An apparatus and system for aligning and packing rollable items such as prolate or spherical fruit; an apparatus to remove a single tray from a stack of trays and method therefor; a wrapper to wrap a tray in plastic film and method therefor; an apparatus to laterally retain a spherical or prolate fruit and method therefor; and an apparatus for aligning a fruit via series of rollers and/or suction heads and a method therefor.

A heat shrinking apparatus 1 includes: a conveyance unit 11 conveying a package 3 obtained by wrapping an object(s) 5 with a heat-shrink film 4; an endless belt 21 disposed below a conveying surface of the conveyance unit, rotating along a conveying direction of the conveyance unit; and a hot air jet unit 19(20) jetting out hot air from an inside to an outside of a belt surface of the endless belt facing the conveying surface, wherein: the endless belt has a hot air passing portion 30 extending in a belt width direction; the hot air jet unit jets out the hot air toward the conveying surface through the hot air passing portion; and the endless belt rotates following a movement of the package so that a seal portion(s) 6a(6b) provided at a front end and/or a rear end of the package is/are heat-shrunk with the hot air.

A controllable packaging device (5) and a method relate to packaging compressed bales (6) on a baling press (2) with a bale-fixing element (11) and a multi-component bale envelope (7) including an upper part (8), a lower part (9) and optionally a sheath-type side part (10). The packaging device includes a fixing device (23) applying the bale-fixing element (11), a supply device (25) supplying the upper part and the lower part and optionally an envelope device (24) applying the side part to the compressed bales. The fixing device and optionally the envelope device are arranged on a transport apparatus (19) that travels along the compressed bale in an advancing direction (22). The supply device is arranged on the transport apparatus and supplies the upper part and the lower part with a supply movement oriented transversely to the advancing direction, from the outside into the baling press.

A controllable packaging device (5) and a method relate to packaging compressed bales (6) on a baling press (2) with a bale-fixing element (11) and a multi-component bale envelope (7) including an upper part (8), a lower part (9) and optionally a sheath-type side part (10). The packaging device includes a fixing device (23) applying the bale-fixing element (11), a supply device (25) supplying the upper part and the lower part and optionally an envelope device (24) applying the side part to the compressed bales. The fixing device and optionally the envelope device are arranged on a transport apparatus (19) that travels along the compressed bale in an advancing direction (22). The supply device is arranged on the transport apparatus and supplies the upper part and the lower part with a supply movement oriented transversely to the advancing direction, from the outside into the baling press.

An overwrap feed station wraps a product with an overwrap material by drawing the overwrap material around the product to form a tube around the product as the product moves through the feed station. The feed station is configurable in one of first and second configurations based upon a desired location of a longitudinal seal to be formed on the tube around the product. A first former is configured to guide the overwrap material through the entrance of the feed station so that longitudinal edges of the overwrap material overlap on a first side of the tube during wrapping of the product. The second former is configured to guide the overwrap material through the entrance of the feed station so that longitudinal edges of the overwrap material overlap on a second side of the tube during wrapping of the product. The second side is transverse to the first side.

A machine that forms groups of containers by wrapping containers in a film blank includes an adhesive applicator that is arranged along a film-transporter for applying adhesive onto an inner side of the film blank and along longitudinal side edges of the film blank before the containers are wrapped. The placement of the adhesive avoids distortion of images or text that are printed on the film blank due to shrinkage.

A machine that forms groups of containers by wrapping containers in a film blank includes an adhesive applicator that is arranged along a film-transporter for applying adhesive onto an inner side of the film blank and along longitudinal side edges of the film blank before the containers are wrapped. The placement of the adhesive avoids distortion of images or text that are printed on the film blank due to shrinkage.

A machine that forms groups of containers by wrapping containers in a film blank includes an adhesive applicator that is arranged along a film-transporter for applying adhesive onto an inner side of the film blank and along longitudinal side edges of the film blank before the containers are wrapped. The placement of the adhesive avoids distortion of images or text that are printed on the film blank due to shrinkage.

A machine that forms groups of containers by wrapping containers in a film blank includes an adhesive applicator that is arranged along a film-transporter for applying adhesive onto an inner side of the film blank and along longitudinal side edges of the film blank before the containers are wrapped. The placement of the adhesive avoids distortion of images or text that are printed on the film blank due to shrinkage.

A magazine unit for a packaging machine comprises a support device configured to rotatably carry a reel of a packaging material web and a reel brake device configured to decelerate rotation of the reel around a central axis. The reel brake device comprises a brake assembly adapted to interact with an outer lateral surface of the reel of the packaging material web and configured to selectively exert a deceleration force on the reel of the packaging material web for decelerating the rotation of the reel around the central axis. The reel brake device comprises a support rail moveably carrying the brake assembly and an actuator device configured to actuate, in use, movement of the brake assembly along the support rail at least towards the outer lateral surface so as to establish contact of at least an interaction element of the brake assembly with the outer lateral surface of the reel.