Abstract:
A composite magazine for feeding to a filling or packaging machine pre-formed and flattened containers includes a main magazine suitably inclined in which the containers are piled up. The main magazine includes a long upper back portion which can be opened and closed downwardly. Below the main magazine there is provided an ancillary magazine which initially is in a substantially horizontal loading position in order to be easily supplied with a pile of containers on a bottom plane which leaves uncovered lateral portions of the bottom of the pile. When the upper back portion is emptied, the upper back portion is opened and the ancillary magazine is raised to insert the pile of containers in the main magazine. The upper back portion then closes to retain the pile, while the ancillary magazine returns in the low loading.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to filling or packaging machines used to place solid or liquid goods inside pre-formed cardboard cases or containers, hereinafter called with the generic term containers. The containers arrive from the paper manufacturer with a tubular and flattened shape, so that they can be fed in great quantity as piles in vertical magazines. Frequently the containers are piled with an inclination of about 45-60° with respect to the horizontal, in order for the piles to be longer and more ample and positioned lower and so that they can be more easily fed by an operator with respect to the vertical magazines. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present practice is to use vertical magazines having a great length so that they can contain a great quantity of containers, but said lengthy magazines have their terminal or end portion at a considerable distance from the ground. Consequently, such magazines are not easily reached by the operator who must cyclically supply them. It will also be appreciated that often the magazines are arranged in pairs side by side, in order to increase the working ability of the packaging machine. 
     The technical problem that actually is found in the packaging machines with manual re-filling of the magazines is therefore of double aspect and consists, on one hand, in the discomfort for the operator to execute the re-filling operation and, on the other hand, in the difficulty for only one operator to supply the magazines of a plurality of packaging machines placed in the same working environment and simultaneously operating. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention resolves these problems with the following solution. Under the inclined and traditional vertical magazine, called the main magazine, which can be structured with a great length and consequently with a great working ability, there is mounted an ancillary magazine which is initially in a loading position almost horizontal so as to be easily re-filled with containers by the operator. The ancillary magazine can thus support a pile or series of containers between longitudinal ends and by a portion of the lower or bottom plane or side, so that with the support of this bottom plane the free lateral portions of the pile are free both laterally and at the top. The main magazine is provided with an upper back portion having a length proportional to the length of the ancillary magazine, which upon suitable control may open and close itself downwardly. When the upper portion of the main magazine is emptied of the containers, the upper back portion is opened and the upward movement of the ancillary magazine is effected to insert its pile of containers in the main magazine. Subsequently, the upper back portion is closed again to retain the pile of containers therein and to allow to the ancillary magazine to return empty in the lower loading position for repeating a new working cycle. 
     The advantages arising from this solution include an easy cyclic feeding of the containers to the ancillary magazine which in the phase of loading is at man-height and in an almost horizontal position. Thus, the feeding of the containers to the ancillary magazine can be effected during the long time interval which passes from the filling of the main magazine until the substantial emptying of said main magazine, so that an operator has a lot of time to feed several such ancillary magazines simultaneously operating several packaging machines. The working ability of the composite magazine according to the invention is now derived from the sum of the capability of the main magazine and the capability of the ancillary magazine. It will also be appreciated that the presence of the ancillary magazine does not substantially modify the overall plan dimensions of the main magazine, because the ancillary magazine can be substantially placed under the main magazine. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Further features of the invention, and the advantages deriving therefrom, will be evident from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention made with reference to the figures of the attached sheets of drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the composite magazine, with the ancillary magazine shown in the two working positions; 
     FIGS. 2 and 3 are views respectively in plan from the top and in frontal elevation of the composite magazine with the ancillary magazine shown in the two working positions; 
     FIG. 4 shows details of the main magazine in the phase of grasping of the containers from the ancillary magazine located in the raised position, taken along the section line IV—IV of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 5 is a schematic and top view of the ancillary magazine inserted into the main magazine, taken along the section line V—V of FIG.  4 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The drawings generally show an example of the present invention with two main magazines arranged side by side, and with the associated ancillary magazines in the two different working positions. It is to be understood that the invention referred to below is intended as well for a composite magazine of a more simple type, that is a magazine formed by only a main magazine with a single associated ancillary magazine. 
