EP2991904B1 - Packaging machine - Google Patents
Packaging machine Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP2991904B1 EP2991904B1 EP14781329.9A EP14781329A EP2991904B1 EP 2991904 B1 EP2991904 B1 EP 2991904B1 EP 14781329 A EP14781329 A EP 14781329A EP 2991904 B1 EP2991904 B1 EP 2991904B1
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- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- conveyor
- articles
- packaging machine
- packaging
- article
- 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.)
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- 238000004806 packaging method and process Methods 0.000 title claims description 75
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims description 18
- 239000004033 plastic Substances 0.000 claims description 9
- 229920003023 plastic Polymers 0.000 claims description 9
- 239000011087 paperboard Substances 0.000 claims description 5
- 239000011295 pitch Substances 0.000 description 12
- 238000011144 upstream manufacturing Methods 0.000 description 8
- 238000011282 treatment Methods 0.000 description 5
- 239000000758 substrate Substances 0.000 description 4
- 239000000853 adhesive Substances 0.000 description 3
- 230000001070 adhesive effect Effects 0.000 description 3
- -1 corrugated board Substances 0.000 description 3
- 238000009518 tertiary packaging Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000003292 glue Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000012856 packing Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000004698 Polyethylene Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000004743 Polypropylene Substances 0.000 description 1
- XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N aluminium Chemical compound [Al] XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052782 aluminium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000004411 aluminium Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000969 carrier Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000151 deposition Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000007613 environmental effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000011521 glass Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229920000573 polyethylene Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229920000642 polymer Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229920000098 polyolefin Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229920001155 polypropylene Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 239000004800 polyvinyl chloride Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000001737 promoting effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B35/00—Supplying, feeding, arranging or orientating articles to be packaged
- B65B35/10—Feeding, e.g. conveying, single articles
- B65B35/24—Feeding, e.g. conveying, single articles by endless belts or chains
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B35/00—Supplying, feeding, arranging or orientating articles to be packaged
- B65B35/10—Feeding, e.g. conveying, single articles
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B11/00—Wrapping, e.g. partially or wholly enclosing, articles or quantities of material, in strips, sheets or blanks, of flexible material
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B5/00—Packaging individual articles in containers or receptacles, e.g. bags, sacks, boxes, cartons, cans, jars
- B65B5/06—Packaging groups of articles, the groups being treated as single articles
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B2210/00—Specific aspects of the packaging machine
- B65B2210/02—Plurality of alternative input or output lines or plurality of alternative packaging units on the same packaging line for improving machine flexibility
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B2220/00—Specific aspects of the packaging operation
- B65B2220/16—Packaging contents into primary and secondary packaging
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B59/00—Arrangements to enable machines to handle articles of different sizes, to produce packages of different sizes, to vary the contents of packages, to handle different types of packaging material, or to give access for cleaning or maintenance purposes
- B65B59/001—Arrangements to enable adjustments related to the product to be packaged
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a packaging machine for packing articles in a carton more specifically, but not exclusively, to a packaging machine which is readily adapted to change the carton or package format.
- a packaging machine comprising two independent paths upon which articles to be contained by a carton are conveyed from an infeed end to an integral tertiary packaging device. Cartons directly output from said two independent paths are merged and combined with a tertiary package, the tertiary packages are conveyed along a transfer means out of said tertiary packaging device travelling at a speed the same as that of each of the two independent paths
- a packaging machine for packaging one or more articles comprising two or more devices each for performing at least one packaging operation upon one or more articles, each of the two or more packaging devices being coupled to one another in a linear series by a first conveyor, the system comprising at least one bypass conveyor providing a forward bypass path and/or a reverse bypass path for bypassing one or more of the devices in a forward and/or reverse direction, and wherein there comprises one or more transfer switches for transferring one or more articles between the first conveyor and the at least one bypass conveyor.
- the present invention seeks to overcome or at least mitigate the problems of the prior art.
- a packaging machine for packaging one or more articles in a package
- FIG. 1 there is shown a perspective view of a packaging system 9 capable of accepting an input of primary products such as, but not limited to, bottles or cans, hereinafter referred to as articles.
- the terms “carton” and “carrier” refer, for the non-limiting purpose of illustrating the various features of the invention, to a container for engaging, carrying, and/or dispensing articles, such as bottles.
- teachings of the invention can be applied to various containers, which may or may not be tapered and/or cylindrical.
- Other exemplary articles include bottles (for example metallic, glass or plastics bottles), cans (for example aluminium cans), tins, pouches, packets and the like.
- the primary products may be packaged in cartons, which cartons are formed from a blank.
- the blank is formed from a sheet of a suitable substrate.
- suitable substrate includes all manner of foldable sheet material such as paperboard, corrugated board, cardboard, plastic, combinations thereof, and the like. It should be recognized that one or other numbers of blanks may be employed, for example, to provide the carrier structure described in more detail below.
- the packaging system 9 comprises a packaging machine 10 as shown in Figures 2 and 3 , the packaging machine 10 having an input conveyor 12, which provides an input stream of articles A, for example in two columns disposed side by side.
- Figures 1 to 3 illustrate the packaging machine 10 in a first mode of operation.
- a transfer device 18 transfers the articles A from the input conveyor 12 to a first conveyor 20.
- the transfer device 18 creates article groups of a predetermined size.
- the groups of articles A are each placed upon the first conveyor 20 at predefined pitch intervals such that the article groups are metered.
- the packaging machine 10 comprises a first hopper 14 which holds blanks for forming cartons.
- the first hopper 14 is coupled to a feeder 16, which places carton blanks upon a second conveyor 22.
- the carton blanks are erected into a tubular form, for example by the feeder 16 or by a separate device.
- the erected cartons C are each placed, between lugs 31, upon the second conveyor 22 at predefined pitch intervals such that the erected cartons C are metered.
- the pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups.
- a loading device 24 loads the cartons C with articles A.
- the loading device 24 comprises a first tool head 25 for handling the articles A.
- the loading device 24 slides each article group into a respective carton C; in doing so, the loading device 24 transfers the articles A from the first conveyor 20 to the second conveyor 22.
- the article groups are continuously moving in a downstream direction, indicted by direction arrow D2, whilst being slid from the first conveyor 20 to the second conveyor 22 as indicated by direction arrow D3.
