Abstract
The disclosure relates to an applicator system for coupling at least one carrier to the top of a confined set of drinking cans to form one or more packages of cans simultaneously, which allows the controlled deformation of carriers of the type having a substantially horizontal upper central area arranged above the upper face of the cans, and the assembly of packages of traditional cans and packages of slim cans.
Claims
1. An application system (or coupling at least one carrier on top of a confined set of cans of beverages to form one or more packages of cans, which allows for controlled deformation of carriers of the type that have a substantially horizontal upper central area and a plurality of covering flaps arranged at a level above the upper face of the cans, comprising: a top applicator in the form of: a flat square plate with flat faces, configured to produce the controlled deformation of the carrier, and a lower confining component to orderly position the set of cans to receive the top applicator. wherein on one of the flat faces, the top applicator includes at least one recess formed by a bottom wall and a multilobular contour that defines a flat peripheral outer edge of the recess to flex transition portions and retention flaps of the carrier that fit under the rim of the cans; said recess including a central area from which as many lobes project as the number of cans to be grouped with the same carrier to form a package; where said lobes correspond to multiple and successive walls in an arc shape; and because the lower confining component includes a quadrangular body with at least one confining cavity of multilobular contour, with as many spacer lobes as the number of cans to be confined to form a package, where, to intentionally create a spacing between the cans, the distance between the central axes of adjacent spacer lobes is greater than the distance between the central axes of adjacent thin cans.
2. The application system according to claim 1, wherein said multiple and successive walls in an arc shape of the top applicator have a stepped cross-section.
3. The application system according to claim 1, wherein in a tangential area between adjacent lobes in the top applicator, a separation wall is formed between lobes, where each wall comprises a distal end pointing towards said central area of the recess, and where the height of said wall with respect to the bottom wall of the recess decreases towards said distal end
4. The application system according to claim 3, wherein said distal end comprises a stepped edge.
5. The application system according to claim 3, wherein said distal end comprises a beveled edge.
6. The application system according to claim 1, wherein the top applicator also comprises straight peripheral walls perpendicular to said flat face; the straight peripheral walls are distributed in a number of at least one for each of the sides of the flat face that forms the top applicator and are arranged along each of said sides.
7. The application system according to claim 6, wherein each of said straight peripheral walls comprises an inner face, an outer face, a proximal edge for joining to the flat face and an opposite distal edge of rounded cross-section.
8. The application system according to claim 7, wherein the inner faces of the set of peripheral walls define an inner perimeter whose width and length are equivalent to the width and length of at least one carrier to couple to a set of cans to form one or more packages.
9. The application system according to claim 6, wherein each of the straight peripheral walls comprises, at its distal edge, at least one notch whose bottom is located close to the flat face of the top applicator
10. The application system according to claim 1, wherein in the lower confining component 20, the spacer lobes have a curved cross-section, whose perimeter length is equivalent to at least half a circumference, to surround part of the body of the cans that it houses inside.
11. The application system 4 according to claim 10, wherein each spacer lobe comprises a vertical inner face perpendicular to a horizontal bottom wall of each confining cavity.
12. The application system according to claim 1, wherein between each of two adjacent spacer lobes a separation wall is formed that has a distal edge.
13. The application system, according to claim 1, wherein the lower confining component also comprises at least one spacer pillar of rhomboidal cross-section with concave sides to adapt to the portion of the can that is not embraced by the corresponding spacer lobe.
14. The application system according to claim 1, wherein the lower confining component also comprises peripheral guides to guide the downward movement of the top applicator, where the peripheral guides are erected vertically and perpendicular to an upper face of the lower confining component.
15. The application system according to claim 14, wherein said peripheral guides are distributed in several at least one for each of the sides of the quadrangular body that forms the lower confining component and are arranged along each of said sides.
16. The application system 1 according to claim 15, wherein each of said peripheral guides comprises an inner face, an outer face, a proximal edge for joining to the base and an opposite distal edge.
17. The application system according to claim 16, wherein the distal edge is beveled at its outer edge to facilitate the movement of the top applicator.
