An apparatus for filling and sealing preformed flexible pouches, comprising:
- endless carrier means defining a first endless and substantially horizontally oriented path;
- means for supporting and unidirectionally driving said endless carrier means at a continuous uniform speed, and including a plurality of annular means supported for rotation about substantially vertical axes and individually disposed in engagement with said endless carrier means over a selected angular extent;
- a plurality of pouch-supporting mechanisms mounted on said endless carrier means at uniform intervals therealong for individually suspendingly supporting individual preformed pouches;
- said pouch-supporting mechanism including a rigid mounting member associated with said endless carrier means, and a pair of supporting arms individually pivotally supported on said mounting member for swinging movement about substantially vertical pivot axes, said pair of supporting arms being disposed in leading and trailing positions relative to the direction of travel of said endless carrier means, said arms projecting horizontally outwardly from said endless carrier means in a direction away from the interior of said first endless path so that said arms have outer free ends which are displaced sidewardly a substantial distance from said endless carrier means, said pair of supporting arms each having openable jaw means associated therewith adjacent the free end thereof for gripping the opposite sides of an individual pouch adjacent the upper corners thereof for permitting said pouch to be supportingly suspended between said pair of arms in sidewardly spaced relationship from said endless carrier means, each said supporting arm of said pair being individually swingably movable inwardly toward the other arm into a pouch supporting position, and each said arm being individually swingably movable outwardly away from the other arm into a nonsupporting position;
- a pouch feeding device for continuously supplying individual preformed pouches one after another in spaced relationship to said endless carrier means at an inlet station which extends along a predetermined portion of said first endless path, said pouch feeding device including endless conveyor means driven continuously at the same uniform speed as said endless conveyor means for transferring individual pouches from a remote location to said inlet station, said endless conveyor means defining a pouch transfer path which at a discharge end thereof has a discharge portion thereof positioned closely adjacent and approximately parallel with said predetermined portion of said first endless path, said endless conveyor means supporting said pouch such that when it is disposed within said discharge portion of said transfer path the pouch is disposed with the upper portion thereof positioned directly between a pair of said supporting arms with the latter being in said nonsupporting position as the arms and pouch are moved substantially synchronously through the inlet station;
- first actuator means coacting with said pair of arms for causing swinging movement of said arms (1) away from one another into said nonsupporting position prior to reaching said inlet station and (2) then toward one another back toward said supporting position after reaching said inlet station and after the upper portion of a pouch has been positioned between the pair of arms by said endless conveyor means;
- second actuator means for opening said jaw means at a location disposed upstream of the position at which the arms are swingably moved back to said supporting position, said second actuator means also effecting closing of said jaw means at or downstream of the location wherein the arms are swingably moved inwardly into said supporting position for causing said jaw means to grip the upper portion of said pouch adjacent the opposite side edges thereof;
- filling means associated with said endless carrier means at a filling station along said first endless path which is downstream of said inlet station, said filling means including at least one filling member supported for movement along a second endless path, at least a part of said second path being positioned substantially directly over that part of said first path as associated with said filling location;
- means drivingly connected to said filling means for causing said filling member to be moved through said part of said second path at the same speed and in synchronization with the movement of said pouch supporting mechanism as it is moved through said part of said first path, whereby said filling member permits a selected product to be deposited into the pouch supported on the respective supporting mechanism as it moves through said filling station;
- and
- sealing means associated with said endless carrier means at a third station along said first path which is downstream of said filling station for sealingly closing the mouth of the filled pouch as it is suspended from the respective supporting mechanism.