Patent GB-508466-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to the packing of cigarettes or other rod-shaped articles
IPC: B65B19/02
Filed: 1937-09-29
Abstract: 508,466. Making and filling boxes. CHALMERS, J. W., and MOLINS MACHINE CO., Ltd. Sept. 29, 1937, Nos. 26329/37, 35900/37 and 9505/38. [Classes 18 and 94 (i)] The machine makes cardboard boxes of oblong rectilinear crosssection, having a relatively deep body portion with the opening at the top and a lid hinged to the back wall at a position between the top and bottom of the box. Forms of boxes to which the invention relates are described in Specification 507,998. The boxes may have corner portions extending above the hinge axis and adapted to engage the front corners of the lid when closed and to resist opening. The corner portions may form part of an inner member serving to reinforce the box or to divide it into two portions. In the operation of the machine, an article or batch of cigarettes &c. may be fed on to a panel of the blank, which is thereupon folded up to enclose it in a box as set forth above. The boxes may be of trapezoidal crosssection. The general layout of a form of the machine is shown in Fig. 1. A blank, which may be as shown in Fig. 32, is fed from a magazine 71 on to a bed 50, along which it is fed while preliminary folding operations produce the formation shown in Fig. 34. A transfer device 51 moves the blank, inverting it in the process, to another bed 52, where further folding is carried out. An inner member r, Fig. 42, is made and delivered by apparatus 55, and transferred to a bed provided with cigarette feeding apparatus 57 and foil applying apparatus 58. The cigarettes, foil and inner member are assembled, carried along the bed 56 and delivered on to a blank on the bed 52. After certain further folding operations have been done, a transfer device 53 moves the blank and charge on to a bed 54 where the final folding and enclosure take place, and the completed pockets are collated in a vertical stacker 386. The blank comprises a front panel a, bottom panel b and back body panel c, with a back lid panel d, top panel e, front lid panel f and lid reinforcing flap g separated by score lines h ... m. The panels a, c, d, f are each provided with a pair of side panels a<1>, c<1>, d<1>, f<1> bounded by score lines n. Reinforcing flaps b<1>, e<1> extend from the top and bottom panels b, e. The lowermost blank of a stack is removed from a magazine 71, Figs. 2B, by vertically reciprocating suction members which move it downwards past serrated supports 86 to rest on guide rails 87, on which the pusher pieces of an intermittently moving chain conveyer 89 move. The blank is moved away by the pushers with its major dimension transverse to the direction of movement, and a pair of top,guides-289 move in beneath the magazine and control the feed. The flap g is first bent downwards at right angles by a disc 112 which co-operates with a rail 115, the hub 112a preventing riding up, and adhesive is applied to the flaps f, e<1>, b<1> by a wheel 101 contacting with a roller 102 in a gum bath 103. During further movement of the blank, the flap g is turned through a further right angle by a folder 118 and is secured to the flap f by the adhesive on the latter. Tuckers 119 on rocking arms 120 descend and bend down the flaps b<1>, e<1>. The leading, flaps are bent up by a fixed folder, and the rear flaps are turned up into engagement with this folder by a, tucker 129. Pressure rollers 146, 147 ensure adhesion, and the blank is now in the form shown in Fig. 34. The blank next passes over rails 160 resiliently mounted, to urge it against electrically heated members 164 on rails 163. The rails 163 are lifted during the movement of the blank, and descend during the pauses. The transfer device comprises a belt 177, Fig. 6, driven by a drum 178. The belt passes partly round the drum and round guide pulleys 184, and cooperates with an idler, belt 185. A platform 188 lifts the blank from the rails 87 to a position between parallel guides 195, and a pusher 197 forwards it to the left so that it is gripped by the belt and the drum. While travelling round the drum the blank is inverted and is fed between the belts 177, 185 to a position over a pocket 224 on a chain conveyer 224a on the table 52. A reciprocating member 225 positions the blank and a plunger 235 descends and forces it into the pocket while guides 223; movable towards the plunger, commence the folding up of the parts cl, d<1>. The plunger carries a spring-mounted base plate 257; Fig. 10, which holds the blank in position while a blade 256 presses the score line k and causes the panel e to take up a sloping position on the plate 259. At the same time. plunger extensions 255 press upon the panel f while plates 260 turn up the flaps f<1>. The panels e, f and flap f straighten out again as the blank is moved.away from beneath the plunger, and the panels a, b are bent upwards by a guide. The blank, being substantially in the form shown in Fig. 37, receives a