US3866394A

US3866394A - High speed packaging device

Info

Publication number: US3866394A
Application number: US440080A
Authority: US
Inventors: Toshio Masai
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1973-02-06
Filing date: 1974-02-06
Publication date: 1975-02-18
Anticipated expiration: 1992-02-18
Also published as: DE2405691B2; JPS5211268B2; DE2405691C3; JPS49103784A; DE2405691A1; IT1005838B

Abstract

A high speed packaging device comprising: A. MEANS FOR FEEDING A HEAT SEALABLE FILM TO A ROTARY SEALINGFILLING DEVICE FROM THE DIRECTION OF ONE TANGENT OF THE DEVICE BY PROGRESSIVELY FOLDING THE FILM LONGITUDINALLY IN HALF SO AS TO MAKE THE UPPER OPEN EDGES OF THE FOLDED FILM FACE UPWARDLY; B. THE ROTARY SEALING-FILLING DEVICE COMPRISING A ROTARY DRUM HAVING A PLURALITY OF FREELY OPENABLE AND CLOSABLE PLATE-SHAPED SEALERS MOUNTED AT EQUAL SPACES THEREON, A BOTTOMED CYLINDRICAL HOPPER FOR FEEDING A MATERIAL, SAID HOPPER BEING DISPOSED ON THE UPPER PART OF SAID DRUM SO AS TO BE ROTATABLE ECCENTRICALLY AND SYNCHRONOUSLY WITH RESPECT TO SAID ROTARY DRUM AND HAVING OPENINGS OF PRE-DETERMINED SIZE FOR THE MATERIAL TO BE FILLED FORMED AT EQUAL SPACES ALONG THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL EDGE OF THE BOTTOM THEREOF, AND A PLURALITY OF MATERIAL DROPPING SPOUTS DISPOSED IMMEDIATELY BELOW SAID OPENINGS AND FREELY ELEVATABLY ALONG THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF SAID ROTARY DRUM AND BEING ROTATABLE TOGETHER WITH SAID ROTARY DRUM; C. TOP SEALERS TO CONTINUOUSLY SEAL THE TOP UPPER OPEN EDGES OF A CHAIN OF FILLED POUCHES PULLED OUT FROM THE TANGENTIAL DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO THE DIRECTION OF FEEDING SAID FOLDED FILM BY SAID ROTARY SEALING-FILLING DEVICE, SAID SEALERS MOUNTED ON SAID ROTARY DRUM CLAMPING THE FOLDED FILM FED FROM ONE TANGENTIAL DIRECTION OF THE ROTARY DRUM IN THE POSITION IN WHICH SAID FILM IS FED, CLOSING SAID FILM ONLY DURING THE PERIOD OF TIME DURING WHICH SAID FILM IS TRANSFERRED WITHIN THE RANGE OF A CERTAIN ARC OF THE CIRCLE DESCRIBED BY THE LOCUS OF ROTATIONAL MOVEMENT OF SAID SEALERS, PULLING AND TAKING OVER SAID FILM AND EFFECTING VERTICAL SEALS AT EQUAL SPACES AT RIGHT ANGLES WITH THE LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION OF SAID FILM AND KEEPING SAID FOLDED FILM OPENED WITHIN THE OTHER REMAINING LOCUS OF ROTATIONAL MOVEMENT, SAID SPOUTS MOVING DOWN FROM ABOVE THE OPEN EDGES OF SAID FOLDED FILM BEFORE SAID FILM FED FROM THE TANGENTIAL DIRECTION OF SAID ROTARY DRUM IS CAUGHT BY SAID SEALERS AND BROUGHT INTO A FULLY FOLDED SHAPE, AND BEING INSERTED INTO THE INTERIOR OF THE FILM AND BEING GUIDED LINEARLY TOGETHER WITH SAID FILM TO A POSITION OF POINT OF CONTACT BETWEEN SAID FILM AND SAID ROTARY DRUM, SAID OPENINGS OF SAID HOPPER FORMING AN INSCRIBED CIRCLE WITH RESPECT TO A PART OF THE LOCUS OF ROTATIONAL MOVEMENT OF SAID SPOUTS AND SAID OPENINGS AND SAID SPOUTS OVERLAPPING WITH EACH OTHER IN A CERTAIN SECTOR RANGE WITHIN WHICH SAID FILM IS SEPARATED FROM THE SEALERS AFTER COMPLETION OF SAID VERTICAL SEALING, SAID OPENINGS BEING OPENED ONLY WHEN THE OPENINGS AND THE SPOUTS ARE PLACED IN AN OVERLAPPED POSITION AND THE SPOUTS UNDERLYING SAID OPENINGS DROPPING AND FEEDING THE MATERIAL TO BE FILLED INTO THE INTERIOR OF SEALED POUCHES CLAMPED BY SAID SEALERS KEPT CLOSED, SAID TOP SEALERS BEING DESIGNED TO PULL AND TAKE OVER A CHAIN OF FILLED POUCHES LEFT RELEASED FROM CLAMPING BY SAID SEALERS.

