ES2716470T5 - Packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags - Google Patents

Description

DESCRIPTION

Packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags

The present invention relates to a packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small pre-formed bags, and a packaging method, particularly for packaging small pre-formed bags that can be carried out with the packaging machine.

Conventional packaging machines are generally provided with discharge outlets that are designed as a function of their size or the shape of the bags to be filled and that have to be totally or at least partially replaced with each format change.

With such conventional packaging machines, disassembly operations are therefore necessary in order to be able to adapt the output to the format of the bag to be filled during the operation.

In fact, the packaging lines on the market are not capable of packaging all types of bags (of different types, sizes and materials) that are present on the market with a single machine model.

For example, some of these conventional packaging machines process the bag to be filled while leaving it standing isolated along the feed line, thus not allowing the processing of all types of bags, since some types of bags do not they stand.

Other conventional packaging machines, to fill the bag, require the deformation of the lateral accordion portions which must then be restored along the line of advance. This type of execution is quite reliable when the bags are made of paper and the sizes do not differ greatly; but it is impossible to process all other types of bags made of different materials or with bottoms that do not allow the bag to stand upright.

Furthermore, another drawback common to all types of conventional packaging machines consists in the fact that a large amount of air remains inside the packages and, as there is no system available that is adapted for its removal, the packages must be perforated with the consequence of the container no longer being perfectly sealed, thus losing its fragrance and emitting unpleasant odors to the outside.

Documents BE 515 333 A, FR 2 780 027 A1, DE 2629065 A1 and EP 2078674 A1 describe packaging machines that have a plurality of processing stations that are arranged along at least one feed line and that are provided with retaining means and opening means for at least one bag to be filled that are operatively connected to the means for advancing the bag to be filled along the advance line, said processing stations comprising at least one filling station that is provided with at least one filling cone that is adapted to discharge loose products into the bag to be filled that is opened and formed beforehand. The filling cone can move between a minimum opening, in which the filling cone assumes a substantially pyramid-like shape with an acute angle, and a maximum opening, means also being provided for raising and lowering one or both bags to be filled and the filling cone for a partial insertion of the filling cone in the bag to be filled.

In addition to these characteristics, document EP 2078674 A1 describes that the filling cone at the maximum opening assumes a substantially parallelepiped shape and is defined by two half-shells, which are pivoted at the outlet of a conduit for feeding loose products and have a it is shaped substantially like an open tub, which is delimited by a central wall substantially parallel to a discharge direction of said loose products and by two side walls.

These two side walls are inserted one inside the other and laterally delimit the filling cone in all its active configurations and are shaped to define, at an exit from the filling cone, two spouts adapted to be inserted into the bag to be filled during filling stage.

EP 2078674 A1 also discloses two opposing suction cups which can be moved towards and away from each other at right angles to the line of advance to open the bag before it moves to the filling cone. EP 2078674 A1 also describes the use of clips according to JP2002-302227A, which retain the bag on the side parts and can be moved towards and away from each other parallel to the line of advance.

EP 0082955 A2 describes a bag filling apparatus with means for holding bags adjacent to their top and side edges, vacuum cups to separate the top edges, and a filling cone with half-shells, having vacuum tubes on their rear walls. and they are articulated on respective transverse axes to the line connecting the pliers. The arrangement is such that, in the filling position and with the bag gripped by the grippers, the upper edge of the bag is tightened so that no powder can escape on the sides.

The object of the present invention is to provide a packaging machine with increased functionality that is capable of overcoming the drawbacks and limitations mentioned above.

Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to offer a packaging machine that is particularly adapted to the packaging of small preformed bags.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a packaging machine that is capable of offering the greatest guarantees of reliability and safety in use.

According to the invention, a packaging machine as defined in the appended claims is provided.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become better apparent from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment of a packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags, which is illustrated for exemplary purposes with the aid of the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic side elevational view of the packaging machine according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a schematic plan view from above of the packaging machine shown in Figure 1; Figures 3 and 4 are two schematic side elevational views of the filling cone of the packaging machine shown in the previous figures, respectively before and after its insertion in the bag to be filled in its active opening configuration;

Figure 5 is a schematic side elevational view of the filling cone shown in the previous figures during the discharge step of the product in the bag to be filled;

Figure 6 is a schematic top plan view of the bag to be filled during the aforementioned discharge step;

Figure 7 is a schematic side elevational view of the filling cone shown in the previous figures illustrating its operation;

Figure 8 is a schematic side elevational view of the bag to be filled during the step of sealing and removing the remaining air contained therein;

Figure 9 is a schematic view of the mouth of the bag to be filled.

