Patent Application
20250058917
The present invention concerns a packaging device for packaging articles in boxes and relative method, which are particularly suitable for packaging articles in accordance with a process in which it is provided to form the box around the article to be packaged, known in the art as “wrap-around” process.
The content of the following Italian patent applications, filed by the same Applicant, is considered to be fully incorporated herein:
The present invention finds a preferred, although not exclusive, application in the field of packaging in boxes articles with variable geometry and which are relatively delicate, such as for example bags of corn flakes, a sector to which reference may be made below without however losing generality.
In particular, in the relevant technical field, it is known to package articles into a box according to two distinct manners.
A first manner provides for a first step of forming a box, which is open at least at one end thereof, the subsequent insertion of the article to be packaged into the open box and, then, the closure of the open end.
A second manner, instead, provides for the box being formed by wrapping a blank, for example a shaped and creased cardboard, around a mandrel made of rigid material, for example made of metal, containing the article to be packaged. This manner provides that the blank is wound around the mandrel so as to form a box that is closed laterally but open at one end thereof, from which the mandrel is then extracted leaving the article inside the newly formed box. Also in this case, the open end can be conveniently closed, so that the package thus made can be sent to the final steps of packaging and shipment to the points of sale. In this description as well as in the accompanying claims, certain terms and expressions are deemed to have, unless otherwise expressly indicated, the meaning expressed in the following definitions.
The term “article” means any product that can be packaged in boxes.
The articles can have a predetermined geometric shape or they can have a variable geometry. Preferably, the articles are food and confectionery articles, in bulk or contained inside bags or other types of wrapping, such as for example cereal bags or coffee capsules or other infusion beverages, single chocolates (wound or not), candies, pouches containing solid, liquid or semi-solid food products; in addition, articles of the ceramic industry, absorbent articles for hygienic use, articles of the tobacco industry, articles of the cosmetic industry, articles of the pharmaceutical industry, articles of the “personal & home care” industry.
By “packaging” one or more articles in a box, it is meant the fact of obtaining a box containing said one or more articles. Such packaging can be obtained by inserting one or more articles into an already formed box or, preferably, it can be obtained by forming a box around the one or more articles to be contained.
By “mandrel” it is meant a container capable, on the one hand, of accommodating and supporting one or more articles to be packaged and, on the other hand, of providing an effective abutment for folding the blank when wound around it.
For this purpose, it should be noted that accommodating and supporting such one or more articles do not in itself imply that they must be entirely accommodated inside the mandrel or completely supported by it, but it is sufficient for them to be accommodated in the moment in which the blank is wound around the mandrel.
Likewise, it should be noted that also the abutment of the blank does not imply in itself that the blank is abutted for its entire surface by the mandrel, but it is sufficient for it to be abutted to an extent such as to allow the correct folding necessary for the formation of the box. In general terms, a first element “abuts” a second element when the first element touches the second element and is able to at least partially oppose a relative displacement of the first element against the second element.
By “blank” it is meant a shaped sheet of appropriate material and thickness which is suitable to be wound by folding around a mandrel to form a box.
Preferably, the blank is made of cardboard.
Preferably, the blank has a thickness of at least 0.2 mm, more preferably less than 4 mm. In a greatly preferred manner, the blank has a thickness comprised between 0.25 mm and 1.6 mm, more preferably between 0.3 mm and 1 mm, even more preferably between 0.4 and 0.8 mm. By “box” it is meant any container suitable for containing a plurality of articles for the purpose of their packaging, which can be made starting from a blank by folding around a mandrel and subsequent fixing at its flaps.
A box is “partially closed” when the box has at least one closed contour section, more preferably it is closed laterally around the mandrel while the longitudinal ends are kept open.
By “flap” it is meant a region of the blank that allows fixing the blank to another region in such a way as to form an at least partially closed box, preferably around a mandrel.
Non-limiting examples of such a fixing are gluing, stapling and jointing by means of interlocking elements or elements with laces and hooks (Velcro®).
In particular, the fixing to form an at least partially closed box takes place by at least partially overlapping two flaps of the blank, an inner flap and an outer flap.
Specifically, it is intended to indicate with “outer flap” the flap that, overlapped on the inner flap, is located outside the at least partially closed box, whereas it is intended to indicate with “inner flap” the flap that, overlapped on the outer flap, is located between it and the inside of the at least partially closed box.
