EP0243349A1 - Container processing apparatus. - Google Patents
Container processing apparatus.Info
- Publication number
- EP0243349A1 EP0243349A1 EP85905280A EP85905280A EP0243349A1 EP 0243349 A1 EP0243349 A1 EP 0243349A1 EP 85905280 A EP85905280 A EP 85905280A EP 85905280 A EP85905280 A EP 85905280A EP 0243349 A1 EP0243349 A1 EP 0243349A1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- mandrel
- container
- resilient member
- rotatable
- base
- 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.)
- Granted
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D17/00—Forming single grooves in sheet metal or tubular or hollow articles
- B21D17/04—Forming single grooves in sheet metal or tubular or hollow articles by rolling
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D22/00—Shaping without cutting, by stamping, spinning, or deep-drawing
- B21D22/10—Stamping using yieldable or resilient pads
- B21D22/105—Stamping using yieldable or resilient pads of tubular products
Definitions
- the present invention relates generally to the manufacture of containers and, more particularly, to an apparatus for conditioning a container to improve the appearance thereof, as well as increase certain strength characteristics of the container.
- the use of a two-piece container has become very common in the beer and beverage industry.
- the two-piece container consists of a unitary body that forms the sidewall of the container and has an end wall integral therewith at one end which is usually formed to a dome-shaped configuration to increase the overall strength of the container.
- the opposite open end of the container has an end seamed thereto after the product has been inserted into the container.
- a sheet of stock material of predetermined thickness is fed to a cupping press wherein discs are cut from the stock material and are transformed into cups that have a diameter which is considerably larger than the ultimate diameter of the finished container.
- the preformed cups are then transferred to a container-forming apparatus, commonly referred to as a bodymaker, wherein the cup is aligned with a punch carried by a reciprocable ram and cooperates with a plurality of spaced ironing dies and a doming mechanism located at the end of the path for the punch.
- the punch initially cooperates with a redraw assembly in which the shallow cup is redrawn to a smaller diameter cup that has an internal diameter which is equal to the internal __ diameter of the ultimately-finished container and a height that is greater than the height of the original cup.
- Each cup then passes through a series of ironing dies having progressively reduced diameters so that the sidewall of the container is progressively reduced in thickness, while the height of the container increases.
- the end of the container is forced into a predetermined configuration of a dome and the integral end wall is reformed to increase the strength thereof.
- the uneven or ragged free edge of the open end of the container is trimmed to provide a finished product of predetermined height and the upper open end then has a reduced neck and an outwardly-directed flange formed thereon, which is used to ultimately seam an end thereto.
- the necking process consists of forming the reduced neck in two or more stages of reduction so that smaller diameter ends can be utilized thereby reducing the overall cost of the metal required for the formation of the containers.
- the progressively- reduced neck not only reduces the necessary diameter of the end but also provides additional strength adjacent the open end of the container and enhances the package when it is presented to the consumer with the product therein.
- Difficulties have been encountered in processing of the containers in the can manufacturing line in that the thin walls and the merging section between the sidewall and the domed end have a tendency to become dented during the transfer of containers during transportation along guide rails between the various processing stations.
- a process has been developed which can readily incorporate embossments into a container body to enhance the appearance thereof, as well increase the structural characteristics of the container. More specifically, the embossments can be added into any existing container manufacturering line for two- or three-piece containers without any significant modification thereof.
- the apparatus consists of a mandrel that is rotatable about a fixed axis and has a container-loading mechanism axially aligned therewith.
- the mandrel has a plurality of circumferentially-spaced, axially-extending rigid projections on the periphery thereof and a resilient member is rotatable adjacent the mandrel in a position to be engageable with the periphery of the mandrel to produce crease lines along the axial dimension of the metal container that are interconnected by generally planar or chordal portions resulting in the embossed container.
- each projection has a length that is less than the overall length of the container so that the crease lines terminate inwardly of opposite ends of the container to provide a rather pleasing transition between the embossments and the remaining circular main body of the container at opposite ends of the crease lines.
- the resilient member or forming mandrel is pivoted on the frame adjacent the container- supporting mandrel or embossing mandrel and is moved into and out of engagement with embossing mandrel by cams so that the forming mandrel is only in driving engagement with the container- supporting mandrel during the actual embossing operation.
- the two mandrels are rotatably driven at synchronized speeds to prevent relative rotation between the mandrels during the embossing operation.
