Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
  • B65B17/00—Other machines, apparatus, or methods for packaging articles or materials
  • B65B17/02—Joining articles, e.g. cans, directly to each other for convenience of storage, transport, or handling
  • B65B17/025—Joining articles, e.g. cans, directly to each other for convenience of storage, transport, or handling the articles being joined by a top carrier element
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D71/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans or pop bottles; Bales of material
  • B65D71/40—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans or pop bottles; Bales of material comprising a plurality of articles held together only partially by packaging elements formed by folding a blank or several blanks
  • B65D71/42—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans or pop bottles; Bales of material comprising a plurality of articles held together only partially by packaging elements formed by folding a blank or several blanks formed by folding a single blank into a single layer element

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method of packaging to ⁇ gether series of containers, particularly bottles, accor ⁇ ding the preamble of patent claim 1.
• the invention also re ⁇ lates to a device designed to carry out the method according to the preamble of the first device claim.
• the invention also relates to a holder, which is used when carrying outthe method according to the preamble of the first claim, which relates to such a holder.
• Such disposable holders consist of a blank provided with punchings and perforations and groovings re ⁇ spectively, possibly a folded blank made of particularly cardboard or corrugated cardboard and package together e.g. 2, 3, 4 or 6 bottles to be shipped from the producer or the distributor to the consumers.
• the European patent document relates to an applica ⁇ tion of three-dimensionally shaped fairly complicated con ⁇ tainers, which nevertheless have no locking means.
• the PCT document relates to a folding of a relatively complicated holder blank according to Fig. 1 into a shape shown in Fig. 2 with gluing, after which containers can be introduced in a way not described in detail. This is of course time con ⁇ suming and does not allow a use of fast mechanical applica ⁇ tion equipment, and also, the reliability of the holders can be questioned. Special gripping means are not used in this case either.
• the object of the present invention is to solve these prob ⁇ lems, to counter-act them and to eliminate them as much as possible.
• Another object of the invention is also to develop the state of the art in this field in various respects.
• Still another object of the invention is to develop the use of safety and holding devices and vice versa in order to achieve a particularly fast and reliable application of hol ⁇ ders onto a holder series formation.
• Another object is to be able to use in a very reliable way the same holders and the same equipment for different holder shapes and sizes.
• Fig. 1 a lateral view of a device according to the inven ⁇ tion m a phase before the application of a holder accor ⁇ ding to the invention onto a series of bottles;
• Fig. 2 a top view of the device according to Fig. 1 ;
• Fig. 3 a view from the left in Fig. 1 in a phase after the application of a holder according to the invention ;
• Fig. 4 a perspective top view of a multiple function plate according to the invention ;
• Fig. 5 a lateral view of a multiple function unit accor ⁇ ding to the invention ;
• Fig. 6 a lateral view in detail of a phase just before the application of a holder according to the invention onto a series of bottles;
• FIG. 7 a top view of a plate, which constitutes a part of a multiple function unit according to Figs. 1-6 ; and Figs. 8-18 top views of blanks, designed for various hol ⁇ ders according to the invention.
• a device 1 according to the present invention is shown in its entirety in Fig. 1.
• the device comprises a machine frame 2 with a unit 3, designed to apply holder blanks 4 and shown in its entirety .
• a conveyor 5 is attached to the machine frame 2 and designed to feed containers 6, particularly bottles, which are to be packed together, and possibly to remove a series of bottles packed together in this way.
• a storage and feeding conveyor 7 for holder blanks is at ⁇ tached to machine frame 2 in a perpendicular direction to ⁇ wards bottle conveyor 5, which blanks are stored in several stacks 8, of which the one, which is placed adjacent machine frame 2 is arranged in a separation unit 9, designed to feed separate blanks or sheets forming holders according to the invention into application unit 3 in mounting condition.
• a certain number of bottles is fed, in this case 8 x 6 bottles for 8 packs and holders with 6 bottles in each respectively, 6 bottles for a total of 2 packs e.g. being arranged close to each other transversely to the conveyor and 8 bottles for a total of 4 packs in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor .
• the feeding conveyor 7 comprises e.g. three endless chains or the like 10, driven by an electric motor 11, which can be switched on manually, when required, or mechanically during automatic operation.
• Separation unit 9 is driven by an electric motor 12, which drives a feeding device 13, similar to an elevator, designed to successively lift the carried stack 8 to a working level for e.g. six pneumatically functioning suction devices 14, designed to separate and lift a holder blank and transfer it to a transfer device 15, designed to transfer it in a horisontal direction centrally into application unit 3 and in this position into a multi-functional unit 16, which has lateral carrying hooks 17, which in their lower part have bent horisontal surfaces 18, turned towards each other, for the lateral edges of the holder blank, and which in their upper parts are rotatably fastened to two pivots 19 in such a way, that simultaneous movements of the pivots with oppo ⁇ site swinging movements are possible, e.g.
• a horisontal multiple function plate 23 is positioned between bent surfaces 18 and pivots 19, which plate preferably is fastened to the lower ends of co ⁇ lumns 24, which in their upper parts carry pivots 19.
• This plate is replaceable and has a pattern of vertical, prefe ⁇ rably through holes 25, designed to be pressed downwards over e.g. screw caps 26 on bottles 6, arranged on assembly line 5.
