US3213591A - Packaging and wrapping machine - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 26, 1965 L. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

7 PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed Oct. 28, 1964 11 Sheets-Sheet 1 CONTAINER FILLING AREA FI'GZA F|G.3C FIGBD 2;; 3o FGA-A 30c 1 A 16 3k; 0 22 Q)/ Q 28 5 (30b W J\ \r \F j E I F v 6 FIG 4B FIGAC F|G.4D

11 Sheets-Sheet 2 L. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Oct. 26, 1965 Filed bet. 28, 1964 Oct. 26, 1965 1.. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

v PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed 001- 28, 1964 1], Sheets-Sheet 3 Oct. 26, 1965 J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE 11 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed 001.. 28. 1964 FIGIIZ FIG. I 3

FIGM- Oct. 26, 1965 L. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE 11 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 28. 1964 QOE Oct. 26, 1965 J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE 11 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed 001;. 28, 1964 1965 1.. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Oct. 26, 1965 1.. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed Oct. 28, 1964 11 Sheets-Sheet 9 JJh/ m Oct. 26, 1965 1.. J. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3,213,591

PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Filed Oct. 28,. 1964 11 Sheets-Sheet 1o 1965 1.. .1. FEURSTEIN ETAL 3, 13

ACHINE United States Patent 3,213,591 PACKAGING AND WRAPPING MACHINE Ludwig J. Feurstein and Frederick F. Koehn, Sheboygan, Wis., assignors to Pemco, Iuc., Sheboygan, Wis., 21 company of Wisconsin Filed Oct. 28, 1964, Ser. No. 407,956 20 Claims. (Cl. 53-379) The present application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial Number 208,380, filed July 9, 1962, now abandoned, by the inventors of the present application.

The present invention relates to a novel method and apparatus for packaging and wrapping articles and reams of paper. More specifically, the present invention relates to a novel apparatus adapted to close at least one end of a box or wrapping by tucking two sides of the end, folding the two flaps left by the tucking operation, applying adhesive to one of said flaps, and sealing the flap.

The prior art has provided a variety of arrangements for performing the operation of closing the end or ends of a bag, box, carton or wrapping, depending upon the particular size and shape of the item being covered and the wrapping material utilized. These arrangements have performed satisfactorily only where objects having uniform characteristics of size and shape are covered with covering materials of uniform character. In addition, these machines will perform only one type of closing operation and cannot be simply adapted to a variety of such closing operations. Accordingly, an inexpensive machine is needed which is adaptable to a variety of types of closing operations and to the closing of packages of various sizes and shapes. In order to provide a machine of these characteristics, a machine should also preferably require no adjustment or modification, or only a very minimum of modification and adjustment.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a machine for automatically folding and sealing the open mouth of a bag or box after it has been filled and for automatically advancing the bag through the machine during the entire closure operation.

It is another object of this invention to provide an automatic folding and sealing machine which can be readily adapted to containers of a variety of sizes, shapes and materials.

A further object is to provide a flap tucking mechanism which will close containers of a variety of sizes with little or no adjustment. In furtherance of this object, it is sought to provide a tucking arrangement which will en gage a variety of container widths in a substantially similar manner with the necessity for little or no adjustment.

Another object of this invention is to provide a specific operating mechanism for tucking flaps which will achieve a uniform engagement with containers passing through the machine so that an evenly wrapped package is obtained.

Another object of the invention is to provide a metering system whereby a desired amount of adhesive is applied at a desired time, said amount being adjustable.

It is generally an object of this invention to provide a container closing machine which performs all required closing operations automatically after a filled container has been placed on the machine.

A further general object of this invention is to provide a packaging machine which is as suitable for closing cartons as for closing bags.

An ancillary object of the invention is to provide an improved arrangement for a packaging machine which is compact and may be conveniently operated and adjusted.

An additional object of the invention is the provision of a means for retaining the mouth of containers in an ice open position thereby facilitating the placement of articles within the containers as the containers are being fed to the container closing operation.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved machine for closing and sealing both ends of a covering material which has been folded to a generally rectangular form having its ends open.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a machine for automatically closing and sealing both ends of an article wrapped in a flat sheet of paper.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide means for holding a stack of sheet-type wrapping material.

Another and further object of the present invention is to provide an improved automatic stop mechanism for a packaging and wrapping machine.

A further object of the present invention is to provide improved mechanisms for adjusting a wrapping and packaging machine to adapt it to use in the wrapping of articles of different shapes and sizes.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become obvious upon consideration of the following specification and drawings showing several embodiments of the invention in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of the invention;

FIGURES 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D are sequential plan views illustrating the cooperation between a stationary tucking member and a movable tucking member in acting upon a bag when using the embodiment of FIGURE 1.

FIGURES 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D are sequential side elevation views illustrating the cooperation between the stationary and movable tucking members of FIGURE 1 and generally corresponding to the sequence shown in FIG- URES 2A-2D;

FIGURE 4A is a side elevational view of the stationary tucking mechanism of the embodiment of FIGURE 1;

FIGURES 4B, 4C and 4D are figures showing the sequence whereby the top and bottom flaps are closed when acted upon by the elements of FIGURE 4A;

FIGURE 5 is an elevation view showing the power connections for the machine of FIGURE 1 and particularly the drive for the tucking mechanism;

FIGURE 6 is a plan view of the movable tucking member of FIGURE 1 in the extended position and the mechanism which operates the movable tucking member;

FIGURE 7 is a plan view of the movable tucking member of FIGURE 6 in the retracted position;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary cutaway side view of the gear and pinion drive utilized in connection with the oper ation of the movable tucking member of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 9 is a plan view of a mounting mechanism carrying adjustable switches which are utilized in the adhesive dispensing mechanisms of all modifications of the wrapping and packaging machine;

FIGURE 10 is an elevational view of the switches of FIGURE 9 and their mountings;

FIGURE 11 is an elevation view illustrating the relationship between the rotary solenoid and adhesive dispensing member utilized in the embodiment of FIG- URE l; V

FIGURE 12 is a side view of the rotary solenoid and adhesive dispensing system of FIGURE 11;

FIGURE 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating the interconnection between the microswitches and rotary solenoid of FIGURES l1 and 12 and the electrical circuit which operates same;

FIGURE 14 is a plan view of a preferred filling or container loading device for bag containers;

FIGURE 15 is a front view of the filling device of FIGURE 14;

FIGURE 16 is a front view of a carton opening device with the carton outlined in two positions;

FIGURE 16A is a perspective view of the carton handling mechanism shown in FIGURES l6 and 17;

FIGURE 17 is a fragmentary end view of the carton opening device of FIGURE 16;

FIGURE 18 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention which fills and closes bags;

FIGURE 19 is a fragmentary rear view of the embodiment shown in FIGURE 18.

