Patent Application
20120053040
A dunnage system for processing material into dunnage is herein described.
Products to be transported and/or stored often are packed within a box or other container. In many instances, however, the shape of the product does not match the shape of the container. Most containers utilized for transporting products have the general shape of a square or rectangular box and, of course, products can be any shape or size. To fit a product within a container and to safely transport and/or store the product without damage to the product, the void space within the container is typically filled with a packing or cushioning material.
The protective-packing material utilized to fill void space within a container is often a lightweight, air-filled material that may act as a pillow or cushion to protect the product within the container. Many types of protective packaging have been used. These include, for example, foam products, inflatable pillows, and paper dunnage.
In the context of paper-based protective packaging, rolls of paper sheet are crumpled to produce the dunnage. Most commonly, this type of dunnage is created by running a generally continuous strip of paper into a machine and then cutting the crumpled sheet material into a desired length to effectively fill void space within a container holding a product. A dunnage conversion machine thus converts a compact supply of stock material, such as a roll or stack of paper, into a lower density dunnage material as the dunnage material is needed by the packer. Exampled of cushioning product machined that feed a paper sheet from an innermost location of a roll are described in U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2008/0076653 and 2008/0261794.
In a preferred embodiment, a dunnage system for converting sheet material can include a converting station, which has a drum having a drum surface first and second axial sides. Guides can be provided protruding adjacent the drum surface on the first and second axial sides associated with the drum to rotate with the drum surface, and configured for guiding the sheet supply material onto the drum surface. A driving mechanism can be associated with the drum for rotating the drum. A roller may be provided biased against the drum, such as by a magnetic retaining mechanism, between the guides to grip the sheet material against the drum for pulling and converting the sheet material to provide dunnage material.
The diameter of the drum can be greater than a diameter of the roller, and the guides can have a height above the drum surface of at least a tenth of the drum diameter. Preferably, the guide heights are at least about the radius of the roller and are convexly dished with respect to the drum surface.
An embodiment has a supply station configured for positioning a supply roll of the sheet material with respect to the converting station such that the sheet material is fed to the converting station coiled from inside the roll. The supply station is preferably positioned and configured to feed the coiled sheet material upwards to the converting station. The drum and roller can be configured for flattening and pulling the coiled supply material to provide the dunnage material. Additionally, the supply station can have a gripping member configured for engaging and gripping the outside of the supply roll for retaining the supply roll as the sheet material becomes depleted. In an embodiment, the gripping member includes a barb configured to engage the outer surface of the supply roll, such that the outer surface can be pulled away from the barb when the roll is empty. The barb can be flexible for automatically engaging the outer surface of the supply roll as the supply roll is positioned in the supply station. The supply roll can be enclosed in an outer wrapping, with the gripping member configured for engaging the outer wrapping.
The supply station can be provided with a supply base configured for supporting the supply roll and for allowing the supply roll to rotate axially as the sheet material is pulled therefrom. The supply base can be substantially freely rotatable to rotate with the supply roll, and a supply brake can be associated with the supply base for applying a resistance to the rotation of the supply roll for controlling the unwinding of the coiled sheet material.
A cutting station can be provided downstream of converting station and can include a pivotable blade configured to swivel as it cuts through the dunnage material. A blade actuator can be provided for actuating the blade for cutting the dunnage material, preferably with the blade is resiliently biased on towards an initial pivotal position.
