Patent Description:
In the field of bottling machines and, in particular, as regards isobaric machines of the linear type, it is known to use means for the linear advancement and conveyance of the vessels to be filled such as to align said vessels in a single row along an advancement line with a preset pitch.

In greater detail, these are conveyor belts on which the vessels are arranged upright and, by virtue of adapted spacer means, allow to obtain the row mentioned above.

The obtainable pitch varies according to the specifications of the machine and to the nature of the spacer means chosen.

For example, it is possible to space the vessels by using screw feeders, toothed supporting belts, narrow conveyance belts, U-shaped elements and others.

As an alternative, the pitch can be defined by the dimensions of the vessels themselves, since they are arranged in a row one against the other, or by means of adapted handling devices.

Typically, bottling machines of a known type, since they have to ensure a preset hourly production, comprise bottling assemblies constituted by a battery of filling nozzles such as to allow the processing of multiple vessels at the same time.

In greater detail, such filling nozzles are mutually aligned along and above a portion of the advancement line with a pitch that coincides with the pitch of the underlying vessels, and when the group of vessels to be filled arrives they fill them simultaneously.

Thus, as the required productivity increases one proceeds to increase the number of nozzles in the individual battery and/or, depending on the maximum allowable space occupation of the machine, to multiply the individual lines.

Both of the outlined solutions, i.e., the longitudinal extension of the individual line and the arrangement of multiple lines in parallel, have the inevitable drawback that consists in multiplying the components needed and therefore the costs.

As an alternative, one might opt for bottling machines of the rotary type, which might contain the space occupation of the machine but would lead to an extremely rigid system in terms of format change, making it almost inapplicable, all at a higher cost than bottling machines of the linear type.

In addition <CIT> discloses a machine according to the preamble of claim <NUM>.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a bottling machine that allows to have an increased productivity with respect to machines of a known type with limited space occupation.

Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a bottling machine in which it is possible to perform a change of format simply and rapidly.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bottling machine that allows easy and straightforward interventions by the operator.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bottling machine that has production costs comparable with machines of a known type.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bottling machine that offers the greatest assurances of reliability and efficiency.

This aim and these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a machine according to claim <NUM>, particularly of the type with increased productivity, comprising at least one advancement assembly which operates along an advancement line and at least one processing station crossed by said advancement line and comprising at least one bottling assembly; characterized in that said at least one bottling assembly comprises at least two lateral batteries of filling nozzles arranged respectively above at least two advancement channels of vessels to be processed, which are organized in two mutually parallel rows and with said filling nozzles mutually spaced so as to be arranged at the vertical projection of said vessels to be processed.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of a machine, particularly of the type with increased productivity, according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:.

With reference to the above figures, the machine, particularly of the type with increased productivity, which in the present embodiment is of the bottling machine type, is generally designated by the reference numeral <NUM> and comprises at least one advancement assembly <NUM> which operates along an advancement line <NUM> and at least one processing station <NUM> crossed by the advancement line <NUM>.

The advancement assembly <NUM> comprises a number "n" of screw feeders <NUM> comprised between <NUM> and "m" arranged on a working surface <NUM> and able to rotate about their respective longitudinal axis <NUM> which is arranged substantially parallel to the working surface <NUM> and to the advancement line <NUM>.

In greater detail, each screw feeder <NUM> is extended from a station for picking up vessels to be processed <NUM>, not shown for the sake of graphic convenience and since it is per se known, which is located upstream of said screw feeder <NUM> at least up to the processing station <NUM>.

In order to allow the alignment of the vessels to be processed <NUM> according to parallel rows, as will be better apparent hereinafter, guiding strips <NUM> of the type that is transversely adjustable with respect to the longitudinal axis <NUM> are further comprised and are extended parallel to the advancement line <NUM> and substantially at right angles to the working surface <NUM> oppositely with respect to the screw feeders <NUM> for the definition of a plurality of external advancement channels <NUM> of the vessels to be processed <NUM> which are delimited by each guiding strip <NUM> and by the adjacent screw feeder <NUM> so that the vessels to be processed <NUM> can be trapped upright on the working surface <NUM> between two consecutive crests of the screw feeder <NUM> and the adjacent guiding strip <NUM>.