FIGURE 20 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the present invention which is adapted to close both ends of a package;

FIGURES 21A through 21G are sequential side elevation views illustrating the cooperation between the movable and stationary tucking members of the embodiment of FIGURE 20;

FIGURE 22 is a side elevation view of the stationary tucking and folding mechanism of the embodiment of FIGURE 20;

FIGURE 23 is a plan view of a mechanism for operating the movable tucking member of the embodiment of FIGURE 20 which is also adapted as an alternate mechanism for the embodiment of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 24 is an elevational view of the mechanism of FIGURE 23;

FIGURE 25 is a plan view of the movable tucking member of the embodiment of FIGURE 20 in its retracted position;

FIGURE 26 is a plan view of the movable tucking member of FIGURE 25 in its extended tucking position;

FIGURE 27 is an elevational view showing a modified drive mechanism for the embodiment of FIGURE 20 but which is also utilizable on the embodiments of FIGURE 1;

FIGURES 28 and 28A are schematic diagrams of the electrical circuit of the drive mechanism of the embodiment of FIGURE 20;

FIGURE 29 is a simplified diagrammatic illustration of the glue dispensing mechanism utilized in the embodiment of FIGURE 20;

FIGURE 30 is an electrical schematic of the switch system for the glue dispensing mechanism of FIGURE 29;

FIGURE 31 is an end elevation view of the clamp bar for holding wrapping material for the embodiment of FIGURE 20;

' FIGURE 32 is a side elevational view of the paper clamp of FIGURE 31 in its inoperative position;

FIGURE 33 is a side elevational view of the clamp of FIGURE 31 in its operative position;

' FIGURE 34 is an elevational view partially in section of the mechanism for adjusting the embodiment of FIG- URE 20 to various heights of packages;

FIGURE 35 is a plan view of the mechanism for adjusting the embodiment of FIGURE 20 to accommodate packages of various lengths;

FIGURE 36 is an-end elevational view of the adjusting mechanism of FIGURE 35;

FIGURE 37 is a side elevational view of the adjusting mechanism of FIGURE 35; and

, FIGURE 38 is a perspective view of the machine of FIGURE 20.

Referring now to FIGURES 1 and 19, spaced apart pairs of conveyor fingers 13 are shown moving a plurality of packages A from left to right. The pairs of conveyor fingers are guided within slots 12 and moved by a pair of conveyor chains 15. A loading station is provided adjacent to the left end of the conveyor mounted on a base 190. This loading station is adapted to facilitate the manual filling of containers (such as bags or boxes) before the automatic operations are to be performed. The operation and structure of this station will be more fully discussed in connection with FIGURES 14 and 15. After the containers are manually filled they are moved forward into the path of the aforementioned conveyor fingers 13, which are moving from left to right. The

rearward movement of the containers is limited by a back guide plate 46. Guide plate 46 is mounted adjacent to the rear edge of the conveyor by means of adjustable brackets 50 and 52 so that it can be moved closer to or further away from the rear edge of the conveyor in order to accommodate packages of different sizes.

As the filled containers move to the right, their open ends are subjected to a tucking operation. This tucking operation involves the use of both moving and stationary tucking members. The general location of the movable tucking member 20 and the stationary tucking section 21 with respect to the entire apparatus is best shown in FIGURE 18. Since the vertical mounting plate 28 obscures the view of stationary tucking section 21 in FIG- URE 18, this section is more clearly shown in FIGURE 19, which is a fragmentary rear view of FIGURE 18. It will be noted that section 21 consists of a relatively thin outwardly protruding elongated upper portion 29 and a somewhat wider lower side flap tucking portion 16. Portions 29 and 16 may be held in place by a plurality of rods or braces 31 joined to the vertical mounting plate 28.

The sequential cooperative relationship between the movable tucking member 20 and the stationary tucking section 21 has been diagrammatically illustrated in FIG- URES 2, 3 and 4. For example, FIGURE 2A and FIG- URE 3A are plan and side views respectively of a bag container in its filled condition but with its flaps all open. FIGURES 2B and 3B are similar views of this same bag after it has moved to the right and is ready to be acted upon by the clockwise movement of tucking member 20 and the stationary tucking section (member 20 not being shown in FIGURE 3B). FIGURES 2C and 3C are plan and side views of the positional relationship between the bag A and the stationary tucking section (comprising portions 16 and 29) immediately before the side portions of the bag are acted upon. FIGURES 2D and 3D are similar views showing the positional relationship a short interval after the bag A has moved further to the right and after tucking member 20 has just about moved to its maximum clockwise position. In FIGURE 3D it will be observed that the portion 16 of the stationary tucking member pushes in the forward side of the bag, which portion 29 rides over the upper flap portion of the bag formed by tucking in the sides. (The distance between members 16 and 29 is somewhat enlarged for purposes of clarity.) v

After the container has been acted upon so that its side portions have been pushed inwardly, the residual effect is that the bag now has upper and lower outwardly extending fiapsections (e.g. see upper flap section 23 in FIG- URE 2D which is shown as having a generally trapezoidal shape). The means for closing these upper and lower flaps are shown in FIGURES 4A-4D. In essence this flap closing operation involves the use of an elongated curved slot. Such a slot 31 is shown in FIGURE 4A and is seen to be formed in part by the stationary tucking member already described in connection with FIGURE 19. More specifically the entrance portion 30 of slot 31A is formed between the spaced apart portions 16 and 29 already de scribed, and as noted previously the portions 16 and 29 of stationary tucking member 21 are joined to the vertical mounting plate 28 by means of a plurality of rods or braces 31. As the bag moves to the right the distance indicated by bracket E in FIGURE 4A, the top flap 33 moves from the essentially horizontal position shown in FIGURE 4B to the essentially downward vertical position shown in FIGURE 4C because of the contour of the slot over this distance. Top flap 33 thus is folded into a position essentially parallel to the bottom of the bag. Over the bracketed distance F the upper flap 33 remains as shown in FIGURE 4C and the lower bag flap 35 remains in the essentially horizontal position shown in FIGURES 4B and 40 as it moves from the horizontal slotted portions. 30A and 30B. The sliding surface for the bag is indicated by 12A. As the bag moves into and through the bracketed distance G, the lower flap 35 enters slot portion 30C and as the slot 300 rises the lower flap 35 rises until at the top of slot 30C the bottom flap 35 is vertical as is shown in FIGURE 4D.

Once the bag has been folded into the position shown in FIGURE 4D, it is of course desirable to maintain the top and bottom flaps (33 and 35) in this position so that the bag will be securely closed. This closure is preferably insured by the application of adhesive to one or both of the flaps and it can be applied in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most important consideration in applying adhesive is to apply it at just the right time. Since it is impractical to apply the adhesive manually, some sort of mechanism must be used to apply it to the desired location at the proper instant of time.

A preferred arrangement for applying adhesive in accordance with this invention can be understood by referring to FIGURE 1 which is a semi-diagrammatic plan view. In FIGURE 1 the sequential movement of the bag from left to right is indicated by the outlines A A A and A The outline of the bag indicated by A generally corresponds to the condition of the bag in FIGURES 2A, 2B, 3A and 33 while outline A generally corresponds to FIGURES 3D, 4B and 4C and outlines A and A generally correspond to FIGURE 4D. In FIGURE 1 the microswitches 42 and 44 are positioned to contact the bottom of the bag as the bag passes the adhesive dispenser 36. Contact of the bag with microswitches 42 and 44 cause these microswitches to actuate a circuit which, by means of rotary solenoid 38 (see FIGURES 11 and 12), rotates a cam to trigger the adhesive dispenser so that adhesive Will be applied to the bottom flap 35 before the bottom flap changes from the position shown in FIGURE 4C to that shown in 4D. In other words the adhesive is preferably applied to the bottom flap 35 as the flap is traversing slot 30B through the distance indicated by the bracket F in FIGURE 4A. Bottom flap 35 is thereafter folded or moved upwardly by virtue of its passage through slot 30C. The result is the sealed container shown in FIG- URE 4D, the adhesive serving to hold the bottom flap 35 over the top flap 33.

