CA2015334C - One step pull tab cap-lining machine - Google Patents
One step pull tab cap-lining machineInfo
- Publication number
- CA2015334C CA2015334C CA002015334A CA2015334A CA2015334C CA 2015334 C CA2015334 C CA 2015334C CA 002015334 A CA002015334 A CA 002015334A CA 2015334 A CA2015334 A CA 2015334A CA 2015334 C CA2015334 C CA 2015334C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- punch
- cap
- tab
- liner
- die
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D51/00—Making hollow objects
- B21D51/16—Making hollow objects characterised by the use of the objects
- B21D51/38—Making inlet or outlet arrangements of cans, tins, baths, bottles, or other vessels; Making can ends; Making closures
- B21D51/44—Making closures, e.g. caps
- B21D51/46—Placing sealings or sealing material
Abstract
A cap-lining machine is disclosed for producing cap liner inserts of the type used to provide a tamper evident seal on the tops of bottles and other containers. To facilitate removal of this seal, it is desirable to have a tab attached to one edge of the seal which can be grasped to pull the seal off the top of the bottle. The liner insert, with an attached tab, is formed in one step by a mating punch and die, each having first and second portions corresponding to the primary portion of the cap insert and the tab, respectively. The structure of the punch and die is such that the tab first is formed and then is folded beneath the main portion of the cap insert in a single operation. The punch includes a reciprocating tamper inside the main portion for pushing the cap insert, with the folded under tab, into a cap located beneath the punch.
Description
3 Background 4 Currently, many applications exist for providing tamper evident safety seals on the tops of bottles containing a variety 6 of different products. Aluminum foil seals commonly are used for 7 sealing such bottles containing petroleum products, food 8 products, medicines, etc.. The aluminum foil seal is adhered to 9 the upper end of the bottle neck, and the seal usually is formed from a liner comprlsing a laminate of aluminum bonded to a 11 suitable polymer which may be induction heat sealed to the top of 12 the bottle. Once the seal is in place, the seal insures that no 13 foreign materials subsequently enter the bottle after it has been 14 sealed and prior to its ultimate use. A second important purpose is that if tampering is attempted, the seal must be altered or 16 destroyed because access to the interior of the bottle cannot be 17 accomplished without doing this.
18 While such tamper evident seals serve the intended purpose 19 of protectlng the bottle contents from unauthorized access, they are difficult to remove. Generally, it is necessary to use a 21 knife or other sharp object to break the seal and tear it away 22 from the edge of the bottle neck. This usually leaves a ragged 23 opening around the edge of the bottle and sometimes results in a 24 spilling of some of the contents of the bottle durins the efforts to remove the seal.
26 Patent #4,754,890 to Ullman discloses a seal and a machine ., ~
1 for making it which forms a tab or protuberance on the edge of 2 the seal. This tab projects upwardly from the seal when the cap 3 is removed from the top of the bottle. The tab then may be 4 grasped by the user to peel the seal off the top of the bottle.
The tab and seal formed by the device of the Ullman Patent are 6 formed in a single punch operation, but it is necessary first to 7 fold the foil material under itself along both-edges prior to the 8 punch operation. The punch then extends past this folded portion 9 to form a folded under tab at the time the cap insert is made.
Thus, it is necessary to provide separate apparatus to fold under 11 the edges of the foil strip from which the seals are formed. A
12 problem also exists in maintaining the precise alignment 13 necessary to insure that the tab is not cut off ana that it is of 4 sufficient strength to prevent it from being torn away when the seal is to be removed fro~ the bottle. In addition, forming the 16 tab in this manner causes a flat edge to be also formed on the 17 seal i~self, which limits the size of the tab which can be 18 formec. I is difficult to maintain the necessary alignment to 19 overcome these problems.
Two other patents which disclose the need for providing a 21 pull ab on a membrane cover over the opening in a metal can, are 22 the Patents to Hardt ~4,328,905 and Wright et al. ~4,544,08C.
