Patent Publication Number: US-2018036990-A1

Title: Air pillow machine

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/370,803, entitled “Air Pillow Machine,” filed on Aug. 4, 2016, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to air pillow machines, in particular, air pillow machines that are modular. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Many techniques have been used to pack items for shipping and to absorb impacts during shipment to protect shipped items, such as foam peanuts, molded foam components, formed paper, crumpled paper, inflated air pillows and molded pulp packaging components. Inflated air pillows have become an accepted, cost effective packaging product because rolls of uninflated preformed plastic film material can be shipped to customers for onsite filling using an air pillow machine, which allows the customer direct control over the filling and packaging of the air pillows into the box with the product to be shipped. 
     There is always a need for improvement in air pillow machines, such as a smaller machine that is faster and easier to repair, which equates to reductions in down time. Machines fulfilling these needs are disclosed herein. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to an embodiment, an air pillow machine system may include an air pillow machine including a primary base plate having mounted thereto a feeding mechanism, an inflating mechanism, and a sealing mechanism. A frame may have the primary base plate of the air pillow machine removably slidingly received therein. The air pillow machine system may also include a housing. The frame may be one of mounted at least partially within the housing and integral with the housing. A portion of each of the feeding mechanism, inflating mechanism, and sealing mechanism that engage an uninflated pillow-precursor protrude away from the primary base plate and away from the frame. 
     One or more of the following features may be included. The air pillow machine may be secured within the frame by a releaseably attachable top plate. One or more of a motor and one or more sensors may be electrically connected to one of a plug and a plug receptacle mounted to the primary base plate. One of the one or more sensors may include a traction wheel rotated by the uninflated pillow-precursor fed through the air pillow machine and a device to sense the speed of the traction wheel. The device to sense the speed of the traction wheel may send a signal indicative of the speed of the traction wheel to a controller configured to change the power to the motor based upon, at least in part, the signal. The traction wheel may include a plurality of spaced apart holes in at least one axial faces of the traction wheel. The device to sense the speed of the traction wheel may include a sensor configured to sense one or more of the passage of the plurality of spaced apart holes and surfaces in between the plurality of holes as the traction wheel rotates. The sensor may be a Hall effect sensor. 
     The sealing mechanism may include a heating element electrically connected to a controller. The controller may be configured to monitor a resistance of the heating element and to control a voltage applied to the heating element to maintain the heating element at a constant temperature. The inflating mechanism may include a fan having a surge line. The fan may be a vane style blower. The fan may be positioned to cool electronics of the air pillow machine as ambient air is drawn into the fan. The sealing mechanism may include an insulator block holding a heating element relative to a first belt of the feeding mechanism to seal the pillow-precursor subsequent to inflation. The sealing mechanism may also include a first electrical plug connected to a first end of the heating element and a second electrical plug connected to a second end of the heating element. The first and second electrical plugs may protrude from the insulator block and may be configured to be plugged into receptacles coupled to the primary base plate. In an embodiment, the frame may have maximum dimensions of 12 inches by 10 inches by 6 inches. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded, perspective view of one example embodiment of an air pillow machine system. 
         FIG. 2  is an assembled, perspective view of the air pillow machine system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a bottom, plan view of the air pillow machine system of  FIG. 1  without a bottom plate of the frame. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective, bottom view of the air pillow machine system of  FIG. 1  with one support of the traction wheel removed. 
         FIG. 5  is a top, plan view of one example embodiment of an air pillow machine. 
         FIG. 6  is a top, perspective view of one example embodiment of an insulated heating block of the air pillow machine. 
         FIG. 7  is a side, perspective view of one example embodiment of the insulated heating block of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 8  is a photograph of an example embodiment of an air pillow machine assembly with uninflated air pillow precursors being fed therethrough. 
