IT202100014405A1 - Packaging machine and wrapping method for making a rigid package of articles, in particular smoking articles, shaped like rods - Google Patents

Description

DESCRIPTION

of the industrial invention entitled:

"Packaging machine and wrapping method for making a rigid package of articles, in particular smoking articles, shaped like rods."

TECHNICAL SECTOR

The present invention ? relating to a packaging machine and a wrapping method for making a rigid package of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles.

EARLIER ART

Traditionally, a rigid pack of cigarettes comprises a group of cigarettes in direct contact with each other (and normally arranged in three layers consisting of seven, six and seven cigarettes respectively), a wrapper which completely envelops the group of cigarettes, and a container which equipped with a hinged lid and houses inside the wrapping that wraps the group of cigarettes. In a traditional pack of this type, drawing the first cigarette is ? relatively simple (although the cigarettes are in close contact with each other and also slightly pressed against each other) as the cigarettes are easily and widely deformable elastically and therefore ? possible with your fingers ?create? the space to extract (pull out) the first cigarette from the group of cigarettes. However, a traditional package of this type is not ? instead suitable for containing rigid cartridges (ie non-deformable) for new generation cigarettes (for example electronic cigarettes), since the rigid cartridges are not elastically deformable (for example because they are enclosed in a plastic or metal cylinder casing) it becomes extremely complex (if not impossible) to extract the first rigid cartridge without damage.

To overcome this drawback, rigid packets of rod-shaped smoking articles have been proposed, for example of the type described in the patent applications WO2017013741A1, WO2017013742A1; a rigid package of this type includes a group of smoking items, a container that is equipped with a hinged lid and houses inside the group of smoke items, and a support system that is? disposed within the container and defining a series of seats each adapted to contain a single smoking article keeping the smoking article itself separate and at a certain distance from the adjacent smoking articles. In this way ? It is simple to grasp each smoking item (as it is spaced from adjacent smoking items) to remove the smoking item from the package. According to some embodiments, the support system comprises at least one wall which ? arranged parallel to a bottom wall of the container, ? arranged perpendicularly to the smoking articles (or to the longitudinal axis of the smoking articles), and presents a plurality? of through holes each of which is engaged by a corresponding smoking article to define a certain and predetermined position of the smoking article itself.

However, for the construction of a rigid package of smoking articles in which smoking articles are spaced apart from each other, it is not ? It is possible to use conventional packing machines, as conventional packing machines are configured to only handle groups of compact smoking items where the smoking items are in close contact with each other and which therefore can be treated as if they were a single monolithic body.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Purpose of the present invention? to provide a packaging machine and a wrapping method for making a rigid package of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles, in which the articles of the group of cigarettes are spaced apart from each other. In accordance with the present invention, a packing machine and a wrapping method are provided for making a rigid packet of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles, and a related method of making, according to what is claimed in the attached claims.

The claims also form an integral part of the present description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

This invention will come now described with reference to the attached drawings, which illustrate a non-limiting embodiment thereof, in which:

? figure 1 ? a front perspective view and in a closed configuration of a rigid package of smoking articles made in accordance with the present invention;

? figure 2 ? a rear perspective view of the package of Figure 1 in a closed configuration;

? figure 3 ? a front perspective view of the package of Figure 1 in an open configuration;

? Figures 4 and 5 are two different perspective views and in longitudinal section of the package of Figure 1 in a closed configuration and with the smoking articles removed for clarity;

? figure 6 ? a front perspective view of a variant of the package of Figure 1 in an open configuration;

? figure 7 ? a front view and with parts eliminated for clarity of a packing machine for making the packet of Figure 1;

? the figure 8 ? a perspective view and with the elimination of parts for clarity of a unit? of formation of the packaging machine of figure 7;

? figure 9 ? a front view of a wrapping drawer of a wrapping conveyor of the packing machine of Figure 7;

? figure 10 ? a longitudinal sectional view of the wrapping drawer of Figure 9;

? figure 11 ? a perspective view of a detail of the unit? forming figure 8;

? figure 12 ? a front view of a training unit drawer? forming figure 8;

? figure 13 ? a longitudinal sectional view of the forming drawer of Figure 12 ;

? figure 14 ? a front view of an outlet mouth of a hopper of the unit? forming figure 8;

? figure 15 ? a front view of a variant of the outlet of the figure ? figure 16 ? a side view and with? the elimination of parts for clarity of the unit? forming figure 8;

? figure 17 ? a front view and with the elimination of parts for clarity of a unit? of wrapping of the wrapping machine of the figure 7;

? figure 18 ? a perspective view and with the elimination of parts for clarity of a unit? of insertion of the packaging machine of figure 7; And ? figure 19 ? a plan view of the unit? of insertion of the figure 18.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In figures 1, 2 and 3 with the number 1 ? referred to as a whole a rigid package of smoking items.

Package 1 comprises a parallelepiped-shaped container 2 which is made of cardboard or rigid cardboard and ? provided with a box-shaped lid 3 hinged along a hinge 4 (shown in figure 2) to rotate between an open position (shown in figure 3) and a closed position (shown in figures 1 and 2). The container 2 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and has an upper wall 5 (which belongs completely to the lid 3), a lower wall 6 opposite the upper wall 5, a front wall 7 (partly belonging to the lid 3) and a wall 8 rear (partly belonging to the lid 3 and in which the hinge 4 is formed) parallel and opposite to each other, and two side walls 9 and 10 (partly belonging to the lid 3) parallel and opposite to each other.

As illustrated in figure 3, package 1 also comprises a rigid collar 11, which is connected (by gluing) folded into a ?U? inside the container 2 to partially protrude outside one end? open top of the container 2 and engage a corresponding inner surface of the lid 3 when the lid 3 itself? placed in the closed position. The collar 11 comprises a front wall 12 glued (obviously below the lid 3) to the front wall 7 of the container 2 and two side walls 13 glued (obviously below the lid 3) to the side walls 9 and 10 of the container 2.

Packet 1 comprises a group of rod-shaped smoking articles 14 (e.g., hard cartridges for electronic cigarettes or cigarettes), each of which ? shaped like an elongated cylinder (that is, having a cross-sectional diameter much smaller than a longitudinal extension). In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 1-5, the assembly ? composed of twenty smoking articles 14 arranged in three layers composed respectively of seven, six and seven smoking articles 14. In the alternative embodiment illustrated in figure 6, the group ? composed of twenty smoking articles 14 arranged in two layers each consisting of ten smoking articles 14. As better illustrated in figures 4 and 5, the package 1 comprises a support system 15 which ? disposed within the container 2 and defines a series of seats each adapted to contain a single smoking article 14 keeping the smoking article 14 itself separate and at a certain distance from the adjacent smoking articles 14. In this way ? It is simple to grasp each smoking article 14 (as it is spaced from the adjacent smoking articles 14) to extract the smoking article 14 from the package 1. The support system 15 comprises two containment walls 16 and 17 which are arranged at a certain distance from each other parallel to the upper wall 5 and to the lower wall 6 of the container 2, are arranged perpendicular to the smoking articles 14 (or to the longitudinal axis of the smoking articles 14), and have a plurality of? of through holes 18 each of which is engaged by a corresponding smoking article 14 to define a certain and predetermined position of the smoking article 14 itself. The set of two aligned holes 18 defines a seat for a corresponding smoking article 14; that is, a smoking article 14 which engages two aligned holes 18 of the two containment walls 16 and 17 is in a predetermined and stable position inside the container 2.