Beyond the rightward extremity of slot 30C, a front guide plate 48 may be employed which in conjunction with back guide plate 46 holds flaps 33 and 35 firmly in the position indicated in FIGURE 4D. A heating compressing means 54, preferably thermostatically controlled, is shown as being associated with the front guide plate 48 to facilitate setting of the adhesive and securing of said flaps 33 and 35 together. The distance that the closed container travels under the influence of guide plates 46 and 48 and heating compressing means 54 can be varied to suit the diifering containers and adhesives that one may wish to use, the main consideration of course being the assurance that the container will be securely closed.

From the above it will be clear that the apparatus of this invention is capable of automatically folding and sealing the open end of a container after it has been suitably filled with the desired merchandise.

It should further be observed that the device is provided with a number of features whereby adjustability is facilitated. For example, in FIGURE 1 is will be noted that the back guide plate 46 is mounted upon horizontally adjustable brackets 50 and 52 which can simply be adjusted and then fixed in place by means of a bolt slideably mounted within said brackets. This arrangement allows adjustment of the apparatus to accommodate packages of different heights. It is also possible in that the stationary tucking member 21 (comprising elements 29 and 16) can be removed in its entirety and replaced with another tucking member having slots arranged at different levels and having different contours to accommodate packages of different thicknesses.

The operation of the movable tucking mechanism 20, as will be mode fully explained in conjunction with subsequent views, is also designed to provide means for adjustment in a vertical direction and the feature of engaging a variety of package widths.

In FIGURE 5 the driving means for both the movable tucking means 20 and the conveyor 15 is shown. A supporting framework is seen to comprise frame members 114, 116, 118 and 120. A suitable motor (not shown) may be attached to said framework to provide a power to the drive wheel 64. The drive wheel 64 operates both a conveyor drive chain 60 and a cam drive belt 62. Conveyor chain 60 passes around suitable rollers (66A, 66, 68A and 68) and is operatively connected to means for driving the conveyor chain 15 (not shown). A chain take-up means is provided which involves a pivot support 65 attached to framework member 118. A pivotable bar 63 is mounted in said pivot support 65 and supports, adjacent opposite ends thereof, pulleys 66 and 68. The pivotable bar 63 is provided with a spring 67 which is attached to frame member 118 to provide a resilient takeup for the drive chain 60. This entire mechanism may be attached to a safety cut-off switch so that in the event of an emergency chain 60 can be effectively disconnected from pulley 64 or the motor can be cut off.

The drive chain 62 is connected to a rotatably supported cam member 70 and serves to rotate said cam member. As the cam member 70 rotates, a roller 77 rides along the outer surface of the cam 70. The roller 77 is attached to one end of an arm 78 pivotally mounted on the framework by means of a pivot pin 75. The arm 78 is biased against said cam by means of a spring 79 which has one end securely mounted to a bracket 115 mounted beneath support member 114. Any movement of the arm '78 caused by the cam 70 is transferred through upper arm 78A and other suitable linkage to the movable tucking member mechanism 20. As shown in FIGURES 5, 6 and 8, this linkage is represented by a bolt 108 which is attached at its right end to the arm 78A and which has a U-head on its other end which is attached to a rod end 106.

The drive mechanism thus described will be seen to provide intermittent operation of the pivotable arms 78 78A in a synchronized manner with the movement of the conveyor chain 15 so that the movable tucking means 20 will come into action at a predetermined time as containers are moved along by said conveyor 15. The operational relationship and timing sequence between the movable tucking means 20 and the conveyor 15 may be changed by the replacement of cam member 70 with a cam member having a differently contoured surface.

The effect of movement of the arm 78 can be more fully understood by referring to FIGURES 6, 7 and 8 wherein the movable tucking member 20 mentioned above is shown. Referring to FIGURES 6 and 8 it will be seen that the bolt 108 is connected to a rod end 106 which in turn is connected to a rack 100 having a plurality of gear teeth 100A along one face thereof. The rack 100 is mounted in a rack guide 110. The teeth of the rack member 100 are seen to be engageable with toothed pinions 102 and 104 mounted on the bottom of rods 80 and 82 which are in turn supported by bearings 94 and 96 mounted on the base 98. Said base 98 is supported by frame members 112 and 114. The rotation of the pinion 102 and 104 is transferred through rods 80 and 82 to tucking member arms 22 and 24.

Referring now to FIGURES 6 and 7, the arms 22 and 24 are seen to transfer their reciprocating motion to a tucking member 20, as the arms are pivotally attached to member 20 by means of pins 86 and 88. It should be noted that movement of the arms 22 and 24, while moving the tucking member 20 in a generally arcuate path, retains the face of said member at a fixed angle with respect to other parts of the packaging machine. Thus, as the tucking member 20 engages a container being moved along the conveyor 15, the engagement of the container with the tucking member 20 will result in no components of movement which involve rotation of the face of member 20. Referring to FIGURES 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D and FIGURE 7 it will be noted that the movable tucking member 20 can thus engage a container at a number of positions along conveyor surface and still produce a uniform tucking of the container opening. The described mechanism will thus provide a tucking arrangement which will engage a variety of container widths in a substantially similar manner without requiring any substantial adjustment. In the manner described, the machine produces an evenly Wrapped package despite some variation in the position of the container during the tucking operation.

Referring again to FIGURES 6 and 7, adjustment for the height of a container to be closed is made possible by attaching any desired size tucking plate face 80A to the support 81 by means of suitable screws 90 and 92. Using a tucking plate 80A of the correct height will insure that the tuck of the container opening is sufficiently compressed inwardly so that the flaps formed at the top and bottom of the container (see FIGURE 2D) will be of the proper size and alignment to pass into the slots provided for folding of these flaps.

While the tucking member arms 22 and 24 are well adapted to provide the desired movement of the tucking member 20, additional provision is made to allow maximum movement of the tucking plate in a lateral direction with respect to the conveyor. An indented portion 23 on arm 22 serves to allow additional movement of pivot point 88 and the same function is provided by indented portion 25 on arm 24 permitting similar additional movement toward pivot point 82. This advantage is about the same that might be obtained by utilizing curved arms.

The movable tucking member operating assembly may be attached by suitable means at the point of desired operation on the packaging machine. In the drawings a base 98 is provided to which the rack guide 110 is attached by suitable means, e.g. welding or bolting. The base 98 is supported on members 112 and 114 of the frame of the packaging machine as noted previously.

The linkage between the arm 78 and the rack 100 should be provided with pivot points as compensation for the transfer from arcuate motion to rectilinear motion. The attachment of bolt 108 and rod end 106 and the attachment of bolt 108 to arm 78 are thus utilized in the capacity of pivot points for the linkage in this embodiment. Of course, no invention would be involved in using a chain or other flexible connection.

Referring now to FIGURES 9 and a container A is shown being moved along the conveyor surface 12A by convey-or chain and fingers 13. The back guide plate 46 is shown as being supported by bracket 50 which in turn is adjustably attached to the base of the packaging device by means of a bolt 49. Attached to the back guide plate 46 by suitable means are brackets 122 and 124 which support a vertical plate 132 positioned above the path of packages passing through the machine. The vertical plate 132 has a bracket member 134 adjustably mounted on the vertical face thereof, with the vertical adjustment being provided by means of bolts 135 and 137 and nuts 128 and 130 passing through the slots 131 and 133 located on the face of plate 132. Attached to the bracket 134 by means of screws 146 is a horizontal plate 136. Plate 136 is provided with slots 138 and 140 which provide an adjustable mounting for rnicroswitches 42 and 44 which are adjustably attached to plate 136 by means of bolts 142 and 144. The rnicroswitches 42 and 44 are provided with actuation levers 43 and 45.

