US2947904A - Machine for supplying a charge of propellant to an aerosol container and for sealing the latter - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 2, 1960 J. R. FOCHT MACHINE FOR SUPPLYING A CHARGE OF PROPELLANT TO AN AEROSOL CONTAINER AND FOR SEALING THE LATTER Filed May 4, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 F.L .L

II I '1 INVENTOR.

Johw PIC/MRO Foo/7' Aug. 2, 1960 J. R. FOCHT 2,947,904

MACHINE FOR SUPPLYING A CHARGE OF PROPELLANT To AN AEROSOL CONTAINER AND FOR SEALING THE LATTER 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 4,

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MACHINE FOR SUPPLYING A CHARGE OF PROPELLANT TO AN AEROSOL CONTAINER AND FOR SEALING THE LATTER Filed May 4, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 0 m T mm 4 8 1m WM 4 .llllH m 9 I IH W "HF-F NA 4 5 M A Kw 3 N 6 f i! w H 7 m 2 a 3 l. 9 7 4 M H M a H 3 a M 5 .c 2 4 3 2 ,3 :2 5 2 m 2 w F J /L v V A I. \l..l mg mfi wivm. \\\\\\\\\\\\\m L 6 M MW 4 BY i am yda l TTOENE Y 1960 Y J. R. FOCHT 2,947,904

MACHINE FOR SUPPLYING A CHARGE OF PROPELLANT TO AN AEROSOL CONTAINER AND FOR SEALING THE LATTER Filed May 4, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. JEw/v PIC/MED FOCHT w M @i r n l 1 MKIL N ILL:

flTTORA/EY 1960 J. R. FOCHT 2,947,904

MACHINE FOR SUPPLYING A CHARGE OF PROFELLANT TO AN AEROSOL CONTAINER AND FOR SEALING THE LATTER Filed May 4, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 P45 ii SEQUENCE TIMER To CLUTCH & BRAKE ATTORNEY mcmron SUPPLYING 'A' CHARG on PR ilThis invention is machine tar" supplying charge of propellant to an aerosol container and for thereafter seali'ng'the latter.

,'In the packaging of ers, it has heretofore'been'the practice toJintroduceth'e material to beQdispensed, i.e., ,theconcent-rate, intoithe. container, then attachthe dispensing valve to the container, thenevacuate air from the containenand then in troduce. the propellant; 'such, for example, as Freon in liquid forminto' the. container through the valve while the'latter is held open, and thenfinally gapplyto the stem; of'the valve a suitable spray button. These operations i have-generally. been periormed by. placing the concent-rate in the container .landxpermlanently .attaehingthe,

valve. to the latterl'before' introducing the assembly into a machine embodying a succession. of stations. .with op;

crating heads, where the remainingoperations are consecutively performed.

.According to. the present i topope'ningin which is .rloosely -positioneda closur e=on wliichiadischarge valve, attached spray --but ton,-is

permanently mountedl 'I'he. container is; thenv placed at a single stationin the rnachine where it remains station'ary until. all other operations are:completed through thejope'r-ationsof a single operating head. While atthis station, the container is .grippedand firmly heldin position, the .closure. is lifted to permit the propellant to be;; introduced through an unrestrictedppening .inthe COD-I" tainer, thepropellant is then -int roduced, and v the closure is thereupon placed in said opening and immediatelycrimped or otherwise locked. in place on the containerito form therewith a .permanent seal. The container is then, removed from the-machine and-theoperations described:

arecarried .on on the next container...

, The .present invention permits the complete assembly ofthe valve and its sprayjbutton on the closure.v by production machinery before the assembly is loosely placed in. the container opening It provides for the charging; of the container with, the propelljant through, an unob structed opening therein in very inuch less timethanit could possibly be accomplished when introduced through aj'valve held open for the purpose. It permitsall of the operations'of the machine to becarried out bya single operating head at asingle station in the 'machine and" thus greatly simplifies the construction of the machirie. It eliminates the necessity of' evacuating 'air'from the container while in the machine. ;And it very materially increases production over prior machines for charging and sealing aerosol containers. Moreover,*the machine is so controlled that the operations described automatically-1 follow; one another inrpredetermined sequence,; so that I all the operator Ihasto do; is to position" the containers I in the machine and remoyethem therefromand, in praci a becarried out on this ,operation U te Sta e Pete/ 31 aerosols within metal contain'- I vention, contradis tinc tion, the concentrate is placed in; a .container having a a t d ug. 2, 1960 tioniandf'appended claims when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. I

"f The accompanying drawings illustrate one practical embodiment of this invention, but the construction there- 5 in shown is to be understood as illustrative, only, and not.

asdefining the limitsof the invention.

