# US 2019/0380359 A1 · Servo driven ice cream sandwich assembly and wrapping machine

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- Number: US 2019/0380359 A1
- Document ID: US20190380359A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 16/444,712
- Filed: 2019-06-18
- Published: 2019-12-19
- Earliest claimed: 2016-11-18
- Assignees: Norse Dairy Systems, Inc.
- Applicants: Norse Dairy Systems, LLC
- Inventors: Jeff Irwin; Jeff Crawford; Chris Martin
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190380359A1

## CPC

- A23G 9/286: {for producing ice-cream sandwiches}
- A23G 9/22: Details, component parts or accessories of apparatus insofar as not peculiar to a single one of the preceding groups
- A23G 9/28: for portioning or dispensing
- B65B 11/08: in a single straight path
- B65B 25/007: {packaging of ice-cream}
- B65B 49/08: Reciprocating or oscillating folders
- B65B 51/10: Applying or generating heat or pressure or combinations thereof {(welding of plastics per se B29C65/02; closing plastic tube ends in general B29C57/10)}
- B65H 23/1825: {and controlling web tension}
- B65H 23/185: motor-controlled
- B65B 11/20: to fold the wrappers in tubular form about contents
- B65B 59/04: Machines constructed with readily-detachable units or assemblies, e.g. to facilitate maintenance
- B65B 2051/105: {Heat seal temperature control}
- B65H 2511/112: of a loop, e.g. a free loop or a loop of dancer rollers
- B65H 2511/14: Diameter, e.g. of roll or package
- B65H 2513/11: angular
- B65H 2515/31: Tensile forces
- B65H 2553/21: Variable resistances, e.g. rheostats, potentiometers or strain gauges
- B65H 2553/30: using acoustic or ultrasonic elements
- B65H 2555/24: Servomotors
- A23G: COCOA; COCOA PRODUCTS, e.g. CHOCOLATE; SUBSTITUTES FOR COCOA OR COCOA PRODUCTS; CONFECTIONERY; CHEWING GUM; ICE-CREAM; PREPARATION THEREOF
- B65B: MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING (bundling and pressing devices for cigars A24C1/44; devices for tensioning and securing binders adapted to be supported by the article or articles to be bound B25B25/00; applying closure members to bottles, jars or similar containers B67B1/00-B67B6/00; concurrent cleaning, filling and closing of bottles B67C7/00; emptying bottles, jars, cans, casks, barrels or similar containers B67C9/00)
- B65H: HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES

## Abstract

An apparatus for the preparation of comestible-containing sandwich products comprises a sandwich product assembly station and corresponding means for the fabrication and assembly of a sandwich product in the vertical direction. The apparatus includes an extruder nozzle, wafer trays and corresponding components for the location of wafers on opposite sides of the extruded product, an indexing wheel for receiving the assembled sandwich product, and sandwich transporting means for moving the sandwich to a wrapping assembly and from there to a discharge end, wherein all of the components of the apparatus are mounted in cantilevered fashion on a vertical support or base member. Each element is powered individually by a servo motor or actuator and controlled by a controller allowing the variability of throughput for each station.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An apparatus for the preparation of a sandwich product comprising:
a base having an infeed end and a discharge end;
a sandwich product assembly station comprising an extruder nozzle mounted for discharge of a comestible filling material in the vertically downward direction, paired wafer trays for feeding wafers against opposite sides of said extruder nozzle, and a vertically actuated wafer pusher driven by a first actuator motor have a wafer pusher blade means cooperating therewith to urge wafers downward into contact with said comestible filling material;
a sandwich indexing means comprising an indexing wheel rotatably mounted vertically below said sandwich product assembly station, said indexing wheel defining a plurality of circumferentially positioned pockets for receiving and transferring assembled sandwiches for conveyance toward said discharge end, wherein said sandwich indexing means is driven by a first servo motor;
a sandwich transporting means having an indexing wheel ejector means proximate to said indexing means, wherein said indexing wheel ejector means is driven by an actuator, and a inclined elevator means driven by a second actuator, wherein inclined elevator is positioned at a pre-determined angle, wherein said indexing wheel ejector means and inclined elevator means are coordinated to be actuated to move the sandwich from the indexing wheel to an elevator;
a wrapping assembly comprising a wrapping head having an upper platform, an elevator means having a shaft for the upward travel of a sandwich product to said platform driven by an actuator for receiving said sandwich from the indexing wheel ejector means and inclined elevator means and delivery of said sandwich product to said platform, side tucking means mounted adjacent said shaft wherein said side tucking means is driven by a servo motor, and pusher bar mounted adjacent said platform for urging the wrapped sandwich product off said elevator and toward said discharge end, wherein said push bar is driven by a servo motor;
a wrapping feeder means, wherein said wrapping feeder means comprises a wrap roller driven by a servo motor to feed a wrap to said wrapping assembly; and
a controller communicatively connected to each servo motor configured to control the servo motors and timing of each servo motor relative to each other according to a pre-determined program on a memory,
wherein said base comprises a vertical wall member, and wherein said sandwich product assembly station, said sandwich transporting means, said sandwich wrapping assembly and said inclined elevator means are all mounted in cantilevered relationship on said base.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, further including an output transport means extending from said upper platform toward said discharge end.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, further including at least one heated platen proximate to the discharge end, wherein said heated platen is configured to heat seal the bottom overlaps of the cut sheet of wrapping paper to each other and provide a secure wrap of said sandwich product.

