U.S. patent number RE36,241 [Application Number 08/804,330] was granted by the patent office on 1999-06-29 for food article filling head.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Planet Products Corporation. Invention is credited to James M. Phelps, Joseph F. Posge.
United States Patent |
RE36,241 |
Phelps , et al. |
June 29, 1999 |
Food article filling head
Abstract
A filling head for loading food articles such as franks into
individual packaging trays is adapted for quick connect to a power
system and a loader parent machine. The filling head comprises an
open frame, at least two spring loaded flapper doors hingeably
attached to the frame, and a pusher bar unloading system capable of
operable connection to the power system of the parent machine to
intermittently discharge food articles from the filling head to the
individual packaging trays positioned below the flapper doors. The
pusher bar unloading system includes a drive rod which can be
connected to the periphery of a flywheel by quick connect means to
run in an smooth continuous reciprocating motion to deliver an up
and down motion to a horizontal shaft slideably mounted on the
frame and an associated set of pusher bars and elongated pusher
members. The elongated pusher members at the bottom of the drive
rod stroke forces food articles in the filling head to open the
flapper doors and drop the food articles into the packaging trays.
The filling head has quick connect features which allows the use of
different filling heads constructed to deliver different food
article arrangements into packaging trays.
Inventors: |
Phelps; James M. (Cincinnati,
OH), Posge; Joseph F. (Cincinnati, OH) |
Assignee: |
Planet Products Corporation
(Cincinnati, OH)
|
Family
ID: |
21935664 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/804,330 |
Filed: |
February 14, 1997 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
Reissue of: |
045035 |
Apr 8, 1993 |
05388385 |
Feb 14, 1995 |
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
53/247;
414/746.8; 53/148; 53/540; 53/248; 53/252; 414/794.2 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B
19/34 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65B
19/00 (20060101); B65B 19/34 (20060101); B65B
005/00 (); B65B 001/00 (); B65B 039/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;414/746.8,794.2
;53/148,236,242,247,248,252,493,531,535,537,540 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Bray; W. Donald
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Thompson Hine & Flory LLP
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A food article filling head for connection to a loader parent
machine to intermittently receive a preset number of food articles
and discharge said food articles into individual packaging trays,
said filling head comprising:
(a) an open frame having quick connect means for ready attachment
to the loader parent machine to receive food articles moving in
alignment along an input conveyor of the parent machine;
(b) at least two flapper doors hingeably attached to the open frame
in a side by side arrangement to collectively form a substantially
flat receiving surface to hold the food articles as they are loaded
into the filling head from the input conveyor; and
(c) a pusher bar unloading system capable of being operably
connected to a power system of the loader parent machine to
intermittently discharge the food articles in the filling head to
the individual packaging trays positioned below the flapper doors,
said unloading system having (i) a set of vertical slide blocks
slideably mounted on rails of the open frame, (ii) a horizontal
shaft rigidly attached at each of its ends to the slide blocks,
(iii) a drive rod pivotally attached at one end to the horizontal
shaft for rotatably attaching to a flywheel of the power system to
run in a smooth continuous fashion to deliver a generally up and
down motion to the horizontal shaft, (iv) a set of vertical pusher
bars rigidly attached to the horizontal shaft, and (v) a horizontal
elongated pusher member rigidly attached to each of the pusher
bars, each said pusher member extending substantially the length of
the flapper doors so as to be in an engaging position with the food
articles when said drive rod is in a lowermost position to force
the food articles downwardly with sufficient force to substantially
fully extend the flapper doors to an open position to cause said
food articles to drop into the packaging trays and to move to a
disengaging position when said drive rod is in an uppermost
position.
2. The food article filling head of claim 1 wherein each slide
block is an assembly comprising a plastic slide block which slides
along the rail and a metal bearing block rigidly holding an end of
the horizontal shaft, said slide block and said bearing block being
fixedly secured together.
3. The food article filling head of claim 1 wherein the open frame
comprises two horizontal lower support members, a cross-member
brace rigidly attached to the lower support members, and a vertical
rail support member extending from each lower support member
wherein the rails for the slide blocks extend substantially along
the length of each vertical rail support member.
4. The food article filling head of claim 3 further comprising end
stops on the open frame positioned to prevent the forward movement
of the food articles as they are loaded into the filling head.
5. The food article filling head of claim 4 wherein the open frame
further has a rigid guide member secured to the cross-member brace,
said guide member having a slot through which the drive rod
passes.
