Patent Application
20060247113
The present invention relates generally to case formers, or carton folding and erecting apparatus, and more particularly to a new and improved case former, or carton folding and erecting apparatus, wherein a pair of pivotal support arms, upon each one of which is mounted a case or carton engagement roller, are mounted upon the machine framework such that when actuator mechanisms, for folding the oppositely disposed major side bottom flap members of the case or carton to their folded positions so as to complete the formation of the bottom portion of the case or carton, are actuated, the pair of pivotal support arms are effectively released from a restrained position, at which the case or carton engagement rollers are disposed at retracted positions with respect to the case or carton blank so as to initially permit the case or carton blank to be inserted into the case former, or carton folding and erecting apparatus, in an unobstructed manner, whereby the case or carton engagement rollers can now engage the major side walls of the case or carton so as to retain the case or carton in position while the case or carton is subsequently filled with product. Upon completion of the case or carton filling process, the case or carton can be discharged from the machine so as to be conducted into a case sealer machine.
Case or carton forming or erecting machines exist wherein an operator initially manually expands a flattened carton blank into an open or expanded carton blank such that the open or expanded carton blank comprises two oppositely disposed minor end walls and two oppositely disposed major side walls, and wherein further, a pair of oppositely disposed minor end wall top flaps and a pair of oppositely disposed major side wall top flaps extend vertically upwardly, while a pair of oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps and a pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps extend vertically downwardly. Subsequently, the operator inserts the opened or expanded carton blank into the case or carton former or erector, and as the opened or expanded carton blank is lowered into the case or carton forming or erecting machine, switch mechanisms are activated such that when the opened or expanded carton blank is fully inserted into the case or carton forming or erecting machine, a bottom flap folding sequence is initiated whereby, for example, the pair of oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps are first folded upwardly and inwardly, by means of a first pair of oppositely disposed actuators, so as to partially form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, and subsequently, the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps are folded upwardly and inwardly, by means of a second pair of oppositely disposed actuators, so as to effectively complete the formation of the bottom wall portion of the case or carton.
It is noted, however, that the pair of oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and the pair of oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps exhibit a predetermined amount of resiliency or memory which tends to want to cause such oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps and such oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps to return to their previously opened or expanded states or positions at which the oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps will once again extend vertically downwardly, as opposed to remaining in their currently folded states or positions at which the pair of oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps and the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton. However, since the oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps are disposed in contact with the first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators, the oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps cannot actually pivot downwardly and outwardly so as to return to their original opened or expanded positions. Accordingly, the resiliency or memory forces inherent within the oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps act upon the first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators and tend to cause the case or carton to move vertically upwardly against and away from the first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators, thereby undoing or reversing the previously achieved folding of the oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps, and the consequent formation of the case or carton bottom wall portion, unless the operator manually pushes downwardly upon the case or carton so as to effectively hold the same in contact with the underlying first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators. This is not actually practical, however, because once the case or carton has had its oppositely disposed folded minor end wall bottom flaps and its oppositely disposed folded major side wall bottom flaps folded upwardly and inwardly in order to form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, the case or carton is then ready to be filled with product, and in order to manipulate the product filling apparatus, the operator cannot maintain his downward force upon the case or carton. Therefore, for example, an additional operator is required to perform the filling of the case or carton with the designated product while the original operator maintains the case or carton in its original position upon the underlying first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators.
A solution to the aforenoted problem has been previously developed whereby a pair of oppositely disposed engagement rollers are fixedly disposed upon opposite interior side portions of the case or carton forming or erecting machine such that when the opened or expanded case or carton blank is initially inserted into the machine, the exterior surface portions of the oppositely disposed major side walls of the case or carton blank will engage the fixed engagement rollers with a predetermined amount of contact force or friction. Accordingly, it can be readily envisioned that when the oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps are folded upwardly and inwardly so as to form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, the aforenoted predetermined contact force or friction, developed or generated between the exteri- or surface portions of the oppositely disposed major side walls of the case or carton and the fixed engagement rollers, will in fact restrain the case or carton against undergoing any upward or vertical movement so as to maintain the case or carton at its position upon the first and second pairs of oppositely disposed actuators whereby the product filling operation can then commence.
The problem with this system, however, is that the fixedly mounted engagement rollers must be disposed at a predetermined distance from or relative to each other which is less than the width of the opened or expanded case or carton blank such that the aforenoted degree of contact force or friction, developed or generated between the exterior surface portions of the oppositely disposed major side walls of the case or carton and the fixed engagement rollers, will be sufficient so as to in fact be capable of restraining the case or carton against undergoing any upward or vertical movement. This relative disposition of the fixed engagement rollers, however, has rendered the insertion of the opened or expanded case or carton, into the case or carton forming or erecting machine, quite difficult and tedious leading to decreased production and increased operator fatigue.
A need therefore exists in the art for a new and improved case or carton forming or erecting machine which can in fact easily accommodate the insertion of the opened or expanded case or carton blank into the case or carton forming machine, and which can likewise additionally automatically retain the opened or expanded case or carton at its position, at which the oppositely disposed minor end bottom flaps and the oppositely disposed major side bottom flaps have been folded upwardly and inwardly, without any forces being required to be impressed upon the opened or expanded case or carton by operator personnel.
