Packaging machine with a protective device and method

Abstract

The present invention refers to a packaging machine and a method, wherein one embodiment of a protective device comprises a protective hood and the protective hood is lifted around a shaft comprising two rolls, and is shifted by means of guides in the protective hood on the rolls.

Claims

1. A packaging machine, said packaging machine comprising: a sealing station; a frame disposed at one of a supply side or a discharge side of said sealing station, said frame disposed at least partially above one of a first transport belt of a supply device on said supply side, or a second transport belt of a discharge device on said discharge side, said frame having a shaft mounted for rotation thereon and two rolls are disposed on said shaft; a protective hood operably connected to said frame, said protective hood including one or more guides; wherein said rolls are positioned on said shaft to engage the one or more guides of said protective hood, and the one or more guides cooperate with the rolls in such a manner that the protective hood is liftable and tiltable around the shaft and a movement of the protective hood between a closed position and an opened position comprises at least a rearwardly directed linear movement; and wherein said protective hood is disposed above one of said first transport belt or said second transport belt when the protective hood is in the closed position.

2. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the two rolls are synchronized with each other by means of the shaft.

3. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the rolls each have a running surface with friction.

4. The packaging machine according to claim 3, wherein the running surfaces of the rolls are made from an elastomer.

5. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the rolls each have a running surface with damping.

6. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein a monitoring device is provided for monitoring the closed position of the protective hood.

7. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the protective hood is removable in a removal position in a keyless manner from the protective device.

8. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the transport belt is driven by a servo-drive.

9. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the guides comprise a sheet-metal bend on the protective hood having one of an L-shape or a U-shape bend.

10. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the shaft is disposed at a first vertical position that is lower than a second vertical position of an upper edge of a frame of said packaging machine.

11. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the protective hood includes at least one recess proximate the guides, wherein said protective hood may be disengaged from at least one of said rollers at said at least one recess.

12. The packaging machine according to claim 1, wherein the transport belt has a direction of production and wherein a downstream side of said protective hood is disposed downstream of the downstream end of a frame of said packaging machine.

13. A method for operating a packaging machine with a protective device for moving a protective hood, the method comprising the following steps: moving the protective hood between a closed position to an open position; lifting and tilting the protective hood around a shaft, shifting the protective hood such that a movement of the protective hood between a closed position and an opened position comprises at least a rearwardly directed linear movement, the guides running on two rolls of the shaft, and tilting the protective hood around the shaft into an end position; and one of disabling a transport belt of the packaging machine when said protective hood is in the open position, or operating the transport belt of the packaging machine when said protective hood is in the closed position.

14. Method according to claim 13, wherein the rolls act as dampers in the end position after shifting of the protective hood.

15. Method according to claim 13, wherein a straight shifting of the protective hood is supported by means of the shaft and the two rolls synchronized with each other on the shaft.

16. Method according to claim 13, further comprising checking the protective hood is in the closed position using at least one monitoring device for monitoring the work position.

17. Method according to claim 13, wherein the protective hood can be removed in a removal position in a keyless manner.

18. A packaging machine, said packaging machine comprising: a supply device, said supply device comprising a first transport belt; a discharge device, said discharge device comprising a second transport belt; a sealing station disposed between said supply device and said discharge device; a frame disposed at least partially above one of said supply device or said discharge device, said frame having a shaft mounted for rotation thereon and two rolls are disposed on said shaft; a protective hood operably connected to said frame, said protective hood including one or more guides; wherein said rolls are positioned on said shaft to engage the one or more guides of said protective hood, and the one or more guides cooperate with the rolls in such a manner that the protective hood is liftable and tiltable around the shaft and a movement of the protective hood between a closed position and an opened position comprises at least a rearwardly directed linear movement; and wherein said protective hood is disposed above one of said first transport belt or said second transport belt when the protective hood is in the closed position.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) An advantageous embodiment of the invention shall now be explained in more detail with reference to a drawing. In detail,

(2) FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a tray sealing machine according to one embodiment of the invention with a protective device in a work position;

(3) FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the protective device in a lifted position according to one embodiment of the invention;

(4) FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the protective device in an opened position according to one embodiment of the invention; and

(5) FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the protective device with a removed protective hood according to one embodiment of the invention.

(6) Like components are provided with like reference numerals throughout the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(7) The invention will now be described with reference to the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout. For purposes of clarity in illustrating the characteristics of the present invention, proportional relationships of the elements have not necessarily been maintained in the drawing figures.

(8) The following detailed description of the invention references specific embodiments in which the invention can be practiced. The embodiments are intended to describe aspects of the invention in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Other embodiments can be utilized and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The present invention is defined by the appended claims and the description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense and shall not limit the scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

(9) FIG. 1 shows a tray sealing machine 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention with a sealing station 4 disposed between a discharge device 2 and a supply device 3. Each of the supply and discharge devices 3, 2 may comprise a protective device 5 with a respective protective cover 6, the positioning of which in a closed or work position can be monitored by means of sensors (not shown in more detail) by a machine control 7, so that the tray sealing machine 1 can only be started by an operator if both protective hoods 6 are in the work position. In the work position the protective hoods 6 are positioned on the machine frame 8, thereby preventing any access into the area covered. The protective hoods 6 may be equipped on the operation side 10 of the tray sealing machine 1 with a grip 9 to permit a manual operation of the protective device 5 and of the protective hood 6 as such.

