Patent Grant
7832183
This disclosure relates generally to packaging machinery and systems and, more specifically, to packaging machine improvements for enabling the automated packaging of cartons having narrow wrap-around minor and bottom flaps.
Machines for packaging products such as beverage cans, or bottles in paperboard cartons are known in the art. Typically, a conveyor system transports the products to be packaged toward a loading mechanism which can push the products into open ends of a partially constructed carton. As the loaded carton is transported further along the conveyor path, an adhesive, such as hot glue, is applied to flaps of the open carton ends, which are then pressed closed by structures or mechanisms further down the conveyor path from the glue applying mechanisms of the machine. The packed and closed carton can then be shipped for retail sale.
Packaging machines are generally designed to handle certain carton configurations. Adjustable elements provided on the machine allow for some reconfigurations of the machine, but cartons packed by these reconfigurable machines usually share certain characteristics required for the machine to be able to successfully pack and close the cartons. Given the size, cost, and complexity of these machines, it is advantageous to design machines that are as versatile in their compatibility with varying carton configurations as possible.
Designing reconfigurable machines poses challenges beyond just creating machines that will successfully pack and load a carton traveling from loading mechanisms through gluing mechanisms and past closing mechanisms in a continuous pass. In some circumstances, the conveyor machinery may be stopped while there are cartons in various stages of packaging. The conveyor may be stopped, for example, at end of a worker's shift, at the end of a work day, or because of an issue occurring along the conveyor path, such as a misfed carton. Such a conveyor stoppage is referred to herein as a “cycle stop.” In these instances, there can be cartons along the conveyor path which have had glue applied to their end flaps, but have not yet had their end flaps pressed closed. During the delay between the application of the glue and the restarting of the conveyor, the glue can cool or cure, preventing adhesion of the end flaps. Merely restarting the conveyor will lead to the end of these cartons being pressed closed, but if the glue has already set and/or cured, carton construction may be unsuccessful.
Some packaging machine designs include cycle stop functions that can be operated to successfully close these cartons following a conveyor stoppage, prior to the glue cooling or curing. A versatile carton packaging machine design, therefore, also requires that cycle stop functions of the machine be compatible with the various carton configurations packaged by the machine.
Generally, the end flaps are the elements that are manipulated as the carton is packed, glued, and closed. The end flap dimensions of certain carton configurations can pose difficulties in versatile packaging machine design. For instance, some packaging machines are designed to be reconfigurable to glue different end flap configurations by selectively deactivating one or more glue guns, which often causes the deactivated glue gun to clog after a period of nonuse. Some difficulties are great enough that certain carton configurations must be hand packed. Such manual processes add considerable time and expense such that these cartons may be used less commercially than they would otherwise be if the packaging process could be automated.
The present disclosure describes a packaging apparatus for use in a packaging machine that facilitates proper closure of cartons of various configurations and sizes, particularly in a continuous packaging process that at least occasionally stops while cartons are undergoing various stages of the process.
Generally described, the packaging apparatus includes a rotating glue gun assembly, as well as means for holding minor flaps and means for folding a bottom end flap for use in connection with a cycle stop operation capability. The cycle stop operation allows carton packaging operations to be halted at any time. When a cycle stop operation is initiated, a finishing process completes any time-sensitive parts of the packaging process, such as gluing and closing end flaps, in process when the cycle stop operation is initiated. When packaging operations are later resumed, the processing of all of the packages in progress when the cycle stop operation was commenced can be successfully completed.
When a cycle stop operation is initiated, a compression plate is actuated by extension of a pneumatic cylinder. The compression plate is brought into contact with the bottom end flap of a carton to which glue has been applied. The compression plate folds the end flap into a closed position and, in conjunction or coordination with means for hold minor flaps, holds the minor and end flaps closed until the glue has set or until normal packaging operations are resumed. This prevents the glue on the end flaps from curing before the end flaps are closed.
