JPS62287816A - Method and device for packaging bread to package - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention 3. Detailed Description of the Invention [Object of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a type of sandwich usually used in fast food restaurants and take-out restaurants such as hamburgers. The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for packaging bread.

(Prior Art) Bakeries that make bread for fast food restaurants generally use a virtually continuous process, in which large quantities of baked bread are arranged on an endless conveyor belt, automatically sliced, For example, groups of 30 pieces are packaged in layers between films made of transparent plastic material. This plastic film is provided in large upper and lower rolls to continuously feed the moving sliced bread. The upper and lower films are sealed together and cut at the leading edge of the pan group and sealed and cut at the trailing edge of the pan group. As the partially sealed package moves along the conveyor, the opposite edges of the film are sealed together to close the package. Such steps are common in the baking industry. - By way of example, equipment for performing the above operations is commercially available from AMF Bakery Systems, Laburnum Avenue, Suchmond, Virginia.

This device is called H,S, bulk pan packer. U.S. Patent No. 3503175 and U.S. Patent No. 350837
No. 8 also discloses such a device.

PROBLEM SOLVED BY THE INVENTION One problem that has arisen in this field to date is that excess air is trapped within the plastic film when the sides are sealed to complete the package. This causes a "pillow effect" in which the film bulges outward from the pan. In this case, the bread slices move within the package and the top slices of the bread slices move relative to the bottom and then stick out, causing them to become damaged, crumbled, or deformed. In such cases, the sliced bread becomes unusable because it is damaged or because it will not fit into the flat multi-bread toasters used in first-food restaurants. Because the toast is not flat, it becomes uneven when toasted. This situation is unacceptable in a highly competitive field.

Special sandwich breads have a superior profile than regular hamburger breads and are sliced on at least two levels to create three vertical slices, or three-tier breads. The separation problem described above becomes particularly acute in such cases.

Another situation in which the bread slices fall apart from each other is that in machines that slice the bread as it moves on a conveyor, spaces must be provided between the rows of bread to receive the slicers. This increases the lateral spacing of the breads and means that the breads have room to move and separate within the package.

In bulk packaging, bread packages are stacked in baskets at the end of the conveyor line of the equipment.

These baskets are shipped directly to fast food restaurants. If there is a billow effect, the bread will not remain stationary within the package and will roll due to the movement of the basket during transportation. This causes the bread slices to separate and collide, causing the bread to break and deform as described above.

To overcome bellow effect, a stretchable plastic film is used, which clings to the pans and holds them in place. A heat-shrinkable plastic film is also used, which shrinks to fit the contours of the bread. Other techniques include sealing the plastic sheet to the pan by applying a vacuum within the package before final sealing along the side edges. None of these processes have gained acceptance in the field for several reasons. One reason is that the plastic film that clings to the contours of the bread is difficult to remove and time consuming to avoid damaging the bread. This is a big problem during rush hours when a large amount of sand inches is needed.

Another problem with stretch and shrink films is that they do not have sufficient porosity to provide breathability. In this case, the steam in the bread is stored and turns into steam when it is cooled. If the steam escapes from the bread before sealing, the packaged bread will become tough.

[Structure of the invention]

(Means and effects for solving the problems) According to the present invention, the above problems related to bulk packaging of bread are solved.
The leading and trailing edges of the upper and lower plastic sheets that cover the loaves carried by the conveyor are sealed, and the side edges of the sheets are held to push the loaves inside the package to increase the density of the loaves, and the This is solved by removing some air to eliminate the bellow effect, but preventing the sheets from touching and crowding the bread outline, and by sealing the side edges of the sheets to complete the package.

Plastic materials with desirable breathing properties can be used to maintain fresh packaged products.

(Example) FIG. 1 schematically shows the packaging method and apparatus of the present invention. A continuous conveyor 12 conveys the baked bread to the packaging device 10 of the present invention. The breads are already in groups of 24 or 30 pieces arranged in six rows on the conveyor 14, for example. These breads may be sliced when they reach the device 10. Grouping and slicing operations are performed with conventional equipment.

In the film supply section 16, the conveyor 12 transfers the grouped breads to another conveyor 18. In section 16, a continuous upper roll 22 of thick flexible transparent plastic film and a lower roll 24 of the same film feed the film in synchronization with the movement of the pans on the conveyor. The film from the lower roll 24 is transferred to roll 1 on the conveyor 18.
Below 4, those from the upper roll 22 extend above the rolls in one group and six rows. The upper and lower films are considerably wider than the pan row so that there is film space on both sides of the pan row. One example is a group of 30 pieces of bread in 6 rows.
The number of columns and pieces are arbitrary.

