A filling machine for filling containers with fruit or vegetables products includes a transportation system for step-by-step conveying the containers to be filled along a horizontal predetermined direction; a primary plain belt conveyor system for products fed parallel to the horizontal direction and adapted to generate a main bulk filling of the containers; a secondary belt conveyor system for single products fed parallel to the horizontal direction and adapted to cooperate simultaneously with the primary belt conveyor system so as to complete the entire final filling of the containers; a motion system applied to both the principal and the secondary belt conveyor systems for a reciprocating motion of the primary and secondary belt conveyor systems in a direction parallel to the horizontal direction; and at least one weighing station for constant weighing the containers during filling.

An adjustable pouch machine comprises a vertical sealer module forms transverse seals between two plies of a pouch web to partially define a plurality of pouches. Rollers selectively tension and relax the web on the vertically oriented wheel, allowing them to drop away from heated lands on emergency and cycle stops. A filler wheel has a plurality of adjustable gripper units mounted directly thereon for transporting independent separate pouches cut from the pouch web. An adjustable knife is selectively provided with changeable knife hub sets to handle a variety of pouch sizes where a filler wheel alternately first fills and seals pouches in a train. Gear linkage accommodates variation in distance between hubs of different sets. Various embodiments, apparatus and methods are described.

Automatic packaging machine (3) for filling a bag (1) made of heat-sealable material, having an open upper end (2) with a dose of loose product; the packaging machine (3) has: a packaging conveyor (4); a pick-up head (7), which is supported by the packaging conveyor (4) to advance along a packaging path (P1); an input station (S1) where the empty bag (1) is grabbed by the pick-up head (7); an output station (S2) where the full, sealed bag (1) leaves the pick-up head (7); a filling device (18) that is mounted on the packaging conveyor (4) to move together with the pick-up head (7) along the entire packaging path (P1) and is adapted to supply the dose of product inside the bag (1) through the upper open end (2); and a sealing device (19) that is mounted on the packaging conveyor (4) to move together with the pick-up head (7) along the entire packaging path (P1) and is adapted to seal the full bag (1) through a heat-seal in correspondence with the open upper end (2).

An unwind station for a packaging machine may be configured to form wrappers having different sizes from a web of packaging material and supply the wrapper to a wrapping station. The unwind station may include a base configured to support the web of packaging material and a carriage configured to selectively slide in a longitudinal direction on the base. A rotating blade can be configured to periodically score the web to form a break line extending between lateral sides of the web. A first conveyor arm and a second conveyor arm may project longitudinally outward from the carriage. The first conveyor arm and the second conveyor arm can each include a low-speed conveyor configured to transport the web to a high-speed conveyor. The high-speed conveyor is configured to separate the wrapper from the web as the break line passes a shear point between the low-speed conveyors and the high-speed conveyors.

Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a case-handling device including movable folding guides positionable relative to a case to facilitate folding the case's upper major flaps outwardly along their respective fold lines before the case's upper minor flaps are closed.

A container filling valve may include a shuttle and a drive sleeve that are magnetically coupled. Movement of the drive sleeve may move the shuttle from a position in which the filling valve is closed to a position in which the filling valve is open. A container handling arm may include a distal end configured to hold a container and a proximal end that includes a load cell. A low flow setpoint system may be configured to arrest closing of a filling valve when that filling valve is partially closed. A pressure control system may be configured to maintain a desired pressure in a reservoir or in a flow path from that reservoir. A product recirculation system may be configured to adjust flow rate in the product recirculation system.

A heat sealing packaging machine and method for assembling that includes a package platform for supporting a package, a film carriage carrying a supply of film material, a sealing platform adjacent the package platform and including a conveyor for laterally moving the package to be sealed to a shrink tunnel. The carriage is laterally movable to adjust the position of the film material and a lifting mechanism raises and lowers the sealing platform and the shrink tunnel. The shrink tunnel is laterally movable with respect to the sealing platform and includes a latch mechanism for locking a lateral position of the shrink tunnel.

The present invention relates to a device comprising a cassette (1) having an opening (2) in an axial direction of the cassette (1) and a support surface (3) transverse to the axial direction and extending around the opening (2) of the cassette (1), the cassette (1) being capable of receiving a cup in the opening with a outwardly extending flange of the cup supported by the support surface (3), and a supporting plate (4) having an opening in a normal direction of the supporting plate (4), wherein the cassette (1) comprises a resilient or flexible material, and a slot in which a part of the supporting plate (4) is received in close contact without cavities.

A transfer device for one or more flat substrates (4, 4a, 4b), which can be inserted between two successive units upstream and downstream (3, 6, 9) in a packaging production machine (1), the device including a bridge (14) with an upper surface (16) providing a junction between the upstream unit (3, 6) and the downstream unit (9). An adjustment device (19) varies a length (L1, L2) of the bridge (14). The bridge (14) is a static apron on which the substrate (4, 4a, 4b) slides, having a fixed transversal end (36) and a mobile transversal end (22). The adjustment device (19) varies a position of the mobile end (22), as a function of a spacing (E1, E2) between the two units.

An optimal package structure and an amount of refrigerant to insert into the package structure are determined based upon product information, consumer preference information, and weather information. The optimal package structure and the amount of refrigerant are an optimized combination that is effective to both protect the product from damage and preserve the product from spoilage. A package is constructed to contain the product according to the optimal package structure and the amount of refrigerant is inserted into the structure.