CA1196225A - Carton marking device - Google Patents
Carton marking deviceInfo
- Publication number
- CA1196225A CA1196225A CA000422622A CA422622A CA1196225A CA 1196225 A CA1196225 A CA 1196225A CA 000422622 A CA000422622 A CA 000422622A CA 422622 A CA422622 A CA 422622A CA 1196225 A CA1196225 A CA 1196225A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- conveyor
- roller
- marking
- carton
- transfer roller
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41F—PRINTING MACHINES OR PRESSES
- B41F17/00—Printing apparatus or machines of special types or for particular purposes, not otherwise provided for
- B41F17/24—Printing apparatus or machines of special types or for particular purposes, not otherwise provided for for printing on flat surfaces of polyhedral articles
- B41F17/26—Printing apparatus or machines of special types or for particular purposes, not otherwise provided for for printing on flat surfaces of polyhedral articles by rolling contact
Landscapes
- Auxiliary Devices For And Details Of Packaging Control (AREA)
Abstract
INVENTOR
RUDDY VOSS
TITLE
CARTON MARKING DEVICE
ABSTRACT OF DISCLOSURE
A carton marking device is disclosed which comprises an actively driven transfer roller having a circumferential speed equal to the speed at which the carton passes the device. This device permits accurate marking of the carton with appropriate printed codes and yet simple of construction and reliable in operation.
RUDDY VOSS
TITLE
CARTON MARKING DEVICE
ABSTRACT OF DISCLOSURE
A carton marking device is disclosed which comprises an actively driven transfer roller having a circumferential speed equal to the speed at which the carton passes the device. This device permits accurate marking of the carton with appropriate printed codes and yet simple of construction and reliable in operation.
Description
The present invention relates to cartons, especially for beverages, such as beer cartons. In particular, the invention relates to devices -for printing indicia such as codes, et cetera, on such cartons.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
Many consumer goods, for example, beverages such as beer and ale, contained in bottles or cans are subsequently packaged in cartons, cases, or similar containers containing a number, say, twelve or twenty-four, of the individual units. A similar situation occurs in the canning industry where small cans containing soup, vegetables, et cetera, are produced in extremely large volumes and these smaller units are packed in larger containers for distribution purposes. It has been the practice and/or legal necessity to apply to containers as discussed above, information in the form of date codes, factoxy or origin markings, et cetera, and the incidence of such marXing is on the increaseO
Problems arise because of the extremely large volumes of similar sized containers to be marked and the desire, and, in some instances, necessity, to apply such markings to certain precise locations on the contain~r.
A marking device widely used in the brewing and other industries (the Bel Mark Coder) comprises a freely rotatable, passive, driven transfer roller which carries a rubber stamp~
mounted for free rotation in a horizontal plane to one side of a con~eyor upon which cases, cartons or the like containers, which are to be marked, travel. The device includes an ink impregnated rubber roller or pad mounted adjacent the transfer roller, the rubber stamp automatically being coated with ink upon contact with the roller or pad. The transfer roller is spring biased toward the conveyor and is adapted to contact the sidewall of each case travelling on the conveyor as the case reaches the coding station.
Upon contact with the case, friction causes the roller to rotate and, since the circumference of the roller is made less than the Z~cj length of -the sidewall, in theory, all the data contained on the rubber s-tamps) on -the roller is applied to the case sidewall.
However, in practice, -the transfer roller rnay no-t commence ro-ta--ting immediately on contact with -the sidewall, and perhaps not a-t all. Consequently, some, or in an extreme situation, all, of the desired marking may not be applied to -the sidewall. This could occur when adequate contact between the roller and sidewall is not made and/or maintained due, for example, to insufficient bias on the trans:~er roller or the carton material and/or rubber "O" rings on the transfer roller become too slippery. In any event, a major disadvantage is that it is not possible using such a device to apply -the markings -to a set precise location on the sidewall.
