U.S. patent application number 11/575547 was filed with the patent office on 2009-02-19 for machine for sealing carton.
This patent application is currently assigned to MEADWESTVACO PACKAGING SYSTEMS LLC. Invention is credited to Jean-Christophe Bonnain, Ladislav Falat, Rune Haraldsson, Pierre-Yves Poget, Benoit Poutot.
Application Number | 20090044497 11/575547 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35149241 |
Filed Date | 2009-02-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090044497 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Falat; Ladislav ; et
al. |
February 19, 2009 |
MACHINE FOR SEALING CARTON
Abstract
A packaging apparatus forms a completely sealed composite
package. The apparatus employs a continuous process which involves
conditioning a surface of the package substrate. The substrate
includes an adhesive coating that can be reactivated by infra-red
radiation and adheres the package substrate to a juxtaposed face of
a second surface. The apparatus uses rollers (102, 104, 118, 120)
to compress the two surfaces together to complete the construction
process.
Inventors: |
Falat; Ladislav; (Columbia,
MD) ; Haraldsson; Rune; (Gamer, NC) ; Poutot;
Benoit; (Blamat, FR) ; Bonnain; Jean-Christophe;
(Chateauroux, FR) ; Poget; Pierre-Yves;
(Chateauroux, FR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MEADWESTVACO CORPORATION;ATTN: IP LEGAL DEPARTMENT
1021 MAIN CAMPUS DRIVE
RALEIGH
NC
27606
US
|
Assignee: |
MEADWESTVACO PACKAGING SYSTEMS
LLC
Stamford
CT
|
Family ID: |
35149241 |
Appl. No.: |
11/575547 |
Filed: |
July 11, 2005 |
PCT Filed: |
July 11, 2005 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/US2005/024453 |
371 Date: |
October 20, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60586497 |
Jul 9, 2004 |
|
|
|
60590780 |
Jul 23, 2004 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
53/478 ; 53/141;
53/290; 53/325; 53/329.2; 53/389.1; 53/507; 53/52 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B 5/024 20130101;
B65B 57/00 20130101; B65B 51/02 20130101; B65B 11/52 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
53/478 ; 53/290;
53/329.2; 53/325; 53/507; 53/141; 53/52; 53/389.1 |
International
Class: |
B65B 11/52 20060101
B65B011/52; B65B 51/10 20060101 B65B051/10; B65B 57/00 20060101
B65B057/00 |
Claims
1. A method of adhering a plurality of first and second surfaces
together comprising the steps of, (a) sequentially supplying the
first and second surfaces to a conveyor means, (b) conveying the
first surface to means for conditioning the first surface such that
it can be adhered to the second surface, and/or (c) bringing one
each of said first and second surfaces into pressure contact so
that adhesive portions of the first surface are adhered to a
juxtaposed face of the second surface wherein at two of the
sequential first surfaces are conditioned simutaneously and are in
continuous motion during the conditioning step and said one each of
the first and second surfaces are in continuous motion during
pressure contact.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the first surface
comprises an adhesive coating which is conditioned by heat.
3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the means for conditioning
the first surface comprises a heating element.
4. A method according to claim 2 wherein the second surface
comprise an adhesive coating which is conditioned by heat and the
sequence of second surfaces is conveyed to a heating element for
conditioning of the adhesive coating.
5. A method according to claims 1, wherein the first surface forms
a front panel of an outer package and the second surface forms a
first surface of an article, and wherein the article is to be
secured within the outer package, wherein the method comprises the
further steps of: conveying the rear panel to a conditioning means
for conditioning means for conditioning such that it can be adhered
to the second article surface and bringing the rear panel and the
second article surface into pressure contact so that adhesive
portions of the rear panel are adhered to the second article
surface thereby adhesively securing the article within the outer
package.
6. A method according to claim 3wherein the heating element emits
infra-red radiation.
7. A method according to any preceding claim 1 wherein the steps of
conditioning the first surface and bringing the first surface and
second surface into pressure contact occur substantially
simultaneously.
8. A method according to any preceding claim 1 wherein the steps of
bringing the first surface and second surface into pressure contact
is facilitated by a pair of rollers and said first and second
surfaces are compressed between the rollers.
9. A method according to claim 1 wherein the heating element
conditions the adhesive coating by convection.
10. A method according to claim 1 wherein the method further
comprises the step of monitoring the condition of at least one of
the first and second surface, and preventing the first and second
surface being brought into pressure contact if the integrity of
said at least one surface is outside pre-determiner criteria.
11. A method according to claim 9 wherein the steps are coordinated
by a control means.
12. A method of monitoring the integrity of a first surface of an
object which is to be adhered to a second surface of said article,
comprising the steps of: (a) using at least one sensor to monitor
the integrity of the first surface, (b) sending a signal to a
control means indicating the integrity of the first surface, (c)
preventing the first and second surface from being brought into
pressure contact if the integrity of the first and/or second
surface is outside predetermined criteria, (d) rejecting said
object if the first surfaces do not comply with the predetermined
criteria.
13. A method according to claims 12 wherein the integrity of the
first surface is monitored by measuring the temperature of the
first surface prior to bringing the first and second surfaces into
pressure contact.
14. A method according to claims 13 wherein the purpose of
monitoring the first surface is to determine if the first surface
has been conditioned sufficiently to adhere it to said second
surface.
15. A method according to claim 1 comprising a series of steps
before the step of supplying the first and second surfaces to the
conveyor means, the series comprising the steps of: (a) determining
if the conditioning means is ready for conditioning the first
surface, (b) if so then, supplying a test surface to the conveyor
means, conveying the test surface to the conditioning means, and
monitoring the integrity of the test surface when it is conveyed
from the conditioning means, (c) if the integrity of the test
surface is within predetermined criteria, supplying the first and
second surfaces to the conveyor means, and (d) if the conditioning
means is not ready to condition the first surface, then causing an
alert to be issued that the conditioning means is not so ready.
16. An apparatus for adhering first and second surfaces together
the apparatus comprising a conveyor means for conveying the first
surface to conditioning means for conditioning the first surface
such that the first surface has an adhesive property, means for
applying the second surface to the first surface such that when
they are brought into pressure contact the first and second
surfaces are adhered together, and means for applying pressure to
both the first and second surfaces characterized in that the
conveying means is adapted to keep the first surface in continuous
motion during the conditioning process and to keep the first and
second surfaces in continuous motion during pressure contact.
17. An apparatus according to claim 16 wherein the means for
conditioning the first surface comprises a heating element.
18. An apparatus according to claim 17 wherein the second surface
comprises an adhesive coating which is conditioned by heat and
conveyor means is provided to convey the second surface to a
heating element.
19. An apparatus according to claim 16 wherein a pair of rolers are
provided for compressing he first and second surfaces together.
20. An apparatus according to claim 16 wherein the heating element
emits infra-red radiation.
21. An apparatus according to claim 16 further comprising means for
conducting an intial warm up run wherein the conditioning means is
assessed for its readiness to condition the first surface by
conveyong a test surface to the conditioning means for conditioning
the test surface and then monitoring the intedrity of the test
surface, and means automatically to prevent the firsr surface from
being conveyed to the conditioning apparatus if the test surface is
impaired.
22. An apparatus according to claim 16 wherein there further
comprises a system for monitoring the integrity of the first
surface wherein said monitoring system comprises at least one
sensor being coupled to the control means for recieving a signal
from the at least one sensor, wherein the control means analyses
the signal and determines wheter or not the integrity of the first
surface complies with predetermined criteria.
23. (canceled)
24. An apparatus according to claim 22 wherein the control means
prevents the second surface from being brought into contacting
relationship with the first surface.
25. An apparatus according to claim 23 wherein the control means
causes an object comprising the first surface to be rejected for
not complying with said predetermined criteria.
26. An apparatus for monitoring the integrity of a first surface of
an object which is to be adhered to a second surface of said
objectcomprising: at least one sensor to monitor the integrity of
the first surface, the at least one sensor being coupled to a
control means for receiving a signal from the or each sensor
indicating the integrity of the first surface, a means for
preventing the first and second surfaces from being brought into
pressure contact if the integrity of the first and/or second
surface is outside predetermined criteria, and/or a means for
rejecting the object if the first surface does not comply with the
predetermined criteria.