As is well known, the upper and lower sealers 30, 32fJ<2 are operated synchronously to weld the films along two spaced parallel strips that cross the film and are located above and below the film. The cutting bar cuts the two layers of film between the two parallel seals to form the rear seal of the bread package that has passed through the open sealing bar and before the next bread package that has not yet passed through that bar. Form a partial seal. The sides are open for the package that has just passed sealing bars 30 and 32.

FIG. 1 shows a central sealing wheel 40,42, an air heater device 44 and a hot air tube 48 which are adapted to create a central seal between the upper and lower films forming the bread mix package.

A similar heater 44 and tube 48 are located below the conveyor 18. Suitable flexible conductors and air hoses (not shown) connect to this heater at coupling 45. As is well known, these two heaters and their associated air tubes blow hot air onto the upper and lower plastic films to soften or melt them. Wheels 40 and 42, which may be provided with knobs, rotate over the softened plastic sheet to fuse the two films together.

As shown, the heater is adjustable and supported by rails 50 suspended between side supports 52 on the frame of the device. The center seam of the bread package is optional. In other embodiments there is no such central seal.

The partial formation of the bread package up to this point is conventional and is carried out as in the apparatus described above.

According to the invention, the open-sided bread packages are then placed between a pair of gripper belts 56, 5 disposed on either side of the conveyor 18.
Enter 8. Each gripper belt serves to bring together the free edges of the upper and lower films on each side of the package. The belts rotate about a pair of horizontally spaced pulleys 60, 62, respectively, which are supported adjacent to respective side plates 66,68. One booth of each pair is driven in synchronization with the conveyor 18 by means not shown.

As shown in FIG. 2, the free edges 22b and 24b of the films 22a and 24a are connected to the surface of a low-friction member 70 made of a material such as Teflon, on which the lower film freely slides without being caught by the lower span of the gripper belt 56. held between. As shown in Figure 2.3, member 70 may be biased upwardly by spring 71 to provide the desired force to prevent edges 22b and 24b from sliding from side to side between the belt and the low friction surface. These gripper belts make high friction contact with the film to load the film onto member 70.

Immediately after gripper belts 56,58 engage the sides of the film to hold the edges of the package unclosed, side blows 74,76 engage both sides of the package. These blows slope inward in the downstream direction. The unsealed side edges of the package are held against lateral movement between gripper belts 56 and 58 and their respective low-friction surfaces, and blows 74 and 76 push inward against the outer rows of pans to open the pans. is positioned so that it pushes toward the center row.

This forms a more compact grouping such that adjacent breads touch each other within the package. This dense grouping of breads supports each other and eliminates the possibility of a slice shifting from the slices below or above it.

Consider steps to avoid pillow effects in sealing the sides of packages. As shown in Figure 1.3.4, after the openings on both sides of the package have passed through the gripper belts 56, 58, they are attached to perforated endless belts 82. with paired spacing on each side of the package. 84 and 82', 8
4' Passed through.

In FIG. 3, perforated belt 82 has three perforated belts spaced in a triangular pattern around the periphery of upper air chamber 86.
It passes around pulleys 82a, 82b, and 82c. Similarly, the perforated belt 84 has pulleys 84a, 48b arranged in a triangular pattern around the lower air chamber 86'.
Pass around 84c.

Driven pulleys 90 and 92 are mounted on a common axle driven by suitable devices not shown.

The drive chain 94 passes around the drive pulley 90, through an idler pulley on the axis of the spindle 82b, and around the pulley 96 of the wheel 62 of the gripper belt 56.

The second drive chain 98 passes through the pulley 92, the second pulley 102 and the spindle 82a, and rotates the spindle 82a, thereby rotating the perforated belt 82. driving the other boolean or heald 106 on the shaft 104;
Or rotate the spindle 84a to make the perforated belt 84.
Rotate. Of course, other power devices can be connected to the gripper belt 56.
It can also be used to drive the perforated healds 82 and 84.

As shown in FIG. 4, upper air chamber 86 is open along its bottom surface and lower air chamber 86' is open along its top surface. These chambers are duct 86a
, 86a', and these ducts pass through the side plate 66. Ducts 86a and 86a' are chambers 86 and 86'.
Connect to a blower that draws air from the As shown in FIG. 4, air is drawn into chambers 86 and 86' through perforated belts 82,84. This airflow is carried out at the open edge 22 of the film.
b and 24b are drawn to belts 82, 84 to keep the edges apart.

