MXPA99005040A - Automatic forming machine of t - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a machine for forming and sticking lids to packages, characterized in that it comprises: a. a lower horizontal transport to carry containers with open ends with side walls inside the machine; b. a first plurality of adhesive applicators located at one end of the conveyor for applying adhesive to certain side walls of the containers; an elevator at the end of the conveyor adjacent to the applicators to continuously receive and elevate the containers in a vertical direction inside the machine without lowering between the packages, the elevator comprises a pair of continuous belts mounted on parallel indented wheels and having a plurality of members cross-linked to it at regular intervals, each cross member includes a plurality of support members to attach to the containers; a feeder located along the path of the lifter to provide blanked lids on the containers e. a second plurality of adhesive applicators located along the path of the feeder to apply adhesive to certain tabs of the blanket covers; a plurality of locatable adjustable angled compression shoes located along the path of the elevator on the feeder to deform the tabs of the blanks around the package; and g. An ejector ram to remove the covered container from the machine

Description

AUTOMATIC COVER FORMING MACHINE DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to container forming machines, and in particular to a new and improved method and apparatus for forming and fixing covers to hard cardboard containers. In the packaging industry, numerous containers and hard cardboard designs have been developed over the years. Such containers are typically constructed of corrugated material and are used to transport and store a wide variety of products such as fresh fruits and vegetables, bottled and canned food, meat and the like. Hardboard materials can be corrugated single-sided, corrugated single-wall, (double-sided) corrugated double wall, triple-wall corrugated, etc. Containers can also be made from other cardboard products including, but not limited to, cardboard for containers, cardboard for boxes, cardboard for lining and cardboard. Of the many types of hard cardboard containers that have been developed, many use lids that are separate from the main container box. A "box" (or "cover") is a large, usually rectangular container made of hard cardboard or paperboard and is designed to hold a given number (for example 12 or 24) smaller units such as containers, bottles, cans or pieces of agricultural products. A "tray" is the term used to describe a variety of different containers, but which is typically used to describe a type of box which uses a separate lid. Tray boxes can also refer to containers designed to maintain a certain weight or volume of product (eg 35 pounds of grapes, 60 pounds of beef, etc.). There are several machines in the industry which can form boxes of trays with open ends (ie without a lid). Said machines are typically included as part of a larger production line as follows: a first machine forms the empty tray box on its own, a second machine fills the box with its contents, a third machine forms or provides a cover for the box and the fourth machine fixes the lid to the box. The existing cap and forming machines are slow in operation and mechanically difficult to handle. Some existing machines lift the tray box vertically upwards towards the lid on a table which moves up and down from a lower position to a higher position. The operation of said machines is extremely slow since the next, in-line box must wait for the table to retract to its lower position before the box can move in position on the table.

Other lid-forming machines employ a ram which lowers the lid towards the box. These machines suffer from the serious disadvantage of not having good adhesion between the sides of the lid and the box. This is because there is little or no lateral support for the sides of the box as the edges of the lid are pressed against it. The present invention overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages of lidding and bonding machines, and provides additional benefits through an improved, vertically oriented machine which is capable of forming and adhering lids to hard cardboard containers with open ends. The improved machine includes a lower horizontal conveyor for transporting containers with open ends inside the machine; a vertical lifting section that includes a novel lifting mechanism for lifting the containers; a cap feed mechanism located along the path of the vertical lift section to provide the caps and place them on the containers; a series of angled, adjustable, spring-mounted compression shoes including a novel frictional cover fastening member along the path of the vertical lift section on the cap feed mechanism to deform the sides of the caps around the container; and an ejection mechanism to remove the covered container from the machine. During operation, a full box or tray approaches the feeder zone on a motorized belt which provides a graduation function. As the box enters the machine, the innovative chain elevator mechanism moves over the elevator. As the box moves towards its position on the elevator, an adhesive is applied along two of the upper sides of the box. The elevator then elevates the box to the reported adhesion station. As the filled box moves over the elevator and begins to move upwards, a lid sheet is pulled from a side hopper and moved into position on the box. As the lid sheet moves in position, adhesive is applied to the underside of two of the lids on the lid sheet. The vertical side walls of the filled box are perpendicular to the lid sheet. The upward movement of the elevator leads these side walls to contact the lid sheet in such a way that the box acts as a mandrel pushing the lid sheet (now on top of the box) upward within the adjustable forming lids and the compression shoes. These lids and shoes fold the outer lids of the lid sheet over the top of the side walls of the boxes, pressing them together. During said operation the side walls of the box may tend to be bent or move from its vertical position, which may affect. the adhesion of the walls to the lid covers. In order to minimize movement, the present invention includes a plurality of novel friction members which press the top of the lid firmly against the vertical side walls as they move upward, thereby keeping them in a vertical position. In addition, even when a slight movement of the side walls occurs, the mounting of pivot springs of the compression shoes allows them to conform to such movement with which a good adhesion is ensured. ~ The upward movement of the elevator stops very briefly at this stage to allow a moment for the adhesive to settle. Meanwhile, another container box starts moving towards the position on the elevator below, and another lid starts to move on it. The compression shoes then react and release the sealed box, and the elevator moves the box up towards the discharge area. At the same time, the elevator brings the next box up to begin the compression and sealing process again.

