Process for producing hinge-lid boxes

Apparatus for producing packs, of the hinge-lid box type with cross-sectionally round upright pack edges (14, 15), in a packaging machine (11) having folding means, wherein planar elonaged blanks (10) for the hinge-lid boxes are to be pre-shaped with the aid of rounding rollers (22), and then are to be fed to the packaging machine (11) for producing the hinge-lid boxes, comprising:

• a) a continually rotating rounding turret,
• b) means for feeding the blanks (10) in succession to the continually rotating rounding turret (18) which has plural securing means (19) for securing one blank (10) each,
• c) a transfer conveyor (29) which feeds the blanks (10) to a charging station (28) located adjacent to the rounding turret (18), and a feed conveyor (33) which removes individual blanks (10) from the transfer conveyor (29) and conveys them to respective ones of said securing means (19) of the rotating rounding turret (18),
• d) means for arranging the blanks (10), on the securing means (19), with a longitudinal extension thereof aligned in an axis-parallel direction transverse to the rotation path of the rounding turret (18),
• e) arranged as shaping tools on both sides of each securing means (19), rounding rollers (22, 23) that are movable relative to the securing means (19),
• f) each securing means (19) also comprising on either side thereof shaping members (20, 21) having lateral roundings (16) in a region of the round pack edges (14, 15) to be formed,
• g) border areas of each blank (10) being shaped around the shaping members (20, 21) by the rounding rollers (22, 23), with the round edges (14, 15) abutting the lateral roundings (16) of the shaping members (20, 21) in the region of the round edges (14, 15), and
• h) in a region of a removal station, a removal conveyor (35) which removes the blanks (10), preformed with respect to the pack edges, from their respective securing means (19).