• the bottles preferably also have a flange 28 below the cap and the holes in the plate are , particularly in this case, designed with a stop or an upper constriction 29 , which will allow the caps to pierce the upper more narrow hole section but not the flanges.
• the hole pattern corre ⁇ sponds to bottle series formation 27 on assembly line 5.
• Bases 33 of the pins preferably are cylindrical and has a diameter , which roughly corresponds to the diameter of said holes.
• a number of knives 35 are fastened to the lower face of the plate, which are positioned exactly above bridges 37 in a holder blank and designed to cut through these bridges, in order to divide up the holder blank into separate holders, which will pack together a se ⁇ ries of bottles. Said knives can of course be left out part ⁇ ly , in case the purpose is to keep together a row of two, three or four holders having the same number of series of bottles.
• Multiple function unit 16 is positioned below a hydraulic or pneumatic press cylinder 38 with an associated equipment in the application unit and is moved up and down by means of the press cylinder.
• a lateral displacement can possibly also be used, in case a small multiple function plate is to pack together a large number of bottles without moving the bott ⁇ les.
• Said equipment comprises of course elements etc. de ⁇ signed to regulate the cylinder stroke and to adjust the plate in the longitudinal and lateral directions etc.
• the invention relates to a particularly designed hol ⁇ der blank according to Figs. 8-18.
• Each holder blank 4 which preferably is made of corrugated cardboard preferably compri ⁇ ses several , e.g.
• Each holder has flaps 39, ar ⁇ ranged on at least two mutually opposite sides, which are marked off from main area 40 of the blank by means of e.g. a perforation line 41. Narrow sides 42 of the flaps prefer ⁇ ably are oblique.
• Two through grip holes 32 are arranged in the blanks , perpendicular to it, e.g. roughly centrally lo ⁇ cated in it and designed to be used, when a packed together series of bottles is to be carried by a person, by inser ⁇ ting fingers in the grip holes.
• a number of locking holes 43 are distributed in a suitable fashion along the main area of the blank and corresponds to the number of bottles in a packed together series thereof. Holes 43 are surroun ⁇ ded all around or on only one or two sides by locking fing ⁇ ers 44 according to the drawings. One of said fingers is connected to the adjacent flap, whereas the rest of them, if any, are marked off from the main area via perforations 45.
• the corrugations in the cardboard in this case prefer ⁇ ably are arranged perpendicular to the flaps and thus ex ⁇ tend in the longitudinal direction of said one finger, a stiffening av the finger being obtained. It is suitable to use only two additional fingers, each of which extends around 1/3 of the periphery .
• the mode of operation according to the invention is as fol ⁇ lows :
• holder blank con ⁇ veyor 7 is provided with packs 8 of holder blanks and such a pack is present in separation unit 9, in which suction de ⁇ vices 14 lift the uppermost blank from the pack and pass it to the transfer unit, to be transported to the application unit , in which the blank is seized by multiple function unit 16, which is lowered onto a bottle series formation.
• the blank is held and positioned by means of bent surfaces 18 along two mutually opposite sides, whereas the folding flanges are situated at a distance from the blank above the two other sides.
• the fingers are fol ⁇ ded upwards by means of the bottle caps and will slide past the latter och possibly the bottle flanges, the wider lower portion of plate holes 25 allowing such a folding upwards.
• the free end edges of the flaps end up below the bottle flanges and in some cases only the bottle caps re ⁇ spectively, a self-locking of the holder blank on the bottle series being obtained.
• the multiple function unit can start its movement upwards again and recieve a new holder blank to be applied to one or several new bottle se ⁇ ries.
• the fingers which are integrated with the flaps obtain an extension thanks to the flaps, which are retained by means of the fingers , the main area becoming stiffer and its bending be ⁇ ing counter-acted, since the flaps are arranged at an angle of e.g. roughly 80° in relation to the main area .
• the described application of a holder blank onto the bottles is very careful or cautious with all the parts, since e.g. the deflecting influence of the folding flanges on the flaps corresponds to the lifting of the fingers by means of the bottle caps.
• these two different folding and holder functional form-creating means assist each other, which to a high degree guarantees, that disadvantageous foldings, e.g. in inappropriate locations or where the material is thinner and for other reasons are prevented.
• a barrier or some other type of projec ⁇ tion 46 can, within the area for the inner flaps, like the folding flanges, be pressed against the flaps in the blank and bend them downwards into the required useful shape, which preferably is done simultaneuos with the cutting of the holder blank into individual holders.
• the flaps can at their free ends be provided with e.g. inward bends, designed to hold a portion of the bottle neck.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Wrapping Of Specific Fragile Articles (AREA)
• Packages (AREA)
• Supplying Of Containers To The Packaging Station (AREA)
• Container Filling Or Packaging Operations (AREA)

Priority Applications (7)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=20400310

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (8)

Families Citing this family (16)

Citations (8)

Family Cites Families (6)

• 1995
  • 1995-11-20 SE SE9504161A patent/SE507976C2/sv not_active IP Right Cessation
• 1996
  • 1996-11-20 DE DE69623662T patent/DE69623662T2/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1996-11-20 AU AU77154/96A patent/AU7715496A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1996-11-20 AT AT96940212T patent/ATE223835T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1996-11-20 EP EP96940212A patent/EP0954470B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1996-11-20 DK DK96940212T patent/DK0954470T3/da active
  • 1996-11-20 US US09/068,855 patent/US6076331A/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1996-11-20 WO PCT/SE1996/001515 patent/WO1997018993A1/en active IP Right Grant
• 1998
  • 1998-05-15 NO NO19982250A patent/NO318392B1/no not_active IP Right Cessation

Patent Citations (8)

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