Patent Application
20190105865
This invention relates to packaging machines, and more particularly to an improved machine for converting spooled material into dunnage.
Dunnage is material used inside packages and containers to protect goods and their packaging from mechanical damage. Dunnage may include, inter alia, various foams, packaging peanuts, cloth, wood, or paper. Spooled materials including paper, foam, and plastic films are favorable materials for use as dunnage because they can be purchased in large quantities for relatively inexpensive cost, and many are lightweight for maintaining low shipping costs.
Spooled material can be converted into Dunnage by hand, for example, one might purchase a spool of paper, crumple said paper by hand, and use the paper to protect an item inside a package during shipment. One problem is that crumpling paper by hand is somewhat tedious, adding considerable labor costs to a company that ships large quantities of items. In addition, and perhaps more importantly, hand-crumbling is significantly more time consuming than automated dunnage, such as using a machine.
Industrial dunnage machines are well known and used in the art. The recent explosion of internet commerce (“e-commerce”) has created a need to safely package and ship large quantities of items quickly and efficiently.
This demand has led to a myriad of industrial machines to streamline the packing process. Everything from giant packaging peanut funnels, to completely automated packaging devices form a very crowded art of bulky or expensive industrial machines. However, there remains a need for a simple, efficient solution, to provide dunnage material both quickly and efficiently. These needs are addressed by the disclosure provided herein and directed to one having skill in the art for making and using machines for converting spooled material into dunnage.
The disclosure concerns a machine for converting spooled material into dunnage. The machine includes a head unit with a stand and a spool basket. The head unit of the machine further includes: a housing; a belt-driven dunnage roller system; and a spring mounted counter roller. The housing includes: an entrance; an exit; and a passage extending therethrough. Additionally, the head unit includes: an adjustable lateral entrance adjacent to a first side of the housing; a feeding tray adjacent to the adjustable lateral entrance; and a cutter adjacent to the exit of the housing.
The machine for converting spooled material into dunnage product is characterized in that the spooled dunnage material is configured to be routed from the spool over the feeding tray, and into the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing. When the dunnage material encounters the walls of the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing, the material will fold in on itself, thus crumpling the dunnage material laterally. Next, the dunnage material passes between the belt-driven dunnage roller and the spring-mounted counter roller, crumpling the dunnage material vertically. Finally, the dunnage roller drives the now converted dunnage product through the exit of the housing, thus allowing a user to extrude and cut a desired amount of dunnage product from the machine. In this regard, the machine provides additional freedom to configure the physical characteristics (size, shape, etc.) of the dunnage product as-produced by the machine.
For purposes of explanation and not limitation, details and descriptions of certain preferred embodiments are hereinafter provided such that one having ordinary skill in the art may be enabled to make and use the invention. These details and descriptions are representative only of certain preferred embodiments, however, a myriad of other embodiments which will not be expressly described will be readily understood by one having skill in the art upon a thorough review hereof. Accordingly, any reviewer of the instant disclosure should interpret the scope of the invention by the claims, and such scope is not intended to be limited by the embodiments described and illustrated herein.
In a general embodiment, a machine for converting spooled material into dunnage includes a head unit, a stand, and a spool basket. The head unit generally includes: a housing, a belt-driven dunnage roller system, and a spring-mounted counter roller. The housing includes: an entrance; an exit; and a passage extending therethrough. Additionally, the head unit includes: an adjustable lateral entrance adjacent to a first side of the housing, a feeding tray adjacent to the adjustable lateral entrance, and a cutter adjacent to the exit of the housing.
The machine for converting spooled material into dunnage product is characterized in that the spooled dunnage material is configured to be routed from the spool over the feeding tray, and into the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing. When the dunnage material encounters the walls of the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing, the material will fold in on itself, thus crumpling the dunnage material laterally. Next, the dunnage material passes between the belt-driven dunnage roller and the spring-mounted counter roller, crumpling the dunnage material vertically. Finally, the dunnage roller drives the now converted dunnage product through the exit of the housing, thus allowing a user to extrude and cut a desired amount of dunnage product from the machine.
Turning to the drawings,
In order to appreciate the workings of the head unit,
The head unit includes a housing formed by a plurality of plates. The plates may be formed to contour the components contained inside the housing, to provide a relatively low profile.
