US3446690A - Apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive labels to cylindrical articles - Google Patents

Apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive labels to cylindrical articles Download PDF

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Publication number
US3446690A
US3446690A US500642A US3446690DA US3446690A US 3446690 A US3446690 A US 3446690A US 500642 A US500642 A US 500642A US 3446690D A US3446690D A US 3446690DA US 3446690 A US3446690 A US 3446690A
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Prior art keywords
tape
roller
rollers
cell
article
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US500642A
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George K Charles
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Nutricia Ltd
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Cow and Gate Ltd
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    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C3/00—Labelling other than flat surfaces
    • B65C3/06—Affixing labels to short rigid containers
    • B65C3/08—Affixing labels to short rigid containers to container bodies
    • B65C3/10—Affixing labels to short rigid containers to container bodies the container being positioned for labelling with its centre-line horizontal
    • B65C3/12—Affixing labels to short rigid containers to container bodies the container being positioned for labelling with its centre-line horizontal by rolling the labels onto cylindrical containers, e.g. bottles
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
    • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
    • Y10T156/00—Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
    • Y10T156/10—Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
    • Y10T156/1002—Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor with permanent bending or reshaping or surface deformation of self sustaining lamina
    • Y10T156/1028—Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor with permanent bending or reshaping or surface deformation of self sustaining lamina by bending, drawing or stretch forming sheet to assume shape of configured lamina while in contact therewith
    • Y10T156/1033—Flexible sheet to cylinder lamina

Definitions

  • the object of the invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label tofa cylindrical article in which the label is pressed evenly and firmly around the article, and which is particularly suitable for applying labels automatically to a plurality of articles in succession.
  • the labels may be in the form of strips cut from a roll of tape, or the labels may be mounted on a backing tape and detached in succession from the tape.
  • a method of applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label to a cylindrical article comprising the steps of locating the article between three parallel rollers, moving at least one of the rollers in a direction to clamp the article between the three rollers with each roller making rolling engagement with the article, driving one of the rollers to rotate the article, and feeding an end of the label between the article and a roller with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof.
  • the three rollers may be substantially horizontal with two of the rollers spaced apart alongside one another and above the third roller. Withdrawal of the third roller after the label has been wound on to the atricle then permits the article to drop from between the two upper rollers.
  • apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive adhesive labels to cylindrical articles by the method set out above comprising a substantially horizontal drive roller, a pressure roller arranged alongside and spaced from the drive roller, a support roller below the drive and pressure rollers, the
  • the labels are generally provided with printed matter for identifying the articles, but the labelsmay be plain where they are intended to be only a protective covering to the articles.
  • FIGURE 1 is a side elevation view of apparatus for applying labels in the form of strips of heat-shrinkable pressure-sensitive adhesive tape to cylindrical dry battery cells by the method according to the invention.
  • FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a dry battery cell wrapped with a label by the apparatus of FIGURE 1.
  • FIGURE 3 is a cut-away view of part of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 showing the tape being applied to a cell clamped between pressure, drive and support rollers.
  • FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of part of the mechanism for heat shrinking a label applied to a cell.
  • FIGURES 5-8 are diagrammatic views of the cell feeding mechanism and the pressure, drive and support rollers illustrating their movements during one cycle of operating of the apparatus.
  • FIGURE 9 is a side elevation view of part of a modified construction of the apparatus of FIGURE 1, in which the tape feeding mechanism is replaced by mechanism for feeding labels mounted on a backing tape.
  • FIGURE 10 is a side elevation view of part of another modified construction of the apparatus of FIGURE 1.
  • FIGURE 11 is a plan view of the mechanism shown in FIGURE 10.
  • the apparatus illustrated in the drawings comprises a main frame consisting of two vertical plates spaced apart by cross members, with the mechanisms for handling the cells, guiding the tape, and applying the labels to the cells, mounted on the outside wall of one of the vertical plates indicated in the drawings by the reference numeral 10 and hereinafter referred to for convenience as the support plate 10. Only the support plate 10 of the frame is illustrated in the drawings.
  • the drive means for operating the mechanisms on the outside wall of the support plate 10 are mounted between the support plate 10 and the other vertical plate of the main frame and can be of any suitable construction adapted to impart appropriate movements to the mechanisms on the support plate as hereinafter described.
  • a magazine 11 for storing the cells 12 is mounted on the rear end of the support plate 10.
  • the magazine 11 comprises two side plates 13 spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the length of the cells 12, a vertical front plate 14, and a base plate 15 inclined downwards and forwards.
  • the side plate 13 remote from the support plate is formed of transparent insulating plastic material to prevent electric short circuiting of the battery cells 12 through the walls of the magazine.
  • the front end 16 of the base plate is turned vertically downwards and is spaced from the front plate 14 to form a chute 17 for guiding the cells 12 in succession to a cell feeding mechanism.
  • a bottom plate 19 rests on the base plate 15 of the magazine with the front end of the bottom plate 19 engaged in a recess formed by a bracket 20 on the base plate 15, and a stop plate 21 on the rear wall of the front plate 14 is arranged so that only one cell at a time can contact the front plate 14 and be aligned with the chute 17.
  • the base plate 15 is formed with an aperture 22 for the passage of a pin 23 for raising and lowering the bottom plate 19 a small distance during operation of the apparatus, to prevent jamming of the cells in the magazine.
  • the cell feeding mechanism is mounted below the magazine “and arranged to receive cells from the lower end of the chute 17.
  • the cell feeding mechanism comprises upper and lower slide blocks 26, 27 slidably mounted between a lower horizontal guide plate 28 secured to the support plate 10 of the main frame and an upper horizontal guide plate 29 supported at its rear end on a bracket 30 on the chute 17 of the magazine.
  • the lower slide block 27 is fitted with two Lshaped brackets 31 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) each arranged with one leg 32 extending vertically upwards and the other leg 33 extending horizontally forwards, the lower ends of the vertical legs 32 being secured to opposite sides of the lower slide block 27 and the horizontal legs 33 being positioned above and on opposite sides .of the upper guide plate 29.
  • a pusher block 34 is secured between the rear ends of the two horizontal legs 33 of the Lshaped brackets and a stop rod 35 extends between the front ends of the two horizontal legs 33, the pusher block 34, stop rod 35 and L- shaped brackets 31 being arranged to accommodate a cell received from the lower end of the chute 17.
  • Two vertical guide plates 36 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) are pivotally mounted at their rear ends on opposite ends of the stop rod 35, the front ends of the vertical guide plates 36 extending forwardly and downwardly beyond the front ends of the horizontal legs 33 of the Lshaped brackets.
  • the vertical guide plate 36 remote from the main frame is formed of insulating material. The other guide plate 36 may be omitted if desired.
  • the front end of the upper slide block 26 is provided with two forwardly projecting lugs and a pressure roller 40 is rotatably mounted on a horizontal transverse axle 41 extending between the two lugs on the upper slide block 26.
  • the front end of the lower slide block 27 is also provided with two forwardly projecting lugs and a support roller 42 is rotatably mounted on a horizontal transverse axle 43 extending between the two lugs on the lower slide block 27.
  • the rear end of the upper slide block 26 is connected by a rod 44 and a resilient coupling 45 to a crank arm 46 on a rocker shaft 47 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame.
  • the rod 44 extends through an aperture in the crank arm 46
  • the resilient coupling 45 comprises two annular rubber discs 48 mounted on the rod 44 on opposite sides of the crank arm 46 and clamped against the crank arm by nuts 49 on the rod 44. Rocking movement of the rocker shaft 47 thus imparts a to-andfro movement to the upper slide block 26.
  • the rear end of the lower slide block 27 is pivotally connected to one end of a connecting rod 52, therothernend of which is pivotally connected to a crank arm 53 secured on a rocker shaft 54 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame, so that rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54 imparts a to-and-fro movement to the lower slide block 27.
  • a further crank arm 55 on the rocker shaft 54 carries the pin 23 arranged to pass through the aperture 22 in the base plate 15 of the magazine and raise and lower the bottom plate 19 of the magazine upon rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54.
  • Rocking movement is imparted to the two rocker shafts 47, 54 by a suitable power driven cam mechanism 56 mounted between the two vertical plates of the main frame, and operable to rock levers 57, 58 secured to the rocker shafts 47, 54, respectively.
