Patent Publication Number: US-6041835-A

Title: Container rim shield for container filling apparatus

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to container filling apparatus and more particularly to structure for shielding the rims of the containers being filled, from product or material being dispensed by the container filling apparatus into the containers. 
     Apparatus and processes for automatically filling containers such as cans, trays or the like with both food and non-food products have become very sophisticated in recent years. Such apparatus and processes are used to fill containers with liquid, semi-liquid, pasty or solid products including both food products, such as liver paste, baby foods, jellies, vegetable oil, mustard, sauces, etc., and non-food products, such as mineral oil, wax, paints, etc. 
     As might be expected, occasionally the material being dispensed into the containers splashes or otherwise is deflected from the inside of the container, and this can be both messy and unsanitary. An additional problem arises when material splashes onto the rims of the openings of the containers which are to be covered and sealed later. If material is present on the upper surface of a container rim and a cover is then placed over the opening in contact with the rim, the material may prevent obtaining a secure seal between the cover and the rim. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the invention to provide container filling apparatus in which the rims of openings of containers being filled are shielded from contact by the material being dispensed into the containers. 
     It is also an object of the invention to provide structure for shielding the rims of containers which are automatically moved into position under a material dispensing nozzle or head of such a container filling apparatus. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide such structure which may be easily manufactured and installed, and which does not interfere with the automatic filling operation of the container filling apparatus. 
     The above and other objects are realized in a specific illustrative embodiment of structure for shielding the rims of openings of containers positioned for filling from a filling head or nozzle of container filling apparatus, where the filling head is disposed above the container. The structure includes a base mountable on the container filling apparatus generally below the level of the filling head, and projections extending from the base generally horizontally, and configured to overlie at least a portion of the rim of the container when the container is in position under the filling head. The projections, advantageously, are spaced apart and configured to cover or overlie the rims of the containers to shield the rims from material being dispensed between the projections into the containers. 
     In accordance with one aspect of the invention, shielding structure is provided for generally rectangularly shaped containers having rim flanges on which a cover will ultimately be placed. The shielding structure includes a pair of generally parallel, spaced-apart arms projecting from the base to generally overlie respective opposing side rim flanges of the container, and a plate extending between the arms at one end thereof to overlie another side rim flange of the container (which extends between the opposing side rim flanges). 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description presented in connection with the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of container filling apparatus with container rim shielding structure made in accordance with the principles of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective, fragmented, close-up view of the shielding structure of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective, exploded view of shielding structure made in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the movement of containers (rectangular trays) under the shielding structure of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a perspective view of a container filling apparatus 4 by which food product is dispensed or deposited in trays 8 being moved by conveyor 12 (illustrated graphically) successively under a filling head 16 of the container filling apparatus. The container filling apparatus 4 is illustrative of one type of container filling machine presently available commercially, the apparatus being the MPF system, manufactured by Multi-Fill, Inc. of West Jordan, Utah. In this apparatus, food product is deposited in a hopper 20 where it is carried by flights 24 of an endless belt 28 upwardly for deposit in another hopper or bin 32. From there the food product moves downwardly through a hollow cylinder 36 to the filling head 16 which automatically discharges a measured amount of food product into each tray 8 as each tray is moved into position underneath the filling head. This is a well-known food product filling operation. Other types of food product filling apparatus include rotary piston fillers, inline fillers, etc. The present invention is not limited to the apparatus of FIG. 1 but could be utilized in conjunction with a variety of container filling apparatus in which food product or other products are dispensed downwardly into an open container. 
     FIG. 2 shows a perspective, close-up view of the filling head 16 of FIG. 1, with shielding structure 40 installed on the filling head. In particular, the filling head 16 includes a bar 16a which projects generally horizontally over the conveyor 12 and the shielding structure 40 is mounted on this bar by way of four brackets 44, best seen in FIG. 3. The brackets 44 are bolted to respective opposite sides of the bar 16a by bolts 48 (FIG. 3). The brackets 44 each include a notch 52 into which laterally extending lips 56 of rails or arms 60 of the shielding structure 40 slide so that the shielding structure may be held in place above the conveyor 12 and above the trays 8 moving successively under the filling head 16 (FIGS. 2 and 3). 
     The shielding structure 40, in addition to the rails 60 which project generally horizontally in a spaced-apart, parallel relationship, in the direction of movement of the conveyor 12, also includes a plate 64 which extends between the rails 60 at the rearward end, to leave a space 68, at least partially circumscribed by the rails 56 and plate 64. It is through this space that food product is dispensed from the filling head 16 into the trays 8. A rear plate 72 is disposed at the rearward end of the rails 60 and plate 64 and includes openings 72a through which bolts 76 are inserted (FIG. 2) which, together with nuts 80 allow for adjusting the position of the shielding structure 40 either forwardly or rearwardly, depending upon the needs of the user. That is, by adjusting the nuts 80, on the bolts 76, the position of the rear plate 72 against which the nuts 80 abut, and thus the position of the shielding structure 40, relative to the brackets 44, may be varied. 
     The rails or arms 60 each include the laterally extending upper lip 56 already mentioned, and a generally laterally extending cover or shielding plate 84 and a vertically disposed connecting web 88 extending between the upper lip and shielding plate. 
     FIG. 4 shows three trays 8 inline, as they would move on the conveyor (not shown) under the shielding structure 40. An exemplary food product dispensing nozzle 92 of the filling head 16 is shown positioned above the shielding structure 40 to dispense food product downwardly between the rails 60 into the trays 8. The nozzle 92 may be positioned lower or higher relative to the shielding structure 40 as determined by the needs of the user, but generally would be somewhat closer to the shielding structure than shown in FIG. 4. 
     The trays 8 are moved in position by the conveyor under the shielding structure 40 so that the shielding plates 84 overlie or cover at least a portion of opposing side rim flanges 8a of the trays 8 to prevent food product from splashing onto or otherwise contacting the upper surfaces of the flanges during filling. The plate 64 similarly overlies or covers the outwardly extending rim flange 8b at the rear of each tray during filling. Thus, those portions of rim flanges of the trays 8 covered by the shielding plates 84 and the plate 64 are shielded from food product. As a result, there is less likelihood that contaminants on the upper surfaces of the flanges of the trays would prevent positive sealing (by adhesive or otherwise) of covers to the flanges. 
     Note in FIG. 1 that the food product 96 is shown at the rear of the trays 8 so that only those flanges generally adjacent to the food product ultimately deposited would need to be shielded. Thus, the rails 60 only extend over a portion of the opposing side rim flanges 8a and not all the way to the forward end of the tray. However, shielding plates, covers or masks of a variety of shapes and designs could be provided to shield the rims of containers during filling so long as an opening similar to the space 68 (FIG. 3) were provided in the shielding structure to allow the passage therethrough of the food product. 
     It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the present invention. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and arrangements.