Description

United States Patent 1 Masai HIGH SPEED PACKAGING DEVICE Toshio Masai, No. 78 Tennojiya, Ohoza-Yao-shi, Osaka-fu, Japan {22 Filed: Feb. 6, 1974 211 Appl. No: 440,080

[76] Inventor:

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Feb. 6, 1973 Japan 4815053 [52] US. Cl. 53/183 [51] Int. Cl B65b l/OZ [58] Field of Search 53/183, 192

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,360,510 10/1944 Murray 53/183 X 3,563,001 2/1971 Cloud et al. 53/183 Primary Examiner-Travis S. McGehee [57] ABSTRACT A high speed packaging device comprising:

a. means for feeding a heat sealable film to a rotary sealing-filling device from the direction of one tangent of the device by progressively folding the film longitudinally in half so as to make the upper open edges of the folded film face upwardly;

immediately below said openings and freely elevatably along the circumference of said rotary drum and being rotatable together with said rotary drum;

c. top sealers to continuously seal the top upper open edges of a chain of filled pouches pulled out from the tangential direction opposite to the direction of feeding said folded film by said rotary sealing-filling device, said sealers mounted on said rotary drum clamping the folded film fed from one tangential direction of the rotary drum in the position in which said film is fed, closing said film only during the period of time during which said film is transferred within the range of a certain arc of the circle described by the locus of rotational movement of said sealers, pulling and taking over said film and effecting vertical seals at equal spaces at right angles with the longitudinal direction of said film and keeping said folded film opened within the other remaining locus of rotational movement, said spouts moving down from above the open edges of said folded film before said film fed from the tangential direction of said rotary drum is caught by said sealers and brought into a fully folded shape, and being inserted into the interior of the film and being guided linearly together with said film to a position of point of contact between said film and said rotary drum, said openings of said hopper forming an inscribed circle with respect to a part of the locus of rotational movement of said spouts and said openings and said spouts overlapping with each other in a certain sector range within which said film is separated from the sealers after completion of said vertical sealing, said openings being opened only when the openings and the spouts are placed in an overlapped position and the spouts underlying said openings dropping and feeding the material to be filled into the interior of sealed pouches clamped by said sealers kept closed, said top sealers being designed to pull and take over a chain of filled pouches left released from clamping by said sealers,

9 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENT FEM 8 I975 SHEET 2 0F 5 PATENTEU FEB] 8 I975 SHEET 3 [IF 5 PATENTEB EB 1 sum 5 [IF '5 FIG. 8.

HIGH SPEED PACKAGING DEVICE This invention relates generally to a device for automatically forming a pouch, filling and packaging the pouch by use ofa heat sealable film as a pouch material in the state of the film being folded in half longitudinally thereof, the material to be filled being mainly powder, grain and tablets, and more particularly to a high speed packaging device designed to effect vertical sealing and filling of a large number of pouches made of the film at the highest speed possible within the function of the device, with no restriction being laid on the time required for sealing or for filling the pouch by the application of one sealing-filling device.

Heretofore, an automatic pouch forming, filling and packaging device of the type described above has been classified into two kinds in accordance with the type of sealing method, one kind being the method by which to continuously feed a heat sealable film and the other being the method by which to intermittently feed the film. The former is a type wherein the film is intermittently supplied to a plate type sealing device placed in a specified position (a type of method in which the film folded in half longitudinally thereof is clamped and pressed into seal) and wherein supply of the film is stopped while the film is being sealed and wherein, upon completion of the sealing, a material to be filled is poured and, upon completion of the pouring, the film is further transferred. The method described requires a very long time in the completion of one packaged pouch, because the time necessary for filling and packaging one pouch is a total of time for sealing, time for filling and time for feeding the film, while on the other hand the latter has recourse to the use of a rotary roll type sealing device, wherein the film can be supplied during the sealing thereof and a material can be filled even while the film is being sealed but wherein the film feed speed cannot be increased over the time which takes longer either in sealing or in filling. Namely, the feed speed of film is determined depending upon the time required either for sealing or for filling.

