
144
, non-synchronized carriers
160
and the synchronized carrier
180
can be raised/lowered and moved side-to-side (
FIG. 2
) to configure the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
for forming different types of blanks into containers. The non-synchronized carriers
160
can be belt-drives known in the art, and the synchronized carrier
180
can be a timed-chain carrier also known in the art. Several embodiments of the non-synchronized carriers
160
, the synchronized carrier
180
, the pattern glue applicator
120
, and the film applicator
130
are described in more detail below with respect to
FIGS. 3-5
.
The integrated apparatus
100
can form containers having a film patch over an opening by placing a plurality of blanks in the feeder
110
and transporting the blanks through the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
without removing the blanks from the transport system
106
. In one application, for example, a feed carrier defined by the non-synchronized carrier
160
adjacent to the feeder
110
transports a blank to the synchronized carrier
180
. The synchronized carrier
180
delivers the blank to the pattern glue applicator
120
in synchronization with the pattern wheel
122
to precisely apply a pattern of glue to the blank (e.g, around the perimeter of an opening). Another non-synchronized carrier
160
at the pattern glue applicator
120
transports the blank with the pattern of glue to the film applicator
130
, which applies a film patch to the glue around the opening. Still another non-synchronized carrier
160
immediately downstream from the film applicator
130
engages the blank and initiates the transport of the blank through the fold/glue unit
104
. The remaining downstream non-synchronized carriers
160
accordingly transport the blank through the glue guns
142
and the fold-members
144
of the sections
140
a-c
of the fold/glue unit
104
to fold and glue the panels and flaps of the blank together. As set forth in more detail below, the non-synchronized carriers
160
and the synchronized carrier
180
in the film attaching unit
102
of an embodiment of the integrated apparatus
100
can be configured with respect to the pattern glue applicator
120
and the film applicator
130
to: (a) bypass the pattern glue applicator
120
and film applicator
130
for delivering a blank directly from the feeder
110
to the fold/glue unit
104
in applications that do not apply a film patch to the blanks; (b) apply only a pattern of glue to the blank without applying a film patch to the blank; and/or (c) apply both a pattern of glue to the blank and a film patch to the patterned glue on the blank.
One advantage of several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
is that it is expected to reduce labor costs and overhead for producing containers with film coverings. Unlike conventional processes that use separate window patch machines and separate fold/glue machines, several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
combine the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
with a single transport system
106
. A single operator can accordingly simultaneously run the integrated apparatus
100
to perform both the window attaching and the folding/gluing operations for forming a container with a film patch over an opening in the container. Several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
are also expected to reduce the floor space required for producing containers with a thin film patch because a single feeder can provide blanks to both the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
. Additionally, several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
provide an efficient use of floor space because they eliminate the need for storing stacks of blanks for processing through a separate fold/glue machine. Therefore, several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
are expected to reduce the labor costs and overhead for forming containers with thin film patches over openings.
Another advantage of several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
is that they are expected to reduce the processing time for fabricating containers with thin film coverings compared to conventional two-step finishing processes. By transporting the blanks along a single transport system
106
through both the film attaching unit
102
and the fold/glue unit
104
, several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
eliminate the process of manually transporting the blanks from one machine to another and loading the blanks into a feeder for a separate fold-glue machine. As a result, several embodiments of the integrated apparatus
100
are expected to significantly reduce the processing time for fabricating containers with film patches over openings.
B. SELECTIVELY CONFIGURABLE FILM ATTACHING UNITS
The integrated apparatus
100
is preferably configurable so that it can process blanks with or without film patches.
FIG. 3
is a side elevation view and
FIG. 4
is an isometric view partially illustrating an embodiment of the film attaching unit
102
for use in connection with the fold/glue unit
104
in an embodiment of the integrated apparatus
100
. Referring to
FIG. 3
, the non-synchronized carriers
160
in the film attaching unit
102
can comprise a feed carrier
160
a
that receives blanks from the feeder
110
(FIG.
1
); a first configurable non-synchronized adjustable carrier
160
b
generally aligned with the synchronized carrier
180
; a second configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
c
downstream from the synchronized carrier
180
; and a third configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
d
at the beginning of the fold/glue unit
104
immediately downstream from the film applicator
130
. The non-synchronized carriers
160
can include a belt
162
wrapped around a plurality of guide rollers
164
with a belt tension roller
166
. The non-synchronized carriers
160
can also include a plurality of surface rollers
168
to press the belt
162
against the blanks in the transport system
106
. Additionally, the configurable non-synchronized carriers
160
b-d
can have lift assemblies
169
to selectively raise and lowered the carriers
160
b-d
for configuring the operation of the film attaching unit
102
.
In operation, the first configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
b
can be positioned in a lowered position (not shown) in which the belt
162
engages a blank in a manner to cause the blank to bypass the synchronized carrier
180
. The first configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
b
can also be positioned in a raised position in which the feeder carrier
160
a
delivers a blank to the synchronized carrier
180
for synchronizing the blank with respect to the pattern glue applicator
120
and the film applicator
130
. The belts
162
, the rollers
164
-
168
, and the lift assemblies
169
are known in the art of non-synchronized belt-type carriers.
