Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
11529~2S
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
United States Patent 3,983,682 deals with forming, fill-
ing and depositing bags filled with a particulate material into
cartons and to facilitate the introduction of the filled bags into
the carton, guide means comprising a pair of opposed channel
member~ is employed within which the filled bags are conformed
while suspended therein by vibrating the guide means. The guide
means extends into the open upper end of the carton so that each
filling operation has to be completed and the filled carton moved
away before the next filling operation can be started, thus limit-
ing the speed of operation. Further, after a bag was released and
allowed to drop into a carton, it~ rate of descent was retarded by
its frictional contact with the guide means and the cushioning
effect of the air within the carton which prevented the bag from
dropping quickly into the carton. The apparatus herein is designed
especially to rectify these limitations in the aforesaid machine
and as designed herein increases the rate of cartoning by about 60~.
SUMMA~Y OF THE I~VENTION
Broadly stated, the invention provides apparatus for form-
ing, filling and depo~iting filled bags into cartons comprising a
hollow mandrel upon which a sheet of flexible material is formed
into a tube with a side seam, sealing and severing means supported
below the mandrel for producing transverse seams to form bags and
for severing successive respective bags from the tube to release
the same, a stationary forming device defining a vertically-
elongate passage below the sealing and se~ering means for constrain-
_, ing the filled bags to substantially the interior cross section of
~ the cartons within which they are to be deposited, a conveyor posi-
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tioned below the forming device for supporting cartons for movement
into alignment with the mandrel to receive the filled bags when
released and means for moving the conveyor to position cartons one
at a time in a position below the forming device to receive the
filled bag and thereafter to move the filled bag away characterized
in that said forming device is situated above the conveyor at a
level exceeding the height of the cartons into which the filled
bags are to be deposited to enable moving cartons into position for
filling and out of position following filling while the filled bag
is suspended in the forming device and further characterize~ in
that there is deflector means at the lower end of the forming
device arranged to be lowered into the open end of the carton
supported therebelow for holding the closure members deflected out-
wardly and means for moving the deflector means into and out of
operative position.
As herein illustrated, the apparatu~ includes means for
vibrating the forming device to effect conformation of the suspend-
ed portion of the tube to the crosR section of the forming device,
means for severing the su~pended tube above the fill to form a bag,
$, 20 and releasing it 50 that it drops into the carton. An empty carton
is positioned below the forming means in timed relation to the
release of the filled bag. The sealing and se~ering means seals a
longitudinal portion of the tube and severs it within the sealed
area between the portion of the tube above the suspended portion of
the tube below the sealing mean~ to form a bag closed at the top
and to release the bag so that it drops from the forming device
into the carton supported therebelow. There is means for effecting
movement of the conveyor means and means operable in synchronism
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with the means for releasing the bag to stop a carton in a position
to receive the filled bag and thereafter to move it on. The afore-
said means may comprise indexing means for moving the conveyor
intermittently, There is means for varying the cross section of
the forming device and there are retractable deflectors at the
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lower end of the forming device, and means for moving them into
positions to fold the closure flaps at the upper end away from the
top of the carton to permit the bag to fall freely into the carton
and means for projecting jets of air downwardly against the front
and back sides of the bag suspended in the forming device to assist
in releasing the bag from the forming device when it is severed.
There is also means for venting the cartons during deposit of the
bags therein comprising employing a forming device having a cross-
sectional area somewhat less than the cross-sectional area of the
carton so that the filled bag will be conformed to a cross section
slightly smaller than the cross section of the carton. Alternative-
ly, the means for venting the cartons comprises providing vent
openings at the lower end~ of the cartons and after depositing the
bags in the cartons, clo~ing the vent openings.