In the meantime, viewedfrom the sealing effect produced by the sealing types of both methods, the former i.e. the plate type sealing device takes slightly more time than the latter i.e. the rotary roll type sealing device, but the former has the advantage that the pouches produced are free from defects such as pinholes. At any rate, the time required for forming and filling the pouch by the aforestated both methods is regulated either by the time for sealing or by the time for filling or by both ofthe time for sealing and filling, and unless the sealing time and filling time are reduced, production per unit time cannot be increased.

A primary object of this invention therefore is to provide a high speed packaging device that is excellent in productivity in that the device can effect high speed film feed with no restriction either in time required for sealing or in time required for filling.

Another object of the invention is to provide a high efficiency high speed packaging device that enables vertical sealing and filling ofa pouch with the material as aforedescribed at substantially the same time within a certain range of arc of one rotary drum by a rotary sealer and a rotary feeder (hereinafter called a rotary sealing-filling device) combined with one rotary drum.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a high speed packaging device that facilitates the production of a quality article free from defects such as pinholes in the vertical sealed portions in spite of high productivity of the device by the application of the platetype sealing device as the aforestated rotary type sealing device.

Still further object of the invention is to provide a high speed packaging device capable of effecting film feed, vertical sealing, filling of a material and top sealing on an all-automatic and continuous basis.

Yet further object of the invention is to provide a high speed packgaing device that enables precise filling operation and rarely makes wrong dropping of the material to be filled in filling a sealed pouch with the material through a filler spout.

Other objects, and features and advantages of this invention will become more apparent from the illustration and description of the invention embodied in its preferred forms.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a plan view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view showing, in section, the central part of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows the relative movement between the hopper and the filler spout;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IVIV of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line V\ of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line VI--Vl of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 shows another-closing and opening arrangement of a sealer;

FIG. 8 shows another elevating mechanism and a joining mechanism between the spout and the film; and

FIG. 9 shows the joining mechanism between the spout and the film.

FIGS. 1 through 5 show a preferred embodiment of this invention. FIG. 1 shows a device which comprises a means A for feeding the heat sealable film unrolled from a film roll to a rotary sealing-filling device B while folding the film longitudinally in half. The rotary sealing-filling device B vertically seals the film which has been previously folded in half longitudinally, at regular intervals and fills a pouch made of the thus folded and sealed film with a measured quantity of specified mate rial. Means C horizontally seals the top edge of the filled pouch provided by the means B and may include. where necessary as a means added to the means C. a rotary cutting means D for cutting the vertically sealed portions of the filled pouches into individual pouches.

In FIG. 2, the numeral 1 designates a rotary shaft supported on a frame 2, the shaft being adapted to be continuously driven by a drive means not shown through a worm wheel 5 mounted on the lower portion of the shaft 1. On the top of the shaft 1 is fixed a rotary drum 4, on the circumference of which a plurality of plate type freely closable and openable sealers 6 (l6 sealers are present in the illustrated embodiment) are equally spaced. Each of the sealers 6 comprises an L-shaped fixed piece 6b spaced along the entire circumference of the rotary drum 4, each movable piece 6a is pivotally mounted by a hinge 6c on the ends of the fixed piece 6b so that piece 6a can freely open and close, and

heating plates

6h and 6h are disposed on the opposed surfaces of both pieces 6b and 6a. Movable piece 60 is constructed in such a manner that when piece 6a travels along a rail 7, it stands up in closed relation with respect to the fixed piece 6b, but when the piece 6a is disengaged from the rail 7, it turns upside down into opened relation with respect to the fixed piece 6b. The rail 7, as shown in FIG. 1, is laid in such a way that it extends over the range of an are slightly smaller than about half of rotary drum 4 and forms part of an arc larger in diameter than the rotary drum 4. When the movable piece 6a rides on the rail 7 from the end thereof, it starts closing with respect to the fixed piece 6b and its closing pressure (heat sealing pressure) can progressively increase and decrease with that point as a peak at which the rotary drum 4 in FIG. 1 is practically brought into a relation nearer to an inscribed circle with respect to the rail 7. When the movable piece 6a is brought into a raised position, the folded film 82 (FIG. 1) is heat sealed by the heating plates 611 and 6h. Thus, sealers 6 are rotated together with rotary drum 4 and effect heat sealing in the range of about half of the locus of movement described by the rotation of drum 4 but do not seal beyond the range. In addition to the rotary sealers incorporated into the circumference ofthe rotary drum 4 there is also a rotary filler utilizing the rotary drum 4. The rotary filler comprises a hopper 3 disposed immediately above the rotary drum 4 for supplying a measured quantity of the material with which the pouch is to be filled. Spouts 13 are lowered into vertically sealed pouches to fill them with the material dropped from the openings 10 of hopper 3. Hopper 3 supplies a measured quantity to each pouch. It is rotated by rotating shaft 19 independently of the rotating shaft 1 as shown in FIG. 2. Hopper 3 is cylindrical in shape, has a bottom 31 (FIGS. 1 and 2) and is supported rotatably on a support shaft 21 connected to the frame 20. On the outer circumference of the hopper 3 is provided a gear 22, and a pinion 23 that meshes with the gear 22 mounted on the upper portion of the rotating shaft 19 which is connected by a chain to rotating shaft 1.

