Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Description
Compact Heat Sealable Baq Dispenser and Sealer
Technical Field
The present invention relates to bags generally
and, more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to
a novel, compact, dispenser and sealer for bags formed
of heat sealable material.
Background Art
Heat sealable bags are widely used for the storage
of materials. The materials can range from foodstuffs
to small parts. There is known manually operated heat
sealing equipment for home use for the storage of
foodstuffs and also manually operated heat sealing
machines used, for example, for forming bags to contain
small parts to be sold in the bags. In both cases, one
selects a bag of desired length, the bag having one end
sealed and one end open, places the foodstuffs or small
parts or etc. into the bag, and then places the open end
of the bag into a heat sealer to form a sealed bag
containing the materials. One problem with such manual
sealing devices is that the heat seals are often not
neat and consistent in appearance, one must in some
cases guess as to how long to apply heat to the seal,
and the seals may not be parallel to the ends of the
bag.
In some cases, the user of the bags must inventory
a number of bags of different lengths, resulting in
unnecessary cost and the possibility of confusion and
waste resulting from selecting a bag of the wrong
length.
Also known are industrial machines for producing
heat sealed bags from a roll of tubular material. These
machines are typically large and heavy and are used
principally to form bags of a given length in long
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production runs. The length of the bags produced can
usually be changed; however, such changing is time
consuming and is not practical for frequent changing of
bag lengths produced.
A problem common with conventional machines that
cut the bag material is that the machines employ hot
wire cutters that produce undesirable smoke and odor.
A problem common with conventional automatic heat
sealing machines is that the heat sealing element is
difficult to replace when it burns out.
What is desirable is to have a bag producing
machine that is compact and operator controllable to
produce bags of different lengths and widths without
complicated and time-consuming machine revisions.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the
present invention to provide a bag producing machine
that is compact and portable.
It is a further object of the invention to provide
such a bag producing machine that allows the operator
thereof to be in control of the length (and width, if
desired) of each bag individually and such control can
be almost instantaneous.
It is an additional object of the invention to
provide such a bag producing machine that produces bags
with neat and consistent seals, parallel with the ends
of the bags.
It is another object of the invention to provide
such a machine that eliminates hot wire cutting of
material.
It is yet a further object of the invention to
provide such a machine in which the heat sealing element
can be quickly replaced.
It is yet an additional object of the invention to
provide such a machine that can be economically
manufactured and is easily used.
Other objects of the present invention, as well as
particular features, elements, and advantages thereof,
will be elucidated in, or be apparent from, the
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following description and the accompanying drawing
figures.
Disclosure of Invention
The present invention achieves the above objects,
among others, by providing, in a preferred embodiment, a
compact dispenser and sealer for heat sealable bags,
comprising: a housing; means disposed in said housing
for selecting a desired bag length; means disposed in
said housing for dispensing said desired bag length from
a roll of heat sealable bag material; and means disposed
in said housing for heat sealing an end of said bag.
Brief Description of Drawings
Understanding of the present invention and the
various aspects thereof will be facilitated by reference
to the accompanying drawing figures, submitted for
purposes of illustration only and not intended to define
the scope of the invention, on which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a dispenser and
sealer for heat sealable bags, with one roll of tubular
heat sealable material mounted therein.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the dispenser
and sealer for heat sealable bags, with two rolls of
tubular heat sealable material mounted therein.
Figure 3 is a top plan view, partially cut-away
and partially in cross-section, of the major internal
elements of the dispenser and sealer for heat sealable
bags.
Figure 4 is a side elevational view, partially cut-
away and partially in cross-section, of the major
internal elements of the dispenser and sealer for heat
sealable bags.
Figure 5 is a side elevational view of the cutter
and heater assemblies for the dispenser and sealer for
heat sealable bags.
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Figure 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view of
the cutter and lower knife assemblies for the dispenser
and sealer for heat sealable bags.
Figure 7 is a front elevational view of the upper
knife for the dispenser and sealer for heat sealable
bags.
Figure 8 is a front elevational view, partially
cut-away and partially in cross-section, of a dual
element heater bar block of the dispenser and sealer for
heat sealable bags.
