Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
~ P7~ ~781-2
Field of the I~ven~ion
This invention relates to improved end closures
of casing material for hollow shirred casing stick~ and
to method~ for making such end closures.
Background of the Invention
- ~hirred food casings of flexible tublng re
presently being used in ~he mea~ industry for making
sausage products such as frankfurter~, pork sausages
or the llke. The flexible ~lbing used for food casing
10 may be comprised of proteins, carbohydrates and the like
as collagens9 alginates, stsrches or cellulosic material
such as cellulo~e esters, cellulose ethers and regenerated
cellulose, as well as other natural, synthetic or
artiflcial material~. The casings are first prepared
as hollow, th~n-walled tubes of lengths ranging from
about 1~.2 to abou~ 48.8 meters or more, and then shirred
and compressed to produce wha~ is eoD~only termed in
~he urt "6hirred casing sticks or strandsl' of from abou~
20 cen~imeters or less ~o about 69 centime~ers or ~or~
20 ~ - lengthO
---. The shirred c~in~ ~ticks ~re th~n packag~d
and shipped ~o a food proces~or where each indi~idual
stick is stuffed ~i h food em~l~ion filling the ca~ing
- to its fully e:ctended length. Such casing s~ick~ may be
stuffed with food emul~ion by manual or au~comatic
operations. In ~h~ manual opera~ion, ~he cas~ng 8tiC~
i8 ~heathed onto a thin~ lled food stuf~ing horn
,
- : connected ~o a con~en~lonal val~e controll2d veg8el
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557 7~ 8781-2
~illed with food emulsion under pressure, The operator
may deshirr a short length of caslng at its outbo~rd
or fore end to form a closure ther~at 80 as to prevent
the loss of food emulsion during the filling of the
casing.
Automatic machines have been developed for
stu~fing or stuffing and linking of ~hirred ~ood casings
- wieh food emulsions to produce ~uch produc~s as frank-
furters or the like on a ontinuous bas~s. On2 such
10automatic machine, disclosed in U. S. Patent 3~115,668
to Town~end~ is capable of ~uccessively s~uffing and
linking a shirred casing with food emulsion to produce
a plurslity of food links on a continuo~s basls. In
automatic food ~tufflng machine~ of ~11 types, and with
the Townsand mach~ne in particular, the ~tuffing of the
casing usually takes place within se~eral seconds with
the result that the ca~ing is extended from a shirred
length of 20 to ~9 centimeters ~o an ext~nded length of
12.2 to 48.8 meters or more in a matter of 7 to 30
20 ~econds. This rapid e~ten~ion of the casing during tha
-stuff~ng operation of the machine require~ the casing
to be esp~cial:Ly str~ng and resistant to ~earing. In
addi~ion, the easing stick is required to h~Ye an end .i m
--. closure 80 that ~he ~hirred casing 6tick can merely be
- placed on the ~3tuffing horn of a ~tuffing machine and
filled with food emul~ion without fur~her handling b~
the machi~e operator o ensure that none of the food
- emul~ion e~capes from the. ~a~i~g. In practice,, a
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plurality of ~hirrad casing sticks with the fore end
of each plugged or o~cherwise clo~ed, are placed in a
dispensing hopper of an automatlc stuffing-linking
machine. The machine o~erates such ~hat one stick at
a time i~ :Eed from the hopper to clamping-aligning means
that align the stickls bore with a thin-walled recipro-
cating food ~tuff ing horn. The stuffing horn is re-
tractabie to a startlng position aft of the casing stick
positioned in the ~ligning mean~. The discharge end of
the stuffing horn i8 ad~anced into the casin~ bore and
mNst engage the fore end of the ca~ing ~tick to i~itially
de~hirr and push the fore end about midway through an
annular pas sge on a control chNck. Thereupon a pu3her
at the àft end of the stick ad~ance~ to compress the
caslng and seat the fore end of the casing wall into
fl~tes of the chuck's passage. Before the stuffing-
linking operation begins9 the casing's ~or~ end is firmly ~
6e~ted in~o and gripped by flute of the chuc~. Food :-
emul~ion is th~ dispensed fr~m the Rtuffi~g horn and
the chu~k is rotated ~o cooperate with linking means ~o
- there~y for~ the ~illed ca~ing s~lck in~o links of pre-
tetermined length which c n thereafter be suitably pro-
cessed, ~f nece~sary, to produce a strand of sausage
links-or the llka which, if peeled, yield skinless
frank~urters or the l~ke.