- the speed of the second conveyor 22 is matched to the speed of the first conveyor 20 such that the cartons C disposed upon the second conveyor 22 and the articles A disposed upon the first conveyor 20 move in the downstream direction synchronously.
- the open ends of the cartons C are closed by a closing device 19 which folds end closure panels to close the open ends.
- the end closure panels are secured in place, for example with glue or other adhesive treatment, and pass between a pair of belts 17 which apply pressure to the end closure panels to ensure a secure bond.
- the cartons C are then conveyed upon a third conveyor 30 to a subsequent processing station.
- the third conveyor 30 bypasses a processing station 28/29 coupled to a fourth conveyor 26.
- the fourth conveyor 26 is disposed in parallel to the first conveyor 20 and is disposed adjacent thereto.
- the fourth conveyor 26 is disposed on a first side of the first conveyor 20.
- the second conveyor 22 is disposed on a second side of the first conveyor 20; the second side opposes the first side.
- the second conveyor 22 is disposed in parallel to the first and fourth conveyors 20, 26.
- the processing station 28/29 is not employed to package articles A and therefore the processing station 28/29 and fourth conveyer 26 may be idle or dormant.
- Figures 4 , 5 and 6 illustrate the packaging machine 10 in a second mode of operation.
- the second conveyor 22 is idle; the feeder 16 is idle and does not feed carton blanks onto the second conveyor 22.
- the loading device 24 picks up the article groups from the first conveyor 20 and places the article groups upon the fourth conveyor 26.
- the loading device 24 is arranged to move the articles A downstream, as indicated by the direction arrow D2, whilst simultaneously moving the article groups from the first conveyor 20 to the fourth conveyor 26.
- the loading device 24 employs a second tool head 27 adapted for picking up the articles A.
- the loading device 24 Upon depositing articles A upon the fourth conveyor 26, the loading device 24 returns to the first conveyor 20, as indicated by direction arrow D5 in Figure 6 , to an upstream position to gather further articles A from the first conveyor 20.
- the articles A are conveyed to a wrapping station 29.
- the article groups are wrapped in a film or sheet of material so as to retain the articles of each group of articles A together as a cohesive unit.
- the film is shrink wrap material formed from a polymer plastics material such as, but not limited to, polyolefins, for example polyethylene or polypropylene, or polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
- PVC polyvinyl chloride
- the film is shrunk by the application of heat thereto; however, in other embodiments, other treatments may be applied to the film.
- the second tool head 27 is configured to pick up articles from the first conveyor 20 upon which they are arranged in metered groups of 12 articles arranged in a 2x6 configuration. The second tool head 27 separates each 2x6 group of articles into three groups of 2x2 articles each spaced apart from one another when placed upon the fourth conveyor 26.
- the packaging system 9 comprises a fifth conveyor 32; fifth conveyor 32 is coupled to the third conveyor 30 and to the fourth conveyor 26 which passes through the shrinking station 28.
- the fifth conveyor 32 is wide enough to receive packages (either articles A wrapped in film, or articles A packaged into cartons C) from either the third conveyor 30 or the fourth conveyor 26.
- the fifth conveyor 32 is coupled to a sixth conveyor 34.
- the sixth conveyor 34 is narrower than the fifth conveyor 32 and is substantially aligned with the fourth conveyor 26 such that packages deposited on the fifth conveyor 32 by the fourth conveyor 26 can be deposited upon the sixth conveyor 34 without moving the packages in a direction transverse to the direction of travel of the fifth conveyor 32.
- an upstream end of the sixth conveyor 34 is co-linear with a downstream end of the fourth conveyor 26.
- the fifth conveyor 32 conveys packages received from the fourth conveyor 26 in a downstream direction only, which is parallel to the direction of travel of the fifth conveyor 32.
- the fifth conveyor 32 comprises fixed guides which direct packages received from the third conveyor 30 in a downstream direction, parallel to the direction of travel of the fifth conveyor 32, and also moves the packages in a transverse direction such that they may be deposited upon the sixth conveyor 34.
- the packaging machine 10 comprises two paths which the articles A may travel upon or follow depending upon the desired packaging format. The first path passes through the shrinking station 28, the second path bypasses the shrinking station 28.
- packaging machine 10 comprises two distinct, spaced apart, exit locations for the packages.
- the sixth conveyor 32 thus merges the two distinct paths of the packages, such that the location from which the packages exit the fifth conveyor 32 is the same irrespective of whether the articles A followed the first or second path.
- the sixth conveyor 34 conveys packages to a tertiary packaging machine 38 which applies a tertiary package R to the secondary packages P, if desired.
- the tertiary packing machine 38 may group one or more secondary packages P together for packaging in the tertiary package R.
- the tertiary packages R or secondary packages P (if no tertiary package is applied) are then conveyed to a second wrapping station 43 and a second shrinking station 42.
- the tertiary packages R or secondary packages P may be grouped together by a second grouping device 41 which is arranged substantially the same as grouping station 23. In this way the packages P may be further packaged in either, or both, of a tertiary package R (such as a tray) and a film material.
- FIG. 7 to 15 there is shown an alternative embodiment of the present invention.
- like numerals have, where possible, been used to denote like parts, albeit with the addition of the prefix "100" to indicate that these features belong to the second embodiment.
- the alternative embodiments share many common features with the first embodiment and therefore only the differences from the embodiment illustrated in Figures 1 to 6 will be described in any greater detail.
- the packaging machine 110 comprises an input conveyor 112, which provides an input stream of articles A, for example in two columns disposed side by side.
- a transfer device 118 transfers the articles from the input conveyor 112 to a first conveyor 120.
- the transfer device 118 creates article groups of a predetermined size.
- the groups of articles A are each placed upon the first conveyor 120 at predefined pitch intervals such that the article groups are metered.
- the packaging machine 110 comprises a first hopper 114 which holds blanks for forming cartons such as trays.
- the first hopper 114 is coupled to a feeder 116 which places carton blanks upon a second conveyor 122.
- the carton blanks are erected into a U-shaped form, for example by the feeder 116 or by a separate device.
