ZA200907147B

ZA200907147B - Support plate

Info

Publication number: ZA200907147B
Application number: ZA200907147A
Authority: ZA
Inventors: William Lennox Ochse; Jacobus Cornelius Lock
Original assignee: Filmatic Packaging Sytems Pty
Priority date: 2009-10-14
Filing date: 2009-10-14
Publication date: 2010-06-30

Description

Co TT SUPPORT PLATE 2009 7071 47

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a support plate.

More particularly, the present invention relates to an anti-rotation support plate ' 5 for a bottle capping machine. : BACKGROUND TO INVENTION

Bottles and containers are commonly used to contain various solid or liquid products and are normally filled by an automatic filling machine and subsequently the bottle is closed with a cap applied by an automatic capping machine. Such capping machines have a rotating supporting table for supporting a series of bottles and aligning these with the capping heads, that screw a threaded cap onto the bottle neck.

On most automated bottling lines, the capping machine employs some mechanism to prevent the bottle from rotating around its own axis while the cap is being applied. Known anti-rotation mechanisms include, amongst others, : pins & blades that are applied to the neck ring of PET bottles or dedicated formed support plates used to received pre-shaped complementary bottle bases as a means to keep the bottles from rotating. These “tools” need to be specifically manufactured for each bottle shape and thus need to be swapped out when different shaped bottles are capped on the capping machine. These mechanisms are thus expensive to manufacture and time consuming during use.

Alternatively, rubber lined pads are used as supports for the base of the bottles, or rubber inserts are located on the guiding components that are applied to the sides of containers for holding the bottles by friction resistance. The problem with such rubber pads are that they often lose their tackiness and effectiveness : when they become wet, which invariable happens during production due to spillage.

DrG Ref: 680214

It is an object of the invention to suggest a support plate which will assist in overcoming these problems. : SUMMARY OF INVENTION . ‘According to the invention a support plate, being adapted to support a base of a container during a capping process wherein a cap is applied to an opposite open end of the container by rotating the cap onto a neck of the container around a } rotational axis, includes at least one elongated edge, the elongated edge extending perpendicularly relative to the rotational axis and away from the support plate, the edge being adapted to grip a base of the container by biting into it.

The support plate may include a mounting base, in use, having an upper surface; a slot provided in the mounting base on its upper surface; a blade supporting in the slot at an angle relative to the upper surface, so that the blade extends partially out from the slot beyond the outer surface, wherein the elongated edge is provided on the blade.

The mounting base may include attachment formations being adapted to attach the plate to a capping machine.

The slot may be provided with a raised internal seat for supporting a part of the blade.

The support plate may include a screw for holding the blade in its slot.

The screw may extend through the blade.

The screw, having a screw head, may be located adjacent to the blade so that the blade is held between the mounting plate and the screw head.

The support plate may include a washer adjacent to the screw head.

The blade may be manufactured from hardened stainless steel.

The blade may be angled relative to the upper surface at an angle of between 5° to 45°.

DrG Ref: 680214

The support plate may include more than one slot, each slot being provided with its own blade. - The support plate may include three slots extending from the rotational axis at discrete 60° intervals.

The invention extends to a capping machine provided with a support plate as described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying schematic drawing.

In the drawing there is shown an isometric view of a support plate according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

Referring to the drawing, there is shown a support plate in accordance with the invention, generally indicated by reference numeral 10. The support plate 10 is © 15 adapted to be joined to a capping machine (not shown), wherein a bottle or similar container is fed onto a supporting table for alignment with a capping head, the support plate 10 being provided on the supporting table.

The support plate 10 includes a mounting base 12 being generally in the form of a flat circular disc having an outer circumferential edge 14 . The mounting base 12 has a passage 16 extending through the centre of the disc and further has cut-outs 18 provided in its circumferential edge 14, which are adapted to operatively attach the support plate 10 to the capping machine for use.