device which attempts to solve the above problem (the Norwood Coder) utilizes a trolley arrangement whereby the leading edge of a container movin~ on a live conveyor meets an abutment a-ttached -to a spring-loaded trolly arrangement. The trolley is pulled by the container against a spring bias a predetermined distance along an associated guide-~rail and when a set point is reached the abut-ment is retracted, the container freed with only a momentary slo-wing down and the trolley autoMatically returned to its original position, the cycle to be repeated with -the next container. Mar-king of the container is effected as the abutment is retracted by a rubber stamp carried by a piston arrangement on the trolley, the piston being arranged to urge the s-tamp agai.nst the container sidewall just as -the container passes the stationO However, such an arrangement is mechanically complex, prone to breakdowns, and consequen-tly, requires extensive maintenance. In addition, there is some restriction on the speed at w~ich the device can operate because of the reciprocal action of the trolley arrangemen-t.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a mar-king device which is simple in construction, requires little main-tenanace and yet is able to rapidly and precisely mark containers travelling on a conveyor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIO~I
I-t has now been found that -the above-described problems associated with marking devices utili~ing a freely ro-tatable -tran-sfer roller can be eliminated whilst still retaining the simpli-city of the device by driving said roller at a rate such -that its circumferential speed is substantially -the same speed as the car-ton whose wall is to be marked.
Also, by selecting a transfer roller having a circumference equal to not more than the length of -the carton wall to be marked, the spacing of cartons on the supply conveyor is not critical since it is ensured that each carton will be fully marked.
Moreover, if the circumference of the transEer roller is made substantially equal to the length of the carton wall to be marked, then the simple expedient of arranging for each carton -to arrive a-t the trans~er roller whils-t the roller is at -the same point in its rota-tion ("match point") will ensure tha-t every car-ton is marked in the same relative location, an important advan-tage when marking decorated cartons since hapha~ard or indescrimi-nate marking would mar the appearance thereof or in situa-tion when exact location of marking may be essential or very important, such as to enable rapid checking of inventory, et cetera. I~
multiple marking of the same information is desired, or if not positively desired, acceptable, then exact location marking can also be achieved by selecting a transfer roller having a circum-ference smaller than the length o~ the carton wall but o~ which the carton wall length is a multiple. Again, alignment o~ each car~on with the roller as aforementioned ensures each container is similarly marked. The second of the two possibilities could occur where two different length cartons are to be marked using the same transEer device~
DETAILED STATEME~T OF INVE~TIO~
In one aspect, the present invention provides a marking device, Eor marking a wall of a series of containers travelling on a conveyor, o-f -the type comprising in combination a transfer rol-ler which carries, on a radially ou-termost portion thereof, a marking stamp, w~ich roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such tha-t said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a container -travelling on the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circum-Eerence of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a container wall to be marked and the transfer roller i5 driven and at a ra-te such -that the speed of any poin-t on its circumference is substantially equal -to the speed of -the containers travelling on the conveyor.
It is preferred tht the circumference of the transfer rol-ler be substantially e~ual to the length of the carton walls to be marked .
In another preferred embodiment -the circumference of the transfer roller is chosen so that the length of container walls to be marked is a multiple thereof.
It will be appreciated that setting the transfer roller circumference at a value less -than the length of the carton wall to be marked ensures that, irrespective of -the spacing, i-f any, between the individual cartons making up the stream of cartons on the conveyor, each carton is marked with the complete "message"
even iE the latter extends along the total circumference of the transfer roller. In practice, the message, a da-te code for exam-ple, extends along only a small fraction of the transEer roller circumference. In such cases, it may be desirable to locate the message on -the same location on each car-ton. This object is achieved according to the present invention by ensuring that -the arrival of each car-ton at the transEer roller and -the degree oE
rotation of the latter is synchronized so that the leading edge of each carton meets the same match points on -the transfer roller.
~ major fea-ture oE the present invention is that the trans-Eer roller is driven. A separate drive system may be used to drive the transfer roller but it is preferred -that it be driven by a power take-off from the conveyor driven system, the latter eli-minating any problems regarding synchronization oE the conveyor ~9~
and transfer roller dri~es action which would be critical if they are separate.
The inking means may comprise an inking pad arranged to contact the stamp when necessary. However, it is preEerred that an inking roller be used, this being arranged for free rotation in the same plane as and adjacent to the transfer roller such -that upon each revolution of the transfer roller, the stamp contacts the inking roller and thereby is coated wi-th ink. In -this context the term "ink" is used to indicate any marking fluid.
In another embodiment, the present invention provides a container marking apparatus comprising in combination a conveyor for transporting containers and a marking device of the type com-prising a transfer roller w~ich carries, on the radially outermost portion thereof, an indicia stamp, which roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such that said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a container travelling on the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circumference of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a container wall to be marked and the transfer roller is driven at a rate such that -the speed of and point on its circumference is substantially equal to the speed of the contai-ners travelling on the conveyor.