A flat nozzle 11.0 is supported on the side plate 66 and has an inner end adjacent the open edges of the upper and lower films. Nozzle 110 is also connected to a blower to draw air between the film edges 22b and 24b as they pass through belts 82 and 84. □ The configuration described in connection with Figure 3.4 is on the right side of the conveyor 18 and is adapted to draw air from both sides of the partially closed package.

As soon as the unsealed edges of the film pass through the perforated belt and the air chamber, they are rotatably supported on the frame by upper and lower sealing rollers 1.
12a and 112b.

Heater 116 heats the air drawn by tube 118 and directs the hot air to tube 120. Tube 120 blows this air onto the upper film on upper wheel 112a.

A similar arrangement of heaters and tubes is placed below the conveyor 18 to blow hot air onto the lower film of the lower sealing roll 12b. These wheels are spring biased and retain and weld the melted plastic to provide a side seal of the bread package in a known manner. This action is performed on both sides of the bread package to ensure a complete seal of the package.

The side seam thus begins at the front edge of the partially completed bread package and the air between the top and bottom films is evacuated from both sides. This operation continues until the sides of the film pass nozzle 110 and the bag is completely sealed by wheels 112a and 112b.

High gaps are not created between the films where the plastic gets entangled with each pan. A conventional device using such a high vacuum is shown, for example, in US Pat. No. 2,753,671. The use of such a high vacuum causes the film to cling tightly to each individual pan, making it difficult to remove during use, resulting in the problems discussed above.

In the present invention, the air between the upper and lower films is not removed to the extent that the film is subjected to tension or stress that exceeds its elastic limit. As shown in FIG. 6, the air is removed to such an extent that the film contacts the top and bottom surfaces of the bread, and there is only a slight depression between the breads. When the top or bottom film is removed from the pan, the film does not stick to the pan and can be removed with one hand.

A particularly suitable film for use in the present invention is polyethylene film from Princeton Packaging Co., Dallas, Texas. The film is made of low-density polyethylene made by a pour extrusion process and has a thickness of 0.65 mm.
1 from the mill. It is an OO mill. It is commercially available under the trade names Polysil B and Super B.

A 1 and 2.5 horsepower blower drawing approximately 114 cm of water was used to remove air between the films and draw the side edges of the film to the perforated belt. These blowers are manufactured by Gust Manufacturing Co. of Pent Harbor, Michigan.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The present invention can be implemented without disrupting or slowing down existing breaking, slicing, and packaging operations in commercial bakeries. The tightly grouped and mutually supported slices of bread within the package do not easily separate or fall off as occurs with pillow-effect packaging, making the packaging of the present invention suitable for delivery to fast food restaurants. Can be stacked within the busnand used.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a part of the bread packaging apparatus of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a device for holding the unsealed side of partially packaged items and a device for tightly packing bread groups;
The figure shows a schematic diagram of the device for keeping the side edges apart, Figure 4 is a detailed view of the air chamber and vacuum nozzle, Figure 5 is a perspective view of the air removal device, and Figure 6 shows the state of the plastic film in complete packaging. FIG. 12.18... Conveyor, 10... Packaging device, 2Q
. 24...Film roll, 30.32...Sealing bar, 40.42...Sealing wheel, 44...
...Heater, 48...Air tube, 56.58...
・Gripper belt, 70...Low friction member, 74.76
...Bucault, 82.84.82', 84'...
Endless Held, 82...Koumei Belt. Applicant's agent Sato -yu f5iξ Fyo〒3

