JP7269241B2 - Method and device for packaging sanitary articles - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for the packaging of sanitary articles such as absorbent articles such as diapers, sanitary napkins, panty liners, incontinence pads or the like. Sanitary products are produced by a production line.

Production lines for such products are known to have high production capacities allowing the production of over 1000 products per minute. However, packaging machines, especially for providing packaging units containing only a few products, generally have a small production capacity. Therefore, one or more devices for diverting a product stream coming from a production line and flowing into two or more substreams directed to a double-lane packaging machine or two or more individual packaging machines. It is known to provide diverters.

US Pat. No. 5,300,003 discloses a method and arrangement for processing diapers, wherein diapers coming from a production line are divided into a first grouped set and a second grouped set. Alternately conveyed, one or more moving conveyors are assigned to grouped sets via which groups of products are conveyed to packaging equipment.

No. 2004/0000002 directs first and second bundles of products, each consisting of a first number of products and a second number of products, to a first grouping mechanism and a second grouping mechanism. Disclosed is a diverter that alternately moves the

US Pat. No. 5,300,003 discloses a diverter that alternately moves a stack of products and an individual product towards a first grouping mechanism and a second grouping mechanism.

The need for high flexibility increases with the increasing variety of packaging units of different types or sizes.

U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0071318 French Patent Application No. 22798370 WO2013/038310 U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0065270 U.S. Pat. No. 7,475,771

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device and method for packaging sanitary articles with a high degree of flexibility.

The object of the invention is solved by a device and a method with the features of claims 1 and 7 . Preferred embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.

According to a first aspect, there is provided an apparatus for packaging sanitary articles comprising at least one diverter and M packaging stations, M≧2, arranged downstream of the diverter, each The packaging facility comprises a grouping mechanism and at least one packaging device, wherein bundles of products are alternately directed to the packaging facility by at least one diverter, each bundle containing at least one product. and a control unit capable of controlling at least one diverter for alternately diverting a repeated series of M×N product bundles, where N≧2, to the packaging facility; The number of at least two of the N bundles of the series of M×N product bundles directed to the first packaging facility is configurable to be different.

According to a second aspect, there is provided a method for the packaging of sanitary articles, wherein at least one diverter alternately directs a bundle of products to M packaging stations, each bundle comprises at least one product, the diverter alternately directing bundles of products in a repeating series of M×N bundles, where N≧2, to the packaging facility; At least two of the N bundles of the attached series of M×N bundles differ in number.

In other words, at least one diverter has at least two delivery lines, and according to the invention using diverters, at least two bundles differing in number are directed to at least one of the two delivery lines of the diverter. be transported.

The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” etc. in the text of the application are used merely as a reference and are not to be understood as any indication of any hierarchy or structural arrangement.

Product bundles in the product stream coming from the production line are alternately directed to the packaging equipment. In one embodiment, at least one packaging device of the first packaging station and the second packaging station is adapted for packaging two bundles of different size products in one common package or successive packages. ing. Alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, at least the first wrapping station is provided with two or more wrapping machines or one or more dual-lane wrapping machines. When diverting the flow of products in a repeating series of M×N bundles of N≧2 products, each bundle is adapted to an associated packaging machine or lane of a packaging machine. For example, the apparatus comprises a first packaging machine and a second packaging machine, the first packaging machine comprising two machines each carrying a number a of first bundles A and a number b of second bundles B. , and the second packaging installation comprises one packaging machine on which the number c of third bundles C is conveyed. In this case, the diverter conveys number a of products to the first packaging equipment, conveys number c of products to the second packaging equipment, conveys number b of products to the first packaging equipment, and conveys number c of products to the first packaging equipment. products can be transported to a second packaging facility, and so on. In other words, the repeated series of four bundles is ACBC, where the number a and b of bundle B may be chosen to be unequal.

The number of products in each bundle in one embodiment is the same as the number of products packaged in one packaging unit. In another embodiment, consecutive bundles are grouped and multiple grouped bundles are packaged together.

In one embodiment, the packaging facility each comprises at least two packaging machines or at least one dual lane packaging machine.

Alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, the apparatus comprises two packaging facilities arranged downstream of one associated diverter. Such diverters are of simple design. Additional diverters may be provided to further divide the product stream. a diverter feeding the first packaging station and the second packaging station conveys a first number a of products to the first packaging machine and a third number c of products to the second packaging machine; A second number b of products can be controlled to convey to a first packaging facility and a fourth number d of products to a second packaging facility. In other words, the repeated series of four bundles is ACBD, and at least two numbers a and b are not identical. The number c of the third bundles C and the number d of the fourth bundles D in one embodiment may be chosen to be the same. In further embodiments, the numbers c and d may be set differently. The two numbers a and b may be packed together using a common wrapping machine, or may be packed using a dual lane wrapping machine or two wrapping machines.

