US2940233A - Coupon attaching mechanism for bag forming machines - Google Patents

Description

June 14, 1960 F. .1. BRAcEY, JR 2,940,233

COUPON ATTACHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Filed Oct, 18, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 .45 W BY @fw im June 14, 1960 F. .1. BRACEY, JR 2,940,233

COUPON ATTCHING MECHNISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Filed OC'C. 18, 1957 5 SheebSSheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS .III L, y D V//Ilf LUV I I l I l I l l l l I I l l. Ik 1M June 14, 1960 F. J. BRACEY, JR 2,940,233

COUPON ATTAOHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Filed Oct. 18, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR /caeR/cx l BPAreY, z/R.

ATTORNEYS June 14, 1960 F. J. BRACEY, .JR 2,940,233

COUPON ATTACHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Filed Oct. 18, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR /f/Qfoenlck d. Bama-r; L/Q.

ATTORNEYS June 14, 1960 F. J. BRACEY, JR 2,940,233

COUPON ATTACHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Filed 00T.. 18, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR @eos/wo( d Emu-sv, c/R.

ATTORNEYS June 14, 1960 F. J. BRACEY, JR 2,940,233

COUPON TTACHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Oct. 18, 1957 mail INVENTOR 52505210( d. BRAccn c/Q.

BY /W M ATTORNEYS COUPON ATTACHING MECHANISM FOR BAG FORMING MACHINES Frederick J. Bracey, Jr., Springfield, Mass., assigner' 1fo Package Machinery Company, VEast Longmeadow, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Oct. 18, 19.57, Ser. No. 691,028

Claims. (Cl. S25-'137) Vwhen they are redeemed.

Such maybe used for other purposes such fas to provide special advertising fior short runs without 'necessitating the printing of special bag materials.

Among the objects of the invention is the provision ofi appmatus forattaching coupon strips'to bags which are formed from' a-tube .of heat scalable sheet material v.which tubeis `heat sealed, drawn downwardly, y'illed' with articles and then heat' sealed a second Itime atv ai point above the articles to form la VAbag portion inesaid :tube with one of the primary features being that Athe coupon strip conforms closely to the exterior of the bag as it is bulged-out by the articles therein-without distorting "the normal shape of such a bag. Y

The above and other related objects' and features of the invention will be apparent from a reading of the following description of the disclosure found in lthe accompanying drawings and the novelty thereof pointedout in the appendedclaims.-

In the drawings: 4

Fig. l' is a yfronti elevation of a coupon feeding device embodying this invention and showing its' relation -to various elements of a bag forming and lfilling machine;

Fig. 2 is a' section taken substantially on line IIQH inlFig. l and on Vanv enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a section taken online III-*III in Fig. 2 and on aA further' enlarged scale;

Fig. 4 is a section taken' on line IVe-IV in Fig. 2 and on afurther enlarged scale;

IFigs.- 5, -6 and 7 are views taken substantially online V--V in Fig. 2, on a further enlarged scale, showing different operating positions-of various parts.

v The present invention relates to the type of bags produced by bag forming and tilling machines of the'nature disclosed in the Zwoyer United States Patent No. 1,986,422. Such machines have been improved over the years and are now vfound in several variant forms, however, the basic mode of operatonis the saune and well known to persons inthe packagingeld.

The device of the present invention will now be 'describedin relation to its application to a bag-forming and iilling machine as described in the said Zwoyer 7 nited States Patent patent, however, the utility of the invention is not limited to any givenv construction other than what is set forth inthe appended claims.

It is com-mon in lthis type of machine to Yhave dual units arranged in side by side relation. However, for

al1-understanding of the present invention itis 2,940,233 Patented June 14, 1960 'sary to describe but one of these units and the coupon attaching means associated therewith.

