EP0680882A1 - A machine for packing items of clothing such as stockings and similar articles into cartons - Google Patents
A machine for packing items of clothing such as stockings and similar articles into cartons Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP0680882A1 EP0680882A1 EP95830173A EP95830173A EP0680882A1 EP 0680882 A1 EP0680882 A1 EP 0680882A1 EP 95830173 A EP95830173 A EP 95830173A EP 95830173 A EP95830173 A EP 95830173A EP 0680882 A1 EP0680882 A1 EP 0680882A1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- folding
- conveyor
- carton blank
- carton
- machine
- 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.)
- Granted
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B5/00—Packaging individual articles in containers or receptacles, e.g. bags, sacks, boxes, cartons, cans, jars
- B65B5/04—Packaging single articles
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B11/00—Wrapping, e.g. partially or wholly enclosing, articles or quantities of material, in strips, sheets or blanks, of flexible material
- B65B11/004—Wrapping, e.g. partially or wholly enclosing, articles or quantities of material, in strips, sheets or blanks, of flexible material in blanks, e.g. sheets precut and creased for folding
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B25/00—Packaging other articles presenting special problems
- B65B25/20—Packaging garments, e.g. socks, stockings, shirts
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B59/00—Arrangements to enable machines to handle articles of different sizes, to produce packages of different sizes, to vary the contents of packages, to handle different types of packaging material, or to give access for cleaning or maintenance purposes
- B65B59/001—Arrangements to enable adjustments related to the product to be packaged
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B59/00—Arrangements to enable machines to handle articles of different sizes, to produce packages of different sizes, to vary the contents of packages, to handle different types of packaging material, or to give access for cleaning or maintenance purposes
- B65B59/003—Arrangements to enable adjustments related to the packaging material
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B7/00—Closing containers or receptacles after filling
- B65B7/16—Closing semi-rigid or rigid containers or receptacles not deformed by, or not taking-up shape of, contents, e.g. boxes or cartons
- B65B7/20—Closing semi-rigid or rigid containers or receptacles not deformed by, or not taking-up shape of, contents, e.g. boxes or cartons by folding-down preformed flaps
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B63/00—Auxiliary devices, not otherwise provided for, for operating on articles or materials to be packaged
- B65B63/04—Auxiliary devices, not otherwise provided for, for operating on articles or materials to be packaged for folding or winding articles, e.g. gloves or stockings
- B65B63/045—Auxiliary devices, not otherwise provided for, for operating on articles or materials to be packaged for folding or winding articles, e.g. gloves or stockings for folding garments, e.g. stockings, shirts
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a machine for packing items of clothing such as stockings and similar articles into cartons.
- the size of the carton required to serve two distinct purposes and destined for diverse markets, such as large department stores or boutiques, may often differ from one manufacturer to the next.
- the individual cartons are, in fact, made from individual carton blanks, with creasing or pre-folding lines, the blanks being folded at these lines to obtain the individual carton.
- Packing machines are currently designed so that each machine operates using a pre-established carton blank size, and the dimensions of the carton blanks may, at most, vary within a very limited range of values.
- this rigid operating limitation means that it is impossible to launch a carton which differs in shape/size from that currently used without acquiring a new packing machine set to operate with the new format.
- the object of the present invention is to provide an automatic machine for the packing of bags containing stockings and similar items of clothing which is extremely flexible, so as to eliminate the disadvantages described above.
- the machine according to the present invention is identified as a whole by the numeral 1 and is able to pack items of clothing such as ladies' stockings and similar articles into cartons 3, made from carton blanks 4 in cardboard or a similar material.
- the stockings in particular, with relation to the information in the above text, may be simply folded with or without a core, or may be ready-packed in the afore-mentioned wrapping.
- the following text refers only to those cases in which the stockings are ready-packed in the respective wrapping or bags 2, where the term bag 2 indicates the product to be packed into a carton 3, irrespective of its form.
- the carton blanks 4 have creasing or pre-folding lines 5, or, more simply, pre-folding lines, which delimit at least a base 6 and four flaps 7,8,9 (figures 1 and 2).
- One of these flaps, indicated by the numeral 7, is designed to be glued to the opposite flap, indicated by the numeral 8.
- the carton blank may have a single set of pre-folding lines 5, or two concentric, parallel sets of pre-folding lines 5, the internal set indicated by 5i and the external set indicated by 5e, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
- the machine 1 according to the present invention is able to operate correctly in both cases, provided that the operations envisaged, described below, are performed.
- figure 1 Observation of figure 1 and an analysis of the machine 1 as a whole reveals that it consists, in the following order, of a magazine 10 containing a stack of carton blanks 4 laid completely flat on top of one another, first conveyor means 11, first folding means 12, second conveyor means 13, a filling station 14, third conveyor means 15 and a counting and stacking station 19.
- a glueing station 16, folding station 17 and closing station 18 are envisaged on the third conveyor means 15.
- the first element of the machine 1 is the magazine 10, supported by a base 53 which also supports, directly or indirectly, all parts of the machine 1 (figures 1 to 3).
- this consists of a plurality of rods or bars or sections, of which two are fixed vertically at the front to create two retaining bars 27 for the flat carton blanks 4d, three are angled 54 and positioned at the back, and two sections are set vertically 55 at the sides.
- the retaining bars 27 are supported by a fixed guide rod 95 placed transversally to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11 and supported, at each end, by two flat uprights 96.
- the uprights 96 are positioned on opposite sides of the magazine 10 and the position of the retaining bars 27 can be adjusted along the guide rod 95.
- the angled bars 54 are supported by a rod 56 set perpendicular to them, whose ends are attached to respective sliders 57 whose position may be adjusted along the respective guides 58 which form part of the base 53.
- the angled bars 54 may, therefore, be moved towards or away from the retaining bars 27, according to the size of the flat carton blanks 4d.
- the position of the same angled bars 54 may be adjusted along the rod 56, again according to the size of the flat carton blank 4d.
- the following text indicates only those elements whose position may be adjusted, without specifying that they are structured in this way in order to adapt to the size of the flat carton blanks 4d.
- the side sections 55 are supported by respective horizontal support rods 97, one end of the rods being attached to the guide rod 95, and may be positioned anywhere along the said rod.
- the position of the side sections 55 may be adjusted along the support rods (97).
- the position of both the retaining bars 27 and the side sections 55 may be adjusted, provided that a centre line of the flat carton blanks 4d, parallel to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11, is used as a reference.
- the bottom of the magazine 10 is delimited by a first continuous conveyor 24 which forms part of the first conveyor means 11.
- the first continuous conveyor 24 consists of a number of belts 59, five are shown in figure 2, made, at least on the outside, of high-friction material and fitted over the respective cylindrical rollers 60, at least one of which is driven by a motor.
- the belts 59 are supported between the cylindrical rollers 60 by support and reference means 28 consisting of cylindrical idling rollers whose axles are parallel to those of the cylindrical rollers 60.
- Figure 3 shows four idling rollers 28, the one positioned at the most downstream point with respect to the belt 59 direction of feed F being vertically aligned with the retaining bars 27.
- the lower section 27i of the retaining bars 27 which extends towards the flat carton blanks 4d, with which it makes contact, is set at an identical angle to that of the angled bars 54, as is clearly shown in figure 3.
- the retaining bars 27 and belts 59 supported by the front idling roller 28 delimit a gap 29 whose height is substantially equivalent to the thickness of each flat carton blank 4d.
- the angled bars 54 are positioned at a distance from the retaining bars 27 slightly less than the corresponding dimension of the flat carton blanks 4d, so that the latter are slightly raised by the belts 59 near the angled bars 54. This structure allows the belts 59 to remove the bottom flat carton blank 4d from the magazine 10, whilst the other carton blanks are held by the retaining bars 27 and so cannot be moved forwards by the belts 59.
- the first conveyor means 11, of which the belts 59 are a part, are supported, together with the magazine 10, by uprights 96 which form part of a gantry structure 98 fixed at the bottom to the base 53 near to the guide and block sections 99 of the base 53.
- the position of the gantry structure 98 may be adjusted along the guide and block sections 99, which are parallel to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11.
- these include a second continuous conveyor 25 which has feed teeth 26 and is positioned at a given distance from the belts 59.
- the second continuous conveyor 25 consists of two chains 61, wound on respective chain sprockets 62 whose axles are parallel to the axles of the cylindrical rollers 60.
- Each chain 61 is fitted between a respective pair of interconnected support walls 63, through which support and guide rods 100 pass.
- the top edges of the support walls 63 define a support surface which is coplanar to and follows the support surface defined by the belts 59.
- the upper generatrices of the feed rollers 64 are positioned at the same height as the top edges of the support walls 63.
- idling rollers 65 The presence of idling rollers 65 is envisaged above the feed rollers 64, the former being at least partly coated with a high-friction material and being held against the feed rollers 64 beneath them.
- the coating on the idling rollers 65 consists of rings 66 of a high-friction material (e.g.: rubber) fitted into grooves on the cylindrical surface of the rollers.
- the positioning screw 102 is supported by the walls 70 so that it cannot move axially, but is free to rotate, and is screwed into the support walls 63.
- a control device is envisaged, for example a handwheel 103, designed to turn the screw about its axis in one direction or the other.
- the positioning screw 102 is screwed to the support walls 63 so that the chains 61 are constantly and symmetrically on opposite sides of the centre line of the flat carton blanks 4d, even while the handwheel 103 is operated.
- Each pair of support walls 63 therefore, acts as a support slide for the relative chain 61.
- the support walls 63 are set at a given distance from the belts 59 and each has, on the side facing the belts, a strip 104 which acts as an extension and joins the belts 59 and the support walls 63.
- Folding means 12 are envisaged in front of the second conveyor means 25, said folding means consisting of a matrix 20 and a punch 21 (figure 4).
- a second, tubular punch 30 is envisaged.
- the matrix 20 has a stop-plate 31 and a through-plate 32, concentric with the former with a vertical axis.
- the top of the matrix 20 forms a support surface 71 which is coplanar to and positioned alongside that of the support walls 63.
- the bottom of the stop-plate 31 is ring-shaped.
- two small guide and containment walls 72 are envisaged, which act as a continuation of the containment walls 70, set apart at a distance equivalent to the size of the flat carton blanks 4d, the ends extending towards the first conveyor means 11 diverging slightly.