  • a spring steel strip 62 is secured to the bottom surface of the lower guide plate 28, the steel strip extending forwardly beyond the front end of the lower guide plate 28 for a purpose to be explained hereinafter.
  • a drive roller 63 is positioned to the front of the pressure roller 40 on the upper slide block 26 and arranged so that the pressure roller 40 can clamp a cell against the drive roller 63 and support roller 42 when the upper slide block is in its forward position.
  • the drive roller 63 is secured on a horizontal transverse axle 64 rotatably mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10, and comprises an inner cylindrical core 65 and an outer sleeve 66 of resilient material, for example, rubber, bonded to the inner core 65.
  • the axle 64 is drivably con nected by a belt and pulley drive 59 to a motor 60 mounted between the two vertical plates of the main frame.
  • a tape arm 67 is positioned to the front of the magazine 11 and is movable to feed an end of a tape 68 towards a cell clamped between the pressure, support and drive rollers 40, 42, 63.
  • the tape arm 67 comprises two spaced apart levers 69 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) each having a bifurcated end clamped by a bolt 70 to a rocker shaft 71 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame, the two levers 69 extending upwardly and rearwardly above the drive roller 63, two side plates 72 secured one on each of the rear ends of the levers 69, the two side plates being of elongated form and projecting above and below the rear ends of the levers 69, a cross bar 73 extending between the upper ends of the two side plates 72, and a cross bar 74 extending between the lower ends of the two side plates 72.
  • a tape guide roller 75 is rotatably mounted on the rocker shaft 71 between the two levers 69, and a further guide roller 76 is rotatably mounted on an axle 77 extending between the rear ends of the two levers 69.
  • a downwardly projecting spring steel finger 78 is secured on the cross bar 73 and has its lower end engaged against a rearwardly facing flat on the cross bar 74, and a further spring steel finger 80 on the lower end of finger 78 projects below the cross bar 74 and has an inturned tip 81 aligned with the fiat on the cross bar 74.
  • Rocking movement is imparted to the tape arm 67 by a lever 82 secured to the rocker shaft 71 and having an end thereof engaging a cam of the cam mechanism 56. If desired, the tape arm 67 may be constructed with only one lever 69.
  • the tape 68 is stored on a spool 85 rotatably mounted on a transverse spindle secured on the support plate 10 above the tape arm 67.
  • the tape has a width slightly greater than the length of the cells 12.
  • the inside surface of the tape on the spool 85 is coated with a pressure-sensitive adhesive, and successive lengths of the tape are printed on the outside surface with labelling matter.
  • the tape from the spool 85 is led in succession around guide rollers 87, 88, 89 rotatably mounted on spindles fixed to the support plate 10, a guide roller 90 rotatably mounted on an adjuster device 91 on the support plate, the guide roller 75 on the rocker shaft 71 of the tape arm 67, the guide roller 76, and between the lower end of the spring finger 78 and the fiat on the cross bar 74,
  • the tape is arranged so that it passes around the lower surface of guide roller 75 and over the upper surface of guide roller 76, with the adhesive side of the end of the tape facing rearwards and adhering to the tip 81 of finger 80.
  • the finger 80 thus prevents the end of the tape curling upwards.
  • the spring finger 78 holds the tape against the flat on the cross bar 74, but permits the tape to be drawn over the cross bar 74 when the tape arm 67 is swung upwards with the end of the tape clamped against a cell to be wrapped.
  • the adjuster device 91 comprises a base plate (not shown) fitted with upper and lower horizontal guide bars 92, a slide block 93 axially movable between the guide bars 92, a cross bar 94 locating the slide block 93 in position between the guide bars 92, an end plate 95 extending across the front ends of the guide bars 92, and a screw threaded rod 96 extending through an aperture in the end plate 95.
  • the rear end of the rod 96 is engaged in a screw threaded aperture in the front end of the slide block 93, and the front end of the rod 96 is provided with a knurled knob 97.
  • Axial movement of the rod 96 is prevented by a nut 98 on the rod at the rear of the end plate 95, so that rotation of the knob 97 in opposite directions screws the rod 96 into and out of the aperture in the slide block 93 and thus effects forwards and rearwards movement of the slide block 93.
  • the guide roller 90 is rotatably mounted on a spindle on the rear end of the slide block 93, and can thus be moved forwards or rearwards by adjustment of the knob 97 to vary the length of tape between the spool 85 and the tape arm 67.
  • a cutter unit is mounted on the support plate to the front of the drive roller 63 and below the tape arm 67.
  • the cutter unit comprises a base plate 105 secured to the support plate 10, an electric solenoid having the coil 106 thereof mounted on the base plate 105, a cutter frame 107 secured to the armature 108 of the solenoid for movement therewith, and a blade 109 projecting from the rear end of the cutter frame 107.
  • the cutter frame is movable rearwardly by the solenoid to a position in which the blade 109 will cut tape extending between the rear of the drive roller 63 and the tip of finger 80 on the tape arm 67.
  • a spring 110 has one end secured to the cutter frame 107 and its other end secured to a stud 111 on the support plate to the front of the cutter unit, the spring retracting the cutter frame 107 and blade 109 when the solenoid is de-energised.
  • the solenoid of the cutter unit is energised by a circuit controlled by a photo-electric scanning head 112 mounted on the support plate 10 immediately in front of the guide roller 88.
  • the scanning head is arranged to scan a plain margin of the tape provided with identifying marks of a different colour to that of the margin at intervals corresponding to the successive lengths of tape provided with the labelling matter.
  • the scanning head 112 is energised by closure of a switch controlled by an operating element of the apparatus, for example, a cam of the cam mechanism 56, immediately prior to the passage of each identifying mark past the scanning head, and when the mark is in register with the scanning head, the head triggers the circuit energising the solenoid of the cutter unit.
  • the operation of the solenoid of the cutter unit is synchronised with movement of successive lengths of tape past the cutter block by adjustment of the adjuster device 91 to vary the length of tape between the scanning head and the tape arm 67.
  • An endless conveyor 115 and a heating chamber 116 are mounted on the support plate 10 below the drive roller 63 and tape arm 67.
  • the conveyor comprises two endless chains 117 each mounted on front and rear sprockets 118, 119 driven by the motor 60, the two chains extending through the heating chamber 116.
  • the heating chamber is provided with two elongated electric heating elements 120 arranged one on each side of the upper run of the conveyor.
  • FIGURES 1 and 5 the components are in the position shown in FIGURES 1 and 5, in which the upper and lower slide blocks 26, 27 are in their rear positions, a cell 12 from the chute 17 is supported on the upper guide plate 29 between the pusher block 34 and the stop rod 35, the tape arm 67 is in its fully raised position with a free end of the tape 68 hanging downwards below the tip of finger 80, the cutter frame 107 is in its forward inoperative position, and the drive roller 63, rotating continuously in an anti-clockwise direction as viewed in FIGURE 1.
  • the lower slide block 27 is first moved forwards by movement of its rocker shaft 54 so that the support roller 42 on the front end of the lower slide block 27 moves to a support position between and below the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63.
  • the two L-shaped brackets 31 on the lower block 27 are thus also moved forwards and the pusher block 34 pushes the cell off the front end of the upper guide plate 29, so that the cell rolls over the pressure roller 40 and drops down into the pocket formed between the pressure, drive and support rollers 40, 63, 42 as shown in FIGURE 6.
  • the cell is guided into the pocket by the two vertical guide plates 36 on the stop rod 35.
  • the cell is supported in the pocket by the support roller 42, and the support roller is arranged so that the axis of the cell is below the axes of the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63.
  • the pusher block 34 passes below the lower end of the chute 17 and prevents the next succeeding cell in the chute from dropping on to the upper guide plate 29.
  • the rocker shaft 47 moves the upper slide block 26 forwards and the pressure roller 40 on the upper slide block 26 forces the cell against the drive roller 63 and the support roller 42, as shown in FIGURE 7.
  • the resilient coupling 45 enables slight variations in cell diameter or surface irregularities to be accommodated without manual adjustment being required.
  • the rotational movement of the drive roller 63 causes rotation of the cell, which in turn causes rotation of the pressure roller 40 and the support roller 42.
  • the rocker shaft 71 then swings the tape arm 67 downwards so that the free end of the tape enters the nip between the drive roller 63 and the cell (FIGURE 3), with the adhesive side of the tape facing towards the cell, and the rotational movement of the drive roller 63 and cell traps the free end of the tape therebetween.
