LABELING MACHINE

Abstract: The invention is concerned with a labeling machine for applying labels to containers with an adhesive station for applying adhesive to a back side of a label having an outer rim (17), whereby the adhesive is sprayed (7) on the label to said outer rim with excess adhesive being sprayed beyond said outer rim, further with label transfer means, said transfer means having a holding plate for holding the label (13), which transfer means transfer labels from a label individualisation position to a label applying position, whereby the adhesive is applied to the label while on the label transfer means, between the label individualisation position and the label applying position, and with an adhesive receiving element (18) having portions thereof located outwardly of the holding plate for receiving excess adhesive being sprayed.

Description: 00001 Labelincf machine 00002 00003 The invention is concerned with a labeling machine for 00004 applying labels to containers, with an adhesive station 00005 for applying adhesive to a back side of a label whereby 00006 the adhesive is sprayed on the label, further with 00007 label transfer means, having a holding plate with an 00008 outer rim for holding the label, which transfer means 00009 transfer labels from a label individualisation position 00010 to a label applying position, whereby the adhesive is 00011 applied to the label while on the label tranfer means, 00012 between the label individualisation position and the 00013 label applying position. 00014 00015 The invention is also concerned with a labeling machine 00016 with an adhesive station for applying adhesive to a 00017 container and applying thereafter the label on the 00018 container by means of the adhesive previously applied 00019 to the container. 00020 00021 It is known in the state of the art a labeling machine 00022 for example according to French patent 14 46 880 to 00023 spray adhesive onto a container and to press the label 00024 against the container in the area the adhesive has been 00025 applied to. Further it is known from this state of the 00026 art, to spray the adhesive through a frame in order to 00027 define exactly the area of the adhesive on the bottle. 00028 This area should match as much as possible, in its 00029 borderlines, with the label. 00030 00031 It has also already been proposed, to spray the ad00032 hesive, also through a frame, onto the back side of the 00033 label while on a holding plate and to apply the label 00034 thereafter to the container (see also the mentioned 00035 French patent) . 00035 In both cases, it is difficult, to confine the area, 00036 the adhesive is applied to. As far as the application 00037 to the bottle is concerned, there might be parts of the 00038 area which go beyond the rim of the label, applied 00039 lateron. In this case the results are unpleasant ad- 00040 hesive accumulations outside of the label. Also, it 00041 might be that the adhesive does not cover the whole 00042 area upto the rim of the label. In this case, the bord- 00043 er of the label may become unsightly due to wrinkles. 00044 As far as the adhesive is applied to the back side of 00045 the label, there might be some amount of adhesive which 00046 goes outside of the rim of the label and does soil 00047 the further parts of the label holder or other parts of 00048 the labeling machine. In case the adhesive does not 00049 cover completely at least the border regions of the 00050 back side of the label, again the applied label may 00051 become unsightly due to wrinkles. 00052 00053 The invention is concerned with the object to have a 00054 labeling machine for linerless pressure sensitive labe- 00055 ling with an application of adhesive by spraying, 00056 whereby very precise matching with the borderlines of 00057 the label is reached. 00058 00059 According to a first idea of the invention, in order to 00060 reach the object outlined before, there is provided an 00061 adhesive receiving element surrounding the holding 00062 plate for the label. In case of applying the adhesive 00063 to the bottle, such adhesive receiving element can be 00064 laid over the bottle for the time, the adhesive is 00065 applied to the bottle. Or the bottle can be pressed 00066 against the element at the moment the adhesive is 00067 applied The adhesive receiving element is preferably 00068 made framelike. This element is further, in case it is 00069 related to a label holding plate, for example on a 00070 turret, preferably divided in at least two parts so 00071 that it can be removed from the holding plate. Further, 00072 the receiving element is located in or moveable in the 00073 plane of the receiving plate of the holding element or, 00074 in flow direction of the adhesive, behind the plane of 00075 the holding plate. The adhesive can be sprayed to the 00076 area, especially to the back side of a label, in a 00077 manner that it goes clearly beyond the outer rim of 00078 such label. The excess adhesive is then received on the 00079 adhesive receiving element. The adhesive receiving 00080 element has further means or is engagable with means to 00081 remove the excess adhesive from time to time from the 00082 receiving element. A first means to do so may be to 00083 heat the receiving element, which is then made from a 00084 metal material, at a temperature above the melting 00085 temperature of the adhesive. A further means can be to 00086 have the receiving element coated with a non-sticky 00087 surface, such a silicone. The adhesive may then fall 00088 down from time to time or it can be scraped from time 00089 to time from the surface. 