APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR FILLING A PRODUCT INTO A CONTAINER

• US 20180118396A1
• Filed: 04/20/2016
• Published: 05/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance SA (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Original Assignee: Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance SA (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Inventors: Lindberg, Peter, Ekberg, Gert
• Granted Patent: US 10,625,884 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 3/12 mechanically, e.g. by pistons or pumps
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 3/30 by volumetric measurement
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/001 with flow cut-off means, e.g. valves
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/06 adapted to support containers or wrappers
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/12 movable towards or away from container or wrapper during filling or depositing
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/59 vertically movable B65B43/58 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/145 for fluent material
• CPC Class Codes: B67C 3/007 Applications of control, warning or safety devices in filling machinery flow-control B67C3/28
• CPC Class Codes: B67C 3/24 Devices for supporting or handling bottles transport or storing devices in general B65G
• CPC Class Codes: B67C 3/28 Flow-control devices, e.g. using valves B67C3/2617, B67C3/2625, B67C3/2637 take precedence; valves in general F16K

Abstract

An apparatus for filling a product into a container is provided. The apparatus comprises: a filling unit configured for delivering the product into the container, the filling unit comprising a pump and furthermore a filling nozzle at its one end; a drive unit for moving the container in relation to the filling unit or vice versa back and forth between a first position, in which a bottom end of the container is arranged at a maximum distance from the filling nozzle, and a second position, in which the bottom end of the container is arranged at a minimum distance from the filling nozzle; and a control unit configured to controlling delivery of the product through the filling nozzle, to control the drive unit, and to calculate a new drive unit motion or controlling movement from said second position to said first position. The control unit is further configured to calculate the speed of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit, to calculate drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump speed at predefined positions of the drive unit, and to update the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.

Claims

1. An apparatus for filling a product into a container, the apparatus comprising:

a filling unit configured to deliver the product into the container, the filling unit comprising a pump and a filling nozzle at its one end;

a drive unit configured to move the container in relation to the filling unit between a first position, in which a bottom end of the container is arranged at a maximum distance from the filling nozzle, and a second position, in which the bottom end of the container is arranged at a minimum distance from the filling nozzle, and

a controller configured to;

control delivery of the product through the filling nozzle;

control the drive unit;

calculate a new drive unit motion profile for controlling movement from said second position to said first position;

calculate a speed of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit;

calculate drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump speed at predefined positions of the drive unit; and

update the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to calculate the new drive unit motion profile based on a current product volume delivered by the pump, said current product volume being converted into length units.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to register an operational end position of the drive unit corresponding to said second position, assign the registered operational position as a new initial position for the drive unit, and calculate said drive unit motion profile based on said new initial position.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said controller is further configured to initiate delivery of the product through the filling nozzle before the drive unit reaches said operational end position.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said drive unit motion profile is calculated as a function of a pump motion profile.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to update the drive unit motion profile by comparing the new initial position for the drive unit with a current product volume delivered by the pump converted into length units at certain predefined instances during filling of the container.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the controller is further configured to calculate an actual product level in the container in relation to the new initial position of the drive unit by comparing the new initial position to a current product volume delivered by the pump converted into length units minus a constant multiplied by the converted volume squared.

8. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the controller is further configured to calculate drive unit compensation distances as a function of the actual product level at predefined positions of the drive unit, and to update the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to calculate the acceleration of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit, to calculate drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump acceleration at predefined positions of the drive unit, and to update the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the controller is further configured to instruct the drive unit to keep the container in the new initial position until the calculated position for the drive unit is less than the new initial position before moving the container away from the filling nozzle.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the filling unit comprises inlet and outlet valves configured to regulate volume of product delivered into a fill volume and the volume of product delivered to the container respectively and wherein the controller is further configured to control time instances at which the inlet and outlet valves open and close.

12. A method for filling a product into a container, the method comprising:

controlling a drive unit for moving the container in relation to a filling unit from a first position, in which a bottom end of the container is arranged at a maximum distance from a filling nozzle, to a second position, in which the bottom end of the container is arranged at a minimum distance from the filling nozzle;

opening a first end of the filling unit and filling the product into the container;

moving the container away from the first end of the filling unit by controlling the drive unit to step through a number of predefined positions according to a drive unit motion profile, while continuing to fill the product into the container;

closing the first end of the filling unit, when the container has been moved to a predefined end position;

calculating a speed of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit;

calculating drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump speed at predefined positions of the drive; and

updating the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising calculating a new drive unit motion profile for controlling movement from said second position to said first position based on a current product volume delivered by the pump, said current product volume being converted into length units.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein delivery of the product through the filling nozzle is initiated before the drive unit is controlled to move the container away from the end of the filling unit or vice versa.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

registering an operational end position of the drive unit corresponding to said second position as a new initial position;

wherein said predefined positions of the drive unit during filling of the container are recalculated in relation to the new initial position.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising calculating a motion profile for the drive unit by comparing the new initial position for the drive unit with a current product volume delivered by the pump converted into length units.

17. The method according to claim 15, further comprising calculating an actual product level in the container in relation to the new initial position of the drive unit by comparing the new initial position to a current product volume delivered by a pump of the filling unit converted into length units minus a constant multiplied by the converted volume squared.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising calculating the acceleration of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit in order to obtain drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump speed at each predefined position of the drive unit.

19. The method according to claim 12, further comprising controlling a volume of the product delivered into a fill volume of the filling system and the volume of product delivered to the container respectively by controlling the movement of inlet and outlet valves in the filling unit.

20. A computer storage system comprising a non-transitory storage device, said computer storage system having stored thereon executable program instructions that direct a computer system of an apparatus for filling a product into a container to at least:

control a drive unit for moving the container in relation to a filling unit from a first position, in which a bottom end of the container is arranged at a maximum distance from a filling nozzle, to a second position, in which the bottom end of the container is arranged at a minimum distance from the filling nozzle;

open a first end of the filling unit and filling the product into the container;

moving the container away from the first end of the filling unit by control the drive unit to step through a number of predefined positions, while continuing to fill the product into the container;

close the first end of the filling unit, when the container has been moved to a predefined end position;

calculate a speed of the pump at predefined positions of the drive unit, calculate drive unit compensation distances as a function of the pump speed at predefined positions of the drive unit, and

update the drive unit motion profile using said drive unit compensation distances.