Package making – Methods – Conforming by stretching or shrinking of cover over contents
Patent
1994-12-19
1996-05-14
Sipos, John
Package making
Methods
Conforming by stretching or shrinking of cover over contents
53399, 53456, 53449, B65B 3500
Patent
active
055156622
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to the packaging of articles of any kind particularly flowable granules, powders or liquids.
The method or methods of the invention may be incorporated into fully automated packaging lines.
The invention is useful in the packaging of flowable granules such as plastic granules, cereals, powders such as fertilisers or liquids as well as for baling of waste materials with only minor modification being required. Materials of all kinds including industrial, commercial and domestic waste materials are currently handled in a variety of ways including use of plastic bags which are difficult to handle if they are to be subject to exposure to liquids and/or compacting of contents and includes intermediate bulk containers which are usually filled with material such as fertilisers, cereal or plastic granules. Furthermore such bags tend to be expensive and do not lend themselves to recycling procedures.
A packaging system of the present type has already been disclosed in our co-pending International Patent Application No. PCT/AU92/00142 which is hereby incorporated herein by cross reference.
The present invention has as its objective to provide a bulk package and packaging system in which the need for a solid base member or conventional pallet base is dispensed with and the package can be handled by normal handling machinery and methods.
There is provided according to the present invention a method of forming a bulk container comprising the steps of forming an open container of flexible material having walls and a closed bottom with a retractable or removable framework therein, at least partially filling the container with material, removing or retracting said framework from said container, closing the container, and subsequently over wrapping the closed container with stretch plastic film to form reinforcing strips to reinforce the container and allow engagement with handling apparatus such as the fork of a lift truck.
In a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of forming a container comprising the steps of forming an open chamber of flexible material having walls and a closed bottom with a retractable or removable framework therein acting to maintain the container volume open, at least partially filling the container with material, removing or retracting said framework from said container, wrapping said container and a spacer means with flexible material to reinforce said container and secure said spacer means, said spacer means being arranged and adapted to allow engagement with a load handling apparatus.
A reinforcing stretch film is preferably wrapped circumferentially around the container end to end to form a right angular cross pattern. To assist engagement with the fork or forks of a lift truck a rigid spacer member(s) is (are) provided at either end of the container between the end of the container and the reinforcing wrap. Thus with the spacer at the top of the container, the container can be transported by a lift truck suspended from the tine of the lift truck or resting on the tine with the spacers at the bottom of the container.
It has been found that the container formed in accordance with the invention will assume a substantially rectangular cubic configuration which is conveniently stackable in the manner of a conventional rectangular cubic bag container without danger of the contents of the container slipping or moving.
The invention is conveniently used in association with a packaging system disclosed in our above-referred to patent application, however, it can be utilised with conventional pre-formed plastic bag systems and overcomes the problem inherent in such systems in retaining a substantially rectangular cubic configuration. Furthermore in conventional bag systems flowable contents such as liquids or granules do tend to shift and the present invention is adapted to overcome this difficulty.
The invention may be used with or without a support base. A support base is not essential if a rigid spacer is provided at the top or the bottom of
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patent: 4546593 (1985-10-01), Lasscock
patent: 4593517 (1986-06-01), Mattila
patent: 4924654 (1990-05-01), Langer et al.
patent: 5056571 (1991-10-01), Derby
patent: 5317851 (1994-06-01), Lang et al.
First Green Park Pty Ltd.
Sipos John
Tolan Ed
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