18. The application system according to claim 8 the outer faces of the set of peripheral guides of the lower confining component define an outer perimeter whose width and length are equivalent to the width and length of the inner perimeter formed by the peripheral walls of the top applicator to guide the downward vertical movement of said top applicator.
19. The application system according to claim 8, wherein the thickness of the peripheral guides corresponds to the distance between the perimeter of the group of confined cans and the inner perimeter of the peripheral walls of the top applicator.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0087] To achieve the objectives, the disclosure can be implemented in different ways, so the figures presented here are only illustrative and do not limit the scope of the disclosure, which can take multiple embodiments.
[0088] Thus, a detailed description of the disclosure will be carried out together with the figures that are an integral part of this presentation, where:
[0089] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional elevation of the assembly of the upper applicator and the lower confining component with a carrier and incorporated cans.
[0090] FIG. 2 is an isometric view of an example of a package to be formed with the present applicator system.
[0091] FIG. 3 is a top view of an example of a type of template to be applied with the present applicator system.
[0092] FIG. 4 is an isometric view of a groupable can with the present applicator system.
[0093] FIG. 5 is a detailed view in elevation of the top of thin cans.
[0094] FIG. 6 is a detailed view in elevation of the top of classic cans.
[0095] FIG. 7 is a top view of an example of a type of template for thin cans to be applied with the present applicator system.
[0096] FIG. 8 is a top view of an example of a type of template for classic cans to be applied with the present applicator system.
[0097] FIG. 9 is an isometric view of the interior part of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for a carrier of four cans.
[0098] FIG. 10 is a top view of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for applying to four thin cans.
[0099] FIG. 11 is a top view of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for applying to four classic cans.
[0100] FIG. 12 is a top view of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for applying to six classic cans.
[0101] FIG. 13 is a top view of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for applying to four thin cans.
[0102] FIG. 14 is a top view of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for applying to four classic cans.
[0103] FIG. 15 is an isometric view of the interior part of the upper applicator of the present applicator system for a carrier of six cans.
[0104] FIG. 16 is a lateral cross-sectional view of an upper applicator over a pair of classic cans.
[0105] FIG. 17 is an isometric view of the coupled assembly of the upper applicator and lower confining component to apply a carrier of four cans.
[0106] FIG. 18 is an exploded isometric view of a lower confining component to apply a carrier of four cans.
[0107] FIG. 19 is a top view of a lower confining component to apply a carrier of four thin cans.
[0108] FIG. 20 is a reference image of four thin cans.
[0109] FIG. 21 is a top view of a lower confining component to apply a carrier of six thin cans.
[0110] FIG. 22 is an isometric view of a lower confining component to apply a carrier of four thin cans.
[0111] FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional elevation of an upper applicator assembly for thin cans, the cans and the carrier undistorted.
[0112] FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional elevation of an upper applicator assembly for thin cans, the cans and the carrier already deformed over the cans.
[0113] FIG. 25 is a top view of an assembly of an upper applicator and a carrier placed inside it.
[0114] FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional elevation of an upper applicator assembly for classic cans, the cans and the carrier already deformed over the cans.
[0115] FIG. 27 shows a top view of a template for four thin cans.
[0116] FIG. 27a shows a top view of a lower confining component for four thin cans.
[0117] FIG. 27b shows an isometric view of a lower confining component for four thin cans.
[0118] FIG. 27c shows a top view of an upper applicator for four thin cans.
[0119] FIG. 27d shows an isometric view of an upper applicator for four thin cans.
[0120] FIG. 28 shows a top view of a template for six cans.
[0121] FIG. 28a shows a top view of a lower confining component for six thin cans.
[0122] FIG. 28b shows an isometric view of a lower confining component for six thin cans.
[0123] FIG. 28c shows a top view of an upper applicator for six thin cans.
[0124] FIG. 28d shows an isometric view of an upper applicator for six thin cans.
[0125] FIG. 29 shows a top view of a template for eight thin cans.