  • the rocker shaft 71 then swings the tape arm 67 upwards so that the tape is drawn from between the finger 78 and crossbar 74 on the tape arm and over the guide rollers.
  • the scanning head 112 When a portion of tape having an identifying mark in the margin passes the scanning head 112 which has previously been energised by the cam mechanism closing a switch in its circuit, the scanning head triggers the circuit energising the solenoid of the cutter unit and the cutter frame 107 and blade 109 are moved rearwards to sever the tape extending between the cell and the finger 80.
  • the tape arm 67 is swung by its rocker shaft 71 into its fully raised position, and when the identifying mark on the tape opposite the scanning head moves past the head, the circuit for the solenoid is de-energised and cutter frame 107 is moved forwards by its return spring 110 to its inoperative position.
  • the length of tape cut by the blade is wrapped around the cell by the rotational movement of the cell, the support roller 42 and the pressure roller 40 assisting in pressing the length of tape evenly and firmly against the cell. Since the tape is wider than the length of the cell, the edges of the tape on the cell project beyond the ends of the cell.
  • the wrapped cell rolls off the support roller 42 and drops on to the spring steel strip 62.
  • the wrapped cell rolls along the strip 62 and into contact with the lower surface of the drive roller 63 which then rolls the cell off the end of the spring strip 62 (FIGURE 8) and on to the front end of the conveyor 115. Since the distance between the front end of the spring strip 62 and the drive roller 63 is less than the diameter of the cell, the strip 62 is deflected downwards, when the cell passes between the strip and drive roller, and urges the cell against the drive roller. This has the effect of accurately locating the cell on the conveyor.
  • the conveyor then carries the cell through the heating chamber 116, the heat in which shrinks the projecting edges of the tape so that it curls inwards and overlies the outer margins of the end walls of the cell, as shown in FIGURE 2.
  • the pusher block 34 Upon rearward movement of the lower slide block 27, the pusher block 34 uncovers the lower end of the chute 17 and another cell drops on to the upper guide plate 29. The apparatus is then set for a further cycle of operation.
  • the cam mechanism for imparting rocking movement to the various rocker shafts has not been illustrated in detail, but can be of any suitable construction in which the movements of the rocker shafts are synchronised to provide the necessary sequence of movements of the slide blocks and tape arm.
  • the cam mechanism is preferably driven by the motor 60.
  • the tape feeding mechanism and cutter unit are replaced by a mechanism for feeding individual die-cut labels to the cells to be Wrapped, as illustrated in FIGURE 9.
  • This modified form of the apparatus comprises a magazine for the cells, mechanism for feeding the cells in succession between pressure, drive and support rollers and rotating each cell between the rollers, a conveyor and a heating chamber, all as previously described with reference to FIGURE 1, and only those parts of the apparatus necessary to illustrate the operation and location of the die-cut label feeding mechanism is shown in FIGURE 9.
  • the label feeding mechanism of FIGURE 9 comprises a vertical blade 130 secured to the support plate with its front surface substantially tangential to the rear of the drive roller 63 and its lower end 131 terminating close to the drive roller 63, a capstan 132 arranged above the blade 130 with the rear face of the blade substantially tangential to the rear of the capstan, a roller 133 above the capstan and urged by a spring into rolling contact with the capstan, and a guide roller 134 to the rear of roller 133.
  • the die-cut labels 135 are spaced apart along the outside surface of a backing tape 136 stored on a spool 137 rotatably mounted on a spindle on the support plate 10, the backing tape extending down the front surface of the blade 130, around the lower end 131 of the blade, up the rear surface of the blade 130, between the capstan 132 and roller 133, and around the underside of the guide roller 134, and the backing tape is then wound on to a rewind spool 139 secured on a spindle rotatably mounted in the support plate 10.
  • the backing tape is fed from spool 137 to the rewind spool 139 by the capstan which is driven by a motor through a magnetic clutch (not shown).
  • the rewind spool 139 is driven through a slipping clutch.
  • the labels are cut from heat-shrinkable material having a pressure-sensitive adhesive coated on one side and labelling matter printed on the other side.
  • the adhesive side of the labels adheres lightly to the outside surface of the backing tape on the spool 137, so that the labels are on the front surface of the length of backing tape passing down the front of the blade 130.
  • the portion of backing tape to which it adheres passes around the lower end of the blade, and the label peels off the backing strip and is fed into the nip between the driving roller 63 and a cell clamped between the pressure, drive and support rollers 40, 63, 42.
  • a scanning head 141 is mounted on the support plate 10 and arranged to scan the labels on the backing tape.
  • the scanning head is connected in an electric circuit with the magnetic clutch for transmitting drive to the capstan and with a switch operated by a cam of the cam mechanism 56 once in each cycle of operation of the apparatus.
  • the circuit is arranged so that operation of the switch engages the magnetic clutch for the capstan and also resets the scanning head.
  • the capstan then feeds the tape from the spool 137 to the spool 139, and when the scannining head reads the full passage of a label, it transmits a signal which de-energises the magnetic clutch and stops the feed of the tape.
  • the pusher block of the cell feeding mechanism is omitted and the pressure roller 40 performs the function of the pusher block in feeding the cells in succession from the magazine into engagement with the drive and support rollers 63, 42 as illustrated in FIGURES 10 and 11.
  • the mechanism of FIGURES l0 and 11 comprises an upper slide which replaces the slide block 26 of the arrangement of FIGURE 1 and a lower slide 151 which replaces the slide block 27, the slide 150 being mounted on the slide 151 and the two slides being mounted between two guide plates in a similar manner to the mounting of the slide blocks 26, 27 in FIGURE 1.
  • the rear end of the slide 150 is connected to the rod 44 and axially movable by rocking movement of the rocker shaft 47, and the rear end of the slide 151 is connected to the connecting rod 52 and axially movable by rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54.
  • the position of the magazine 11 is arranged so that the lower end of the chute 17 is directly above the front end of the upper slide 150.
  • the upper slide 150 comprises two vertical side plates 152 and a horizontal bridge plate 153 extending between the upper edges of the side plates with the front edge of the bridge plate 153 spaced to the rear of the front edges of the side plates.
  • the pressure roller 40 is rotatably mounted on the axle 41 which extends between the two side plates 152, the periphery of the pressure roller being close to the front edge of the bridge plate 153, and a disc 154 of insulating material is mounted on the inner end of a stud 155 screwed in an aperture in the side plate 153 remote from the support plate 10 of the main frame of the apparatus, the disc being positioned immediately in front of the pressure roller.
  • the spacing between the insulating disc 154 and the side plate 153 adjacent the support plate 10 is adjustable by screwing the stud 155 in or out of the aperture in the other side plate.
  • the stud 155 is secured in position by a lock nut 156.
  • the lower slide 151 comprises two vertical side plates and a bridge plate 161 extending between the upper edges of the side plates with the front edge of the bridge plate 161 spaced to the rear of the front edges of the side plates 160.
  • the support roller 42 is rotatably mounted on the axle 43 which extends between the side plates 160. with the periphery of the support roller close to the front edge of the bridge plate 161.
  • the slides 150, 151 are in their rear positions as shown in FIGURE 10, in which the pressure roller 40 is at the rear of the chute 17 and a cell 12 from the chute is resting upon the bridge plate 161 of the lower slide 151, the cell being immediately in front of the pressure roller and aligned with the insulating disc 154.
  • the insulating disc 154 prevents short-circuiting of the cell across the slide 150 and has previously been set, by adjustment of the stud 155, so that the cell is a loose fit between the disc 154 and the side plate 152 adjacent the support plate 10.
  • the upper and lower slides 150, 151 are moved simultaneously by rocking movement of the rocker shafts 47, 54 so that the support roller 42 on slide 151 is moved into its support position (shown in broken lines in FIGURE 10) and the pressure roller 40 propels the cell 12 along the bridge plate 161 of the lower slide and on to the support roller 42.
  • the bridge plate 153 passes below and seals off the lower end of the chute -17 with the cells in the chute resting on the bridge plate 153.
