EP0799769A1 - Method as well as a blank for fabricating a balloon package - Google Patents

Abstract

The method involves forming the package from a flat rectangular blank of preferably coated carton, which is folded about a 180 degrees fold line (10). This is located centrally between and parallel to, the opposite edges. The open engaging edges (6a,b,b',c,26b,b') are connected, to form a hermetically sealed inner chamber. A filling and extraction opening is made before folding or after sealing. A liquid or paste-like product is introduced under pressure into the sealed chamber. This inflates the previously flat blank into its final balloon-like shape. The opening is hermetically sealed after this stage.

Description

The invention relates to a method for producing a hermetically sealed packaging on all sides for preferably liquid or pasty products which are filled into the packaging under pressure.

Such a method is known, for example, from E. Spreer, Technologie der Milchverarbeitung, 5th edition, VEB Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, 1984, pages 174 to 182.

The classic way of producing hermetically sealed packaging for liquids is simply to use a rigid, liquid-tight container such as Fill a milk bottle with the desired product and then close the filling opening with a stopper, a screw cap, a crown cap or an adhesive label, as described, for example, in the above-mentioned book on pages 174 to 177. Another variant of the packaging of liquids in rigid bodies is filling in cans, as is the case, for example, in H.G. Kessler, "Food Process Engineering Focus on Dairy Technology", Munich, Weihenstephan, 1976, Chapter 14.4.6. The previous chapter 14.4.5 of this document also describes the packaging of liquids in bottles made of glass and plastic.

A main disadvantage when filling rigid, already erected moldings with liquid or pasty products is that the moldings, such as bottles, cans etc., already consume the same large volume in the empty state as in the filled final state, so that the empty containers to be filled are temporarily stored Shaped body has an enormous space requirement. In particular, when using glass bottles or metal cans, there is an increased weight of the packaging and a greater consumption of materials that are difficult to recycle and energy-intensive (glass, metal).

To avoid these disadvantages, packaging processes have meanwhile been developed in which the packaging body is not rigid from the outset, but is erected from a coated cardboard blank, which may initially be flat. This is, for example, in the publication by E. Spreer cited at the beginning on pages 177 to 182, in the second publication by H.G. Kessler on pages 347 to 349 or in DE 27 58 092 A1. After the blank has been erected into its final shape, the liquid product to be packaged is then poured in and the packaging is subsequently sealed in a liquid-tight manner.

Alternatively, a process was developed for very large quantities of packaging to be processed, in which sections of a continuous tubular bag made of plastic film were cut off, filled, and then welded or glued on a machine. This is, for example, in the publication by E. Spreer cited at the beginning on pages 175 to 177, in the second publication cited by H.G. Kessler on pages 347 to 349 and in DE-OS 25 30 945 described and shown. The final shape of the packaging can be influenced by filling it with the product under pressure.

A decisive disadvantage of the film packaging process from the continuous roll is that these processes are only economical for very large quantities of product to be processed. Medium and small quantities of packaging or even individual packaging cannot be economically produced with such a process. In particular, the product to be packaged can only be changed when the roll is completely through the packaging machine is carried out and processed, so that there are large changeover times and thus large machine downtimes. Since an open film roll is generally used, the hygiene area in the packaging machines, which work according to the roll process, must be particularly extensive in terms of space, particularly in the case of food packaging, and must already hold the film roll when it is being fed.

In contrast, the object of the present invention is to present a method of the type described in the introduction, in which, on the one hand, the intermediate storage volume required for the packaging material before filling is minimal, but on the other hand, medium and small amounts of packaging down to individual packagings can also be processed in an economically sensible manner, whereby a quick product change with short changeover times of the machine is made possible without any problems and the area to be kept sterile in the case of food packaging is minimal.

According to the invention, this object is achieved in a surprisingly simple and effective manner in that a flat, generally rectangular blank of preferably coated cardboard material is folded around a 180 ° folding line that runs parallel and generally centrally between two opposite edges of the blank, in that the two superimposed halves of the folded blank are connected to one another at their open edge surfaces in such a way that a hermetically sealed inner area is created that a filling and removal opening is made in a partial surface of the blank before folding or after sealing the blank that under Print a preferably liquid or pasty product through the filling and removal opening into the sealed interior of the folded blank is filled, the previously generally flat blank being inflated and brought into its final spatial shape, and that the filling and removal opening is hermetically sealed after the filling process.

