CA2122980A1 - Web imprinting apparatus and method - Google Patents
Web imprinting apparatus and methodInfo
- Publication number
- CA2122980A1 CA2122980A1 CA 2122980 CA2122980A CA2122980A1 CA 2122980 A1 CA2122980 A1 CA 2122980A1 CA 2122980 CA2122980 CA 2122980 CA 2122980 A CA2122980 A CA 2122980A CA 2122980 A1 CA2122980 A1 CA 2122980A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- web
- path
- feed
- output
- dancer
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
- B65H23/00—Registering, tensioning, smoothing or guiding webs
- B65H23/04—Registering, tensioning, smoothing or guiding webs longitudinally
- B65H23/18—Registering, tensioning, smoothing or guiding webs longitudinally by controlling or regulating the web-advancing mechanism, e.g. mechanism acting on the running web
- B65H23/188—Registering, tensioning, smoothing or guiding webs longitudinally by controlling or regulating the web-advancing mechanism, e.g. mechanism acting on the running web in connection with running-web
- B65H23/1882—Registering, tensioning, smoothing or guiding webs longitudinally by controlling or regulating the web-advancing mechanism, e.g. mechanism acting on the running web in connection with running-web and controlling longitudinal register of web
Landscapes
- Controlling Rewinding, Feeding, Winding, Or Abnormalities Of Webs (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT
An improved printer is disclosed which has upright and inverted printers for printing either or both faces of a flat web. A stepper motor driven nip is provided to feed the web along a path of travel past the two imprinters. The web is driven at a relatively high feed speed until sections of the web to be imprinted are registered with the imprinters, whereupon the feed speed is reduced to a slower imprinting speed. Upon completion of the imprinting, web feed is returned to thehigher rate providing a downstream dancer is in condition to accept the web at the higher rate. If the amount of web accumulated in the downstream dancer exceeds a predetermined level, the motor is stopped until the dancer is in condition to receive the web at the higher feed speed rate.
An improved printer is disclosed which has upright and inverted printers for printing either or both faces of a flat web. A stepper motor driven nip is provided to feed the web along a path of travel past the two imprinters. The web is driven at a relatively high feed speed until sections of the web to be imprinted are registered with the imprinters, whereupon the feed speed is reduced to a slower imprinting speed. Upon completion of the imprinting, web feed is returned to thehigher rate providing a downstream dancer is in condition to accept the web at the higher rate. If the amount of web accumulated in the downstream dancer exceeds a predetermined level, the motor is stopped until the dancer is in condition to receive the web at the higher feed speed rate.
Description
- ~ 2~29'~U
-13-119~
VVEB IMPRINTING APPAlR~TUS AND METlgl[OD
Fiekl of Invention This invention relates to web processing equipment and more particularly to a method and apparatus of imprinting a web for subsequent use in packaging orother applications.
Background In packaging and other operations, it is often desirable ~o imprint information on a section of a web before that section is made into a package or put to other use. The information may be such things as a part number, instructions for use of a product to be packaged or identification of applications where a packaged product is suitable for use.
Thermal imprinters for imprinting such information on a web are now well known. One such imprinter is deseribed and claimed in commonly owned co-pending application 2,092,377, filed March 24, 1993 under the title "Packaging Machine with Thermal Imprinter and Method", which is herein incorporated by reference (the Teeter-'rotter l[mprinter). With the Tetter-To~ter Imprinter, a web is fed from a supply along a path of travel to an output until registration of asection to be impAnted with an imprinter is achieved and then the feed is stopped.
Thereupon a rocking mechanism--the teeter-totter--is actna~ed ~o feed the web section past the imprinter while feed of the web is otherwise stopped. Next, theweb is again advanced until another section to be imprinted is registered with the imprinter and feed is again stopped.
While the Teetes-Totter deYice has enjoyed commercial success an~ is ideal fvr certain applications, it nonetheless has eertain drawbacks. One s)f these is that the feed is an on-off feed. Each time the feed is stopped, there is some amount of delay before a supply dancer mechanism reaches an equilibrium achieving desired tension on the web. Further, on initiation of feed, inertia of rest of the supply must be overeome and urther dancer delay in response may resul~ in momentary tension on the web at levels in excess of the desired tension.
The Teeter-Totter device due to its start and s~op mode of operation is ` ` 2 l229~0 relatively slow and can limit the cycling rate of, for example, a packaging machine such is that described and claimed in commonly-owned applica~ion 2,103,688, filed August 6, 1993 under the title "Packaging Machine and Method" (the HS-100 application) which is also incorporated by reference.
s Summary of the Invepeion With a machine made in accordance wi$h the present invention, rollers are mounted on a frame structure to define a web path of travel from a supply to an output. A dancer assembly corresponding to that described and claimed in the 10 HS-100 application is positioned adjacent the supply. The web is fed from thesupply dancer along a path past an inverted imprinter and thence, an upright imprinter. A stepper motor driven nip is downstream from the two imprinters and selectively driven to pull a web to feed it along the path. An output dancer assembly is positioned downstream from the nip and adjacent an output from 15 which the web is fed to a bagging machine or other downstream apparatus.