- the resilient member is an arcuate segment formed on a cam member that is continuously rotated about a fixed axis parallel to and spaced from the fixed axis of rotation for the embossing mandrel.
- the resilient, arcuate segment equivalent to the forming mandrel, has a circumferential dimension approximately equal to the circumferential dimension of the embossing mandrel.
- both embodiments described above could readily be embodied into existing types of commercial container trimming machines, such as the type illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 3,838,653, incorporated herein by reference with certain modifications.
- FIG. 1 shows a fragmentary side elevation view of a container processing apparatus having the present invention incorporated therein;
- FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary end view as viewed along line 2-2 of FIG. 1 showing details of the apparatus;
- FIG. 2A is a fragmentary end view of the drive mechanism, as viewed along line 2A-2A of FIG. 1;
- FIG. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view of the embossing mandrel forming part of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;
- FIG. 4 is an enlarged end view as viewed along line 4-4 of the mandrel shown in FIG. 3;
- FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary end view of a modified form of the invention.
- FIG. 1 of the drawings generally discloses a container processing apparatus, which is generally designated by reference numeral 10.
- the container processing apparatus 10 is preferably an apparatus such as disclosed in the above-mentioned patent which discloses a trimming apparatus for trimming the uneven edge of a drawn and ironed container.
- the container trimming apparatus is modified to produce an apparatus that .is-capable_of . _ _ _ . embossing a container, as will be described below.
- the container processing apparatus 10 generally includes a base or support structure 12, only a portion of which is shown in FIG. 1.
- a main drive shaft 14 is rotatably supported about a fixed axis on base 12 and is driven by a suitable motor 16.
- Main drive shaft 14 has a large gear 18 fixed thereto for rotation therewith which is in mesh with a second gear 20 that is mounted on a further driven shaft 22 extending parallel to the shaft 14.
- Driven shaft 22 is supported on bearings in housing 26 which is clamped by brackets 24, so that the shaft 22 is rotated about a fixed stationary axis.
- One end of the shaft 22 has a mandrel 30 (FIG. 2) supported thereon for rotation therewith.
- a container-loading mechanism is supported on base 12 arid, is adapted to receive and move a container onto the mandrel 30 for processing thereon.
- the container-loading station includes a reciprocable plunger 36 which is reciprocated through suitable drive means (not shown), such as a fluid ram, for movement along an axis that is coincident with the axis for main shaft 22.
- suitable drive means such as a fluid ram
- Containers are constantly supplied through a starwheel 38 which is rotatable about a fixed axis and has a plurality of circumferentially- spaced pockets which are sequentially indexed into alignment with the plunger 36.
- the plunger 36 is movable from the solid line position illustrated in FIG. 1 to the dotted line position for moving a container from a receiving station or starwheel 38 onto the mandrel 30.
- the apparatus so far described is generally of the type disclosed in the -above- mentioned patent and patents cited therein, which is specifically designed for trimming of uneven edges of containers after the containers have been processed in the drawing and ironing machine.
- This type of apparatus has been commercially available from the Assignee of the present invention, as well as other manufacturers, with only minimum modification thereof.
- the prior trimming apparatus is designed such that the drive shaft 14 is continuously rotated and, in turn, rotates driven shaft 22 and mandrel 30.
- the starwheel 38 is periodically indexed to align a pocket with the mandrel 30 and plunger 36 with a container thereon.
- the ⁇ andrel is then actuated through a fluid cylinder (not shown) and the container is moved from the starwheel 38 through a locating collar 39 onto the continously-rotating mandrel 30.
- a trimming knife located on a cam member (not shown), fixed to and rotatable with drive shaft 14, cooperates with a cutting element adjacent one end of the mandrel 30 to trim the edge of the container.
- the container is then removed from the mandrel, such as by forcing air through the shaft 22.and blowing the container off the mandrel back to the pocket on the starwheel. The starwheel is then indexed and the process is repeated.
- the container trimming apparatus of the prior art type that is commercially available has been slightly modified so that the apparatus can be utilized for producing an embossed container.
- the apparatus for producing embossed containers includes the mechanism described above, with only minor modifications, so that a container supported on the mandrel can readily be reformed from a circular configuration to a generally non-circular configuration having a very aesthetic appearance.
- the mandrel 30 is modified in a manner that will be described later and the general apparatus is further modified to provide a member that cooperates with the mandrel to form the embossed container, as will be described later.