In the method according to the invention, a pre-glued or pre-welded, flat blank can be temporarily stored in a volume-saving manner before the material to be packaged is filled under pressure and at the same time the packaging is brought into its final spatial shape. The flat blank, which is sealed all around by means of a simple 180 ° bend around the 180 ° folding line and possibly already sealed by the cardboard manufacturer, only requires a compact filling device at the filling plant, in which the filling and the erection of the packaging into its final shape are carried out in a single operation becomes. As a result, the space required for the packaging or filling machine is particularly small. In connection with the minimal interim storage volume of the pretreated blanks, when using the method according to the invention, the filling of liquid or pasty products can take place in a small space, whereas in the classic method large machine shops are required.

Another advantage of the method according to the invention is that the actual hygiene area of the packaging and filling machine can be kept to a minimum, since only the interior of the packaging has to be made sterile or kept sterile. This also results in further space savings.

Another advantage of using the method according to the invention is that permanent access to faulty packaging is possible even before filling, whereas in the known methods of the film roll, the finished and filled packaging generally only has a leak in the form of a leak displays. If, in the case of using a roller method, the film web already has a recognizable error in the feed area to the filling station, the entire machine must be stopped and large parts of the film roll or the entire film roll must be replaced. Then a new film roll has to be completely threaded into the apparatus, which usually requires a very long time and thus results in long machine downtimes. In the method according to the invention, however, a defective individual blank can be removed from the apparatus easily and without stopping the filling machine, for example by a simple handle or automatically. This means there are no machine downtimes.

A variant of the method according to the invention is particularly preferred in which the shaping of the packaging is supported by corresponding shaping tools during the filling process. It is true that the product filled into the sealed blank under pressure causes the packaging walls to deform, which are first pressed into the width. When using a suitable contour tool, in which the blank is held during the filling process, however, the packaging as a whole can be brought into its corresponding final shape more easily and in a much more defined manner.

A variant of the method is particularly simple in which the folded blank is sealed by gluing the edge surfaces with the aid of an adhesive.

In contrast, an embodiment is advantageous in which the folded blank is sealed by welding the edge surfaces, because this eliminates the need to handle an additional substance, in the above case adhesive.

In a further development of this embodiment, the edge surfaces can be welded by means of ultrasound, which can be carried out with the aid of a corresponding ultrasound-generating unit without further precautions.

Alternatively, in another development of the above embodiment, the welding is carried out by the action of heat. For this, at least the immediate vicinity of the welding station must be shielded from the outside world in such a way that the heat generated cannot cause any damage. On the other hand, the locally limited generation of a defined amount of heat is technically feasible.

For example, in the development of the method, the action of heat can be caused by the use of hot air. This allows the desired region in the edge area of the blank to be heated precisely and relatively inexpensively using a commercially available hair dryer.

Alternatively, the effect of heat can also be caused by placing or pressing hot tool surfaces onto the edge surfaces of the blank. For example, metallic tool surfaces can be constructed without large Effort can be locally heated by means of power supply.

In a further advantageous variant of the method according to the invention, the filling and removal opening is created by pre-grooving the blank and piercing the pre-grooved area with a filling mandrel before the filling process. The pre-grooving allows the blank to be pierced at the appropriate point with the filling mandrel without great mechanical effort. A major advantage of this procedure is that the sealed interior of the folded blank remains hermetically sealed to the outside until it is pierced with the filling mandrel, since the filling opening, through which, for example, germs could penetrate the interior, is only created in the filling station. This means that the folded and sealed blanks can be stored practically indefinitely without fear of contamination of the sealed interior.

In a further development of this method variant, the filling and removal opening is sealed after the filling process by welding the opening area. In particular when using plastic-coated cardboard material, local heating can be used to pull plastic from the surface into the opening area, which after cooling can form a closure that is easy for the consumer to open again.

Alternatively, in a further embodiment of the invention, the filling and removal opening can be created by punching out before the blank is folded. This is particularly easy to use when punching out the entire blank and pre-grooving in one operation with a special punching tool.