         FIGS. 9-11  are alternate views of example touch screen display of an illustrative embodiment of an air pillow machine. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following detailed description of illustrative example embodiments will illustrate the general principles consistent with the disclosure, examples of which are additionally illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference numbers indicate identical or functionally similar elements. 
     The present disclosure generally describes systems and methods for converting uninflated film pillow-precursors into inflated pillows that may be used as cushioning for packaging and shipping goods.  FIGS. 1 and 2  show an illustrative embodiment of an air pillow machine system  100 , first, in an unassembled state and, then, in an assembled state for inflating and sealing the uninflated film pillow-precursors into inflated pillows. According to one aspect, the depicted illustrative embodiment may demonstrate modularity of the air pillow machine system  100  including a capability for sliding the air pillow machine  102 , in its entirety (and/or one or more subcomponents thereof), into the frame  104 . The air pillow machine  102  may include a primary base plate  132  having mounted thereto a feeding mechanism  140 , an inflating mechanism  142 , a sealing mechanism  144 , and a cutting mechanism  146 , which may be capable of moving together with the primary base plate  132  into the frame  104 . In some example embodiments, the air pillow machine  102  may measure at most about twelve inches by ten inches by six inches, with respect to the portion of the machine slidingly received in the frame  104 . In some further example embodiments, the air pillow machine  102  may measure at most about ten inches by eight inches by four inches. As illustrated in the assembled state of  FIG. 2 , the rollers  120 ,  122 , belts  124 ,  126  ( FIG. 5 ) disposed about respective sets of rollers  120 ,  122 , the cutting mechanism  146 , the air nozzle  160 , and motor  128  may protrude outwardly away from the front face FF of the primary base plate  132  of the machine  102 , i.e., away from the portion of the machine  102  enclosed within the frame  104 , and are not included in the foregoing illustrative example dimensions. Hence, a portion of each of the feeding mechanism  140 , inflating mechanism  142 , and sealing mechanism  144  that may engage an uninflated film pillow-precursor may protrude away from the primary base plate and away from the frame  104 . 
     As shown, the base plate  132  may include a plurality of preselectively positioned bore holes therethrough to receive shafts for the rollers,  120 ,  122 , the motor  128  and/or at least a portion of the wiring for the motor, an air passageway for fluid communication between a fan  138  and an inflation nozzle  160 , openings for other wiring for sensors and/or power to the heating element  172 , and fastener openings for mounting various components thereto. The fasteners may include any suitable fasteners and/or combinations of fasteners, such as screws, bolts, rivets, or the like. The edges of the base plate  132  that contact the opposing side rails  106 ,  108  of frame  104  may include a friction reducing coating applied thereto, e.g., which may make it easier to slide the air pillow machine  102  into the frame  104 . One example coating is a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) impregnated hard anodize coating. Consistent with the illustrative example embodiment, the base plate  132  may have a plurality of legs  139  extending from the back face BF, for example, generally from the corners of the plate, to provide additional rigidity to the base plate to hold the working components such as the gears  150 - 152  and the fan  138  a spaced apart distance (clearance) from the frame  104  and/or a housing enclosing the frame  104  and the portion of the air pillow machine enclosed therein. In some embodiments, this clearance may also reduce the risk that the working parts may be damaged by hitting the frame  104  as the air pillow machine  102  is slid into the frame. Further, in some embodiments, the clearance may reduce the risk of overheating during operation. 