Y Referring rst vto Fig. 1, Acertain basic counterparts to the Zwoyer disclosure will be apparent. Fig. l is taken from the front of the machine and shows one iilling tube 18 yaround which a web of sheet material is wrapped and heat sealed to form a tube t (Figs. 2 and 7) by means not illustrated. The sheet material tube t vextends to a composite draw bar 2? which is reciprocable to draw with it successive lengths of the sheet material tube t. More particularly the ldraw bar 214B is mounted in fixed axial relation to a pair of vertical rods, one of which is seen at 22. Mechanism beneath a platform 24 (Fig. l) reciprocates these rods and at the same time imparts an oscillatory movement to said rods. The draw bar 2t) comprises a pair of transversely extending frames 26, 27 on which are mounted two pairs of heat sealing grippers 28, 30. In the upper position of the draw bar 2t?, the rod 22 (and the other rod not shown), are rotated and through existing means bring the grippers 25, 39V from an open position (Fig. 4) to a clamping position (Fig. 6) vin which the sheet material tube is heat sealed thereby and firmly gripped therebetween. The draw bar is then moved downward and at Vthis Vtime a charge of articles is released through the tube 1.8 and receivedin the sealed off endl of the sheet material tube. During this downward movement of the draw bar 2), 'a itin-fe,- not shown, is passed between vthe g'rippers 23, 3G' -to separate a previously filled bag'. Just before the draw bar reaches its lowermost position (-Fig. 7), the grippers 2d are opened slightly by'actuation of a solenoid 3 2 which controls the illustratedtoggle linkage'. The solenoid 32 is energized by appropriateelectric eye means (not shown) which are responsive Yto vindiciav on the tube forming web. The indicia on the tube forming web' are spaced apart a fixed distance representing the desired length for forming a bag. The use of solenoid V3`2irisu'res that exactly the same length of bag is drawn each time 'with a slight overtravel of the draw bar 2'0` 4being provbar 20 is 4then raised to its upper position for repetition of the' described process'. VIt willb'e appreciated that the length of the bag thus formed is dependent upon the length of tube t drawn by the bar 2t) and as controlled by the indicia-ori the tube forming web.

As will have been noticed from the various figures, during the `filling and forming, i.e., sealing, of the bag a strip of coupon material was also sealed-to the tube t by the grippers 28 and 30. This strip is provided from a supply roll 34 (Figs. l and 4)'-which is pivotaliy mounted on a stud 36 extending outwardly from a vertical `bar 38. Earsl 40 (see also Fig. 2) extend rearwardly from the bar 40 and receive a vertical shaft 42. shaft d2 is ysecured to `and spaced from frame projections i4 to' provide a rigid support for the present coupon attaching. device while also 4permitting it to be swung about` the shaft' 42 to permit access to the' front of the machine or Vwhen it is desired to use the machine without the device When thev coupon attachingdevice is in its operative position, further rigidity is provided by a rod 45' secured .at one .end to the frame of the machine. AV swing screw 47 is threaded into the' other end of the rod i5 and clamps a slotted plate 49 thereagainst. The plate is rigidly connected to the attaching device in a .manner which will further appear.

V.The basic framework (Figs. 1 and 2) for the-present device comprises a horizontal bar 46 secu-red tothe vertical bar 38 and a second parallel horizontal bar 48 .spaced Vtherefrom by cross piecesSli', 51, 52 andf54. 'Ihe fslottedplate V49 is .secured to the' @bar 46. A web. w is V as the bar 92 engages the lug 94 (Fig. 5).

drawn from'the supply roll 34 and extends downwardly over a roller 56, around a vertically movable slackener roll 58, upwardly and over rollers 60, 62 downwardly past an electric eye unit 64 and then around a roller V66, then aroundV an adjustable roller 68 and a fixed roller 70 to an angle rod 72 around which the web w passes and in doing Vso changes its direction 90 so that it may extend toward the filling tube 18 in a'direction normal to the front of the machine. Y

The rolls 56, 60, 62, 66 and 70 are journaled or otherwise mounted on the bars 46, 48 or on plates secured thereto in a convenient manner. The slackener roll 58 is guided for parallel vertical movement by slotted plates f 74 and the illustrated rack and pinion arrangement. YThe Yweight of the roll 58 is suicient to maintain thecoupon web w taut at all times. Y y