The present invention will be further described with re-ference to, but not limited by, the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a plan view of part of an article conveyor system incorporating a marking device of the present invention;
Figure 2 i5 a side elevation of the marking device of Fi-gure 1, and Figure 3 is a diagrammatic plan view of a carton supply conveyor in combination with a marking device accordi.ng to the presen-t invention.
In the drawings, the marking device of the present inven-tion is shown in combination with a supply conveyor section whichconstitutes part of the packaging system in a brewery. Roller conveyor 10 carries filled cases from a caser (not shown) wherein ~ 6 the filled bo-ttles are inser-ted into the made-up cases to the marking device o:E the presen-t invention, generally designated S in Figure 1. The roller conveyor 10 is no-t driven, and filled cases C (carrying twenty-Eour "pint" bot-tles of an alcoholic brewery bevera~e) are each propelled along the conveyor by one of a series of conve~or fl.ights such as 16 in Figure 1. Flights 16 are car-ried by endless driving chains 18 and are equidis-tantly spaced from each other along the length of the conveyor 10 as -to form a series of pocke-ts or compartments of somewha-t larger d.imensions than the car-tons -to be marked. Cartons C are carried to the mar-king or coding sta-tion where they transfer to a carrier surface 22 upon w~ich they pass through the marking station and, following mar~ing, con-tinue to storage or transport. Conveyor 10 and car-rier surface 22 are provided with the usual article restraining side rails 26. The width of the carrier surface 22 at the coding station may be ad~us~ed by way of restraining bar 23. The above-descrbied article transport system is conventional and fur-ther detailed description of the components thereof is not considered necessary, It should be notedt however, that the flight carrying chains 18 are driven by a system of sprockets carried by axles, the latter being driven by associated motors in known manner.
The device of the present invention comprises a transfer wheel or roller 30 mounted on a shaft (not visible) so as to ro--tate in a horizon-tal place, the roller 30 projecting a short dis-tance through a break in side rail 26 (see Figure 1). The infor-mation or "message" to be applied to the cases is carried by -the corresponding rubber stamp 32 which is affixed to -the rim by two removable clamp members 33 of rim surface 34 of wheel 30. Rubber stamp 32 may readily be changed as desired. The shaft upon which roller 30 is mounted is driven via a simple right angle bevel gear arrangement contained in housing 38, drive being applied to the said gearing via sprocket 400 Housing 38, and therefore, indi-rec-tly roller 30, are carried by bracket 42 being secured thereto via bolts 44. Housing 38 is bolted at its lower extremity to bracke-t 43 which itself is secured to -the conveyor framework to bolt 45: vertical alignment of the shaft carrying roller 30 is thereby ensured. Endless drive chain 50 encircles sprocket 40 and sprocket 52, the lat-ter beiny carried and driven by axle or shaft 54. Shaft 54 is driven by the system which drives the flight conveyor. In otner words, the transfer roller 30 is driven by a simple mechanical power take-ofE arrangemen-t from -the basic con-veyor drive system. Separa-te drive means could be provided for tne transfer roller but -this is unnecessary and would signifi-cantly add to the complexity of the device and could introduce problems associated with ensuring synchronization of the conveyor and transEer roller drives.
Ink is automa-tically supplied to the rubber stamp 32 on transEer roller 30 by an ink impregnated roller 47 hori~ontally freely rotatably mounted on vertical spindle 46 which is carried by upper and lower parallel arms 48 and 48' (not shown). Arms 48 and 48' are welded to a boss 50 which is rotatably mounted on lock bolt 45 journaled into bracket 43. ~s can be seen, the roller 45 is adapted to allow it to swing in a horizontal plane towards or away from transfer roller 30. In practice~ the roller 47 is moved towards roller 30 until the roller 47 is able to make contact with the (indicia-containing) surface of stamp 32, which is, as shown, significantly raised from the surface of roller 30 which conse-quently is not inked. When in the desired position, lock bolt 45 is adjusted to secure boss 50 and hence roller 47. This arrange ment allows ink impregnated rollers of various d.iameters to be utilized if desired. Roller 47 will, of course, rotate under -the influence of the moving con-tact of stamp 32 -thereby providing for con-tinuous inking without hindering -the rotation of transfer rol-ler 30 and even wear of all of the surface of inking roller 450 Turning to Figure 3, this is a diagrammatic plan view sho-wing how beer cases con-taining twenty-four bot~les of beer are spaced apart on a flight conveyor 10 and how the synchronization of the rotation of transfer wheel 30 and the arrival of each car-ton C at the marXing station ensures, in this embodiment, the exact marking of each carton at the same relative specific loca-tion on the carton wall.