     In the figures, with references MP 1  and MP 2  there are respectively indicated the two main magazines. These main magazines are inclined as shown, and differ from the magazines of the known type by having a greater length and therefore for having an upper end at a higher distance from the ground. Each main magazine is a tubular structure formed by longitudinal guides  1 , for example steel rods, which support and guide upwardly, downwardly and laterally the pile P of containers. The guides  1  are, in their turn supported at the ends thereof by transversal structures or supports  2 ,  2 ′ of annular type (FIGS.  4  and  5 ). In particular, the lower support  2 ′ is fixed to the frame  3  of the packaging machine and is connected to the upper structure  2  by beams  4  fixed (in their turn) to the frame  3  by tie rods  5 . 
     According to the invention, the long or upper back portion of each main magazine which is comprised between the transversal structures  2 ,  2 ′ has at least the lower guides  1 ′ which, upon command, can be opened like a door—that is in such a manner that the lower guides  1 ′ can pass from the position shown in FIG. 4 with a continuous line to the one shown with a dotted line and vice versa, in order to open and close vertically the associated upper back portion of the main magazine. From the FIGS. 1 and 4 it is pointed out that the lower guides  1 ′ are welded for example onto respective “L” shaped section bars  6 , which bars  6  carry fixed at their ends the levers  7  which are in their turn fixed upon a shaft  8  parallel to the section bar  6 , and which shafts  8  are supported rotatably at the ends by means of supports  2 ,  2 ′. 
     At least one of the levers  7  extends beyond the fulcrum shaft  8  with a shaft  107  articulated to the rod of a jack  9  which is articulated at joint  10  to the near support  2 . All the jacks of the apparatus referred to can be of the fluid pressure type or of the electromechanical screw-nut screw type. The jacks  9 , if they are of the fluid pressure type, are preferably of the simple effect type and normally extended, to maintain the guides  1  normally in a closing position of the main magazine. 
     From FIG. 5 it can be noted that the lower movable guides  1 ′ terminate beyond the initial ends of lower fixed guides  1 ″ in order to ensure continuity of support to the containers during the forwards displacement from  1 ′ to  1 ″. The initial ends of the guides  1 ″ are shaped so as to favor the reception of the containers, for example with a suitable downward bending. 
     At least the lateral lower guides  1 ″ of each main magazine can be provided with longitudinal and continuous fins  11 . Fins  11  are downwardly oriented and outwardly diverging, in order to form a reception zone which facilitates the inlet of the pile of containers cyclically fed into the main magazine, as mentioned further on. 
     For and under each main magazine, there is provided a respective ancillary magazine MA 1  and MA 2  which comprises a flat surface plane  12  having a width for example substantially equal to the distance which passes between the lower fixed guides  1 ″ of the main magazine (FIG. 5) and having a length a little less than the length of the movable guides  1 ′. Plane  12  is connected to a motion means of any suitable kind which causes plane  12  to pass from a low and substantially horizontal loading position, as indicated in FIG. 1 with dotted line, to a raised unloading position in which said plane  12  is inserted in the upper back portion of the associated main magazine. In the raised position, the plane  12  of the ancillary magazine is located immediately upwardly from, co-planar with, and longitudinally aligned with the inferior and fixed guides  1 ′. 
     According to a preferred embodiment, the motion means  20  of the plane  12  are constituted by an articulate quadrilateral which comprises a lever  13  and a pair of levers  14  respectively articulated in joints  15  and  16  to end appendices  17  and  18  of the plane  12 , and respectively articulated in joints  19  and  20  to a raised base portion  121  of a base  21 . Base  21  bears onto the ground and has articulated thereto in joint  22  the body of a jack  23 , in its turn articulated by the rod thereof at joint  24  to the intermediate portion of the pair of levers  14 . It is to be understood that the movements of the plane  12  can be effected with different means than the articulated quadrilateral, for example with direct articulation of said plane to the main magazine or to the frame  3  of the packaging machine, although the utilization of the articulated quadrilateral system is preferred because it eliminates the limitations that can derive from the overall dimensions of the frame of the packaging machine and because it allows the plan  12 , when it is in the lower loading position, to be advantageously out from the plan overall dimensions of the main magazine so that the main magazine does not hinder the operator which provides for the cyclic feeding of the containers. 
