U.S. patent number RE30,144 [Application Number 05/894,237] was granted by the patent office on 1979-11-13 for apparatus for spin flanging containers.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company. Invention is credited to Karl Elert, Andrew Gnyp.
United States Patent |
RE30,144 |
Gnyp , et al. |
November 13, 1979 |
Apparatus for spin flanging containers
Abstract
A spin flanging machine for flanging the open end of container
bodies, such as metal cans. The machine includes a drive shaft
mounted for rotation on a supporting structure and a rotary turret
is secured to the shaft and carries a series of flanging heads.
Each head is provided with a plurality of flanging rollers which
are adapted to engage the open end of the can. As the turret
rotates, each head is rotated about its axis by the driving
engagement of a pinion connected to the head shaft with a large
fixed gear mounted on the supporting structure. The flanging heads
are moved in a reciprocating manner towards and away from the can
by a cam mechanism including a cam follower that is secured to the
end of each head and engages a cam groove on the fixed supporting
structure.
Inventors: |
Gnyp; Andrew (Brookfield,
WI), Elert; Karl (Brookfield, WI) |
Assignee: |
Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company
(Milwaukee, WI)
|
Family
ID: |
26973806 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/894,237 |
Filed: |
April 6, 1978 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
Reissue of: |
304093 |
Nov 6, 1972 |
04018176 |
Apr 19, 1977 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
413/37;
72/94 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B21D
51/2615 (20130101); B21D 51/2638 (20130101); B21D
51/263 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B21D
51/26 (20060101); B21D 051/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;113/16,7,115,12AA
;72/94,126 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Gilden; Leon
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Andrus, Sceales, Starke &
Sawall
Claims
We claim:
1. A machine for spin flanging the open ends of containers
comprising, a supporting structure, a drive shaft mounted for
rotation with respect to the supporting structure, a turret secured
to the drive shaft and disposed to rotate with the drive shaft,
container holding means carried by the turret for holding the
containers during the spin flanging operation, a series of flanging
heads carried by the turret, each flanging head being mounted for
rotation about its axis and being mounted for reciprocating axial
movement with respect to the turret, a fixed drive gear mounted on
the supporting structure and disposed concentrically of said drive
shaft, each flanging head including a series of circumferentially
spaced freely rotatable flanging rollers disposed to engage the
open end of the container to flange the same, a pinion connected to
each flanging head and operably engaged with said gear to rotate
the flanging heads about their axes as the turret rotates, each
pinion and the respective gear having substantially different axial
lengths to enable the pinion to move axially with respect to the
gear and maintain a driving connection therebetween when the head
is moved axially with respect to the turret, cam means
interconnecting each flanging head and the supporting structure for
moving the flanging heads axially with respect to the turret in
programmed sequence to thereby move the heads toward and away from
the containers being held by said container holding means, gas
supply means for introducing a gas under pressure through each
flanging head and into the interior of the container to aid in
stripping the container from the flanging head as the head is moved
away from the container after the flanging operation, each flanging
head includes a flanging head shaft journalled with respect to the
turret, said gas supply means includes a chamber in said turret and
communicating with a source of gas under pressure, and a passage
located axially of each flanging head shaft and communicating with
said chamber for conducting gas to the interior of each container.
.Iadd.
2. A machine for spin flanging the open ends of containers
comprising, a supporting structure, a drive shaft mounted for
rotation with respect to the supporting structure, a turret secured
to the drive shaft and disposed to rotate with the drive shaft,
container holding means for holding the containers during the spin
flanging operation, a series of flanging heads carried by the
turret, each flanging head including a flanging head shaft
journalled for rotation about its axis and each flanging head
including a series of circumferentially spaced freely rotatable
flanging rollers disposed to engage the open end of a container to
flange the same, means to rotate the flanging heads about their
axes as the turret rotates, means for providing relative movement
between the flanging heads and said container holding means to
effect engagement of the heads and the respective containers being
held by the container holding means and to effect disengagement
thereof, gas supply means including a chamber in each head for
introducing a gas under pressure through each flanging head and
into the interior of the container to aid in stripping the
container from the flanging head as the head is disengaged from the
container after the flanging operation. .Iaddend. .Iadd.
