Patent ID: 7959851
Filing Date: 2011-06-14
Classification: B29C,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method for forming strips of containers, comprising: feeding intermittently at least two continuous webs, facing each other, along an advancing direction and with a preset advancing step along a feed line; transforming said webs into at least one continuous strip of containers, said containers being formed on said continuous strip into two parallel rows that are opposed with respect to a longitudinal median zone, each one of said containers being provided with at least one mouth, the mouths of the containers of a first row being arranged on a first longitudinal edge of said continuous strip and facing an opposite way from said longitudinal median zone, the mouths of the containers of a second row being arranged on a second longitudinal edge, opposite the first longitudinal edge, and facing an opposite way from the mouths of the containers of said first row, said containers being formed such that the containers of said first row are arranged substantially staggered in relation to the containers of said second row; and feeding said continuous strip to a cutting station in which said two rows are divided from each other by means of a longitudinal cutting along a continuous shaped cutting line that is arranged in a central zone of said continuous strip, said central zone being comprised between said two rows of containers, said shaped cutting line comprising a stroke that repeats itself step-by-step indefinitely in said advancing direction, said containers being formed on each row at a substantially constant step that is the same for both rows, the containers of said first row being arranged substantially staggered by a half step in relation to the containers of said second row, said continuous shaped cutting line crossing said continuous strip along a substantially flat zone of said central zone not occupied by a swollen part of said containers suitable for containing a product in such a way that said longitudinal cutting does not create a further opening of a part of said containers suitable for containing a product, said continuous shaped cutting line defining a series of protruding parts that are next to one another and belong alternately to the containers of the one and the other of the two half-strips; said cutting station comprising a pair of opposed cutting elements operated to open and close in a way that is coordinated with an indexing of said strip which is indexed with an advancing step and passes between said two cutting elements that cyclically close in order to longitudinally cut a section of the strip after each indexing of one step of the strip and that open before the next advancing of a step, wherein in said cutting station, said strip being longitudinally cut at said central zone in order to obtain two continuous half-strips each one of which comprises one row of containers, said two half-strips being moved towards at least one subsequent operation.