Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01F—MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
  • G01F11/00—Apparatus requiring external operation adapted at each repeated and identical operation to measure and separate a predetermined volume of fluid or fluent solid material from a supply or container, without regard to weight, and to deliver it
  • G01F11/02—Apparatus requiring external operation adapted at each repeated and identical operation to measure and separate a predetermined volume of fluid or fluent solid material from a supply or container, without regard to weight, and to deliver it with measuring chambers which expand or contract during measurement
  • G01F11/021—Apparatus requiring external operation adapted at each repeated and identical operation to measure and separate a predetermined volume of fluid or fluent solid material from a supply or container, without regard to weight, and to deliver it with measuring chambers which expand or contract during measurement of the piston type
  • G01F11/029—Apparatus requiring external operation adapted at each repeated and identical operation to measure and separate a predetermined volume of fluid or fluent solid material from a supply or container, without regard to weight, and to deliver it with measuring chambers which expand or contract during measurement of the piston type provided with electric controlling means
• • 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
  • B65B3/00—Packaging plastic material, semiliquids, liquids or mixed solids and liquids, in individual containers or receptacles, e.g. bags, sacks, boxes, cartons, cans, or jars
  • B65B3/26—Methods or devices for controlling the quantity of the material fed or filled
  • B65B3/30—Methods or devices for controlling the quantity of the material fed or filled by volumetric measurement
  • B65B3/32—Methods or devices for controlling the quantity of the material fed or filled by volumetric measurement by pistons co-operating with measuring chambers

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method for dosing a predefined portion of a product or material to be packaged, the material being preferably a pasty, semi- liquid or semi-solid material, in particular a foodstuff material, such as for instance the material constituting bouillon cubes or the like.
• the present invention further relates to a dosing device that realises the aforesaid method.
• Prior art devices for dosing pasty material such as the raw material used to make bouillon cubes, essentially comprise a hopper wherein said material is poured, which feeds the pasty material to a chamber for housing the material itself comprising a section for advancing the material, wherein a metering screw feeder is located which advances and compresses said material within an end accumulation section of the chamber, wherefrom a predefined portion of material is drawn and removed from said chambers by a movable organ for containing the material, which transports the drawn portion of material towards a further work position, where the pre-set portion of material is discharged by said movable container organ, by means of a thrust imparted on said portion of material by an appropriate alternating piston.
• said prior art devices comprise movable drawing organs, mounted on a rotating support structure, which are alternatively presented to the accumulation chamber and in succession to the discharge piston.
• the traditional dosing methodology described above is rather inaccurate in its dosage, as it does not guarantee a supply of portions of material having constant weight or at least varying within acceptable weighing tolerances.
• This problem stems from the fact that this methodology does not allow to guarantee that, upon the detachment for the withdrawal of the material by the movable container organ, the latter is actually in a completely filled condition. It may occur that the container organ, and possibly the entire terminal accumulation section, have not been filled sufficiently or present air bubbles in their interiors, so that the quantity of material drawn is less than the one prescribed for the dosed portion to be packaged.
• the object of the present invention therefore is to provide a method and a device for dosing a quantity to be packaged of a material, preferably in pasty condition, which allows to overcome the drawbacks present in known similar devices.
• a method for dosing a predefined portion of a material to be packaged the material being preferably a pasty material, characterised in that said material to be dosed is fed within a housing compartment, said material is compacted by compressing the material fed in said compartment within a compacting area of said compartment, said compacting phase entailing, during said compression, letting the excess material that cannot be housed in this compacting area of said compartment exit said compacting area, and discharging from said compartment at least part of the compacted material present in said compacting area thereby realising the predefined dosed portion of material.
• Providing a phase wherein the material is compacted within said compartment through the supply of a superabundant quantity of material inside the compartment, which material is then compacted, compressing the material present in the compartment in a limited area thereof with the free exit from said compacting area of the excess quantity of material beyond the measure that can be contained therein, allows to prevent excessive over-pressures, such as would separate the fatty matter from the remainder of the pasty material, from being produced by effect of the compression. Discharging then said material having an appropriate and desired degree of compacting, and which additionally has not been brought to harmful pressure levels, a dosed portion can be obtained which is extremely precise and has high quality with respect to the dosed portions obtained using the prior art.
