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
  • B65B51/00—Devices for, or methods of, sealing or securing package folds or closures; Devices for gathering or twisting wrappers, or necks of bags
  • B65B51/04—Applying separate sealing or securing members, e.g. clips
  • B65B51/043—Applying springy clips around bag necks
• • 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
  • B65B25/06—Packaging slices or specially-shaped pieces of meat, cheese, or other plastic or tacky products
  • B65B25/064—Packaging slices or specially-shaped pieces of meat, cheese, or other plastic or tacky products of poultry
• • 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
  • B65B31/00—Packaging articles or materials under special atmospheric or gaseous conditions; Adding propellants to aerosol containers
  • B65B31/04—Evacuating, pressurising or gasifying filled containers or wrappers by means of nozzles through which air or other gas, e.g. an inert gas, is withdrawn or supplied
  • B65B31/06—Evacuating, pressurising or gasifying filled containers or wrappers by means of nozzles through which air or other gas, e.g. an inert gas, is withdrawn or supplied the nozzle being arranged for insertion into, and withdrawal from, the mouth of a filled container and operating in conjunction with means for sealing the container mouth
• • 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
  • B65B5/045—Packaging single articles in bags

Definitions

• This invention is generally directed to a system for encasing materials, such as poultry or other materials, in plastic bags.
• the invention is used for packaging poultry such as whole dressed chickens, ducks, geese, and turkeys, but can be used as well for poultry parts, such as turkey breasts, for whole-muscle meats, such as hams, for other food items such as game, cheeses, and sausages, and for non-food items as well.
• 6473681.1 34990/137721 is applied to the neck of the bag to seal the bag.
• An apparatus of this type generally comprises a rotating circular table, a plurality of radially-oriented evacuation nozzles, and a clamping means at each nozzle.
• a bagged product such as a dressed turkey in a plastic bag, is applied to each of the vacuum nozzles at a first position.
• the clamping means closes to seal the bag to the nozzle, the vacuum nozzle evacuates the bag, a clip is applied, the excess bag or "tail" is removed, the clamping means opens, and the now packaged turkey is removed from the table.
• the entire package is then sent to a netting machine for enclosure in netting.
• the plastic bag can be shrunk even further by use of shrinkable plastic for the bag.
• the package is sent to a shrink tunnel and exposed to heat by steam or hot water.
• the plastic when exposed to heat, shrinks even further around the bird.
• the plastic used in shrinkable bags is a non-breathing type of plastic, so these types of bags can be used for fresh birds as well as for frozen birds.
• the invention is a method and an apparatus for enclosing material in a bag, for a bag comprising a stretchable material and having a first dimension and a second dimension.
• 6473681.1 34990/137721 method comprises stretching the bag in the first dimension, placing material in the bag, releasing the bag in the first dimension, stretching the bag in a second dimension, evacuating the bag, and sealing the bag.
• the apparatus comprises a bagger configured to stretch the bag in a first dimension, to receive the material, and to release the bag in the first dimension, and a packaging apparatus comprising a nozzle coupled to a vacuum system, a grasping means, a clipper means, and an iris, the grasping means configured to hold a neck of the bag to the nozzle, the iris configured to push the material in the bag away from the grasping means.
• FIGS. IA through 1C are elevation views of a whole dressed bird encased in a plastic bag, as is produced by the method and apparatus of the present invention.
• FIGS. 2 A and 2B are diagrammatic views of a plastic bag as used in the preferred embodiments of the present invention.
• FIG. 3 is a top diagrammatic view of the apparatus of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 4 is a side diagrammatic view of the apparatus of FIG. 3.
• FIG. 5 is a side view of a whole dressed bird at a step of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 6 is a side view of the bird of FIG. 5 after the next step of the preferred embodiment
• FIG. 7 is a side view of the bird of FIG. 5 after yet another step of the preferred embodiment of the present invention of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 8 is a side view of the bird of FIG. 5 after yet another step of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 9 is a side view of the bird of FIG. 5 after yet another step of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
• FIGS. IA, IB, and 1C Representative packaged assemblies 20 of a whole dressed bird 22 encased in a plastic bag 24 and sealed therein by a clip 26 applied to neck 28 of bag 24 are shown in FIGS. IA, IB, and 1C. Please note that in some applications, neck 28 of the bag 24 is gathered above the packaged item 20 and the clip 26 is applied above the packaged item 20, as shown in FIG. IA.
• FIG. 1 For other food items, the appearance as shown in FIG. 1 is satisfactory.
• the present invention can be used to package material in either configuration.
• the present invention will be described in an embodiment relating to bagging whole dressed turkeys.
• the invention is not limited to this particular application, however.
• the present invention uses stretchable material for plastic bags 24.
• bag 24 is made of polyethylene to which a memory agent has been added. This material will stretch when a force is applied (up to a limit) and will relax back to, or at least very close to, the original size when the force is removed. This material allows the use of printed bags, which is important in marketing consumer goods. The information printed on the bags,
• Bag 24 as used in the present invention is conventionally made of a top sheet 24a folded over a bottom sheet 24b, with the sides welded together by ultrasound or heat to form bag 24.
• Bag manufacturers generally provide a series of bags 24 stacked flat.
