Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
15.~11.~~D1 15146 flMMflhJhl PfITEh~T fITTORh~EYS LTD. -~ D~~1613~3~844Q
haUM699 D~~~
CA 02382597 2001-11-15
(Cc~T&tP~BadvS9iZ637.~W0lt.xc! Txss 1o.11.2001 )
DE'V'ICE FOR THE TItL~RTI~NT OF FLAT M~'1TERIAL9 '
The present invention refers Zo a device w ''""'
of flat matcrialc, znoz~c pa-r ' for nmbossix~,c~ and/or
~a1 Pn~3Prinq foils, aoCOrding to the pt~ean~le oL ~;ldim 1. ~1
device of thin kix~d i3 e.g. known, from EP-A-498 623, wh~r~
tl,R r'1 ~t mat-pri a 1 1s a fibrous material such as paper whlct~
1' , "., after the treatment. L'or th~.a , purpose, paired of
steel aza.d xubber rolls arQ used, an~i kn~hs on the steel
L'U11~ et7,cadc~e 111 C;t~I:I:B51JtV11d1nGf recesses in the rubber roll.
The use of two pairs of equal, or similar rn.7..l.s 1 ~ a I s~
disclosed. Such ~dir5 U.~ ~u115 using recesses in a rubber
roll are unsuitable fox a precise fine ezabossing ax~.rl
Calendering as it is rec~ui:~eci Lor Lhe 1.~,~cxtment of packaging
foils, for example.
US-A-9 280 378 diaclocco an cmbosEing and perforating device
9.n.c Ludi nc~ ~n amhn~si nd r~1 1 anti twn matiriq rolls wlmtw Llie
mati,n,g rolls are pravided with recesses in which the spikeE
of the emhoss.i.nc~ rnl.1 s Angac~P. This dpviee is also
.uuSU~,Lal,~l,e .CAL a pseoisc fins ~cm'L~ossing and calendexing.
1
Fu~~l.lmL kuuwii aZe US-A-5 007 27~, or U3-A-5 59E3 774 of the
applicant of the prosent invention, which disclose emho~sing
v 25 dev~,ces fvr fla.U. cua~erldl5. IW.IA~,s r:untext, the flat
matcriai~ in question are bands or straps one face of which
is coated with metal, Q2nerally with, aluml.iiuiu, aW whose
oupport conoiota of pnpcr or another fibrous material, or
fells, P.g. nt synr.heti~ materials of metal, or of compound
matex~,a7,s.
Inter alia, the above-mentioned embossing devices are used
in the paekayinc~ iliduSLry tvz.~ lie pu..~pVs~ o:~ calenderlng
packing mat~rials while seals, emblems and the like may h~2
stamped a~t Lhe Sue Liu(e . zla l:his context, the term
15.~11.~'~~001 15x46 flMMflhlha PflTEhaT fITTORh~EYS LTD. -~
0001613'''3"x'8440 MUM698 D003
CA 02382597 2001-11-15
~c,vss~avss~..~rvaaaava~.sae o.a. m.ii.sooi ~
.,.
calendQrinr~ means rrou.i.di nc~ fihR snr. tac:e with a tl,ne pattern
1111 the millimeter and submillimeter zange. Str~.p or ohcct
packing mat~rials of this kind are e.c~, usP~l tar. pac:kaging
tobacco pLwducl.s, c:ic~dreLLeS, fouls, chocolates, chewing
gums and tho like.
The last znentior~ed devic~s have been surcassful a.nci st.i.J.l.
are as 3,on.r~ as the embossed roils, more paL~Livulat7,y
packaging foilo, arc mainly composed of aluminum or mainly
l.(.~ of paSi 1 y ~'~1 ~Iah1 P paper. In the manufacture ~L c:iydrel,~e
packages, for example, thcae packaging matcxa.alE serve the
y.~r~o~a ~1" yrr~ppi nc~ »p a ~~mntPd number of ci9'arettes in the
~rro~luation pROC:~:~S 111 alder to be subacqucntly in3erted in n
box.
