US2036105A - Cap applying machine - Google Patents

Description

R. c. s'rRouT 2,036,105

CAP APPLYING MACHINE v INVENTOQI( ZW wml j my@ @1m/111g.

l ATTONEY R. c. STRou-r 'CAP APPLYING MACHINE Filed Dec. 11, 1954. 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR n H Wt w M ATTORNEY March 31, 1936. R, C, STRQUT 2,036J5 CAP APPLYING MACHINE Filed Deo. 11, 1964` 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 ATTORNEY T U O R T. S Q R.

CAP APPLYING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 11, 1954 INVENTOR f/M Q. @6.3M maf/M QAM ATTORNEY Y March `31, 1936.

R. c. sTRouT 2,036,105

CAP APPLYING MACHINE Filed Dec. 1l, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR BY /whvl Q sw j mwa., MMM.

ATTORNEY Patented `Mar.

mor.

CAP APPLYING MACHINE Ralph c. stront, Wollaston, Moss., ossimorlo Pneumatic Scale Corporation, limited, Quincy, .Ma,ss., a corporation of Massachusetts Applioouoo nooombor 11, 1934, serial No. 756,952 11 claims. (ci. 22e-so) invention relates to a cap applying machine.

One object of the invention is to provide a novel and-highly eiiicient machine for applying caps or coverings to containers and by which the capped containers may be produced in a rapid and economical manner.

.il further and more specic object of the invention is to provide a novel and eiiicient machine for applying contractible caps or coverings, such as those of wet regenerated cellulose, to the top and neck portions of bottles in order to provide the bottles with sealing members shrunk in tightly ntting relation upon the top and neck thereof and entirely covering the closure therefor so that the sealing cap is required to he destroyed in order to open the bottle.

With these general objects in View and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in theI cap applying machine and in the various structures, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and particularly defined in the claims at the end of this specification.

While the different features of the invention may he used with advantage in a cap applying machine for the application of various caps to different types of containers, the invention is particularly useful in the application of caps or coverings of 'Wet regenerated cellulose over the top of nlled and closed bottles and around the neck thereof in such a manner that when the cap or covering' dries it will shrink intotightly fitted relation upon the top and neck of the hottle entirely covering the closure and forming a sealing member which must be destroyed or broken in order to open the bottle.

ln the drawings illustrating the preferred ern-f hodiment of the invention, Fig. l is aside eleva" tion of the machine; Fig. 2 is a perspective View v of a cap or covering in opened position; Figs. 3 and tl are viewsof a cap applied to a bottle, before l andafter shrinking respectively; Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the machine with some of the parts omitted; Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional elevation' taken on the line t-t of Fig. 5, showing details of the cap feeding and applying' mechanism; Fig. 'l is a vievv similar to Fig. 6 with'the parts in different positions; Fig. d is a detail View of a cam to he referred to; Figs. 9, 10 and ll are detail views of the cap applying mechanism in different positions; Fig. l2. is a cross-sectionah l vievv taken on the line lf-lf of Fig. 9 showing a cap in position to be applied to a bottle; and

Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional detail taken on the line |3-l3 ofFg. 6. o

In the illustrated machine a supply of the wet regenerated cellulose caps or coverings, in col'- lapsed condition, is preferably 'stored in a magazine and provision is made for automatically lwithdrawing successive caps or coverings from the magazine, opening the same, and applying the open caps over the tops of successive bottles in a positive and highly emcient manner and into such positions that the caps upon drying may shrink into tightly tting relation on the tops and necks of the bottles, entirely covering the closures therefor. A

Referring now to the' drawings, in the illustrated machine the filled and closed bottles are fed into the machine on an incoming conveyor from which a bottle is transferred into cap applying position intermediate the incoming conveyor and a discharge conveyor. The caps to heap- 'plied are transferred frorna magazine by a vacuum operated device and then opened and positioned over the bottle to he capped. After the cap has been applied tothe bottle, the capped bottle is transferred to the-outgoing conveyor to be discharged from the machine.,