The rotating glue gun assembly allows rotation of two or more glue guns prior to commencing or during packaging operations. The rotation of the glue gun assembly and the glue guns provides adjustable application of one or more glue beads without having to deactivate any of the glue guns for an extended time. The ability to adjust glue application allows the packaging machine to be configured to accommodate various package configurations. In addition to being able to vary the number of applied glue beads, the rotating glue gun assembly allows adjustment of the distance between the applied glue beads, according to desired specifications.
Specifically, certain embodiments of the packaging apparatus include a rotating glue gun assembly. The rotating glue assembly has at least a first glue nozzle and a second glue nozzle for placing glue beads on a carton being packaged by the packaging machine. The location of the placed glue beads can be adjusted by rotation of the glue gun assembly, and thereby, of the first and second glue nozzles.
According to an aspect of the disclosure, the glue gun assembly can be rotated through ninety degrees or more. Thereby, the glue nozzles can be selectively positioned and aligned to provide the desired number of lines of glue at the desired spacing. To apply fewer lines of glue than the number of glue nozzles, at least two of the glue nozzles can be rotated to be in line with one another to apply one of the desired lines of glue.
For example, a first orientation of the glue gun assembly permits the first and second glue beads to be placed on the carton along two substantially parallel lines. The spacing between the two substantially parallel lines, and therefore, the glue beads, is substantially equal to the linear distance between a first nozzle outlet of the first glue nozzle, and a second nozzle outlet of the second glue nozzle.
A second orientation of the glue gun assembly, achieved by rotating the glue gun assembly approximately 90 degrees in either direction, aligns the first and second glue nozzles to overlay or alternatingly apply a glue bead from each glue nozzle so that the glue is placed on a carton along a single line.
In certain embodiments, the first glue nozzle and the second glue nozzle can be separately actuated to cause the first glue nozzle to apply a first glue bead to a carton, and the second glue nozzle to apply a second glue bead to the carton. Either or both of the first glue bead and the second glue bead can be continuous or discontinuous, as dictated by the particular application.
A third orientation of the glue gun assembly, achieved by rotating the glue gun assembly to some extent but less than 90 degrees, permits glue beads to be placed along a second set of two substantially parallel lines. The spacing between the second set of two substantially parallel lines can be less than the linear distance between the first nozzle outlet and the second nozzle outlet.
According to one aspect, the packaging apparatus includes a retaining guide and/or a retaining bar, along with a cycle stop compression plate. The retaining bar and the retaining guide function either alone or in combination as means for holding minor flaps in place during normal operation and in the initial stage of a cycle stop operation. In certain embodiments, the retaining guide moves pivotably in response to a cycle stop operation to avoid contacting a bottom end flap of the carton as it is positioned by the cycle stop compression plate. More specifically, the retaining guide retracts during its movement to avoid contact with the carton.
In certain embodiments, the movement of the retaining guide is caused by contact between a cam bar and a pivoting member of a retaining guide assembly. According to an aspect of these embodiments, the movement of the retaining guide is caused by a force, such as that exerted by an actuation cylinder on a pivoting member of a retaining guide assembly.
The foregoing has broadly outlined some of the aspects and features of the present disclosure, which should be construed to be merely illustrative of various potential applications of the invention. Other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed information in a different manner or by combining various aspects of the disclosed embodiments. Accordingly, other aspects and a more comprehensive understanding of the invention may be obtained by referring to the detailed description of the exemplary embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims.
As required, detailed embodiments of the present disclosure are disclosed herein. It must be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the disclosure that may be embodied in various and alternative forms, and combinations thereof. As used herein, the word “exemplary” is used expansively to refer to embodiments that serve as illustrations, specimens, models, or patterns. The figures are not necessarily to scale and some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. In other instances, well-known components, systems, materials, or methods have not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the present disclosure. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present disclosure.
Referring now to the drawings, wherein like numerals indicate like elements throughout the several views, the drawings illustrate certain of the various aspects of an exemplary embodiment of a packaging machine that includes mechanisms for automated packaging of various carton configurations, particularly those having relatively narrow end flaps.
