High speed produce label applicator

Details High speed produce label applicator High speed produce label applicator

1999-02-19

2001-07-10

Crispino, Richard (Department: 1734)

Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture

Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor

Automatic and/or material-triggered control

C156S361000, C156S387000, C156S566000, C156S567000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06257294

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for printing adhesive labels with information specific to the produce item to be labeled and applying the labels to that produce item by a vacuum/air burst system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A variety of labelling and object sorting apparatus and methods have been disclosed. The following documents are hereby incorporated by reference:
1. Patent application, entitled “Object Sorter and Sizer,” applicant Roger Blood, filed on Feb. 20, 1998, patent application Ser. No. 09/027,489.
2. U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,941.
3. U.S. Pat. No. 4,189,337
4. U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,586
5. U.S. Pat. No. 5,489,360
6. U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,680
7. U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,302
8. U.S. Pat. No. 4,328,063
9. U.S. Pat. No. 4,547,001
10. U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,676
11. U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,057
12. U.S. Pat. No. 2,848,228
13. U.S. Pat. No. 3,888,725
14. U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,648
15. U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,211
16. U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,714
17. U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,747
18. U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,416
19. European Patent Application No. EP 0 113 256 A2
Generally, in a conventional produce labeller, pre-printed labels are used requiring one to order in advance labels for different varieties of produce, such as fruits and vegetables. There are as many as 60 or 70 varieties of some fruits. The labels usually are printed before the produce season begins each year. Quantities of labels to be printed are based on a rough estimate of the type of produce that would be available in that given year. However, the necessary quantities of pre-printed labels for each variety of produce are difficult to predict. Thus, for example, on must guess how many large red delicious apple labels or how many small red delicious apple labels would be needed. Conventional produce labellers require ordering and buying these pre-printed labels whether or not they are eventually used. One must also estimate minimum quantities of pre-printed labels which might be required. Often these estimates are inaccurate resulting in a waste of the labels. Further label waste results from the practice of ordering more labels than the anticipated requirement in order to avoid label shortages if additional fruit requires packing.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a label applicator, which includes a label carrier reel containing a plurality of unprinted labels. The label applicator also includes a print station including a printer, positioned to print a desired image on said unprinted labels to provide printed labels. The label applicator further includes a pickup head for picking up the printed labels from said print station at a label transfer position, rotationally carrying said printed labels from said label transfer position to a label deposit position, and successively placing the printed labels on individual objects.
According to the invention, blank labels on a backing tape are supplied to a printer. Even before the printer completes printing information on a blank label, a pickup head at a label transfer position begins to remove the label from the backing tape. A vacuum is applied through the pickup head to remove and hold the printed label onto an applicator at the end of the pickup head. The pickup head, which is mounted on a rotating plate, remains in a retracted position until it rotates from the label transfer position to a label deposit position. At the label deposit position, pressure, such as air pressure is applied to drive a firing piston to apply force to a main piston. Momentum of the main piston drives the applicator with the label toward the object to be labelled. After the pickup head rotates away from the label deposit position, the vacuum retracts the pickup head and applicator.
The system can be controlled to prevent the pickup head from advancing at the label deposit position, for example when no object is present. Alternatively, the labelling apparatus construction can be simplified by allowing the pickup head to advance each time it passes the label deposit position. In order to avoid wasting labels, using the same control system that informs the printer what information to print, the printer can also advise the printer when no object requiring a label is present. The printer will then cease printing and advancing the label tape until another label is needed. As a result, the labelling apparatus can have a conveniently simplified mechanical construction in which the pickup head always advances at the label deposit position, because it does not have a label on the applicator where no label is required but does have a label on the applicator when an object requires labelling.


REFERENCES:
patent: 2848228 (1958-08-01), Kimbro
patent: 3616050 (1971-10-01), Schrotz
patent: 3888725 (1975-06-01), French
patent: 4129473 (1978-12-01), Perret
patent: 4174057 (1979-11-01), Emery
patent: 4189337 (1980-02-01), Higgins et al.
patent: 4194941 (1980-03-01), Briggs et al.
patent: 4235661 (1980-11-01), Evrard
patent: 4244763 (1981-01-01), Varon et al.
patent: 4293365 (1981-10-01), Geyser et al.
patent: 4328063 (1982-05-01), Ingalls
patent: 4512842 (1985-04-01), Schneider
patent: 4526648 (1985-07-01), Tochtermann
patent: 4547001 (1985-10-01), Stitt
patent: 4595447 (1986-06-01), Lindstrom
patent: 4707211 (1987-11-01), Shibata
patent: 4784714 (1988-11-01), Shibata
patent: 4881934 (1989-11-01), Harston et al.
patent: 4919747 (1990-04-01), Eagle
patent: 4978416 (1990-12-01), Potter et al.
patent: 5054761 (1991-10-01), Dietrich et al.
patent: 5104306 (1992-04-01), Gordon et al.
patent: 5149392 (1992-09-01), Plaesemann
patent: 5387302 (1995-02-01), Bernard et al.
patent: 5441586 (1995-08-01), Fukunaga et al.
patent: 5489360 (1996-02-01), Shimizu et al.
patent: 5645680 (1997-07-01), Rietheimer
patent: 5660676 (1997-08-01), Brooks
patent: 5829351 (1998-11-01), Anderson et al.
patent: 5849142 (1998-12-01), Fuehrer et al.
patent: 5888343 (1999-03-01), Olson
patent: 6024830 (2000-02-01), Nedblake et al.
patent: 1 884 257 (1963-12-01), None
patent: 0 113 256 (1984-07-01), None
patent: 2 657 327 (1991-07-01), None
patent: 96/39331 (1996-12-01), None

Affiliated with

Also associated with

Rating

High speed produce label applicator does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.

If you have personal experience with High speed produce label applicator, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and High speed produce label applicator will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2509926