AS shown, carton Cl has a]ready a-t-tained carrier surface 22 whereas carton C2 is being transported to surface 22 on inac-tive roller conveyor 10 under the influence of driven flights 16.
The circumference oE transfer roller 30 is substantially the same as the leng-th L of identical car-tons Cl and C2. The flights 16 on flight conveyor 17 are preset such that the leading edges of adjacent csaes are distance L apart where L is twice the length "A" of each carton. sefore markin~ of cases commences, the orien-tation of -transfer roller 30 is adjusted so -that match poin-t M is adjacent the leading corner X of any car-ton such as Cl on the conveyor. In the presen-t circumstar,ces, it follows that all lea-ding edges X of all cases on the flight conveyor will match up with match point M. ~s shown, the flight conveyor 17 travels in the airection of arrow A and transfer roller 30 rota-tes clockwise in the direction of arrow B and the carton Cl is in the position on the carrier surface 22 just subsequent to when edge X o~ the carton Cl has ~een aliqned with match point M on -transfer roller 30 and when stamp 32 is in the process of marking the carton wall W.
To operate the device, once the size of carton to be marked is known (in the instance shown the carton is a beer carton con-taining twenty-four bot-tles of beer) the size of -transfer wheel is chosen. In this instance, the circumference of the transfer wheel 30 is substantially the same as the length A of the longer wall of the cartons Cl, C2, et cetera, to be marked. The information or message to be stamped on the case is a coding made up of some Eour letters, the full stamp taking up less than a quarter of circumference or rim of transfer wheel 30. The marXing of beer cartons does not in fact require that exact marking of the type referred to be effected: in other words, the marking of beer cartons is of the type wherein, provided the message or informa-tion is marked somewhere on the wall of the carton, that is quite acceptable. However, the embodiment shown in the drawings and in particular in Figure 3, specifically i]lustrates the marking of beer cartons wherein exact marking is obtained. In setting up the 3 ~ r~
g device to carry out same, the distance between flights 16 of fligh-t conveyor 17 is adjusted 90 -that the distance L between -the leading wall of adjacen-t cartons is equivalent to twice the cir-cumference of the transfer wheel 30 (and 2 x A). Secondly, the drive ~o transfer roller is disconnected and transfer wheel 30 rotated until the rim portion carrying match point M is located in the gap in the conveyor sidewall, conveyor 17 carrying, for exam-ple, carton Cl, is advanced until the -Eront corner X of carton Cl lies immediately adjacent match point M, ie. they are matched; and finally the drive to transfer wheel 30 from the con-veyor drive system is reconnected. The inX roller 45 is swung and locked into place so as to contact only the stamp 32 on the rim of -transfer wheel 30. The device is then ready for operation.
In operation, flight conveyor 17 brings a continuous stream of cartons Cl, C2,...along roller conveyor 10 and carrier surface 22 to the marking device whereupon stamp 32, carried by the transfer wheel 30 which is rota-ting at the same speed as each carton C is travelling, marks each case on the same approximate location designated P in Figure 3. The transfer wheel 30 makes one complete revolution as each carton C passes the marking sta-tion and a -further complete revolution in the spacing between cartons C.
If a transfer wheel having a smaller diameter is chosen and the length A of -the car-ton -to be marked is a multiple of the cir-cumference of smaller roller, then it is readily appreciated that the stamp 32 will contact the container walls W two or more times (depending on -t'ne multiple involved) and the transfer wheel will rotate tlle same number of times in the spacing between cartons.
It may be no-ted that in -this embodiment the cartons are propelled along conveyor 10 and carrier surface 22 by flight con-veyor 17. However, the conveyor transporting cases to and through the rnarking station may itself be an active conveyor which may provide pockets or compartments for cartons spaced apart by pre-selected dis-tance or not, as may be desired.
As mentioned previously, in the embodiment shown, it has been assumed that all cartons C to be marked have the same wall length and in most situations that will prove to be the case.