The machine is mounted upon leg members l? supporting a platen d upon which the main oper= ating mechanisms of the machine are mounted. lhe driving mechanism for driving the various instrumentalities of the machine is mounted heneath' the platen il upon suitable shafts journaled in bearings in the supporting legs t. The driving mechanism may he described as follows: d. driving pulley t, driven from any convenient source, such as anv electric motor, not shown, ls mounted on a.' short shaft The shaft d is provided with a gear lf secured thereon arranged to mesh with a gear ld on the outer end of a main cam shaft it and the latter has mounted `tlflereon allof the cams for performing the varie ous operations of the machine, as will he de scribed. The gear if is providedvvith a sprocket ft secured thereto which is connected through a chain fd and sprocket ft toa shaft 'f2 so that the shaft is driven from the gear l2. The shaft ff is' provided with a sprocket dt connected hy a chain fitto a sprocket tt secured to the end of the shaft of a vacuum pump of any usual or preferred construction and vacuum pump 50 is utilized, as will be described, to create the vacuum employed in transferring and opening the individual caps during theapplication thereof v to the hotties.

ds previously pointed out in the operation of 5t the machine the bottles are fed into the machine on an incoming conveyor 50 driven from any suitable source, not shown, and thereafter the bottle is transferred from the incoming conveyor to a plate 62 and positioned under the capping head. The transfer of the bottle may be effected either manually or by a pusher mechanism 288 generally shown in Fig. 1. After the cap has been applied, the bottle is transferred to the outgoing conveyor 5I, either manually or by a second pusher mechanism 240, generally indicated in Fig. 1. The outgoing conveyor 5I, driven from any suitable source, not shown, discharges the capped bottles from the machine. After the bottle has been transferred to the cap applying station, provision is made for withdrawing a collapsed tubular cap or covering from the bottom of a vertical stack thereof supported in a magazine 260, and for transferring the cap from the horizontal position in which it is withdrawn to a vertical position, and also for thereafter moving the cap to a position immediately above the neck portion of the bottle to which it is to be applied. The collapsed caps are stacked by an operator in the magazine 260 in a wet condition and are supported at the bottom thereof by small projecting fingers 262 in such manner that the lowermost cap may be readily removed and the remaining caps retained within the magazine. The cap withdrawing and transferring device indicated generally at 280 is mounted to rock in a bearing in a hub 283 formed on a horizontal slide member 284. A plurality of tubes 28l have attached to them at their outer ends a fiat suction plate 286 and their inner ends are secured to a hollow sleeve 282. The suction plate is provided with a plurality of openings or ports communicating with the tubes 20E and the latter communicate with the interior of the hollow sleeve 282, so that when suction is created within the hollow sleeve 282 the lowermost cap in the magazine may be drawn into contact with the suction plate, as illustrated in Fig. 13. The hollow sleeve 282 is connected with the suction pump through pipe connections 281, suction control valve 288 and connecting pipes 289, and through a connecting elbow 285. A vertical reciprocatory motion is imparted to the cap feeder 280 by a cam 500 keyed to the main cam shaft I6 and provided with a cam path 502 cooperating with a cam roll 504 on a cam lever 508 pivotally supported on a shaft 60, the outer end of the cam lever 506 being connected toa lever 296 by a connecting rod 298 and imparts a rocking motion to a shaft 300 to which the lever 296 is secured. A lever 302 is secured to the shaft 300 and imparts a sliding motion to a slide 3I0 through a slotted connecting rod 304 to which it is connected by a clamping connecting screw 306 in a slot 308. The second end of the connecting rod 304 is connected to the vertical slide 3I0 through a pin 3I2. The vertical slide 3I0 is slidably mounted in a bracket 3I6 which in turn is fastened to and supported on a bracket 3I8 attached to the platen 4. The vertical slide 3I0 is retained in sliding position by suitable gibs 309. Attached to the lower end of the slide 3I0 is a horizontal slide bracket 322 which forms a sliding support for the slide member 284 upon which the cap feeder 280 is mounted. The slide 284 is retained in sliding position by a gib 340 attached to the member 322. A horizontal sliding motion is imparted to the slide 284 by means of a link 350, one end of which is connected to the slide by a pin 352 fastened to a hub 354. A slot 360 is provided in the bracket 322 to permit the reciprocatory motion of the hub 354 therein. The second end of the connecting rod 358 is connected to a lever 328 mounted free to swing on a pin 322 attached to the vertical slide 3I0. A connecting rod 314 is pivotally connected at one end to the lever 378 by a pin 316, and at the other end to one arm 318 of a bell crank lever by a pin 388. The outer end of the second arm 382 of the bell crank lever is connected by a link 384 to a lever 386 secured to a shaft 388 by connecting pins 390. The shaft 388 is rocked by a cam 396 secured to the main cam shaft I6 and having a cam path 398 cooperating with a cam roller 400 supported on a cam lever 402 pivotally mounted on the shaft 60. The cam lever 402 is operatively connected to a lever 408 secured to the shaft by a connecting rod 406.