3. A machine for spin flanging the open ends of containers,
comprising a supporting structure, a drive shaft mounted for
rotation with respect to the supporting structure, a turret secured
to the drive shaft and disposed to rotate with the drive shaft,
container holding means for holding the containers during the spin
flanging operation, a series of flanging heads mounted on the
turret, each flanging head including an outer tubular body and an
internal shaft journalled for rotation about its axis with respect
to the body, each shaft having an internal passage extending to the
outer end thereof, each flanging head also including a series of
circumferentially spaced freely rotatable flanging rollers mounted
on the outer end of the shaft and disposed to engage the open end
of a container held by the container holding means to flange the
same, means to rotate the flanging head shafts about their axes as
the turret rotates, means for providing relative movement between
the flanging heads and the container holding means to effect
engagement of the heads and the respective containers being held by
the container holding means and to effect disengagement thereof,
each flanging head including a sealed chamber in said body
communicating with the passage in said flanging head shaft, and a
gas supply conduit for introducing a gas under pressure into each
chamber, said gas flowing through the respective passage to aid in
stripping the container from the flanging head as the head is
disengaged from the container after the flanging operation.
.Iaddend.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the manufacture of can bodies, such as beer or soft drink cans,
the open end of the can is initially necked down to a small
diameter and then flanged outwardly to provide a flanged neck
capable of interlocking with the can lid.
In high speed manufacturing operations, a spin flanging machine is
normally used to flange the necked-down ends of the cans. The
conventional spin flanging machine includes a turret which is
mounted for rotation on a central drive shaft and the turret
carries a series of flanging heads. Each head includes a plurality
of freely rotatable flanging rollers which are adapted to engage
the open end of the can to flange the same as the head is moved
into engagement with the can.
During the flanging operation, the cans are supported by a
star-wheel conveyor secured to the turret, and as the turret and
conveyor rotate, the rotating heads are programmed to move toward
the open end of the can to flange the same and to retract from the
can to enable the can to be discharged from the conveyor.
Because the components of the spin flanging machine are required to
provide a number of specific movements, such as rotation of the
turret, rotation of the flanging heads relative to the turret, and
reciprocating movement of the flanging heads relative to the
turret, a complicated and costly drive mechanism has been used in
the past to provide these functions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a spin flanging machine for flanging the
open end of container bodies, such as metal cans, and which has a
simplified drive mechanism, thereby reducing the overall cost of
the machine, as well as reducing maintenance and down-time.
According to the invention, a drive shaft is mounted for rotation
with respect to a fixed supporting structure, and a rotary turret
is secured to the shaft and carries a series of flanging heads.
Each flanging head is provided with a plurality of flanging rollers
which are adapted to engage the open end of a container body or can
to flange the same. The cans are carried by a star-wheel conveyor
that is secured to the turret and rotates with the turret.
Each of the flanging heads is rotated about its axis by a pinion
which is connected to the flanging head shaft and is engaged with a
large fixed gear on the supporting structure. As the drive shaft
and turret rotate, the pinions associated with the various flanging
heads ride on the large gear to thereby rotate the flanging heads
about their axes. The flanging heads are programmed to move in a
reciprocating path toward and away from the cans carried by the
star-wheel conveyor by a cam mechanism which includes a cam
follower that is attached to each flanging head shaft adapted to
ride in a cam groove formed in the supporting structure. As the
turret rotates, each follower moves along the cam groove to thereby
move the respective flanging head into engagement with the can for
the flanging operation and retract the flanging head from the can
after the flanging operation has been completed.
As both the rotation of the flanging heads about their axes and the
axial movement of the flanging heads is initiated through fixed
members secured to the supporting structure, the drive mechanism is
considerably simplified over that employed in conventional spin
flanging machines. Simplification of the drive mechanism reduces
the initial cost of the machine, as well as reducing maintenance
and down-time.