- the guide and containment walls 72 allow the position of the flat carton blanks 4d with respect to the matrix 20 to be established precisely, even if the flat carton blanks 4d fed by the feed teeth 26 are incorrectly aligned.
- a reference wall 73 which, together with the guide and containment walls 72, positions the flat carton blanks 4d correctly.
- the reference wall 73 defines the maximum forward position that can be reached by the flat carton blank 4d conveyed by the feed teeth 26 so that its pre-folding lines 5 are vertically aligned with the walls of plates 31 and 32.
- detectors 74 are envisaged above the second continuous conveyor 25, e.g.: photocells which can interrupt the forward movement of the chains 61.
- the matrix 20 works with two punches 21 and 30, which are coaxial, with reciprocating movement.
- the shape of the tubular punch 30 substantially corresponds to that of the bottom of the stop-plate 31, whilst the shape of punch 21 substantially corresponds to the cross-section of the through-plate 32.
- the tubular punch 30 is attached to a flat horizontal bracket 75, set on one edge and, on one side, having idling rollers 76 which engage with opposite ends of a vertical guide 36 attached to a column 78 on the base 53.
- the bracket 75 therefore, forms a slide, indicated by the numeral 34, which moves along the guide 36.
- the punch 21 is, in contrast, secured to the bottom end of a vertical rod 79, which in turn is attached at one end to a flat, horizontal bracket 80, set on one edge and bent to form an "L"-shape.
- the free section of the bracket 80 is parallel to the bracket 75 and has, on the side which does not face the bracket 75, idling rollers 81 on each edge which engage with a relative guide 35 attached to a vertical column 83 on the base 53, parallel with and opposite to the column 78. Thanks to the idling rollers 81, the bracket 80 also forms a slide, indicated by the numeral 33, which moves along the respective vertical guide 35.
- crank levers 86 and 87 Pivoted to the slides 75 and 80 are the ends of respective connecting rods 84 and 85, the other ends being pivoted at eccentric points of respective pulleys, forming crank levers 86 and 87, with reciprocating movement.
- the crank levers 86 and 87 are normally left in such a position that, when the tubular punch 30 begins its downstroke, punch 21 begins to rise, reversing its direction of movement and making contact with the flat carton blank 4d as soon as the tubular punch 30 reverses its own direction of movement and begins to rise.
- the arm of crank lever 87 is longer than that of crank lever 86, since the travel of punch 21 is greater than that of the tubular punch 30.
- one end of the second conveyor means 13 is envisaged below the first folding means 12, said second conveyor means 13 consisting of two parallel, horizontal support plates 88, set on one edge and supported by the base 53 in a direction perpendicular to the direction of feed F11 of the first conveyor means 11.
- a pusher 89 is envisaged above the support plates 88, supported by a vertical rod 90 which passes through the base 53 in a slot 91 made parallel to the support plates 88 and passing between them.
- the pusher 89 is moved along the slot 91 by the rod 90, between a first end position (the home position) in which it is slightly drawn back when seen in plan view, with respect to the through-plate 32, thus allowing a folded carton blank 4r to be pressed down by the punch 21, as seen below, and a second end position (the release position) in which the folded carton blank 4r is vertically aligned with the filling station 14.
- Adjustable guides 22 are envisaged on both sides of the support plates 88, guides which may be moved towards or away from one another depending on the size of the folded carton blank 4r.
- the guides 22 define tracks 23 for guiding the top edge of the flap 7 to be glued and the flap 8 opposite it. Since flaps 7 and 8 differ in height, the tracks 23 are also set at different heights.
- the guides 22 consist of a plurality of small vertical columns 92 which delimit the through-plate 32 and, subsequently, of two vertical plates 93 with side strips 94 which are fixed to them and also define the tracks 23.
- the support plates 88 are envisaged only in correspondence with the small columns 92, and, to guarantee the support of the folded carton blanks 4r, in correspondence with the vertical plates 93.
- the pusher 89 has two support rods 105, coplanar to the support plates 88 and set on either side of them.
- the vertical plates 93 and side strips 94 converge in the direction of forward movement of the pusher 89 and the folded carton blank 4r, creating a lead to the tracks 23.
- the bottom of the side strips 94 in particular, has a narrow section 106 of a given length, to cause the flap 7 to be glued and the opposite flap 8 on the folded carton blank 4r to be folded inwards upon contact with the vertical plates 93.
- Two horizontal diverters 107, curved upwards from the column 92 side are envisaged between the columns 92 and the vertical plates 93, designed to intercept the flap 7 to be glued and the opposite flap 8 of the folded carton blank 4r and cause them to lower (figures 5 and 6).
- the vertical plates 93 are connected to one another at both ends by a pair of horizontal spacers 108, having opposing extensions 109 aligned with the extensions of the other spacer 108 where they make contact with the vertical plates 93.
- Two horizontal, coplanar support surfaces 37 are envisaged between the spacers 108, the support surfaces being pivoted to the extensions 109 about axes which are parallel to one another and perpendicular to the direction of forward movement of the pusher 89.
- Each of the support surfaces 37 is pivoted to a respective spacer 108 like a basic lever and, near to the end closest to the respective spacer 108 is pivoted at one end of an air cylinder 110 whose other end is pivoted to the top of a column 111 whose base is secured to the respective spacer 108.
- the pivoting axes of the support surfaces 37 with respect to the spacers 108 are positioned in such a way that when a folded carton blank 4r arrives beneath them while they are set in their coplanar configuration and they are turned downwards, by the air cylinder 110, the support surfaces 37 move inside the side flaps 9, opening them, as described below.
- the vertical plates 93 support a vertical "C"-shaped orienting wall 112, consisting of two parallel side surfaces 112c positioned substantially above the pivoting axes of the support surfaces 37, and of a front surface 112f positioned against the vertical plates 93 and designed to make contact with the flap 7 to be glued.
- the distance between the side surfaces 112c is slightly greater than the corresponding size of the bags 2 to be packed.
- a presser 38 with adjustable height, supported by the bottom end of a vertical support rod 113 is envisaged, vertically aligned with the compartment delimited by the orienting wall 112.
- the support rod 113 is supported in such a way that it may slide along its axis on a plurality of idling rollers 114, by a crosspiece 115 attached to the top ends of a pair of uprights 116 on the base 53.
- Connected to the bottom of the support rod 113 is the free end of the stem 117 of an air cylinder 118, supported by a U-shaped bracket 119 attached to the crosspiece 115.
- the U-shaped bracket 119 is positioned so as to bridge the support rod 113, thus holding the air cylinder 118 parallel to the said support rod 113.
- the uprights 116 also support the vertical plates 93, as well as directly supporting one end of a continuous conveyor belt or chain 121, which feeds the bags 2 to be packed.
- the vertical plates 93 and continuous conveyor 121 are positioned on opposite sides of the uprights 116.
- the continuous conveyor 121 feeds the bags 2 in a direction perpendicular to the direction of feed of the second conveyor means 13 and parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15.
- the crosspiece 115 supports detectors 122, designed to detect the presence of a bag 2 on the continuous conveyor 121 and to activate the entire machine 1 as described below.
- the third conveyor means 15 consist of a bucket conveyor 40, made up of a pair of chains 124 set side-by-side with a plurality of equally spaced buckets 39 or pockets.
- the chains 124 are positioned so that their straight sections are horizontal and are driven by continuous motion, so that they reciprocate, as described below.
- the bucket conveyor feed step is equivalent to the spacing between the buckets 39.
- Each bucket 39 consists of a pair of "L"-shaped sections 126 set opposite one another and secured to respective blocks 127 locked to the chains 124 at regular, preset intervals, depending on the size of the folded carton blank 4r.
- the horizontal sides 126s of each pair of sections 126 are coplanar at least along the horizontal sections of the chains 124, whilst the distance between the vertical sides 126c substantially corresponds to the size of the base 6 of the folded carton blank 4r.
- the horizontal sides 126s support the folded carton blank 4r, whilst the vertical sides 126c contain and move them forwards.
- the size of the bucket conveyor 40 is such that the horizontal sides 126s are lower than the base 6 of the folded carton blanks 4r supported by the pusher 89.
- the size of the sections 126, measured across the chains 124, is less than the corresponding size of the folded carton blanks 4r for the reason which becomes obvious below.
- Two small walls 123 for the containment of the side flaps 9 of the folded carton blanks 4r are envisaged on either side of the bucket conveyor 40: at the filling station 14, one of these walls 123 is replaced by the bracket 120.
- the walls 123 are parallel and vertical and are supported on horizontal bars 123b by respective slides 125, in turn supported by the base 53 on support bars which are not illustrated.
- the slides 125 are adjustable and may be moved towards or away from the centre line of the folded carton blanks 4r transported by the bucket conveyor 40. Given the size of the sections 126, the walls 123 are set at a given distance from the folded carton blanks 4r, leaving a space 135 for the purpose which becomes evident below.
- the glueing station 16 is envisaged after the filling station 14, distanced from the latter by the space between the buckets 39 (figures 7,8,9 and 10).
- Glueing means 41 are envisaged at the glueing station 16, supported by a pair of slides 128 and 129.
- the first of these slides, indicated by the numeral 128, rigidly supports the glueing means 41 by means of a horizontal bracket 130 whose height may be adjusted on vertical guide rods 131 attached to the other slide, indicated by the numeral 129.
- Slide 129 moves horizontally along horizontal guide rods 132, supported by a frame 133 attached to the base 53.
- slide 128 is normally set at an intermediate home position and is moved, by a motor which is not indicated, between two end positions, the lower being the operating position and the upper the return position.
- Slide 129 is moved, by a motor which is not indicated, between two end positions, one being the home position, near to the first conveyor means 11, and the other the point of maximum travel away from said means.
- a collection channel 134 is attached to the bottom of the frame 133, and is designed to catch any glue from the glueing means 41 which is not intercepted by the flap 7 to be glued of the folded carton blanks 4r.
- the glueing means are not described in further detail, being of a known type which may be programmed to suit specific requirements.
- a folding station 17 is envisaged downstream from the filling station 14, the folding station coinciding, in the embodiment illustrated, with the glueing station 16.
- Second folding means 42 and third folding means 43 are envisaged at the folding station 17.
- the second folding means 42 consist of two plates 136 which move in slots 137 made in the walls 123. Each plate 136 is attached to one arm of a two-arm lever 138, supported by the respective slide 125 and pivoted to it about an axis parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15. Pivoted to the other lever arm 138 is one end of a connecting rod 139, whose other end is pivoted to a slide 140 supported by a respective horizontal guide 141 made in the slide 125 in a direction transversal to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15.
