Abstract:
Two series of work products move along parallel paths into open bags mounted on wickets and carry the bags to shipping containers. When the bags on the wickets are depleted, the wickets are automatically removed and replaced by wickets loaded with a new supply of bags.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority with respect to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/274,454, filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Jan. 4, 2016. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    A typical commercial bakery mass production system for bread and rolls products moves dough continuously through a series of processing devices and finally into bags or other receptacles to be delivered to the retail store and to other customers. A dough processing system may include dough mixer and a dough pump as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,908 that moves the dough from the mixer in a stream through a dough divider that forms the stream of dough in separate volumes for baking. A dough divider is described in U.S. Pat. 4,332,538. From the divider the dough may pass through rounder bars that form the dough into desired shapes as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,025. The shaped separate volumes of dough then may pass through an open ended oven that progressively cooks the dough. 
         [0003]    The final products may be loaves of bread or smaller products such as hamburger and hot dog buns. After loaves of bread have been baked they continue their movement and usually are placed in bags. 
         [0004]    A prior art bread bagging system, sometimes referred to as a “bread bagger,” is placed in line at the end of the bread processing system described above. Each loaf of bread is moved in sequence into an open bag. A currently used prior art bread bagger is a single line bagger and it includes a bagging “wicket” that has a bag support tray that supports a vertical stack of bags with the bag openings facing the on-coming loaves of bread. The bags in the stack are closed and lie on their sides. The uppermost bag in the stack is opened with a stream of air, with its open end facing the on-coming loaf of bread for receiving the loaf of bread. As a loaf of bread continues its movement into the top bag in the stack of bags, the loaf of bread pushes against the closed end of the its bag and tears its bag away from the stack of bags on the wicket tray, and the now bagged loaf moves onto a surface conveyor and to a packing station where the bagged loaves are placed in containers for shipment. 
         [0005]    A wicket that is used in the bread bagger includes a bag support tray that has an upwardly facing horizontal bag support surface. It also includes an inverted U-shaped wicket bar with legs that fit downwardly into openings in the bag support surface. A plurality of wicket bags are stacked flat on the horizontal bag support surface and the wicket bags are positioned with the bag openings all facing the on-coming loaves of bread in the processing line so that the loaves of bread may be pushed through the bag openings and into the wicket bags. The wicket bags have a lower side longer than the upper side, and retaining holes are formed at the edge on the longer side. The inverted U-shaped wicket bar has its ends inserted through the aligned retaining holes in the wicket bags and into support holes of the bag support surface so that the wicket board and its U-shaped rod maintain the bags with the openings of the bags to be faced toward the on-coming loaves of bread. 
         [0006]    A stream of air is directed toward the open end of the uppermost bag on the wicket and the air blows the top bag open to receive an on-coming loaf of bread being pushed into the bag. The movement of the loaf of bread along the processing line and into the uppermost wicket bag and against the closed end of the bag tears the upper bag away from the wicket. The now bagged loaf of bread continues with its movement onto a surface conveyor for delivery to a shipping container. Usually, the operation of the above described bagging process is continuous until the supply of bread bags on the bag support tray is exhausted. 
         [0007]    When the bread bags have been exhausted from the wicket support tray, the empty bag support tray must be removed from its position in the processing line and replaced by a full bag support tray. The task of replacing an empty wicket tray with a loaded wicket tray requires the movement of the bagging line to be terminated and the replacement is done manually and is difficult. The empty bag support tray must be removed and a loaded bag support tray must be carefully and firmly placed in its position in a receptacle of the framework of the machine. 
         [0008]    If two prior art bagging lines as described above were put together in a side-by-side arrangement, the manual replacement of wickets in the two machines would likely be even more difficult and more time consuming than twice the time required for a single processing line. The bagging process of such a double machine would likely have to pause to allow the operator to retrieve the empty wicket and mount a full wicket securely and accurately in the system. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0009]    The invention presented herein concerns a bagger for placing loaves of bread, buns or other work products in bags. The invention includes a bag support wicket and a substitute bag support wicket, and an automated wicket reloading apparatus, so that when the bag support wicket gives out of bags and is empty, the empty wicket is automatically removed from the processing line and sent to a reloading station, and a substitute loaded wicket automatically replaces the empty wicket in the bagging machine. 
         [0010]    Also, the reloading system may be used on a dual line bread and buns bagger, in which two reloading systems work side-by-side independently of each other to reload the two bagging machines with full wickets. 
