Classifications

• • 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
  • B65B35/00—Supplying, feeding, arranging or orientating articles to be packaged
  • B65B35/30—Arranging and feeding articles in groups
  • B65B35/44—Arranging and feeding articles in groups by endless belts or chains
• • 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
  • B65B5/06—Packaging groups of articles, the groups being treated as single articles
  • B65B5/061—Filled bags
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G15/00—Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration
  • B65G15/10—Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration comprising two or more co-operating endless surfaces with parallel longitudinal axes, or a multiplicity of parallel elements, e.g. ropes defining an endless surface
  • B65G15/12—Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration comprising two or more co-operating endless surfaces with parallel longitudinal axes, or a multiplicity of parallel elements, e.g. ropes defining an endless surface with two or more endless belts
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
  • B65G47/02—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors
  • B65G47/04—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors for feeding articles
  • B65G47/06—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors for feeding articles from a single group of articles arranged in orderly pattern, e.g. workpieces in magazines
  • B65G47/08—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors for feeding articles from a single group of articles arranged in orderly pattern, e.g. workpieces in magazines spacing or grouping the articles during feeding
  • B65G47/082—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors for feeding articles from a single group of articles arranged in orderly pattern, e.g. workpieces in magazines spacing or grouping the articles during feeding grouping articles in rows
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G2201/00—Indexing codes relating to handling devices, e.g. conveyors, characterised by the type of product or load being conveyed or handled
  • B65G2201/02—Articles