- the slide 140 is kinematically connected, by a connecting rod 142, to the vertical or driven arm 143c of an "L"-shaped lever 143. Notice that connecting rods 139 and 142 are practically parallel to the horizontal guide 141.
- the "L"-shaped lever 143 is supported by slide 125, to which it is pivoted about an axis parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15.
- the horizontal or driving arm 143m of the "L"-shaped lever 143 supports a cam-follower idling roller 144 housed in a respective horizontal seat 145, parallel to the horizontal guide 141 and made in a slide 146. There is only one slide 146, positioned between the slides 125 and supported by a vertical guide 147 attached to the base 53.
- Slide 146 is kinematically connected, by a vertical connecting rod 148, to an arm of a lever 149 pivoted to the base 53 about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of the "L"-shaped lever 143.
- the other arm of the lever 149 is kinematically connected, by a connecting rod 150, to a crank lever 151 which is pivoted, at its opposite end, to the base 53 about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of the lever 149.
- the crank lever 151 supports an idling roller 152 which slides in a respective cam seat 153 made on one face of a disk 154 which rotates about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of the crank lever 151.
- the crank lever 151 When the crank lever 151 is operated, the structure described allows the plates 136 to rotate between a home end position, outside the walls 123, and an operating end position, in which they are inserted in the respective slots 137 in the walls 123.
- the use of seats 145 allows slides 125 to be moved towards or away from one another, so that the position of the plates 136 with respect to the walls 123 remains unchanged.
- the movement of the slides 125 in one direction or the other provokes only a corresponding sliding movement of the idling rollers 144 within the respective seats 145.
- the third folding means 43 consist of two "L"-shaped arms 155 positioned on either side of the chains 124.
- Each arm 155 is supported by a horizontal bracket 156, attached to a block 157 which is secured to a chain 158.
- the chain 158 is supported by the slide 125 and is positioned below it.
- the chain 158 is also positioned parallel to the chains 124, and the bracket 156 extends horizontally and transversally to the chain 158 and to chains 124.
- Each arm 155 is supported by the respective bracket 156 in such a way that it is moved by the chain 158 within the space 135.
- Each chain 158 is driven by a motor which is not illustrated, which causes it to complete a full circle each time the machine 1 is activated, as described below with reference to the operation of the machine 1.
- Fixed to the bottom ends of the rods 160 is a horizontal plate 161, to which the free end of the stem 162s of an air cylinder 162 is attached, supported by the bracket 159.
- the plate 161, which acts as a presser, is vertically aligned above the bucket 39 which follows that at the glueing station 16.
- Observation of the bracket 159 reveals that it is secured to a vertical bar 77 connected to a bracket 82 attached to the frame 133.
- the vertical bar 77 has a longitudinal slot 155, through which a screw 166 passes, screwed into the bracket 82.
- the bracket 82 also has a seat 167 which houses the vertical bar 77. Thanks to the slot 165, the height of the vertical bar 77 may be adjusted along the seat 167. Adjustment of the height of the vertical bar 77 causes an adjustment of the height of the plate 161 in accordance with the thickness of the cartons 3.
- Fixed to the bottom of the bracket 159 is a crosspiece 168, to the bottom of which two extended plates 169 are attached.
- the said plates form the fourth folding means 164, designed to intercept the flap 7 of each folded carton blank 4r.
- the extended plates 169 are each positioned and operate between a wall 123 and the sections 126 of the buckets 39.
- the extended plates 169 start below the channel 134 (see figure 7), which also forms part of the fourth folding means 164.
- the extended plates 159 are initially tapered, so as to cause the flap 7 to fold gradually.
- the minimum height of the extended plates 169 always coincides with the minimum height of the plate 161.
- the connection of the crosspiece 168 to the bracket 159 allows adjustment of the position of the extended plates 169 in the direction of feed F15 of the bucket conveyor 40, as indicated by the slots 170 in the bracket 159.
- each bucket 39 reaches the counting and stacking station 19, at which lift means 44 and support means 45 are envisaged, as well as transfer means 171 (see figure 1).
- the lift means 44 consist of two comb elements 46, positioned on opposite sides of the bucket conveyor 40, their teeth 47 pointing upwards.
- Each comb element 46 is supported by one of the slides 125 and can be moved, by a motor which is not illustrated, between a lowered home position, which allows the forward movement of the bucket conveyor 40 with the respective cartons 3, and a raised position. As they are raised, the teeth 47 of the comb elements 46 intercept, on opposite sides of the bucket 39 which has stopped at the counting and stacking station 19, the opposite ends of the carton 3 in the bucket 39.
- the support means 45 consist of two walls 49 set on opposite sides of the bucket conveyor 40 and walls 123, each supported by a respective slide 125.
- the walls 49 have respective seats 48, vertically aligned with the teeth 47 of the comb elements 46 and with teeth 172 in the walls 123 at the counting and stacking station 19.
- Each wall 49 is pivoted to two vertical brackets 173 which are attached to the slide 125.
- the brackets 173 support a fixed counter wall 174.
- Each wall 49 may oscillate, with respect to the brackets 173, about an axis parallel to the direction of feed F15 of the bucket conveyor 40, when respective flexible means 50 fitted between the wall 49 and the respective counter wall 174 are operated (see figures 1 and from 12 to 14).
- the flexible means 50 e.g.: compression springs, push the walls 49 against one another.
- the limit position which may be reached by the walls 49 pushed by the flexible means 50 is determined by the teeth 172 of the walls 123 housed in the seats 48 of the walls 49.
- the walls 49 are partially vertically aligned with the comb elements 46 when they reach their limit position.
- Transfer means 171 are envisaged between the comb elements 46, said means consisting of a vertical blade 175, substantially vertically aligned with the chains 124 and attached to the free end of the stem 176s of an air cylinder 176, supported by the base 53.
- the travel of the stem 176s may be adjusted according to the size of the cartons 3, measured along the direction of feed F15 of the bucket conveyor 40.
- the vertical blade 175 is moved, by the air cylinder 176, between a home position in which it is drawn back, and a forward transfer position, as described below.
- the machine 1 also has numerous elements and parts which are indispensable to its correct operation, yet which are not illustrated or indicated, or which are indicated later. These elements and parts do not directly influence the inventive aspect of the machine 1 and have, for the purpose of greater clarity, been omitted.
- the machine 1 as a whole has a "C"-shaped structural-operating configuration.
- the magazine 10, the first conveyor means 11 and the first folding means 12 form a first operating line indicated by the numeral 200.
- the filling station 14, third conveyor means 15 and counting and stacking station 19 form a second operating line indicated by the numeral 201, which is positioned parallel at the side of the first 200.
- the two lines are structurally and operatively interconnected, between the first folding means 12 and the said filling station 14 by the second conveyor means 13, which are, therefore, perpendicular to the operating lines 200 and 201.
- the machine functions as described below with reference to the carton blanks 4 with two sets of pre-folding lines (internal and external) 5i and 5e. It is important to point out that, before operation, the machine 1 must be adjusted and set to operate with carton blanks 4 of a given size, that is to say, with a given crosswise measurement. This means that the following are adjusted in accordance with the size of the carton blanks 4 measured transversally to the direction of feed F11 or F15: the position of the side sections 55 relative to the magazine 10, of the transfer units 163 relative to the first conveyor means 11 and of the slides 125 relative to the adjustable parts which can be positioned along the third conveyor means 15.
- the position of the angled bars 54 relative to the magazine 10 and of the entire gantry structure 98 is adjusted in accordance with the size of the carton blank 4 measured along the same directions of feed F11 or F15, which are parallel.
- the final adjustments are the height of the bracket 159 in accordance with the height of the cartons 3, and the length of travel of the stem 176s of the air cylinder 176 in accordance with the size of the cartons 3 measured in the direction F15.
- some replacements are also necessary, that is to say, of the first folding means 12, the second conveyor means 13, the support surfaces 37, presser 38, orienting wall 112, the second folding means 42 and third folding means 43.
- the buckets 39 of the bucket conveyor 40 must be adjusted or replaced.
- the machine 1 is structured so as to complete an operating cycle for each bag 2 which is supplied to it. At the end of each operating cycle and before beginning the next, separated by a period determined not by the machine 1 operating speed, but by the speed at which the bags 2 are fed to the machine 1, all machine parts or elements respect preset configurations or positions.
- the belts 59 have partially removed the bottom flat carton blank 4d from the base of the magazine 10 (see figure 1, in which the flat carton blank 4d is illustrated by a broken line).
- the feed teeth 26 hold a flat carton blank 4d against the reference wall 73 (see figure 1, in which the flat carton blank 4d is illustrated by a broken line) so that the pre-folding lines 5 of the flat carton blank 4d are vertically aligned with the walls of the stop-plate 31 and the through-plate 32 and, as a result, with the outer edges of punch 21 and the tubular punch 30 which are raised by the matrix 20 (see figure 15).
- the pusher 89 is drawn back.
- the support surfaces 37 and presser 38 are raised, so that a folded carton blank 4r is held below them solely by its elasticity, which causes flaps 7,8 and 9 to stretch open in such a way that flaps 7 and 8 press against the respective side strips 94 (see figure 19).
- the plates 136 are positioned outside the walls 123 and the arms 155 are in position downstream with respect to the direction of feed F15 (see figure 7).
- the glueing means 41 are near to the first conveyor means 11 and set at an intermediate height.
- the plate 161 is raised (see figure 24).
- the comb elements 46 are lowered (see figure 12), and the vertical blade 175 is outside the range of the comb elements 46 (see figure 1).
- the position of the bucket conveyor 40 has not been described, since each bucket in positioned at an operating station.
- each carton blank 4 is subjected as if during a single operating cycle: in reality these operations are effected on each carton blank 4 during more than one operating cycle, although for each operating cycle one carton blank 4 is subjected to the operations described.
- the bottom flat carton blank 4d is completely removed from the magazine 10 by the belts 59 which push it over the strips 104 and between the feed rollers 64 and idling rollers 65.
- rollers cause the blank to accelerate away from the next flat carton blank 4d which, in the meantime, is removed from the bottom of the pile of flat carton blanks 4d in the magazine 10.