[0126] FIG. 29a shows a top view of the base of a lower confining component for eight thin cans.
[0127] FIG. 29b shows an isometric view of a lower confining component for eight thin cans.
[0128] FIG. 29c shows a top view of an upper applicator for eight thin cans.
[0129] FIG. 29d shows an isometric view of an upper applicator for eight thin cans.
[0130] FIG. 30 shows a top view of a larger template composed of four smaller templates for four cans each.
[0131] FIG. 30a shows an isometric view of a lower confining component to confine 24 cans and form six packages of four cans each.
[0132] FIG. 30b shows an isometric view of an upper applicator to apply a larger carrier over 24 cans and form six packages of four cans each.
[0133] FIG. 30c shows an assembly of an upper applicator and its corresponding lower confining component to form six packages of four cans each.
[0134] FIG. 31 shows a top view of a larger template composed of three smaller templates for four cans each.
[0135] FIG. 31a shows an isometric view of a lower confining component to confine 12 cans and form three packages of four cans each.
[0136] FIG. 31b shows an isometric view of an upper applicator to apply a larger carrier over 12 cans and form three packages of four cans each.
[0137] FIG. 32 shows a top view of an upper applicator to form four packages of six cans each.
[0138] FIG. 33 shows a top view of an upper applicator to form four packages of four cans each.
[0139] FIG. 34 shows a top view of an upper applicator to form two packages of six cans each.
[0140] FIG. 35 shows a top view of an upper applicator forming three packages of six cans each.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0141] Taking as an example the embodiment of FIG. 1, the present disclosure relates to an applicator system (1) for applying one or more carriers (A) over a group of cans (B) of beverages to form one or more packages (C) of cans simultaneously. It essentially includes a top applicator (10) to apply a carrier (A) over a group of cans (B) and a lower confining component (20) to orderly position the set of cans (B) to receive the upper applicator (10).
[0142] The present applicator system addresses the problem of applying carriers (A) of the type shown in FIG. 2, which comprise a central upper area (A1) and a plurality of covering flaps (A2) that remain at a level above the upper face of the cans (B), forming a package (C); it includes substantially frustoconical holding straps (A3) and receiving openings (A4) for the cans, which have a series of radial cuts that form retention fins (A5) under the rim (B1) of the can. It also includes transition portions (A6) that extend downwardly inclined as a continuation of the central upper area (A1) and laterally connect with the holding straps (A3). The carrier (A) is conceived as a flat template to be placed over the cans before being applied with the present system; in FIG. 3, the different components of an embodiment of the carrier to be placed with the present system are appreciated. To provide a clear explanation of other scopes of the disclosure, FIG. 4 shows any can (B) for beverages, in which a top rim (B1), a lid (B2), a frustoconical neck (B3), a main body (B4), and a base (B4) are distinguished.
[0143] Another problem addressed by the present disclosure relates to the appropriate distance that must exist between grouped cans to receive the carrier; this distance is related to the distance between the rims (B1) of each can (B), since in the case of thin cans, as illustrated in FIG. 5, there is very little difference between the diameter (D) of the body and the diameter (d) of the rim, so that when confining the cans tightly together, the distance (s) between their rims (B1) is very small, compared to what is seen in the classic cans illustrated in FIG. 6. In the case of thin cans, this small distance (s) would require that the design of the carrier have very thin transition portions (A6), making it very weak.
[0144] This problem does not occur when confining classic cans, since they (FIG. 6), having a larger body diameter (D), when placed side by side, the distance(s) between their rims (B1) is greater, and therefore the carrier can also have a greater width in the transition portions, although not necessarily as wide as for the classic can version, so that the carriers are designed differently for classic cans and for thin cans, where in the case of thin cans (FIG. 7) a width (t) of the transition portion (A6) is proposed that is greater than the actual distance(s) between the rims of the thin cans, while in the case of classic cans (FIG. 8), the width (t) of the transition portions (A6) coincides with the actual width(s) of separation between the rims of the cans.
