EP3526146A1

EP3526146A1 - Method for setting-up a container-manufacturing system, and associated system

Info

Publication number: EP3526146A1
Application number: EP17794363.6A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Laurent Danel; Franck FEILLOLEY; Stéphane LINGLET; Yves-Alban Duclos
Original assignee: Sidel Participations SAS
Current assignee: Sidel Participations SAS
Priority date: 2016-10-12
Filing date: 2017-10-11
Publication date: 2019-08-21
Also published as: CN109843762A; JP2020500127A; US20190256299A1; WO2018069639A1; FR3053963A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for setting-up and adjusting a system comprising a conveying table, as well as a first and a second module. The invention also relates to a system (20), a first and a second module and a conveying table (30) for transporting hollow bodies, comprising: – at least two transfer wheels (38A to 38G) having an upstream-end transfer wheel (38A) and a downstream-end transfer wheel (38G); – a rigid common chassis (46) which rotatably supports all the transfer wheels (38A to 38G) via individual rotational guide means (67A to 67G). The invention relates to the adjustment of the various transport elements with respect to one another because the setting-up of a system for the mass production of containers is an operation that requires precision so that the hollow bodies can circulate smoothly through the system .

Description

"Method of mounting a container manufacturing facility, and associated facility"

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of mounting methods of a container manufacturing facility.

The invention relates to the field of container manufacturing facilities, and in particular, the installations comprising a conveying table for transporting hollow bodies, in particular preforms made of thermoplastic material. The conveying table comprising:

a succession of at least two transfer wheels having an upstream end transfer wheel and a downstream end transfer wheel, each transfer wheel comprising hollow body support members at its periphery;

- A rigid common chassis which rotates all the transfer wheels by means of individual rotational guiding means, the axes of rotation of the transfer wheels being held parallel by the frame, two adjacent transfer wheels being tangent.

TECHNICAL BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is known to manufacture containers made of thermoplastic material, such as bottles, by forming previously heated preforms.

In the remainder of the description and in the claims, the term "hollow body" will be used to generically refer to finished containers, intermediate containers being processed (forming, labeling, filling), and preforms.

Each hollow body is provided with a neck. A mass-production facility of containers is formed of several modules arranged to form a manufacturing line. Some modules are formed by hollow-body treatment stations. These treatment stations are interconnected either by air conveyors, with a container support at the neck, or by conveyors endless belt with a support of the containers at their bottom. This type of manufacturing facility has the great advantage of allowing a free disposition of the stations. However, it has the big disadvantage of taking up a lot of ground space.

Another type of bulk container manufacturing facility is formed of several modules arranged to form a manufacturing line. Some modules are formed by hollow-body treatment stations, while other modules are formed by conveying tables connecting the treatment stations to each other with a transport containers by their neck all along the production line.

In the rest of the description and in the claims, the term module applies to a set of elements carried by a frame, the module being transported and deposited in a block during installation of the installation.

The assembly of a large-scale production facility for containers is an operation that requires precision so that the hollow bodies can circulate fluidly through the installation.

In the case of a mass production plant in which the hollow bodies circulate continuously, the conveying tables are designed to hold the hollow bodies during their conveying. The hollow bodies are thus likely to travel at high speed without falling. For this purpose, the conveying tables generally comprise a succession of transfer wheels, sometimes called star wheels, which are equipped at their periphery with individual hollow body support members such as notches that support the neck of the hollow body. Alternatively, the support members are for example formed by clamps which grip the hollow body by its neck.

The transfer wheels of the conveying table are carried by a common frame, thus enabling the transfer wheels of the conveying table to be placed in a single block. Advantageously, the conveying table comprises a single actuator member which rotates all the transfer wheels by means of transmission members. The transmission members are capable of transmitting the chain rotation movement between the adjacent transfer wheels.

When mounting the installation, we usually start by positioning and attach the heaviest module to the ground because it would be very complex and expensive to correct the positioning of this module thereafter. The term "heavy" module means a module that requires the use of bulky lifting instruments, such as a crane, to be moved. This module will be called "reference module". This is usually the forming station that can weigh up to several tens of tons.

Once this reference module is positioned, successively arranges, following the flow path of the hollow bodies, the different modules starting from this reference module. Thus, a first conveying table is deposited on the ground at the output of the reference module. The position of the first conveying table is corrected so as to be aligned with the reference module so that the hollow bodies issuing from said module can be correctly supported by the first upstream transfer wheel of the conveying table. After correcting its positioning, the frame of this first conveying table is fixed to the frame of the reference module.

Then a next module is deposited on the ground at the exit of the first conveying table. Its position is corrected to be aligned with the first conveying table, then the module is fixed. This is for example a filling station or a labeling station.

The assembly of the manufacturing facility continues thus until the installation of the last module. The position of each subsequent module is individually corrected with respect to the position of the reference module.