The dunnage system provided herein may be used to process sheet material, such as a roll of paper, into dunnage. Commonly, the unprocessed material type may be pulp based virgin and recycled papers, newsprint, cellulose and starch compositions, and poly or synthetic material, of suitable thickness, weight, and dimensions
Referring to
One or more gripping members 34 can be provided to positively hold the supply roll 22 to the base 30. In one embodiment, the gripping members 34 comprise barbs, for example that are directed towards the roll to grip the outer surface thereof, so that the supply roll 22 can be held as the sheet material is depleted therefrom. Alternative gripping members include high-friction or traction surfaces, for instance. In one embodiment, the supply roll 22 is provided on the base 30 in a naked or unwrapped state. In a more preferred embodiment, the supply roll 22 is provided with an outer wrapping, such as a plastic shrink-wrap 39 or other packaging extending around the roll 22, and preferably closely fitting about the roll, containing the roll, keeping it wound, and facilitating transportation thereof. The shrink wrap 39 can have an opening 41 on an axial end to allow the sheeting material, such as paper, from the supply roll 22 to be removed from the center thereof. A second opening 41 can be provided at the opposite axial end of the supply roll 22 so that the roll can be positioned with either end facing the converting stage 14.
The preferred barbs 34 in this embodiment extend inwardly towards the roll-receiving space 37 in the base 30 in which the supply roll is received, and can be flexible to automatically engage the supply roll 22 and grip it onto the base 30 when the supply roll 2 is placed on the base 30 or inserted into the roll-receiving space 37. The barbs can be sharp to at least partially penetrate the outer surface of the supply roll 22. The angle and flexibility of the barbs can be selected o facilitate this capture of the supply roll 22 and its retention. Preferably, the barbs are configured to capture and retain the shrink wrap 39 or other packaging, while allowing the paper of the supply roll 22, including outermost paper layer on the supply roll 22, to be pulled out therefrom, such as linearly, by the converting mechanism 14. After the paper from the supply roll 22 is emptied, the empty shrink wrap 39 can easily be removed from the barbs 34 and the base 30. Alternative embodiments can have barbs or other gripping members that are selectively engageable and disengageable, and/or that can grip one or more paper layers on the supply roll 22 itself.
Referring to
The converting station 14, shown particularly in
During the pulling of the coil 44 between the drum 50 and roller 52, the roller The converting station includes an infeed end, an outfeed end, and a feed path generally extending from the infeed to the outfeed. The drum 50 and roller 52 together help define the feed path. The drum 50 and roller 52 are preferably configured and associated with each other to also flatten the coil to provide a flattened tube of paper dunnage-material at the output side of the device. When removed from the system 10, such flattened tube can be rolled over itself, such as about an axis generally parallel to the tube's lateral axis, and coiled to provide 3-dimensional dunnage to fill voids in a package to provide protective packaging for an item that is to be shipped within a box or other container.
The large drum 50 can be driven, for example, by motor 16 or another motive device. In alternative embodiments, the roller 52 is driven in addition to or instead of the drum 50, although in the preferred embodiment it is unpowered and free to roll due to its engagement against the drum 50. In the embodiment shown, the motor 16 drives the large drum 50 using belt 54.
The roller 52 can be associated with the large drum in any suitable manner including, biased thereagainst by gravity or a spring. In the preferred embodiment, the roller 52 is held in place against the drum 50 by a magnetic retaining mechanism. The magnetic retaining mechanism can include, for example, a first magnetic member 53 mounted with the roller, such as a magnet or ferrous member mounted to a support arm 55 that pivots or otherwise moves to place the roller 52 against the drum 55 and allow it to be pushed away therefrom, and a second magnetic member 57 mounted to the frame 20. The first magnetic member 53 is magnetically coupled, such as by magnetic attraction, to the second magnetic member 57 sufficiently to require a predetermined force tending to separate the roller 52 from the drum 50 to overcome the magnetic coupling. This can occur, for example, if a paper jam occurs between the roller 52 and the drum 50. Once the magnetic coupling is overcome, the bias of the roller 52 towards the drum 50 is decreased or eliminated, facilitating removal of the jam or simply opening the device for servicing.
