Patent ID: 11905056
Assignee: INTERTAPE POLYMER CORP.
Field: Handling (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 14:
15. A method of supplying a carton using a cartoning apparatus, wherein the cartoning apparatus comprises a handling station comprising a robot, a carton supply station comprising a rotating support and a plurality of magazines operatively coupled to the rotating support for holding cartons, a carton feeder mechanism and a pick-up position sensor, a filling station or a closing station arranged adjacent to the handling station, wherein the filling station fills the carton with one or more products, and wherein the closing station folds one or more flaps of the carton, and a controller operatively coupled to the robot and the carton supply station, wherein the robot comprises a first arm having two ends, a second arm operatively coupled to one end of the first arm, and a grip hand operatively coupled to another end of the first arm, wherein the first arm rotates relative to the second arm, wherein the plurality of magazines comprise a first magazine adjacent to the robot and a second magazine away from the robot, wherein the first magazine is configured to hold a plurality of first cartons and the second magazine is configured to hold a plurality of second cartons, wherein the plurality of first cartons and the plurality of second cartons have at least one different attribute, and wherein the plurality of magazines are movable with respect to the robot by rotating the rotating support, the method comprising:
identifying, by the controller, one or more operating parameters for the cartoning apparatus including at least a sequence of carton use for the plurality of magazines based on the at least one different attribute;
communicating, by the controller, with the carton supply station to selectively rotate the rotating support to move the plurality of magazines based on at least the sequence of carton use;
communicating, by the controller, with the carton feeder mechanism to move a carton in a magazine to a pre-determined pick-up position based on feedback from the pick-up position sensor; and
communicating, by the controller, with the robot to pick the carton from the pre-determined pick-up position of the magazine using the grip hand and transferring the carton to the closing station;
wherein as the robot is transporting a first carton after pick-up from the first magazine in the carton supply station, or after the robot has transported the first carton to the filling station or the closing station and the robot is moving to select a second carton from the second magazine, the carton supply station rotates the rotating support and the carton feeder mechanism moves the second carton to the pre-determined pick-up position for picking by the robot.