In another aspect, the invention comprises a method for
depositing filled bags into cartons open at their upper ends and
resting at their lower ends on a conveyor comprising lowering a
filled bag into a forming device of predetermined cros~ section in
which the bag i~ formed into the cro~s section of a receiving
carton, moving an empty carton by means of said conveyor into a
po~ltion below the forming device and thereafter severing and releas-
ing the bag to thus allow the so formed bag to drop into the empty
carton, characterized in that the empty carton is moved to the
position below the forming device and thereupon the flaps at the
upper end of the carton are deflected away from each other whilè
the bag is formed and after moving the filled bag into the carton,
the flaps are released, the filled carton is moved on and an empty
- carton is moved into position underneath the forming device while
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the next bag is being filled.
While holding it suspended therein, the bag may be sub-
jected to vibration to cause it to conform to the cross section of
the forming device. During vibration, a previously filled carton
is moved away from the lower end of the forming device and an
empty carton is moved into a position below the forming device into
alignment with the lower end of the bag suspended
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within the forming device. The method includes simultaneously
sealing and severing the b~g in a sealed area to form a closed
¦ top bag, projecting jets oE air downwardly against the front
¦ and bac~ ~ides of the bag while in the forming device to
) release i~ from the forming device and of venting the carton
during de~osit of the bag into the carton either by forming
the bag while suspended to a cross section somewhat less
than the cross section of the carton or providing a vent
opening at the bottom of ~he carton.
¦ The invention will now be described in greater detail ¦~ with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
~'IG. 1 is a front elevation o a vertical forming and
filling machine according to this invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation as seen from the right
side of FIG. l;
FIG. 2A is a horizontal section of the forming means ,
s~owing the blowdown means;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevation of
the m~chine showing the forming device for conforming the
filled bags to the cross section of the carton and for
guiding ~he filled ~ags into the cartons and further showing
the conveyor for supporting the cartons below the forming
device for deposit of the bags in the cartons,
FIG. 4 is a partial elevation from the right side
25 1l of the apparatus as shown in FIG. 3;
! FIG. 4A is a fragmentary plan view of a conveyor
belt designed to convey cartons in uniformly-spaced relation.
ll FIG. 5 is a frasmentary section of the sealing and
¦I severing means;
FIG, 5A is a section similar to FIG. 5 showing the
sealing jaws cut away below the cutting blades;
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FIG. 6 is a horizontal section through a carton
j' showing a clearance space between the bag and the carton which
¦ provides one form of venting;
~ FIG. 7 is a plan view of a narrow conveyor belt for
I tran~porting cartons with the end or dust flaps folded up and
both of the sides or closure flaps folded down;
FIG. 8 is a plan view of a narrow conveyor belt
for transporting cartons with the end or dust flaps and one
~ side flap folded up and one side closure flap folded down;
, FIG. 9 is a vertical section taken transversely of
, FIG. 7 showing a carton resting on the belt with the end or
dust flaps folded up and both of the side closure flaps
folded down;
~I FIG. 10 is a plan view of the means for sealing
15 1l the tops of open top bags; and
jl FIG. 11 is an elevation of FIG. 10.
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Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2, the
apparatus of this invention is a vertical type fol~ing and
filling machine comprising a frame 10 on which there is
vertically supported a hollow filling mandrel 12 to which
there i.s suppl.ied flexible sheet material 14 for forming into
a c~ntinuous tube on the mandrel and above which there is
supported a hopper 16 for supplying material to be packaged;
a side sealing element 19 for continuously forming a side
seam; means 18-18 for moving the formed tube downwardly on
the mandrel; sealing and severing means 20a,20b for forming
the tube into bag lengths and separating the bag lengths
into individual bags; a tubular forming device 22 for conforming
the cross section of the bags to the interior cross section
~ of the cartons in which they are to be deposited, including
1S '! means 23 for vibrating the forming device; and conveyor means
24 for moving cartons into positions for receiving the bags
and thereafter moving them on.
