Method and apparatus for splicing packing material webs

Abstract

A method for splicing the trailing end portion of an advancing web of packing material to the leading end portion of an initially stationary second web of the same packing material such that after splicing marks provided on each of the webs in an equally spaced relation continue as an uninterrupted regular row, in particular in a packing machine. The articles to be packed are advanced spaced apart as a continuous flow into a web of packing material folded to a tube and are carried and advanced along sealing stations by the advancing tube for producing a longitudinal sealing seam and transverse sealing seams in the packing material between the articles. The transverse seams are cut thereafter and the discrete packed articles are discharged on a coveyor, in which the first web runs over a roller and the leading end portion provided with an adhesive of the second web is placed over a second roller opposite to the first roller. Upon passing a predetermined point by the trailing end of the first web an initiating signal is excited and supplied to a controlling device for conditioning this and upon passing a predetermined point by a mark on the first web a signal is generated by which the conditioned controlling device delivers a command to a displacing device for its operation, by which said rollers are pressed against each other and the splicing is carried out. The period of time (t) is determined between the actuation of the displacing device and the mutual engagement of said rollers, and between the signal generated by a mark and the command from the controlling device a lapse of time (Tn-t) is set, in which Tn is obtained by dividing at least one spacing between two subsequent marks by the velocity of the first web.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.