GB2130542A

GB2130542A - An arrangement for packaging products

Info

Publication number: GB2130542A
Application number: GB08326204A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jean Binder
Original assignee: Sapal SA
Current assignee: Sapal SA
Priority date: 1982-11-23
Filing date: 1983-09-30
Publication date: 1984-06-06
Also published as: CH648259A5; BE897657A; FR2536367A1; GB8326204D0

Abstract

A packaging arrangement comprises an endless conveyor belt (11) formed of a horizontal section (12) and a section (15) with variable inclination. Vertical dividing walls (22) define alignment channels. Corresponding to each dividing wall there is a device designed to push back products which are not lined up. This device is composed of a rotating plate equipped with one or more lugs disposed evenly over the periphery of the plate. The lugs corresponding to the even-number vertical walls (22) are offset angularly relative to the lugs corresponding to the odd- number vertical walls. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A packaging arrangement The present invention relates to a packaging arrangement, particularly for food products, cosmetic products or diverse objects such as stoppers, capsules, phials and the like, with an endless conveyor belt for these loose products, vertical dividing walls defining channels for aligning said products, devices for pushing products which are not lined up with the entrance to the channels back in the direction opposite to the displacement direction of the conveyor belt, devices for removing in succession the products at the head of the lines, and devices for placing these products in the head of the lines, and devices for placing these products in the appropriate packaging containers.

German Patent No. 1 246 526 describes a packaging machine of this type comprising a plurality of product aligning guides which are displaced with a reciprocating back and forth movement, to push back products which are not lined up with the entrance to the channels defined by these guides.

In this arrangement the line of the first products in each row is disposed obliquely to the transverse receiving belt positioned downstream of the heads of the rows, to allow staggering of the products as they are picked up by the receiving belt. Accordingly, the products at the head of the row disposed furthest towards the rear have to travel over a relatively long distance before they each the transverse receiving belt, and during this travel they run the risk of being upset by the reciprocating movement of the guides.

Furthermore, this arrangement allows virtually no freedom of choice with regard to providing a system for picking up the products again which is adapted to the characteristics of the products involved and/or its packaging.

Moreover, the quantity of loose products disposed on the conveyor belt upstream of the alignment system for the products must be controlled con tinuouslyto prevent too great an accumulation at the entrance to the alignment channels, since such an accumulation would occasion considerable pressure which might affect the products detrimentally or cause them to overlap each other.

Finally, the products disposed on the belt are necessarily removed in a single operation. Consequently, the system described does not allow the products to be piled up, or more than one row of products to be transferred per cycle of the machine.

The object of the present invention is to remedy the above-mentioned disadvantages by providing an arrangement which is reliable, simple and economical in design and which allows virtually any pick-up system to be used for the products at the exit from the alignment channels. Furthermore, the arrangement is suitable for piling up the products, which is an important advantage, particularly during the process of putting assortments of biscuits or other products in boxes where two or more similar products are required to be superimposed and packed away in suitably designed compartments.

The arrangement also allows the simultaneous removal of a plurality of rows of products.

To this end, the packaging arrangement according to the invention is characterised in that the conveyor belt is inclined relative to the horizontal plane in such a manner that the products being conveyed are drawn along over a rising path.

This method makes it possible to reduce the risks of an accumulation of products at the entrance to the alignment channels and to reduce the pressure which the products waiting at the entrance to these channels exert on each other. Appropriate adjustment of the slope of the conveyor belt as a function of the sliding coefficient of the products on the belt enables an alignment arrangement to be obtained which is well-adapted to a wide variety of different products.

The present invention will be better understood by reference to the description of embodiment examples and to the attached drawing, on which: Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a particular embodiment of the arrangement according to the invention, Figure2 is a partial view in perspective, showing a detail of the arrangement in Figure, Figure 3 is a schematic elevation showing another method of constructing the arrangement according to the invention, and Figure 4 is an enlarged view of a detail of a modified version of the arrangement shown in Figure 3.

With reference to Figures 1 and 2, the packaging arrangement described and designated by the general reference numeral 10 comprises essentially an endless conveyor belt 11 with a horizontal section 12 stretched between two cylindrical rollers 13 and 14, and an inclined section 15 stretched between the roller 14 on one side and a roller 16 on the other side and supported by a tensioning roller 9. The roller 16 is advantageously height-adjustable, so that the angle which the section 15 of the endless conveyor belt 11 forms with the horizontal plane may be modified by the operator according to the products being conveyed, and more precisely, according to the coefficient of adhesion of the products relative to the surface of the belt.For this purpose, the axle 17 of the roller 16 may be engaged in the slots of two arc-shaped slideways 19 and clamped in position by means of locking knobs 20. This construction is given by way of example, and may of course be replaced by any other equivalent arrangement which poduces the same effect, i.e., which allows the height of the roller 16 to be adjusted. According to experiments carried out the slope of the section 15 of the endless conveyor belt will preferably be between zero and thirty degrees, and is advantageously approximately 10 degrees.

