Dual meter filler apparatus and method
AssigneePneumatic Scale Corporation
InventorsMichael Mihalik, Duane Carlson, James C. Loase, Michael Baker, Michael Davis
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A filler product supply system (5) and method using two or more conduits (120, 130) to deliver filler product under pressure from product reservoirs (200, 210) to in fluid isolation to a supply manifold (58). Filler product is further delivered in fluid isolation from supply manifold (58) through conduits (170, 171) to two or more filling heads (180, 190). Downstream from filling heads (180, 190), the previously isolated fluid lines are combined to introduce two or more distinct filler products into a single container without creating a homogenous mixture.
Claims22
A system for supplying a plurality of fluids to a container comprising at least one filling station including:
- a plurality of conduits in fluid isolation from each other,
- a plurality of flowmeters in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of conduits,
- a plurality of filling heads in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of conduits, and
- at least one nozzle in fluid connection with a plurality of filling heads which nozzle is adapted to deliver a plurality of previously isolated fluids received from the conduits in a non-homogeneous stream;
- at least one controller in operative connection with each of the plurality of flowmeters and with each of the plurality of filling heads, and which is adapted to individually cause each of the plurality of flowmeters to control the flow of a fluid through said filling head, and which is further adapted to receive and transmit data;
- and
- at least one operator station in communication with the at least one controller, the at least one operator station comprising
- a computer,
- a recipe, and
- a software application operative, responsive to data received from the at least one controller to direct at least one of the plurality of flowmeters to cause each of the plurality of filling heads in the at least one filling station to control the flow of fluid through each such filling head in accordance with the recipe.
A method for controlling the appearance of the fluid contents of a container by using a computer implemented recipe to monitor and control the operation of a filling apparatus which has been adapted to introduce two previously isolated fluids into a container through a single nozzle by
- (a) initiating the flow of a first product stream through a first filling head;
- (b) initiating the flow of a second product stream through a second filling head;
- (c) combining the second product stream into the first product stream after the first filling head and before a nozzle;
- (d) capturing data representative of the quantity of product which has passed through each filling head;
- (e) responsive to the data, stopping the flow of a first product stream through a first filling head;
- and
- (f) responsive to the data, stopping the flow of a second product stream through the second filling head.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.