The present disclosure relates to a tucking device for use in a roll packing system wherein the tucking device allows for a wrapper to be secured to a roll during the packaging process.
Rolls of product, for example, rolls of household tissue, e.g., toilet paper or paper towel, need to be packaged for distribution and commercial sale. Many rolled products, including rolls of household tissue, are individually wrapped in packaging, such as paper or plastic. Oftentimes, the wrapped individual rolls are then packaged in groups in larger packaging, such as larger plastic bags, boxes, etc.
Wrapping individual rolls in packaging requires special manufacturing equipment, specifically, roll packaging systems. Many roll packaging systems package rolls by wrapping them and then securing the wrapper to the roll by tucking the wrapper into the hollow center cavity of the roll. Tucking is generally accomplished by forcing the wrapper into the center of the roll with a tucking device, such as a rod sized to fit within the center of the roll that pushes any paper covering the center portion of the roll into that hollow center cavity.
Prior art roll packaging methods contemplate multiple stages wherein the roll is moved from station to station and each stage is completed while the roil is in a stationary, or stopped, position. Prior art roll wrapping systems typically have a step wherein a wrapper is folded at least partially over a roll, while the roll is stationary, and then, after the folding process occurs, a stationary tucking arm is pushed into the hollow cavity of the roll to tuck the folded wrapper into the hollow cavity to secure the wrapper to the roll. In these prior art devices, the roll remains stationary throughout the first folding and tucking step. After the first folding step, the roll is then moved along the assembly in the roll wrapping system to several more stationary locations wherein the remainder of the wrapper is folded over the roll and then tucked into the center of the roll. Once the tucking step is completed. the packaging system moves the roll to the next station.
For example, many prior art tucking devices feature a four station gradual folding and tucking method wherein the wrapper was folded over each of the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the roll end. At each of the four tucking stages, the wrapper is plunged into the core with a tucking device. In prior art systems, the roll is stopped to perform each tucking operation because prior art tucking devices operate to linearly drive a tucking arm, or rod, into the roll. Thus, prior art tucking devices operate along a single axis to make a simple in-out motion to plunge the tucking arm into the hollow center of the roll and then to remove the arm from the
Prior art roll packaging systems and methods described above are inefficient and can be improved by reducing the number of steps required to wrap a roll in packaging and/or by reducing the number of times that the roll has to be stopped in the packaging process. Specifically, by allowing the roll to continue moving through a roll wrapping system while the tucking process takes place and/or by combining two or more of the wrapping steps together into one continuous process efficiency is greatly increased. This increased efficiency manifests itself in an improved machine having a smaller footprint and occupying less space on a manufacturing floor.
Whereas prior art tucking machines used to have separate, stationary folding steps and tucking steps, the present invention contemplates folding and tucking in one continuous step while the roll continues moving through the roll wrapping system. A rotating tucking arm allows the roll to continue moving in the packaging system while the wrapper is tucked into the center of the roll. The rotating tucking device works to capture and tuck more of the wrapper into the roll in one tucking action. Thereby, the disclosed rotating tucking device and method reduces the number of steps required to tuck a wrapper into the hollow cavity of a roll and reduces the amount of time that those steps take because they can be accomplished simultaneously as the roll continues its motion through the packaging system. Specifically, by changing the tucking process from the stationary process of the prior art to the rotational, or moving, process of the present invention, throughput of the roll wrapping system increases by roughly fifty rolls per minute. The footprint of the roll wrapping system is reduced because the fewer tucking steps are performed in less amount of space. As space and time are both important factors in profitability in a manufacturing environment, the increase in manufacture speed and reduced footprints of the roll wrapping system including the present invention can provide a great benefit to a manufacturer leading to increased profits.
in one embodiment, a rotating tucking device for securing a wrapper to a roll in the roll packing system comprises a tucking arm and a rotating insertion system. The tucking arm is designed for insertion into a hollow cavity of a roll The rotating insertion system is connected to the tucking arm and moves the tucking arm in a rotational pattern coordinated with the movement of the roll in the roll packaging system such that the tucking arm and the rotating insertion system tuck a wrapper into the hollow cavity of the roll as the roll moves continuously to the roll packaging system.