With reference to the figures, the packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags, generally designated with the reference number 1, comprises a plurality of processing stations that are arranged along at least one advance line 2 and which are provided with retaining means 3 and opening means 4 for at least one bag 5 to be filled which are operatively connected to means for advancing the bag 5 which are not shown as they are conventional.

For example, the bag 5 can be a preformed bag of the type with an open mouth with or without lateral accordion portions, an open mouth with or without a bottom, an open mouth with or without a handle, or an open mouth of the Doy Pack type, or beltpack with stable base, or Top Slider, etc.

These preformed bags can also be made of different types of materials and the sizes of the bags that can be processed can vary from 300 grams to 7 kilograms.

More precisely, the processing stations comprise at least one filling station that is provided with at least one filling cone 6 that is adapted to discharge loose products 7 into the bag 5, which is open and formed in advance.

In the proposed embodiment there are two filling stations that are arranged in series in order to increase the productivity of the packaging machine 1.

According to the invention, each filling cone 6 is of the type with variable opening so that it can move between an active configuration of minimum opening, in which it assumes a substantially pyramid-like shape with an acute angle as shown in the figures 3 and 4, and a maximum opening active configuration in which it assumes a shape substantially like a parallelepiped with a rectangular cross-section as shown in figures 5 and 7.

Furthermore, also according to the invention, means are provided, also not shown, for raising and lowering both or either of the bag 5 and the filling cone 6 in order to partially insert the filling cone 6 into the bag 5 along an ascent/descent line 18.

Advantageously, each filling cone 6 is defined by at least two half-shells 8 and 9 that are pivoted at the outlet 10 of a conduit 11 to feed the loose products 7 so that they can move between the minimum opening active configuration, in which these half-shells 8 and 9 are closed against each other to give the filling cone 6 the substantially pyramid-like shape with an acute angle, and the active configuration of maximum opening, in which the two half-shells 8 and 9 are open to each other to give the filling cone 6 substantially the shape of a parallelepiped with a rectangular cross-section.

More precisely, the two half-shells 8 and 9 are both substantially shaped like an open tub that is delimited by a central wall 12 that extends substantially parallel to the discharge direction of the loose products 7, and by two side walls 13, with the central walls 12 being mutually opposed and the central walls mutually offset to define a male-female coupling and allow the insertion of two half-shells 8 and 9 one inside the other and laterally delimit each filling cone 6 in all its active configurations.

It is important to note that the aforementioned walls 12 and 13 are further formed to define, at the outlet of each filling cone 6, two peaks 14 and 15 that define the apex of the filling cone 6 and are adapted to be inserted into the bag 5 during the step to fill it.

Conveniently, means 16 are provided for adjusting the opening angle of the two half-shells 8 and 9, comprising for each half-shell 8 and 9 a pneumatic actuator 17 which is interposed between a stop 19 which is integral with the supply duct 11 and a element 20 to support the respective half-shells 8 or 9.

The acute angle of the filling cone 6, which is directed downwards, penetrates the bag 5 with extreme ease, allowing the coupling and packaging of a plurality of bags, some of which are increasingly in demand by the European market; for example bags that have the side accordion portions closed in place, or minipacks of formats that vary from 300 grams to 800 grams. The filling mouth that is defined allows the packaging, with high productivity, of any bag, regardless of shape, type and size.

The aforementioned opening means 4 comprise at least two mutually opposed sets of suction cups 21 which can move towards or away from each other at right angles to the line of advance 2 so as to grip the bag 5 by adhering to its lateral surfaces 23, following its mutual approach, and to open the selvedge 24 of theirs, following their mutual spacing.

As for the retaining means 3, they comprise at least two sets of clamps 25 that are mutually opposed and movable towards each other or away from each other at right angles with respect to the line of advance 2 to retain the bag 5 to be filled in its portions of side accordion 26.

As will be described in more detail below, the two sets of clamps 25 are movable towards or away from each other parallel to the line of advance 2 to allow the complete opening of the bag 5 with the lateral accordion portions 26 retained by the sets of clamps. tweezers 25 following the push applied to the selvedge 24 by the spikes 14 and 15 that are inserted into the bag 5, to make the selvedge 23 adhere to the entire outer perimeter of the filling cone 6.

