US3866389A - Roll wrapping machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A machine for wrapping rolls of coiled sheet material with heatshrinkable wrapper sheeting, sections of which are wrapped around each of said coiled rolls of material in a loose condition and sealed axially along the length of the roll, the machine including heating means extending longitudinally of the path of movement of the loosely wrapped roll after it leaves the wrapperapplying station of the machine and operable to shrink one or more portions of the loose wrapper into contiguous relationship with the roll at one or more selected positions spaced longitudinally along said roll, thereby preventing uncoiling of said material upon the rolls incident to the loose wrapping on the rolls ultimately being subjected to heat-shrinking along substantially the entire length of the sealed wrapper.

Description

United States Patent [19 1 Elsner et al.

[ Feb. 18, 1975 ROLL WRAPPING MACHINE [75] Inventors: Bertram F. Elsner; Frank Elsner,

Jr., both of Hanover, Pa.

[73] Assignee: Elsner Engineering Works, Inc.,

Hanover, Pa.

{22] Filed: Apr. 30, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 465,676

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 358,582, May 9,

1973, abandoned.

[52] US. Cl 53/76, 53/182, 53/184 [51] Int. Cl B65b 57/12 [58] Field of Search 53/76, 182, 184, 198 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,523,402 8/1970 West et al. 53/198 R 3,775,939 12/1973 Elsner et al. 1. 53/198 R Primary ExaminerTravis S. McGehee Attorney, Agent, or FirmC. Hercus Just ABSTRACT A machine for wrapping rolls of coiled sheet material with heat-shrinkable wrapper sheeting, sections of which are wrapped around each of said coiled rolls of material in a loose condition and sealed axially along the length of the roll, the machine including heating means extending longitudinally of the path of movement of the loosely wrapped roll after it leaves the wrapper-applying station of the machine and operable to shrink one or more portions of the loose wrapper into contiguous relationship with the roll at one or more selected positions spaced longitudinally along said roll, thereby preventing uncoiling of said material upon the rolls incident to the loose wrapping on the rolls ultimately being subjected to heat-shrinking along substantially the entire length of the sealed wrapper.

14 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures PATENTED FEB] 8 I975 SHEEI 10F 5 I PATENTEBFEBI 81975 SHEET 20F 5 PATENTEB FEB I 81% ROLL WRAPPING MACHINE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This application is a continuation-in-part of application, Ser. No. 358,582, filed May 9, 1973, and now abandanned.

One of the continuing problems involved in handling rolls of coiled sheet material wound in a roll is to retain the sheet coiled during handling. A well-understood and frequently used method to accomplish this by other than static means (tape or glue) is to rotate the coiled roll of material in a direction to maintain it coiled while being moved.

Even though coiled rolls of sheet material may have been stabilized to prevent uncoiling thereof, as by the dynamic rotating technique described immediately above, applying a wrapper to such rolls presents another difficult problem; namely, the cover must intercept the total width of the path of movement of the roll without interfering with the movement itself or releasing the roll for uncoiling.

The present invention provides a means for directly applying a wrapper to a coiled roll of sheet material while maintaining it in a coiled condition, thereby decreasing the investment in equipment, as well as saving time in handling of the roll, and also thereby additionally decreasing operating costs, particularly in regard to packaging gift-wrapping types of sheet material and the like. Details of an exemplary machine to accomplish such benefits are set forth hereinafter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the principal object of the present invention to provide a machine adapted, for example, directly to receive from a re-wind machine, one at a time, coiled rolls of sheet material and move the same to a wrapperapplying unit while maintaining each roll in fully coiled condition, the wrapper-applying unit disposing a section of heat-shrinkable synthetic resin wrapper material around the coiled rolls in somewhatloose condition but sealed axially along the length of each roll as each is sequentially presented to said wrapper-applying unit, and heating means being arranged to apply heat to one or more portions of said loosely applied wrapper and thereby being operable to shrink said portion or portions of the same into engagement with the cylindrical surface of the coiled roll of material in a manner to prevent uncoiling of the same, notwithstanding the fact that other portions of substantial length of the wrapper are loose, whereby each loosely wrapped roll may be conveyed to temporary storage or directly to additional heat-shrinking means in which the entire wrapper is shrunk into contiguous engagement with the entire length of the tightly coiled roll of material.

Another object of the invention is to provide the machine with conveyor means operable to advance the coiled rolls in spaced relationship to each other while rotating the same in a direction to prevent uncoiling of the rolls, for delivery to said wrapper-applying unit in which a narrow stationary support is located just past the relatively movable anvil and heating jaws which preferably move in a vertical plane, whereby each roll is supported stationarily while a wrapper along its entire length is being loosely applied around the same and sealed axially along the length of'the roll by said jaws, the machine also including an additional conveyor operable to remove the loosely wrapped roll from the wrapper-applying unit and continuing to rotate the same while said aforementioned portions of said wrapper are subjected to heat to shrink said sections of restricted length into contiguous engagement with the rolls to prevent uncoiling of the same.