According to a different embodiment, the support system 15 comprises a single containment wall 16 or the support system 15 comprises three or more? retaining walls 16 and 17.

In figure 7, with the reference number 19 ? shown as a whole a packing machine for making the packet 1 of smoking articles described above. The packaging machine 19 comprises a frame 20 which rests on the ground and supports: a unit? A training in which groups of 14 smoking articles are formed, a unit? B of wrapping in which the empty and open containers 2 are made (that is, having the lid 3 in the open position), a unit? C of insertion in which the groups of smoking articles 14 are inserted into the corresponding containers 2, and finally a unit? closure D in which the lids 3 of the containers 2 are closed thus completing the production of the packets 1 of cigarettes.

The packaging machine 19 comprises a wrapping conveyor 21 (better illustrated in Figure 8), which advances along a rectilinear and horizontal wrapping path P1 a plurality of of wrapping drawers 22 each adapted to support a group of smoking articles 14. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the wrapping conveyor 21 is belt type and comprises two parallel and spaced apart conveyor belts which are looped around respective pairs of end pulleys. and support at the end? opposite the wrapping drawers 22.

As illustrated in figures 9 and 10, each packing drawer 22 comprises a parallelepiped body in which a plurality of of 23 through holes, each of which ? suitable for receiving and housing a single corresponding smoking article 14; the through holes 23 are arranged to exactly reproduce the arrangement of the group of smoking articles 14, i.e. the distances between the through holes 23 are the same distances between the smoking articles 14 of the group of smoking articles 14. Preferably, on an inlet side (that is, on the side where the smoking articles 14 enter the through holes 23), the through holes 23 have an initial flared (truncated-conical) portion having a progressively decreasing diameter; in this way, at the inlet side, the through holes 23 are "self-centering", i.e. they are able to guide towards the correct position any smoking article 14 which is trying to enter a through hole 23 starting from a (slightly) off-center location.

According to what is illustrated in figure 7, the unit? A for forming the groups of smoking articles 14 comprises a hopper 24 provided with three outlet mouths 25 (better illustrated in Figure 8) and a forming conveyor 26. As illustrated in Figure 8, the forming conveyor 26 advances along a forming path P2 shaped like a ?U? a plurality? of forming drawers 27 each adapted to support a group of smoking articles 14. The P2 training path ? shaped to ?U? and has an upper straight section (illustrated in figure 8) which extends through an input station S1 at the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 and a lower straight section (not shown in figure 8) which extends parallel to the path wrapping P1 through a transfer station S2; the two straight sections of the formation path P2 are connected to each other by a curved section (not shown in Figure 8) shaped like a semicircle. In the input station S1 three groups of smoking articles 14 are transferred from the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 to three corresponding forming drawers 27 of the forming conveyor 26, while in the transfer station S2 three groups of smoking articles 14 are transferred from three corresponding forming drawers 27 of the forming conveyor 26 to corresponding wrapping drawers 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21.

According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the forming conveyor 26 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports 27 training drawers. As illustrated in figures 12 and 13, each forming drawer 27 comprises a parallelepiped body in which a plurality of of 28 through holes, each of which ? suitable for receiving and housing a single corresponding smoking article 14; the through holes 28 are arranged to exactly reproduce the arrangement of the group of smoking articles 14, i.e. the distances between the through holes 28 are the same distances between the smoking articles 14 of the group of smoking articles 14 . Preferably, on an inlet side (that is, on the side where the smoking articles 14 enter the through holes 28), the through holes 28 have an initial flared (truncated-conical) portion having a progressively decreasing diameter; in this way, at the inlet side, the through holes 28 are "self-centring", i.e. they are able to guide towards the correct position any smoking article 14 which is trying to enter a through hole 28 starting from a position (slightly) off center.

According to what is illustrated in figure 8, the unit? A of training includes three extractors 29, each of which ? configured to extract a group of smoking articles 14 from a corresponding outlet mouth 25 and subsequently insert the group of smoking articles 14 into a corresponding forming drawer 27 by means of a working stroke perpendicular to the forming path P2. That is to say ? an actuator device 30 is provided (schematically illustrated in Figure 16) which imparts to the three extractors 29 an alternate movement along an extraction direction D1 perpendicular to the formation path P2; in particular, the linear movement of the three extractors 29 alternates a working stroke in which the extractors 29 enter the outlet mouths 25 to extract respective groups of smoking articles 14 which are subsequently inserted into respective forming drawers 27 stopped in front to the hopper 24, and a return stroke in which the extractors 29 return back to their initial position.

As better illustrated in figure 14, each outlet mouth 25 of the hopper 24 comprises a plurality of of dividing walls 31 defining channels 32, each of which ? configured to hold a vertical stack of items 14. Each stripper 29 ? configured to extract a group of smoking articles 14 from the channels 32 of the corresponding outlet mouth 25 and subsequently insert the group of smoking articles 14 into the corresponding forming drawer 27.

As illustrated in Figure 11, each extractor 29 comprises a plurality of? of 33 cylindrical rods, each of which ? separate and independent from the other 33 cylindrical rods and ? configured to push on a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the unit to push the single smoking article 14 out of the respective channel 32 of the outlet mouth 25 and then insert the single smoking article 14 into a corresponding through hole 28 of the drawer 27 training. In particular, each extractor 29 comprises a support plate 34 on which the cylindrical rods 33 projecting from the support plate 34 (that is, they rise perpendicularly from the support plate 34) are mounted.

The embodiment illustrated in figures 8, 11 and 14 ? configured to form the packet 1 illustrated in figures 1-5, in which in each group the smoking articles 14 are arranged on three superimposed layers and are composed respectively of seven, six and seven cigarettes; in this embodiment, the cylindrical rods 33 of each extractor 29 are arranged in (exactly) three superimposed rows to extract from the channels 32 of the corresponding outlet mouth 25 three superimposed layers of smoking articles 14. In particular, the cylindrical rods 33 of two rows of extremities? are vertically aligned with each other while the cylindrical rods 33 of a central row disposed between the two end rows? are they vertically staggered with respect to the cylindrical rods 33 of the two end rows? (obviously reproducing the arrangement of the smoking articles 14 in a group of smoking articles 14).

The cylindrical rods 33 of the two end rows? are arranged in such a way that two cylindrical rods 33 vertically aligned with each other of the two end rows? they engage the same channel 32a of the outlet mouth 25 to extract from the channel 32a two different smoking articles 14; in particular, the cylindrical rods 33 of the two end rows? are arranged in such a way that two cylindrical rods 33 vertically aligned with each other of the two end rows? engage the same channel 32a of the outlet mouth 25 to extract from the channel 32a two different smoking articles 14 which are not adjacent to each other, or separated from each other by a further smoking article 14 which is not engaged by the cylindrical rods 33 of the extractor 29. Instead, the cylindrical rods 33 of the central row are arranged in such a way that each channel 32b of the outlet mouth 25 arranged between two channels 32a is engaged by a single cylindrical rod 33 of the central row to extract from the channel 32b a single article 14 from smoke. Thus, with each extraction of a group of smoking articles 14, two non-adjacent smoking articles 14 are extracted from each channel 32a while a single smoking article 14 is extracted from each channel 32b; consequently, the extraction of the articles 14 from smoke from the channels 32a ? double compared to the extraction of the smoking articles 14 from the channels 32b. To balance this difference, each channel 32b has a filling element 35 at its bottom which reduces the height of the channel 32b itself with respect to a height of the channels 32a; that is, each channel 32b has a filling element 35 at the bottom which defines a lower wall of the channel 32b which is arranged more? above the lower walls of the channels 32a.

