EP0733553A1

EP0733553A1 - A method for applying seals especially U seals, to the tops and necks of bottles, and a machine for implementing the same

Info

Publication number: EP0733553A1
Application number: EP95830271A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ivano Maffizzioli
Original assignee: Kosme SRL
Current assignee: Kosme SRL
Priority date: 1995-03-24
Filing date: 1995-06-28
Publication date: 1996-09-25
Also published as: ITVR950026A0; IT1278817B1; ITVR950026A1; JPH08258821A

Abstract

The method for applying seals, especially U seals (1), to the top (2) and neck (3) of bottles (4), where the seal (1) is picked from a magazine (7) by a picker unit (6), is carried towards a bottle (4) and is applied to the top (2) and the neck (3) of the bottle (4), consists in the following stages: - the picking by a picker unit (6) of a seal (1) from a magazine (7) in which the said seal is placed vertically; - the transfer of the seal (1) from the picker unit (6) to a feeder (8) when the latter moves past the picker unit (6); -the carrying of the seal (1) towards the bottle (4) and, contemporaneously, its rotation by the feeder (8) from a vertical to a horizontal position; - the positioning by the feeder (8) of the seal (1) horizontally and centrally over the top (2) of the bottle (4); - the application of the seal (1) to the bottle top (2) by a pusher mechanism (12) moving downwards along the same axis as the vertical axis of the bottle (4); - the immediate folding and pressing, effected by folding and pressing means (13), mounted parallel to the axis of the bottle (4), of the projecting edges (1a, 1b) of the seal against the sides of the top (2) and of the neck (3) of the bottle (4).

Description

The present invention relates to a method for applying seals, especially U seals, to the tops and necks of bottles, and to a machine for implementing the method.
Bottle top seals are applied to guarantee tamper-evidency and come in two main types, namely, one-sided, when the seal forms an upturned L applied to the top face and one side of the top and neck of the bottle, and two-sided, when it forms an upturned U applied to the top face and two opposite sides of the top and neck of the bottle.
At present, according to prior art, each seal is picked from a magazine horizontally, turned to the vertical position and moved towards the bottle, which is standing upright, in such a way that its top edge is higher than the bottle top. Once it is positioned in this way, the seal is applied to one side of the neck and then folded and pressed onto the top of the bottle, in the case of a one-sided seal. A U seal, on the other hand, because it is longer, projects horizontally to the other side of the bottle-top and must at this stage be folded again and pressed against the opposite side of the top and neck of the bottle in order to complete application.
The main disadvantage of this known method, and of the machine used to implement it, is the low speed at which the seals are applied, due to the relatively low speed which can be reached if the seals are in a horizontal position when they are picked from a magazine. This is because the seal pickers have to be very widely spaced and consequently, fewer of them can be fitted with the result that fewer seals are picked up per unit time.
Furthermore, as the bottles move from one station to another, they tend to vibrate, making it difficult to obtain a high degree of precision when applying the seals, especially in the case of U seals. Thus, after the seal has been applied to one side of the bottle neck and top and before it is folded and pressed onto the upper surface of the top itself, the part of the seal that extends upwards from the bottle top can sway freely, and very often, in the instant when it is folded over the bottle top, it is not aligned with the part of the seal which has already been applied. As a result, the seal is not applied uniformly and may be twisted and skew. This disadvantage is even more marked in the case of a U seal, not only because it is longer and therefore the tendency of its upper portion to sway after the lower portion has been applied to the neck of the bottle is even greater but also because the upper portion itself is applied to the top and to the other side of the bottle neck in two stages, which means that swaying and consequent misalignment can occur on two different occasions after the lower portion has been applied to the first side of the bottle neck.
The object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks mentioned above by disclosing a method for applying seals, especially U seals to the tops and necks of bottles, which allows a high speed of production and a good degree of precision to be attained.
This object is achieved by the method disclosed herein for applying seals, especially U seals, to the tops and necks of bottles, the main characteristics of the method being set forth in claim 1 below.
The fact that the seals are picked from a magazine vertically enables the seal feeders of the picker unit to be positioned more closely together than those used up to the present, which means that more of them can be fitted, consequently enabling the seals to be picked and fed at a faster rate.
Moreover, when the seal is applied to the bottle top by the pusher mechanism, it is positioned horizontally and centred over the bottle top itself and the projecting edges of the seal are then immediately folded and pressed against the sides of the top and neck of the bottle by the folding and pressing means which are parallel to the axis of the bottle. This enables the seal to be applied squarely without allowing it to sway and twist before it comes into contact with the bottle.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a machine capable of implementing the method disclosed.
This object is achieved by the machine whose main characteristics are described in claim 4.
As stated in claim 2, the method disclosed envisages that the feeder carrying the seal reaches and moves past the bottle an instant before the latter is fed to a carousel. In this way, the seal feeder can rotate the seal from the vertical to the horizontal position without knocking against the bottle neck and causing the bottle to fall over.
This makes it possible to limit the working height of the machine and hence to reduce the stroke of the pusher mechanism.
The method disclosed further envisages, as stated in claim 3, that when the seal feeder has completed its rotation from the vertical to the horizontal position, the seal is in front of the bottle neck in the direction in which the bottle is travelling on the carousel and is subsequently positioned over the bottle top by a reverse movement of the feeder.
This constitutes a simple and effective way of positioning the seal centrally over the bottle top to enable it to be applied squarely.
A machine for implementing the method disclosed by the present invention forms the subject-matter of claim 4.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed description which follows, with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention by way of example and in which:

Figure 1 is a very schematic general view of a labelling machine for applying normal labels and top seals;
Figure 2 is an enlargement of Fig. 1 showing in more detail the part of the machine where the top seals are applied;
Figure 3 is a further enlarged view of the part of the machine illustrated in Fig. 2.
Figure 4 shows the sequence of movements effected by the feeder to rotate the seal from the vertical to the horizontal position;
Figure 5 shows the same sequence as that shown in Fig. 4 but from another angle;
Figure 6 illustrates the stage in which the seal is placed on the top of the bottle;
Figure 7 illustrates the stage in which the projecting edges of the seal are folded and pressed against the sides of the top and neck of the bottle.

In Fig. 1, the numeral 20 indicates a bottle labelling machine also designed to apply top seals, especially U seals 1. Each bottle 4 on whose top 2 and neck 3 the seal 1 is to be applied is fed by a first starwheel 21 to a carousel 5 which turns about a vertical axis of rotation A and is moved away from the carousel 5 by a second starwheel 22 after the seal 1 has been applied. The bottles 4 are peripherally arranged on the carousel 5. The numerals 23, 24 and 25 are schematic representations of conventional labelling units which apply labels to the bodies of the bottles and which do not fall within the scope of the present invention.
The numeral 6 indicates a picker unit which picks the seals 1 from a magazine 7.
As can be seen in Fig. 2, when the seal 1 is picked by the picker 6, it is in a vertical position.
A carousel 14 has peripherally mounted on it a plurality of feeders 8. The carousel 14 rotates about a vertical axis A in synchrony with carousel 5. As the carousel 14 rotates, the feeder 8 moves past the picker unit 6, which transfers to it the seal 1 the picker 6 is holding, and then continues going round on the carousel 14 towards the bottle 4 being fed by the carousel 5. As it travels towards the bottle, the feeder 8, which is pivotally mounted on means 10, also rotates about its own axis in such a way as to bring the seal 1 from a vertical position to a substantially horizontal position.
The numeral 11 indicates mounting means by which the feeder 8 holding the seal 1, lying horizontally, is positioned centrally over the top 2 of the bottle 4.
As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, a pusher mechanism 12 moving downwards along the same axis as the vertical axis of the bottle 4, then pushes the seal 1 down onto the bottle top 2 while, an instant later, folding and pressing means 13, mounted parallel to the axis of the bottle 4, fold and press the projecting edges 1a and 1b of the seal 1 against the sides of the top 2 and of the neck 3 of the bottle 4.
The process cycle of the machine can be summarized as follows:

a seal 1 placed vertically in a magazine 7 is picked from the magazine by a picker unit 6;
the seal 1 held by the picker unit 6 is transferred to a feeder 8, as the latter moves past the picker unit 6;
the feeder 8 carries the seal 1 towards the bottle 4 and, at the same time, rotates it from the vertical position to a substantially horizontal position, the feeder 8 being mounted on the carousel 14, which moves it towards the bottle, on pivoting means 10, which enable it to rotate the seal;
the feeder 8 carrying the seal 1 is positioned centrally over the top 2 of the bottle 4;
a pusher mechanism 12 moving downwards along the same axis as the vertical axis of the bottle 4, pushes the seal 1 down onto the bottle top 2; and
an instant later, the folding and pressing means 13, mounted parallel to the axis of the bottle 4, fold and press the projecting edges 1a and 1b of the seal 1 against the sides of the top 2 and of the neck 3 of the bottle 4.