Fig. 1' is a perspectiveview largelydiagrammatic in. nature showing the mechanical parts and the primary' electrical controls. I' Y [Fig 2 is a sectiononthe line 2.-2 of Fig. 1. Fig.3 is a section'on'the line 3-- -3. of Fig. -2.

Fig. 4 is a section on the -line 4 4 of Figs. 3 and 8.

lFigs. 5 10 are views illustrating successive steps i111. the operation of the machine from the time the container is'fplaced in the machinetothe time when .the cap isv crimped in place on the containertocomplete the filling; and sealing operation. In theseyieWsQFi'gJ 8 is a section. on theline of Fig.. 4 and'Fig'. 10 shows certain parts. broken away .on-the line 10410" of Fig. 3.

1Eig. .11 is an electric Wiring diagram for the machine 1 shown in {the foregoing figuresofthe drawings.

In the drawings, .1 designates, the frame of the ma-.

chine which comprises a table 2 beneath which is a shelf 3-. On the-table. Zis supported an upright tubular guide 4 inwhich aplungerfiisguided-for vertical move-.,. en a d keyeia a a rota ThevPP an f i plunger 5 carries. a horizontal-arm Grand an upright. rod

7;.passesdown ard ly through the arm 6 and plunger-5 to a point benea shelf 13 The rod.7 passes loosely throughthe arm .6 and plunger 5 and has 'a head '11 with aspring 12 interposed between the head and the arm,- 6, sothat, when the arm isl drawn downwardly by the c ranl'c 9,-thearm .willbe yieldablydepressed;{Thepurpose of this ;yieldab1 e conent heights f .Mounted on "the shelf; isa-lc onstant speed. electric .40 motor.13. having a belt drive to a pulley'14 connected to a, the reducing gear. 10 through aninterposed.clutch andbrake' assembly 15 of. any appropriate. and conventional form.-.'1"he .function of this clutch and brakev assembly is i. tofoperative'ly connect the pulley 1'4., with the reduc--.

mg. gear so that the latter may be drivenat proper timesandto brake .the'reducing gear. at other times. The re- 'ducing" gear drives two cams 1d and 17 operable upon micro switches .and ,1 9.: to control electric circuits as hereinafter, described. a

,. end of thearm 6 isanoperating head embodying apair cylinders, namely, an upper cylinder ztl and a lower cylinder. 2.1;, .The lower cylinder 21 has anupper cylinder headf2 2 provided with an upright, tubular shank 23. which i .55 extends.iupwardlyithrough an opening in the-arm 6 and is ex t e" rnally threaded above the arm to receive a clamping. nut-2.4 which locks theshank rigidly to the arm and at the same time rigidly supports the lowercylinder on' I the armu fIheupper end of the-shank 23 iscounterbored and internally threaded to receive a depending shank 25 formedon the lower cylinder head 2.6 of the upper cylinder 2-0 ,whereby the; upper cylinder-20; is also rigidly supp t fi zhe M 116. 1The' lower'endof the lower cylin' der 2 1 is closed by-a lower cylinder head 27 of'tubu- =la 1' form and mounted in.the'cylinderbetween-the heads 2 2; and27 is a'piston'2 8 which hasaflepending cylindrisoft and'res'ilient material. 0 iqwencylinder head- 27 is out away asshown at- 3-1; so

n th tableand a link connection a cranlg fizmounted ona reducing gear 10 of any -;;appropriate. and conventional form, supported on the nectiori is'to compensate for containers.ofslightly differ. Q.