In operation, the nip is fed at a relatively high feed speed until a position sensing detector senses that sections of a web to be imprinted are registered with the imprinters. Thereupon a signal from the detector causes the stepper motor toslow to an imprinter feed speed and imprinting on either or both faces of a web is 20 perfo~ned by either one or both imprinters. Upon completion of the imprinting, a return to feed speed signal is supplied to the stepper motor and the stepper motor will immediately return to the higher feed speed unless disabled by an output dancer produced signal.
The output dancer serves as an accumulator or looper to collect the web as 25 it is ~ed by the nip. l~e output dancer senres to maintain tension on the webdownstream from the nip as it is intermittently taken by a downstream bagger or other device.
An output dancer condition sensor is provided. The output sensor emits signals which disable a high-speed web feed operation whenever the accumulated 30 length of web in the output dancer exceeds a predetermined level. ~us, when an imprinting ~ycle is completed, the stepper motor will return to the high speed feed rate if but only if the output dancer is in condition to accept additional web at the 2~22~0 higher rate for accumulation in the output dancer. ~f the length of web accum~llated in the output dancer exceeds the predetermined level, the stepper motor will stop and feed will be terminated until a feed enabling signal is received from the output dancer sensor.
S The detector ~or determining registration of a section to be imprinted on the imprinter may be either a well known spar:k gap detector for detecting transverse lines of perforations in a web or alternatively a detector such as that described and claimed in U.S. Patent 4,3g2,056, issued July S, 1983, under the title "Control Marking Detector," which senses norrnally invisible indicia along the web.
In order that the machine may appropriately register web sections to be imprinted with the imprinters over a relatively wide range of spacings of successive imprintings, path length adjustment mechanisms are provided. One of these adjustment mechanisms is along the path between the l;wo imprinting locations while the other is between the downstream imprinting location and the powered nip.
Accordingly the objects of the invention are to provide a novel and improved web imprinting mechanism and a method of web i~nprinting.
Brief Description of the Drawing~
Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an imprinting machine embodying the invention;
Figure 2 is a top plan view, on a reduced scale, of the machine of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a front elevational view of the machine of Figures 1 and 2 on the scale of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a flow diagram showing the operation of the machine of Figure 1.
Figures Sa and Sb are timing charts showing operation of web ~eed with the machine of Figure 1; alld, Description of the Preferred Embodiment Referring to the drawings and Figures 1 - 3, in particular, the improved imprinting machine shown generally at 10 includes a housing and frame structure ,, ~ .. . . ~ . . , - .... . . . . . .
2~2~ 0 including a base 11, a supporting post 12 and a cantilever supporte(l imprintingsection 13. A supply dancer 14 is carried by the base 11. The supply dancer 14 is the supply dallcer described more fully in the HS-100 application. I~e supply dancer 14 includes a supply mandrel 15 for supporting a web supply in the form of a coil 16.
A web is fed from the supply coil 16 carried by the mandrel 15 along a path of travel which is initially defined by the supply dancer 14. The path of travel is upwardly from the supply dancer along a feed section 17. The feed section 17 is delineated by an output roller 18 of the supply dancer and a first idler roller 20 carried by an imprinting section 13. The path continues laterally, to the left as viewed in Figure 1, past an inverted imprinter 25. The path goes over an inverted imprinter print head 26, over a pair of idler rollers 27 and thence, under an imprinter path length adjustment roller 2~.
An upright imprinter 30 is provided. The upright imprinter 30 like inverted imprinter 25 is an imprinter of the type described more fully in the Teeter-Totter Imprinter. The upright imprin~er 30 has a print head 32 ~or printing a display on an upper ~ace of a web as opposed to a display printed on the lower face by the inverted imprinter head 26.
The path extends from the upright imprinter head 32 under a feed path length adjustment roller 34 and thence, to a slack absorber in the form of an output dancer 35. I'he web e~tends from the output dancer along an output path 36 to a downstream packager or other apparatus which will utilize a web imprinted by the printer mechanism 10.
A registration detector 38 is provided downstream from the ~eed path length adjustment roller 34 and upstream from the output dancer 35. Where the web has periodlc transverse lines of perforations, the detector 38 may be a wellknown spark gap detector. Alternatively, it may be a detector of the ~pe described in the (: ontrol Marking Detector patent which senses normallyg invisible indicia.