The novelty elevator of the present invention allows subsequent boxes to enter the machine quickly, without waiting for a platform or other fastener to be lowered to receive them. The novel friction members ensure good adhesion between the lid and the box minimizing any curvature or other movement of the side walls of the vertical during the adhesion process. The lid forming machine of the present invention can be used to achieve a variety of different actions related to the formation and / or adhesion of different types of lids to different types of container boxes. In a set of alternative embodiments, the machine can be modified and adjusted to facilitate the formation and adhesion of lids having only two side lids (instead of four) to the containers. Such modalities will eliminate (deactivate) the use of one of the sets of adhesive applicators so that the adhesive only applies to the two parallel edges where there will be cover lids. These modalities will also eliminate the need for one of the. sets of parallel deforming lids and shoes, since there will be no lids on two of the lateral sides. This can be achieved simply by moving the appropriate lids and shoes out of the way of the vertical path of the container and the lid. The determination of which set of adhesive applicators and which set of forming lids and shoes will be removed will depend on which cover lids are present and which have been removed. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any set of parallel cover lids can be removed, thereby making adjustments to the machine. In another set of modalities the machine can be modified and adjusted to facilitate the formation and adhesion of lids having lids which require mule folds. The lids in such covers ordinarily include two fold lines. For such lids, the lids and shoes may be fixed in an alternating relationship such that the outer edges are first bent together with the outermost pre-scratched (or punched) fold line when making contact with an external level. of the alternate tongue and shoe. Then as the lid is pushed upward, the inner edges contact an inner tongue and shoe level resug in a second fold together with the internal pre-scratched (or perforated) lid fold line. The action of the box against the first folded lid causes the lid to be fixed under the second bent lid to obtain a side wall of a firm lid.

In another set of modalities, the machine can be modified and adjusted to facilitate the formation of caps which do not adhere directly to the container box. Many times it may be desirable that the lid does not adhere to the box itself (for example the caps with various folds described in the above embodiment). This would require the removal (deactivation) of the appropriate adhesive applicators either alone or in conjunction with the adjustments to the shoes and lids. It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide a compact machine capable of rapidly forming the hard board lids for hard cardboard containers with open ends, adhering or not adhering the lids to the containers. It is another important object of the present invention to provide a vertically oriented lid forming machine that ensures secure adhesion of hard cardboard containers. It is another important object of the present invention to provide a hard carton hoist as part of the lid forming and adhesive machine which allows a subsequent box to enter the machine to begin processing before the process is completed. previous box has been completed.

It is yet another object It is important for the present invention to provide a vertically oriented lid forming machine that uses a plurality of friction members which engage the upper part of the caps and press it down against the container in order to minimize the curvature and sliding movement of the walls. side of the container to measures that the lids of the caps adhere to it. It is still another important object of the present invention to provide a vertically oriented cap forming machine that utilizes a plurality of compression shoes loaded with pivotally mounted adjustable springs which are capable of conforming to slight movements of the container side walls as the lid covers adhere to it. It is also another important object of the present invention to provide a vertically oriented lid foaming machine in which the lid hopper can be recharged during operation without interrupting the process of the machine. It is another important object the present invention to provide a machine vertically oriented to form lids for hard cardboard containers without adhering the lids to the containers.