         [0011]    More particularly, the new dual lane bread and buns bagger has been developed that uses most of the principles of operation of the prior art single lane bagger described above. The dual lane bagging system has two lanes through which the bread and buns are aligned both longitudinally and laterally and may be bagged simultaneously. 
         [0012]    Briefly described, this invention concerns an improved method and apparatus for automatically and expediently and simultaneously bagging loaves of bread that move in parallel paths from an open ended continuous baking oven of the type described above. This new system is designed for a dual lane bread and buns bagger, has four wickets, two of the wickets that are in operation as described above to apply bags about the bread and buns being pushed along the two processing paths, and two substitute wickets that are loaded with bags and are automatically moved from a refill station where they are available for immediate substitute for an empty wicket in the bagger. When one or both of the bags on a wicket become depleted, the empty wicket is automatically removed from the processing line and its loaded substitute wicket is automatically moved into the position vacated by the empty wicket. 
         [0013]    The wicket exchange system includes two independent lanes of bag loading zones that are each in line with one of the lanes of the bagging system, so two loaded substitute bags may be loaded individually or simultaneously while the bagging system, continues to operate to fill bags with bread or buns. Any one or both of the bagging lanes can run out of bags at any time, allowing a full set to be delivered to the empty loading area independently of the other lane. When the empty wicket has been displaced with the full wicket, the empty wicket is delivered back to an operator loading area where the operator removes the empty wicket and places a full set of wicket bags back onto the bag support tray. Once the new bags have been placed on the empty bag support tray, this new full substitute wicket with its set of bags travels to a stand-by position, ready for another exchange. 
         [0014]    The exchange of wickets from the standby position to the loading location can be accomplished on either lane, independent from one another. If lane “A” runs out of bags, the exchange can occur on lane “A”, not effecting the bags on lane “B”. After an exchange occurs, the empty wicket is delivered to a position where the machine operator can safely remove the empty wicket and replace it with the wicket fully loaded with bags. Once the new full set of wicket bags have been added, the operator activates a switch to send the new wicket bags to the standby position to replace the wicket being used in the bagging line. 
         [0015]    There are two wicket trays for each bread and buns bagger on each lane, one in operation to fill the bags with bread and buns and another being refilled with bags and waiting for movement in the bagging machine. 
         [0016]    Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following specification, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a schematic plan view of the dual lane bagger that places the loaves of bread or buns in bags. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  is a top view of a bag support wicket, the U-shaped wicket bar displaced at an angle from the bag support tray. 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a bottom perspective view of the bag support tray, with the front and bottom portions of stacked bags extending over the front and rear edges of the bag support tray. 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a side perspective view of the bag support tray loaded with bread bags and with the wicket bar extending through the protruding long edges of the bread bags. 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a schematic view of the movements of the four bag support wickets through the apparatus. 
           [0022]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a two lane bagger with the quad wicket exchange system mounted in alignment with the bread and buns bagger. 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is a side view of the quad wicket exchange system. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0024]    Referring now in more detail to the drawings,  FIG. 1  is a top view of the multiple row bagger  10  that is positioned at the delivery end of a pair of surface conveyors  11  and  12  that deliver loaves of bread or buns  14 ,  15 ,  16  and  17 , in pairs, in the direction as indicated by arrows  19  and  20 . The bread or buns  14 - 17  are moved into bags  21  and  22 , primarily by the motion of the surface conveyors, but as assisted by a pair of spreader bars  23  and  24 , respectively. In addition, streams of air are moved from nozzles  25  and  26  toward the open ends of the bags so as to induce the top layer about the bag opening to lift away from the bottom surface of the bag, forming spaces in which the bread or buns  14 - 17  move. The pusher forks  28  and  29  also move in unison with the surface conveyors to urge the bread or buns  14 - 17  into the bags  21  and  22 . 
         [0025]    Once the bags  21  and  22  have been substantially filled with pairs of loaves of bread  14 ,  15 ,  16 ,  17 , they move continuously with the motions of the surface conveyors  11  and  12  to a lateral surface conveyor  31  that moves at a right angle with respect to the motions of the surface conveyors  11  and  12 . In order to avoid misplacement of the loaves on the lateral surface conveyor  31 , positioning blocks  23  are located behind each anticipated space where the loaves of bread in their bags will be received. The surface conveyor moves the loaves of bread to a staging position where the loaves will be placed in containers for delivery to the customers, etc. 