A further object of the invention is to provide said conveyors with elongated stationary means parallel thereto and defining spaces along which each roll is rotated as aforesaid, the end of said stationary elongated means which is associated with the second conveyor extending longitudinally so as to have portions positioned above said narrow support and cooperating therewith to hold each roll, sequentially, while the heat-shrinkable wrapper is being applied therearound along its entire length and sealed axially along its entire length in loose condition, prior to the next consecutive roll being moved into wrapper-applying position in said unit and thereby urging said preceding loosely wrapped roll into engagement with the receiving end of said second movable conveyor, and thus, inititating continued rotation of the same past said heating means to shrink said portions of the wrapper.

Still another object of the invention is to accelerate the movement of each coiled roll of said material from said first conveyor to the supported position thereof upon said stationary support by means of oscillating arms, the pivots of which are located above or below said first conveyor adjacent said wrapper-applying unit, the lower ends of said arms being adapted to engage said rolls at longitudinally spaced locations therealong to prevent skewing of the rolls when introduced to said wrapper-applying unit, said arms being moved in rolladvancing direction while the anvil and heating jaws are separated to permit passing a coiled roll thercbetween and onto said stationary support, said arms immediately then being moved to retracted position to permit closing of the jaws to seal the wrapper.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a fluid-operated cylinder unit located appropriately and respectively to reciprocate said anvil and heating jawsv relative to each other and also to actuate said rollmoving arms which project each roll into the wrapperapplying unit, control means for said units being provided to operate the same in sequence and also permit the anvil and heating jaws to remain a short, but nevertheless, definite length of time abutted which is adequate to effect sealing of a section of the heatshrinkable wrapper sheet axially along the entire length of each coiled roll of material, sever the sealed wrapper from the supply of wrapper sheeting, and reconstitute the severed ends of the sheeting material respectively fed from two supply rolls thereof into a continuous sheet extending across the path of movement of the next oncoming roll and intercepted thereby when said oncoming roll is moved onto said stationary support for application of a wrapper therearound and along its entire length, all of such operations being accomplished automatically by suitable relay and timing mechanism incorporated in the control means.

Details of the foregoing objects and of the invention, as well as other objects thereof, are set forth in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings comprising a part thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation of an exemplary machine embodying the principles of the present invention.

ure also illustrating somewhat diagrammatically certain elements of the actuating and control mechanism for said arm means, said arm means being shown in full lines and phantom respectively in different operative positions thereof.

FIG. is a fragmentary, foreshortened vertical elevation illustrating the mechanism shown in FIG. 4 as seen substantially along the line 55-thereof.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary, fragmentary side elevation showing a row of coiled material in process of having a wrapper applied therearound, the anvil and heating jaws being spaced in said view to permit passage of the roll therebetween.

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 but showing said jaws in sealing and severing engagement with each other following application of the wrapper around a coiled roll of said material. A

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary side elevation of a roll of material having a fragmentary portion of a heat-shrinkable wrapper applied loosely thereto and illustrating a shrunken limited section of said wrapper contracted into substantially contiguous engagement with the coiled roll to prevent uncoiling thereof in accordance with the principles of the invention.

I FIG. 9 is a fragmentary plan view of the right hand portion of the machine as viewed in FIG. 2 and illustrating another exemplary position of the film shrinking members relative to the path of movement of the rolls around which wrappers have been applied.

FIG. 10 is an exemplary view of foreshortened roll having a wrapper applied thereto by the heater arrangement shown in FIG. 9 and in which the end portending frame members 24, best shown in FIG. 2, the inner end of said frame 22 supporting a pair of similar sheaves 26 and the inlet end of said'frame 22 having a transverse horizontal plate 28 extending between the frame members 24 and adapted to receive coiled rolls of sheet material 30 from any suitable means such as a re-wind machine of conventional type.

The forward ends of the frame members 24 also support additional guide sheaves 32 which are similar in size to the sheaves 26. Endless flexible feed belts 34 move along the upper surfaces of the frame members 24 and around the sheaves 26 and 32. Referring to FIG. 1, it will be seen that each belt also extends around a drive sheave 36 and a tensioning idler sheave 38 mounted on the outer end of a' pivoted arm 40 which extends in opposition to another arm 42 to which one end of atensioning spring 44 isconnected, the opposite end being connected to the upright frame member 18 i as shown FIG. 1.

Overhead longitudinal frame members 56 are mounted parallel to and above the upper courses of the tions of the wrapper have been shrunk to prevent uncoiling of the roll therein.

FIG. 11 is an exemplary end view of the roll shown in FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3 in particular, the machine comprising the present invention is composed ofa base frame 10 from which several pairs of upright plates 12 and 14 extend to substantially the same height, at opposite sides of the machine, said plates having horizontal frame plates 16 connected to the upper ends of opposite pairs ofthe plates 12 and 14, as shown in FIG. 1. Adjacent the inlet end of the machine, the frame also comprises additional shorterupright members 18, respectively at opposite sides of the machine for purposes of supporting additional horizontal side members 20 connected to the upper ends of the members 18 and to appropriate locations on the upright plates 12.