6. The food article filling head of claim 5 wherein a door rod
extends along each of the horizontal lower support members and is
secured thereto and the flapper doors are hingeably attached on the
door rods.
7. The food article filling head of claim 6 further wherein at
least two torsional springs are mounted on each door rod to hold
the flapper doors in a substantially horizontal closed position
during rest.
8. The food article filling head of claim 7 wherein the open frame
is configured to have two sets of the spring loaded flapper doors
to receive two aligned rows of the food articles.
9. The food article filling head of claim 7 wherein each flapper
door has a width adequate to provide ends of the food articles with
sufficient support to maintain said food articles in a planar
disposition.
10. The food article filling head of claim 9 wherein each flapper
door has a width of from about one inch to about three inches.
11. The food article filling head of claim 1 wherein the quick
connect means to the loader parent machine comprises a transverse
horizontal mounting bar extending across the horizontal upper
support members of the frame and positioned to be received in
grooves of mounting blocks which are permanently attached to the
loader parent machine and is capable of being locked into said
groove by drop pins.
12. The food article filling head of claim 11 wherein the drive rod
of the pusher bar unloading system is rigidly attached to a crank
arm and further wherein said crank arm has a quick connect pin for
attachment to the flywheel of the loader parent machine power
system.
13. A food article loader machine having a filling head and a
loader parent machine operably connected and powered by a common
power system to intermittently discharge a present number of food
articles into individual packaging trays, wherein the improvement
comprises a filling head characterized in having:
(a) an open frame with quick connect means attached to the loader
parent machine to receive food articles moving in alignment along
an input conveyor of the parent machine;
(b) at least two flapper doors hingeably attached to the open frame
in a side by side arrangement to collectively form a substantially
flat receiving surface to hold the food articles as they are loaded
into the filling head from the input conveyor; and
(c) a pusher bar unloading system operably connected to the power
system of the loader parent machine to intermittently discharge the
food articles in the filling head to the individual packaging trays
positioned below the flapper doors, said unloading system having
(i) a set of vertical slide blocks slideably mounted on rails of
the open frame, (ii) a horizontal shaft rigidly attached at each of
its ends to the slide blocks, (iii) a drive rod pivotally attached
at one end to the horizontal shaft and rotatably attached to a
flywheel of the power system to run in a smooth continuous fashion
to deliver a generally up and down motion to the horizontal shaft,
(iv) a set of vertical pusher bars rigidly attached to the
horizontal shaft, and (v) a horizontal elongated pusher member
rigidly attached to each of the pusher bars, each said pusher
member extending substantially the length of the flapper doors so
as to be in an engaging position with the food articles when said
drive rod is in a lowermost position to force the food articles
downwardly with sufficient force to substantially fully extend the
flapper doors to an open position to cause said food articles to
drop into the packaging trays and to move to a disengaging position
when said drive rod is in an uppermost position.
14. The food article loader machine of claim 13 wherein the input
conveyor of the loader parent machine and the flywheel used to run
the drive rod of the filling head are driven by the same power
source at a synchronized speed.
15. The food article loader machine of claim 14 wherein a single
cycle clutch is operably connected to the power system to
intermittently deliver power to the flywheel.
16. The food article loader machine of claim 15 wherein the power
system includes an interchangeable sprocket wheel operably
connected to the single cycle clutch to deliver a selected number
of the food article groupings to the filling head. .Iadd.
17. A food article filling head for connection to a loader parent
machine to intermittently receive a preset number of food articles
and discharge said food articles into individual packaging trays,
said filling head comprising:
(a) an open frame having a quick connect for ready attachment to
the loader parent machine to receive food articles moving in
alignment along an input conveyor of the parent machine;
(b) at least two flapper doors pivotally attached to the open frame
in a side by side arrangement to collectively form a substantially
flat receiving surface to hold the food articles as they are loaded
into the filling head from the input conveyor; and
(c) a pusher bar unloading system capable of being operably
connected to a power system of the loader parent machine to
intermittently discharge the food articles in the filling head to
the individual packaging trays positioned below the flapper doors.