With particular reference to Figure 8, at least one sealing station is provided which is arranged behind the filling station(s) and is provided with at least one set of heat-sealing bars 27 which are provided with liquid heat-sealing cooling media, for the heat sealing of the selvedge 24 of the bag 5.

Conveniently, means are provided for height adjustment of the heat sealing bars 27 to be able to provide a plurality, for example up to four, of closure types for different types of bags and/or to be able to provide a plurality, for example 3, of different types of closure. closure types in the same bag.

Also with particular reference to figure 8, advantageously, air elimination means 28 are provided to eliminate the residual air contained in the bag 5 in its transfer from the filling station to the sealing station, comprising in its upper part a series of pressers 29 that are adapted to retain the bag 5 and cause the selvedge 24 to descend and in its lower part a pair of rollers 30 that are adapted to operate vertically on the lateral surfaces 23 of the bag 5 until they reach the level of the product contained there to eliminate air between the product and the selvedge 24.

The packaging method, obtainable with the packaging machine 1 described above, particularly for packaging small preformed bags, is described below.

According to the invention, the packaging method comprises the following steps:

- Retain the bag 5 to be filled by retaining means 3,

- Advance the bag 5 to be filled until it is arranged in at least one of the filling stations described above,

- Opening the selvedge 24 of the bag 5 to be filled by means of the opening means 4, an operation that can also occur before or during the previous advance step.

More precisely, the retaining means 3 and the opening means 4 respectively comprise the sets of clamps 25 for retaining the lateral accordion portions of the bag 5 to be filled and the sets of suction cups 21 for opening the bag 5; the former operate on the sides of the selvedge 24 of the bag 5 to keep the accordion portions closed, and move one towards the other on the horizontal axis while simultaneously the latter, once adhered to the bag 5, separate so that it can be opened with in order to make the selvedge 5 define an oval-shaped opening.

Subsequently, after the advance, the following steps are executed:

- Partially insert each filling cone 6 into the bag 5 to be filled by means of the lifting and lowering means, - Open each filling cone 6 and move the retaining means 3 to make the selvedge 24 adhere to the entire outer perimeter of the filling cone 6,

- Unloading the loose products 7 in the bag 5 to be filled.

Advantageously, at least two steps of:

- The step of partially inserting the filling cone 6,

- The step of opening the filling cone 6,

- The step of unloading the loose products 7,

they can also occur simultaneously.

More precisely, the outlet of each filling cone 6 and the selvedge 6 of the bag 5 to be filled can be mutually coupled and uncoupled thanks to the vertical and horizontal movements of the mouth or of the retaining means 3 of the bag 5 that are connected to the support frame of outlet 10.

After the bag 5 to be filled, with the selvedge 24 open in an oval shape, has been positioned under the outlet of the respective filling cone 6, it is held and held by a further set of bag retaining clamps that are positioned below discharge outlet(s).

The filling cone 5 can thus partially penetrate the bag 5 and then open horizontally towards the accordion portions and discharge the product 7 into the bag 5.

During the opening step, the outlet of the filling cone 6 deforms the initially oval cross section of the selvedge 24 making it take the shape of the outlet itself, i.e. a shape very similar to that of the transverse cross section of the bag 5 which is now filled, almost rectangular.

In this way, the outlet of the filling cone 5, during the opening step, moves a part of the accordion portions that are not held in place by the retaining means 3 so that the outlet of the filling cone 6 can defining a larger opening, thus exploiting approximately 80% of the width of the selvedge 24 of the bag 5. More precisely, during the step of opening the filling cone 6 and unloading the products 7, the retaining means 3 that hold the The selvedge 24 of the bag 5 with the accordion portions held in place are separated in order to put the selvedge 24 of the bag under tension and make it adhere to the entire outer perimeter of the outlet of the filling cone 6.

In this way, the opening of the outlet of the filling cone 6, in addition to allowing the product 7 to enter the bag 5, also modifies the original oval-shaped opening of the selvedge 24, making it take on an almost rectangular shape. When the filling is completed, the filling cone 6 and the selvedge 24 are separated and the bag 5 is then held by the retaining means 3 in such a way that they can hold, align and transport the bag 5 whose retaining means have a pair of claws or jaws that rotate in a downward vertical plane to separate and join.

More precisely, such retaining, aligning and conveying means allow the alignment of the selvedge 24 by a mutual spacing movement along the horizontal axis and the alignment can be achieved both under the outlet of the filling cone 6 and at a subsequent station.