Products 21 brought up in the loose state by the section 15 are required to be put in a line on the section 12 of the conveyor belt 11. To this end, the arrangement comprises vertical dividing walls 22, shown in more detail in Figure 2; each of these is composed of a fixed front guide 23 and a movable rear guide 24. Odd-number movable guides are each provided with a strap 25 the upper ends of which are interconnected by a rod 26 which is itself connected to a mechanism of the eccentric type (not shown) which is adapted to displace the said odd-number movable guides in the direction of the double arrow A.Similarly, even-number movable guides 24 each have a connecting strap 27 the upper ends of which are interconnected by a rod 28 connected to a mechanism of the eccentric type, adapted to displace the said even-number movable guides with translation in the direction of the double arrow A.

The drive mechanisms of the movable guides 24 are controlled so that the even-number guides and the odd-number guides are displaced in a reciprocating movement in opposite directions. By constructing the vertical walls as two elements of which one 23 is fixed while the other 24 is movable, it is possible to line up the products along a transverseline perpendicularto the displacement direction of the products, on the conveyor belt at the exit from the alignment channels defined by the vertical dividing walls. Since the ends of the alignment channels are defined by the fixed vertical guides, the products no longer run the risk of being upset by the sliding motion of the movable dividing walls, as was the case in the arrangements according to the prior art.Furthermore, since the products at the head of the lines are lined up, any kind of take-over arrangement for these products may be positioned at the end of the alignment arrangement. Accordingly, as shown in Figure 1, it is possible to provide a plate 29 adapted to pivot around a longitudinal axis 30 at the end of the conveyor belt 11. This plate may advantageously occupy a first position as shown in the Figure, in which its product-entry side 31 is located substantially at the same level as the adjacent end of the horizontal section 12 of the conveyor belt 11. In a second position (not shown), after having been pivoted around its axis 30 in the direction of the arrow B, the plate 29 has its edge 31 slightly raised up relative to the level of the section 12 of the conveyor belt 11.With the plate 29 in this inclined position a row of products previously positioned on this plate slides onto one or more suitable ramps or, as shown in Figure 1, onto a transverse belt 32 designed to remove the products in the direction of the arrow C, while the following row of products is held back by the edge 31 which performs the task of a stop. To facilitate the passage of the products from the plate 29 onto the transverse belt 32, the arrangement may advantageously comprise a pusher 8 adapted to move in the direction of the double arrow Din a mannerwhich is known peruse. Naturally, any other type of pusher than that shown on the Figure may also be used.Furthermore, it should be noted that the transverse belt 32 may be smooth or may comprise a series of dividers 7 defining compartments 6 which are indispensable when it is not desired to remove all the products in a row on each cycle. Depending on the amount of advance of the transverse belt for each step of the conveyor belt 11, each compartment may contain a specific number of products.

Naturally, any other removal method can be contemplated. The products may slide directly on ramps and be deposited in the compartments of a packaging box, or they may be removed by a suction or pincer device, to be arranged in a predetermined manner. Again, the pivoting plate 29 might be replaced by a conveyor belt with its roller parallel to the drive rollers of the conveyor belt 11. Generally speaking, the removal method chosen will be adapted to the end to be achieved, particularly when it is desired to pile up several similar products which are to be disposed in appropriate compartments.

Figure 3 shows another way of constructing the arrangement according to the invention. As in the previous embodiment, this arrangement comprises an endless conveyor belt 11 provided with a first horizontal section 12 and a second inclinable section 15. The section 12 is taken between a cylindrical roller 13, a fixed nose 5 and a tensioning roller 14, and the section 15 is stretched between the roller 14 and a roller 16 which is height-adjustable in the direction of the double arrow D. Preferably, a tensioning roller 33 is arranged below the roller 14.

In this arrangement the vertical dividing walls 22 are fixed. The devices provided for pushing back products which are not lined up with the entrance to the alignment channels defined by the vertical dividing walls 22 are formed by rotating lugs 40. These lugs are preferably attached to the periphery of a circular rotating plate 41 which revolves around an axis 42.

To obtain a similar effect to that provided by staggering the movable guides 24 in the arrangement described previously, the lugs 40 which correspond to each even-number vertical dividing wall 22 are offset angularly relative to the lugs 40' corresponding to the odd-number vertical dividing walls 22. The end of the dividing walls is machined away in the arc of a circle to allow the lugs to pass by. -In the example illustrated in Figure 3 each circular plate 41 bears two lugs. The lugs or pins 40' are offset by 90 relative to the lugs or pins 40. The plate 41 preferably has a certain number of bores provided in its periphery which allows a number of pins to be set in place according to the operating rate of the machine or the dimensions of the products.

Preferably, these pins are disposed so that the angle of approach of the products 21 which are to be pushed back is advantageously between 1 and 45 .

Moreover, their length is determined so that they are in contact with the product over at least half its height.

In this example the products at the head of the lines are removed by a transverse conveyor belt 43 mounted on a frame 44 which pivots around an axis 45 and the height of which is preferably controlled by a pneumatic jack 46. The stop effect in the high position is identical to that obtained with the pivoting plate 29 in Figure 1.