A first conveyor frame 22 extends from the inlet end of the machine, adjacent the left-hand end as viewed in FIG. 1, and extends horizontally inward suvstantially to the upright side plates 12. Said frame 22, as viewed in FIG. 2, has a width substantially less than that of the entire machine and comprises a pair of longitudinally exfeed belts 34 comprising inlet conveyor means. The frame members 56 have longitudinally extending stationary plates 58 supported thereby in parallel relationship to the upper courses of the feed belts 34, the lower surface of the plates 58 preferably having strips of compressible material 60 extending therealong as best shown in FIG. 1, the same comprising sponge rubber or similar material. The purpose of the strips 60 is to afford frictional engagement by the coiled rolls of mate- I rial 30 as the same are moved by the upper courses of the belts 34 which travel in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 1 toward the wrapper-applying unit 62 located adjacent the inner end of the upper courses of belts 34, as best shown in FIGS. 1 and 4.

The overhead frame members 56 preferably are vertically adjustable a limited extent in order to accommodate rolls 30 of a limited range of different diameters. Suitable conventional adjustable means, details of which are not shown, connect said frame members 56 and the elements carried thereby with respect to upright frame members 64 and 66 which are shown in exemplary manner in FIG. 1 and extend upward from the longitudinal frame members 24 which support the feed belts 34. Vertical adjustment of the outer end of said assembled frame means and the belts 34 is made possible by appropriate adjustment means 68 of suitable nature, shown in FIG. 1, and thereby adapt the entrance end of the first conveyor frame 22 to the discharge means of a re-wind machine, for example, not shown.

WRAPPER-APPLYING UNIT The wrapper-applying unit 62 receives sheets of heatshrinkable synthetic resin wrapper material of suitable type, of which a number of different commercial kinds are available, from supply rolls 70 and 72 thereof respectively mounted in the upper and lower portions of the frame 10. Commercial rolls of such material, especially if or the order of 30 or 36 inches, for example,

may be as much as 8 or 10 inches in diameter. Rolls of this size are quite heavy and may be of as much as 50 or 60 pounds or more in weight. Accordingly, the present invention contemplates that said rolls will be uncoiled by power means. The rolls 70 and 72 of said material respectively rest upon pairs of rollers 74 and 76, each of the rollers 74 being power driven by appropriate motors 78 through the medium of sprocket chains 80. Said motors operate at appropriate speed. Rollers 74 are provided with suitable flanges to position the supply rolls 70 and 72 thereon axially and the rollers 76 are idlers. Said supply rolls are driven intermittently by control means, details of which are described hereinafter.

The upper web 82 of heat-shrinkable wrapper sheeting is fed over idler rolls 84 in the upper portion of the frame of the machine, part of the web extending around a take-up roll 86 which extends between the outer ends of pivoted arms 88 which are counterweighted at one end but in such manner that the roll 86 is gravity operated so as to exert relatively light weight upon the web 82 and take up any slack therein resulting from the intermittent consumption of the web while the same is fed at suitable speed from the supply roll 70.

The lower web 90 of wrapper sheeting extends over idler roll 92 and around take-up roll 94 which extends between a pair of pivoted arms 96 which have counterweights on the ends thereof opposite the take-up roll 94. The counter-weight is such, however, that the roll 94 primarily operates by gravity to take up the slack in the lower web 90. The outer ends of the webs 82 and 90 are fused together to form a continuous web that extends across the entire path of the oncoming coiled rolls 30 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4. I

Intermittent driving of the supply rolls 70 and 72 is effected by limit switches 98 provided with actuating arms 100 positioned to be engaged by the counterweighted end of the pivoted arms 88 and 96. When the consumption of the united webs 82 and 90 reaches a certain limit which effects elevation of the take-up rolls 86 and 94 to a predetermined amount, the limit switches 98 are actuated to drive the supply rolls 70 and 72 a predetermined amount adequate to cause lowering of the rolls 86 and 94 to a desired extent which effects opening of the switches 98 and stopping of the driving of said supply rolls.

The wrapper-applying unit is provided with an upwardly movable, horizontally extending anvil jaw 102 and a downwardly movable heating jaw 104 which are parallel to each other and are disposed commonly within a substantially vertical plane, as shown in FIGS. 1, 4, 6 and 7. Said jaws are actually composite and respectively are carried by transversely extending supporting bars 106 and 108, best shown in FIG. 3. The opposite ends of the supporting bars 106 and 108 are disposed within appropriate guides on the upright frame plates 12 at opposite sides of the machine. Said supporting bars and the jaws respectively carried thereby preferably are moved from vertically spaced positions of the jaws 102 and 104 to and from engagement of the faces of said jaws into substantial abutment with each other, except for the webs of wrapper sheeting 82 and 90, which are disposed in over-lapping relationship with respect to each other between said abutting faces of the jaws, as shown in FIG. 7, for example.