- the erected cartons C are each placed, between lugs 131, upon the second conveyor 122 at predefined pitch intervals such that the erected cartons C are metered.
- the pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups.
- the cartons C are trays.
- a loading device 124 loads the cartons C with articles A; the loading device 124 comprises a first tool for handling the articles A.
- the loading device 124 slides each article group into a respective tray; in doing so the loading device 124 transfers the articles A from the first conveyor 120 to the second conveyor 122.
- the article groups are continuously moving in a downstream direction whilst being slid from the first conveyor 120 to the second conveyor 122.
- the speed of the second conveyor 122 is matched to the speed of the first conveyor 120 such that the trays upon the second conveyor 122 and the articles A upon the first conveyor 120 move in the downstream direction synchronously.
- the packaging machine 110 comprises a grouping and transfer device 140 disposed downstream from the loading device 124.
- the grouping and transfer device 140 is idle.
- the transfer device 118 creates article groups of 24 articles arranged in a 4x6 array. Each group of articles A are transferred, in the 4x6 array, to a tray.
- the ends of the tray which comprise end closure panels, are closed by the closing device 119 which folds the end closure panels.
- the end closure panels are secured with adhesive or other suitable treatment.
- the trays pass between a pair of rollers 117 disposed on opposing sides of the second conveyor 122 which apply a force to each end of the tray to secure the end closure panels in place.
- the trays of articles A then pass to a wrapping station 129 which wraps the trays and articles A in a film or sheet of material.
- the wrapped trays of articles A are then conveyed to a shrinking station 128.
- the shrinking station 128 applies heat or other suitable treatment to shrink the film or sheet of material about the trays of articles A.
- Figures 10 and 11 illustrate the packaging machine 110 in a second mode of operation.
- articles A are conveyed upon the first conveyor 120 to the grouping and transfer device 140.
- the grouping and transfer device 140 comprises a tool head 142. Only the tool head 142 is shown in Figures 10 and 11 for clarity.
- the loading device 124 in the second mode of operation, is idle.
- the transfer device 140 places articles A upon the first conveyor 120 in metered groups of ten articles arranged in a 2x5 array.
- other article configurations are envisaged, for example but not limited to, eight articles A arranged in a 2x4 array or twelve articles A arranged in a 2x6 array.
- the tool head 142 of the grouping and transfer device 140 picks up ten groups of articles A from separate pitches upon the first conveyor 120.
- the tool head 142 is configured so that the five groups of articles A at the upstream end of the tool head 142 are placed upon the second conveyor 122 in a first lane L1, and the five groups of articles A at the downstream end of the tool head 142 are placed upon the second conveyor 122 in a second lane L2.
- the five groups of articles A at the upstream end of the tool head 142 are placed upon the second conveyor 122 at a position which is upstream of the five groups of articles A at the downstream end of the tool head 142 as indicated by phantom line T, which shows the position upon the second conveyor 122 where the ten groups of articles A picked up from the first conveyor 120 are placed.
- the tool head 142 is additionally configured to move upstream and downstream, such that it can move downstream in synchrony with the first conveyor 120 as it picks up the articles A.
- the tool head 142 continues to move downstream, as indicated by direction arrow D8, as it deposits the articles A upon the second conveyor 122, at this time the tool head 142 moves downstream in synchrony with the second conveyor 122. Once the tool head 142 has deposited the articles A upon the second conveyor 122 it moves upstream to collect further groups of articles A from the first conveyor 120.
- the two lanes L1, L2 of articles A are conveyed upon the second conveyor 122 to the wrapping station 129 which wraps the groups of articles A in each lane L1, L2 with a film of material.
- the wrapped groups are then conveyed to the shrinking station 128.
- Figures 12 and 13 illustrate the packaging machine 110 in a third mode of operation.
- articles A are conveyed upon the first conveyor 120 to the grouping and transfer device 140.
- the grouping and transfer device 140 comprises a second tool head 144; only the tool head 144 is shown in Figures 12 and 13 for clarity.
- the second tool head 144 is adapted to pick up five groups of twenty-four articles A arranged in a 4x6 array.
- the groups of articles A are transferred to the second conveyor 122 as indicated by direction arrow D7.
- the groups of articles A are placed upon the second conveyor 122, which then conveys the groups of articles A to the wrapping station 129 where the groups of articles A are wrapped in film. Subsequently the groups of articles A are conveyed to the shrinking station 128 which tightens the film about the groups of articles A.
- Figures 14 and 15 illustrate the packaging machine 110 in a fourth mode of operation.
- articles A are conveyed upon the first conveyor 120 to the loading device 124.
- the loading device 124 comprises a tool head adapted to slide the articles A from the first conveyor 120 into the carton C being conveyed upon the second conveyor 122.
- the packaging machine 110 comprises the first hopper 114 which holds blanks for forming cartons.
- the hopper 114 is coupled to the feeder 116 which places carton blanks upon a second conveyor 122.
- the carton blanks are erected into a tubular form, for example by the feeder 116 or by a separate device.
- the erected cartons C are each placed, between lugs 131, upon the second conveyor 122 at predefined pitch intervals such that the articles groups are metered.
- the pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups.
- the loading device 124 slides each article group into a respective erected carton C. In doing so the loading device 124 transfers the articles A from the first conveyor 120 to the second conveyor 122.
- the open ends of the cartons C are closed by a closing device 119 which folds end closure panels to close the open ends; the end closure panels are secured in place, for example with glue or other adhesive treatment, and pass between a pair of belts 117 which apply pressure to the end closure panels to ensure a secure bond.
- the cartons C are then conveyed downstream upon the second conveyor 122 to a grouping mechanism 123.
- the grouping mechanism 123 comprises a conveyor and flight bars, the flight bars moving at a different speed to the conveyor.
- the grouping mechanism 123 groups together a number of cartons C; in the illustrated embodiment two cartons C are grouped together.
- a first carton C is transferred onto the conveyor of the grouping mechanism 123 and is conveyed at a first speed by the conveyor.
- a second carton is then transferred onto the conveyor, the second carton C being spaced apart from the first carton C.