Consequently, stuffing-linking machinery that
opera~es in such a manner requires shirred food casing
stlcks ~o hsve a plug or olosure at the fore end of
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1~5~77~ 8781
~u~h sticks 80 that the ~dv~ncing ~uffing horn may engage
it 80 that the stuffing horn can ~dvance ~he casing ~tick
into ~he chuck to ~hereby de~hirr the ca~ing ~ithout diB80Ci-
~tion of ~he closure ~d al80 ~0 effect~vely block the flow
herethrough of food emulsion. The clo~ure thus aerves a8
- an ab~ment to properly initi~te sui~able filling and de-
~hirring of the casi~g stick ~hile simultaneously pr~viding
suitable con~rol for the ~tart of the linking opera~i~n
without having any of the food emNlsi~n e~cape from ~he
casing. When u~ing completely hollow ca~in~ ~ticks ~ith
automatic stuffing-linking marhinery~ the operator had to
plug one end of each casing by tying, twisting or insertlng
an obstruction to the food emul~ion flow. Thi~ Wa8 a c08tly
and time consuming operation for the food packer. Thu6
it became conventional practice to provide a casing stick
:. with an end closure prepar~ddur~ng the manufac~ure of the
casing rather than during the u~e of the casing nt the site
of the ~tuffing and linking operatlons. Consequently,
var~ous typeæ of casing clo ures, a~d methods for forming
the 8ame9 have bPen discloRed ~8, for example, in U. S.
Patent 3,162,892 to Tc~nsendg U. S. ~e~t 3,274,005 to
Al~ys, U. S. Patent 3,383,222 to Alsys e~ al and U~ S. :~
Patents 3,419,401, 3,5509191~ 3~564,647 and 3,570,045
- to Matecki~ ~nd in ~. S. P~tent 3~865,954 to Tum~ et al.
` Although the~e ca~ing end closures exhibi~ . -
many adYantages over the manually formed clo8ure89 they
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5 57 7~ 87~ 2
have been found to ha~e certain llmitations such as
no~ being readily formable on shirring machines, being
~ifficult to control the amount of casing used in forming
the end closure, being too tightly ~nchored in the bore,
or being too rigid to be employed in s~me ver~ions of
the automatic linking mesns of stuffing machines.
- Accordingly, it is one ob~ect of this invention
to provide a new and ~mproYed method of closing the fore
end o~ a shirred casing ~tick for food or other materials.
-10 Another ob~ect of this invention is to provide
an improved method for closing the end of a ~hirred casing
sti~k utilizing only the material of the casing in the
closure.
Another ob~ect of the invention is ~o pr~vide
a new and improved method for producing plug closure~
for hollow shirred sticks o. tubular casings.
Another ob~ect o th~ 8 invention is ~o provide
a new ant improYed shirred food casing stick having a
~loating end closure which is integral with the easing
stick-.
- Another ob~ect of this inventio~ is to provide
a.new ~nd impro~ed shirred food casing ~tick ha~ing a
- - ~e~i-floating end clo~ure which may or may no~ be integral
- - with the ca~ng stick.
Still ,another ob~ ect of this invention is to
- provide a new and improved shirrsd food casing stic~ -
haYing a:~ull~ anchored plug closure to preven~ improper
- - sheQthing of th~ atic~ o~to a stuffing horn and to permi~
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577~L 8781-2
internal enga~ement of the clo~ure with me~ns to de~hirr
- and s~ff the c~ing with food e~Nlsion.
Still another ob~ ec~c of the invention is to
provide a new and improved shirred casing ~tick with a
plug closure which is not an integral part o~ the ca~ g
st~ ck.
Other and additional ob~ects of the inven~cion
will become apparent from the specifications, de~cription
and accompanying drawings.