A feed roll 40 and a co-acting nip roll 42 are provided along the path between the detector 38 and the output dancer 35. The feed roll 40 is drivingly connected to a stepper motor 44 by a suitable drive chain or belt 46. Opera~ion 2~229~
of the stepper motor 44 causes rotation of the driven roll 40 and of the coating nip roll 42 such that the rollers 40, 42 together provide a powered-feed nip.
Operation After a web has been threaded through the machine from the supply lS
S along the path of travel to the output 36, the machine will be jogged until a registration perforation or indicia is identified by the detector 38. Next, the feed path length adjustment roller 34 will be movecl up or down along its sport guide 48 to bring a section of an upper face of ~he web to be imprinted in registration with the upper imprinter print head 32.
After the upper face section of the web is in registration with the upright print head 32, the imprinter path length adjustment roller 28 will be moved up or down in its suppor~ guide 50 until a to be imprinted section of a lower ~ace of the web is in registration with the inverted imprinter head 26. l[he machine is thenready for operation.
From the flow diagram of Figure 4 showing the operation of the control, it will be recognized that a mechanic skilled in the art can readily provide a suitable control to perform the steps represented by the flow diagram. As the diagram shows when the machine is turned on, the control first checks for an enabling signal from an output dancer senss)r 51, which indicates the output dancer is in a position to function as an accumulator or looper as the web is fed. Assum~ng theoutput dancer is in a ready condition as indicated by the dancer ready line 52 of Figures Sa and Sb, the stepper motor commences to operate at a relatively high so-called index feed rate as indicated at 54 in Figures Sa and 5b.
VVhen the detector 38 senses perforations or normally invisible indica, the stepper motor slows to print speed as indicated at SS in Figures Sa and 5b.
Assuming both printers are to operate to print messages concurrently the irnprinters are energized to commence printing on both the upper and the lower faces of the web. The web will continue to be fed at print speed until each of the imprinters has completed its task.
The imprinters are indicated on the flow diagram of Figure 4 as master and slave respectively and the control can be programmed to cause either or both to imprint. Again, if both master and slave are imprinting, both must complete their 21229~0 print;ng before the print speed feed is discontinued. Once the control receives signals indicating both master and slave have completed their printing chores, it once again checks the condition o the output dancer 35. Assuming the output dancer is still in a feed ready condition as indicated by the line 52 of Figures 5a 5 and Sb, the stepper motor will immediately return to the indexing or high speed rate alld continue until the detector 38 again signals it is time to print.
Thereupon, the stepper will slow to the printing speed SS in Figures Sa and S~. If the output dancer is not in a condition to absorb further web as indicated by the line 56 of Figures 5a and Sb, the stepper motor operation is stopped as indicated 10 by the line 58 and will remain stopped until a dancer ready signal is received.
Whether the output dancer is prepared to received further web is a function of the rate at which the downstream packaging machine or other apparatus is utilizing the web. Assuming it to be a bagger using web at a relatively high rate, the speecl of the imprinter mechanism 10 becomes the limiting factor on 15 the throughput of the system. YVhile it is the limiting factor it is nonetheless far faster than the Teeter-Totter Imprinter. Tests of given size chain of bags have shown that the imprinter mechanism of this invention can ~eed at a rate of 88 bags a minute as contrasted with 45 bags a minute with the Teeter-Totter Imprinter.
In that situation where the imprinter mechanism becomes the limiting 20 factor, a further output dancer sensor, not shown, is coupled to the downstream bagger or o~her deYice to prevent downstream device activation unless an ade~ate length of web has accumulated in the output dancer.
Although the invention has been described in its preferred ~orrn with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the 25 preferred form has been made orlly by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to wi~hout departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinater claimed.
I claim ., , . . .. , ... ~ . . . . . . . . .
-13-119~
VVEB IMPRINTING APPAlR~TUS AND METlgl[OD
Fiekl of Invention This invention relates to web processing equipment and more particularly to a method and apparatus of imprinting a web for subsequent use in packaging orother applications.
Background In packaging and other operations, it is often desirable ~o imprint information on a section of a web before that section is made into a package or put to other use. The information may be such things as a part number, instructions for use of a product to be packaged or identification of applications where a packaged product is suitable for use.
Thermal imprinters for imprinting such information on a web are now well known. One such imprinter is deseribed and claimed in commonly owned co-pending application 2,092,377, filed March 24, 1993 under the title "Packaging Machine with Thermal Imprinter and Method", which is herein incorporated by reference (the Teeter-'rotter l[mprinter). With the Tetter-To~ter Imprinter, a web is fed from a supply along a path of travel to an output until registration of asection to be impAnted with an imprinter is achieved and then the feed is stopped.