     Consistent with the illustrated example embodiment, in some implementations the air pillow machine  102  may provide a unique modularity in that the entirety of the working parts slides into and out of the frame  104  and, therefore, is replaceable by a new unit in the event of a repair or failure of any single component thereof. The air pillow machine  102  may include one or more male or female electrical connectors (e.g., a plug  130 ) fixedly connected to the primary base plate  132  by a plug plate  131 , which makes it easier to unplug and reconnect the plug  130 . The plug  130  may provide an electrical connection for connecting and disconnecting all, and/or at least a portion, of the onboard electronics  135  ( FIG. 3 ) and/or at all, or at least a portion, of the wiring for electrical components (e.g., if no computer processing unit is included as part of air pillow machine  102 ) to off-board electronics. Consistent with such an embodiment, the frame  104  may be simply opened by removing the releaseably attachable top plate  110 , unplugging (e.g., via plug  130 ) the onboard electronic  135  of the air pillow machine  102  from the off-board electronics, and sliding the air pillow machine  102  out of the frame  104 . Then, a new air pillow machine may slide into the frame  104 . The plug  130  of the new air pillow machine may be reconnected, and the top plate  110  is fastened back in place. This construction may provide the customer the advantage of having a replacement air pillow machine on site waiting to be installed in the event of some malfunction. Down time may, therefore, be avoided and the unit in need of repair can be sent to the manufacturer and a new unit ordered to be on site. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , consistent with the illustrated embodiment, the frame  104  may include opposing, spaced apart side rails  106 ,  108 , which are spaced apart by an end panel  114 , seated therebetween, that has a length (L) slightly longer than the width (W) of the primary base plate  132  of the air pillow machine  102 . Also, the frame  104  may include generally, opposing top and bottom plates  110 ,  112  seated on exterior surfaces of the opposing side rails  106 ,  108  with an orientation that is perpendicular to the end panel  114 . The end opposite the end panel  114  may include an open face defined by the opposing side rails  106 ,  108  and the top and bottom plates  110 ,  112 . The plug  130  of the air pillow machine  102  may be at either end of the frame  104  when the air pillow machine  102  is inserted therein. In an embodiment in which the plug  130  is adjacent the end panel  114 , then the end panel  114  may define a cooperating opening (not shown) through which a cord with a mating plug (not shown) may be received. 
     At least the first side rail  106  and the second side rail  108  of the frame  104  may include a plurality of holes  137  therethrough as air vents to allow heat to dissipate and/or to allow ambient air to be drawn to the fan  138 . In an embodiment, the plurality of holes  137  may be positioned relative to the onboard electronics  135  to draw external ambient air thereacross to cool the electronics on its way to the fan  138 . The fan  138  may include part of the inflating mechanism  142 , and in some embodiments may include a surge line. In one embodiment, the fan  138  may be a vane style blower. 
     In some embodiments, frame  104  may be mounted within and/or may be an integral part of a housing or shell (not shown) forming a decorative or more visually appealing exterior that may also provide some degree of protection for an end user (e.g., the user&#39;s fingers) from the moving parts of the air pillow machine (such as the gears). In some embodiments, the housing or shell may be insulated in part to reduce noise. In some such embodiments, the insulation may be positioned such that heat will not build up within the frame  104  to a degree that may compromise the operation and/or useful life of the air pillow machine.  FIG. 8  is a photograph of one embodiment of an air pillow machine assembly  200  comprising the air pillow machine system  100  of  FIGS. 1-5 . In the depicted example embodiment, the uninflated film pillow-precursors  206  is provided as a roll  202  of film material wound on core  204 . The film material may be pulled through the air pillow machine assembly  200  in the path or machine direction shown by arrow “A” as explained in more detail below with reference to  FIGS. 1-5 . The housing  210  may include a display  216 , an on-off controller  218 , and other controllers  219  for other variables of the assembly  200 , for example, speed of the motor, sealing temperature, plastic jams, sealing wire break, etc. 
     As described above, in some embodiments, the air pillow machine  102  may be slidingly and releasably, engaged with the frame  104  in a modular fashion (e.g., with the air pillow machine  102  being configured for ready removal and replacement within the frame  104 ). Further, in some of the described embodiments, the frame  104  may be disposed within, and/or may be an integral feature of, a housing. Consistent with one or more additional illustrative embodiments, the modularity of the air pillow machine and the frame may be leveraged to provide various unique applications an advantages. In one such embodiment, the air pillow machine may be mounted, or otherwise disposed, at the end of an articulating arm. Consistent with such an embodiment, the air pillow machine and articulating arm may be utilized as a fill in place unit. The articulating arm may be utilized to position the discharge of completed air pillows (e.g., inflated and sealed air pillows) from the air pillow machine to be over, beside, behind, or any combination thereof, a container to be filled with air pillows (e.g., to pre-fill the container with air pillows prior to placement of an article being packed and/or to fill around an article already packed in the container). 