- the feed rollers 64 and idling rollers 65 push the flat carton blank 4d against the support walls 63, at least to the centre, as shown in figure 3.
- the feed teeth 26 then intercept the flat carton blank 4d, moving it forwards until it makes contact with the reference wall 73 (see figure 3).
- the motor driven chain 67, feed teeth 26 and belts 59, are stopped as soon as the foremost detectors 74 detect the absence of the flat carton blank 4d below them.
- the use of two detectors 74 is necessary due to the fact that there is normally no flat carton blank 4d beneath the foremost device: the first of the detectors 74 detects the transit of a flat carton blank 4d and activates the second with a given delay necessary for the flat carton blank 4d to reach it at the speed set by the feed teeth 26.
- the guide and containment walls 72 guide and correct the position of the flat carton blank 4d until it is positioned above the matrix 20. At this point both crank levers 86 and 87 are turned.
- the tubular punch 30 is moved towards the flat carton blank 4d before the punch 21, that is to say, the tubular punch 30 is lowered and moved towards the flat carton blank 4d (see figure 15, in which the arrow F30 relative to the tubular punch 30 points downwards), whilst the punch 21 is initially raised and moved away from the flat carton blank 4d (see figure 15, in which the arrow F21 relative to the punch 21 points upwards). While the tubular punch 30 continues to descend, punch 21 reverses its direction of movement and also begins to descend (see figure 16).
- punch 21 is ready to intercept the base 6 of the partially folded carton blank 4r (see figure 17).
- the punch 21 continues its downstroke, folds the folded carton blank 4r about its internal pre-folding lines 5i, in collaboration with the side walls of the through-plate 32 and lowers it until it makes contact with the support plates 88 (see figures 3 and 18).
- the folded carton blank 4r is prevented from returning to its flat state by the tracks 23.
- the flaps 7 and 8 flex open and fit into the tracks 23, which prevent them from opening any further and raising the flat carton blank 4d (see figures 3 and 18).
- the pusher 89 is moved into its forward position and returned to its home position while both the punch 21 and the tubular punch 30 are returned to their respective home positions.
- the folded carton blank 4r is supported first by the support plates 88, then by the support strips 105 of the pusher 89 itself.
- the folded carton blank 4r is first lowered to a given height by the diverters 107 (see figure 5), then its flaps 7 and 8 are guided into the tracks 23 defined by the vertical plates 93 and side strips 94 until they arrive beneath the presser 38 (see figures 5 and 19).
- the elasticity of the folded carton blank 4r and its limited weight allow the folded carton blank 4r to remain in this position without support, thanks only to the elastic force exerted by the flaps 7 and 8 against the side strips 94 (as shown in figure 6).
- the air cylinders 110 and 118 are activated together so as to lower the support surfaces 37 and presser 38.
- the support surfaces 37 not only allow the bag 2 to be lowered, but also open out the side flaps 9 of the folded carton blank 4r so that the said side flaps 9 do not obstruct the bag 2 (see figure 5, in which the support surfaces 37 are illustrated by a broken line, in their intermediate, partially lowered position).
- the presser 38 causes the folded carton blank 4r and the bag 2 contained in it to be lowered into a bucket conveyor 40 bucket 39, paused below it (see figure 20).
- the side flaps 9 are slightly folded towards one another by the walls 123 (see figure 6) and the remaining flaps 7 and 8 are also folded towards one another, but by the vertical sides 126c of the sections 126, as illustrated in figure 20.
- the glueing means 41 are lowered and moved from one end of the bucket conveyor 40 to the other, then raised to their topmost position and returned to the other end of the bucket conveyor 40, after which they are returned to their home position at intermediate height.
- the glueing means 41 are activated and apply a continuous or broken line, dots or any other pattern of adhesive to flap 7 (see figure 21).
- the disk 154 then completes a full rotation and moves the plates 136 so that they intercept the side flaps 9, folding them towards the base 6 of the folded carton blank 4r (see figure 22).
- both the bucket conveyor 40 and chain 158 are moved.
- the movement of the arms 155 may be anticipated with respect to that of the plates 136, so that the side flaps 9 on the finished carton 3 lie between flaps 7 and 8, and flap 7 is glued both to flaps 8 and 9.
- the carton 3 is moved forwards between the lower horizontal sides 126s and the upper extended plates 169 until it is below the plate 161, which presses it to further dry the adhesive applied to flap 7 (see figure 24) .
- the comb elements 46 are gradually raised (see figure 12, in which the raising of the comb elements 46 is indicated by arrow F46) .
- the carton 3 causes the walls 49 to move apart thanks to the flexible means 50 (see figure 13).
- the carton 3 reaches the top of the walls 49, the carton 3 above, until that moment supported by the walls 49, is supported by the newly arrived carton 3, and the walls 49 move together once more, thanks to the flexible means 50 and to their seats 48, which house the teeth 47 of the comb elements 46 (see figure 14).
- the air cylinder 176 When special detectors detect that the stack of cartons 3 supported by the walls 49 has reached the preset number, the air cylinder 176 is activated and, by means of the vertical blade 175, moves the stack of cartons 3 away from the bucket conveyor 40 (see figure 1, in which the movement of the vertical blade 175 is highlighted by arrow F175, and the final position of the vertical blade 175 is indicated by a broken line).
- the machine 1 is very flexible and compact.
- the reduction in size is made possible by the fact that feed motion follows parallel operating lines, with simple conveyor transferal in a direction perpendicular to the lines.
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Making Paper Articles (AREA)
- Socks And Pantyhose (AREA)
- Packaging Of Special Articles (AREA)
Abstract
Description
- The present invention relates to a machine for packing items of clothing such as stockings and similar articles into cartons.
- It is known that ladies' stockings are packaged in various ways before being put on the market. They may be folded and placed in cardboard cartons, or placed in a wrapping made of transparent heat-sealed material which may or may not also contain cardboard inserts. In many cases, the products thus wrapped, without cardboard inserts, are then placed in special cardboard cartons.
- In particular, mainly in the case of higher quality stockings, they are wrapped around a section of card or core, inserted in the said wrapping, then placed in cartons which not only protect the product, but also serve as a means for publicizing and distinguishing the product inside.
- The size of the carton, required to serve two distinct purposes and destined for diverse markets, such as large department stores or boutiques, may often differ from one manufacturer to the next.
- However, this difference in size complicates automatic packing processes, not so much as regards the actual packing operation, but rather in the creation of automatic machines which are able to correctly manage sizes which may differ greatly.
- The individual cartons are, in fact, made from individual carton blanks, with creasing or pre-folding lines, the blanks being folded at these lines to obtain the individual carton.
- Packing machines are currently designed so that each machine operates using a pre-established carton blank size, and the dimensions of the carton blanks may, at most, vary within a very limited range of values.
- As a result, an automatic packing machine which is set to operate using a given size cannot operate with carton blanks of a different size.
- For example, if the machine is set to use a rectangular blank, it cannot use carton blanks which are substantially square.
- Another factor which differentiates the cartons, further increasing the rigid operating limitations of current automatic machines, is the particular geometric configuration of the carton itself which, being substantially a parallelepiped, may vary in thickness. Cartons may, in fact, be made ultra-thin, that is to say, comparable to flat packs, or assigned a pre-established thickness that gives them a genuine parallelepiped box configuration. In the first case, a single set of pre-folding lines is envisaged to delimit the back and the four flaps which form the front. In the second case, two sets of pre-folding lines are required to delimit not only the base and flaps, but also the four sides.
- This means that packing machine manufacturers must supply numerous machines which are similar yet operate differently as regards the carton blank shapes and sizes that can be used. For the stocking manufacturer, this rigid operating limitation means that it is impossible to launch a carton which differs in shape/size from that currently used without acquiring a new packing machine set to operate with the new format.
- The object of the present invention is to provide an automatic machine for the packing of bags containing stockings and similar items of clothing which is extremely flexible, so as to eliminate the disadvantages described above.
- The technical features and advantages of the present invention, in accordance with the afore-mentioned objects, are clearly illustrated in the claims and will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate an embodiment by way of example only and in which:
- figure 1 is a schematic plan view of the machine according to the present invention;
- figure 2 is a scaled-up schematic plan view of the initial section of the machine shown in figure 1;
- figure 3 is a schematic front view of the initial section of the machine shown in figure 2;
- figure 4 is a perspective schematic view of a detail of the initial section of the machine shown in figures 2 and 3;
- figures 5 and 6 are respectively a front view and perspective schematic view of the part of the machine after that shown in figures 2 and 3;
- figures 7 and 8 are respectively a side view and schematic plan view of the part of the machine after that shown in figures 5 and 6;
- figure 9 is a cross-section of the machine which provides a front view of the part of the machine shown in figures 7 and 8;
- figure 10 is a scaled-up perspective view of a detail shown in figures 7 and 9;
- figure 11 is a perspective view of the part of the machine after that shown in figures 7 and 9;
- figures 12 to 14 show a front view of the final part of the machine illustrated in figure 1 in three successive configurations;
- figures 15 to 18 show a perspective view of the stages of pre-folding for a flat carton blank which has two sets of creasing or pre-folding lines;
- figures 19 and 20 illustrate a schematic front view with some parts cut away, of the insertion of a bag containing stockings or similar items of clothing into a folded carton blank;
- figures 21 to 24 show a perspective view of the glueing and final folding of a carton blank folded and filled to create a carton.