The sealing means 20a comprises, FIG. 5, a pair of
l! opposed ~aws 68-68 ~upported for horizontal reciprocation
1 toward and from each other which have vertically-disposed
flat surfaces 70-70 for engagement with the front and back
sides of the tube to press them together to seal a narrow
. length of the tube as shown in FIG. S from the top to the
bottom of the faces of the jaws~ The iaws have a vertical
depth which is sufficient to form a sealed area which is
adapted to be severed intermediate its upper and lower
boundaries to form a seal at the lower end
ll5Z4Z5
of the bag above the jaws and a seal at the upper end of the
bag below the jaws.
The severing means 20b comprises cutting blades
72-72 which are recessed into the jaws 68-68 for horizontal
movement, after the jaws are brought together, to cut through
the sealed area. ~-~en a structure of this kind is employed,
Il as soon as the jaws are retracted, the bag at the lower side
7l of the jaws is released, whereupon it drops from the forming 7
I device into the carton.
It may be desirable under certain circumstances to
leave the top of the bag below the jaws open until it is
deposited in the carton and if this is the case the lower
portions of the jaws 68-6B below the cutting blades 72-72
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are beveled as shown in FIG. SA so that the seal takes place
only above the cutting blades. The tube below the cutting
blades is not sealed and so the bag length formed by severing
the tube remains open at the top and will drop downwardly
through the guiding means into the carton. When operating in
I this fashion there is provided means 101 as shown in FIGS
¦ lO and 11 for qealing the upper open ends of the bags while
within the cartons after the latter are moved away from the
l~ lower end of the mandrel by the conveyor 24.
¦I The sealing jaws 68-68 are provided at their upper
~7 sides, FIG. 5, with flat surfaces 74-74 upon which the lower
l~ end of the bag at each side of the seam is adapted to rest
during the filling operation and the operation of the apparatus -
is designed to hold the sealing jaws 68-68 engaged with the
bottom seam until the bag is completely filled and for a
sufficient length of time to perfect the seal by allowing it
to become set before the sealing jaws are retracted to permit
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the bag to be dropped down for deposit into the carton there-
below. The advantage, as pointed out, was to form a bag of
uniform cross section throughout its length. This provided
for a maximum fill vo~ume and maximum bag length even when
the bottom seal was of the pillowslip type.
After the tube is sealed transversely to form the
bottom of a bag, and the portion above the sealed portion is
filled with a predetermined amount of particulate material,
the tube is lowered to position the filled portion within the
tubular forming device 22, the cross section of which
correspond~ sub~tantially to the inside cross section of the
carton within which the bag is to be deposited and while
suspended therein is vi~rated to conform it to the interior
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1~52425
of the carton whereupon it is severed from the portion of the
tube above it and allowed to gravitate into the carton resting
on the conveyor.
In the aforesaid patented apparatus, the lower end
~ of the forming device 22 extends into the open part of tne
cartons an~ ~ust be raised to permit a filled carton to be
moved away. Hence, the speed of operation is limited, thus
slowing up the rate of production. Furthermore, the conforming
of the bags to the exact cross section of the interior of the
cartons traps air within the cartons during deposit of the
bags therein, thus preventing the bags from settling immediately
to the bottom and thus limiting the rate of cartoning. Failure
of the bag~ to settle rapidly to the bottom of the cartons was
also aggravated by frictional contact of the surface of the bags ,
lS with the inner sides of the cartons. In order to overcome
these problems, the forming device of the apparatus of this
invention is raised or the conveyor is lowered so that the
open upper end of cartons standing on the conveyor are spaced
below the low¢r end of the forming device so that the bottoms
of bags suspended in the forming device are also spaced above
the open top of the carton. Additionally, blowdown means is
provided for disengaging the bags from the forming device and
means is provided for venting the cartons as the ba~s are
dropped into the cartons.