23 Neither o~ these patenls, however, disclose the manner in which 24 the tabs are formec.
Ano~her techni~ue which has been employe~ is to utilize 26 prog essive dies to first form a tab from a sheet of liner 2(~15334 . _ 1 material passing through the liner insert machine. The tab is punched at a first position with a tab punch; and as the liner advances, the tab is folded under the liner material. This 4 punched-folded tab then advances to the liner punch station where it is punched out as a part of the liner insert. Since the tab 6 is folded under the insert, which then is inserted into 2 cap 7 with the tab located between the cap and the line , it 8 subsequently can be utilized to remove the insert from a 9 container on which the cap ultimately is attached. For a progressive die system of this type to work properly, the tab 11 must be folded and creased without any defects, and then held 12 folded until it reaches the liner insert punch station. Once the 13 tab is located at the liner insert punch station, alignment is 4 critical. If the tab fold is not far enough into the punch station, the tab will be cut off. Also, if the tab is too far 16 into the punch station, slits between the tab and the liner 17 insert will result. These slits ultimately will cause the tab to 18 tea- away from the main liner insert when it is pulled to remove 19 the insert from the container on which the insert ultimate'y is attached. This then leaves the main portion of the insert 21 unremoved, with a rip or opening through i'. Consequen~ly, if 22 significant precision is not maintained in such a progressive die 23 system, faulty product results.
24 Il is desirable to provide a cap-linins machine which 2~ produces pull tab liner insert disks whic~ are no' subject to the 26 disadvantages of the prior art. Ideally, it is desirable to 1 provide a one-step punch and die and insert operation to produce 2 a tab liner insert seated in a cap, all as part of a single 3 machine operation.
Summary of the Invention 6 It is an object of this invention to provide an improved 7 one-step tab liner insert for~ing machine.
8 It is another object of this invention to provide an 9 improvement in the provision of a ta~per evident safety seal having an at.ached tab to faciliate subseouent removal of the 11 seal from the container on which il is placed.
12 It is an additional object of this invention to provide an 13 improvea cap lining machine.
14 It is a further object of this invention to provide an improveZ machine for producina a tamper evident insert seal with 16 a grasping tab and for installing such seals in a cap.
17 In accordance with a preferred e~.bodiment of the invention, 18 a -aF-lininc machine proauces tab liners and places such liners 19 in a caF in a single step operation. To do this, the machine incluaes 2 stamping die with 2 first portion shapec to correspond 21 with 'he internal size of a cap to be lined with a liner. A
22 secona S~2l ler aZjacent portion extenas from the first portion 23 anc is shapec to form ar. extending pull tab, so tha. the two 24 portions of the die together form 2 single opening in the die. A
punch has first and secona por-ions which mate, respec.ively, 26 wilh the firs ana seconc por.ions of the die. The punch is 1 moveable between retracted and punching positions to punch cap inserts with an extending tab on them from liner material located 3 at the punching position. The structure of the punch and the die 4 is such that, during the punching operation, the tab first is cut and folded under the liner insert portion as the punch moves 6 through its punching position. Once the liner with the attached 7 tab has been punched, it is seated into a cap located beneath the 8 punch as the final portion of the one-step punching and seating 9 operation.
11 Brief Description of the Drawing 12 Figure lA is a partially cut-away side view of a preferred 13 embodiment of the invention in a first stage of operation;
14 Figures lB throuqh lD illustrate a portion of the embodiment of Figure l in three successive stages of operation;
16 Figure 2 illustrates a pull tab insert of the type formed by 17 the apparatus of Figure l;
18 Figure 3 is a view taken along the line 3-3 of Figure l; and 19 Figure 4 is a view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure l showing details of a por~ion of the apparatus of the embodiment 21 of Fiaure l.
23 Detailed Description 24 Reference now should be made to the drawing, in which the same reference numbers are used throughout the different figures 26 to designate the same components. In addi~ion, reference also should be made to the Patent ~4,728,239 to ~ieran and Rickenbach, 2 assigned to the same assignee as the present application. This 3 patent illustrates a cap lining ~r,achine of a type which 11~2y be 4 modified to incorporate the present invention and describes in S greater detail the overall operation of a system for forTr.ing cap 6 inserts and placing theJr; in caps in a high speed automatic 7 operation.
8 Figures lA through lI~ of the present application are similar 9 in ~r,any respects to ~igures iA through 5C of Patent $~4,728,239, 10 and those colrponents whic~. are su~stantially the same as the 11 coJrponents of Patent ~4,728,239 have been given the same 12 reference numbers in Figures lA through lD as they are given in ~3 ~igures 5A through 5C of the '23g Patent. Reference should be 14 ~r,ade to the specification of Patent ~4,728,239 for a more 15 com~lete aescription of the overall operation of the basic cap 16 lining Tr.achine.