However, it may be desired to mark cartons having different wall lengths with the same information and the device of the present invention readily permits such marking to be effected without changing the roller, by selecting a transfer roller having a cir-cumference of less than the wall length of the smallest carton to be marked. Obviously, that would mean that the larger carton will be marked or stamped more than once.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
Many consumer goods, for example, beverages such as beer and ale, contained in bottles or cans are subsequently packaged in cartons, cases, or similar containers containing a number, say, twelve or twenty-four, of the individual units. A similar situation occurs in the canning industry where small cans containing soup, vegetables, et cetera, are produced in extremely large volumes and these smaller units are packed in larger containers for distribution purposes. It has been the practice and/or legal necessity to apply to containers as discussed above, information in the form of date codes, factoxy or origin markings, et cetera, and the incidence of such marXing is on the increaseO
Problems arise because of the extremely large volumes of similar sized containers to be marked and the desire, and, in some instances, necessity, to apply such markings to certain precise locations on the contain~r.
A marking device widely used in the brewing and other industries (the Bel Mark Coder) comprises a freely rotatable, passive, driven transfer roller which carries a rubber stamp~
mounted for free rotation in a horizontal plane to one side of a con~eyor upon which cases, cartons or the like containers, which are to be marked, travel. The device includes an ink impregnated rubber roller or pad mounted adjacent the transfer roller, the rubber stamp automatically being coated with ink upon contact with the roller or pad. The transfer roller is spring biased toward the conveyor and is adapted to contact the sidewall of each case travelling on the conveyor as the case reaches the coding station.
Upon contact with the case, friction causes the roller to rotate and, since the circumference of the roller is made less than the Z~cj length of -the sidewall, in theory, all the data contained on the rubber s-tamps) on -the roller is applied to the case sidewall.
However, in practice, -the transfer roller rnay no-t commence ro-ta--ting immediately on contact with -the sidewall, and perhaps not a-t all. Consequently, some, or in an extreme situation, all, of the desired marking may not be applied to -the sidewall. This could occur when adequate contact between the roller and sidewall is not made and/or maintained due, for example, to insufficient bias on the trans:~er roller or the carton material and/or rubber "O" rings on the transfer roller become too slippery. In any event, a major disadvantage is that it is not possible using such a device to apply -the markings -to a set precise location on the sidewall.
device which attempts to solve the above problem (the Norwood Coder) utilizes a trolley arrangement whereby the leading edge of a container movin~ on a live conveyor meets an abutment a-ttached -to a spring-loaded trolly arrangement. The trolley is pulled by the container against a spring bias a predetermined distance along an associated guide-~rail and when a set point is reached the abut-ment is retracted, the container freed with only a momentary slo-wing down and the trolley autoMatically returned to its original position, the cycle to be repeated with -the next container. Mar-king of the container is effected as the abutment is retracted by a rubber stamp carried by a piston arrangement on the trolley, the piston being arranged to urge the s-tamp agai.nst the container sidewall just as -the container passes the stationO However, such an arrangement is mechanically complex, prone to breakdowns, and consequen-tly, requires extensive maintenance. In addition, there is some restriction on the speed at w~ich the device can operate because of the reciprocal action of the trolley arrangemen-t.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a mar-king device which is simple in construction, requires little main-tenanace and yet is able to rapidly and precisely mark containers travelling on a conveyor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIO~I
I-t has now been found that -the above-described problems associated with marking devices utili~ing a freely ro-tatable -tran-sfer roller can be eliminated whilst still retaining the simpli-city of the device by driving said roller at a rate such -that its circumferential speed is substantially -the same speed as the car-ton whose wall is to be marked.
Also, by selecting a transfer roller having a circumference equal to not more than the length of -the carton wall to be marked, the spacing of cartons on the supply conveyor is not critical since it is ensured that each carton will be fully marked.
Moreover, if the circumference of the transEer roller is made substantially equal to the length of the carton wall to be marked, then the simple expedient of arranging for each carton -to arrive a-t the trans~er roller whils-t the roller is at -the same point in its rota-tion ("match point") will ensure tha-t every car-ton is marked in the same relative location, an important advan-tage when marking decorated cartons since hapha~ard or indescrimi-nate marking would mar the appearance thereof or in situa-tion when exact location of marking may be essential or very important, such as to enable rapid checking of inventory, et cetera. I~
multiple marking of the same information is desired, or if not positively desired, acceptable, then exact location marking can also be achieved by selecting a transfer roller having a circum-ference smaller than the length o~ the carton wall but o~ which the carton wall length is a multiple. Again, alignment o~ each car~on with the roller as aforementioned ensures each container is similarly marked. The second of the two possibilities could occur where two different length cartons are to be marked using the same transEer device~
DETAILED STATEME~T OF INVE~TIO~
In one aspect, the present invention provides a marking device, Eor marking a wall of a series of containers travelling on a conveyor, o-f -the type comprising in combination a transfer rol-ler which carries, on a radially ou-termost portion thereof, a marking stamp, w~ich roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such tha-t said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a container -travelling on the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circum-Eerence of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a container wall to be marked and the transfer roller i5 driven and at a ra-te such -that the speed of any poin-t on its circumference is substantially equal -to the speed of -the containers travelling on the conveyor.