- With reference to the accompanying drawings, the machine according to the present invention is identified as a whole by the
numeral 1 and is able to pack items of clothing such as ladies' stockings and similar articles intocartons 3, made fromcarton blanks 4 in cardboard or a similar material. At this point, it is essential to point out that the stockings, in particular, with relation to the information in the above text, may be simply folded with or without a core, or may be ready-packed in the afore-mentioned wrapping. For the purpose of clarity, the following text refers only to those cases in which the stockings are ready-packed in the respective wrapping orbags 2, where theterm bag 2 indicates the product to be packed into acarton 3, irrespective of its form. - The
carton blanks 4 have creasing or pre-foldinglines 5, or, more simply, pre-folding lines, which delimit at least abase 6 and fourflaps numeral 7, is designed to be glued to the opposite flap, indicated by thenumeral 8. As already said, the carton blank may have a single set ofpre-folding lines 5, or two concentric, parallel sets ofpre-folding lines 5, the internal set indicated by 5i and the external set indicated by 5e, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Themachine 1 according to the present invention is able to operate correctly in both cases, provided that the operations envisaged, described below, are performed. - Observation of figure 1 and an analysis of the
machine 1 as a whole reveals that it consists, in the following order, of amagazine 10 containing a stack ofcarton blanks 4 laid completely flat on top of one another, first conveyor means 11, first folding means 12, second conveyor means 13, afilling station 14, third conveyor means 15 and a counting andstacking station 19. A glueingstation 16,folding station 17 andclosing station 18 are envisaged on the third conveyor means 15. - To better understand the exact structure of the
machine 1, its various parts will now be examined in detail in the order indicated, with precise references to the accompanying drawings which illustrate an embodiment of the machine by way of example only. - The first element of the
machine 1 is themagazine 10, supported by abase 53 which also supports, directly or indirectly, all parts of the machine 1 (figures 1 to 3). - The following text, for reasons of brevity and simplicity, does not name the various components of the
base 53, such as columns and support brackets, since they do not contribute expressly to the inventive aspect of themachine 1. Returning to themagazine 10, this consists of a plurality of rods or bars or sections, of which two are fixed vertically at the front to create tworetaining bars 27 for theflat carton blanks 4d, three are angled 54 and positioned at the back, and two sections are set vertically 55 at the sides. Theretaining bars 27 are supported by afixed guide rod 95 placed transversally to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11 and supported, at each end, by twoflat uprights 96. Theuprights 96 are positioned on opposite sides of themagazine 10 and the position of theretaining bars 27 can be adjusted along theguide rod 95. Theangled bars 54 are supported by arod 56 set perpendicular to them, whose ends are attached torespective sliders 57 whose position may be adjusted along therespective guides 58 which form part of thebase 53. Theangled bars 54 may, therefore, be moved towards or away from theretaining bars 27, according to the size of theflat carton blanks 4d. The position of the sameangled bars 54 may be adjusted along therod 56, again according to the size of the flat carton blank 4d. To avoid repetition, the following text indicates only those elements whose position may be adjusted, without specifying that they are structured in this way in order to adapt to the size of theflat carton blanks 4d. Theside sections 55 are supported by respectivehorizontal support rods 97, one end of the rods being attached to theguide rod 95, and may be positioned anywhere along the said rod. The position of theside sections 55 may be adjusted along the support rods (97). In themagazine 10, the position of both theretaining bars 27 and theside sections 55 may be adjusted, provided that a centre line of theflat carton blanks 4d, parallel to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11, is used as a reference. - The bottom of the
magazine 10 is delimited by a firstcontinuous conveyor 24 which forms part of the first conveyor means 11. The firstcontinuous conveyor 24 consists of a number ofbelts 59, five are shown in figure 2, made, at least on the outside, of high-friction material and fitted over the respectivecylindrical rollers 60, at least one of which is driven by a motor. With reference to figure 3, thebelts 59 are supported between thecylindrical rollers 60 by support and reference means 28 consisting of cylindrical idling rollers whose axles are parallel to those of thecylindrical rollers 60. Figure 3 shows fouridling rollers 28, the one positioned at the most downstream point with respect to thebelt 59 direction of feed F being vertically aligned with theretaining bars 27. The lower section 27i of theretaining bars 27 which extends towards theflat carton blanks 4d, with which it makes contact, is set at an identical angle to that of theangled bars 54, as is clearly shown in figure 3. Theretaining bars 27 andbelts 59 supported by the frontidling roller 28 delimit agap 29 whose height is substantially equivalent to the thickness of each flat carton blank 4d. Theangled bars 54 are positioned at a distance from theretaining bars 27 slightly less than the corresponding dimension of theflat carton blanks 4d, so that the latter are slightly raised by thebelts 59 near theangled bars 54. This structure allows thebelts 59 to remove the bottom flat carton blank 4d from themagazine 10, whilst the other carton blanks are held by theretaining bars 27 and so cannot be moved forwards by thebelts 59. - The first conveyor means 11, of which the
belts 59 are a part, are supported, together with themagazine 10, byuprights 96 which form part of agantry structure 98 fixed at the bottom to thebase 53 near to the guide andblock sections 99 of thebase 53. The position of thegantry structure 98 may be adjusted along the guide andblock sections 99, which are parallel to the direction of feed F of the first conveyor means 11. Returning to the first conveyor means 11, these include a secondcontinuous conveyor 25 which has feedteeth 26 and is positioned at a given distance from thebelts 59. The secondcontinuous conveyor 25 consists of twochains 61, wound onrespective chain sprockets 62 whose axles are parallel to the axles of thecylindrical rollers 60. Eachchain 61 is fitted between a respective pair ofinterconnected support walls 63, through which support and guiderods 100 pass. The top edges of thesupport walls 63 define a support surface which is coplanar to and follows the support surface defined by thebelts 59. Also envisaged on the axles of thechain sprockets 62, near thebelts 59, are motor drivencylindrical feed rollers 64, completely synchronized with thechains 61 and having a tangential speed greater than the feed speed of thebelts 59. As is clearly shown in figure 3, the upper generatrices of thefeed rollers 64 are positioned at the same height as the top edges of thesupport walls 63. The presence of idlingrollers 65 is envisaged above thefeed rollers 64, the former being at least partly coated with a high-friction material and being held against thefeed rollers 64 beneath them. The coating on the idlingrollers 65 consists ofrings 66 of a high-friction material (e.g.: rubber) fitted into grooves on the cylindrical surface of the rollers. With this structure, as soon as thebelts 59 bring a flat carton blank 4d between thefeed rollers 64 and idlingrollers 65, therings 66 press the flat carton blank 4d against thefeed rollers 64, accelerating its movement in the same direction of feed F11, distancing it from the next flat carton blank 4d, which the system begins to remove from themagazine 10. In figure 3 the movement of thebelts 59 andchains 61 is produced by a single motor drivenchain 67, of which it is specified only that thechain sprocket 68 on which it is wound in order to move thebelts 59 has a diameter greater than thesprocket 69 on which it is wound in order to move thechains 61, so that the latter are moved faster, for the reason described above.Vertical walls 70 are envisaged on either side of the secondcontinuous conveyor 25, the walls being fixed to ahorizontal plate 101 which is secured to the uprights 96. Both thewalls 70 and thesupport walls 63 are passed through by apositioning screw 102, with double-start screw thread (figure 2). Thepositioning screw 102 is supported by thewalls 70 so that it cannot move axially, but is free to rotate, and is screwed into thesupport walls 63. At one end of the positioning screw 102 a control device is envisaged, for example ahandwheel 103, designed to turn the screw about its axis in one direction or the other. Thepositioning screw 102 is screwed to thesupport walls 63 so that thechains 61 are constantly and symmetrically on opposite sides of the centre line of theflat carton blanks 4d, even while thehandwheel 103 is operated. Each pair ofsupport walls 63, therefore, acts as a support slide for therelative chain 61. Thesupport walls 63 are set at a given distance from thebelts 59 and each has, on the side facing the belts, astrip 104 which acts as an extension and joins thebelts 59 and thesupport walls 63. - Folding means 12 are envisaged in front of the second conveyor means 25, said folding means consisting of a
matrix 20 and a punch 21 (figure 4). In the embodiment illustrated, which showscarton blanks 4 with two sets ofpre-folding lines 5, a second,tubular punch 30 is envisaged. Thematrix 20 has a stop-plate 31 and a through-plate 32, concentric with the former with a vertical axis. The top of thematrix 20 forms asupport surface 71 which is coplanar to and positioned alongside that of thesupport walls 63. The walls of the stop-plate 31, starting from thesupport surface 71, coincide substantially with the externalpre-folding lines 5e, whilst the walls of the through-plate 32, formed at the base of the stop-plate 31, coincide substantially with the internalpre-folding lines 5i. Obviously, the bottom of the stop-plate 31 is ring-shaped. On both sides of the stop-plate 31, parallel to the direction of feed F11 of the first conveyor means 11, two small guide andcontainment walls 72 are envisaged, which act as a continuation of thecontainment walls 70, set apart at a distance equivalent to the size of theflat carton blanks 4d, the ends extending towards the first conveyor means 11 diverging slightly. The guide andcontainment walls 72 allow the position of theflat carton blanks 4d with respect to thematrix 20 to be established precisely, even if theflat carton blanks 4d fed by thefeed teeth 26 are incorrectly aligned. From the side of the stop-plate 31 furthest from thechains 61, there extends areference wall 73 which, together with the guide andcontainment walls 72, positions theflat carton blanks 4d correctly. Thereference wall 73 defines the maximum forward position that can be reached by the flat carton blank 4d conveyed by thefeed teeth 26 so that itspre-folding lines 5 are vertically aligned with the walls ofplates feed teeth 26 from pushing theflat carton blanks 4d against thereference wall 73 and damaging them,detectors 74 are envisaged above the secondcontinuous conveyor 25, e.g.: photocells which can interrupt the forward movement of thechains 61. - As indicated, the