*Mounted rigidly on and aboveiand below the outboard V sl lev r-he s 7 shown in Fig, 3;"

The piston 28 is shown as built up, but essentially it provides a counterbored chamber 32 in'which is received tudinally slotted at'arcuately spaced apart distances, so

as to arcuately divide the lower portio'rr of this crimping member into a plurality of annularly arranged spring arms or clamping jaws 35; the lower ends" of which areprovided with external beads 36.

Positioned within the upper cylinder ZO'is'a piston 37 having a downwardly extending piston rod 38 on the lower end of which is mounted a jaw operating plunger 39. This plunger extends downwardly into the interior of the crimpingmember'34', as shown best in Fig. 3', and is chamfered at its lower end. When in raised position, the plunger 39 permits the jaws'to radially contract but, when'th'e plunger is forced downwardly against the interior converging faces of the jaws, these jaws are forced apart in a radial direction for the purpose of crimping a cap onto a container, as hereinafter described.

The jaw operating plunger 39 is actuated by the piston 37 within the upper cylinder 20 and the piston is, in turn, pneumatically operated by compressed air. admitted through inlets 40 and 41. Air is'selectively introduced at the opposite sides of the piston through a four way solenoid valve 42, shown in Fig. 1, controlled by a switch 43.

' The lower piston 28 is normally depressed by a spring 44, but is operatedby suction and compression, there being a suction inlet 45 into the cylinder above the piston" and a compressed air inlet 46 below the piston.

The lower head 27 of the lower cylinder is provided" below the wall of the cylinder 21 with inlet passages 47 i which are arranged'tangentially of the inner cylindrical surface of the head, as shown in Fig. 4. These passages provide for the introduction of the propellant, e.g., Freon, into the container. through inlets 48' to solenoid valves 49'of any appropriate conventional kind, their function being to normally seal the passages but they are adapted, when the coils of thesolenoids are energized, to unseal the-passages 47, so that the propellant may enter the container. The relation between these valves'and inlets is shown best in Figs. 4 and 8. From these figures, it will be noted that, when the propellant is-fed' into the interior of the lower cylin: der head, it enters the chamber therein and then the con tainer tangentially and is thus received therein withoutj undue agitationwhich' I have'found is apt to cause un-' desirable frothing, whereas it is preferred to deposit this propellant in a liquid state. Experience has shown that the'tangential feed is the best possible way of feeding which I have been able to produce. It overcomes many disadvantages inherent in prior practice'of introducing a propellant into an aerosol container; 7 I

Containers to be charged and sealedare adapted to be positioned manually orotherwise upon the tablez in apredetermined position determined by the angular stop 50 and as a container, such as indicated at C, is brought into" this predetermined position, it is adapted to actuate a micro switch 51 at the apex of the angle, asshown in Fig. 1, for the purposeof closing a circuit and initiating the operations of the machine.

It is essential in the operation of this machine that the various parts thereof function in predetermined sequence to carry out their respective functions and in this machine I prefer to control electrically several trains of mechanisms involved. I may conveniently utilize for this purpose any well known andconventionalform of sequence timer connected byelectric circuits with the several micro switches to which I have referred and which operates in a conventional manner to render the several micro switches eifectiveto initiate the operations-in proper sue;- cession.

Rather than complicate Fig. 1 of" the drawings by] showing all of the wiringconnections,Thaveincorporated be introduced-between ter'shown in Fig. 1 to its lower dead center.

, v 4 these wiring connections within a separate figure of the drawing, namely, Fig. 11, wherein I have indicated the several switches shown in the other figure. I have not attempted to show the details of a sequence timer because there are so many well known forms of sequence timer on the market that they may be considered conventional, In Fig. 11, the sequence timer bears the refer'erice character T. I

The operation of the machine will now be described in connection with the charging and sealing of one container This container before introduction into the position shown in Fig. 1 first receives the desired quantity of the material to be dispensed, to which may be added a small quantity of the propellant to purge the container of air. Variousforins of container may be employed, but the machine 'of thisl invention is primarily intended to operate on either plastic or metal containers which have a relatively large opening at their top adapted to be sealed by a closure'inthe form of a cup x equipped with a" dispensing valve having a spray button and an associ-f ated dip tube, such as illustrated in the Robert H. Abplan alp Patent No. 2,63 1,814, dated March 17, 1953. The

preferred-type of cupx is best shown in the 'accompany' ing drawings in Figs. 610 inclusive.