00090 00091 The receiving element can be also described as a rear 00092 or catcher picture frame which has an outside dimension 00093 much larger than the label dimension and an inner hole 00094 that is smaller. The rear frame will catch and controll 00095 the over-spray. By increasing the hole in the picture 00096 frame located between the spray source, the spray 00097 nozzle and the label (focus picture frame) the adhesive 00098 spray will cover the full backside surface of the label 00099 all the way to and over the edges. The rear catcher 00100 frame located behind the label (between the label and 00101 the machine mechanism) will catch all the over-spray. 00102 The rear catcher frame can be designed to rotate or 00103 index with the turret resulting in a catcher for each 00104 station, or it could be designed to stay in a station- 00105 ary position across from the focus ^picture frame and 00106 adhesive spray equipment. The focus picture frame is 00107 heated to allow the over-spray to melt and run down 00108 into a collection container. The catcher frame can also 00109 be heated or it can be designed to hold a paper or 00110 other through-away material that would accept the over- 00111 spray. The material could be replaced quickly when 00112 needed. The material could be adhered to the catcher 00113 frame with a POST IT-type adhesive to hold it in place. 00114 This would allow a very fast change. 00115 00116 For the cleaning of the adhesive receiving element also 00117 other methods are possible. For example the element can 00118 be vibrated from time to time, for example by exposure 00119 to ultrasonic. Dried adhesive may then be seperated 00120 thereby. It is also possible, maybe also from time to 00121 time, as already mentioned, to heat the element to a 00122 temperature above the melting temperature of the ad00123 hesive. The adhesive may flow thereby into a groove at 00124 the bottom of the element and from there into a 00125 recycle receptacle. 00126 00127 As to a coating of the receiving element, especially 00128 prefered is also a coating as described in ger an 00129 laid.open publication 19544 763. This publication is 00130 hereby incorporated by reference. 00131 00132 In case the receiving element is located behind the 00133 holding plate, it is further prefered, that the receiv00134 ing element extends inwardly over the rim of the hol00135 ding plate. Thereby, it is assured, that any excess 00136 adhesive, which goes over the rim of the holding plate, 00137 which does match with the rim of label, is received on 00138 the adhesive receiving element. 00139 00140 The adhesive receiving element can also be partly 00141 behind the holding plate and partly be flush with the 00142 holding plate. In this case, it is of advantage to have 00143 the receiving element made with a step, matching with 00144 the rim of the holding plate. Such element is then 00145 moveable from a position, in which the step is flush 00146 with the rim of the holding plate to a position, in 00147 which the step is distant to the rim of the plate. 00148 00149 In order to avoid any threads or threadlets of the 00150 adhesive between the label and the label receiving 00151 element, it is also of advantage, to heat the res- 00152 pective rim of the holding plate. Additionally or alter- 00153 natively can be also of advantage to heat the res- 00154 pective rim of the label. The heating of the label can 00155 also be done simply by contact heating of the label on 00156 the holding plate, which then only needs to be heated. 00157 00158 It is also proposed by the invention, alternatively or 00159 in combination, to apply the adhesive within an electri- 00160 cal field. This can be done in different ways, for 00161 example by spraying the adhesive through a metallic net 00162 having a negative electrical charge. By such high char- 00163 ge, the molecules, especially the air molecules, get 00164 ionizated. Such ionizated molecules go then to the 00165 container or to the label, having a different electri- 00166 cal charge or no electrical charge. In this connection 00167 it can be of advantage, to have at least the rim of the 00168 label or the rim of the respective area on the contai- 00169 ner metallized and electrically connected to the res- 00170 pective electrical potential. The mentioned net is not 00171 absolutely necessary. In some cases it might be suff- 00172 icient to charge electrically only the frame, having no 00173 net inside but just an opening and being positioned in 00174 distance to the label. 00175 In all embodiments described, it is possible to heat 00176 the frame located in front of and with distance to the 00177 label, to which frame has been refered above to also a 00178 focus picture frame. 00179 00180 A further idea of the invention is a label material, to 00181 be cut into individual labels. The label material has 00182 for each individual label electrically conductive mate00183 rial following a rim portion of the desired label. 00184 Further, the conductive part can cover to whole area of 00185 the label and also the whole area of the label materi00186 al. Such electrically conductive parts can for example 00187 be made by printing either to the back side or to the 00188 front side or per incorporating in between into the 00189 label respective electrically conductive parts . 00190 00191 A further idea of the invention are also containers 00192 applied with label having electrically conductive 00193 parts, at least at the rims of the labels. 00194 00195 Further, the invention is described with respect to the 00196 enclosed drawings, which are however only examples. 