.Iaddend..Iadd.18. The food article filling head of claim 17
wherein the pusher bar unloading system includes (i) a set of
vertical slide blocks slideably mounted on rails of the open frame,
(ii) a horizontal shaft rigidly attached at each of its ends to the
slide blocks, (iii) a drive rod pivotally attached at one end to
the horizontal shaft for rotatably attaching to a flywheel of the
power system to run in a smooth continuous fashion to deliver a
generally up and down motion to the horizontal shaft, (iv) a set of
vertical pusher bars rigidly attached to the horizontal shaft, and
(v) a horizontal elongated pusher member rigidly attached to each
of the pusher bars, each said pusher member extending substantially
the length of the flapper doors so as to be in an engaging position
with the food articles when said drive rod is in a lowermost
position to force the food articles downwardly with sufficient
force to substantially fully extend the flapper doors to an open
position to cause said food articles to drop into the packaging
trays and to move to a disengaging position when said drive rod is
in an uppermost position.
.Iaddend..Iadd.19. The food article filling head of claim 18
wherein the power system of the loader parent machine includes a
flywheel to which the drive rod is rotatably attached.
.Iaddend..Iadd.20. The food article filling head of claim 18
wherein each slide block is an assembly comprising a plastic slide
block which slides along the rail and a metal bearing block rigidly
holding an end of the horizontal shaft, said slide block and said
bearing block being fixedly secured together. .Iaddend..Iadd.21.
The food article filling head of claim 17 wherein the open frame
comprises two horizontal lower support members, a cross-member
brace rigidly attached to the lower support members, and a vertical
rail support member extending from each lower support member
wherein the rails for the slide blocks extend substantially along
the length of each vertical rail support member. .Iaddend..Iadd.22.
The food article filling head of claim 21 further comprising end
stops on the open frame positioned to prevent the forward movement
of the food articles as they are loaded into the filling head.
.Iaddend..Iadd.23. The food article filling head of claim 22
wherein the open frame further has a rigid guide member secured to
the cross-member brace, said guide member having a slot through
which the drive rod passes. .Iaddend..Iadd.24. The food article
filling head of claim 23 wherein a door rod extends along each of
the horizontal lower support members and is secured thereto and the
flapper doors are pivotally attached on the door rods.
.Iaddend..Iadd.25. The food article filling head of claim 24
further wherein at least two torsional springs are mounted on each
door rod to hold the flapper doors in a substantially
horizontal closed position during rest. .Iaddend..Iadd.26. The food
article filling head of claim 25 wherein the open frame is
configured to have two sets of the spring loaded flapper doors to
receive two aligned rows of the food articles. .Iaddend..Iadd.27.
The food article filling head of claim 25 wherein each flapper door
has a width adequate to provide ends of the food articles with
sufficient support to maintain said food articles in a planar
disposition. .Iaddend..Iadd.28. The food article filling head of
claim 27 wherein each flapper door has a width of from about one
inch to about three inches. .Iaddend..Iadd.29. The food article
filling head of claim 17 wherein the quick connect to the loader
parent machine comprises a transverse horizontal mounting bar
extending across the horizontal upper support members of the frame
and positioned to be received in grooves of mounting blocks which
are permanently attached to the loader parent machine and is
capable of being locked into said groove by drop pins.
.Iaddend..Iadd.30. The food article filling head of claim 29
wherein the drive rod of the pusher bar unloading system is rigidly
attached to a crank arm and further wherein said crank arm has a
quick connect pin for attachment to the flywheel of the loader
parent machine power system. .Iaddend..Iadd.31. A food article
filling head of a food article loading system including a loader
parent machine with a power system to intermittently receive a
preset number of food articles and discharge said food articles
into individual packaging trays, said filling head comprising:
(a) an open frame for receiving food articles moving in alignment
along an input conveyor of the parent machine;
(b) at least two flapper doors pivotally attached to the open frame
in a side by side arrangement to collectively form a substantially
flat receiving surface to hold the food articles as they are loaded
into the filling head from the input conveyor;
(c) a flywheel operably connected to the power system of the loader
parent machine; and
(d) a pusher bar unloading system capable of being operably
connected to the flywheel to intermittently discharge the food
articles in the filling head to the individual packaging trays
positioned below the flapper doors.
