Apparatus for folding and closing a blank of wrapping material around an article to be packaged

An apparatus for wrapping and closing a blank (1) of wrapping material around an article to be packaged, said wrapping blank consisting of a rectangular piece of protective cardboard (3, 4) serving as an outer jacket of the package and of a wrapper element (2), fastened to said protective cardboard and wrappable around an article, and the side edges of such a package can be closed by folding both ends (3, 4) of protective cardboard around the side edges of an article, said apparatus comprising a mechanism for folding the ends (3, 4) of protective cardboard, said mechanism comprising a conveyor track (5, 13) and pusher (32) on either side of its centre axis and movable towards and away from each other by means of a power unit (33) and, in whose position away from each other, said wrapping blank (1) can be conveyed in between said pusher elements (32) for closing the package by driving pusher elements (32) towards each other, characterized in that below said pusher elements (32) are provided holder means (22) adapted to be driven by a power unit (26, 28) towards and away from each other, that pusher elements (32) are adapted to be carried along with holder means (22) and also to be driven by their own power unit (33) relative to holder means (22) in a manner that, as said holder means (22) run against the side edges of package (1) and stop their movement, said pusher elements (32) continue their movement along the top surface of said package, that pusher elements (32) and holder means (22) and a section (13) of the conveyor track aligned therewith are adapted to be movable relative to each other in vertical direction and that above this track section (13) is arranged a press element (18) that can be lifted up and lowered down.