Manufacturing infusion packages

• US 5,233,813 A
• Filed: 02/25/1991
• Issued: 08/10/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: TATA Global Beverages Limited
• Original Assignee: AGA (American Greetings Corporation)
• Inventors: Wood, John D., Kenney, Alan G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Culver, Horace M.
• Application Number:
  US07/633,054
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: 53/553, 53/560, 53/559, 53/370.4, 53/373.4, 53/450, 53/453, 53/454
• US Class Current: 53/450
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 29/028 packaging infusion material into filter bags
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 9/023 Packaging fluent material B65B9/04 takes precedence

Abstract

A method and apparatus for manufacturing infusion packages such as tea or coffee bags of predetermined shape, comprises means for dosing discrete piles (7) of infusion on a first moving web (4), means (8) for sealing a second web (5) over the first to form a consolidated web with discrete infusion containing pockets (3), a co-rotating roller cutting device having cutting means and recess means to cut packages of predetermined shape e.g. circular from the web, a suction device (15) for collecting waste web and maintaining downstream web tension to transport the cut packages to a removal device (50, 51) operable to stamp the packages downwardly into stacking chambers (49).

Claims

1. An apparatus for manufacturing infusion packages of non-rectangular shape comprising:

(a) dosing means for dosing infusion in discrete measures onto a first moving web;

(b) sealing means synchronized with the dosing means for sealing a second moving web over said first moving web to produce a travelling two-ply web having a plurality of discrete pockets each containing one of the measures of infusion;

(c) a web-cutting device comprising;

(i) a pair of opposed cutting rollers having a plurality of recess means for receiving therein a plurality of successive said pockets; and

(ii) cutting means provided on at least one of said rollers and associated with said recess means for cutting each said pocket into an individual package, said cutting means comprising a cutting edge which defines said non-rectangular shape for substantially an entire outer peripheral edge of each package, whereby waste web substantially surrounds said packages;

(d) means for maintaining a degree of tension in said waste web, said waste web thereby being effective to transport said packages in a generally horizontal direction from said cutting device to a position downstream of said cutting device;

(e) package removing means located at said downstream position for removing said cut-out packages from said web; and

(f) package stacking means below said package removal means for receiving and stacking said packages removed from the web.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the package removing means comprise a reciprocating stamping member whose movement is synchronized with that of the cutting device, the stamping member urging successive packages into said stacking means.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein a lower end of the stamping member has a smaller cross section than that of the packages.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 19 further comprising a platform extending downstream of said cutting device to support said web downstream of said cutting device, and aperture means beneath said package removing means through which packages are removed from said web into said stacking means.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the recess means comprise recesses provided on both of said opposed rollers.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the recess means comprise recesses provided on only one of said opposed rollers.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the cutting means are formed by a lip raised around the recess means of one of said opposed rollers, the lip engaging a hard smooth surface of the other roller.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sealing means comprise a pair of opposed heated rollers separate from and synchronized for rotation with the cutting rollers.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising waste web collecting means.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein the collecting means comprise suction means having an inlet aperture configured to receive the waste web.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for maintaining a degree of tension in said waste web comprise suction means.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for maintaining a degree of tension in said waste web comprise rollers.

13. A method of manufacturing infusion packages of a non-rectangular shape comprising steps as follows:

dosing an infusion in discrete measures onto a first moving web;

sealing a second moving web over said first moving web to produce a travelling two-ply web having a plurality of discrete infusion filled pockets each containing one of the measures of infusion;

cutting said two-ply web into packages having said non-rectangular shape and each including one of the pockets by passing the two-ply web through a cutting device having co-operating co-rotating rollers with recess means which accommodate successive of the pockets and providing cutting means arranged around said recess means for cutting out each said package with said predetermined shape such that waste web substantially surrounds the cut-out packages;

maintaining the two-ply web downstream of the cutting device taut so that the waste two-ply web surrounding the packages transports the packages generally horizontally to a location downstream of said cutting device;

removing said cut-out packages from the travelling two-ply web at said location; and

stacking said cut-out packages such that they lie generally horizontally one above the other in a starting means provided beneath said location.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 wherein the tension is maintained in said web by suction.

15. The method as claimed in claim 13 wherein the tension is maintained in said web by rollers.

16. An apparatus for manufacturing infusion packages of non-rectangular shape comprising:

(a) dosing means for dosing infusion in discrete measures onto a first moving web;

(b) sealing means synchronized with the dosing means and comprises a pair of opposed heated rollers, for sealing a second moving web over said first moving web to produce a travelling two-ply web having a plurality of discrete pockets each containing one of the measures of infusion;

(c) a web-cutting device comprising;

(i) a pair of opposed cutting rollers separate from and synchronized with said heated rollers, and having recess means for receiving therein said pockets; and

(ii) cutting means associated with said recess means for cutting each said pocket into an individual package, said cutting means comprising a cutting lip raised around a recess of one of said opposed rollers, the lip engaging a hard smooth surface of the other roller, and which defines said non-rectangular shape for substantially an entire outer peripheral edge of each package, whereby waste web substantially surrounds said packages;

(d) means for holding said waste web taut downstream of said cutting device, said waste web thereby being effective to transport said packages in a generally horizontal direction from said cutting device to a position downstream of said cutting device;

(e) package removing means located at said downstream position for removing said cut-out packages from said web; and

(f) a package stacking means below said package removal means for receiving and stacking said packages removed from the web.

17. An apparatus for manufacturing infusion packages of non-rectangular shape comprising:

(a) infusion dosing and web sealing means for producing a travelling two-ply web having a plurality of discrete pockets each containing a dosed measure of infusion;

(b) a web-cutting device comprising;

(i) a pair of opposed cutting rollers having recess means for receiving therein said pockets; and

(ii) cutting means provided on at least one of said rollers and associated with said recess means for cutting each said pocket into an individual package, said cutting means comprising a cutting edge which defines said non-rectangular shape for substantially an entire outer peripheral edge of each package, whereby waste web substantially surrounds said packages;

(c) means for holding said waste web taut downstream of said cutting device, said waste web thereby being effective to transport said packages in a generally horizontal direction from said cutting device to a position downstream of said cutting device;

(d) package removing means located at said downstream position for removing said cut-out packages from said web and comprising a pusher member whose movement is synchronized with that of the cutting device, the pushing member urging successive packages into a stacking means arranged below said package removal means; and

(e) platform means extending downstream of said cutting device to support said web downstream of the cutting device; and

(f) aperture means beneath said package removing means through which packages are moved into said stacking means.

18. An infusion package of a nonrectangular shape formed by a method comprising the following steps:

dosing an infusion in discrete measures onto a first moving web;

sealing a second moving web over said first moving web to produce a travelling two-ply web having a plurality of discrete infusion filled pockets each containing one of the measures of infusion;

cutting said two-ply web into packages having said non-rectangular shape and each including one of the pockets by passing the two-ply web through a cutting device having co-operating co-rotating rollers with recess means which accommodate successive of the pockets and providing cutting means arranged around said recess means for cutting out each said package with said predetermined shape such that waste web substantially surrounds the cut-out packages;

maintaining the two-ply web downstream of the cutting device taut so that the waste two-ply web surrounding the packages transports the packages generally horizontally to a location downstream of said cutting device;

removing said cut-out packages from the travelling two-ply web at said location; and

stacking said cut-out packages such that they lie generally horizontally one above the other in a stacking means provided beneath said location.