  • the pressure roller 40 When the upper slide 150 is in its fully forward position, the pressure roller 40 is in the position shown in broken lines in FIGURE 10 and clamps the cell against the drive roller 63 and support roller 42, the axis of the cell being below the plane passing through the axes of the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63. Rotation of the drive roller 63 then causes rotation of the cell and the pressure and support rollers 40, 42, and a label is fed between the cell and the drive roller 63 by the feeding mechanism illustrated in FIGURE 1 or FIGURE 9.
  • the upper and lower slides 150, 151 When the label has been wrapped around the cell, the upper and lower slides 150, 151 are with drawn to their rear positions and the wrapped cell drops down on to the spring steel strip 62 shown in FIGURE 1.
  • the bridge plate 153 of the upper slide 150 Upon movement of the bridge plate 153 of the upper slide 150 to the rear of the chute 17, the next succeeding cell drops from the chute on to the bridge plate 161 and is wrapped with a label in the next operating cycle of the apparatus.
  • Apparatus for applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label to a cylindrical article comprising three parallel rollers arranged to receive the article therebetween, means for feeding the article intothe space between the rollers, means for moving one of the rollers in a direction to clamp the article therebetween, means rotating one of the rollers and thereby cause rotation of the article cl-amped between the rollers, and means for feeding an end of the label between a roller and the article with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof.
  • Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 including resilient means urging one of said rollers towards a clamping position, whereby the clamping force between the rollers and article remains substantially constant during rotation of the article, despite small irregularities in the diameter of the article.
  • Apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive adhesive labels to cylindrical articles comprising a substantially horizontal drive roller, a pressure roller arranged alongside and spaced from the drive roller, a support roller below the drive and pressure rollers, the three rollers being parallel to one another, means for moving the support roller substantially horizontally towards and from a support position, means for moving the pressure roller substantially horizontally towards and from a clamping position in which the three rollers, with the support roller in the support position, co-operate to clamp an article in rolling engagement with the rollers with the axis of the article below the plane containing the axes of the pressure and drive rollers, means for feeding the articles in successive sion into the space between the pressure and drive rollers whereby each article is clamped between the three rollers upon movement of the pressure and support rollers into their clamping and support positions respectively, means for rotating the drive roller and thereby causing rotation of the article clamped between the rollers, andmeans for feeding an end of a label between one of the rollers, and means for feeding an end of a label between one
  • the support roller is rotatably mounted on a slide
  • the article feeding means comprises a chute and a pusher element forming a gate to the chute, the pusher element being fitted to the slide and arranged to release an article from the chute upon movement of the slide in a direction to move the support roller out of its support position, and to push the article over the pressure roller and between the pressure and drive rollers upon movement of the slide in a direction to locate the support roller in its support position.
  • the article feeding means comprises a chute and a slide forming a gate for the chute, the slide being movable towards and from the drive roller and the pressure roller being rotatably mounted on the slide, the slide and pressure roller be ing arranged so that movement of the slide away from the drive roller releases an article from the chute into the space between the pressure roller and the drive roller, and movement of the slide towards the drive roller causes the pressure roller to push the article into engagement with the drive and support rollers.
  • the means for moving the pressure roller into its clamping position includes a resilient coupling transmitting the clamping force to the pressure roller, the resilience of the coupling permitting small translational movements of the pressure roller to accommodate variations in the diameter of the article without appreciably altering the clamping force.
  • Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 including a cantilever resilient strip disposed below the support roller when in its support position and having a free end projecting below the drive roller from the side thereof adjacent the pressure roller, the free end of the strip in an unstressed condition being spaced below the drive roller at a distance less than the diameter of the article, whereby the article drops on to the strip upon withdrawal of the support roller from its support position and the drive roller rolls the article off the free end of the strip to a receiving station.
  • the label feeding means comprises a tape anm pivotally mounted on the frame of the apparatus, gripper means mounted on the distal end of the tape arm and adapted to grip the tape with an end portion thereof projecting from the tape arm, and gripper means permitting the tape to be drawn therethrough against the resistance due to its gripping action, and means for rocking the tape arm towards and from an operative position in which the free end of the tape is inserted between the drive roller and an article clamped between the three rollers
  • the apparatus including a cutter device for cutting the tape between the gripper means and the article after the tape has been inserted between the drive roller and the article, the strip cut from the tape forming the label.
  • Apparatus as claimed in claim 9, including tape 1 1 guide means guiding tape from a spool to the gripper means on the tape arm, the tape guide means including a roller rotatably mounted about the pivot axis of the tape arm and arranged so that the tape passes around the roller in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the tape arm upon movement into its operative position.
  • Apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein the tape arm is provided with a finger arranged so that its tip engages the adhesive side of the end portion of the tape projecting from the gripper means at a point spaced from the gripper means, whereby the end portion of the tape adheres to the finger tip and is thus located in a predetermined position relative to the tape anrn.
  • the label feeding means comprises a blade mounted on the frame of the apparatus and having an end thereof directed towards the space between the three rollers, and means operable to pass around said end of the blade a backing strip hav- References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,253,973 5/1966 Anderberg et al. l56-446 XR 2,199,033 4/1940 Strauss 156446 XR 2,585,250 2/1952 Jones et al. 156-449 PHILIP DIER, Primary Examiner.

Description

3,446,690 ELS Sheet.
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G. K. CHARLES PLYING PRESSURE- APPARATUS FOR AP SENSITIVE LAB TO CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES Filed Oct. 22, 1965 May 27, 1969 s. K. CHARLES 3,446,690
FLYING PRESSURE-SENSITIVE LABELS TO CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES I Sheet APPARATUS FOR AP Filed Oct. 22, 1965 May 27, 1969 G. K. CHARLES 3,446,690 APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE-SENSITIVE LABELS T0 CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES Filed Oct. 22, 1965 L 2 Fig.5.
M y 27, 1969 G. K. CHARLES 3,446,690
APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE-SENSITIVE LABELS TO CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES Filed Oct. 22, 1965 Sheet 4 of 5 3,446,690 ITIVE LAB May 27, 1969 Flled Oct 22 1965 G. K. CHARLES APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE-SENS ELS TO CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES Sheet Fig.1].
I -ll Illl United States Patent 3,446,690 APPARATUS FOR APPLYING PRESSURE-SENSI- TIVE LABELS TO CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES George K. Charles, Guildford, England, assiguor to Cow & Gate Limited, Guildford, England Filed Oct. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 500,642 'Int. Cl. B65c 3/12, 9/02 US. Cl. 156446 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to the application of pressuresensitive adhesivelabels to cylindrical articles. a
The object of the invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label tofa cylindrical article in which the label is pressed evenly and firmly around the article, and which is particularly suitable for applying labels automatically to a plurality of articles in succession. The labels may be in the form of strips cut from a roll of tape, or the labels may be mounted on a backing tape and detached in succession from the tape.
According to the invention there is provided a method of applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label to a cylindrical article, comprising the steps of locating the article between three parallel rollers, moving at least one of the rollers in a direction to clamp the article between the three rollers with each roller making rolling engagement with the article, driving one of the rollers to rotate the article, and feeding an end of the label between the article and a roller with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof.
At least one of the rollers is preferably urged into an article clamping position by resilient means, so that the clamping force between the rollers and article remains substantially constant during rotation of the article, despite small irregularities in the diameter of the article.
The three rollers may be substantially horizontal with two of the rollers spaced apart alongside one another and above the third roller. Withdrawal of the third roller after the label has been wound on to the atricle then permits the article to drop from between the two upper rollers.
According to the invention there is further provided apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive adhesive labels to cylindrical articles by the method set out above, comprising a substantially horizontal drive roller, a pressure roller arranged alongside and spaced from the drive roller, a support roller below the drive and pressure rollers, the
3,446,690 Patented May 27, 1969 three rollers being parallel to one another, means for moving the support roller substantially horizontally towards and from a support position, means for moving the pressure roller substantially horizontally towards and from a clamping position in which the three rollers, with the support roller in the support position, co-operate to clamp an article in rolling engagement with therollers with the axis of the article below the plane containing the axes of the pressure and drive rollers, means for feeding the articles in succession into the space between the pressure and drive rollers whereby each article is clamped between the three rollers upon movement of the pressure and support rollers into their clamping and support positions re spectively, means for rotating the drive roller and thereby cause rotation of the article clamped between the rollers, and means for feeding an end of a label between one of the rollers and the article with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof, the article drop ping out from between the pressure and drive rollers upon movement of the support roller out of its support position.
