Banding machine

• US 3,888,067 A
• Filed: 09/18/1973
• Issued: 06/10/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: John Laessig, Radley Cross
• Original Assignee: John Laessig, Radley Cross
• Inventors: Laessig, John, Cross, Radley
• Primary Examiner(s): McGehee, Travis S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Culver, Horace M.
• Application Number:
  US05/398,514
• Time in Patent Office: 630 Days
• Field of Search: 53/291,292,295,136,139.3,198R,198A,184,296,297,307
• US Class Current: 53/292
• CPC Class Codes: B67B 5/036 the covers being heat-shrinkable

Abstract

Apparatus for providing heat shrinkable bands onto bottles or other objects as they are fed through the apparatus on a conveyor belt. The apparatus comprises means for incrementally feeding a flat, hollow strip of heat shrinkable material from a storage reel. A vacuum head, including a pair of fingers, is provided to hold the end of the strip, whereupon cutting means cut off the length thereof to form a heat shrinkable band. The band is thereafter partially opened by the action of the vacuum fingers in gripping the outside surface of the band and is carried to a rotating mandrel. The band is placed on the mandrel to further open it and the mandrel is thereafter rotated to carry the band thereon to a dispensing station at which a vacuum ring is disposed. The vacuum ring grips the band by its outer surface to fully open the band and carries the fully opened band to the bottle, whereupon the band is placed thereon. The bottle with the band disposed on it is then moved, via the conveyor, through an associated heat tunnel, whereupon the band is tightly shrunk in place.

Claims

1. Apparatus for providing a band about an article moving along a horizontal path comprising means for supplying a band of a predetermined length, first vacuum means to grip the outer surface of the band to effect the partial opening of the band and to carry said partially opened band along a vertical path to mandrel means disposed therebelow, said mandrel means including a turret having a plurality of mandrels extending radially outward therefrom, said turret being rotatable about a horizontal axis to rotate said mandrels in a vertical plane whereupon one of said mandrels extends vertically upward towards said first vacuum means and one of said mandrels extends vertically downward towards second vacuum Means disposed therebelow, each of said mandrels being cylindrical and including a tapered end, the diameter of said mandrels being slightly smaller than the inside diameter of the band when fully opened such that when said first vacuum means places said partially opened band on said mandrel said mandrel effects the more full opening of said band, said second vacuum means for gripping the outer surface of the band disposed on said downwardly extending mandrel to substantially fully open the band and completely remove it from said mandrel by thereafter carrying said band in a downward vertical direction off said mandrel to position it around said article disposed therebelow.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the means for supplying the band supplies it in the form of a flat, hollow strip and wherein cutting means are provided for cutting off said band from said strip prior to the operation of said first vacuum means.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the means for supplying the band comprises storage means for storing a flat, hollow strip on a reel and incremental feed means for incrementally feeding the strip to said cutting means.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the first vacuum means holds the end of the strip as the cutting means cuts off a length from the end thereof.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the first vacuum means comprises plural vacuum fingers.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein each of the fingers includes a concave portion having a plurality of apertures therein and adapted to grip the outer surface of the band.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said fingers are arranged to open and close.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the second vacuum means comprises a vacuum ring.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the vacuum ring includes a circular peripheral inside surface having a plurality of vacuum apertures and adapted to grip the outer surface of the band to fully open the band.