A “folding line” of a blank is a predetermined line about which two blank portions are provided to rotate relative to each other so as to fold the blank.
The folding line can be a virtual, albeit predefined line.
The folding line is preferably defined by a line of weakness obtained on the blank, such as for example a crease, or an incision or a plurality of aligned holes.
The Applicant has preliminarily observed that the wrap-around type packaging process briefly illustrated above allows to obtain significant advantages in terms of production flexibility compared to the packaging process with insertion of the article in the preformed box. In fact, in the wrap-around type packaging process, the times to switch from one format to another or to bring new formats into production are significantly reduced.
However, the Applicant has observed that the wrap-around type packaging process described above is often particularly complex and articulated, particularly when the articles contain delicate or crumbly products, like in the case of bags containing corn flakes. In fact, the latter can easily break forming crumbs and powders that lower the quality of the end product.
In particular, the Applicant has observed that one of the critical steps for packaging articles into a box by the wrap-around type packaging process is the closure of the blank once it is wound around the mandrel. This closure provides for a series of distinct operations, such as folding the flaps along a corresponding folding line and gluing them onto each other, which in turn provides not only that the two flaps are in their desired final relative position, but that they are kept in that position for the time necessary for the adhesive to effectively exert its function, i.e. that the two flaps no longer move with respect to each other.
These operations may generally provide that these flaps have an appropriate abutting element.
The Applicant was able to assess that the folding of the flaps onto each other along the corresponding folding line to overlap at least partially the flaps and their gluing onto each other cannot take place by folding the flaps and pressing them against the products, that is using the products as abutting elements, in particular when such articles are delicate or crumbly.
The Applicant has also observed that these operations of folding the flaps and of gluing the flaps themselves are typically carried out by different members, which make both the process and the plant for the wrap-around type packaging little flexible and complicated both from the realization and management point of view.
The Applicant has therefore felt the need to modify the plant for the wrap-around type packaging and the relative process taking into account that a simplification of the packaging operations could not, however, have dispensed with safeguarding the integrity of the articles to be packaged.
In response to this need, the Applicant has finally found that a device and a method for the packaging of articles in boxes that provide that the operations of folding the flaps and of gluing the flaps onto each other are carried out by a single closing group against a mandrel greatly simplifies the wrap-around process and the relative packaging plant.
In a first aspect thereof, therefore, the present invention is directed to a packaging device for packaging articles in boxes comprising a mandrel and a closing group.
Preferably said mandrel is configured to accommodate one or more of said articles therein.
Preferably said mandrel is adapted to be at least partially wound by a blank so as to form a partially closed box.
Preferably the closing group is arranged to at least partially overlap and fix an outer flap of the blank onto an inner flap of the blank when the blank is at least partially wound on the mandrel.
Preferably said closing group comprises an abutting element movable with respect to the mandrel.
Preferably said abutting element is movable with respect to said mandrel between a rest position, in which the abutting element is in a remote position from the mandrel and at least one folding position, in which the abutting element is in a position such as to fold the outer flap towards the mandrel.
Preferably said abutting element is movable with respect to said mandrel between such at least one folding position, in which the abutting element is in such a position as to fold the outer flap towards the mandrel, and a pressure position, in which the abutting element is in such a position as to press the outer flap on the inner flap and against the mandrel.
Preferably said closing group comprises a displacement member.
Preferably said displacement member is configured to displace the abutting element between the rest position and the at least one folding position.
Preferably said displacement member is configured to displace the abutting element between the at least one folding position and the pressure position.
In a second aspect thereof, the present invention comprises a method for packaging articles in boxes comprising step a) of arranging a blank at least partially around a mandrel.
Preferably step a) provides for arranging a blank at least partially around a mandrel so as to form a partially closed box around said mandrel.
Preferably step a) provides for arranging a blank at least partially around a mandrel in such a manner that the blank has two flaps, an outer flap and an inner flap.
Preferably the outer flap is at least partially overlappable on the inner flap.
Preferably the two flaps are fixable on each other when pressed against each other.
Preferably, said mandrel contains one or more of said articles inside it.
Preferably the method for packaging articles in boxes comprises step b) of at least partially folding the inner flap towards the mandrel.