It is another important object of the present invention to provide a vertically oriented machine for forming caps with multiple folds for hard cardboard containers. Additional objects of the invention will be obvious from the detailed descriptions and claims described herein. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is an elevation end view of the machine of the present invention. Figure 2 is a partially cut-away elevation side view of the invention shown in Figure 1. Figure 3A is a perspective view of the operational parts of the machine before the entrance of a container box or lid. Figure 3B is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 3A showing the inward movement of the machine of a box and a lid. Figure 3C is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 3B showing the box in the elevator of the machine with the lid on it. Figure 3D is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 3C showing the box and lid being lifted by the elevator into the compression section of the machine. A subsequent box and a subsequent lid starting to move inside the machine. Figure 3E is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 3B showing the box with the lid adhered thereto being removed from the top of the elevator. The box and subsequent lids have moved into the compression section of the machine, and another box and cover have begun to move into the machine. Figure 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the elevator of the present invention. Figure 5A is a partially cut away side view, enlarged along line 5-5 of Figure 3A showing details of a compression shoe and the pivotal friction member. A box and a lid are below them. Figure 5B is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 5A showing the friction member in contact with the upper part of the lid moving upwards. Figure 5C is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 5B showing the friction member making contact with the top of the lid, and the lid covers being partially deformed by the compression shoe as it moves upwards.