27. An apparatus according to claims 26 wherein the integrity of
the first surface is monitored by measuring the temperature of the
first surface and the predetermined criteria is a temperature range
at which an adhesive bond between the first and second surfaces is
achieved.
28. An apparatus according to claim 26 wherein the integrity of the
first surface is monitored prior to bringing the first and second
surfaces into pressure contact.
29. An apparatus according to claims 26 wherein the purpose of
monitoring the first surface is to determine if the first surface
has been conditioned sufficiently to adhere it to the second
surface.
30. (canceled)
31. (canceled)
32. (canceled)
33. (canceled)
34. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first surface forms
a front panel of an outer package and the second surface forms a
first surface of an article, and wherein the outer package
comprises a rear panel surface and the article has a second article
surface, wherein the method comprises the further steps of:
conveying the rearr panel to a conditionong means for conditioning
such that it can be adhered to the second article surface and
bringing the rear panel and the second article surface into
pressure contact so that adhesive portions of the rear panel are
ahered to the second article surface thereby adhesively securing
the article within outer package.
35. A method according to claim 1 comprising a series of steps
before the step of supplying the first and second surfaces to the
conveyor means, the series comprising the steps of: (a) determining
if the conditioning means is ready for conditioning the first
surface, (b) if so then, supplying a test surface to the conveyor
means, conveying the test surface to the conditioning means, and
monitoring the integrity of the test surface when it is conveyed
from the conditioning means, (c) if the integrity of the test
surface is outside predetermined criteria, preventing said first
and second surfaces from being supplied to the conveyor, and (d) if
the conditioning means is not ready to condition the first surface,
then causing an alert to be issused that the conditioning means is
not so ready.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to a method and apparatus for adhering
one surface to another, and more particularly to cartons and
packaging systems.
[0002] The invention is concerned with a method and apparatus for
adhering packaging substrates which have been conditioned with an
adhesive coating.
[0003] The invention has potential applications in many types of
consumer packaging but offers many benefits in pharmaceutical
packaging where tamper evident and child proof features are
important characteristics of the packaging, and where conventional
gluing technologies such as hot melt gluing are less suitable.
Additionally, the pharmaceutical industry requires stringent
quality control checks as well as a high rate of output in order
for the packaging methods to be viable and cost effective. One
common type of pharmaceutical package is a foil-backed PVC and
Aclar/PVC blister pack which contains pharmaceutical products such
as prescription drugs. The blister pack needs to be sealed within
an outer protective layer such as a paperboard sleeve. A paperboard
sleeve is advantageous because it can provide printed instructions
for administering the prescription drugs on the paperboard package
as well as providing a protective outer. Such packages require the
blister packs to be secured by both their front and back, to
produce a child resistant package.
[0004] Current commercial blister card sealing systems operate
intermittently, using a hot platen to seal a blister between two
layers of paperboard, to create a paperboard--blister--paperboard
sandwich. Prior to such sandwiching, the paperboard blank is
provided with an extruded or press-applied adhesive on one side,
with graphics being printed on the opposite laminated side. The
adhesive is reactivated by heating, and current hot platen sealers
require around two second of heating and compression to securely
adhere a blister pack within a paperboard package. This causes the
process to be slow and therefore costly.
[0005] In known processes, one mould of a platen sealer, the
female, is generally not heated because heating this would lead to
heating of the blister contents and heating of the blister packs
can have a detrimental effect to the contents. However, a
disadvantage of this technique is the reduction in the quality of
the adhesive bond between the blister and paperboard layers of the
package and a further increase in the time taken to produce each
packaged blister pack.
[0006] A further disadvantage of current packaging systems is that
they require physical contact between the substrate and the heating
element and this may have a detrimental effect on the printed
surface of substrates, thereby reducing the aesthetic appearance of
the packaging. The hot mould directly contacting the flammable
paperboard package can also be dangerous.
[0007] Additionally, pharmaceutical industry regulations require
stringent checking of the quality of blister packs containing
medication and very careful and close monitoring of the drugs
throughout the packaging process.
[0008] It is therefore desirable to provide a packaging machine
which provides for quicker production of packaged drug blisters
whilst also providing a method and system for monitoring the
blisters and rejected any packages falling outside the necessary
standard whilst maintaining a high throughput of packages from the
machine. It is also desirable to provide a system which can control
the correct packaging of the blisters and minimize the number of
incorrectly packaged blisters.
[0009] The present invention seeks to overcome the limitations of
the prior art, and offers improved throughput of cartons in the
packaging apparatus in a continuous packaging assembly line.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] According to a first aspect of the invention, a method of
adhering a first and second surface together comprising the steps
of, supplying the first and second surface to a conveyor means
conveying the first surface to a means for conditioning the first
surface such that it can be adhered to the second surface, and/or
bringing said first and second surface into pressure contact so
that adhesive portions of the first surface are adhered to a
juxtaposed face of the second surface characterised in that the
first surface is in continuous motion during the conditioning of
the first surface and the first and second surfaces are in
continuous motion during pressure contact.
[0011] Preferably the first surface comprises an adhesive coating
which is conditioned by heat. The means for conditioning the first
surface may comprise a heating element.
[0012] Additionally the second surface comprises an adhesive
coating which may be conditioned by heat and the second surface is
conveyed to a heating element for conditioning of the adhesive
coating. The first and second surfaces may be compressed
together.
[0013] Alternatively the first surface forms a front panel of an
outer package and the second surface forms part of an article to be
secured within the outer package and the outer package comprises a
rear panel surface and the article has a second article surface,
wherein the method comprises the further steps of: conveying the
rear panel to a conditioning means for conditioning such that it
can be adhered to the second article surface and bringing the rear
panel and the second article surface into pressure contact so that
adhesive portions of the rear panel are adhered to the second
article surface thereby adhesively securing the article within the
outer package.
[0014] Alternatively the steps of conditioning the first surface
and bringing the first surface and second surface into pressure
contact occur substantially simultaneously. The heating element may
condition the adhesive coating by convection.
[0015] Additionally the method may further comprise the step of
monitoring the condition of the first and/or second surface,
preventing the first and second surface being brought into pressure
contact if the integrity of the first and/or second surface is
outside pre-determined criteria and/or rejecting an object
comprising the first and/or second surface if the first and second
surfaces have not been brought into pressure contact. The steps may
be coordinated by a control means.
[0016] According to a second aspect of the invention a method of
monitoring the integrity of first and/or second surfaces of an
object may comprise the steps of using at least one sensor to
monitor the integrity of the first and/or second surface, sending a
signal to a control means indicating the integrity of the first
and/or second surface, preventing the first and second surface from
being brought into pressure contact if the integrity of the first
and/or second surface is outside predetermined criteria and/or
rejecting said object if the first and/or second surfaces do not
comply with the predetermined criteria.
[0017] Preferably the integrity of the first and/or second surface
may be monitored by measuring the temperature of the first and/or
second surface prior to bringing the first and second surfaces into
pressure contact.
[0018] Additionally comprising a series of steps before the step of
supplying the first and second surfaces to the conveyor means, the
series comprising the steps of: determining if the conditioning
means is ready for conditioning the first surface, and if so then,
supplying a test surface to the conveyor means, conveying the test
surface to the conditioning means, monitoring the integrity of the
test surface when it is conveyed from the conditioning means and if
the integrity of the test surface is within predetermined criteria,
supplying the first and second surfaces to the conveyor means, or
if the integrity of the test surface is outside predetermined
criteria, preventing said first and second surfaces from being
supplied to the conveyor, and if the conditioning means is not
ready to condition the first surface, then causing an alert to be
issued that the conditioning means is not so ready.
[0019] Preferably the purpose of monitoring the first and/or second
surface is to determine if the first and/or second surfaces have
been conditioned sufficiently to adhere them together.
[0020] According to a third aspect of the invention an apparatus
for adhering first and second surfaces together the apparatus
comprising a conveyor means for conveying the first surface to
conditioning means for conditioning the first surface such that the
first surface has an adhesive property, means for applying the
second surface to the first surface such that when they are brought
into pressure contact the first and second surfaces are adhered
together, and means for applying pressure to both the first and
second surfaces characterised in that the conveying means is
adapted to keep the first surface in continuous motion during the
conditioning process and to keep the first and second surfaces in
continuous motion during pressure contact.
[0021] Preferably the means for conditioning the first surface
comprises a heating element. The second surface may comprise an
adhesive coating which is conditioned by heat and conveyor means is
provided to convey the second surface to a heating element.