- a flight bar moving at a second speed, faster than the first speed of the conveyor then engages with the upstream end of the second carton C pushing it downstream, at the second speed, over the conveyor surface until it engages or contacts with the first carton C such that the flight bar pushes both first and second cartons C, downstream now at the second speed, over the conveyor until they are disposed upon the wrapping station.
- the flight bars convey the cartons C downstream at a speed substantially equal to the speed at which the second conveyor 122 conveys the articles A downstream.
- the wrapping station 129 wraps the grouped cartons in film to hold them together.
- the wrapped carton groups are then conveyed to the shrinking station 128 where the film is treated so as to tighten it about grouped cartons C. In this way a plurality of cartons C can be held together as a single unit.
- the packaging machine 110 shown in Figures 7 to 15 may replace the packaging machine 10 of Figures 1 to 6 to form an alternative packaging system.
- the downstream end of the shrinking station 128 may be coupled to the sixth conveyor 34 such that further packaging operations may be carried out upon the packages produced by the packaging machine 110.
- hinge connection and “fold line” refer to all manner of lines that define hinge features of the blank, facilitate folding portions of the blank with respect to one another, or otherwise indicate optimal panel folding locations for the blank.
- a fold line is typically a scored line, an embossed line, or a debossed line. Any reference to “hinged connection” or “fold line” should not be construed as necessarily referring to a single fold line only; indeed it is envisaged that hinged connection can be formed from any one or more of the following: a short slit, a frangible line or a fold line without departing from the scope of the invention.
- severed line refers to all manner of lines that facilitate separating portions of the substrate from one another or that indicate optimal separation locations. Severance lines may be frangible or otherwise weakened lines, tear lines, cut lines, or slits.
- hinged connection, severance lines and fold lines can each include elements that are formed in the substrate of the blank including perforations, a line of perforations, a line of short slits, a line of half-cuts, a single half-cut, a cut line, an interrupted cut line, slits, scores, any combination thereof, and the like.
- the elements can be dimensioned and arranged to provide the desired functionality.
- a line of perforations can be dimensioned or designed with degrees of weakness to define a fold line and/or a severance line.
- the line of perforations can be designed to facilitate folding and resist breaking, to facilitate folding and facilitate breaking with more effort, or to facilitate breaking with little effort.
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Wrapping Of Specific Fragile Articles (AREA)
- Container Filling Or Packaging Operations (AREA)
- Auxiliary Devices For And Details Of Packaging Control (AREA)
Description
- The present invention relates to a packaging machine for packing articles in a carton more specifically, but not exclusively, to a packaging machine which is readily adapted to change the carton or package format.
- In the field of packaging it is often required to provide consumers with a package comprising multiple primary product containers. Such multi-packs are desirable for shipping and distribution and for display of promotional information. For cost and environmental considerations, such cartons or carriers need to be formed from as little material as possible and cause as little wastage in the materials from which they are formed as possible. Another consideration is the strength of the packaging and its suitability for holding and transporting large weights of articles.
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WO2009/097546 to MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC - A packaging machine comprising two independent paths upon which articles to be contained by a carton are conveyed from an infeed end to an integral tertiary packaging device. Cartons directly output from said two independent paths are merged and combined with a tertiary package, the tertiary packages are conveyed along a transfer means out of said tertiary packaging device travelling at a speed the same as that of each of the two independent paths
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WO2013/115862 to MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC This document falls under Article 54(3) EPC and is as such not relevant to the question of inventive step. A packaging machine for packaging one or more articles the packaging machine comprising two or more devices each for performing at least one packaging operation upon one or more articles, each of the two or more packaging devices being coupled to one another in a linear series by a first conveyor, the system comprising at least one bypass conveyor providing a forward bypass path and/or a reverse bypass path for bypassing one or more of the devices in a forward and/or reverse direction, and wherein there comprises one or more transfer switches for transferring one or more articles between the first conveyor and the at least one bypass conveyor. - It is desirable to be able to employ a packaging system to automatically place primary product containers in such multi-packs. It is desirable for the packaging machine to be capable of packaging articles in a variety of carton or packaging formats.
- The present invention seeks to overcome or at least mitigate the problems of the prior art.
- According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a packaging machine for packaging one or more articles in a package;
- the packaging machine comprising a first article path and a second article path;
- wherein the packaging machine comprises a first apparatus for packaging articles in a paperboard carton;
- and a second apparatus for packaging articles in a plastics material;
- the packaging machine comprising at least one transfer device for transferring articles between a pair of conveyors to select either the first article path or the second article path;
- the packaging machine being configurable such that the articles may follow either the first or second article path such that the articles may be packaged in either, or both, of the paperboard carton and the plastics material.
- Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
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FIGURE 1 is a perspective view from above of a packaging system according to a first embodiment of the invention; -
FIGURE 2 is a perspective view from above of a packaging machine according to a first embodiment of the invention; -
FIGURE 3 is a perspective view from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 2 loading articles into cartons to form a first packaging format; -
FIGURES 4 ,5 and6 are a perspective views from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 2 loading articles into cartons to form a second packaging format; -
FIGURE 7 is a perspective view from above of a packaging machine according to a second embodiment of the invention; -
FIGURES 8 and9 are perspective views from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 7 loading articles into cartons to form a third packaging format; -
FIGURES 10 and11 are perspective views from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 7 loading articles into cartons to form a fourth packaging format; -
FIGURES 12 and13 are perspective views from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 7 loading articles into cartons to form a fifth packaging format; and -
FIGURES 14 and15 are perspective views from above of the packaging machine ofFigure 7 loading articles into cartons to form a sixth packaging format. - Detailed descriptions of specific embodiments of the packaging machine, packages, blanks and cartons are disclosed herein. It will be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples of the way in which certain aspects of the invention can be implemented and do not represent an exhaustive list of all of the ways the invention may be embodied. As used herein, the word "exemplary" is used expansively to refer to embodiments that serve as illustrations, specimens, models, or patterns. Indeed, it will be understood that the packaging machine, packages, blanks and cartons described herein may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The Figures are not necessarily to scale and some features may be exaggerated or minimised to show details of particular components. Well-known components, materials or methods are not necessarily described in great detail in order to avoid obscuring the present disclosure. Any specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the invention.