.Iaddend..Iadd.32. The food article filling head of claim 31
wherein the pusher bar unloading system includes (i) a set of
vertical slide blocks slideably mounted on rails of the open frame,
(ii) a horizontal shaft rigidly attached at each of its ends to the
slide blocks, (iii) a drive rod pivotally attached at one end to
the horizontal shaft and pivotally attached at the other end to the
flywheel to run in a smooth continuous fashion to deliver a
generally up and down motion to the horizontal shaft, (iv) a set of
vertical pusher bars rigidly attached to the horizontal shaft, and
(v) a horizontal elongated pusher member rigidly attached to each
of the pusher bars, each said pusher member extending substantially
the length of the flapper doors so as to be in an engaging position
with the food articles when said drive rod is in a lowermost
position to force the food articles downwardly with sufficient
force to substantially fully extend the flapper doors to an open
position to cause said food articles to drop into the packaging
trays and to move to a disengaging position when said drive rod is
in an uppermost position. .Iaddend..Iadd.33. The food article
filling head of claim 32 wherein each slide block is an assembly
comprising a plastic slide block which slides along the rail and a
metal bearing block rigidly holding an end of the horizontal shaft,
said slide block and said bearing block being fixedly secured
together. .Iaddend..Iadd.34. The food article filling head of claim
32 wherein the open frame comprises two horizontal lower support
members, a cross-member brace rigidly attached to the lower support
members, and a vertical rail support member extending from each
lower support member wherein the rails for the slide blocks extend
substantially along the length of each
vertical rail support member. .Iaddend..Iadd.35. The food article
filling head of claim 34 further comprising end stops on the open
frame positioned to prevent the forward movement of the food
articles as they are loaded into the filling head.
.Iaddend..Iadd.36. The food article filling head of claim 35
wherein the open frame further has a rigid guide member secured to
the cross-member brace, said guide member having a slot through
which the drive rod passes. .Iaddend..Iadd.37. The food article
filling head of claim 36 wherein a door rod extends along each of
the horizontal lower support members and is secured thereto and the
flapper doors are pivotally attached on the door rods.
.Iaddend..Iadd.38. The food article filling head of claim 37
further wherein at least two torsional springs are mounted on each
door rod to hold the flapper doors in a substantially horizontal
closed position during rest. .Iaddend..Iadd.39. The food article
filling head of claim 38 wherein the open frame is configured to
have two sets of the spring loaded flapper doors to receive two
aligned rows of the food articles. .Iaddend..Iadd.40. The food
article filling head of claim 38 wherein each flapper door has a
width adequate to provide ends of the food articles with sufficient
support to maintain said food articles in a planar disposition.
.Iaddend..Iadd.41. The food article filling head of claim 40
wherein each flapper door has a width of from about one inch to
about three inches. .Iaddend..Iadd.42. The food article filling
head of claim 32 wherein the open frame includes a quick
connect
for ready attachment to the loader parent machine.
.Iaddend..Iadd.43. The food article filling head of claim 42
wherein the quick connect to the loader parent machine comprises a
transverse horizontal mounting bar extending across the horizontal
upper support members of the frame and positioned to be received in
grooves of mounting blocks which are permanently attached to the
loader parent machine and is capable of being locked into said
groove by drop pins. .Iaddend..Iadd.44. The food article filling
head of claim 43 wherein the drive rod of the pusher bar unloading
system is rigidly attached to a crank arm and further wherein said
crank arm has a quick connect pin for attachment to the flywheel of
the loader parent machine power system. .Iaddend.
Description
This invention relates to a filling head for food articles such as
franks or other similarly shaped processed food articles of roughly
equal size. More particularly, the invention relates to a food
article filling head capable of quick connection with a loader
parent machine to allow an interchanging of different sized and
configured heads to accommodate desired packaging tray
arrangements.
Packing machines for all types of foods are very common and have
been widely used for many years. Typically, processed food articles
have a uniform shade which renders them conducive to high speed
automated packaging machines. The processed food articles move
along a conveyor to a filling head and into trays, boxes or some
other form of packaging container. Often, the containers also are
on a high speed conveyor which moves the containers with the loaded
food articles to a wrapping station or another processing station
used in the ultimate distribution of the food to the consumer.
Speed of packaging the food articles is of utmost importance. Any
packaging machine must keep up with the supply of food articles
being processed. It is particularly important for sanitation
reasons to minimize the exposure of many processed food articles to
the ambient temperatures in a packaging plant. Machines are known
which can load processed food articles such as franks into
packaging trays. Most have a filling head where the food articles
are loaded, then unloaded into containers. The filling head can be
configured to load one or more containers at a time. The containers
themselves can be one of many different sizes to hold any desired
number of food articles. Ideally, any filling head on a loader will
be versatile enough to accommodate the varied food article
packaging sizes and arrangements.