Thereupon a rocking mechanism--the teeter-totter--is actna~ed ~o feed the web section past the imprinter while feed of the web is otherwise stopped. Next, theweb is again advanced until another section to be imprinted is registered with the imprinter and feed is again stopped.
While the Teetes-Totter deYice has enjoyed commercial success an~ is ideal fvr certain applications, it nonetheless has eertain drawbacks. One s)f these is that the feed is an on-off feed. Each time the feed is stopped, there is some amount of delay before a supply dancer mechanism reaches an equilibrium achieving desired tension on the web. Further, on initiation of feed, inertia of rest of the supply must be overeome and urther dancer delay in response may resul~ in momentary tension on the web at levels in excess of the desired tension.
The Teeter-Totter device due to its start and s~op mode of operation is ` ` 2 l229~0 relatively slow and can limit the cycling rate of, for example, a packaging machine such is that described and claimed in commonly-owned applica~ion 2,103,688, filed August 6, 1993 under the title "Packaging Machine and Method" (the HS-100 application) which is also incorporated by reference.
s Summary of the Invepeion With a machine made in accordance wi$h the present invention, rollers are mounted on a frame structure to define a web path of travel from a supply to an output. A dancer assembly corresponding to that described and claimed in the 10 HS-100 application is positioned adjacent the supply. The web is fed from thesupply dancer along a path past an inverted imprinter and thence, an upright imprinter. A stepper motor driven nip is downstream from the two imprinters and selectively driven to pull a web to feed it along the path. An output dancer assembly is positioned downstream from the nip and adjacent an output from 15 which the web is fed to a bagging machine or other downstream apparatus.
In operation, the nip is fed at a relatively high feed speed until a position sensing detector senses that sections of a web to be imprinted are registered with the imprinters. Thereupon a signal from the detector causes the stepper motor toslow to an imprinter feed speed and imprinting on either or both faces of a web is 20 perfo~ned by either one or both imprinters. Upon completion of the imprinting, a return to feed speed signal is supplied to the stepper motor and the stepper motor will immediately return to the higher feed speed unless disabled by an output dancer produced signal.
The output dancer serves as an accumulator or looper to collect the web as 25 it is ~ed by the nip. l~e output dancer senres to maintain tension on the webdownstream from the nip as it is intermittently taken by a downstream bagger or other device.
An output dancer condition sensor is provided. The output sensor emits signals which disable a high-speed web feed operation whenever the accumulated 30 length of web in the output dancer exceeds a predetermined level. ~us, when an imprinting ~ycle is completed, the stepper motor will return to the high speed feed rate if but only if the output dancer is in condition to accept additional web at the 2~22~0 higher rate for accumulation in the output dancer. ~f the length of web accum~llated in the output dancer exceeds the predetermined level, the stepper motor will stop and feed will be terminated until a feed enabling signal is received from the output dancer sensor.
S The detector ~or determining registration of a section to be imprinted on the imprinter may be either a well known spar:k gap detector for detecting transverse lines of perforations in a web or alternatively a detector such as that described and claimed in U.S. Patent 4,3g2,056, issued July S, 1983, under the title "Control Marking Detector," which senses norrnally invisible indicia along the web.
In order that the machine may appropriately register web sections to be imprinted with the imprinters over a relatively wide range of spacings of successive imprintings, path length adjustment mechanisms are provided. One of these adjustment mechanisms is along the path between the l;wo imprinting locations while the other is between the downstream imprinting location and the powered nip.
Accordingly the objects of the invention are to provide a novel and improved web imprinting mechanism and a method of web i~nprinting.
Brief Description of the Drawing~
Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an imprinting machine embodying the invention;
Figure 2 is a top plan view, on a reduced scale, of the machine of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a front elevational view of the machine of Figures 1 and 2 on the scale of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a flow diagram showing the operation of the machine of Figure 1.
Figures Sa and Sb are timing charts showing operation of web ~eed with the machine of Figure 1; alld, Description of the Preferred Embodiment Referring to the drawings and Figures 1 - 3, in particular, the improved imprinting machine shown generally at 10 includes a housing and frame structure ,, ~ .. . . ~ . . , - .... . . . . . .
2~2~ 0 including a base 11, a supporting post 12 and a cantilever supporte(l imprintingsection 13. A supply dancer 14 is carried by the base 11. The supply dancer 14 is the supply dallcer described more fully in the HS-100 application. I~e supply dancer 14 includes a supply mandrel 15 for supporting a web supply in the form of a coil 16.