The embodiment illustrated in Figure 15 ? configured to form the package 1 illustrated in Figure 6, wherein in each group the smoking articles 14 are arranged on two layers each consisting of ten smoking articles 14. In this embodiment, the cylindrical rods 33 of each extractor 29 are arranged in (only) two superimposed rows to extract two superimposed layers of smoking articles 14 from the channels 32 of the outlet mouth 25. The cylindrical rods 33 of each extractor 29 are arranged in such a way that each channel 32 is engaged by two different cylindrical rods 33 vertically aligned with each other so as to extract from the channel 32 two different smoking articles 14; in particular, the cylindrical rods 33 of each extractor 29 are arranged in such a way that each channel 32 is engaged by two different cylindrical rods 33 vertically aligned with each other in such a way as to extract from the channel 32 two different smoking articles 14 which are not adjacent to each other , or separated from each other by a further smoking article 14 which is not engaged by the cylindrical rods 33 of the extractor 29. Furthermore, in this embodiment, between two side-by-side channels 32 of the outlet mouth 25 ? there is an empty space 36 which separates the two channels 32 themselves; or each channel 32 ? delimited by two dividing walls 31 which are different and independent from the dividing walls 31 of the other channels 32.

As illustrated in figure 16, three transferors 37 are arranged in the transfer station S2 (only one of which is shown in figure 16) which are similarly shaped to the extractors 29 and therefore are each provided with a group of completely identical cylindrical rods 38 to the cylindrical rods 33 of the extractors 29. In particular, each transfer device 37 comprises a support plate on which the cylindrical rods 38 which protrude overhangingly from the support plate (ie rise perpendicularly from the support plate) are mounted. The transfer devices 37 are moved by an actuator device 39 which ? configured to impart to the transferors 37 both a perpendicular movement to the paths P1 and P2 (i.e. along the extraction direction D1) which transfers the smoking articles 14 from the through holes 28 of the formation drawers 27 to the through holes 23 of the wrapping drawers 22, is a movement parallel to the paths P1 and P2 to track the advancement of the drawers 22 and 27 in a synchronized manner. In fact, the wrapping conveyor 21 preferably has a continuous motion law, i.e. it advances the wrapping drawers 22 along the path P1 of wrapping with a speed? constant without alternating phases of rest and phases of motion; consequently, the transferors 37 must also move parallel to the paths P1 and P2 in order to remain aligned with the trays 22 and 27 throughout the transfer phase.

According to a preferred embodiment, the forming conveyor 26 has an intermittent motion law, i.e. it advances the forming drawers 27 by alternating dwell phases and motion phases: during a pause phase a group of three forming drawers 27 remains stationary in the input station S1 to receive from the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 (which is obviously stopped) three groups of smoking articles 14, while during a subsequent motion phase a group of three forming drawers 27 moves in a synchronized manner with the wrapping conveyor 21 for transferring its three groups of smoking articles 14 to three wrapping drawers 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 (which is in continuous motion). The particular law of intermittent motion of the forming conveyor 26 which allows the forming conveyor 26 to interface both with a part of the packing machine 19 which has an intermittent operation (the hopper 24), and with a part of the packing machine 19 which has a continuous operation (the wrapping conveyor 21) ? described in greater detail in patent application WO2020089754A1.

According to what is illustrated in figures 17 and 18, the unit? B of wrapping comprises a wrapping conveyor 40, which advances along a straight wrapping path P3 and parallel to the wrapping path P1, a plurality of of wrapping pockets 41 each adapted to support a container 22 having one end? open, i.e., as previously stated, having the lid 3 in the open position to allow entry of a group of smoking articles 14. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the wrapping conveyor 40 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports the wrapping pockets 41.

According to what is illustrated in figure 17, the unit? B of wrapping comprises a wrapping wheel 42 which ? mounted rotating with continuous motion around an axis 43 of horizontal rotation (therefore perpendicular to the plane of figure 17 and perpendicular to the paths P1 and P2) and supports three gripping heads 44. Rotation of the wrapping wheel 42 about the axis of rotation 43 advances each gripping head 44 along a wrapping path P4 which passes through a gripping station S3 wherein the gripping head 44 picks up a pre-folded blank from a hopper 45 horizontal, a folding station S4 in which the gripping head 44 folds the blank to form a container 2 having the lid 3 in the open position, and finally through a release station S5 in which gripping head 44 feeds the container 2 having the lid 3 in the open position in a corresponding packing pocket 41.

According to what is illustrated in figures 18 and 19, in the unit? C of insertion, the two wrapping conveyors 21 and 40 advance parallel and synchronized (i.e. with the same speed and the same relative position) so that each wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 is always aligned (centred) with a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. In this way, a group of 14 smoking articles can? be transferred by axial movement from a wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 to a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40.

The unit insertion C comprises a conveyor 46 which advances along a path (P5) parallel to and alongside the wrapping path P1 (therefore also parallel to the wrapping path P3) a plurality? of 47 pushers, each of which ? configured to axially push a group of smoking articles 14 out of a corresponding wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 and subsequently into a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the conveyor 46 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports the pushers 47.

The unit insertion C comprises an actuator device 48 which ? coupled to the conveyor 46 and ? configured to translate each pusher 47 along a push direction D2 perpendicular to path P5 (hence perpendicular to wrapping paths P1 and P3) to push a group of smoking items 14 out of a wrapping drawer 22 of wrapping conveyor 21 and then inside a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. Preferably, the actuator device 48 uses cams to generate the movement along the thrust direction D2 by exploiting the advancement along the path P5; in this way it is ensured that the movement of the pushers 47 along the thrust direction D2 generated by the actuator device 48 is always perfectly synchronized with the advancement of the pushers 47 along the path P5.

Each wrapping drawer 22 ? movably mounted on the wrapping conveyor 21 to translate with respect to the wrapping conveyor 21 itself along the thrust direction D2 which ? horizontal and perpendicular to paths P1, P3 and P5; moreover, the unit? insertion C comprises an actuator device 49 which ? configured to translate each wrapping drawer 22 along the thrust direction D2 so as to insert the wrapping drawer 22 inside the container 2 carried by a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 before the corresponding pusher 47 pushes the group of smoking articles 14 from the wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 into the container 2 carried by the wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. Preferably, the actuator device 49 uses cams to generate the movement along the thrust direction D2 by exploiting the advancement along the wrapping path P1; in this way it is ensured that the movement of the wrapping drawers 22 along the thrust direction D2 generated by the actuator device 49 is always perfectly synchronized with the advancement of the wrapping drawers 22 along the wrapping path P1.

The device 49 actuator ? configured to hold each wrapping drawer 22 within the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 until the corresponding pusher 47 has completely withdrawn the group of smoking articles 14 from the wrapping drawer 22. Furthermore, the actuator device 49 ? configured to hold each pusher 47 at an end-of-travel position along the push direction D2 until the actuator device 49 has completely disengaged the group of smoking items 14 from the corresponding wrapping drawer 22 by moving the wrapping drawer 22 away from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40; in this way, the return movement of the wrapping drawer 22 (that is, the moving away movement of the wrapping drawer 22 from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41) cannot? cause an undesired frictional displacement of the smoking articles 14 which are found inside the container 2 and are kept in the correct position by the contrast provided by the pusher 47. In other words, the actuator device 48 ? configured to initiate a return stroke of each pusher 47 away from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 only after the actuator device 49 has already started a return stroke of the corresponding wrapping drawer 22 away from the container 2.