• the present invention further relates to a dosing device, in particular according to claim 19, realising the present dosing method.
• FIG. ⁇ shows a section view, taken according to line 6-6 of Figure 5, relating to a detail of the housing compartment or chamber and of the dosing piston housed therein of the preferred device of the present invention
• FIG. 7 shows a longitudinal section view taken according to the line 7-7 of Figure 6 relating to an enlarged detail of the central area of the housing compartment of the preferred device of the present invention.
• the device 10 that realises the present dosing method essentially comprises, as Figure 1 schematically shows, a housing compartment or chamber 12 obtained within a body 11 of the device, which is supplied with the pasty material 14 by means of appropriate feeding means in the form of a loading hopper 16 fitted with feeder rollers 15 and a possible flow separator 17, with which the pasty material 14 is passed inside the compartment 12 through the opening 18 provided in the upper part of the longitudinal wall of said compartment.
• the feeding means operate in such a way as to introduce in said housing compartment a quantity of material that exceeds the quantity of the portion of material to be packaged and the present device further comprises means suitable for compacting within said compartment 12 the material to be dosed, which comprise means 20 pressing said material 14 in a predetermined area 12' of said compartment, and means 22 to let simultaneously flow out, from said compacting area of said compartment, the excess material that does not find housing therein.
• said pressing means comprise a piston or thrust means 20 slidingly movable within said compartment 12, which, in order to compact the material, is advanced within said compartment until reaching a predetermined compacting position, shown in Figure 2.
• the pasty material is compacted in an area 12' of the compartment 12 which is substantially central, wherein the material is held thanks to appropriate shutting means 32, provided in said compartment and acting to intercept the material blocking it on the side opposing the one whereon the compacting thrust is imparted by the dosing piston 20.
• said feeding opening 18 is closed. According to the present preferred embodiment this is accomplished by the same thrust means 20 by means of the lateral surface of the piston 20 which presents a length suitable to provide such closure.
• said material outflow phase for the realisation of the dosed portion entails, in order to make the material exceeding the quantity that can be contained within said compacting area 12' exit said compartment, the use of at least one orifice 22 which opens in said compartment for housing the material, according to the direction of advance of the material, in a position downstream of the predetermined compacting 7 position reached for dosing by said thrusting means 20.
• the opening of the orifice 22 is established in such a way as to obtain a throttling of the flow of material exiting the compartment by effect of the compression, suitable to provide an appropriate and desired degree of compacting for said material to be dosed.
• the opening or passage port of said orifice means 22 is adjusted, by adjusting the position of a shutter 24 obtained at the extreme part of an element 26 axially movable in an adjustable manner, by means of a calibration screw (not shown) or other means acting at the other side of the element 26, within a retrieval conduit 28 within which said material is progressively lifted by effect of the material exiting the compartment 12 and wherefrom said excess material is recycled, by means of suitable recirculation means comprising a conveying slide or conduit 30, within said hopper 16 to be re-inserted for feeding to said compartment 12.
• the terminal part of said conveying slide or conduit 30 ending in said hopper 16 in correspondence with a wall 30' for the separation thereof, which prolongs at the lower part to allow the easy re-entry of the product into the hopper.
• the lifting within said recirculation conduit 28 could also be accomplished by a screw feeder acting to lift the excess material exiting the compartment 12 and whose speed of rotation is varied, according to the consistency of the pasty material used, to regulate its flow out of the treatment chamber 12.
• a sensor 31 is provided on the hopper 16 to sense the level of the pasty material present therein and block the supply of said material to the hopper through the external supply means, exemplified by the conveyor belt 33.
• a discharge assent phase is provided, to accomplish which the present device provides for moving said means 32 for intercepting the material from a position (shown in Figures 1 and 2) upstream of a discharge nozzle 34, held during the feeding and dosing phase, to a position (shown in Figure 3) downstream of the point wherein discharge nozzle means 34 open in said compartment 12.
• This discharge assent phase further comprises the additional forward displacement of said thrusting piston 20, to be conducted preferably simultaneously with said shutting means 32, until reaching an advanced position suitable to position the compacted mass of material to be discharged in correspondence with said discharge nozzle means 34, as shown in Figure 3.