matrix 20 works with twopunches tubular punch 30 substantially corresponds to that of the bottom of the stop-plate 31, whilst the shape ofpunch 21 substantially corresponds to the cross-section of the through-plate 32. Thetubular punch 30 is attached to a flathorizontal bracket 75, set on one edge and, on one side, having idlingrollers 76 which engage with opposite ends of avertical guide 36 attached to acolumn 78 on thebase 53. Thebracket 75, therefore, forms a slide, indicated by the numeral 34, which moves along theguide 36. Thepunch 21 is, in contrast, secured to the bottom end of avertical rod 79, which in turn is attached at one end to a flat,horizontal bracket 80, set on one edge and bent to form an "L"-shape. The free section of thebracket 80 is parallel to thebracket 75 and has, on the side which does not face thebracket 75, idlingrollers 81 on each edge which engage with arelative guide 35 attached to avertical column 83 on thebase 53, parallel with and opposite to thecolumn 78. Thanks to the idlingrollers 81, thebracket 80 also forms a slide, indicated by the numeral 33, which moves along the respectivevertical guide 35. Pivoted to theslides rods levers 86 and 87, with reciprocating movement. The crank levers 86 and 87 are normally left in such a position that, when thetubular punch 30 begins its downstroke, punch 21 begins to rise, reversing its direction of movement and making contact with the flat carton blank 4d as soon as thetubular punch 30 reverses its own direction of movement and begins to rise. Obviously, the arm ofcrank lever 87 is longer than that of crank lever 86, since the travel ofpunch 21 is greater than that of thetubular punch 30. Continuing the description of themachine 1, one end of the second conveyor means 13 is envisaged below the first folding means 12, said second conveyor means 13 consisting of two parallel,horizontal support plates 88, set on one edge and supported by the base 53 in a direction perpendicular to the direction of feed F11 of the first conveyor means 11. Apusher 89 is envisaged above thesupport plates 88, supported by avertical rod 90 which passes through the base 53 in aslot 91 made parallel to thesupport plates 88 and passing between them. Thepusher 89 is moved along theslot 91 by therod 90, between a first end position (the home position) in which it is slightly drawn back when seen in plan view, with respect to the through-plate 32, thus allowing a folded carton blank 4r to be pressed down by thepunch 21, as seen below, and a second end position (the release position) in which the folded carton blank 4r is vertically aligned with the fillingstation 14.Adjustable guides 22 are envisaged on both sides of thesupport plates 88, guides which may be moved towards or away from one another depending on the size of the folded carton blank 4r. Theguides 22 definetracks 23 for guiding the top edge of theflap 7 to be glued and theflap 8 opposite it. Sinceflaps tracks 23 are also set at different heights. Beneath thematrix 20, theguides 22 consist of a plurality of smallvertical columns 92 which delimit the through-plate 32 and, subsequently, of twovertical plates 93 with side strips 94 which are fixed to them and also define thetracks 23. As shown in figure 6, thesupport plates 88 are envisaged only in correspondence with thesmall columns 92, and, to guarantee the support of the foldedcarton blanks 4r, in correspondence with thevertical plates 93. Below and in front of its direction of forward movement, thepusher 89 has twosupport rods 105, coplanar to thesupport plates 88 and set on either side of them. At the ends closest to thesmall columns 92, thevertical plates 93 and side strips 94 converge in the direction of forward movement of thepusher 89 and the folded carton blank 4r, creating a lead to thetracks 23. The bottom of the side strips 94 in particular, has anarrow section 106 of a given length, to cause theflap 7 to be glued and theopposite flap 8 on the folded carton blank 4r to be folded inwards upon contact with thevertical plates 93. Twohorizontal diverters 107, curved upwards from thecolumn 92 side are envisaged between thecolumns 92 and thevertical plates 93, designed to intercept theflap 7 to be glued and theopposite flap 8 of the folded carton blank 4r and cause them to lower (figures 5 and 6). - The
vertical plates 93 are connected to one another at both ends by a pair ofhorizontal spacers 108, having opposingextensions 109 aligned with the extensions of theother spacer 108 where they make contact with thevertical plates 93. Two horizontal, coplanar support surfaces 37 are envisaged between thespacers 108, the support surfaces being pivoted to theextensions 109 about axes which are parallel to one another and perpendicular to the direction of forward movement of thepusher 89. Each of the support surfaces 37 is pivoted to arespective spacer 108 like a basic lever and, near to the end closest to therespective spacer 108 is pivoted at one end of anair cylinder 110 whose other end is pivoted to the top of acolumn 111 whose base is secured to therespective spacer 108. The pivoting axes of the support surfaces 37 with respect to thespacers 108 are positioned in such a way that when a folded carton blank 4r arrives beneath them while they are set in their coplanar configuration and they are turned downwards, by theair cylinder 110, the support surfaces 37 move inside the side flaps 9, opening them, as described below. Between theair cylinders 110 and above the support surfaces 37, thevertical plates 93 support a vertical "C"-shapedorienting wall 112, consisting of two parallel side surfaces 112c positioned substantially above the pivoting axes of the support surfaces 37, and of afront surface 112f positioned against thevertical plates 93 and designed to make contact with theflap 7 to be glued. The distance between the side surfaces 112c is slightly greater than the corresponding size of thebags 2 to be packed. - A
presser 38 with adjustable height, supported by the bottom end of avertical support rod 113 is envisaged, vertically aligned with the compartment delimited by the orientingwall 112. Thesupport rod 113 is supported in such a way that it may slide along its axis on a plurality of idlingrollers 114, by acrosspiece 115 attached to the top ends of a pair ofuprights 116 on thebase 53. Connected to the bottom of thesupport rod 113 is the free end of thestem 117 of anair cylinder 118, supported by aU-shaped bracket 119 attached to thecrosspiece 115. TheU-shaped bracket 119 is positioned so as to bridge thesupport rod 113, thus holding theair cylinder 118 parallel to the saidsupport rod 113. - By means of a
bracket 120, theuprights 116 also support thevertical plates 93, as well as directly supporting one end of a continuous conveyor belt orchain 121, which feeds thebags 2 to be packed. Thevertical plates 93 andcontinuous conveyor 121 are positioned on opposite sides of theuprights 116. Thecontinuous conveyor 121 feeds thebags 2 in a direction perpendicular to the direction of feed of the second conveyor means 13 and parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15. Above thecontinuous conveyor 121, thecrosspiece 115 supportsdetectors 122, designed to detect the presence of abag 2 on thecontinuous conveyor 121 and to activate theentire machine 1 as described below. - The third conveyor means 15 consist of a
bucket conveyor 40, made up of a pair ofchains 124 set side-by-side with a plurality of equally spacedbuckets 39 or pockets. Thechains 124 are positioned so that their straight sections are horizontal and are driven by continuous motion, so that they reciprocate, as described below. The bucket conveyor feed step is equivalent to the spacing between thebuckets 39. Eachbucket 39 consists of a pair of "L"-shapedsections 126 set opposite one another and secured torespective blocks 127 locked to thechains 124 at regular, preset intervals, depending on the size of the folded carton blank 4r. Thehorizontal sides 126s of each pair ofsections 126 are coplanar at least along the horizontal sections of thechains 124, whilst the distance between thevertical sides 126c substantially corresponds to the size of thebase 6 of the folded carton blank 4r. Thehorizontal sides 126s support the folded carton blank 4r, whilst thevertical sides 126c contain and move them forwards. The size of thebucket conveyor 40 is such that thehorizontal sides 126s are lower than thebase 6 of the foldedcarton blanks 4r supported by thepusher 89. The size of thesections 126, measured across thechains 124, is less than the corresponding size of the foldedcarton blanks 4r for the reason which becomes obvious below. - Two
small walls 123 for the containment of the side flaps 9 of the foldedcarton blanks 4r are envisaged on either side of the bucket conveyor 40: at the fillingstation 14, one of thesewalls 123 is replaced by thebracket 120. Thewalls 123 are parallel and vertical and are supported onhorizontal bars 123b byrespective slides 125, in turn supported by thebase 53 on support bars which are not illustrated. Theslides 125 are adjustable and may be moved towards or away from the centre line of the foldedcarton blanks 4r transported by thebucket conveyor 40. Given the size of thesections 126, thewalls 123 are set at a given distance from the foldedcarton blanks 4r, leaving aspace 135 for the purpose which becomes evident below. - The glueing
station 16 is envisaged after the fillingstation 14, distanced from the latter by the space between the buckets 39 (figures 7,8,9 and 10). Glueing means 41 are envisaged at the glueingstation 16, supported by a pair ofslides horizontal bracket 130 whose height may be adjusted onvertical guide rods 131 attached to the other slide, indicated by the numeral 129.Slide 129 moves horizontally alonghorizontal guide rods 132, supported by aframe 133 attached to thebase 53. As regards the movement of theslides Slide 129 is moved, by a motor which is not indicated, between two end positions, one being the home position, near to the first conveyor means 11, and the other the point of maximum travel away from said means. Acollection channel 134 is attached to the bottom of theframe 133, and is designed to catch any glue from the glueing means 41 which is not intercepted by theflap 7 to be glued of the foldedcarton blanks 4r. The glueing means are not described in further detail, being of a known type which may be programmed to suit specific requirements. - A
folding station 17 is envisaged downstream from the fillingstation 14, the folding station coinciding, in the embodiment illustrated, with the glueingstation 16. Second folding means 42 and third folding means 43 are envisaged at thefolding station 17. The second folding means 42 consist of twoplates 136 which move inslots 137 made in thewalls 123. Eachplate 136 is attached to one arm of a two-arm lever 138, supported by therespective slide 125 and pivoted to it about an axis parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15. Pivoted to theother lever arm 138 is one end of a connectingrod 139, whose other end is pivoted to aslide 140 supported by a respectivehorizontal guide 141 made in theslide 125 in a direction transversal to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15. Theslide 140 is kinematically connected, by a connectingrod 142, to the vertical or driven arm 143c of an "L"-shapedlever 143. Notice that connectingrods horizontal guide 141. The "L"-shapedlever 143 is supported byslide 125, to which it is pivoted about an axis parallel to the direction of feed of the third conveyor means 15. The horizontal or driving arm 143m of the "L"-shapedlever 143 supports a cam-follower idling roller 144 housed in a respectivehorizontal seat 145, parallel to thehorizontal guide 141 and made in aslide 146. There is only oneslide 146, positioned between theslides 125 and supported by avertical guide 147 attached to thebase 53.Slide 146 is kinematically connected, by a vertical connectingrod 148, to an arm of alever 149 pivoted to the base 53 about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of the "L"-shapedlever 143. The other arm of thelever 149 is kinematically connected, by a connectingrod 150, to a cranklever 151 which is pivoted, at its opposite end, to the base 53 about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of thelever 149. At an intermediary point, thecrank lever 151 supports an idling roller 152 which slides in arespective cam seat 153 made on one face of adisk 154 which rotates about an axis parallel to the pivoting axis of thecrank lever 151. When thecrank lever 151 is operated, the structure described allows theplates 136 to rotate between a home end position, outside thewalls 123, and an operating end position, in which they are inserted in therespective slots 137 in thewalls 123. The use ofseats 145 allowsslides 125 to be moved towards or away from one another, so that the position of theplates 136 with respect to thewalls 123 remains unchanged. The movement of theslides 125 in one direction or the other provokes only a corresponding sliding movement of the idlingrollers 144 within therespective seats 145. - The third folding means 43 consist of two "L"-shaped