Advantageously, in possible variations of the advancement assembly <NUM> shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, this can comprise a plurality of screw feeders <NUM> which are mutually laterally adjacent in order to define a plurality of internal advancement channels <NUM> of the vessels to be processed <NUM> which are delimited by each pair of screw feeders <NUM> so that the vessels to be processed <NUM> can be trapped upright on the working surface <NUM> between two first consecutive crests <NUM> of a first screw feeder <NUM> and two second consecutive crests <NUM>, which are opposite with respect to the first consecutive crests <NUM>, of a second screw feeder <NUM> which is adjacent to the first screw feeder <NUM>.

Conveniently, in this case the screw feeders <NUM> have the same pitch and are mutually synchronous in rotation.

In this manner, the vessels to be processed <NUM> can advance along said advancement line <NUM>, upright on the working surface <NUM>, following the rotation of the one or more screw feeders <NUM> about their respective longitudinal axis <NUM>.

Conveniently, in order to assist the advancement of the vessels to be processed <NUM>, the working surface <NUM> previously mentioned is constituted by a conveyor belt <NUM> which can move in a synchronous manner with the advancement speed of the vessels to be processed <NUM>.

In the present embodiment, said conveyor belt <NUM> is provided by a plurality of side-by-side and mutually synchronous conveyor belts.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, depending on the productivity required it is possible to provide an indefinite numbers of screw feeders <NUM> arranged so as to be able to manage a number of vessels to be processed <NUM> greater by one than the number of screw feeders.

In addition, if this is not sufficient, with particular reference to <FIG> and <FIG>, it is possible to provide a plurality of advancement assemblies <NUM>, such as those described previously, which operate along a plurality of advancement lines <NUM> which pass through the processing station.

However, with particular reference to <FIG>, it is possible to provide traditional advancement assemblies <NUM>, i.e., with a one-to-one ratio between the number of screw feeders <NUM> and the rows of vessels to be processed <NUM> arranged mutually side by side with said rows which can be positioned externally or internally to the screw feeders <NUM>. These traditional advancement assemblies <NUM>, having to manage the vessels to be processed <NUM> in an independent manner among the individual rows, can be mutually asynchronous and with different pitches depending on the diameter of the vessels to be processed <NUM> in the individual rows.

As already mentioned earlier, in the proposed embodiment the machine <NUM> is of the bottling machine type and the vessels to be processed <NUM> are bottles for beverages such as beer and the like.

However, nothing excludes that what has been described so far and what will be described hereinafter can be applied for the bottling and/or management of vessels which consist of: cans, jars, vials or containers in general for food products or non-food products such as: wine, oil, cider, liqueurs, spirits in general, creams, sauces, products for cosmetic use, products for pharmaceutical use, personal hygiene products and others.

According to the invention, the processing station thus comprises at least one bottling assembly <NUM> comprising in turn, for each pair of advancement channels <NUM> and/or <NUM>, at least two lateral batteries <NUM> of filling nozzles <NUM> arranged respectively above the two advancement channels <NUM> and/or <NUM> with the filling nozzles <NUM> mutually spaced so as to be arranged at the vertical projection of the vessels to be processed <NUM>.

The bottling assembly <NUM> is functionally connected to the two lateral batteries <NUM> and comprises a product tank <NUM> which feeds the filling nozzles <NUM> by means of adapted manifolds and electric valves.

Arranged downstream of the filling nozzles <NUM> along the advancement line <NUM>, the bottling assembly <NUM> comprises closure fitting devices <NUM> arranged respectively above the advancement channels <NUM> and/or <NUM> so as to be located at the vertical projection of the vessels to be processed <NUM> once they have been filled.

The bottling assembly <NUM> is functionally connected to the closure fitting devices <NUM> and comprises a closure feeder <NUM>.

Since as a result of bottling the product might froth, the bottling assembly <NUM> comprises at least two frothing nozzles <NUM> arranged between the two lateral batteries <NUM> and the closure fitting devices <NUM> along the advancement line <NUM>.

These nozzles, which are functionally connected to a water tank <NUM>, are arranged respectively above the advancement channels <NUM> and/or <NUM> so as to be located at the vertical projection of the vessels to be processed <NUM> once they have been filled.

Advantageously, there is a single supporting beam <NUM> which is arranged above and centrally with respect to the advancement channels <NUM> and/or <NUM> and which supports laterally at least one from the filling nozzles <NUM>, the frothing nozzles <NUM> and the closure fitting devices <NUM> and centrally at least one from the product tank <NUM>, the water tank <NUM> and the closure feeder <NUM>.