It is preferred tht the circumference of the transfer rol-ler be substantially e~ual to the length of the carton walls to be marked .
In another preferred embodiment -the circumference of the transfer roller is chosen so that the length of container walls to be marked is a multiple thereof.
It will be appreciated that setting the transfer roller circumference at a value less -than the length of the carton wall to be marked ensures that, irrespective of -the spacing, i-f any, between the individual cartons making up the stream of cartons on the conveyor, each carton is marked with the complete "message"
even iE the latter extends along the total circumference of the transfer roller. In practice, the message, a da-te code for exam-ple, extends along only a small fraction of the transEer roller circumference. In such cases, it may be desirable to locate the message on -the same location on each car-ton. This object is achieved according to the present invention by ensuring that -the arrival of each car-ton at the transEer roller and -the degree oE
rotation of the latter is synchronized so that the leading edge of each carton meets the same match points on -the transfer roller.
~ major fea-ture oE the present invention is that the trans-Eer roller is driven. A separate drive system may be used to drive the transfer roller but it is preferred -that it be driven by a power take-off from the conveyor driven system, the latter eli-minating any problems regarding synchronization oE the conveyor ~9~
and transfer roller dri~es action which would be critical if they are separate.
The inking means may comprise an inking pad arranged to contact the stamp when necessary. However, it is preEerred that an inking roller be used, this being arranged for free rotation in the same plane as and adjacent to the transfer roller such -that upon each revolution of the transfer roller, the stamp contacts the inking roller and thereby is coated wi-th ink. In -this context the term "ink" is used to indicate any marking fluid.
In another embodiment, the present invention provides a container marking apparatus comprising in combination a conveyor for transporting containers and a marking device of the type com-prising a transfer roller w~ich carries, on the radially outermost portion thereof, an indicia stamp, which roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such that said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a container travelling on the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circumference of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a container wall to be marked and the transfer roller is driven at a rate such that -the speed of and point on its circumference is substantially equal to the speed of the contai-ners travelling on the conveyor.
The present invention will be further described with re-ference to, but not limited by, the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a plan view of part of an article conveyor system incorporating a marking device of the present invention;
Figure 2 i5 a side elevation of the marking device of Fi-gure 1, and Figure 3 is a diagrammatic plan view of a carton supply conveyor in combination with a marking device accordi.ng to the presen-t invention.
In the drawings, the marking device of the present inven-tion is shown in combination with a supply conveyor section whichconstitutes part of the packaging system in a brewery. Roller conveyor 10 carries filled cases from a caser (not shown) wherein ~ 6 the filled bo-ttles are inser-ted into the made-up cases to the marking device o:E the presen-t invention, generally designated S in Figure 1. The roller conveyor 10 is no-t driven, and filled cases C (carrying twenty-Eour "pint" bot-tles of an alcoholic brewery bevera~e) are each propelled along the conveyor by one of a series of conve~or fl.ights such as 16 in Figure 1. Flights 16 are car-ried by endless driving chains 18 and are equidis-tantly spaced from each other along the length of the conveyor 10 as -to form a series of pocke-ts or compartments of somewha-t larger d.imensions than the car-tons -to be marked. Cartons C are carried to the mar-king or coding sta-tion where they transfer to a carrier surface 22 upon w~ich they pass through the marking station and, following mar~ing, con-tinue to storage or transport. Conveyor 10 and car-rier surface 22 are provided with the usual article restraining side rails 26. The width of the carrier surface 22 at the coding station may be ad~us~ed by way of restraining bar 23. The above-descrbied article transport system is conventional and fur-ther detailed description of the components thereof is not considered necessary, It should be notedt however, that the flight carrying chains 18 are driven by a system of sprockets carried by axles, the latter being driven by associated motors in known manner.