In accord with a need for fast and efficient food article
packaging, there has been developed food article filling heads for
loader parent machines. The filling heads have quick connect
features to allow a head with desired capacity and food article
arrangement to be selected and installed on the parent machine. A
limited number of interchangeable filling heads for a loader parent
machine lends a great deal of versatility to the type of package
containers, both in capacity and physical food article arrangement,
that can be loaded. Most importantly, the filing head is able to
operate at an increased speed and in a very efficient manner. These
and other advantages of the filling head of the invention will be
apparent from the description which follows.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A food article filling head is capable of being readily connected
to and disconnected from a loader parent machine to make possible
the interchangeability of filling heads with different
configurations to provide varied food article arrangements. The
filling head comprises an open frame with means to semi-permanently
attach it to the loader parent machine to receive food articles in
an aligned array. At least two spring loaded flapper doors are
hingeably mounted on the frame to form a substantially flat
receiving surface to hold food articles as they are being loaded
into the filling head from a conveyor of the parent machine. A
pusher bar unloading system is capable of operable connection to a
power system of the parent machine to intermittently discharge food
articles from the filling head to individual packaging trays
positioned below the flapper doors. The unloading system includes a
set of slide blocks mounted to the frame, a horizontal shaft
mounted in the slide blocks, a drive rod pivotally attached at one
end to the horizontal shaft and rigidly attached at another end to
a crank arm with quick connect means, a set of pusher bars rigidly
attached to the horizontal shaft and horizontal elongated pusher
members attached to the pusher bars. Reciprocating motion from the
drive rod causes the pusher bars and associated elongated pusher
members to travel from a disengaging position to an engaging
position with the loaded food articles with sufficient force to
cause the flapper doors to open and allow the food articles to drop
into the packaging trays.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side view of the food article filling head of the
invention operably connected to an input conveyor belt and power
system of a loader parent machine.
FIG. 2 is a front view of the food article filling head of FIG. 1
showing food articles in position for loading into a packaging
tray.
FIG. 3 is a side view partially in section of the food article
filling head of FIG. 1 showing a pusher bar unloading system and
showing a drive rod connection to a power system.
FIG. 4 is a top view of the food article filling head of FIG. 1
showing the power system connections.
FIG. 5 is a front view of the food article filling head of FIG. 1
showing the food articles immediately after discharge from the
filling head into packaging trays.
FIG. 6 is a side view partially in section of a quick connect
system of the food article filling head of FIG. 1 showing its
connection to the power system.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view in isolation showing in detail the
pusher bar unloading system of the food article filling head of
FIG. 1.
FIG. 8 is a side view partially in section showing in detail a
slide block assembly of the pusher bar unloading system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The food article filling head of the invention is described in
detail in the following paragraphs and with reference to the
drawings. The filling head is particularly useful for the filling
of franks into packaging trays and for this reason is described.
Other food articles such as sausage links, fish sticks, zucchini
sticks and the like can as well be loaded in the filling head and
discharged into specially configured individual containers. The
food articles are similarly shaped of roughly equal size and
include cylindrical-, rectangular-, square- and oblong-shaped
articles. The containers include the packaging trays as well as
cartons and boxes. The packaged articles are for home sales as well
as restaurant and institutional sales.
With reference to FIGS. 1-5, there is shown a food article filling
head 10 of the invention operably connected to a loader parent
machine 11 and positioned over packaging trays 12. The filling head
is capable of quick connection to and quick disconnection from the
loader parent machine by means described in detail in the following
paragraphs. The parent machine is constructed and operates in a
known manner. It comprises conveyors for receiving the processed
franks and arranging them in an aligned side by side arrangement.
It is adapted for use with the food article filling head 10 of the
invention by the inclusion of guide connect pin receiving mounts
and mounting blocks with bar-receiving grooves, each more
particularly described below. While not illustrated, the packaging
trays are conveyed to and from the filling head by a conveyor of a
packager in synchronization with operation of the filling head.
Such packagers are well known and readily interface with the
filling head of the invention.