In another embodiment, a method for securing the wrapper to a roll comprises providing a roll to a roll packaging system, the roll having a tubular body with a first end and a second end and hollow cavity running therethrough, and then moving the roll through the roll packaging system. The method also includes placing a wrapper at least partially around the outer circumference of the roll, folding the wrapper over a portion of the first end of the roll such that an edge of the wrapper extends over the hollow cavity of the roll, and then inserting a tucking arm into the hollow cavity of the roll to push the edge or the wrapper into the hollow cavity in order to secure the wrapper to the roll. The moving step and the inserting step are coordinated in speed and direction such that the wrapper is secured to the roll while the roll moves continuously through the roll packaging system.
In yet another embodiment, a roll packaging system comprises a roll conveyor, a wrapping apparatus, a first folding apparatus, and a first rotating tucking device. The roll conveyor moves the roll through a roll packaging system, the roll having a tubular body with a first end, a second end, and a hollow center cavity running therethrough. The wrapping apparatus is operationally connected to the roll conveyor for covering at least a portion of the roll with a wrapper. The first folding apparatus is operationally connected to the roll conveyor and is positioned adjacent to the wrapping apparatus for folding the wrapper over the first end of the roll such that an edge of the wrapper extends over the hollow center portion of the roll. The first rotating tucking device is operatively adjacent to the roll conveyor for securing the wrapper to the roll by tucking the edge of the wrapper into the hollow center cavity as the roll moves continuously on the roll conveyor. Specifically, the rotating tucking device includes a tucking arm and a rotating insertion system connected to the tucking arm and moving the tucking arm in a rotational pattern, wherein the rotational pattern is coordinated with the movement of the roll on the roll conveyor such that the rotating insertion system inserts the tucking arm into the hollow center cavity of the roll as the roll moves continuously along the roll conveyor.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings,
The drawings illustrate the best mode presently contemplated of carrying out the disclosure. In the drawings:
In the present description, certain terms have been used for brevity, clarity, and understanding. No unnecessary limitations are to be implied therefrom beyond the requirements prior art because such terms are used for descriptive purposes only and are intended to be broadly construed. The different systems and methods described herein may be used alone or in combination with other systems and methods. Various equivalents, alternatives, and modifications are possible within the scope of the appended claims.
Referring to
As depicted in
The rotating tucking device 1 performs the tucking action while the roll 2 continues its movement along the roll path 20. The rotating tucking device 1 performs a moving tucking step wherein the tucking arm 10 is inserted into the hollow center portion or cavity 4 of the roil 2 when the wrapper 6 is folded over and is covering the hollow cavity 4. The tucking arm 10 pushes the edges of the wrapper 6 into the hollow cavity 4, folding the edges into the hollow cavity 4 and securing the wrapper to the roll 2. In some embodiments, the roll wrapping system 40 includes a rotating tucking device 1 on each side of the roll 2 in order to tuck the wrapper 6 into the hollow cavity 4 at each of the first roll end 5a and the second roll end 5b. Specifically, a first rotating tucking device 1 may be positioned adjacent to the first end 5a of the roll 2, and an opposing rotating tucking device 69 may be positioned adjacent to the second end 5b of the roll. As depicted in Fig, 6, two rotating tucking devices may work simultaneously, both inserting their respective tucking arms 10 into both ends 5a and 5b of the roll 2 at the same time. Alternatively, the rotating tucking devices 1 and 69 could operate sequentially to tuck the wrapper 6 into each of the ends 5a and 5b one at a time.
The rotating tucking device 1, in one embodiment, has a tucking arm 10 connected to a support bar 12. The support bar 12 is connected to at least one crank 14 by a rotating joint 15. The crank 14 is connected to a drive system 23 that rotates the crank 14 in a circular motion, driving the support bar 12 and the tucking arm 10 in a rotational pattern 17. As seen in
As shown in
While the above description discloses the preferred best mode, the rotating insertion system 9 may be any system capable of driving the tucking arm 10 in a rotational pattern wherein at least a portion of the rotational pattern corresponds with the speed and direction of the roll 2 moving through a roll wrapping system 40. For example, with reference to
The rotating insertion system 9 is driven by a controller, which may be the controller for the roll packaging system 40, or may be a separate controller for the rotating tucking device 1. The controller may be a programmable logic controller (PLC) device, or any controller known to one of skill in the art. For example, in a preferred embodiment, a single PLC controls the entire roll packaging system 40, and thus coordinates the movement between the various components of the system, including coordinating movement of the rotating insertion system 9 with the speed and position of the roll 2.