With the drive system of the invention, as the speed of the main
drive shaft is increased, the speed of rotation of the flanging
head shafts is correspondingly increased, with the result that the
flanging heads operate on each can with the same number of
revolutions for each working cycle regardless of the speed of the
main drive shaft. This enables the speed of the machine to be
varied through a substantial range without changing the intensity
of contact between the flanging rollers and the can, thus insuring
uniformity of quality regardless of any variation in the speed of
the machine.
With the spin flanger of the invention, no mechanism is required to
hold the can bottoms against the supporting plate of the conveyor
during the flanging operation, as is normally required in
conventional spin flanging machines.
The speed of stripping of the cans from the flanging heads at the
completion of the working cycle can be increased by utilizing an
air pressure release in which a blast of air is introduced through
the flanging head into the interior of the can to aid in removing
the can from the flanging head.
The spin flanger of the invention utilizes seven freely rotatable
flanging rollers with each flanging head and this not only produces
a more uniformly flanged can, but also enables the speed of
rotation of the flanging heads to be reduced and prevents any
tendency of the can to rotate with the flanging head.
Other objects and advantages will appear in the course of the
following description.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The drawings illustrate the best mode presently contemplated of
carrying out the invention.
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the spin flanging machine of the
invention with parts broken away in section;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section showing the
central drive shaft and one of the flanging heads;
FIG. 3 is a section taken along line 3--3 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a section taken along line 4--4 of FIG. 2; and
FIG. 5 is an enlarged transverse section of one of the flanging
head bodies .
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The drawings illustrate a spin flanging machine for flanging the
open end or neck of a container body such as a metal can. The spin
flanging machine includes a main drive shaft 1 having its ends
journalled in fixed supports 2 which extend upwardly from the base
3.
The shaft 1 is adapted to be rotated by any conventional drive
mechanism, and as shown in FIG. 1, a sprocket 4 is connected to one
end of the shaft and is adapted to be driven through a chain drive
5 by a motor, not shown.
A turret 6 having a central hub 7 is secured to the main drive
shaft 1 and includes a series of flanging head assemblies 8 which
are mounted in circumferentially spaced relation on the outer
surface of the hub 7. As the turret 6 is fixed to the shaft 1,
rotation of the shaft will cause rotation of the turret about the
axis of shaft 1.
As best illustrated in FIG. 2, each of the flanging head assemblies
8 includes an outer generally cylindrical housing 9 and a sleeve 10
is located within each housing and the rear end of the sleeve
projects a substantial distance beyond the housing.
A flanging head shaft 11 is mounted for rotation within each sleeve
10 by a pair of bearing assemblies 12 and 13, and a flanging head
13 is secured to the forward end of each shaft 11 by a central bolt
15.
As best shown in FIG. 5, each flanging head 14 includes a generally
cylindrical body 16 and a plurality of flanging rollers 17 are
journalled for rotation on the body 14. Each of the flanging
rollers 17 includes an inner base ridge 18, a central cylindrical
portion 19 and an outer tapered tip 20. In the flanging operation
the tapered outer end 20 serves as a guide to guide the roller into
the can while the ridge 18 engages the edge of the can 21 to deform
the same outwardly and provide the flange.
Each of the flanging rollers 17 is provided with a shank 22 (See
FIG. 5) which is journalled for rotation within an opening 23 in
the body 16 by a bearing assembly 24. In addition, the inner end of
each shank 22 is provided with a shoulder which engages a thrust
bearing 25 attached to the plate 26 that is secured to the inner
surface of the body 16.
As best illustrated in FIG. 2, the bolt 15 which connects the
flanging head 14 to the shaft 11 is provided with a central opening
27 which communicates with an axial passage 28 formed in the shaft
11.
The passage 28 and opening 27 provide a conduit for conducting
compressed air or other gas to the interior of the can 21 to strip
the can from the flanging head 14, as will hereinafter be
described.
Each of the flanging heads 14 is adapted to be rotated about its
axis as the turret 6 rotates about the axis of the main drive shaft
1. To provide the rotation for each head 14, a pinion 29 is secured
to the outer end of the head shaft 11 by a key 30. Each of the
pinions 29 is engaged with a fixed large gear 31. As best shown in
FIG. 2, gear 31 is secured to a cam plate 32 by a series of bolts
33 and cam plate 32 is connected to a supporting plate 34 by bolts
35. The supporting plate 34, in turn, is connected to the base 3.
With this construction, as the turret rotates, each of the pinions
29 associated with the flanging head shafts 11 will engage the
fixed large gear 31 to thereby rotate the shafts 11 about their
axes.