The various modules traditionally comprise transport means of the preforms which are fixedly carried by a frame of said module. The correction of the position of each module therefore requires moving the chassis of the module into a block. This is possible because of the relatively low weight of these modules relative to the weight of the reference module. It is thus possible to correct the position of these modules to align them correctly with the previous modules, for example by pushing the chassis by means of mallets.

Nevertheless, it would be easier to mount the manufacturing facility without having to correct the position of all the modules relative to the position of the reference module.

In addition, it has recently been proposed to integrate new modules into manufacturing facilities. These new modules are too heavy to correct their position easily after laying them on the ground. This is for example a hollow body coating station.

Such a new module is for example installed downstream of the reference module with interposition of a conveying table to allow the transport of the hollow bodies from one to the other. However, as thorough as the removal of the reference module and the removal of the new module, there will always be a defect in the positioning of one module relative to the other which will not allow the conveying table to be properly positioned in relation to the other. to one of these two modules.

To solve this problem, the document WO2012107172 proposes to have transfer wheels supported by individual frames to replace the conventional conveying table having a frame common to all transfer wheels. Such a solution makes it possible to correctly position the end transfer wheels with respect to the two modules.

Nevertheless, such a solution requires to individually and vertically position each of the transfer wheels relative to each other so that they all fit in a horizontal plane, that is to say perpendicular to the axes of the transfer wheels, to carry out the transfer of the hollow bodies. The installation time is thus lengthened compared to the installation of a block of all the transfer wheels supported by a common frame.

In addition, such a solution requires that each of the transfer wheels is set in motion by an individual motor. It is indeed very complex to have transmission members between two successive transfer wheels because, due to unevenness of the ground, the axes of rotation of the different transfer wheels carried by individual frames are no longer perfectly parallel to each other. to others. It thus becomes impossible to correctly position simultaneously the transfer wheels between them, on the one hand, and the transmission members, such as gears, between them, on the other hand. The cost of such a solution is very high because of the presence of several individual drive motors of each transfer wheel.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention proposes a method of mounting a container manufacturing installation comprising at least a first module and a second module, and a conveying table interposed between the two modules for conveying the hollow bodies from a transport device of the invention. exit of the hollow bodies from the first module to an input transport device hollow bodies of the second module, characterized in that it comprises successively the following steps:

a first step of positioning and fixing the two modules on the ground;

a second step of placing the conveying table in position between the two modules, the chassis of the conveying table being positioned and fixed relative to a frame of one of the two modules;

a third step of adjusting the angular position of the adjustable transfer wheel of the conveying table so as to allow the transfer of the hollow bodies between said transfer wheel to the transport device of the other of the two modules;

According to other characteristics of the assembly method produced according to the teachings of the invention:

in the third step, said adjustable wheel is displaced along an arcuate trajectory about the axis (F) of the adjacent transfer wheel (38F) between two extreme angular positions,

a fourth step of adjusting the height of the legs of the frame so as to allow the transfer of the hollow bodies between said adjustable transfer wheel and the transport device of said other module;

the first module is a forming station;

the second module is a hollow body coating station;

- The second module is a conveying table which is positioned and fixed relative to a frame of a coating station of the hollow body.

The invention also proposes a container manufacturing installation comprising a first module, in particular a forming station; a second module, in particular a hollow body coating station; and

a conveying table comprising a succession of at least two transfer wheels having, each comprising hollow body support members at its periphery, said succession including:

^* An upstream end transfer wheel designed to be mounted tangent to an output conveying means of said first module, and

a downstream end transfer wheel, each transfer wheel intended to be mounted tangent to an input transport device of said second module;

the table further comprising a rigid common frame which rotates all the transfer wheels by means of individual rotational guiding means, the axes (A to G) of rotation of the transfer wheels being kept parallel by the frame, two adjacent transfer wheels being tangent;

According to the invention, the guide means of at least one of the end transfer wheels, said adjustable wheel, are slidably mounted horizontally relative to the frame.

In other words, the conveying table is likely to adapt to the positioning defects of the modules, quick to implement and inexpensive to achieve.

According to other characteristics of the conveying table made according to the teachings of the invention:

the means for guiding at least one of the end transfer wheels, called the adjustable wheel, are slidably mounted with respect to the chassis along an arcuate trajectory around the axis of the wheel of adjacent transfer between two extreme angular positions - the conveying table comprises a single actuator which drives in rotation all the chain transfer wheels via movement transmission members;

each adjustable transfer wheel is mounted to rotate with a first coaxial gear which meshes directly with a second gear mounted to rotate coaxially with the adjacent transfer wheel;

- The guide means of the transfer wheels other than the adjustable wheels are mounted in a single non-adjustable position on the frame;

- The chassis has adjustable feet in height;

- The conveying table comprises at least one intermediate transfer wheel which is interposed between the two end wheels;

- The conveying table comprises a succession of a plurality of intermediate transfer wheels which are interposed between the two end wheels;

- only one end wheel is adjustable;

all the transmission members are formed by gears each of which is mounted to rotate coaxially with the associated transfer wheel, each gear meshing directly with the associated gear of each adjacent wheel;

- The conveying table comprises means for locking the guide means of the transfer wheel adjustable relative to the frame in a set angular position.

