Plant for applying protective membranes on beverage cans

A system for applying a stretchable plastic tape on beverage cans, comprising:

• a turntable comprising an upper ring and a lower ring having a common vertical rotation axis, the upper ring and the lower ring being vertically spaced and coupled to one another so to be jointly rotatable;
• a first plurality of guides disposed on the upper ring and a second plurality of guides disposes on the lower ring, the guides in the first plurality being vertically aligned with the guides in the second plurality;
• a plurality of operating devices, each coupled to a pair of the guides so as to translate circularly together with the turntable, and radially and vertically in relation to the turntable,
• wherein the pair of the guides comprises one of the guides in the first plurality and one of the guides in the second plurality, and
• wherein each of the operating devices comprises a lower clamp and an upper clamp that are vertically aligned;
• a plurality of rods that translate vertically,
• wherein an upward translation of one of the rods aligned with the lower and upper clamps causes a beverage can engaged in the lower clamp to be pushed from the lower clamp into the upper clamp, so as to become engaged by the upper clamp,
• wherein the stretchable plastic tape is interposed between the lower clamp and the upper clamp, and
• wherein the upward translation of the beverage can causes the stretchable plastic tape to become engaged to an upper rim of the beverage can, so as to form a protective membrane on the beverage can;
• and
• a hot air diffuser causing the stretchable plastic tape to become severed from the upper rim of the beverage can, leaving the protective membrane to cover an upper end of the beverage can.