The synchronized carrier
180
can have a timed-chain
182
wrapped around a plurality of guide sprockets
184
. The timed-chain
182
has a plurality of individual stops (not shown) that are configured to engage a blank and move the blank along the transport system
106
at known intervals. The synchronized carrier
180
can alternatively be a belt feed system similar to feed systems for automatic-feed copiers. As such, the synchronized carrier
180
can be any suitable carrier capable of receiving a blank and advancing the blank along the transport system at selected intervals.
Referring to
FIGS. 3 and 4
together, the pattern wheel
122
of the pattern glue unit has a pattern surface
124
. The pattern glue unit
120
of this embodiment also has a glue reservoir
126
and a pick-up wheel
128
in contact with glue in the glue reservoir
126
. In operation, the reservoir
126
deposits a layer of glue on the pick-up wheel
128
, which applies a layer of the glue to the pattern surface
124
on the pattern wheel
122
. The pattern surface
124
on the pattern wheel
122
is synchronized with the timed-chain
182
of the synchronized carrier
180
(
FIG. 3
) so that the pattern surface
124
applies a pattern of glue
195
(
FIG. 4
) around an opening
196
on a blank
197
(FIG.
4
).
The embodiment of the film applicator
130
shown in
FIGS. 3 and 4
has a plurality of rollers
132
including a supply roller
132
a carrying a roll of film
134
, a plurality of idler rollers
132
b
to guide the film
134
, and a plurality of drive rollers
132
c to advance the film
134
. The film applicator
130
can also include a film cutter
135
having a blade
136
and a film applicator assembly
150
. As best shown in
FIG. 3
, the film applicator assembly
150
includes a perforated cylinder
152
that rotates about a shaft
153
having a blow-off section
154
and a vacuum section
155
. In operation, the vacuum section
155
of the shaft
153
draws a vacuum around a majority of the circumference of the perforated cylinder
152
to hold the film
134
against the perforated cylinder
152
. The cutting blade
136
of the film cutter
135
cuts a film patch
198
(
FIG. 4
) from the section of the film
134
held on the perforated cylinder
152
by the vacuum section
155
. As a leading edge of the film patch
198
moves under the shaft
153
, a blank
197
with a pattern glue
195
around an opening
196
is accordingly positioned under the perforated cylinder
152
in a synchronized manner so that the leading edge of the film patch
198
presses against the leading edge of the patterned glue
195
. The blow-off portion
154
of the shaft
153
drives the film patch
198
from the perforated cylinder
152
in synchronization with pressing the film patch
198
against the pattern glue
195
on the blank
197
. A blank
199
to which a film patch
198
has been attached accordingly exits the film applicator
130
and is transported by the third configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
d
(
FIG. 3
) to the pre-fold section
140
a
(FIG.
1
).
FIG. 5
is a side elevation view of the film attaching unit
102
shown in
FIGS. 3 and 4
from an opposite side such that the processing path P goes from left-to-right. In this configuration, the first configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
b
is in the lowered or bypass position in which it carries a blank past the synchronized carrier
180
. Additionally, the pattern glue applicator
120
and the film applicator
130
are in raised positions in which they cannot apply a pattern of glue or a film patch to a blank. In one embodiment of the bypass configuration or the pattern glue only configuration, the transport system
106
can also include a non-synchronized bearing unit
170
between
160
c
and
160
d
. The non-synchronized bearing unit
170
has a plurality of bearing
172
. In operation the non-synchronized bearing unit
170
is lowered and the film applicator
130
is raised when the film application unit
120
does not attach a film patch to the blank. The non-synchronized bearing unit
170
is raised and the film applicator
130
is lowered to apply a film patch to the blank.
FIG. 5
accordingly illustrates a configuration of the film attaching unit
102
in which the non-synchronized carriers
160
a-c
pass a blank through the film attaching unit
102
without either applying a glue pattern to the blank or attaching a film patch to the blank.
Referring to
FIGS. 3 and 5
, the film attaching unit
102
can accordingly be configured into (a) a bypass configuration, (b) a pattern glue configuration, and/or (c) a film application configuration.
FIG. 5
illustrates the transport system
106
with the non-synchronized carriers
160
a-c
, the synchronized carrier
180
, the pattern glue applicator
120
, and the film applicator
130
positioned to allow the blank to bypass the pattern glue applicator
120
and the film applicator
130
. This configuration is typically used in applications that do not apply a pattern of glue or a film patch to a container, such as containers that do not include windows. Referring to
FIG. 3
, the first configurable non-synchronized carrier
160
b
is raised so that a blank is controlled by the synchronized carrier
180
to synchronize the blank with the pattern glue applicator
120
. In this configuration, the pattern glue applicator
120
can apply a pattern of glue to the blank and the film applicator
130
can apply a film patch to the pattern of glue, or the pattern glue applicator
120
can apply a pattern of glue to the blank and the film applicator
130
can be in a raised position (not shown in
FIG. 3
) so that a film patch is not applied to the pattern of glue.
