Abstract:
A method and apparatus used for packaging flat products in a plurality of trays. According to the method, individual trays are picked from a stack of trays by a suitable device. Several products are fed to a conveyor belt so that they lay flat and one behind the other on the conveyor belt. These products are picked individually one after the other from the conveyor belt and placed into the individual trays. The trays that are filled with the products are delivered on a second conveyor belt for packaging or wrapping. The method and apparatus also facilitate the placement of products in the trays in different arrangements.

Description:
The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for the packaging of flat products into trays. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The apparatus according to the present invention is preferably used in the industry of sweets (candies) and durable bakery goods (pastries). Specifically, the apparatus is used for the automatic packaging of sensitive products which may vary greatly in their measurements and shapes. These sensitive products include cakes, biscuits, cookies or chocolate products that are packed into trays with high efficiency. In a preferred embodiment, the trays consist of a more or less rigid plastic sheet or foil that is formed, particularly by being deep-drawn, into a shape that corresponds to the shape and the number of the products to be packed. 
     The products to be packed are received from ovens or from casting, bar-forming or coating systems whereby the products can be distributed onto the required number of conveyors and, according to the invention, supplied to the devices for inserting them into the trays. The trays are preferably supplied in the form of tray stacks, from which individual trays are denested. The products are individually and successively, one after the other, inserted into the trays. When in the trays, the products lie flat one above the other or generally standing upright one behind the other or also scaled and standing inclined one behind the other. The thus filled trays are then conveyed further and, for example, supplied to an apparatus for introducing them into an outer packaging or for wrapping them. 
     Intermediate buffers or storage means can be provided in the region where the products are supplied to the trays. In the case of obstacles in the following machine parts, the products can be stored or buffered carefully, for example, by laying them scaled on top of each other. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Details and advantages of the invention can be seen from the following description of embodiments based on the drawings. 
     FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an apparatus according to the invention, by which products arriving in a flat-lying manner can be packed into trays so that they are standing upright or on edge beside each other. 
     FIG. 2 is a schematic top plan view of the apparatus of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of an apparatus according to the invention by which products arriving in a flat-lying manner can be packed into trays so that they are standing inclined one behind the other, i.e., scaled. 
     FIG. 4 is a schematic side view of an apparatus according to the invention, by which products arriving in a flat-lying manner can be packed into trays so that they are lying flat one above the other and in individual stacks beside each other. 
     FIG. 5 is a schematic top plan view of the apparatus of FIG.  3  and FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view of an apparatus according to the invention by which products arriving in several rows on a common conveyor can be packed into trays in individual rows. 
     FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view of an apparatus substantially corresponding to FIG. 6, however, with an additional product buffer in the path of the arriving products. 
     FIG. 8 is a schematic view of an apparatus according to the invention with two supply conveyors, each with a product buffer. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     At first the invention with its basic characters will be described with regard to the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. The apparatus according to the invention substantially comprises a machine frame  11  with an operating panel  13  that is provided at the front side of an electrical control box  15 . On one side of the machine frame  11  various apparatus parts are provided on a side frame  17 . A tray magazine  19  is positioned at an upper side of the side frame  17 . In the tray magazine  19 , several individual trays  21 , stacked substantially vertically behind each other, are supplied in a leftward direction to a denester  23 . Suitable conveying means, for example a feeding belt  25  with deflection pulleys  27  and with a slide  29  engaging behind the tray stack, convey the trays  21  in the direction of the denester  23 . In the denester  23  the trays are denested individually and transferred to a tray manipulator  31  provided in the machine frame  11 . The tray manipulator  31  has suitable drive means for moving the trays  21  in a reciprocating manner. For example, the drive means can include a conveyor belt  35  guided by means of deflection pulleys  33 . The machine frame  11  together with the structural parts provided therein constitutes a tray loading arrangement or tray loader. 
     A first conveyor or supply conveyor  43  for supplying individual products P lying flat one behind the other is positioned below the tray magazine  19  and to the side of the tray manipulator  31 . As shown in FIG. 1, the conveyor  43  is, also on the side of frame  17 . The conveyor  43  may include a product feeding belt  43  guided by means of deflection pulleys  41 . During the operation of the apparatus, the individual products P arrive in the direction of the arrow A lying flat behind each other on the feeding belt  43 . According to FIG. 1 at the left end of the conveyor belt  43 , the products P are stacked into the trays  21  standing substantially vertically in the tray manipulator  31  such that the products P in the tray  21  are always lying in a stack above each other in a vertical direction. In connection therewith, the tray  21  is moved downwardly always by the height of one product P. The transfer of the products P from the conveyor belt  43  to the trays  21  is made, for example, by means of a sharp deflection  45  of the conveyor belt  43 . This sharp deflection, also known as a knife-edge deflection, is caused by a small deflection pulley  47 . Further, belt tensioning devices  49  are provided at the conveyor belt  43 . 
