Method and Apparatus for Making Profile Sheets

The invention relates to improvements in a mechanism and method of continuously making thermoplastic film having fastener profiles on the surface thereof and more particularly wherein the temperature of the plastic for the profiles and film, and the delivery of the plastic can be individually controlled and wherein the dimensions of the film and the location of the profiles can be rapidly and simply changed without requiring additional separate die heads.

This type of thermoplastic film with fastener profiles on the surface is used for lightweight reclosable bags which vary in size and gauge in accordance with the product to be packaged therein and also vary in that the original bags may be open at the bottom or at the top depending upon the contents and the filling procedure used. To form these bags a thin thermoplastic film is first extruded in a continuous film length with fastener profiles on the surface. After cooling the film is then folded by being doubled along its center so that the fastener profiles are brought together, and the fastener profiles may be pressed together to be joined or left separated. The bags are formed by cross-sealing and cross-cutting the film in predetermined lengths dependent upon the width of the bag to be obtained. The height of the bag is determined by the width of the film sheet which is extruded, and the location of the fastener profiles is determined by their position relative to the edge of the film. Should a bottom open bag be desired, the profiles will be placed near the center of the film and the height of the bag will be determined by the distance from the profiles to the edge of the film. The film is produced from various types of thermoplastic resins or combinations of same such as, for example, polyethylene (high or low density), polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride (hard and soft), polyvinylidine chloride, cellulose acetate, polyesters, etc. The plastic is chosen to have optimum characteristics for the bag usually requiring clarity and resiliency, or in the case of combined (coextruded) films for their different barrier properties. By separately extruding the profiles and attaching them in the fused state, plastic of optimum characteristics for the profiles can be chosen substantially independent of the plastic of the bag. For example, a more stiff, and slippery plastic is better suited to the formation of profiles to the bag material. Also, plastic of different colors may be employed. After the profiles and film are brought together in the fusible state, they are subjected to cooling.

In certain instances, it may be desirable to form a sheet of plastic with a single profile extending therealong. Such a sheet can be utilized, for example, in the forming of bags by placing it in face-to-face relationship with another sheet with the profiles in alignment, and the sheets sealed along the side and bottom edges to form an open bag.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an improved mechanism and method for extrusion of a film and extrusion of profiles positioned on the surface wherein the location of the profiles relative to the width of the plastic sheet can be quickly, easily and simply changed without requiring the exchange of die heads and other equipment and hence the necessity of a large stock of dies to accommodate the many bag heights required.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved plastic extrusion mechanism of the type described wherein a greater dexterity is obtainable in the control of the temperature and amount of plastic delivered to the film extrusion slot and the profile extrusion openings to thereby improve the quality of the product obtained therefrom.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an extrusion mechanism for providing profile sheets wherein the various demands of different types of bags can be readily and quickly accommodated without any great loss in downtime such as those affecting the width of the sheet, the location of the profiles and the nature and conditions of extrusion of the plastic.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method of and apparatus for extruding a sheet and attaching a single profile or a plurality of profiles thereto, and more easily controlling the location of the profile or profiles relative to the edge of the sheet;

Other objects, advantages and features will become more apparent, as will equivalent methods and mechanisms which are intended to be covered herein, from the teaching of the principles of the invention in the description of the preferred embodiments of the specification, claims and drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an extrusion mechanism constructed and operating in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a somewhat schematic sectional view taken substantially along line II--II of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an elevational view taken substantially from the direction indicated at III--III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a detailed view of the profile extruder die block;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating a portion of the extrusion mechanism;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view illustrating another form of the extrusion mechanism;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are illustrations showing two different types of bags capable of being formed by the mechanism of the invention;

FIG. 9 is an elevational view, with portions removed for clarity, of an extruder illustrating mechanism for forming and attaching a male profile to a sheet;

FIG. 10 is an elevational view similar to FIG. 9 illustrating the attachment of a female profile to a sheet; and

FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing two sheets such as formed by the apparatus of FIGS. 9 and 10 in face-to-face relationship as they may be utilized for a bag.

FIGS. 1 through 3 show an extruding mechanism for continuously forming film with fastener profiles thereon including a film extruding head 10 which has a thin slot die opening 17 from which the continuous sheet of film emerges.

Plastic is supplied from an extruder 13. A single extruder may be employed, as will be described in connection with FIG. 5, or separate extruders which will be described in connection with FIG. 6. In FIG. 1 the extruder 13 delivers fused plastic through the passage 16 to the film die opening 17.