A web is fed from the supply coil 16 carried by the mandrel 15 along a path of travel which is initially defined by the supply dancer 14. The path of travel is upwardly from the supply dancer along a feed section 17. The feed section 17 is delineated by an output roller 18 of the supply dancer and a first idler roller 20 carried by an imprinting section 13. The path continues laterally, to the left as viewed in Figure 1, past an inverted imprinter 25. The path goes over an inverted imprinter print head 26, over a pair of idler rollers 27 and thence, under an imprinter path length adjustment roller 2~.
An upright imprinter 30 is provided. The upright imprinter 30 like inverted imprinter 25 is an imprinter of the type described more fully in the Teeter-Totter Imprinter. The upright imprin~er 30 has a print head 32 ~or printing a display on an upper ~ace of a web as opposed to a display printed on the lower face by the inverted imprinter head 26.
The path extends from the upright imprinter head 32 under a feed path length adjustment roller 34 and thence, to a slack absorber in the form of an output dancer 35. I'he web e~tends from the output dancer along an output path 36 to a downstream packager or other apparatus which will utilize a web imprinted by the printer mechanism 10.
A registration detector 38 is provided downstream from the ~eed path length adjustment roller 34 and upstream from the output dancer 35. Where the web has periodlc transverse lines of perforations, the detector 38 may be a wellknown spark gap detector. Alternatively, it may be a detector of the ~pe described in the (: ontrol Marking Detector patent which senses normallyg invisible indicia.
A feed roll 40 and a co-acting nip roll 42 are provided along the path between the detector 38 and the output dancer 35. The feed roll 40 is drivingly connected to a stepper motor 44 by a suitable drive chain or belt 46. Opera~ion 2~229~
of the stepper motor 44 causes rotation of the driven roll 40 and of the coating nip roll 42 such that the rollers 40, 42 together provide a powered-feed nip.
Operation After a web has been threaded through the machine from the supply lS
S along the path of travel to the output 36, the machine will be jogged until a registration perforation or indicia is identified by the detector 38. Next, the feed path length adjustment roller 34 will be movecl up or down along its sport guide 48 to bring a section of an upper face of ~he web to be imprinted in registration with the upper imprinter print head 32.
After the upper face section of the web is in registration with the upright print head 32, the imprinter path length adjustment roller 28 will be moved up or down in its suppor~ guide 50 until a to be imprinted section of a lower ~ace of the web is in registration with the inverted imprinter head 26. l[he machine is thenready for operation.
From the flow diagram of Figure 4 showing the operation of the control, it will be recognized that a mechanic skilled in the art can readily provide a suitable control to perform the steps represented by the flow diagram. As the diagram shows when the machine is turned on, the control first checks for an enabling signal from an output dancer senss)r 51, which indicates the output dancer is in a position to function as an accumulator or looper as the web is fed. Assum~ng theoutput dancer is in a ready condition as indicated by the dancer ready line 52 of Figures Sa and Sb, the stepper motor commences to operate at a relatively high so-called index feed rate as indicated at 54 in Figures Sa and 5b.
VVhen the detector 38 senses perforations or normally invisible indica, the stepper motor slows to print speed as indicated at SS in Figures Sa and 5b.
Assuming both printers are to operate to print messages concurrently the irnprinters are energized to commence printing on both the upper and the lower faces of the web. The web will continue to be fed at print speed until each of the imprinters has completed its task.
The imprinters are indicated on the flow diagram of Figure 4 as master and slave respectively and the control can be programmed to cause either or both to imprint. Again, if both master and slave are imprinting, both must complete their 21229~0 print;ng before the print speed feed is discontinued. Once the control receives signals indicating both master and slave have completed their printing chores, it once again checks the condition o the output dancer 35. Assuming the output dancer is still in a feed ready condition as indicated by the line 52 of Figures 5a 5 and Sb, the stepper motor will immediately return to the indexing or high speed rate alld continue until the detector 38 again signals it is time to print.
Thereupon, the stepper will slow to the printing speed SS in Figures Sa and S~. If the output dancer is not in a condition to absorb further web as indicated by the line 56 of Figures 5a and Sb, the stepper motor operation is stopped as indicated 10 by the line 58 and will remain stopped until a dancer ready signal is received.
Whether the output dancer is prepared to received further web is a function of the rate at which the downstream packaging machine or other apparatus is utilizing the web. Assuming it to be a bagger using web at a relatively high rate, the speecl of the imprinter mechanism 10 becomes the limiting factor on 15 the throughput of the system. YVhile it is the limiting factor it is nonetheless far faster than the Teeter-Totter Imprinter. Tests of given size chain of bags have shown that the imprinter mechanism of this invention can ~eed at a rate of 88 bags a minute as contrasted with 45 bags a minute with the Teeter-Totter Imprinter.