The filling head 10 has an open frame 15 with two horizontal lower
support members 16, a transverse U-shaped cross-member brace 17
attached to the lower support members, two horizontal upper support
members 18 attached to the cross-member brace 17, and two vertical
rail support members 19 extending from the lower support members
16. The frame 15 is configured depending on an input conveyor of
the parent machine, the packaging trays and the number of franks to
be filled at a time. As most evident in FIGS. 1 and 2 the filling
head 10 is configured to receive two rows of franks aligned side by
side, with each row of franks being loaded twenty-eight at a time
into a packaging tray. One tray receives the two rows of franks per
cycle with a double layer of franks being discharged during two
cycles into each tray to fully load it. Other loader parent
machines can deliver three or more rows of franks to the filling
head in which case the filling head is configured to handle the
increased load. The number of franks loaded into an individual
packaging tray can vary as well as the number of layers, i.e. a
single layer or multiple layers. The width and length of the frame
15 is varied accordingly as well as the number of flapper doors as
discussed in detail below.
The frame 15 of the food article filling head is adapted for
connection to the loader parent machine and is capable of holding
flapper doors and a pusher bar unloading system, including a drive
rod which delivers power from a power system of the parent machine
to open the flapper doors at the proper time. The frame members are
made of a rigid material, normally machined steel and/or plastic.
The respective frame members are permanently secured together by
welds, bolts and nuts or other conventional attachment means.
Quick connect means on the frame 15 allow it to be readily
installed and removed from the loader parent machine 11. This
feature is needed because of the need to change filling heads
depending on the desired individual packaging tray arrangements. As
best seen in FIG. 1, each of the horizontal lower support members
has a mounting guide pin 21 (shown in phantom) extending axially
from its end. Mounts in the parent machine are positioned to
receive the guide pins. A transverse horizontal mounting bar is
also used in conjunction with the mounting guide pins. As best seen
in FIGS. 2 and 3, a bracket 22 is permanently attached to each of
the horizontal upper support members 18 of the frame 15 at the end
nearest the parent machine. The brackets 22 extend above the frame
and permanently hold ends of a horizontal mounting bar 23. With
reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, mounting blocks 24 each with a
receiving groove 25 are fixedly attached to the loader parent
machine to receive the horizontal mounting bar 23 when the food
article filling head is properly positioned juxtaposed the parent
machine. Once so positioned, the mounting bar extends fully into
the grooves. A vertical hole in each mounting block receives a drop
pin 26. The drop pins 25 engage a side of the mounting bar 23 and
in effect lock the filling head in place. The drop pins are readily
removed and the frame pulled away from the loader parent machine as
need dictates.
At least two spring loaded flapper doors are mounted on the frame
to control the loading and discharging of franks from the filling
head. The filling head 10 is configured to discharge two rows of
franks at a time. Accordingly, two sets of flapper doors are
mounted to the frame. The flapper doors are suspended from the
frame by the use of a front rod 30 and a back rod (not shown). The
front rod 30 extends between the two horizontal lower support
members 16 and rests in notches at their terminuses. The front rod
30 is used to hold hanger brackets 31 near each horizontal lower
support member and a hanger bracket 32 at a mid-point. Associated
brackets are positioned on the back rod. Door rods 33 are hung to
the frame by use of the brackets 31 to extend along each of the
horizontal lower support members 16. Parallel internal door rods 34
are attached to the bracket 32. Each set of door rods 33 and 34 is
each used to hold two cooperating flapper doors 35, best seen in
FIG. 2. The flapper doors extend substantially the full length of
the frame and extend inwardly a sufficient distance to provide
support to the franks to hold them in a flat plane. The free edge
of each door 35 is offset from the hinged end to minimize contact
with the franks and to allow them to more freely drop when the
doors are forced open as more fully described below. Generally, a
flapper door width of about one inch to about three inches for each
associated flapper door is adequate to provide ends of the franks
with sufficient support to maintain them in a planar disposition.
At least two torsional springs 36 are mounted on the door rods and
are operably associated with each flapper door 35 to hold it in a
substantially horizontal closed positioned which will return to
that position after an opening force is removed.
The front rod 30 which extends between the two horizontal lower
support members 16 is also used to hold end stops to limit the
forward movement of the franks during a loading step. As seen in
FIGS. 2 and 4, two hanger brackets 37 are mounted on the front rod
30 at an approximate mid-point of each frank row. Each end stop 38
extends from the bracket 37. The end stop 38 is a generally
U-shaped member which extends inwardly in a planar disposition to
engage the front frank of a row of franks being loaded into the
filling head.
