Literature Applying Machine and Method

This invention relates to packaging equipment and, more particularly, to a banding system for applying literature, such as folded matter, to the outside of packages and containers by use of an adhesive band which is secured about the literature and to the package or container.

Containers of various shapes are employed in the marketplace for storage of various items ranging from food and drugs to other items, such as hardware, which is utilized in the home. The containers may be in the form of a paper box, or may be in the form of a bottle having a cap thereon and being formed with curved or flat sides. Information as to the contents of the container and/or as to directions for use is provided by printing on the container itself or by use of a label which is affixed to the container. When still further information is required, such further information is provided by a literature packet, sometimes referred to as an "outsert" which is secured to the container.

A problem exists in that securing of the outsert literature to the container may not be accomplished as readily and expeditiously as is desirable in packaging facilities employing automated equipment for filling and closing of packages. Typically, such automated equipment is employed with containers having the familiar shapes seen in the market place. As an example of the problem, it is well known that such literature may be affixed to a container by means of rubber bands, and that such a mode of banding readily is accomplished manually. However, in an automated facility it is most desirable that securing of the literature to the container be accomplished at a rate commensurate with other steps in the packaging operation.

The foregoing problem is overcome and other advantages are provided by a banding system, incorporating the invention, for securing of literature to containers by means of an adhesive band. The invention includes machinery for advancing a portion of the band from a supply roll, cutting a predesignated length of the band, lifting a piece of the literature, and successively applying the literature and the length of band to one of the containers as it passes by, usually on a conveyor. The band is formed of a theremo-sensitive material and is, accordingly, activated by heating. The machinery of the invention includes applicators for handling the band, and the applicators advantageously may incorporate heating elements for heating the bands, so as to activate their adhesive properties. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the applicators are carried by a carousel which brings each of the applicators cyclically in contact with a section of the banding material, with the literature, and with the container positioned on the conveyor.

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention are explained in the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a banding system incorporating the invention, the view showing a carousel carrying band applicators for applying the bands to containers carried on a conveyor;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged isometric view of an applicator, or banding head, carried by the carousel of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows securing of literature to a wall of a round bottle by means of a thermo-sensitive band of the invention; and

FIG. 4 shows securing of literature to a bottle having flat sides.

With reference to the figures, there is shown a banding system 100 incorporating the invention for securing literature to sides of containers by means of thermo-sensitive bands. The system 100 is utilized in conjunction with a conveyor 104 of the containers, and includes a carousel 133 disposed alongside the conveyor 104 for affixing the literature to the containers. The novel features of the invention will be understood better with reference to specific details of construction of the system 100.

The system 100 comprises a supply roll 10 of a thermosensitive band 11, the band 11 being drawn from the roll 10 by combined action of a feed roll 12 and a pressure roll 13 which is then loaded for contact with the feed roll 12. Pressure of a roll 13 against the feed roll 12 provides for secure frictional contact of the band 11 with the roll 12 so as to insure the drawing of the band 11 by the roll 12. The portion of the band 11 fed by the roll 12 is passed onto a knife 14 which cuts off a predetermined length of band. Operation of the knife 14 is synchronized with operation of the roll 12, so as to provide for the cutting of the band 11 at the appropriate instant of time to obtain desired lengths or segments of band. The mechanism for the operation of a knife, as well as devices for synchronizing such mechanism with rotation of the feed roll 12, are well known and have been deleted from the figures so as to portray better the essential elements of the invention.

In the construction of the feed roll 12, the outer periphery is structured of two portions 15 and 16, the portion 15 has an extended radius while the portion 16 has a reduced radius. Thereby the portion 15 makes contact with the pressure roll 13 while the portion 16 is retracted beyond the spring movement of the roll 13, so as to prevent contact between portion 16 and the roll 13. Thus, there is a drawing of the band 11 by the feed roll 12 only during the interval of time associated with contact between the portion 15 and the roll 13, there being no drawing of the band 11 during the duration of time when the portion 16 faces the roll 13. A drag pad 117 contacts the band 11 so as to provide a retarding frictional force against which the feed roll 12 must pull. The retarding force of the drag pad 117 insures that movement of the band 11 stops during the interval of time when the portion 16 is facing the pressure roll 13. The pressure roll 13 is supported at an end of an arm 140 which is urged by a spring 142 towards a stop 144. The stop 144 prevents the arm 140 from carrying the roll 13 up against the portion 16 of the feed roll 12.

A length of the band which is cut off by the knife 14 is indicated in FIG. 1 as a segment 17 which protrudes beyond the knife blade, this portion becoming a band 18 which serves as the attaching medium of literature 19 to a container 20 as portrayed in FIG. 3 or the container 20' of FIG. 4. The protruding segment 17 is transferred from its cut-off position to one of several applicators which are transported in turn by the carousel 133 for transferring the segment 17 to a container 20 carried by the conveyor 104. Each of the applicators is constructed as a head 21 to which the band segment 17 is transferred with the aid of a transfer roll 22. The roll 22 is, in turn, driven intermittently by well known means (not shown) such as cyclo-index drive. After the protruding band segment 17 has been transferred by the roll 22 to the head 21, the head 21 holds the segment 18 in close contact to heater blocks 23,23' of a heater block assembly 123. The band segment 18 is held at its end portions against the assembly 123 by vacuum forces exerted through suction holes 24,24' in respective ones of heater blocks 23,23' (Fig.2). The heater blocks 23,23' are fastened to a heater block support 25 and thermally insulated therefrom by insulators 26,26'.