As previously stated, each container 2 comprises two containment walls 16 and 17 which have a plurality of of through holes 18 which are engaged by the smoking articles 14; each pusher 47 ? configured to insert each smoking article 14 into the corresponding through holes 18 of the containment walls 16 and 17. According to a preferred embodiment, the actuator device 49 is configured to bring each wrapping drawer 22 abutting against the upper containment wall 16 inside the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40; that is, each wrapping drawer 22 rests against the upper containment wall 16 inside the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40.

As previously stated, each packing drawer 22 comprises a plurality of of 23 through holes of cylindrical shape, each of which? separate and independent from the other 23 through holes and ? adapted to house a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the group; each pusher 47 comprises a plurality? of 50 cylindrical rods, each of which ? separate and independent from the other 50 cylindrical rods and ? configured to push on a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the unit to push the single smoking article 50 out of the respective through hole 23 of a wrapping drawer 22 and then insert the single smoking article 14 into the corresponding through holes 18 of the walls 16 and 17 for containing a container 2 carried by a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 (ie each cylindrical rod 50 is adapted to pass through a corresponding through hole 23 of a wrapping drawer 22). In particular, each pusher 47 comprises a support plate on which the cylindrical rods 50 projecting from the support plate (that is, they rise perpendicularly from the support plate) are mounted.

As better illustrated in Figure 10, each packing drawer 22 has a front portion of a tapered shape which first enters a container 2; in this way, each wrapping drawer 22 ? self-centering with respect to container 2, ie ? capable of autonomously correcting small positioning inaccuracies of the container 2 due to the construction tolerances of the blanks and to the tolerances of the wrapping process.

As previously stated, the conveyors 21, 40 and 46 have the same law of continuous motion; to ensure perfect synchronism of movements of the conveyors 21, 40 and 46, preferably the conveyors 21, 40 and 46 are set in motion by the same common motor.

? important to observe that the packing machine 19 could comprise the unit? A training described above combined with a different type of unit? B of wrapping and/or to a different type of unit? Insert C; or the particular conformation of the unit? A training pu? be exploited regardless of the presence or otherwise of the other units? B, C and D described above. Similarly, the packaging machine 19 could comprise the unit? C insertion described above combined with a different type of unit? A training and / or a different type of unit? Wrapping B; or the particular conformation of the unit? C insertion pu? be exploited regardless of the presence or otherwise of the other units? A, B and D described above.

The embodiment illustrated in the attached figures refers to the production of a rigid packet 1 of rod-shaped smoking articles, but the present invention ? applicable without substantial modifications also to the realization of any other type of rigid package of rod-shaped articles, even non-smoking ones.

The embodiments described here can be combined with each other without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention.

The unit A of the formation described above has numerous advantages, as it allows to form the groups of smoking articles 14 in an effective (that is, forming only complete groups and without running the risk of damaging the smoking articles 14) and efficiently (that is, for a high operating speed and indicatively higher than 300-400 groups of smoking articles 14 per minute). Furthermore, the unit? A of training described above ? of relatively simple and compact construction.

The unit C of insertion described above has numerous advantages, as it allows to insert the groups of smoking articles 14 in the open containers 2 in an effective way (that is, by inserting all the smoking articles 14 in the corresponding through holes 18 of the containment walls 16 and 17 of the containers without damaging either the smoking articles 14 or the containers 2) and efficiently (that is, at a high operating speed and indicatively higher than 300-400 packets 1 per minute). Furthermore, the unit? C of insertion described above ? of relatively simple and compact construction.

LIST OF FIGURE REFERENCE NUMBERS

1 package

2 container

3 cover

4 zipper

5 upper wall

6 lower wall

7 anterior wall

8 rear wall

9 side wall

10 side wall

11 collar

12 front wall

13 sidewalls

14 smoking items

15 support system

16 retaining wall

17 retaining wall

18 holes

19 packing machine 20 loom

21 wrapping conveyor 22 wrapping drawer

23 through holes

24 hopper

25 outlet mouth

26 forming conveyor 27 forming drawer

28 through holes

29 extractors

30 actuator device

31 partition walls

32 channels

33 cylindrical rods

34 backing plate

35 filler element 36 empty space

37 transporters

38 cylindrical rods

39 actuator device 40 wrapping conveyor 41 wrapping pocket

42 wrapping wheel

43 axis of rotation

44 gripping heads

45 hopper

46 Conveyor

47 pusher

48 actuator device 49 actuator device 50 cylindrical rods

A unit? of training

B unit? of wrapping

C unit? of insertion D unit? closing

P1 wrapping path

P2 training course P3 wrapping course

P4 wrapping path

P5 route

D1 extraction direction D2 thrust direction

S1 input station S2 transfer station S3 pick-up station

S4 bending station S4 station

DESCRIPTION

of the industrial invention entitled:

"Packaging machine and wrapping method for making a rigid package of articles, in particular smoking articles, shaped like rods."

TECHNICAL SECTOR

The present invention ? relating to a packaging machine and a wrapping method for making a rigid package of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles.

EARLIER ART

Traditionally, a rigid pack of cigarettes comprises a group of cigarettes in direct contact with each other (and normally arranged in three layers consisting of seven, six and seven cigarettes respectively), a wrapper which completely envelops the group of cigarettes, and a container which equipped with a hinged lid and houses inside the wrapping that wraps the group of cigarettes. In a traditional pack of this type, drawing the first cigarette is ? relatively simple (although the cigarettes are in close contact with each other and also slightly pressed against each other) as the cigarettes are easily and widely deformable elastically and therefore ? possible with your fingers ?create? the space to extract (pull out) the first cigarette from the group of cigarettes. However, a traditional package of this type is not ? instead suitable for containing rigid cartridges (ie non-deformable) for new generation cigarettes (for example electronic cigarettes), since the rigid cartridges are not elastically deformable (for example because they are enclosed in a plastic or metal cylinder casing) it becomes extremely complex (if not impossible) to extract the first rigid cartridge without damage.

To overcome this drawback, rigid packets of rod-shaped smoking articles have been proposed, for example of the type described in the patent applications WO2017013741A1, WO2017013742A1; a rigid package of this type includes a group of smoking items, a container that is equipped with a hinged lid and houses inside the group of smoke items, and a support system that is? disposed within the container and defining a series of seats each adapted to contain a single smoking article keeping the smoking article itself separate and at a certain distance from the adjacent smoking articles. In this way ? It is simple to grasp each smoking item (as it is spaced from adjacent smoking items) to remove the smoking item from the package. According to some embodiments, the support system comprises at least one wall which ? arranged parallel to a bottom wall of the container, ? arranged perpendicularly to the smoking articles (or to the longitudinal axis of the smoking articles), and presents a plurality? of through holes each of which is engaged by a corresponding smoking article to define a certain and predetermined position of the smoking article itself.

However, for the construction of a rigid package of smoking articles in which smoking articles are spaced apart from each other, it is not ? It is possible to use conventional packing machines, as conventional packing machines are configured to only handle groups of compact smoking items where the smoking items are in close contact with each other and which therefore can be treated as if they were a single monolithic body.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Purpose of the present invention? to provide a packaging machine and a wrapping method for making a rigid package of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles, in which the articles of the group of cigarettes are spaced apart from each other. In accordance with the present invention, a packing machine and a wrapping method are provided for making a rigid packet of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles, and a related method of making, according to what is claimed in the attached claims.

