The present invention relates to a machine and a method of manufacturing a pouch, and in particular to a machine and a method of manufacturing a two-compartment pouch.
Flexible pouches known as “stick packs” are elongated, rectangular pouches having a single side seal, bottom seal, and a top seal. Stick packs are formed on a vertical forming machine where the laminate material is pulled from a roll around a fill tube. Side edges of the laminate are then overlapped and sealed with a seal bar to form a tubular sleeve. Spaced a distance beneath the fill tube is a puller having a seal bar and die cut device. The seal bar forms a horizontal bottom seal across the sleeve. The puller then pulls the sleeve downwardly while the fill tube deposits material from a reservoir into the sleeve. When the puller has traveled the length of the stick pack, it stops and is moved upwardly to the start position where the seal bar places another horizontal seal in the sleeve to seal the contents in the sleeve. The die cutter then cuts through the seal so that a stick pack is formed and separated from the sleeve. The puller then repeats the process when the puller returns to the bottom.
A machine and a method for forming a two-compartment pouch having a lower compartment and an upper compartment is provided. The machine has a lower compartment fill tube and an upper compartment fill tube. The lower compartment fill tube is operable to fill a lower compartment and the upper compartment fill tube is operable to fill an upper compartment of the two-compartment pouch. The machine also includes a thin film drawer that is operable to pull or draw a thin film sheet. The thin film drawer draws the thin film over the lower compartment fill tube and the upper compartment fill tube such that side edges of the thin film sheet are aligned parallel and adjacent to each other.
A side seal bar is included and is operable to seal the pair of side edges to each other and thereby form a sleeve that extends around and downwardly from the lower compartment fill tube and the upper compartment fill tube.
A puller assembly can be included and has a lower seal bar with a die cutter and an upper seal bar that is spaced apart from the lower seal bar. The puller assembly is operable to move upwardly and downwardly in a vertical direction and thereby pull a sleeve of the thin film, and compartments formed from the sleeve, in a downward direction. The puller assembly can produce a bottom seal on the sleeve using the lower seal bar and in so doing initiates formation of a lower compartment for a two compartment pouch. The puller assembly then pulls the sleeve downwardly while the partially formed lower compartment is being filling by the lower compartment filler tube. Once a predetermined amount of product is filled into the lower compartment, the upper seal bar can produce an intermediate seal spaced apart from the bottom seal and thereby complete the lower compartment of the two-compartment pouch. In addition, the intermediate seal initiates formation of an upper compartment of the two-compartment pouch.
The puller assembly can move upwardly to a top position while the upper compartment fill tube is filling the partially formed upper compartment is being filled with the upper compartment filler tube. Once a predetermined amount of product is filled into the upper compartment, a top seal is produced on the sleeve using the lower seal bar and thereby complete the upper compartment of the two-compartment flexible pouch. At the same time, the lower seal bar also produces a bottom seal for the next two-compartment pouch to be manufactured. Finally, the die cutter makes a cut across or between the top seal and bottom seal and a completed two-compartment flexible pouch is separated from the sleeve while another two-compartment pouch is being manufactured in a similar manner.
The puller assembly can move upwardly and downwardly on a pair of vertical puller assembly support rods. In addition, the lower seal bar can be a pair of lower seal bars that move inwardly and outwardly with respect to each other and the sleeve. Likewise, the intermediate seal bar can be a pair of intermediate seal bars that move inwardly and outwardly with respect to each other and the sleeve. The pair of lower seal bars produce the top seal for a first two-compartment flexible pouch and the bottom seal for a second two-compartment flexible pouch and produces the top seal and the bottom seal at the same time. Stated differently, the top seal and the bottom seal can be a single seal that is between an upper compartment of the first two-compartment flexible pouch and a lower compartment of the second two-compartment flexible pouch. Furthermore, the die cutter can cut the single seal to remove the first two-compartment flexible pouch from the bottom seal of the sleeve which is in the process of being manufactured into the second two-compartment flexible pouch.
The process for manufacturing the two-compartment pouch includes providing the machine discussed above and providing a thin film sheet that has a pair of oppositely disposed side edges. The sheet is drawn over the lower compartment fill tube and the upper compartment fill tube using the thin film drawer and the pair of side edges are aligned parallel and adjacent to each other. The side seal bar seals the side edges together and thereby produces a sleeve of the thin film sheet. The sleeve of the thin film sheet extends in a downwardly direction and also surrounds at least a portion of the lower compartment fill tube and the upper compartment fill tube such that the tubes can provide products into the sleeve.
While the puller assembly is in a top position, a bottom seal is produced on the sleeve using the lower seal bar and the sleeve with the bottom seal is pulled downwardly with the puller assembly. In some instances, the lower compartment fill tube initiates filling of the bottom sealed sleeve with a first product while the puller assembly is pulling the sleeve with the bottom seal downwardly. After a desired amount of the first product is fed into the sleeve bounded by the bottom seal, an intermediate seal that is spaced apart from the bottom seal on the sleeve is produced using the upper seal bar. In this manner, the lower compartment of the two-compartment flexible pouch is formed between the bottom seal and the intermediate seal.