In that situation where the imprinter mechanism becomes the limiting 20 factor, a further output dancer sensor, not shown, is coupled to the downstream bagger or o~her deYice to prevent downstream device activation unless an ade~ate length of web has accumulated in the output dancer.
Although the invention has been described in its preferred ~orrn with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the 25 preferred form has been made orlly by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to wi~hout departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinater claimed.
I claim ., , . . .. , ... ~ . . . . . . . . .
Claims (22)
1. In a machine for processing a web, including printing on the web:
a) an imprinter for cyclically imprinting a web;
b) structure delineating a path of travel from a supply past the imprinter to an output location;
c) the structure including a web feed drive means along the path and downstream from the imprinter for pulling the web to feed it from the supplyalong the path;
d) position sensing means along the path and adapted to sense registration of a web section to be imprinted with the imprinter and to emit a drive feed control signal upon sensing such registration; and, e) said drive means being responsive to such control signal to reduce the speed of web travel from a relatively high feed speed to a relative low imprinting feed speed and re-establish the relatively high feed speed upon completion of all imprinter cycle.
a) an imprinter for cyclically imprinting a web;
b) structure delineating a path of travel from a supply past the imprinter to an output location;
c) the structure including a web feed drive means along the path and downstream from the imprinter for pulling the web to feed it from the supplyalong the path;
d) position sensing means along the path and adapted to sense registration of a web section to be imprinted with the imprinter and to emit a drive feed control signal upon sensing such registration; and, e) said drive means being responsive to such control signal to reduce the speed of web travel from a relatively high feed speed to a relative low imprinting feed speed and re-establish the relatively high feed speed upon completion of all imprinter cycle.
2. The machine of Claim 1 further including a web slack-absorbing means downstream from the feed drive for tensioning a web between the feed drive and the output.
3. The machine of Claim 2 further including slack-sensing means connected to the slack-absorbing means and operatively connected to the drive means, the sensing means being adapted to sense a condition of the slack-absor-bing means and emit a feed control signal to the drive means upon sensing the slack-absorbing means condition.
4. The machine of Claim 1 wherein there are two imprinters respec-tively positioned on opposite sides of the path for imprinting opposed faces of a web.
5. A method of processing an elongate web comprising:
a) feeding the web along a path of travel at a relatively high feed rate;
b) sensing registration of a web section to be processed relative to a processing mechanism positioned along the path;
c) slowing the web feed to a processing speed and processing the web section with a predetermined display;
d) sensing the completion of the processing step; and, e) thereafter re-establishing the high feed rate.
a) feeding the web along a path of travel at a relatively high feed rate;
b) sensing registration of a web section to be processed relative to a processing mechanism positioned along the path;
c) slowing the web feed to a processing speed and processing the web section with a predetermined display;
d) sensing the completion of the processing step; and, e) thereafter re-establishing the high feed rate.
6. The method of Claim 5 further including the step of collecting portions of a web with an accumulator near an output end of the path downstream from a location where the web is processed and delaying the re-establishment of the high feed rate when the quantity of web collected exceeds a predetermined amount.
7. The method of Claim 5 wherein the processing mechanism is an imprinter and the processing is imprinting.
8. The method of Claim 7 further including the step of concurrently imprinting opposed faces of the web.
9. The method of Claim 8 wherein the concurrent imprinting is performed at spaced locations along the path.
10. The method of Claim 5 further including adjusting the length of the path between a location where registration is sensed and a location where the web is processed to provide appropriate registration of the web at the imprinting location,
11. A web processing assembly comprising:
a) a frame structure;
b) a supply connected to the frame structure for supplying an elongate web for feeding along a path of travel to an output;
c) a supply dancer mechanism connected to the frame structure downstream from, but near the supply for maintaining tension in such web as it is fed along the path;
d) rollers connected to the frame structure and delineating portions of the path;
e) inverted and upright imprinters connected to the frame structure and positioned along and on opposite sides of the path downstream fromthe supply dancer mechanism for imprinting sections of opposed web faces as a web is fed along the path, one of the imprinters being downstream from the otheralong the path;
f) a powered nip connected to the frame structure and pos-itioned along the path between the imprinters and the output;
g) registration sensing means connected to the frame structure and along the path for emitting a speed control signal when a predetermined web registration condition is sensed;
h) a prime mover means connected to the powered nip in driving relationship to cause web feed along the path; and, i) the prime mover means being responsive to said speed control signals to provide a relatively high web feed rate when the web is not being imprinted and a slower feed rate as at least one of the imprinters is applying printing to a web face.
