Vertical sealer apparatus and methods of vertically sealing

A method for sealing objects with films comprising:

• conveying a first object on at least one conveyor from an upstream location to a downstream location in a downstream direction along a conveying path, said first object having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a bottom end and a top end above the bottom end and extending between the leading edge and trailing edge, a first surface and second surface opposite the first surface, wherein the first and second surfaces are each bounded by said leading edge, trailing edge, bottom end and top end, wherein said first object has a thickness defined between said first and second surfaces, a height defined between the bottom and top ends and a width defined between the leading and trailing edges, and wherein the bottom end is rested over said at least one conveyor for being conveyed;
• providing a first film from a source of first film over the first surface and a second film from a source of second film over the second surface while conveying said first object in said downstream direction;
• vertically sealing the first film to the second film proximate the leading edge of the first object forming a first vertically oriented seam;
• vertically sealing the first film to the second film proximate the trailing edge of the first object forming a second vertically oriented seam;
• laterally sealing the first film to the second film below the bottom end of the first object forming a first lateral seam;
• and
• detecting a height of the top end of said first object while being conveyed along the conveying path and moving a lateral sealer in response to said detected height to a location above the detected height of the top end of the first object for laterally sealing said two films over the top end of the first object forming a second lateral seam between the first vertically oriented seam and the second vertically oriented seam.

A method for sealing objects with films comprising:

• conveying a first object on at least one conveyor from an upstream location to a downstream location in a downstream direction along a conveying path, said first object having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a bottom end and a top end, a first surface and second surface opposite the first surface, wherein the first and second surfaces are each bounded by said leading edge, trailing edge, bottom end and top end, wherein said first object has a thickness defined between said first and second surfaces, a height defined between the bottom and top ends and a width defined between the leading and trailing edges, and wherein the bottom end is rested over said at least one conveyor for being conveyed;
• providing a first film from a source of first film over the first surface and a second film from a source of second film over the second surface while conveying said first object in said downstream direction;
• vertically sealing the first film to the second film proximate the leading edge of the first object forming a first vertically oriented seam;
• vertically sealing the first film to the second film proximate the trailing edge of the first object forming a second vertically oriented seam;
• laterally sealing the first film to the second film below the bottom end of the first object forming a first lateral seam;
• laterally sealing the first film to the second film above the top end of the first object forming a second lateral seam;
• conveying a second object on said at least one conveyor upstream from said first object, said second object having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a bottom end and a top end, a first surface and second surface opposite the first surface, wherein the first and second surfaces of said second object are each bounded by said leading edge, trailing edge, bottom end and top end of said second object, wherein said second object has a thickness defined between the first and second surfaces of said second object, a height defined between the bottom and top ends of said second object and a width defined between the leading and trailing edges of said second object, and wherein the bottom end of said second object is rested over said at least one conveyor for being conveyed, said first object being downstream of said second object, wherein said second object can have the same height as, or a different height than, the first object, wherein said second object can have the same width as, or a different width than, the first object, and wherein said second object can have the same thickness as, or different thickness than, the first object;
• cutting the second vertically oriented seam along a vertically oriented path forming a first seam portion and a second seam portion, wherein the first seam portion is downstream of the second seam portion;
• detecting the trailing edge of the first object;
• detecting the leading edge of the second object;
• adjusting a trailing spacing between the first seam portion and the trailing edge of the first object to a desired trailing spacing;
• adjusting a leading spacing between the second seam portion and a leading edge of the second object to a desired leading spacing;
• feeding the first film from the first film source to over the first surface of the second object;
• feeding the second firm from the second film source over the second surface of the second object, wherein said at least one conveyor comprises a loading conveyor, an infeed conveyor downstream of the loading conveyor, and a discharge conveyor downstream of the infeed conveyor, wherein adjusting the trailing spacing comprises adjusting a speed of the infeed conveyor and a speed of the discharge conveyor in response to the detection of the trailing edge of said first object, wherein adjusting the leading spacing comprises adjusting the leading spacing in response to the detection of the leading edge of the second object, wherein detecting the trailing edge of the first object comprises detecting the trailing edge of the first object at a first location downstream of the infeed conveyor and prior to the formation of the second vertically oriented seam, and wherein detecting the leading edge of the second object comprises detecting the leading edge of the second object at a second location along the conveying path proximate, or at, the downstream end of the infeed conveyor and upstream of the first location;
• detecting the trailing edge of the first object at a third location proximate, or at, the downstream end of the loading conveyor and proximate, or at, the upstream end of the infeed conveyor;
• detecting the leading edge of the second object at said third location;
• and
• adjusting the spacing between the trailing edge of the first object and the leading edge of the second object in response to said detected trailing edge of the first object and said detected leading edge of the second object by adjusting a speed of the infeed conveyor and a speed of the loading conveyor.