A device for positioning in the body of an animal, the device comprising a first portion and a second portion that may be positioned in contact with one other, the first portion and the second portion each comprising a biocompatible conductive thermoplastic material, such that when the device is positioned in the body of an animal and electric current flows from the first portion to the second portion, heat is generated by electrical resistance at the point of contact between the first portion and the second portion so as to melt regions of the first portion and the second portion, and when the electric current is thereafter terminated, the melted regions of the first portion and the second portion re-solidify so that a weld is formed between the first portion and the second portion.

An assembly for producing sealed packaging units (14) from a sheet packaging material, comprises: an advancement device (21) for advancing the sheet packaging material along an advancement direction (F), a longitudinal sealing device for sealing opposite borders of the sheet packaging material along a longitudinal sealing band arranged parallelly to the advancement direction (F), thereby forming a continuous tube (15), a transverse sealing device (29) for sealing the continuous tube (15) transversely to the advancement direction (F), so as to define a sealed packaging unit (14). The transverse sealing device (29) comprises a sealing element (30) and an abutment element (31) that are intended to mutually cooperate during sealing while being located on opposite sides of the continuous tube (15). The sealing element (30) is so configured as to act on a side (27) of the continuous tube (15) on which the longitudinal sealing band is provided.

An ultrasonic sealing anvil is provided which is capable of applying an optimal pressure to an overlap part in the absence of misalignment between the overlap part and the anvil, and preventing application of an excessive pressure in the occurrence of misalignment. An ultrasonic sealing anvil is configured to seal a tubular material having an overlap part extending in one direction, in a sealing direction crossing the overlap part. The anvil is provided with a step that can be abutted with the overlap part R, and a pair of grooves arranged sandwiching the step in the sealing direction.

Certain implementations provide a form-fill-seal machine that can efficiently seal a packaging material. The transverse sealing unit may have first members to sandwich the packaging material and sealing the packaging material in a transverse direction, and second members for squeezing the packaging material while sandwiching the packaging material with a prescribed gap left therebetween. The control unit may cause the packaging material to be squeezed by the second members by causing the transverse sealing unit located at a reference position to descend faster than the packaging material being conveyed downward. The control unit may cause the transverse sealing unit to ascend while the packaging material is being sealed by the first members. The control unit may cause the transverse sealing unit to move such that the first members are separated from the packaging material.

The present invention relates to a blowing device (1) for blowing gas through a gas-permeable tubular-shaped packaging material (29). The blowing device comprises at least one gas nozzle (19; 75, 77), adapted to blow gas from an outside of the tubular-shaped packaging material through the tubular-shaped packaging material, and a guiding member (3), which comprises a web passage (5) having a surface (7) adapted to face the tubular-shaped packaging material, such that the web passage surrounds or substantially surrounds the tubular-shaped packaging material. The present invention further relates to a use of the blowing device, to a sealing arrangement (27, 71) for transversely sealing a gas-permeable tubular-shaped packaging material (29) and to an arrangement (37) for manufacturing of pouched products (39), which arrangement comprises such a sealing arrangement. The present invention also relates to a method for transversely sealing a gas-permeable tubular-shaped packaging material and to a method for manu facturing a pouched product, e.g. a portion-packed pouched oral snuff product.

A method for operating a tubular bag machine having a film web capable of unwinding from a supply reel, a shoulder for forming the web into a film tube, a take-off unit serving to move the tube, a longitudinal sealing device for welding the tube parallel to its transport direction by a longitudinal seam, a sealing device with jaws for producing transverse seams in the tube, a separating element for separating finished tubular bags from the tube, the machine being accelerated in a positive acceleration phase from an initial speed to a target speed when starting or being decelerated in a negative acceleration phase from the target speed to a final speed for stopping, wherein, in the positive acceleration phase and/or in the negative acceleration phase, at least one sealing parameter of the jaws for producing tubular bags changes as a function of the conveying speed of the web.

An automated system and method are disclosed for producing an inflatable product having a first sheet, a second sheet, and a plurality of tensioning structures between the first and second sheets. The system includes an upstream tensioning structure production subsystem that produces the tensioning structures and a downstream preassembly production subsystem that couples the tensioning structures to the first and second sheets. The subsystems may operate simultaneously to produce the inflatable product in an automated, efficient, and repeatable manner.

A process and apparatus (1) for packaging a product (P) arranged on a tray (4) is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a packaging assembly (8) configured for tightly fixing one or more film sheets to one or more trays. The packaging assembly includes a lower tool (22) defining a prefixed number of seats (23) for receiving the trays and an upper tool (21) facing the lower tool and cooperating with the upper tool to define a packaging chamber (24). The packaging assembly (8) is configured to operate at least in a first operating condition, where said packaging chamber (24) is open, and in a second operating condition, where said packaging chamber (24) is hermetically closed. First injection apertures (90) are positioned in corner regions of the seat and are configured to inject streams of gas in a direction substantially parallel to and above the flange (4c) of a tray (4) positioned in said seat. The process includes the step of activating injection of a plurality of streams of gas through said first apertures (90) in order to form a controlled atmosphere inside the tray before closing the tray with the film.

A separation welding device for the sectional joining and sectional separation of weldable film layers includes a temperature-controlled working surface that is designed to support joinable and separable film layers and further includes an electrical heating device as well as a counterholder for sectionally applying pressure to the joinable and separable film layers, which delimits a variably adjustable working gap with the working surface and that includes two mutually spaced joining stamps and one separating stamp arranged between the joining stamps wherein the separating stamp and/or at least one joining stamp is moveably attached to the counterholder wherein provision can be made for the separating stamp and/or the joining stamp to each be assigned a force sensor and/or a motion sensor to calculate a separation sequence determined by the separating stamp and/or a joining sequence determined by the joining stamp.

The invention relates to a strapping device for strapping packaged goods with a strapping band, said strapping device being provided with a connecting device (5) designed as an ultrasonic welding device (9) in order to form a closure. The ultrasonic welding device (9) is provided with a sonotrode device (13) to which ultrasound generated by an ultrasound converter (10) can be transmitted, and the sonotrode device (13) has a contact surface (21, 24) in a provided region which contacts the strapping band. The contact surface is designed to contact a surface of the strapping band, and the sonotrode device (13) is designed to produce ultrasonic vibrations by means of the contact surface. The aim of the invention is to allow a more compact design for such strapping devices. This is achieved in that the contact surface (21, 24) of the sonotrode (11) is aligned at an angle which deviates from a right angle relative to the provided vibration direction of the sonotrode (11).