[0022] Additionally wherein a compression means may be provided for
compression of the first and second surfaces together. The heating
element may emit infra-red radiation.
[0023] Preferably the conveyor means may comprise a belt which is
constructed from fire retardant material (such as metal) and the
conveyor means may comprise means for compensation of expansion and
contraction of the belt.
[0024] Additionally the apparatus may further comprise sensors to
monitor operation of the apparatus and may further comprise control
means for controlling operation of the apparatus.
[0025] Additionally the apparatus may further comprise means for
conducting an initial warm up run wherein the conditioning means is
assessed for its readiness to condition the first surface by
conveying a test surface to the conditioning means for conditioning
the test surface and then monitoring the integrity of the test
surface, and means automatically to prevent the first surface from
being conveyed to the conditioning apparatus if the test surface is
impaired.
[0026] Alternatively the apparatus may further comprise a system
for monitoring the integrity of the first and/or second surfaces
wherein said monitoring system comprises at least one sensor for
monitoring the integrity of the first and/or second surface, said
at least one sensor being coupled to the control means for
receiving a signal from the at least one sensor, wherein the
control means analyses the signal and determines whether or not the
integrity of the first and/or second surface complies with
predetermined criteria.
[0027] Additionally the control means causes and/or prevents an
action from being carried out by a part of the apparatus. The
control means may prevent the second surface from being brought
into contacting relationship with the first surface.
[0028] Alternatively the control means may cause an object
comprising the first and/or second surface to be rejected for not
complying with said predetermined criteria.
[0029] According to fourth aspect of the invention an apparatus for
monitoring the integrity of first and/or second surfaces of an
object comprising: at least one sensor to monitor the integrity of
the first and/or second surface, the at least one sensor being
coupled to a control means for receiving a signal from the or each
sensor indicating the integrity of the first and/or second surface,
a means for preventing the first and second surfaces from being
brought into pressure contact if the integrity of the first and/or
second surface is outside predetermined criteria and/or a means for
rejecting the object if the first and/or second surfaces do not
comply with the predetermined criteria.
[0030] Preferably the integrity of the first and/or second surface
may be monitored by measuring the temperature of the first and/or
second surface and the predetermined criteria is a temperature
range at which an adhesive bond between the first and second
surfaces is achieved.
[0031] Additionally the integrity of the first and/or second
surface may be monitored prior to bringing the first and second
surfaces into pressure contact.
[0032] Additionally the purpose of monitoring the first and/or
second surface is to determine if the first and/or second surfaces
have been conditioned sufficiently to adhere them together.
[0033] According to a fifth aspect a method for forming a sealed
composite package, which may employ a continuous process, involving
the steps of (i) conditioning a surface of the package substrate
having an adhesive coating by irradiating the surface using
infra-red radiation (ii) adhering the package substrate to a
juxtaposed face of a second surface and (iii) compressing the two
surfaces together using rollers to complete the construction
process.
[0034] According to a sixth aspect an apparatus for forming a
completely sealed composite package, the apparatus may employ a
continuous process involving conditioning a surface of the package
substrate, the package substrate having an adhesive coating which
is reactivated by infra-red radiation and which adheres the package
substrate to a juxtaposed face of a second surface, the apparatus
using rollers to compress the two surfaces together to complete the
construction process.
[0035] According to a seventh aspect a method of adhering first and
second surfaces together comprising the steps of, supplying the
first and second surfaces to a conveyor means, bringing said first
and second surfaces into contact with each other, conveying the
first surface to means for conditioning the first surface such that
it can be adhered to the second surface, and applying pressure to
both the first and second surfaces so that adhesive portions of the
first surface are adhered to a juxtaposed face of the second
surface, characterised in that the first and second surfaces are in
continuous motion during the conditioning of the first surface and
the pressure application.
[0036] According to an eighth aspect, the invention provides an
apparatus having means for executing a process on an article while
the article is in motion, the apparatus comprising a checking means
for assessing whether the processing means is ready to execute said
process, the checking means comprising a first monitoring means for
monitoring the operation of the processing means, means for
supplying a test article to the processing means and for maintaing
the test article in motion whilst the process is executed, and
comprising a second monitoring means for monitoring the integrity
of the test article once the process has been executed, the first
and second monitoring means each being coupled to a control means
for determining whether the processing means is ready before the
process is executed on an article and for causing the process to be
executed.
[0037] Preferably the process is an infra-red heating process and
the article is a paperboard blank and wherein each of the first and
second monitoring means are temperature sensors and the control
means may be a computer processing unit.
[0038] According to a ninth aspect, the invention provides a method
of checking the capability of an apparatus for processing an
article, comprising the steps of determining if a processing means
is ready for processing an article, and if so, then supplying a
test article to a conveying means, conveying the test article to
the processing means, monitoring the integrity of the test article
when it is conveyed from the processing means and if the integrity
of the test article is within predetermined criteria, allowing the
apparatus to process the article, or if the integrity of the test
article is outside predetermined criteria preventing the apparatus
from processing the article, and if the processing means is not
ready to process an article, then causing an alert to be issued
that the processing means is not so ready and thereafter preventing
the apparatus from operating.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0039] Three exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be
described, by way of example only, with reference to the
accompanying drawings in which;
[0040] FIG. 1. shows a perspective view of a packaging machine
according to a first embodiment of the invention;
[0041] FIG. 2 shows a perspective zoomed in view of an in-feed
section of the packaging machine of FIG. 1;
[0042] FIG. 3 shows a perspective zoomed in view of a conditioning
section of the packaging machine of FIG. 1;
[0043] FIG. 4 shows a perspective zoomed in view of a second
delivery and compression section of the packaging machine of FIG.
1;
[0044] FIG. 5 shows a zoomed in view of a final section of the
packaging machine of FIG. 1;
[0045] FIG. 5a shows an enlarged view of a compression section
shown in FIG. 5;
[0046] FIG. 6 shows an example of a blank which may be constructed
into a sealed carton by the packaging machine of FIG. 1;
[0047] FIG. 7 shows an example of an insert which may be sealed
within the carton constructed from the blank of FIG. 6, by the
packaging machine shown in FIG. 1;
[0048] FIG. 8 shows an enlarged view of a rejection section of a
packaging machine according to a second aspect of the
invention;
[0049] FIG. 9 shows a schematic of a first step in the rejection of
a package constructed by the packaging machine of the second
aspect;
[0050] FIG. 10 shows a schematic of a second step in the rejection
of a package;
[0051] FIG. 11 shows a schematic of a third step in the rejection
of a package;
[0052] FIG. 12 is a schematic illustration of a rejection system
provided within the packaging machine of the first embodiment;
[0053] FIG. 13 is a schematic representation of sensors and control
means provided within the rejection system which are used to
control the rejection of faulty packages; and
[0054] FIG. 14 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a warm up
mechanism according to a third aspect of the invention;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0055] The present invention provides a packaging machine which can
condition a surface of a continually moving substrate in
preparation of adhering one or both surfaces of the substrate to a
second substrate. Particularly the packaging machine 50 of the
preferred embodiment of the invention can reactivate an adhesive
agent provided on a substrate, such as a paperboard carton blank
10. The packaging machine 50, as shown in FIG. 1 conditions the
continuously moving blank 10, using heat, and can also perform a
series of folding and compression steps which may be required to
construct a carton or other sealed item from the blank or substrate
10.
[0056] Referring to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 6 one
example of a blank 10, formed from paperboard or other suitable
material, for forming a carton to be constructed and loaded by a
packaging machine 50 of one or more aspects of the present
invention. The paperboard blank 10 may be impregnated or coated on
one or more sides by a heat reactivating adhesive agent.
Appropriate coated substrates of this type are available, for
example, from MeadWestvaco Corporation, sold under the trademarks
Printkote EasySeal.RTM. or Printkote EasySeal.RTM. Plus.
[0057] In this embodiment a unitary blank 10 comprises a series of
panels hinged one to the next. Front panels 12, 14 are hinged to
rear panels 16, 18 along a fold line 20 which bisects the blank 10.
In this embodiment the front and rear panels 12, 14, 16 and 18 are
coated on an inside face with a heat reactivating adhesive agent.