In a development of the above method variants, the filling and removal opening is sealed after the filling process by attaching an adhesive or welding label. Such a closure technique is known per se, for example from EP 0 205 073 A2 or the above-mentioned DE-OS 25 30 945. In particular, a relatively large or irregularly shaped filling and removal opening can thus be effectively closed.

In a particularly preferred development of this embodiment, a reclosable label is used as the adhesive or welding label, which after opening the first time does not have a hermetic seal, but at least a splash guard and a blockage against the exchange of air and thus reduced oxidation and contamination of the packaged product offers.

An embodiment of the method according to the invention is also particularly preferred in which the inner region of the folded blank is sterilized. This is unavoidable, especially when packaging food or medication.

In further developments of this embodiment, the sterilization is effected by sterile precoating of the corresponding inner surfaces of the unfolded blank, which can already be applied by the manufacturer of the blank.

Alternatively, sterilization can also be carried out by spraying the interior with a germicidal aerosol after folding and sealing the blank.

In a further alternative, the sterilization can also be effected by washing out the inner region of the folded and sealed blank with a sterilizing fluid, for example with a germicidal solution.

It can also be advantageous if the inner region of the folded and sealed blank is blown out with hot air, which already results in sterilization in itself, but in any case represents additional security with further sterilization measures applied at the same time.

In further process variants, the filled packaging is irradiated with a germicidal radiation, for example UV radiation or gamma radiation, so that both the inside of the packaging and the packaged product itself are sterilized.

Furthermore, the filled packaging together with the filled product can also be heated after the filling process and thereby sterilized or at least re-sterilized.

In a further process variant, the product itself is filled hot into the folded and sealed blank, so that on the one hand the product itself is sterile due to the heat of the product and on the other hand germs located on the walls of the inner surface of the blank are killed by the hot filling material.

It is also advantageous if a constant exchange of sterile air in the interior of the folded during the filling process and sealed blank is carried out, since air residues may have to be removed from the blank during filling, but in any case the air flowing into the interior of the packaging should be sterile in the edge regions of the filling mandrel.

In a particularly preferred variant of the method according to the invention, defective blanks are ejected before the filling process, for example in an automatic ejection station, in which the blanks can be checked for errors. This can minimize machine downtimes due to faulty packaging. In contrast to the method according to the invention, such a procedure is not possible in the known methods described above, in which endless films are processed from the roll, since a locally limited interruption of the supplied film tube cannot be effected, but rather when errors occur the entire packaging machine has to be stopped or the defective packaging has to be removed after filling.

Finally, in a further method variant, powdery or granular products can also be filled into the packaging instead of the liquid or pasty products mentioned above. The described advantages of the method according to the invention are retained.

A blank for producing a packaging according to the inventive method described above also falls within the scope of the invention. The cut is characterized by a 180 ° fold line running parallel and mainly in the middle between two opposite edges; two parallel, close to each other on the 180 ° fold line from this fold lines running through the center area of the blank; in each case two parallel fold lines running at a short distance from one another and parallel and at a small distance from the edges of the blank, the fold lines, together with the respectively adjacent edge, delimiting the edge surface for sealing the blank.

Such a cut can advantageously be erected by the "center fold" method known from EP 0 417 252 B1. In addition, the 180 ° folding line provided in the cutting according to the invention enables pre-erection and pre-sealing in accordance with the method according to the invention described above with all of the advantages described.

Particularly preferred is an embodiment of the blank according to the invention, which is characterized in that four top side flaps are delimited by fold lines in the four corner regions of the blank, that four bottom mirror flaps are delimited on both sides by fold lines in the middle region of the blank, that the top side flaps are each one by one on the respective one Diagonal folding line tapered corner of the blank, and that the bottom mirror flaps are each divided by a diagonal folding line, the diagonal folding lines of two adjacent bottom mirror flaps converging at one point.

In particular, the diagonal fold lines make it easier to unfold the packaging into its spatial shape under the influence of the pressurized filling product during the filling process, because it favors the shaping of the top and bottom mirror flaps. The top and bottom mirror flaps can be filled and closed the packaging on the side surfaces or the floor mirror thereof, for example by means of an adhesive, so as not to protrude from the filled packaging in a disturbing manner.