13
In order to be able to meet the increasingly severe
eirv~iromueul.dl ~t~e5c:ri~LiviaS, (.lm eiuLossing materials have
been modifiod in the sense that the thickness of the
. metazl.ized layer at the embossed media, e.y. ~uel.dlli~ecl
20 paper, has boon roduced while si,znultaneously xeinfercinc~ the
ribers to such an extent that the favorable foidlmq~
propertie3 hove 3onaibly dctcrioratQd.
In the operation of the cited device, it i,o observod that
the paper nsrvP~ ~t pmhasspd papers having stronger Fibers
are no larger sufficiently broken by conventional embo3sing
tQChnir_Iu.cs, and that after the fn 1 d1 nc~ pr~~P~~, a so-called
u~euw~y eLfec;t is vbsezvecl as the fal.dcd portions tend to
return to their origiz~.al, condition. The i,z~sertion of
30 cigarette packaeTina' units wrapped u~ iii l,x~e ~~ww ~rgcking
materials 1.s thereby impaired or sometimes impossible.
~rthe~-more, the above-mentioned effect substantially
1?'lrrR~RRS i t the P111h1~.r,S~'t'1c~ paper. loses humidity due to
inadequates storage, thereby fu~:ther increasing the strezxgth
35 c,f fihR p~par fii hors _ Thi ~ r.~u 1 d he encountered by thermal
15.~11.~001 15x46 flMMflh~hJ PfITEhIT fITTORhaEYS LTD. a 0001613~~8440 haUM698
D(~4
CA 02382597 2001-11-15
ro:~rcirusa~sswssis~at.=es vac; is.~~.zoox ~
- 3 -
treatments and controlled huzaiditication of the media ps'lUr
to folding reap. cmboooi,zag, but for the packaging of foods,
r.'hawing c~om~r ~i garPti-.ps and the like this is not
advaatageoua for hygienic reaaona. In some canes, however,
it may be advantageous if the embossed. prpar i~ gmnothPnPd
key d 5u?~S~c~uei~L LwIJ..
In order still to be able to proc:e55 5uc:l~ hardly fol~labl~
matex,ials, the contact pr~ssure of the embossing rol7.s u..ceci
according' to the ci~led rererellc:es i,5 ~uuwtim~s substaz~ti.ally
increased as compared to the prev~,ously usad standaz~d media.
However. ache 2001 lire of the embossing 1'U115 15 l.l~e,~e~y
substantially reduced, and bcaidcc the costs for xeplacement
purrs, thp npc:pssary maintenance requires an interruption or
the productioz~, thereby reducing the overall eff~.c,iency and
thus 1~'hP nr~fii ra'hi I i ty ~fi' t.h~ prodvac2ion process .
A rarallel develo~unent i.s t.hat in rha c~~slity inspection of
the end users, the tolerance range of the media delivered by
~0 the papex znanu~acturers has bean strongly resi-ri rtPd_ ThP
reason is that if th,e vari,ativns iii Lliic:kc~.e5~ d.re tou large,
the embossing pressure, i.e. the contact pressuxe of thQ
mating roll on the driven roll.. has ~Lo be 5ub~l.da~tially
further incrcaccd in oxdcx to cnsuro a su~ficzent embossing
in every case. flue to the increased demands in quality, l.~~e
number of possible aupp~,ier~ has been strongly limited,
rPSp. i-.hP manuta~turp of the paper becomes more complicated.
On the background of this rrio.r. ari-, ifi 1~ the obasca of the
present inventian to improve the quality of the embossing
and calQndaring as wall as the .fo1 d; nc~ t~Rhavi nr of the
pxocesaed foil without inerea3ing the embcc~ing pressuxe and
thus the wear or the embossing rolls. This is accomplishes
by the device according to elai7m
:i 5
15.~11.~001 15s46 flMMflhahl PflTEhlT fITTORhaEYS LTD. a 0001613?3~8440
h~UM698 D~05
CA 02382597 2001-11-15
e~=vr~swssnvssvas3W aas.re! sse: ll.ii.zool ~
.~r..r..nrciinc~ tn the SnJ.ntion disclosed in Claim l, it has been
found surprisingly that on one hand, the presence of at
least 2nnth.er. emhc,ssi nc~ rn I 1 tnr. re-embossing the material
n.ot only allows a aubatantiaJ. xaduction of the contact
prcssurcs, Q.g_ by halt', anal. nn rhP ~thPr hand., that the
application of a tuvth ar~:angement according to claim 1
~urthar allows a suhstantia..l. ;,mprnvPmpnt-. hoth of. the optical
properties o~ the embo55ed mal.eL,~als ans of the~,r folding
properties.