Definitions

• TITLE "Apparatus for the boxing of articles"
• the present Invention relates to an apparatus for the boxing of articles and Is particularly, but not exclusively, concerned with the boxing of substantially laminar articles such as filter bags which are loose or packaged in suitable packets and may contain tea or other infusion products.
• substantially laminar articles such as filter bags which are loose or packaged in suitable packets and may contain tea or other infusion products.
• Such type of apparatus is disclosed, for example, in prior art documents EP-A-0 551 613, EP-A-0 250 190 and DE-A-3 708 604.
• the articles are inserted on edge into respective stalls formed by pairs of equal panels, mutually parallel and equidistant, fixed one following another and transversely on a conveyor belt where there is grouped in the necessary number to accumulate one next to another the quantity of packets which can be contained in a box.
• the introduction of the articles into said stalls is carried out just before the stalls themselves arrive on the upper horizontal branch of the conveyor belt, when they are still turning around one of the end pulleys of the same conveyor and the pairs of panels which compose the stalls are mutually divergent towards the outside and open in a fan-like manner so that the introduction of the articles into the stalls is greatly facilitated.
• the pairs of panels which form the stalls are arranged mutually parallel and group the articles which are then inserted contemporaneously and in a known manner, by a pusher and a hopper, into the packaging box placed at the side of the upper group of stalls.
• a special belt conveyor system which carries in succession a number of groups of stalls and which comprises at least two endless conveyors arranged side by side which can be actuated independently of one another in order that, while one group of stalls is stationary at the station for boxing the articles, another group of stalls can be actuated for interaction with the feeding conveyor for cyclical feeding of the articles.
• FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view in perspective of the apparatus in question
• - Figure 2 is a side view of the initial and intermediate section of the feeding conveyor which feeds the articles in sequence to the conveyor with stalls
• - Figure 3 is a side view of the end section of the feeding conveyor in Figure 2 and of the successive conveyor with stalls;
• the articles 1 originating from the production line in single file, correctly orientated and appropriately distanced from one another, are fed by known means into the initial rectilinear and horizontal part 102 of a feeding line comprising a sliding guide 2 which, as illustrated in Figure 4, comprises a longitudinal and median rail 3, on which the articles rest and slide with their median part and comprises "L"-shaped lateral containment profiles 4- 104, on which and against which the longitudinal edges of the same articles 1 rest and slide.
• the parts 3, 4-104 are fixed on ties 5 mounted in an exact number and in a cantilevered manner on a vertical plate 6 which is integral with a suitable base structure (not illustrated) .
• the guide 2 continues upwards with a rectilinear and composite section 202, which will be discussed below, then with a parabolic section 302 and ends with a rectilinear section 402 which is orientated downwards and appropriately inclined, for example so as to form an angle with the vertical of approximately 35°.
• the articles 1 are compelled to run longitudinally through the guide 2, in the direction indicated by the arrow 200 ( Figure 2) , by forked pushers 7 which interact with portions of the article itself positioned at the side of the rail 3 ( Figure 4) and which are fixed mutually equidistantly and transversely on a conveyor belt 8 deflected on end pulleys 9-10 ( Figures 2- 3) positioned above and in the region of the ends of said guide 2, the first of these pulleys being idle and equipped with a tensioner 109 while the other pulley is connected to a movement shaft 110 (see Figure 5) .
• the upper return branch of the belt 8 ( Figures 2-3) is kept distant from the guide 2, with a broken-line course, by virtue of deflection on an intermediate idle pulley 11 positioned in the region of the highest point of the curved section 302 of said guide 2.
• the lower branch of the conveyor belt 8 is kept equidistant from and in the vicinity of the guide 2, with initial deflection on the idle pulleys 9-12 which arrange it parallel to the initial section 102 of said guide 2 and with deflection of the intermediate section on two parallel and opposite rows of small wheels 13-113 (see also Figure 4) which interact with the edges of the belt left free by the pushers 7 and which arrange the lower branch of the belt itself with the necessary equidistance in relation to both the parabolic section 302 and the rectilinear sections 202 and 402 following this of said guide 2. From Figures 2-3-4, it can be seen that the small wheels 13- 113 are mounted on vertical support plates 14-114 with a curved lower edge, which are fixed to the plate 6 by means of respective
• the ascending section 202 of the guide 2 is interrupted for a portion of length greater than that of a article 1 and is formed by a separate segment of rail indicated by 103, supported via the upper end by a fork 16 articulated transversely at 17 to the plate 6, in the region of the ends of a tie 5, this fork being connected to an electromagnetic oscillation actuator 18 which, when operated, can bring said segment 103 of rail from the position indicated in Figure 2 with a continuous line to the raised position indicated with a dashed line to unload from the guide 2 any faulty articles. Any actuation of the actuator 18 modifies the functioning of the components downstream of the conveyor in question as described below.
• this section of guide can be isolated from the consecutive rectilinear sections and supported via the ends of forks 19-20, one of which is fulcrumed transversely at 21 to the plate 6, in the region of the ends of a tie 5, while the other is equipped with a forked groove 22 with which it can be fixed removably to a clamp 23 fixed in a cantilevered manner to the same plate 6.
• a forked groove 22 with which it can be fixed removably to a clamp 23 fixed in a cantilevered manner to the same plate 6.
• covers 24-25 preferably made of transparent material which have a profile shaped like an upturned "L"
• Suitable means can be provided to avoid the articles escaping by gravity the pushing action exerted by the associated rear pusher 7 as they pass through the last, descending section of the guide 2.
• These means can, for example, consist of small brushes indicated diagrammatically by 28 in Figure 5 which are fixed on the lateral guide profiles 4-104 and arranged to act on the longitudinal edges of the articles being conveyed to brake them slightly and ensure that they advance essentially by the action of the pushers 7.
• Other means can be used for this purpose. It is, for example, possible that there are fixed on the conveyor belt 8, in front of the pushers 7, sponge rubber pads (not illustrated) which perform their action of retention of the articles in the last and most critical sections of the transport by virtue of the guide 2 progressively drawing closer to the active branch of the same conveyor belt 8.
• the rail can be replaced in part by a track of idle rollers or can be covered longitudinally by the upper branch of a belt which may be motorized for connection to the axle of the driving pulley 10, all of which is intuitable and easily achievable by experts in the field.
• the linear distance which exists between one group of stalls and that immediately following, mounted on the various belts just mentioned, is preferably identical or expediently greater than the length of one of these groups.
• the groups of stalls considered have an identical containment capacity and each group is capable of bearing as many articles as are necessary for filling a box.
• the apparatus in question is completed by a logic unit 48 which controls the motors 43-44, and also the motor 49 of the pulley 10, and to which optoelectronic sensors 50-54-154 are connected, the first of which acts immediately downstream of the last rectilinear section 402 of the guide 2 while the others are located to detect the correct position of the stalls in the filling station and in the unloading station of the articles respectively.
• the sensor 50 detects this state and brings about the actuation of the motor 44 which controls the advance of the belts 41-141 by an amount necessary to align a successive empty stall 101 with the guide 2.
• a box 51 ( Figure 1) , into which the articles positioned in said group of stalls are transferred contemporaneously by a pusher 52 of known type and by means of a likewise known hopper 53 positioned in a bridge-like manner between the stalls and the box and also having the function of compacting in width the group of articles to be boxed.
• the actuation of the pusher 52 is controlled by the unit 48 by means of the connection 152 ( Figure 3) .

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

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ID=11340212

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

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• 1995
  • 1995-01-20 IT IT95BO000014A patent/IT1278163B1/it active IP Right Grant
• 1996
  • 1996-01-11 EP EP96901258A patent/EP0804363A1/de not_active Ceased
  • 1996-01-11 WO PCT/EP1996/000099 patent/WO1996022223A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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