There is described a packaging unit (1) for producing sealed packages containing a pourable food product from a tube (2) of packaging material advanced along a first axis (A); the packaging unit (1) comprises: at least two jaws (10, 11) arranged on opposite sides of the first axis (A) and movable between a closed position, in which they grip and seal said tube (2) of packaging material at one of a plurality of equally spaced cross sections, and an open position, in which they are detached from the tube (2); at least two forming members (15) supported by the respective jaws (10, 11) in a movable manner between a first operating position, in which, in relation to the position of the jaws (10, 11), they have the maximum distance from one another, and a second operating position, in which, in relation to the closed position of the jaws (10, 11), they mate with one another and cooperate with the tube (2); and actuator means (20) to produce movement of the forming members (15) between the first operating position and the second operating position; the actuator means (20) comprise at least one mover (21) connected to both forming members (15) in any position of the jaws (10, 11) and selectively activated to perform opposite strokes, along which the mover (21) itself produces the movement of each forming members (15) in opposite directions.

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 producing packages holding liquid food products from a web of packaging material, wherein the web comprises a number of blanks placed after one another, wherein each blank corresponds to one package, the method comprising receiving a reel holding the web of packaging material, capturing reel data from a tag attached to the reel, transferring the reel data to a printing information database, receiving printing information data (PID) related to the reel data from the printing information database, printing decors on each of the blanks of the web of packaging material based on information provided via the PID, transferring the reel data to a packaging machine information database receiving packaging machine information data (PMID) related to the reel data from the packaging machine information database, and forming the packages from the d?cor provided web in a packaging machine based on information provided via the PMID.

The present invention discloses a flat bottom pillow pouch that can stand upright on its bottom transverse seal. The flat bottom pillow bag can be made from the same film as a standard pillow pouch and requires less film than prior art stand up packages. The flat bottom pillow pouch disclosed herein has no gussets.

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 producing a sealed package (2; 102) for a product, comprises the following steps: providing a sheet packaging material (1; 101) having a crease pattern (20; 120), the crease pattern (20; 120) comprising at least a first transverse crease line (4) and a second transverse crease line (6), the crease pattern (20; 120) further comprising a plurality of further crease lines (8, 9, 10, 11; 8, 90, 91, 92, 93, 11) interposed between the first transverse crease line (4) and the second transverse crease line (6), said further crease lines (8, 9, 10, 11; 8, 90, 91, 92, 93, 11) extending transversely to the first transverse crease line (4) and to the second transverse crease line (6); obtaining a sealed preliminary packaging unit (200) from the sheet packaging material (1; 101), the sealed preliminary packaging unit (200) having a preset inner volume and containing the product; exerting a forming action on the sealed preliminary packaging unit (200) so as to fold the sheet packaging material (1; 101) defining the sealed preliminary packaging unit (200) and obtain a package (2; 102) therefrom. During the step of obtaining the sealed preliminary packaging unit (200), the sheet packaging material (1; 101) is processed without being folded along said further crease lines (8, 9, 10, 11; 8, 90, 91, 92, 93, 11).

A device for selectively retaining a package opening in a gaping configuration and a package including the device applied to a package body. The device includes a circumferential strip with side seams formed as vertical or longitudinal hinges. One or more tabs extend in a first axial direction from an upper edge of the circumferential strip at the side seams. Each tab is coupled to the circumferential strip with a horizontal or transverse hinge. The tabs are pivotable about the horizontal or transverse hinges in opposite directions away from the opening axis to respective folded-out positions, which inhibits the device from folding at the side seams and retains a gaping open configuration of the device and package. The vertical hinges include thru cuts or line of perforations that go through the entire material thickness of the circumferential strip and the one or more tabs and extend for a majority of the full axial length of the device. The horizontal hinges may be in the form of a living hinge or alternatively thru cuts or a line of perforations.

A package forming unit comprises plural jaw units, each having at least one respective operative assembly for engaging the tube and for at least partially forming the advancing tube, one respective sealing element for at least partially transversally sealing the tube along a transversal sealing band and a pair of interaction tabs for interacting with the tube. Each jaw unit is controllable as a function of the tube filling level in an operative configuration in which the respective operative assembly, the respective sealing element and the respective pair of interaction tabs are controlled in respective active states while advancing along respective operative portions and a partial operative configuration in which the respective sealing element is controlled in the respective active state and the respective operative assembly and/or the respective pair of interaction tabs is/are controlled in a respective inactive state while, in use, advancing along the respective operative portion.

A method of operating a machine for producing sealed packages for a product, comprises the step of changing the configuration of the machine so that the machine, which was producing a package (2) having a first conformation, becomes capable of producing a package (102) having a second conformation. The first conformation is different from the second conformation. The package (2) having the first conformation is produced from a first sheet packaging material (1) comprising a first basic unit (3) having a length (L) and a width (W), the package (102) having the second conformation being produced from a second sheet packaging material (101) comprising a second basic unit (103) having a length (L) and a width (W) respectively equal to the length (L) and width (W) of the first basic unit (3).