     The plane  12  carries, at a right angle, upon the end farthest to the articulation system, a fixed and upwardly oriented head board  25 , while on the other end it carries a head board  26 , parallel to the previous one but which in a different manner can be withdrawn upon command below the plane  12 . For this purpose the board  26  is mounted upon a slide  27  (FIGS. 1 and 3) slidable upon a guide  28 , fixed to an appendix  29  under the plane  12  and upon which is fixed the body of an actuator  30  of said slide  27 , for example the body of a jack. 
     When the plane  12  is in the low loading position, plane  12  is preferably arranged with a slight inclination with respect to the horizontal position and the board  26  is in the high position, so that the operator can arrange against board  26  the packages or containers P put on their edge upon the plane  12 , until containers P constitute a pile or series that results and is sufficiently compressed between the head boards  26  and  25 . 
     Laterally to the plane  12  there is a vertical and parallel plane  31 . Plane  31  is fixed, for example, to the frame  21 , and the containers P bear against plane  31  as the containers are piled in the ancillary magazine. The containers P thus laterally project with the same length from the plane  12  and with their sides in alignment. 
     From FIGS. 1,  2  and  3  it can be seen that the ancillary magazines are preferably placed inside a box  32  which also contains the main magazines and which is laterally provided with doors  132  controlled by microswitches which activate the working of the apparatus only when the doors  132  are closed. Once the ancillary magazine is filled in the low loading position and once the doors  132  are closed, and when in the main magazine the containers P come to occupy only the lower fixed guides  1 ″, a control device such as sensor  33  (FIG. 1) detects this condition and actuates the following steps. The inferior and mobile guides  1 ′ of the main magazine are opened as shown with dotted line in FIG.  4  and the filled plane  12  of the ancillary magazine is raised as shown in FIG.  4  and as shown with the continuous line in FIG.  1 . 
     Next, the guides  1 ′ return in the active position indicated with continuous line in FIG. 4, in order to support the new pile or series of containers inserted in the main magazine by the filled ancillary magazine. Then the movable board  26  is moved downwardly to release the pile of containers P, and the empty plane  12  is carried back in the low position for the repetition of a new working cycle. 
     In order to avoid dead times during the working phase, it can be provided that after the ancillary magazine is filled with containers and after the closure of the doors  132  of the box  32 , the filled ancillary magazine raises part way up and conveniently gets near to the main magazine, in order to reduce the times of the next supply travel of the filled ancillary magazine. 
     If the main magazine has a considerable length, in the portion of the main magazine which is defined by the movable guides  1 ′, there can be laterally provided motorized conveyers  34  (FIG.  3 ). Conveyors  34  operate with friction on the sides of the pile of containers P, in order to feed progressively the containers P upon the fixed guides  1 ″. In this manner, conveyors  34  avoid the exertion of any excessive thrust on the bottom or front-most container P that cyclically must be extracted from the head retainers  35  of the main magazine by means of the suction cups  36  which are provided for the cyclical insertion of the front-most container inside the packaging machine. The conveyers  34  are, for example, provided to oscillate upon fulcrums  37  in order to be spaced during the phase of insertion of the pile of containers in the main magazine, so that they do not interfere with this procedure. The actuation means of the conveyers  34  are not shown in the drawings, because they are conceivable and easily realizable by persons skilled in the art. 
     Several variations and modifications to the above invention can be appreciated. For example, the utilization of different means from those described for the operation of the movable guides  1 ′ are possible, so that such means could derive their motion from the movement of the plane  12 , for example by means of suitable cams. Other variants can be appreciated where in the portion of the main magazine cyclically fed by containers, also the lateral guides are movable in addition to the bottom guides  1 ′, to avoid undesired interferences of the pile of containers with the lateral guides. For this purpose, the lateral guides could be, for example, combined with the oscillating structure which provides for the movements of the conveyers  34 .