     Below the supply conveyor  43  for the products P, a second or discharge conveyor  51  is provided on which the filled or loaded trays  21  are discharged in the direction of the arrow C (discharge conveyor for the discharge of loaded trays). As shown in FIG. 1, the second conveyor  51  is provided at the side frame  17 . Also, in one embodiment, second conveyor  51  may be a conveyor belt guided by means of rollers or pulleys. Between the tray manipulator  31  and the second or discharge conveyor  51  there is provided a curved conveyor or transfer conveyor  53  for the individual trays  21 . When on the transfer conveyor  53 , the trays  21  are turned or sweeped by approximately 90 degrees from the substantially vertical feed position to a substantially horizontal position. The products P, lying at first in the form of a vertical stack one above the other in the tray  21 , stand on edge in or on the trays  21  turned by 90 degrees with the trays when on conveyor  51 . 
     FIG. 2 shows the substantial details of the apparatus of FIG. 1 in a schematic plan view from above. 
     In FIGS. 3,  4  and  5  the same or corresponding structural parts are provided with the same reference numbers as in FIGS. 1 and 2. The differences between the devices of FIGS. 3-5 and those of FIGS. 1 and 2 are described below. 
     The tray manipulator  31  is pivotally arranged about a horizontal axis so that, as shown in FIG. 3, the individual products P arriving on the supply conveyor  43  are introduced into inclined trays  21 . The trays  21  are positioned by and correspondingly angled with the tray manipulator  31  that, as shown in FIG. 3, is slightly inclined with regard to the vertical direction. The products P then lie flat in the tray manipulator  31  in an almost vertical stack but slightly offset with regard to each other in the individual tray  21 . The filled or loaded tray  21  is moved downwardly from the inclined position and, at the same time, turned by the transfer conveyor  53  such that the tray  21  is positioned horizontally on the discharge conveyor  51 . The individual products P then stand scaled on edge one behind the other in the tray  21 . For this purpose the tray  21  at its bottom and/or at its lateral walls can be provided with corresponding inclined holding projections for the products P. 
     FIG. 4 shows another possible use for the inventive apparatus according to FIGS. 1 to  3 . In this embodiment, the tray manipulator  31  is pivotable about a horizontal axis such that the individual trays  21  denested by the denester  23  are only slightly inclined with regard to the horizontal direction on the tray manipulator  31 . The individual products P arriving on the supply conveyor  43  are introduced into the tray  21  by the knife-edge deflection  45 ,  47  such that they are positioned in the tray parallel to its bottom. In this connection, the tray manipulator  31  can control and move the tray  21  reciprocally such that the products P are individually positioned in a single layer, one behind the other on the tray  21 . However, the tray  21  can also be moved reciprocally and controlled by the tray manipulator  31  such that several individual layers of products P, one after the other, can be positioned onto the tray  21 . As a result, the individual stacks of products P are positioned one behind the other on the tray  21  in the conveying direction. These product stacks become higher with each supplied layer of products P. The tray manipulator  31 , however, can also be controlled and moved such that initially only one single stack of products P is positioned on the forward or front (right) end of the tray  21 , whereafter then a second, a third and possibly further product stacks are formed on the tray  21 . The products P are always individually supplied to the stacks such that one stack after the other is formed and the tray  21  is correspondingly moved forward for each stack. 
     In the tray manipulator  31 , the transfer conveyor  53  can be flexibly or bendably arranged in such a manner that (in the embodiment of FIG. 4) the already almost horizontally lying trays  21  are transferred downwardly by a somewhat steeper section of the transfer conveyor  53 . Additional parts of the transfer conveyor  53  cause the trays  21  to move in the horizontal direction as they are transferred onto the discharge conveyor  51 . When on the discharge conveyor  51  the trays  21  are positioned horizontally one behind the other. In this position, the individual products P can lie on the trays  21  side-by-side in a flat position and stacked above each other. 
     FIG. 5 shows a plan view of a possible modified embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention. Here, trays  2  la that have multiple rows are used. At the tray manipulator  31  a shifting module  37  is provided for the multi-row trays by which the trays  21   a  can be shifted transverse to their main conveying direction and transverse to the supply direction A of the individual products P. As a result, the individual products P can be inserted successively into each row of the trays  21   a.    
     In FIGS. 6,  7  and  8  the same or corresponding structural parts are provided with the same reference numbers as in the previous figures. The differences between the illustrated apparatus and those of the previous figures will be described below. 