In one embodiment, at least one grouping mechanism of the M packaging facilities is a stacker with a conveyor having multiple pockets for receiving individual products. Stackers are described, for example, with reference to those contained in US Pat. Bundles of products are grouped in stackers and groups of products are unloaded or moved from the stackers for successive packaging. In one embodiment, the conveyor is an open loop conveyor and pockets may be selectively added to or removed from the conveyor. In another embodiment, the conveyor is a closed loop circulating conveyor. In one embodiment, the walls separating successive pockets are arranged in a fixed position on the conveyor. In another embodiment, the walls are movable within limits to the conveyor to allow the pocket size to be reduced after receiving the product. Such forms may be used for compressing the product or inspecting the product.

In one embodiment, the speed of the stacker is adapted to the speed of the diverter and the speed of the product stream so that successive bundles are inserted into the pockets of the stacker without gaps.

In an alternate embodiment, consecutive bundles in the same series of bundles are separated by one or more empty pockets in the stacker. In an alternative or additional embodiment, successive bundles of products of a continuous series of bundles of products are separated by one or more empty pockets in the stacker. Empty pockets can store additional products of the same or different types for packaging together with the bundle of products. The size of the empty pockets between successive bundles can vary, especially if the walls between successive pockets are movable with respect to the conveyor.

In an alternative embodiment, at least one grouping mechanism of the M packaging facilities is a stacker with a conveyor with multiple compartments for bundles of products. In one embodiment, the size of each compartment is adjustable to adjust the compartment size to the size of the bundle received. The walls defining the compartments are movable with respect to each wall for size adjustment. In one embodiment, once the bay is loaded, the leading wall is moved faster than the trailing wall, thereby increasing the size of the bay. Alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, after loading the compartment, the trailing wall is moved toward the leading wall to compress the bundles in the compartment. In one embodiment, a gap is formed between the trailing wall and the leading wall in the successive section when the trailing wall moves toward the leading wall in the same section. In another embodiment, the trailing wall of successive compartments is interlocked with the leading wall of the compartment such that the size of successive compartments increases as the trailing wall moves toward the leading wall of the same compartment. In yet another embodiment, the movement of successive trailing walls and/or successive leading walls is ganged, preferably the compartment sizes differ to match the associated bundle size.

In the following, embodiments of the invention are described in detail with reference to the drawings. Like elements are denoted by like reference numerals throughout the drawings.

FIG. 1 schematically shows an apparatus for packaging sanitary articles with a diverter and a first packaging station and a second packaging station arranged downstream of the diverter. Figure 2 schematically shows a stacker of a packaging installation for the apparatus of Figure 1; FIG. 3 schematically shows an alternative embodiment of a stacker similar to FIG.

FIG. 1 shows an apparatus 1 for the packaging of hygiene articles 5 (see FIG. 2) (hereinafter product 5) such as absorbent articles such as diapers, sanitary napkins, panty liners, incontinence pads or the like. is schematically shown.

The apparatus 1 in FIG. 1 comprises a diverter 10 , a first packaging station 11 and a second packaging station 12 arranged downstream of the diverter 10 . In the embodiment shown, the first packaging facility 11 comprises a first grouping mechanism 21 and two packaging devices 31,32. The second packaging facility 12 comprises a second grouping mechanism 22 and two packaging devices 33,34. A control unit 100 is located in the diverter 10 . Control unit 100 in one embodiment is part of a central control unit (not shown) provided for monitoring and/or controlling device 1 . In other embodiments, individual control units 100 are located on the diverter 10 .

A product stream S coming from a production line (not shown) is conveyed to a diverter 10 . The diverter 10 is controllable to alternately direct the bundles of products A, B, C, D to the first packaging station 11 and the second packaging station 12 by using the diverter 10. , in the embodiment shown, the first bundle A and the second bundle B are conveyed to the first packaging facility 11 and the third bundle C and the fourth bundle D are conveyed to the second It is transported to packaging facility 12 . In the embodiment shown, in the first packaging installation 11, a first bundle A is processed in a first packaging device 31 and a second bundle B is processed in a second packaging device 32. . Similarly, in the second packaging facility 12, the third bundle C is processed by the third packaging device 33 and the fourth bundle D is processed by the fourth packaging device 34. As shown in FIG. Terms such as "first", "second", "third" and "fourth" are used merely to distinguish between bundles and/or devices and may be used to distinguish between priority, hierarchy and/or It is understood not to be construed as defining any order of structural arrangement.

