Carousel machine for packaging

A machine for packaging one or more products into containers, said machine comprising:

• a plurality of workstations adapted to carry out a sequence of packaging steps and an intermittent-rotation carousel which includes a plurality of gripping members for said containers and is arranged to position the containers in sequence through said workstations, wherein
• said carousel is arranged with a horizontal axis of rotation and the gripping members are counter-rotating in a synchronous manner relative to the carousel for maintaining a constant orientation of the containers in a vertical position, and
• wherein the carousel includes a plurality of radially arranged arms, each of said arms bearing one of said gripping members, and wherein each of the gripping members has a body which is hinged to a respective arm of the carousel and is connected to a transmission, wherein said transmission is configured to rotate the body relative to the arm, said rotation of the body being opposite and synchronised with respect to the rotation of the carousel about the axis of the carousel, and
• wherein each of the gripping members includes at least two gripper devices;
• each of said devices is adapted to grab a portion or a side of one of the containers;
• at least one of said two gripper devices is slidable along the body of the gripping member thus varying the distance between said sliding gripper device and at least another gripper device of the gripping member;
• each gripping member includes a transmission system operable from outside the gripping member and adapted to move said at least one sliding gripper device, and
• wherein at least one of the workstations includes a motor which can be temporarily coupled to the transmission system of each gripping member when the gripping member is in the workstation equipped with said motor, allowing the motor to control the sliding device or devices.