The method disclosed also envisages that the seal 1 carried by the feeder 8 reaches and moves past the bottle 4 an instant before the latter is fed to the carousel 5. As a result of this, when the seal 1 has completed its rotation from the vertical to the horizontal position, it is in front of the neck 3 of the bottle 4 in the direction in which the bottle 4 itself is travelling on the carousel 5.
Then, as shown in Fig. 5, the method envisages that the feeder 8 makes a reverse movement in such a manner as to position the seal 1 centrally over the bottle top 2.
For this purpose, the machine is equipped with means 11 which allow the feeder 8 to be moved in such a way that the seal 1 it is carrying is positioned horizontally and centrally over the top 2 of the bottle 4. The said means 11 comprise a shoe 16 on which the feeder 8 is mounted. The shoe 16 is in turn slidably mounted on the periphery of the carousel 14.

Claims

A method for applying seals, especially U seals (1), to the top (2) and neck (3) of bottles (4), where the seal (1):
- is picked from a magazine (7) by a picker unit (6);

- is carried towards a bottle (4), on whose top (2) and neck (3) the seal (1) is to be applied and which is placed peripherally on a carousel (5) that rotates about a vertical axis (A) to which the bottle (4) is fed before the seal (1) is applied and from which it is moved away after the seal (1) has been applied; and

- is applied to the top (2) and the neck (3) of a bottle (4);
the said method being characterized in that it consists in the following stages:

- the picking by a picker unit (6) of a seal (1) from a magazine (7) in which the said seal is placed vertically;

- the transfer of the seal (1) from the picker unit (6) to a feeder (8) when the latter moves past the picker unit (6);

- the carrying of the seal (1) towards the bottle (4) and, contemporaneously, its rotation by the feeder (8) from a vertical to a horizontal position;

- the positioning by the feeder (8) of the seal (1) horizontally and centrally over the top (2) of the bottle (4);

- the application of the seal (1) to the bottle top (2) by a pusher mechanism (12) moving downwards along the same axis as the vertical axis of the bottle (4);

- the immediate folding and pressing, effected by folding and pressing means (13), mounted parallel to the axis of the bottle (4), of the projecting edges (1a, 1b) of the seal (1) against the sides of the top (2) and of the neck (3) of the bottle (4).
The method according to claim 1 characterized in that the seal (1) carried by the feeder (8) reaches and moves past the bottle (4) an instant before the latter is fed to the carousel (5).
The method according to claim 2 characterized in that when the seal feeder (8) has completed its rotation from the vertical to the horizontal position, the seal (1) is in front of the neck (3) of the bottle (4) in the direction in which the bottle itself is travelling on the carousel (5) and is subsequently positioned over the bottle top (2) by a reverse movement of the feeder (8).
A machine to implement the method according to claim 1, comprising:
- a carousel (5) which turns about a vertical axis of rotation (A), each bottle (4) on whose top (2) and neck (3) the seal (1) is to be applied being fed to, and peripherally placed on, the said carousel (5) and then moved away from it once the seal (1) has been applied;
the said machine being characterized in that it also comprises:

- a picker unit (6) designed to pick the seal (1) from a magazine (7) in which the seal is placed vertically;

- at least one feeder (8) to which the seal (1) held by the picker unit (6) is transferred when the feeder (8) moves past the picker unit (6);

- first means (14) designed to carry the feeder (8) holding the seal (1) towards the bottle (4);

- second means (10) to enable the feeder (8) holding the seal (1) to rotate in such a way that the seal (1) is turned from the vertical position to a substantially horizontal position;

- third means (11) which mount the feeder (8) holding the seal (1) and by which the seal (1) can be positioned centrally over the top (2) of the bottle (4);

- a pusher mechanism (12) moving downwards along the vertical axis of the bottle (4) for applying the seal (1) to the bottle top (2); and

- folding and pressing means (13) mounted parallel to the axis of the bottle (4), for folding and pressing the projecting edges (1a, 1b) of the seal (1) against the sides of the top (2) and of the neck (3) of the bottle (4).
The machine according to claim 4, characterized in that the said first means (14) for moving the feeder (8) carrying the seal (1) close to the bottle (4) consist of a carousel (14) on which a plurality of feeders (8) are peripherally mounted and which rotates about a vertical axis (A) in synchrony with the carousel (5).
The machine according to claim 5 and to implement the method according to claim 3 characterized in that the said third means (11) allowing the feeder (8) to be moved in such a way that the seal (1) it is carrying is positioned horizontally and centrally over the top (2) of the bottle (4) comprise a shoe (16) on which the feeder (8) is mounted and which is in turn slidably mounted on the periphery of the carousel (14).