Preferably the method for packaging articles in boxes comprises step c) of folding the outer flap towards the mandrel.
Preferably the outer flap is folded towards the mandrel by displacing an abutting element from a rest position, in which the abutting element is in a remote position with respect to the mandrel, to at least one folding position in which the abutting element abuts said outer flap by folding it towards the mandrel.
Preferably the method for packaging articles in boxes comprises step d) of pressing the outer flap onto the inner flap.
Preferably the method for packaging articles in boxes comprises step d) of pressing the outer flap onto the inner flap and against the mandrel.
Preferably the outer flap is pressed onto the inner flap and against the mandrel by displacing the abutting element from the at least one folding position to a pressure position. Preferably the outer flap is pressed onto the inner flap and against the mandrel by displacing the abutting element from the at least one folding position to the pressure position so that the outer flap is fixed on the inner flap.
Thanks to these characteristics, the packaging device and the packaging method according to the present solution allow to fold two flaps of the cardboard blank that is wound at least partially around the mandrel one on top of the other so that they are at least partially overlapped and to glue them by using a single closing group capable of performing both operations. At the same time, if the articles are fragile, they are not damaged at all during these operations, because the abutting element, in its pressure position, does not press the two flaps against the articles but it presses the outer flap onto the inner flap against the mandrel, preserving the integrity of the articles themselves.
In addition, both the step of folding and overlapping the flaps and the subsequent pressure against each other is obtained by moving a single element, the abutting element.
The present solution, in at least one of the aforementioned aspects, may have at least one of the further preferred features set forth below.
In some embodiments, the displacement member is provided to displace the abutting element with respect to the mandrel from the rest position, to the at least one folding position and from the at least one folding position to the pressure position along a straight trajectory.
Advantageously, since no changes in direction are provided in the displacement of the abutting element from the rest position to the pressure position, this makes such displacement easier to be performed, and the displacement member less subject to wear or malfunctions.
The displacement member may be any mechanism capable of moving the abutting element between the rest position, the at least one folding position and the pressure position along a predefined path and is represented by a conveyor driven by electric, mechanical, hydraulic or pneumatic motors or other similar systems capable of displacing the abutting element along a trajectory. An example of a displacement member is robotic arms.
In one embodiment, the abutting element in the pressure position presses the outer flap onto the inner flap against an abutment surface of the mandrel and the straight trajectory is inclined by an angle comprised in the range from 10° to 60°, preferably from 20° to 45° with respect to said abutment surface of the mandrel.
This allows to have an abutting element that, by displacing from the rest position to the pressure position along this straight trajectory, is still able to generate pressure on the overlapped flaps of the blank and against the mandrel.
In some embodiments the abutting element preferably comprises a bar, a roller, a cylinder or an L-bent plate, more preferably it comprises a bar or an L-bent plate. This allows to have, in the pressure position, a homogeneous pressure of the outer flap onto the inner flap and against the mandrel on the entire contact surface between the abutting element and the outer flap.
Preferably the abutting element comprises an L-bent plate and the displacement member is provided to displace the abutting element into the pressure position so that in this position it presses simultaneously on the overlapped flaps and on a further side of the at least partially closed box. This ensures that the box is kept in its shape, avoiding damages of the box or crushing it which could in turn cause a damage to the articles inside it.
In some embodiments the closing group comprises pneumatic elements, preferably pneumatic cylinders, adapted to keep the abutting element pressed on the two overlapped flaps of the blank against the mandrel with a predefined pressure.
This technical measure ensures on the one hand an adequate gluing of the flaps and on the other hand it does not exert on the mandrel a pressure higher than necessary.
In some embodiments, the device for packaging articles in boxes further comprises a mandrel movement unit configured to move the mandrel.
In some embodiments, said mandrel is moved by said movement unit along a movement plane and said abutting element is moved between said rest position, said folding position and said pressure position along a trajectory incident with said movement plane.
Preferably the closing group is mounted on such a movement unit.
By movement unit it is meant any mechanism capable of moving the mandrel along a predetermined path and can be represented by a conveyor driven by mechanical, pneumatic or hydraulic electric motors or other similar known systems capable of moving the mandrel along any trajectory, for example straight, curvilinear, closed-loop, circular.
Examples of movement units are conveyor belts, robotic arms and carousels. Preferably, the movement unit comprises a carousel.