Subsequently, the bag is transferred to the subsequent station for the operations of discharging the air contained in the bag 5 to be filled by the air elimination means 28 and to heat-seal the selvedge 24 by means of the set of heat-sealing bars 27.

More precisely, such translational movement occurs through the clamps to retain, align and transport, accompanied by auxiliary movement means that operate at the bottom of the bag, such as, for example, conveyor belts and mobile arms.

The bag is moved to the heat sealing station directly by the air removing means 28.

Once the operations of the air removing means 28 are completed, the bag 5 is immediately heat sealed by the set of heat sealing bars 27.

Such heat sealing stations can be one or more in number, and in each assembly it is possible to have sets of bars that are adjustable in height in order to be able to execute up to four different types of closure for different types of bags or to be able to execute up to three different types of bag from closure for the same bag.

In practice it has been found that the packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags, and the packaging method obtainable with it, achieve the intended aim and objects since they allow the packaging of different types of bags without the need to change the discharge outlets so that the machine is adapted for the packaging of both food products and chemical products as well as pet food.

For example, it allows the packaging of different types of bags such as: bags with accordion portions, or without accordion portions, bags with external handles, bags with perforated handles, Doy Pack bags, stable base bags, Single Life Top Zip bags. , Mini Pet Pack bags, internal front zipper bags, Top Slider bags, Hidden Front Slider bags, and easy open bags.

In addition, it is possible to process bags of any shape, size and material.

Another advantage of the packaging machine according to the present invention consists in the fact that the handling of the bags in the advance line always occurs with the accordion portions held in place, to ensure the 100% perfect closure of the package.

In fact, the handling of the bags on the forward line occurs while they are constantly clamped and with the accordion portions clamped in place, to ensure a reliable and uninterrupted production process and perfect packaging of the bags.

Another advantage of the packaging machine according to the present invention consists in the fact that it allows an optimal sealing of the bags, which is such as to preserve the fragrance and quality of the product.

In fact, thanks to the air elimination means, the oxygen is eliminated from the inside of the sealed package; in this way it is not necessary to perforate the container in order to palletize it.

In addition, thanks to the presence of the liquid cooling means of heat sealing, it is possible to prevent the bag material from deforming with heat, thus taking on an unpleasant appearance; In addition, the system prevents the color variation of the bag in contact with heat sources.

Another advantage of the packaging machine according to the present invention consists in the fact that it is easy to use and quick to change the format, being also reliable from the point of view of both the process and the work elements over time.

The packaging machine with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags, and the method of packaging obtainable therewith, thus conceived, are susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims.

Furthermore, all the details can be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.

In practice the materials employed, provided they are compatible with the specific use, and the contingent shapes and dimensions may be any according to requirements.

Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference numbers and/or signs, those reference numbers and/or signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such numbers and/or or reference signs have no limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by example by such numbers and/or reference signs.

Claims (10)