arms 155 positioned on either side of thechains 124. Eacharm 155 is supported by ahorizontal bracket 156, attached to ablock 157 which is secured to achain 158. Thechain 158 is supported by theslide 125 and is positioned below it. Thechain 158 is also positioned parallel to thechains 124, and thebracket 156 extends horizontally and transversally to thechain 158 and tochains 124. Eacharm 155 is supported by therespective bracket 156 in such a way that it is moved by thechain 158 within thespace 135. Eachchain 158 is driven by a motor which is not illustrated, which causes it to complete a full circle each time themachine 1 is activated, as described below with reference to the operation of themachine 1. - The side of the
frame 133 opposite that on which glueing means 41 are envisaged, supports ahorizontal bracket 159 through which a pair of vertical,parallel rods 160 pass (figure 11). Fixed to the bottom ends of therods 160 is ahorizontal plate 161, to which the free end of the stem 162s of anair cylinder 162 is attached, supported by thebracket 159. Theplate 161, which acts as a presser, is vertically aligned above thebucket 39 which follows that at the glueingstation 16. Observation of thebracket 159 reveals that it is secured to avertical bar 77 connected to abracket 82 attached to theframe 133. Thevertical bar 77 has alongitudinal slot 155, through which ascrew 166 passes, screwed into thebracket 82. Thebracket 82 also has aseat 167 which houses thevertical bar 77. Thanks to theslot 165, the height of thevertical bar 77 may be adjusted along theseat 167. Adjustment of the height of thevertical bar 77 causes an adjustment of the height of theplate 161 in accordance with the thickness of thecartons 3. Fixed to the bottom of thebracket 159 is acrosspiece 168, to the bottom of which twoextended plates 169 are attached. The said plates form the fourth folding means 164, designed to intercept theflap 7 of each folded carton blank 4r. Theextended plates 169 are each positioned and operate between awall 123 and thesections 126 of thebuckets 39. Theextended plates 169 start below the channel 134 (see figure 7), which also forms part of the fourth folding means 164. Theextended plates 159 are initially tapered, so as to cause theflap 7 to fold gradually. The minimum height of theextended plates 169 always coincides with the minimum height of theplate 161. The connection of thecrosspiece 168 to thebracket 159 allows adjustment of the position of theextended plates 169 in the direction of feed F15 of thebucket conveyor 40, as indicated by theslots 170 in thebracket 159. - After the
closing station 18, eachbucket 39 reaches the counting and stackingstation 19, at which lift means 44 and support means 45 are envisaged, as well as transfer means 171 (see figure 1). The lift means 44 consist of twocomb elements 46, positioned on opposite sides of thebucket conveyor 40, theirteeth 47 pointing upwards. Eachcomb element 46 is supported by one of theslides 125 and can be moved, by a motor which is not illustrated, between a lowered home position, which allows the forward movement of thebucket conveyor 40 with therespective cartons 3, and a raised position. As they are raised, theteeth 47 of thecomb elements 46 intercept, on opposite sides of thebucket 39 which has stopped at the counting and stackingstation 19, the opposite ends of thecarton 3 in thebucket 39. - The support means 45 consist of two
walls 49 set on opposite sides of thebucket conveyor 40 andwalls 123, each supported by arespective slide 125. Thewalls 49 haverespective seats 48, vertically aligned with theteeth 47 of thecomb elements 46 and withteeth 172 in thewalls 123 at the counting and stackingstation 19. Eachwall 49 is pivoted to twovertical brackets 173 which are attached to theslide 125. On the outside of eachwall 49, thebrackets 173 support a fixedcounter wall 174. Eachwall 49 may oscillate, with respect to thebrackets 173, about an axis parallel to the direction of feed F15 of thebucket conveyor 40, when respective flexible means 50 fitted between thewall 49 and therespective counter wall 174 are operated (see figures 1 and from 12 to 14). The flexible means 50, e.g.: compression springs, push thewalls 49 against one another. The limit position which may be reached by thewalls 49 pushed by the flexible means 50 is determined by theteeth 172 of thewalls 123 housed in theseats 48 of thewalls 49. As illustrated in figures 1 and 12, thewalls 49 are partially vertically aligned with thecomb elements 46 when they reach their limit position. - Transfer means 171 are envisaged between the
comb elements 46, said means consisting of avertical blade 175, substantially vertically aligned with thechains 124 and attached to the free end of the stem 176s of anair cylinder 176, supported by thebase 53. The travel of the stem 176s may be adjusted according to the size of thecartons 3, measured along the direction of feed F15 of thebucket conveyor 40. Thevertical blade 175 is moved, by theair cylinder 176, between a home position in which it is drawn back, and a forward transfer position, as described below. - The
machine 1 also has numerous elements and parts which are indispensable to its correct operation, yet which are not illustrated or indicated, or which are indicated later. These elements and parts do not directly influence the inventive aspect of themachine 1 and have, for the purpose of greater clarity, been omitted. - As is clearly shown in figure 1, the
machine 1 as a whole has a "C"-shaped structural-operating configuration. In particular, themagazine 10, the first conveyor means 11 and the first folding means 12 form a first operating line indicated by the numeral 200. The fillingstation 14, third conveyor means 15 and counting and stackingstation 19 form a second operating line indicated by the numeral 201, which is positioned parallel at the side of the first 200. The two lines are structurally and operatively interconnected, between the first folding means 12 and the saidfilling station 14 by the second conveyor means 13, which are, therefore, perpendicular to the operatinglines - With reference to all of the accompanying drawings, the machine functions as described below with reference to the
carton blanks 4 with two sets of pre-folding lines (internal and external) 5i and 5e. It is important to point out that, before operation, themachine 1 must be adjusted and set to operate withcarton blanks 4 of a given size, that is to say, with a given crosswise measurement. This means that the following are adjusted in accordance with the size of thecarton blanks 4 measured transversally to the direction of feed F11 or F15: the position of theside sections 55 relative to themagazine 10, of thetransfer units 163 relative to the first conveyor means 11 and of theslides 125 relative to the adjustable parts which can be positioned along the third conveyor means 15. The position of theangled bars 54 relative to themagazine 10 and of theentire gantry structure 98 is adjusted in accordance with the size of the carton blank 4 measured along the same directions of feed F11 or F15, which are parallel. The final adjustments are the height of thebracket 159 in accordance with the height of thecartons 3, and the length of travel of the stem 176s of theair cylinder 176 in accordance with the size of thecartons 3 measured in the direction F15. As well as adjustments, some replacements are also necessary, that is to say, of the first folding means 12, the second conveyor means 13, the support surfaces 37,presser 38, orientingwall 112, the second folding means 42 and third folding means 43. Finally, thebuckets 39 of thebucket conveyor 40 must be adjusted or replaced. All, part or none of these adjustments or replacements may be necessary, depending on requirements. It should be noticed that, in practice, the adjustment of those elements which convey the carton blank 4 orcarton 3 in the direction (F11 or F15) which unites theflap 7 to be glued and theopposite flap 8, is envisaged, whilst replacements are envisaged for the interchangeable elements designed to erect thecarton blanks 4 or convey them in the direction (F13) perpendicular to the former direction. This allows the precision adjustment of those elements which must execute extremely delicate operations such as folding, and the approximate adjustment of elements designed for non-precision operations such as shifting. Interchangeable elements shall be replaced by specialized personnel, whilst adjustments may be made bymachine 1 operators. - In light of this, the
machine 1 is structured so as to complete an operating cycle for eachbag 2 which is supplied to it. At the end of each operating cycle and before beginning the next, separated by a period determined not by themachine 1 operating speed, but by the speed at which thebags 2 are fed to themachine 1, all machine parts or elements respect preset configurations or positions. Thebelts 59 have partially removed the bottom flat carton blank 4d from the base of the magazine 10 (see figure 1, in which the flat carton blank 4d is illustrated by a broken line). Thefeed teeth 26 hold a flat carton blank 4d against the reference wall 73 (see figure 1, in which the flat carton blank 4d is illustrated by a broken line) so that thepre-folding lines 5 of the flat carton blank 4d are vertically aligned with the walls of the stop-plate 31 and the through-plate 32 and, as a result, with the outer edges ofpunch 21 and thetubular punch 30 which are raised by the matrix 20 (see figure 15). Thepusher 89 is drawn back. The support surfaces 37 andpresser 38 are raised, so that a folded carton blank 4r is held below them solely by its elasticity, which causes flaps 7,8 and 9 to stretch open in such a way that flaps 7 and 8 press against the respective side strips 94 (see figure 19). Theplates 136 are positioned outside thewalls 123 and thearms 155 are in position downstream with respect to the direction of feed F15 (see figure 7). The glueing means 41 are near to the first conveyor means 11 and set at an intermediate height. Theplate 161 is raised (see figure 24). Thecomb elements 46 are lowered (see figure 12), and thevertical blade 175 is outside the range of the comb elements 46 (see figure 1). The position of thebucket conveyor 40 has not been described, since each bucket in positioned at an operating station. - As soon as a