The present disclosure includes a modified packaging machine capable of packaging products in a carton such as carton 100, and that can be reconfigured by an operator to package products in a carton such as carton 300. The machine includes modified glue delivery and cycle stop mechanisms that are capable of operator reconfiguration for use with both carton 100 and carton 300.
The packaging apparatus 500 of
Movement of the apparatus during operation is driven at least in part by the actuation cylinder 512. The actuation cylinder 512 can include a pneumatically actuated piston, a hydraulically actuated piston, or any actuation mechanism capable of providing a linear force. A first end of the actuation cylinder 512 is attached at a lower pivot point 516 on a mounting bracket 514. A second end of the actuation cylinder 512 is pivotally attached to a track bar 518.
The track bar 518 is so named because it follows a path defined by a track cut into the plates 520a, 520b over the motion range provided by the actuation cylinder 512. The track bar 518 also passes through the pinch blocks 524a, 524b (524b is not visible from the perspective shown). The pinch blocks 524a, and 524b serve to provide a connection between the track bar 518 and the cycle stop compression plate slide rods 526a, 526b (“slide rods”). The bolts 525a, 525b (525b is not visible from the perspective shown) can be loosened to provide an adjustment range for movement of the cycle stop compression plate 508. The slide rods 526a, 526b are free to slide through tunnels in the cycle stop compression plate pivot blocks 528a, 528b (“pivot blocks”). The pivot blocks 528a, 528b rotate about pivot bar 530.
The pinch blocks 532a, 532b serve to provide an adjustable connection between the slide rods 526a, 526b and the cam bar 534. The bolts 533a, 533b (533b is not visible from the perspective shown) of the pinch blocks 532a, 532b can be loosened to move the cam bar fore or aft. During operation of the actuation cylinder 512, movement of the slide rods 526a, 526b causes the cam bar 534 to move forward and contact a bottom surface of the retaining bar pivot blocks 536a, 536b. Further forward motion of the cam bar 534 (in the Y direction) causes the pivot blocks 536a, 536b to rotate about the pivot bar 530. The pivot blocks 536a, 536b can include tunnels for the retaining bar slide rods 540a, 540b. The pivot blocks 536a, 536b can also include air holes 542a, 542b (542a is not visible from the perspective shown) to permit the slide rods 540a, 540b to slide the pivot blocks 536a, 536b without creating a high or low pressure area (relative to the ambient pressure) in the pivot block tunnels. The track bar 544 passes through the plates 520a, 520b, and the pivot blocks 536a, 536b. The track bar 544 follows the tracks 545a, 545b in the plates 520a, 520b respectively (545b is not visible from the perspective shown). The slide rods 540a, 540b can include rounded notches (not visible) that rest on the track bar 544 in the pivot block 536a, 536b tunnels. Rotation of the pivot blocks 536a, 536b causes the track bar 544 to follow the tracks 545a, 545b to retract the slide rods 540a, 540b into the pivot blocks 536a, 536b.
The retainer mounting plate 546 is mounted to the slide rods 540a, 540b. The retainer mounting plate 546 has a rear surface that lies in a plane perpendicular to the slide rods 540a, 540b. Thumb screws 548a, 548b are used to connect the retaining bar 502 and the retaining guide 504 to the mounting plate 546. An operator can loosen the thumb screws 548a, 548b to adjust the height (in the Z direction) of the retaining bar 502 and the retaining guide 504. An operator can remove the thumb screws 548a, 548b to mount retaining bars and/or retaining guides having different dimensions to pack various carton designs.
The apparatus 500 is positioned next to a conveyor (not shown) carrying cartons that have been loaded but still have open ends. Conveyor motion can be substantially parallel to and in the direction of the X axis shown in
Cycle Stop Mechanism and Operation
When the actuation cylinder 512 is retracted, the track bar 518 will follow the track 522b to its rightmost end (the track bar also follows track 522a which is not shown in the view of
“Steady state packaging operations” as used herein means operations where the conveyor is moving cartons past the apparatus 500 at a substantially constant speed where the apparatus applies glue to each passing carton and each carton is closed by static bars and/or guides which contact the carton as it is drawn down the conveyor line.