- the mandrel utilized in the present invention is generally shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and consists of a generally cylindrical solid member 40, formed from a hard metal, which is tapered at one end 42 to conform generally to the configuration of the integral end wall of the container supported thereon.
- the rigid circular member 40 has a plurality of circumferential, equally-spaced projections 44 thereon extending from the periphery thereof.
- the projections are generally rectangular or square in cross-section, as seen in FIG. 4, and the projections terminate inwardly of opposite ends of the circular member, for a purpose that will be described later.
- a resilient member 50 (FIG. 2) is mounted adjacent the mandrel 30 to cooperate therewith and to perform the embossing function.
- the resilient member or mandrel 50 is keyed to a shaft 52 that is rotatably supported on a pair of bracket arms 54 and has a gear 56 fixed to one end thereof.
- the bracket arms 54 are secured to a hollow sleeve 58 that is rotatable on a drive shaft 60.
- Shaft 60 is rotatably supported in bearings, in a U-shaped bracket 62 supported on base 12 and is driven through a gear 64 thereon in mesh with main drive gear 18 and drives resilient mandrel 50 through gear 66 in mesh with gear 56 on shaft 52.
- Hollow sleeve 58 also has a further pair of arms 68 secured thereto and the outer ends of arms 68 support a pin 70 which rotatably supports a cam follower 72.
- Cam follower 72 is biased toward a cam member 74 through a spring 76 and cam member 74 has a raised portion 78 which pivots the arms 54, 68 and sleeve 58 on shaft 60 and, in turn,the resilient member 50, as will be described later.
- Raised portion 78 of the cam will be long enough to force engagement between mandrel 30 and resilient member 50 for approximately one complete revolution at synchronized speed provided by proper selection of the size and gear ratios of the respective gears 56, 64 and 66.
- the resilient member may be in the form of various materials, but preferably is a rubber or deformable plastic member that cooperates with the projections, as will be described later.
- the container processing apparatus is operated in the same general fashion as previously in connection with the trimming of container bodies.
- containers are supplied to the various pockets on the starwheel 38 and the starwheel is consecutively indexed to align a pocket with the plunger 36, which is then extended and carries the container from the starwheel onto the rotating mandrel 30.
- the continuous rotation of the cam member 74 will cause the cam surface 78 of cam 74 to move cam follower 72, which in turn will pivot and force the resilient member or forming mandrel 50 into engagement with the periphery of the container- supporting mandrel.
- the arms 54, hollow sleeve 58 and arms 68 may be considered a single pivoted link providing movement for the member 50 *
- the peripheral speeds of the forming mandrel 50 and mandrel 30 are sychronized so that the speeds are approximately equal to prevent any relative movement during the actual embossing process.
- the cam surface 78 is configured to provide movement of forming mandrel 50 to take up clearance between resilient member 50 and mandrel 30 and to further compress the two, thereby providing forming loads necessary to provide the embossed form.
- the metal essentially will be pinched along the leading edge of each of the projections and the adjacent forming member to produce a crease line and the metal will be somewhat stretched over the remainder of the projection so that a generally chordal portion will be formed between adjacent projections during the embossing operation.
- the projections terminate inwardly of the opposite ends of the rigid circular member 40, the projections will likewise terminate inwardly of the opposite ends of the containers, and it has been determined that the particular configuration of the projections is such that there will be a smooth transition between the crease line and the remaining circular portion of the container at opposite ends thereof.
- the pleasingly-aesthetic container also has a certain inherent strength characteristic incorporated therein because of the configuration resulting from the embossment. Since .the crease line or ridges are interconnected by chordal portions, it has been determined that the column strength of the thin-walled container is increased substantially, which has significant advantages during the filling operation where large axial loads are applied to the upper open end of the container by the filling machinery, as well as during the seaming process, of Jthe end orientationto the container.
- FIG. 5 A slightly modified form of the invention is illustrated in FIG. 5 wherein the container-supporting or embossing mandrel 30 and the structure associated therewith is identical to that described in connection with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and in existing trimming mechanisms.
- the resilient member or forming member is in the form of an arcuate segment 80 which is formed on and extends beyond the periphery of a circular driven member 82 carried by the main drive shaft 14.