The front and rear panels 12, 14, 16 and 18 also comprise a series
of apertures 22 designed such that two blister packs 4 can be
inserted and sealed within a package formed from the blank 10. An
example of a blister pack 4 is shown in FIG. 7. Each blister pack 4
comprises a main panel 6, which may be formed from aluminium foil;
each blister pack 4 also comprises a series of blisters 3, each for
containing a medicament. In this embodiment a blister pack 4 is
secured to each of the front panels 12 and 14 using the heat
reactivating adhesive. The rear panels 16, 18 are then folded about
fold line 20 and secured to the main panel 6 of the blister pack 4
using the heat reactivating adhesive, to form a completely sealed
package 126.
[0058] It is envisaged that the blank 10 can vary depending upon
the shape and/or quantity of articles to be packaged and
accordingly, a machine in accordance with one or more aspects of
the present invention is adjustable in numerous respects so that it
can process a wide variety of such blanks and is not limited to the
specific example outlined above. Indeed a machine of the present
invention may be used to package and seal items other than a
blister pack within a paperboard carton. For example it is
envisaged that any material coated or impregnated with a heat
reactivating adhesive could be processed using a machine of the
present invention. A packaging machine of the present invention may
also be adapted for use with other heat reactivating agents or heat
curable material and is not limited to use with substrates such as
and Printkote EasySeal.RTM. and Printkote EasySeal.RTM. Plus. It is
also envisaged that a packaging machine of the present invention
may be adapted to continuously condition a surface of a substrate
for adhesion to a second surface by means other than heat
reactivation. It is further envisaged that instead of the unitary
blank 10, two or more non-hinged, separate blanks may be used with
the present invention to create a carton. It is still further
envisaged that any number of blister packs, such as one or more
than two packs, may be inserted and sealed within a package
according to the present invention.
[0059] Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, there is shown a
machine 50 for processing blanks 10 of the type outlined above. The
upstream end of the machine 50 is further illustrated in FIG. 2.
The upstream end of the machine 50 includes a first hopper 54, or
other suitable storage means in which a multiplicity of blanks 10,
in flat condition, are held ready for processing. As shown in FIGS.
1 and 2 the blanks 10 are sequentially removed from the first
hopper 54 by suitable feeder means, for example, a rotary vacuum
feeder 56. The rotary vacuum feeder 56 comprises two pairs of
suction cups 58 each being connected to a drive shaft 60 by a drive
rod 62. Drive means 64, for example a servo motor, rotates the
drive shaft 60. A cam track and cam rod (not shown) may be provided
to define a uniform path for the suction cups as the drive shaft is
rotated.
[0060] The first hopper 54 is, in this embodiment, a `gravity feed`
type whereby the blanks 10 are held on the first hopper 54 at an
incline to provide a positive feed. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2, a
blank 10 in flat collapsed condition is removed from the first
hopper 54 and is rotated by the vacuum feeder 56 to the in-feed end
of the machine. The blank 10 is then placed onto suitable conveying
means, which in this embodiment of the invention is an endless
metallic belt 66, 68, which is provided on either side of a track
70. The blank 10 is placed onto the track 70 and suitable means,
for example leading and trailing lugs 72, 74 which are mounted upon
the endless metallic bands 66, 68, are used to convey the carton
blank 10 down stream to a first heating station, shown generally at
76. The metallic bands 66, 68 are tensioned between rotating
pulleys 78 which are positioned, one at the upstream end and one at
the down stream end of the machine 50. The endless metallic belts
66, 68 convey the blanks 10 into and through first and second
heating sections 76, 114. The metallic belts 66, 68 are arranged to
follow a return path which is outside of the heating stations, this
allows the metallic bands 66, 68 to cool during the return path.
The metallic bands 66, 68 are also provided with an idler wheel
disposed adjacent the rotating pulleys 78 which enables the tension
in the metallic belts 66, 68 to be adjusted in response to any
changes caused by the heating and cooling of the metallic belts 66,
68. In other embodiments it is envisaged that other means may be
used to cool the metallic bands, for example, a water cooling
system or cooling fan may be employed. It is also envisaged that
the endless belts may be formed of other material such as fire
retardant material. In other embodiments of the invention the blank
10 may actually rest upon upper edges of the metallic bands and the
lugs and or track may therefore not be necessary.
[0061] The first heating station 76 is shown in FIG. 3. The first
heating station 76 is comprises a hood 80 which encloses a section
of the track 70. A heating element 82 is provided, which in this
embodiment of the invention is a series of medium wavelength
infra-red strip lamps 82. The infra-red lamps 82 radiate heat
energy directly onto the blanks 10. The blank 10 absorbs the broad
wavelength infra-red radiation and thus the surface temperature of
the blank 10 and the temperature of the heat reactivating adhesive
are increased. As the blank 10 traverses the track 70 beneath the
infra-red lamps 82 the heat sensitive adhesive is reactivated.
[0062] The temperature (T1) of the infra-red heating element 82 in
the first heating element 82 may be monitored by one or more,
closely positioned, temperature sensors. A cooling-fan is employed
to control the temperature (T1) of the infra-red heating element
82. In this embodiment of the invention the infra-red heating
element 82 is a series of three parallel elongate elements. However
it is envisaged that the orientation of the elongate elements may
differ and indeed alternative shaped elements could be used without
departing from the scope of the invention.
[0063] The length of track 70 enclosed by the hood 80 and the
linear speed at which the blanks are conveyed through that length
of track 70 determines the time period in which the blanks 10 are
exposed to the heat radiating from the infra-red lamps 82. The
intensity of the heat radiation from the infra-red lamps 82 and the
time period of exposure determine the temperature increase of the
blank 10 and heat reactivating adhesive. The linear speed of the
conveyor and intensity of the infra-red lamps 82 are constant and
predetermined to achieve a pre-selected temperature increase. In
this embodiment of the invention a temperature increase of the
blank 10 to around 150 degrees Celsius is required to activate the
adhesive. In other embodiments of the invention, the speed of
conveyance of the blanks 10, the length of the heating element 82
and the intensity of the radiation may each be adapted in order to
achieve a desired temperature increase of the blank 10 during the
continuous conditioning stage. In this way other heat reactivated
agents and package materials other than paperboard can be
accommodated by the packaging machine 50.
[0064] The blanks 10 may also be heated by convection currents
flowing within the hood, however in this embodiment of the
invention the air flow within the hood 80 is controlled by an
extraction fan. The extraction fan enables the amount of air and
resulting convection currents to be controlled. In other
embodiments, the ambient temperature within the hood 80 may be
finely controlled by use of temperature sensors and a computerised
feedback system coupled to the sensors and the hot air extraction
system. Smoke detectors may also be positioned within the hood 80
as an additional safety precaution.
[0065] A guide panel 92 is provided above the blanks 10 to secure
and guide the blanks 10 as they traverse the track 70 beneath the
first heating station 76. The guide panel 92 maintains the blanks
10 in a flat condition so that the exposed surfaces of the blanks
10 are evenly heated by the radiating heating element 82. The guide
panel 92 is shaped so that no specific portion of the blank 10 is
completely and continually obscured from exposure to the radiating
heating element 82. In other embodiments of the invention it is
anticipated that the guide panel 92 could be contoured to
deliberately obscure a specific portion of the blank 10 or other
substrate from exposure to the heating element 82. It is also
envisaged that the guide element 92 could be cooled; for example
the guide element may be a copper or other heat conductive metal
tube which could be cooled by water flowing within the tube. The
guide element 92 may also be provided with sensors to detect the
presence of a blank 10 or may be provided with smoke, temperature
or other safety sensing means.
[0066] After the blanks 10 have been heated within the first
heating station 76, they are successively transferred to a loading
station 84; this is shown in FIG. 4. The loading station 84
comprises a suitable delivery means, such as a magazine or second
hopper 86, of the gravity feed type, to sequentially deliver the
blister packs 4. The second hopper 86 feeds pairs of blister packs
4 onto a delivery wheel 88. The delivery wheel 88 is provided with
a series of shaped receiving troughs each of which can accommodate
a blister pack 4 from the second hopper 86. A pair of blister packs
4 is received by two adjacent shaped troughs at the top of the
delivery wheel 88, which is then rotated in a clockwise
direction.