Furthex czabodimczita' and improvemez~ts of th~ devicQ of th~
invention are described in the dependent c:la.~um.
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CA 02382597 2001-11-15
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The invention is explained in more detail hereinafter with
reference to a drawing of exemplary embodiments.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a first
embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 shows a schematic cross-section of the device of
FIG. 1 with the embossed medium;
FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the device of the
invention comprising a synchronization gear;
FIG. 5 shows a cross-section of the device of. FIG. 4 with
the embossed medium;
FIG. 6 shows the device of FIG. 4 with enlarged details
of toothings; and
20' FIG. 7 shows the device of FIG. 4 with further enlarged
details of toothings.
Fig. 1 shows a first exemplary embodiment of a device 1 with
the devices which are essential for the invention, i.e. a
first embossing roll 2 which cooperates with a second
embossing roll 3 and a following embossing roll 4, the first
roll 2 being driven by a driving system 5 while the two
other rolls 3 and 4, i.e. the mating rolls, are neither
driven themselves nor synchronized with the driven roll by
means of synchronizing elements such as e.g. gearwheels, but
driven by medium 6, see FIG. 2.
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As FIG. 2 schematically shows, the embossed medium 6, e.g.
paper with a thin metallized layer of 0.006 mm, runs in the
vertical direction, i.e. from the top to the bottom of the
figures.
In FIG. 1 and 2, the embossing rolls are illustrated with
smooth surfaces in order to indicate that they may be
provided with different structures. An advantageous
structure is e.g. a toothing according to first mentioned
U.S. Patent No.5,007,271 or the improved embodiment
according to the European Patent Application No. 98811220.7.
With respect to the re-embossing procedure, which is not a
supplementary embossing procedure where different patterns
are embossed successively to produce a final pattern, it is
important to note that all embossing rolls have toothings of
the same kind and the same dimensions such that in the
stable mutual position, each tooth of each roll is
symmetrically enclosed between four teeth of the opposite
roll.
The production of devices, emblems and the like, hereinafter
called patterns, is realized by removing or shortening the
teeth at the desired locations, and these engravings may be
produced either on a single roll, e.g. the driven roll, or
on different rolls. The engravings on the mating rolls may
be the same or varied, and the area of the pattern on the
first mating roll may be somewhat larger than on. the
following roll or rolls, i.e. the sharp contours are
produced by the following roll(s).
Toothings of the same kind on all cooperating embossing
rolls for the re-embossing procedure are not only used in
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the case of pyramidal teeth which are disposed in parallel
and orthogonally to the longitudinal axis, but for teeth of
all kinds in any disposition.
FIGS. 1 or 2 indicate that the two mating rolls 3 and 4 are
in engagement with driven roll 2, but this is not
necessarily always the case. It is also possible that the
second resp. additional roll is in engagement or capable of
being engaged with the first, resp. preceding roll only.
Also, it may be advantageous in certain applications to
provide more than three embossing rolls altogether, in which
case all of them have toothings of the same kind.
Furthermore, the rolls may be different both with respect to
their diameters and their lengths. Soft rolls may also be
used in addition to the embossing rolls.
While driven roll 2 is fixedly journalled, at least one of
the two mating rolls is free-wheeling and journalled as
described in U.S. Patent No. 5,598,774. This means that the
axles of the embossing rolls are capable of an excursion
both in the longitudinal and/or in the pressure direction
and/or in the travelling direction of the material. This
allows an adjustment of the rolls and a precise engagement
of the teeth in each other, and thus a faultless treatment
of the material without wrinkling it. This is also
described in European Patent Application No. 98811220.7.
