The present invention relates to a machine for the continuous manufacture of tubular box bodies, notably based on cardboard or the like, this machine comprising at least one longitudinal forming mandrel whose cross-section corresponds to the internal cross-section of the tubular bodies of the boxes to be manufactured and around which at least one longitudinally unwound and previously at least partly glue-coated strip of material is applied and folded in order to form a closed tubular profile, this machine comprising moreover pressing means arranged for rolling said at least one strip of material against said forming mandrel, and traction means arranged for moving continuously said tubular profile along said forming mandrel.
Such a machine is in particular described in publication FR 2 702 414 whose manufacturing process provides to fold the side flaps of every strip of material in an at least partly dissymmetrical way on the forming mandrel so that the folding of a first flap of a material strip is completed prior to the folding of the second flap of this strip of material, this folding being completed prior to that of a first flap of a subsequent strip of material. This manufacturing process allows producing tubular box bodies with very high quality, avoiding the buckling phenomena between the strips of material and ensuring an accurate geometry of the longitudinal joints in order to guarantee the required resistance of the tube wall in the area(s) where these joints are located.
In this type of machine, guiding and folding the strips of material on the forming mandrel are ensured by fixed guides, for example out of sheet metal. Then, the rolling of these strips of material around the forming mandrel to ensure their intimate bonding by gluing, as well as the longitudinal movement of the tubular profile formed by said strips of material, are ensured by traction belts driven and applied under pressure against said forming mandrel by rigid motorized press rollers, these traction belts being distributed radially around said forming mandrel.
The disadvantage of this type of design lies in the numerous operations required when starting the machine to introduce the strips of material between the fixed guides, then between the traction belts, to position properly the strips of material with respect to each other and around the forming mandrel, to adjust the position of said fixed guides, as well as the pressure of said press rollers and the tension of said traction belts. All these operations are difficult to carry out, require several operators simultaneously and generate substantial raw material scraps until achieving the optimum setting. Moreover, the use of fixed guides generates a high linear tension due to the friction between the continuously moving strips of material and the static guides, which must be compensated by efficient traction means. On the other hand, the use of traction belts combined with press rollers has the disadvantage of providing a relatively large rolling surface that is detrimental to the local pressure exerted on the strips of material and does not allow achieving a uniform pressure in all points of the periphery of said tube, nor to adapt to the thickness variations of the material strips, which are mostly made of cardboard. The cost of such a machine, its dimensions, the complexity of the work for changing the format of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured and ensuring the maintenance of such machine and the replacement of the wear parts compound these disadvantages.
The present invention aims to overcome these disadvantages by offering a machine for the manufacture of tubular box bodies with a simpler design, representing a lower investment, with reduced dimensions, facilitating maintenance work, allowing a quick change of the format of the boxes to be manufactured, allowing automated and therefore faster start-up, with less raw material scrap, achieving better rolling of the strips of material against each other, which allows improving substantially the quality and mechanical strength of the produced box bodies, reducing or even suppressing the frictions and linear tensions and therefore allowing limiting the power of the traction means. Another scope of the invention consists in producing box bodies ensuring optimum tightness for the packagings requiring this feature.
To that purpose, the invention relates to a machine of the kind described in the preamble, characterized in that said pressing means and said traction means are distinct and in that said pressing means comprise a plurality of press rollers mounted free in rotation about their axis, said press rollers being deformable and radially distributed around said forming mandrel so as to fit the periphery of said mandrel.
The press rollers are preferably distributed symmetrically around said forming mandrel, each covering a sector of said mandrel, and are offset longitudinally in order to cover the whole periphery of said mandrel.
Advantageously, every press roller comprises a lining made out of an elastic material and having a profile complementary to that of the sector of the forming mandrel against which the corresponding press roller is applied.
The elastic lining of said press rollers can comprise internal recesses arranged to increase its elasticity. The elastic material of said lining can in addition be chosen in the group including the natural rubbers and the polyurethane-based synthetic rubbers.
In a preferred embodiment, each press roller is carried by a support whose radial position can be adjustable with respect to said forming mandrel and is coupled with a pressurizing element carried by said support.
The machine according to the invention can moreover comprise a longitudinal centering mandrel arranged upstream of said forming mandrel and having a polygonal cross-section whose development is smaller that the development of the internal cross-section of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured, said centering mandrel being arranged to guide said strips of material longitudinally and transversally without slipping.
It can also comprise a temporary longitudinal mandrel arranged downstream of said centering mandrel and upstream of said forming mandrel and having a water drop-shaped cross-section whose development corresponds to the development of the internal cross-section of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured.
In this case, it preferably comprises a welding station adjacent to said temporary mandrel to weld the longitudinal edges of at least one strip of material forming the internal layer of said tubular box bodies.
It finally can comprise a series of press rollers aligned on a longitudinal sector of said forming mandrel corresponding to an area where the longitudinal edges of said at least one strip of material meet to close said tubular profile by means of at least one longitudinal joint.
The traction means can comprise at least one traction belt carried by drive rollers and arranged downstream of said pressing means, and preferably at least two traction belts arranged symmetrically with respect to said forming mandrel.