The invention also relates to the aforementioned conveying table intended to be mounted between a first module and a second module for transferring the hollow bodies from the first to the second module.

The invention also proposes a plant which comprises:

- implantation soil; a first and a second module, as well as a conveying table forming the hollow body manufacturing facility produced according to the teachings of the invention;

the first and the second module, as well as the conveying table, are fixed to the floor of the factory to guarantee a good accuracy of the assembly of the conveying table and the modules relative to one another.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear during the reading of the detailed description which follows for the understanding of which reference will be made to the appended drawings in which:

- Figure 1 is a plan view showing a floor plan of a container manufacturing facility having two processing stations and a conveying table;

- Figure 2 is a view similar to that of Figure 1 in which the actual position of the two treatment stations has been superimposed with their theoretical position defined by the implantation plan of Figure 1;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2 on which the actual position of the conveying table made according to the teachings of the invention has been added, the table being positioned relative to the first treatment station;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 3 in which the position of the downstream end transfer wheel of the conveying table has been set to be tangent to an input transport device of the second station. treatment ;

- Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the conveyor table made according to the teachings of the invention; - Figure 6 is a top view which shows the downstream end transfer wheel of the conveying table of Figure 5 and the adjacent transfer wheel;

- Figure 7 is an axial sectional view along the section plane 7-7 of Figure 6 which shows the means for guiding the rotation of the downstream end transfer wheel;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the upper wall of a central beam of the frame of the conveying table at the level of the downstream end transfer wheel;

- Figure 9 is a sectional view along the section plane

9-9 of Figure 1 which shows locking means of the downstream end transfer wheel in a specific position;

- Figure 10 is a perspective view showing a drive member of the transfer wheels of the conveying table;

- Figure 11 is a block diagram which shows a mounting method of a container manufacturing installation comprising a conveying table made according to the teachings of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

In the remainder of the description, elements having identical structure or similar functions will be designated by the same references.

In the remainder of the description, the following will be adopted without limitation:

- Longitudinal directed from back to front and indicated by the arrow "L" of Figures 5 to 10;

vertical directed from the bottom upwards and indicated by the arrow "V" of FIGS. 5 to 10; - transverse directed from left to right and indicated by the arrow "T" of Figures 5 to 10.

The term "horizontal" will be used to define a plane orthogonal to the vertical direction. The vertical direction is defined as a purely geometrical landmark and it does not necessarily coincide with the direction of gravity.

The terms upstream and downstream will be used with reference to the direction of displacement of the hollow bodies along a path through the container manufacturing facility.

FIG. 1 shows schematically the theoretical plan of implantation on the ground of a plant 20 for manufacturing containers in large series. In the installation shown in FIG. 1, the hollow bodies are intended to be moved continuously from their entry into the installation 20 until they exit.

The installation 20 comprises several modules each of which is intended to be installed in one block. For this purpose, each module comprises a single carrier chassis. The chassis of a module is designed to be transported and deposited in a single block on the ground, at a position determined by the layout plan.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, a first module is formed by a forming station 22. The forming station 22 comprises a carousel 24 for forming previously heated preforms. The carousel 24 is carried by the frame of the forming station 22. The carousel 24 carries a plurality of molding units (not shown) which are intended to form the preforms into containers by forming by means of a fluid under pressure, in particular air. During the forming operation, the carousel 24 rotates so as to move the hollow bodies continuously from a loading point of a hot preform to an unloading point of the final container. Such carousel 24 is well known to those skilled in the art. It will not be described in more detail.

A preform heat-conditioning furnace 26 is here juxtaposed at the forming station 22. This is a tunnel of heating which is traversed by a chain of organs (not shown) gripping each of which is able to carry a preform. The preforms are thus heated during their conveying through the heating tunnel from an entry point of the cold preforms to a transfer point of the hot preforms in the direction of the carousel 24 for forming. Such a conditioning oven 26 is well known to those skilled in the art. It will not be described in more detail later.

The hollow bodies come out continuously from the forming station 22 via an exit transport device 28 carried by the frame of the forming station 22. The output conveying device 28 is here formed by a transfer wheel driven in rotation about a substantially vertical axis. The transfer wheel comprises at its periphery bodies (not shown) for individual support of hollow bodies.

Another module is arranged directly downstream of the forming station 22. This is a conveyor table. The conveyor table 30 will be described in more detail later. It is able to take care of the hollow bodies leaving the forming station 22 via the outlet transport device 28 for transporting them to a second following downstream module.