The remaining driving elements and the constructive details
are described in the cited US Patent Application U.S. Patent
No. 5,598,774, although in the present example, the material
passes through the machine in the vertical direction. In
FIG. 1, the bearings, resp. the two yokes 7 which contain
the two bearings, are schematically illustrated. At the
(26314NP.DOC Prt: 24.l0.zoo1 Mc> CA 02382597 2001-11-15
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same time, it is thereby indicated that the roll axles may
be journalled individually, in groups, or in common.
The use of follow-up rolls and the reduction of the contact
pressure completely eliminate the need of providing a
complicated flexural compensation for the embossing rolls.
FIG. 3 is the same as FIG. l, and corresponding parts are
designated by the same reference numerals. FIG. 3
schematically indicates a certain toothing where the
individual teeth are again in the form of truncated
pyramids, as cited above, but instead of being parallel
resp. perpendicular to the longitudinal axes of the
embossing rolls, the sides of the pyramids are disposed at
any angle a thereto, e.g. 45°.
The device according to FIGS. 1 to 3 is especially suitable
for applications where the engravings are provided on driven
roll 2 and the two mating rolls only have toothings without
engravings. Furthermore, this device is preferred in cases
where the material is subject to very little or no
distortion in order to avoid blurring of the contours.
If it is intended to provide engravings both on one of the
embossing rolls, e.g. on the driven roll, and on one or even
both of the mating rolls, on one hand, and/or if there is a
risk that the paper is subject to strong distortions between
the two mating rolls, it is advantageous and sometimes even
imperative to permanently synchronize the rolls to each
other. In the second embodiment according to FIGS. 4 to 7,
driven roll 10, the first mating roll 11, and the second
mating roll 12 in device 9 are mutually synchronized by
gearwheels 13, 14, and 15. The gearwheels generally
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represent synchronizing elements comprising other
synchronizing means which are known ep r se, such as
electronic components and the like.
The synchronization allows a precise embossing i.n the above-
mentioned, complex cases. Here also, essentially, the
embossed material is pre-embossed by the first mating roll,
and the re-embossing is subsequently performed by the second
mating roll in order to neutralize most of the remaining
residual tension in the medium. If possible, the re-
embossing is set into the pre-embossing, i.e. if engravings
are provided both on the first mating roll and on the
following mating rolls, the area of the contours on the
first mating roll may be somewhat more comprehensive than on
the following mating roll in order to obtain an improvement
of the contour.
The support of the roll axles, the contact of the mating
rolls on the driven roll or on the preceding roll, as well
as the application of the engravings remain the same as in
the previous example, but the synchronization allows further
possible applications. One or both, resp. all or some of
the mating rolls may have engravings which are inverted with
respect to those of the driven roll, i.e. the driven roll
may have positive (negative) and the mating rolls) may have
positive (negative) engravings.
Here also, the embossing rolls need not have the same
diameter or the same length, but in contrast to the first
example, unless they are equal, the ratio of the roll
diameters must be integral if the synchronization is
effected by gearwheels, whereas their lengths may be
different individually.
CA 02382597 2001-11-15
(26314NP.DOC Prt: 24.10.2001 MGI
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FIG. 6 shows the same toothing of the rolls as illustrated
in FIG. 3.
FIG. 7 shows a toothing with teeth 16 which consist of
pyramids having a rhombic base and whose lateral surfaces
are arranged in parallel or at any angle to the longitudinal
axis of the rolls. Furthermore, the teeth may also be in
the form of truncated conical bodies.
The not prior published European Patent Application No.
99810255.2 of the same applicant, which is herewith
expressly referred to, discloses an embossing device where
at least one of the embossing rolls is contained in an
interchangeable unit such that it is insertable in the
bearing mount in a predetermined position.
For the present device including at least three embossing
rolls, interchangeable units for individual rolls or groups
of rolls are particularly advantageous since the
rationalization effect and the ecological advantages are
particularly important in this case.
The preceding description shows that the device of the
invention offers many advantages:
1. The paper fibers are broken in the best possible manner
and the memory effect of the paper is largely neutralized.
This is possible by a precise positioning of the successive
embossing rolls in operation, thereby allowing to re-emboss
even with very fine existing calendering patterns without
optical deterioration.