The filling nozzles <NUM> of each lateral battery <NUM> are longitudinally offset, along the advancement line <NUM>, with respect to the filling nozzles of the other opposite lateral battery <NUM> so that the actuation and supply components of each filling nozzle <NUM> of each lateral battery <NUM> are accommodated at least partly between two filling nozzles <NUM> which belong to the other opposite lateral battery <NUM>.

Likewise, the closure fitting devices <NUM> and the frothing nozzles <NUM> also can be offset with respect to their opposites.

In order to meet the different timings of the bottling, frothing and closure fitting steps, each screw feeder <NUM> can be divided into two portions with an independent speed, the first of which is extended up to the bottling assembly <NUM> included and the second is extended below the frothing nozzles <NUM> and the closure fitting devices <NUM>.

Finally, to complete the machine <NUM>, it is possible to provide washing and rinsing devices, which are per se known and therefore are not shown graphically, and are adapted to clean and rinse the vessels <NUM> during the filling and closure fitting process, or it is possible to provide any other device adapted to perform operations which are additional and/or alternative to those described so far, which are in any case comprised within the inventive concept of the present invention.

Conveniently, depending on the productivity required, the processing station can comprise a plurality of bottling assemblies <NUM> such as the one described above, arranged above an equal number of advancement lines <NUM>.

The operation of the machine <NUM> according to the invention is clear and understandable from what has been described so far.

In particular, it should be highlighted that depending on the required productivity and the maximum acceptable space occupation for the machine <NUM>, the machine can be designed by implementing a plurality of mutually parallel advancement lines <NUM> with an equal number of advancement assemblies <NUM> and bottling assemblies <NUM>.

As shown in the cited <FIG>, as regards the advancement assemblies <NUM>, they can comprise screw feeders <NUM> which, by virtue of guiding strips <NUM> or other screw feeders <NUM>, define feeding channels <NUM> and/or <NUM> on both sides of the individual screw feeder <NUM> so as to double the transport capacity of the individual screw feeder <NUM> and, regardless of the constructive nature of the individual feeding assembly <NUM>, the bottling assembly <NUM> allows to perform all the bottling steps by optimizing its lateral space occupations due to fewer components because they are common among different mutually offset lateral batteries <NUM> of filling nozzles <NUM>.

In practice it has been found that the machine, particularly of the type with increased productivity, fully achieves the intended aim and objects, since it allows to multiply the lines and thus to increase productivity without necessary doubling at the same time the components of the machine both as regards the advancement assembly and as regards the bottling assembly.

This is possible by virtue of the doubling of the advancement lines by utilizing the individual screw feeders from both sides and/or the bottling assembly with single beam.

In this manner, furthermore, it is possible to contain the longitudinal space occupation at the expense of a slight increase in the transverse one.

Furthermore, by virtue of the adjustable guiding strips, it is possible, by changing just the screw feeder, to perform a change of format that is immediate and at low cost.

Another advantage of the machine according to the present invention resides in that the bottling assembly thus defined allows access by the operator from both sides without any space occupation of any kind. In fact, on the individual sides of the bottling assembly there is free access to the bottling nozzles of the relevant side and to the electrohydraulic components of the opposite side.

The machine, particularly of the type with increased productivity, thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications provided that they fall within the scope of the accompanying claims.

In practice, the materials used, as well as the contingent shapes and dimensions, may be any according to the requirements and the state of the art.

Claim 1:
A machine (<NUM>) comprising at least one advancement assembly (<NUM>) which operates along an advancement line (<NUM>) and at least one processing station (<NUM>) crossed by said advancement line (<NUM>) and comprising at least one bottling assembly (<NUM>); said at least one bottling assembly (<NUM>) comprising at least two lateral batteries (<NUM>) of filling nozzles (<NUM>) arranged respectively above at least two advancement channels (<NUM>, <NUM>) of vessels to be processed (<NUM>), which are organized in two mutually parallel rows and with said filling nozzles (<NUM>) mutually spaced so as to be arranged at the vertical projection of said vessels to be processed (<NUM>), wherein said filling nozzles (<NUM>) of each one of said at least two lateral batteries (<NUM>) are longitudinally offset, along said advancement line (<NUM>), with respect to said filling nozzles of the other one of said at least two lateral batteries (<NUM>) characterized in that the actuation and supply components of each one of said filling nozzles (<NUM>) of each one of said at least two lateral batteries (<NUM>) is accommodated at least partly between two of said filling nozzles (<NUM>) which belong to the other one of said at least two lateral batteries (<NUM>).