The labels are generally provided with printed matter for identifying the articles, but the labelsmay be plain where they are intended to be only a protective covering to the articles.
The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIGURE 1 is a side elevation view of apparatus for applying labels in the form of strips of heat-shrinkable pressure-sensitive adhesive tape to cylindrical dry battery cells by the method according to the invention.
FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a dry battery cell wrapped with a label by the apparatus of FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 3 is a cut-away view of part of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 showing the tape being applied to a cell clamped between pressure, drive and support rollers.
FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of part of the mechanism for heat shrinking a label applied to a cell.
FIGURES 5-8 are diagrammatic views of the cell feeding mechanism and the pressure, drive and support rollers illustrating their movements during one cycle of operating of the apparatus.
FIGURE 9 is a side elevation view of part of a modified construction of the apparatus of FIGURE 1, in which the tape feeding mechanism is replaced by mechanism for feeding labels mounted on a backing tape.
FIGURE 10 is a side elevation view of part of another modified construction of the apparatus of FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 11 is a plan view of the mechanism shown in FIGURE 10.
The apparatus illustrated in the drawings comprises a main frame consisting of two vertical plates spaced apart by cross members, with the mechanisms for handling the cells, guiding the tape, and applying the labels to the cells, mounted on the outside wall of one of the vertical plates indicated in the drawings by the reference numeral 10 and hereinafter referred to for convenience as the support plate 10. Only the support plate 10 of the frame is illustrated in the drawings. The drive means for operating the mechanisms on the outside wall of the support plate 10 are mounted between the support plate 10 and the other vertical plate of the main frame and can be of any suitable construction adapted to impart appropriate movements to the mechanisms on the support plate as hereinafter described.
Referring to FIGURE 1, a magazine 11 for storing the cells 12 is mounted on the rear end of the support plate 10. The magazine 11 comprises two side plates 13 spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the length of the cells 12, a vertical front plate 14, and a base plate 15 inclined downwards and forwards. The side plate 13 remote from the support plate is formed of transparent insulating plastic material to prevent electric short circuiting of the battery cells 12 through the walls of the magazine. The front end 16 of the base plate is turned vertically downwards and is spaced from the front plate 14 to form a chute 17 for guiding the cells 12 in succession to a cell feeding mechanism. A bottom plate 19 rests on the base plate 15 of the magazine with the front end of the bottom plate 19 engaged in a recess formed by a bracket 20 on the base plate 15, and a stop plate 21 on the rear wall of the front plate 14 is arranged so that only one cell at a time can contact the front plate 14 and be aligned with the chute 17. The base plate 15 is formed with an aperture 22 for the passage of a pin 23 for raising and lowering the bottom plate 19 a small distance during operation of the apparatus, to prevent jamming of the cells in the magazine.
The cell feeding mechanism is mounted below the magazine "and arranged to receive cells from the lower end of the chute 17. The cell feeding mechanism comprises upper and lower slide blocks 26, 27 slidably mounted between a lower horizontal guide plate 28 secured to the support plate 10 of the main frame and an upper horizontal guide plate 29 supported at its rear end on a bracket 30 on the chute 17 of the magazine. The lower slide block 27 is fitted with two Lshaped brackets 31 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) each arranged with one leg 32 extending vertically upwards and the other leg 33 extending horizontally forwards, the lower ends of the vertical legs 32 being secured to opposite sides of the lower slide block 27 and the horizontal legs 33 being positioned above and on opposite sides .of the upper guide plate 29. A pusher block 34 is secured between the rear ends of the two horizontal legs 33 of the Lshaped brackets and a stop rod 35 extends between the front ends of the two horizontal legs 33, the pusher block 34, stop rod 35 and L- shaped brackets 31 being arranged to accommodate a cell received from the lower end of the chute 17. Two vertical guide plates 36 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) are pivotally mounted at their rear ends on opposite ends of the stop rod 35, the front ends of the vertical guide plates 36 extending forwardly and downwardly beyond the front ends of the horizontal legs 33 of the Lshaped brackets. The vertical guide plate 36 remote from the main frame is formed of insulating material. The other guide plate 36 may be omitted if desired.
The front end of the upper slide block 26 is provided with two forwardly projecting lugs and a pressure roller 40 is rotatably mounted on a horizontal transverse axle 41 extending between the two lugs on the upper slide block 26. The front end of the lower slide block 27 is also provided with two forwardly projecting lugs and a support roller 42 is rotatably mounted on a horizontal transverse axle 43 extending between the two lugs on the lower slide block 27.
The rear end of the upper slide block 26 is connected by a rod 44 and a resilient coupling 45 to a crank arm 46 on a rocker shaft 47 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame. The rod 44 extends through an aperture in the crank arm 46, and the resilient coupling 45 comprises two annular rubber discs 48 mounted on the rod 44 on opposite sides of the crank arm 46 and clamped against the crank arm by nuts 49 on the rod 44. Rocking movement of the rocker shaft 47 thus imparts a to-andfro movement to the upper slide block 26. The rear end of the lower slide block 27 is pivotally connected to one end of a connecting rod 52, therothernend of which is pivotally connected to a crank arm 53 secured on a rocker shaft 54 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame, so that rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54 imparts a to-and-fro movement to the lower slide block 27. A further crank arm 55 on the rocker shaft 54 carries the pin 23 arranged to pass through the aperture 22 in the base plate 15 of the magazine and raise and lower the bottom plate 19 of the magazine upon rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54. Rocking movement is imparted to the two rocker shafts 47, 54 by a suitable power driven cam mechanism 56 mounted between the two vertical plates of the main frame, and operable to rock levers 57, 58 secured to the rocker shafts 47, 54, respectively.
A spring steel strip 62 is secured to the bottom surface of the lower guide plate 28, the steel strip extending forwardly beyond the front end of the lower guide plate 28 for a purpose to be explained hereinafter.
A drive roller 63 is positioned to the front of the pressure roller 40 on the upper slide block 26 and arranged so that the pressure roller 40 can clamp a cell against the drive roller 63 and support roller 42 when the upper slide block is in its forward position. The drive roller 63 is secured on a horizontal transverse axle 64 rotatably mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10, and comprises an inner cylindrical core 65 and an outer sleeve 66 of resilient material, for example, rubber, bonded to the inner core 65. The axle 64 is drivably con nected by a belt and pulley drive 59 to a motor 60 mounted between the two vertical plates of the main frame.
A tape arm 67 is positioned to the front of the magazine 11 and is movable to feed an end of a tape 68 towards a cell clamped between the pressure, support and drive rollers 40, 42, 63. The tape arm 67 comprises two spaced apart levers 69 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 1) each having a bifurcated end clamped by a bolt 70 to a rocker shaft 71 mounted in a bearing in the support plate 10 of the main frame, the two levers 69 extending upwardly and rearwardly above the drive roller 63, two side plates 72 secured one on each of the rear ends of the levers 69, the two side plates being of elongated form and projecting above and below the rear ends of the levers 69, a cross bar 73 extending between the upper ends of the two side plates 72, and a cross bar 74 extending between the lower ends of the two side plates 72. A tape guide roller 75 is rotatably mounted on the rocker shaft 71 between the two levers 69, and a further guide roller 76 is rotatably mounted on an axle 77 extending between the rear ends of the two levers 69. A downwardly projecting spring steel finger 78 is secured on the cross bar 73 and has its lower end engaged against a rearwardly facing flat on the cross bar 74, and a further spring steel finger 80 on the lower end of finger 78 projects below the cross bar 74 and has an inturned tip 81 aligned with the fiat on the cross bar 74. Rocking movement is imparted to the tape arm 67 by a lever 82 secured to the rocker shaft 71 and having an end thereof engaging a cam of the cam mechanism 56. If desired, the tape arm 67 may be constructed with only one lever 69.