The electric eye 64 is arranged to detect the passage are spaced apart alongthe length of the web, the distance desired forieachY length of coupon. The roll 68 is guided for parallel horizontal movementby slottedfplates 76 (secured to bars 46 and 48) and the illustrated rack and pinion arrangement (Figs. l and 2). provided to facilitate adjustment of the'roll 68 in order to correlate the length of web w between the electric Yeye 64 and its point of attachment to the tube t to the length of the particular coupon. This results in proper v of indicia i (Fig. 7) onrthe coupon web w. The indicia i p A knob 78 is ,il

registration ofwhatever printing is on the coupon when it is attached Yto a finished bag. A threaded knob 80 is provided to clamp the roller 68 in this adjusted position.

After the coupon web bends over the angle rod 72 it passes over a plate 82and'then enters a chute-84 (Fig.

7). The plate82 is secured to the bar 46 and further i z--j gidityis provided by the rod 72 which is secured at one VVend to thepl'ate 1.82 and atits other end to the bar 48.

A brake member 85 isrfaced with a strap `87 of appro- .priate frictionmaterial and friction material/is provided therebeneath onth'e plate 82, A tail 86 extends from Vthe brake member 85 and is pivotally mounted lon a pin 88 which in turn ismounted on the bar 48 by way of a bracket 90 (Fig. 2). A lever 92 (Figs. 2 and 3) is pivot- Aally Ymounted on a shoulder bolt 93 extending fromVthe coupon web w additional to what is drawn by movement bar 48. The Vlever 92 overlies the tail 86 and in turn is captured in this overlying relation by an undercut lug v 94 secured to the tail 86. The other end Yof the bar 92,

is connected by a link 96 to the plunger of a solenoid 98 which is secured to the cross member 51. A screw 100 (Fig. 3) is threaded into the cross member 50 to posivtion and maintain a compression spring 102 in engagement with the bar 92 and thus provide a braking force to the Vbrake member 85. the solenoid 98 lis energized,

bar 92 will be'raised against the forceV of spring 102 and the brake member 85 lifted awayfrom the coupon web 'Ihe chute 84 (Figs. 5 and.6) comprises a pair of plates 104, 106 which are spaced apart a distance sutli- V cient for freepassageY of the coupon web and secured together by screws 108. The plate 104 is secured at its upper end -to a atted portion of a pivot rod 110 which is journaled in outstanding ears 111 (Fig. 2) of a bracket Y112 which in turn is secured to the, bar 82. -At one end oftheY pivot rod 110 is anV L-shaped lever i114 with a cam roll 116 extending from the ,upper leg of said lever.

ratchet' 118 and pivotally mounted on ascrewv 121 threaded into .the end lof bar -46 .(FigsjZ, 3 and 4). Be-

. yond the screw 121, thelatch 119 is provided with'a flat tail 123 which extendsv overV thelever 92. A lug 12S-is secured to the lever 92 -and screw V127 positions the .tail

7.123.(and latch'119)fagainst the action of a Vcompression spring 129.

. A single tooth ratchet 118 is pinned to the pivot rod'110 Y next to the lever 114. A latch V119 is disposed above the gins its downward movement thelever .140 overlies Vvfilling machine is continuous and, as has been alluded, .requires ftwo cycles of movement of the draw bar `to complete each bag. Referring to Fig. 4, the draw bar 20 is in its upper, 4open position with the grippers 28, 30 ready to v`simultaneously'seal the upper end of a lled bag and also the lower end of the next successive bag. W'nen the grippers 28, 30 are brought into contact with the bag material (Fig. 6) the right hand gripper 28 engages the chute 84, to bringit to the full line position V,offFigs. 4 and 6.v When the grippers close,`appropriate timing means actuate the solenoid 98, raising the vlever y92, thus raising the brakemember away from the coupon web w and also pressing the latch 119 yieldingly against the ratchet member 118 (Fig. 6.)