[0067] The delivery wheel 88 is driven by a servo motor and further
comprises a guide frame 90, which is provided to prevent the
blister packs 4 from falling free of the delivery wheel 88 as it is
rotated. A second rotary vacuum feeder 98, which comprises one pair
of suction cups 100 sequentially removes one pair of blister packs
4 from the bottom of the delivery wheel and places them onto a
blank 10. The conveyance of the blanks 10 into alignment with the
blister packs 4 as they are delivered is synchronized by a control
means, such as a computer coupled to the servo motors used to drive
the belts 66, 68 and delivery wheel 88. The blisters 3 of the
blister packs 6 are received in the apertures 22 of the blank 10.
The second hopper 86 and delivery wheel 88 are located in close
proximity to the end of the first heating station 76 so that the
blank 10 is maintained sufficiently close to the temperature
required to reactivate the heat sensitive adhesive. The blister
packs 4, if only one side of which are aluminium coated are placed
onto the front panels 12, 14 of the blank 10 with the aluminium
sides facing upwards. The non-aluminium side is then secured in
place onto the blank 10 by the reactivated adhesive on the front
panels 12, 14.
[0068] The blanks 10 with the blister packs 4 are then sequentially
fed between two compressing rollers 102, 104. The rollers 102, 104
are spaced apart and each compressing roller 102, 104 comprises at
least one shaped pad 106, 108. The pads 106, 108 are each sized and
shaped to accommodate two blister packs 4 disposed adjacent one
another and to protect the blister packs 4 from damage. The blank
10 with the blister packs 4 adhered to the front panels 12, 14, is
fed between the rollers 102/104. The adhesive on the rear panels
16, 18 may still be activated and so the rear panels 16, 18 of the
blank 10 pass between the spaced rollers 102, 104 without making
contact with the rollers 102, 104.
[0069] Compressing roller 102 is rotated by a drive means in a
clockwise direction, whilst the compressing roller 104 is rotated
by a similar drive means in an anticlockwise direction. In this way
as the rollers 102, 104 rotate the blank 10 and blister packs 4 are
fed through. The timing of the rollers 102, 104 is such that the
shaped pads 106, 108 simultaneously contact the underside of the
front panels 12, 14 of the blank 10 and the main panel 6 of the
blister packs 4. Thus the rear panels 16, 18 pass through the
roller without making contact and pressure applied to the blank 10
and blister packs 4 ensures that the blister packs 4 are adhered to
the front panels 12, 14. In other embodiments of the invention, it
is envisaged that the compression stage, which ensures that the two
surfaces are securely adhered, may not be required or may be
achieved by means other that the use of rollers. It is also
envisaged that the compression stage could be performed
simultaneously with the conditioning of the first surface. It is
also envisaged that the compression of the two surfaces could in
fact be employed to condition one or both surfaces for gluing, if
for example compression reactivating adhesive was employed.
[0070] The blanks 10, with two blister packs 4 adhered to the front
panels 12, 14, traverse the track 70, being conveyed by the lugs
72, 74 mounted upon the metallic bands 66, 68. A flipper 110, which
comprises moveable arms 112, is provided downstream of the
compression rollers 102, 104. The moveable arms 112 are positioned
such that they intercept the leading edge of a blank 10. The
moveable arms 112 are, in this embodiment, spring loaded and
provide a means for folding the carton blank 10 about fold line 20.
The rear panels 16, 18 are brought into face contacting relation
with the main panel 6 disposed above the front panels 12, 14
respectively. The moveable arms 112 resist the forward motion of
the rear panels 12, 14, thus causing the panels to be folded about
fold line 20. As the rear panels 16, 18 are lifted out of the plane
of the front panels 12, 14, the moveable arms 112 are caused to be
displaced above the track. Once the folding is complete the
moveable arms 112 can return to their original starting position in
preparation of intercepting a successive blank 10.
[0071] The folded blank 10 is conveyed further downstream to a
second heating station 114. The second heating station 114 is
similar to the first heating station 76 and therefore is not
described in detail. The heat activated adhesive on the inner face
of the rear panels 14, 16 is reactivated by an infra-red heating
element similar to that described in the first heating station 76.
Radiation is exposed to the outer surface of the rear panels 16, 18
and is absorbed by the rear panels 16, 18, sufficiently to
reactivate the adhesive agent on the inner surface of the panels.
During the second heating phase, any exposed part of the aluminium
blister pack 4 may reflect any incident infra-red radiation and
thus prevent undesirable heating of the blister pack 4 and
medicaments contained within the blisters 3.
[0072] To complete the sealing process the folded blank 10 is
conveyed to a final compressing section 116 as shown in FIG. 5. The
final compressing section 116 comprises two rollers 118, 120, one
of which is provided with a series of indentations which receive
the blisters 3 of the blister pack 4 as shown in FIG. 5a. The
folded blank 10 is sandwiched between the rollers to ensure that
the rear panels 16, 18 are securely adhered to the outer face of
the blister pack. In this way the machine 50 constructs a fully
sealed package 126, which is formed by a continuous process. The
blister pack 4 may be sized smaller than the front or rear panels
12, 14, 16 and 18 and in which case portions of the front panels
12, 14 will be directly adhered to portions of the rear panels 16,
18.
[0073] The machine 50 of the present invention is also provided
with a series of safety sensors. An emergency operating condition
may be triggered by one or more of the sensing elements feeding
back an alerting signal. For example a smoke detector within the
hood 80 of the first heating station 76 may feedback a signal to
indicate the presence of smoke. This alert can trigger an emergency
condition whereby the delivery of carton blanks 10 and blister
packs 4 from the first and second hoppers 54, is stopped by the
servo motors operating the rotary vacuum feeders 56. The conveying
means however continues to operate so that any remaining blanks 10
are removed from beneath the first and second heating stations 76,
thus reducing the risk of a blank 10 combusting within the machine
50. A series of control sensors are also provided to monitor the
presence of a blank 10 and blister pack 4 during the construction
process.
[0074] Further modifications may be made without departing from the
scope of the invention. For example, it is envisaged that the step
of conditioning the first surface in preparation for adhering to a
second surface may be achieved by means other than using heat
radiation to reactivate a heat sensitive adhering agent already
coated upon the first substrate. In other embodiments it is
envisaged that the substrate may be provided with an adhesive agent
which is reactivated by pressure, for example, a micro capsule type
agent which may be coated on the substrate and which can be
activated by compressing the first and second surfaces and thereby
adhering the surfaces together. Alternatively the adhesive agent
provided on the first surface may be reactivated by contact with
water or steam. This conditioning may be performed prior to
compressing the first and second surfaces together or indeed in
conjunction with the compression stage. Furthermore, the first
substrate may be conditioned by coating or impregnating the surface
with an adhesive agent during the continuous conditioning process.
For example an adhesive may be sprayed or applied by other means,
to coat the surface of the first substrate during the continuous
conditioning process.
[0075] It is also envisaged that other suitable conveying means may
be employed without departing from the scope of the invention. For
example endless side lug chains may be used, with leading and
trailing lugs mounted upon the endless chains. It is envisaged that
the endless chains could be spaced from the main track such that
the endless chains do not pass through the conditioning section,
which may be of a temperature not suitable for any lubricant used
on the endless chains. In such an embodiment it is envisaged that
the lugs mounted on the lug chains may extend sufficiently from the
lug chains to convey a blank 10 along the track 70. Alternatively
endless lug chains may be used and positioned such that they do
pass through the heating stations but they may be provided with
high temperature lubricant or indeed shielded from the radiating
heat or provided with a cooling means.
[0076] Furthermore it is anticipated that where the conditioning
phase is achieved by means of radiation, the wavelength of the
radiation may differ from the broad wavelength infra-red range. For
example in some applications microwave radiation could be used to
condition the surface of a substrate in preparation of adhering the
surface to a second substrate. It is also envisaged that a computer
controlled and dynamic heating process could be used in which the
temperature within a heating station 76 is ramped up and ramped
down to provide a more gradual heating process. Separate infra-red
lamps 82 may be needed in such an embodiment to allow the intensity
of the infra-red lamps to be individually controlled along the
linear path of the heating station 76.
[0077] It can be appreciated that various changes may be made
within the scope of the present invention, for example, the size
and shape of the hoppers and track may be adjusted to accommodate
cartons of differing size or shape. It is also possible that the
length and/or number of heating stations may be adjusted to
facilitate the construction of an alternative carton. FIGS. 8 to 14
illustrate further aspects of the present invention, which will now
be described by way of example only and to illustrate some of the
changes or additions that can be made, whilst keeping within the
scope of the present invention.