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A group of breads is moving along a conveyor, and thin plastic films are placed above and below the group, and the films are sealed along the front and rear edges of the group, and on both sides of the group. In a method of automatically packaging a group of breads as a whole in which these films are extended over the group of breads and left unsealed to form a partially completed package, when said group of breads is moved on a conveyor. Hold the edges of the upper and lower films on each side of the group of breads, seal the side edges as the tightly grouped breads advance on the conveyor, and seal the edges between the upper and lower films as the side edges are sealed. The air in the pan is partially pulled out so that the film contacts the top and bottom surfaces of the pan but is not stressed beyond its yield point, so that the film can grip the pan easily and at high speeds without damaging it. A method of packaging bread in a removable packaging. 2. The step of partially drawing air includes engaging the side edges of the upper and lower films and keeping them apart while drawing air from between the films. the method of. 3. Engaging the lateral edges of the film includes passing the lateral edges of each side of the partially completed package near upper and lower chambers on each side, such that the chambers engage the edges of the film. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein air is drawn from the adjacent area and the edges of the film are drawn toward the upper and lower chambers to hold the edges apart. 4. Passing moving perforated belts between the chambers and the edges of the plastic film, respectively, so that the edges of the film engage with these belts to facilitate the movement of the edges along the chamber and past it. 4. The method of claim 3, comprising: 5. A group of breads is moving along a conveyor and thin plastic films are placed above and below the group of breads and the films are sealed along the front and rear edges of the group of breads;
In a method for automatically wrapping a group of breads as a whole in which these films are left unsealed by extending them beyond the group on both sides of the group of breads to form a partially completed package, said group of breads comprising: holding the edges of the upper and lower films on each side of the loaf as it moves on the conveyor, pushing each side of the partially completed package inward while holding the unsealed side edges; thereby grouping the breads more closely together in a partially completed package so that adjacent breads support each other, and partially drawing out the air between the upper and lower films when the side edges are sealed. so that the film contacts the top and bottom surfaces of the pan but is not stressed beyond its yield point, so that the film can be easily grasped and removed at high speed without damaging the pan, and is tightly clustered. A method of packaging bread in a package comprising: sealing the side edges as the bread travels on a conveyor; 6. The step of partially evacuating includes engaging the side edges of the upper and lower films and keeping them apart while evacuating air from between the films. Method. 7. The step of engaging the side edges of the film includes passing the side edges of each side of the partially completed package near upper and lower chambers on each side, such that the chambers engage the edges of the film. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein air is evacuated from the adjacent area and the edges of the film are pulled toward the upper and lower chambers to hold the edges apart. 8. Passing moving perforated belts between the chambers and the edges of the plastic film, respectively, so that the edges of the film engage these belts and cause the edges to move along and past the chamber. 8. The method of claim 7, comprising facilitating. 9. The method of claim 6 including slicing the bread to form at least top and bottom slices before forming the partially completed package. 10. A group of sliced bread moves along a conveyor and places thin plastic films above and below the group and seals these films along the front and rear edges of the group, and on both sides of the group In an apparatus for automatically packaging groups of sliced bread as a whole which have been left unstretched and unsealed to form a partially completed package, each of the groups as the bread moves on a conveyor. A device for holding the edges of the upper and lower films on the side of the pan, and a device that partially removes the air between the upper and lower films when the side edges are sealed so that the film touches the upper and lower surfaces of the pan but exceeds its yield point. a device which leaves the bread untensioned or stressed so that the film can be easily grasped and removed at high speed without damaging the bread as the bread is moved in close groups on a conveyor; and a device for sealing the side edges. 11. The air removal device includes a device for engaging the side edges of the upper and lower films and keeping them apart while air is removed from between the films.
Apparatus described in section. 12. The engaging device is above and below the unsealed side edges of the films to evacuate air from respective areas of the two films, thereby drawing the edges into their respective chambers and separating the side edges of the films. 12. The apparatus of claim 11, including a chamber. 13. a pair of perforated belts on each side of the package, each disposed between a chamber and a side edge of the film;
13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising means for moving the belts in synchronization with the movement of the conveyor conveying the batches of bread. 14. A group of sliced bread is moving along a conveyor and thin plastic films are placed above and below the group, these films are sealed along the front and rear edges of the group, and these films are placed on both sides of the group. In an apparatus for automatically packaging a group of sliced breads as a whole in which the film is extended over the group of breads and left unsealed to form a partially completed package, said group of breads is moved on a conveyor. Sometimes a device for holding the edges of the upper and lower films on each side of the pan group, and when said side edges are sealed, the air between the upper and lower films is partially drawn so that the film contacts the top and bottom surfaces of the pan. a device which allows the film to be easily grasped and removed at high speed without damaging the pan, such that the pan is not pulled or stressed beyond its yield point; and a device for sealing the side edges as the bread travels on a conveyor. 15. The device of claim 14, wherein the air removal device includes a device that engages the side edges of the upper and lower films to keep them apart during air removal. 16. The engaging device includes chambers disposed above and below the unsealed side edges of the films for evacuating air from respective areas of the two films, thereby drawing the edges into the respective chambers and tightening the films. 16. The device of claim 15, wherein the device separates the side edges of the lateral edges of the wafer. 17. further comprising a pair of perforated belts disposed on each side of the package between the side edges of the chamber and the film, respectively, and a device for moving the perforated belts in synchronization with the movement of the conveyor conveying the bread. An apparatus according to claim 16. 18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said film is a low density polyethylene of about 0.65 mil to about 1.00 mil thick made by a cast extrusion process.