Figure 5D is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 5C showing the friction member making contact with the top of the lid, and the lid of the lid being more fully deformed by the custom pivot compression shoe that the box moves up. Figure 5E is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 5D showing the friction member making contact with the top of the lid, and the lid of the lid being completely deformed and compressed against the side wall of the box by the compression shoe as the box moves up. Figure 5F is a view of the same perspective view of Figure 5E showing the friction member now in contact with the deformed side cover of the lid, the lid of the lid being adhered against the side wall of the box, and the Compression shoe against the side wall of the box as the box moves up. Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of the adhesive applicators of the present invention. Referring to the drawings, wherein similar reference characters designate similar or corresponding parts through the various views 7 and generally referring to Figures 1 and 2, it is seen that the operative portion of the invention includes an inlet conveyor 10. , a lifting mechanism 50, a horizontal lid feeder 30, a discharging ram 71 and a discharge ramp 74. Referring more particularly to the Figures 3A, 3B and 6, it is seen that the boxes with open ends 11, 12 and 13 move into, the machine using the conveyor 10. Each box (example 11) has two parallel side walls 14 and 15, which are perpendicular to two or other parallel side walls 16 and 17. As the box 11 leaves the conveyor 10 and enters the machine, passes between a pair of adjustable electronically controlled adhesive applicators 19 and 20 which spray adhesive along the upper edges of the two parallel side walls 16 and 17 (see Figure 6) . At or about the same time, the lowermost lid sheet 35 is removed by suction of other appropriate means (not shown) from the bottom of a side hopper 30. Each lid sheet has two parallel deformable lids 40 and 41 which are perpendicular to two other parallel deformable lids 42 and 43. A plurality of rollers 32 move the lid sheet 35 in place along the path of the lifter below the compression shoe 21-24. As this happens, the adjustable adhesive applicators 31 and 33 spray adhesive onto the parts below the covers 40 and 41 of the sheet 35. Figure 3C shows a box 11 in place on the elevator 50 with a sheet of Top 35 on it. As shown in Figure 4, the lifter 50 includes a pair of continuous bands or chains 51 and 52. Each band is mounted around a pair of upper or lower gearwheels 53 and 54, and 55 and 56, respectively. The upper gearwheels 53 and 55 are fixed to an electronically controlled top rotating rod 57; similarly, the lower sprockets 55 and 56 are fixed to a lower rotary bar 58 which is under the same electronic control. A plurality of lifting belts 61 are fixed at regular intervals along the strips 51 and 52. Each belt 61 includes a plurality of plates or splits of supports for fixing the boxes. The strips 51 and 52 move the tapes 61 in an upward direction on the compression side of the elevator, and in a downward direction on the outer side in such a manner that the tapes 61 are constantly rotating around the elevator. At any time, the elevator 50 is capable of maintaining three separate boxes in lower, intermediate and upper positions (see Figure 13). The lifting operation of the elevator 50 is shown in Figures 3C-3E. In Figure 3C, the box 11 has moved to the lower position of the elevator. The cover sheet below has been removed from the stacked sheets and moved directly onto the box 11 by electronically controlled rollers 32. The lifting belt 61 with support plate 62 moves the box 11 upwards in such a way that it comes in contact with the lid sheet 35 and pushing it up into the adjustable compression shoes 21-24. This is shown in Figure 3D. The shoes 21-24 compress the lids of the covers 40-43 against the side walls of the boxes 14-17, respectively. After a very short pause to allow the adhesive to settle, the lifter 50 continues to move the box 11 upwards with the lid 35 now firmly adhered thereto. This upward movement by the riser also causes the tape 61 to come into contact with the next box 12 which moves up towards its lid 36 while the process is repeated (see Figure 3E). At the top of the elevator, the hydraulic ram 71 moves the closed shaft 11 down towards the discharge of the lid 74 to remove and transport it. In Figures 5A-5F the compression shoes are shown in detail. These figures illustrate only the cross-sectional view of the compression shoes 22; however, the same structure is present for the shoes 21, 23 and 24. The shoe 22 includes an angled deflection surface and is fixed to a retractable member 38 using a pair of skewed spring mounting member 28 and 34. These springs they force the shoe 22 to extend inwardly, thereby allowing it to press and release the wall of the box 15 and the lid of the cover 41. Since there are two springs, the shoe 22 can rotate slightly from the vertical to able to conform to a non-vertical potential position of either the lid of the lid 41 (see Figure 5D) or the side wall 15. An L-shaped friction member 25 is also provided, and is pivotally mounted to the frame at one end 29. A biased spring 27 forces the member 25 downwards. An elongated bar 26 is fixed to the opposite end of the member 25. As the wall of the box 14 and lid of the lid 41 move upward, the bar 26 first comes into contact with the top of the lid 35 ( see Figure 5B). The downward friction imparted by the bar 26 holds the lid 35 firmly against the perpendicular wall 15 of the box 11. This pressure minimizes the sliding of the wall 15 out of the vertical alignment. As it moves upward, the lid 41 then encounters the angled shoe 22, and deforms downwardly as shown in Figures 5C and 5D. The pressure of the bar 26 continues to hold the lid 35 firmly against the wall 15 so that it does not deviate from the vertical alignment. It is important to keep the wall 15 in vertical alignment as shown in Figure 5E when the cover 41 is pressed firmly against the wall 15 for adhesion. Then there is a short pause for me to fix the sticker. Then, once the adhesion is complete, the bar 26 rolls the top part of the lid as shown in Figure 5F. The positions of the shoes 21-24, and the positions of the adhesive applicators 19, 20, 31 and 33 can be adjusted over a wide range of positions thereby allowing the machine to be used with boxes and covers having many different shapes and sizes. In an alternative embodiment, the machine can be modified and adjusted to facilitate the formation and adhesion of the covers 35 having only two side covers (instead of four). If the lids 40 and 41 are present, then the adhesive sprinklers 31 and 33 would be used, but the sprinklers 19 and 20 would not be necessary, and the lugs 21 and 22 would be used, but the lugs 23 and 24 would not be necessary. Alternatively if the lids 42 and 43 are present, the adhesive sprinklers 19 and 20 would be used, but the sprinklers 31 and 33 would not be necessary; and shoes 23 and 24 would be used, but shoes 21 and 22 would not be necessary. In another embodiment, the machine can be modified and adjusted to facilitate the formation and adhesion of covers having lids which requires multiple folds. For a lid with two fold line lids that require an additional set of compression shoes that would be placed in alternating relation under the shoe 21-24 in such a way that the outer lids of the lid are first folded along the. lid fold line further out when making contact with additional shoes. Then as the lid is pushed up, the inner lids would make contact with the shoes 21-24 resulting in a second fold along the fold line of the inner lid. The action of the side walls of the box 14-17 against the first bent lids would cause the lid to be fixed under the second bent lid to obtain a side wall of a firm lid. The applicators of adhesives 31 and 33 can be placed to spray adhesives only on the lid of the lid with two fold lines, resulting in good adhesion of the double fold, but without adhesion in the case covers. In the preferred embodiment, the bands 51 and 52 of the elevator 50 are metal chains, and the belts 61 include at least two slats 62 for supporting the container boxes. The hopper 30 must be open at the top in order to allow receiving additional lid sheets 35 to be inserted during the operation of the machine without interruptions. A vacuum suction can be used to remove the lid sheet further below the bottom of the lid stacked in the hopper 30, although gravity and a sliding selection may suffice. The electronic controls should be used to facilitate the continuous and coordinated operation of the entrance of the band 10, the elevator 50, sprinklers 19-20 and 31, 33, cap rollers 32, compression shoes 21-24, and the ram 71 The positions of the shoes 21-24 must be adjustable over a wide range (horizontally, vertically and rotationally), to facilitate receiving any variety of boxes that have different sizes and shapes. Similarly, the positions of the adhesive applicators should be adjustable over a wide range to allow the adhesive to be applied at any suitable place in a lid box or sheet. In a new alternative embodiment, a second parallel elevator can be used immediately adjacent to the existing elevator 50 in order to lift extremely heavy boxes. In another alternative embodiment, additional compression shoes can be added to facilitate deforming lid caps with multiple folds. In another alternative embodiment, additional adhesive applicators may be added to facilitate the application of adhesive in multiple locations in a lid box or sheet.