An embodiment of the blank according to the invention can also be advantageous, in which at least two opposite edge lines of the blank are convex or concave. In this way it is also possible to realize partially round packaging forms.

In general, the cut on its outer circumference can also deviate from the rectangular shape, for example be polygonal. This means that almost any number of packaging shapes can be created.

In particular, in a further development of this embodiment, the blank can be designed trapezoidal on its outer circumference. After the packaging has been filled, this leads to pyramid-shaped shapes, it being possible for the tip of the resulting packaging body to be “capped”.

An embodiment of the blank according to the invention in which the filling and removal openings are formed in a cover area delimited by the fold lines is very particularly advantageous. This allows filling and removal, for example, from above, which prevents the liquid from flowing out of the packaging. The embodiment mentioned is therefore particularly favorable for the handling of fluid filling goods.

Further advantages of the invention result from the description and the drawing. Likewise, the above According to the invention, the features mentioned and those listed further can be used individually or in combination in any combination. The embodiments shown and described are not to be understood as an exhaustive list, but rather have an exemplary character for the description of the invention.

Fig. 1

eine Ausführungsform des erfindungsgemäßen Zuschnitts in flachem Zustand;

Fig. 2

eine weitere Ausführungsform des erfindungsgemäßen Zuschnitts in einem entlang der Längsfaltlinien vorgebrochenen Zustand;

Fig. 3a

den Beginn der Vorfaltung eines erfindungsgemäßen Zuschnitts um die 180°-Faltlinie;

Fig. 3b

den Vorgang von Fig. 3a nach etwa der Hälfte der Faltung;

Fig. 3c

den Vorgang von Fig. 3a kurz vor Ende des Zusammenfaltens;

Fig. 3d

den gemäß Fign. 3a bis 3c vorgefalteten Zuschnitt mit exakt gegenüberliegenden Zuschnittshälften; und

Fig. 4

eine erfindungsgemäß hergestellt Verpackung nach Abschluß des Befüllvorgangs.

The invention is illustrated in drawings and is explained in more detail using exemplary embodiments. Show it:

Fig. 1

an embodiment of the blank according to the invention in a flat state;

Fig. 2

a further embodiment of the blank according to the invention in a state which has been pre-broken along the longitudinal fold lines;

Fig. 3a

the beginning of the pre-folding of a blank according to the invention around the 180 ° fold line;

Fig. 3b

the process of Figure 3a after about half the fold;

Fig. 3c

the process of Fig. 3a shortly before the end of the folding;

Fig. 3d

the according to FIGS. 3a to 3c pre-folded blank with exactly opposite cutting halves; and

Fig. 4

a packaging produced according to the invention after completion of the filling process.

1 shows a blank for the production according to the invention of a hermetically sealed packaging on all sides for preferably liquid or pasty, in general also for powdery or granular products which are filled into the packaging under pressure. The flat, essentially rectangular blank has a front side 1 and a rear side 2, which are formed by a 180 ° folding line 10 which runs parallel and essentially centrally between the two corresponding opposite edges of the blank and two parallel to it with a small distance from it 180 ° folding line 10 are separated by folding lines 15, 16 running through the central region of the blank. In the center of the cut, the fold lines 15 and 16 and fold lines 12 and 22 running perpendicularly to these bound the later floor mirror area 4.

Parallel to the fold lines 12 and 22, further fold lines 11 and 21 each run near the edge.

Parallel to the 180 ° fold line 10, in the vicinity of the mutually opposite edges, are fold lines 13 and 14 or 17 and 18. The fold lines 12, 17, 18 and 22 delimit a later first cover surface 3a, which has a filling and removal opening 19 contains for filling the subsequent packaging with a filling material and for removing the same from the packaging. At the opposite end of the blank, the fold lines 12, 13, 14 and 22 delimit a further cover surface 3b which, when the packaging is erected, comes to lie parallel next to the first cover surface 3a.