Operation of the heads 21 for acquiring and releasing a band segment 18 is accomplished by a retractable feature which operates as follows. The heater block support 25 is retractably mounted to an activating head block 27 to undergo a horizontal motion, as is necessitated by the various work stations positioned about the carousel 133. The heater block support 25 is mounted by a pair of arms 146 (one such arm being shown in the figure) which are slidably supported within the head block 27 and are movable in response to a cam drive 148.

Each head 21 further comprises a set of three outwardly spring-biased suction cups 28 and a pair of pressure rolls 29,29' which are mounted rotatably to spring-biased, pivotably mounted arms 30,30'. The arms 30,30' are supported by an arm support block 31 which in turn is slidably supported upon the head block 27. Adjustment of the position of the support block 31 relative to the head block 27 is provided by a cam drive 150 acting through a shaft 152 which extends from the head block 27 to provide a slidable support for the support block 31. Both of the cam drives 148 and 150 are shown in phantom in FIG. 2. The spring-biasing of the suction cups 28 is provided by springs 154 which encircle stem portions of the suction cups 28.

In operation, during transfer of the band segment 18 to the head 21 at the transfer roller 22, the suction cups 28 are fully extended so that the band segment 18 is then held firmly in position against the central one of the suction cups 28 by vacuum forces applied through the central one of the orifices 156. During this transfer, the pressure rolls 29,29' and the arms 30,30' from which they extend are fully retracted by the action of the cam 150 acting through the support block 31. As the band segment 18 is held securely by the central one of the suction cups 28 and the suction holes 24, 24', the carousel 133 rotates to carry the head 21 with its band segment 18 to the next work station, this being a literature supply hopper 32 or, alternatively, the exit chute 158 of a literature folding machine 160, shown in phantom. During rotation of the carousel 133, heat radiates from the blocks 23,23' to raise the temperature of the band segment 18 sufficiently for activating the adhesive of the band.

At the hopper 32, a transfer roller 33 having suction cups thereon transfers a piece of literature 19 from the hopper 32 to a head 21. The transfer roller 33 is driven in synchronism with the driving of the carousel 133 and with an intermittent motion, such as is provided by a well-known cyclo-index drive (not shown). The array of the suction cups 28 extends beyond the width of the band segment 18 so that only the central one of the suction cups 28 is holding the band segment 18 to the head 21. The remaining ones of the suction cups 28 are utilized for applying vacuum forces to the piece of literature 19 for holding the literature 19 to the head 21 after transfer thereto by the roller 33. It is noted that the heater blocks 23,23' are spaced apart, so as to heat the end portions of a band segment 18 without heating the midportion. Thereby the adhesive of the end portions is activated to stick to the container 20, while the adhesive of the midportion remains deactivated so as not to stick to the literature 19.

With still further rotation of the carousel 133, the head 21 carrying both the band segment 18 and the literature 19 approaches the next work station, this being the station wherein a container 20 sets upon a conveyor 104 for receiving the literature 19 and the adhesive action of the band segment 18. The applying of the literature 19 to the container 20 by the head 21 is accomplished as follows: The cam 148 imparts a retracting motion to the heater block assembly 123 and, simultaneously, the vacuum is cut off at the heater blocks 23,23' by well-known valving (not shown). A series of the containers 20 is located on the conveyor 104 with the containers 20 being spaced apart by distances equal to the spacing of the heads 21 about the periphery of the carousel 133. Thereby, as each container 20 arrives at the station for the application of the literature 19, the respective ones of the containers 20 are aligned with the respective ones of the heads 21. At the station, a back-up belt 162 circulates about a turret 164 and in contact with the container 20 so as to urge the container 20 against the springloaded suction cups 28. The cups 28 exert a pressure on the literature 19 and the band segment 18, the pressure being exerted by the force of the wall of the container 20 against the front faces of the suction cups 28. The cam 150 then drives the support block 31 outwardly to drive the arms 30,30' and their pressure rolls 29,29' against the band segment 18 and the container 20. The resulting movement of the rolls 29,29' along the container 20 forces the band segment 18 to encompass the container 20 and to adhere securely to the container 20. Thereby, the band segment 18 binds the literature 19 to the container 20. The operation is concluded by retraction of the vacuum forces of the suction cups 28 by means of well-known valving (not shown), so as to release the literature 19 and the encompassing band segment 18 from the suction cups 28.

With further rotation of the carousel 133, the cam drives 148 and 150 of the foregoing head 21 retract to their initial positions so as to initialize the positions of the mechanical elements of the head 21, and thereby prepare the head 21 to receive the next band segment 17 at the band transfer roller 22. The foregoing sequence of operational steps is the same irrespectively as to whether the literature 19 is applied via the chute 158 or via the hopper 32.

In view of the foregoing description of the invention, it should be appreciated readily that a container travelling along a conveyor can receive literature which is banded securely to the outer surface of the container. In addition, the mounting of the heads 21 on the carousel 133 provide for the ready transfer of sections of banding material and of pieces of literature from their respective dispensers to be applied to the container.

It is to be understood that the above described embodiment of the invention is illustrative only, and that modifications thereof may occur to those skilled in the art.

Accordingly, this invention is not to be regarded as limited to the embodiment disclosed herein, but is to be limited only as defined by the appended claims.