Hopper 3 is provided along the circumference thereof at the bottom 31 with openings 10 of a predetermined size that are opened on the side of sealers. Blind plate 11 is independently and fixedly disposed on the underside of the bottom 31 of hopper 3. When hopper 3 is moved relative to blind plate 11, the openings 10 are automatically opened and closed, and are adapted to be opened only when the openings 10 are positioned in the opened area of blind plate 11 during the cycle of operation during which the sealers 6 are closed. A scraper 12 is fixed to the frame and extends into the hopper 3. Scraper 12 is designed to fill the openings 10 fully with a material by rotation of the hopper 3, while the openings 10 are moving from the position in which they are opened to the position in which they are closed. The spouts 13 for filling sealed pouches with the material from the openings 10 are rotated and raised along the circumference of the rotary drum 4 in the following manner. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of spring seats 132 are spacedly and vertically fixed to the inside of the rotary drum 4, and shafts 133 are slidably and vertically inserted through the spring seats 132 and cam followers 15 are connected to the lower ends of the shafts 133. The cam followers 15 may be integral with shafts 133. Spring 16 is compressively loaded between each of the cam followers 15 and each of the spring seats 132 so as to constantly impart depressing force to the cam follower 15. Each of arms 13. The cam follower 15 is caused to move on the end cam 14 fixed to the rotating shaft 1 so as to make it possible for the spout 13 to make circular and vertical movement. Furthermore, spout 13 is designed so that the folded film 82 nontangentially contacts spout 13 by swinging the spout outwardly from the locus of circular movement at its junction with film 82. Spout 13 is moved down from above the folded film to the upper open edges of the folded film before the folded film is fed tangentially from the rotary drum, is caught by the sealers and brought into a fully closed shape. Then the spout is inserted into the interior of the film 82 so that the spouts may be moved linearly together with the film 82 to a point of contact between the film 82 and the rotary drum 4. Accordingly, there is no need to expand the edges of the opening of the folded film widely enough to permit the insertion of the spouts 13 into the opened edges by application of a suction nozzle or the like nor is there any possibility of the film 82 coming into collision with the spouts 13 at a junction between the two, with the result that the spouts 13 are allowed to be lowered inside the film 82 automatically and smoothly. As a means of making it possible for the spouts to operate in the manner described, there is provided in this embodiment of the invention a deflection plate 136 fixed to the side of support shaft 21 as shown in FIG. 4 and disposed in opposed relation with the circle 0 of locus of movement of the hooked rod of the arm 134 of the spout. Shaft 133 is twisted by the rod 135 bearing against the deflection plate 136 to cause the spout 13 to swing partially outwardly from its circle 0 of locus of movement so that film 82 joins nontangentially spout I3 and the end cam 14 is allowed to move down gently from such nontangential junction toward the position of point of contact.

When spout 13 first meets sealer 6 during the insertion of spout 13 into film 82, movable piece 6a of sealer 6 rides on rail 7 and starts closing with respect to fixed piece 612. Film 82 is first taken up by the closing pres sure produced between pieces 6a and 6b and then rotated along the circumference of rotary drum 4. When sealers 6 move into an open position, the pulling force of the film 82 is taken over by top sealing members C. Thus, film 82 is pulled by sealers 6 during the sealing operation and then by top sealing members C.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, top sealing members C have a variable speed gear (not shown) in order to provide the same peripheral speed between the top sealing member C and film 82.

The contoured height of cam 14 is a factor in determining the elevatable stroke of the spouts in combination with the rotational movement of spouts 13, but it is possible to make hopper 3 as close to rotary drum 4 as possible by positioning hopper 3 to make its measured supply of a material, in eccentric relation with respect to rotary drum 4. Thus, the uppermost elevatable position of spouts 13 may be set on the side of hopper 3 but not below hopper 3 as shown in FIG. 2.