bag 2 is carried by thecontinuous conveyor 121 within range of thedetectors 122, these devices detect the presence of thebag 2 and transmit a signal to check and control means for theentire machine 1, which cause an operating cycle to be completed. For a more detailed description, the following text describes the operations to which eachcarton blank 4 is subjected as if during a single operating cycle: in reality these operations are effected on each carton blank 4 during more than one operating cycle, although for each operating cycle onecarton blank 4 is subjected to the operations described. The bottom flat carton blank 4d is completely removed from themagazine 10 by thebelts 59 which push it over thestrips 104 and between thefeed rollers 64 and idlingrollers 65. These rollers cause the blank to accelerate away from the next flat carton blank 4d which, in the meantime, is removed from the bottom of the pile offlat carton blanks 4d in themagazine 10. Thefeed rollers 64 and idlingrollers 65 push the flat carton blank 4d against thesupport walls 63, at least to the centre, as shown in figure 3. Thefeed teeth 26 then intercept the flat carton blank 4d, moving it forwards until it makes contact with the reference wall 73 (see figure 3). The motor drivenchain 67, feedteeth 26 andbelts 59, are stopped as soon as theforemost detectors 74 detect the absence of the flat carton blank 4d below them. The use of twodetectors 74 is necessary due to the fact that there is normally no flat carton blank 4d beneath the foremost device: the first of thedetectors 74 detects the transit of a flat carton blank 4d and activates the second with a given delay necessary for the flat carton blank 4d to reach it at the speed set by thefeed teeth 26. The guide andcontainment walls 72 guide and correct the position of the flat carton blank 4d until it is positioned above thematrix 20. At this point both cranklevers 86 and 87 are turned. Thetubular punch 30 is moved towards the flat carton blank 4d before thepunch 21, that is to say, thetubular punch 30 is lowered and moved towards the flat carton blank 4d (see figure 15, in which the arrow F30 relative to thetubular punch 30 points downwards), whilst thepunch 21 is initially raised and moved away from the flat carton blank 4d (see figure 15, in which the arrow F21 relative to thepunch 21 points upwards). While thetubular punch 30 continues to descend, punch 21 reverses its direction of movement and also begins to descend (see figure 16). As soon as thetubular punch 30 has folded the flat carton blank 4d about its externalpre-folding lines 5e, in collaboration with the top edges of the side wall of the stop-plate 31 and reverses its direction of movement, an instant before applying excessive pressure to the bottom of the stop-plate 31 itself, punch 21 is ready to intercept thebase 6 of the partially folded carton blank 4r (see figure 17). Thepunch 21 continues its downstroke, folds the folded carton blank 4r about its internalpre-folding lines 5i, in collaboration with the side walls of the through-plate 32 and lowers it until it makes contact with the support plates 88 (see figures 3 and 18). The folded carton blank 4r is prevented from returning to its flat state by thetracks 23. Theflaps tracks 23, which prevent them from opening any further and raising the flat carton blank 4d (see figures 3 and 18). Thepusher 89 is moved into its forward position and returned to its home position while both thepunch 21 and thetubular punch 30 are returned to their respective home positions. During thepusher 89 stroke the folded carton blank 4r is supported first by thesupport plates 88, then by the support strips 105 of thepusher 89 itself. During the saidpusher 89 stroke, the folded carton blank 4r is first lowered to a given height by the diverters 107 (see figure 5), then itsflaps tracks 23 defined by thevertical plates 93 and side strips 94 until they arrive beneath the presser 38 (see figures 5 and 19). The elasticity of the folded carton blank 4r and its limited weight allow the folded carton blank 4r to remain in this position without support, thanks only to the elastic force exerted by theflaps bag 2 has been unloaded by thecontinuous conveyor 121 onto the support surfaces 37, theair cylinders presser 38. The support surfaces 37 not only allow thebag 2 to be lowered, but also open out the side flaps 9 of the folded carton blank 4r so that the said side flaps 9 do not obstruct the bag 2 (see figure 5, in which the support surfaces 37 are illustrated by a broken line, in their intermediate, partially lowered position). Thepresser 38, as well as guaranteeing the descent of thebag 2 to thebase 6, then (if necessary with suction means positioned and operating below the folded carton blank 4r) causes the folded carton blank 4r and thebag 2 contained in it to be lowered into abucket conveyor 40bucket 39, paused below it (see figure 20). As the folded carton blank 4r is inserted into thebucket 39 below, the side flaps 9 are slightly folded towards one another by the walls 123 (see figure 6) and the remainingflaps vertical sides 126c of thesections 126, as illustrated in figure 20. When the folded carton blank 4r reaches the glueingstation 16, the glueing means 41 are lowered and moved from one end of thebucket conveyor 40 to the other, then raised to their topmost position and returned to the other end of thebucket conveyor 40, after which they are returned to their home position at intermediate height. During their travel at minimum height, the glueing means 41 are activated and apply a continuous or broken line, dots or any other pattern of adhesive to flap 7 (see figure 21). Thedisk 154 then completes a full rotation and moves theplates 136 so that they intercept the side flaps 9, folding them towards thebase 6 of the folded carton blank 4r (see figure 22). Immediately afterwards, both thebucket conveyor 40 andchain 158 are moved. First it accelerates, so that thearms 155 reach and intercept theflap 8, folding it towards thebase 6 of the folded carton blank 4r (see figure 23), then it decelerates so that thecarton blank 4r thus folded is released from thearms 155 whilst theflap 7 is intercepted first by thechannel 134, then by theextended plates 169, and folded towards thebase 6, as shown in figure 23. In this way, on thefinished carton 3, the side flaps 9 lie inside thecarton 3, beneathflaps Flap 7 is then glued toflap 8 only. Should a tamper-evidencing method be required, where an increase in the stability of the connection betweenflaps arms 155 may be anticipated with respect to that of theplates 136, so that the side flaps 9 on thefinished carton 3 lie betweenflaps flap 7 is glued both toflaps carton 3 is moved forwards between the lowerhorizontal sides 126s and the upperextended plates 169 until it is below theplate 161, which presses it to further dry the adhesive applied to flap 7 (see figure 24) . When thecarton 3 reaches the counting and stackingstation 19, thecomb elements 46 are gradually raised (see figure 12, in which the raising of thecomb elements 46 is indicated by arrow F46) . As it is raised, thecarton 3 causes thewalls 49 to move apart thanks to the flexible means 50 (see figure 13). When thecarton 3 reaches the top of thewalls 49, thecarton 3 above, until that moment supported by thewalls 49, is supported by the newly arrivedcarton 3, and thewalls 49 move together once more, thanks to the flexible means 50 and to theirseats 48, which house theteeth 47 of the comb elements 46 (see figure 14). When special detectors detect that the stack ofcartons 3 supported by thewalls 49 has reached the preset number, theair cylinder 176 is activated and, by means of thevertical blade 175, moves the stack ofcartons 3 away from the bucket conveyor 40 (see figure 1, in which the movement of thevertical blade 175 is highlighted by arrow F175, and the final position of thevertical blade 175 is indicated by a broken line). - It is, therefore, obvious that the
machine 1 is very flexible and compact. The reduction in size is made possible by the fact that feed motion follows parallel operating lines, with simple conveyor transferal in a direction perpendicular to the lines. - It should be noticed that the above description makes no mention of a stamping station for the
carton blanks 4. Such a station may be fitted beneath thestrips 104.
Claims (17)
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
ITBO940187 | 1994-04-29 | ||
IT94BO000187A ITBO940187A1 (en) | 1994-04-29 | 1994-04-29 | MACHINE FOR THE PACKAGING OF CLOTHING SUCH AS STOCKINGS AND THE LIKE WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE CASES. |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0680882A1 true EP0680882A1 (en) | 1995-11-08 |
EP0680882B1 EP0680882B1 (en) | 1998-06-17 |
Family
ID=11339758
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP95830173A Expired - Lifetime EP0680882B1 (en) | 1994-04-29 | 1995-04-28 | A machine for packing items of clothing such as stockings and similar articles into cartons |
Country Status (3)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0680882B1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE69502995T2 (en) |
IT (1) | ITBO940187A1 (en) |
Cited By (8)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
WO2010024660A1 (en) * | 2008-08-27 | 2010-03-04 | Doeka Asia Sdn. Bhd. | A device for separating and packing elastic products |
US8127518B2 (en) | 2006-02-22 | 2012-03-06 | Graphic Packaging International, Inc. | Flat blank carton |
EP2711302A1 (en) * | 2012-09-21 | 2014-03-26 | Mohrbach Verpackungsmaschinen GmbH | Packaging machine with a novel magazine for changing format by means of a format changing plate |
CN103832044A (en) * | 2012-11-21 | 2014-06-04 | 李世荣 | Automatic cloth sticking machine |
CN110641784A (en) * | 2019-10-14 | 2020-01-03 | 中山易裁剪网络科技有限公司 | Automatic identification letter sorting baling equipment of finished product clothing |
CN114040874A (en) * | 2019-05-17 | 2022-02-11 | 伊利诺斯工具制品有限公司 | Packaging machine for packaging products in cartons and method thereof |
CN115285468A (en) * | 2022-08-24 | 2022-11-04 | 海宁金麒麟时装有限公司 | Automatic dress stacking and boxing machine suitable for various dresses |
CN115465534A (en) * | 2022-09-23 | 2022-12-13 | 苏州市青田企业发展有限公司 | Packaging production line and packaging process of knitted garment |
Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3043069A (en) * | 1960-08-08 | 1962-07-10 | Little Inc A | Automatic processing apparatus |
US4070952A (en) * | 1976-11-12 | 1978-01-31 | Ab Akerlund & Rausing | Carton storage, feeding and opening apparatus |
-
1994
- 1994-04-29 IT IT94BO000187A patent/ITBO940187A1/en unknown
-
1995
- 1995-04-28 EP EP95830173A patent/EP0680882B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1995-04-28 DE DE69502995T patent/DE69502995T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Patent Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3043069A (en) * | 1960-08-08 | 1962-07-10 | Little Inc A | Automatic processing apparatus |
US4070952A (en) * | 1976-11-12 | 1978-01-31 | Ab Akerlund & Rausing | Carton storage, feeding and opening apparatus |
Cited By (10)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US8127518B2 (en) | 2006-02-22 | 2012-03-06 | Graphic Packaging International, Inc. | Flat blank carton |
WO2010024660A1 (en) * | 2008-08-27 | 2010-03-04 | Doeka Asia Sdn. Bhd. | A device for separating and packing elastic products |
EP2711302A1 (en) * | 2012-09-21 | 2014-03-26 | Mohrbach Verpackungsmaschinen GmbH | Packaging machine with a novel magazine for changing format by means of a format changing plate |
CN103832044A (en) * | 2012-11-21 | 2014-06-04 | 李世荣 | Automatic cloth sticking machine |
CN114040874A (en) * | 2019-05-17 | 2022-02-11 | 伊利诺斯工具制品有限公司 | Packaging machine for packaging products in cartons and method thereof |
CN110641784A (en) * | 2019-10-14 | 2020-01-03 | 中山易裁剪网络科技有限公司 | Automatic identification letter sorting baling equipment of finished product clothing |
CN115285468A (en) * | 2022-08-24 | 2022-11-04 | 海宁金麒麟时装有限公司 | Automatic dress stacking and boxing machine suitable for various dresses |
CN115285468B (en) * | 2022-08-24 | 2023-08-04 | 海宁金麒麟时装有限公司 | Automatic dress stacking and boxing machine suitable for various clothes |
CN115465534A (en) * | 2022-09-23 | 2022-12-13 | 苏州市青田企业发展有限公司 | Packaging production line and packaging process of knitted garment |
CN115465534B (en) * | 2022-09-23 | 2024-06-07 | 苏州市青田企业发展有限公司 | Packaging production line and packaging technology of knitted garment |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
ITBO940187A1 (en) | 1995-10-29 |
DE69502995D1 (en) | 1998-07-23 |
DE69502995T2 (en) | 1998-10-15 |
EP0680882B1 (en) | 1998-06-17 |
ITBO940187A0 (en) | 1994-04-29 |
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