Figure 9 is a block diagram of a control system
for use in the dispenser and sealer for heat sealable
bags.
Best Mode for Carrvina Out the Invention
Reference should now be made to the drawing
figures, on which similar or identical elements are
given consistent identifying numerals throughout the
various figures thereof, and on which parenthetical
references to figure numbers direct the reader to the
views) on which the elements) being described is (are)
best seen, although the elements) may be seen also on
other views.
Figure 1 illustrates a dispenser and sealer for
heat sealable bags, the machine being constructed
according to the present invention, and indicated
generally by the reference numeral 20.
Machine 20 includes a housing 30 in which is
mounted a horizontal feed roll shaft 32 on which shaft
is rotatably mounted a supply roll 34 containing a
continuous tubular heat sealable material 36. A
flexible drag strap 40 has its proximal end 42 rotatably
attached to a portion of housing 30 and is disposed over
material 36 with a weight (not shown on Figure 1)
attached to the distal end of the strap such that the
strap acts as a drag to prevent undesirable rotation of
supply roll 34.
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As is described more fully below, machine 20 is
provided to automatically dispense a bag 50 of selected
length from supply roll 34 and heat seal one end of the
bag. Bag 50 can then be manually removed from machine
20, small parts, for example, placed in the bag through
the open end thereof, and then the open end of the bag
is reinserted in the machine to heat seal the open end.
Machine 20 includes a plurality of pushbuttons 60
with which to enter the thickness of heat sealable
material 36, the thickness setting serving as an input
to the heat sealing control, a thicker material
requiring a longer heat sealing time than a thinner
material. Machine 20 also includes a plurality of
pushbuttons 62 with which to select the length of bag
50, a plurality of pushbuttons 64, with which to select
the roll from which bag 50 is to be dispensed when more
than one roll is provided, a START pushbutton 66 with
which to initiate the dispensing and sealing operation,
a FEED pushbutton 68 that dispenses bag 50 as long as
that pushbutton is depressed, and a SEAL pushbutton that
initiates a sealing process. Completing the major
elements of machine 20 visible on Figure l, there are
provided a power switch 80, a lower guide 82, a
removable or hinged cover 84, and two openings 86 and 88
defined through the cover to view operation of the
machine.
Figure 2 illustrates machine 20 and the same
elements as shown and described with reference to Figure
1, except in this case a second supply roll 100 is
rotatably mounted on supply roll shaft 32 and contains a
continuous tubular heat sealable material 110 having
disposed thereon a flexible drag strap 112, similar in
form and function to drag strap 40, with the proximal
end 114 of strap 112 being rotatably attached to a
portion of housing 30. It will be noted that material
36 is wider than material 110 so that a bag may be
dispensed having a selected one of two different
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widths. Any number of supply rolls may be mounted on
feed roll shaft 32 within the limits of machine 20.
Pushbuttons 64 are used to select from which of
supply rolls 34 or 100 heat sealable bags will be
dispensed and can be used to control any suitable
electromechanical means to select from which roll to
dispense heat sealable material, such as an
electromechanical clutch/release mechanism (not shown)
cooperating with feed roll shaft 32.
Reference should now be made to Figure 3 for a
general understanding of the arrangement of the major
internal elements of machine 20 (Figure 1) shown on
Figure 3 in their non-dispensing positions. The major
internal elements of machine 20 include a generally
planar, horizontal base plate 150 with first and second,
generally planar, vertical side plates 152 and 154,
respectively, fixedly attached thereto. First and second
side plates 152 and 154 are disposed inwardly of the
vertical sides of housing 30 of machine 20 (Figure 1).
Feed roll shaft 32 is rotatably journaled in upwardly
open, U-shaped, first and second bearing members 160 and
162, respectively, fixed to first and second side plates
152 and 154. Supply roll 34 is shown on feed roll shaft
32 and is held in place by means of a releasable clamp
170.
First and second pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182
are pivotally mounted, respectively, to first and second
side plates 152 and 154 by means of a horizontal pivot
arm assembly shaft 184 extending between the first and
second side plates.