Figure 4 shows another method of constructing the devices designed to push back the roducts which are not lined up with the entrance to the alignment channels. In this case the lugs consist of plates 47 attached to a rotating plate 48 by means of two keeper pins 49 and 50 of which one 49 constitutes a pivot axis, while the other can slide inside a slot 51 and is preferably equipped with a locking screw which enables the lug 47 to be clamped in a specific angular position. This method of fixing allows the angle into two be adjusted according to the product being dealt with by the arrangement. The space a between the lower edge of the lug 47 in its lowest position and the surface of the conveyor belt is preferably less than or equal to half the height of the product 21 being conveyed.When this height is particularly small, notably when the products 21 being conveyed are relatively flat biscuits, the vertical dividing walls 22 are preferably formed by two mutually parallel plates 52 and 53 disposed so that the lug 47 passes between them as it These double plates may be replaced by a single member machined away in the arc of a circle 54 corresponding substantially to the path followed by the lug.

In the two cases shown in Figures 3 and 4, the rotating plates 41 and 48 have their axis of rotation disposed substantially vertically above the end of the dividing walls 22. The task of the lugs 47 is similar to that of the movable guides 24, i.e., to push back the products 21 which arrive in the proximity of the entrance into the alignment channels in an unsuitable position. In particular, products which arrive up against the end of the vertical dividing walls are pushed back and either to the right or to the left so that they are able to enter one of the alignment channels without any difficulty. The inclination of the section 15 of the endless conveyor belt makes it possible to limit decisively the pressure which the lattermost products inevitably exert on the foremost products, and this makes it easier to push back the products which are in a position which does not allow them to enter directly into the alignment channels, without the rist of damaging these products by this counter-pushing, or tipping them up or causing them to overlap. The number of alignment channels is limited only by the width of the conveyor belt 11. A device designed to push back products which are not lined up must necessarily be provided corresponding to each vertical dividing wall.

Claims

1. A packaging arrangement, particularly for food products, cosmetic products, cosmetic products or diverse objects such as stoppers, capsules, phials and the like, with an endless conveyor belt for these loose products, vertical dividing walls defining channels for aligning said products, devices for pushing products which are not lined up with the entrance to the channels back in the direction opposite to the displacement direction of the conveyor belt, devices for removing in succession the products at the head of the lines, and devices for placing these products in the appropriate packaging containers, characterised in that the conveyor belt is inclined relative to the horizontal plane in such a manner that the products being conveyed are drawn along over a rising path.

2. An arrangement according to claim 1,characterised in that it comprises devices for adjusting the slope of the conveyor belt as a function of the coefficient of friction of the products being conveyed.

3. An arrangement according to claim 2, characterised in that the slope of the conveyor belt may vary from the horizontal by an angle of between 0 and 30 .

4. An arrangement according to claim 1, characterised in that the devices for removing in succession the products at the head of the rows comprise a movable plate adapted to be able to pivot around an axis substantially parallel to the plane of the belt, between a first position in which the edge of the plate is substantially at the same level as the edge of the belt so that the products are able to pass from the belt onto the plate, and a second position in which the edge of the plate is higher than the edge of the belt so that the products are stopped against this plate.

5. An arrangement according to claim 1 in which the devices for pushing back the products and the vertical dividing walls comprise guides which are reciprocatingly movable in an axial direction, characterised in that each guide is formed by a movable plate in extension of a fixed plate positioned downstream of it, viewed in the displacement direction of the products, these two elements forming a coacting pair constituting a vertical dividing wall, and in that the downstream ends of the fixed plates are all disposed in the same transverse plane relative to the conveyor belt.

6. An arrangement according to claim 1,characterised in that the devices for pushing back the products comprise at least one lug rotating in the plane of the corresponding vertical dividing wall, this lug being adapted to follow a path substantially tangential to the plane of the conveyor belt, in the vicinity of the end of the end of the alignment channel for the products.

7. An arrangement according to claim 6, characterised in that the rotating lug is mounted on a circular rotating plate in such a way that the impact with the product to be pushed back occurs at an angle of between 0 and 45 and over at least half the height of the product.

8. An arrangement according to claim 1, characterised in that the rotating circular plate bears a plurality of lugs distributed evenly around the periphery of this plate.

9. An arrangement according to claim 6, characterised in that the front end of the vertical dividing walls is cut away in the arc of a circle substantially parallel with the circular path of the rotating lug.

10. An arrangement according to claim 6, characterised in that the end section of the vertical dividing wall comprises two parallel plates separated by a central space, and in that the circular path of the rotating lug passes through this central space provided between the two plates.

11. An arrangement according to claim 1, in which the devices for removing in succession the products at the head of the rows comprise a conveyor belt with lateral displacement, optionally provided with blocks to define compartments, characterised in that this belt is articulated on a longitudinal axis and is able to occupy a first position in which its edge adjacent to the endless conveyor belt is located substantially at the same level as the edge of this latter belt, and a second position in which the edge of the transverse belt is raised up relative to the edge of the endless conveyor belt.

12. A packaging arrangement for loose products constructed, arranged and adapted for use substantially as herein before described with reference to, and as shown in the accompanying drawings.