Referring now to the procedures through which a measured quantity of material is fed from hopper 3 to spouts 13, hopper 3 is a disk smaller in diameter than the rotary drum 4 (as shown in FIG. 1). The axis of hopper 3 is eccentric with respect to rotary drum 4. In this eccentric relation between the two, material is dropped from the hopper within a certain range of rotational movement relative to spouts 13. As shown in FIG. 3, the locus of rotational movement 0 of openings generates an inscribed circle with respect to the locus of rotational movement 0 of spouts 13, and furthermore, the distance 1 between the respective centers of spouts 13 is so established as to be equal to the distance l between the respective centers of openings 10, with the result that when the rotation of rotary drum 4 and hopper 3 brings spouts 13 and openings 10 into the sector range R in FIG. 3, spouts 13 and openings 10 are brought into vertical alignment with each other within the range R and material drops from openings 10 into funnels 131 of spouts 13.

The heat sealable film that forms a pouch is folded longitudinally in half (into a V-shape) in such a manner that the opened edges of the folded film face upward. A device A that feeds the heat sealable film thus folded from the direction of one tangent of rotary drum 4 is represented as a bugle-shaped folding guide 9 that gradually folds the heat sealable film 81 fed from a film roll 8 as shown in FIG. 1. The film 8 is folded successively longitudinally in half (in a V-shape) by bringing both side edges of film 81 into engagement with both outwardly folded rear edges 91-of guide 9 and transferring film 81 along the outside surface of the guide 9. The film 81 is made either of heat sealable synthetic resin or of paper having the same type of synthetic resin layer formed over the inner surfaces thereof to be brought into abutting relation with each other when the paper is folded in half. The folded film 82 is fed from the position in which the movable piece 6a of the sealer 6 is opened to the sealers 6 from the direction of one tangent of the rotary drum 4. The filledpouches that have finished vertical sealing by the sealers 6 and pro portioning ofthe material by the spouts 13 immediately after the vertical sealing are pulled through top sealer C. Top sealer C is a known type of heat sealer capable of adjusting a pair of upper and lower heating rolls 17 and 17' by a pressure regulator 171 so as to freely regulate rolling pressure. The filled pouches 83 that have vertically sealings 84 are clamped between the rolls 17 and 17 on the upper open edges thereof thereby forming filled pouches 85 sealed on three sides. The rolls 17 and 17' concurrently serve as take-up rolls for the folded film as previously described. In addition to top sealing means C (above described), cutting means D may be a roller cutter 18. A chain of filled pouches 85 is, optionally, automatically cut by cutter 18 into individual packages. In the drawings, numeral 25 designates chain sprockets; 26 a bearing; and 38 designates a regulating means that regulates the maximum open position of the movable piece 6a.

The device according to the present invention operates as follows. Film 81 unrolled from film roll 8 is folded longitudinally in half progressively by folding guide 9 and is fed along the outer surfaces of guide 9 from the direction of one tangent of rotary drum 4 to sealers 6. Sealers 6 rotate while they are pressing and clamping folded film 82 so as to divide the film 82 at equal spaces at right angles with the longitudinal direction of the film 82 in accordance with rotation of drum 4 to produce vertical seals 84. Spouts 13 are gradually moving down from above to the upper open edges of film 82 before the sealers 6 clamp and press film 82, and insert the lower ends thereof into film 82 by the operation of end cam 14. Sealers 6 clamp film 82 on both sides of spouts 13, press and heat seal the film 82. The

material to be filled (not shown) is enclosed by scraper 12 inside a measured quantity supply hopper 3 and is collected in the area in which openings 10 are closed. This material is put into the openings 10 while openings 10 are closed and the amount in excess of the capacity of the openings is scraped off the top of the openings 10 by scraper 12 and measured to a specified quantity by scraper 12 in accordance with rotation of hopper 3. Thereafter when openings 10 are placed in such a position relative to the spouts as indicated by the sector range R in FIG. 3, the lower portions of openings 10 are opened and the material therein is dropped into spouts 13 right below openings 10 and fed between the vertically sealed