- Referring to
Figure 1 there is shown a perspective view of a packaging system 9 capable of accepting an input of primary products such as, but not limited to, bottles or cans, hereinafter referred to as articles. - In the embodiments detailed herein, the terms "carton" and "carrier" refer, for the non-limiting purpose of illustrating the various features of the invention, to a container for engaging, carrying, and/or dispensing articles, such as bottles. However, it is contemplated that the teachings of the invention can be applied to various containers, which may or may not be tapered and/or cylindrical. Other exemplary articles include bottles (for example metallic, glass or plastics bottles), cans (for example aluminium cans), tins, pouches, packets and the like.
- The primary products may be packaged in cartons, which cartons are formed from a blank.
- The blank is formed from a sheet of a suitable substrate. It is to be understood that, as used herein, the term "suitable substrate" includes all manner of foldable sheet material such as paperboard, corrugated board, cardboard, plastic, combinations thereof, and the like. It should be recognized that one or other numbers of blanks may be employed, for example, to provide the carrier structure described in more detail below.
- The packaging system 9 comprises a
packaging machine 10 as shown inFigures 2 and3 , thepackaging machine 10 having aninput conveyor 12, which provides an input stream of articles A, for example in two columns disposed side by side.Figures 1 to 3 illustrate thepackaging machine 10 in a first mode of operation. - A
transfer device 18 transfers the articles A from theinput conveyor 12 to afirst conveyor 20. Thetransfer device 18 creates article groups of a predetermined size. The groups of articles A are each placed upon thefirst conveyor 20 at predefined pitch intervals such that the article groups are metered. - The
packaging machine 10 comprises afirst hopper 14 which holds blanks for forming cartons. Thefirst hopper 14 is coupled to afeeder 16, which places carton blanks upon asecond conveyor 22. The carton blanks are erected into a tubular form, for example by thefeeder 16 or by a separate device. The erected cartons C are each placed, betweenlugs 31, upon thesecond conveyor 22 at predefined pitch intervals such that the erected cartons C are metered. The pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups. - A
loading device 24 loads the cartons C with articles A. Theloading device 24 comprises afirst tool head 25 for handling the articles A. Theloading device 24 slides each article group into a respective carton C; in doing so, theloading device 24 transfers the articles A from thefirst conveyor 20 to thesecond conveyor 22. The article groups are continuously moving in a downstream direction, indicted by direction arrow D2, whilst being slid from thefirst conveyor 20 to thesecond conveyor 22 as indicated by direction arrow D3. The speed of thesecond conveyor 22 is matched to the speed of thefirst conveyor 20 such that the cartons C disposed upon thesecond conveyor 22 and the articles A disposed upon thefirst conveyor 20 move in the downstream direction synchronously. - The open ends of the cartons C are closed by a
closing device 19 which folds end closure panels to close the open ends. The end closure panels are secured in place, for example with glue or other adhesive treatment, and pass between a pair ofbelts 17 which apply pressure to the end closure panels to ensure a secure bond. - The cartons C are then conveyed upon a
third conveyor 30 to a subsequent processing station. Thethird conveyor 30 bypasses aprocessing station 28/29 coupled to afourth conveyor 26. Thefourth conveyor 26 is disposed in parallel to thefirst conveyor 20 and is disposed adjacent thereto. Thefourth conveyor 26 is disposed on a first side of thefirst conveyor 20. Thesecond conveyor 22 is disposed on a second side of thefirst conveyor 20; the second side opposes the first side. Thesecond conveyor 22 is disposed in parallel to the first andfourth conveyors processing station 28/29 is not employed to package articles A and therefore theprocessing station 28/29 andfourth conveyer 26 may be idle or dormant. -
Figures 4 ,5 and6 illustrate thepackaging machine 10 in a second mode of operation. In this mode of operation thesecond conveyor 22 is idle; thefeeder 16 is idle and does not feed carton blanks onto thesecond conveyor 22. Theloading device 24 picks up the article groups from thefirst conveyor 20 and places the article groups upon thefourth conveyor 26. Theloading device 24 is arranged to move the articles A downstream, as indicated by the direction arrow D2, whilst simultaneously moving the article groups from thefirst conveyor 20 to thefourth conveyor 26. In the second mode of operation theloading device 24 employs asecond tool head 27 adapted for picking up the articles A. Upon depositing articles A upon thefourth conveyor 26, theloading device 24 returns to thefirst conveyor 20, as indicated by direction arrow D5 inFigure 6 , to an upstream position to gather further articles A from thefirst conveyor 20. Once disposed upon thefourth conveyor 26, the articles A are conveyed to a wrappingstation 29. The article groups are wrapped in a film or sheet of material so as to retain the articles of each group of articles A together as a cohesive unit. Preferably, the film is shrink wrap material formed from a polymer plastics material such as, but not limited to, polyolefins, for example polyethylene or polypropylene, or polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The wrapped article groups are then conveyed to a shrinkingstation 28 which treats the film or sheet of material to tighten it about each article group. In the preferred embodiment the film is shrunk by the application of heat thereto; however, in other embodiments, other treatments may be applied to the film. In the illustrated embodiment thesecond tool head 27 is configured to pick up articles from thefirst conveyor 20 upon which they are arranged in metered groups of 12 articles arranged in a 2x6 configuration. Thesecond tool head 27 separates each 2x6 group of articles into three groups of 2x2 articles each spaced apart from one another when placed upon thefourth conveyor 26. - The packaging system 9 comprises a
fifth conveyor 32;fifth conveyor 32 is coupled to thethird conveyor 30 and to thefourth conveyor 26 which passes through the shrinkingstation 28. Thefifth conveyor 32 is wide enough to receive packages (either articles A wrapped in film, or articles A packaged into cartons C) from either thethird conveyor 30 or thefourth conveyor 26. Thefifth conveyor 32 is coupled to asixth conveyor 34. Thesixth conveyor 34 is narrower than thefifth conveyor 32 and is substantially aligned with thefourth conveyor 26 such that packages deposited on thefifth conveyor 32 by thefourth conveyor 26 can be deposited upon thesixth conveyor 34 without moving the packages in a direction transverse to the direction of travel of thefifth conveyor 32. In other words, an upstream end of thesixth conveyor 34 is co-linear with a downstream end of thefourth conveyor 26. - The