     In another embodiment, the air pillow machine may be slidingly, and releasably, mounted in a frame above an overhead bin. In such a configuration, the completed air pillows discharged from the air pillow machine may be collected within the overhead bin, e.g. for subsequent distribution to one or more pack stations. In some implementations, multiple air pillow machine and frame combinations may be deployed to fill the same overhead bin to ensure a sufficient supply of air pillows to handle any demand (e.g., as may be associated with large consumption users). Consistent with the foregoing implementation, a single overhead bin of air pillows may provide a single source of distribution for supplying multiple packing stations. Accordingly, it may be possible to free up space at individual pack stations/tables (e.g., by not requiring a separate air pillow machine system at each packing station). 
     In another similar implementation, one or more air pillow machines may be operated, e.g. at a centralized location, and the produced air pillows may be conveyed, blown, or otherwise transported (using any combinations transport methodologies) from the centralized location to a plurality of individual packing stations (e.g., where the air pillows may be used for packing articles to be shipped). Such an arrangement may free up space at the packing stations/tables (e.g., by not requiring a separate air pillow machine system at each packing station). Additionally, such an arrangement may allow the air pillow making process to be carried out in one area by one or more operators who may be in charge of making and/or distributing air pillows. 
     Consistent with yet a further embodiment, the air pillow machine may be used in connection with a mobile air pillow distribution system. In one such embodiment, a complete air pillow machine system and/or the air pillow machine (alone and/or in combination with a frame) may be configured as a mobile system that may, in some implementations, be battery operated (e.g., via one or more rechargeable batteries). In some implementations the mobile air pillow system may be provided with the ability to carry extra consumables. Further, in some embodiments, the mobile air pillow machine may include a communication system (e.g., via any suitable wired or wireless communication system) that may allow individual pack stations to request replenishment of air pillows (e.g., based on the remaining quantity of air pillows at the pack station). Upon receiving the request for replenishment of air pillows from a pack station, the mobile air pillow distribution system may be transported to the requesting pack stations and a sufficient quantity of air pillows may be produced at the pack station to replenish the pack station supply. Accordingly, the single mobile air pillow machine (alone and/or with an operator of the mobile air pillow machine) may supply multiple pack stations as demand requires. Such an implementation may clean up individual pack stations, e.g., by not requiring the various pack stations to each have a dedicated air pillow machine. In some implementations, a queue system may be utilized and managed to dispatch the mobile air pillow machine to a packing stations based upon, for example, the order in which requests for air pillows are received, an urgency level of the request, a hierarchical arrangement, or other suitable queueing system. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 9-11 , in one illustrative example embodiment, the display  216  may be a touch screen user interface  230  that may enable the user to start and stop the air pillow machine  102  (buttons  232 ,  234 ), monitor the temperature of the heating element (display fields  240 ,  242 ), change the size configuration of the air pillows to be made (“Change” button  236 ), receive messages, and/or access the manufacture&#39;s website using a 2D bar code  244 . It will be appreciated that additional and/or alternative information and/or operations may be provided via the display  216 . The area of the screen for the start button  232  may be indicated by any image desirable. Here, it is a green circle with a white triangle in the center thereof. The area of the screen for the stop button  234  may be indicated by any image desirable. Here, it is a red circle with a white square in the center thereof. The area of the screen for the change air pillow size  236  may be indicated by any image desirable. Here, it is a rectangular box housing the word “Change” in the upper right corner of the screen. 