Using the control unit 100, the number of products in each bundle A, B, C, D can be individually set, each bundle A, B, C, D comprising at least one product. . A diverter 10 alternately directs the bundles of products A, B, C, D to a first packaging station 11 and a second packaging station 12 in a repeating series of four bundles ACBD. It can be controlled to attach Of course, the number of each bundle A, B, C, D can be chosen to be the same. However, for greater flexibility, the first bundle A of products and the second bundle B of products to be processed in at least the first packaging device 11 can be chosen to differ in number. For maximum flexibility, the third bundle C of products and the fourth bundle D of products to be processed in the second packaging device 11 can be chosen to differ in number. In one embodiment, to set the number, the control unit 100 is equipped with a man-machine interface that allows the user to set the number of each bundle A, B, C, D individually.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that additional packaging equipment can be added to one or both packaging facilities and/or additional packaging equipment can be added downstream of the diverter 10 . In such cases, the number of bundles per run can be increased so that the number of products is applied to each packaging device.

In one embodiment shown, two packaging devices 31, 32, 33, 34 are provided for each packaging installation 11,12. In an alternative embodiment, in at least one packaging installation 11,12, a double lane packaging machine is provided instead of two packaging machines 31,32,33,34. In yet another embodiment, one packaging facility 11, 12 comprises only one packaging device.

The number of products in each bundle A, B, C, D is in one embodiment the same as the number of products packaged in one packaging unit on the four packaging devices 31, 32, 33, 34. . In another embodiment, successive bundles conveyed to one of the four packaging machines 31,32,33,34 are grouped and multiple bundles are sent to each packaging machine 31,32,33,34. are packaged together in

FIG. 2 schematically shows the grouping mechanism 21 of the device 1 of FIG. 1, which in the embodiment shown has a plurality of pockets 212 for receiving individual products 5. It is a stacker with a closed-loop circulation conveyor 210 . It will be appreciated that in the preferred embodiment, pockets 212 are provided along the entire path of conveyor 210, however, for convenience only a plurality of pockets 212 are shown in FIG.

The product 5 is inserted into the pocket 212 as shown schematically. According to the invention, the products 5 are supplied in two bundles A, B of different numbers. In the embodiment shown one bundle A comprises three products 5 and another bundle B comprises four products 5 . Further, in the illustrated embodiment, the shunting between successive bundles B and A in the continuous series of bundles ACBD and between the same series of bundles ACBD In each case between successive bundles A and B (see FIG. 1) there is one empty pocket 212 .

FIG. 3 schematically shows an alternative embodiment of the grouping mechanism 21 of the apparatus 1 of FIG. A stacker with a closed loop circulating conveyor 210 having a plurality of pocket compartments 213,214,215,216,217. It will be appreciated that in the preferred embodiment, compartments 213, 214, 215, 216, 217 are provided along the entire path of conveyor 210; however, for convenience, multiple compartments 213, 214, 215 , 216, 217 are shown in FIG. Each compartment 213, 214, 215, 216, 217 is bounded by a leading wall and a trailing wall. In preferred embodiments, the leading and trailing walls are movable relative to each other. In an alternative embodiment, one or more additional separation walls are provided between the leading and trailing walls of one compartment to separate the bundle of products into two or more sub-bundles. . Sub-bundles within one bundle are then fed to a common packaging machine. In yet another embodiment, different numbers of consecutive bundles A, B are inserted between the leading and trailing walls of a common compartment and fed to a common packaging device.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 allows for minimizing unused space along the conveyor path and, particularly for thick products 5, the size of the stacker shown in FIG. The size of the pocket 212 is smaller than that of the pocket 212 of . In particular, if both the trailing and leading walls of compartments 213, 214, 215, 216, 217 are movable with respect to the conveyor path, optimization of the positioning of bundles A, B along the path is possible. be. The clearance 218 between successive compartments 213, 214, 215, 216, 217 in one embodiment can be chosen to be the same as the set size. In the illustrated embodiment, the clearance is variable. This is especially true when two bags are filled at least partly in the same part or at the same time as two successive bundles A, B are moved apart and both bundles A, B are placed in a common bag. Allow two successive bundles A, B to move closer to each other for squeezing in.