The pusher bar unloading system on the filling head is used to
intermittently discharge franks from the filling head to individual
packaging trays directly below the flapper doors. The pusher bar
unloading system is operably connected to the power system of the
loader parent machine to translate a rotary motion of a flywheel to
force a downward motion to a drive rod to cause the flapper doors
to open and drop a full load of franks into the packaging trays.
The filling head is reloaded with more franks during an upward
motion of the rod.
As best seen in FIGS. 2, 3, 5 and 7 the pusher bar unloading system
has a set of slide block assemblies 40 mounted on rails 41
extending along the vertical rail support members 19 of the frame
15. Each rail 41 is permanently secured to a vertical rail support
member 19. With particular reference to FIG. 7, each block assembly
40 has a plastic slide block 42 with a groove to ride along the
rail 41. A metal bearing block 43 is secured by screws to the
plastic slide block 42. Each bearing block 43 has a centered hole
to receive and hold in a fixed position an end of a horizontal
shaft 44. The horizonal shaft 44 is rigidly attached to the two
block assemblies in a manner whereby it can only move in an up or
down direction.
A drive rod 45 is pivotally secured to the horizontal shaft 44 to
cause the shaft to move in a timed relationship as discussed below.
A collar 46 attached to the drive rod 45 and with an inside
diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the horizontal shaft
44 allows the drive rod to force the shaft down yet allows the
drive rod to rotate partially around the shaft in response to the
flywheel movement. A crank arm 47 extending from the drive rod is
rotatably secured to a periphery of the flywheel. With reference to
FIG. 6, the drive rod 45 is bolted to the crank arm 47. Rivets on
either side of the bolt extending from the crank shaft into the
drive arm ensures a rigid connection. A quick connect means
rotatably attaches the crank arm 47 to the flywheel 55. A first
bushing 48 is welded to the free end of the crank arm 47. A quick
connect pin 49 passes through the bushing 48 and a hole in the
periphery of the flywheel 55. A second bushing 50 is welded to the
backside of the flywheel to reinforce the attachment. A cotter pin
passing through a cotter pin hole 51 holds the quick connect pin 49
in place during operation. The cotter pin's removal allows the
removal of the quick connect pin and is one step in changing
filling heads on the loader parent machine.
The balance of the pusher bar unloading system comprises vertical
pusher bars 52 mounted on the horizontal shaft 44 and elongated
stainless steel pusher members 53 on the ends of the pusher bars.
Four pusher bars are positioned on the horizontal shaft such that
each pusher bar is directly over a flapper door as best seen in
FIG. 5. Each of the pusher bars 52 has a split collar 54 at one end
and is fixedly secured to the shaft 44 by tightening of a screw in
the collar. The pusher members 53 fixedly secured at the free end
of the pusher bars are elongated members which are horizontally
disposed and extend substantially the length of the flapper
doors.
A rigid guide member 56 is secured to the cross-member brace 17 of
the frame 15 at an approximate mid-point between the upper support
members 18 to contain the drive rod of the pusher bar unloading
system. The guide member 56 has a slot 57 through which the drive
rod 45 passes. The slot has a length which permits the drive rod to
move in response to the revolving crank arm while it has a width
which restricts any lateral movement of the drive rod. Movement of
the drive rod up and down causes a consequent movement of the
elongated pusher members in concert. Thus, a downward stroke of the
drive rod forces the horizontal shaft to move down. It is kept
horizontal by its rigid attachment to the slide blocks and their
movement along the vertical rails. In turn the pusher bars and the
pusher members are forced down in unison to contact the franks and
indirectly force open the flapper doors simultaneously. Movement of
the drive rod upwardly reverses the movement of the shaft, pusher
bars and pusher members. It is the smooth operation of the pusher
bar unloading system which is responsible for the enhanced speed
and efficiency of the feeding head of the invention. Rotary motion
is effectively transferred through the system with a minimum of
inertia and friction.
The franks to be loaded into the packaging trays travel along an
endless input conveyor 60 of the loader parent machine 11. As
shown, the franks are directed into two rows as they approach the
filling head 10. The input conveyor 60 has a plurality of spaced
receptacles 61 arranged in parallel rows such that each frank
travels down the conveyor in an aligned fashion. The receptacles 61
are disposed and supported by a sprocket chain assembly driven by a
sprocket wheel 62 mounted on a shaft 63. Each receptacle 61 is a
L-shaped support with a ridge 64 positioned mid-way in a base leg
to minimize contact of the frank with the leg. A protrusion 65 at
the end of the base leg helps to retain the frank in the
receptacle.