The claims also form an integral part of the present description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

This invention will come now described with reference to the attached drawings, which illustrate a non-limiting embodiment thereof, in which:

? figure 1 ? a front perspective view and in a closed configuration of a rigid package of smoking articles made in accordance with the present invention;

? figure 2 ? a rear perspective view of the package of Figure 1 in a closed configuration;

? figure 3 ? a front perspective view of the package of Figure 1 in an open configuration;

? Figures 4 and 5 are two different perspective views and in longitudinal section of the package of Figure 1 in a closed configuration and with the smoking articles removed for clarity;

? figure 6 ? a front perspective view of a variant of the package of Figure 1 in an open configuration;

? figure 7 ? a front view and with parts eliminated for clarity of a packing machine for making the packet of Figure 1; And

? the figure 8 ? a plan view of the unit? of insertion of the packing machine of the figure 7.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In figures 1, 2 and 3 with the number 1 ? referred to as a whole a rigid package of smoking items.

Package 1 comprises a parallelepiped-shaped container 2 which is made of cardboard or rigid cardboard and ? provided with a box-shaped lid 3 hinged along a hinge 4 (shown in figure 2) to rotate between an open position (shown in figure 3) and a closed position (shown in figures 1 and 2).

The container 2 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and has an upper wall 5 (which belongs completely to the lid 3), a lower wall 6 opposite the upper wall 5, a front wall 7 (partly belonging to the lid 3) and a wall 8 rear (partly belonging to the lid 3 and in which the hinge 4 is formed) parallel and opposite to each other, and two side walls 9 and 10 (partly belonging to the lid 3) parallel and opposite to each other.

As illustrated in figure 3, package 1 also comprises a rigid collar 11, which is connected (by gluing) folded into a ?U? inside the container 2 to partially protrude outside one end? open top of the container 2 and engage a corresponding inner surface of the lid 3 when the lid 3 itself? placed in the closed position. The collar 11 comprises a front wall 12 glued (obviously below the lid 3) to the front wall 7 of the container 2 and two side walls 13 glued (obviously below the lid 3) to the side walls 9 and 10 of the container 2.

Packet 1 comprises a group of rod-shaped smoking articles 14 (e.g., hard cartridges for electronic cigarettes or cigarettes), each of which ? shaped like an elongated cylinder (that is, having a cross-sectional diameter much smaller than a longitudinal extension). In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 1-5, the assembly ? composed of twenty smoking articles 14 arranged in three layers composed respectively of seven, six and seven smoking articles 14. In the alternative embodiment illustrated in figure 6, the group ? composed of twenty smoking articles 14 arranged in two layers each consisting of ten smoking articles 14. As better illustrated in figures 4 and 5, the package 1 comprises a support system 15 which ? disposed within the container 2 and defines a series of seats each adapted to contain a single smoking article 14 keeping the smoking article 14 itself separate and at a certain distance from the adjacent smoking articles 14. In this way ? It is simple to grasp each smoking article 14 (as it is spaced from the adjacent smoking articles 14) to extract the smoking article 14 from the package 1. The support system 15 comprises two containment walls 16 and 17 which are arranged at a certain distance from each other parallel to the upper wall 5 and to the lower wall 6 of the container 2, are arranged perpendicular to the smoking articles 14 (or to the longitudinal axis of the smoking articles 14), and have a plurality of? of through holes 18 each of which is engaged by a corresponding smoking article 14 to define a certain and predetermined position of the smoking article 14 itself. The set of two aligned holes 18 defines a seat for a corresponding smoking article 14; that is, a smoking article 14 which engages two aligned holes 18 of the two containment walls 16 and 17 is in a predetermined and stable position inside the container 2.

According to a different embodiment, the support system 15 comprises a single containment wall 16 or the support system 15 comprises three or more? containment walls 16 and 17.

In figure 7, with the reference number 19 ? shown as a whole a packing machine for making the packet 1 of smoking articles described above. The packaging machine 19 comprises a frame 20 which rests on the ground and supports: a unit? A training in which groups of 14 smoking articles are formed, a unit? B of wrapping in which the empty and open containers 2 are made (that is, having the lid 3 in the open position), a unit? C of insertion in which the groups of smoking articles 14 are inserted into the corresponding containers 2, and finally a unit? closure D in which the lids 3 of the containers 2 are closed thus completing the production of the packets 1 of cigarettes.

The packaging machine 19 comprises a wrapping conveyor 21, which advances along a rectilinear and horizontal wrapping path P1 a plurality of of wrapping drawers 22 each adapted to support a group of smoking articles 14. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the wrapping conveyor 21 is belt type and comprises two parallel and spaced apart conveyor belts which are looped around respective pairs of end pulleys. and support at the end? opposite the wrapping drawers 22.

Each wrapping drawer 22 comprises a parallelepiped body in which a plurality of of through holes, each of which ? suitable for receiving and housing a single corresponding smoking article 14; the through holes are arranged to exactly reproduce the arrangement of the smoking article group 14, i.e. the distances between the through holes are the same distances between the smoking articles 14 of the smoking article group 14. Preferably, at an inlet side (ie at the side where the smoking articles 14 enter the through holes), the through holes have an initial flared (truncated-conical) portion having a progressively decreasing diameter; in this way, on the inlet side, the through holes are "self-centring", i.e. they are able to guide any smoking article 14 which is trying to enter a through hole starting from a position towards the correct position (slightly) off center.

According to what is illustrated in figure 7, the unit? A for forming the groups of smoking articles 14 comprises a hopper 24 provided with three outlet mouths 25 and a forming conveyor 26. The forming conveyor 26 travels along a ?U? shaped forming path. a plurality? of forming drawers each adapted to support a group of smoking articles 14. The training course? shaped to ?U? and has an upper straight section (illustrated in Figure 7) which extends through an input station at the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 and a lower straight section which extends parallel to the wrapping path P1 through a transfer station ; the two straight sections of the training course are connected to each other by a curved section shaped like a semicircle. In the input station, three groups of smoking articles 14 are transferred from the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 to three corresponding forming drawers of the forming conveyor 26, while in the transfer station, three groups of smoking articles 14 are transferred from three corresponding forming drawers of the forming conveyor 26 to corresponding wrapping drawers 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21.

According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in Figure 7, the forming conveyor 26 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports training drawers.

Each forming drawer comprises a parallelepiped body in which a plurality of of through holes, each of which ? suitable for receiving and housing a single corresponding smoking article 14; the through holes are arranged to exactly reproduce the arrangement of the smoking article group 14, i.e. the distances between the through holes are the same distances between the smoking articles 14 of the smoking article group 14. Preferably, at an inlet side (ie at the side where the smoking articles 14 enter the through holes), the through holes have an initial flared (truncated-conical) portion having a progressively decreasing diameter; in this way, on the inlet side, the through holes are "self-centring", i.e. they are able to guide any smoking article 14 which is trying to enter a through hole starting from a position towards the correct position (slightly) off center.

The unit A training includes three extractors each of which ? configured to extract a group of smoking articles 14 from a corresponding outlet mouth 25 and subsequently insert the group of smoking articles 14 into a corresponding forming drawer by means of a working stroke perpendicular to the forming path. That is to say ? an actuator device is provided (not shown) which imparts to the three extractors an alternating movement along an extraction direction perpendicular to the formation path; in particular, the linear movement of the three extractors alternates a working stroke in which the extractors enter the outlet mouths 25 to extract respective groups of smoking articles 14 which are subsequently inserted into respective forming drawers stationary in front of the hopper 24 , and a return stroke in which the extractors return to their initial position.