Jaw 104 has an electrical resistance heating wire 110 extending therealong which is energized substantially instanteously by suitable control means, not shown, which, when the jaws are in substantially abutting relationship, as shown in FIG. 7, operates to supply current to the wire in suitable amount to substantially inst-anteously effect severing of the overlying webs 82 and 90, sealing by fusion the edges of the portions of the thermo-plastic webs 82 and which have been severed by the heating wire so as to provide a loose wrapper around the coiled roll 30, and also unite by fusion the severed ends of the webs 82 and 90 extending from the supply rolls so as to reconstitute the aforementioned substantially continuous web of thermo-plastic wrapper sheeting to extend across the path of the oncoming coiled rolls 30.

Movement of the supporting bars 106 and 108 in opposite directions with respect to each other for purposes of carrying the jaws thereon to and from wrapper-sealing engagement is effected by commonly oper ated means comprising a pair of bell cranks 112 which are pivotally supported by a cross-frame member 114, as shown in FIG. 3, the upright portions thereof being connected by horizontal linkage 116, the right-hand end of which, as shown in FIG. 3, being connected to the upper end of another bell crank 118 and vertical links 120 extending between and connecting the horizontal arms of bell cranks 112 with the supporting bar 106.

The lower supporting bar 108 is supported and operated by a bell crank 122 and a T-crank 124, similarly extending horizontal arms of which are connected to vertical rods 126 which extend downward from the lower supporting bar 108 and include compression springs shown in FIG. 3 around rods 126 to provide yieldability between the engaging faces of the anvil and heating jaws I02 and 104.

The pivots of the bell crank 122 and T-crank 124 are supported by another horizontal cross-frame member 128 and the downwardly extending legs of said cranks are connected by a horizontal rod 130. The opposite horizontal rod 132 of T-crank 124 extends outwardly beyond one side of the machine and is connected to a vertical link 134, the upper end of which is connected to the outer end of the horizontal leg of bell crank 118 as clearly shown in FIG. 3.

The lower end of bell crank 122 is also connected to the outer end of a piston rod projecting from one end of a fluid-operated cylinder 136, the opposite end being connected to a horizontal supporting arm 138, which is connected to one of the upright frame plates 12 as shown in FIG. 3. From said structure, it will be seen that when the piston in the cylinder 136 is operated in opposite directions, the supporting bars 106 and 108 and the jaws respectively carried thereby will be moved toward and from each other simultaneously and engagement of said anvils will be of a cushion nature, due to the springs which surround the vertical rods 126.

ROLL INSERTING MEANS The coiled rolls of sheet material 30 preferably are rotatably moved at constant speed, in spaced relationship to each other by means of the feed belts 34 which rotate the rolls relative to the strips of compressible material 60 in a direction to prevent unwinding of the material on said rolls. As the leading roll 30 approaches the united web 91 of wrapper sheeting formed by fusing the end of webs 82 and 90 together, see FIG. 4, said roll passes beneath the scanning ray of a photo-electric unit 140, the ray being emitted from means projecting from the lower surfaces thereof as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4. When said ray is intercepted by the leading roll 30, a control relay 142, which is in circuit with cylinder unit 144 moves crank arm 146 and shaft 148 counterclockwise. Said shaft extends between bearings supported by the vertical frame plates 12. Hubs on the upper ends of a pair of pusher arms 150 are connected to shaft 148 and said arms extend downward therefrom and terminate in means to support contact rolls 152, said supporting means being adjustable relative to the lower ends of the arms 150. Normally, the arms are disposed in the outermost phantom position thereof shown in FIG. 4, and in which the contact rolls .152 are disposed above the space between the strips 60 and conveyor feed belts 34.

The function of the pusher arms 150 is to move from the fully retracted position thereof, just described, down into the path of movement of the rolls 30 as as to engage the trailing surface of the leading roll 30, as shown in full lines of the arm 150 in FIG. 4, and push said roll from the discharge end of the conveyor feed belt 34 onto a narrow, stationary support plate 154, which is best shown in FIGS. 4, 6 and 7. The arms 150 then quickly return to the retracted position referred to above.

Intermediately of the pushing stroke of the arms 150, a jaw opening limit switch 156 is closed by means of a cam 158 which is fixed to shaft 148. Said switch operates a solenoid, not shown, which controls a valve that directs operating fluid to the jaw-operating cylinder 136, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. In FIG. 4, the cranks and linkage operated by the cylinder are not shown in their entirety for purposes of simplicity. The cylinder 136, under such circumstances, is moved in a direction to extend the jaws to open position, such as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4. I

The pusher cylinder 144 continues to move the roll 30 which results in passing the roll between the spaced jaws 102 and 104 and onto the narrow stationary support plate 154 shown in FIGS. 4, 6 and 7. Said roll then comes to rest for a short interval of time and is held upon the support 154 by one end of each of a pair of similar horizontal, transversely spaced stationary plates 160, the under surfaces of which are lined with strips of compressible material 162. Thus, the roll 30, when resting upon the support plate 154, is effectively maintained in stationary condition for application of a loosely fitting, axially sealed sleeve 164, shown in FIG. 8, of the wrapper sheeting 82 and 90.