Summary of the Invention
The inYention relate~ to a hollow shirred s~ick
of ~bular caslng having an open end, also referred to
as the aft cnd, and a closed end, al~o referred to 28
the fore end, said closed end c~mprisin$ a plug of com-
pre~sed deshirred ca~ing o~ which a first portion is
secursd to at least a portion of ~he clo~ed or fore end
6urface of the shirred stic~ with the remainder generally
conforming to the bore of the shirr2d ~tick and e~tending
within ~aid bore ~o as to form an annular spsce between
20 the ex~e}lded portion of said plug and the internal wall
of the shirred ~3tick. Another embodi~ent of a closed
end for a hollow ~hirred sticlc of ~uhular casing comprises
a cylind~ical p:Lug of compr . ssed deshirred casing, haYing
substantially f:Lat end ~urfaces, coaxial~y implanted
within the bore of the ~h~rred ~tick and ~ubs~an~cially
. ~lush Dlounted at the clo~ed or fore end thereof. The
plug in ~oth of these embodiment~ could prefera~ly ~e aT~ :
ir~tegr81 par'c o the ca~i~ so a~ ~o ~fficiently and
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57 7 ~
easily allow the fore end pleats of the cssing ~o be
initially de~hirred by the advanc~ment of a stuffing
horn of an automatic stuffing machine for inserting the
fore end of the casing into a chuck mem~er of the machine
whereupon ths pressure of the dispenfiing food or other
type emNlsion oould then deshirr the r~mainder of the
casing. In another em~odiment~ a plug can be pr~pared
u8ing casing or some other material in a separate opera-
tion and ~hen be inserted into the bore at the fore end
of a shirred sasing stick having a deshirred portion of
about 2 to 5 centimeters. The separately produced plug
can be attached or otherwise secured to the deshirred
casing at the fore end of the s~lck prior to being
inserted in the bore of the casing or subsequent thereto
as long as it is sufficiently anchored to the fore end
of the casing stick to allow for the fore end to be
initially deshirred as stated aboPe, Preferably, the
portion of the separstely produeed plug which extends
8ubstantially across the bore of the casing stick should
be compre~sed against the internal wall of the casing
stick and then ~he deshirred portion of casing ~tick
folded ti~htly into or bonded onto the end surface of
the piug to for~ a secured union therewith.
- In both ~he integral and non in~eg.al plug
e~bodiments, the plug ~hould be sufficiently anchored
to the fore end of the cas~ng ~tick so as to permit
initi~l deshirriag as s~ated above and to prevent blowout
o the plug during filling of the ca~ing with food or
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~ L~5577~L 8781-2
other type emul~ion while being adaptsble BO that any
- exces6 emulsion that may be trapped in the first link
of the casing can be easily removedO
The invention al~o relate~ to a method for
closing an end of a hollow shirred stick of tubular
casing whi~h compri~es:
a) placing a hollow cylindrical forming tube
into the bore of a hollow shirred Rtick of tubular casing;
- b) inturning a portion of the casing at the
fore end of the shirred stic~ into 6aid forming tube;
- c) placing a relatively fixed surface against
the end of the ~hirred stick containing the inturned
cas ing;
d) compressing the inturned casing against
sa~d fixed ~urface to form a c~mpressed plug of casing
within the bore of the shirred stick; and
e) removing said forming tube from the bore
of said ~hirr~d ~tick.
Another method for clo~ing an end of a hollow
shirred stick of tubular food casing would compri~e
- steps (a) through (c~ above followed by the following
step:
d'3 c~mpressing the inturned casing against
- - - said fixed surface while~simul~aneously removing ~aid
for~ing tube ~o as to form a compres~ed flat-end~face
cylindrical plug of casing withi~ the bore of said
- ~hirred seick which is tightly compressed again t the
i~ternal wall o~f sald shirred ~ic~ with sufficient
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878l-2
tenacity to allow the fore end of the casing to be
forcibly inserted lnto sizing-linking means of ~n
~utomatic stuffing machine.
Another f2ature of this invention relates to
a method for producing plugs or closures of compressed
casing, made of food casing or another type. material,
for use wlth hollow shirred æticks of tubular casings
which comprises:
a) implanting a fixed amoun~ of c sirlg into
-one end of a cylindrical forming tube;
b) placing a relati~ely fixed surface against
the end of the forming tube containing the implanted
cas in8; and
~ c) compressing the implanted ca~ing against
said fixed surface to form a compressed cylindrical plug
of ca6ing having substantially flat end surfaces.
The compressed plug can then be firmly anchored
to the plests of the internal wall of the for~ end o~
a hol~w hirred stick of tubular casing, for example, food
c~sing, by being forcibly implant~d therein ~o as to
pro~ide a suitable c losure hereat as described above .