[0078] In a second embodiment of the invention, the packaging
machine 350, which is similar to the packaging machine 50 of the
first embodiment, further comprises a rejection system 440. The
rejection system 440 has a rejection mechanism 330 provided at the
output end of the packaging machine 350 as shown in FIG. 8. The
rejection system 440 further comprises a control means 400 coupled
to the rejection mechanism 330. The control means 400 is coupled to
one or more sensors (S) which monitor the state and quality of the
blanks throughout the construction process.
[0079] For applications such as in the pharmaceutical industry
where the packaged article is a blister pack of medication, it is
desirable that the blister pack is firmly held within the package.
Paperboard material comprises a series aligned cellulose fibres
which are bonded together. The heat reactivated adhesive provided
on the paperboard blank is sufficiently strong to create an
adhesive bond between a paperboard surface and another surface such
that if the two substrates are pulled apart, before the adhesive
bond will break, the fibre bond of the paperboard material will
first be forced to tear. In order to achieve this bond, the heat
reactivating adhesive must be sufficiently heated and the surfaces
to be bonded together may need to be compressively contacted.
Additionally it is important that during the conditioning phase the
package and the packaged article are monitored to ensure that the
article is in no way damaged or spoiled. The quality checks and
safety sensors of the packaging machine are provided to ensure the
integrity of the package and the packaged article, where integrity
should be taken to mean the quality of being unimpaired.
[0080] Various, safety sensors which may monitor the state of the
packaging machine 350 may also be coupled to the control means 400.
The quality and safety sensors (S) which monitor the state of the
blanks and condition of the packaging machine 350 communicate with
the control means to which they are coupled. Signals or data
messages transmitted from the sensors (S) to the control means 400
may give rise to a rejection signal or alert. The rejection signal
or alert signal indicates that either a particular blank in the
production process has failed to meet necessary standards or that a
fault or hazard exists in the packaging machine 350.
[0081] In order to track the progress of each individual blank
through the packaging machine, each pitch of the conveyor means is
allocated a unique identifier. The progress of each blank can then
be followed by the control means 400. If at some point during the
progress of a blank through the construction process a sensor (S)
feeds back a signal which gives rise to a rejection signal, the
control means 400 registers that the blank located at that uniquely
identifiable pitch should be rejected. The rejection signal is
logged against the specific pitch so that the faulty blank or
carton can be identified at the rejection mechanism 330 and
discarded therefrom.
[0082] The rejection mechanism 330, as shown in FIG. 8, comprises
an overhead lug belt 334, which is provided with lugs 336. The lugs
336 of the overhead belt 334 convey a constructed carton or
finished package 326 from the compressing rollers 318 along a guide
rail 340. The guide rail 340 is provided with a moveable section or
displaceable portion 332. During the construction of the package
326 the temperature and position of the blank are monitored by the
sensors (S). If a package does not meet the required standards a
rejection signal will be recorded against the pitch of the conveyer
containing the package 326. The progress of the package 326 through
the packaging machine 350 will be tracked and the faulty package
338 will be rejected when it reaches the rejection mechanism 330.
The faulty package 338 will be extracted by the displaceable
portion 332. The displaceable portion 332 is positioned in the
plane of the guide rail 340 and can be moved into an open position
to facilitate the removal of a faulty package 338. The displaceable
portion 332 is hinged to the guide rail and can be pivoted about
the hinged connection, it is anticipated that other means for
displacing the displaceable portion could be used. The displaceable
portion 332 is also positioned above a rotary air cylinder 328. The
rotary air cylinder 328 can provide an air jet to assist the
rejection of the faulty package by propelling it from the
displaceable portion 332 into a waste outlet (W).
[0083] Schematic illustrations showing the operation of the
displaceable portion 332 to reject a faulty package 338 are shown
in FIGS. 9-11. It is envisaged that means other than the
displaceable portion 332 could be used to extract a faulty package
338 without departing from the scope of the present invention. For
example an articulated arm could be used to pick a faulty package
338 up from the conveyer means or indeed the conveyer means could
have channels to provide a different path for the faulty package
338 compared to the path of an acceptable finished package 326.
[0084] An example rejection system 440 which may be used to monitor
the progress of a blank through the packaging machine 350 will now
be described in more detail. FIG. 12 shows a schematic of the
packaging machine 350, rejection system 440 and sensors (S) which
are provided at each section of the packaging machine 350. Since
the blister packs contain medicaments the state of the packs, for
example their temperature, must be monitored closely. Each sensor
(S) is used to detect a fault with a blank, for example the
temperature of the blank being outside an accepted range. If any of
the quality sensors detects a fault with a blank, the control means
400 will identify the blank by its pitch position and register that
the identified blank should be rejected at the output end. The
quality sensors are coupled to the control means 400, which is in
turn coupled to the rejection mechanism 330.
[0085] Safety sensors are also provided which are used to monitor
the operation of the packaging machine, for example if the
temperature of the heating element is outside an acceptable
operating range, this will be detected by a temperature sensor 408
positioned in close proximity to the heating element 82. The safety
sensors are connected to the control means 400; in an alternative
embodiment they may each be provided with individual control means.
In this way if a fault is detected by a safety sensor, the control
means to which it is coupled could be directly coupled to an alarm
or warning light for alerting an operator of a hazard without first
having to couple to the control means 400. Information collected
from both the safety and quality sensors can be collated by the
control means 400 and analysed for the purpose of fault finding or
for improving the efficiency of the packaging machine 350.
[0086] The control means 400 can be configured to cause the
packaging machine 350 to shut down in response to a safety sensor
detecting a fault with the machine. The fault detected may invoke a
particular shut down or emergency condition. To shut down the
packaging machine 350, the rotary vacuum feeders in the blank and
blister pack feed sections 342, 344 are stopped. The conveyor means
may continue to operate for a set period after the blanks and
blisters have stopped being fed in order to remove any paperboard
blanks and/or blister packs which may be beneath the heating
elements so that the risk of fire is reduced. The hoods of the
first and second heating sections may also be provided with a
mechanism to allow the hoods to be automatically lifted above the
conveyer track in response to a received signal which has been
transmitted by the control means 400 during a shut down or
emergency operating condition. Each hood may be controlled and
operated individually in response to the fault detected.
[0087] The rejection system 440 and quality and safety sensors
provided in the present invention will now be described in more
detail with reference to FIGS. 12 and 13.
[0088] FIG. 12 shows a schematic of the packaging machine 350 and
rejection mechanism 330. At the in feed end of the packaging
machine 350, a sensor 402 is provided to detect if the first hopper
is empty of blanks. Such sensors 402 are known in the art and can
detect the presence of a carton blank. The sensor 402 is coupled to
the control means 400 and can be used to raise an alarm if the
first hopper is empty of blanks. If the first hopper is empty, a
second signal may be transmitted from the control means 400 to the
second hopper of the blister feed 344. The second hopper of the
blister feed 344 may comprise a mechanism which can prevent a
blister from being fed. Therefore the unnecessary waste of blisters
can be prevented by not feeding blisters when there is no blank
present to receive them.
[0089] Also, within the blank feed section 342, sensors (S) are
provided to detect a blank which has not been correctly fed from
the hopper. A blank can be misfed for example if after being picked
up by the suction cups, it is incorrectly placed on the track or if
two blanks are erroneously picked up simultaneously. The sensor 404
can detect that a blank has been misfed and is coupled to the
control means 400. The sensor 404 may employ a series of optical
beams to detect the leading and trailing edges of the blanks. An
error in the placement of a blank may be detected by the optical
beam being interrupted too soon or not being interrupted at all if
a blank is missing. If a blank is misfed the control means 400 can
identify the pitch of the blank and register a reject logic against
the pitch. The misfed blank will then be rejected when it reaches
the rejection mechanism 330. A second signal may also be
transmitted by the control means 400 to the second hopper of the
blister feed 344 to trigger the mechanism to prevent a blister from
being fed. In this way the unnecessary rejection and waste of
blister packs is prevented.