The puller assembly is then moved upwardly to a top position. In some instances, the upper compartment fill tube initiates filling of the sleeve above the intermediate seal with a second product while the puller assembly is moving upwardly to the top position. After a desired amount of the second product is filled into the sleeve above the intermediate seal, a top seal that is spaced apart from the intermediate seal on the sleeve is produced using the lower seal bar. In this manner, the upper compartment of the two-compartment flexible pouch is formed between the intermediate seal and the top seal. Finally, the two-compartment flexible pouch is cut or removed from the sleeve using the die cutter.
The intermediate seal can be a frangible seal so that when broken, the two products in the lower compartment and the upper compartment can be mixed together before opening the flexible pouch. In the alternative, the intermediate seal can be a permanent seal with perforations such that the two compartments can be detached and opened separately.
Described is a method and machine for forming a novel two-compartment pouch. The method includes the steps of drawing a film over a pair of fill tubes; sealing side edges of the film to form a sleeve; forming a bottom seal on the sleeve; pulling the sleeve downwardly; filling a bottom portion of the pouch using one of the fill tubes; forming a second seal over the filled bottom portion; filling an upper portion of the pouch using the other fill tube; and sealing the upper portion.
The machine is a flexible pouch manufacturing apparatus that has a pair of fill tubes. For example, the pair of fill tubes can include a lower compartment fill tube and an upper compartment fill tube. The machine also includes a film drawer that is operable to draw a thin film that has a pair of oppositely disposed side edges over the pair of fill tubes. The film drawer is also operable to align the pair of side edges of the thin film such that they are parallel and adjacent to each other.
A side seal bar is included and is operable to seal the pair of side edges of the thin film to each other and thereby form a sleeve that extends around and downwardly from the pair of fill tubes. In this manner, thin film material or thin film sheet is taken from a roll of the material, unrolled, and formed into a sleeve that is then formed into a plurality of two-compartment pouches.
A puller assembly that has a lower seal bar with a die cutter and an upper seal bar spaced apart from the lower seal bar is also part of the machine. The puller assembly moves upwardly and downwardly in a vertical direction relative to the machine and the sleeve of the thin film. The puller assembly produces a bottom seal on the sleeve using the lower seal bar and then pulls the bottom sealed sleeve downwardly, e.g. while the lower compartment fill tube is filling the bottom sealed sleeve with a first product. The upper seal bar is then used to produce an intermediate seal that is spaced apart from the bottom seal and thereby produces a lower compartment of the two-compartment flexible pouch. The puller assembly then moves in an upwardly direction to a top position, e.g. while the upper compartment fill tube is filling the sleeve above the intermediate seal, i.e. the upper compartment. Once the upper compartment is filled to a desired level with the second product, a top seal is produced using the lower seal bar and thereby produces the upper compartment of the two-pouch flexible pouch. After the two compartments have been manufactured, the two-compartment flexible pouch is completed by cutting the top seal the sleeve above using the die cutter. The manufactured two-compartment flexible pouch can then be dropped or placed onto a conveyor belt for further processing such as printing thereon, weighing, indexing, packaging, and the like.
Turning now to
Turning now to
As shown in
The flexible sleeve formed by sealing the edges 103 to each other using the side seal bar is fed to a puller assembly 240 which can be mounted on a pair of support and/or guide rods 242. It is appreciated that the puller assembly 240 can move reciprocally upwardly and downwardly, e.g. using a pneumatic cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, a mechanical drive system, and the like.
The puller assembly 240 has a lower seal bar 244 which can be a pair of lower seal bars 244 (e.g. see
Before, during, and/or after filling of the sleeve above the bottom seal 120 with the product P, the puller assembly 240 pulls the sleeve in a downward direction to a bottom position as illustrated in
Also shown in
After the intermediate seal 140 has been completed or manufactured, the puller assembly 240 can move in an upwardly direction to a top position as illustrated in
Turning now to
Referring now to
Once the bottom seal is produced, the puller assembly pulls the sleeve material with the bottom seal in a downward direction and a filler tube fills the sleeve above the bottom seal, i.e. the lower compartment, with a first product at step 340. Upon completion of filling the lower compartment, an intermediate seal is produced at step 350. In addition, a die cutter that is part of the puller assembly can cut between the tops seal of the first two-compartment pouch and the bottom seal of the second two-compartment pouch either before, during or after the intermediate seal is produced.
After the intermediate seal is produced, the puller assembly moves in an upwardly direction to a top position at step 360. Upon completion of filling the upper compartment above the intermediate seal with a second product, the lower seal bar produces a top seal for the second two-compartment flexible pouch and a bottom seal for another two-compartment pouch to be manufactured at step 370. Thereafter, the cycle repeats and the filling tube 204 begins to provide the first product into a lower portion of the next two-compartment flexible pouch that is being manufactured.
The above examples, aspects, and embodiments described above are for illustrative purposes only and are not meant to and do not limit the scope of the instant disclosure. Changes, modifications, and the like will be apparent to those skilled in the art and yet fall within the scope of the instant disclosure. As such, it is the claims, and all equivalents thereof, which define the scope of the invention.
This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/053,976 filed on Sep. 23, 2014, which is incorporated in its entirety herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62053976 | Sep 2014 | US |