fifth conveyor 32 conveys packages received from thefourth conveyor 26 in a downstream direction only, which is parallel to the direction of travel of thefifth conveyor 32. Thefifth conveyor 32 comprises fixed guides which direct packages received from thethird conveyor 30 in a downstream direction, parallel to the direction of travel of thefifth conveyor 32, and also moves the packages in a transverse direction such that they may be deposited upon thesixth conveyor 34. It will be appreciated that thepackaging machine 10 comprises two paths which the articles A may travel upon or follow depending upon the desired packaging format. The first path passes through the shrinkingstation 28, the second path bypasses the shrinkingstation 28. Thus packagingmachine 10 comprises two distinct, spaced apart, exit locations for the packages. Thesixth conveyor 32 thus merges the two distinct paths of the packages, such that the location from which the packages exit thefifth conveyor 32 is the same irrespective of whether the articles A followed the first or second path. - In this way the cartons C which are received from the
third conveyor 30 are moved in a direction transverse to the direction of travel whilst being conveyed downstream, such that the packages debark from thefifth conveyor 32 at the same position irrespective of whether the packages are supplied to thefifth conveyor 32 by thethird conveyor 30 or thefourth conveyor 26. - The
sixth conveyor 34 conveys packages to atertiary packaging machine 38 which applies a tertiary package R to the secondary packages P, if desired. Thetertiary packing machine 38 may group one or more secondary packages P together for packaging in the tertiary package R. - The tertiary packages R or secondary packages P (if no tertiary package is applied) are then conveyed to a
second wrapping station 43 and a second shrinkingstation 42. The tertiary packages R or secondary packages P may be grouped together by asecond grouping device 41 which is arranged substantially the same as groupingstation 23. In this way the packages P may be further packaged in either, or both, of a tertiary package R (such as a tray) and a film material. - Referring now to
Figures 7 to 15 , there is shown an alternative embodiment of the present invention. In the second illustrated embodiment, like numerals have, where possible, been used to denote like parts, albeit with the addition of the prefix "100" to indicate that these features belong to the second embodiment. The alternative embodiments share many common features with the first embodiment and therefore only the differences from the embodiment illustrated inFigures 1 to 6 will be described in any greater detail. - The
packaging machine 110 comprises aninput conveyor 112, which provides an input stream of articles A, for example in two columns disposed side by side. Atransfer device 118 transfers the articles from theinput conveyor 112 to afirst conveyor 120. Thetransfer device 118 creates article groups of a predetermined size. The groups of articles A are each placed upon thefirst conveyor 120 at predefined pitch intervals such that the article groups are metered. - The
packaging machine 110 comprises afirst hopper 114 which holds blanks for forming cartons such as trays. Thefirst hopper 114 is coupled to afeeder 116 which places carton blanks upon asecond conveyor 122. The carton blanks are erected into a U-shaped form, for example by thefeeder 116 or by a separate device. The erected cartons C are each placed, betweenlugs 131, upon thesecond conveyor 122 at predefined pitch intervals such that the erected cartons C are metered. The pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups. - In a first mode of operation, illustrated in
Figures 7 to 9 the cartons C are trays. Aloading device 124 loads the cartons C with articles A; theloading device 124 comprises a first tool for handling the articles A. Theloading device 124 slides each article group into a respective tray; in doing so theloading device 124 transfers the articles A from thefirst conveyor 120 to thesecond conveyor 122. The article groups are continuously moving in a downstream direction whilst being slid from thefirst conveyor 120 to thesecond conveyor 122. The speed of thesecond conveyor 122 is matched to the speed of thefirst conveyor 120 such that the trays upon thesecond conveyor 122 and the articles A upon thefirst conveyor 120 move in the downstream direction synchronously. - The
packaging machine 110 comprises a grouping andtransfer device 140 disposed downstream from theloading device 124. In the first mode of operation, the grouping andtransfer device 140 is idle. Thetransfer device 118 creates article groups of 24 articles arranged in a 4x6 array. Each group of articles A are transferred, in the 4x6 array, to a tray. - Once the tray is loaded with articles A the ends of the tray, which comprise end closure panels, are closed by the
closing device 119 which folds the end closure panels. The end closure panels are secured with adhesive or other suitable treatment. The trays pass between a pair ofrollers 117 disposed on opposing sides of thesecond conveyor 122 which apply a force to each end of the tray to secure the end closure panels in place. - The trays of articles A then pass to a wrapping
station 129 which wraps the trays and articles A in a film or sheet of material. The wrapped trays of articles A are then conveyed to a shrinkingstation 128. The shrinkingstation 128 applies heat or other suitable treatment to shrink the film or sheet of material about the trays of articles A. -
Figures 10 and11 illustrate thepackaging machine 110 in a second mode of operation. In this mode articles A are conveyed upon thefirst conveyor 120 to the grouping andtransfer device 140. The grouping andtransfer device 140 comprises atool head 142. Only thetool head 142 is shown inFigures 10 and11 for clarity. - The
loading device 124, in the second mode of operation, is idle. Thetransfer device 140 places articles A upon thefirst conveyor 120 in metered groups of ten articles arranged in a 2x5 array. In other embodiments other article configurations are envisaged, for example but not limited to, eight articles A arranged in a 2x4 array or twelve articles A arranged in a 2x6 array. - The
tool head 142 of the grouping andtransfer device 140 picks up ten groups of articles A from separate pitches upon thefirst conveyor 120. Thetool head 142 is configured so that the five groups of articles A at the upstream end of thetool head 142 are placed upon thesecond conveyor 122 in a first lane L1, and the five groups of articles A at the downstream end of thetool head 142 are placed upon thesecond conveyor 122 in a second lane L2. The five groups of articles A at the upstream end of thetool head 142 are placed upon thesecond conveyor 122 at a position which is upstream of the five groups of articles A at the downstream end of thetool head 142 as indicated by phantom line T, which shows the position upon thesecond conveyor 122 where the ten groups of articles A picked up from thefirst conveyor 120 are placed. - The