The forming device 22 as herein illustrated comprises
a pair of confronting channel mem~ers 26-26 which are supported
below the sealing and severing means and above the open tops
of the cartons resting on the conveyor 24 therebelow. Each
channel member 26, FIG. 2A, has a side wall 28 and right
angularly disposed front and bac~ walls 30-30 for engagement
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¦¦ with front, back and side walls of the filled bag. The
channels 26-26 are supported between the forward ends of a
pair of transversely-spaced horizontal arms 32-32 by L-shaped
bracket members 34-34, the vertical arms of which are fixed
to the channel members and the horizontal arms of which are
adjustably fastened to the forward ends of the arms 32-32
for movement transversely thereof, thus enabling changing the
¦ spacing of the channel members and, hence, the cross-sectional 3j
¦ area defined by the channel members. The rear ends of the
¦ arms 32-32 are secured to a mounting panel 36 with relatively ~i
¦ thick blocks 38-38 of rubber-like material between them and
¦ the frame. As thus supported, the upper end of the forming
¦ device is just below the lower side of the sealing and severing 7
¦ means and the lower end is situated above the conveyor means
15 ¦ at a level which i8 above the upper ends of the carton resting 3
on the conveyor means. There are at the lower end o the
forming device at opposite sides pivotally-mounted deflector
elements 40-40 arranged to be lowered into the open end of a
carton supported therebelow for holding the closure members
42-42 at the top of the carton deflected outwardly fro~ the
top and to guide the bag into the open end of the carton.
.he deflector members 40-40 are pivotally ~ounted on shats
44-44 and these, in turn, are rotatably mounted to the frame
of the machine by bracket ~embers 45-45 provided with bearings
46-46, 48-4a. The brackets 45-45 are fastened by bolt and 7
slot means 50-5~, 52-52 to a cross bar 54 for movement l,
transversely toward and fro~ each other and the opposite ends 7
of the bar 54 are connected to vertically-disposed posts 56-56
by bolts 58-58 extended through slots 60-60 which provide for
ad~ustment of the deflector members up and down. The deflector
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: 115242S
, members 40-40 are moved into and out of operative positions by
rotation of the shafts 44-44 and rotation of the shafts 44-44
¦ is effected by arms 62-62 fixed at one end to the shafts and
~ connected at their other ends to the piston rods 64-64 of air
S cylinders 66-66. The deflectors are held retracted until a
carton is ~oved into position and are immediately withdrawn
when the bag drops into the carton.
In order to conform the filled bag with the cross
section of the forming device, the latter is vibrated while
I the bag is suspended therein and while the portion of the tube
¦l above the sealing and severing means is being filled. Vibration
~l of the forming device is effected herein by the vibrator 23
¦I which is bolted to the mounting panel 36. As previously
mentioned, the panel is secured to the frame with rubber
blocks between it and the frame so that substantial shaking
of the panel and, hence, of the forming device can be achieved.
In accordance with one aspect of this invention, as
previously explained, the lower end of the forming device is
located at a sufficient di~tance above the conveyor so that
cartons can be moved into and out of position below the lower
¦ end of the forming device while a filled bag is suspended
within the forming device and the portion of the tube above
the sealing and severing means is being filled. Thus, it is
possible to speed up the cartoning operation by movins cartons
into and out of loading position without having to await
retraction of the forming device.
Ideally, as previously related, the forming means
22 is provided with a cross section which corresponds sub-
stantially with the cross section of the interior of the
carton so that a bag which is conformed to the forming device
l~SZ425
will slide smoothly into the open top of the carton. As a
practical matter, however, it is desirable to make the cross
section of the forming device somewhat smaller than the cross
section of the interior of the carton and this is achieved by
~he adjustable mounting of the channel-shaped member.s 26-26
constituting the forming device relative to eaeh other.