The franks are transferred from the input conveyor 60 to the
filling head 10 with the aid of a single piece filling head cage
66. The cage 66 is a set of S-shaped guide-wires positioned at the
end of the input conveyor 60 and adjacent the receiving end of the
filling head 10. The guide wires are disposed in a spaced generally
vertical relation to one another to collectively retain and guide
the franks around the sprocket wheel 62 and drop them into an
accumulating area. A sweep finger 67 mounted on a shaft 68
continuously rotates and engages the franks to create groupings of
franks in a predetermined number. Pusher pins on a conveyor belt
(not shown) push each grouping of franks from the accumulating area
into the filling head. The whole system is synchronized such that
when the filling head is unloaded and the pusher members moved
upwardly to allow the flapper doors to close, the frank groupings
are conveyed into the loading area of the filling head until it is
fully loaded. The end stops on the frame limit their forward
travel.
The sprocket wheel 62 of the input conveyor 60, the flywheel 55
used to transfer power to the drive rod, and the sweep finger 67
are mounted on shafts which are run by the same power source and
are synchronized so that the proper number of franks are delivered
to the filling head at the proper time. With reference to FIG. 1,
the main power source delivers power to the shaft 70 and its
associated sprocket wheel 71. Power is delivered to the reversing
sprocket wheel 72 which in turn is delivered to the sweep finger
67. The sprocket wheel 72 also delivers power to the
interchangeable sprocket wheel 73 mounted on a shaft 74. A
proximity sensor 75 is operably associated with the shaft 68 and is
used to sense revolutions of the shaft Its reading is transmitted
to a computer 76. In effect, the number of frank groupings put into
the filling head by operation of the sweep finger 67 is transmitted
to the computer through operation of the proximity sensor 75. When
the predetermined number of franks are loaded into the filling
head, the computer energizes a single cycle clutch 77 (as best seen
in FIG. 4) to cause a shaft 78 to revolve one full turn. This power
is transferred through its associated sprocket wheel 79 to cause
one revolution of the shaft 80 and its associated flywheel 55 and
an unloading the franks into the trays. A set of sprocket chains
(shown in schematic hidden lines in the figures) transfers power
from the power source and to the various sprocket wheels and their
shafts. The various gearings and idler wheels used in the power
transfers are conventional.
The single power source powers the filling head and the loader
parent machine. The loading of the filling head is synchronized
with the delivery of franks from the input conveyor of the loader
parent machine and the intermittent discharge of the filling head.
The versatility of the filling head is enhanced by the fact the
interchangeable sprocket wheel 73 can be changed to change cycle
speed with a consequent different frank grouping size loaded into
the filling head.
As illustrated, two packaging trays 12 are being loaded
simultaneously by the filling head 10. The packaging trays travel
along a conveyor (not shown) transverse to the food article filling
head. The positioning of the packaging trays and their travel is
done in a conventional manner.
In operation, a filling head of the invention with the requisite
food article size and configuration for a desired packaging
arrangement is positioned near the loader parent machine. The
mounting guide pins and the horizontal mounting bar are matched
with the mount holes and receiving brackets, respectively of the
parent machine. The bar is shoved fully into the receiving grooves
and the drop pins properly positioned. Next, the crank arm at the
end of the drive rod is aligned with the flywheel, the quick
connect pin inserted fully and the cotter pin added to connect the
filling head to the power system of the parent machine. The input
conveyor of the parent machine and the drive rod movement are
synchronized such that food articles traveling down the input
conveyor of the parent machine are loaded into the filling head
when the drive rod is in the upward position. Upon being fully
loaded, the drive rod on a downward swing forces the elongated
pusher members to push directly and evenly down on the food
articles with sufficient force to cause the flapper doors to swing
open and the food articles to drop directly down in a planar
relationship to the awaiting packaging trays. As the drive rod
begins its upwardly movement, the elongated pusher members pull
back up to allow the flapper doors to close. A new batch of food
articles are then loaded into the filling head. The loading process
is completed prior to the drive rod moving back down.
While the invention has been described in detail, it should be
understood various changes can be made. All such modifications of
an obvious nature and all uses of the food article filling head to
load food articles of all natures and in all packaging arrangements
are considered within the scope of the appended claims.
* * * * *