AUTOMATIC BAG FILLING MACHINE WITH SEVERAL FILLING STATIONS

• US 20200130877A1
• Filed: 10/25/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Concetti Spa
• Original Assignee: Concetti Spa
• Inventors: CONCETTI, TEODORO, CONCETTI, EMANUELE
• Granted Patent: US 11,267,599 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/02 Machines characterised by the incorporation of means for making the containers or receptacles from flat, folded, or tubular webs of flexible sheet material B65B9/00
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/04 Methods of, or means for, filling the material into the containers or receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/06 by gravity flow
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/26 by pneumatic means, e.g. suction
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/28 Controlling escape of air or dust from containers or receptacles during filling
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 2051/105 Heat seal temperature control
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/007 Guides or funnels for introducing articles into containers or wrappers
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/10 operating automatically
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/14 Feeding individual bags or carton blanks from piles or magazines
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/30 by grippers engaging opposed walls, e.g. suction-operated
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/465 for bags
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/54 Means for supporting containers or receptacles during the filling operation
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 51/10 Applying or generating heat or pressure or combinations thereof welding of plastics per se B29C65/02; closing plastic tube ends in general B29C57/10
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 51/26 Devices specially adapted for producing transverse or longitudinal seams in webs or tubes
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 51/32 Cooling, or cooling and pressing, package closures after heat-sealing
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 9/13 the preformed tubular webs being supplied in a flattened state

Abstract

Machine for filling bags with loose products, in particular to a forming and filling machine, in which the bags fed one at a time to the single pick-up position are formed along the line from a tubular material, preferably by means of a forming station provided with means for sealing the bottom of each bag, arranged in said pick-up position.

Claims

1. Machine for filling bags (1) with predefined quantities of loose products, the machine extending in a longitudinal direction (X-X) of movement of the bags (1) from an upstream inlet (M) to a downstream outlet (V), there being defined a sense of movement (V1) concordant with the advancing movement of the bags from upstream to downstream and a sense of movement (V2) opposite to the preceding sense (V1) in the longitudinal direction (X-X), the machine comprising:

a station (A,F) for feeding, to a single pick-up position, a bag (1) oriented with its mouth extending in a transverse direction (Y-Y) perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (X-X) of advancing movement;

at least a first filling station (R1) and a second filling station (R2) of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) for filling a respective bag (1), which are arranged in succession along the longitudinal direction (X-X) of movement of the bags (1), downstream of the pick-up position, each filling station (R1,R2,Rn) being associated with respective gripping means for gripping the bag;

said pick-up position and at least two filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) being arranged at a predefined and identical relative distance from one another, which corresponds to a step between adjacent stations in the longitudinal direction (X-X);

transport means (100,1100) for transporting the bags from one station to the other station, which are movable in both senses (V1,V2) of the longitudinal direction (X-X) and are provided with pairs of gripping means (110) for gripping a bag, the gripping means of a pair being arranged opposite each other in the transverse direction (Y-Y);

the machine being configured so that the said transport means (100,110) perform single translation movements, each with a displacement equal to one step in the sense (V2) opposite to the sense of advancing movement of the bags in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and with a displacement equal to a number of steps which is equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) in the sense (V1) concordant with the advancing movement of the bags in the longitudinal direction (X-X),

wherein said pairs of gripping means (110a,110b,110c,110d) for gripping a bag comprise a number of pairs at least equal to twice the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn), each pair of gripping means being arranged at a distance of one step in the longitudinal direction (X-X) from the pair/s of bag gripping means (110) adjacent thereto.

2. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the transport means (100;

1100) are operated so as to perform a number of single translation movements in the sense (V2) opposite to the sense of advancing movement of the bags in the longitudinal direction, equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn), before performing a single translation movement in the sense (V1) concordant with the advancing movement of the bags in the longitudinal direction (X-X).

3. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the number of filling stations is equal to two.

4. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that it is a forming and filling machine, in which the bags fed one at a time to the single pick-up position are formed along the line from a tubular material (101), preferably by means of a forming station (F) provided with means for sealing the bottom of each bag and arranged in said pick-up position.

5. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a number of stations (S1,S2,Sn) for sealing the mouth of the bag equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn), said stations being arranged in succession at a relative distance of one step from each other and from the last filling station in the longitudinal direction (X-X).

6. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a number of stations (C1,C2,Cn) for cooling the sealed bag mouth, equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn), said cooling stations being arranged in succession at a relative distance of one step from each other and from the last bag mouth sealing station.

7. Machine according to claim 1, comprising a number of pairs of gripping means which is a multiple ≥

2 of the number of filling stations, preferably equal to twice the number of filling stations, plus the number of cooling stations.

8. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the transport means comprise a polygonal, preferably quadrangular, frame or carriage (100) which carries said pairs of gripping means (110) and is movable translatably in both senses (V1,V2) of the longitudinal direction X-X.

