Dispensing device for arrangement in the format tube of a tubular bag machine

Abstract

The invention relates to a dispensing device (40) for being disposed in the forming tube (42) of a tubular bag machine (01) for the portioned dispensation of a flowable, in particular powdery, product (46), having at least one screw conveyor (43) discharging the product (46), said screw conveyor (43) protruding into a screw tube (41) with its longitudinal axis and being able to be rotationally driven by a drive, and having a flow barrier (45) fastened at the lower end of the screw tube (41), the amount of the product (46), which trickles down when the screw conveyor (43) is stopped, being able to be reduced by the flow barrier (45), at least one first receiving contour being provided at the flow barrier (45), and at least one second receiving contour being provided at the lower end of the screw tube (41), and a locking bolt being able to be inserted into and/or pushed through the first receiving contour and second receiving contour when disposing the flow barrier (45) at the lower end of the screw tube (41) in order to fixate the flow barrier (45) between the locking bolt and the two receiving contours at the lower end of the screw tube (41) in a form-fit manner.

Claims

1. A dispensing device (40) for being disposed in a forming tube (42) of a tubular bag machine (01) for portioned dispensation of a flowable product (46), the dispensing device comprising: a one screw conveyor (43) adapted for discharging the product (46), said screw conveyor (43) protruding into a screw tube (41) along a longitudinal axis of the screw conveyor and being able to be rotationally driven by a drive; a flow barrier (45) fastened at a lower end of the screw tube (41), the flow barrier being adapted to limit an amount of the product (46) from trickling down the screw conveyor beyond the lower end of the screw tube when the screw conveyor (43) is stopped; at least one first receiving contour (49) provided at the flow barrier (45); at least one second receiving (48) contour provided at the lower end of the screw tube (41); a fastener (47) adapted for being inserted into and/or adapted for being pushed through the first receiving contour (49) and second receiving contour (48) for fastening the flow barrier (45) at the lower end of the screw tube (41) in order to fixate the flow barrier (45) with respect to the screw tube; and at least one anti-rotation element (50) at the flow barrier (45), said at least one anti-rotational element engaging a cutout in a lower end surface of the screw tube in a form-fit manner so as to prevent relative rotation therebetween; wherein the fastener (47) engages the first and second receiving contours (48, 49) at the lower end of the screw tube (41) in a form-fit manner; and wherein at least one of the at least one first receiving contour (49) and the at least one second receiving contour (48) comprises a groove extending circumferentially around the flow barrier or the screw tube, respectively.

2. The dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein an end cross section of the flow barrier (45) facing towards the screw tube (41) is adapted to be placed over the lower end of the screw tube (41), wherein the first receiving contour (49) comprises at least one perforation through a wall of the flow barrier (45), wherein the second receiving contour (48) being formed at the end of the screw tube (41) comprises the groove, said groove extending circumferentially around the screw tube, and wherein said fastener (47) is adapted to be inserted so as to engage through at least one the perforation (49) in the wall of the flow barrier (45) when the flow barrier (45) is disposed at the lower end of the screw tube (41) and engaging in the groove (48) at the lower end of the screw tube (41) in a fixing manner.

3. The dispensing device according to claim 2, wherein the wall of the flow barrier (45) comprises two perforations (49), and wherein the fastener (47) comprises a push clamp, said push clamp (47) comprising two arms (52) which are adapted to be inserted so as to engage through the two perforations (49) and thus each engage in the groove (48) in a fixating manner, said two arms (52) being connected to each other via a connecting portion (53).

4. The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the groove (48) and/or the two arms (52) of the push clamp (47) have a rectangular cross section.

5. The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the two perforations (49) comprise slits which tangentially perforate a circumference of the flow barrier (45).

6. The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the arms (42) of the installed push clamp (47) are disposed in an installation plane extending orthogonally to the longitudinal axis of the screw conveyor (41).

7. The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the two arms (52) of the push clamp (47) are adapted to be elastically widened when pushing through the two perforations (49) in the wall of the flow barrier (45).

8. The dispensing device according to claim 3, wherein the connecting portion (53) of the installed push clamp (47) is disposed in a space between the screw tube (41) and the forming tube (42), the space (54) between the screw tube (41) and the forming tube (42) being smaller than an extraction path required for extracting the push clamp (47).

9. The dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein an end cross section of the flow barrier facing towards the screw tube is adapted to be inserted into the lower end of the screw tube, wherein the at least one first receiving contour comprises the groove, said groove extending circumferentially around the flow barrier, wherein the at least one second receiving contour comprises a perforation through a wall of the screw tube, and wherein the fastener is adapted to inserted so as to engage through the perforation in the wall of the screw tube and to engage the groove of the flow barrier in a fixing manner.

10. The dispensing device according to claim 9, wherein the wall of the screw tube comprises two perforations (49), and wherein the fastener (47) comprises a push clamp, said push clamp (47) comprising two arms (52) which can be inserted so as to engage through the two perforations (49) and thus each engage in the groove (48) in a fixating manner, said two arms (52) being connected to each other via a connecting portion (53).

11. The dispensing device according to claim 10, wherein the groove (48) and/or the two arms (52) of the push clamp (47) have a rectangular cross section.

12. The dispensing device according to claim 10, wherein the two perforations (49) comprise slits which tangentially perforate a circumference of the screw tube.

13. The dispensing device according to claim 10, wherein the arms (42) of the installed push clamp (47) are disposed in an installation plane extending orthogonally to the longitudinal axis of the screw conveyor (41).

14. The dispensing device according to claim 10, wherein the two arms (52) of the push clamp (47) are adapted to be elastically widened when pushing through the two perforations (49) in the wall of the screw tube.