In some embodiments, the movement unit comprises a carousel provided to displace the mandrel along a predefined path. Preferably said predetermined path is, at least in a portion thereof corresponding to the displacement of the abutting element from the rest position to the pressure position and vice versa, circular. In this case, the movement plane of the mandrel is represented by the plane containing the portion of circular path.
Preferably, the mandrel in its displacement along the predetermined path defines an advancement direction and, in one embodiment, the trajectory along which said abutting element is displaced from the rest position to the pressure position, comprises a component concordant with said advancement direction of the mandrel.
In some embodiments, the movement unit is configured to move both the mandrel and the closing group.
In some embodiments, the movement unit comprises a carousel provided to displace the mandrel along a circular path and is configured to displace both the mandrel and the closing group.
In some embodiments the packaging device for packaging articles in boxes comprises a plurality of mandrels and a closing group for each mandrel.
In some embodiments the packaging device for packaging articles in boxes comprises a carousel provided to displace a plurality of mandrels and a closing group for each mandrel.
In a further embodiment, the displacement of the abutting element from the rest position to the at least one folding position and from the at least one folding position to the pressure position is carried out along a straight trajectory.
Preferably the displacement of the abutting element in steps c) and/or d) is carried out by the closing group.
Preferably the outer flap and/or the inner flap are at least partially separated from the rest of the blank by a folding line.
Preferably the outer flap and/or the inner flap are folded along a folding line thereof.
Preferably the outer flap and/or the inner flap are folded along a folding line thereof by the closing group.
In some embodiments, the folding line is formed by a crease or by an incision line or by a line of holes obtained on the blank.
In this way the folding of the flap along the folding line is particularly facilitated.
In a preferred embodiment, at least one of said two flaps bears an adhesive on an overlapping surface with the other flap.
In some embodiments, the adhesive is a glue.
In one embodiment, the adhesive is a glue and in step d) the abutting element presses, in the pressure position, the outer flap onto the inner flap and against the mandrel, preferably for a time equal to or longer than the drying time of the glue.
In this way the box is closed permanently, avoiding issues of detachment or insufficient adhesion. In some embodiments, the abutting element presses, in the pressure position, the outer flap on the inner flap and against the mandrel with a predetermined pressure.
This technical measure allows to optimally control the pressure applied, ensuring that it is sufficient for gluing but not such to damage the mandrel itself.
In some embodiments, the blank is preliminarily at least partially creased.
This makes the closing process easier to execute.
Preferably, the blank is creased at the upper flap and/or the lower flap, more preferably at both flaps.
In this way the closing process is less prone to errors, such as an erroneous overlap of the upper and lower flaps.
In some embodiments step b) is performed at least partially concurrently with step c) but preferably before the abutting element is in the pressure position.
This allows shortening the packaging times, while maintaining a sequence of steps suitable for the packaging of articles in boxes.
In some embodiments, the abutting element, in the passage from the at least one folding position to the pressure position, completes the folding of the inner flap against the mandrel.
With this measure, both the packaging process is simplified, which does not provide that the inner flap is kept against the mandrel during the folding of the outer flap on the inner flap and against the mandrel, and any preliminary treatments of the blank, whose inner flap does not necessarily have to be preliminarily already folded in the position that it has once glued with the upper flap.
In some embodiments, a step of returning the movable abutting element from the pressure position to the rest position after step c) is provided.
In such a case, the step of returning the movable abutting element from the pressure position to the rest position does not necessarily occur along a single trajectory, nor is such trajectory necessarily the same as the one for moving the abutting element from the rest position to the at least one folding position and from the at least one closing position to the pressure position.
In some embodiments, it is the displacement member that brings the movable abutting element from the pressure position back to the rest position after step c).
It should be noted that some steps of this method may be independent of the order of execution reported. In addition, some steps may be optional. In addition, some steps of the methods may be performed repetitively, or they may be performed in series or in parallel with other steps of the method.
The characteristics and advantages of the present solution will become clearer from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawings wherein:
With initial reference to
The packaging device 100 is arranged to package one or more articles 1 inside boxes 2.
The articles 1 are, in this preferred embodiment, bags of granular, loose or bulk food products, for example corn flakes, in particular bags with a longitudinal dimension of about 300 mm (exemplary value).