- the circular or arcuate member 80 has a circumferential peripheral dimension which is at least equal to the circumferential dimension of the container-supporting mandrel 30 and the mandrel and support member 82 are driven at a speed such that the peripheral speed of the arcuate, resilient member 80 is approximately equal to the peripheral speed of the container- supporting mandrel 30.
- the resilient member would have an elongated dimension at least equal to the axial dimension of the mandrel and would cooperate with the projections 44 in the same manner described above.
- the embossing apparatus need not be embodied into an existing machine of the type described above, and could readily be formed as part of existing can-processing machinery.
- the mandrel 30 could be incorporated into respective stations of multiple-stations on the periphery of a rotating turret.
- the respective mandrels could be simultaneously rotated by a common drive with a single resilient,-rotatable or stationary member supported adjacent the periphery of the turret to be engageable and rotate with each of the separate container- supporting mandrels.
- the apparatus could readily be placed in a proper position in a can-manufacturing line to reduce the amount of container handling necessary for performing the embossing operation.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Shaping Metal By Deep-Drawing, Or The Like (AREA)
Abstract
Un appareil de gaufrage (10) de récipients comprend un mandrin de gaufrage (30) qui soutient les récipients et dont la périphérie présente des nervures (44) s'étendant axialement et espacées de manière circonférentielle et qui peuvent s'engager dans un mandrin ou un élément de formage (50) élastiques, de façon à former des cannelures sur le récipient durant l'opération d'estampage.An embossing apparatus (10) for containers includes an embossing mandrel (30) which supports the containers and whose periphery has axially extending and circumferentially spaced ribs (44) which can engage a mandrel or an elastic forming element (50), so as to form grooves on the container during the stamping operation.
Description
Claims
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/US1985/001969 WO1987002282A1 (en) | 1985-10-09 | 1985-10-09 | Container processing apparatus |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0243349A1 true EP0243349A1 (en) | 1987-11-04 |
EP0243349A4 EP0243349A4 (en) | 1988-07-04 |
EP0243349B1 EP0243349B1 (en) | 1994-03-02 |
Family
ID=22188877
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP19850905280 Expired - Lifetime EP0243349B1 (en) | 1985-10-09 | 1985-10-09 | Container processing apparatus |
Country Status (4)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0243349B1 (en) |
AU (1) | AU5017485A (en) |
DE (1) | DE3587768T2 (en) |
WO (1) | WO1987002282A1 (en) |
Families Citing this family (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5261558A (en) * | 1990-12-21 | 1993-11-16 | Carnaudmetalbox Plc | Can bodies |
FR2705257B1 (en) * | 1993-05-21 | 1995-08-11 | Lorraine Laminage | Metallic container, in particular steel, of the tin can type and method of manufacturing such a container. |
Family Cites Families (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US606856A (en) * | 1898-07-05 | Round tin can | ||
US744231A (en) * | 1902-12-30 | 1903-11-17 | Briscoe Mfg Company | Corrugating-machine. |
US889981A (en) * | 1907-08-22 | 1908-06-09 | John J Snyder | Hat. |
US1262289A (en) * | 1913-03-31 | 1918-04-09 | American Can Co | Paneled asparagus-can. |
CA1029580A (en) * | 1975-08-29 | 1978-04-18 | B And K Machinery International Limited | Rotary embosser and process of embossing strip sheet metal |
US4316375A (en) * | 1979-11-30 | 1982-02-23 | Reynolds Metals Company | Apparatus for corrugating can body flanges |
DE3118783C2 (en) * | 1981-05-12 | 1986-02-20 | Cantec, Inc., Fort Worth, Tex. | Device for beading the body of a sheet metal container |
-
1985
- 1985-10-09 WO PCT/US1985/001969 patent/WO1987002282A1/en active IP Right Grant
- 1985-10-09 DE DE3587768T patent/DE3587768T2/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1985-10-09 EP EP19850905280 patent/EP0243349B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1985-10-09 AU AU50174/85A patent/AU5017485A/en not_active Abandoned
Non-Patent Citations (2)
Title |
---|
No relevant documents have been disclosed. * |
See also references of WO8702282A1 * |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
AU5017485A (en) | 1987-05-05 |
DE3587768T2 (en) | 1994-10-20 |
EP0243349B1 (en) | 1994-03-02 |
EP0243349A4 (en) | 1988-07-04 |
DE3587768D1 (en) | 1994-04-07 |
WO1987002282A1 (en) | 1987-04-23 |
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