An apparatus for vacuumizing and sealing a package includes a plurality of platens and vacuum chambers, each chamber adapted to mate with a dedicated one of the platens; a conveying system for conveying the platens and chambers along a generally angular path having a single axis of rotation; an automated loading assembly having a linear component and configured to load a package onto each of the platens; an automated unloading assembly having a linear portion and configured to unload a vacuumized, sealed package from each loaded platen onto an outfeed conveyor; and a vacuumizing/sealing system configured to cause relative movement of each chamber/platen pair, along a portion of the angular path, to form therebetween an air-tight enclosure accommodating the package and effect vacuumization and sealing of the package.

A method and apparatus for making bags from a film that follows a film path through a bag machine includes an input section located on the film path, a sealing section located on the film path downstream of the input section, an output section located on the film path downstream of the sealing section, and a controller, connected to control the sealing section. The sealing section includes a sealer that includes a heater block and a manifold. There is an air flow path from the heater block to the manifold. Air is heated in the heater block in response to a control signal provided by the controller to the heater block. The heated air is provided through the air path to the manifold. A temperature sensor is disposed in at least one of the air path and the manifold.

The present invention relates to thermoforming food packaging methods and to dual ovenable thermoformed food packages suitable for cooking food products directly in the package in microwave, conventional and convection ovens. These packages are characterized by good hermeticity, clean peelability, self-venting, very good optics and, if shrunk, a very appealing appearance.

A bag for loose material, wherein the bag is formed from a tubular material, which tubular material is a tubular planar assembly or a flat material connected to form a tube, and has a first and a second open end. Sections of the tubular material of one of the ends are shaped by folding to form a bag bottom. The bag bottom exhibits a first cover sheet and a second cover sheet. The first cover sheet is connected to the bag bottom and extends in a first region of the bag bottom. The second cover sheet is connected to the bag bottom and extends in a second region of the bag bottom. Via the cover sheets, the folded sections of the tubular material are held together in such a way that the bag bottom is sealed.

A system includes a first horn, a first ultrasonic transducer, a second horn, a second ultrasonic transducer, a memory, and a controller. The first horn includes a first part-interfacing surface. The second horn includes a second part-interfacing surface and is positioned relative to the first horn such that a part to be welded can be positioned between the first and second part-interface surfaces. The controller is configured to cause a first ultrasonic energy to be applied through the first horn via the first transducer to cause the first part-interfacing surface to vibrate, cause the first horn to move in a first direction at a first time, cause a second ultrasonic energy to be applied through the second horn via the second transducer to cause the second part-interfacing surface to vibrate, and cause the second horn to move in a second direction at the first time.

A fin sealer and method to seal a radially outwardly directed fin of a tubular web structure by directing the fin through a nip between a first and a second fin sealing rollers while communicating heat to the fin through at least one of the fin sealing rollers is provided. The fin sealer is configured to maintain a nominal face-to-face relation between an outer annulus of the first fin sealing roller and an outer annulus of the second fin sealing roller with a flexible connection between a hub element of the second fin sealing roller with the outer annulus of the second fin sealing roller.

A method for monitoring a tubular bag machine having a drive control system and independently controlled electronic drive units controlled by a drive control system for driving functional elements of the packing machine in a cycle time-synchronous manner in predefined motion sequences, one drive unit being a transverse sealing unit with a drive motor and two transverse sealing jaws for transversely sealing a film tube, and the drive motor torque measured using a drive controller, and the drive motor position measured using a position sensor, the method including moving the film tube into the sealing zone between the transverse sealing jaws, closing the jaws according to a predefined target torque stored in the drive control system, measuring the actual position of the drive motor upon reaching the target torque, and comparing the measured position to a target position stored in the drive control system associated with the predefined target torque.

An injection molded pourer for a pouch pack. The injection molded pourer includes an inner pouring channel having a pouring spout arranged at an upper end of the inner pouring channel and a boat-shaped weld-in portion which surrounds a lower end of the inner pouring channel, and an injection molding gate arranged on an outside. The pouring spout can be closed with a cap. The boat-shaped weld-in portion has boat-shaped ribs which are arranged parallel to one another and which have a gap there-between. A plastic melt can be pressed into the injection molding gate. The plastic melt includes a main plastic material, and a second plastic material which forms an oxygen barrier.

The present invention discloses a heat fusing device for a smart trash receptacle, including: a heating wire for fusion-cutting and thermally sealing an open end of a trash bag, the heating wire being connected to a heat-fusing circuit; a base having heat-resistant and insulating properties, the base having a first end surface on which the heating wire is arranged; and a control mechanism communicatively coupled to the heat-fusing circuit for control thereof. The present invention also discloses a smart trash receptacle incorporating the heat fusing device and a method for controlling a heat fusing temperature. With the present invention, during automatic bagging by the smart trash receptacle, good contact between the heating wire and the trash bag can be ensured while preventing adhesion of the trash bag. This results in improved sealing quality and enables the fulfillment of two tasks, i.e., thermoplastic sealing and thermal fusion-cutting, in the same action of the heat fusing device. As a result, higher automatic bagging quality and reliability are obtainable at lower bagging control difficulty and reduced bagging cost. Moreover, control in the system is simplified, and the stability and reliability of the system are increased.

An apparatus for joining a first film portion and a second film portion together along a seal line. The apparatus includes a horn and anvil. The anvil is positioned close to the horn. The horn or anvil has a face that is rotatable about a rotation axis. The face has a raised profile, and a height thereof has a dimension corresponding to 50% to 150% of a thickness of the first film portion or the second film portion. The face is positioned such that the raised profile extends along the circumference such that continuous running contact is provided between the raised profile and the other of the one of the horn or the anvil when rotated about the rotation axis, to form the seal line without any external structure to control a distance between the horn/anvil. A tapered bonding profile, a traction pattern, and a cut-and-seal feature are also disclosed.