One advantage of the embodiment of the film attaching unit
102
shown in
FIGS. 3-5
is that the transport system
106
can be configured to allow the integrated apparatus
100
to form either (a) a container with a film patch, (b) a container with a particular glue pattern that cannot be achieved with glue guns in the fold/glue unit
104
, or (c) a container without a film patch. The integrated apparatus
100
, therefore, is not limited to producing only containers that have transparent films, but it can also be used to produce other types of containers without transparent film patches. As a result, the integrated apparatus
100
provides a flexible machine that can be selectively configured to produce virtually any type of container, with or without film patches, in single-run processing.
From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the pattern glue unit
102
can be a different type of mechanism that is capable of being synchronized with the blanks and depositing a pattern of glue. The synchronized carrier
180
can also be a different mechanism, or it can even be eliminated by substituting an optical timing system to activate and synchronize the pattern glue applicator
120
with the blank. Other embodiments can also have different types of fold/glue units with different configurations of sections. Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. An integrated apparatus for forming folded containers, comprising:a film attaching unit having a pattern glue applicator for applying a pattern of glue to a blank and a film applicator operatively coupled to the pattern glue applicator to apply a film to the blank; a fold/glue unit configured to receive the blank directly from the film attaching unit, the fold/glue unit having a plurality of fold-members for folding portions of the blank and at least one glue gun for applying glue to portions of the blank; a blank transport system having a synchronized carrier to transport the blank through a portion of the film attaching unit and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers to transport the blank through the film attaching unit and/or the fold/glue unit without removing the blank from the transport system; wherein the pattern glue applicator comprises a glue reservoir, a pick-up wheel positioned in a portion of the glue reservoir to pick up a layer of glue, and a pattern wheel having a pattern surface corresponding to a desired glue pattern, the pattern surface contacting the pick-up wheel to coat the pattern surface with glue; wherein the film applicator comprises a film carrier, a film applicator assembly having a vacuum section and a blow-off section, and a film cutter, wherein the film cutter cuts a section of the film on the film applicator assembly, the vacuum section of the film applicator assembly holds the cut section of the film until a leading edge of the film is pressed against the pattern glue on the blank, and the blow-off section detaches the cut section of film from the film applicator assembly; and wherein the transport system further comprises at least a first non-synchronized carrier in the film attaching unit aligned with the synchronized carrier, a second non-synchronized carrier downstream from the synchronized carrier and in the region of the pattern glue applicator, and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers downstream from the film applicator in the fold/glue unit, the first non-synchronized carrier and the synchronized carrier moving between a non-timed configuration in which the non-synchronized carrier moves the blank and a timed configuration in which the synchronized carrier moves the blank to the pattern glue machine.
- 2. An integrated apparatus for forming folded containers, comprising:a film attaching unit having a pattern glue applicator for applying a pattern of glue to a blank and a film applicator operatively coupled to the pattern glue applicator to apply a film to the blank; a fold/glue unit configured to receive the blank directly from the film attaching unit, the fold/glue unit having a plurality of fold-members for folding portions of the blank and at least one glue gun for applying glue to portions of the blank; a blank transport system having a synchronized carrier to transport the blank through a portion of the film attaching unit and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers to transport the blank through the film attaching unit and/or the fold/glue unit without removing the blank from the transport system; at least a first non-synchronized carrier in the film attaching unit generally aligned with the synchronized carrier, the first non-synchronized carrier being a belt-carrier movable between a bypass position in which the first non-synchronized carrier transports the blank past the synchronized carrier without synchronizing the blank with the pattern glue applicator; a second non-synchronized carrier downstream from the synchronized carrier and in the region of the pattern glue applicator, the second non-synchronized carrier receiving the blank from either (a) the synchronized carrier for applying a pattern glue onto the blank or (b) the first non-synchronized carrier for passing the blank through the pattern glue applicator without applying a pattern of glue to the blank; and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers downstream from the film applicator in the fold/glue unit.
- 3. An integrated apparatus for forming folded containers, comprising:a film attaching unit having a pattern glue applicator for applying a pattern of glue to a blank and a film applicator operatively coupled to the pattern glue applicator to apply a film to the blank; a fold/glue unit configured to receive the blank directly from the film attaching unit, the fold/glue unit having a plurality of fold-members for folding portions of the blank and at least one glue gun for applying glue to portions of the blank; a blank transport system having a synchronized carrier to transport the blank through a portion of the film attaching unit and a plurality of non-synchronized carriers to transport the blank through the film attaching unit and/or the fold/glue unit without removing the blank from the transport system; a single feeder upstream from the film attaching unit, the single feeder providing blanks to the film attaching unit that are subsequently transported by the transport system to the fold/glue unit; and a first set of belt carriers including a feed belt carrier immediately downstream from the feeder and a first configurable belt carrier, the feed belt carrier and the first configurable belt carrier being over the synchronized carrier, and the first configurable belt carrier being moveable into (a) a bypass position to carry a blank past the synchronized carrier for bypassing the pattern glue applicator and the film applicator and (b) a synchronized position to feed the blank to the synchronized carrier for processing the blank through the pattern glue applicator and/or the film applicator.
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