' After the draw bar 20 is closed and the coupon web w sealedto the bag tube vthe draw bar moves downwardly, drawing .with it the sheet material bag tube and also theicoupon webw. At thistime a charge of articles is released through the tube 18. Shortly after this .downwai-d movement begins, alu`g140.secured to the vertical rod. 22 engages the horizontal arm of the L-shaped lever 114 swingingthe lchute 84 4to its outermost position (as se'enxin, Eig. 5).` Y The-lug 140 is best. seen in Fig. 2

{When the 'draw b`ar20fis in its open position. It will be Aremembered that thev rod 22,rotates as the draw bar is closed -andin doingsoV brings the projection 140 to the indicated, phantom position. Y Thus. when Vthe draw bar be- Ythe horizontal arm ofi lever 114. t

:When lthe chuteY 84 isso swung, Ait draws a length Vof of the draw bar. The length Yof web w drawn bythis combined action is 'somewhatgreater fthan ythe length of bag material,- i-.e. tube t, drawn by thedraw bar 20.

. YRememheringgthat'the lever 92" is raised yieldingly forcing thejlat ch 119 against the ratchet 118, the-latch 119 will be seated against the single tooth of ratchet 118 when the chute is so swung by the lug 140. The chute 84Ywill thereby-'positively be held' in its outermost position (Fig. 5). 'Y Y Y 'When theAV draw Vbar Vhas reached a point somewhat above itslowermost position, the next succeeding indicium i (Fig. 7) on the couponfweb'w will trigger the electric eyeY 64 vwhich in .turnis arrangedto `cause deenergization of the solenoid 98. At this point, further feed of the rcoupon :web wis immediately stopped as the 'brake member 85 is pressed against` thefwebV w by spring 102. Simultaneously vthe latch 119 is raisedv from the ratchet 118 vpermitting movement'of .the chute 84. Thereafter the chute 84 will be swung inwardly a short distance Yto the position seendn Fig. 7 as -thedraw 'bar 20 continues its downward movement. Y"When the Vdraw bar reaches the position VVseeniinj lfFig.17, .thegrippers 28 are opened a sh-ortdistance by. the solenoid 32 as it is energized by the next succeeding indicia on the V.tube forming web `by ythe above-mentioned electricleye means. Thereafter the draw -bar is yTrinved to its fully open position with the frames 26, y27 separatedand -then the drawV bar is raised v to its upper position(Fig. A4). Y As raising movement occurs, the roller Y116-is delectedby a lug :144 also secured to therod 22; VI-t-wil1again be remembered that thisrod'22 rotates .orfoscillates `asthe draw'bar is moved -A disc 120 (Figs.`2 and 3) is pinned to ther otherend Y .of the pivot rod and Vis'engaged byua 'non-rotatable Ydisc of vfrictionmaterial 131 which is replaceably secured between` its open and closed positions.'v 'An'd .thus on upward movement of :th'e vdrawibar (operi position) the lug 144 is positioned to engage the roll i1.176 Vand Yswing the :chute V84`inward1yiat least to --the intermediate 'phantom andasse position of Pig. 4 to prevent thechute from being struck by .the rising draw 'bar 20. The friction disc 131 pref vents free swinging movement of the chute to insure against any rebound thereof. y

The coupon web is thus draped along the length of Ithe bag just iilled during upward movement of theA draw bar. The grippers again move in and seal lthe top of this bag and the bottom .of the next bag and at the same time seal .the coupon to the bag. The bag vitself is bulgcd out by the articles therein and it has been gfound that the above described means, and particularly the movable chute 84, which insure the provision of a coupon slightly longer than .the bag length will Yinsure the coupon'tting snugly against the bulged `out bag without distorting it from its generally symmetrical appearance. It has `been found that Vfor a bag Sor 6 inches in length, the coupon should be about 1/16 of an inch longer than the length of the bag. l

Many variations in form and structure Within `the scope of the lteachings of the present invention will be apparent and without otherwise limiting such scope, note should be taken that the discharge end of .the chute 84 could bc replaced by a pair of parallel rods 'which might not be spaced as close together as the plates 104 and 106.

