Claims
- 1. A method of packaging a potted plant comprising the steps of:
providing a potted plant comprising a pot and a botanical item; applying a cover about the potted plant to form a covered potted plant; providing an automatic sleeving apparatus for automatically applying a sleeve to the covered potted plant; transferring the covered potted plant to the automatic sleeving apparatus; and applying a sleeve about the covered potted plant by automatically disposing the covered potted plant into the sleeve to form a sleeved covered potted plant.
- 2. The method of claim 1 comprising after the step of providing the potted plant the additional step of sorting the potted plant into one of at least two grades in accordance with a predetermined grading criterion.
- 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the step of sorting the potted plant occurs before the step of applying the cover.
- 4. The method of claim 2 wherein the step of sorting the potted plant occurs after the step of applying the cover.
- 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of applying the cover about the potted plant is preceded by transferring the potted plant to a cover applying station wherein the cover is applied about the potted plant.
- 6. The method of claim 1 wherein the cover is a preformed cover having an interior surface, an exterior surface, and an interior space adjacent and surrounded by the interior surface.
- 7. The method of claim 6 wherein in the step of applying the cover to the potted plant, the potted plant is automatically deposited into the interior space of the cover.
- 8. The method of claim 6 wherein in the step of applying the cover to the potted plant, the potted plant is manually deposited into the interior space of the cover.
- 9. The method of claim 6 wherein in the step of applying the cover, the cover is a preformed cover provided by an automatic cover supplying apparatus which retrieves the preformed cover from a set of preformed covers and places the preformed cover in an application position.
- 10. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of applying a cover is preceded by the step of providing a cover which has been formed by a mold type cover forming apparatus, wherein after the cover is formed, the cover is placed in an application position for application to the potted plant.
- 11. The method of claim 1 wherein in the step of applying the cover to the potted plant, the cover is applied about the potted plant by a cover forming apparatus which appresses a sheet of material about an external surface of the pot of the potted plant to form the cover.
- 12. The method of claim 11 wherein the cover forming apparatus comprises a plurality of pivoting members which act together to appress the sheet of material about the external surface of the pot of the potted plant.
- 13. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of applying a cover further comprises the additional step of bonding the cover about the potted plant via a bonding material, a tie, a band or a ribbon.
- 14. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of transferring the potted plant to the automatic sleeving apparatus comprises transferring the potted plant on an automatic conveying apparatus.
- 15. The method of claim 14 wherein the automatic conveying apparatus comprises a conveyor belt.
- 16. The method of claim 1 comprising the additional step of sealing an upper portion of the sleeve of the sleeved covered potted plant.
- 17. The method of claim 1 further comprising the additional step of providing a transfer apparatus for placing the sleeved covered plant into a carton.
- 18. The method of claim 17 wherein the transfer apparatus further comprises an automatic pushing apparatus.
- 19. The method of claim 17 wherein the transfer apparatus further comprises an automatic gripping apparatus.
- 20. A method of packaging a potted plant comprising the steps of:
providing a potted plant comprising a pot and a botanical item; applying a cover about the potted plant to form a covered potted plant; securing the cover to the potted plant via a bonding material; providing an automatic sleeving apparatus for automatically applying a sleeve to the covered potted plant; transferring the covered potted plant to the automatic sleeving apparatus; and applying a sleeve about the covered potted plant by automatically disposing the covered potted plant into the sleeve to form a sleeved covered potted plant.
- 21. The method of claim 20 wherein in the step of securing the cover about the potted plant, the bonding material is an adhesive or cohesive material, a tie, a band, a ribbon, a heat sealable material, a sonic sealable material, a vibratory sealable material, a label, a string, a tape, or a staple.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/378,768, filed Mar. 4, 2003, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/208,566, filed Jul. 29, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,546,700, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/909,374, filed Jul. 19, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,546,699, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/785,891, filed Feb. 16, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,461, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/393,041, filed Sep. 8, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,189,295, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/005,630, filed Jan. 9, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,500, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 08/720,961, filed Oct. 10, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,706,628, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 08/462,332 filed Jun. 5, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,605,029, which is a division of U.S. Ser. No. 08/417,477 filed Apr. 5, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,425, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 07/954,635, filed Sep. 30, 1992, now abandoned. Each of these applications is hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
08417477 |
Apr 1995 |
US |
Child |
08462332 |
Jun 1995 |
US |
Continuations (9)
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10378768 |
Mar 2003 |
US |
Child |
10685223 |
Oct 2003 |
US |
Parent |
10208566 |
Jul 2002 |
US |
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10378768 |
Mar 2003 |
US |
Parent |
09909374 |
Jul 2001 |
US |
Child |
10208566 |
Jul 2002 |
US |
Parent |
09785891 |
Feb 2001 |
US |
Child |
09909374 |
Jul 2001 |
US |
Parent |
09393041 |
Sep 1999 |
US |
Child |
09785891 |
Feb 2001 |
US |
Parent |
09005630 |
Jan 1998 |
US |
Child |
09393041 |
Sep 1999 |
US |
Parent |
08720961 |
Oct 1996 |
US |
Child |
09005630 |
Jan 1998 |
US |
Parent |
08462332 |
Jun 1995 |
US |
Child |
08720961 |
Oct 1996 |
US |
Parent |
07954635 |
Sep 1992 |
US |
Child |
08417477 |
Apr 1995 |
US |