[0145] That said, carriers for thin cans are designed to have a width of transition portions that are wider than the actual distance(s) between the thin cans, so the solution of the present disclosure is to establish the distance between thin cans prior to placing a carrier, so that the separation between thin cans adapts to the appropriate width of transition portions in the carrier to ensure it is strong. In a first aspect of the disclosure, as exemplified in FIG. 9, the upper applicator (10) includes, on one of the flat faces (100), at least one recess (101) formed by a bottom wall (102) of multilobular contour (103) that defines a flat outer edge (104) of the recess (101) to flex the retention fins of the carrier that fit under the rim of the cans. This recess (101) includes a central zone (105) from which lobes (106) project, as many lobes as the number of cans to be grouped with the same carrier to form a package; where these lobes (106) of the recess correspond to multiple and successive walls (107) in an arc shape, which have a stepped cross-section.
[0146] As seen in FIG. 10, in a tangential area between adjacent lobes (106), a separating wall (108) is formed, where each separating wall (108) includes a distal end (109) that points towards said central zone (105) of the recess (101), and where the height of said wall with respect to the bottom wall (102) of the recess decreases towards said distal end (109), either through a stepped edge or a beveled edge.
[0147] In one embodiment, for example, for four cans (FIG. 11), each lobe (106) includes a perimeter of approximately three-quarters of a circumference; however, in an applicator for a carrier of six cans (FIG. 12), which therefore has six lobes (106), the outer lobes (106a) have a perimeter of approximately three-quarters of a circumference and the two central lobes (106b) facing each other have a semicircular perimeter where the inner part of the distal end (109) of their separating walls (108) presents a curved extension (110) that allows the applicator to push all the transition portions of the carrier.
[0148] On the other hand, in the case of an applicator for thin cans (FIG. 13), the separating wall (108) is thinner than the wall (108) for applicators for thick cans (FIG. 14); this addresses the width (t, t) of the transition portions of the carriers, as explained in the reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
[0149] Additionally, as illustrated in figures FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 together, the upper applicator (10) also includes straight peripheral walls (111) perpendicular to said flat face (100) where at least one multilobular recess (101) is located; the straight peripheral walls (111) are distributed in a number of at least one for each of the sides of said main face (100) and are arranged along each of said sides. Each of said straight peripheral walls (111) includes an inner face (112), an opposite outer face (113), a proximal edge (114) for joining to the flat plate (100), and an opposite distal edge (115) of rounded cross-section.
[0150] As best seen in FIG. 16, the inner faces (112) of the set of straight peripheral walls (111) define an inner perimeter whose width and length are equivalent to the width and length of a carrier (A) in a flat template state, so that, in the application process, the carrier is placed within this perimeter where it remains contained without the possibility of moving.
[0151] Each of said straight peripheral walls (111) has at least one notch (116) (FIG. 15), preferably semicircular, whose bottom is located close to the flat face (100) of the upper applicator (10); the purpose of these notches and why their bottom is located close to the flat face of the applicator is because once the carrier is placed within the perimeter defined by the straight peripheral walls (111), when inverting the applicator to place it over the cans, these notches allow the passage of the fingers of an operator to hold the carrier so that it does not fall.
[0152] In another aspect of the disclosure, as illustrated in FIG. 17, the applicator system (1) includes a lower confining component (20) to orderly group the cans to receive the carrier and the upper applicator (10).
[0153] For its part, the lower confining component (20), as seen disassembled in FIG. 18, includes a base (201) with a top face (202) on which at least one confining cavity (203) of multilobular contour is arranged to receive the cans to be grouped; each confining cavity (203) has as many spacer lobes (204) as the number of cans to be confined to form a package. Each confining cavity (203) includes a vertical inner face (205) that partially embraces the cans to provide stability and is perpendicular to a horizontal bottom wall (206) where the base of each can rests.
[0154] As seen in FIG. 19 and FIG. 20 together, the lower confining component (20) is designed to intentionally create a spacing between the cans, the distance (e) from the center axis of adjacent spacer lobes (204) is greater than the distance (f) from the center axis of adjacent cans, so that when placing the cans inside each lobe of the confining cavity, the cans are spaced apart.