     In some embodiments, the screen  230  may include one, or a plurality of, display fields  238 ,  240 ,  242 . The first display field  238 , positioned at the top, center of the screen, may function as a screen title displaying useful information to the user. For instance, in  FIG. 9 , the first display field  238  may notify the user of the current air pillow size selected by reference to the dimensions thereof, “8×12.” Then, after the change button  236  is pressed, the first display field  238  may notify the user to “Choose Packing Size” as seen in  FIG. 11 . On the “Choose Packing Size” screen a plurality of areas of the screen may form buttons  250 , each identifying a different option for the size (dimensions) of an air pillow, e.g., “8×5,” “8×6,” “8×8,” “8×10,” and “8×12.” Once a size button is pressed, the user may return to a screen similar to the display shown in  FIG. 9 , with the selected dimensions displayed in the first display field  238   
     With reference to  FIG. 10 , the second display field  240  may be for the temperature in Celsius of the heating element  172 . The third display field  242  may be for the temperature in Fahrenheit of the heating element  172 . When in between modes, these display fields  240 ,  242  may display the word “Ready” in each thereof; however, there is no requirement that these fields display the same message. 
     It will be appreciated that touch screen user interface may provide various additional and/or alternative displays, menus and/or modes of operation than those described above. Accordingly, such description should be understood as illustrative and not limiting on the scope of the present disclosure. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 8 , in an illustrative example embodiment of the air pillow machine assembly  200 , the frame  104  may be integral with the lower portion of the housing  210 . The housing  210  may include a support arm  212 , which may be adjustable to provide clearance for different sized uninflated air pillow precursors  206 . A dispensing platform  214  may also be included that rotates to dispense the uninflated air pillow precursors  206  as a continuous strip of film material into the air pillow machine assembly  200 . Inflated air pillows  220  may then be dispensed from the assembly  200  and can be directed into a cardboard box  222  or other packaging containers or collection arrangement. 
     To convert the uninflated film pillow-precursors  206  into inflated air pillows  220 , an opening in the film material may be inserted around the inflation nozzle  160 . The inflation nozzle  160  may insert gas into the uninflated film pillow-precursors  206 , inflating the film material into inflated air pillows  220 . As best shown in  FIG. 5 , the inflation nozzle  160  may include a side inflation opening  162 , e.g., a hole defined by the inflation nozzle  160  ( FIG. 5 ). Secondly, the inflation nozzle  160  may act as a guide for the film material, and may typically be an elongate, generally straight hollow rod coupled to the base plate  132  by a tube header  164  that fluidly connects the inflation nozzle  160  to an output of the fan  138 . A free end  166  of the inflation nozzle  160 , which may include a generally rounded or conical tip  167 , may extend forward or upstream of the side inflation opening  162  to be received in an inflation channel  221  formed between layers of the film material. The inflation channel  221  may initially be closed to trap the inflation nozzle  160  radially therein, until the film material around the inflation nozzle  160  is cut by the cutting mechanism  146 . 
     With reference to  FIGS. 1-5 , in the illustrated embodiment the film material may be pulled through the air pillow machine  102  in the machine direction shown by arrow “A” (labeled in  FIG. 2 ) by the feeding mechanism  140  that may include a motor  128  geared to a set of feed rollers  120  by primary gear  150  and secondary intermeshing gears  151 ,  152 . The primary gear  150  may be mounted to shaft  153  driven by the motor  128 . The first secondary intermeshing gear  151  may be mounted to shaft  154  upon which the first of the feed rollers  120   a  may be seated for rotation therewith. The second secondary intermeshing gear  152  may be mounted to shaft  155  upon which the second of the feed rollers  120   b  may be seated for rotation therewith. The first secondary gear  151  may be mated intermeshingly to the primary gear  151  and may be mated intermeshingly to the second secondary gear  152  to transfer rotation from the primary gear  151  to the second secondary gear  152 . The second of the feed rollers  120   b  may include a tension bearing support  156  having a bearing spacing bar  157  with the second secondary gear  152  seated between the tension bearing supports  156 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , a first spring  121  may be attached to at least one of the tension bearing supports  156  of the feed rollers  120   b  to bias the gears into intermeshing relationship and to bias the feed rollers  120   b  toward the feed rollers  120   a  to form a nip between the first and second endless belts  124 ,  126  for pulling the film material though the air pillow machine  102 . 