1. A packaging machine (1) with increased functionality, particularly for small preformed bags, comprising a plurality of processing stations that are arranged along at least one feed line (2) and that are provided with retaining means (3) and opening means (4) so that at least one bag (5) is filled, which are operatively connected to means for advancing said at least one bag (5) to be filled along said advance line (2), said processing stations comprise at least one filling station that is provided with at least one filling cone (6) that is adapted to discharge loose products (7) into said at least one bag (5) that is going to be filled, which opens and forms beforehand, said at least one filling cone (6) being of the type with variable opening, so that it can move between an active minimum opening configuration, in which said at least one cone of filling (6) assumes a substantially pyramidal entity with an acute angle, and a maximum opening active configuration, means are also provided for raising and lowering either or both of said at least one bag (5) to be filled and said at least one filling cone (6) for a partial insertion of said at least one filling cone (6) in said at least one bag (5) to be filled, where in said maximum opening active configuration said at least one filling cone (6) assumes a shape substantially as a parallelepiped with a rectangular cross section, said at least one filling cone (6) is defined by at least two half-shells (8, 9), which are pivoted at the outlet (10) of a conduit (11) to feed said products loose (7) so that they can move between said minimum opening active configuration, in which said at least two half-shells (8, 9) are closed together to give said at least one filling cone (6) said shape substantially pyramidal with an acute angle, and said maximum opening active configuration, in which said at least two half-shells (8, 9) are open to each other to give said at least one filling cone (6) said shape substantially as a parallelepiped with a rectangular cross-section, being both at least two half-shells (8, 9) substantially in the form of an open tub, which is delimited by a central wall (12), which extends substantially parallel to the discharge direction of said loose products (7), and by two side walls (13), said central walls (12) of said at least two half-shells (8, 9) being mutually opposite and said central walls (12) of said at least two half-shells (8, 9) moving mutually to allow the insertion of said at least two half-shells (8, 9) one inside the other and laterally delimit said at least one filling cone (6) in all its active configurations, said walls (12, 13) of said at least two half-shells ( 8, 9) further conform to define, at least one outlet of said at least one filling cone (6), two peaks (14, 15), which define a vertex of said at least one filling cone (6) and are adapted to insert into said at least one bag (5) to be filled during the step for filling said bag; where said opening means (4) comprise at least two sets of mutually opposed suction cups (21) that can move towards and away from each other at right angles with respect to said advance line (2), in order to hold said at least a bag (5) to be filled by adhering to the lateral surfaces (26) of said at least one bag (5) to be filled, after their mutual approach, and to open a selvedge (24) of said at least one bag ( 5) to be filled, after their mutual separation; wherein said retaining means (3) comprise at least two sets of mutually opposed clamps (25) that can move towards and away from each other at right angles with respect to said line of advance (2) to retain said at least one bag (5 ) to be filled in its lateral accordion portions (26), where said at least two sets of grippers (25) can further move towards and away from each other parallel to said advance line (2) to allow a complete opening of said at least one bag (5) is filled with said lateral accordion portions (26) retained by said at least two sets of clips (25) after a thrust applied to said selvedge (24) by said spikes (14, 15) which are inserted into said at least one bag (5) to be filled, to make said selvedge (24) adhere to a complete outer perimeter of said at least one filling cone (6); and where, during the opening stage of the filling cone (6) and unloading of the products (7), the sets of clamps (25) that hold the selvedge (24) of the bag (5) with the accordion portions held in place they separate to put the selvedge (24) of the bag under tension and make it adhere to the entire external perimeter of the outlet of the filling cone (6). 2. The packaging machine (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises means (16) for adjusting an opening angle of said at least two half-shells (8, 9), comprising, for each of said at least two half-shells (8, 9), a pneumatic actuator (17) interposed between a stop (19) that is integral with said feed conduit (11), and an element (20) for supporting said half-shells (8, 9) . 3. The packaging machine (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one sealing station that is arranged behind said filling station and is provided with at least one set of heat-sealing bars (27 ) for heat sealing said selvedge (24). 4. The packaging machine (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that it comprises means for adjusting the height of said heat-sealing bars (27) to be able to provide a plurality of closure types for different types of bags and/or to be able to provide a plurality of different closure types on the same bag. 5. The packaging machine (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises air elimination means (28) to eliminate the residual air contained in said at least one bag (5) in a transfer of said at least one bag (5 ) from said at least one filling station to said sealing station. 6. The packaging machine (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that said air elimination means (28) comprises, in its upper part, a series of pressers (29) that are adapted to retain said at least one bag (5 ) to fill and to lower said selvedge (24) and, in its lower part, a pair of rollers (30) that are adapted to operate vertically on the lateral surfaces (23) of said at least one bag (5), until reaching the level of the product contained therein, to eliminate the air between said products (7) and said selvedge (24). 7. The packaging machine (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that it comprises two filling stations arranged in series. 8. A packaging method, in particular for packaging small preformed bags, using a packaging machine (1) according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: - retaining said at least one bag (5) to be filled by means of said retaining means (3), - advancing said at least one bag (5) to be filled until it is arranged in at least one of said filling stations, - opening said selvedge (24) of said at least one bag (5) to be filled by means of said opening means (4), - partially inserting said at least one filling cone (6) in said at least one bag ( 5) to be filled by said lifting and lowering means, - opening said at least one filling cone (6) and moving said retaining means (3) so that said selvedge (24) adheres to the entire external perimeter of said at least one filling cone (6), - unloading said loose products (7) into said at least one bag (5) to be filled, - removing the air contained in said at least one bag (5) by means of said air removal means (28), - heat sealing said selvedge (24) by means of said at least one set of heat sealing bars (27). The packaging method according to claim 8, characterized in that said step of opening said selvedge (24) occurs before said step of advancing said at least one bag (5) to be filled. 10. The packaging method according to claim 8, characterized in that at least two stages of: - said step of partial insertion of said at least one filling cone (6), - said step of opening said at least one filling cone (6), - said unloading stage of said loose products (7), occur simultaneously.