portions

84 and 84 of film 82 through spouts 13. In this case, hopper 3 is mounted eccentrically with respect to rotary drum 4 and the locus of rotational movement 0 of the openings 10 is brought into the relation of inscribed circle with respect to the locus of rotational movement 0 of spouts 13, and both loci O and 0 include no such portion outside the sector range R as will bring the loci O, and 0 into alignment with each other. Accordingly, the path which permits elevation of spouts 13 is obtained on the lateral side of hopper 3 except for the portion wherein both loci O, and 0 are in the relation of an inscribed circle with each other as shown in FIG. 3, and it is merely necessary to make it possible for the spouts to be positioned right below hopper 3 only when the spouts are in the operational cycle of being filled with a material. Asa result, the distance between hopper 3 and spouts l3 within the sector range R in FIG. 3 is made as close as possible, and thus the material is dropped correctly and because the dropping becomes correct, it becomes possible to increase productivity by further increasing the numbers of rotations of rotary drum 4 and hopper 3. Thereafter, when rotary drum 4 is rotated and vertical seals are finished, sealers 6 are disengaged from rail 7 and released, and the spouts 13 are pushed up by end cam 14 to thereby pull up the spouts from film 82. A chain of pouches 83 which are sealed on the two sides thereof and which are filled with material is transferred tangentially of the opposite side of rotary drum 4 and the upper opened edges of the film 82 are successively horizontally sealed by a roller type top sealing means 17 to thereby complete a chain of filled pouches 85 which are sealed on the three sides thereof. Thereafter, the continuous chain of formed, filled, and sealed pouches 85 is cut off by a rotary cutter into individual packages. In the operation described above, sealing of the film at a plurality of points and filling at a plurality of points are parallelly and simultaneously carried out by a plurality of sealers 6 and spouts l3 and accordingly, one rotation of rotating shaft produces 16 filled packages as illustrated in the drawings.

As shown in the drawings, the device for producing formed, filled, and sealed pouches makes it possible to dispense with the time required for sealing by the sealers, effect filling and sealing simultaneously, make the time for sealing overlap the time for filling, and seal and fill the film while the film is being transferred; and because the present invention seals also other parts at the same time by the successive sealers while sealing one part of the film, the device of the present invention can carry out continuous film feed, filling, and packaging in spite of the fact that a sealing means like a plate type sealer which performs intermittent operation is used. Accordingly, film feed can be increased in speed regardless of the time required for sealing or the time for filling. In other words, production of filled pouches per unit time depends upon the speed of the film feed, but the present device makes it possible not only to produce a large number of packages by one action even if film feed is constant, independently of the time for sealing and the time for filling which govern the feed speed, but also to increase the feed speed itself. In this manner, according to the present invention, the production per unit time is far superior to that attained by the known types of devices. Moreover, because according to the present invention a plate type sealer is used in combination with the rotary drum and because sealing is effected during rotation of the rotary drum more time can be spared for sealing notwithstanding'this high productivity, with the result that quality packages free from defects such as pinholes on the sealed portions can be obtained. In addition thereto, because hopper 3 and rotary drum 4 are mounted eccentrically in vertical relation with each other, the distance between the hopper and the spouts can be reduced as much as possible, with the result that not only correct dropping of material from the hopper into the spouts is insured but also there is no loss in amount of material during supply nor adhesion of the split material to other members. According to the present invention, the respective numbers of rotations of the rotary drum and hopper can be increased to a high speed of 400 rpm/min at maximum which has never heretofore been attained.

Modifications and revisions may be made without departing from the inventive concept herein described. Three specific modifications are:

I. The contact and separation of movable piece 6a of the sealer with and from rail 7 that has been illustrated by way of example as the opening and closing mechanism of the sealer of the sealing-filling device may be replaced by the structure in which, as shown in FIG. 7, a leg 6e projects at the end of the movable piece 6a, a roller (roller bearing) 6d is mounted on the end of the leg 6e, the roller 6a is caused to roll in an endless grooved cam 27 and the cam 27 is disposed in opposition to the sealer to move the same endlessly around the rotary drum 4 in such a relation in which, as shown in FIG. 7, grooved cam 27 is horizontally placed opposite to the roller within the range of sealing and placed vertically opposite to the roller within the range of nonsealing.

II. The vertical movement of spouts l3 and nontangential contact of spouts l3 and film 82 may be carried out by the provision of an, end cam 14, cam followers 15, deflection plate 136 and hooked piece 135 of an arm 134 but this mechanism may be replaced by the structure in which, as shown in FIG. 8, an endless grooved cam 31 is disposed so as to impart the necessary ability to rise and fall to the spouts 13 by extending a leg 29 intermediately of the shaft 28 of a lengthwise long spout, mounting a roller 30 on the end of the leg 29, and causing roller 30 to roll in the grooved cam 31 so as to suitably change the vertical position of the grooved cam 31. Numeral 33 is collar stopper adapted to prevent the vertical movement of shaft 28 mounted intermediately thereof.

