Computer program products for operating clipping packaging apparatus and related systems
AssigneeTipper Tie, Inc.
InventorsSamuel D. Griggs, Dennis J. May, David T. Wince, William M. Poteat, Derek L. Brown
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Systems, devices and computer program products automatically package an object in a covering material such as casing and/or netting by: (a) automatically pushing at least one object through a product chute; (b) pulling a covering material upstream of the product chute off an exterior surface of the product chute to automatically enclose the object in the covering material as the object exits the product chute; and (c) applying a clip to the covering material to secure the object in the packing material.
Claims16
A computer program product for operating a packaging system with a clipper mechanism, the computer program product comprising:
- a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied in said medium, said computer-readable program code comprising:
- computer readable program code that (a) controllably actuates a cutting member actuation cylinder to direct a corresponding cutting member to rise up from a position below a target product casing to cut a gathered portion of the target product casing in an upward direction, then after the cutting member cuts the gathered portion of the target product casing, (b) controllably actuates the actuation cylinder to direct the cutting member to retract in a downward direction;
- and (c) computer readable program code that automatically controllably directs the clipper mechanism to move from a home or pre-clip position to a full-clip position before controllably actuating the cutting member to cut in the upward direction, wherein in the full clip position, the cutting member resides in a substantially vertical orientation.
A packaging system, comprising:
- a clipper mechanism;
- a pair of gathering plates attached to the clipper mechanism;
- and a cutting member and associated actuation cylinder attached to a lower portion of the clipper mechanism, under the gathering plates;
- and
- a controller with a computer program for operating the clipper mechanism, the controller computer program comprising:
- a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied in said medium, said computer-readable program code comprising:
- computer readable program code that directs the clipper mechanism with the gathering plates and cutting member to move to a full clip position;
- then
- computer readable program code that controllably actuates the cutting member actuation cylinder to direct the cutting member to (a) rise to cut from a bottom to top direction, then (b) direct the cutting member to retract.
A packaging system for clipping packages in a covering material, comprising:
- a pivoting clipper;
- a cutting member mounted to a lower portion of the clipper so as to concurrently pivot with the clipper;
- an electronic controller in communication with the clipper, the controller configured to:
- (a) direct the clipper to automatically pivot from a home to a full-clip position to apply at least one clip to at least one gathered leading and/or trailing edge portion of a covering material encasing a target product;
- and
- (b) direct the cutting member to automatically advance substantially vertically upward after the clipper is in the full-clip position to sever adjacent portions of gathered covering material covering a target product from an underside to top side thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.