The second downstream module is here formed, in a non-limiting manner, by a station 32 for coating the hollow bodies with a so-called "barrier" layer. The coating station 32 has a processing carousel 34 which is carried by a frame of the coating station 32. The hollow bodies are routed continuously to the processing carrousel 34 via an input transport device 36. The input conveying device 36 is here formed by a transfer wheel driven in rotation about a substantially vertical axis. The transfer wheel comprises at its periphery individual hollow body support members. In Figures 1 to 4, the theoretical positions of the modules are indicated in broken lines, while their actual position is indicated in solid lines.

As shown in Figure 2, when the modules are deposited on the ground, it is common that their actual position, indicated in solid lines, does not coincide perfectly with their theoretical position defined by the plan of implantation, indicated in broken lines. A longitudinal offset, a transverse shift and an angular offset with respect to the theoretical position are thus observed. These offsets are, as far as possible, limited to a certain tolerance range.

In addition, depending on the state of the ground, it is also common that the attitude of the modules is not perfectly horizontal. In addition, the inclination of the modules on the ground may differ from one module to another depending on the state of the ground.

Some modules weigh too much, for example up to several tens of tons, to be moved after their removal to the ground. The other modules must therefore be positioned relative to the actual position of these modules.

This is particularly the case of the forming station 22 and the coating station 32 which can each weigh up to thirty tons each.

As a result, the conveyor table 30 must be able to adapt to the positioning tolerances of these two stations 22, 32. The following figures are represented in the following figures: a conveyor table 30 made according to the teachings of the invention making it possible to adapt to the positioning tolerances of the stations 22, 32 without having to correct the positioning of these two stations 22, 32.

As shown in FIG. 5, the conveying table 30 comprises a succession of at least two transfer wheels 38A, 38G having an upstream end transfer wheel 38A and a downstream end transfer wheel 38G. Depending on its length, the conveyor table 30 may comprise at least one intermediate transfer wheel which is interposed between the two end wheels 38A, 38G. The hollow bodies thus move passing successively through each of the transfer wheels 38A to 38G.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the conveying table 30 comprises a succession of seven identical transfer wheels 38A, 38B, 38C, 36D, 38E, 38F, 38G. We will describe the downstream end transfer wheel 38G thereafter, this description being applicable to the other transfer wheels 38A to 38F of the conveyor table.

Subsequently, the references of an element associated with a particular transfer wheel will be followed by a letter associated with this transfer wheel.

The transfer wheel 38G extends in a horizontal plane and has a central vertical axis "G" of rotation which is perpendicular to said horizontal plane. The rotational axes of each wheel 38A to 38G of transfer will be designated respectively by the references "A" to "G".

As shown in more detail in FIG. 6, the transfer wheel 38G has at its periphery members 40G for supporting a hollow body. The support members 40G are here twenty in number. They are regularly distributed around the wheel 38G. Each support member 40G is capable of individually supporting a hollow body and maintain it in position during its transport.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, each support member 40G is formed by a clamp which is capable of grasping the hollow body by its neck.

Call center 42 of the clamp the point between two jaws of the clamp which corresponds to the position of an axis of the neck (not shown) of the hollow body when gripped by the clamp. Reference circle 44G will be referred to as a circle centered on the axis of rotation of the transfer wheel 38G which passes through the center of the grippers of said transfer wheel 38G.

The conveyor table 30 also comprises a rigid common frame 46 which rotates about all their transfer wheels 38A to 38G about their axes "A" to "G" by means of individual means for guiding rotation.

By "rigid" chassis, it will be understood that the frame 46 deforms little during its transport. The chassis 46 is not articulated in particular. This frame is fixed to the floor of the factory during assembly of the installation 20.

The frame 46 more specifically comprises a central beam 50 of substantially longitudinal axis having a high rigidity. The beam 50 is here hollow of square or rectangular section. It thus comprises an upper wall 52 and a lower wall 54 separated by a free internal space as shown in FIG.

The beam 50 is carried by several feet 56 which are distributed along the length of the beam 50 and on either side of the axis of the beam 50. The feet 56 are here vertical. They are here eight in number divided into four feet 56 left and four feet 56 right.

To allow the frame 46 to rest on the ground stably, the feet 56 are spaced transversely of the longitudinal axis of the beam 50. For this purpose the upper end of each foot 56 is rigidly connected to the beam 50 by the intermediate of a cross 58. Each foot 56 has at its lower end a shoe 60 capable of being adjusted in height to allow all the feet 56 to rest simultaneously on the ground independently of its irregularities and to allow to adjust the plate of the conveyor table 30.

To allow greater rigidity of the frame 46, the feet 56 are interconnected by reinforcing beams 62. The rigidity of the frame 46 thus designed to allow its transport in a single block and to put it in position in a single operation at the location provided by the layout plan.