[0090] A correct-blank-type sensor 406 is also provided within the
blank feed section 342. The correct-blank-type sensor 406 is used
to monitor the type of blank which has been placed on the track
from the hopper. The sensor 406 is used to detect that the correct
type of blank is present. It is envisaged that this sensor 406 may
be a barcode reader positioned to read a barcode printed on each
blank. The barcode can be used to identify the type of blank, for
example a type of blank specifically printed for containing a
particular course of a medication. The blank identity can then be
checked by the control means 400 to ensure that the correct blank
has been placed on the conveyor. It is envisaged that other means
for identifying and checking that the correct carton has been
placed on the conveyor could also be used, for example a camera
could be positioned to monitor the colour of the graphics printed
on the blank. The correct-blank-type sensor 406 is coupled to the
control means 400 and if an incorrect blank is detected a reject
signal will be registered against the pitch where the fault was
detected. A second signal may also be transmitted from the control
means to prevent a blister from being fed onto the incorrect carton
blank and therefore prevent unnecessary waste of pharmaceutical
products contained within the blister packs.
[0091] A series of conveyor sensors 424 may be present periodically
throughout the packaging machine 350. The conveyor sensors 424 may
be positioned on the track and can be used to monitor the progress
of the conveyed blanks. The conveyer sensors 424 can detect a
missing blank or may detect a jam on the conveyor if two or more
blanks become staggered. The conveyer sensors 424 may operate in a
similar manner to the sensor 404 for detecting a misfeed. An
optical beam or pair of optical beams, spaced along the track at
intervals determined by the blank type, can be used to detect the
leading and trailing edges of a blank. The conveyor sensors 424 are
each coupled to the control means 400. If a fault is detected a
rejection signal may be sent to the rejection mechanism 330 to
reject the faulty package 328. If a jam is detected in the
packaging machine the control means 400 may be configured to alert
a machine operator of the location of the jam.
[0092] A variety of safety and quality sensors (S) are located in
the first heating section 376. A heating element sensor 408, which
is coupled to the control means 400, is provided to detect if the
heating element is operating. It is envisaged that the heating
element sensor 408 may be coupled to the heating element's power
supply. The heating element sensor 408 may operate by detecting
that an electrical current is drawn by the heating element from the
power supply. If the sensor 408 detects that no current is drawn by
the heating element, the control means 400 can be used to indicate
that a fault exists with the heating element. The control means 400
may also initiate a shut down procedure in response to the detected
fault with the heating element and the hood of the first heating
station 376 may automatically be lifted above the conveyor to allow
access to the heating element and to facilitate any repair work
which may be necessary.
[0093] A first temperature sensor 410 is also provided within the
first heating section 376 to measure the temperature of the heating
element. The temperature may be continuously monitored whilst the
packaging machine 350 is in operation to ensure that the heating
element temperature is within an acceptable range. The information
regarding the temperature of the heating element is transmitted to
the control means 400. If the operating temperature is within an
unacceptable range, which may be hazardous or may affect process
efficiency, the control means 400 may invoke an emergency shut down
of the packaging machine or initiate other courses of action
depending upon the circumstances. However under normal operating
conditions, the control means 400, which is also directly coupled
to the heating element, can adjust the amount of electrical power
supplied to the heating element in order to regulate its
temperature. The temperature of the heating element is thereby
controlled accordingly with the surface temperature of the blanks,
which is measured by a third temperature sensor 414 after the
blanks have been conditioned in the first heating section 376.
[0094] Smoke detectors may also be provided in the hood of the
first heating section 376. If the presence of smoke is detected an
alarm may be immediately raised and the emergency shut down
condition may be invoked.
[0095] A second temperature sensor 412 may also be provided within
the first heating section 376 to monitor the temperature (T1) of
the ambient air. The second temperature sensor 412 is also coupled
to the control means 400 and the information from the second
temperature sensor 412 is transmitted to the control means 400. The
control means 400 may be configured such that the received
information can be used to alter the amount or rate of air
extraction from the hood of the heating station in order to control
the amount of heating of the blanks as they are conveyed through
the heating sections. The control means 400 may therefore be
coupled to the extraction fan to increase or decrease the rate of
revolution of the fan or may be coupled to an inlet and/or outlet
valve provided on the air extraction mechanism of the hood to
dynamically control the amount of air within the heating section
376.
[0096] Finally a third temperature sensor 414, such as a pyrometer,
is provided at the down stream end of the first heating station
376. This is used to measure the surface temperature (T3) of each
blank after it has been heated by the heating element. The
temperature sensor 414 is, in this embodiment of the invention, a
non-contact sensor which employs infra-red radiation to determine
the surface temperature of the blank. The third temperature sensor
414 is coupled to the control means 400 and measures the blank
temperature at a spot on the surface of the blank. If the
temperature of the heated blank is not within an accepted range a
signal will be transmitted by the control means 400 and the blank
will be rejected by the rejection mechanism 330. In this embodiment
the temperature sensor is positioned within close proximity to the
out feed end of the heating station and therefore within close
proximity to the second hopper which supplies the blister packs.
The close proximity of the blister feed 344 to the third
temperature sensor 414 means that the delivery of the blister onto
the faulty blank cannot be prevented and therefore the blister and
blank both have to be rejected. In other embodiments it is
envisaged that the third temperature sensor 414 could be located to
allow the blister feed to be prevented or indeed another mechanism
for preventing a blister from being placed onto a faulty blank
could be employed. It is also anticipated that more than one
temperature sensor 414 could be employed to monitor the temperature
of the blank. This may be especially useful if the surface is
selectively heated to achieve different temperatures at different
points on the blank to selectively reactivate the adhesive.
[0097] At the blister feed section 344 a sensor 416, coupled to the
control means 400, is provided to monitor the contents of the
second hopper and an alert signal can be transmitted if the hopper
is empty. A further sensor 418 is employed to check that the
blisters have been placed on a blank at all and that any blisters
placed are aligned correctly on the blank. If any fault is detected
a rejection signal will be logged and the package will be discarded
by the rejection mechanism 330. A correct-blister-type sensor 420
is also provided to detect if the incorrect type of blister pack is
fed onto a carton blank. The correct-blister-type sensor 420 is
coupled to the control means 400 and if the incorrect type of
blister is detected a reject signal will be transmitted by the
control means to the rejection mechanism 330 to reject the blank
and blister.
[0098] A pressure sensor 422 is provided between the compression
rollers 318 to detect any abnormality in the pressure applied by
the rollers to the package being formed. The pressure sensor 422
may detect that the package has been incorrectly fed between the
rollers and that the content of the blister may therefore have been
damaged. If the pressure sensor 422 detects that the compression
rollers 318 have applied a pressure to the package which is outside
of an acceptable range, the control means 400 will transmit a
rejection signal and the package will be discarded by the rejection
mechanism 330. In this way any blank which is not securely sealed
or contains a damaged blister pack will be identified and
rejected.
[0099] The packaging machine of the present invention is provided
with a similar set of sensors in the second heating section 314 to
those of the first heating section 376. Therefore the sensors of
the second heating section 314 and second compression section 318
will not be described in detail. The second heating section is
provided with a heating element sensor 408 and first, second and
third temperature sensors 410, 412, 414 which are each coupled to
the control means 400 and monitor the operation and temperature of
the heating element, the ambient air (T2) within the hood and the
temperature of the conditioned blank surface. The second
compression roller 318 is also provided with a pressure sensor 422
to ensure that the conditioned first surface is securely adhered to
the second surface and that no damage to the blister pack occurs.
The third temperature sensor 414 of the second heating station may
be employed to measure either the temperature of the blank or of
the aluminium face of the blister pack. It is anticipated that, if
required, two sensors 414 could be used to measure the temperature
of both the blank and the aluminium face of the blister pack.
[0100] The packaging machine 350 may also be provided with a safety
sensor to monitor the temperature of the cooling agent used within
the guide panels 92.
[0101] It is envisaged that the rejection system 440 may be altered
without departing from the scope of the present invention. For
example it is anticipated that the control means 400 may also be
coupled to the drive means of various components of the packaging
machine 350. For example the control means 400 may be coupled to a
servo motor used to drive the second rotary vacuum feeder for
feeding the blisters onto the blanks. The control means 400 could
therefore be configured to respond to the sensor 416, which is
provided at the blister feed section 344 to detect an empty hopper.
If the sensor 416 detects an empty hopper, the control means 400
could automatically respond by stopping the rotary vacuum
feeder.