• Bag 24 is when flat is generally rectangular and has a first dimension or height h and a second dimension or width w, as shown in FIG. 2A. Bag 24 when opened has a first dimension or height h and a second dimension or diameter d, as shown in FIG. 2B.
• Bag 24 is stretched open in the w dimension preferably using a bagger, a turkey 22 is pushed into bag 24, and bag 24 is released, causing bag 24 to revert from its stretched position to a relaxed position over turkey 22.
• a bagger and methods of bagging are described in, for example, United States Patent No. 6,895,726, Poly-stretch Bagger System, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
• bag 24 encasing turkey 22, is placed on packaging apparatus 40.
• Packaging apparatus as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, is preferably a rotatable framework 42 with multiple stations for evacuating bags 24.
• framework 42 is connected, preferably by a gear assembly 48, to a motor 50.
• motor 50 drives framework 42 in a rotating motion by belts, shafts, cranks, cams, or other means.
• a central vacuum pump 52 is connected by suitable piping 54 to a plurality of vacuum nozzles 56.
• apparatus 40 could comprise a single nozzle without a rotating framework.
• the tip 58 of each vacuum nozzle 56 extends through a grasping means 60.
• grasping means 60 is a pair of jaws configured to clamp neck 28 onto nozzle 56.
• Grasping means 60 in the preferred embodiment has jaws actuated by one or more air-actuated cylinders (not shown) connected to a compressed air supply.
• the jaws of grasping means 60 are actuated electronically or electromechanically.
• the jaws of grasping means 60 are actuated manually.
• other grasping means 60 are used, such as wire or band sealers, tapers, and tying devices.
• Grasping means 60 is movable from a position adjacent bagged turkey 20, as shown in FIG. 5, to a position remote from bagged turkey 20, as shown in FIG. 8.
• Each grasping means 60 preferably travels by means of an air-actuated cylinder (not shown) connected to a compressed air supply.
• grasping means 60 travels by electronic or electromechanical means.
• grasping means is moved from one position to the other manually.
• Clipping means 64 is preferably a conventional clipping apparatus, including gathering jaws, a clip rail, a punch, and a die, and is actuated by one or more air-actuated cylinders connected to a compressed air supply to apply a conventional clip.
• other automated devices that apply conventional clips, wires, bands, sealing tape, twist ties, cables, or other sealing means are used.
• clipper means 64 is operated manually.
• a central controller 62 is coupled to each of pump 52, grasping means 60, and clipper means 64.
• Controller 62 is preferably an electronic control, such as a standard Siemens central processing unit, with a "power 5 6EP1333-1SL11" power supply, a "Simatic S7-300 314-1AEO4-0AB0" PLC, a 32-output "SM322 321-1 BL00-0AA0" card, a 32- input "SM 321 321 -ABL00-0AA0" card, and a 16-input "SM 321 321-1 BH0S-OAAO" card.
• PLC -based electronic controls are used.
• controller 62 is an analog controller.
• apparatus 40 is controlled manually.
• neck 28 of bag 24 is placed over nozzle 56, as shown in FIG. 5.
• the gathering jaws of grasping means 60 close over neck 28 and hold the plastic material of neck 28 tightly to nozzle 56, as shown in FIG. 6. Then, or at the same time, the gathering jaws of clipper means 64 wrap around neck 28, distal to nozzle 56, and vacuum pump 52 evacuates any excess air out of bag 24, causing bag 24 to collapse even more tightly about turkey 22, as shown in FIG. 7.
• Grasping means 60 next moves to its second position, remote from bagged turkey 20, as shown in FIG. 8. Since grasping means 60 is holding neck 28 tightly to nozzle 56, but the plastic of neck 28 can still slide along nozzle 56, bag 24 is pulled even more tightly about turkey 20 as neck 20 is pulled by grasping means 60 away from turkey 20.
• Clipping means 64 then applies a clip 26 to bag 24, and severs neck 28, sealing turkey 22 within bag 24 to form packaged assembly 20, as shown in FIG. 9. Please note that apparatus 40 can place clip 26 above turkey 22, as shown in FIGS. IA and 9, or next to turkey 22, as shown in
• FIG. 1C 6473681.1 34990/137721 FIG. 1C, in the manner described in United States Published Patent Application No. 2009/0044488 Al, Dual Mode Bagger, filed August 15, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
• the tail of bag 24, the excess plastic distal to clip 26, is trimmed using a trimmer.
• Package 20 is then weighed on a scale and, preferably, a tag is printed with the weight and other information, such as date, lot number, and factory identification, preferably on a laser printer. The tag is applied to package 20 and, in some applications, package
• the method of the preferred embodiment of the invention comprises the following steps, not necessarily in this exact order:
• Step 101 Enlarge stretchable bag 24 radially to increase its diameter by stretching;
• Step 102 Place turkey 22 inside stretchable bag 24;
• Step 103 Release stretchable bag 24 to decrease its diameter; bag 24 collapses about turkey 22;
• Step 104 Grasp neck 28 of stretchable bag 24;
• Step 105 Evacuate air from inside of stretchable bag 24;
• Step 106 Pull neck 28 of stretchable bag 24 away from turkey 22;
• Step 107 Apply clip 26 to neck 28;
• Step 108 Sever neck 28 above clip 26;
• Step 109 Trim tail of bag 24;
• Step 112. Apply tag to package 20;
• Step 113 Freeze package 20.
• Steps 105 and 106 can be reversed in order or can be done at the same time.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Dispersion Chemistry (AREA)
• Vacuum Packaging (AREA)
• Package Closures (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=43499427

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (4)

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Citations (4)

Family Cites Families (6)

• 2010
  • 2010-07-23 CA CA2768579A patent/CA2768579A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2010-07-23 WO PCT/US2010/043044 patent/WO2011011679A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2010-07-23 US US12/842,318 patent/US20110107726A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2010-07-23 EP EP10802946.3A patent/EP2456673A4/de not_active Withdrawn

Patent Citations (4)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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