For this purpose, the frame 46 here comprises two transverse sleeves 64 which are arranged in the lower part of the feet 56. The sleeves 64 are more precisely arranged to be distributed on either side of the center of gravity of the table 30. conveying. The sleeves 64 are spaced longitudinally from each other by a suitable distance so that a forklift can straddle the sleeves 64 and proceed to transport the conveyor table 30 in one block.

The transfer wheels 38A to 38G are carried by the central beam 50 so that their axes "A" to "G" of rotation are vertical. The rigidity of the beam 50 and the frame 46 in general is sufficient to ensure that the axes "A" to "G" of the transfer wheels 38A to 38G will remain parallel to each other regardless of the irregularities of the ground and perpendicular to the horizontal plane defined by the transfer wheels.

As shown in FIG. 7, each transfer wheel 38A to 38G is rotatably mounted with a coaxial central shaft 66A at 66G. Each shaft 66A-66G is rotatably received in individual rotational guiding means 67A-67G which are carried by beam 50. These rotation guiding means 67A-67G are similar for all transfer wheels 38A-38G. Only the means 67G associated with the downstream end transfer wheel 38G will therefore be described.

The rotation guiding means 67G comprise a sleeve 68G of vertical axis which is intended to be fixedly mounted on the beam 50. An upper end of the sleeve 68G is located just below the transfer wheel 38G. The sleeve 68G has a flange 70G which extends radially outwardly and rests on the upper wall 52 of the beam 50.

The sleeve 68G coaxially receives the shaft 66G of the transfer wheel 38G with a clearance allowing the rotation of the shaft 66G relative to sleeve 68G. The shaft 66G rests on the sleeve 68G via at least one guide bearing 72G, here a ball bearing. This first guide bearing 72G is here arranged in the upper end of the sleeve 68G.

A second guide bearing 74G, here a ball bearing, completes the rotational guidance of the wheel shaft 66G. The second guide bearing 74G is here arranged in a lower end of the sleeve 68G.

The shaft 66G here vertically crosses the beam 50 from side to side through a through hole 76G through the upper wall 52 and the lower wall 54 of the beam 50, as shown in FIG. Referring to FIG. 7, a lower end section 78G of the sleeve 68G extending downwardly from the collar 70G penetrating here into the through hole 76G, completely traversing the beam 50. In this manner, the sleeve 68G is maintained rigidly and rigidly vertically by the edges of the passage opening 76G both in the upper wall 52 and in the lower wall 54 of the beam 50.

The transfer wheels 38A to 38G are successively arranged in a chain along the longitudinal axis of the beam 50. Thus, each transfer wheel 38A to 38F upstream is adjacent to a wheel 38B to 38G downstream directly following.

To allow the transfer of the hollow bodies of a transfer wheel 38A to 38F to the next, two successive transfer wheels are tangent in horizontal projection.

As shown in FIG. 6, with, for example, the downstream end transfer wheel 38G and the adjacent wheel 38F, at the point of tangency between the two transfer wheels 38F, 38G, each wheel support member 40F 38F Upstream transfer is likely to coincide vertically with a corresponding support member 40G of the downstream transfer wheel 38G so that the neck of the hollow body is simultaneously supported by the two bodies 40G, 40F of coinciding carrier. For this purpose, the organs 40G of a 38G wheel support are slightly vertically offset, in the direction of the height, relative to 40F support members 38F adjacent wheels to avoid interference between them during their passage to the point of tangency.

With regard to the transfer wheels 38A to 38G equipped with clips, two transfer wheels 38F, 38G are said to be tangent when their reference circles 44G, 44F are tangent, as illustrated in FIG.

When formed by clamps, the support members 40F of the upstream transfer wheel 38F are controlled in the open position to allow the hollow body to move on the downstream transfer wheel 38G as they pass the point of tangency.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the conveyor table 30 is deposited on the ground at the location defined by the layout plan between the two stations 22, 32 occupying their real position, the conveying table 30 can not be placed correctly only with respect to one of the two stations 22, 32.

As a result, one of the end transfer wheels 38G of the conveyor table 30 may not be correctly positioned relative to the exit or entry transport device 28, 36 of the other station 22, 32 treatment.

The position of the conveyor table 30 is here corrected with respect to the forming station 22. It can be seen in FIG. 3 that the downstream end transfer wheel 38G of the conveyor table 30 is not tangent with the transfer wheel forming the entry conveying device 36 of the coating station 32.

To solve this problem by not having to move any of the two processing stations 22, 32, the means 67G for guiding at least one of the end transfer wheels 38G, referred to as an adjustable transfer wheel, are slidably mounted horizontally relative to the frame 46. The term "horizontally" means a horizontal plane defined by a perpendicular to an axis of one of the transfer wheels. Preferably, each of the perpendiculars of each axis is common to the horizontal plane. In this horizontal plane is the trajectory of a part of the hollow bodies including the neck.

In particular, at least one of the end transfer wheels 38G, referred to as the adjustable transfer wheel, are slidably mounted horizontally relative to the frame 46 along an arcuate trajectory about the "F" axis. the transfer wheel 38F adjacent between two extreme angular positions.