tool head 142 is additionally configured to move upstream and downstream, such that it can move downstream in synchrony with thefirst conveyor 120 as it picks up the articles A. Thetool head 142 continues to move downstream, as indicated by direction arrow D8, as it deposits the articles A upon thesecond conveyor 122, at this time thetool head 142 moves downstream in synchrony with thesecond conveyor 122. Once thetool head 142 has deposited the articles A upon thesecond conveyor 122 it moves upstream to collect further groups of articles A from thefirst conveyor 120. - The two lanes L1, L2 of articles A are conveyed upon the
second conveyor 122 to the wrappingstation 129 which wraps the groups of articles A in each lane L1, L2 with a film of material. The wrapped groups are then conveyed to the shrinkingstation 128. -
Figures 12 and13 illustrate thepackaging machine 110 in a third mode of operation. In this mode articles A are conveyed upon thefirst conveyor 120 to the grouping andtransfer device 140. The grouping andtransfer device 140 comprises asecond tool head 144; only thetool head 144 is shown inFigures 12 and13 for clarity. - The
second tool head 144 is adapted to pick up five groups of twenty-four articles A arranged in a 4x6 array. The groups of articles A are transferred to thesecond conveyor 122 as indicated by direction arrow D7. The groups of articles A are placed upon thesecond conveyor 122, which then conveys the groups of articles A to the wrappingstation 129 where the groups of articles A are wrapped in film. Subsequently the groups of articles A are conveyed to the shrinkingstation 128 which tightens the film about the groups of articles A. -
Figures 14 and15 illustrate thepackaging machine 110 in a fourth mode of operation. In this mode articles A are conveyed upon thefirst conveyor 120 to theloading device 124. Theloading device 124 comprises a tool head adapted to slide the articles A from thefirst conveyor 120 into the carton C being conveyed upon thesecond conveyor 122. - As shown in
Figure 7 , thepackaging machine 110 comprises thefirst hopper 114 which holds blanks for forming cartons. Thehopper 114 is coupled to thefeeder 116 which places carton blanks upon asecond conveyor 122. The carton blanks are erected into a tubular form, for example by thefeeder 116 or by a separate device. The erected cartons C are each placed, betweenlugs 131, upon thesecond conveyor 122 at predefined pitch intervals such that the articles groups are metered. The pitch of the cartons C is arranged so as to match the pitch of the article groups. Theloading device 124 slides each article group into a respective erected carton C. In doing so theloading device 124 transfers the articles A from thefirst conveyor 120 to thesecond conveyor 122. - The open ends of the cartons C are closed by a
closing device 119 which folds end closure panels to close the open ends; the end closure panels are secured in place, for example with glue or other adhesive treatment, and pass between a pair ofbelts 117 which apply pressure to the end closure panels to ensure a secure bond. - The cartons C are then conveyed downstream upon the
second conveyor 122 to agrouping mechanism 123. Thegrouping mechanism 123 comprises a conveyor and flight bars, the flight bars moving at a different speed to the conveyor. Thegrouping mechanism 123 groups together a number of cartons C; in the illustrated embodiment two cartons C are grouped together. A first carton C is transferred onto the conveyor of thegrouping mechanism 123 and is conveyed at a first speed by the conveyor. A second carton is then transferred onto the conveyor, the second carton C being spaced apart from the first carton C. A flight bar moving at a second speed, faster than the first speed of the conveyor, then engages with the upstream end of the second carton C pushing it downstream, at the second speed, over the conveyor surface until it engages or contacts with the first carton C such that the flight bar pushes both first and second cartons C, downstream now at the second speed, over the conveyor until they are disposed upon the wrapping station. Preferably, the flight bars convey the cartons C downstream at a speed substantially equal to the speed at which thesecond conveyor 122 conveys the articles A downstream. - The wrapping
station 129 wraps the grouped cartons in film to hold them together. The wrapped carton groups are then conveyed to the shrinkingstation 128 where the film is treated so as to tighten it about grouped cartons C. In this way a plurality of cartons C can be held together as a single unit. - The
packaging machine 110 shown inFigures 7 to 15 may replace thepackaging machine 10 ofFigures 1 to 6 to form an alternative packaging system. The downstream end of the shrinkingstation 128 may be coupled to thesixth conveyor 34 such that further packaging operations may be carried out upon the packages produced by thepackaging machine 110. - It can be appreciated that various changes may be made within the scope of the present invention. For example, the size and shape of the panels and apertures may be adjusted to accommodate articles of differing size or shape.
- It will be recognised that as used herein, directional references such as "top", "bottom", "front", "back", "end", "side", "inner", "outer", "upper" and "lower" do not limit the respective panels to such orientation, but merely serve to distinguish these panels from one another.
- As used herein, the terms "hinged connection" and "fold line" refer to all manner of lines that define hinge features of the blank, facilitate folding portions of the blank with respect to one another, or otherwise indicate optimal panel folding locations for the blank. A fold line is typically a scored line, an embossed line, or a debossed line. Any reference to "hinged connection" or "fold line" should not be construed as necessarily referring to a single fold line only; indeed it is envisaged that hinged connection can be formed from any one or more of the following: a short slit, a frangible line or a fold line without departing from the scope of the invention.
- As used herein, the term "severance line" refers to all manner of lines that facilitate separating portions of the substrate from one another or that indicate optimal separation locations. Severance lines may be frangible or otherwise weakened lines, tear lines, cut lines, or slits.
- It should be understood that hinged connection, severance lines and fold lines can each include elements that are formed in the substrate of the blank including perforations, a line of perforations, a line of short slits, a line of half-cuts, a single half-cut, a cut line, an interrupted cut line, slits, scores, any combination thereof, and the like. The elements can be dimensioned and arranged to provide the desired functionality. For example, a line of perforations can be dimensioned or designed with degrees of weakness to define a fold line and/or a severance line. The line of perforations can be designed to facilitate folding and resist breaking, to facilitate folding and facilitate breaking with more effort, or to facilitate breaking with little effort.