Claims (12)

A device for the packaging of sanitary articles, comprising:
at least one diverter (10);
M packaging equipment (11, 12) with M≧2 arranged downstream of the diverter (10);
Each of said packaging facilities (11, 12) comprises a grouping mechanism (21) and at least one packaging device (31, 32) and comprises a bundle (A, B, C, D) of products (5). are alternately directed to said packaging equipment (11, 12) by means of at least one said diverter (10), each bundle (A, B, C, D) having at least one product ( 5), in an apparatus comprising
Alternating batches (A, B, C, D) of products (A, B, C, D) in a repeating series of M×N batches (ACBD) with N≧2 to said packaging equipment (11, 12) A control unit (100) is provided which is used to controllable at least one said diverter (10) for directing, said control unit (100) comprising a series of M×N N bundles (A , B) are configurable to be different, and
The grouping mechanism (21, 22) of at least the first packaging facility (11) among the M packaging facilities (11, 12) is a stacker equipped with a conveyor,
Said conveyor comprises a plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products (5) and/or a plurality of compartments (213, 214, 215, 216, 217),
At least the first packaging facility (11) of the M packaging facilities (11, 12),
at least two packaging devices (31, 32) supplied with a first number (a) of first bundles (A) and a second number (b) of second bundles (B), respectively, two packaging devices (31, 32), wherein said first number (a) and said second number (b) are not identical, or
at least one dual-lane packaging machine having lanes through which a first bundle (A) of a first number (a) and a second bundle (B) of a second number (b) are fed respectively; and wherein said first number (a) and said second number (b) are not the same;
A device for packaging sanitary articles, characterized in that Claim 1, characterized in that said M packaging stations (11, 12) each comprise at least two packaging devices (31, 32, 33, 34) or at least one double-lane packaging device. A device for the packaging of sanitary articles, as described in . 3. For packaging of sanitary articles according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the device comprises two packaging stations (11, 12) arranged downstream of one associated diverter (10). equipment for 4. Apparatus for the packaging of sanitary articles according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said conveyor is a closed-loop circulating conveyor (210). Said conveyor has said plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products (5), and in said stacker successive bundles of the same series of bundles (ACBD) are: 5. A device for the packaging of sanitary articles according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it is separated by one or more empty pockets (212). Said conveyor has said plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products (5) and in said stacker successive bundles of successive batches (ACBD) are , separated by one or more empty pockets (212). A method for packaging sanitary articles, comprising:
Bundles (A, B, C, D) of products (5) are alternately directed to M packaging stations (11, 12) using at least one diverter (10), each bundle (A, B, C, D) is a method comprising at least one product (5),
Said diverter (10) divides bundles (A, B, C, D) of products (5) in a repeated series of M×N bundles (ACBD) with N≧2 into said M packaging equipment (11, 12), and one series of M × N bundles (ACBD) of the M packaging equipment (11, 12) characterized in that at least two of the N bundles (A, B) directed to the first packaging installation (11) differ in number ,
In at least said first packaging station (11) of said M packaging stations (11, 12), products (5) are provided with a plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products and/or grouped using a stacker with a conveyor having a plurality of compartments (213, 214, 215, 216, 217) for receiving the bundles (A, B, C, D);
In at least said first packaging station (11) of said M packaging stations (11, 12), the product (5) is
At least two packaging devices (31, 32, 33, 34) supplied with a first number (a) of first bundles (A) and a second number (b) of second bundles (B), respectively. two packaging devices (31, 32, 33, 34) , wherein said first number (a) and said second number (b) are not identical, or
at least one dual-lane packaging machine having lanes through which a first bundle (A) of a first number (a) and a second bundle (B) of a second number (b) are each fed; and wherein said first number (a) and said second number (b) are not the same, and are packaged using a dual lane packaging machine;
A method for the packaging of sanitary articles. In each of said M packaging stations (11, 12), the products (5) are packaged using at least two packaging machines (31, 32, 33, 34) or at least one double-lane packaging machine. 8. A method for packaging sanitary articles according to claim 7 , characterized in that they are packaged. At least two of the N bundles directed to another one of said M packaging facilities (11, 12) of a series of M×N bundles of one product are 9. A method for the packaging of sanitary articles according to claim 7 or 8 , characterized in that the are different. 10. A method for the packaging of sanitary articles according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that said conveyor is a closed-loop circulating conveyor (210). In at least said first packaging station (11) of said M packaging stations (11, 12), products (5) are provided on said conveyor having a plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products. Grouped using said stacker, in said stacker consecutive bundles (A, B) of the same series of bundles (ACBD) are separated by one or more empty pockets (212) 11. A method for packaging sanitary articles according to claim 10 , characterized in that they are separated. In at least said first packaging station (11) of said M packaging stations (11, 12), products (5) are provided on said conveyor having a plurality of pockets (212) for receiving individual products. Grouped using said stacker, in said stacker successive bundles (A, B) of products of a continuous series of bundles (ACBD) are divided into one or more empty pockets ( 212) .

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