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said friction member is a heated platen configured to heat seal the bottom overlaps of the cut sheet of wrapping paper to each other and provide a secure wrap of said sandwich product.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a braking system coupled to said wrapping feeder means and communicatively coupled to said controller.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the braking system comprises:
a sensor configured to monitor the tension of said wrap, and
a braking means configured to apply torque to said wrap roller.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said braking means is a magnetic particle brake.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said braking means is a pneumatic brake.

### Claim 9 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said breaking means is a servo motor.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said wrap roller servo drive assembly is further comprised of additional servo motors configured, wherein the servos are configured to drive a first and second roller to feed a wrap to said wrapping assembly, and wherein a third servo motor is configured to drive a rotary knife configured to cut said wrap.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said wrapper roller comprises a first motor, a second motor, and a third motor, wherein first motor in the wrapper roller spins at a first pre-determined rate, the second motor is coupled to rotary knife and spins at a second pre-determined rate, and the third motor can spin at a third pre-determined rate.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first pre-determined rate is the wrap calculated from the wrap feed rate and the roller's fixed diameter.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the third pre-determined rate is faster than the first pre-determined rate and is configured to create tension when cutting the wrap.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the inclined elevator has a head portion and the ejector means has an ejector head portion, wherein the indexing wheel has a first width, the inclined elevator head portion has a second width, and the ejector head portion has a third width.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the indexing wheel width is narrower that the ejector head width.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising a quick disconnecting arbor chuck including a plunger, shaft, and one or more clamping jaws, wherein the chuck is configured to clamp equally around the diameter of a paper core and maintain the paper in a centered configuration.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the shaft has a stepped configuration having a plurality of steps, wherein said steps contact an interfacing portion of the claiming jaws to further extend the jaws as the plunger is further depressed.

### Claim 18

A method for controlling the tension of wrap on a wrap feed system comprising:
providing a controller communicatively coupled to a first servo motor coupled to a roll of wrap,
a second servo motor, a third servo motor, a fourth servo motor, and a laser distance sensor positioned proximate to the roll of wrap configured to measure the diameter of the roll of wrap;
initiate wrap at a prescribed a feed rate at a first pre-determined rate;
input a desired a wrap tension;
monitor the tension of the wrap;
change the feed rate to increase or decrease the wrap tension;
calculate using the controller the speed of the spin of the roll to provide a pre-determined amount of wrap;
provide wrap to the second motor, wherein the second motor spins at the same rate as the first motor;
spin second motor at a second pre-determined rate, wherein said second pre-determined rate corresponds to a wrapping cycle;
spin third motor at a third-predetermined rate, wherein said third pre-determined rate is faster than said first pre-determined rate and configured to create tension on the wrap.