III. A lever 32 is connected to the lever end of the shaft 28 referred to in II) above, a leg 34 is connected to the other end of lever 32, a roller 35 is mounted on the leg 34, and roller 35 is rolled in a grooved cam 36 and cam 36, as shown in FIG. 9 in its horizontal contour, is caused to swing out and deviate slightly outwardly from the locus of regular rotational movement of the film in the position cam 36 takes before folded film 82 is fed from the tangential direction of rotary drum 4 and reaches the position of point of contact. Shaft 28 is caused to make circular movement, but roller 35 is caused to swing out slightly outwardly from the circular movement of shaft 28 in the area 361 in which cam 36 is caused to swing out as above, to thereby twist shaft 28 outwardly by 0 and thus cause spouts 13 to swing outwardly. The cam 36 is disposed in the form of an endless grooved cam around rotary drum 4 so that cam 36 may function in the manner described above.

What is claimed is:

1. A high speed packaging device comprising:

a. means for feeding a heat scalable film to a rotary sealing-filling device from the direction of one tangent of the device by progressively folding the film longitudinally in half so as to make the upper open edges of the folded film face upwardly;

. the rotary sealing-filling device comprising a rotary drum having a plurality of freely openable and closable plate-shaped sealers mounted at equal spaces thereon, a bottomed cylindrical hopper for feeding a material, said hopper being disposed on the upper part of said drum so as to be rotatable eccentrically and synchronously with respect to said rotary drum and having openings of pre-determined size for the material to be filled formed at equal spaces along the circumferential edge of the bottom thereof, and a plurality of material dropping spouts disposed immediately below said openings and freely elevatably along the circumference of said rotary drum and being rotatable together with said rotary drum;

c. top sealers to continuously seal the top upper open edges of a chain of filled pouches pulled out from the tangential direction opposite to the direction of feeding said folded film by said rotary sealingfilling device, said sealers mounted on said rotary drum clamping the folded film fed from one tangential direction of the rotary drum in the position in which said film is fed, closing said film only during the period of time during which said film is transferred within the range of a certain arc of the circle described by the locus of rotational movement of said sealers, pulling and taking over said film and effecting vertical seals at equal spaces at right angles with the longitudinal direction of said film and keeping said folded film opened within the other remaining locus of rotational movement, said spouts moving down from above the open edges of said folded film before said film fed from the tan gential direction of said rotary drum is caught by said sealers and brought into a fully folded shape, and being inserted into the interior of the film and being guided linearly together with said film to a position of point of contact between said film and said rotary drum, said openings of said hopper forming an inscribed circle with respect to a part of the locus of rotational movement of said spouts and said openings and said spouts overlapping with each other in a certain sector range within which said film is separated from the sealers after completion of said vertical sealing, said openings being opened only when the openings and the spouts are placed in an overlapped position and the spouts underlying said openings dropping and feeding the material to be filled into the interior of scaled pouches clamped by said sealers kept closed, said top sealers being designed to pull and take over a chain of filled pouches left released from clamping by said sealers. 2. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said sealers mounted on the rotary drum includes an L-shaped piece fixed to the circumference of the rotary drum and an L-shaped movable piece, said movable piece being raised into closed relationship with respect to said L-shaped fixed piece when the movable piece travels along the rail laid over a certain range of the locus of rotational movement and being kept opened when the movable piece is disengaged from said rail.

3. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein said spouts are connected through arms to shafts adapted to be freely raised and lowered with respect to the rotary drum, said shafts being raised by a cam follower and an end cam, said arms being swung and jutting out partially from the locus of rotational movement while being rotated by the arms abutting against a deflection plate mounted independently of said rotary drum, and said spouts being designed to be moved down from above the upper open edges of the film into the interior thereof before the folded film is guided to the position of point of contact of the rotary drum and brought into a fully closed state.

4. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein said material supply hopper has a scraper disposed inside, said scraper partitioning the inside of the hopper into the area in which said openings move from an open state to a closed state during rotation of said hopper.

5. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein said openings are opened and closed by a blind plate fixed to the underside of the hopper.

6. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein said means for feeding a heat scalable film is a bugle-shaped folding guide.

7. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said spouts is provided with a shaft supporting the spout and a leg projecting from said shaft intermediately thereof and a roller mounted on the end of said leg, said roller being rolled within an endless grooved cam to thereby raise and lower the spout, the direction of said cam facing said roller being in the same horizontal direction with that of said roller but being suitably varied in height.

8. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said spouts is provided with a shaft supporting the spout, a lever connected to the lower end of said shaft, and a leg projecting downwardly of the other end of said lever and a roller mounted on the lower end of said leg, said spout being rotated around the rotary drum by rolling said roller within an endless grooved cam, said endless grooved cam being, however, swung out and curved slightly outwardly in the position in which the folded film is fed from the tangential direction of the rotary drum, rolling of said roller within said curved portion twisting said shaft outwardly to thereby swing said spout outwardly from the circle of locus of rotational movement and feed the spout, said spout moving down from above the upper open edges of the folded film and being inserted thereinto before the folded film is guided to the position of point of contact of the rotary drum and brought into a fully closed state.

9. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said sealers mounted to the rotary drum include an L-shaped fixed piece secured to the circumference of the rotary drum and an L-shaped movable piece pivotally mounted on one end of said fixed piece, said movable piece having a leg projecting at the end thereof, said leg having a roller mounted at the end thereof, said movable piece being brought into a closed or opened relation with said fixed piece by said roller being rolled inside an endless grooved cam, said cam facing said roller being horizontal in direction when said movable piece is closed with respect to said fixed piece and being vertical in direction when said movable piece is opened with respect to said fixed

Claims

1. A high speed packaging device comprising: a. means for feeding a heat sealable film to a rotary sealingfilling device from the direction of one tangent of the device by progressively folding the film longitudinally in half so as to make the upper open edges of the folded film face upwardly; b. the rotary sealing-filling device comprising a rotary drum having a plurality of freely openable and closable plate-shaped sealers mounted at equal spaces thereon, a bottomed cylindrical hopper for feeding a material, said hopper being disposed on the upper part of said drum so as to be rotatable eccentrically and synchronously with respect to said rotary drum and having openings of pre-determined size for the material to be filled formed at equal spaces along the circumferential edge of the bottom thereof, and a plurality of material dropping spouts disposed immediately below said openings and freely elevatably along the circumference of said rotary drum and being rotatable together with said rotary drum; c. top sealers to continuously seal the top upper open edges of a chain of filled pouches pulled out from the tangential direction opposite to the direction of feeding said folded film by said rotary sealing-filling device, said sealers mounted on said rotary drum clamping the folded film fed from one tangential direction of the rotary drum in the position in which said film is fed, closing said film only during the period of time during which said film is transferred within the range of a certain arc of the circle described by the locus of rotational movement of said sealers, pulling and taking over said film and effecting vertical seals at equal spaces at right angles with the longitudinal direction of said film and keeping said folded film opened within the other remaining locus of rotational movement, said spouts moving down from above the open edges of said folded film before said film fed from the tangential direction of said rotary drum is caught by said sealers and brought into a fully folded shape, and being inserted into the interior of the film and being guided linearly together with said film to a position of point of contact between said film and said rotary drum, said openings of said hopper forming an inscribed circle with respect to a part of the locus of rotational movement of said spouts and said openings and said spouts overlapping with each other in a certain sector range within which said film is separated from the sealers after completion of said vertical sealing, said openings being opened only when the openings and the spouts are placed in an overlapped position and the spouts underlying said openings dropping and feeding the material to be filled into the interior of sealed pouches clamped by said sealers kept closed, said top sealers being designed To pull and take over a chain of filled pouches left released from clamping by said sealers.

2. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said sealers mounted on the rotary drum includes an L-shaped piece fixed to the circumference of the rotary drum and an L-shaped movable piece, said movable piece being raised into closed relationship with respect to said L-shaped fixed piece when the movable piece travels along the rail laid over a certain range of the locus of rotational movement and being kept opened when the movable piece is disengaged from said rail.

6. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein said means for feeding a heat sealable film is a bugle-shaped folding guide.

9. A high speed packaging device according to claim 1 wherein each of said sealers mounted to the rotary drum include an L-shaped fixed piece secured to the circumference of the rotary drum and an L-shaped movable piece pivotally mounted on one end of said fixed piece, said movable piece having a leg projecting at the end thereof, said leg having a roller mounted at the end thereof, said movable piece being brought into a closed or opened relation with said fixed piece by said roller being rolled inside an endless grooved cam, said cam facing said roller being horizontal in direction when said movable piece is closed with respect to said fixed piece and being vertical in direction when said movaBle piece is opened with respect to said fixed piece.