Preformed profiles are extruded from preform die blocks 11 and 12 which are mounted on the film extruding head 10. The die blocks have shaped profile ports or openings 18 and 19 as shown in FIG. 3. The opening 18 is shaped to provide a male element and the opening 19 a female element, and these openings are related so that rib and groove profile elements will emerge of a size and shape to releasable interlock with each other when pressed together. The profiles emerge from their die openings 18 and 19 to substantially immediately engage the emerging thin sheet of film, while the plastic is in the fused state. The plastic of the base of the profiles and of the surface of the film immediately merge and fuse to each other as shown in FIG. 2. The profiles thus positioned on the film are immediately cooled with the film passing over a chill roll 27. Jets of coolant such as provided by the coolant supply 28 are directed against the male and female profiles. By positioning of the chill roll 27 and jets 28, adequate time for the plastic of the profiles and film to fuse is afforded and as soon as that fusion occurs, heat is immediately removed from the plastic to affix the profiles to the film in the fused state while retaining accurately the shape of the profiles that have emerged from the profiled die block openings.

Plastic is delivered to the profiled die block openings through flexible tubes 14 and 15. Separate choke valves 36 and 37 control plastic flow to the profile openings. Separate heaters such as 38 and 38a are used to separately regulate the temperature of plastic delivered to the profile openings.

The preform die blocks 11 and 12 are secured in their laterally adjusted positions, i.e. in the direction of the length of the die opening 17, by attaching means 20 and 22. These attaching means are in the form of cap screws extending through openings such as 24 in the blocks 11 and 12, FIG. 2, and threaded into primary selected adjusted position openings in the film die head 10. The primary position openings are positioned at spaced intervals laterally along the film die head 10 as illustrated by the openings 21 and 23. To adjust the position of the preform die block 12, the cap screws 20 will be loosened and removed, and the die block 12 moved laterally inwardly or outwardly on the film head to a selected primary position. If moved outwardly, the cap screws will be threaded into outward openings such as 21 or 23. If moved inwardly, they will be threaded into openings such as 21a. Thus, as many selected primary adjustment positions exist as there are tapped openings in the film head, and additional secondary lateral adjustment is provided by having elongated slots, in the die block 12 FIG. 4, for the openings 24 through which the cap screws pass.

The slots 24 are of a length so that they will permit a substantial range of lateral secondary adjustment of the preform die blocks to the location of the next tapped opening. In other words, the die blocks can be positioned accurately at any location laterally along the film die head in order to position the profiles at any location relative to the edge of the film. The separate flexible supply tubes 14 and 15 connected to each of the shiftably adjustable preform die blocks for separately supplying each of the die blocks with fused plastic contributes substantially to the adjustability of the die blocks because the tubes 14 and 15 flexibly accommodate themselves to any adjusted positions of the die blocks to which the tubes are connected.

Adjustment of the width of the film is also permitted by wire choke rods 17a and 17b. These choke rods are mounted so that they can be slipped laterally to block the outward portions of the die slot 17 to adjust the length of the die slot opening to control the width of the film extruded from the die slot opening.

Thus, the maximum width of the film will be determined by the overall width of the die head 10, and within this maximum, the film width can be narrowed to any smaller size. Also, the profiles can be quickly and easily located at any location along the surface of the film. Heretofore, in order to change the location of the profiles so as to produce a different depth bag, it was necessary to change to a different die, since the profiles were part of the film die. This, of course, then required a shut-down period for each change, thereby increasing the cost of operation because of the lost time and the necessity of cleaning the changed die. Also this involved the expense of providing many extra dies, which is unnecessary with the present method and mechanism.

It will be understood that the profile film can be made multilayered by extruding an additional sheet of plain film and laying it against the layer of film shown. For example, in FIG. 2 an additional head will be provided to extrude another layer of film parallel to the layer 25 and having the second layer merge with 25 prior to engagement with the chill roll. The second, or outer layer, will then be cooled by direct contact with the chill roll 27 and the layer 25 will be cooled by the conduction of heat through the outer layer to the chill roll and the resulted material will be a laminated multi-layered profile sheet.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate cross-sectional views of bags formed from profile films. The bag 50 of FIG. 7 is an open bottom bag which is filled through the separated bottom edges 54. The top of the bag 53 is folded so that it provides a pilfer proof seal. In other words the bag cannot be used until the top is cut open or torn off along a line of weakened resistance, and this type of bag is totally and tightly sealed from dust and dirt until it is eventually used and provides a visual indication of whether or not the bag has been tampered with. For this type of bag, the male and female profiles 51 and 52 are positioned close to the center of the original film, that is, a distance two times the dimension 61 which is the distance the profiles are located from the top of the bag. In other words, the profiles are spaced a distance 62 from the edges of the film.

