US 5,938,580 AGranted

Cushioning conversion machine with restricted access to a cutting assembly

AssigneeRanpak Corp.

InventorDirk Johannes Siekmann

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Abstract

A machine for manufacturing a cushioning product starting from a multi-ply stock (R) material or the like includes a frame (12) having a housing (14) with an exit opening, a stock supply supported by the frame, a forming assembly (28) causing the lateral edges of the stock material to roll inwardly to form a continuous strip (36) having lateral pillow-like portions and a central band, a gear assembly (34) for feeding the stock material through the forming assembly and out the exit opening, a cutting assembly (26) intermediate the gear assembly and the exit opening for cutting a determined length of the continuous strip to produce a cushioning product and, an access assembly (46) for permitting the cushioning product to be fed therethrough and inhibiting access to the cutting assembly from outside the housing.

Claims15

Dependent claims

A machine (10) for converting a sheet-like stock material (18) into a cushioning product of a desired length, said machine comprising:

a frame (12) having a housing (14) with an exit pathway (22);
a conversion assembly (24), mounted to the frame (12), which converts the sheet-like stock material (19) into a dunnage strip (36) and which feeds the dunnage strip (36) into the exit pathway (22) for passage out of the housing;
a cutting assembly (26), positioned at an upstream end of the exit pathway (22), which cuts the dunnage strip (36) to produce the cushioning product of the desired length;
wherein:
the machine (10) includes an access assembly (46) movable between an open condition which permits the cushioning product to be fed through the exit pathway and a closed condition which at least partially blocks the exit pathway to restrict access to the cutting assembly (26) through the exit pathway (22);
and
the machine (10) includes a control assembly (54) which allows operation of the conversion assembly (24) when the access assembly (46) is in the open condition and which prevents operation of the cutting assembly (26) unless the access assembly (46) is in the closed condition.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.