As the leading roll 30 enters the wrapper-applying unit 62, it first intersects along its entire length the vertically extending, reconstituted web 91 composed of film 82, 90 and pushes the same with it, said sheeting paying off of the supply webs which pass around the take-up rolls 86 and 94, until the roll comes to rest upon the stationary support 154. When this occurs, the pusher arms 150 will have moved to their fullest extent toward the wrapper-applying unit 62 and another switch 165, see FIG. 4, is closed to de-energize the con.- trol relay 142. This, in turn, de-energizes the solenoid, not shown, which controls the delivery of fluid to the pusher arm cylinder 144 and actuates it in a direction to return the pusher arms 1'50 quickly to the starting position thereof, so that they are ready for the next stroke when called upon for movement.

Approximately midway of the return stroke of the pusher arm cylinder 144', the switch 156 is released and this causes the first-mentioned solenoid valve referred to above, not shown, to become de-energized and thus cause the jaws to close, thereby bringing the webs of wrapper'sheeting 82 and which extend around the faces of said jaws into abutment with each other as shown in FIG. 7, whereupon the heating wire on jaw 104 is instantly energized to effect the severing of the webs, axial sealing of the edges of the web sections which surround the roll 30, and reconstituting the other edges of the webs 82 and 90 so as to form said continuous web 91 to extend across the path of movement of the rolls 30. At this stage,it is pointed out that the axial wrapper which is sealed around the entire length of roll 30 is of a relatively loose nature and incapable of preventing uncoiling of the sheet material which is tightly coiled upon a core, or is coreless, as it moves along the feed belts 34 and also as it is held stationarily upon the support plate 154. Therefore, in accordance with the present invention, the loosely applied wrapper 164, as shown in FIG. 8, is subjected to longitudinally extending, preferably electrically energized, heating members 166, one or more of which are disposed in transversely spaced relationship to each other with respect to the discharge conveyor belts 168 which extend around suitable guide sheaves 170 and 172 at opposite ends of the belt-supporting frame 174. Said belts also extending around driving sheaves 176 and tightening sheaves 178 as shown in FIG. 1.

In FIG. 3, it will be seen that three heating members 166 are illustrated at locations spaced longitudinally along and above the rolls 30 as they are moved by belts 168. If desired, however, only a single heater may be used, midway between the ends of rolls 30, as shown in FIG. 2; Further, as shown in exemplary manner in FIG. 9, the heating members 166 respectively may be mounted above the ends of rolls 30 to heat the outer ends of the loose wrapper 164, which initially project beyond the opposite ends of rolls 30.

The driving sheaves 176 for belts 168 are driven by an electric motor 180 which is connected to a gear re duction unit 182 having a driving sheave 184 around which a drive belt or sprocket chain 186 extends, said belt being maintained tight by a tightening roll 188 on lever means which are maintained in tightening direction by spring means 190.

The discharge conveyor belts 168 are driven in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 1 to rotate the rolls 30 in a direction to continue to maintain the sheet material in coiled condition thereon, even though the same are enclosed loosely within the wrapper 164.

The various selective arrangements of heating members 166 preferably are continuously heated and extend in close proximity. adjacent selected portions of restricted width of the loosely applied wrapper 164 on each of the rolls 30 disposed between the stationary plates 160 and the discharge conveyor belts 168. Due to the wrapper being composed of heat-shrinkable,

. thermo-plastic synthetic resin material, the heat emanating from the heating members 166 is adequate to progressively shrink said selected portions 192 of the wrappers 164, as shown in FIG. 8, which are intermediate of the ends of the rolls 30. By the time the rolls reach the discharge end of the conveyor belts 168, this shrinkage is adequate to cause said limited areas 192 and/or 198 to be in very close contiguous engagement with the periphery of the tightly coiled sheet material upon the rolls 30, whereby the elongated, otherwise loose wrappers 164 upon the rolls 30 may be moved to any desired location to subject the same to heatshrinking in tunnels for such purpose, or otherwise, to effect complete shrinking ofthe entire sleeves 164 into contiguous engagement with the rolls 30.

In addition to the shrinking of selected limited areas 192 of the loose wrapper 164, intermediate of the ends thereof, to provide one or more of the same which have been shrunk into close contiguous engagement with the periphery of the coiled sheet material on the rolls 30, the arrangement of heating members 166 shown in FIG. 9, which produces the constricted end areas 198 of the loose wrapper 164, provides several distinct ad vantages. The first is that the tight engagement of areas 198 with the ends of the coiled material on rolls 30 will prevent uncoiling thereof even if the entire intermediate portion of wrapper 164 remains loose. The second advantage is that the constricted end portions 198 which extend at least a limited distance radially over the ends of the rolls, as shown in exemplary manner in FIG. 11, will prevent the wrapper, when subjected to final shrinkage from having the ends of the wrapper pulled away from the ends of the rolls due to longitudianl shrinking of the wrapper.

