This application is a national stage application of PCT/US2020/023113, filed on Mar. 17, 2020, which claims priority to and the benefit of German Patent Application No. 10 2019 107 702.8, filed Mar. 26, 2019, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure generally relates to methods for arranging an edge-protection device on a package in an apparatus for strapping packages, and apparatus for strapping packages.
Generic methods and apparatuses are well known from the prior art. For example, the applicant's EP2778076B1 discloses a strapping apparatus having a packaging table, which is provided with rollers in order to guide packages, in particular goods containers arranged on pallets, through the apparatus. A frame-like machine rack consists of two columns arranged to the right and left of the packaging table and of a press plate that is movable vertically up and down on the columns A strapping-device channel is formed along the columns and the press plate and along the packaging table. In said strapping-device channel, the strapping device is guided from the insertion location to the sealing head. In order to protect sensitive package edges from damage by the strapping device, edge-protection devices, usually paperboards or plastic angles, are arranged there prior to strapping. These reinforce the edges and prevent damage by the strapping device.
The abovementioned document shows how an edge-protection device, for example a paperboard, can be moved to a package by way of a carriage-like arranging device. The carriage is equipped, at a starting position close to the frame or column, with an edge-protection device and is then advanced as far as a package edge. The edge-protection device is set down there. The distance between the starting position and the package edge, i.e., the arranging position, is established by a detection device. This, according to the proposal by the abovementioned document, is a sensor integrated into a support. The sensor measures the distance from the side face of the package and extrapolates the position of the package edge therefrom.
The apparatus, known from the first prior art, together with the arranging method has proven to be extremely successful. However, in the case of packages having regions that protrude laterally beyond the upper package edge, erroneous detections can occur.
Various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method for arranging an edge-protection device on a package in an apparatus for strapping packages, wherein the apparatus
Various embodiments of the present disclosure also relate to an apparatus for strapping packages
Various advantages of the present disclosure are achieved firstly by a method having the features described above, in particular having the following method steps:
In this novel method, the first detection device is first of all interrogated to check whether the package edge is essentially able to be detected. This is essentially the case when the first detection device is located vertically next to the package, i.e., the top side is not able to be sensed by the detection device.
The arrangement of the detection device on the carriage for arranging the edge protector itself ensures that the package edge itself is detected and it is not necessary to extrapolate the position of the package edge from the detections of a package side face. The detection of the package edge itself takes place in that the carriage is moved in the direction of the package until the detection device detects the position of the package edge. Then, the carriage is moved into its arranging position, which results from the position of the first detection device relative to the gripping tool for the edge-protection device.
Since, in the case of very wide packages, it is possible however for the package top side to be arranged beneath the first detection device, a second detection device is provided at the rear of the carriage. If the first detection device is occupied by a package top side located therebeneath, it is not possible for the package edge to be sensed by the first detection device. In this case, the carriage is moved forward until the second detection device, arranged at the rear of the carriage, senses a package edge. As soon as this is the case, the carriage is moved into the arranging position for setting down the edge-protection device on the package edge. In this case, the arranging position is determined from the relative position of the second detection device with respect to the holding tool of the edge-protection device.
In this case, it is preferred for a check also to be carried out as to whether the second detection device is arranged above the package top side.
If the first and second detection devices are arranged above the package top side, an error message is output and the carriage remains in its starting position.
It is envisaged that when the package edge is detected by the first detection device, the carriage is moved further forwards in the direction of travel into its arranging position.
Furthermore, a method step is preferred in which, after the package edge is detected by the second detection device, the carriage is moved backwards into its arranging position.
Various advantages provided by the present disclosure are also achieved by an apparatus
One advantage of the apparatus is primarily that the first and the second detection device are arranged on the carriage itself and thus, by moving the carriage in the direction of the package, the package edge can be detected when the package is passed over. It is no longer necessary to identify the position of the package edge by measuring the distance between the frame and package side face, which can result in erroneous detections in particular in the case of irregular package side faces.
Using a first detection device at the carriage front and a second detection device at the carriage rear, it is possible to reliably provide an edge-protection device even on those packages that, on account of their width, pass through the apparatus beneath the first detection device, or to reliably provide edge-protection device on packages that do not pass in centrally, but rather erroneously in a laterally offset manner.
Reliable detection of the package edge is ensured when the detection devices detect substantially in the direction of the packaging table.
A particular advantage is furthermore afforded when the detection devices are photocells.
The control device advantageously makes it possible to provide edge-protection device even on packages that, on account of their size or defective entry into the strapping apparatus, impede the measurement by the first detection device with their package top side.
