Patent GB-712829-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to wrapping machines
Inventor: FORSTER LESLIE GORDON
IPC: B65B35/24
Filed: 1950-09-25
Abstract: 712,829. Wrapping-machines. FORSTERS MACHINE CO.; Ltd. Dec. 13, 1951 [Sept. 25, 1950; July 16, 1951], Nos. 23469/50 and 16867/51. Class 94 (1) [Also in Group XXX] In a machine in which wrappers are applied to and folded around articles as they are moved in procession along and in frictional contact with a bed by conveyer fingers, the bed is inclined upwardly at a substantial angle, e.g. 30 degrees or 45 degrees, to the horizontal. The resulting backward inclination of the fingers enables the machine to wrap thin or soft articles supported on edge or irregularly-shaped articles having one straight edge or flat face which may be engaged by the conveyer fingers. The machine shown in Figs. 1 and 3 comprises a bed 1, inclined at 30 degrees and supported on a base 2, and a horizontal feed conveyer 6 secured at one end 7 to the bed and supported at the other end on an adjustable strut 8. The conveyer 6 comprises two endless chains 13 carrying a series of fingers 23 which move the articles 5, e.g. jellies, along a rollerway 24 between the chains. Alternatively, a single chain may be provided carrying fingers which project upwardly through a gap between two rollerways. The jellies are centralized by rollers 27 at the delivery end of the conveyer and pass on to an independently-supported, downwardly-inclined rollerway 28, 29 which positions them on edge for engagement by the fingers 11 of a main endless-chain conveyer such as that disclosed in Specifications 645,418 and 668,230, [both in Group XXX]. Each finger comprises an upper portion formed with forks, which straddle the rollerway 29, and a flat rearwardlyextending part 11a secured to a narrow stem which passes through a slot 33a in the bed. To reduce the resistance to movement of the uncovered jellies, the surface of the bed below the slot 36 through which the wrappers are fed is formed by spaced rollerways 32. The bed carries wrapper feeding and severing mechanism 3, as disclosed in Specifications 668,080, 668,081 and 668,082, [all in Group VIII], operated in synchronism with the conveyer, and the wrappers are guided by members 44 projecting perpendicularly from the bed and formed with inclined ends 45. Each article and wrapper is then moved through a folding box of conventional type comprising side plates 4 and a top plate 38, whereby the wrapper is folded to form an open-ended pouch, and as each partially-wrapped article reaches the top of the bed, a holding finger 50, Fig. 5, is moved through the space 49 between the forks of the associated finger 11 to move the article clear of the finger and beyond the end of the bed where it rests on resiliently-supported tongues, as disclosed in Specification 680,115, and is located by adjustable side plates and an adjustable end plate 70. The finger 50 is carried by pivoted arm 53 and is operated through a spring- loaded linkage 58, 60 by a cam 62: in synchronism with a top-folding plate 71 which is moved downwardly after end tucks have been made as described in Specification 680,115, to complete the end-folding operations. The completed packets pass downwardly between guides on to a delivery conveyer 74. In a modification, Fig. 4 (not shown), the conveyer 6 is replaced by a magazine secured to the bed at right-angles, the articles being removed in succession from the base of the magazine by the fingers 11. If the machine is used for effecting side-folding operations at one side only of a packet, as described in Specification 712,830, one of the guide members 44 is mounted on a pivot so that it may be swung clear at the necessary intervals by a connection to the operating mechanism of the machine.