     The first endless belt  124  may be entrained about the first feed roller  120   a  and a first guide roller  122   a  aligned horizontally relative to one another and parallel to the machine direction A. The first guide roller  122   a  may be positioned forward or upstream relative to the first feed roller  120   a.  The second endless belt  126  may be entrained about the second feed roller  120   b  and a second guide roller  122   b  aligned horizontally relative to one another and parallel to the machine direction. Hereto, the second guide roller  122   b  may be positioned forward or upstream relative to the second feed roller  120   b.  Each guide roller  122  may be biased linearly to maintain or hold the first endless belt  124  and the second endless belt  126  in tension. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the first guide roller  122   a  may be operatively coupled to a second spring  123  and the second guide roller  122   b  may be operative coupled to a third spring  125 , both of which may act to bias the guide rollers away from the gears,  150 ,  151 ,  152  to tension the belts  124 ,  126 , respectively. Both of the guide rollers  122  may be mounted to the primary base plate by tension bearing supports  156 ′ separated by a spacer bar  157 ′. 
     The pair of guide rollers  122  guide the film material toward the sealing mechanism  144  and the cutting mechanism  146 , but the film material may be pulled in the machine direction by the set of feed rollers  120 . The set of guide rollers  122  may be nylon rollers, while the set of feed rollers  120  may typically have an exterior surface comprising a silicon material. The core of each of the feed rollers  120  may be any lightweight material of suitable durability, such as aluminum. In some embodiments, the first endless belt  124  include Teflon, since this belt is in contact with a heating element of the sealing mechanism  144 . The second endless belt  126  is not required to include Teflon, but can, and in one embodiment is a silicon belt. 
     In an example embodiment, when a new roll of uninflated film pillow-precursor is fed into the air pillow machine  102 , a first uninflated pillow-precursor may be inserted by hand around the inflation nozzle  160  and may be fed between first and second endless belts  124 ,  126 . The first endless belt  124  may be driven in the direction shown by the arrow “B,” and the second endless belt  126  may be driven in the direction shown by arrow “C,” (labeled in  FIG. 5 ) such that the uninflated film pillow-precursor may be driven in the machine direction “A” between the first and second belts  124 ,  126 , which may be positioned relative to one another by the set of feed roller  120  and set of guide rollers  122  to cooperatively pull the film material through the air pillow machine  102 . 
     As the film material is advanced through the air pillow machine  102 , a fluid or inflation gas may be inserted to inflate the air pillows. Subsequent to inflation and generally commensurate with sealing of the inflated air pillow, the inflation channel  221  may be cut by the cutting mechanism  146  to increase the ease of dispensing the inflated air pillows from the air pillow machine  102 . The cutting mechanism  146  may include a blade  176  releaseably attachable to a blade holder  178 . The blade holder  178  may be releaseably attachable to the primary base plate  132  and may hold the cutting edge  177  of the blade  176  in a plane parallel to the upper surface of the primary base plate  132  and generally centrally positioned along a side of the air nozzle  160 . The air nozzle  160  may define a shallow recess  179  ( FIG. 2 ) in which a portion of the blade  176  may be seated to assist in holding the blade steady during operation. The cutting edge  177  may be coated with titanium nitride and/or Teflon to increase the cutting ability and wear resistance thereof. Various cutting mechanisms can be used and are not limited to the blade member and cutting edge, such as other forms of knives, sharp edges, rotating abrasive devices, etc. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the blade holder  178  may be positioned underneath a portion of the sealing mechanism  144 , such as the insulated block  170  that holds the heating element  172  adjacent to the first endless belt  124 . In another embodiment, the blade holder  178  may be positioned underneath the support block  173 . The heating element  172  may form a longitudinal seal that may be continuous along the film material by sealing together the layers of the film material that define each inflated air pillow. As mentioned above, the longitudinal seal may be formed by heating the layers of the film material with the heating element  172  through the first endless belt  124  to melt the layers together. The inflated, sealed air pillows may be advanced between the set of feed rollers  120 , and then exit the first and second endless belts  124 ,  126  and, hence, the air pillow machine  102 . 