15. The dispensing device according to claim 10, wherein the connecting portion (53) of the installed push clamp (47) is disposed in a space between the screw tube (41) and the forming tube (42), the space (54) between the screw tube (41) and the forming tube (42) being smaller than an extraction path required for extracting the push clamp (47).

16. The dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one anti-rotation element (50) secures a defined mounting angle between the flow barrier (45) and the screw conveyor (41).

17. The dispensing device according to claim 16, the at least one anti-rotation element comprises a protrusion which engages all the cutout (51) in a form-fit manner when the flow barrier (45) is disposed at the lower end of the screw tube (41).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(1) An embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated in the drawings and is described in an exemplary manner in the following.

(2) In the following,

(3) FIG. 1 illustrates in a side view a schematically illustrated tubular bag machine having a dispensing device for the portioned dispensation of a flowable product;

(4) FIG. 2 illustrates in a side view the lower end of the screw tube of the dispensation device according to FIG. 1 having the flow barrier to be fastened thereto and the fastening clamp intended for fastening;

(5) FIG. 3 illustrates in a perspective side view the lower end of the screw tube, the flow barrier and the fastening clamp according to FIG. 2;

(6) FIG. 4 illustrates in a perspective side view the lower end of the screw tube having the flow barrier fastened thereto by using the fastening clamp according to FIG. 3;

(7) FIG. 5 illustrates from the top the flow barrier and the fastening clamp according to FIG. 4;

(8) FIG. 6 illustrates in a partial cross section along the cutting line I-I the lower end of the screw tube, the flow barrier and the fastening clamp according to FIG. 4 when disposed in a forming tube.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(9) FIG. 1 illustrates in a side view in a general presentation a vertical tubular bag machine 01. In the tubular bag machine 01, a level film sheet 03 is withdrawn from a supply roll 04 by means of a film withdrawal 02 and reshaped to a film tube 06 via a forming shoulder 05. In a known manner, the film tube is sealed lengthwise and transverse to the film withdrawal direction at a longitudinal seal device (not illustrated) by means of transverse sealing jaws 07 which are movable with respect to each other. The transverse sealing jaws 07 simultaneously generate the head seam 08 of an already filled tube bag 09 having a bottom seam 10 of the end of the film tube 06 during a sealing process. The film tube 06 is separated between the head seam 08 and a directly adjacent bottom seam 10 by a separating device 12.

(10) A dispensing device 40 having a product container 13 is disposed above the forming shoulder 05. The product container 13 is supplied with product via a filling nozzle 14. The product in the product container 13 is, for example, a powder and is stirred by means of a stirrer 16 driven by a motor 15. A screw tube 41 connects in the dispensing device 14 below the product container 13. The screw tube 41 is disposed coaxially to the forming tube 42 on which the film tube 06 is guided. In the screw tube 41, a screw conveyor 43 is rotationally mounted which can be driven by means of a motor 44.

(11) At the lower end of the screw tube 41 is a flow barrier 45 which is made of two half shells driven by a drive device. By driving the half shells (not illustrated in the drawing), the flow barrier 45 can be opened when the screw conveyor 43 is rotating and can be closed when the screw conveyor 43 is stopped. By closing the flow barrier 45 when the screw conveyor 43 is stopped, it is prevented that in particular powdery product 46 trickles down from the lower opening of the screw tub 41 when the screw conveyor is shut off and thus disrupts the transverse sealing process.

(12) FIG. 2 illustrates in an extracted state the lower end of the screw tube 41, the flow barrier 45 and the fastener 47 which is intended for fastening the flow barrier 45 to the screw tube 41 and is realized like a push clamp.

(13) FIG. 3 illustrates the screw tube 41, the flow barrier 45 and the push clamp 47 in a perspective side view.

(14) At the lower end of the screw tube 41, a receiving contour 48 is provided which is realized like an annular groove. The groove comprises a rectangular cross section. At the flow barrier 45, two slit-shaped perforations 49 are provided in the wall as receiving contours. When mounting the flow barrier 45 to the screw tube 41, the flow barrier 45 is inserted onto the lower end of the screw tube 41 from the bottom, the angle position between the flow barrier 45 and the screw tube 41 being defined by an anti-rotation element 50. The anti-rotation element 50 is realized like a protrusion on the inner side of the wall of the flow barrier 45 and engages in a cutout 51 at the end cross section of the screw tube 41 in a form-fit manner. As soon as the flow barrier 45 is fit onto the end of the screw tube 41 without play, the push clamp 47, which serves as a fastener in the scope of the invention, is pushed into the perforations 49 from the side, which extend tangentially along the flow barrier 45, until the push clamp 47 surrounds the circumference of the screw tube 41 with both its arms 52.

(15) FIG. 4 illustrates the screw tube 41 having the mounted flow barrier 45 in a side view. It can be seen that the two arms 52 of the push clamp 47 engage through the perforations 49 in the wall of the flow barrier 45 and engage in the groove serving as a receiving contour 48 in a form-fit manner. Loosening the flow barrier 45 after mounting the push clamp 47 is only possible if the push clamp is first removed by pulling the push clamp 47 out. A connecting web 53, which connects the two arms 52 to each other in an elastically resilient manner, serves for pulling out the push clamp 47.

(16) FIG. 5 illustrates the flow barrier having the push clamp 47 fastened thereto in a top view. After mounting the push clamp 47, the two arms 52 laterally protrude only with their two free ends.

(17) FIG. 6 illustrates the screw tube 41 having the flow barrier 45 fastened thereto when disposed in the forming tube 42. The distance 54 between the inner side of the forming tube 42 and the outer side of the push clamp 47 in the area of the connecting web 53 is so small that the push clamp 47 can no longer be pulled out from the side after the screw tube 41 has been disposed in the forming tube 42.