Further advantages and a better understanding of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of an exemplary embodiment. In the figures:
While the systems, devices, and processes described herein may be embodied in various forms, the drawings show and the specification describes certain exemplary and non-limiting embodiments. Not all of the components shown in the drawings and described in the specification may be required, and certain implementations may include additional, different, or fewer components. Variations in the arrangement and type of the components; the shapes, sizes, and materials of the components; and the manners of connections of the components may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the claims. Unless otherwise indicated, any directions referred to in the specification reflect the orientations of the components shown in the corresponding drawings and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure. Further, terms that refer to mounting processes, such as mounted, connected, etc., are not intended to be limited to direct mounting processes but should be interpreted broadly to include indirect and operably mounted, connected, and like mounting processes. This specification is intended to be taken as a whole and interpreted in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure and as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.
The strapping apparatus 10 illustrated in
A press plate is arranged in a vertically movable manner on two columns 14 located to the right and left of the packaging table 11. The press plate not illustrated here for reasons of simplification. The press plate provides a track 15 for two carriages 30. The carriages 30 serve to arrange edge-protection device 20 on the upper package edges 16 exposed to the strapping device.
The carriage 30 illustrated in
With regard to the forward direction of travel X, the carriage 30 has a carriage rear 36, which is provided with a second detection device 37, which is fastened at the rear of the carriage 30 in the forward direction of travel X. The detection direction of the second detection device 37 is likewise directed substantially vertically downwards and is illustrated symbolically by a second detection beam 38.
At the vehicle rear 36, the carriage chassis 32 forms a retaining arm 39, which carries an actuator 40 for a gripping tool 41 arranged on the actuator 40. The gripping tool 41 has two clamping jaws 42 that are movable relative to one another and are movable into an open position and a closed position by the actuator 40. In the open position illustrated in
A handle 45 located at the front 31 of the carriage 30 makes it easier to handle the carriage 30 when it is being mounted on and removed from the apparatus 10 and during maintenance or otherwise.
In
The carriages 30 now both travel forwards in the direction of travel. The first detection device 34 detects the position of the package edge 16 on passing over the latter. The system controller calculates from the position of the package edge 16 the movement in the forward direction X that is still required until the arranging position, illustrated in
Therefore, to control the carriages, the signal from the first detection devices 34 is ignored, and instead the second detection devices 37 are used for detecting the package edges 16. The controller causes the carriages 30 to move forwards in the direction of travel X until the second detection devices 37 pass over the package edges 16. In the process, the position of the package edges 16 is detected. The controller will now calculate the travel that the carriages 30 have to cover until an arranging position for the edge-protection device 20 is reached. To this end, the carriages 30 are moved counter to the forward direction X back in the direction of the starting position. In this case, the arranging position is calculated from the relative position of the second detection device 37 with respect to the gripping tool 41, taking the edge-protection-device width measured in the direction of travel X into consideration.
In an example that is not illustrated here, it is conceivable for a package not to enter centrally between the supports 14 but in a laterally offset manner. In this case, it is possible for the plausibility value of the first detection device 34 of one of the carriages to be absent, but to exist at the second carriage 30. In this case, the carriages 30 are controlled differently from one another. The carriage 30 for which the plausibility value exists for both detection devices 34 and 37 uses only the first detection device 34 to identify the arranging positions. The carriage 30 for which only the plausibility value for the rear, second detection device 37 exists uses this very rear detection device 37 to identify the arranging position of the edge-protection device 20.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