The type of container shown is adapted to be sealed byinserting the cup 1 into the top opening of the container and then expanding the-base portion of the cup to a greater diameter than theopening. To produce a leak-proof seal a gasket may ing.

It will be assumed in the following description that I am" charging and sealing a container. of this kind.

Having introduced the concentrate into the container andloosely placed the cup in the top opening thereof,, thecontainer'is brought'into the position shown in Fig. 1

and, as it seats in the apex of the angular stop or guide 'it actuates' the micro switch 51 to momentarily close the same (Figs, 1 and I1). This initiates the operation of the-timer Twhich immediately thereafter closes the circuitto the power unit 52 which controls the brake and cl'utch" assembly 15. As a result, the constantly driven motor 13 will be coupled to the reducing gear 10 for the, purpose ofmovingthecrank 9 from the upper dead cenp By the time this operation is completed, the cam 16 associated with the reducing gear 10 acts upon the micro switch 18' to disengage the 'clutch andeng a ge the brake of the 'clutch' and'brake assembly 15 to leave the crankat rest at lower dead center.

The movement of the crank Q-from upper dead center to lower dead center has effected thelowering of the arm 6 and the lower cylinder'Z-I' so that its lower cylinder head 27 bears upon and firmly clamps the container C" to'thetable, whilea-resilient gasket 53 associatedwith said cylinder head bears against the top of the container:

and forms a leak-proofseal therewith, as shown in Figs. 3 and 6. As the lower cylinder is lowered as' stated,

cup -x.

When these initialstepsof bringing'the lower cylinder and parts thereof'into cooperation with the container and'cup have been completed, the timer T acts upon the solenoid valve 54"(Figs. 1 and 11) to'cominunicate a vacuum through the connection 45 of Fig. 3

andexhaust theportion of "the'cylinder. above the lower piston 28"with thejresult that the vacuum thus produced is {communicated through a passage 55 to the interior 1' of""the'-tubular sleeve 29"and acts to anchor the cup- 3:

to the lower end of said tub-ular sleeve 29. The vacuum thus produced is f, siren magnitude that it ill; not

the cup and the wall'of'the openovercome the tension of the spring 44 and thus the piston 28 remains in its lowered position of Fig. 3.

. While this vacuum is held, to anchor the 'cup to the timed or the propellant may be passed through a suit-- able measuring valve, so as to feed a predetermined quantity of propellant but in any event as soon as the requisite amount has been fed, the timer T de-energizes the twin solenoid valves 49. Immediately thereafter the timer energizes two solenoid operated valves 57 ('Figs. 1 and 11) to vent both the upper and lower portions of the lower cylinderand the spring 44 immediately lowers the piston 27 of said cylinder to reseat the cup at in the container opening, as shown in Fig. 9.

When the cup has been seated as stated, the timer closes a micro switch 58 which, in turn, closes the relay 43 to energize a four way solenoid'valve 42 (-Fig. l) and feed compressed air into the upper cylinder 20 above the piston 37 (Fig. 2). This piston is thus depressed .carrying with it the jaw operating plunger 39 which forces apart the jaws 35 with the result that that portion of the cup below the lip of the opening in the container is expanded radially to a tight seal with the margin of the container opening.

As this operation is completed, the downward movement of the piston acts upon the enlarged head 59 of a switch controlling pin 60 so-that the pin is depressed and breaks the circuit at the micro switch 58 with the result that the four way valve 42 vents the upper chamberof the cylinder 20 and admits compressed air at 41 to the lower portion of the cylinder. The piston 37 is thus elevated and returns the plunger 39 to the position shown in Fig. 2.