[0155] In the lower confining component (20), the spacer lobes (204) have a curved cross-section, whose perimeter length is equivalent to at least half a circumference to surround part of the body of the cans that it houses inside. Thus, in one embodiment, for example, for four cans as seen in FIG. 19, each confining cavity (203) includes four lobes (204), each with a section equivalent to approximately three-quarters of a circumference; however, in the case of an embodiment for six cans, as seen in FIG. 21, the two central spacer lobes (204b) have a semicircular cross-section, while the four outer lobes (204a) have a cross-section of three-quarters of a circumference. Between each pair of adjacent lobes (204), a separating wall (207) is formed that has a distal edge (208); this separating wall (207) is simply the area where each spacer lobe (204) meets the adjacent lobe and therefore, the width of its distal edge (208) generates, in a way, the distance between the cans.
[0156] The lower confining component (20), as seen in the same FIG. 21, includes at least one spacer pillar (209) with a rhomboidal cross-section of concave sides to adapt to the portion of the can that is not embraced by a corresponding spacer lobe (204). In this embodiment with cavities for six cans, the lower confining component (20) includes two spacer pillars (209).
[0157] Taking reference to FIG. 22, the lower confining device (20) also includes peripheral guides (210) that rise upward and are perpendicular to the top face (202) of the base (201); they are distributed in several at least one for each of the sides and are arranged along the same sides.
[0158] These peripheral guides (210) serve to laterally confine the cans and guide the downward movement of the upper applicator (10) as seen in FIG. 23. Each of said peripheral guides (210) includes an inner face (211), an opposite outer face (212), and a proximal edge (213) for joining to the base (201) and an opposite distal edge (214), where optionally, the distal edge (214) is beveled at its outer edge to facilitate the movement of the straight peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator (10).
[0159] The outer faces (212) of the set of peripheral guides (210) define an outer perimeter whose width and length are equivalent to the width and length of the inner perimeter of the set of straight peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator (10), to guide the vertical downward movement of said upper applicator; meanwhile, the inner faces (211) of the peripheral guides (210) form an inner perimeter that corresponds to the perimeter formed by the confined cans, so that these cans remain tangent to the inner face (211) of the guides.
[0160] Meanwhile, the thickness of the peripheral guides (210) corresponds to the distance between the perimeter of the group of confined cans and the inner perimeter of the peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator.
[0161] Continuing with FIG. 23, in general, to form packages with thin cans, the lower confining component (20) is loaded with the cans; once loaded, the carrier (A) is placed inside the inner perimeter of the peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator (10) and then this applicator is positioned over the carrier (A) with the peripheral walls (111) projected downward, so that the inner perimeter of the peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator surrounds the outer perimeter of the peripheral guides (210) of the lower confining component (20); the upper applicator is pushed downward, for example by a press, and is lowered (FIG. 24) until the bottom wall (102) of the multilobular recess (101) of the upper applicator (10) touches the upper edge of the rims (B1) of the cans (B).
[0162] Hence, and as seen in FIG. 24, it is the flat outer edge (104) of the recess (101) and the stepped peripheral walls (107) of the lobes that, when pressing the applicator against the top of the cans, exert pressure on the straps (A3) of the carrier (A), flexing them downward so that they surround the frustoconical portion of the neck of each can.
[0163] Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 25, it is the separating walls (108) between lobes that exert pressure on the transition portions (A6) of the carrier (A) to make them deform downwardly inclined from the central upper area (A1) of the carrier (A) towards the perimeter of the carrier.