Each outlet mouth 25 of the hopper 24 comprises a plurality of of dividing walls defining the channels, each of which? configured to hold a vertical stack of 14 items. Each stripper ? configured to extract a group of smoking articles 14 from the channels of the corresponding outlet mouth 25 and subsequently insert the group of smoking articles 14 into the corresponding forming drawer.

Each extractor includes a plurality? of cylindrical rods, each of which ? separate and independent from the other cylindrical rods and ? configured to push on a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the assembly to push the single smoking article 14 out of the respective channel of the outlet mouth 25 and then insert the single smoking article 14 into a corresponding through hole of the forming drawer. In particular, each extractor comprises a support plate on which the cylindrical rods projecting overhanging the support plate (that is, rising perpendicularly from the support plate) are mounted.

The machine for making the packet 1 illustrated in figures 1-5 is described below, in which in each group the smoking articles 14 are arranged on three superimposed layers and are composed respectively of seven, six and seven cigarettes; in this embodiment, the cylindrical rods of each extractor are arranged in (exactly) three superimposed rows to extract from the channels of the corresponding outlet mouth 25 three superimposed layers of smoking articles 14. In particular, the cylindrical rods of two rows of extremities? are vertically aligned with each other while the cylindrical rods of a central row arranged between the two end rows? are they vertically staggered with respect to the cylindrical rods of the two end rows? (obviously reproducing the arrangement of the smoking articles 14 in a group of smoking articles 14).

The cylindrical rods of the two end rows? are arranged in such a way that two cylindrical rods vertically aligned with each other of the two rows of extremities? they engage the same channel of the outlet mouth 25 to extract from the channel two different smoking articles 14; in particular, the cylindrical rods of the two rows of ends? are arranged in such a way that two cylindrical rods vertically aligned with each other of the two rows of extremities? they engage the same channel of the outlet mouth 25 to extract from the channel two different smoking articles 14 which are not adjacent to each other, or separated from each other by a further smoking article 14 which is not engaged by the cylindrical rods of the extractor. Instead, the center row stems are arranged such that each outlet spout 25 disposed between two spouts is engaged by a single center row stem to withdraw a single smoking article 14 from the spout. Thus, with each extraction of a group of smoking articles 14, two non-adjacent smoking articles 14 are extracted from each channel while a single smoking article 14 is extracted from each channel; consequently, the extraction of the articles 14 from smoke from the canals ? double compared to the extraction of smoking articles 14 from the channels. To balance this difference, each channel has a filling element at the bottom which reduces the height of the channel itself with respect to a height of the channels; that is, each channel has a filling element at the bottom which defines a lower wall of the channel arranged more? above the lower walls of the channels.

The machine for making the package 1 illustrated in Figure 6 is described below, wherein in each group the smoking articles 14 are arranged on two layers each consisting of ten smoking articles 14. In this embodiment, the cylindrical rods of each extractor are arranged in (only) two superimposed rows to extract from the channels of the outlet mouth 25 two superimposed layers of smoking articles 14. The cylindrical rods of each extractor are arranged in such a way that each channel is engaged by two different cylindrical rods vertically aligned with each other so as to extract from the channel two different smoking articles 14; in particular, the cylindrical rods of each extractor are arranged in such a way that each channel is engaged by two different cylindrical rods vertically aligned with each other in such a way as to extract from the channel two different smoking articles 14 which are not adjacent to each other, i.e. separated one from the other. is other than a further smoking article 14 which is not engaged by the cylindrical rods of the extractor. Furthermore, in this embodiment, between two side-by-side channels of the outlet mouth 25 ? there is an empty space that separates the two channels themselves; or each channel? delimited by two partition walls which are different and independent from the partition walls of the other gutters.

In the transfer station three transferers are arranged which are similar in shape to the extractors and are therefore each provided with a group of cylindrical rods which are completely identical to the cylindrical rods of the extractors. In particular, each transfer device comprises a support plate on which the cylindrical rods projecting overhang from the support plate (that is, they rise perpendicularly from the support plate) are mounted. The transporters are moved by an actuator device which ? configured to impart to the transferors both a movement perpendicular to the path P1 (i.e. along the extraction direction) which transfers the smoking articles 14 from the through holes of the formation drawers to the through holes of the wrapping drawers 22, and a movement parallel to the path P1 to track the advancement of the drawers 22 in a synchronized manner. In fact, the wrapping conveyor 21 preferably has a continuous motion law, i.e. it advances the wrapping drawers 22 along the wrapping path P1 with a speed equal to the constant without alternating phases of rest and phases of motion; consequently, the transferors must also move parallel to the path P1 to remain aligned with the drawers 22 throughout the transfer phase.

According to a preferred embodiment, the forming conveyor 26 has an intermittent motion law, i.e. it advances the forming drawers by alternating dwell phases and motion phases: during a dwell phase a group of three forming drawers remains stationary in the station inlet to receive from the three outlet mouths 25 of the hopper 24 (which is obviously stationary) three groups of smoking articles 14, while during a subsequent motion phase a group of three forming drawers moves in a synchronized manner with the conveyor 21 wrapping conveyor for transferring its three groups of smoking articles 14 to three wrapping drawers 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 (which is in continuous motion). The particular law of intermittent motion of the forming conveyor 26 which allows the forming conveyor 26 to interface both with a part of the packing machine 19 which has an intermittent operation (the hopper 24), and with a part of the packing machine 19 which has a continuous operation (the wrapping conveyor 21) ? described in greater detail in patent application WO2020089754A1.

According to what is illustrated in figures 7 and 8, the unit? B of wrapping comprises a wrapping conveyor 40, which advances along a straight wrapping path P3 and parallel to the wrapping path P1, a plurality of of wrapping pockets 41 each adapted to support a container 22 having one end? open, i.e., as previously stated, having the lid 3 in the open position to allow entry of a group of smoking articles 14. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the wrapping conveyor 40 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports the wrapping pockets 41.

According to what is illustrated in figure 7, the unit? B of wrapping comprises a wrapping wheel 42 which ? rotatable with continuous motion around a horizontal axis of rotation (therefore perpendicular to the plane of figure 7 and perpendicular to the path P1) and supports three gripping heads. Rotation of the wrapping wheel 42 about the axis of rotation advances each gripper head along a wrapping path that passes through a gripper station in which the gripper head picks up a pre-folded blank from a horizontal hopper 45, a folding in which the gripping head folds the blank to form a container 2 having the lid 3 in the open position, and finally through a release station in which the gripping head feeds the container 2 having the lid 3 in the open position in a corresponding wrapping pocket 41. According to what is illustrated in figure 8, in the unit? C of insertion, the two wrapping conveyors 21 and 40 advance parallel and synchronized (i.e. with the same speed and the same relative position) so that each wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 is always aligned (centred) with a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. In this way, a group of 14 smoking articles can? be transferred by axial movement from a wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 to a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40.

The unit insertion C comprises a conveyor 46 which advances along a parallel path P5 and alongside the wrapping path P1 (therefore also parallel to the wrapping path P3) a plurality? of 47 pushers, each of which ? configured to axially push a group of smoking articles 14 out of a corresponding wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 and subsequently into a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures, the conveyor 46 is tape and includes a conveyor belt that ? wrapped in a ring around a pair of pulleys of extremities? and supports the pushers 47.