a) a frame structure;
b) a supply connected to the frame structure for supplying an elongate web for feeding along a path of travel to an output;
c) a supply dancer mechanism connected to the frame structure downstream from, but near the supply for maintaining tension in such web as it is fed along the path;
d) rollers connected to the frame structure and delineating portions of the path;
e) inverted and upright imprinters connected to the frame structure and positioned along and on opposite sides of the path downstream fromthe supply dancer mechanism for imprinting sections of opposed web faces as a web is fed along the path, one of the imprinters being downstream from the otheralong the path;
f) a powered nip connected to the frame structure and pos-itioned along the path between the imprinters and the output;
g) registration sensing means connected to the frame structure and along the path for emitting a speed control signal when a predetermined web registration condition is sensed;
h) a prime mover means connected to the powered nip in driving relationship to cause web feed along the path; and, i) the prime mover means being responsive to said speed control signals to provide a relatively high web feed rate when the web is not being imprinted and a slower feed rate as at least one of the imprinters is applying printing to a web face.
12. The apparatus of Claim 11 wherein each of the imprinters is responsive to said signals to initiate concurrent imprinting of the opposed faces of such a web as such web is fed at the slower feed rate.
13. The apparatus of Claim 11 wherein a path length adjustment means is connected to two of the rollers for adjusting the path length between the imprinters and the path length between the downstream imprinter and the output.
14. The apparatus of Claim 11 wherein an output dancer is positioned along the path and wherein an output dancer condition sensor is connected to theoutput dancer and the prime mover for emitting prime mover feed control signals when a predetermined output dancer condition is sensed.
15. The apparatus of Claim 14 wherein the sensed output dancer condition is the length of web in the output dancer is relatively long such that the output dancer cannot accommodate a high feed rate and the output signal is a enabling signal.
16. A web processing assembly comprising:
a) a frame structure;
b) a supply connected to the frame structure for supplying an elongate web for feeding along a path of travel to an output;
c) a supply dancer mechanism connected to the frame structure downstream from, but near the supply for maintaining tension in such web as it is fed along the path;
d) rollers connected to the frame structure and delineating portions of the path;
e) inverted and upright imprinters carried by the frame structure and positioned along and on opposite sides of the path downstream from the supply dancer mechanism for imprinting sections of opposed web faces as a web isfed along the path, one of the imprinters being downstream from the other along the path;
f) a powered nip connected to the frame structure and pos-itioned along the path between the imprinters and the output;
g) registration sensing means connected to the frame structure and positioned along the path for emitting a speed control signal when a predeter-mined web registration condition is sensed;
h) a prime mover means connected to the powered nip in driving relationship to cause web feed along the path;
i) the prime mover means being responsive to said speed control signals to provide a relatively high web feed rate when the web is not being imprinted and a slower feed rate as at least one of the imprinters is applying printing to a web face;
j) each of the imprinters being responsive to said signals to initiate concurrent imprinting of the opposed faces of such a web as such web isfed at the slower feed rate;
k) path length adjustment means connected to two of the rollers for adjusting the path length between the imprinters and the path length betweenthe downstream imprinter and the output;
l) an output dancer positioned along the path and delineating the output; and, m) an output dancer condition sensor connected to the output dancer and the prime mover for emitting prime mover control signals to enable high speed feed when a predetermined output dancer condition is present and disable high speed feed when the condition is present.
a) a frame structure;
b) a supply connected to the frame structure for supplying an elongate web for feeding along a path of travel to an output;
c) a supply dancer mechanism connected to the frame structure downstream from, but near the supply for maintaining tension in such web as it is fed along the path;
d) rollers connected to the frame structure and delineating portions of the path;
e) inverted and upright imprinters carried by the frame structure and positioned along and on opposite sides of the path downstream from the supply dancer mechanism for imprinting sections of opposed web faces as a web isfed along the path, one of the imprinters being downstream from the other along the path;
f) a powered nip connected to the frame structure and pos-itioned along the path between the imprinters and the output;
g) registration sensing means connected to the frame structure and positioned along the path for emitting a speed control signal when a predeter-mined web registration condition is sensed;
h) a prime mover means connected to the powered nip in driving relationship to cause web feed along the path;
i) the prime mover means being responsive to said speed control signals to provide a relatively high web feed rate when the web is not being imprinted and a slower feed rate as at least one of the imprinters is applying printing to a web face;
j) each of the imprinters being responsive to said signals to initiate concurrent imprinting of the opposed faces of such a web as such web isfed at the slower feed rate;
k) path length adjustment means connected to two of the rollers for adjusting the path length between the imprinters and the path length betweenthe downstream imprinter and the output;
l) an output dancer positioned along the path and delineating the output; and, m) an output dancer condition sensor connected to the output dancer and the prime mover for emitting prime mover control signals to enable high speed feed when a predetermined output dancer condition is present and disable high speed feed when the condition is present.