[0102] In other embodiments of the invention it is also envisaged
that the rejection mechanism 330 may be adapted to accommodate
different sized articles or indeed more than one rejection
mechanism may be provided. It is envisaged that means other than
the displaceable portion 332 could be used to extract a faulty
package 338 without departing from the scope of the present
invention. For example an articulated arm could be used to remove a
faulty package 338 from the conveyer means or indeed the conveyer
means could have channels to provide a different path for the
faulty package 338 to the path of a satisfactory finished package
326.
[0103] It is also anticipated that an alternative sensor to the
third temperature sensor may be employed without departing from the
scope of the present invention. The integrity of the blank, carton
or other object may be monitored throughout the construction
process however the third temperature sensor is provided to
specifically monitor the integrity of the first and/or second
surface to ensure that the first and/or second surfaces of an
object are correctly conditioned in preparation of being adhered
together. For example it is envisaged that if the first and or
second surfaces of the blank, carton or other object are
conditioned by means other than heat, such as by humidity or by
pressure, the sensor provided to monitor the integrity of the
carton to ensure that the first and or second surfaces of the
carton are properly conditioned may be a humidity sensor or
pressure sensor rather than a temperature sensor. It is envisaged
that the sensor employed to monitor the integrity and conditioning
of the first and or second surfaces, may be coupled to the control
means to allow for interactive adjustment of the conditioning means
in response to the amount of conditioning of the first and or
second surfaces. For example a humidity sensor may feed back a
signal to the control means indicating that the measured humidity
of the first surface is outside predetermined criteria. This may
result in the object comprising the first surface being rejected by
the rejection mechanism but may also result in the control means
transmitting a signal to the means for conditioning the first
surface, i.e. a humidity source. The control means may cause the
amount of humidity provided by the source to be adjusted in
response to the integrity of the first surface being measured and
being found to not comply with predetermined criteria regarding the
humidity of the surface required for adhesion. The operating
conditions of the packaging machine 450 can thereby be
interactively controlled to ensure that the down time for
correcting the operating conditions is minimized and to refine the
quality control of the package to ensure that the integrity of the
package is maintained within an accurate quality range.
[0104] In other embodiments of the invention it is also envisaged
that an extinguishing system may be provided in case of a fire or
emergency. The extinguishing system may be coupled directly to a
smoke detector or may be coupled to the control means 400 which
could deploy the extinguishing system in the event of smoke and/or
high blank temperature being detected. The extinguishing system may
be a gas extinguisher, such as carbon dioxide.
[0105] A third aspect of the invention relates to an initial
start-up operation of the packaging machine 50 which was described
in the first embodiment with reference to FIGS. 1-8. Reference to
these figures will be made in connection with the foregoing
description since features shown therein will also be relevant to
the description of the initial start-up operation of the packaging
machine 50. Reference will also be made to FIG. 14 which shows a
schematic flow chart illustrating exemplary steps that can be taken
to ensure that the packaging machine is operating under the correct
conditions during the initial start-up operation.
[0106] The initial start up operation is intended to ensure that
the mechanisms for conditioning a package blank for adhesion with
an article, such as a blister pack, to be securely contained within
the package are operating correctly before any such articles are
fed from the article feed 86. In the specific embodiment herein
described the conditioning means is provided by first and second
heating elements 76 and 80 which are shown in FIG. 1. The
additional aspect of an initial start up operation will therefore
be described in the context of a packaging machine employing a
heating means 82 for conditioning a carton blank. However it should
be understood that the initial start-up operation to be described
is not limited in its application to a packaging machine having
heating means and could readily be applied to a packaging machine
utilizing other conditioning means.
[0107] The first step of the initial start-up is a slow-run warm up
530, wherein the first and second heating elements 76, 114 are
activated. The conveyer means 66, 68 is also activated but no
blanks or blisters are fed from their respective hoppers 54, 86.
The temperature T1 of the ambient air inside the hood 80 of the
first heating station 76 is measured by a temperature sensor 412.
The temperature T1 is measured for a time t during which time the
measured temperature T1 is checked against a desired operational
temperature which is required for conditioning a blank. When T1
reaches the conditioning temperature, or is within an acceptable
temperature range for conditioning, for example 150.degree.
C.+/-5.degree. C., a bell will sound or another signal will be
given. The bell or signal indicates that the first conditioning
means, in this case first heating station 76 is ready for
conditioning a substrate, such as the paperboard blank of the
present example. This step is illustrated by step 512 in FIG.
14.
[0108] If however during a pre-set time limit t.sub.max T1 has not
reached the required temperature 558, then the slow run warm up 530
will be stopped and an alarm signal or error report will be sent
from the central control means 400 to indicate to an operator that
there is an error with the first conditioning means 76. This will
indicate for example that one of the infra-red heating lamps 82 of
the first heating section 76 is not working and enable a machine
operator to address the problem. In checking the correct operation
of the machine before sending any blisters 4, the need for
rejecting and hence wasting any pharmaceutical preparations is
alleviated. This step is shown in steps 558 and 560 of FIG. 14.
[0109] A similar method is used to control and check the operation
of the second conditioning element, which in this example is a
second heating section 114. In other embodiments it is envisaged
that there may be more or less than two conditioning elements and
that where more than one conditioning element is used, each element
may condition a substrate using a different technique. However in
the embodiment presently described, a second heating section 114 is
employed and the temperature T2 of the ambient air within the hood
80 of the second heating section 114 is measured to check whether
the second conditioning element is ready for conditioning. Again T2
will be measured 612 until either the correct temperature is
reached or the time for which T2 should be measured (t.sub.max) is
reached. Again if T2 has not reached an optimum operating
temperature, an alerting signal will be raised and the slow run
warm-up 530 will be stopped 564. The machine operator will know
that a problem exists with the second conditioning means 114. The
steps 612, 570 and 564 are illustrated schematically in FIG.
14.
[0110] If T1 and T2 are both measured to be within the optimum
conditioning range 586 a single blank will be feed 542 and conveyed
through the packaging machine 50, 350 to check that the blank will
be conditioned correctly. In order to carry out an accurate
assessment of the conditioning of the blank, the blank is conveyed
at full speed so that it is present beneath the infra-red heating
lamps for the correct amount of time. When the blank exits the
first heating section 76 a temperature sensor 414 is used to
accurately measure the surface temperature of the blank. The
preferred type of temperature sensor 414 is a pyrometer, which is a
non-contact sensor employing infra-red radiation to determine the
surface temperature of the blank. The third temperature sensor 414
is coupled to the control means 400 and measures the blank
temperature at a spot on the surface of the blank. If the
temperature T3 of the conditioned blank is not within an accepted
range a signal will be transmitted by the control means 400. If
only one test blank has been conveyed than a further blank will be
fed and its temperature T3 measured after the first conditioning
means. If the measurement of T3 is again not within a range which
is acceptable for ensuring proper adhesion of the substrate
surfaces by the heat reactivated adhesive, a signal will be sent by
the control means 400 to stop the packaging machine 50, 350. If
however temperature T3 is measured and found to be correct a bell
will sound to indicate that this is the case. Whatever the outcome
of the measurement of T3 the first or second test blank will be
conveyed through the second heating section and its temperature T4
will be measured immediately it exits the second conditioning
section. If T4 is not correct and if only one test blank has been
fed 552 a second test blank will be fed 542 and T4 measured again
614. If T4 is still measured 614 to be outside the optimum range
the packaging machine 50, 350 will be stopped 580 and an error
report sent via a signal from the control means 400 to alert the
operator to the problem. The steps 614, 552 and 580 are illustrated
in FIG. 14.
[0111] If however T3 514 and T4 614 are both correct 584, then the
packaging machine 50, 350, is operating correctly and ready to run.
The machine will continue to run at full speed with blanks and
blisters both being fed at full speed. The operation of the machine
thereafter is controlled and the quality of the packaged blisters
monitored as described with reference to FIG. 13.
[0112] It will be apparent that changes may be made to the
foregoing without departing from the invention described. For
example the way in which the readiness of the or each conditioning
element is assessed before a substrate is conveyed for conditioning
may depend upon the way in which the conditioning is carried out.
For example if the conditioning means is a humidifying means then a
humidity sensor will be employed to check that the conditioning
means is ready. Additionally the way in which alarm signals or
indicating bells are arranged can easily be varied depending upon
the types of test carried out and the methodology of the control
means. Furthermore it is envisaged that this aspect of the
invention may be used in conjunction with or separately from the
packaging apparatus of the first and second embodiments.
* * * * *