In FIGURE 10 the operation of the actuation levers 43 and 45 is shown wherein the movement of a package A along the conveyor first engages the lever 43 thereby moving it upwardly to position 43A. As the package advances further to the right, lever 43 is retained in position 43A and lever 45 is then moved upwardly into posi-,

tion 45A. As will be apparent from later detailed descriptions, the rnicroswitches 42 and 44 are electrically connected in such a manner that both switches must be depressed (raised) before the desired adhesive dispensing action is produced. By suitable adjustment of the microswitches within slots 138 and 140, the exact position at which the container will depress (or raise) both microswitches may be con-trolled. Since the only purpose of the Inicroswitches is to serve as a timing means to insure the dispensing of adhesive at the proper instant, it is really immaterial Whether the rnicroswitches are positioned above, below or to the side of the moving containers. Thus, while the microswitches are located above the containers in FIGURES 9 and 10, FIGURE 1 illustrates that they could be positioned to contact the back or bottom sides of the containers.

As will be discussed in greater detail with regard to FIGURE 13, the rnicroswitches serve to operate the rotary solenoid shown in FIGURES 11 and 12. The rotary solenoid 38 is mounted adjacent the bracketed area F indicated in FIGURE 4A and is indicated in FIG- URES 1 and 19 as 38. A base member is shown in FIGURE 12 and this base member can be attached by any suitable means to the packaging machine. Slid-ably mounted upon member 150 is a bracket 152 having a slot in the top face thereof which in conjunction with bolt 156 allows limited movement of the assembly laterally with respect to the direction of conveyor movement. Upon member 152 is mounted an upstanding bracket 154. The rotary solenoid 38 is attached to bracket portion 154 by means of bolts 153 and 155. Extending outwardly from the front side of the rotary solenoid 38 is a drive member 158. Attached to the drive member is a cam 162 which is attached by means of sleeve 160. Rotation of the rotary solenoid operates the cam member 162 to cause it to ride against a trigger 166 of an adhesive dispenser. The adhesive dispenser 36 is securely mounted in a bracket assembly consisting of plates 170 and 172 which are tightened against the body of the adhesive dispenser 36 by means of bolts 174 and 176, thereby securing it in position. The adhesive dispenser has a roller 168 along the bottom portion thereof which dispenses the glue along a surface, in this case a flap of a container. Additional positioning means for the adhesive dispenser is provided by a top plate 178 and a pin 180 on the said dispenser which engages a space between plate 178 and plates 172 and 170.

The adhesive dispenser acts as a valve which is activated by the trigger 166 upon actuation of the rotary solenoid 38. Upon the opening of this valve, adhesive is supplied through :a hose 182 from a pressurized source.

As a container is moved along by the conveyor 15 and fingers 13 to the bracketed area F shown in FIG- URE 4A, the container has its lower flap 35 in the position shown in FIGURE 4C. Referring to FIGURE 12, this lower flap 35 will then be extending under plate 29 and under the roller 168 of the adhesive dispenser 36. At this point the rotary solenoid 38 would be actuated and adhesive would be applied along the length of the flap 35 passing under roller 168.

The manner in which the adhesive is dispensed and controlled so that it will be applied only when a container flap is passing under the roller 168 is illustrated in FIG- URE 13 wherein an electric circuit is shown having a current source 181 and rnicroswitches 42 and 44 which energize the operation of the adhesive dispensing system when both are in a closed position. More particularly, the depression of switch 42 and switch 44 allows current to pass through the rectifying circuit 184 and supplies current which actuates the rotary solenoid illustrated by element 38. The operation of the rotary solenoid 38 causes the rotation of the cam 162 thereby actuating the adhesive dispenser 36. Upon the depression of the trigger 166 of the adhesive dispenser 36 the valve within the dispenser (not shown) is opened thereby allowing adhesive which is supplied under pressure from the adhe- 9. sive container 186 through the adhesive supply line 185 through hose 182 to be force fed over roller 168 to a container flap. The adhesive container 186 is a pressurized container having regulated pressure which may be produced by a compressed air source indicated by line 187 and pressure regulator 188.

It will be noted that both micoswitches 42 and 44 must be depressed before dispensing is possible. Accordingly one can adjust the interval during which adhesive will be dispensed by adjusting the positions of the microswitches so that the container will maintain them closed for that desired interval of time.

As a means for facilitating the filling of containers and arranging them on the machine for the automatic closing operation, a filling device (such as is generally indicated on FIGURE 1) is specifically illustrated in FIGURES 14 and 15. It has a base member 190 and an elongated slot 192 along the middle of the front end of said base member and acts as a platform for placing objects into a container A. The base 190 extends laterally from the packaging machine with respect to the direction of movement of the conveyor 15. A container (such as a bag) is inserted over channel members 196 and 198 when these channel members are in positions indicated by dotted outlines 196A and 198A. After the articles to be placed in the bag are inserted into the spread apart front portions of the channel members (when in positions 196A and 198A) the channel members are then rotated to an essentially parallel position. Since the rear portions of the channel members are within the mouth of the bag, the bag is constantly maintained in a fully open position which permits very easy insertion of any desired items into the interior of the container. Along the sides of elongated slot 192 there are provided raised portions 194 and 195 which serve to both protect the operators hands from sharp edges and insure that articles will slide freely into the bag without snagging on the front edges of the channel members 196 and 198. The arms 202 and 204 may be attached to the sides of channel members 196 and 198 by spot Welding or other means. The arms 202 and 204 are mounted on laterally extending bracket members 210 and 212 by means of bolts 214 and 216. The channel members and arms may pivot about bolts 214 and 216 and the channel members are biased toward positions 196A and 198A by means of springs 206 and 208 which are fixedly attached to the base 190 and the arms 202 and 204. The arrangement illustrated in these figures is particulanly adapted to filling paper bags with articles in preparation for the subsequent automatic operations illustrated in the preceding discussion. After the articles have been inserted into a bag, the filled bag can be simply pushed rearwardly onto the conveyor surface 12A.

Other devices may be used to perform similar feeding functions in conjunction with the operation of the packaging machine. For example, one such alternative device which may be used for filling containers in preparation for the closing operation performed by the machine is seen in FIGURES 16, 16A and 17. In these figures a device which is particularly adapted for use with boxes or cartons is shown. This device serves to hold the flaps of a box in an open position as the container is moved by the conveyor so that articles may be easily placed within the box.

Referring now to FIGURES 16, 16A and 17, boxes are seen to be passing from left to right and initially the flaps are all in about the same plane as the sides to which they are attached, that is in an open position. However, as the cartons move to the right toward the point where they are to be loaded, it is desirable to insure that the upper flap F and the lower flap F do not interfere with the loading operation. To insure that they are out of the way several things are done. First of all, the upper surface of the loading table 224 is provided with an extension 226 which extends inwardly over the conveyor surf-ace 12A and forms a channel 227. The bottom flap F of 16 the carton is then guided into channel 227 and will be retained therein (see FIGURE 17) at least until the container has been filled and if desired even through a portion of the closing and sealing operation.

At about the same time the top flap guiding means comes into play, as will be seen in FIGURES 16, 16A and 17, vertical members 222 and 248 and horizontal support members 221A and 221B support a bar 230 which is disposed parallel to the conveyor surface 12A. Vertical members 222 and 248 are attached to a portion of the framework 114A (see FIGURE 16) and vertical adjustment is possible because of slots 221 and 249 and screw clamps 223A and 223B.