102019107702.8 | Mar 2019 | DE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/US2020/023113 | 3/17/2020 | WO |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2020/197847 | 10/1/2020 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1770099 | D'Humy et al. | Jul 1930 | A |
3241287 | Chundelak | Mar 1966 | A |
3271925 | Aubery | Sep 1966 | A |
3378987 | Lems | Apr 1968 | A |
3381443 | Copping | May 1968 | A |
3585780 | Elmore | Jun 1971 | A |
3661382 | Spicer | May 1972 | A |
3735555 | Pasic | May 1973 | A |
3995409 | Discavage et al. | Dec 1976 | A |
4048839 | Peterpaul | Sep 1977 | A |
4238663 | Calhoun et al. | Dec 1980 | A |
4480460 | Bush et al. | Nov 1984 | A |
4535224 | Westerman | Aug 1985 | A |
4587791 | Brouse et al. | May 1986 | A |
4700530 | Norberg | Oct 1987 | A |
4878334 | Quinn | Nov 1989 | A |
4897980 | Geyser et al. | Feb 1990 | A |
5226280 | Scherer et al. | Jul 1993 | A |
5289668 | Meyer | Mar 1994 | A |
5307664 | Homm | May 1994 | A |
5311996 | Duffy et al. | May 1994 | A |
5394505 | Bidare | Feb 1995 | A |
5423118 | Lotti | Jun 1995 | A |
5535572 | Morantz et al. | Jul 1996 | A |
5546730 | Newell et al. | Aug 1996 | A |
5551212 | Odenthal | Sep 1996 | A |
5564254 | Thimon et al. | Oct 1996 | A |
5596863 | Kasel | Jan 1997 | A |
5619838 | Kasel | Apr 1997 | A |
5758470 | Lancaster | Jun 1998 | A |
5842598 | Tsuchida | Dec 1998 | A |
5878548 | Sauer et al. | Mar 1999 | A |
5899046 | Hughes | May 1999 | A |
6178721 | Turfan | Jan 2001 | B1 |
6540080 | Moreyra | Apr 2003 | B2 |
6775956 | Lacey | Aug 2004 | B1 |
6883293 | Lancaster et al. | Apr 2005 | B2 |
7213381 | Zitella et al. | May 2007 | B2 |
7237478 | Gosis et al. | Jul 2007 | B1 |
7383952 | Kruelle et al. | Jun 2008 | B2 |
7428865 | Kasel et al. | Sep 2008 | B1 |
8175445 | Morrison et al. | May 2012 | B2 |
8938934 | Brunson et al. | Jan 2015 | B2 |
9932134 | Suolahti et al. | Apr 2018 | B2 |
10017283 | Kastner | Jul 2018 | B2 |
10099808 | Termanas et al. | Oct 2018 | B2 |
10926902 | Schulz et al. | Feb 2021 | B2 |
20020014052 | Suolahti | Feb 2002 | A1 |
20030006012 | Lai | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20040216425 | Morton et al. | Nov 2004 | A1 |
20040237735 | Diem | Dec 2004 | A1 |
20040261360 | Cere | Dec 2004 | A1 |
20050108989 | Dickner | May 2005 | A1 |
20060266002 | Zitella et al. | Nov 2006 | A1 |
20100040353 | Morrison et al. | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20110219845 | Schurder et al. | Sep 2011 | A1 |
20120055123 | Brunson et al. | Mar 2012 | A1 |
20140311092 | Flores et al. | Oct 2014 | A1 |
20160114918 | Kastner | Apr 2016 | A1 |
20160152363 | Termanas et al. | Jun 2016 | A1 |
20180244413 | Oehm et al. | Aug 2018 | A1 |
20180319520 | Termanas et al. | Nov 2018 | A1 |
20210002009 | Spasov | Jan 2021 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2050271 | Mar 1992 | CA |
2639153 | Mar 2009 | CA |
406955 | Jan 1966 | CH |
610268 | Mar 1935 | DE |
1200212 | Sep 1965 | DE |
1225564 | Sep 1966 | DE |
1461764 | Feb 1969 | DE |
7149601 | Apr 1972 | DE |
2431153 | Jan 1976 | DE |
3025825 | Jan 1982 | DE |
3700146 | Jul 1988 | DE |
9311406 | Nov 1993 | DE |
19814941 | Oct 1999 | DE |
10012484 | Sep 2001 | DE |
10223350 | Dec 2003 | DE |
202004015190 | Nov 2004 | DE |
202007018468 | Aug 2008 | DE |
202010006486 | Oct 2011 | DE |
102010030998 | Jan 2012 | DE |
102011012207 | Aug 2012 | DE |
202012004335 | Aug 2013 | DE |
202012008063 | Aug 2013 | DE |
202012008064 | Nov 2013 | DE |
102012016659 | Feb 2014 | DE |
102013004448 | Mar 2014 | DE |
202013002503 | Jun 2014 | DE |
102013004449 | Sep 2014 | DE |
202014008458 | Nov 2014 | DE |
202015104275 | Aug 2015 | DE |
1033305 | Sep 2000 | EP |
1491447 | Dec 2004 | EP |
1927545 | Jun 2008 | EP |
2202160 | Jun 2010 | EP |
2394916 | Dec 2011 | EP |
2778076 | Sep 2014 | EP |
2700577 | Oct 2014 | EP |
2660158 | Jan 2015 | EP |
2700578 | Jan 2015 | EP |
2700579 | Mar 2015 | EP |
2778075 | Jun 2015 | EP |
2778076 | Jun 2015 | EP |
2733077 | Sep 2015 | EP |
2878541 | Apr 2016 | EP |
3337726 | Jul 2019 | EP |
163422 | May 1921 | GB |
556374 | Oct 1943 | GB |
2213474 | Aug 1989 | GB |
S5882814 | May 1983 | JP |
S61145047 | Jul 1986 | JP |
2004331077 | Nov 2004 | JP |
9623610 | Aug 1996 | WO |
2009136188 | Nov 2009 | WO |
2009139686 | Nov 2009 | WO |
2010029451 | Mar 2010 | WO |
2010061312 | Jun 2010 | WO |
2020197847 | Oct 2020 | WO |
Entry |
---|
“Examination Report No. 1”, from corresponding Australian patent application No. 2020245300, dated Sep. 19, 2022. |
“International Search Report and Written Opinion”, from corresponding PCT/US2020/023113 (12 pages), dated Jun. 12, 2020. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20220177174 A1 | Jun 2022 | US |