As noted previously, the apparatus 500 can be used to close both types of cartons, including cartons such as carton 100 and cartons such as carton 300. If the apparatus 500 is used to close cartons such as carton 100, the retaining bar 502 can contact the minor flaps 102a, 102b across a line such as that shown by line A-A′ of
When the apparatus is used to pack cartons such as carton 300, cartons 300 are moved past the apparatus 500, where a front edge 800 of the retaining guide 504 contacts the cartons 300 at a point along the minor flaps 302a, 302b so as to hold the minor flaps 302a, 302b in a closed position around and/or against a product loaded into the carton 300 by machine elements upstream of the conveyor line from apparatus 500. While the minor flaps 302a, 302b are held in this closed position, glue can be applied to a front surface of the minor flaps 302a, 302b. Referring to
If the conveyor motion is stopped during the packaging process, one or more cartons 100, 300, to which glue has been applied but that have not traveled beyond the apparatus 500, can be present on the conveyor line in front of the apparatus 500. If the conveyor line is not started again before the glue cures, these cartons 100, 300 may not be closed when the conveyor is later restarted. To prevent this undesirable occurrence, the apparatus 500 includes cycle stop features that can be used to close the bottom flaps 106, 306 of any cartons 100, 300 to which glue has been applied, but are present in front of the apparatus 500 when the conveyor motion has been stopped. The cycle stop features of the apparatus 500 are compatible with cartons such as carton 100 and cartons such as carton 300. In use with either type of carton, the cycle stop features provide means for holding the minor flaps 102a, 102b, 302a, 302b while the bottom end flap 106, 306 is folded upwardly and over the minor flaps 102a, 102b, 302a, 302b to seal the carton 100, 300.
Cycle Stop Operation
An exemplary cycle stop operation will now be described. For a cycle stop operation during packaging of cartons such as carton 100, the retaining guide 504 can be removed as it is not needed to close the carton 100. In addition, the cam bar 534 can be removed, as well as the spring loaded compression bar 510. When the conveyor is stopped, the actuation cylinder 512 can be operated to extend its length causing the articulating track bar 518 to follow the lower tracks 522a, 522b. The movement of the articulating track bar 518 will cause the slide rods 526a, 526b to first swing up into positions where they are substantially parallel to the slide rods 540a, 540b and to the Y axis. This motion will cause the cycle stop compression plate 508 to make contact with the open bottom flaps 106 of one or more unclosed cartons 100 in front of the apparatus 500, and to fold the bottom flaps 106 upwardly to a position where the bottom flaps 106 stand almost upright in front of the respective pairs of the minor flaps 102a, 102b of those cartons 100. The slide rods 540a, 540b can remain in position so that the means for holding the minor flaps, here retaining bar 502, holds the minor flaps 102a, 102b closed while the cycle stop operation is performed. Further extension of the actuation cylinder 512 causes the articulating track bar 518 to move to the leftmost end of the lower tracks 522a, 522b. This motion can cause the slide rods to slide out from the pivot blocks 528a, 528b to the left in a positive Y direction (as shown in
Another exemplary cycle stop operation will now be described. For cycle stop operation on cartons such as carton 300, the retaining guide 504, cam bar 534, and the spring loaded compression bar 510 are in place as in the configuration shown in