As shown in FIG. 1, the heating members 166 are supported by overhead frame means 194 from which vertical struts 196 extend which are connected to frame means 194 by means affording vertical adjustment of members 166 relative to the rotating rolls 30 for desired shrinkage of the portions 192 and/or 198 in a short period of time.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that the present invention provides for direct wrapping of a coiled roll while preventing uncoiling of the roll, whereby the cost of producing tightly wrapped rolls of sheet material is minimized.

While the invention has been described and illustrated in its preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the precise details herein illustrated and described since the same may be carried out in other ways falling within the true spirit and scope of the invention as illustrated and described.

We claim:

1. A machine for wrapping rolls of sheet material coiled about an axis as received from a re-winding machine and unrestrained against uncoiling, said machine comprising in combination, a frame, a first conveyor having an entrance and an opposite end supported by said frame and defining a path along which coiled rolls of material are advanced from said entrance, power means to move said conveyor along said path and away from said entrance, means operable as said coiled rolls are advanced along said path to rotate them in a direction to maintain said rolls in coiled condition, wrapperapplying mechanism including support means positioned to receive said coiled rolls of material from said first conveyor,- means to apply loosely around each roll of material a heat-shrinkable wrapper positioned between the opposite ends of said rolls, means engageable with said rolls of coiled sheet material and operable to move said rolls onto said supporting means, wrapper sealing means operable while said rolls are on said supporting means to seal said wrapper axially along the length thereof to enclose each roll for the full length thereof, a second conveyor having a receiving end adjacent said wrapper-applying mechanism and defining a discharge path from said sealing means, means operable as said coiled rolls and enclosing wrapper are moved along said path by said second conveyor to rotate said rolls and wrapper continuously in a direction to maintain said rolls coiled within said wrapper. and heater means extending along the path of movement of said rolls upon said second conveyor at predetermined locations operable to shrink at least one or more portions of said loose wrapper into contiguous relationship with each roll to maintain the same coiled within said wrapper prior to subsequent shrinking of the entire wrapper into such contiguous relationship with the rolls.

2. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrappers have a width greater than the length of the rolls to permit the ends of said wrapper to extend beyond the opposite ends of said coiled rolls of material, and a pair of said heater means being positioned longitudinally in said machine respectively above the opposite end portions of said coiled rolls and loose wrappers thereon and thereby operable to shrink at least the extending end portions of said wrappers into contiguous engagement with the end portions of said coiled rolls and thereby prevent said rolls from uncoiling within said loose wrappers.

3. The wrapping machine according to claim 2 in which the end portions of said wrappers which extend beyond the corresponding ends of the roll of material in each wrapper are shrunk to a smaller diameter than said roll of material and thereby extend a limited distance in a substantially radial direction relative to the ends of said roll of material and prevent said ends of said wrapper from being moved axially incident to final shrinking of said wrappers.

4. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said heater means is positioned longitudinally relative to said discharge path of said rolls intermediately between the ends of said rolls and operable to shrink at least a portion of said loose wrappers into contiguous relationship with each roll to maintain the same coiled within said loose wrapper.

5. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said heater means are elongated and extend substantially in parallel spaced relationship with the longitudinal discharge path in said machine, said heater means being continuous between the ends thereof.

6. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrapper-applying mechanism comprises an elongated anvil jaw and an elongated heating jaw cooperable with said anvil jaw, said jaws extending transversely to the longitudinal axes of said machine and being substantially horizontal, means interconnected to said jaws and operable to effect relatively reciprocable movement thereof with respect to each other and being operable to engage spaced portions of a web of heatshrinkable wrapper material when extended around a roll of sheet material when disposed in said wrapperapplying mechanism, and said supporting means comprises a stationary plate extending substantially in parallelism with said jaws immediately adjacent the entrance end of said second conveyor and operable to support a roll of coiled sheet material stationarily thereon during operation of said jaws.

7. The wrapping machine according to claim 6'in which said second conveyor comprises driven belt means and stationary elongated means parallel to one course of said belt means and spaced therefrom to define a space through which said coiled rolls are rolled, the end of said stationary elongated means which is nearest said jaws extending substantially horizontally above said stationary supporting plate and being operable in conjunction with said supporting plate respectively to engage opposite surfaces of said rolls of coiled sheet material while the same are being enclosed by said wrapper and thereby stabilize said rolls in stationary condition upon said supporting plate while thus being wrapped.

8. The wrapping machine according to claim 7 in which said means to move said rolls onto said supporting means from said first conveyor comprise pushing means movable in timed relation to the movement of said jaws and operable to move individual rolls of said coiled sheet material sequentially between said jawswhen separated and onto said stationary supporting plate, such movement of a roll of said material onto said supporting plate being operable to push a previously wrapped roll from said supporting plate and onto the receiving end of said second conveyor to reestablish rotation of said wrapped roll of coiled material for movement past said heater means.