The unit insertion C comprises an actuator device 48 which ? coupled to the conveyor 46 and ? configured to translate each pusher 47 along a push direction D2 perpendicular to path P5 (hence perpendicular to wrapping paths P1 and P3) to push a group of smoking items 14 out of a wrapping drawer 22 of wrapping conveyor 21 and then inside a container 2 carried by a wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. Preferably, the actuator device 48 uses cams to generate the movement along the thrust direction D2 by exploiting the advancement along the path P5; in this way it is ensured that the movement of the pushers 47 along the thrust direction D2 generated by the actuator device 48 is always perfectly synchronized with the advancement of the pushers 47 along the path P5.

Each wrapping drawer 22 ? movably mounted on the wrapping conveyor 21 to translate with respect to the wrapping conveyor 21 itself along the thrust direction D2 which ? horizontal and perpendicular to paths P1, P3 and P5; moreover, the unit? insertion C comprises an actuator device 49 which ? configured to translate each wrapping drawer 22 along the thrust direction D2 so as to insert the wrapping drawer 22 inside the container 2 carried by a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 before the corresponding pusher 47 pushes the group of smoking articles 14 from the wrapping drawer 22 of the wrapping conveyor 21 into the container 2 carried by the wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40. Preferably, the actuator device 49 uses cams to generate the movement along the thrust direction D2 by exploiting the advancement along the wrapping path P1; in this way it is ensured that the movement of the wrapping drawers 22 along the thrust direction D2 generated by the actuator device 49 is always perfectly synchronized with the advancement of the wrapping drawers 22 along the wrapping path P1.

The device 49 actuator ? configured to hold each wrapping drawer 22 within the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 until the corresponding pusher 47 has completely withdrawn the group of smoking articles 14 from the wrapping drawer 22. Furthermore, the actuator device 49 ? configured to hold each pusher 47 at an end-of-travel position along the push direction D2 until the actuator device 49 has completely disengaged the group of smoking items 14 from the corresponding wrapping drawer 22 by moving the wrapping drawer 22 away from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40; in this way, the return movement of the wrapping drawer 22 (that is, the moving away movement of the wrapping drawer 22 from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41) cannot? cause an undesired frictional displacement of the smoking articles 14 which are found inside the container 2 and are kept in the correct position by the contrast provided by the pusher 47. In other words, the actuator device 48 ? configured to initiate a return stroke of each pusher 47 away from the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 only after the actuator device 49 has already started a return stroke of the corresponding wrapping drawer 22 away from the container 2.

As previously stated, each container 2 comprises two containment walls 16 and 17 which have a plurality of of through holes 18 which are engaged by the smoking articles 14; each pusher 47 ? configured to insert each smoking article 14 into the corresponding through holes 18 of the containment walls 16 and 17. According to a preferred embodiment, the actuator device 49 is configured to bring each wrapping drawer 22 abutting against the upper containment wall 16 inside the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40; that is, each wrapping drawer 22 rests against the upper containment wall 16 inside the container 2 carried by the corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40.

As previously stated, each packing drawer 22 comprises a plurality of of through holes of cylindrical shape, each of which? separate and independent from the other through holes and ? adapted to house a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the group; each pusher 47 comprises a plurality? of cylindrical rods, each of which ? separate and independent from the other cylindrical rods and ? configured to push on a corresponding single smoking article 14 of the group to push the single smoking article out of the respective through hole of a wrapping drawer 22 and then insert the single smoking article 14 into the corresponding through holes 18 of the walls 16 and 17 containment of a container 2 carried by a corresponding wrapping pocket 41 of the wrapping conveyor 40 (ie each cylindrical rod is adapted to pass through a corresponding through hole of a wrapping drawer 22). In particular, each pusher 47 comprises a support plate on which are mounted the cylindrical rods which protrude projectingly from the support plate (that is, they rise perpendicularly from the support plate).

Each packing drawer 22 has a tapered front portion which first enters a container 2; in this way, each wrapping drawer 22 ? self-centering with respect to container 2, ie ? capable of autonomously correcting small positioning inaccuracies of the container 2 due to the construction tolerances of the blanks and to the tolerances of the wrapping process.

As previously stated, the conveyors 21, 40 and 46 have the same law of continuous motion; to ensure perfect synchronism of movements of the conveyors 21, 40 and 46, preferably the conveyors 21, 40 and 46 are set in motion by the same common motor.

? important to observe that the packing machine 19 could comprise the unit? A training described above combined with a different type of unit? B of wrapping and/or to a different type of unit? Insert C; or the particular conformation of the unit? A training pu? be exploited regardless of the presence or otherwise of the other units? B, C and D described above. Similarly, the packaging machine 19 could comprise the unit? C insertion described above combined with a different type of unit? A training and / or a different type of unit? Wrapping B; or the particular conformation of the unit? C insertion pu? be exploited regardless of the presence or otherwise of the other units? A, B and D described above.

The embodiment illustrated in the attached figures refers to the production of a rigid packet 1 of rod-shaped smoking articles, but the present invention ? applicable without substantial modifications also to the realization of any other type of rigid package of rod-shaped articles, even non-smoking ones.

The embodiments described here can be combined with each other without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention.

The unit A of the formation described above has numerous advantages, as it allows to form the groups of smoking articles 14 in an effective (that is, forming only complete groups and without running the risk of damaging the smoking articles 14) and efficiently (that is, for a high operating speed and indicatively higher than 300-400 groups of smoking articles 14 per minute). Furthermore, the unit? A of training described above ? of relatively simple and compact construction.

The unit C of insertion described above has numerous advantages, as it allows to insert the groups of smoking articles 14 in the open containers 2 in an effective way (that is, by inserting all the smoking articles 14 in the corresponding through holes 18 of the containment walls 16 and 17 of the containers without damaging either the smoking articles 14 or the containers 2) and efficiently (that is, at a high operating speed and indicatively higher than 300-400 packets 1 per minute). Furthermore, the unit? C of insertion described above ? of relatively simple and compact construction.

LIST OF FIGURE REFERENCE NUMBERS

1 package

2 container

3 cover

4 zipper

5 upper wall

6 lower wall

7 anterior wall

8 rear wall

9 side wall

10 side wall

11 collar

12 front wall

13 sidewalls

14 smoking items

15 support system

16 retaining wall 17 retaining wall 18 holes

19 packing machine 20 loom

21 wrapping conveyor 22 wrapping drawer

24 hopper

25 outlet mouth

26 forming conveyor 39 actuator device

40 wrapping conveyor 41 wrapping pocket

42 wrapping wheel

45 hopper

46 Conveyor

47 pusher

48 actuator device

49 actuator device

A unit? of training

B unit? of wrapping

C unit? of insertion

D unit? closing

P1 wrapping path P3 wrapping path P5 path

D1 extraction direction D2 thrust direction

Claims (10)

