Patent GB-1476754-A (GB)
Title: Packaging apparatus
IPC: B65B7/16
Filed: 1974-09-03
Abstract: 1476754 Packaging apparatus FIRST DYNAMICS Inc 3 Sept 1974 [25 Sept 1973] 38555/74 Heading B8C An apparatus for packaging a beverage or food-stuff with an implement, e.g. a straw 48, for extracting the beverage or food-stuff comnrises means 12 for thermo-forming successive clusters of containers 14 in an intermittently fed first web 16, a filler 24 for filling the containers, means 28 for thermo-forming successive clusters of first lids 36 having implement receiving recesses 54 in an intermittently fed second web 30, a roller 38 for placing the lids 36 on to the containers 4 so that they can be sealed thereto by a welding device 42, means 44 for supplying and depositing the implements in the recesses in the first lids 36, a press 56 for welding a third web 58 to the first lids 36 to enclose the implements, and a trimming device 62 for dividing each cluster of containers into individual containers, Fig. 25. The thermoformed containers each have bevelled corners 12a and a peripheral flange 14c. The implement receiving recesses 54 are arranged diagonally in the first lids 36 which also have puncturable implement receiving depressions 36a thermoformed therein by the means 28. A punch device 42a punches triangular holes (42d) Fig. 19 (not shown) in the combined first and second webs 16, 30 so that upon separation of the containers by the trimming device 62 a graspable triangular tongue portion of the third web 58 is left on each closed container. The straw supplying and depositing arrangement.-The straws 48 are fed by gravity from three hoppers 68 which each include an oscillatable agitator blade (94) Fig. 8 (not shown) to prevent jamming of the straws as they enter into delivery throats (92) Fig. 3 (not shown) of the hoppers. A respective horizontally disposed and reciprocable plate 106 is arranged under each hopper throat (92) and carries three parallel rails 110, 112. When the plate 106 moves to the right as viewed in Fig. 4, the rail 112 engages the centre of the straw and in conjunction with the rails 108 and fixed rollers 124, bends and forces a straw into a respective one of three straw receiving members 114. A conveyer 46 which comprises a plurality of articulated plates 52, each having elongate openings 50 therethrough, receives straws from the straw receiving members 114 and positions them above the recesses 54 in the first lids 36. In operation each straw receiving member 114 is lowered into register with an opening 50 in a conveyer plate 52 and the straw discharged into the opening 50 by downward movement of a bar 148 located in the interior of the straw receiving member 114. The straws are placed into the lid recesses 54 by downward movement of an array of elongate press bars 220 into the conveyer openings 50, and by simultaneously urging a platen (240) Fig. 14 (not shown) upwardly against the bottoms of the containers 14. Sealing press 56, Fig. 16 (not shown).-The press includes a rectangular upper member (302) which is heated and has a hard rubber facing (308) on its underside, and a lower member (320) which is in the form of a separator having recesses in which individual containers 14 can be received. In operation the upper and lower members (302, 320) are urged towards one another and the container flanges and the overlying third web are sandwiched between the hard rubber facing (308) and the upper edges of the separator (320), and hence sealed. Walking beam convener and third web feed.- The three webs are fed through the apparatus by a walking beam conveyer which clamps the edges of the webs and then advances the webs in the conveying direction before releasing the webs and returning to its initial position. The conveyer, Fig. 21 (not shown), comprises spaced beams (380) which are interconnected at one end and slidably mounted in channel supports (382) for movement by a piston and cylinder unit (404) Fig. 20 (not shown). The beams (380) carry a plurality of spaced sleeve members (388) which have openings (396) in which the side edges of the webs are received and clampable by pistonrods (392) extending within the sleeve members (388). Lengths of the third web 58 are unwound from a supply reel by a vertically reciprocable bar (353) Fig. 23 (not shown) which acts intermittently to enlarge a loop (345) Fig. 23 (not shown) in the web.