Registration of intermittently moved fastener tape with continuously moving web

A system comprising a packaging machine, a fastener processing machine, a fastener tape comprising mutually interlocked first and second fastener strips made of flexible material that follow a first process pathway through said fastener processing machine and then through said packaging machine, and a controller for controlling the operation of said packaging machine and said fastener processing machine, wherein:

• said fastener processing machine comprises a supply reel having a portion of said fastener tape wound thereon with a paid-out portion of said fastener tape connected thereto, a slider insertion device that is activatable for inserting a slider on a section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in a slider insertion zone, a clamp disposed downstream of said slider insertion device, said clamp being activatable for clamping a section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in a clamping zone, an accumulator disposed downstream of said clamp for accumulating fastener tape, and means for pulling said section that is resident in said slider insertion zone toward said packaging machine;
• said packaging machine comprises a supply roll having portions of a web of bag making material wound thereon with a paid-out portion of said web connected thereto, means for advancing the paid-out portion of said web, and a station for joining respective sections of the paid-out portions of said fastener tape and said web to each other while the paid-out portion of said web is advancing;
• and
• said controller is programmed to control the operation of said slider insertion device, said clamp, said fastener tape pulling means and said web advancing means so that the following events occur during each work cycle:
• (a) during the entire work cycle, the web advancing means advances said web of bag making material;
• (b) during a dwell time of the work cycle, said clamp clamps the section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in said clamping zone;
• (c) during the dwell time, said slider insertion device inserts a slider onto the section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in said slider insertion zone;
• and
• (d) during the remainder (non-dwell time) of the work cycle, the pulling means advances the section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in said slider insertion zone.

A system for manufacturing material suitable for feeding to a bag making machine, comprising:

• a sealer that joins incremental portions of a web of bag making material to incremental portions of a fastener tape while said incremental portions of said web and said fastener tape are continuously moving through said sealer during a dwell time and a remainder of each work cycle;
• an accumulator disposed upstream of said sealer, said accumulator being activatable for accumulating and then de-accumulating a respective portion of said fastener tape during each work cycle;
• a clamp disposed upstream of said accumulator, said clamp being activatable for clamping a respective section of said fastener tape that is resident in a clamping zone at the start of and during said dwell time of each work cycle;
• and
• a slider insertion device disposed upstream of said clamp, said slider being activatable for inserting a slider on a respective section of said fastener tape that is resident in a slider insertion zone during said dwell time of each work cycle.

A system for manufacturing material suitable for feeding to a bag making machine, comprising:

• a supply reel having a portion of a fastener tape wound thereon with a paid-out portion of said fastener tape connected thereto;
• a slider insertion device that is activatable for inserting a slider on a section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in a slider insertion zone;
• a clamp disposed downstream of said slider insertion device, said clamp being activatable for clamping a section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in a clamping zone;
• an accumulator disposed downstream of said clamp for accumulating fastener tape;
• a supply roll having portions of a web of bag making material wound thereon with a paid-out portion of said web connected thereto;
• a joining station disposed downstream of said accumulator, said joining station joining respective sections of the paid-out portions of said fastener tape and said web to each other while the paid-out portion of said web is advancing;
• and
• a controller programmed to control the operation of said slider insertion device, said clamp, and said accumulator so that the following events occur during each work cycle:
• (a) during a dwell time of each work cycle, said clamp clamps the section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in said clamping zone;
• (b) during said dwell time of each work cycle, said slider insertion device inserts a slider onto the section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape that is resident in said slider insertion zone;
• and
• (c) during said dwell time of each work cycle, said accumulator de-accumulates a previously accumulated section of the paid-out portion of said fastener tape.