charge.t of cigarettes enveloped in foil, and passes to the folding mechanism of Fig. 14. The panel b passes beneath a square guide rail 265a and a folder 301 lifts the panel a upwards. A similar folder 276 lifts the panel f into position for a folder 277 to press it on to a triangular guide 275. A further set of folders bring the blank to the form shown in Fig. 38. During these operations the loaded blank is controlled by guides 305, Fig. 14. Two cards may be fed from separate magazines to adjacent blanks, the magazines being offset from the centre lines of the packets, so that at the next step, two more cards are fed, and two lie side by side on the top of each packet. The panel a is folded into a vertical position again and turned over on to the top of the packet as shown in Fig. 40. In this condition the packet arrives opposite the transfer device 53, consisting of a chain 361, Fig. 23, with pushers 372 which sweep the packet on to a bed 54 along which they are continuously moved by pushers 376 on another conveyer 375. Gum is applied to the panels a<1>, f<1> by segments 380, and discs 381 turn the panels drawn over blades 384 into contact with spiral folders 385. The completed box, now as shown in Fig. 41, arrives beneath a stacker 402 having pivoted walls adapted to swing outwards during the ascent of the boxes to release the pressure. The boxes are moved upwards by a reciprocating platform 412. A presser arm 495 engages the end of the packet to ensure that it is properly closed. Retrogression of the stack is prevented by spring catches. The walls of the stacker may be heated. The boxes are removed horizontally from the top of the stacker by a pusher and may travel down a slope to a wrapping-machine. Cigarette assembly and feed. The cigarette feed, indicated generally at 57, Fig. 1, comprises a hopper 437, Fig. 19B, having partitions between which cigarettes pass to the bed 56. Ten spaces are arranged so that two groups each having two rows of five each, and slightly spaced from each other, may be fed by a pusher 441 on a chain 440. A detecting device 440 is provided so that if a defective batch is fed, a circuit is energised and operates means to eject the faulty packet at a subsequent stage. The batch is carried along between guides 443, Fig. 20, and beneath a top plate 444 with a downwardly projecting plate 445 separating the two portions of the batch. Projections 447 on the pushers are accommodated in grooves 446. An inner member r, Fig. 42, is added to the batch so that the central partition divides the batch and is fed with it by engagement by the projections 447. Small upper grooves 448a are arranged to accommodate the projections P. The batch next engages a strip of foil fed by rollers 450, 451, Fig. 1, and severed by a knife 463. The strip is folded to the top and bottom of the batch in its further progress. The pusher 441 is tripped and the batch is fed on to the panel c of a blank by a pusher which moves forward in a horizontal path and returns in an elevated path to clear the oncoming batches. The apparatus for producing an inner member and associating it with a batch i forms the subject-matter of Specification 508,536. The apparatus for producing the inner member r, Figs. 42, 43, comprises feed rollers 517, 518, Fig. 28, for drawing the web w past detecting mechanism 604, to rollers 519, 520. The roller 520 is provided with scoring or perforating blades which produce the scores &c. s, Fig. 43, and cuts u and sever the blank from the web. Feed rollers 521 ... 523 feed the blank at an accelerated rate to curved guides which swing it through a right angle into position beneath folders on a rocking lever 532, then in a raised position. The lever falls and folders 535 nip the panels v against a creasing blade 536 while the longer limbs of the folders co-operate with plates 537 to bend up the panels x. The blank, which is now in the form shown in Fig. 42, but inverted, is swept downwards through a semi-circular guide 545 on to the table 56. The feeding arms are tripped and the member is fed along the table with a batch of cigarettes, the folded panels v occupying the central space between the groups of ten cigarettes formerly occupied by the rib 445. The web detector comprises a double lever 601, Fig. 28, with an insulated bushing 602<1>, and having contacts 603, 604, and an arm 605 with a roller 606 spring-urged towards the web and the roller 516. If the web breaks, the contact 603 completes a circuit and actuates devices to eject the faulty packet at a subsequent stage. If a double thickness passes the roller 606, the contact 604 completes a circuit with the same result. The ejecting device comprises a rotary disc having a number of axially movable pins adapted to be displaced by electromagnetic means on the completion of the circuit. The displaced pin corresponds to a faulty packet, and, at the appropriate stage in the rotation of the disc, actuates ejecting mechanism for that packet. The boxes may be made without corner portions and of trapezoidal cross-se