(10) FIG. 2 shows the tray sealing machine 1 with a lifted protective hood 6 on the discharge device 2. The protective device 5 on the discharge device 2 may further comprise a frame 11 which extends laterally, arranged in the figure at the left side on the discharge device 2, and along the back side of the tray sealing machine 1. The protective device 5 ensures that a section of a servo-driven transport belt 12 which discharges trays out of the sealing station 4 and the tray sealing machine 1 is covered. In the sealing station 3 the trays may be sealed with a lid film. The protective hood 6 may be lifted in the opening process to such an extent that the front lower edge 13 of the protective hood 6 is positioned above the upper edge 14 of the frame 11 to subsequently permit a displacement of the protective hood 6 to the rear. The lifting operation can be carried out around a shaft 15, which is visibly shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

(11) FIG. 3 shows the tray sealing machine 1 with the protective hood 6, which has been shifted rearwards into the opened position. The protective hood 6 may grip around rolls 17, which are shown in more detail in FIG. 4, with guides 16 that are given a laterally oriented L- or U-shape (as shown) by way of sheet metal bends. The rolls 17 as such can be connected to the shaft 15 at the shaft ends thereof and the shaft 15 may be mounted on the frame 11 of the protective device 5 via two holders 18. Since the rolls 17 may have a rubber-lined running surface of high friction, the sliding movement of the protective hood 6 can be synchronized such that the protective hood 6 performs a rearwardly directed straight movement, with the guides 16 running on the rolls 17 in this process. During said movement the protective hood 6 is continuously tilting downwards due to the shaft 15 being arranged at a lower level than the upper edge 14 of the frame, and due to the rolls 17, respectively. In the position shown in FIG. 3, the protective hood 6 is positioned with two stops 19 (shown in FIG. 4), which are provided in the guides 16, on the rolls 17, which due to their rubber-lined running surface may additionally act as dampers. Each of the holders 18 additionally can comprise a further rubber or plastic roll 20, which serves as an abutment for the protective hood 6 in the opened position and thereby limits the inclination of the protective hood 6. The position of the protective hood 6 in the opened position is thereby defined via the rolls 17 and the rolls 20 and is also called end position. The rolls 20 need not be rotatably mounted on the holders 18.

(12) FIG. 4 shows the tray sealing machine 1 with a protective hood 6 removed from the protective device 5. In this view, the two internal guides 16 and a respective recess 21 of the protective hood 6 are shown. To be able to remove the protective hood 6 from the rolls 17, the protective hood 6 may be lifted into a removal position so that the rolls 17 are positioned in the area of the recess 21, and the rolls 17 can pass out of the guides 16. To sum up, it should be noted that the opening movement and also the closing movement of the protective hood 6 may be defined just by the arrangement and cooperation of the shaft 15 together with the two rolls 17 on the frame 11 of the protective device 5 and the guides 18 with the stops 19 of the protective hood 6.

(13) The invention is not limited to a tray sealing machine 1, but alternatively relates to a thermoforming machine and transport devices which supply products and discharge packs and form a packaging system together with the packaging machine. All of these apparatuses may comprise a protective device 5 in one of the variants as described herein.

(14) The scope of the invention also comprises an equivalent configuration where, instead of the shaft 15 with the two rolls 17, sliding elements are provided that are cooperating with the protective hood in the same way.

(15) In the embodiment shown in the figures, the frame 11 in the production direction of the packaging machine 1 is shorter than the protective hood 6. This has the consequence that even in the case of an unintended lowering of the protective hood 6 the front lower edge 13 of the protective hood 6 will rest on the upper edge 14 of the frame 11 (see FIG. 2) as soon as the protective hood 6 is shifted by a short distance to the rear. The operating reliability of the packaging machine 1 is thereby improved since the contact between the edges 13, 14 prevents the edge 13 of the protective hood 6 from getting into contact, for instance, with the transport belt 2 or with trays positioned thereon.

(16) From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure. It will be understood that certain features and sub combinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and sub combinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims. Since many possible embodiments of the invention may be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is also to be understood that all matters herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings are to be interpreted as illustrative and not limiting.

(17) The constructions and methods described above and illustrated in the drawings are presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the concepts and principles of the present invention. Thus, there has been shown and described several embodiments of a novel invention. As is evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of the present invention are not limited by the particular details of the examples illustrated herein, and it is therefore contemplated that other modifications and applications, or equivalents thereof, will occur to those skilled in the art. The terms having and including and similar terms as used in the foregoing specification are used in the sense of optional or may include and not as required. Many changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications of the present construction will, however, become apparent to those skilled in the art after considering the specification and the accompanying drawings. All such changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention are deemed to be covered by the invention which is limited only by the claims which follow.