Patent GB-1387051-A (GB)
Title: Method of and an apparatus for automatically compressing and banding a stack of articles
IPC: B65B27/08
Filed: 1972-03-01
Abstract: 1387051 Banding stacks of flat compressible articles INTERNATIONAL PAPER CO 1 March 1972 [8 March 1971] 9620/72 Heading B8C In a method of compressing and banding a stack 12 of flat compressible articles 13 such as creped tissues 13 is fed, by opposed pairs of chain conveyers 37, 37, along a dead plate 34, upper and lower individual lengths of banding, or wrapping, sheets 14a, 14b, severed respectively from continuous webs 21 are positioned above and below the stack overlapping the sides of the latter, and the stack is vertically compressed as it passes between a pair of endless compression belts 19, 20 the sides of the sheets 14a, 14b, having glue areas 22, 23, being folded up and down respectively in overlapping relationship by plates 109, 113 and stuck together by pressure rollers 115 to form an endless band around the stack. When a stack 12 is ejected from between the compression belts 19, 20 the articles are held in a compressed and banded state. The stacks 12 are successively brought toaninletbetweenthebelts19,20by opposed pairs of pushers 35 carried by the chain conveyers 37, 37, each pusher 35 having a vertical wall 41 so that the sides walls 13a of each stack are vertically aligned, and a spring- loaded pusher 39 which is for engaging the rear ends 13b of the stack and which is removable from driving engagement with the stack by a cam-mechanism 53, 55. As a stack passes a pair of opposed idler sprockets 49, 49 for the chain conveyers 37, 37, lengths of wrapper 14a, 14b are fed, in each case, by a pair of feed rollers 75, 75 between an idler roller 79, and the corresponding end roller 81 of the compression belt 19, or 20, and synchronously on to the respective upper and lower faces of the stack 12 as the latter is transferred from the dead plate 34 to the lower compression belt 19. Vacuum boxes 89 hold the sheets 14a, 14b on to the conconveyers 19, 20 as the latter transfer takes place. Each continuous web 21 has a series of transverse tear lines 26, Fig. 5, and, before a wrapper length is fed forward to the rolls 79, 81, a loop of web is located between first and second pairs of rollers 75, 85 respectively. Feed by the roller pair 75 while the roller pair 85 are stationary tears the leading wrapping length at its tear line 26. When a subsequent wrapper length is fed to the standby position the rollers 75 are stopped before the rollers 85 to form the next loop between the pairs of rollers 75, 85. Preferably, as shown a length of web 21 is temporarily stored for furnishing and feeding forwardly a number of wrapper sheets 14b before having to turn a large diameter supply roll. Means, (125) Fig. 7, not shown, for applying adhesive on to the ends of the wrapper may be supplied instead of supplying readily glued wrappers. The wrapper sheets 14a, 14b have a length less than the longitudinal length of the stack 12 and are preferably centered on the latter. The lower and upper compression belts 19, 20 move along dead plates, not shown the lower belt 19 being meshed. Instead of providing perforations 26 in the webs 21 a cutter may be used to sever the wrapper lengths from the webs.