The mounting base 12 has an upper surface 20 on which is provided a number of equally spaced apart slots 22 located radially between the passage 16 and the circumferential edge 14. If required, the slots 22 can extend fully from the passage 16 to the edge 14. Alternatively, as shown, the slots 22 can be spaced apart from the passage 16 and extend to the circumferential edge 14. Each slot 22 has an internal raised seat 24 extending along its length.

DrG Ref: 680214

: Adjacent to each slot 22, on the opposite side thereof to the seat 24, there is provided a threaded screw hole 26, which has a surrounding annular recess 28 that intersects with the slot 22. The recess 28 locates a washer 30 that is held : in place by a screw 32 inserted into the hole 26. ) 5 Each slot 22 locates a substantially flat rectangular blade 34 having an edge 36. . Each blade 34 is inserted into its slot 22 so that its edge 36 rests on the raised seat 24 thereby causing the blade 34 to be at a planar angle relative to the ’ mounting base 30, which edge 36 accordingly projects out from the slot 22

So beyond the upper surface 20 of the mounting base 12. The blade 34 is secured in place by tightening the washer 30 against it.

Each blade 34 is manufactured from hardened stainless steel. ~The planar angle between the blade 34 and the mounting base 12 may be between 5° to 45°.

In use, when a bottle is fed onto the supporting table of the capping machine, the bottle is located on top of the support plate 10 so that the blades 34 are below the base of the bottle. The planar angle at which the blades 34 are mounted results in a line contact between the edges 36 and the base of the bottle. During the capping process, as down force is applied to the bottle by the capping head, the edges 36 engage with and “bite” into the bottle base, thereby preventing the bottle from rotating and without damaging the bottle.

DrG Ref: 680214

Claims

: 6 arm NE 8 CLAIMS h

1. A support plate being adapted to support a base of a container during a . capping process wherein a cap is applied to an opposite open end of the container by rotating the cap onto a neck of the container around a ' 5 rotational axis, the support plate including at least one elongated edge, the . elongated edge extending perpendicularly relative to the rotational axis : and away from the support plate, the edge being adapted to grip a base of : the container by biting into it.

2. A support plate as claimed in claim 1, which includes a mounting base, in use, having an upper surface; a slot provided in the mounting base on its upper surface; a blade supporting in the slot at an angle relative to the upper surface, so that the blade extends partially out from the slot beyond the outer surface, wherein the elongated edge is provided on the blade.

3. A support plate as claimed in claim 2, in which the mounting base includes attachment formations being adapted to attach the plate to a capping machine.

4. A support plate as claimed in claim 2 or 3, in which the slot is provided with a raised internal seat for supporting a part of the blade.

5. A support plate as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 4, which includes a screw for holding the blade in its slot.

6. A support plate as claimed in claim 5, in which the screw extends through the blade.

7. A support plate as claimed in claim 5, in which the screw has a screw head and the screw is located adjacent to the blade so that the blade is held between the mounting plate and the screw head. :

8. A support plate as claimed in claim 7, which includes a washer adjacent to the screw head.

9. A support plate as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 8, in which the blade is manufactured from hardened stainless steel. DrG Ref: 680214

10. A support plate as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 9, in which the blade is angled relative to the upper surface at an angle of between 5° to 45°. -

11. A support plate as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 10, which includes ~ more than one slot, each slot being provided with its own blade.

12. A support plate as claimed in claim 11, which includes three slots extending from the rotational axis at discrete 60° intervals.

13. A support plate substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying schematic drawing.

14. A capping machine provided with a support plate as claimed in any one of the preceding claims. Date: 14 October 2009 A ° John Spicer / DR GERNTHOIAZ INC Patent Attorngds of Applicant(s) P O Box 8; Cape Town 8000; South Africa 30 Union Road; Milnerton 7441; South Africa Tel: (021) 551 2650 Fax: (021) 551 2960 DrG Ref.: 680214 t:\files\14\680214\680214 spec.docx DrG Ref: 680214