A cap 36 is secured to the rear end of each sleeve 10 and the end
of the shaft 11 is sealed with respect to the internal surfaces of
the cap by a sealing ring 37. A nut 38 is threaded on the end of
the shaft 11 and is located between the seal 37 and the pinion 29,
as shown in FIG. 2.
To move each flanging head 14 toward and away from the respective
can 21 is programmed sequence, a cam mechanism is utilized which
includes a cam follower 39 having a shank which is secured to a
flange on cap 36 by means of a nut. A spacer 41, as illustrated in
FIG. 3, is interposed between the cap flange and the follower.
Each of the followers 39 is adapted to ride within a cam groove 42
formed in the cam plate 32 as the turret 6 rotates. The groove 42
is provided with a contour such that each flanging head 14 is
sequentially moved toward the can 21 to provide the flanging
operation and is then withdrawn from the can after the flanging has
been completed.
During the flanging operation, each can 21 is supported by a
star-wheel transferer 43 which is secured to the main drive shaft
and rotates with the turret 6. The star-wheel transferer 43
includes a pair of spaced plates 44 having a series of peripheral
recesses or pockets 45 which receive the cans. The cans can be
introduced into the pockets 42 of the star-wheel transferer 43
either by a gravity feed system or by a suitable conveyor system.
After the flanging operation, the cans 21 will fall by gravity from
the pockets 45 of the star-wheel transferer.
In the flanging operation the bottoms of the can 21 bear against a
support plate 46 which is secured to the main driveshaft 1 and
rotates with the shaft. A wear ring 47 can be secured to the face
of the support plate and serve as a thrust surface for cans.
In order to facilitate removal or stripping of each can 21 from the
respective flanging head 14 a pressurized gas can be introduced
into the interior of the can after the flanging operation. To
provide the pressurized gas system, a sleeve 48 is secured around
the shaft 1 inwardly of the large gear 31 and cam plate 32 and the
sleeve is provided with axial passages 49 that are connected to a
suitable source of pressurized gas. Each passage 49 is connected by
a hose 50 to a chamber 51 in one of the caps 36. Each chamber 51
communicates with the central passage 28 in shaft 11, which in turn
is connected to the opening 27 in bolt 15, so that the gas can pass
through the shaft 11 and bolt 15 to the interior of the can 21. The
gas supply system is operated in programmed sequence with the
flanging operation so that the gas will be supplied to the can as
the flanging head is withdrawn from engagement with the can. The
blast of gas discharged into the can prevents the can from
following the return movement of the flanging head and maintains
the bottom of the can in engagement with the support plate 46.
The drive mechanism of the spin flanging machine of the invention
is substantially simplified over the drive mechanism normally used
in spin flanging machines. Both the rotary motion for the flanging
heads 14 and the reciprocating motion for the heads is activated by
stationary members, namely the stationary gear 31 and the
stationary cam 32. As the drive mechanism is simplified, the
initial cost of the machine is reduced over that of conventional
units and maintenance expense and down-time is also decreased.
With the drive system of the invention an increase in speed of the
central drive shaft 1 will also result in a corresponding increase
in speed of the flanging head shafts 11 and thus, each flanging
head 14 will engage the respective can for the same number of
working revolutions regardless of the speed of the main drive
shaft. This insures a more uniformly flanged product regardless of
the speed of operation of the machine.
With the unit of the invention no mechanism is required to hold the
cans 21 against the plate 46, for the cans are held merely by
frictional contact. The gas supply system which blasts pressurized
air into the interior of the can after the flanging operation
insures that the cans will not follow the flanging heads on the
return stroke and will retain the can bottoms in engagement with
the support plate 46 after the flanging operation has been
completed.
Various modes of carrying out the invention are contemplated as
being within the scope of the following claims particularly
pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which is
regarded as the invention.
* * * * *