Claims (2)
- A packaging machine for packaging one or more articles in a package;the packaging machine comprising a first article path and a second article path;wherein the packaging machine comprises a first apparatus (24) for packaging articles in a paperboard carton;and a second apparatus (29) for packaging articles in a plastics material;the packaging machine comprising at least one transfer device (24; 124) for transferring articles between a pair of conveyors (20, 22, 26; 120, 122) to select either the first article path or the second article path;the packaging machine being configurable such that the articles may follow either the first or second article path such that the articles may be packaged in either, or both, of the paperboard carton and the plastics material, wherein both the first and second article paths comprise a third apparatus (38) for application of a tertiary package and a fourth apparatus for application of a plastics material.
- A packaging machine according to claim 1 comprising:an input conveyor (12) for conveying an input stream of articles;the first apparatus comprising a first conveyor (22) for conveying cartons on a first article path;the second apparatus comprising a second conveyor (26) coupled to a wrapping station for applying a wrapping film on a second article path;wherein the transfer device is configured to transfer the articles on the input conveyor to either the first conveyor or the second conveyor, and wherein the transfer device either loads articles into the cartons on the first conveyor or places the articles upon the second conveyor for wrapping and wherein the first conveyor bypasses the wrapping station; the first conveyor and the second conveyor are each coupled to a third conveyor (32) which merges the first article path and the second article path together such that packages from each article of the first or second paths follow the same path downstream of the third conveyor; the third conveyor is coupled to the third apparatus (38) for loading packages into a tertiary package; wherein the third apparatus is coupled to a second wrapping station (43) by a fourth conveyor (40), such that the tertiary package or packages are wrapped in a film of plastics material.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
EP17199784.4A EP3301030B1 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GBGB1307791.2A GB201307791D0 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2013-04-30 | Packaging machine |
PCT/US2014/036019 WO2014204583A2 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
Related Child Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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EP17199784.4A Division EP3301030B1 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
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EP2991904A2 EP2991904A2 (en) | 2016-03-09 |
EP2991904B1 true EP2991904B1 (en) | 2017-12-06 |
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EP14781329.9A Active EP2991904B1 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
EP17199784.4A Active EP3301030B1 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
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EP17199784.4A Active EP3301030B1 (en) | 2013-04-30 | 2014-04-30 | Packaging machine |
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US (1) | US20160068290A1 (en) |
EP (2) | EP2991904B1 (en) |
ES (1) | ES2755901T3 (en) |
GB (1) | GB201307791D0 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2014204583A2 (en) |
Cited By (1)
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WO2024042440A1 (en) * | 2022-08-23 | 2024-02-29 | Cps Company S.R.L. | Packaging machine and method for packaging products |
Families Citing this family (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
ITUB20154224A1 (en) * | 2015-10-08 | 2017-04-08 | Gima Spa | FORMING AND FILLING MACHINE FOR DIFFERENT TYPOLOGICAL CASES |
ITUB20154231A1 (en) * | 2015-10-08 | 2017-04-08 | Gima Spa | INSERTION STATION OF PRODUCTS WITH DIFFERENT TYPOLOGICAL BODIES |
ITUB20154217A1 (en) | 2015-10-08 | 2017-04-08 | Gima Spa | TRANSPORT AND FORMING LINE FOR DIFFERENT TYPOLOGICAL CASES |
DE102017109470A1 (en) * | 2017-05-03 | 2018-11-08 | Illinois Tool Works Inc. | PACKAGING MACHINE AND METHOD OF PACKAGING PRODUCTS |
CN114502471A (en) | 2019-07-30 | 2022-05-13 | 安海斯-布希英博有限公司 | Article pick-up and handling apparatus |
USD980069S1 (en) | 2020-07-14 | 2023-03-07 | Ball Corporation | Metallic dispensing lid |
CN113086265A (en) * | 2021-02-25 | 2021-07-09 | 红云红河烟草(集团)有限责任公司 | Emergency storage boxing device for packaging box production line |
Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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EP2771263A1 (en) * | 2011-10-28 | 2014-09-03 | MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC | Packaging system, machine and transfer apparatus and method |
Family Cites Families (7)
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SE403901B (en) * | 1976-12-07 | 1978-09-11 | Sundpacma Ab | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR PACKAGING GOODS UNITS IN SO-CALL WRAP-AROUND PACKAGING DURING CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT |
IT1252925B (en) * | 1991-08-29 | 1995-07-05 | Gd Spa | SUPER-WRAPPING UNIT FOR PACKAGING CIGARETTE PACKAGES IN GROUPS |
GB9928230D0 (en) * | 1999-12-01 | 2000-01-26 | Bradman Lake Ltd | Robotic end-loader |
GB0801889D0 (en) * | 2008-02-01 | 2008-03-12 | Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems | Twin packaging line and metering system |
GB0812233D0 (en) * | 2008-07-04 | 2008-08-13 | Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems | Packaging machine and method of packaging articles |
EP2343243B1 (en) * | 2010-01-07 | 2012-06-13 | Uhlmann VisioTec GmbH | Assembly for monitored filling of solid pharmaceutical products |
AT510224A1 (en) * | 2010-07-16 | 2012-02-15 | Tgw Mechanics Gmbh | TRANSFER CONVEYOR |
-
2013
- 2013-04-30 GB GBGB1307791.2A patent/GB201307791D0/en not_active Ceased
-
2014
- 2014-04-30 EP EP14781329.9A patent/EP2991904B1/en active Active
- 2014-04-30 ES ES17199784T patent/ES2755901T3/en active Active
- 2014-04-30 US US14/888,109 patent/US20160068290A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2014-04-30 EP EP17199784.4A patent/EP3301030B1/en active Active
- 2014-04-30 WO PCT/US2014/036019 patent/WO2014204583A2/en active Application Filing
Patent Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP2771263A1 (en) * | 2011-10-28 | 2014-09-03 | MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC | Packaging system, machine and transfer apparatus and method |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
WO2024042440A1 (en) * | 2022-08-23 | 2024-02-29 | Cps Company S.R.L. | Packaging machine and method for packaging products |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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EP3301030B1 (en) | 2019-08-14 |
US20160068290A1 (en) | 2016-03-10 |
EP3301030A1 (en) | 2018-04-04 |
WO2014204583A3 (en) | 2015-04-16 |
ES2755901T3 (en) | 2020-04-24 |
WO2014204583A2 (en) | 2014-12-24 |
GB201307791D0 (en) | 2013-06-12 |
EP2991904A2 (en) | 2016-03-09 |
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