9. Method for filling bags (1) with quantities of loose products, by means of a machine according to claim 1, comprising the following steps:

a) feeding a first bag (1) to the pick-up position (F);

b) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) with a displacement equal to one step in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the opposite sense (V2) to the sense (V1) of advancing movement of the bags from upstream (M) to downstream (V), so as to bring a first pair of gripping means (110a) into the pick-up position;

c) gripping of the first bag (1a) by the first pair of gripping means (110a) in the pick-up position;

d) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) with a displacement equal to a further step in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the opposite sense (V2) to the sense (V1) of advancing movement of the bags from upstream (M) to downstream (V);

e) feeding a further bag (1b) to the pick-up position (F);

f) gripping of the further bag (1b) by a pair of gripping means (110b) which are adjacent, downstream in the longitudinal direction (X-X), to the gripping means which picked up the preceding bag (1a), in the pick-up position;

g) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the sense (V1) concordant with the advancing movement of the bags, with a displacement equal to a number of steps corresponding to the number of filling stations, so as to bring with a single translation movement each picked-up bag (1a,1b) into a respective filling station (R1,R2,Rn);

h) gripping of the respective bag (1a,1b) by the gripping means associated with the filling station (R1,R2,Rn) and releasing of the bags by the gripping means (110) associated with the transport means (100;

1100);

i) simultaneous filling of the bags (1a,1b) in the respective filling station (R1,R2,Rn);

j) conveying away of the filled bags towards the machine outlet.

10. Method according to claim 1, comprising a step of:

repeating the steps d) to f) a number of times equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) of the machine less two;

before the step g) of translation in the sense (V1) concordant with the sense of advancing movement from upstream (M) to downstream (V) in the longitudinal direction.

11. Method according to claim 9, comprising the following steps performed following the releasing step h) performed by the gripping means (110):

a1) feeding a further bag (1c) to the pick-up position (F);

b1) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) with a displacement equal to one step in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the opposite sense (V2) to the sense (V1) of advancing movement of the bags from upstream (M) to downstream (V), so as to bring the first pair of gripping means (110a) into the pick-up position;

c1) gripping of the further bag (1c) by the first pair of gripping means (110a) in the pick-up position;

d1) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) with a displacement equal to a further step in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the opposite sense (V2) to the sense (V1) of advancing movement of the bags from upstream (M) to downstream (V);

e1) feeding of a further bag (1d) to the pick-up position (F);

f1) gripping of the further bag (1b) by a pair of gripping means (110b) which are adjacent downstream in the longitudinal direction (X-X) to the gripping means (110a) which picked up the preceding bag (1c) in the pick-up position;

f2) repetition of the steps d1) to f1) a number of times equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) of the machine less two;

and the following steps performed following the step i) of simultaneous filling of the bags in the filling station;

f3) gripping of each filled bag (1a,1b) arranged in a filling station (R1,R2,Rn), by a respective pair of gripping means (110) carried by the transport means (100;

1100) and releasing of the respective bag (1a,1b) by the gripping means associated with the filling station (R1,R2,Rn);

g1) translation of the transport means (100;

1100) in the longitudinal direction (X-X) and in the sense (V1) concordant with the advancing movement (V1) of the bags, with a displacement equal to a number of steps corresponding to the number of filling stations, so as to bring with a single translation movement each further bag (1c,1d), previously picked up, into a respective filling station (R1,R2,Rn) and convey away each filled bag towards the outlet;

h1) gripping of a respective further bag (1c,1d) by the gripping means associated with the filling station (R1,R2,Rn) and releasing of the bags by the gripping means (110) associated with the transport means (100;

1100);

ii) simultaneous filling of the further bags (1c,1d) in the respective filling station (R1,R2,Rn).

12. Method according to claim 9, wherein, following simultaneous filling of the bags in the respective filling station, each filled bag (1a, 1b) is gripped by a respective pair of gripping means (110) of the transport means (100;

1100), and the transport means are made to advance in the longitudinal direction (X-X) in the sense concordant with the direction of advancing movement of the bags by a number of steps equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) so as to bring each filled bag into a respective one of a plurality of sealing stations (S1,S2,Sn) for sealing the mouth of the bag, said sealing stations being arranged in succession and in a number equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn) at a relative distance of one step from each other and from the last filling station in the longitudinal direction (X-X).

13. Method according to claim 1, wherein, following sealing of the mouth of the bags in the respective sealing station (S1,S2,Sn), each bag (1a,1b) with its mouth sealed is gripped by a respective pair of gripping means (110) of the transport means (100;

1100), and the transport means (100;

1100) are made to advance in the longitudinal direction (X-X) in the sense concordant with the direction of advancing movement of the bags by a number of steps equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn), so as to bring each bag with its sealed mouth opposite a respective one of a plurality of cooling stations (C1,C2,Cn) for cooling the sealed bag mouth, said cooling stations being arranged in succession at a relative distance of one step from each other and from the last bag mouth sealing station and being in number equal to the number of filling stations (R1,R2,Rn).

14. Method according to claim 10, comprising a step of opening the mouth of the bag before the step of filling the bags (1), opening of the bag mouth being performed by the gripping means (110) carried by the transport means (100;

1100) or by the gripping means associated with the corresponding filling station, preferably with the aid of sucker means associated with each filling station and acting parallel to the longitudinal direction (X-X).