Aspects of the disclosure relate to a clutch assembly (100) for handling a container, and an associated method for using the clutch assembly. The clutch assembly includes a shaft (102) configured to rotate in a first direction and a second direction, opposite from the first direction. The clutch assembly further includes a clutch coupled to a first end of the shaft. The clutch includes at least two rollers (108) configured to move into a first position, extending radially beyond a periphery of the clutch, and out of the first position, extending radially flush with or inward from the periphery of the clutch.

An oven for preforms and in particular a preform rotation system heats portions of the preform in a preferential manner. An oven (1) for blowing or stretch-blowing preforms (P) to provide containers (C) with oval section includes a path (2) for the preforms (P), transfer system (3) of the preforms (P) from a transport system upstream of the oven (1) and a transfer system (4) of the heated preforms (P) from the oven (1) to a downstream transport. Mandrels (9) are slidingly carried along the path (2), the mandrels temporarily engage with the preforms (P) to conduct the preforms along the path (2). The oven (1) includes at least one first heating module (10) and at least one second heating module (10). The oven (1) includes elements (22, 25) for rotating the preforms (P) by 180, the elements being in median position of the second heating module (10).

A blow molding device and a blow molding method are disclosed that can blow-mold a container with a handle without requiring a handle inserter that inserts a handle into a blow molding section. A blow molding method for blow-molding a container with a handle includes heating a preform (2) that is held by a heating transfer jig (370), transferring the preform from the heating transfer jig to a blow transfer jig (420), and transferring the blow transfer jig in a state in which a handle (500) is held by the blow transfer jig to be adjacent to the preform in a transfer direction.

A method for forming a container with an integral handle includes heating a preform having an integral handle in a first oven, stretching the preform, closing a first mold having a first mold recess and a second mold having a second mold recess around the preform, and blowing air into the preform. A handle pocket wedge block is inserted into a handle pocket of the integral handle of the preform within the first mold and the second mold.

A device for transporting a hollow body having a neck including an inner vertical orientation wall and a top edge, the device including elements for grasping the hollow body by engaging with the neck's inner wall, which are mounted at the bottom end of a rod and movably connected to the rod, the rod being movably mounted vertically between a high position and a low position. The grasping elements are movably mounted radially between: a retracted position, in which the grasping elements are inserted vertically, from top to bottom, inside the neck, without contact with the inner wall; and a deployed position, in which the grasping elements engage with the inner wall of the neck, wherein changing the position of the grasping elements from the retracted to the deployed position is controlled by the vertical movement toward the bottom of the rod, from the high to the low position.

A device for transporting a hollow body provided with a neck which includes a vertically oriented internal wall, the device including at least elements for gripping the hollow body by engaging with the internal wall of the neck, which are mounted on the lower free end of a rod and movably connected thereto, the rod being mounted to be vertically movable between a high position and a low position, wherein the gripping elements are mounted to be radially movable between a retracted position in which the gripping elements are vertically inserted from top to bottom into the neck, without contacting the internal wall, and a deployed position in which the gripping elements engage the internal wall of the neck, and the change in position of the gripping elements from the retracted to the deployed position and/or from the deployed to the retracted position is actuated by a magnetic field.

A plant for producing and treating containers includes a clean room, a production machine for producing preforms, a blow-molding machine arranged downstream of the production machine for shaping the preforms into containers and a container treatment machine arranged downstream of the blow-molding machine for treating the containers. The production machine, the blow-molding machine and the container treatment machine are arranged in the clean room, and each component of the production machine, the blow-molding machine and the container treatment machine that comes into physical contact with a preform or a container consists of or comprises sterilization-proof material.

Provided is a method for verifying holding members in a heating station equipped with a device for transporting the preforms. The device includes a plurality of movable supports circulating in a closed circuit and members for individually holding the preforms by their neck, where each of the holding members is borne by a movable support. The method includes setting the movable supports in movement to bring them successively into an acquisition zone, acquiring an image of each individual holding member in the acquisition zone, and automatically verifying the presence of a holding member on each of the images taken.

A continuously rotating, non-symmetric preform feed, stretch-blow-moulding machine dedicated to the stretch-blow-moulding of containers from non-symmetric injection moulded preforms; the non-symmetric preforms including an integral handle extending from a first junction point to a second junction point on a body of the preform; the body of the preform and the integral handle constituted from the same material.

Ways to produce a plurality of preform (5) temperature profiles are provided that employ systems having a first heating means, a second heating means, and a first transfer means. The a first heating means has a first preform (5) path, imparts a first temperature profile to a preform (5) passing through the first preform (5) path, and has a first dispensing means configured to selectively dispense the preform (5) passing through at least a portion of the first preform (5) path. The second heating means has a second preform (5) path, imparts a second temperature profile to a preform (5) passing through the second preform (5) path, and has a second dispensing means configured to selectively dispense the preform (5) passing through at least a portion of the second preform (5) path. The first transfer means selectively transfers a preform (5) between the first preform (5) path and the second preform (5) path.