Having thus described the invention, what isnovel and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. In a packaging machine of the type having a composite draw bar on which are mounted heat sealing grippers, means for vertically reciprocating said draw bar, means -for closing said grippers against the end of a tube of heat scalable sheet material when the draw bar is in .an upper position and maintaining said grippers closed Ias the draw bar is lowered to draw the tube therewith, means for separating said grippers at a lower position of the draw bar preparatory to its return to its upper position, and means for releasing la charge of articles into said sealed tube prior to `the grippers being rccloscd against said tube; coupon attaching mechanism comprising means `for guiding a web of coupon stock om l. given point towards said grippers whereby .the web may be gripped therebetween and heat scaled to said tube and then drawn therewith as the draw bar is lowered, a member engageable with said web between said given point and said draw bars, and means operable while said draw bars are being lowered for displacing said member against said web so that a small additional length of web is drawn supplemental .to the length drawn by said draw bars, whereby the coupon will properly conform -to the shape of Ithe filled tube when the grippers again close to seal off a bag portion thereof and at the same time seal the coupon thereto.

2. In a packaging machine of the type having a composite draw bar on which lare mounted heat scaling grippers, means for vertically reciprocating said draw bar, means for closing said grippers against the end of a tube of heat scalable sheet material when the draw bar is in an upper position and maintaining said grippers closed as the draw bar is lowered to draw the tube therewith, means for separating said grippers at `a lower position of the draw bar preparatory to its return to its upper position, and means for releasing a charge of articles into said sealed tube prior to the grippers being recloscd against said tube; coupon attaching mechanism comprising means for guiding a web of coupon stock towards said grippers whereby the web may be gripped therebetween and heat sealed to said tube and then drawn therewith as the draw bar is lowered, said guiding means including a depending chute terminating in a discharge end adjacent the draw bar grippers in their upper position and means for moving said discharge end away from the tube as the draw bar is lowered to draw a slightly greater length of coupon than the length of tube material drawn by the draw bar, whereby the coupon will properly conform to the shape of a lled bag when the grippers again close to seal oli a u bag portion thereof and at the same time seal thecoupoii thereto.

3. Coupon attaching mechanism as in claim 2 wherein the chute is pivotally mounted at a point Iremote Vfrom its dischargeiend and projc'ctionsmovable with the draw bar swing the discharge end of the chute towards and away from the tube. l

4. In a packaging machine of the 'type' having a coinposite draw bar on which are mounted heat sealing grippers, means for vertical-ly reciprocating said draw bar, means for closing'said `grippers against the end of a tube of heat scalable sheet material when the draw bar is in an upper position and maintainingsaid grippers closed as the draw vbar is lowered to draw-the tube therewith, means for separating said grippers at a lower position ofthe draw bar preparatory to its return to its upper position, and means forreleasing a charge of articles lintosaid sealed tube prior `to thegrippers Vbeing-rccloscd against said tube;

coupon attachingmechanism comprising a rotatable supply roll of coupon stock having indicia spaced along its "length a distance representing the desired coupon length and a distance somewhat greater than the length of tube drawn by the draw bar during 'its downward movement, means for guiding a web of coupon stock from the supply roll -to a point adjacent the-upper position of the draw bar, an electric eye `for scanning said web and responsive to passage-of said indicia, a brake for controlling movement of 'said web, means for deactuatingsaid brake Vto permit the coupon web tobe drawn withthe tube as'the draw bar is lowered and means for actuating said brake in response to passage of an indicium past the electric eye.