The arcuate path and the parallelism of the axes of rotation of these two transfer wheels 38F, 38G make it possible to guarantee that the end transfer wheel 38G remains permanently tangent with the adjacent transfer wheel 38F, whatever the position. angular of its means 67G for guiding in rotation between its two extreme angular positions.

It is thus possible to slide the end transfer wheel 38G to a so-called set angular position in which the hollow bodies are capable of being transferred in a fluid manner between the end transfer wheel 38G and the device 28. , 36 of the input or output transport of the station 22, 32 associated processing, as illustrated by the arrow "S" of Figure 4.

In the example shown in FIGS. 5 to 10, only the means 67G for guiding the rotation of the downstream end transfer wheel 38G are adjustable. The means 67A to 67F for guiding in rotation all the other transfer wheels 38A to 38F occupy a fixed position relative to the frame 46. Thereafter, the downstream end transfer wheel 38G will therefore be called an adjustable transfer wheel 38G.

In not shown variant of the invention, the two downstream and upstream end transfer wheels are adjustable. this allows to avoid having to accurately correct the ground position of the frame of the conveying table to ensure the smooth transfer of the preforms between the treatment stations and the conveyor table.

According to another variant not shown of the invention, only the means for guiding the rotation of the upstream end transfer wheel are adjustable in position relative to the chassis.

To allow adjustment in angular position of the means 67G for guiding the adjustable transfer wheel 38G, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the orifices 76G passing through the corresponding beam 50 have an elongated shape in an arc centered on the 'F' axis of rotation of the adjacent transfer wheel 38F to allow the sliding of the rotating guide means 67G. The orifice 76G of passage extends over an angular sector "a" making for example about 30 °.

Referring to Figures 7 and 9, the collar 70G of the sleeve 68G of said adjustable transfer wheel 38G rests on the upper wall 52 of the beam 50 through a horizontal support plate 80G.

It is also provided means for locking the means 67G for guiding the transfer wheel 38G adjustable relative to the frame 46 in a set angular position. Blocking is achieved by clamping the support plate 80G against the beam 50.

For this purpose, the support plate 80G comprises bores arranged in coincidence with two slots 82G in circular arc concentric with the circular arc formed by the passage opening 76G for the passage of screw 84G through the beam 50. The screws 84G are received in counterpart plates 86G arranged vertically opposite the support plate 80G inside the beam 50, as shown in FIG. 9. The screws 84G make it possible to tighten the wall 52 upper beam 50 hollow between the support plate 80G and the counterpart plates 86G to block the sleeve 68G, and thus to block the guide means 67G, in an angular position selected between the two extreme angular positions.

The tightening of the screws 84G is for example ensured by a tapping of the counterpart plates 86G or by a nut which is received under the counterpart plates 86G.

When an operator wishes to change the angular position of the adjustable transfer wheel 38G, it suffices to loosen the screws 84G to release the pressure of the plates 80, 86 and allow the sliding of the guiding means 67G in rotation to the position desired.

The means 67A to 67F for guiding in rotation the transfer wheels 38A to 38F other than the adjustable wheels are mounted in a single non-adjustable position on the frame 46. All the other wheels 38A to 38F of transfer are thus non-adjustable. For this purpose, the associated sleeve 68A to 68F is received in a hole 76A to 76F of passage having a complementary contour, here circular, not allowing to change the position of the sleeve 68A to 68F, and therefore of the wheel 38A to 38F of transfer, with respect to the frame 46, as illustrated in FIG.

In known manner, two consecutive transfer wheels rotate in the opposite direction synchronously so that each support member 40 is in coincidence with a corresponding support member 40 of the transfer wheel downstream at the point of tangency.

Advantageously, a single actuator member 88 which drives in rotation all the chain transfer wheels 38A to 38G via movement transmission members.

For this purpose, at least the adjustable transfer wheel 38G is mounted to rotate with a first coaxial gear 90G which meshes directly with a second gear 90F. mounted to rotate coaxially with the adjacent transfer wheel 38F, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 7. Each gear 90F, 90G is rotatably mounted on a lower section of the associated shaft 66. Said lower section of the shaft 66 extends vertically downwardly from the sleeve 68 below the central beam 50.

Due to this arrangement, when the means 67G for guiding the rotation of the adjustable transfer wheel 38G slide along their arcuate trajectory, the transfer wheel 38G, the shaft 66G and the gear 90G move together. along said arcuate path.

The two gears 90F, 90G have a pitch diameter which is substantially equal to the diameter of the reference circle 44F, 44G of the transfer wheels 38F, 38G. Thus, regardless of the angular position of sleeve 68G of the adjustable transfer wheel 38G along its arcuate opening port 76G, the gear wheel 90G of the adjustable transfer wheel 38G remains meshed properly with the gear 90F. of the adjacent transfer wheel 38F.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 to 10, all the transfer wheels 38A to 38G comprise a gear 90A at 90G identical to that described for the adjustable transfer wheel 38G. Thus, the rotation of a wheel 38A to 38F of any transfer of the conveyor table 30 rotates synchronously all other wheels 38A to 38G transfer of the table 30 conveyor.