Attached to the bar 230 by suitable means, such as welding or rivets, is an angled channel section 232. Near the front end of said angled channel section 232- is a flap lifting finger 234 which extends beyond the end of the angled channel section 232. Said rod is attached by means of a clamp assembly consisting of a clamp body 236 and a screw 238. Also supported by bar 230 is an adjustable assembly consisting of a second bar 242 which is supported from bar 230 by means of rod 240. A second rod 244 extends downwardly from bar 242 and at the lower end thereof a plate 246 is attached. This assembly serves to prevent distortion of a carton as articles are placed therein.

As the container passes along the conveyor 15 and comes into contact with the flap lifting finger 234, this finger passes under the top flap F of the oncoming carton and lifts flap F into a position whereby it rests upon the upper inclined surface of the angled channel section 232. The box is retained on the conveyor because of plate 246. At aboutthe same time the lower flapF passes under the inward extension 226 of the table 224 and the top and bottom of the box are thereby held in an open position. When the box reaches the point A in FIGURE 16 it will be seen that an article or articles may be easily placed within the container Without encountering obstruction from the top or bottom flaps. When the filled box then moves further to the right it will be subject to the tucking operation disclosed previously (tucking elements 16 and 29 being shown in FIGURE 16).

Depending upon variations in the type of packages desired, a means of retaining the mouth of the container in an open position thereby facilitating the placement of articles within the carton can be provided by either of the above filling means.

Referring now to FIGURES 20 and 38 which illustrate a second embodiment of the invention which is adapted to close both ends of a package. In describing this embodiment, like numbers will be used to designate elements which are mirror images of an element on the opposite side of the machine.

Mounted on a portable base member 250, which contains the various drive mechanisms and the like for the entire machine, are front table section 251 and rear table section 252. Mounted on the side of table section 251 is hand wheel 253 which is adapted to adjust the machine to accommodate packages of various lengths as will be pointed out in detail hereinafter. Mounted between table sections 251 and 252, and also carried by base 250, is conveyor belt 254. Spaced along conveyor belt 254 at approriate points are feed bars 255 which are adapted to hold the object being closed on the conveyor belt at a given point and thereby move it from the feed end of the machine to the discharge end. Located adjacent the feed end of the machine on table sections 251 and 252 are movable tucking heads 256. Tucking heads 256 are pivoted on tucking arms 257 and 258, respectively. Tucking arms 257 and 258 have their opposite ends pivoted on pivots 259 and 260. Mounted on table sections 251 and 252 adjacent tucking heads 256 are stationary tucking heads 261. Stationary tucking heads 261 are attached to mounting bracket 262 in a fashion such that head 261 may be removed or replaced by a different shaped head, such as head 16 of FIGURE 4A. Mounting bracket 262 is releasably held on table sections 251 and 252 by hand bolts 263. Hand bolts 263 may be removed so that both bracket 262 and head 261 may be removed from the table. Cooperating with and mounted adjacent to tucking head 261 is flap folding unit 264. Flap folding unit 264 is made up of folding elements 265, 266 and 267, respectively. Attached to folding elements 265 and 266 near their top and extending substantially the entire length of folding elements 265 and 266 are pressure bars 268, which are adapted to press lightly against the top of the package as it moves through the flap folding mechanism. Beyond flap folding section 266 on either side of conveyor 254 are beating and/ or pressure bars 268. Whether bars 268 contain appropriate heating elements or not depends strictly upon the point at which glue is placed on the lower flap of the wrapping. In the particular device shown in FIGURES 20 and 28, these pressure bars contain no heating elements. Instead the heating elements are contained in horizontally-disposed pressure bars 269, which attach to and from extensions of folding elements 267. Pressure bars 269 and folding element 267 can be adjusted in height by hand wheel 270, as will be pointed out hereinafter.

When the device of FIGURES 20 and 38 is to be used to wrap an item in a flat sheet of paper, wrapping table 271 may be attached to the feed end of the apparatus. Mounted through slots 272 of table 271 is air operated hold down bar 273. As will be pointed out in more detail Zhereinafter, hold down bar 273 is adapted to hold a stack 274 of wrapping sheets. Referring specifically to FIG- URE 20, an object A, which is to be wrapped, is placed on stack 274 and glue 275 is placed along the righthand edge of the top sheet of wrapping paper. The object is then manually wrapped by releasing bar 273 and wrapping the left side of the top sheet of paper over object A, followed by the right side. This then produces a generally rectangular package having both ends open, which is then placed on conveyor 254, as shown at position B, and moved along the conveyor through successive positions C, D, E, F and G by bars 255. Mounted just beyond folding element 265 but ahead of element 266 is a glue dispensing mechanism made up of glue dispensing means 276 and switches 277 and 278. These elements will be referred to in greater detail in connection with other drawings.

FIGURES 21A through 216 show one end of a package as it is closed in moving through corresponding positions A through G of FIGURE 20. It is to be seen that in position A the object has been placed on a sheet of paper. In position B the paper has been folded about the object as previously described. In position C stationary tucking head 261 and movable tucking head 256 have tucked both sides of the wrapping as the object moves past the stationary tucking member. In position D, the top flap, left after the tucking operation, is folded downwardly by moving under folding element 265 as it progresses toward the discharge end of the machine. It is to be noted that the flaps are longer than the vertical height of the object. After glue has been dispensed on the bottom flaps, as shown in position E, the object then passes to position F and in doing so the bottom flap passes over folding element 266 and is folded upwardly. As can be seen, the lower flap is longer than the thickness of the package and it is this protruding end which contains the glue. Therefore, the package then passes under folding element 267 which folds the free end of the bottom flap over the top of the package as shown in position G. From position G the package passes under top pressure bars 269, which apply pressure and heat to cure the glue. As indicated earlier, the top and bottom flaps are longer than the vertical dimension of the article being wrapped. This greatly increases the ability of the machine to tightly and uniformly wrap the article since 12 part of the top flap is creased under folding elements 265 thus dfawing the wrapping taut across the top; and this excess is then folded upwardly with the bottom flap to add strength to 'the end folds. The bottom flap is then folded over the top of the article to thus form a strong, positive closure on the end. p

FIGURES 2 3 and 24are a plan view and a side elevation respectively, showing the mechanical interconnection between the package conveying section and the rear tucker head. Shaft 351 is driven by sprocket 352 through conveyor chain 353 which also dfives conveyor 254 (FIG- URE 20). Shaft 351 in turn transmits power through a pair o-f gears 354 to rotatable cam 355. Rotatable cam 355 maintains a constant mechanical relationship between the cfo'riveyor' flights and the tucking mechanism throughout the entire machine speed range. When cam 355 is rotated the cam action will be transmitted through cam follower 356 to movable sliding member 357. Sliding member 357 is, in turn, connected to sliding member 358. Sliding member 358 transmits power to linkage 359, which, in turn, transmits motion to arms 257 and 258 through pivots 259 and 260. Sliding member 358 is laterally driven by cam 355 and thus transmits motion parallel to the direction of conveyor travel. Tucker carriage plate 356 is attached to and moves with the machine top plate 252 and maintains a constant motion relative to the cam action through the entire machine length range. Since linkage 359 moves laterally through the slot 360 as the machine is adjusted for different package lengths, the power transmitted by cam 355 through linkage 357, sliding member 358 and linkage 359 is transmitted to pivots 259 and 260 at any position of linkage 359 along the slot 360. v

FIGURES 25 and 26 show in greater detail tucking head 256 and tucker arms 257 and 258. In FIGURE 25 the tucking head is in its retracted position, whereas in FIGURE 26 the head is in its extended position to tuck one side of the package covering.

