Process and apparatus for gas purging of a bag being formed, filled and sealed on a bagging machine

In combination with a form, fill and seal bagging machine of the type wherein a bag is formed from first and second sealable films which are continuously joined together along side seals and are further joined together along a bottom seal prior to being filled with a product and then are joined together along a top seal to seal the product within the interior of the bag, an improvement which comprises:

• a filling head, said filling head sized and shaped to extend across said interior of said bag and of a size and shape smaller than the width of said interior of said bag but of a size approaching the width of said interior of said bag to essentially extend across the totality of the width of the interior of said bag and be positioned adjacent to but spaced away from the interior surface of said bag;
• supporting means for supporting said filling head on said bagging machine in a location between the interior of said first and second films between said side seals and elevated above said bottom seal directly adjacent the interior surface of said bag with no further structure located between said filling head and the interior surface of said bag;
• said filling head including a product discharge means for dispensing a product downward in said bag to be sealed in said bag;
• a gas discharge means for discharging gas within said interior of said bag;
• a fluid return means for removing fluid from the interior of said bag;
• said filling head including one of said gas discharge means or said fluid return means positioned adjacent said product discharge means;
• and
• the other of said gas discharge means or said fluid return means located within the interior of said bag in an elevated position with respect to said filling head and displaced inwardly from the interior surface of said bag so as not to contact said interior surface of said bag whereby a pressure differential is created by said gas discharge means and said fluid return means in the interior of said bag between the interior surface of said bag and said filling head.

A process of filling a bag formed on a form, fill and seal bagging machine of the type wherein a bag is formed from first and second sealable films which are continuously joined together along side seals and are further joined together along a bottom seal, said process comprising:

• selecting a filling head of a size and shape so as to extend across the interior of the bag yet of a size and shape smaller than the width of the interior of the bag but of a size approaching the width of the interior of the bag so as to essentially extend across the totality of the width of the interior of the bag and be positioned adjacent to but spaced from the interior surfaces of the bag;
• locating said filling head between said first and second sealable films between said side seals and displaced upwardly from said bottom seal and directly adjacent to the interior surface of the bag with no further structure located between the filling head and the interior surface of the bag, said filling head having at least one product discharge orifice, said filling head further having at least one of a gas discharge orifice or a fluid return orifice;
• locating the other of a gas discharge orifice or a fluid return orifice in the interior of said bag in an elevated position with respect to said filling head and displaced inwardly from the interior surface of the bag so as not to contact said interior surface of the bag;
• creating a negative pressure with respect to ambient pressure at said fluid return orifice to create a low pressure area within the interior of said bag;
• discharging gas from said gas discharge orifice into the interior of said bag to cause gas flow from said gas orifice between said filling head and said interior surface of said bag to said fluid return orifice;
• and
• dispensing product from said product discharge orifice for a time sufficient to dispense an aliquot of product into the interior of said bag.