As shown in Figure 10, the actuator member 88 is formed by a motor, here an electric motor, which rotates a drive pinion 92. The motorization member 88 is carried by the central beam 50. The drive gear 92 is in mesh with the gear 90D of one of the non-adjustable transfer wheels, here the intermediate transfer wheel 38D. The transmission members 90A to 90G are not intended to be coupled to transmission members of another module. The positional offsets between two modules due in particular to the irregularities of the ground do not make it possible to guarantee that the axes of rotation "A" to "G" of the transfer wheels of the conveyor table 30 will be sufficiently parallel with the axes of rotation of the wheels. transfer of other modules. As a result, the meshing of the transmission members 90A to 90G of the conveyor table 30 may not be able to be coupled to the transmission members of other modules. Thus, the actuator member 88 is intended to drive only the transfer wheels 38A to 38G of the conveyor table.

Alternatively, it will be understood that the gears may be replaced by other known means of synchronized motion transmission, such as belts and pulleys.

There is now described a method of mounting the container-making plant described above which is illustrated in FIG.

In a first step "S1", the first module, formed here by the forming station 22, and the second module, formed by the coating station 32, are deposited on the ground at the location provided by the plane of FIG. implantation. As explained previously with reference to FIG. 2, the two processing stations 22, 32 are slightly offset with respect to the theoretical position defined by the plane. These two stations 22, 32 are then fixed to the ground.

Then, during a second step "S2", the conveyor table 30 is deposited in a block between the two treatment stations 22, 32 at the location provided by the implantation plan, as shown in FIG. 3. The conveyor table 30 having a single adjustable transfer wheel 38G formed by the adjustable transfer wheel 38G, the position of the frame 46 of the conveyor table 30 is corrected with respect to the actual position of the forming station 22 . In this corrected position, wheel 38A of Upstream end transfer of the conveying table 30 is tangent to the transfer wheel forming the output conveying device 28 of the forming station 22. The frame 46 of the conveyor table 30 is then attached to the frame of the forming station 22.

In this corrected position, the adjustable transfer wheel 38G of the conveying table 30 is not tangent with the transfer wheel forming the input conveying device 36 of the coating station 32, in particular because of the different tolerances of position of the modules.

Then, during a third adjustment step "S3", the angular position of the adjustable transfer wheel 38G of the conveying table 30 is adjusted by sliding means 67 for guiding the rotation of said transfer wheel 38G which is adjustable relative to at the beam 50, as indicated by the arrow "S" in FIG. 4. The adjustable transfer wheel 38G is thus slid to a set position in which the hollow bodies can be automatically transferred from said adjustable transfer wheel 38 to the input transport device 36 of the coating station 32. In its set position, the adjustable transfer wheel 38G is thus tangent with the transfer wheel forming the input conveying device 36 of the coating station 32.

Finally, during a fourth step "S4" of adjustment of the height which can occur before the third step "S3", during the third step "S3" or after the third step "S3", the shoes 60 of the frame 46 are adjusted in height so as to allow the transfer of the hollow bodies from said adjustable transfer wheel 38G to the input transport device 36 of the coating station 32.

In a variant not shown of the invention, a second conveying table is interposed between the conveyor table 30 made according to the teachings of the invention and the coating station 32. This second conveying table is for example a conveying table with non-adjustable transfer wheels. In this case, the position of the second conveying table is corrected with respect to the position of the coating station 32. The wheel 38G adjustable transfer of the first conveyor table 30 made according to the teachings of the invention allows to come to position the transfer wheel 38G adjustable in a tangent manner with respect to a non-adjustable upstream end transfer wheel of the second conveying table.

The conveyor table 30 made according to the teachings of the invention retains the advantages of a single rigid frame 46 which makes it possible to transport the conveyor table 30 in a block. The positioning of the conveyor table 30 is thus fast.

In addition, the conveyor table 30 made according to the teachings of the invention makes it possible to make up for the positioning errors of an upstream module and a downstream module without having to correct the position of either of these two modules. This is particularly useful when both upstream and downstream modules are too heavy to be able to be moved without the aid of a lifting instrument.

This also reduces the installation time of a conventional installation because it is no longer necessary to correct the position of all the modules, even when the modules are light enough to be moved without the aid of a crane.

We now describe a plant that includes:

- implantation soil;

a first and a second module, as well as a conveying table forming the hollow body manufacturing facility produced according to the teachings of the invention;

- The first and the second module, as well as the conveying table are fixed to the plant floor of the plant to ensure good accuracy of assembly of the conveying table and modules, relative to each other.