While all of these operations, subsequent to the initial lowering of the arm are being carried out, the arm remains lowered as stated, but now that theseoperations are completed, the timer energizes the power unit 52 to disengage the brake and engage the clutch of the assembly 15 and the motor 13 thereupon drives the reducing gear 10 to return the crank 9 from lower dead center to the initialupper dead center position of Fig. l, tor the purpose of lifting the arm and associated parts of the head free from the changed and sealed container. As soon as the crank '9 reaches upper dead center, the cam 17 (Fig. 1) trips the micro switch 19 with the result that the .brake is set and the clutch released, so

that all the parts, except the motor, come to rest in the initial position. The operator may then remove the container and place another container in position to be operated upon through a recurrence of the operations hereinbefore described. A V I The foregoing detailed description sets forth the in- .ventioninits preferred practical form, but the invention is to be understood as fully commensurate with the appended claims.

For example, in themachine shown in the accompanying drawings, the container is positioned on a seat which forms part of the table '2. The seat, as well as the rest of the table, is stationary'and' the operating head is raised and lowered to'engage with'the container througih opera .tion of the plunger 5 as described. i v

Inasmuch as the primary purpose of this arrangement is to bring about engagement and disengagement due to relative movement between the container and the head, it is entirely practical to mount the arm 6 rigidly upon the part 4, so that the head will be rigid with the table and move the seat up and down to bring the container into and out of engagement with the head. This may be done by having the portion of the table which embodies the seat'and carries the guide 50 in the form of a movable platform mounted for vertical adjustment and operated from the reducing gear mechanism 10 by a pitman 8 in the same manner as hereinbefore described, so as to move the seat up and down in propertimed relation with the other parts of the machine.

' Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A machine of the character described comprising: a seat adapted to receive and support in upright position a container having a top opening with a valved closure loosely resting therein, an operating head positioned above the seat, means for producing relative movement between the seat and the head to bring about engagement between the head and the container, means on the head for producing aseal around the top opening of the container when the head is engaged with the latter, means'on thehead for lifting the closure free fromthe top opening of the container, walled passages leading into a chamber in the head tangentially of said chamber for introducing a predetermined quantity of propellant through the head into the container while the closure is lifted, means for thereafter lowering the closure, and means on the [head for thereafter crimping the closure to the container to form a hermetic seal therewith while the top opening of the container remains sealed with respect to the head.

2. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the flow of propellant-through said passages is valve controlled. 3. A machine of the character described comprising: a seat adapted to receive and support in upright position a container having'a top "opening with a valved closure loosely "resting therein, an operating head positioned above the seat, means for producing relative movement between the seat and the head to bring about engagement between the head and the container, said means embodying a prime 'movenchange speed gearing operable bysaid prime mover, a crank and pitman' including a spring for yieldably engaging the head with the container, means on the head for producing a seal around the top opening of the container when the head is engaged with tainer to for'm'a hermetic seal therewith while the top opening of the container remains sealed with respect to the head. j

' 4. A machine of the'character described comprising: a seat adapted to receive and support in upright position a container having 'a top opening with a closure loosely restingftherein an operating head mounted for movement toward and away from said seat in a direction normal to the latter and provided with a gasket to bear against and forin a seal with the container peripherally of said opening'to hold the container in fixed position on the seat, a hollow piston located in the head and having an extension carrying a gasket to bear against and form a seal ,with the'closure, a spring acting upon the piston to normally hold the same in lowered position, means for imparting-a vacuum tothe interior of the piston and its extension to anchor the closure to the piston, means for introducing compressed air below the pistonto elevate the same and lift the closure from the top opening 'of the container,- valve controlled passages in the head 7 the closure within said opening .Qf thecgntainerto form apressure tightseal between them.

5. .-Machine according to claim 3, wherein the connection between the prime mover andthe change speed gearing includes a clutch and brake assembly, andmeans for timing the operations of the clutch and brake assembly tosynchronize their operations with the operation of the parts carried by the head.