Reduction of the cross section of the forming device and,
hence, of the bag before it is dropped therefrom into the
carton provides a narrow clearance space a, FIG. 6, around
the bag between it and the carton so that frictional engagement
; of the side6 of the bag with the inner side of the carton is
avoided which, as has been found, tends to retard the movement
of the bag into the carton. At the same time, the air trapped
¦ between the bottom of the bag and the bottom of the carton
which tends to prevent the bag from descending freely into
the carton can escape upwardly around the ba~. The venting of
the carton may be achieved by bottor,l venting as shown in FIGS. 7,
8 and 9. In FIGS. 8 and 9, the belt 92 is made narrow and the
l carton is placed on the belt with the end or dust flaps resting
¦ on the belt and the side or closure flaps turned down. The
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space between the adjacent ends of the dust flap provides for
venting. As shown in FIG. 9, the carton is placed on the
belt with the dust flaps and one of the closure flaps resting
l~ on the belt and the other closure flap turned down. The space
~etween thc dust flaps exposed by the downwardly-folded closure
flap provides for venting.
The slight reduction in the cross section of the
bag to eliminate frictional contact with the inside of the
l carton, the provision of a vent space around the bas and the
l~ provision of a vent hole at the bottom of the carton collec-
tively promote rapid descent of the bag into the carton which
thus enahles increasing the rate o~ cartoning so that it can
be accomplished within the time period required for depositing
the particulate material in the bag above the sealing and
severing means so that the speed of cartoni~g is limited only
by the rate at which the bag can be filled with the part$culate
material. This is especially important when filling bags with
¦ particulate material which iY lightweight bulky material, the
de~cent of which is retarded both by the effects or friction
and the buoyancy of air trapped within the carton as it
descends into the carton.
The frictional contact of the filled bags with the
inside of the forming device 22 someti~es inhibits free descent
of the filled bag. Hence, there is provided, FIG. 2~, blowdown
means at the front and back in the form of vertically-disposed
tubes 90-90 located in the space between the channel me~bers
which contain vertically-spaced, downwardly-inclined ports
93-93 through which jets of air are ejected downwardly a~ainst
~he front and bac~ sides of the bag.
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The conveyor 24 which ~oves the empty cartons into
position beneath the forming device and removes the filled
~cartons in one form comprises a belt 92, FIGS. 3 and 4,
I supported with a portion in a horizontal position on longi-
tudinally-spaced sproc~ets 94-94, FIG. l; the sprockets at one
end being driven through suitable connections by a motor M
continuously or intermittently. When driven continuously,
Ithere i5 provided a positioning device 96 which is automatically s
~ moved into a position across the conveyor to stop a carton
~directly below the forming device in synchronism with the
,operation of the means for severing the bag so that the carton
i will be in a position when the bag is released to receive the
, bag. A stop 98 is moved across the conveyor to press the carton
1 ,l~against the railing at the back side of the conveyor to stop
¦¦ the succeeding carton. Pneumatic means are provided for s
lj operating the positioning device and stop to which air is
!~ supplied by valve means 104,106. Alternatively, the belt
may be moved intermittently with the aid of indexing means to
move car~ons one at a time into position below the forming
device. When using indexing means, the belt i5 provided with
means for holding the cartons at uniformly-spaced intervals.
For example, the conveyor may comprise, FIG, 4A, a belt 92
with longitudinally-spaced spaces 9~ paced apart to
receive the cartons and hold them at a predetermined spacing.
1 There are at opposite sides of the conveyor in whatever for~
vertically-spaced railings 108-108 for gl~iding the cartons and
; preventing them from tipping over.
¦¦ When the bags are left open at the top until deposited
!¦ into the carton there is provided as heretofore mentioned,
sealing means 101 for sealing the open ends, means 107 for
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folding the sealed ends into the carton and means for closing
the end and side closure flaps of the carton, FIGS. 10 and 11.
Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, as a carton with a bag in it is
1 moved by the conveyor 24 away from the lower end of the forming
and filling apparatus to the right as shown in FIG. 11, the
front and back closure flaps are spread apart by spaced,
parallel folding rails 111-111. The sealing means 101 comprise
jaws 113-113 similar to those disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6A arranged
. to reciprocate in a horizontal plane above the top line of the
containers moving along on the conveyor. The open tops of the
,~ bay~ will be moved between the separated jaws and at the right
time a detector in the form of a photocell PC causes the jaws
,I to be closed on the upwardly proiecting top of the bag to seal
I the top. As the jaws come together they push the end wall
¦ closure 1aps apart and to hold the leading closure flap dis-
¦ placed downwardly, when the jaws are retracted, there is
provided a pneumatic plunger 115 which i8 depre~ed into
~ engagement with the leading flap, as shown in FIG 11, to a
¦ nearly horizontal position so that as the carton continue~
to be moved along the leading closure flap it will be engaged
with the underside of spaced rails 117~117 and be held down,
A folding blade 119 havin~ an inclined edge 121, supported above
the line of travel of the upper ends of the carton provides
for folding the upwardly projecting sealed top of the bag over
so as to lie flat within the open top of the carton Simul-
taneously, adhesive is applied to the lower side of the closure
flap at the back of the carton by means compristng a pair of
~ rollers 123a,123b and a pot 125 which supplied adhesive to
the lower one of the rolls 123a. Beyond the folding adhesive
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applying means there is means 127 for engaging the underside
of the leading flap to cause it to be folded back and down
over the top of the carton. At this point, the forward end
of the carton intercepts another photocell P'C' and a one
revolution clutch 131 actuated by a solenoid moves a hook 133
under the trailing closure flap and folds it forwardly and
down over the open top of the carton so that both the leading
~¦ flap and the trailing flap now move under a rail 135. Further
movement of the carton brings the front and back closure
flaps into engagement with spaced folding rails 137-137 which
operate to first fold the adhesive-coated back closure flap
inwardly over the end flaps and then the ront closure flap
, onto the upper adhesive-coated side of the back closure flap.
, For folding and sealing the downwardly-folded closure
¦ member or members at the bottoms of the cartons, adhesive is
applied to the downwardly-folded closure member or members
with adhesive-applying means such as described above, and the
cartons are moved onto folding rails such as described above
bclow a hold down xail for folding the closure rnember or
1 members upwardly against the bottom.
~uring a single cycle of operation, a baq is formed
above the sealing jaws, closed at its lower end and open at its
upper end, and a bag is formed below the sealing jaws which is
ll closed at its lower end and may be closed or open at its upper
end. The filling operation t~kes place while the sealing jaws
are closed and the severing takes p~ace after the sealing
operation. Following filling, the sealing jaws and severing
blades are retracted, the released bag allowed to drop into
, the carton therebelow and the filled bag lowered for sealing
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and severing of the succeeding bag. Vibration of the bag is
effected while the bag is within the guide means. If the top
of the bag is left open, then the top is sealed while in the
! carton as the latter is moving away from the mandrel and the
closure flaps are folded over the tops of the cartons.
The several operative functi~ns, to wit, the filling
'i operation, the sealing and severing operations, the projection
~¦ of the deflectors at the lower end of the forming device, the
, operation of the jets, the movement of the conveyor and the
operating of the positioning means and gates are all controlled
to operate in synchronism and in the proper sequence to insure
that the bag is filled with a predetermined quantity of
particulate material sealed and severed, vibrated for a
sufficient length of time to conform the bag to the cross
section of the forming device, released to be deposited in
the carton and a carton moved into position in time to receive
the bag as it drops from the forming device by limit switches
or a punched tape or a combination of limit 3witches and punched
~ tape or equivalent means.
1 The chief advantages of the apparatus as herein
de~cribed over and above that shown in Patent No. 3,983,682
! resides in an increase in the rate of cartoning of about 60
i over that possible with the patented apparatus and in the
l elimination of interruption by reason of a bag fail~ng to drop
! freely from the forming device and/or failing to descend into~
the carton.
It should be understood that the present disclosure
~¦ is for the purpose of illustration only and includes all modi- ¦
~~ fications or improvements which fall within the scope of the
~ appended claims.
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