17. A process of imprinting a plastic web with an imprinting machine comprising:
a) threading the web along a path of travel through the machine to set up the machine for operation.
b) jogging a powered nip until registration indicia are detected by a detector;
c) adjusting the length of the web path to bring a section of one face of the web to be imprinted into registration with an upright imprinter and to bring a section of a lower face of the web to be implanted into registration with an inverted imprinter; and, d) thereafter repetitively feeding the web at a high rate of speed until a registration condition is sensed, slowing the web feed to an imprinting speed, imprinting the web and thereafter cyclically and sequentially returning to the high and then the low feed rate for repetitive imprintings.
a) threading the web along a path of travel through the machine to set up the machine for operation.
b) jogging a powered nip until registration indicia are detected by a detector;
c) adjusting the length of the web path to bring a section of one face of the web to be imprinted into registration with an upright imprinter and to bring a section of a lower face of the web to be implanted into registration with an inverted imprinter; and, d) thereafter repetitively feeding the web at a high rate of speed until a registration condition is sensed, slowing the web feed to an imprinting speed, imprinting the web and thereafter cyclically and sequentially returning to the high and then the low feed rate for repetitive imprintings.
18. The process of Claim 17 including the further step of collecting an output from the imprinting machine in a dancer, sensing the condition of the dancer and preventing web feed when the quantity of web accumulated in the dancer exceeds a predetermined level.
19. The process of Claim 17 wherein the slower imprinting speed is maintained until each of the imprinters has completed its application of printing to the web.
20. In a machine for processing a web, including performing a work operation on the web:
a) a mechanism for performing a work operation cyclically on a web;
b) structure delineating a path of travel from a supply past the mechanism to an output location;
c) the structure including a web feed drive means along the path and downstream from the mechanism for pulling the web to feed it from the supply along the path;
d) position sensing means along the path and adapted to sense registration of a web section to be worked on with the mechanism and to emit a drive feed control signal upon sensing such registration; and, e) said drive means being responsible to such control signal to reduce the speed of web travel from a relatively high feed speed to a relative low work performance feed speed and re-establish the relatively high feed speed uponcompletion of an work cycle.
a) a mechanism for performing a work operation cyclically on a web;
b) structure delineating a path of travel from a supply past the mechanism to an output location;
c) the structure including a web feed drive means along the path and downstream from the mechanism for pulling the web to feed it from the supply along the path;
d) position sensing means along the path and adapted to sense registration of a web section to be worked on with the mechanism and to emit a drive feed control signal upon sensing such registration; and, e) said drive means being responsible to such control signal to reduce the speed of web travel from a relatively high feed speed to a relative low work performance feed speed and re-establish the relatively high feed speed uponcompletion of an work cycle.
21. The machine of Claim 20 further including a web slack-absorbing means downstream from the feed drive for tensioning a web between the feed drive and the output.
22. The machine of Claim 21 further including slack-sensing means connected to the slack-absorbing means and operatively connected to the drive means, the sensing means being adapted to sense a condition of the slack-absor-bing means and emit a feed control signal to the drive means upon sensing the slack-absorbing means condition.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US9089693A | 1993-07-12 | 1993-07-12 | |
| US08/090,896 | 1993-07-12 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2122980A1 true CA2122980A1 (en) | 1995-01-13 |
Family
ID=22224856
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2122980 Abandoned CA2122980A1 (en) | 1993-07-12 | 1994-05-05 | Web imprinting apparatus and method |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| EP (1) | EP0634351A1 (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2122980A1 (en) |
Family Cites Families (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US3116032A (en) * | 1961-06-28 | 1963-12-31 | Package Machinery Co | Web feeding system |
| IT1140024B (en) * | 1980-11-07 | 1986-09-24 | Hauni Werke Koerber & Co Kg | MACHINE FOR PACKAGING CIGARETTE BLOCKS IN SOFT CONTAINER PACKAGES |
| JPS58131084A (en) * | 1982-01-29 | 1983-08-04 | Toshiba Corp | Printer |
| BE896899A (en) * | 1983-05-31 | 1983-09-16 | Fraver Sa | PROCESS AND INSTALLATION FOR PROCESSING OR CONTINUOUSLY WORKING A VIRGIN DEFORMABLE FLEXIBLE SUPPORT FOR PASSING INTO A COMPUTER PRINTER. |
| US4839814A (en) * | 1985-01-29 | 1989-06-13 | Moore Business Forms, Inc. | Size independent modular web processing line and modules |
-
1994
- 1994-05-05 CA CA 2122980 patent/CA2122980A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 1994-06-27 EP EP94304675A patent/EP0634351A1/en not_active Withdrawn
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| EP0634351A1 (en) | 1995-01-18 |
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| Date | Code | Title | Description |
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| FZDE | Dead |