From the above description it will be observed that as the cap feeder slide 284 is moved to thc left, viewing Fig. 6, the cap feeder 280 is caused to rotate in a counterclockwise direction to bring the collapsed cap from a horizontal to a vertical position. This rotation is effected by a cam 4I0 attached to the bracket 322 through contact with a roller 4I2 carried on an arm 4I4 secured to the sleeve 282.

Provision is made for applying suction to the cap feeder at the time in the operation of the machine when the suction plate 286 is in contact g with the lowermost cap in the magazine, causing the same to be removed therefrom and held upon the suction plate 288 until the applying device operates to place it on the bottle. To this end, the valve 288 is formed in a bracket 29| attached to the platen 4 and comprises a rocking shaft 293 having a valve port 294 adapted to be rocked by a lever 295 fastened to the outer end of the valve shaft 293 and connected by a connecting rod 291 to one arm 299 of a bell crank 30| pivotally mounted on the shaft 60. The other arm of the bell crank 30I is provided with a cam roll 303 cooperating with an open cam 305 secured to the main cam shaft I6. It will thus be seen that the maintenance of suction at the suction plate 286 is so controlled by the valve 288 that suction is applied when the suction plate 286 contacts with the lowermost cap in the magazine and is maintained to hold the cap thus removed until it is delivered to the cap applying device hereinafter to be described.

After the cap or covering has been moved into cap applying position as shown in Fig. 7, a second suction member is caused to engage the opposite or free surface of the cap to assist in opening i it into tubular form and to thereby enable the cap to be inserted into the cap applying device. The second suction member comprises suction tubes 430 and 432 attached to a hollow sleeve 434 rotatably mounted on an arm 436. The end of the hollow sleeve 434 is connected to the suction pump 28 through pipes 638, a valve 440, and the pipes 84I and 289. The valve 440 is the same in construction as the valve 288 above described, being operated to open and close the suction line in proper timed relation, by means of a cam 442 attached to the shaft I6, acting upon a cam roll 444 mounted on the end of an arm 446 of a bell crank lever 448 pivoted on the shaft 60. The second end of the bell crank lever 448 is connected by mea-ns of a connecting rod 450 to a valve operating arm 452 which operates the valve 440.

Referring now to Fig. 7, the arm 436 which carries the hollow sleeve 434 and the suction members 430, 432 is mounted to swing freely on a stud 75 thereof an' arm 45t.

l tt is connected by a link 453 to e. fixed stud 45t lib till

acadien 455 fastened in the bracket BIB. The tubular sleeve 434 is mounted to turn in the lower end oi the arm 536 and has attached to one end The outer end of the arm secured to the bracket 3l8. An arm 355 formed as a part of the upper portion of the arm 555 is connected by an adjustable connecting rod 45t to the outer end of an arm 46B secured to a shaft ttt. The connecting rod Q53 is provided in its upper end with an adjusting slot ttt with which a clamping bolt 45B in the end of the arm ttt cooperates, to adjus'tably clamp the upper end ot the connecting rod 45B with the arm ttt. llihe lower end oi' the connecting rod ttt is pivotaily connected to the arm 455 by a pin tit so as to provide a substantially straight-line horizontal motion to the suction members till, litt, as the latter are moved into and from the cap applying station. The shaft ttt has a rocking motion imparted to it by a cam ll'll secured to the shaft lt, and the cam has a cam path tl? cooperating` with a roller lt'll located intermediate the ends ci a lever 455 pivoted on the shaft tt. The outer end of the lever 455 is connected by a connecting rod tit to the outer end of a lever tit which is secured to the shaft ttt. v