5. In a packaging machine of the type having a composite draw bar on which are mounted heat sealing grippers, means for vertically reciprocating said draw bar, means for closing said grippers against the end of a tube of heat scalable sheet material when the draw bar is in an upper position and maintaining said grippers closed as the draw bar is lowered to draw the tube therewith, means for separating said grippers -at a lower position of the draw bar preparatory to its return to its upper position, and means for releasing a charge of articles into said scaled tube prior to the grippers being rccloscd against said tube; coupon attaching mechanism comprising a rotatable supply roll of coupon stock having indicia spaced along its length a distance representing the desired coupon length and a distance somewhat greater than the length of tube drawn by the draw bar during its downward movement, means for guiding a web of coupon stock from the supply roll to a point adjacent the upper position of the draw bar whereby the coupon web may be gripped by the grippers and heat sealed to said tube, an electric eye for scanning said web and responsive to passage of said indicia, a brake for controlling movement of said web, means for deactuating said brake during at least a portion of the downward movement of said draw bar to permit the coupon web to be drawn from said supply roll, auxiliary means for drawing said web so that the next successive indicium is brought to the electric eye Iby the combined action of the draw bar and the auxiliary means at least by the time the draw bar has reached its lowermost position, and means responsive to the electric eye sensing said indicium for actuating said brake.

6. In a packaging machine of the type having a composite draw bar on which are mounted heat sealing grippers, means for vertically reciprocating said draw bar, means for closing said grippers against the end of a tube of heat scalable sheet material when the draw bar is in an upper position and maintaining said grippers closed as the draw bar is lowered to draw the tube therewith, means for separating said grippers at a lower position of the draw bar preparatory to its return to its upper position, and means for releasing a charge of articles into said sealed tube prior to the grippers being rccloscd against said tube; coupon attaching mechanism comprising a rotatable supply roll of coupon stock having indicia spaced along its length a distance representing thedesiredcouponV length and a distance somewhat greater than thenlength of tube drawn by the draw bar kduringitsdownward movement, means' fori guiding a -Web of coupon stock from the supply roll to a point adjacent the upper position of the draw'bari said guiding means including a piv- Votally mounted'depending chute terminating in aV discharge end adjacent the grippers of said draw bar where- V.by the couponweb may be I 'pped bythe grippers and heat sealed torsaid tube', -an electric eye mountedY to scan -said web and responsive to -thei passageof said indicia, a

` brake-for controlling movement of said web, means operative upon closureo-f said grippers'to deactuateA said brake to permit the coupon webto be drawn bythe d raw bar -during'itsdownward movement, means for swinging the discharge end of saidchute awaygfrom said tube to increase the amount' of-web so d rawn so that 'the next suc Y most remote from said tube until the brake is actuated.V

8. Cc'aupon'attaching mechanism as in claim 7 wherein the locking means comprise a latch and a single tooth ratchet rotatable with saidchute and engageable by said Iatchwheu the discharge end` of the chute is in.- its fur- 15 fln a Wrappingtmachine as n1 8 the stV position from said tube, andthe means for actuat-- ingmandY deactuating.said-brake-include a solenoid which isenerglzedpwhenthe grippers close and-deenegized in response to said indicium beingvsensed by said electric o eye',` and said latch ismounted'to be yieldingly forced against said ratchet in re'sponseto energization of said slenoid-J i; 1 `Y 119. 1n a wrapping machine as in claim 6 wherein the couponattaching `mechanism is disposed at the frontl of 1Q machine and wherein the web guiding means includes an angularly disposed bar and the web is guided along a path 11atera11yxof the machine and then passes over said angular.bar to Iapproach* the grippers in a path which is normal to theY front of the machine.

Y *Y wfwherein the coupon attaching mechanism-is-- disposedat the front vof the-imrachine. arid: Pvtally mguntiyg means Aare provided for swinging the coupon attaching, mechanism about a fvejllfaxiszto prqvdsiasss t9 thepfrrpnt 0f thema- Y? Y l References Cited the le of Vthis patent UNITEDsTATEs PATENTS kWeisman .V Nov. 25,` 1 '958

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