The device of the present invention comprises a transfer wheel or roller 30 mounted on a shaft (not visible) so as to ro--tate in a horizon-tal place, the roller 30 projecting a short dis-tance through a break in side rail 26 (see Figure 1). The infor-mation or "message" to be applied to the cases is carried by -the corresponding rubber stamp 32 which is affixed to -the rim by two removable clamp members 33 of rim surface 34 of wheel 30. Rubber stamp 32 may readily be changed as desired. The shaft upon which roller 30 is mounted is driven via a simple right angle bevel gear arrangement contained in housing 38, drive being applied to the said gearing via sprocket 400 Housing 38, and therefore, indi-rec-tly roller 30, are carried by bracket 42 being secured thereto via bolts 44. Housing 38 is bolted at its lower extremity to bracke-t 43 which itself is secured to -the conveyor framework to bolt 45: vertical alignment of the shaft carrying roller 30 is thereby ensured. Endless drive chain 50 encircles sprocket 40 and sprocket 52, the lat-ter beiny carried and driven by axle or shaft 54. Shaft 54 is driven by the system which drives the flight conveyor. In otner words, the transfer roller 30 is driven by a simple mechanical power take-ofE arrangemen-t from -the basic con-veyor drive system. Separa-te drive means could be provided for tne transfer roller but -this is unnecessary and would signifi-cantly add to the complexity of the device and could introduce problems associated with ensuring synchronization of the conveyor and transEer roller drives.
Ink is automa-tically supplied to the rubber stamp 32 on transEer roller 30 by an ink impregnated roller 47 hori~ontally freely rotatably mounted on vertical spindle 46 which is carried by upper and lower parallel arms 48 and 48' (not shown). Arms 48 and 48' are welded to a boss 50 which is rotatably mounted on lock bolt 45 journaled into bracket 43. ~s can be seen, the roller 45 is adapted to allow it to swing in a horizontal plane towards or away from transfer roller 30. In practice~ the roller 47 is moved towards roller 30 until the roller 47 is able to make contact with the (indicia-containing) surface of stamp 32, which is, as shown, significantly raised from the surface of roller 30 which conse-quently is not inked. When in the desired position, lock bolt 45 is adjusted to secure boss 50 and hence roller 47. This arrange ment allows ink impregnated rollers of various d.iameters to be utilized if desired. Roller 47 will, of course, rotate under -the influence of the moving con-tact of stamp 32 -thereby providing for con-tinuous inking without hindering -the rotation of transfer rol-ler 30 and even wear of all of the surface of inking roller 450 Turning to Figure 3, this is a diagrammatic plan view sho-wing how beer cases con-taining twenty-four bot~les of beer are spaced apart on a flight conveyor 10 and how the synchronization of the rotation of transfer wheel 30 and the arrival of each car-ton C at the marXing station ensures, in this embodiment, the exact marking of each carton at the same relative specific loca-tion on the carton wall.
AS shown, carton Cl has a]ready a-t-tained carrier surface 22 whereas carton C2 is being transported to surface 22 on inac-tive roller conveyor 10 under the influence of driven flights 16.
The circumference oE transfer roller 30 is substantially the same as the leng-th L of identical car-tons Cl and C2. The flights 16 on flight conveyor 17 are preset such that the leading edges of adjacent csaes are distance L apart where L is twice the length "A" of each carton. sefore markin~ of cases commences, the orien-tation of -transfer roller 30 is adjusted so -that match poin-t M is adjacent the leading corner X of any car-ton such as Cl on the conveyor. In the presen-t circumstar,ces, it follows that all lea-ding edges X of all cases on the flight conveyor will match up with match point M. ~s shown, the flight conveyor 17 travels in the airection of arrow A and transfer roller 30 rota-tes clockwise in the direction of arrow B and the carton Cl is in the position on the carrier surface 22 just subsequent to when edge X o~ the carton Cl has ~een aliqned with match point M on -transfer roller 30 and when stamp 32 is in the process of marking the carton wall W.
To operate the device, once the size of carton to be marked is known (in the instance shown the carton is a beer carton con-taining twenty-four bot-tles of beer) the size of -transfer wheel is chosen. In this instance, the circumference of the transfer wheel 30 is substantially the same as the length A of the longer wall of the cartons Cl, C2, et cetera, to be marked. The information or message to be stamped on the case is a coding made up of some Eour letters, the full stamp taking up less than a quarter of circumference or rim of transfer wheel 30. The marXing of beer cartons does not in fact require that exact marking of the type referred to be effected: in other words, the marking of beer cartons is of the type wherein, provided the message or informa-tion is marked somewhere on the wall of the carton, that is quite acceptable. However, the embodiment shown in the drawings and in particular in Figure 3, specifically i]lustrates the marking of beer cartons wherein exact marking is obtained. In setting up the 3 ~ r~
g device to carry out same, the distance between flights 16 of fligh-t conveyor 17 is adjusted 90 -that the distance L between -the leading wall of adjacen-t cartons is equivalent to twice the cir-cumference of the transfer wheel 30 (and 2 x A). Secondly, the drive ~o transfer roller is disconnected and transfer wheel 30 rotated until the rim portion carrying match point M is located in the gap in the conveyor sidewall, conveyor 17 carrying, for exam-ple, carton Cl, is advanced until the -Eront corner X of carton Cl lies immediately adjacent match point M, ie. they are matched; and finally the drive to transfer wheel 30 from the con-veyor drive system is reconnected. The inX roller 45 is swung and locked into place so as to contact only the stamp 32 on the rim of -transfer wheel 30. The device is then ready for operation.