[0164] In the case of forming packages of cans with classic cans, as mentioned earlier, it is not necessary for these cans to be intentionally separated, since due to their larger body diameter than thin cans, when placed side by side, a greater distance is obtained between the rims of the cans, coinciding with the width of the transition portions of the carrier. As shown in FIG. 26, the same parts of the recess (101) that operate in the previous embodiment are the ones that deform the straps (A3) of the carrier (A) downward to surround the cans (B), that is, the flat outer edge (104) of the recess (101) and the stepped peripheral walls (107) of the lobes; the difference with the applicator for thin cans is that, being able to dispense with the lower confining component, the inner faces (112) of the straight peripheral walls (111) of the upper applicator (10) surround the body of the cans (B).
[0165] In an embodiment of the disclosure, useful for forming an individual package of four thin cans, a carrier (A) for thin cans with four openings is used, as seen in FIG. 27; the system includes a lower confining component (20) (FIG. 27a and FIG. 27b), which has a single confining cavity (203) that includes four spacer lobes (204) and a spacer pillar (209), and an upper applicator (10) (FIG. 27c and FIG. 27d) that includes a single recess (101) with four lobes (106).
[0166] In an alternative embodiment of the disclosure, useful for forming an individual package of six cans each, a carrier (A) for six cans is used, as seen in FIG. 28; the system includes a lower confining component (20) (FIG. 28a and FIG. 28b), which has a single confining cavity (203) that includes six spacer lobes (204) and two spacer pillars (209), and an upper applicator (10) (FIG. 28c and FIG. 28d) that includes a single recess (101) with six lobes (106).
[0167] In another alternative embodiment of the disclosure, useful for forming an individual package of eight cans each, a carrier (A) for eight cans that has two groups of four cans is used, as seen in FIG. 29; the system includes a lower confining component (20) (FIG. 29a and FIG. 29b), which has two confining cavities (203) that comprise four spacer lobes (204) each and a spacer pillar (209) for each confining cavity (203), and an upper applicator (10) (FIG. 29c and FIG. 29d) that includes two recesses (101) with four lobes (106).
[0168] In another alternative embodiment of the disclosure, useful for forming more than one package simultaneously, for example to handle 24 cans and form six packages of four cans each, a larger carrier (A) is used as seen in FIG. 30, formed by six carriers for four cans each, joined by weakened pre-cut lines (a) that detach easily when the carrier is applied over the cans; the system includes a lower confining component (20) (FIG. 30a), which has six confining cavities (203) with four spacer lobes (204) each and each confining cavity (203) with a respective pillar (209), and an upper applicator (10) (FIG. 30b) that includes six recesses (101) with four lobes (106) each. It operates in the same way as for individual packages, sliding the upper applicator (10) over the lower confining component (20) as seen in FIG. 30c.
[0169] In another alternative embodiment of the disclosure, useful for forming more than one package simultaneously, to handle 12 cans, to form three packages of four cans each, a larger carrier (A) is used as seen in FIG. 31, formed by three carriers for four cans each, joined by weakened pre-cut lines (a) that detach easily when the carrier is applied over the cans; the system includes a lower confining component (20) (FIG. 31a), which has three confining cavities (203) with four spacer lobes (204) each and each confining cavity (203) with a respective pillar (209), and an upper applicator (10) (FIG. 31b) that includes three recesses (101) with four lobes (106) each.
[0170] An example for forming four packages simultaneously is seen in FIG. 32 where, by way of example, a configuration of upper applicator (10) with four recesses (101) of six lobes (106) each is appreciated, to form four packages of six cans each.
[0171] Another possible embodiment for applying a carrier over classic cans where the system does not need to operate with the lower confining component is seen in FIG. 33, where an upper applicator is shown that includes four recesses (101) of four lobes (106) each, to simultaneously form four packages of four cans each.
[0172] Another possible embodiment for applying a carrier over classic cans where the system does not need to operate with the lower confining component is seen in FIG. 34, where an upper applicator is shown that includes two recesses (101) of six lobes (106) each to simultaneously form two packages of six cans each.
[0173] In yet another possible embodiment for applying a carrier over classic cans where the system does not need to operate with the lower confining component is seen in FIG. 35, where an upper applicator is shown that includes three recesses (101) of six lobes (106) each to simultaneously form three packages of six cans each.