1) Packaging machine (19) for making a rigid package (1) of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles; the packing machine (19) includes: a first wrapping conveyor (40) which advances along a first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping pocket (41) configured to contain a container (2) having one end? open; a second wrapping conveyor (21) which advances along a second wrapping path (P1) parallel to and alongside the first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping drawer (22) configured to contain a group of items (14); a third conveyor (46) which advances along a third path (P5) parallel to and alongside the second wrapping path (P1) at least one pusher (47) configured to push the group of articles (14); and a first actuator device (48) which ? configured to translate the pusher (47) along a push direction (D2) perpendicular to the third path (P5) to push the group of articles (14) out of the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) and then inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40); the packing machine (19) ? characterized by the fact that: the wrapping drawer (22) ? movably mounted on the second wrapping conveyor (21) to translate with respect to the second wrapping conveyor (21) along the thrust direction (D2); and ? provided a second actuator device (49) which ? configured to translate the wrapping drawer (22) along the thrust direction (D2) so as to insert the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first conveyor (40) of before the pusher (47) pushes the group of articles (14) from the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) into the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40 ) of wrapping. 2) Packaging machine (19) according to claim 1, wherein the second actuator device (49) is configured to keep the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40) until the pusher (47) has completely extracted the group of articles (14 ) from the wrapping drawer (22). 3) Packing machine (19) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first actuator device (48) ? configured to hold the pusher (47) at an end position along the push direction (D2) until the first actuator device (49) has completely disengaged the group of items (14) from the packing drawer (22) moving the wrapping drawer (22) away from the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40). 4) Packing machine (19) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the first actuator device (48) ? configured to initiate a return stroke of the pusher (47) away from the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40) only after the second actuator device (49) has already started a return stroke of the wrapping drawer (22) away from the container (2). 5) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims from 1 to 4, wherein: the container (2) comprises internally at least one containment wall (16, 17) which has a plurality of of through holes (18); And the pusher (47) ? configured to insert each article (14) into a corresponding through hole (18) of the containment wall (16, 17). 6) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims from 1 to 5, wherein: the container (2) comprises internally at least one containment wall (16, 17) which has a plurality of? of through holes (18); And the second actuator device (49) ? configured to bring the wrapping drawer (22) abutting against the containment wall (16, 17) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40). 7) Packaging machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: the wrapping drawer (22) comprises a plurality of? of holes (23) through cylindrical shape, each of which? separate and independent from the other through holes (23) and ? adapted to house a corresponding single article (14) of the group; And the pusher (47) comprises a plurality? rods (50) cylindrical, each of which? separate and independent from the other cylindrical rods (50) and ? adapted to pass through a corresponding through hole (23) of the wrapping drawer (22). 8) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the wrapping drawer (22) has a tapered front portion which enters the container (2) first. 9) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the first conveyor (40), the second conveyor (21) and the third conveyor (46) have a continuous law of motion. 10) Wrapping method for making a rigid package (1) of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles; the wrapping method includes the phases of: forward, by means of a first wrapping conveyor (40), along a first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping pocket (41) configured to contain a container (2) having one end? open; advance, by means of a second wrapping conveyor (21), along a second wrapping path (P1) parallel to and alongside the first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping drawer (22) configured to contain a group of articles (14) advancing, by means of a third conveyor (46), along a third path (P5) parallel to and alongside the second wrapping path (P1), at least one pusher (47) configured to push the group of articles (14); And translate, by means of a first actuator device (48), the pusher (47) along a push direction (D2) perpendicular to the third path (P5) to push the group of articles (14) out of the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) and then into the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40); the wrapping method ? characterized in that it comprises the further step of translating, by means of a second actuator device (49), the wrapping drawer (22) along the thrust direction (D2) so as to insert the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the packing pocket (41) of the first packing conveyor (40) before the pusher (47) pushes the group of articles (14) from the packing drawer (22) of the second packing conveyor (21) into to the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40). 1) Packaging machine (19) for making a rigid package (1) of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles; the packing machine (19) includes: a first wrapping conveyor (40) which advances along a first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping pocket (41) configured to contain a container (2) having one end? open; a second wrapping conveyor (21) which advances along a second wrapping path (P1) parallel to and alongside the first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping drawer (22) configured to contain a group of items (14); a third conveyor (46) which advances along a third path (P5) parallel to and alongside the second wrapping path (P1) at least one pusher (47) configured to push the group of articles (14); and a first actuator device (48) which ? configured to translate the pusher (47) along a push direction (D2) perpendicular to the third path (P5) to push the group of articles (14) out of the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) and then inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40); the packing machine (19) ? characterized by the fact that: the wrapping drawer (22) ? movably mounted on the second wrapping conveyor (21) to translate with respect to the second wrapping conveyor (21) along the thrust direction (D2); and ? provided a second actuator device (49) which ? configured to translate the wrapping drawer (22) along the thrust direction (D2) so as to insert the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first conveyor (40) of before the pusher (47) pushes the group of articles (14) from the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) into the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40 ) of wrapping. 2) Packaging machine (19) according to claim 1, wherein the second actuator device (49) is configured to keep the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40) until the pusher (47) has completely extracted the group of articles (14 ) from the wrapping drawer (22). 3) Packing machine (19) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first actuator device (48) ? configured to hold the pusher (47) at an end position along the push direction (D2) until the first actuator device (49) has completely disengaged the group of items (14) from the packing drawer (22) moving the wrapping drawer (22) away from the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40). 4) Packing machine (19) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the first actuator device (48) ? configured to initiate a return stroke of the pusher (47) away from the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40) only after the second actuator device (49) has already started a return stroke of the wrapping drawer (22) away from the container (2). 5) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims from 1 to 4, wherein: the container (2) comprises internally at least one containment wall (16, 17) which has a plurality of of through holes (18); And the pusher (47) ? configured to insert each article (14) into a corresponding through hole (18) of the containment wall (16, 17). 6) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims from 1 to 5, wherein: the container (2) comprises internally at least one containment wall (16, 17) which has a plurality of? of through holes (18); And the second actuator device (49) ? configured to bring the wrapping drawer (22) abutting against the containment wall (16, 17) inside the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40). 7) Packaging machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: the wrapping drawer (22) comprises a plurality of? of through holes of cylindrical shape, each of which? separate and independent from the other through holes and ? adapted to house a corresponding single article (14) of the group; And the pusher (47) comprises a plurality? of cylindrical rods, each of which ? separate and independent from the other cylindrical rods and ? adapted to pass through a corresponding through hole of the wrapping drawer (22). 8) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the wrapping drawer (22) has a tapered front portion which enters the container (2) first. 9) Packing machine (19) according to one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the first conveyor (40), the second conveyor (21) and the third conveyor (46) have a continuous law of motion. 10) Wrapping method for making a rigid package (1) of rod-shaped articles, in particular smoking articles; the wrapping method includes the phases of: forward, by means of a first wrapping conveyor (40), along a first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping pocket (41) configured to contain a container (2) having one end? open; advance, by means of a second wrapping conveyor (21), along a second wrapping path (P1) parallel to and alongside the first wrapping path (P3) at least one wrapping drawer (22) configured to contain a group of articles (14) advancing, by means of a third conveyor (46), along a third path (P5) parallel to and alongside the second wrapping path (P1), at least one pusher (47) configured to push the group of articles (14); And translate, by means of a first actuator device (48), the pusher (47) along a push direction (D2) perpendicular to the third path (P5) to push the group of articles (14) out of the wrapping drawer (22) of the second wrapping conveyor (21) and then into the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40); the wrapping method ? characterized in that it comprises the further step of translating, by means of a second actuator device (49), the wrapping drawer (22) along the thrust direction (D2) so as to insert the wrapping drawer (22) inside the container (2) carried by the packing pocket (41) of the first packing conveyor (40) before the pusher (47) pushes the group of articles (14) from the packing drawer (22) of the second packing conveyor (21) into to the container (2) carried by the wrapping pocket (41) of the first wrapping conveyor (40).