The foregoing and other objectives are achieved in accordance with the teachings and principles of the present invention through the provision of a new and improved case or carton forming or erecting machine which comprises a first pair of oppositely disposed actuators for folding the pair of oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flaps upwardly and inwardly so as to partially form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, and a second pair of oppositely disposed actuators for folding the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps upwardly and inwardly so as to complete the formation of the bottom wall portion of the case or carton. A pair of oppositely disposed engagement rollers are respectively mounted upon first end portions of a pair of oppositely disposed support arms which are pivotally mounted upon oppositely disposed upper framework members which partially form oppositely disposed sides of the case or carton forming or erecting machine. Spring biasing means are respectively operatively associated with first end portions of the support arms so as to normally bias the engagement rollers to their extended positions at which they can engage the oppositely disposed side walls of the case or carton, and a bumper member is disposed upon second end portions of the support arms, wherein further, the support arms are pivotally mounted at substantially central portions thereof.
Piston-cylinder assemblies are used to pivotally move the second pair of oppositely disposed actuators, for folding the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps, between first retracted positions, at which the second pair of oppositely disposed actuators do not engage and fold the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps, and second extended positions at which the second pair of oppositely disposed actuators do engage and fold the pair of oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flaps upwardly and inwardly so as to complete the formation of the bottom wall portion of the case or carton. When the second pair of oppositely disposed actuators are disposed at their first retracted positions, the piston-cylinder assemblies contact the bumper members of the engagement roller support arms so as to cause the support arms to be pivoted against the biasing forces of the spring means whereby the engagement rollers will be disposed at retracted positions so as to permit the opened or expanded case or carton blank to be inserted into the case or carton forming machine. Conversely, when the second pair of oppositely disposed actuators are disposed at their second ex-tended positions, the piston-cylinder assemblies will be removed from contact with the bumper members of the engagement roller support arms so as to permit the spring biasing means of the roller support arms to cause the support arms to be pivoted whereby the engagement rollers will be biased into engagement with the exterior surface portions of the oppositely disposed major side wall portions of the opened or expanded case or carton so as to fixedly retain the case or carton at its position within the case or carton forming or erecting machine in preparation for commencement of the product filling operation.
Various other features and attendant advantages of the present invention will be more fully appreciated from the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and wherein:
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to
In this manner, when the hand-crank mechanism 34 is rotated by means of an operator, the second transversely oriented threaded rod 32 is correspondingly rotated, and the rotary motion of the second transversely oriented threaded rod 32 is able to be transmitted to the first transversely oriented threaded rod 30 by means of the chain drive mechanism, not shown. It is noted that the opposite end portions of each one of the transversely oriented threaded rods 30,32, which are respectively disposed upon opposite sides of the central non-threaded portions 42,36 of the transversely oriented threaded rods 30,32, comprise oppositely oriented threads, and a pair of nut members, only one of which is visible in
More particularly, as can be further appreciated as a result of additional reference being made to
Continuing further, with reference to
A first pneumatically-powered minor end wall bottom flap member folding assembly 88 is fixedly mounted upon the lower transversely oriented cross-brace member 24 of the primary framework 12 for folding a first one of the minor end wall bottom flap members upwardly from its original vertically dependent position to a horizontal position at which it will partially form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, and in a similar manner, a second pneumatically-powered minor end wall bottom flap member folding assembly 90 is fixedly mounted upon the lower transversely oriented cross-brace member 28 of the primary framework 12 for folding a second one of the minor end wall bottom flap members upwardly from its vertically dependent position to a horizontal position at which it will cooperate with the first one of the minor end wall bottom flap members so as to partially form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton. It is also noted that a pneumatically actuated finger mechanism is operatively mounted upon each one of the platforms 82,86, although only the finger mechanism operatively disposed upon platform 86 is visible as at 92. These finger mechanisms 92 are adapted to be actuated, just prior to the actuation of the first and second minor end wall bottom flap member folding assemblies 88,90, so as to effectively move the oppositely disposed first and second major side wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank slightly outwardly from their normal vertically dependent positions so as to permit the first and second minor end wall bottom flap member folding assemblies 88,90 to in fact perform their folding operations, with respect to the oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flap members, whereby the oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flap members will be able to be moved upwardly and inwardly in an unobstructed manner.