To produce a semi-floating non-integral plug
for a hollow shirred 8tick~ the fo~ming tube in step (a)
- aboV2 i8 `prefer~lbly coaxially aligned within a larger
cylindrical supE~ort tube and rec~s~ed at ~ne end by a
flx~d am~unt. A fixed amount of c~sing is ~hen implanted
into the recessed end of the forming ~ub~ and step~ (b)
-and.(c) are performed a~ ~tated above except thst in~tead
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~5577~ 878l-2
of producing a cylindrical compressed plug, a mushroom
type semi-floating plug is produced. Thereafter the
semi-floating plug can be forcibly inserted into the
fore end of a hollow shirred stick with the top or larger
diameter portion of the plug being firmly anchored to
the pleats of the lnternal ~all of sa~d ~hirred caslng.
A~ used herein, the terms "fore end" and "aft
end" of the ~hirred casing ~tick are intended to mean
the direction of shirring in the stick, the fore end
being the part of the casing to be initially shirred,
and the aft end being the last to be shirred. Thus,
it i8 the aft end of the shirred casing stick that is
fed oYer a ~tuffing ho~n BO tha~ the food emulsion dis~
persed from ~aid horn will deshirr and fill the fore end `
of the casing stick first. Typical methods and ~pparatus
employed to shirr lengths of tubular casing to obtain
shirred casing ~ticks are disclosed, for exam~le, in
U. S. Paten 2,983,949 and 2~9&4,574 to M~tecki and
U. S. Patent 3,110,058 to Marbach. -
I~ ~hould be appreciated that the si~a, shape and
degree o~ anchor~ng of the compressed plug~ of this
invention can vary depending on the cize a~d use of the
hollow shirred o sing s~icks with which it will be used.
For example, with casing stick~ ha~ing an intern~l or
bore d~ameter of between abou~ 9 mm. to 25 mm.~ the
cylindrical flat-end plugs of thi~ in~ention can vary
~n casing deshirred lengths bet~een ab~ut 7 cm. to about -
46 cm. in length and have a di~meter sufficient 80 that
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~ 0 5 57 7 ~ B781-2
the plug can be firmly anchored within the fore end of
the casing stick. A plug having a deshirred casing leng~h
smaller than about 7 cm. would be undesirable because:
1~ the plug ~ould not contain enough material to permit a
stuffing horn of an automatic stuffing machine to advance
the stick containing said plug into a chuck of the machine
for proper ~ndexing therein; and 2) the plug wGuld not
contain enough material in which to maintain integrity
or securement to the stick and this could result in
blowouts and/or lea~age during stuffing of the 8ticko A
plug length larger than about 46 cm. would be undesirable
because: 1) the plug would have too much ma~erial and
thereby ba too largP and rigid to cooperate satisfactorily
with the link~ng means o~ an a~omatic stuffing machine;
2) too much material in the plug prevent~ effective and
efficient stripping of emulsion from the fir~t (par~ially
filled) link; 3) leads ~o ineffective and wasteful u~e
of casing matcrial; and 4) ca~ses the plug to be anchored
more secure b to the bore than desirable.
- Preferably, a shlrred cellulose casing stick having an
outsid2 diameter of abou~ 23 mm., an inside diameter of about
13 mm. a~d a shirred length of about 50 cm. (~ deshirred
length of abou~ 50 m.) can use floating plu~s having a ~ .
dashirr d casing length o~ 25 cm. c~mprea~ed to a plug
length o~ about 25 mm. When using a ~mi-floating plug
for the ab~ve ~lzed casing7 the preferred c~mpres~ed
casing length would be about 20 mm. and whe~ using a fully
anchored plug~ the preferred compressed ca~ing length
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8781-2
~5577
would be abou~ 15 mm.
The cssing lengths of the compres~ed plugs of
this i~vention can vary depending on the end use of the
casing ~ticks in which they will be used. However, for
general application ~S2, preferable de~hirred lengths of the
plug8 should be between about 20 cm. and about 36 c~O
The diameter of the sm~.ller cylindrical portion
of the floating plug can vary depending on the bore and
-end use of the ~hlrred rasing s~lck. The benefits of
employing a floating end plug are that it permits ease
and uniformity of deshirring ~he fore end of the ~tic~
in whlch it i~ used while it also provides a softer or
more resilient plug for minimizing difficulties with the
linking m~ans of automatic stuffing machines.
The size snd shape of the 6emi-floa~ing plugs
- of this Lnvention can vary whereby the length and diameter
of the floating segment can be a~ described above for
the floating end plug while the length and diameter of
the anchored portion can be as de~cribed above for the
20 f lat end cylindrical plug .