00197 00198 The figures of the drawings show: 00199 00200 fig. 1 a schematic view from above onto the labeling 00201 machine; 00202 00203 fig. 2 a schematic view from the side of a detail of 00204 the holding plate with the adhesive receiving 00205 element; 00206 00207 fig. 3 a perspective view showing a container being 00208 applied with adhesive; 00209 00210 fig.4 a perspective view of an adhesive spraying 00211 onto the back side of a label, explaining the 00212 electrostatical charging of the adhesive and 00213 00214 fig. 5 a respective label from its back side. 00215 00216 With reference to fig. 1 there is first shown a label 00217 supply 1 in form of a roll. The label band goes to a 00218 separation station not shown in detail here. For the 00219 separation station, reference is made for example to 00220 US-PS 4,336,095, with the difference, that the labels 00221 are not catched after separation by a vacuum drum but 00222 are collected in a supply holder 2 as described here. 00223 00224 The holder 2 works together with a turret 3, which has 00225 individual label holding plates 4, which move intermit00226 tently in a clockwise direction. The turret 3 has four 00227 arms 4 each of them having at their outer ends a label 00228 holding plate 5. The label holding plate 5 is also 00229 moveable in an axial direction D. It is moved against a 00230 label in the holder 2 and then backward to seperate one 00231 of the labels out of the label supply. This is reached 00232 by a vacuum, applied to several holes in the holding 00233 plate. Then the holding plate is moved backward, in the 00234 opposite direction of direction D and further moved in 00235 clockwise direction to the adhesive applying position 00236 6. In the adhesive applying position, the label is in 00237 front of a spray nozzle 7, by which adhesive 8 is spray00238 ed onto the back side of the label being held on the 00239 holding plate 5. The adhesive applying station especia00240 lly is only shown schematically, without the frames 00241 described below in more detail. Then the label with 00242 such adhesive on its back side is further moved to the 00243 label applying position 9. By a further movement of the 00244 holding plate 5 in the direction D, the label is 00245 applied to a container 10. Further, the vacuum is 00246 interrupted while the holding plate 5 is again moved in 00247 the opposite direction of the direction D. The label is 00248 fixed to the container and the turret can be further 00249 moved in clockwise direction. 00250 00251 As shown schematically in fig. 2 in the adhesive app00252 lying position, the adhesive is first sprayed through a 00253 frame 11. The frame 11 has an inner orifice 12, having 00254 nearly the same shape as the label 13. 00255 00256 The adhesive in the arrangement shown is sprayed with 00257 an spray angle Gamma extending between a center line L 00258 of the overal spray jet 14 and a borderline 15 of such 00259 spray jet. 00260 00261 The frame 11 extends radially, in case the spray jet 00262 has a circular cross section, over the outer line of 00263 the spray jet. This radial extension can be different, 00264 as a spray jet with a round cross section can be tran00265 sformed by the frame 11 into one with for example rect00266 angular cross section. Therefore, a first outer part of 00267 the spray jet in the area a, as shown in fig. 2 in 00268 cross section, is sprayed against the surface of the 00269 frame 11 facing the spray nozzle 7 of the adhesive. A 00270 further part b between an angle Beta between the center 00271 line L and a line 16 emitting from the spray nozzle 7 00272 and going just along the rim 15, defining the orifice 00273 12, of the frame 11 and an angle Alpha between the 00274 center line L of the spray jet and a line 17, origina00275 ting from the nozzle 7 and hitting just the outer rim 00276 17 of the label 13, goes outside of the label 13. The 00277 adhesive of the spray jet in this area b goes around 00278 the label 13 and is catched by the adhesive receiving 00279 element 18. The adhesive receiving element 18 is 00280 located in a distance d behind the label 13 and the 00281 label holding plate. Further, the label receiving ele00282 ment is also frame-like designed. Further, what is not 00283 shown, this element 18 is divided into two parts, so 00284 that one can move for example one part upwardly and the 00285 other part downwardly. This is of advantage for having 00286 a stationary adhesive receiving element 18. 00287 00288 Fig. 3 shows an embodiment in which the adhesive nozzle 00289 7 is directed, through the frame 11, directly to the 00290 container 10. Reference is made to a machine and method 00291 as basically described in French patent 1446880. As 00292 shown the container 10 is held from behind against the 00293 adhesive receiving element 18, which is stationary with 00294 the first frame 11. The container is actually pressed 00295 from behind against the adhesive receiving element 18 00296 and similarly as explained before, it is reached, that 00297 the adhesive is exactly on the area the label 13, 00298 applied lateron, needs. The area A, in which the ad00299 hesive is applied to the container does exactly match 00300 with the dimensions of the label 13. 00301 00302 The further embodiment according to fig. 4 shows a part 00303 of the arrangement according to fig. 1. It is a perspe00304 ctive view onto a holding plate 5 with a label 13 00305 thereon. A back side of the label is facing to the 00306 nozzle 7. The spray nozzle sprays adhesive through a 00307 first frame 11. This frame 11 has additionally a metal00308 lic net 19 which covers the orifice 12 of the frame. 00309 This is however only optional. The principle described 00310 with respect to this embodiment would also function 00311 with a frame 11 described before, for example in 00312 connection with fig. 2. 