The later side parts of the packaging are formed by side surfaces 5a, 5b, 25a and 25b, which are formed by fold lines 11, 12, 16 and 17 or 11, 12, 14 and 15 or 21, 22, 16 and 17 or 21, 22, 14 and 15 can be limited.

The fold line 18, together with the edge adjacent to it, delimits an edge surface 6a. Likewise, at the opposite end of the cut, the fold line 13 delimits a further edge surface 6c with the edge that lies first thereon. The fold line 11 delimits an edge surface 6b with the edge adjacent to it in the upper half of the blank and an edge surface 6b 'in the lower half of the blank; the fold line 21 on the opposite side finally delimits an edge surface 26b in the upper half of the blank and an edge surface 26b 'in the lower half of the blank with the edge adjacent to it. In the later sealing, the edge surfaces 6a, 6b, 6b ', 6c, 26b' and 26b are sealed against each other after erection of the blank around the 180 ° fold line 10 either by gluing or by welding, so that an all-round closed interior of the folded blank is created .

To form a bottom flap 8 and to facilitate the unfolding in the later bottom region of the packaging, a diagonal folding line 9 is provided in the blank shown in FIG. 1 in the area delimited by the folding lines 10, 11, 12 and 16. Likewise, the later bottom mirror flap 8 'is divided into two halves by a diagonal folding line 9', the later bottom mirror flap 28 by a diagonal folding line 29 and the later bottom mirror flap 28 'by a diagonal folding line 29. The diagonal fold lines 9, 9 'and 29, 29' each of two adjacent floor mirror flaps 8, 8 'and 28, 28' converge at one point.

In the four corner areas of the blank shown in FIG. 1, four later upper side flaps 7a, 7b, 27a and 27b are shown by fold lines 11, 12, 17 and 18 or 11, 12, 13 and 14, or 21, 22, 17 and 18 or 21, 22, 13 and 14 limited. The areas of the later upper side flaps 7a, 7b, 27a and 27b are each divided into two halves by a diagonal folding line 23a or 23b or 24a or 24b which runs towards the respective corner of the blank. As with the bottom flaps 8, 8 ', 28, 28' and the associated diagonal folding lines 9, 9 ', 29, 29', this will make it easier for the packaging to be erected from the blank into its later final shape.

In the corner areas of the essentially rectangular cut from FIG. 1, the actual corners are replaced by diagonal cut edges 30a, 30b, 30c and 30d. These later facilitate the sealing of the edge surfaces 6a, 6b, 6b ', 26b' and 26b against each other.

The cut shown in FIG. 2 differs from the cut according to FIG. 1 essentially only in that it is somewhat elongated in its rectangular shape and therefore longer. Since the different fold lines and the areas delimited by them correspond exactly, the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1 are used. In contrast to that of FIG. 1, the blank of FIG. 2 is not shown in the flat state, but rather in a state that has already been broken along the longitudinal fold lines 11, 12, 21 and 22. This preliminary break facilitates the later erection of the packaging during the filling process.

In Figs. 3a to 3d is the unfolding process of a further embodiment of the blank according to the invention 180 ° fold line 10 shown. Here, too, the same reference numerals are used as in FIG. 1, since the cut shown here also differs from that shown in FIG. 1 only by smaller rescaling of the rectangular sides.

3a shows the beginning of the unfolding, FIG. 3b a folding by approximately 90 °, FIG. 3c the folding process shortly before its end and FIG. 3d the pre-folded blank with the blank halves lying exactly one on top of the other. In this state, the edge surfaces 6b ', 6c and 26b' can be sealed with the edge surfaces 6a, 6b and 26b which can no longer be seen in FIG. 3d.

4 finally shows the final spatial shape of the packaging erected from a blank according to the invention by filling with pressurized filling material after the filling process has been completed. The top flap 27a visible in FIG. 4 and the likewise visible edge surfaces 6a and 26b 'are glued to the side surface 25b and to the top surface 3b, respectively, in order to prevent them from sticking out from the filled packaging. Likewise, the further edge surfaces and top and bottom mirror flaps which cannot be seen in FIG. 4 are glued to the corresponding outer surfaces of the packaging.