- - - A common festur2 of all the above shaped plugs : :
i8 th~t each is pro~ided with a flat end facing the aft
end of the casing stick thereby providing a more reliable
pressure receipt poin~ for the fore end of the food
emul~ion-stuf~ing horn of commercial ~tuffing machines
such as disclosed in the ~bove-idcntified patent to
Townse~d. This i~ an lmportant feature since at the
star~: of the stuffing cycle5 the stuffing horn i6 advanced
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8781 2
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through the bore of an indexed casing to engage the plug
posieioned at the casing's fore end to introduce it into
a rotating annulus or chuck on the machine which cooperates
with linking means for automatically llnking the stuffed
casing into predetermined length~ after it i~ filled with
food emulsion, The plug5 of this inventi~ in addition
. to having the necessary mechanical integrity to withstand
the ini~ial insertion of the casing into the chuc~ member9
possess the neces~ary hydraulic integrity to prevent
ejection of the food emulsion during the stuffing opera~io~
while also being susceptible to being ~tripped upon com
pletion of the stuffing and linking operation 80 that any
food emulsion contained therein can be ssl~aged.
Illustrative embodiments of the invention are
6hown in the drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a view partially in elevation ~nd
partial b in section of a hollow shirred s~ick of tubular
food cssing with a portion of the casing deshirred at it~
fore end~
Figure 2 is a view of the hollow shirred ~tick
of F~gure 1 with a forming tube containing a pscking rod
- dispo8ed-wi~hin the bore of the ~hirred stick.
. Figure 3 is a ~iew of ~h~ ~hirred ~ticX assem~ly
in Figure 2 with an in~erti~g rod positioned to ini~iate
the inturning of the de~hirred casing into the bore of
the form~ng ~u~O
Figure 4 i8 a ~ie~ of the shirred ~tick as~embly
of Figure 3 with the inverting rod moved to a position
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~781-2
~55~
whereby the de~hirred CRSing shown in Figure 1 along
wi~h a ~ec~nd portion of deshirred casing is Inturned
into the bore of the forming tube.
Figure 5 iQ B ~iew of the shirred stick assembly
of Figure 4 with the inverting rod removed and a fix~d
~urface po~itloned again~t the fore end of ~he shirred
- stic~.
Figure 6 is a view of the shirred stick asse~bly
of Figure 5 with the packing rod positioned ~uch tha~ the
10-- . inturned casing i~ compressed ag~inst the fixed ~urface.
Figure 7 is a ~iew of the shirred stic~ assembly
of Figure 6 ~ith the forming tube moved to a position
of alignment with the packing rod.
Figure 8 iB a view of the shirred stick as~embly
of Figure 7 with the forming tube and packing rod being : -
moved to the aft end of the shirred caQing. ~.
. Figure 9 is a view of the shirred stick of
Tigure 8 after the floating plug is formed and the forming
tube and packing rod remo~ed.
- Figure 10 is a Yiew of a shirred stick assem~ly
similar to Figure 6 ~xcept tha~ the forming tube i5
- recessed at the fore end o the shirred s~ick.
-Figure 11 i8 a view of the shirred sticlc of
Figure 10 after the semi~floAting plug i8 formed and the
form~ng tube ànd packing rod removed. - -
. Figure 12 is a ~iew of a shirred stick assembly
: . . similar to Figure 10 except that the form~ng ~ube is
:-- . shown in a po~ition of being removed as the packing rod
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~j5~7~ - 8781-~
is advancing to the fore end of the casing~
Figure 13 is a view of ~he shirred stick of
Figure 12 aftPr the fully anchored plug ~ 8 formed and
the forming tu~e and pac~ing rod removed.
Figure 14 is a view of ,a portion of severed
de~hirred ca~ing implanted within ~ formlng tube and
sh~wing a fi~ed s~rface and packing rod in position to
initiate compres~ion of the casing.
~ Figure 15 i8 a Yiew of ~ flat-end cylLndrical
plug formed using ~he as8emb1y and material ~hown in
~igure 14.
Figure 16 i~ a Yiew of a portion of ~evered
de8hirred casing implanted within a forming tube which
is coaxially mounted within, and recessed ~rom, one end
of a supporting tube and showing a fixed surface and
packing rod in position to initiate compression of the :~
casing.
Figure 17 i~ a view of a semi-floating plug
formed using the assGmbly and material shGwn ln Figure 16.