6. A machine of the character described comprising: a stationary seat adapted to receive a container having a top opening with a closure loosely resting in said opening, a cylinder positioned coaxiallyof the container on said seat and movable in a direction normal to the seat, said cylinder being provided with a lower tubular cylinder head provided on itsunder side with a gasket to engage with and form a leak-proof seal with the container remote from the top opening in the latter, an upper cylinder head forsaid cylinder, a hollow piston positioned between the upper andlower cylinder-heads and having a depending tubular extension provided at its lower edge with a gasket to engage and form a seal with the closure, a spring interposed between the piston and'the upper cylinder head to normally maintain the, piston in lowered position, means for introducing a partial vacuum into the interior of the tubular extension to anchor the closure to said extension, means for thereupon introducing compressed air into the cylinder below the piston to elevate the piston and lift the closure-free from the container, valved passages leading into the interior pf the lower cylinder head for-introducing propellant intothe container while the closure is lifted, a crimping member projecting downwardly through the piston anditstubular extension and having crimping jaws adapted toengage with the closure when the piston is-in lowered position, a plunger extending downwardly'into the crimping member, means for depressing the plunger to move the crimping jaws apart for the purpose of expanding the closure to a tight seal within the container opening, and means for bodily lowering the cylinder toengage the gasket of its lower head and the gasket ofithe tubular extension of the piston with the container andclosure and for elevating the piston to disengage the sealed container for removal from themachine.

7. Machine according to claim 6, whereinthevalved passages for the propellant are arranged trangentially of the interior of the hollow lower cylinder head.

8. Machine according to claim 6 comprising means for synchronizing and timing the operation of ,the parts to occur in predetermined sequence.

9. Machine according 'to claim 6;Wherein the means for raising and lowering the cylinder comprises a supporting arm mounted on a supporting plunger guided for vertical movement, a motor and changefspeed gearing interposed between and having driving connections with both the motor and the supportingplunger, therebeing a clutch and brake assembly interposed between said motor and change speed gearing, and means for syn chronizing the operations of the clutch and brake assembly with the operations of the other part of thegnachine to efiect operation of all parts of.,the machine in pre determined sequence.

10. An aerosol charging and sealing'machine comprising: means for supporting a containerhaving a topopening with a valved cap loosely engaged therewith, a charging and sealing head provided therein with a chamber, means for imparting relative movement between such a container and :the headto' engage .the'container with the head with the container opening registering with the head chamber, means to engage and lift the valved cap free from the container .andflthereafter ,to return it into engagement therewith, means for injecting a predetermined measured charge of propellant into the head chamber and through said chamber and container top opening into the container while the valved cap is lifted free from the container to permit unrestricted passage of propellant into the Container, and means for sealing the valved cap to the container after it has been returned to engagement therewith, said propellant being injected into the head chamber through a plurality of passages which are spaced apart about said chamber and are substantially tangent thereto.

11. An apparatus for charging an aerosol container having a top opening, comprising: a charging headprovided therein with a chamber having an open bottom with a gasket for forming with a container a seal about the top opening of thelatter, and a propellant inlet passage leading to said chamber tangentially thereof.

12. An apparatusaccording to claim 11, wherein there are a plurality of such inlet passages spaced apart about said chamber.

13. An apparatus according to claim 11, comprising a differential pressure valve for controlling the feed of propellant through said passage. I

14. An apparatus according to claim 11, comprising a source of propellant under pressure, a conduit leading from said source to said passage, a valve having a spring pressed sealing member for normally sealing the passage from said conduit, and a piston connected with and of greater area than the valve and exposed to the pressure of the propellant to unseat said sealing member when such pressure exceeds that at the source.

15. The herein described method of-fillinglan aerosol container having a topopening and a separate closure provided with a dispensing valve mechanism, which comprises: introducing into the container a predetermined quantity of active ingredient, then placing the closure loosely in cooperative relation with the top opening with the closure in'u'nsealed condition and with the dispensing valve mechanism closed, bodily lifting the closure from the container, then introducing a predetermined quantity of a propellant into the container through :the top opening thereof. beneath the closure and tangentially of the. top opening while the dispensing valve mechanism of the latter remains closed, and thereafterlowering the closure and permanently securing it to .the container.

16. The method of charging and sealing an aerosol container. having a top opening and a valved cap, which comprises: positioning the valved cap loosely on the container in cooperative relation with the top opening of said container, thereafter bodilyf lifting the valved capfree of said container to completely free the top opening from obstruction, thereby, thereafter injecting a predetermined measured quantity'of a propellant intofthe container substantially tangentially of and through the thus unobstructed top opening thereof, and thereafter returning the valved cap into cooperative engagement with the container andsealing said valved cap thereto.

References Cited in the file of thispatent

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