lin the operation of the illustrated machine, as thus far described, it will be seen that the cap or covering is placed and retained in position above the bottle by the suction members ttt and ttl. Provision is now made tor partially opening the cap into substantially cylindrical lterm, so that it may be inserted into a cap applying unit lllt, and to this end the suction members ttt and ttl are caused to be withdrawn slightlyby their respective cams ttt and t'll. In the loperation of the machine, while the cap is retained by the suction members in a partially opened position, the cap applying unit1 ltlll is lowered and an air nozzle itl is caused to move up into a position to torce a jet oi air into the cap so that the cap will be projected intothe cap applying unit lllt as it is being lowered. it the same time the suction members ttt and titl are drawn still further apart and returned to their original positions, as illustrated in Fig. 9. 'li'he air nozzle ltl is moved by a cam itt mounted on the cam shaftmlt and which cooperates 'with a 'roller lllt'on a cam le ver itil loosely mounted on the rocker shaft til. The outer end of the cam lever itt is connected to one arm itt of a bell-crank by a linl; l llt. The bell-crank is pivotally mounted on a stud itl secured to a bracketv ttt which is mounted on the platen l. The other arm ltd oi the bell-cranir is connected to a lever lill by a linlr lll. .lis shown in Fig. l2, the lever llt is secured to an air tube llt which is carried by the braclret itt. The lever llt and tube llt are held from longitudinal displacement by retaining washers or collars llt. The air nozzle lul is connected to one end of the tube l l 2 and the other end is connected by flexible tubing lill to an air valve llt similar in construction and operation to the valves above described in connection with the suction members 2st and Mil at the proper time by a cam ll5, see Fig. 5. Air is supplied under pressure to the valve fromany convenient source of supply through a pipe llt.

Referring now to Figs. l and l2, after the cap has been projected into the cap applying unit lllt, the cap is retained in the unit and in complete tubular form by suction applied to the sides thereof. A hollow sleeve lll forming' a part of the cap applying unit lllll is provided with holes llt The valve llt is opened and closed which communicate with an air space llt cut in the sleeve ll'l, and is connected to the vacuum pump 2t through connection itil, tube itl, flexible tubing l2t, and valve itt. The valve lill. similar to the valves above referred to, is actuated to apply and retain suction at the proper intervals by a cam lt through connections similar to those described in reference to the suction members 2M and ttl.

While the cap is retained therein by the suction as above described, the capping unit is now lowered with the cap, over-the top ot the bottle, to the position shown in Fig. i0, to apply the cap to the bottle. f The hollow sleeve lll is carried by a. slide member lib which is arranged to be raised and lowered on a vertical slide lili by a cam itl secured to the cam shaft it. li. roller llt mounted on a cam lever llt cooperates with a cam path lit in the cam lll. The cam lever lill, loosely mounted in the shaft tll, is connected at its outer end to a lever itl secured to a shaft itt, by a linlr itt. A second lever itt secured to the shalt ltt is connected to the slide member llt by a linlr llit', as shown in Fig. 1. v

As illustrated in Figs. lll and 1l., it will be seen that the second member or thecapping unit itt comprises a plunger lllt which lits into the hollow sleevelll and is shaped at its lower end to conform to the contour of the top ot the cap.` The plunger llt is also provided with an air hole ltl'l through which air is allowed to pass at the proper time, as will be described. The plunger itt is arranged to descend with the hollow sleeve ll'l as a unit, when the cap is being applied as shown in lig. lll, but is operated individually through the following connections. The plungeris clamped to a second slide member ltill on the vertical slide itt and the slide member itt is actuated to be raised and lowered by a cam itt secured to the cam shaft it through connections including a cam roll llill cooperating with a cam path llll, cam lever itt, linir itil, and lever lllt secured to a shaft l titi;v .il second lever lllt on the shaft lllb is'connected to the slide member tilt by a link lll'l.