The diameter 94 of the drum 50 is preferably greater than the diameter 96 of the roller 52. In some embodiments, the axial width 92 of the drum 50 is greater than the width 98 of the roller 52, preferably the roller 52 width is between ¼, ⅓, or ½ and about the width 92 of the drum 50, although smaller or larger sizes can be used. In some embodiments, the roller 52 may have an approximately 2 inch diameter 96 and an approximately 2 inch width 98. In some embodiments, the drum 50 may have an approximately 4-5 inch diameter 94 and an approximately 4 inch width 92. Spaces 60 can be provided on opposite sides of the roller 52 to accommodate the lateral edges of the coil 44 being pulled through the converting stage 14. The drum 50 and/or the roller 52 may be provided with a smooth outer surface or other textures or shapes depending on the material to be gripped, and can have ridges, as shown for the roller 52.
The large drum 50 is preferably provided with one or two guides 56 on each axial side of the drum 50 for guiding the sheet material towards the center of the drum. The guides 56 can be rotationally fixed to the drum 50, and can extend therefrom as flanges, and preferably rotate with the drum 50. In some embodiments, the guides 56 can have dished sides, such as convex when viewed from the surface of the drum 50 that engages the coil 44 in the converting stage 14. In some embodiments, the guides 56 may have a bowl structure. In other embodiments, the guides 56 can have other shapes, such as having a conical structure or being primarily planar flanges, optionally with bent or curved outer edges. Generally, walls of the guides 56 may be provided at an angle to the drum 50 such that the guides extend from the drum at more than 90° but less than 180° from the drum 50. In some embodiments, the angle of the guide 56 starts at the drum 50. In other embodiments, the guides include a planar, or straight-sided conical portion extending from the drum, and preferably transitioning into a shallower angle or a curved surface. The radial height 90 of the guides 56 above the drum surface is preferably between about 1/10 of the width 92 of the drum 50 to about ½, one time, or twice the width 92 of the drum 50, and the diameter 100 of the guides 56 are preferably between 1/10 and 3 times the diameter 94 of the drum, and preferably about 1.5 to 2.5 time the diameter 94. The guides are preferably generally axially symmetrical to continue to guide and direct the coiled tube 44 onto the drum 50 as the drum rotates. Preferably, the guides 56 are at least a third of, more preferably at least a half of, and most preferably taller than the roller 52.
The drums may be formed of any suitable material. In some embodiments, the drums may be provided in a combination of selective surfaces ranging from hard to soft and smooth to rough. In some embodiments, the drums comprise a medium to hard durometer elastomeric and metallic and/or plastic mating drums.
Preferably, one side 76 is higher than the other 78 to start contacting the tube 44 on one side thereof. The blade 72 is biased as it cuts by the tube 44 to cause the blade to rotate around its pivot 73, and this rotation of the blade can assist in cutting through the tube as it adds a rotational and/or a horizontal (generally parallel to the flat sides of the tube 44) component of motion of the blade. This motion can decrease the force to cut through the tube 44 and can provide a sliding contact between the serrations and tube 44 due to the rotation and/or horizontal movement.
The blade 72 can be operably coupled to an actuator 80 to push the blade against and through the tube 44, although in other embodiments, the tube 44 may be pulled against the blade 72 by its end, or the side of the tube 44 can be pushed thereagainst by another member disposed on an opposite side of the tube 44 from the blade 72. The actuator 80 can act, for example, directly on the pivot 73, and can include a motor, a linear actuator, or another suitable powered device. Alternatively, the blade 72 may be operated manually. Springs 82 return the blade 72 to its original position. Some embodiments do not include a cutting mechanism.
One having ordinary skill in the art should appreciate that there are numerous types and sizes of dunnage for which there can be a need or desire to accumulate or discharge according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
As used herein, the terms “top,” “bottom,” and/or other terms indicative of direction are used herein for convenience and to depict relational positions and/or directions between the parts of the embodiments. It will be appreciated that certain embodiments, or portions thereof, can also be oriented in other positions. In addition, the term “about” should generally be understood to refer to both the corresponding number and a range of numbers. In addition, all numerical ranges herein should be understood to include each whole integer within the range.
While illustrative embodiments of the invention are disclosed herein, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and other embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art. For example, the features for the various embodiments can be used in other embodiments. Therefore, it will be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications and embodiments that come within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
