Heating element for inflation and sealing system
AssigneePregis Innovative Packaging LLC
InventorsThomas D. Wetsch, Stephen J. Milchuck
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A protective packaging formation device is disclosed herein. The device includes an inflation assembly that directs fluid between first and second overlapping plies of a web material. The device also includes a sealing mechanism. The sealing mechanism includes a heating zone and a cooling zone. The sealing mechanism also includes a heating element that extends along both the heating zone and the cooling zone, with the heating element having a first profile in the heating zone and a second profile in the cooling zone.
Claims23
A protective packaging formation device, comprising:
- an inflation assembly having a fluid conduit that directs fluid between first and second overlapping plies of a web material;
- a driving mechanism that drives the film in a downstream direction through an arcuate pinch zone;
- and
- a sealing mechanism that includes a heating element that includes a wide cross-section portion and a reduced cross-section portion, the size of the cross-sections selected such that the reduced cross-section portion produces high temperature zone that outputs sufficient heat to heat seal the plies to create a longitudinal seal that seals the first and second plies of film together, trapping the fluid therebetween as the driving mechanism drives the web past the heating assembly in a downstream direction.
A protective packaging formation device, comprising:
- an inflation assembly that directs fluid between first and second overlapping plies of a web material;
- a sealing mechanism that includes:
- a heating zone and a cooling zone, wherein the heating zone is operable to heat the plies to create a longitudinal heat seal that seals the first and second plies together as the web is driven over the heating zone in a downstream direction, and the cooling zone disposed downstream of the heating zone operable to allow the heated plies to cool at the longitudinal heat seal as the web is driven over the heating zone in a downstream direction, such that the cooled longitudinal heat seal retains the fluid between the plies;
- and
- a heating element that extends along both the heating zone and the cooling zone, with the heating element having a first profile in the heating zone and a second profile in the cooling zone;
- and
- a driving mechanism that drives the film in the downstream direction over the heating and cooling zones, with the web supported by a web-support surface from an upstream location to a downstream location.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.