The cardboard packaging according to the invention is erected and filled at the same time by means of an erecting and filling machine that was specially developed for this type of packaging. In this case, the blank is inserted into the molding area by means of suction, folded over along the 180 ° folding line 10 and sealed on the edge surfaces 6a, 6b, 6b '6c, 26b' and 26b by gluing or welding. After that the packaging is transferred to the shaping area, in which there is a filling device which, by means of a pressure container, liquid, pasty, powdery or granular products via a filling mandrel, which is introduced into the filling and removal opening 19 of the packaging before the filling process introduces a flat, folded and sealed blank.

The internal pressure of the liquid then presses the packaging into the corresponding shape of the area provided with a molding tool. The filling mandrel is then removed from the filling and removal opening 19 again. In the following, the bottom flaps 8, 8 ', 28, 28' and the top flaps 7a, 7b, 27a, 27b are attached to the packaging by means of an adhesive. The erected and filled packaging is removed from the shaping area onto a conveyor belt and hermetically sealed in a further work step by a labeling station at the filling and removal opening 19 by means of a preferably resealable adhesive or welding label.

Claims (11)

Process for producing a hermetically sealed packaging on all sides for preferably liquid or pasty products which are filled into the packaging under pressure,
characterized, that a flat, generally rectangular blank of preferably coated cardboard material is folded around a 180 ° folding line (10) running parallel and generally centrally between two opposite edges of the blank, that the two halves of the folded blank lying on top of each other are connected to one another all around at their open edge surfaces (6a, 6b, 6b ', 26b, 26b' 6c) in such a way that a hermetically sealed inner region is created, that a filling and removal opening (19) is provided in a partial area of the blank before folding or after sealing the blank, that a preferably liquid or pasty product is filled under pressure through the filling and removal opening (19) into the sealed interior of the folded blank, the previously flat blank being inflated and brought into its final spatial shape, and that the filling and removal opening (19) is hermetically sealed after the filling process. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the shaping of the packaging is supported by corresponding shaping tools during the filling process. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the filling and removal opening (19) is created by pre-grooving or pre-scoring the blank and piercing the pre-grooved or pre-scored area with a filling mandrel before the filling process. Method according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the filling and removal opening (19) is produced by punching out before folding the blank. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the inner region of the folded blank is sterilized. A method according to claim 5, characterized in that the inner region of the folded and sealed blank is blown out with hot air. A method according to claim 5, characterized in that the filled packaging is irradiated with germicidal radiation after the filling process. Method according to one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that the product is filled hot into the folded and sealed blank. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that there is a constant exchange of sterile air in the interior of the folded and sealed blank during the filling process. Blank for producing a packaging according to a method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by a 180 ° folding line (10) which runs parallel and essentially centrally between two opposite edges; two parallel folding lines (15, 16) running on both sides of the 180 ° folding line (10) at a short distance from it through the central region of the blank; Two parallel fold lines (11, 12; 13, 14; 17, 18; 21, 22) running parallel and at a short distance from each other and parallel and at a small distance from the edges of the blank, the fold line (18) together with the adjacent one Edge the edge surface (6a), the fold line (13) together with the adjacent edge, the edge surface (6c), the fold line (13) together with the adjacent edge, the edge surfaces (6b, 6b ') and the fold line (22) together with the adjacent edge border the edge surfaces (26b, 26b '). Blank according to claim 10, characterized in that in the four corner areas of the blank four top flaps (7a; 7b; 27a; 27b) through the fold lines (11, 12, 17, 18 or 11, 12, 13, 14 or 21, 22, 17, 18 or 21, 22, 13, 14) are delimited, that in the central region of the cut, four bottom mirror flaps (8; 8 ';28;28') on both sides through the fold lines (11, 12, 10, 16 or 11, 12, 10, 15 or 21, 22, 10, 16 or 21, 22, 10, 15) are delimited, that the top tabs (7a; 7b; 27a; 27b) each are divided by a diagonal folding line (23a; 23b; 24a; 24b) that runs towards the respective corner of the blank, and that the bottom mirror flaps (8; 8 ';28;28') are each divided by a diagonal fold line (9; 9 ';29;29'), the diagonal fold lines (9, 9 'and 29, 29 ') two adjacent floor mirror flaps (8, 8' or 28, 28 ') converge at one point.

Images