In the type of bag 55 shown in FIG. 8, the bag is filled from the top. The film is folded at its center 56 to form the bag bottom. The profiles are located inwardly from the edges of the film a distance 63. Above the male profile 59 and the female profile 60 are flanges 57 and 58 which are pulled apart to separate the interlocking profiles 59 and 60 when the bag is to be opened. As will be observed, different requirements of bags of the type shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 will require different locations of the profiles which can rapidly and easily be accommodated with the mechanism above described. Additionally more than one set of profiles may be attached to the film die so as to produce more than one series of bags from the resulting multiple profile film.

FIG. 5 shows an arrangement wherein a single extruder 30 supplies plastic both to the film extruding head and the preform extruding blocks. Plastic extrudate is delivered to the dividing chamber 31 from which it flows to the film slot. It also flows in both directions through line 32 and line 33 leading to the preform die blocks. Separate flow control valves are provided as illustrated by the choke valve 34 controlling the flow to the line 32 and the choke valve 35 controlling the flow to the line 33. An additional choke valve not shown may be located in the line to the film slot.

While the plastic extrudate is in the molten form, additional control of the heat for the profiles can be obtained by separate heaters 39a for the line 32 and 39 for the line 33 and additional separately controlled heaters not shown are provided for the head 10 and its film slot. Due generally to their different characteristics, differences in temperature between the film and profiles are necessary. The profiles having greater thickness will cool more slowly than the film so usually it is desirable to have the profiles at a lower temperature than the film, and this is provided by the separate heaters 38a and 38 as well as 39a and 39 which will be provided with separate thermostatic regulators to obtain accurate plastic profile temperature.

In the construction of FIG. 6, separate plastic supply extruders are provided shown at 40 and 41. The extruder 40 delivers plastic for the film die with the plastic flowing out through the line 42 which distributes it to the die opening. The plastic from the extruder 41 delivers plastic to the profile blocks through lines 43 and 45. A balance between these two lines can be obtained by separate choke valves 46 and 47 respectively for the lines 43 and 45.

In addition the separate profile die blocks are provided with their individual temperature controls to control the temperature of the plastic emerging therefrom separately from that of the film. This is illustrated by a heater 48 for the profile die block 44, and a similar heat control, not shown, will be provided for the die block which is supplied by the line 45. As above indicated, the plastic for the profiles may be of different physical characteristics than the plastic for the film, and this is readily accomplished by the separate extruders 40 and 41, as well as the separate temperature and flow controls on the preform profile die blocks. Also, because of the difference in the shape and size of the male and female profile elements, different flow conditions and temperatures for each profile have been found to give more uniform and better controlled profile shapes, and this is also achieved by the separate valves and heat controls on the preform profile die blocks.

In FIGS. 9 through 11, parts similar in construction to FIGS. 1 through 8 are given similar numbers. The film die head 10 extrudes a sheet of film through the opening 17 with its width being controlled by side controls 17a and 17b. Mounted on the die head is a movable dieblock 11 supplied with fluid heated plastic through a supply tube 14. The die block has a die opening 18 shaped to form a male fastener profile. The die block 11 is adjustable across the width of the die head to control the location where the profile emerging from the opening 18 will be laid on the sheet. Major adjustments are accomplished by setting the block in accordance with the spacing of the holes such as 21 and minor adjustments are made by the cap bolts 22 in the manner described in connection with the arrangement of FIGS. 1 through 8. Thus, not only can the width of the sheet be adjusted, but the location of the profile which emerges from 18 can be adjusted to any position relative to either edge of the sheet.

In FIG. 10 the die head 10 has mounted thereon a movable die block 12 which has an opening 19 shaped to form a female profile of a size and shape so that the profile will releasably interlock with the profile formed from the block of FIG. 9. The width of the sheet emerging from the die opening 17 is adjustable by the adjustment devices 17a and 17b. In this arrangement, the female die block 17 can be adjusted so that the female profile can be in any location relative to either edge of the sheet.

The sheets are shown in confronting relationship in FIG. 11 with the male profile 59 opposite the female profile 60, and the sheets will form sidewalls 55a and 55b with the bag. By bringing two such sheets in confronting relationship and forming spaced cross-seals and cutting at the cross-seals, bags can be formed with the lower edges of the sheets sealed to form the bottom of the bag. Inasmuch as the profiles can be located independently, the projections 57 and 58 above the profiles can be controlled as to their length so that if one of these flanges is to be longer than the other for ease of gripping and opening the bag, this is controlled by controlling the location of the profile on the sheet. Other purposes and arrangements will be apparent to those versed in the art insofar as additional profiles on each of the sheets which may be attached by other means, and other uses and purposes for the disclosed arrangement and method will be apparent to those versed in the art.