With reference again being made primarily to
In a similar manner, a dependent mounting bracket 136 is adapted to be fixedly secured to the undersurface of the support plate 58, and one end of the support arm 122 is pivotally mounted upon the mounting bracket 136 through means of a third bearing member 138, while the opposite end of the support arm 122 is pivotally mounted upon the vertically oriented mounting plate 100 through means of a fourth bearing member 140. Roller mounting plates 142 are adjustably mounted upon the support arm 122 by means of suitable bolt and slot assemblies 144, and a longitudinal array of rollers 146 are rotatably mounted upon the roller mounting plates 142. It can therefore be appreciated that when the piston-cylinder assemblies 102,104 are actuated such that each one of the piston rods 110,112 are respectively disposed at their extended positions, as exemplified by means of the piston-cylinder assembly 102 as illustrated within
To the contrary, when the piston-cylinder assemblies 102,104 are actuated such that each one of the piston rods 110,112 are respectively disposed at their retracted positions, as exemplified by means of the piston-cylinder assembly 104 as illustrated within
Continuing further, and in accordance with another unique and novel feature of the present invention, it will be recalled that when the oppositely disposed arrays of rollers 134,146 are pivotally moved into contact with the first and second oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank so as to cause the first and second oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank to be moved upwardly and inwardly to their folded positions in order to cooperate with the previously folded first and second oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank so as to complete the formation of the bottom wall portion of the case or carton, it is desired to firmly contact or engage the oppositely disposed major side wall members of the case or carton so as to effectively fixedly secure the case or carton upon the arrays of rollers 134,146 in preparation for performing the product filling operation. Accordingly, it will be further appreciated that a pair of engagement rollers 148,150 are respectively mounted upon first end portions of a pair of roller support arms 152,154 by means of suitable bolt members, only one of which is visible at 158, and that the roller support arms 152,154 are respectively mounted, at substantially central regions thereof, beneath the support plates 56,58 by means of pivot pins 160,162 whereby the roller support arms 152,154 are pivotally movable with respect to the support plates 56,58 around vertically oriented axes defined by means of the pivot pins 160,162.
Continuing still further, and with reference still being made to
Conversely, when the piston rods 110,112 of the piston-cylinder assemblies 102,104 are moved toward their retracted positions, as illustrated within
It is lastly noted that in connection with the actual operation of the new and improved case or carton forming or erecting machine 10 of the present invention, that the various moving or actuating components of the case or carton forming or erecting machine 10, such as, for example, the first and second pneumatically-powered minor end wall bottom flap member folding assemblies 88,90, the first and second piston-cylinder assemblies 102,104 for controlling the first and second arrays of rollers 134,146 for folding the first and second major side wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank, and the first and second pneumatically-controlled finger mechanisms 92 for moving the first and second major side wall bottom flap members slightly outwardly prior to the actuation of the first and second pneumatically-powered minor end wall bottom flap member folding assemblies 88,90 such that the upward and inward folding of the first and second minor end wall bottom flap members will occur without encountering any interference, are under the control of a programmable logic controller (PLC) 170. It is additionally noted that, in order to commence a case or carton forming or erecting operation, a plunger switch mechanism 172 is mounted upon a plunger switch mounting block 174 which is secured to an undersurface portion of the support plate 58, and a roller actuator 176 is operatively connected to the plunger switch mechanism 172.
In this manner, when the case or carton blank is inserted downwardly into the interior of the case or carton forming or erecting machine 10, one of the major side wall bottom flap members of the case or carton blank will engage the roller actuator 176 so as to cause the same to move inwardly and thereby activate the plunger switch mechanism 172. The plunger switch mechanism 172 will transmit a control signal to the programmable logic controller (PLC) 170, and it will also be recalled that suitable limit switches, position switches, photodetectors, or the like, not shown, are operatively associated with each one of the platforms 82,86 so as to confirm the fact that the lower edge portions of the oppositely disposed, downwardly extending major side wall bottom flap members of the opened or expanded case or carton blank are in fact positioned or seated upon the platforms 82,86 in preparation for the commencement of a bottom flap member folding operation for forming the bottom wall portion of the case or carton. Accordingly, when such limit switches, position switches, photodetectors, or the like, not shown, likewise transmit their confirmation signals to the programmable logic controller (PLC) 170, the programmable logic controller (PLC) 170 will commence a folding operation for folding the oppositely disposed minor end wall bottom flap members, and the oppositely disposed major side wall bottom flap members, of the case or carton blank upwardly and inwardly so as to in fact form the bottom wall portion of the case or carton.
It will be recalled that when the arrays of rollers 134,146 have been moved to their extended positions as illustrated within
Thus, it may be seen that in accordance with the principles and teachings of the present invention, there has been disclosed a new and improved case former, or carton folding and erecting apparatus, wherein a pair of pivotal support arms, upon each one of which is mounted a case or carton engagement roller, are mounted upon the machine framework such that when actuator mechanisms, for folding the oppositely disposed major side bottom flap members of the case or carton to their folded positions so as to complete the formation of the bottom portion of the case or carton, are actuated, the pair of pivotal support arms are effectively released from a restrained position, at which the case or carton engagement rollers are disposed at retracted positions with respect to the case or carton blank so as to initially permit the case or carton blank to be inserted into the case former, or carton folding and erecting apparatus, in an unobstructed manner, whereby the case or carton engagement rollers can now engage the major side walls of the case or carton so as to retain the case or carton in position while the case or carton is subsequently filled with product. Upon completion of the case or carton filling process, the case or carton can be discharged from the machine so as to be conducted into a case sealer machine.
Obviously, many variations and modifications of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the present invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein.