The packaging device 100 comprises, in its most general units, a mandrel 10 and a closing group 30.
The closing group 30 comprises an abutting element 31 and a displacement member 32.
The abutting element 31, in the embodiment example of
Said displacement member 32 comprises an articulated arm 321 that actuates the displacement of the abutting element 31 between the rest, folding and pressure positions.
The mandrel 10 is configured to accommodate one or more such articles 1 therein. It is furthermore adapted to be wound at least partially by a blank 20 of cardboard so as to form a partially closed box 210, as can be noted for example in
The blank 20, an example of which is shown in
The flaps 24, 241, 242 and the panels 23 may be creased along a folding line 25, 251, 252 so as to be more easily folded to form the box 2.
The blank 20 is shaped such that, once wound at least partially around the mandrel 10, it has two flaps 241,242 that are overlappable on each other when folded towards each other along the corresponding folding line 251,252.
In particular, the flap 241 folded along the corresponding folding line 251 will be overlapped on the flap 242, in turn folded along the corresponding folding line 252.
The flap 241, once this overlap has been made, will be located outside the partially closed box 210; this flap 241 is the so-called outer flap 241. In a completely similar way, the flap 242, once such an overlap has been made, will be located between the outer flap 241 and the inside of the partially closed box 210; such flap 242 is the so-called inner flap 242.
At least one of the two flaps 241,242 also bears an adhesive 40 on an overlapping surface 222 with the other flap 241,242.
The adhesive 40 is a glue 41 distributed in glue points 411 spaced apart stepwise along an axis X parallel to the folding lines 251 and 252.
With reference to
With reference to
The movement unit 50 moves the plurality of mandrels 10 along a displacement direction F defining a substantially circular path.
Each mandrel 10 has its closing group 30; each closing group 30 is mounted on the movement unit 50, so that said movement unit 50 moves both each mandrel 10 and the corresponding closing group 30 along the movement direction F.
With reference to
The closing group 30 comprises a displacement member 32 and an abutting element 31 movable with respect to the mandrel 10 between a rest position in which the abutting element 31 is in a remote position with respect to the mandrel 10 (position depicted in
In such an embodiment, the abutting element 31 is an L-shaped plate 311.
The displacement member 32 moves the abutting element 31 between the rest, folding and pressure positions.
The abutting element 31, in passing from the rest position to the at least one folding position, approaches the mandrel 10 from the side of the outer 241 and inner 242 flaps of the blank 20 until it meets the outer flap 241.
Continuing its approach towards the mandrel 10, the abutting element 31 folds the outer flap 241 against the mandrel 10 along a corresponding folding line 251. The outer flap 241, by folding against the mandrel 10 along the folding line 251, meets the inner flap 242, which is already preliminarily at least partially folded along a corresponding folding line 252 towards the mandrel 10 itself.
Continuing further its approach to the mandrel 10, the abutting element 31 continues to fold the outer flap 241 towards the mandrel 10; in turn the outer flap 241, in its folding movement, further folds the inner flap 242 against the mandrel 10 until it abuts the mandrel 10 itself on an abutment surface 10a thereof.
The approach of the abutting element 31 to the mandrel 10 from the rest position to the pressure position takes place with a straight trajectory D that is inclined with respect to the abutment surface 10a of the mandrel 10.
Once the abutting element 31 has abutted the outer flap 241 on the inner flap 242 and against the mandrel 10 on its abutment surface 10a, it remains pressed against the mandrel 10 until the glue 41 present on at least one of the two flaps 241,242 on the overlapping surface 222 with the other flap 241,242 has dried, so that the two overlapped flaps 241,242 no longer separate and that the partially closed box 210 does not open.
With reference to
Finally,
In this step the abutting element 31 is in the pressure position and applies a predetermined pressure on the overlapped flaps 241,242 against the abutment surface 10a of the mandrel 10 until the glue 41 has dried.
Subsequently, the closing group 31 can possibly return to the rest position with respect to the mandrel 10 (
It goes without saying that, in order to meet specific and contingent application needs, a person skilled in the art will be able to make further modifications and variants to the solution described above that are nevertheless within the scope of protection as defined by the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 102021000032933 | Dec 2021 | IT | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB22/62636 | 12/21/2022 | WO |
