Wrap-around hot-melt labelling machine

A labelling machine, comprising:

• a turntable rotatable in a given direction and formed with a multiplicity of stations for respective containers to be labelled angularly equispaced about an axis of rotation of said turntable, each of said stations being provided with a respective rotary plate upon which a respective container is to be received, said stations forming an array surrounding said axis of rotation of said turntable;
• a label box positioned along said turntable and outwardly of said array provided with a magazine for applying individual wrap-around labels from a stack thereof contained in said magazine to individual ones of said containers as they are rotatably entrained by said turntable past said box and are rotated on their respective plates concurrently with their rotatable entrainment by said turntable past said box;
• a first gluing device upstream of said label box in said direction inwardly of said array along said turntable and including at least one hot-melt glue-spray nozzle located within a path of said containers entrained by said turntable and trained outwardly and directly upon the containers entrained along said path for applying a hot-melt glue to each container, the hot-melt glue on each container causing a leading end of a respective wrap-around label from said label box to adhere to the container when each container reaches said label box;
• a second gluing device downstream of said label box in said direction along said turntable and positioned to apply glue to a trailing end of a label adapted to adhere last to the respective container to bond to a leading end of the label whereby said trailing end can overlap and bond to said leading end;
• and
• means downstream of said second gluing device along said path for pressing said labels against said containers as said containers are rotated on the respective plates and are entrained along said path beyond said second gluing device.