Figure 18 is a ~iew of a shirred stick assem~ly
similar to Figure 6 except that the formi~g tube is
e~t~nded outside the fore end of th2 ~hirred casing.
- Referrin$ in detall to ~igures 1 through 9
- thcre i~ 8hown a holl~w ~tic~ of tubular food casing 10
having a deshirre~ first length 12 at the fore end thereof. :~
A orming or pack sleeve 14 i8 ~hown di~po~ed within the
.
bore of casing stick 10 substantially flush mounted to
the fore end of ca ing s~ick 10. A reciproeating pack
.
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~ S 5~ 7 ~ 8781-2
rod 16 ~re~iprocating means not shown), secured to
~upport member 18, is positioned with~n the bore of
sleeve 14 and is adapted to have a clo~e 31ide fit therein~
~y subseantially elimina$ing any clearance between pack
rod 16 and the intern~l diameter of sleeYe 14, wedging of
casing material between pack rod 16 ~nd sleeve 14 is
effectively prevented during the compressing operation
by these c~mponent~ as will be de~cribed below. Pack
rod 16 i8 provided with a conduit 20 to effectively
equslize the air pressure in ~he chamber formed withln
the bore of ca~ing ~tick 10 as the pack rod 16 is ad~anced
or retracted from said bore before or af~er c~mpre~sing~
respectively, the plug at the fore end of casing stic~ 10
against a fixed ~urface.
With ~he de~hirred length 1~ of casing stick 10
posieioned to occlude or ob~truct the bore at the fore
end of c~sing ctick 10 as ~h~wn in Figure 3, an inverting
rod 22, ~xially aligned with orming sleeve 14, is ~d~anced
into said sleeve 14 a predetermined distance short of
contac~ with pack rod 16~ During the insertion of inverting
rod ~2, de~hirred length 12 and a ~econd de~hirred
length 24 which is concurrently deshirred by the ad~ancing
invertlng rod 22, are inturned into sleeve 14 as sh~wn in
Figure 4. T~e amount of each of these deshirred lengths
12 and 24 can vary depending upon the distance advanced
by ~nverting rod 22 and the density and leng~h of the
closure plug desired.
... Upon removal of in~erting rod 22, 8 rela~ively
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~S57~L 8781-2
fixed surface 2~ i~ placed against the fore end of casing
stick 10 as shown in Figure 5 and then paek rod 16 is
ad~anced to compress and comp~ct: the inturned casing
leng~hs 12 and 24 into a floating closura plug 28 as
shown in Figure 6, The clo~e 81.ide flt between pa~ rod
16 and the bore of sleeve 14 pre.vents the casing lengths
12 and 24 from being wedged between members ~6 and 14 and
thereby effectively allows pack rod 16 to impart a flat-end
surface to the compressed plug 28.
Forming sleeve 14 is then retrac~ed from compre~sed
plug 28 until aligned with pack rod 16 which remains
engaged with said plug 28 ~s shown in Figure 7~ Thereafter
pack rod 16 and forming sleeve 14 are concurrently with~
drawn from the bore of casing stick 10 and fixed surface 26
~ removed as shown in Figure 8. Conduit 20 in pack rod 16
functions to equalize the air pressure formed in the
chamber of the bore of casing 10 thus preventing the plug
28 from being drawn ~urther into ~he bore by a vacuum
which would normally be oreated in the chamber upon remo~al
of pack rod 16 from casing stick 10. Once pack rod 16
. and sleeve 14 are rPImoved~ a casing ~tick 10 remains ha~ing
a floating end closure 28 at its fore end as shown ln
- Figure ~0
~ Figure 19 shows sn arrangment of components as in
FigurP 6 which use~ the s2me reference numbers for iden~
members. The only diffe2~ence 15 that forming sleeve 14
is ~hown displaced a predeter~qined distance x from the fore
~nd of ca~ing stick 10 eo th~it d~ring compaction of the
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1~ 55~P7~ 8781-2
inturned casing lengths 12 and 24, ~ portion of plug 30
will be firmly anchored to the pleats comprising the bor~
of casing stick 10. The pack rod 16 and sleeve 14 are
removed as discussed above leaving a caslng stick 10
ha~ing a semi-floating end closure 30 ~t its fore end as
- shown in Figure 11. A st ted above, the distance x of
semi-floating plug 30 can vary as l~ng a~ it exhibits a
sufficient degree of tenacity or anchoring to the internal
wall of casing ~tick 10 toforce the fore end of the c~sing
stick into sizing-linking means of an automatlc stuffing
machine.