Referring now to Fig. il, in order to assure the retention of the cap on the bottle, the suction on the cap is released and the hollow sleeve lll is raised to the position shown, while the plunger ltli remains in Contact with the cap. a jet of air is then projected through the hole itl in the plunger itt and at the same time the plunger is withdrawn from the cap, leaving the cap on the bottle. The cap applying unit llt is then returned toits original position in readiness to start another cycle. The airis supplied to the air hole lt'l from any convenient source of air under pressurethroughthe valve llt and flexible tubing litt. The valve itt is operated to release air at the proper time by a cam itt, see Fig. 5, and through connections similar to those described above. All the cams lor operating the valves are open cams and the rollers are heldin contact with the cams by springs'v itt, as shown in Fig. 6.

While certain features ol the invention are particularly designed for use in the application ci caps of wet regenerated cellulose to the tops oi' the bottles, nevertheless, it is not desired to limit the use of the invention thereto, as other caps may be applied to other forms 'of containers.

Having thus described the invention, what is` claimed iszl. ln a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for storing a bulk supply ol collapsed caps, means for withdrawing-successive caps from saiclsupply,

fill

lli

lid

lll

and means for applying a cap over the top of and onto the neck oi' the bottle, including a hollow cap applying unit adapted to be lowered over the top and neck of the bottle, and means for directing an air blast within a cap to project it into said unit, and operating mechanism for'raising and lowering the cap applying unit.

2. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means ior engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to the bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, and means for directing an air blast within the cap to project it into the hollow cap applying member in an open condition.

3. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to a bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, means for introducing a cap in an open condition into said cap applying member, and means for retaining the same therein during movement of the cap applying member over the top of the bottle.

4. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to the bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member. means for relatively moving the cap applying member and bottle, means for directing an air blast within a cap to open the same and project it into the cap applying member, and suction means for holding the open cap within the cap applying member.

5. In a machine for applying a cap to a bottle, in combination, bottle supporting means, a hollow cap applying member movable toward and from the bottle supporting means, operating means for moving the cap applying member, a cap engaging member for positioning successive caps below the cap applying member, an air nozzle movable into a position beneath the cap thus positioned to introduce a blast of air within the cap and project it into the cap applying member, and suction means for holding the open cap Within the cap applying member during the movement thereof over the top of the bottle.

6. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to a bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, means for introducing an open cap therein, means for retaining the cap in the cap applying member in an open condition, and projecting means cooperating with the cap for insuring the separation of the cap from the cap applying member after the deposition of the cap upon the bottle.

7. In a machine for applying a cap oi the character described to a bottle, in combination,

means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to the bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, means for introducing an open cap therein, means for retaining the cap in the cap applying member in an open condition, and projecting means cooperating with the cap for insuring the separation of the cap from the cap applying member after the deposition of the cap onto the bottle, said means including a plunger, and means for effecting relative movement of the plunger and cap applying member.

3. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to the bottle over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, means for introducing an open cap therein, means for retaining the cap in the cap applying member in an open condition, and projecting means cooperating with the cap for insuring the separation of the cap from the cap applying member after the deposition of the cap upon the bottle, said means including a plunger, and means for directing an air blast through said plunger.

9. In a machine for applying a cap of the character described to a bottle, in combination, means for supporting a bottle, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, and means for applying the cap to the bottle over the top thereof, including a cap applying member comprising a sleeve and a plunger movable within the sleeve, said plunger being provided with an air passage, the sleeve and plunger cooperating to form a hollow cap applying member of a size suilicient to it over the top of the bottle, means for introducing a cap in an open condition into the cap applying member, means for moving the cap applying member to apply the cap onto the bottle, means for moving the sleeve with relation to the plunger to withdraw the sleeve from around the cap after the latter has been applied to the bottle, and means for directing an air blast through the passage in the plunger during the upward movement of the sleeve and plunger.

10. In a cap applying machine, in combination, container supporting means, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, means for applying the cap to the container over the top thereof, including a hollow cap applying member, and cap opening means cooperating therewith.

11. In a cap applying machine, in combination,

container supporting means, means for engaging and holding a cap in a collapsed condition, means for applying the cap to the container over the top thereof, including a cap applying member, means for opening the cap and moving it into operative engagement by the cap applying member, means for relatively moving the cap applying member and container to deposit the cap over the top of the container.

I RALPH C. STROUT.

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