         [0026]      FIGS. 2-4  illustrate one of the bag support wickets  35  that is to be positioned at the location where the bread or buns are to be introduced into the bags  21 .  FIG. 2  is a top view of the wicket tray that has a flat top surface  36 , and a stack of bags  21  is placed on its side on the top surface  36  of the wicket tray. 
         [0027]    The length of the bags may be greater than the length of the flat top surface  36  so that the open ends  38  of the bags are positioned at the front edge  39  of the top surface  36  and the bottoms of the bags may drape over the other edge. 
         [0028]    The bottom sheet of each bag is longer than its top layer so that the edge of the bottom layer protrudes beyond the top layer. The protruding edge of the bottom layer has wicket openings  41  formed therein. An inverted U-shaped wicket bar  43  has its parallel legs  44  and  45  spaced apart distances equal to the spacing between wicket openings  41  so that the parallel legs  44  and  45  can be threaded through the wicket openings in the bread bags  21  and  22 . Another pair of openings (not shown) is formed through the flat top surface  36  of the bag support wicket tray, so that the parallel legs of the wicket bar fit into the top surface of the bag support wicket tray. This anchors the longer edges of the stacked bags to the wicket tray and when each bag is uncovered, this allows the shorter edge to lift away from the longer edge in response to a stream of air to open the top bag in the stack of bags. 
         [0029]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , the nozzles  25  and  26  direct a stream of air toward the edges of the open ends of the bags, lifting the shorter edge upwardly while passing over the rear edge that is anchored to the flat top surface of the bag support tray. This opens the top bag and makes the top bag available to receive the loaves of bread  14 - 17 , as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         [0030]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , the bottom surface  47  of the bag support wicket  35  includes several locating pins  49  that extend at a right angle from the bottom surface of the bag support wicket and are spaced apart at distances appropriate for the locating pins  49  to be received in sockets (not shown) in the surface of the conveyor system. This maintains the bag support wicket  35  in a static position as the surface conveyors move the loaves toward the lateral surface conveyor  31 . 
         [0031]    As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the ends of the bags  38  may be allowed to overlap the back edge of the flat top surface  36  of the bag support wicket  35 . 
         [0032]    When the supply of bread bags  21  and  22  has been depleted and a new supply of bags is required to continue the bagging process, the bag support trays can be automatically replaced when they are empty of bags. 
       Reloading the System 
       [0033]      FIG. 5  illustrates a pattern of movements of the bag support wickets through a bag reloading process. The bag support wicket  35  is shown at the top left portion of  FIG. 5  in position  1 . The bread or buns will have entered the space inside the top bag, as shown by arrow  51 , with the bread having been moved into the space  52 . The bread will then have moved on beyond that position as shown at  53 , with the bread being safely received in the bag and moved to the next conveyor. 
         [0034]    As the bags become finally depleted from the bag support wicket  35 , the now the empty wicket, will move downwardly, from position  1  as shown by arrow  61 , through position  2  to corner position  3 , then continuing laterally from position  3  through space  4  and to corner space  5 , and immediately on upwardly to stop at retrieval space  6  where a person may retrieve the empty wicket tray at position  7  and reload it. 
         [0035]    The person will have a second tray previously loaded with bags at position  8  and insert the previously loaded tray back into the system which immediately moves the reloaded tray to position  9  and the reloaded tray moves laterally to standby position  10  where its movement is terminated until another cycle of the reloading system starts. 
         [0036]    When the reloading system begins another loading cycle, the empty tray moves as previously described on through the position  2  so the reloaded tray can move through position  11  and then upwardly to the operative position  12 . Only two wicket trays are required for the replacement system for each of the lines of bread moving through the overall system. 
         [0037]    The system shown in  FIG. 5  is provided for each side of the machine so that the empty wickets of both sides of the process can be independently refilled as needed. 
         [0038]    As shown in  FIG. 6 , the wicket tray removal and replacement positions for both sides of the system at the removal and supply locations  7  and  8  of  FIG. 5  are shown and the footprints  58  and  59  of the attendant show where the trays can be refilled. 
         [0039]      FIG. 7  also shows the system where the operator station  58  is located, and where the bag load station is located. The rails  72  and  73  and their respective chains guide the wickets from their operative positions to their reloading positions and the elevator rails  74  and  75  guide the wickets vertically. The operation of the device is controlled by photo sensors that detect the presence and absence of the bag support wickets at the several stations of the system. 
         [0040]    While the invention is described herein as a bagger for loaves of bread, it should be understood that the invention may be used for packing other work products. 
         [0041]    Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in detail herein, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications of the disclosed embodiment can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.