Package making – Progressively seamed cover web or web folds – With closing of web between package units
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-01
2001-02-20
Sipos, John (Department: 3721)
Package making
Progressively seamed cover web or web folds
With closing of web between package units
C053S248000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06189301
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a form-fill-seal type packaging machine for continuously producing packaged products by filling bags with articles such as candies while these bags are being formed.
As disclosed for example in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 10-7102, a packaging machine of this type is typically adapted to bend an elongated bag-making material (the “film”) by wrapping it around a tubular chute, to make it into a tubular form by sealing its side edges together longitudinally, to thereafter seal it and cut it transversely at specified intervals to continuously form bags, and to drop articles to be packaged into the bags through the chute while these bags are being formed. The transverse sealing of the tubularly formed film is usually carried out by clamping it by a device for thermal sealing, and the film is separated at the sealed positions to be made into individual packaged bags. Thus, the sealing must be effected during time intervals between periods during which articles are dropped through the chute.
The current tendency in the packaging technology is to shorten the intervals at which the articles to be packaged are dropped in successive batches so as to improve the productivity. Although the intervals are shortened, there will be enough space of time left between the dropping of one batch to that of the next if articles in each batch drop closely together and the sealing device can be operated to clamp the film during such a space of time. In reality, however, articles which are dropped together as a batch become dispersed while undergoing a free fall inside the chute. As a result, it is likely that some of the articles are caught when the sealing device clamps the film transversely.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved packaging machine of the form-fill-seal type capable of transversely sealing the film without catching the articles being dropped in although the intervals at which they are dropped in batches are shortened.
A packaging machine embodying this invention, with which the above and other objects can be accomplished, may be characterized as having what is herein referred to as a “halting device” above a transverse sealer and a cylindrical chute around which a film is formed into a tubular form and through which articles to be packaged are dropped cyclically in batches. The function of the halting device is to momentarily halt the free-falling motion of the articles before reaching the transverse sealer such that the articles dropped together within the same cycle will pass through the transverse sealer as a more compactly bunched batch. The more compact the batches which pass through the transverse sealer, the easier it becomes to avoid catching any of the articles between sealing devices of the transverse sealer which clamp the film to effect the transverse sealing.
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Kakita Yukio
Kubo Michihiro
Nakagawa Yukio
Coudert Brothers
Ishida Co. Ltd.
Sipos John
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