9. The wrapping machine according to claim 6 in which said means engageable with said rolls of material to the same onto said stationary supporting plate comprises pusher arm means extending radially from a shaft mounted horizontally and transversely to the longitudinal axis of the machine, means rotatably supporting said shaft vertically spaced from the discharge end of said first conveyor and operable to engage a roll of coiled material at longitudinally spaced locations along said roll to prevent skewing thereof incident to being introduced to said wrapper-applying mechanism, said machine also including actuating means supported upon said machine and engageable with said shaft and operable upon the arrival of a roll of said material adjacent the discharge end of said first conveyor to move said pusher arm means in a direction to advance said roll between said jaws whenv spaced and onto said narrow stationary supporting plate, and control means operable to retract said pusher arm means from interference with advancement of subsequent rolls of coiled material upon said first conveyor.

10. The wrapping machine according to claim 9 further including sensitive means responsive to the passage of rolls past the same and positioned adjacent the discharge end of said first conveyor, and control means for said shaft actuating means operable when a roll passes said sensitive means to effect movement of said pusher arm means to move a roll from said first conveyor onto said narrow stationary supporting plate.

11. The wrapping machine according to .claim 10 further including limit switch means interconnected to said jaw moving means and operable when said arm means are in retracted position to control the time in which said jaws are in sealing engagement with wrapping material extending around a roll of coiled material disposed within said wrapper-applying mechanism.

12. The wrapping machine according to claim 11 further'including a fluid-operated cylinder unit interconnected to one of said jaws, and fluid control means interconnected to said cylinder unit and to said limit switch operated by said arm means to control the movement of at least one of said jaws toward and from the other.

13. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 further including support means respectively positioned above and below said conveyors and respectively adapted to support supply rolls of said wrapper sheeting to be applied to said rolls of coiled material, and powered driving means respectively engaging said sup ply rolls of wrapper sheeting and operable to drive said rolls at a substantially constant speed, and take-up control means engageable with the wrapper sheeting respectively being paid-off from said supply rolls for de livery to said anvils and periodically moved into encirclement of said coiled rolls of material, thereby compensating for the constant speed of driving said supply rolls of wrapper sheeting and the periodic consumption thereof.

14. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrapper sealing means comprise elongated anvil and heating jaws of similar length and supported transversely to said path of movement of said rolls and adapted to be moved toward and from each other, one of said jaws being below said path and the other being above said path when said jaws are spaced to permit passage of said rolls therebetween, and said machine further including sets of angular linkage means supported by said frame at transversely spaced positions and connected to longitudinally spaced locations on said jaws to support the same horizontally in all vertical positions of said jaws, one of said sets of angulur linkage means being mounted above said path of said rolls and the other set being mounted below said path, additional linkage means interconnecting said sets of angulur linkage means for common actuation thereof to move said jaws simultaneously toward and from each other, and power means connected to said additional linkage means to actuate the same.

Claims (14)

1. A machine for wrapping rolls of sheet material coiled about an axis as received from a re-winding machine and unrestrained against uncoiling, said machine comprising in combination, a frame, a first conveyor having an entrance and an opposite end supported by said frame and defining a path along which coiled rolls of material are advanced from said entrance, power means to move said conveyor along said path and away from said entrance, means operable as said coiled rolls are advanced along said path to rotate them in a direction to maintain said rolls in coiled condition, wrapper-applying mechanism including support means positioned to receive said coiled rolls of material from said first conveyor, means to apply loosely around each roll of material a heat-shrinkable wrapper positioned between the opposite ends of said rolls, means engageable with said rolls of coiled sheet material and operable to move said rolls onto said supporting means, wrapper sealing means operable while said rolls are on said suPporting means to seal said wrapper axially along the length thereof to enclose each roll for the full length thereof, a second conveyor having a receiving end adjacent said wrapper-applying mechanism and defining a discharge path from said sealing means, means operable as said coiled rolls and enclosing wrapper are moved along said path by said second conveyor to rotate said rolls and wrapper continuously in a direction to maintain said rolls coiled within said wrapper, and heater means extending along the path of movement of said rolls upon said second conveyor at predetermined locations operable to shrink at least one or more portions of said loose wrapper into contiguous relationship with each roll to maintain the same coiled within said wrapper prior to subsequent shrinking of the entire wrapper into such contiguous relationship with the rolls.

2. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrappers have a width greater than the length of the rolls to permit the ends of said wrapper to extend beyond the opposite ends of said coiled rolls of material, and a pair of said heater means being positioned longitudinally in said machine respectively above the opposite end portions of said coiled rolls and loose wrappers thereon and thereby operable to shrink at least the extending end portions of said wrappers into contiguous engagement with the end portions of said coiled rolls and thereby prevent said rolls from uncoiling within said loose wrappers.

3. The wrapping machine according to claim 2 in which the end portions of said wrappers which extend beyond the corresponding ends of the roll of material in each wrapper are shrunk to a smaller diameter than said roll of material and thereby extend a limited distance in a substantially radial direction relative to the ends of said roll of material and prevent said ends of said wrapper from being moved axially incident to final shrinking of said wrappers.

4. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said heater means is positioned longitudinally relative to said discharge path of said rolls intermediately between the ends of said rolls and operable to shrink at least a portion of said loose wrappers into contiguous relationship with each roll to maintain the same coiled within said loose wrapper.

5. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said heater means are elongated and extend substantially in parallel spaced relationship with the longitudinal discharge path in said machine, said heater means being continuous between the ends thereof.

6. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrapper-applying mechanism comprises an elongated anvil jaw and an elongated heating jaw cooperable with said anvil jaw, said jaws extending transversely to the longitudinal axes of said machine and being substantially horizontal, means interconnected to said jaws and operable to effect relatively reciprocable movement thereof with respect to each other and being operable to engage spaced portions of a web of heat-shrinkable wrapper material when extended around a roll of sheet material when disposed in said wrapper-applying mechanism, and said supporting means comprises a stationary plate extending substantially in parallelism with said jaws immediately adjacent the entrance end of said second conveyor and operable to support a roll of coiled sheet material stationarily thereon during operation of said jaws.

7. The wrapping machine according to claim 6 in which said second conveyor comprises driven belt means and stationary elongated means parallel to one course of said belt means and spaced therefrom to define a space through which said coiled rolls are rolled, the end of said stationary elongated means which is nearest said jaws extending substantially horizontally above said stationary supporting plate and being operable in conjunction with said supporting plate respectively to engage opposite surfaces of said rolls of coiled sheet material while the same are being enclosed by said wrapper anD thereby stabilize said rolls in stationary condition upon said supporting plate while thus being wrapped.

8. The wrapping machine according to claim 7 in which said means to move said rolls onto said supporting means from said first conveyor comprise pushing means movable in timed relation to the movement of said jaws and operable to move individual rolls of said coiled sheet material sequentially between said jaws when separated and onto said stationary supporting plate, such movement of a roll of said material onto said supporting plate being operable to push a previously wrapped roll from said supporting plate and onto the receiving end of said second conveyor to re-establish rotation of said wrapped roll of coiled material for movement past said heater means.

9. The wrapping machine according to claim 6 in which said means engageable with said rolls of material to the same onto said stationary supporting plate comprises pusher arm means extending radially from a shaft mounted horizontally and transversely to the longitudinal axis of the machine, means rotatably supporting said shaft vertically spaced from the discharge end of said first conveyor and operable to engage a roll of coiled material at longitudinally spaced locations along said roll to prevent skewing thereof incident to being introduced to said wrapper-applying mechanism, said machine also including actuating means supported upon said machine and engageable with said shaft and operable upon the arrival of a roll of said material adjacent the discharge end of said first conveyor to move said pusher arm means in a direction to advance said roll between said jaws when spaced and onto said narrow stationary supporting plate, and control means operable to retract said pusher arm means from interference with advancement of subsequent rolls of coiled material upon said first conveyor.

10. The wrapping machine according to claim 9 further including sensitive means responsive to the passage of rolls past the same and positioned adjacent the discharge end of said first conveyor, and control means for said shaft actuating means operable when a roll passes said sensitive means to effect movement of said pusher arm means to move a roll from said first conveyor onto said narrow stationary supporting plate.

11. The wrapping machine according to claim 10 further including limit switch means interconnected to said jaw moving means and operable when said arm means are in retracted position to control the time in which said jaws are in sealing engagement with wrapping material extending around a roll of coiled material disposed within said wrapper-applying mechanism.

12. The wrapping machine according to claim 11 further including a fluid-operated cylinder unit interconnected to one of said jaws, and fluid control means interconnected to said cylinder unit and to said limit switch operated by said arm means to control the movement of at least one of said jaws toward and from the other.

13. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 further including support means respectively positioned above and below said conveyors and respectively adapted to support supply rolls of said wrapper sheeting to be applied to said rolls of coiled material, and powered driving means respectively engaging said supply rolls of wrapper sheeting and operable to drive said rolls at a substantially constant speed, and take-up control means engageable with the wrapper sheeting respectively being paid-off from said supply rolls for delivery to said anvils and periodically moved into encirclement of said coiled rolls of material, thereby compensating for the constant speed of driving said supply rolls of wrapper sheeting and the periodic consumption thereof.

14. The wrapping machine according to claim 1 in which said wrapper sealing means comprise elongated anvil and heating jaws of similar length and supported transversely to said path of movement of said rolls and adapted to be moved toward and from each other, one of said jaws being below said path and the other being above said path when said jaws are spaced to permit passage of said rolls therebetween, and said machine further including sets of angular linkage means supported by said frame at transversely spaced positions and connected to longitudinally spaced locations on said jaws to support the same horizontally in all vertical positions of said jaws, one of said sets of angulur linkage means being mounted above said path of said rolls and the other set being mounted below said path, additional linkage means interconnecting said sets of angulur linkage means for common actuation thereof to move said jaws simultaneously toward and from each other, and power means connected to said additional linkage means to actuate the same.

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