Said machine can moreover comprise at least one gluing nozzle arranged to add glue on at least some of the longitudinal edges of said strips of material.
The present invention and its advantages will be better revealed in the following description of an embodiment given as a non limiting example, in reference to the drawings in appendix, in which:
The machine 1 according to the invention is partially illustrated in the attached figures in order to show only the parts concerned by the present invention, without frame and enclosure, to facilitate understanding. This machine allows manufacturing tubular box bodies, notably based on cardboard or the like, for example for packaging food products or the like, by longitudinally unwinding one or several strips of material 2 wound in coils, said strips being coated with glue, superimposed to form a web and slightly offset laterally with respect to each other before being applied on a longitudinal forming mandrel 3 on which they are folded, pressed and rolled to form a tubular profile 4 closed by one or several offset longitudinal joints 5. This tubular profile 4 is then cut to the required length to form said tubular box bodies. The longitudinal joint 5 is achieved by gluing the superimposed longitudinal edges 6 of every strip of material 2, the longitudinal edges of every material strip being preferably offset laterally so that the longitudinal joints of said strips of material overlap, in order not to weaken the wall of the tubular box bodies in this junction area. If the tubular box bodies are made from one single strip of material, then this strip is made of a complex or composite material, that is to say made of several layers of materials that may be different or not, depending on the physical properties required for the tubular box bodies.
The machine 1 partially represented in the attached figures comprises a longitudinal forming mandrel 3 having a circular cross-section that corresponds to the internal cross-section of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured, which are consequently cylindrical. Of course, this machine 1 allows manufacturing tubular box bodies with any cross-section, such as polygonal, ovoid, or others.
The machine 1 according to the invention differs from the known machines by the fact that the “rolling” function of the strips of material on forming mandrel 3 and the “traction” function of the tubular profile formed by said strips of material are dissociated and performed by totally distinct traction means 10 and pressing means 20.
The traction means 10 visible on
Pressing means 20 comprise a plurality of deformable press rollers 21 mounted free in rotation about their axis and radially and longitudinally distributed around forming mandrel 3 so as to fit perfectly the whole periphery of this forming mandrel 3 to ensure uniform and powerful rolling of the web of strips of material 2 against forming mandrel 3 to further their cohesion and intimate bonding by gluing.
When press roller 21 is not pressed against forming mandrel 3, it defines a gap J between its lining 23, which is not constrained, and tubular profile 4 carried by forming mandrel 3 (see
Moreover, press roller 21 is mounted free in rotation about its axis and generates neither friction nor sliding on tubular profile 4. To reduce or even suppress the differential speeds in the end zones of press roller 21, the dimension of these press rollers 21 is reduced and their number is increased.
Shaft 22 of press roller 21 is mounted free in rotation about an axis 24 by means of ball bearings 25 or the like, while axis 24 is carried by a support 26. This support 26 comprises a plate 27 fastened on the frame (not represented) of machine 1 in order to be removable and radially adjustable with respect to forming mandrel 3, thus facilitating the maintenance and setting operations. This support 26 comprises a slide 28 guided in translation in plate 27 and carrying on its end said axis 24, which carries press roller 21. This slide 28 is moved in radial translation with respect to forming mandrel 3 by means of a linear actuator such as a jack (not represented) that allows pressing press roller 21 against forming mandrel 3 with a defined and adjustable pressure. This slide 28 comprises at least two guide columns 29 located symmetrically with respect to a central rod 30 prolongating the linear actuator, the two columns 29 and central rod 30 being arranged to slide in corresponding bores provided in plate 27. Of course, any other equivalent guiding and/or pressurizing means of press rollers 21 can be envisaged.
In the illustrated example, in particular in
A temporary longitudinal mandrel 41 arranged downstream of centering mandrel 40 and upstream of forming mandrel 3 can be provided when it is necessary to weld a barrier film forming an internal membrane or layer provided inside of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured in order to comply with tightness requirements. To facilitate this operation and guarantee an optimum welding quality, this temporary mandrel 41 has a water drop-shaped cross-section whose development corresponds to the development of the internal cross-section D of the tubular box bodies to be manufactured (
When leaving temporary mandrel 41 if it is used or in the continuity of centering mandrel 40, and upstream of forming mandrel 3, the web of strips of material 2 is bent laterally by a bending roller 43 that has a profile complementary to temporary half mandrel 41 or to centering mandrel 40 (
In the represented example, there are eight press rollers 21, 21′:
This description shows clearly that the invention allows reaching the goals defined. In particular, this new design allows sequencing the closing of the press rollers when starting the machine and therefore automatizing the start-up, generating substantial gains. Likewise, the format changes for the tubular box bodies to be manufactured are faster, as well as the maintenance operations. Moreover, the box bodies manufactured using this process have a better quality, both from the mechanical strength point of view and from the barrier features point of view.
The present invention is not restricted to the example of embodiment described, but extends to any modification and variant which is obvious to a person skilled in the art while remaining within the scope of the protection defined in the attached claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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13/53638 | Apr 2013 | FR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/FR2014/000082 | 4/9/2014 | WO | 00 |