Patent ID: 11905059
Assignee: ATLANTA ATTACHMENT COMPANY
Field: Handling (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 11:
12. A method of packaging products, comprising:
moving each product along a path of travel through a packaging area;
feeding a packaging material into registration with each product moving along the path of travel;
moving an upper sealing assembly having an upper sealing element into engagement with a lower sealing assembly having a lower sealing element and one or more inflatable sealing tubes configured to receive a fluid therein;
forming a thermal bond between one or more portions of the packaging material by engagement of the packaging material between the upper sealing assembly and the lower sealing assembly and applying heat thereto; and
controlling a volume of fluid within the inflatable sealing tubes such that the inflatable sealing tubes are expandable and compressible along the length thereof to adjust the lower sealing element relative to the upper sealing element in response to a force bearing on the lower sealing element due to compression or expansion of the fluid within the one or more inflatable sealing tubes to compensate for inconsistencies in engagement between the upper and lower sealing assemblies and maintain a substantially consistent counter-engaging sealing contact between the upper sealing element and the lower sealing element along a length thereof during the forming the thermal bond.