Apparatus for forming a metallic container

• US 8,087,564 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2010
• Issued: 01/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: New Sonic Technologies, LLC
• Original Assignee: New Sonic Technologies, LLC
• Inventors: Williamson, James T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Stoner, Kiley
• Assistant Examiner(s): GAMINO, CARLOS J
• Application Number:
  US12/834,246
• Publication Number:
  US 20110014013A1
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 533/29, 533/292, 533/53, 533/718, 228 11- 23, 2281101-1145, 156 731- 734, 156/76.3, 156/73.5, 156/580, 156/580.1, 156/580.2, 156/358
• US Class Current: 228/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 20/10 making use of vibrations, e.g. ultrasonic welding
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49945 by driven force fit
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53322 Means to assemble container

Abstract

A method of forming a metallic container by placing body and lid portions together, keeping parts of the body and lid portions in contact with one another, and vibrating the lid with respect to the body, thereby generating frictional heat to form a friction metallic weld therebetween. Apparatus for attaching the lid and body portions of the metallic container includes a body supporting base, an assembly to support a flange of the body, a sonotrode to contact a flange of the lid so that wherein the flanges of the lid and body are held together between the support assembly and the sonotrode. A motor vibrates the sonotrode relative to the support assembly to thereby move the flanges relative to one another generating sufficient frictional heat to create a friction metallic weld therebetween.

Claims

1. An apparatus for attaching a lid portion of a metallic container to a body portion of the container, the container body portion including a flange having an inner surface and an outer surface, the apparatus comprising:

a base, and a support assembly movable relative to the base, the support assembly including a support surface for engaging the flange outer surface of the metallic container body portion,

a sonotrode having a friction surface, the sonotrode being movable relative to the base between a retracted position, wherein the friction surface is spaced from the metallic container, and an engaged position, wherein the friction surface engages the lid portion, and

a motor for vibrating the sonotrode relative to the support assembly when situated in the engaged position to move the lid portion relative to the body portion such that frictional heat generated from the vibrational motion welds together the lid portion and the flange of the metallic container body,

wherein the support assembly includes a frame, and a clamshell anvil, the clamshell anvil comprising two halves that are pivotally mounted onto opposing portions of the frame for pivotal movement between an open position and a closed position, and springs biasing the two halves of the clamshell anvil to the open position, and

wherein the sonotrode is supported on a shaft, the shaft having a cammed outer surface, portions of the pivotally mounted clamshell anvil halves engaging the cammed outer surface, such that when the sonotrode is in the retracted position, the pivotally mounted clamshell anvil halves engage the shaft at a point where the shaft allows the clamshell anvil halves to pivot to the open position, and when the shaft and the sonotrode begin to move downward, the cammed outer surface of the shaft forces the clamshell anvil halves to pivot to the closed position wherein the support surface engages the flange of the body portion of the metallic container.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sonotrode is moved in the engaged position to confront the support surface so that portions of the lid and the body of the metallic container are held in contact with one another between the support surface of the support assembly and the friction surface of the sonotrode.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the motor is adapted to reciprocally move the sonotrode at a rate of between 15 KHz and 25 KHz.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the motor is adapted to reciprocally rotate the sonotrode around a longitudinal axis of the metallic container.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 or 4, wherein the motor is adapted to reciprocally vibrate the sonotrode longitudinally relative to the metallic container longitudinal axis.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, further including an actuator for advancing and retracting the sonotrode between the engaged position and the retracted position, wherein when the sonotrode is moved to the engaged position, the actuator moves the sonotrode toward the base such that the sonotrode exerts a force to hold portions of the lid portion and the body portion of the metallic container in contact with one another between the support surface of the support assembly and the friction surface of the sonotrode, the actuator being adapted to provide a force between approximately 1300 N and approximately 7200 N.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cammed outer surface of the shaft is shaped such that the clamshell anvil halves are forced to pivot to the closed position prior to the sonotrode reaching the engaged position.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the clamshell anvil halves includes a stop extending from an inner surface of the clamshell anvil half, positioned vertically above the support surface, such that when the sonotrode retracts from the lid portion of the metallic container after welding, if the lid portion sticks to the friction surface of the sonotrode, the stop will contact the lid portion, thereby holding the metallic container down as the sonotrode retracts upward.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the support surface of the support assembly has a textured surface such that the support surface will frictionally engage the outer surface of the flange portion of the body of the metallic container to prevent sliding movement of the flange of the body portion relative to the support assembly.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the friction surface of the sonotrode has a textured surface such that the friction surface will frictionally engage the lid portion of the metallic container to prevent sliding movement of the lid relative to the sonotrode.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the support surface of the support assembly and the friction surface of the sonotrode has a knurled pattern formed therein.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the knurled pattern comprises a triangular knurl pattern.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the support surface and the friction surface are grit blasted.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the support surface and the friction surface each have a raised ridge in a serpentine pattern.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein an interior surface of the body portion and the lid portion of the metallic container include a coating applied thereto, wherein when the sonotrode is moved to the engaged position, the sonotrode exerts a downward force to hold portions of the lid portion and the body portion of the metallic container in contact with one another between the support surface of the support assembly and the friction surface of the sonotrode, the downward force of the sonotrode and the frequency of vibration of the sonotrode provided by the motor being such that the frictional heat generated from the relative motion between the lid portion and the body portion is sufficient to create a friction weld between the lid portion and the body portion of the metallic container.

16. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the friction surface of the sonotrode and the support surface of the support assembly are angled relative to the longitudinal axis of the apparatus.

17. An apparatus for attaching a lid portion of a container to a body portion of the container, the container body portion having a longitudinal axis and including an obliquely angled flange concentric with respect to the axis and having an inner surface and an outer surface, the lid portion including an obliquely angled flange having an inner surface and an outer surface, the apparatus comprising:

a base, and a support assembly movable relative to the base, the support assembly including a support surface configured to engage the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container body portion,

a sonotrode having a friction surface, the sonotrode being movable relative to the base between a retracted position where the friction surface is spaced from the container, and an engaged position where the friction surface engages the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container lid portion so that the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container lid portion contacts the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container body portion, and

a motor coupled to the sonotrode and configured to vibrate the sonotrode relative to the support assembly when situated in the engaged position, to move the lid portion relative to the body portion such that frictional heat generated from the vibrational motion welds together portions of the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container lid portion and the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container body portion,

wherein the support assembly includes a frame, and a clamshell anvil, the clamshell anvil comprising two halves that are pivotally mounted onto opposing portions of the frame for pivotal movement between an open position and a closed position, and springs biasing the two halves of the clamshell anvil to the open position, and

wherein the sonotrode is supported on a shaft, the shaft having a cammed outer surface, portions of the pivotally mounted clamshell anvil halves engaging the cammed outer surface, such that when the sonotrode is in the retracted position, the pivotally mounted clamshell anvil halves engage the shaft at a point where the shaft allows the clamshell anvil halves to pivot to the open position, and when the shaft and the sonotrode begin to move downward, the cammed outer surface of the shaft forces the clamshell anvil halves to pivot to the closed position wherein the support surface engages the flange of the body portion of the metallic container.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the motor is further configured to reciprocally move the sonotrode at a rate of between 15 KHz and 25 KHz.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising an actuator coupled to the sonotrode, the actuator configured to move the sonotrode between the engaged position and the retracted position along an apparatus longitudinal axis, wherein when the sonotrode is moved to the engaged position, the actuator is adapted to cause the sonotrode to exert a force to hold portions of the lid portion and the body portion of the container in contact with one another between the support surface of the support assembly and the friction surface of the sonotrode, the actuator capable of providing a force between approximately 1300 N and approximately 7200 N.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein a portion of each of the inner surfaces of the obliquely angled flange of the respective body portion and lid portion of the container includes a coating,

wherein when the sonotrode is moved to the engaged position, the actuator is adapted to cause said sonotrode to exert a first force to hold portions of the lid portion and the body portion of the container in contact with one another, the first force and a frequency of vibrational motion of the sonotrode configured to generate a first frictional heat to remove the coating from portions of each of the inner surfaces of the obliquely angled flange of the respective body portion and lid portion of the container to form a weld zone.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein after the sonitrode is moved to the engaged position, the actuator is configured to increase the force of the sonotrode to a second force to hold portions of the lid portion and the body portion of the container in contact with one another, the second force and the frequency of vibrational motion of the sonotrode configured to generate a second frictional heat, greater than the first frictional heat, to weld the inner surfaces of the obliquely angled flange of the respective body portion and lid portion of the container together along the weld zone.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein after the sonotrode is moved to the engaged position, the motor is configured to increase the frequency of vibrational motion of the sonotrode to a second frequency, the first force and the second frequency of vibrational motion of the sonotrode configured to generate a second frictional heat, greater than the first frictional heat, to weld the inner surfaces of the obliquely angled flange of the respective body portion and lid portion of the container together along the weld zone.

23. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the container body portion longitudinal axis and the apparatus longitudinal axis are in alignment, and the support surface of the support assembly is obliquely angled relative to the apparatus longitudinal axis at an angle substantially identical to an angle of the obliquely angled flange of the container body portion, wherein the support surface of the support assembly further comprises a textured surface to frictionally engage the outer surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container body portion.

24. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the sonotrode is sized to fit within a space defined by the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container lid portion.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the sonotrode includes a cylindrical body having an outward surface joined to a bottom surface by an outwardly curved surface, the sonotrode being movable along an apparatus longitudinal axis, the outward surface being generally parallel to the apparatus longitudinal axis and the bottom surface being generally perpendicular to the apparatus longitudinal axis, where the friction surface is included along the outwardly curved surface.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the outwardly curved surface of the sonotrode is configured to contact the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container lid portion along circumferential portions thereof.

27. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the outwardly curved surface of the sonotrode is configured to tangentially glance the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container lid portion.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the motor is further configured to reciprocally move the sonotrode at a rate so that repeated tangential glancing contact between the outwardly curved surface of the sonotrode and the obliquely angled flange outer surface of the container lid portion generates said frictional heat to weld together portions of the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container lid portion and the inner surface of the obliquely angled flange of the container body portion.