     So far it was assumed that the products P were being supplied in the direction of the arrow A in one single row, and one after the other. According to FIG. 6, however, the products P can also be supplied in several rows and beside each other. By way of sorting devices  61 , the arriving products P are sorted by a product feeding and distribution system  65  provided by the first conveyor or the supply conveyor, respectively, into several rows of products P traveling parallel to each other. The sorting devices can include aligning belts with guiding surfaces or baffles  63  arranged there above. The product feeding and distribution system  65  is associated with several tray loaders that correspond in number to the individual rows of products P. The tray loaders are each illustrated by their machine frame  11  with associate control box  15 . Each of these tray loaders has its own tray magazine  19 , if applicable with a shifting or displacement module  37  for the transverse movement of multi-row trays  21 . Each tray loader has its own supply conveyor or conveyor belt  43  for receiving the products P in one single row, or, in an alternative embodiment, in several parallel rows, from the first conveyor  65  and for supplying the products P to the corresponding tray manipulator  31 . 
     After the loading of the individual trays  21  in the manner described above, the filled trays  21  are transported on individual discharge conveyors  51 , associated with each tray loader, to a collecting conveyor or a collecting transport  55 . The individual trays  21  are then discharged in the direction of the arrow C for further packaging. The individual tray loaders characterized by the reference number  11  for the machine frame furthermore are designed as it has been described in connection with the FIGS. 1 to  5 . 
     The apparatus according to FIG. 7 corresponds largely to that of FIG.  6 . Here the product feeding and distribution system  65  has several separate rows parallel to each other and separated from each other, for example, by partition walls  67 . These partition walls  67  on the product feeding and distribution system  65  form product buffers in the individual parallel rows formed by the partition walls  67  that are long enough in the conveying direction to receive or store the arriving products P. In the product buffers created by the walls  67 , the individual products can be stored so that they lie flat behind each other or are scaled above each other. Hereby, a sensitive treatment of the products is assured. For the rest, the design of the apparatus according to FIG. 7 corresponds to that of FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 8 shows an apparatus in which the products P arriving in the direction of the arrow A are distributed by two sets of two guiding surfaces or baffles  63 . As shown in FIG. 8, a baffle  63  is arranged behind another baffle  63  on two supply conveyors  65  that, due to their length in the conveying direction, can again serve as product buffers. At the end of each of these first conveyors  65  there is provided a tray loading station or tray loader  71  mounted within a common machine frame  11 . The tray loaders  71  in this embodiment have two tray magazines  19  extending parallel to each other, each with an associate tray manipulator  31 . From each tray manipulator  31  the trays  21  loaded with products P are first transported away on an associated discharge conveyor. The two discharge conveyors  51  convey the trays  21  to a common collecting conveyor  55  on which the loaded trays  21  are transported away in the direction of the arrow C for further packaging. 
     Thus, by the invention a modular machine concept is provided in which the individual components can be used alone for themselves or commonly in a multiple arrangement. Thereby, this concept is particularly suitable for the specific requirements of the industry of sweets and permanent bakery goods. Each individual supply conveyor or conveyor belt can be controlled separately through the control box  15  by means of the operating panel  13 . Frequency controlled drives can be used for the supply and transport conveyors, for the buffer conveyors and for the tray manipulators  31 . The kind and the number of the products P per tray  21  differ from operation to operation. The kind and number of products P per tray  21  can be programmed by inputting information into the apparatus via the operating panel  13 . In case of a product change, only a few machine elements need be adjusted. This is a simple procedure to accomplish. All parts coming into contact with the products can be designed in materials compatible with food and edible goods, for example, stainless steel or suitable plastics. Altogether, the apparatus has a solid, rugged and reliable design. 
     The particular advantages of the method according to the invention and of the apparatus used for it, respectively, are established in that the modular system is very flexible and can easily be adjusted to different products. The products are treated in a particularly sensitive manner by feeding, counting and handling them without pressure, i.e., without mutual transport pressure, and thus without the use of grippers (pick-ups) or special separating devices. Also, even when the products include irregularities, an exact number of products for each tray still exist. By means of the integrated product buffer the entire system has the highest possible availability, whereby alternatively also stand-by modules can be envisaged. By the modular design of the apparatus, it is tailored for each type of use. All elements of the apparatus can be designed so that they are accessible in an optimal manner for the easy operation and the maintenance of the apparatus. Finally, the overall system has a very good price-efficiency-ratio. With a maximum outfit or provision of requisite equipment, all conceivable formations of packings and presentations of products can be realized in the single apparatus system according to the present invention. Finally, devices for removing or transferring deformed or damaged products away from the apparatus can be provided at suitable places.