If a radius is drawn from the center of the pivot bar 530 to the front edge 800 of the retaining guide 504 that rotation as described above could cause the front edge 800 of the retaining guide 504 to rotate into cartons 300 that are in front of the apparatus 500. Such contact between the cartons 300 and the retaining guide 504 could result in damage to the cartons 300, the contents of the cartons 300, or in moving the cartons 300 off of the conveyor. This potential problem is alleviated by the use of means for retracting the retaining guide 504, such as the retracting track bar 544. The retracting track bar 544, as described above, follows upper tracks 545a, 545b in plates 520a, 520b. Also, as described above, the slide rods 540a, 540b have rounded notches 800a, 800b (800a is not visible in the perspective shown) that rest on the retracting track bar 544. As the track bar 544 follows the tracks 545a, 545b, the motion of the track bar 544 causes the slide rods 540a, 540b to retract into the pivot blocks 536a, 536b. Pivot block openings 800a, 800b can prevent this motion of the slide rods 540a, 540b from causing binding at the retracting track bar 544. Any air in the pivot blocks 536a, 536b compressed by this motion can escape through air holes 542a, 542b. The profiles of the surfaces 600a, 600b, and of the tracks 545a, 545b, are designed to keep the front edge 800 of the retaining guide 504 in contact with the minor flaps 302a, 302b for as long as possible before the retaining guide 504 is rotated out of the way to avoid contact with the cycle stop compression plate 508. It can be seen in
The spring loaded compression bar 510 can be set so as to make initial contact with the bottom flap 306 of the carton 300 as the slide rods 526a, 526b are extended. The compression bar 510 can help to maintain a tight closure of the minor flaps 300a, 300b as the retaining guide 504 is rotated upward.
Glue Delivery
Due to the taller minor end flaps 102a, 102b of carton 100, two glue beads can be used to close its end flaps 102a, 102b. In contrast, only a single glue bead is used to close the shorter end flaps 300a, 300b of the carton 300.
Where the packaging apparatus 500 is configured for use with cartons such as carton 300, only one bead of glue is needed on each of the end flaps 302a, 302b. To apply a single bead of glue L1 on each of the minor end flaps 300a, 300b, the upper nozzle 1000a could merely be disabled such that it does not dispense glue, with the lower nozzle 1000b dispensing a single bead of glue L2 on each of the minor flaps 302a, 302b. Leaving one glue nozzle 1000a, 1000b idle, however, can result in burning and/or charring of the glue in the idle nozzle 1000a, 1000b. This can lead to clogging of a glue nozzle 1000a, 1000b.
The present disclosure overcomes this problem by introducing a rotating glue application assembly 1006, which is shown, although partially obstructed, in
A retention tab 1206 with a head portion and a shaft portion can be included. The head portion has a diameter greater than the groove 1208 so as to hold the glue gun assembly in the groove 1208, and a face of the glue gun assembly bracket 1002 substantially flush with a face of the static mounting bracket 1200. A washer or pad 1218 can be placed between the glue gun assembly bracket 1002 and the static mounting bracket 1200.
When tightened, the retention bolt 1202 holds the glue gun assembly in place to prevent rotation. When the retention bolt 1202 is loosened, the glue gun assembly can be rotated in a path defined by the movement of the retention bolt 1202 and the retention tab 1206 in the grooves 1204 and 1208, respectively. Static mounting bracket 1200 material is removed from an area 1216 to permit rotation of the glue gun assembly, preventing the static mounting bracket 1200 from interfering with the pneumatic valve plumbing 1210a, 1210b of the glue guns 1004a, 1004b. The glue guns 1004a, 1004b, the glue gun assembly bracket 1002, a glue input 1214, and a glue heater 1212 can all rotate with the rotation of the glue gun assembly.
The grooves 1204 and 1208 and the area 1216 permit 90 degrees of rotation of the glue gun assembly. The glue gun assembly 1006 need not be set at the extremes of rotation, as shown as first orientation I and third orientation III in
Alternative Cycle Stop Mechanism and Operation
An alternative embodiment of a packaging apparatus 1500 is shown in
The apparatus 500 employs a single actuation cylinder 512. In some cases the force needed to swing the cycle stop compression plate 508 up following the tracks 522a, 522b and subsequently lift the retaining guide 504 and slot rods 540a, 540b through contact of the cam bar 534 with the pivot blocks 536a, 536b can be so great so as to cause the cycle stop compression plate 508 to contact the bottom flap of a carton more abruptly than is desirable. The apparatus 1500 requires less force to be applied by the actuation cylinder 512 so that a gentler contacting of the cycle stop compression plate 508 against the carton can be achieved.