.Figure 12 shows an arrangment of components as
in Figure lO which uses the same reference numbers for .
identical members. The only difference is that as pack
rod 16 advances to compact caslng lengths 12 and 24, forming
sleeve 14 is concurrently retracted so that plug 32 is
formed ~ully anchored to the fore end of casing stic~ 10.
Upon removal of pack rod 16 and sleeve 14 after compaction
of casing lengths 12 and-24, a casing stick 10 remains
~0 which has-a fully anchored, flat-end-face cylindrical plug
32 at i~8 fore end as shown in Figure 13.
It is 21so to be under.tood that the forming
- - tu~e 14 could exteRd outside the fore.end of casing 10
aQ sh~wn ~n Figure 18 80 that a plug 34 coul~ be formed
-- ou~3ide casing lO using pack rot l~ and.then inserted in~o
the bore of caaing 10 to prodluce a closure 28 shoun, for
example, in Figure 9.
~Referring in detail to~ Figures 14 and 15, there
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~ 5 ~ 7~ 8781-2
is sh~wn a rerlprocating p~ck rod 40, Recured ~o support
member 42, positioned within the bore of a formin$ sleeve
~4 and adapted to have a closP s:Lide it within said bore
for the reasons mentioned abo~e. Pack rod 40 also ha~ a
conduit 46 for the reasons advanced above. A relati~ely
fixed surface 48 is positioned against ~che end of the
forming sle~ve 44 once a predetermined amount of ~evered
deshirred ca~ing 50 is implanted within said end of sleeve
44. The de~hirred ca~ing 50 can be implanted in the bore
of sleeve 44 in any convenient manner ~uch as disclosed
with reference to Figures 4 snd 5 w~ereby an inverting
rod ~s employed. Once cssing 50 ~s dispo~ed in sleeve 44,
pack rod 40 is ad~anced to compact the casing 50 againRt
fixed sur~ace 48 thereby forming a cylindrical plug ha~ing
flat end faces as ~h~wn in Figure 15. This cylindrical
plug can then be forced fit into the fore end o~ a casing
3tick so that it can become fully anchored therein as ~hown
in Figure 13.
To form a semi-floating plug as sh~wn in Fi~ure 17,
. he cGmponents of Figure 14 can be u~ed wi~h the addition
of a support tu~e 54 co~x~ally ~unted ou~slde ~f formlng
81eave 44 88 sh~wn in Figure 16~ Forming sleeve 44 also
ha~ to be recessed or spaced a predetermined distance x
frcm the fi~ed surface 48 ~o that when p ek rod 40 i8
ad~anced ~o compact casing 52, A portio~ of the plug ~o
formed will be ~uitable for being forcet fit into the
ore end of a casing ~ ick ~hexe it can be f~rmly anchored
therein a~ sh~wn in Figure ll. All that is required i8
- . 20 L
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,
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~ SS~ 878l 2
tha~ the portion x anchored into the bor~ of a casing
stic~ have a degree of tenacity or anchoring ~o the
ln~ernal ~all o the bore so as to allcw th~ fore end
of the casiDg stick to be forcled into sizlng-linking ~eans
of ~n automatic ~tuffing machine wlthout damaging either
the casing or the sizing-link~g m~an~O
When the plugs are fabrica~ed in a separate
operatlon a~ described in con~unction with Figur~ 14 $o
17, they can be mæde of Rny ~uita~le material tha~ will
be co~pa~ible with the material of ~he ca~ing.
It i8 to be understood that componen~ parts
used in making the plug8 of this i~vention, whether in~egral
with the cQsing stic~ or not, csn be made of ~ny suitsble
material capable of withstanding the pressure used to
compact and form the plug8. It i9 thus apparent that e~ch
component part may be made of the sæme material or each
may be made of a different material.
EXAMPLE I
U~ing the procedure outlined ~n Figures 1 through
9, ~ 0.711 ~m. :Lnch th~ck cylindrical ~tainle~s ~te~l
forming sleeve ha~ing a~ O.D. of 12.8 mm. wa~ inserted
~i~hin the bore of a hollc~ cellulose caslng stick measuring
- 1~,7 mm. I~D. and 22.8 mm. O.D. A highly polished 11.2 mm.
diameter tainl~ teel pac~ rod, with a 4.7 mm. axial
pa8sage9 wa~ di~posed wlthin the bore of ~he orming xleeve.