In one embodiment, the rotating tucking device 1 causes the tucking arm to form a rotational pattern 17 that is circular in shape. As depicted in
The rotational pattern 17 is a function of the structure of the rotating tucking device 1. The present invention contemplates any rotational pattern 17 that can be created from a rotational tucking device 1 constructed by any means described above, or according to any technology known in the art. The rotational pattern 17 could be a pattern of any shape that would allow the rotating tucking device 1 to tuck the wrapper 6 into the hollow cavity 4 of the roll 2 while it moves through the roll wrapping system. For example, the rotational pattern 17 could be a rectangular or squarish pattern having a first side, a second side, third side, and fourth side. In such an embodiment, when the tucking arm 10 travels along the first side of the rotational pattern 17, it is propelled into the hollow cavity 4 of the roll 2. The tucking arm 10 then follows onto the second side of the rotational pattern 17 wherein it may be propelled at roughly the same speed and direction as the roll 2 moving through the roll wrapping system 40. When traveling along the third side of the rotational pattern 17, the tucking arm may be removed from the hollow cavity 4 of the roll 2. Finally, the tucking arm 10 traveling along the fourth side the rotational pattern 17 returns the tucking arm 10 to its start position. In still other embodiments, rotational pattern created by the insertion system 9 could be any shape, including but not limited to ovular or triangular, so long as the rotational pattern followed by the tucking arm 10 allows for the device to tuck a wrapper 6 into the hollow cavity 4 of the roll 2 as the roll is moving through the wrapping system 40.
The roll wrapping system 40 may include a single rotating tucking device, as demonstrated in
In the embodiment of
The moving first tuck step 76 may overlap in time and/or space with the first folding step 75. As the folding plate 41 is folding the wrapper 6 over the end 5 of the roll, the first moving tucking step 76 may begin. As described above, the first moving tuck step is performed with a tucking arm 10 attached to the rotating insertion system 9. As shown in
Still referring to
The roll wrapping system 40 may comprise any number of folding plates. For example, as seen in
Similar to the head folding plate 41 described above, the tail folding plate 44 may be shaped to accommodate the second tucking arm 55, as the second tuck step 79 may overlap in time and space with the second folding step 78. The tail folding plate may be a mirror image of the head folding plate, or it may be different in shape. For example, as depicted in
The second tuck step 79 may be a moving tuck step similar to the moving first tuck step 76, or it may be a stationary tuck step.
In one embodiment, the second folding step 78 and the second tuck step 79 overlap in time and space in order to perform an efficient roll wrapping process. However, in alternative embodiments, the second folding step 78 may be completed entirely before the second tuck step 79. In still other embodiments, the second tuck step 79 may begin at the tail end of the second folding step 78, or at any point in time which would enable the second tuck step 79 to tuck the second edge 32 of the wrapper 6 into the hollow cavity 4 of the roll once it is folded over the roll end 5.
The roll wrapping system 40 may comprise any number of tucking devices, one or more of which may be a rotating tucking device 1. For example,
In the embodiment depicted in
Like the head folding plate 41, the tail folding plate 44 may be any shape that accommodates the coordinated folding step, i.e. 75 or 78, and tuck step, i.e. 76 or 79. In the embodiment of
If the folding step is a separate step that takes place prior to the tuck step, the folding plate, i.e. 41 or 44, may be a solid rectangular plate with no indentions to accommodate the second tucking arm 55. However, in the embodiment where the folding step overlaps significantly with the tuck step, the tail folding plate 44 may be two separate plates that split the hollow cavity 4 such that the tail folding plate would never cross over the hollow cavity 4 or impede the motion of a moving second tucking arm 55.
As depicted in
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, and to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other example that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other example are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
20050060954 | Dall'Omo | Mar 2005 | A1 |
20110076128 | Johnsen | Mar 2011 | A1 |
20140260087 | Antoniazzi | Sep 2014 | A1 |
20150251785 | Canini | Sep 2015 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
WO 2013054229 | Apr 2013 | IT |
Entry |
---|
Continuous Flow Wrappers, Paper Converting Machine Company, http://www.pcmc.com/mods-upgrades/tissuetowel/wrappers, accessed Jul. 12, 2013. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20150020478 A1 | Jan 2015 | US |