A bag drive motor output pulley 190 and a bag
drive roller pulley 192 extend outwardly of second side
plate 154, the bag drive motor output pulley driving the
bag drive roller pulley by means of a continuous belt
(not shown on Figure 3) extending therebetween. Bag
drive roller pulley is fixedly mounted on bag drive
roller shaft 200 that extends between first and second
side plates 152 and 154 and rotation of the bag drive
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roller shaft causes the a bag drive roller 202 fixedly
mounted on bag drive roller shaft 200 to rotate. A bag
pinch roller 210 is mounted generally above bag drive
roller 202 on a bag drive roller shaft 212 and has its
ends rotatably mounted in first and second pivot arm
assemblies 180 and 182.
A heater assembly 220 is disposed horizontally
between first and second side plates 152 and 154 near
the inboard edge of lower guide 82, while a horizontal
cutting assembly 222 is disposed inwardly of the heater
assembly and extends between and is rotatably attached
to first and second pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182.
First and second pivot arm assembly springs 230 and 232
extend between a horizontal spring shaft 234 fixedly
attached to and extending between first and second side
plates 152 and 154 and a spring return shaft 236 fixedly
attached to and extending between a forward portion of
first and second pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182.
Figure 4 illustrates the internal elements of
machine 20 (Figure 1) as if second side plate 182 had
been removed. It will be understood that, while second
pivot arm assembly 182 is shown on Figure 4, an
identical first pivot arm assembly 180 is positioned
behind the second pivot arm assembly. Second pivot arm
assembly 182 is shown in solid lines in its non-
dispensing, or cutting, position and is shown in broken
lines in its dispensing position in which material 36
may be dispensed by machine 20 to form bag 50.
First, it can be seen that distal end 240 of drag
strap 40 has fixedly attached thereto a weight 242 and
that the drag strap continues to engage material 36 as
the roll of material is diminished in diameter. This
arrangement is simple and keeps a fairly even drag
pressure on roll of material 36.
Material 36 feeds from the bottom of supply roll
34 while pulling the supply roll in a clockwise
direction as seen on Figure 4. Material 36 then passes
over an idler roller 260 disposed between first and
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second side plates 152 and 154, along a plate 262
fixedly attached to the first and second side plates,
past cutter assembly 222, through heater assembly 220,
and exiting machine 20 between lower guide 82 and upper
guide 264 to become heat sealable bag 50.
Operation of machine 20 (Figure 1) is initiated,
after selection of length and thickness (and roll, if
more than one roll is provided) by depressing START
pushbutton 66. This starts the following procedure.
The motive power for moving material 36 along the path
described above is provided by supplying electrical
power to a solenoid 280, centered between first and
second side pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182, drawing a
solenoid core 282 downwardly and, likewise, drawing
downwardly a first link 284 rotatingly attached at its
lower end to the distal end of the solenoid core. The
upper end of first link 282 is rotatingly attached to a
second link 284 and the latter motion causes this second
link to rotate counterclockwise, as seen on Figure 4,
about a shaft 286 fixedly disposed between first and
second side plates 152 and 154. This motion draws
downwardly a rod 290 fixedly disposed between first and
second pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182 and engaging a
lower surface of second link 284, thus causing the first
and second pivot arm assemblies to rotate clockwise, as
seen on Figure 4, about pivot arm assembly shaft 184 to
the position shown in broken lines. The pivoting of
first and second pivot arm assemblies 180 and 182 raises
cutter assembly 222, fixedly attached to the first and
second pivot arm assemblies, to permit material 36 to
pass thereunder and lowers bag pinch roller 210 to
create a nip between the bag pinch roller and bag drive
roller 202. Now, when drive motor output pulley 190 is
rotated counterclockwise by a motor associated with gear
box 310 mounted on adjustment plate 312, continuous belt
314 will cause bag drive roller pulley 192 and bag drive
roller to rotate counterclockwise, drawing material 36
to the left as seen on Figure 4.