Apparatus 1500 includes a second actuation cylinder, a retaining guide actuation cylinder 1502 that can control the rotation of pivot block 1501, the slot rods 540a, 540b, and the retaining guide 504. The two pivot blocks 536a, 536b of apparatus 500 are replaced in apparatus 1500 with the single pivot block 1501. The pivot block 1501 includes air holes 1506a, 1506b to permit air to escape during sliding of the slot rods 540a, 540b into and out of the tunnels in the pivot block 1501. Bolts 1508a, 1508b hold bracket 1504 to the back of the pivot block 1501. A first end of the retaining guide actuation cylinder 1502 pivotally connects to the bracket 1504 at a pivot point 1514. A second end of the actuation cylinder 1502 pivotally connects to an attachment bracket 1510 at a pivot point 1512.
During steady-state carton loading operations, the cycle stop compression plate 508 remains in a lowered position. When an operator of the packaging apparatus 1500 initiates a cycle stop operation due to a conveyor stoppage, or some other non-emergency event such as no remaining product to be loaded or a low amount of non-erected cartons in the carton hopper, the actuation cylinder 512 extends and the track bar 518 follows tracks 522a, 522b. This movement of the track bar 518 causes the cycle stop compression plate 508 to swing up until the slide rods 526a, 526b become substantially parallel to the slide rods 540a, 540b. The cam bar 534 then contacts the surfaces 1520a, 1520b of the pivot block 1501. The movement of the track bar 518 in the tracks 522a, 522b is then halted by the cam bar making contact with the surfaces 1520a, 1520b. The pivot block 1501 is held in place by a force exerted by the retaining guide actuation cylinder 1502 in a negative P direction (as shown on the actuation cylinder 1502). Therefore, the cam bar 534 of the apparatus 1500 acts as a latch to prevent further movement of the cycle stop compression plate 508 once the cam bar 534 makes contact with the surfaces 1520a, 1520b.
For movement of the cycle stop compression plate 508 to continue toward the cartons 100, 300 on the conveyor, the actuation cylinder 1502 releases the pressure applied in the negative P direction and applies a force in the positive P direction to rotate the retaining guide 504 up and out of the way of the cycle stop compression plate. The slide rods 540a, 540b, retract into the pivot block 1501 to prevent the retaining guide 504 from striking cartons during its upward rotation. The retraction is implemented by the track bar 544 as described above regarding apparatus 500.
The actuation cylinder 512 and the actuation cylinder 1502 can be pneumatic cylinders, in which case the relative air pressures used in the actuation cylinders 512, 1502 can be adjusted for proper operation. The apparatus 1500 permits the use of a lower air pressure in the actuation cylinder 1502 than that used in an actuation cylinder 512 of the apparatus 500 the force required from this cylinder is reduced due to it no longer being required to lift the retaining guide 504 through the movement of the cam bar 534. Instead, the cam bar 534 acts as a latch and the retaining guide 504 is rotated by the operation of the actuation cylinder 1502. Using a lower pressure in the actuation cylinder 512 can be desirable as use of lower pressure can prevent the cycle stop compression plate 508 from slamming abruptly into cartons 100, 300 on the conveyor.
The above-described embodiments are merely exemplary illustrations of implementations set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the disclosure. Variations, modifications, and combinations may be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the claims. For example, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that glue may be applied in continuous or broken lines, or as dots, and thus, that all reference to beads of glue should be construed in the context of a rapidly moving serial process in that even intermittent dots of glue, in the aggregate, will approximate lines. All such variations, modifications, and combinations are included herein by the scope of this disclosure and the following claims.
This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/940,827, filed Nov. 15, 2007, now abandoned which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/866,028, filed Nov. 15, 2006, both of which applications are hereby incorporated by reference.
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| Child | 12466043 | US |