The tape 68 is stored on a spool 85 rotatably mounted on a transverse spindle secured on the support plate 10 above the tape arm 67. The tape has a width slightly greater than the length of the cells 12. The inside surface of the tape on the spool 85 is coated with a pressure-sensitive adhesive, and successive lengths of the tape are printed on the outside surface with labelling matter. The tape from the spool 85 is led in succession around guide rollers 87, 88, 89 rotatably mounted on spindles fixed to the support plate 10, a guide roller 90 rotatably mounted on an adjuster device 91 on the support plate, the guide roller 75 on the rocker shaft 71 of the tape arm 67, the guide roller 76, and between the lower end of the spring finger 78 and the fiat on the cross bar 74,
the end of the tape projecting downwards from the cross bar 74. The tape is arranged so that it passes around the lower surface of guide roller 75 and over the upper surface of guide roller 76, with the adhesive side of the end of the tape facing rearwards and adhering to the tip 81 of finger 80. The finger 80 thus prevents the end of the tape curling upwards. The spring finger 78 holds the tape against the flat on the cross bar 74, but permits the tape to be drawn over the cross bar 74 when the tape arm 67 is swung upwards with the end of the tape clamped against a cell to be wrapped.
The adjuster device 91 comprises a base plate (not shown) fitted with upper and lower horizontal guide bars 92, a slide block 93 axially movable between the guide bars 92, a cross bar 94 locating the slide block 93 in position between the guide bars 92, an end plate 95 extending across the front ends of the guide bars 92, and a screw threaded rod 96 extending through an aperture in the end plate 95. The rear end of the rod 96 is engaged in a screw threaded aperture in the front end of the slide block 93, and the front end of the rod 96 is provided with a knurled knob 97. Axial movement of the rod 96 is prevented by a nut 98 on the rod at the rear of the end plate 95, so that rotation of the knob 97 in opposite directions screws the rod 96 into and out of the aperture in the slide block 93 and thus effects forwards and rearwards movement of the slide block 93. The guide roller 90 is rotatably mounted on a spindle on the rear end of the slide block 93, and can thus be moved forwards or rearwards by adjustment of the knob 97 to vary the length of tape between the spool 85 and the tape arm 67.
A cutter unit is mounted on the support plate to the front of the drive roller 63 and below the tape arm 67. The cutter unit comprises a base plate 105 secured to the support plate 10, an electric solenoid having the coil 106 thereof mounted on the base plate 105, a cutter frame 107 secured to the armature 108 of the solenoid for movement therewith, and a blade 109 projecting from the rear end of the cutter frame 107. The cutter frame is movable rearwardly by the solenoid to a position in which the blade 109 will cut tape extending between the rear of the drive roller 63 and the tip of finger 80 on the tape arm 67. A spring 110 has one end secured to the cutter frame 107 and its other end secured to a stud 111 on the support plate to the front of the cutter unit, the spring retracting the cutter frame 107 and blade 109 when the solenoid is de-energised.
The solenoid of the cutter unit is energised by a circuit controlled by a photo-electric scanning head 112 mounted on the support plate 10 immediately in front of the guide roller 88. The scanning head is arranged to scan a plain margin of the tape provided with identifying marks of a different colour to that of the margin at intervals corresponding to the successive lengths of tape provided with the labelling matter. The scanning head 112 is energised by closure of a switch controlled by an operating element of the apparatus, for example, a cam of the cam mechanism 56, immediately prior to the passage of each identifying mark past the scanning head, and when the mark is in register with the scanning head, the head triggers the circuit energising the solenoid of the cutter unit. The operation of the solenoid of the cutter unit is synchronised with movement of successive lengths of tape past the cutter block by adjustment of the adjuster device 91 to vary the length of tape between the scanning head and the tape arm 67.
An endless conveyor 115 and a heating chamber 116 are mounted on the support plate 10 below the drive roller 63 and tape arm 67. The conveyor comprises two endless chains 117 each mounted on front and rear sprockets 118, 119 driven by the motor 60, the two chains extending through the heating chamber 116. The heating chamber is provided with two elongated electric heating elements 120 arranged one on each side of the upper run of the conveyor.
An operating cycle of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 will now be described.
At the start of the cycle, the components are in the position shown in FIGURES 1 and 5, in which the upper and lower slide blocks 26, 27 are in their rear positions, a cell 12 from the chute 17 is supported on the upper guide plate 29 between the pusher block 34 and the stop rod 35, the tape arm 67 is in its fully raised position with a free end of the tape 68 hanging downwards below the tip of finger 80, the cutter frame 107 is in its forward inoperative position, and the drive roller 63, rotating continuously in an anti-clockwise direction as viewed in FIGURE 1.
The lower slide block 27 is first moved forwards by movement of its rocker shaft 54 so that the support roller 42 on the front end of the lower slide block 27 moves to a support position between and below the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63. The two L-shaped brackets 31 on the lower block 27 are thus also moved forwards and the pusher block 34 pushes the cell off the front end of the upper guide plate 29, so that the cell rolls over the pressure roller 40 and drops down into the pocket formed between the pressure, drive and support rollers 40, 63, 42 as shown in FIGURE 6. The cell is guided into the pocket by the two vertical guide plates 36 on the stop rod 35. The cell is supported in the pocket by the support roller 42, and the support roller is arranged so that the axis of the cell is below the axes of the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63.
During its forward movement, the pusher block 34 passes below the lower end of the chute 17 and prevents the next succeeding cell in the chute from dropping on to the upper guide plate 29.
After the cell is in position in the pocket, the rocker shaft 47 moves the upper slide block 26 forwards and the pressure roller 40 on the upper slide block 26 forces the cell against the drive roller 63 and the support roller 42, as shown in FIGURE 7. The resilient coupling 45 enables slight variations in cell diameter or surface irregularities to be accommodated without manual adjustment being required. The rotational movement of the drive roller 63 causes rotation of the cell, which in turn causes rotation of the pressure roller 40 and the support roller 42.
The rocker shaft 71 then swings the tape arm 67 downwards so that the free end of the tape enters the nip between the drive roller 63 and the cell (FIGURE 3), with the adhesive side of the tape facing towards the cell, and the rotational movement of the drive roller 63 and cell traps the free end of the tape therebetween. The rocker shaft 71 then swings the tape arm 67 upwards so that the tape is drawn from between the finger 78 and crossbar 74 on the tape arm and over the guide rollers.
When a portion of tape having an identifying mark in the margin passes the scanning head 112 which has previously been energised by the cam mechanism closing a switch in its circuit, the scanning head triggers the circuit energising the solenoid of the cutter unit and the cutter frame 107 and blade 109 are moved rearwards to sever the tape extending between the cell and the finger 80. After the tape is severed, the tape arm 67 is swung by its rocker shaft 71 into its fully raised position, and when the identifying mark on the tape opposite the scanning head moves past the head, the circuit for the solenoid is de-energised and cutter frame 107 is moved forwards by its return spring 110 to its inoperative position.
During the downward movement of the tape arm 67, the tape between the two guide rollers 75, 76 is slack since the tape passes around the roller in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the tape arm. Thus, the tape is drawn past the scanning head only after the tape has been trapped between the cell and drive roller 63 and the tape arm is moving upwards. This arrangement has the advantage of ensuring that, when the identifying mark on the tape passes the scanning head and the solenoid of the cutter unit is energised, the tape is taut between the cell and the tape arm and the blade makes a clean cut in the tape.
The length of tape cut by the blade is wrapped around the cell by the rotational movement of the cell, the support roller 42 and the pressure roller 40 assisting in pressing the length of tape evenly and firmly against the cell. Since the tape is wider than the length of the cell, the edges of the tape on the cell project beyond the ends of the cell.
After the wrapping operation is completed, the upper and lower slide blocks 26, 27, together with the pressure and support rollers 40, 42, are withdrawn rearwardly by.
their rocker shafts and the wrapped cell rolls off the support roller 42 and drops on to the spring steel strip 62. The wrapped cell rolls along the strip 62 and into contact with the lower surface of the drive roller 63 which then rolls the cell off the end of the spring strip 62 (FIGURE 8) and on to the front end of the conveyor 115. Since the distance between the front end of the spring strip 62 and the drive roller 63 is less than the diameter of the cell, the strip 62 is deflected downwards, when the cell passes between the strip and drive roller, and urges the cell against the drive roller. This has the effect of accurately locating the cell on the conveyor. The conveyor then carries the cell through the heating chamber 116, the heat in which shrinks the projecting edges of the tape so that it curls inwards and overlies the outer margins of the end walls of the cell, as shown in FIGURE 2.
Upon rearward movement of the lower slide block 27, the pusher block 34 uncovers the lower end of the chute 17 and another cell drops on to the upper guide plate 29. The apparatus is then set for a further cycle of operation.
