Apparatus for inflating and sealing air-filled packing cushions
AssigneeFree-Flow Packaging International, Inc.
InventorsAndrew Perkins, Oliver M. Reyes, Philipp Borchard, Nicholas P. De Luca
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A machine which inflates and seals pillows in packaging is compact in overall size, can be conveniently operated to produce varied lengths of strips of inflated pillow-type packaging as needed, can begin production of inflated pillow-type strip packaging immediately after being held out of a production cycle for some period of time, and applies a heated sealing element directly to and in sliding contact with a web of film to securely seal the inlet port of an inflated pillow while the pillow is under pressure and as the web of film is continuously and uninterruptedly advanced through the machine.
Claims23
A machine for making air-filled packing cushions from a web of preconfigured film material having inflatable chambers which communicate with a longitudinally extending inflation channel through laterally extending inlet ports, comprising:
- first and second pairs of nip rollers for gripping a web of the preconfigured film material and advancing the material through the machine,
- an inflation station positioned between the pairs of nip rollers for inflating the chambers in the film material, and
- a sealing roller and a heated sealing element biased toward each other near the inflation station with one side of the film material wrapped about and in rolling contact with the peripheral surface of the sealing roller and the other side of the film material in direct sliding contact with the heated sealing element for sealing the material across the inlet ports to seal the inflated chambers.
A machine for inflating and sealing pillow patterns in a web of film while continuously and uninterruptedly advancing the web of film through the machine, comprising:
- a first film transport station for gripping and advancing a web of film in the machine,
- the web of film having uninflated pillow patterns and an uninflated inflation channel which are preformed in the web of film before the web of film is gripped at the first film transport station,
- the uninflated pillow patterns comprising multiple, spaced-apart, pillow patterns aligned along one side of the inflation channel which extends longitudinally and continuously along the entire length of the web of film,
- each uninflated pillow pattern having a narrow width inlet port extending generally transversely to the longitudinally extending inflation channel and connecting the uninflated pillow pattern to the uninflated inflation channel so that when pressurized air is introduced into the inflation channel the pressurized air can be transmitted through the inlet port to inflate the pillow pattern,
- a series of longitudinally spaced outlet ports on the side of the inflation channel opposite the side having the inlet ports for maintaining calibration of the pressure within the inflation channel and for preventing excessive pressure buildup in the inflation channel and in the inflated pillows,
- an inflating station for inflating pillows in the web of film,
- a sealing station having a sealing roller and a heated sealing element biased toward each other with a preselected force for sealing inflated pillows by sealing the inlet ports,
- a slitting station for slitting the inflation channel to permit removal of a strip of inflated, sealed pillows from the machine,
- a sensor positioned to monitor air flow out of the outlet ports for counting the number of inflated pillows produced and maintaining accurate positioning of the web of film within the machine, and
- a second film transport station for gripping and advancing the web of film,
- with a longitudinally extending portion of the web of film which contains the inlet ports being interposed between and pressed between the heated sealing element and the sealing roller with one film surface engaged directly and in sliding contact with the heated sealing element and the other film surface wrapped in rolling contact around a part of the peripheral surface of the sealing roller as the web of film is continuously and uninterruptedly advanced through the sealing station,
- and the seal being formed complete and secure at the time the web of film moves out of rolling contact with the sealing roller without the need for additional pressing together of the web of film after the sealing station and without the need for additional cooling of the seal across the inlet port.
A machine for inflating and sealing packing cushions in a web of preformed film material having a longitudinally extending inflation channel, a plurality of inflatable chambers communicating with the inflation channel through laterally extending inlet ports, and longitudinally spaced outlet ports which also communicate with the inflation channel, comprising:
- first and second film transport stations each having a pair of nip rollers for gripping the web of preformed film material and advancing it through the machine,
- an inflation station for inflating the chambers through the inflation channel,
- a sealing station having a sealing roller and a heated sealing element biased toward each other with a preselected force for sealing the inlet ports to close the inflated chambers, and
- a slitting station for slitting the film material along the inflation channel to permit removal of a strip of inflated, sealed cushions from the machine,
- with one surface of the film material in direct sliding contact with the heated sealing element and the other surface of the film material wrapped in rolling contact around a part of the peripheral surface of the sealing roller as the web of film material advances through the sealing station, and
- the longitudinally spaced outlet ports providing an outlet for pressure in the inflation channel while the film material is being wrapped around the peripheral surface of the sealing roller.
A machine for making air-filled packing cushions from a preconfigured film material having inflatable chambers which communicate with a longitudinally extending inflation channel through laterally extending ports, comprising:
- means for advancing the preconfigured film material through the machine,
- means for inflating the chambers through the inflation channel,
- a cartridge containing a heated sealing element which cooperates with the sealing roller in engaging opposite surfaces of the film material to seal the inlet ports closed after the chambers are inflated, the cartridge being removably mounted and being adapted to be removed and replaced as a unit without having to replace any individual components of the cartridge.
A machine for making air-filled packing cushions from a web of preconfigured film material having a longitudinally extending inflation channel and a plurality of inflatable chambers which communicate with the inflation channel through laterally extending inlet ports, comprising:
- means for advancing the web of preconfigured film material through the machine,
- means for introducing air into the inflatable chambers through the inflation channel, and
- a sealing roller and a heated sealing element biased toward each other with one side of the film material wrapped about and in rolling contact with the peripheral surface of the sealing roller and the other side of the material in direct sliding contact with the heated sealing element for sealing the material across the inlet ports to seal the inflated chambers.
A machine for making air-filled packing cushions from a web of preconfigured film material having a longitudinally extending inflation channel, a plurality of inflatable chambers communicating with the inflation channel through laterally extending inlet ports, and longitudinally spaced outlet ports which also communicate with the inflation channel, comprising:
- means for advancing a web of the preconfigured film material through the machine,
- means for introducing air into the chambers through the inflation channel to inflate the chambers,
- means for sealing the inlet ports closed to retain the air in the inflated chambers, and
- a sensor for monitoring air flow out of the outlet ports as the material advances through the machine.
A machine for inflating and sealing a preconfigured film material having inflatable chambers in communication with an inflation channel to make air-filled packing cushions, comprising:
- an upstanding support having a laterally facing side wall, a spindle extending from the side wall in cantilevered fashion for rotatively supporting a roll of the film material perpendicular to the wall, a feed mechanism on the same side of the wall as the spindle for drawing the film material from the roll and advancing it along a path beside the wall with the material generally perpendicular to the wall, an air injector extending through the side wall for insertion into the inflation channel to inflate the chambers as the material advances along the path, and a heating element outboard of the side wall for sealing the inflated chambers in the advancing material.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.