FIGURE 27 shows another form of drive mechanism which may be used as an alternate to the drive mechanism of FIGURE 5. As shown in FIGURE 27, pivot support 300 is attached to base 250. Mounted intermediate its ends on pivot support 300 is pivot bar 301. Mounted below pivot support 300 on pivot bar 301 is sprocket 302 and mounted above pivot support 300 is sprocket 303. Chain 304 passes over sprockets 302 and 303 in a manner similar to that shown in FIGURE 5. Attached to the upper free end of pivot bar 301 is dash pot means 305 which, in turn, contains spring 306 mounted on rod 307. Rod 307 is attached to an element of base 250. Mounted on pivot support 300 and bearing against pivot bar 301 is adjusting bolt 308. Adjusting bolt 308, together with spring 306, is adapted to adjust the tension on chain 304. Also mounted on pivot bar 301 near its upper end and cooperating with a counterpart element mounted on frame 250 is overload switch 309. Overload switch 309 is adapted to stop the device in the event that a dangerous overload condition occurs. By connecting overload switch 309 with the motor control circuit as shown in FIGURE 28, tripping of switch 309 not only brings the machine to an immediate stop but also reverses the drive motor momentarily, thus completely relieving the overload condition.

The operation of overload switch 309 is more specifically illustrated by FIGURE 28. FIGURE 28 shows a schematic wiring diagram of a novel motor control cirouit for the machine of the present invention; including overload switch 309. Motor 361 is supplied with energy from a source of electrical current through one of two alternate circuits, generally referred to herein as the forward control circuit and the reverse control circuit, respectively. Manually operable, stop switch 362 is connected in such a manner that depressing the push button of 362 will interrupt the flow of electrical energy to motor 361 through both of the motor control circuits. Manually operable, reverse switch 363, includes, contacts 364 and 365. Depressing the push button of switch 363 will open contacts 364 and interrupt the electrical current to forward motor starter coil 366 in the forward control circuit. Depression of switch 363 also simultaneously closes contacts 365. The closing of contacts 365, in turn, energizes reverse motor starter coil 367 in the reverse control circuit. Thus, the depression of reverse switch 363 will stop the forward motion of the machine and immediately put the machine into a reverse condition. Normally closed switch 368 and normally closed switch 369 are mechanically connected to motor starter coils 366 and 367, respectively. When the forward motor starter coil 366 is energized, switch 368 will be opened, thus preventing motor starter coil 367 from being energized until forward starter coil 366 has 'been de-energized. In like manner, normally closed switch 369 will open any time motor starter coil 367 is energized. Accordingly, an electro-mechanical interlock is provided which prevents coils 366 and 367, and hence the forward and reverse control circuits, from being energized simultaneously. Switch 370 is a holding contact. When manually operable start switch 371 is depressed, momentarily, to energize forward motor starter coil 366, coil 366 will close switch 370, to which it is mechanically coupled, and maintain it in its closed position so long as forward motor starter coil 366 is energized. When forward starter coil 366 is de-energized by depressing stop switch 362, depressing reverse switch 363 or through an overload condition actuating overload switch 309, located in the overload safety device, switch 370 will open. It should also be noted that once the forward starter coil 366 has been de-energized by any of the previously-mentioned methods, the machine cannot start unless someone manually depresses starter switch 371. Normally closed, thermal switches 372 interrupt the forward or reverse control circuits should the motor become overheated or overloaded for any length of time.

Referring now to FIGURE 28A, this figure shows the detail of the connection of unotor 361 to a source of three-phase current supplied by lines 373, 374 and 375. Switches 376 are located in lines 373, 374 and 375 and are actuated by forward motor starter coil 367. When forward motor starter coil 366 is energized, switches 376 are closed, thereby connecting motor 361 to the source of current through lines 373, 374 and 375 and running motor in a forward direction. When forward motor starter coil 366 is de-energized and reverse motor starter coil 367 is energized, switches 377 located in lines 378, 379 and 380 will be closed, thus reversing the supply of energy from the current source through lines 373 and 375 to motor 361. This will, of course, reverse the direction of motor rotation. Overload thermal switches 372 are also shown in lines 373 and 375 of FIGURE 28A.

FIGURE 29 shows a glue dispensing mechanism which is made up of glue dispensing head 276, having attached thereto nozzle 319. Supplying glue to dispensing head 276 is glue line 320. Glue line 320 is in open communication with pressurized glue reservoir 321. Reservoir 321 is supplied with air through air line 322. Air is also supplied through air line 323, which supplies air to the bottom of a flexible diaphram 324 in dispensing head 276. Diaphragm 324 is adapted to close the passage from glue line 320 to nozzle 319 when sufficient air pressure is supplied through air line 323. However, when no pressurized air is supplied by line 323, pressurized glue will pass through line 320 to nozzle 319. Mounted in air line 323 is electrically-operated solenoid valve 325. Valve 325 is normally open but is closed by electrical switches as hereinafter pointed out. Also mounted in air line 323 and performing the same function as valve 325 is manually operated valve 326.

FIGURE 30 is a schematic diagram of the electrical system showing the connection of glue trip limit switches 2 77 and 278 with motor start switch 371. Reference to FIGURE 30 will clearly show that adhesive may be dis pensed only when motor start switch 371 is closed which, in turn, activates relay coil 328 closing relay switches 329. Switches 277 and 278 also act on solenoid valve 325 to allow adhesive to be dispensed through nozzle 319 (FIG- URE 29). It should be noted that only when both switches 277 and 278, in addition to switches 329, are closed will coil 381 of solenoid valve 325 be energized to close valve 325.

FIGURES 31, 32 and 33 show the operating mechanism for clamp bar 273. Clamp bar 273 is attached to and supported by upstanding support structure 330. Mounted on the lower end of support 330 is pressure plate 331. Mounted on table 271 in a manner to slide longitudinally is clamp carriage 332. Clamp carriage 332 may be moved forwardly or rearwardly with respect to table 271 by operating hand wheel 333 which rotates an appropriate gear cooperating with a rack (not shown). Connecting plate 331 to carriage 332 are upstanding pivot means 334. Also connected between plate 331 and carriage 332 are springs 335 which pull plate 331 toward carriage 332 and also tilt support 330 and consequently clamp 273 as shown in FIGURE 17. Mounted on carriage 332 are air cylinders 336 which have piston rods 337 adapted to press against plate 331. When air pressure is supplied to cylinders 336, piston rods 337 are extended to overcome the tension of springs 335 and press plate 331 downwardly while at the Same time rotating plate 331 and support 330 to a vertical position, as shown in FIGURE 33.

FIGURE 34 shows the details of the mechanism for adjusting the height of upper pressure bars 269 and flap folding element 267. Depending from plate 269 is plate 338. Adjusting hand wheel 270 passes through side units 268 and terminates in a worm 339. Worm 339 cooperatively engages worm gear 340, which in turn operates spur gear 341. Spur gear 341 cooperates with rack gear 342 which is rigidly attached to an extension of plate 269.