The cam mechanism for imparting rocking movement to the various rocker shafts has not been illustrated in detail, but can be of any suitable construction in which the movements of the rocker shafts are synchronised to provide the necessary sequence of movements of the slide blocks and tape arm. The cam mechanism is preferably driven by the motor 60.
In a modified form of the apparatus of FIGURE 1, the tape feeding mechanism and cutter unit are replaced by a mechanism for feeding individual die-cut labels to the cells to be Wrapped, as illustrated in FIGURE 9. This modified form of the apparatus comprises a magazine for the cells, mechanism for feeding the cells in succession between pressure, drive and support rollers and rotating each cell between the rollers, a conveyor and a heating chamber, all as previously described with reference to FIGURE 1, and only those parts of the apparatus necessary to illustrate the operation and location of the die-cut label feeding mechanism is shown in FIGURE 9.
The label feeding mechanism of FIGURE 9 comprises a vertical blade 130 secured to the support plate with its front surface substantially tangential to the rear of the drive roller 63 and its lower end 131 terminating close to the drive roller 63, a capstan 132 arranged above the blade 130 with the rear face of the blade substantially tangential to the rear of the capstan, a roller 133 above the capstan and urged by a spring into rolling contact with the capstan, and a guide roller 134 to the rear of roller 133.
- The die-cut labels 135 are spaced apart along the outside surface of a backing tape 136 stored on a spool 137 rotatably mounted on a spindle on the support plate 10, the backing tape extending down the front surface of the blade 130, around the lower end 131 of the blade, up the rear surface of the blade 130, between the capstan 132 and roller 133, and around the underside of the guide roller 134, and the backing tape is then wound on to a rewind spool 139 secured on a spindle rotatably mounted in the support plate 10. The backing tape is fed from spool 137 to the rewind spool 139 by the capstan which is driven by a motor through a magnetic clutch (not shown). The rewind spool 139 is driven through a slipping clutch.
The labels are cut from heat-shrinkable material having a pressure-sensitive adhesive coated on one side and labelling matter printed on the other side. The adhesive side of the labels adheres lightly to the outside surface of the backing tape on the spool 137, so that the labels are on the front surface of the length of backing tape passing down the front of the blade 130. When the leading end of each label reaches the bottom of the blade, the portion of backing tape to which it adheres passes around the lower end of the blade, and the label peels off the backing strip and is fed into the nip between the driving roller 63 and a cell clamped between the pressure, drive and support rollers 40, 63, 42.
A scanning head 141 is mounted on the support plate 10 and arranged to scan the labels on the backing tape. The scanning head is connected in an electric circuit with the magnetic clutch for transmitting drive to the capstan and with a switch operated by a cam of the cam mechanism 56 once in each cycle of operation of the apparatus. The circuit is arranged so that operation of the switch engages the magnetic clutch for the capstan and also resets the scanning head. The capstan then feeds the tape from the spool 137 to the spool 139, and when the scannining head reads the full passage of a label, it transmits a signal which de-energises the magnetic clutch and stops the feed of the tape.
In a further modified form of the apparatus of FIG- URE 1, the pusher block of the cell feeding mechanism is omitted and the pressure roller 40 performs the function of the pusher block in feeding the cells in succession from the magazine into engagement with the drive and support rollers 63, 42 as illustrated in FIGURES 10 and 11.
The mechanism of FIGURES l0 and 11 comprises an upper slide which replaces the slide block 26 of the arrangement of FIGURE 1 and a lower slide 151 which replaces the slide block 27, the slide 150 being mounted on the slide 151 and the two slides being mounted between two guide plates in a similar manner to the mounting of the slide blocks 26, 27 in FIGURE 1. The rear end of the slide 150 is connected to the rod 44 and axially movable by rocking movement of the rocker shaft 47, and the rear end of the slide 151 is connected to the connecting rod 52 and axially movable by rocking movement of the rocker shaft 54. In this modified form of the apparatus, the position of the magazine 11 is arranged so that the lower end of the chute 17 is directly above the front end of the upper slide 150.
The upper slide 150 comprises two vertical side plates 152 and a horizontal bridge plate 153 extending between the upper edges of the side plates with the front edge of the bridge plate 153 spaced to the rear of the front edges of the side plates. The pressure roller 40 is rotatably mounted on the axle 41 which extends between the two side plates 152, the periphery of the pressure roller being close to the front edge of the bridge plate 153, and a disc 154 of insulating material is mounted on the inner end of a stud 155 screwed in an aperture in the side plate 153 remote from the support plate 10 of the main frame of the apparatus, the disc being positioned immediately in front of the pressure roller. The spacing between the insulating disc 154 and the side plate 153 adjacent the support plate 10 is adjustable by screwing the stud 155 in or out of the aperture in the other side plate. The stud 155 is secured in position by a lock nut 156.
The lower slide 151 comprises two vertical side plates and a bridge plate 161 extending between the upper edges of the side plates with the front edge of the bridge plate 161 spaced to the rear of the front edges of the side plates 160. The support roller 42 is rotatably mounted on the axle 43 which extends between the side plates 160. with the periphery of the support roller close to the front edge of the bridge plate 161.
At the start of an operating cycle of the apparatus modified as shown in FIGURES and 11, the slides 150, 151 are in their rear positions as shown in FIGURE 10, in which the pressure roller 40 is at the rear of the chute 17 and a cell 12 from the chute is resting upon the bridge plate 161 of the lower slide 151, the cell being immediately in front of the pressure roller and aligned with the insulating disc 154. The insulating disc 154 prevents short-circuiting of the cell across the slide 150 and has previously been set, by adjustment of the stud 155, so that the cell is a loose fit between the disc 154 and the side plate 152 adjacent the support plate 10.
The upper and lower slides 150, 151 are moved simultaneously by rocking movement of the rocker shafts 47, 54 so that the support roller 42 on slide 151 is moved into its support position (shown in broken lines in FIGURE 10) and the pressure roller 40 propels the cell 12 along the bridge plate 161 of the lower slide and on to the support roller 42. During this forward movement of the upper slide 150, the bridge plate 153 passes below and seals off the lower end of the chute -17 with the cells in the chute resting on the bridge plate 153. When the upper slide 150 is in its fully forward position, the pressure roller 40 is in the position shown in broken lines in FIGURE 10 and clamps the cell against the drive roller 63 and support roller 42, the axis of the cell being below the plane passing through the axes of the pressure roller 40 and drive roller 63. Rotation of the drive roller 63 then causes rotation of the cell and the pressure and support rollers 40, 42, and a label is fed between the cell and the drive roller 63 by the feeding mechanism illustrated in FIGURE 1 or FIGURE 9. When the label has been wrapped around the cell, the upper and lower slides 150, 151 are with drawn to their rear positions and the wrapped cell drops down on to the spring steel strip 62 shown in FIGURE 1. Upon movement of the bridge plate 153 of the upper slide 150 to the rear of the chute 17, the next succeeding cell drops from the chute on to the bridge plate 161 and is wrapped with a label in the next operating cycle of the apparatus.
I claim:
1. Apparatus for applying a pressure-sensitive adhesive label to a cylindrical article, comprising three parallel rollers arranged to receive the article therebetween, means for feeding the article intothe space between the rollers, means for moving one of the rollers in a direction to clamp the article therebetween, means rotating one of the rollers and thereby cause rotation of the article cl-amped between the rollers, and means for feeding an end of the label between a roller and the article with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof.
2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 including resilient means urging one of said rollers towards a clamping position, whereby the clamping force between the rollers and article remains substantially constant during rotation of the article, despite small irregularities in the diameter of the article.
3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the three rollers are substantially horizontal with two of the rollers positioned above the third roller, one of the upper rollers being movable to clamp the article between the three rollers,'and the third roller being movable from a support position in which the three rollers co-operate to receive the article therebetween and a release position in which the article is free to drop from between the two upper rollers.
4. Apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive adhesive labels to cylindrical articles comprising a substantially horizontal drive roller, a pressure roller arranged alongside and spaced from the drive roller, a support roller below the drive and pressure rollers, the three rollers being parallel to one another, means for moving the support roller substantially horizontally towards and from a support position, means for moving the pressure roller substantially horizontally towards and from a clamping position in which the three rollers, with the support roller in the support position, co-operate to clamp an article in rolling engagement with the rollers with the axis of the article below the plane containing the axes of the pressure and drive rollers, means for feeding the articles in succes sion into the space between the pressure and drive rollers whereby each article is clamped between the three rollers upon movement of the pressure and support rollers into their clamping and support positions respectively, means for rotating the drive roller and thereby causing rotation of the article clamped between the rollers, andmeans for feeding an end of a label between one of the rollers, and means for feeding an end of a label between one of the rollers and the article with an adhesive side of the label in contact with the article so that the label is wound on to the article during rotation thereof, the article dropping out from between the pressure and drive rollers upon movement of the support roller out of its support position.
5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the support roller is rotatably mounted on a slide, and the article feeding means comprises a chute and a pusher element forming a gate to the chute, the pusher element being fitted to the slide and arranged to release an article from the chute upon movement of the slide in a direction to move the support roller out of its support position, and to push the article over the pressure roller and between the pressure and drive rollers upon movement of the slide in a direction to locate the support roller in its support position.
6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the article feeding means comprises a chute and a slide forming a gate for the chute, the slide being movable towards and from the drive roller and the pressure roller being rotatably mounted on the slide, the slide and pressure roller be ing arranged so that movement of the slide away from the drive roller releases an article from the chute into the space between the pressure roller and the drive roller, and movement of the slide towards the drive roller causes the pressure roller to push the article into engagement with the drive and support rollers.
7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the means for moving the pressure roller into its clamping position includes a resilient coupling transmitting the clamping force to the pressure roller, the resilience of the coupling permitting small translational movements of the pressure roller to accommodate variations in the diameter of the article without appreciably altering the clamping force.
8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, including a cantilever resilient strip disposed below the support roller when in its support position and having a free end projecting below the drive roller from the side thereof adjacent the pressure roller, the free end of the strip in an unstressed condition being spaced below the drive roller at a distance less than the diameter of the article, whereby the article drops on to the strip upon withdrawal of the support roller from its support position and the drive roller rolls the article off the free end of the strip to a receiving station.
9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, and suitable for applying labels in the form of strips cut from a roll of tape, wherein the label feeding means comprises a tape anm pivotally mounted on the frame of the apparatus, gripper means mounted on the distal end of the tape arm and adapted to grip the tape with an end portion thereof projecting from the tape arm, and gripper means permitting the tape to be drawn therethrough against the resistance due to its gripping action, and means for rocking the tape arm towards and from an operative position in which the free end of the tape is inserted between the drive roller and an article clamped between the three rollers, the apparatus including a cutter device for cutting the tape between the gripper means and the article after the tape has been inserted between the drive roller and the article, the strip cut from the tape forming the label.
10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9, including tape 1 1 guide means guiding tape from a spool to the gripper means on the tape arm, the tape guide means including a roller rotatably mounted about the pivot axis of the tape arm and arranged so that the tape passes around the roller in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the tape arm upon movement into its operative position.
'11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein the tape arm is provided with a finger arranged so that its tip engages the adhesive side of the end portion of the tape projecting from the gripper means at a point spaced from the gripper means, whereby the end portion of the tape adheres to the finger tip and is thus located in a predetermined position relative to the tape anrn.
12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the label feeding means comprises a blade mounted on the frame of the apparatus and having an end thereof directed towards the space between the three rollers, and means operable to pass around said end of the blade a backing strip hav- References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,253,973 5/1966 Anderberg et al. l56-446 XR 2,199,033 4/1940 Strauss 156446 XR 2,585,250 2/1952 Jones et al. 156-449 PHILIP DIER, Primary Examiner.
US. Cl. X.R.
US500642A 1965-10-22 1965-10-22 Apparatus for applying pressure-sensitive labels to cylindrical articles Expired - Lifetime US3446690A (en)

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Cited By (14)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3663339A (en) * 1969-07-11 1972-05-16 Metalloxyd Gmbh Method and apparatus for securing superimposed windings of a coil
US3929554A (en) * 1972-06-14 1975-12-30 Wavin Bv Device for manufacturing fibre reinforced plastic tubes
US3984276A (en) * 1974-10-24 1976-10-05 Midland Engineering And Machine Co. Machine for taping capacitors and the like
US4238273A (en) * 1979-03-19 1980-12-09 Condes Corporation Rod applicator mechanism for machine for making hanging file folders
US4601771A (en) * 1984-12-26 1986-07-22 Labelette Company Labeling machine attachment for applying pressure sensitive labels to round containers
JPS6382932A (en) * 1986-01-21 1988-04-13 ユナイテツド　ステイツ　トバコ　カンパニ− Precise can labeller and sticking method thereof
JPH02129009U (en) * 1989-03-31 1990-10-24
JPH04154534A (en) * 1990-10-19 1992-05-27 Ootonikusu:Kk Bar-code label sticker for test tube
JPH0478111U (en) * 1990-11-22 1992-07-08
US5314567A (en) * 1993-05-12 1994-05-24 Noll Marvin H Modular apparatus for preparing articles to be mailed
US5338387A (en) * 1993-05-12 1994-08-16 Noll Marvin H Modular apparatus for preparing articles to be mailed
FR2759347A1 (en) * 1997-02-10 1998-08-14 Lens Micro Inf Test tube labelling assembly
JP2008037479A (en) * 2006-08-09 2008-02-21 Sato Corp Labeling apparatus
US20180002054A1 (en) * 2014-09-05 2018-01-04 Medical Packaging Inc. Semi-automatic syringe label applicator

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2199033A (en) * 1939-02-14 1940-04-30 Ober G Strauss Machine for applying sealing tape to wrapped articles
US2585250A (en) * 1950-05-24 1952-02-12 Eastman Kodak Co Machine for applying tape to cylindrical containers
US3253973A (en) * 1961-01-30 1966-05-31 Rockwool Ab Apparatus for making pipe insulating shells from mineral wool

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2199033A (en) * 1939-02-14 1940-04-30 Ober G Strauss Machine for applying sealing tape to wrapped articles
US2585250A (en) * 1950-05-24 1952-02-12 Eastman Kodak Co Machine for applying tape to cylindrical containers
US3253973A (en) * 1961-01-30 1966-05-31 Rockwool Ab Apparatus for making pipe insulating shells from mineral wool

Cited By (17)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3663339A (en) * 1969-07-11 1972-05-16 Metalloxyd Gmbh Method and apparatus for securing superimposed windings of a coil
US3929554A (en) * 1972-06-14 1975-12-30 Wavin Bv Device for manufacturing fibre reinforced plastic tubes
US3984276A (en) * 1974-10-24 1976-10-05 Midland Engineering And Machine Co. Machine for taping capacitors and the like
US4238273A (en) * 1979-03-19 1980-12-09 Condes Corporation Rod applicator mechanism for machine for making hanging file folders
US4601771A (en) * 1984-12-26 1986-07-22 Labelette Company Labeling machine attachment for applying pressure sensitive labels to round containers
JPS6382932A (en) * 1986-01-21 1988-04-13 ユナイテツド　ステイツ　トバコ　カンパニ− Precise can labeller and sticking method thereof
JPH08246Y2 (en) 1989-03-31 1996-01-10 照明 伊藤 Test tube label automatic issuing and pasting device
JPH02129009U (en) * 1989-03-31 1990-10-24
JPH04154534A (en) * 1990-10-19 1992-05-27 Ootonikusu:Kk Bar-code label sticker for test tube
JPH0478111U (en) * 1990-11-22 1992-07-08
JPH0646810Y2 (en) 1990-11-22 1994-11-30 照明 伊藤 Test tube label automatic attachment device
US5314567A (en) * 1993-05-12 1994-05-24 Noll Marvin H Modular apparatus for preparing articles to be mailed
US5338387A (en) * 1993-05-12 1994-08-16 Noll Marvin H Modular apparatus for preparing articles to be mailed
FR2759347A1 (en) * 1997-02-10 1998-08-14 Lens Micro Inf Test tube labelling assembly
JP2008037479A (en) * 2006-08-09 2008-02-21 Sato Corp Labeling apparatus
US20180002054A1 (en) * 2014-09-05 2018-01-04 Medical Packaging Inc. Semi-automatic syringe label applicator
US9969518B2 (en) * 2014-09-05 2018-05-15 Medical Packaging Inc. Semi-automatic syringe label applicator

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