US 4,108,221 AGranted

Container filling machine

AssigneeGerhart Engineering & Machine Co.

InventorsGerhart William Freimuth, Jerold Samuel Weiner

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Abstract

A container filling machine comprises a plurality of filling stations each including a container platform which is raised and lowered by a cam controlled elevating mechanism, for providing bottom-up filling; a cam-controlled pumping mechanism operating a piston pump for drawing fluid into the pump during a charge cycle, and pushing the fluid out of the pump during a discharge cycle; and an adjustable crank lever mechanism is included in the cam controlled pumping mechanism for providing adjustment of the volume of fluid being pumped. Operating in common with the filling stations are a pair of cams for operating the valves of each station, and in combination with each cam-controlled pumping mechanism provide greater than 180.degree. of machine time for continuously filling a container during the discharge cycle for each station. A rotary bearing upon nuts mounted on a plurality of jackscrews support the filling stations, whereby the jackscrews are turned in unision via a chain for raising and lowering the filling stations but not their container platforms, for adjusting to different heights of containers. The profile of the track for the cam of the cam controlled pumping mechanism can be changed to program the exit velocity of the fluid in accordance with the viscosity of the fluid.

Claims12

Dependent claims

In a container filling machine, the combination comprising:

a plurality of container platforms;
a bulk supply tank for storing fluid;
a plurality of piston pumps each including a piston rod;
a plurality of nozzles;
a plurality of valves, each one of said valves being associated with and having an individual piston pump and individual nozzle connected thereto, said nozzle projecting downward from said valve above a particular one of said container platforms;
means for delivering fluid from said bulk supply to said valves;
means for operating said valves to deliver fluid from said bulk supply tank into said piston pumps during a charging cycle, and from said piston pumps into said nozzles during a discharge cycle;
cam controlled pumping means including:
a barrel-like pump actuating cam having a track;
and cam follower means resting partially within and guided by said track, for providing pumping movement correspondence with the profile of said track;
said cam controlled pumping means providing in combination with said valve operating means, greater than 180.degree. of machine time for continuously discharging fluid from said nozzles during the discharge cycle;
and
stroke adjusting means including:
a plurality of crank levers pivotally connected between said cam follower means and individual ones of said piston rods of said piston pumps, respectively;
and means for controlling the pivoting of said plurality of crank levers for providing infinite adjustability in a range between zero and maximum stroke of the stroke of said piston pumps without necessitating changing of the profile of said pump actuating cam.

12 more elements

In a container filling machine, the combination comprising:

an upper horizontal support plate providing an uppermost mounting platform for said filling machine;
a base plate providing a lowermost mounting platform for said filling machine;
a lower horizontal support plate located between said upper support and base plates;
a rotatable center column passing through a hole in said lower horizontal support plate, and mounted for rotation between said upper support and base plates;
sleeve-like means keyed to and slideably mounted upon said center column between said upper horizontal support and base plates;
a plurality of fluid dispensing means arranged in a circle, evenly spaced about, and rigidly coupled to an uppermost portion of said sleeve-like means between said upper and lower support plates;
a lower rotary plate rigidly mounted upon a lowermost portion of said sleeve-like means between said lower support and base plates;
an upper rotary plate rigidly mounted to a portion of said sleeve-like means between said lower support plate and lower rotary plate;
a plurality of cam controlled pumping means rigidly mounted between said upper and lower rotary plates, each one of which provides pumping power to an individual one of said plurality of fluid dispensing means;
a plurality of container elevating platform means each including a container platform located directly below an individual one of said fluid dispensing means above said lower support plate, and rod-like means slideably mounted with and through said upper and lower rotary plates, for controlling the vertical position of said container platforms relative to said fluid dispensing means;
and,
container height adjusting means located between said lower support and base plates for raising and lowering said upper and lower rotary plates, pumping means, and fluid dispensing means, all in unison while permitting the rotation thereof and without changing the vertical position of said container platforms, for accommodating various sizes of containers.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.