In operation, flight conveyor 17 brings a continuous stream of cartons Cl, C2,...along roller conveyor 10 and carrier surface 22 to the marking device whereupon stamp 32, carried by the transfer wheel 30 which is rota-ting at the same speed as each carton C is travelling, marks each case on the same approximate location designated P in Figure 3. The transfer wheel 30 makes one complete revolution as each carton C passes the marking sta-tion and a -further complete revolution in the spacing between cartons C.
If a transfer wheel having a smaller diameter is chosen and the length A of -the car-ton -to be marked is a multiple of the cir-cumference of smaller roller, then it is readily appreciated that the stamp 32 will contact the container walls W two or more times (depending on -t'ne multiple involved) and the transfer wheel will rotate tlle same number of times in the spacing between cartons.
It may be no-ted that in -this embodiment the cartons are propelled along conveyor 10 and carrier surface 22 by flight con-veyor 17. However, the conveyor transporting cases to and through the rnarking station may itself be an active conveyor which may provide pockets or compartments for cartons spaced apart by pre-selected dis-tance or not, as may be desired.
As mentioned previously, in the embodiment shown, it has been assumed that all cartons C to be marked have the same wall length and in most situations that will prove to be the case.
However, it may be desired to mark cartons having different wall lengths with the same information and the device of the present invention readily permits such marking to be effected without changing the roller, by selecting a transfer roller having a cir-cumference of less than the wall length of the smallest carton to be marked. Obviously, that would mean that the larger carton will be marked or stamped more than once.
Claims (5)
- I claim:
l. A marking device, for marking each wall of a series of cartons travelling on a conveyor, of the type comprising in combination a transfer roller which carries, on a radially outermost portion thereof, a marking stamp, which roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such that said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a carton travelling on the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circumference of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a carton wall to be marked and the transfer roller is actively driven at a rate such that the speed of any point on its circumference is substantially equal to the speed of the cartons travelling on the conveyor. - 2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said marking means is a roller impregnated with marking fluid and arranged to contact and coat said stamp upon rotation of the transfer roller.
- 3. A device according to claim 1 wherein the circumference of the transfer roller is substantially equal to the length of the carton wall to be marked.
- 4. A device according to claim 1 wherein the length of carton wall to be marked is a multiple of the circumference of the transfer roller.
- 5. In combination a conveyor for transporting cartons and a marking device of the type comprising a transfer roller which carries, on a radially outermost portion thereof, marking stamp, which roller is mounted for rotation adjacent the conveyor such that said stamp is adapted to contact a wall of a carton travelling on -the conveyor, and means for supplying marking liquid to said stamp, the improvement wherein the circumference of the transfer roller is at most equal to the length of a carton wall to be marked and the transfer roller is actively driven at a rate such that the speed of any point on its circumference is substantially equal to the speed of the cartons travelling on the conveyor.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000422622A CA1196225A (en) | 1983-03-01 | 1983-03-01 | Carton marking device |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000422622A CA1196225A (en) | 1983-03-01 | 1983-03-01 | Carton marking device |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1196225A true CA1196225A (en) | 1985-11-05 |
Family
ID=4124682
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000422622A Expired CA1196225A (en) | 1983-03-01 | 1983-03-01 | Carton marking device |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1196225A (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN111775580A (en) * | 2020-08-22 | 2020-10-16 | 郭菊花 | Carton packing that can glue black automatically and can beat mark in succession is with beating mark device |
-
1983
- 1983-03-01 CA CA000422622A patent/CA1196225A/en not_active Expired
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN111775580A (en) * | 2020-08-22 | 2020-10-16 | 郭菊花 | Carton packing that can glue black automatically and can beat mark in succession is with beating mark device |
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