00313 00314 Of importance is, that the frame 11 and especially the 00315 net in the frame has a negative electrical potential of 00316 for example lOkV. On the other hand, the label holder 5 00317 and the label 13 itself, at least at its rim portion is 00318 on the elctrical potential zero. Thereby, the adhesive, 00319 the single different jets of the adhesive, are - 00320 concerning the rim of the label 13 - directed at the 00321 outer borderline of the label 13 exactly on the rim 20 00322 of the label 13 by the lines of the electrical field 00323 created between the frame 11 and the label 13. 00324 00325 It is also possible to dispense with the frame 11 and 00326 to create the electrical potential difference only 00327 between the nozzle 7 and the label 13 (the rim 20 00328 thereof) . 00329 00330 In fig. 5, a respective label is shown principally. Of 00331 importance is, that the rim portion P of the label 13 00332 (shown is the back side of the label) is electrically 00333 conducting. Further, there is an electrically conduct00334 ing connection between the label holder and the label 00335 itself, ensuring, that the label, at least its rim 00336 portion P, is on the said electrical potential zero 00337 while held on the holder. 00338 00339 The electrically conducting rim portion P on the label 00340 is made for example by a printed application of electri00341 cally conducting particles. Only the rim portion P of 00342 the label 13 needs to be printed with such electri00343 cally conducting particles. However, it is also possi00344 ble to print the whole back side of the label with such 00345 conducting particles. 00346 00347 Also in connection with the embodiments described with 00348 respect to fig. 1 and 2, such label could be of advant- 00349 age. In this respect, it is possible to heat such label 00350 or at least its rim portion, while on the label holder, 00351 by electrically inductive heating. This is of advantage 00352 in respect of any tendency of the adhesive to build 00353 threads between the rim portion of the label and the 00354 adhesive receiving element, for example because the 00355 adhesive has not enough temperature when reaching the 00356 label.

Claims: 00357 C L A I M S 00358 00359 1. Labeling machine for applying labels to containers 00360 with an adhesive station for applying adhesive to a 00361 back side of a label having an outer rim, whereby the 00362 adhesive is sprayed on the label to said outer rim with 00363 excess adhesive being sprayed beyond said outer rim, 00364 further with label transfer means, said transfer means 00365 having a holding plate for holding the label, which 00366 transfer means transfer labels from a label individual- 00367 isation position to a label applying position, whereby 00368 the adhesive is applied to the label while on the label 00369 transfer means, between the label individualisation 00370 position and the label applying position, and with an 00371 adhesive receiving element having portions thereof 00372 located outwardly of the holding plate for receiving 00373 excess adhesive being sprayed. 00374 00375 2. Labeling machine according to claim 1, whereby the 00376 receiving element is located behind the holding plate, 00377 in a spray direction of the adheesive. 00378 00379 3. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00380 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the 00381 receiving element extends inwardly over the rim of the 00382 holding plate. 00383 00384 4. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00385 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the rim 00386 of the holding plate is heated. 00387 00388 5. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00389 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the 00390 receiving element is heated. 00391 00392 6. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00393 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby said 00394 receiving element moces with the holding plate. 00395 00396 7. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00397 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby said 00398 receiving element is divided into two parts and is 00399 stationary. 00400 00401 8. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00402 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the 00403 receiving element has a step matching with the rim of 00404 the holding plate and the receiving element is moveable 00405 from a position, in which the step is flush with the 00406 rim to a position, in which said step is distant to the 00407 rim of said holding plate. 00408 00409 9. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00410 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the 00411 label is at least partly of a material being electri- 00412 cally conductive. 00413 00414 10. Labeling machine according to one or more of the 00415 preceding claims or especially thereto, whereby the 00416 holding plate has means for heating the label by induct- 00417 ion. 00418 00419 11. Labeling machine according to one of the claims 00420 1-10, whereby said adhesive receiving element is a 00421 frame-like structure and said holding plate extends 00422 through said adhesive receiving element. 00423 00424 12. Labeling machine according to one of the claims 00425 1-11, whereby said holding plate maintains said label 00426 in spaced relationship with said adhesive receiving 00427 element when adhesive is applied to said label. 00428 00429 13. Labeling machine according to of the claims 1-12, 00430 whereby said receiving element has a coating on the 00431 surface which receives said excess adhesive.

Inventors: HEIDER JAMES E, HEYMANN PETER, HEIDER, JAMES, E., HEYMANN, PETER
Applicants: GERRO PLAST GMBH
Application year: 2000
Main classification: B65C9
IPC codes: B65C3, B65C9