     Turning to  FIGS. 6-7 , the insulated block  170  may hold the heating element  172  along a first side face  180  of the insulated block  170  that may be positioned against the inside surface of endless belt  124 . The first side face  180  may be covered by Teflon tape  181  to protect the block from the high temperature of the heating element  172 . In the first side face  180 , the insulated block  170  may include first bore holes  182 , one each positioned proximate one of the opposing ends  183  of the first side face  180 . Each of the first bore holes  182  may extend into the insulated block  170  at least to a depth that intersects transverse second bore holes  184  extending from the back face  185  into the insulated block to a depth at least through the bore holes  182 , but optionally may extend through to the front face  187  of the insulated block. 
     The heating element  172  may extend between the first bore holes  182 , lying against the first side face  180 , and into each of the first bore holes  182 . Inside each of the first bore holes  182 , an end (not shown) of the heating element  172  may be attached to an electrically conductive spring (not shown) that may be connected to an electrical plug protruding from one of the second bore holes  184 , or directly connected to an electrical plug protruding from one of the second bore holes  184 . The electrical plugs  188  are seen in  FIG. 7  protruding from the back face  185  of the insulated block. The electrical plugs  188  may be pluggable into first and second receptacles  189  ( FIG. 5 ) in the primary base plate  132 . In one embodiment, the pluggable aspect of the insulated block  170  may be accomplished using banana plugs, which makes it very easy to unplug the insulated block  170  containing the heating element  172  and replace it with a new one, without requiring the disconnection of any of the wires  186  and reconnecting the same. In some embodiments, the insulated block  170  may be made of an insulating material, so that it does not act as a heat sink. For example, in some embodiments, the insulated block  170  may be made of a ceramic matrix. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 5 , the sealing mechanism  144  may include a support block  173  including a fixedly mounted, stationary base  174  having seated thereagainst or therein a plurality of springs  175  under compression that bias a generally linearly translatable upper bar  179  toward the interior surface of the second endless belt  126  most proximate the insulated block  170  (i.e., the upper run of the second endless belt  126 ). The support block  173  may be positioned facing the heating element  172  of the insulated block  170  with the linearly translatable upper bar  179  working cooperatively with the insulated block  170  to hold the film material against the heated surface of the first endless belt  124  to form the longitudinal seal while the film material is conveyed through the air pillow machine  102 . 
     With reference to  FIG. 3 , the illustrative embodiment of the air pillow machine  102 , as discussed above, may include a plug or plug receptacle  130  mounted to the primary base plate  132 . The plug or plug receptacle  130  may be electrically connected to the motor  128 , the fan  138 , the heating element  172 , and/or one or more sensors, such as the traction wheel sensor  190 , by wires  186 . In some embodiments, the motor  128  may be a  12 V direct current motor. One of the sensors may include a traction wheel  190  rotatably mounted on a shaft  196  between supports  194 , see  FIGS. 4 and 5 , with the traction wheel  190  in contact with the uninflated pillow-precursors for rotation of the traction wheel  190  in response to the conveyance of the uninflated pillow-precursors through the air pillow machine  102 . The base plate  132  may define an elongate opening  197  positioned underneath the inflation nozzle  160  upstream of the feeding mechanism  140  and the sealing mechanism  144 . 