FIGURES 35, 36 and 37 show the mechanism whereby table sections 251 and 252 may be adjusted to accommodate packages of different lengths. Specifically, table sections 251 and 252 and the associated tucking, folding, gluing and heating elements mounted thereon are simultaneously moved toward or away from conveyor belt 254 by the operation of hand wheel 253. Hand wheel 253 is connected to lead screws 343 which are threaded in opposite directions on either end and which have an unthreaded center portion. Lead screws 343 are connected to one another through drive shaft 344 and bevel gears 345. Lead screws 343 are supported at their unthreaded centers through depending pillow blocks 346, which are fixedly attached to the conveyor mechanism support. Follower nuts 347 are mounted on either end of lead screws 343 and are attached, in turn, to table sections 251 and 252, respectively. Thus, it is obvious that, as hand wheel 253 is turned table sections 251 and 252 will either move toward one another or away from one another to thereby adjust the distance between the tucking, folding, gluing and heating mechanisms carried by table sections 251 and 252. Guide rollers 348 are mounted on table sections 251 and 252 through mounting blocks 349 and are adapted to provide additional support for the table sections and to slide along tie bars 350.

It is quite obvious from observation of the modifications shown in FIGURES 20 through 38 that this machine can be appropriately adapted to carry out a number of different closing and wrapping operations and handle a. wide variety of different shapes and sizes of objects being placed in a variety of packages. For example, table 271 may be replaced by appropriate boxing or packaging extensions such as those shown in FIGURES 14 through 18. In addition, the device of FIGURES 20 and 38 can be adapted to close a wrapping or container having only one open end by simply attaching a blank plate in front of tucking heads 256 and 261 and folding members 265 and 266 mounted on table Section 252, and disconnecting glue mechanism 276 on table section 252. Similarly; a box having both ends open can have theends simultaneously closed by the apparatus of FIGURES and 38; or, by positioning tucking members 256 and 261 and folding members 265 and 266 slightly ahead of the corresponding folding members on table 251, one end of either a box or a package may be closed in advance of the closing of the other end. Also, as previously Suggested, a variety of different sizes and shapes of movable and stationary tucking members may be substituted for tucking elements 256 and261. Thevefsatility and ready adjustability of the mechanism of FIGURES 20 and 33 will suggest a number of other similar modifications and variations to those skilled in the art.

It is obvious that numerous variations in construction might be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention illustrated by the above-described embodiment.

It will therefore be appreciated that we do not wish to be limited by the details of construction but only by what is fairly included within the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A container combination:

(a) a base;

(b) means for filling containers;

(0) a conveyor positioned on said base adjacent said filling means;

(d) a stationary member positioned adjacent one side and the top surface of said conveyor engageable with a portion of articles moved along said conveyor;

(e) a movable member adjacent said stationary member and positioned rearwardly thereof in relation to the directional movement of said conveyor;

(f) said movable member having a component of movement along the directional movement of the conveyor when moving laterally toward said conveyor and a reverse component when moving lateral'ly away from said conveyor;

(g) said movable member at all time remaining in a fixed angular relation with respect to said conveyor;

(h) means associated with said conveyor for intermittently operating said movable member, including a cam rotated by the drive of said conveyor, an arm pivotable by said cam, a rack movable by said arm, a pinion rotatable by said rack, said pinion being attached to said movable arm to provide the lateral and longitudinal movement of said member with respect to said conveyor;

(i) a first curved slot adjacent said conveyor;

(j) adhesive dispensing means adjacent said conveyor (k) an actuation control device for said adhesive dispensing means positioned adjacent said conveyor and actuated by the presence of articles moving along said conveyor;

(1) a second curved slot adjacent said conveyor;

( m) guiding means along each side of said conveyor;

(11) wherein a portion of the length of said guiding means provides lateral pressure on articles moving on said conveyor;

(0) heating means associated with said guiding means along a portion of the length thereof.

2, A container closure machine comprising combination:

(a) a base;

(b) means for filling containers;

(0) a conveyor positioned on said base adjacent said filling means;

(d) a stationary member positioned adjacent one side and the top surface of said conveyor engageable with a portion of articles moved along said conveyor;

(e) a movable member adjacent said stationary member and positioned rearwardly thereof in relation to the directional movement of said conveyor;

(f) said movable member having a component of closure machine comprising in movement along the directional movement of the conveyor when moving laterally toward said conveyor and a reverse component when moving latterally away from said conveyor;

(g) said movable member at all times remaining in a fixed angular relation with respect to said conveyor;

(h) means connected with the drive of said conveyor for intermittently operating said movable member, including parallel rotatable members, said members being intermittently rotated by pinions associated with a common rack, said rack being provided with movement by a lever the opposite end thereof movable by a cam, said cam provided with rotary movement by connection to said drive of said conveyor;

(i) a first curved slot adjacent said conveyor;

(j) adhesive dispensing means adjacent said conveyor;

(k) an actuation control device for said adhesive dispensing means positioned adjacent said conveyor and actuated by the presence of articles moving along said conveyor;

(1) a second curved slot adjacent said conveyor;

(m) guiding means along each side of said conveyor;

(n) wherein a portion of the length of said guiding means provides lateral pressure on articles moving on said conveyor;

(0) heating means associated with said guiding means along a portion of the length thereof.

3. A container closure machine comprising combination:

(a) a flat, horizontally-disposed base member;

(b) a conveyor positioned on said base member and adapted to travel in a horizontal plane;

(c) a stationary tucking member perpendicular to said base and parallel to one edge of said conveyor and adapted to tuck one side of an open container from a position perpendicular to the direction of movement of said conveyor to a position parallel thereto;

(d) said stationary member being mounted so as to project toward said conveyor and be suspended above said base to form a narrow passage beneath said stationary member;

(6) a movable arm means pivotally mounted on said base member adjacent said stationary member and adapted to describe an are from a line generally parallel to said conveyor to a line generally perpendicular to said conveyor and in the same plane as said conveyor and to tuck the other side of said container from a position perpendicular to the direction of movement of said conveyor to a position parallel thereto;

(f) drive means for intermittently moving said arm through its arcuate path;

(g) a flat, vertically-disposed flap-folding means mounted on said base on the same side of said conveyor as said stationary member and forward thereof, with respect to the direction of movement of said conveyor, and having appropriate guide slots to fold first one and then the other of the horizontally-disposed flaps formed by the operation of the tucking elements from their horizontal positions to generallyvertical positions;

(h) adhesive dispensing means mounted adjacent said conveyor and adapted to apply adhesive to the last flap folded by said flap-folding means, just prior to such folding;

(i) actuator means for said dispensing means actuated by contact with said container to maintain said dispenser operative for a preselected period of time; and

(j) guide means, perpendicular to said base and mounted on either side of said conveyor parallel thereto, adapted to contact the ends of said container as it leaves said flap-folding means.

4. A machine in accordance with claim 3 wherein the actuator means includes two switches spaced from one another parallel to the direction of movement of the conveyor and both of which must be closed in order to actuate the adhesive dispenser.

5. A machine in accordance with claim 4 wherein the switches include means for adjusting the spacing therebetween.

6. A machine in accordance with claim 4 wherein the switches actuate a rotary solenoid carrying a cam which is in contact with a trigger on the adhesive dispenser.

7. A machine in accordance with claim 3 wherein the guide means include means for adjusting the distance between said guide means to accommodate larger containers.

8. A machine in accordance with claim 3 wherein the movable arm carries a replaceable shoe on its free end which is in the same vertical plane as the stationary tucking member when said movable arm is perpendicular to the conveyor.