• the exit of the material from said orifice means 22 is closed, by the thrusting means 20 itself with the lateral surface of the piston 20.
• the opening 18 for the introduction of the material inside the compartment 12 is kept closed by the rear lateral surface of the piston 20.
• Said discharging means comprise means 36 acting by thrusting on the compacted material to discharge it from the housing compartment through said nozzle means 34.
• the discharge stroke of said thrusting means 36 determines the desired dosed portion which, being obtained by operating on a suitably compacted material, presents a high degree of precision.
• said compartment 12 for housing the material comprises a main part 12a wherein the material is introduced during the feeding phase and wherein the material, indicated as 14a, is compacted and a secondary part 12b within which during the compacting operation a secondary part 14b of said material is compressed.
• said main part 12a of the compartment 12 comprises a cylindrical chamber extending longitudinally and said secondary part 12b of the compartment 12 also comprises a cylindrical chamber extending longitudinally in parallel to said main chamber and separated therefrom by means of an intermediate wall 12c.
• Said secondary part of the compartment 12b presents a curved forward terminal section 12' b for the junction and insertion, through a port 38, into said first part 12a of the compartment 12.
• the pistons 20, 32 for compacting and intercepting the material are positioned within the main part of the compartment 12a prolonging and being activated starting from opposite longitudinal ends of said compartment 12, while the dosing and discharging piston 36 in turn extends in the secondary part 12b of the compartment 12 and it is activated by the same side wherefrom said 10 compacting piston 20 extends in the main part 12a of the compartment 12.
• Said port 38 for connecting the secondary branch 12b with the main branch 12a of the chamber 12 is located downstream of said orifice means 22 on the side of the chamber opposite to the one occupied by said orifice means and by said feeding opening 18.
• said thrusting means 20 after advancing the compacted material in correspondence with the ejection nozzle 34, position themselves in correspondence to, in particular slightly upstream of, said connecting port 38.
• Said means 36 acting to thrust on the compacted material to effect the discharge are movable between a rear position (shown in Figure 3) , which is maintained during the compacting operation, and an advanced discharge position (shown in Figure 4) wherein they act thrusting against the secondary portion of material 14b present in this secondary part 12b, causing the exit (as shown in Figure 4) of the pre-set dosed portion of the nozzle 34 towards the packaging.
• the normal operation of the device therefore entails, cyclically, a first phase, shown in Figure 1, whereby the pasty material is fed into said housing compartment 12 by means of the hopper 16, followed by a second phase (shown in Figure 2) whereby the piston 20 advances to close the opening 18 for feeding the material to the compartment 12 and reaches a first working position wherein the compacting operation is effected and during which the material in excess is ejected through the orifice 22, suitably adjusted, and then recirculated within the feeding hopper 16.
• a first phase shown in Figure 1
• the piston 20 advances to close the opening 18 for feeding the material to the compartment 12 and reaches a first working position wherein the compacting operation is effected and during which the material in excess is ejected through the orifice 22, suitably adjusted, and then recirculated within the feeding hopper 16.
• a third phase shown in Figure 3 the material is moved in correspondence with the outlet 34, by moving the piston 32 for intercepting the material downstream of the inlet of the discharge nozzle 34 and further advancing the rear thrusting piston 20 until arriving, in a second working position, in correspondence with the port 38 connecting the main part 12a of the chamber with the secondary part 12b.
• Discharge is effected, in a fourth phase that entails, as shown in Figure 4, the advancement and thrusting on the material by the discharging and dosing piston 36 which, flowing within the secondary part of the compartment, thrusts the compacted material to the rear and forces it to exit the nozzle 34 towards the packaging.
• the pistons 20, 32, 36 present respective extreme portions to engage the material 20a, 32a, 36a having a cross section whose outer peripheral profile matches with and slidingly contacts the profiles of the cross section of said compartment 12 and respective stem portions 20b, 32b, 36b supporting said extreme portions for engaging the material 20a, 32a, 36a.
• the front faces of the pistons 20, 32, 36 that engage the material are provided inclined with 12 respect to the direction of motion of the material in such a way that by moving back a certain detachment is possible from these faces of the treated pasty material.
