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US 6,889,485 B2Granted
Article grouping mechanism
AssigneeMeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC
InventorEmmanuel Davaillon
Life of this patent
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AssigneeMeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC
InventorEmmanuel Davaillon
Estimating the term…
A device for grouping articles to be loaded into a carton and delivered to the device from an infeed stream at an infeed end of a packaging machine. The device comprises a leading and trailing spacer elements arranged to move along a first path, each spacer element being adapted to engage at least one article from the infeed stream and to convey the articles through a working reach of the device. The device further comprises adjustment means to adjust the device between a first mode in which each spacer element follows the first path to successively engage an article group; and a second mode in which the trailing spacer element follows the first path and the leading spacer element becomes transferred from the first path to follow a second path connected to the first path before rejoining the first path, whereby the leading and trailing spacer elements engage an article group simultaneously.
A device for grouping articles to be loaded into a carton and delivered to the device from an infeed stream at an infeed end of a packaging machine, which device comprises leading and trailing spacer elements arranged to move along a first predetermined path, each of said spacer elements being adapted to engage at least one article from the infeed stream and to convey the articles through a working reach of the device, and adjustment means to adjust the device between a first mode in which said each spacer element follows said first predetermined path to successively engage an article group and a second mode in which said trailing spacer element follows said first predetermined path and said leading spacer element becomes transferred from said first predetermined path to follow a second predetermined path connected to said first predetermined path before rejoining said first predetermined path whereby said leading and trailing spacer elements engage an article group simultaneously.
A packaging machine having an article infeed, a carton loading station and a device for grouping the articles to be loaded into the cartons, which device comprises leading and trailing spacer elements arranged to move along a first predetermined path, each of said spacer elements being adapted to engage at least one article from the article infeed and to convey the articles through a working reach of the device, and adjustment means to adjust the device between a first mode in which said each spacer element follows said first predetermined path to successively engage an article group and a second mode in which said trailing spacer element follows said first predetermined path and said leading spacer element becomes transferred from said first predetermined path to follow a second predetermined path connected to said first predetermined path before rejoining said first predetermined path whereby said leading and trailing spacer elements engage an article group simultaneously.
A method of grouping articles delivered from an infeed stream of a packaging machine, said method comprising engaging successive articles with leading and trailing spacer elements from the infeed stream so that said articles are located relative to one another during feed movement of said articles so that one group of said articles is advanced with respect to and thereby spaced from a next succeeding group of said articles while said leading and trailing spacer elements move along a feed path of said articles, said method further comprising the step prior to feeding said articles to a carton of adjusting the device between a first mode in which each of said leading and trailing spacer elements follows a first path to successively engage an article group and a second mode in which said trailing spacer element follows said first path and said leading spacer element becomes transferred from said first path to follow a second path connected to said first path before rejoining said first path whereby said leading and trailing spacer elements engage an article group simultaneously.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.