Afte~ a 12.7 c:m. inch lengt~ o~ casing was deshirred,
a highl~ poli~had 6.35 mm. di~me~er s~eel inverti~g rod
was axially adYanced i~to the forming sleeve for a
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~ 781-2
~5577~11
distance of 20.32 cm" Upon re~oval of the inverting
rody a rigid flat surface was positioned agalnst the
fore end of the ca~ing stick co~taining the inturned
deshirred ca~ing and then the pack rod was a~7anced ~co
compact the inturned ca~ing thereby formis~g a floating
plug appro~:imately 25.4 mm. l~ l'hereafter ~he sleeve,
pack rod and rigid flat surfacle were removed leaving a
casing s~cick having an int2gral floa~ing end closureO
Ths closed end casing 8tick wa3 then placed in a con~ren-
10 tional type hopper which fed the 6tlck ~o a stuffingand lir~cing machine as de~cribed in U. S. Patent 3,115,6680
The ca~ing st~ck performed better than available comme~
cial ca8is~g ~tick in that the casing ~tick had a plug
~hich ~as fabricated from a predete~mined fixed amount
of casing material ~hich wa~ adapted or easy and efficien~
atrippirU~ while being ~ofter or les~ resilient there~y
bei~g a`dmirably suited for cooperation with the slzln~-
link~ ~ean~ of the automatic stuffing machine.
~ U~ g the proce~ure ou~lined in Flgure ~ thr~ugh
11, a 0.711 ~, thick cylindrie 1 ~tainless steel orming
slee~e, ha~ing ~ O.D. of 12.8 m~ was in~erted wit~in
- the bore of a c~llulose hollow casing stick measuring
13.7 m~0 I.D. and 22.8 ~. O.D. A highly poli~he~ 11.2 m~0
diameter ~taillle3s steel pack rod? with a 4~ mm. axial
pas~age, wa~ di~po~ed wi~hln the bore o:f the forming ~leeve.
After a 15024 em~ inch lèngth of ca~Lng wa~ deshirred
and wi~ the forming sle~ve recesse~ abou~ 12~7 mmO rom
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5 57 ~ ~ 8781-2
the fore end of the caRing s~ick, a highly polished
6.35 mm. diameter steel inverting rod Wa8 axially
ad~anced intc the forming sleeve for a di.stance of 15.24 cm.
Upon removal of the inverting rodl a rigid flat surface was
positioned against the fore end of the casing stick con-
taining the ~ntu~ned deshirred casing and then the pack
rod was advanced to compact the inturned casing thereby
forming a semi-floating plug having an anchored portion
12.7 mm. long and a ~loating portion 12.7 mm. long.
Thereafter ~he sleeve, pack rod and rigid metal flat
surface were removed leaving a casing stick having an
ln~egral semi-floating end clo~ure, The closed end casing
stick was then plaeed in a con~Ten~ional type hopper
which fed the stick to a BtUf~ing ~nd linking machine as
described in U. S.~Patent 3,115,668. Th~ casing stiok
performed better than available commercial ca!~ing sticks
in that the ca ing stick had a plug which was fabricated
from a predetermlned fixed 2mou~t of casing ~aterial
which was adapted for e~sy alld e~icient stripping while
20 be~ng ~ofter and le88 res~lient thereby being adlm}rably
su$ted or coop~eration with the ~izing~linking means of
~he automa~ic stu~fing ~achine.
It i~ thus evident f~om che v~rious embodiments
shown in the drawings and from ~he axamples ~hat a ree-
floating plug i~ o~e ~hat fo~ms an integral par~ of ~he
casing ~uch that the plug i~ secured at the fore end of
the intarnal wall of the ca~ing b~ the portion of the deshirred
casing that i8 common to the plug and the oaRing. A
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~ 35577~lL 8781 -2
sem~-floating plug i 02le that i8 or i8 not int~gral
with the casing and ~hich ha8 a compressed por~lon of
the plug tightly ~ecured to the pleats at the fore end
of the interr~l wall of the casing.
It i8 to be understood that other modificAtions
and changes to the preferred embodimen~s of the iIlvention
- here~n shown and described can al~o be made by a per~on
8~illed in the art witho~t departing from ~he 8piri~
and 8cope of the inYentioTl.
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