     As seen in  FIG. 5 , the elongate opening  197  may be generally underneath at least a portion of the inflation nozzle  160  that defines the inflation opening  162 . The traction wheel  190  may be positioned relative to a device (or arrangement of devices) to sense the speed  192  thereof. The device to sense the speed  192  may send a signal indicative of the sensed speed to a controller and the controller, based on the signal, may change the power of the motor  128 , and hence the rate at which the uninflated pillow-precursors move through the machine. The power of the motor  128  can be increased or decreased as the situation demands. The device to sense the speed  192  may be an optical eye tracking one or more images, such as a line, dot, recess, or protrusion on the traction wheel  190  as it passes through each rotation. As is visible in  FIG. 4 , the traction wheel  190  may include a plurality of spaced apart holes or recesses  198  in at least one of the opposing axial faces  199  thereof and a sensor  192 , such as a Hall effect sensor, sensing the passage of the plurality of spaced apart holes  198  or the surfaces in between the plurality of holes as the traction wheel passes through each rotation. In other embodiments, the device to sense the speed  192  may be determined by monitoring the movement of one or more of the first and second endless belts  124 ,  126 , or the revolutions (rpm) of the shaft  153  of the primary gear  150  or the motor&#39;s rpm or the primary gear&#39;s rpms relative to the length of the first and second endless belts  124 ,  126 . 
     The traction wheel  190  may be continuously biased partially through the hole  197  in the base plate by biasing members  195 , typically springs, to keep the traction wheel in contact with the film material as it is fed through the machine. In one embodiment the springs are coil springs. In another embodiment, the springs are elastomeric springs. 
     With reference to  FIG. 3 , another sensor may include a resistance sensor electrically connected to the heating element  172 . The resistance sensor may be part of the onboard electronics  135  or the off board electronics of the air pillow machine  102 . By electrically connecting the heating element  172  to the controller  136  (in the onboard electronics  135  or off board electronics), the heating element  172  may be sensed or monitored using the electrical resistance R thereof. In one embodiment, the heating element  172  may include a nichrome wire. The resistance of the heating element  172  may be used by the controller to increase or decrease the voltage applied to the heating element  172  to maintain the heating element at a constant temperature for forming the longitudinal seal in the film material. The heating element  172  generally may not require a warm-up period, as it may heat to the sealing temperature nearly instantaneously. The resistance sensor may also functions to indicate on the display  216  of the machine  200  in  FIG. 6  if the heating element  172  is broken. A broken heating element  172  will break the circuit, which may be detectable by the controller  136  and, hence may trigger the display of a message to the user to replace the heating element  172 . The display may also include a listing of the instructions for the user to follow in replacing the heating element  172 . 
     The film material of the pillow-precursor may be made of a variety of different materials, including films made of polyethylenic resins such as low density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), and high density polyethylene (HDPE); metallocenes thereof; ethylene vinyl acetates (EVAs); and blends thereof, but is not limited to such. In one embodiment, the film material may be a polyethylene web, and the sealing wire may be kept at a temperature typically within the range of about 340° F. to about 600° F. (about 171° C. to about 316° C.), based on a sealing temperature appropriate for the type of film material being run through the air pillow machine  102  and the speed of motor (or the rate the film material is fed through the air pillow machine). 
     The uninflated air pillow precursors may include generally transverse seals and at least one perpendicular longitudinal seal or folded seam that define inflatable chambers. Typically, generally transverse perforations may be provided between adjacently neighboring inflatable chambers for ease of selecting a desired length of air pillows for the end use. Additional seals may be provided, as part of the uninflated air pillow precursor, within the inflatable chambers (between the transverse seals) if desired. These additional seals may be of any shape and configuration, including straight lines, curved lines, and angled lines. 
     Having described the invention in detail and by reference to preferred embodiments, it will be apparent that modifications and variations thereof are possible without departing from the scope of this invention.