During use, the style dimensions of the container and lid should be selected first. Next, the positions of the adhesive plaster, risers, and compression shoes should be adjusted to receive the boxes and lids. It should be understood that variations and modifications of the present invention can be made without departing from the scope thereof. It should also be understood that the present invention should not be limited by the specific embodiments described herein, but only in accordance with the appended claims when read in light of the alternate specification.

Claims (9)

1. CLAIMS 1. A machine for forming and sticking lids to containers, characterized in that it comprises: a. a lower horizontal band for transporting open end containers with side walls inside the machine; b. a first plurality of adhesive applicators located at one end of such a band for applying adhesive to certain side walls of the containers; c. an elevator at the end of such band adjacent the band to the applicators for lifting the containers in a vertical direction within the machine; d. a feeder located along the path of the elevator to provide lid sheets with lid over the containers; and. a second plurality of adhesive applicators located along the path of the feeder for applying adhesive to certain covers of the lid sheets; F. a plurality of adjustable angled compression shoes located along the path of the elevator on the feeder to deform the covers of the cover sheets around the container; and g. an ejector ram to remove the covered container from the machine.
2. 2. The machine in accordance with the claim 1, characterized in that the lifter comprises a pair of continuous bands mounted on the parallel gear wheels and having a plurality of cross members fixed thereto at regular intervals, each cross member includes a plurality of support members for securing the containers.
3. 3. The machine in accordance with the claim 2, characterized in that a full and pivotally mounted spring loaded friction member is provided on each compression shoe to press the top of each cover sheet against the adjacent wall of a container. The machine according to claim 3, characterized in that the compression shoes are assembled using at least two springs to allow a pivotal movement of the shoe as it is pressed against the lid of the lid and the side walls of the container which moves to the sides. 5. In a machine for forming lids for hard cardboard containers with open ends, an apparatus is characterized in that it comprises: a. a lower horizontal band for transporting open end containers with side walls inside the machine; b. a first plurality of applicators of adhesives located at one end of said band for applying adhesive to certain side walls of the containers; c. an elevator at the end of said band adjacent the band to the applicators for lifting the containers in a vertical direction within the machine; d. a feeder located along the path of the elevator to provide lid sheets with lid over the containers; and. a second plurality of adhesive applicators located along the path of the feeder for applying adhesive to certain covers of the lid sheets; F. a plurality of adjustable, angled compression shoes located along the path of the elevator on the feeder to deform the covers of the cover sheets around the container; and g. an ejector ram to remove the covered container from the machine. The combination according to claim 5, characterized in that it comprises a pair of continuous bands mounted on the parallel gear wheels and having a plurality of cross members fixed thereto at regular intervals, each cross member includes a plurality of support members to fix the containers. The machine according to claim 6, characterized in that a total and pivotally mounted spring loaded friction member is provided on each compression shoe to press the top of each cover sheet against the adjacent wall of a container. 8. The machine according to claim 7, characterized in that the compression shoes are assembled using at least two springs to allow a pivotal movement of the shoe as it is pressed against the lid of the lid and the side walls of the container moving to the sides. 9. A method for forming lids for hard cardboard containers characterized in that it comprises the steps of: a. place a container with open ends, with side walls on the side walls on a lower horizontal conveyor; b. moving the container with open ends beyond a first plurality of adhesive applicators located at one end of the conveyor; c. apply adhesive to certain side walls of the container; d. raise the vertical container inside the machine; d. feeding a cover sheet with lids in a position above the container; and. apply adhesive to certain covers of the cover sheet; F; elevating the container so that it comes into contact with the cover sheet; g. deforming the lid covers of the lid sheet around the container by raising the container and sheet within a plurality of adjustable angled compression shoe; and g. eject the covered container from the machine.