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When the desired length of bag 50 has been
dispensed, drive motor output pulley 190 ceases rotating
and power is removed from solenoid 280. The latter
causes first and second pivot arm assembly springs 230
and 232 to rotate first and second pivot arm assemblies
180 and 182 counterclockwise, as seen on Figure 4, about
pivot arm assembly shaft 184, lowering cutter assembly
222 which causes the cutter assembly to slide against
lower knife assembly 330, thus shearing material 36.
Before material 36 is cut to the desired length,
electrical power applied to heater seal bar drive 340
causes a continuous belt 342 to rotate a first cam
assembly 344 which initiates the bag sealing operation
described below.
Figure 5 illustrates heater assembly 220. Heater
assembly 220 includes first cam assembly 344 that is
fixedly mounted on a cam assembly shaft 360 rotatingly
attached to and extending between first and second side
plates 152 and 154. Cam assembly 344 is adjacent first
side plate 152 and a second, similar cam assembly is
disposed adjacent second side plate 154. Cam assembly
344 is provided to drive downwardly an elongated,
horizontal heater seal bar 370, biased upwardly by a
spring 372, to press an end of bag 50 against a heater
bar 374. Heater bar 374 has its upper surface covered
with a patterned teflon tape to impart a complementarily
shaped pattern to the sealed area of bag 50 so that it
does not fall out of machine 20 after the sealing and
cutting operation. The teflon tape also protects heater
bar 374. Heater bar 374 is disposed in a heater bar
block 380 the details of which are described below.
As is indicated above, heat is applied for a time
sufficient to seal bag 50, the time depending on the
thickness of material 36, with thicker materials having
a longer sealing time than thinner materials. After
heat is applied, heater seal bar 50 is left in place
against the upper surface of the sealed area of bag 50
for a brief period of time to permit a degree of
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cooling. After the cooling period, heater seal bar is
raised and bag 50 can be manually removed from machine
20. Then, for example, parts can be placed in bag 50,
the open end of the bag is inserted in machine 20
between upper exit guide 264 and lower exit guide 82,
with the upper end of the bag against cutter assembly
222 which is in its lowered position when material 36 is
not being dispensed, and SEAL pushbutton 70 (Figure 1)
is depressed to start the sealing operation to seal the
open end. Alternatively, a foot switch (not shown on
Figure 5) may initiate the second sealing step to as to
leave free the hands of the operator. Having a stop for
the open end of bag 50, in this case cutter assembly
222, assures that the second seal is parallel with the
ends of the bags. The "stop" is approximately one-half-
inch from the portion of the bag to be sealed. Re-
insertion of bag 50 in machine 20 is facilitated by
upper and lower guides 264 and 82.
Figure 5 also illustrates cutter assembly 222.
Cutter assembly 222 includes a generally vertical upper
knife 400 to which is fixedly attached an upper knife
guide 402. Upper knife guide 402 is narrow and is
disposed at the end of upper knife 400 adjacent first
side plate 152. The outer surface of upper knife guide
402 rides on a roller 410 that is rotatingly attached to
first side plate 152 to guide cutter assembly 222 as it
moves up and down.
Figure 6 illustrates cutter assembly 222 and lower
knife assembly 330 and shows the function of roller 410
as cutter assembly 222 is moved from its dispensing,
raised position (solid lines) to its lowered position
(broken lines) after having cut material 36 (not shown
on Figure 6). Since cutter assembly 222 is fixedly
attached to first and second pivot arm assemblies 180
and 182, the cutter assembly rotates as the pivot arm
assemblies rotate. Cutting of material 36 is effected
by the lower edge of upper knife 400 sliding against the
forward edge of a lower knife 420 fixedly mounted on
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lower knife mounting block 422 and extending along the
upper knife. Mounting block 422 is pivotally mounted on
a shaft 430 extending between first and second side
plates 152 and 154 and is biased forwardly, that is
toward upper knife 400, by means of a spring-loaded
plunger 432 disposed for axial movement in a plunger
mounting block 434 fixedly attached to first side plate
152.
Figure 7 illustrates upper knife 400 and shows
that cutting edge 440 thereof tapers upwardly from the
end of the upper knife adjacent first pivot arm assembly
180 to the end of the upper knife adjacent second pivot
arm assembly 182. Figure 7 also shows more clearly
upper knife guide 402 fixedly attached to the front
surface of upper knife 400.