9. A a machine in accordance with claim 3 wherein the guide means include a heating means adapted to set the adhesive.

10. A machine in accordance with claim 3 which additionally includes means for filling a bag comprising:

(a) a table attached to the base member adjacent the conveyor;

(b) a pair of channel members horizontally spaced from one another and pivoted on said table; and

(c) means for biasing said channel members in oppocite angular directions, whereby said bag may be placed over the adjacent ends of said channels and the object to be placed in said bag will overcome the tension of the biasing means and hold said channel members parallel to one another in the mouth of said bag during insertion.

11. A machine in accordance with claim 3 which additionally includes means for filling a box comprising:

(a) a table attached to the base member at the end of the conveyor;

(b) vertically-spaced guide members mounted on said base and overlying said conveyor; and

(c) flap lifting means mounted adjacent the uppermost one of said guide members, whereby the upper flap of the box will be lifted onto said uppermost guide and both upper and lower flaps of said box will be held open by said guide members for a limited period of time.

12. A machine in accordance with claim 3 which additionally includes a stationary tucking member, a movable arm means, a flap-folding means, and an adhesive dispensing means which are mirror images of and are mounted on the opposite side of the conveyor from the first-mentioned stationary tucking member, movable arm means, flap-folding means and adhesive dispensing means.

13. A machine in accordance with claim 3 wherein the base member is divided into two separate sections disposed on either side of the conveyor.

14. A machine in accordance with claim 13 which additionally includes a drive means operatively attached to said base member and adapted to move the sections of said base member toward and away from one another and the conveyor.

15. A machine for closing at least one end of a covering on a generally rectangular package, wherein the end of the covering to be closed extends beyond the end of the object contained in the package a distance slightly greater than the thickness of the package, comprising:

(a) a flat, horizontally-disposed base member;

(b) a conveyor positioned on said base member and adapted to travel in a horizontal plane;

() a stationary tucking member perpendicular to said base and parallel to one edge of said conveyor and 18 adapted to tuck one side of an open container from a position perpendicular to the direction of movement of said conveyor to a position parallel thereto;

((1) said stationary member being mounted so as to project toward said conveyor and be suspended above said base to form a narrow passage beneath said stationary member;

(e) a movable arm means pivotally mounted on said base member adjacent said stationary member and adapted to describe an arc from a line generally parallel to said conveyor to a line generally perpendicular to said conveyor and in the same plane as said conveyor and to tuck the other side of said container from a position perpendicular to the direction of movement of said conveyor to a position parallel thereto;

(f) drive means for intermittently moving said arm through its arcuate path;

(g) a first flat, vertically-disposed flap-folding means mounted on said base on the same side of said conveyor as said stationary member and forward thereof, with respect to the direction of movement of said conveyor, and having appropriate guide slots to fold the top flap from a generally horizontal position downwardly to a vertical position and the bottom flap from a generally horizontal position upwardly to a generally vertical position;

(h) adhesive dispensing means mounted adjacent said conveyor and adapted to apply adhesive to the bottom flap just prior to such folding;

(i) actuator means for said dispensing means actuated by contact with said container to maintain said dispenser operative for a preselected period of time;

(j) a second flat, horizontally-disposed flap-folding means mounted on said base forward of said first flap-folding means and extending over part of said conveyor and adapted to turn the free end of the bottom flap toward the center of said conveyor and downwardly against the top of the package; and

(k) guide means mounted on either side of said conveyor parallel thereto and adapted to contact the ends of the package as it leaves said second flapfolding means.

16. A machine in accordance with claim 15 which additionally includes a stationary tucking member, a movable arm means, a first flap-folding means, an adhesive dispensing means and a second flap-folding means which are mirror images of and are mounted on the base on the opposite side of the conveyor from the first-mentioned stationary tucking member, movable arm means, first flapfolding means, adhesive dispensing means and second flapfolding means.

17. A machine in accordance with claim 15 wherein the guide means is an L-shaped element extending upwardly and parallel to the conveyor and thence horizontally over a portion of the conveyor.

18. A machine in accordance with claim 17 which additionally includes drive means operatively attached to and adapted to move the second flap-folding means and the guide means vertically.

19. A machine in accordance with claim 15 wherein the base member is divided into two separate sections disposed on either side of the conveyor.

20. A machine in accordance with claim 19 which additionally includes drive means operatively attached to the base sections and adapted to move said sections toward and away from one another and the conveyor.

No references cited.

FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. 3. A CONTAINER CLOSURE MACHINE COMPRISING IN COMBINATION: (A) A FLAT, HORIZONTALLY-DISPOSED BASE MEMBER; (B) A CONVEYOR POSITIONED ON SAID BASE MEMBER AND ADAPTED TO TRAVEL IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE; (C) A STATIONARY TUCKING MEMBER PERPENDICULAR TO SAID BASE AND PARALLEL TO ONE EDGE OF SAID CONVEYOR AND ADAPTED TO TUCK ONE SIDE OF AN OPEN CONTAINER FROM A POSITION PERPENDICULAR TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID CONVEYOR TO A POSITION PARALLEL THERETO; (D) SAID STATIONARY MEMBER BEING MOUNTED SO AS TO PROJECT TOWARD SAID CONVEYOR AND BE SUSPENDED ABOVE SAID BASE TO FORM A NARROW PASSAGE BENEATH SAID STATIONARY MEMBER; (E) A MOVABLE ARM MEANS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID BASE MEMBER ADJACENT SAID STATIONARY MEMBER AND ADAPTED TO DESCRIBE AN ARC FROM A LINE GENERALLY PARALLEL TO SAID CONVEYOR TO A LINE GENERALLY PERPENDICULAR TO SAID CONVEYOR AND IN THE SAME PLANE AS SAID CONVEYOR AND TO TUCK THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID CONTAINER FROM A POSITION PERPENDICULAR TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID CONVEYOR TO A POSITION PARALLEL THERETO; (F) DRIVE MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY MOVING SAID ARM THROUGH ITS ARCUATE PATH; (G) A FLAT, VERTICALLY-DISPOSED FLAP-FOLDING MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID BASE ON THE SAME SIDE OF SAID CONVEYOR AS SAID STATIONARY MEMBER AND FORWARD THEREOF, WITH RESPECT TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID CONVEYOR, AND HAVING APPROPRIATE GUIDE SLOTS TO FOLD FIRST ONE AND THEN THE OTHER OF THE HORIZONTALLY-DISPOSED FLAPS FORMED BY THE OPERATION OF THE TUCKING ELEMENTS FROM THEIR HORIZONTAL POSITIONS TO GENERALLYVERTICAL POSITIONS; (H) ADHESIVE DISPENSING MEANS MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID CONVEYOR AND ADAPTED TO APPLY ADHESIVE TO THE LAST FLAP FOLDED BY SAID FLAP-FOLDING MEANS, JUST PRIOR TO SUCH FOLDING; (I) ACTUATOR MEANS FOR SAID DISPENSING MEANS ACTUATED BY CONTACT WITH SAID CONTAINER TO MAINTAIN SAID DISPENSER OPERATIVE FOR A PRESELECTED PERIOD OF TIME; AND (J) GUIDE MEANS, PERPENDICULAR TO SAID BASE AND MOUNTED ON EITHER SIDE OF SAID CONVEYOR PARALLEL THERETO, ADAPTED TO CONTACT THE ENDS OF SAID CONTAINER AS IT LEAVES SAID FLAP-FOLDING MEANS.

Images