The housing formed has an entrance, an exit, and a passage extending therethrough. A side of the entrance on the outside of the housing may be referred to herein as the first side of the entrance, and the side of the entrance on the inside of the housing may be referred to herein as the second side of the entrance. Adjacent to the first side of the entrance, a plurality of tapered walls may be disposed, the tapered walls can extend outwardly forming an adjustable lateral entrance. The adjustable lateral entrance acts to funnel spooled material into the entrance as the material approaches the entrance of the housing.
The components inside the housing form a belt driven dunnage roller system. The belt driven dunnage roller system may include: a dunnage roller, a motor, and a tensioner rotationally connected by a belt. Additionally, each component can be mounted for independent rotation inside the housing. The dunnage roller extends into the passage of the housing, adjacent to the second side of the entrance, inside of the housing.
The dunnage roller includes a first roller configured with a channel extending around an outer surface (circumference) of the wheel. The channel is configured to receive the belt such that when the motor pulls the belt, the belt will pull the first roller. By placing the belt in the channel on the outer surface of the first roller as opposed to a gear adjacent to the first roller, the surface of the belt helps the wheel grip the dunnage material, and easily drive the spooled material through the machine.
Additionally, a spring-mounted counter roller, is disposed adjacent to the entrance of the housing and below the dunnage roller. The spring-mounted counter roller is configured to abut the surface of the dunnage roller and rotate in a direction opposite the dunnage roller. Because the spring mounted roller is biased to provide a force against the dunnage roller, it also helps the dunnage roller grip and pass the spooled material as the dunnage roller drives it through the machine.
A feeding tray is disposed adjacent to the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing. The feeding tray extends outwardly from the entrance of the housing and guides the material from the spool to the entrance of the housing. The feeding tray provides support to the spooled material, allowing it to enter the adjustable lateral entrance at a proper angle.
A cutter is disposed adjacent to the exit of the housing. This cutter allows a user to safely and efficiently cut the newly extruded dunnage product. The cutter may comprise a piece of metal with a jagged, serrated, or otherwise sharpened edge.
Optionally, a spool basket may be provided. The spool basket can be formed by a plurality of plates coupled together via a plurality of bars. The spool basket further includes a plurality of wheels rotationally mounted inside the basket such that a spool of dunnage material can be placed inside the basket and can rotate inside the basket atop the plurality of wheels.
The machine for converting spooled material into dunnage is characterized in that a user can route spooled material from the spool, over the feeding tray, and into the adjustable lateral entrance of the housing, wherein when the spooled material encounters the walls and posts of the adjustable lateral entrance, the spooled material will fold into itself, crumpling the spooled material laterally, and wherein when the spooled material passes between the belt-driven dunnage roller and the spring-mounted counter roller disposed adjacent to the entrance, the belt driven dunnage roller engages the dunnage material, crumpling the dunnage material vertically against the spring mounted counter roller, simultaneously forcing the material through the passage of the housing and out through the exit. Accordingly, the machine allows a user to extrude a desired amount of dunnage product from the exit of the housing, and enables the user to cut the dunnage product via the cutter disposed adjacent to the exit of the housing.
Now, the density of the extruded dunnage product can be varied by adjusting the width of the material as it enters the housing and contacts the dunnage roller. Accordingly, adjacent to the entrance of the dunnage roller, between the dunnage roller and the funneled entrance, a plurality of adjustable posts can be provided. By varying the distance between these adjustable posts, the user can set the density of the extruded dunnage product. For example, by increasing the distance between the adjustable posts, the density of the extruded dunnage product will decrease, thereby producing a relatively thin dunnage product. Conversely, by decreasing the distance between the adjustable posts, the density of the extruded dunnage material will increase, thereby producing a relatively thick, but compact dunnage product. This allows the user to control the density of the dunnage product extruded by the machine.
The spooled material may be any material used as dunnage in packaging and shipping, for example: paper, poster board, cardboard, cloth, plastic film, foam, or any other dunnage material.
In some embodiments, an adjustable lateral entrance, narrower than the paper itself, provides an ability to adjust the lateral width of the dunnage, thereby adjusting paper output crumple pattern.
This application claims benefit of priority with U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/570,948, filed Oct. 11, 2017; the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62570948 | Oct 2017 | US |