Figure 8 illustrates heater bar block 380 and
shows that the heater bar block has heater bar 374
disposed along the upper surface thereof and has an
identical spare heater bar 450 disposed along the lower
surface thereof. The present invention addresses the
problem of difficulty in replacing burned out heater
bars by providing heater bar block 380 having dual
elements. Electrical power is furnished to heater bar
374 through wires 460 and 462 operatively connected to a
receptacle block 464 fixedly mounted on first side plate
152. When heater bar 374 burns out, mounting screws 470
and 472 are removed and heater bar block 380 is
unplugged from receptacle block 464 by withdrawing the
heater bar block through an opening 480 defined through
second side plate 154. Heater bar block 380 is then
rotated 180 degrees with respect to its major axis,
rotated end for end, reinserted into opening 480,
replugged into receptacle block 464, and mounting screws
470 and 472 are reattached. Heater bar 450 is now on
the upper surface of heater bar block 374 and is
supplied electrical power through wires 490 and 492.
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As seen on Figure 8, heater bars 374 and 450 are
supported by, and attached to, at the left ends thereof
a fixed support block 494 and are supported by, and
attached to, at the rights ends thereof a sliding
support block 496. To accommodate expansion and
contraction of heater bars 374 and 450 as they heat and
cool, a biasing spring 498 is provided between sliding
support block 496 and a fixed block 499 to maintain
tension on the heater bars.
Figure 9 illustrates a control system for machine
(Figure 1), the control system being generally
indicated by the reference numeral 500. Control system
500 includes a microcontroller 510 that is desirably
located in housing 30. Microcontroller 510 receives
15 inputs of selected material thickness, selected bag
length, selected supply roll, START, and an input from a
foot switch 520 that may be provided to initiate bag
dispensing and/or for providing a signal to initiate
sealing of the open end of the bag. The selection
20 inputs may be provided by means of depressing selected
ones of pushbuttons 60, 62, 64, 66, and 70 (Figure 1).
Microcontroller 510 provides outputs to the roll
selection mechanism, the solenoid, the drive motor, and
the heater. A remote controller or computer or the like
530 may be provided operatively connected to
microcontroller 510 to control certain functions of
machine 20 and/or to monitor operation of machine 20.
Machine 20 offers a number of advantages over
conventional means for forming bags of varying lengths
and widths. First, machine 20 is of "table-top" size,
is relatively light, and is very portable. Housing 30
is on the order of the size of a conventional typewriter
and machine 20 weighs less than about 50 pounds.
Cutting with a knife eliminates the hot wire
typically used to cut bag material, the hot wire
generating undesirable smoke and odor.
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The operator is in control of the length (and
width, if desired) of each bag individually, since the
length and width can be chosen for each bag. If
material on different rolls have different thicknesses,
thickness can also be a chosen parameter.
Machine 20 produces bags with neat and consistent
seals, parallel to the ends of the bags. Pre-selection
of heating time facilitates uniform sealing.
Any heat sealable material can be used with
machine 20. The material may be clear, opaque, colored,
pre-printed, anti-static, or any combination of these,
for example. Printing may be placed on the bags as they
are dispensed.
The heating element in machine 20 can be easily
and quickly replaced.
In the embodiments of the present invention
described above, it will be recognized that individual
elements and/or features thereof are not necessarily
limited to a particular embodiment but, where
applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in any
selected embodiment even though such may not be
specifically shown.
Terms such as "upper", "lower", "inner", "outer",
"inwardly", "outwardly", and the like, when used herein,
refer to the positions of the respective elements shown
on the accompanying drawing figures and the present
invention is not necessarily limited to such positions.
It will thus be seen that the objects set forth
above, among those elucidated in, or made apparent from,
the preceding description, are efficiently attained and,
since certain changes may be made in the above
construction without departing from the scope of the
invention, it is intended that all matter contained in
the above description or shown on the accompanying
drawing figures shall be interpreted as illustrative
only and not in a limiting sense.
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It is also to be understood that the following
claims are intended to cover all of the generic and
specific features of the invention herein described and
all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a
matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.
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