• passage means 40, 42 are provided in correspondence with said compartment 12, which allow the fluid to flow beyond the extreme portions 20a, 32a, 36a for engaging the material of said pistons 20, 32, 36, in such a way as to allow the passage of the detergent or cleansing fluid between the areas upstream and downstream of the respective extreme portions 20a, 32a, 36a for engaging the material.
• the stem portions 20b, 32b, 36b are provided with respective longitudinal groove means 20c, 32c, 36c which can be placed in fluid communication with the corresponding passage means 40, 42 to allow the circulation of said detergent or cleansing fluid in the compartment 12.
• the stem portions 20b, 32b, 36b of the pistons 20, 32, 36 preferably present a polygonal section, in particular, as shown in Figure 6 relatively to piston 20 alone, a triangular section having vertices or edge portions 20d, 20d, 20d for contacting and sliding against the inner surface of said compartment 12, between which are defined, delimited between the longitudinal lateral faces 20e, 20e, 20e and the inner cylindrical wall of the compartment 12, respective longitudinal grooves 20c, 20c, 20c for the passage and linear conveyance of the detergent or cleansing fluid.
• first passage means 40 are provided in the main part 12a 13 of said compartment 12 in a median position thereof in correspondence with which are positioned said compacting piston 20 and said intercepting piston 32 in such a way that an individual means 40 can provide for the passage of washing or cleansing fluid beyond both portions 20a, 32a for engaging said pistons 20, 32.
• Said passage means 40 are provided in the main part 12a of said compartment 12 in correspondence with said connecting port 38 between the parts 12a and 12b of the compartment 12, and second passage means 42 are provided in the secondary part 12b of said compartment 12 in proximity with the connecting port 38.
• said passage means 40 and, equally, said passage means 42 are in the form of a circumferential widening of the cross section of said compartment 12 that extends longitudinally for a certain section of the compartment or chamber 12.
• the present device it is possible periodically to effect, after a number of predetermined dosage cycles, a washing or cleansing process of the device.
• the washing and cleansing process provides for positioning each piston 20, 32, 36 in correspondence with the respective means 40, 42 for the passage of the washing or cleansing fluid, and for making said washing and cleansing fluid circulate within said compartment 12 in particular in the form of a liquid material.
• the washing or cleansing process of the device provides for positioning said thrusting and intercepting pistons 20, 32 of the material within the main part of the compartment 12a 14 approached one in front of the other in coincidence with said section widening in correspondence with said port 38 for connecting the secondary part 12b with the main part 12a of the housing compartment, whilst the discharge thrusting piston 36 is positioned, within said secondary part 12b of the compartment, in correspondence with said section widening provided in proximity with said connecting port 38.
• said orifice means 22 are fully opened, in such a way that said washing or cleansing fluid can circulate, as shown by the arrows in Figure 5, along the whole inner part of the device which is in contact with the treated material, sliding within said chamber 12, along the grooves 20c, 32c, 36c of the pistons, and within the ascent conduit 28 along the slide 30 and the inner parts of the hopper 16.
• the washing or cleansing liquid is introduced, by appropriate means 50, into the device through the hopper 17. In this way it is possible to effect the washing and the possible cleansing of the inner surfaces of the device in contact with the pasty material without needing to provide for the disassembly of the device.
• actuation of the various movable organs, such as the pistons, of the device is governed by actuation and control means of a wholly known kind. It is not necessary, therefore, to describe it in detail herein.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Confectionery (AREA)
• Containers And Plastic Fillers For Packaging (AREA)
• Basic Packing Technique (AREA)
• Containers And Packaging Bodies Having A Special Means To Remove Contents (AREA)

Priority Applications (4)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=11343110

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Citations (6)

• 1998
  • 1998-04-14 IT IT98BO000238A patent/IT1299968B1/it active IP Right Grant
• 1999
  • 1999-04-09 IL IL13347999A patent/IL133479A0/xx unknown
  • 1999-04-09 EP EP99909167A patent/EP0988230A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1999-04-09 PL PL99337444A patent/PL337444A1/xx unknown
  • 1999-04-09 JP JP55142099A patent/JP2002506410A/ja active Pending
  • 1999-04-09 AU AU28511/99A patent/AU2851199A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1999-04-09 WO PCT/IB1999/000622 patent/WO1999052774A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation

Patent Citations (6)

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