Claims

1. A method of mounting a container manufacturing installation (20) comprising at least a first module, a second module and a conveyor table (30) interposed between the two modules for conveying the hollow bodies from a device ( 28) for transporting the hollow bodies from the first module to a device (36) for conveying the entry of the hollow bodies of the second module,

the conveying table comprising:

a succession of at least two transfer wheels (38A to 38G) having an upstream end transfer wheel (38A) and a downstream end transfer wheel (38G);

a rigid common frame (46) which rotates all the transfer wheels (38A to 38G), two adjacent transfer wheels (38A to 38G) being tangent;

- The means (67A to 67G) for guiding at least one of the end transfer wheels (38G), called the adjustable wheel, are slidably mounted horizontally relative to the frame (46), the mounting method comprising successively the following steps:

a first step (S1) for positioning and fixing the two modules on the ground;

a second step (S2) for positioning the conveyor table (30) between the two modules, the frame (46) of the conveyor table (30) being positioned and fixed with respect to a frame of one of the two modules;

characterized in that it comprises a third step (S3) of adjustment of said wheel adjustable by horizontal sliding so as to allow the transfer of the hollow bodies between said wheel (38G) adjustable to the device (36) for transporting the other of the two modules.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that, in the third step, said adjustable wheel is moved along an arcuate trajectory about the axis (F) of the transfer wheel (38F). adjacent between two extreme angular positions.

3. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that a fourth step (S4) for adjusting the height of the feet (56) of the frame (46) so as to allow the transfer of the hollow bodies between said wheel (38G) of adjustable transfer and the device (36) for transporting said other module.

4. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first module is a station (22) for forming.

5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second module is a station (32) for coating the hollow body.

6. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second module is a conveying table which is positioned and fixed relative to a frame of a station (32) for coating the hollow body.

7. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow bodies, in particular preforms (14) made of thermoplastic material, comprising:

a first module (22), in particular a forming station;

a second module (36), in particular a coating station for the hollow body; and

a conveying table (30) comprising a succession of at least two transfer wheels (38A to 38G) presenting, comprising each of the hollow body support members (40A to 40G) at its periphery, said succession including:

^* A wheel (38A) to transfer upstream end to be mounted tangent to a device (28) exit conveyance of said first module (22), and

^* A gear (38G) for transferring downstream end, each wheel (38A to 38G) of transfer to be mounted tangent to a device (28) input conveying said second module (36);

the table further comprising a rigid common frame (46) which rotates all transfer wheels (38A to 38G) through means (67A to 67G) of individual rotation guide means, the axes (A to G); rotating the transfer wheels (38A to 38G) being held parallel by the frame (46), two adjacent transfer wheels (38A to 38G) being tangent;

characterized in that the means (67A to 67G) for guiding at least one of the end transfer wheels (38G), said adjustable wheel, are slidably mounted horizontally relative to the frame (46).

8. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow body according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the means of said adjustable wheel are slidably mounted relative to the frame (46) along an arcuate trajectory around the l axis (F) of the adjacent transfer wheel (38F) between two extreme angular positions.

9. Installation (20) manufacturing hollow body according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the table (30) comprises a single actuator member (88) which drives in rotation all the wheels (38A to 38G) chain transfer via motion transmission members (90A to 90G).

10. Installation (20) manufacturing hollow body according to the preceding claim, characterized in that each wheel (38G) adjustable transfer is mounted integral in rotation with a first gear (90G) coaxial which meshes directly with a second gear (90F) ) mounted to rotate coaxially with the adjacent transfer wheel (38F).

11. Installation (20) manufacturing hollow body according to any one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that the means (67A to 67F) for guiding the wheels (38A to 38F) transfer other than wheels (38G ) adjustable are mounted in a single, non-adjustable position on the frame (46).

12. Installation (20) manufacturing hollow body according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the frame (46) comprises feet (56) adjustable in height.

13. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow body according to any one of claims 7 to 12, characterized in that the table (30) for conveying comprises at least one wheel (38B to 38F) intermediate transfer which is interposed between the two end wheels (38A, 38G).

14. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow body according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the conveyor table (30) comprises a succession of a plurality of intermediate transfer wheels (38B to 38F) which are interposed between the two end wheels (38A, 38G).

15. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow body according to any one of claims 7 to 14, characterized in that a single end wheel (38G) is adjustable.

16. Installation (20) for manufacturing hollow body according to any one of claims 7 to 15, characterized in that all the members (90A to 90G) of transmission are formed by gears each of which is mounted to rotate coaxially with the associated transfer wheel (38A-38G), each gear meshing directly with the associated gear of each adjacent wheel.

17. Installation (20) manufacturing hollow body according to any one of claims 7 to 16, characterized in that it comprises means (80G, 84G, 86G) for locking means (67G) for guiding the wheel (38G) adjustable transfer relative to the frame (46) in a set angular position.