18 ~eference now shoulà be made to ~igure lA. In the operation t9 of the ~r,achine aescribea in Patent ~4,728,2~9, a cap l0, into 20 which an insert is to be placea, first is centered ~irectly 21 benea'h an opening l0Q in 2 die 71, which is locatec beneath c 22 punch block 45. In the -e~racted position shown in Figure lA, 23 the punch block 45 ano 2 punclh coIrp-isinS a first portion 70 and 24 c seconc ta~ cu.~in~ portion gn, is located in the retrac.eo 25 position. Once the cap l0 is locatea as shown in Figure lA, the 26 punch ~lock 45 is lowerec 2S aesc.ibeo in the '2~9 Patent, 'o .~
2~1S334 1 punch out a liner insert. The se~uence of operation for accomplishing.this is shown in Figures lA, lB, lC, and lD.
The punch portions 70 and 90 move downwardly together from 4 the position shown in ~igure lA first to ~he position shown in Figure 1~. As illustrated in Figure lB, the tab cutting portion 6 go of the punch first enters into a tab opening 101 in the die 71 7 to cut a tab 75 from a web 48 of the liner ~,aterial. The side of 8 the punch portion 90 which faces the main cap insert opening 100 9 in the die 71 is tapered at a relatively sharp angle 91 to cause 0 the tab 75 which is cut by the punch 90 to curl toward the left, 11 as viewed in Figure lB, as the punch block 45 moves downwardly to 12 effect the punching operation.
13 The punch block 45 continues its downward movement to the 14 final punching position shown in ~igure lC. In this position, it can be seen that the punch portion 7.0, cooperating with the 16 circular aperature 100 in the die 71, causes a circular cap liner 17 insert 74 to be cut fro~l the web 48. The punch carries the 18 liner insert 74 ana the curled under tab 75 to a position where 19 it engages the upper eage of a circular opening in a folding member 104 attached to the bottom of the die 71. This folding 21 member 104 is not present in the device of Patent ~4,728,239, and 22 it hac a c oss section as illustrated in ~igure 4.
23 It can be seen that there is a circular opening in the 24 member 104 which conforms with and is aligned with the opening 100 in the die 71. In addition, there is a second opening 108 26 which per~,its the cutting tip of the punch portion 90 to pass 20~5334 through it as the punch continues the downward movement shown in 2Figure lC. The two openings in the melr.ber 104 are joined by a 3folding rib 107.
4The folded edge of the liner insert, where the tab 7~ joins 5the main body portion 74 of the insert, engages the thin folding 6rib 107 to crease the tab 75 firlrlly underneath the main body 7portion 74 of the insert. This is illustrated in Figure lC which 8shows the folded edge of the tab 75 engaging the top of the 9folding rib 107. Also, it is readily apparent from an 10examination of Figure lC that once the punch block 45 has reached 11this lowermost position, the cutting end of the punch portion 90 12is inserted through the opening lC8 in the folding mem.ber 104.
13In the position shown in ~igure lC, the liner insert 74 with 14its connected tab 75 is located adjacent the lower edge of the 15die block 71 and above the open top of the cap 10. his location 16also is significantly above the bottom of the cap 10 into which 17the insert 74 is to be pressed.
18As aescribed in Patent #4,728,2~9, placemen of the liner 19inserts 74 in the cap 10 is accorGpllshed by means of a 20reciprocating tamper 86 attachec to a shaft 78. The tamper shaft 2178, which terlr.inates in the tamper 86, is concentrically mounted 22in a cartridge 80 located within the hollow ?unch 70. A flange 23on the top of the cartridge 80 extends outwardly over the upper 24ena of the punch 70 for su?port; and the tamper shaft 78 is 25sprins '~iased to an upwara or retracted position by a spring 81, 26 ~ as bes' il lustratea in Figure 1~. The compression spring 81 21~1~;334 extends between the top of the cartridge 80 and a circular flange attached to the upper end of the tamper shaft 78. The flange on 3 the upper end of the tamper 78 then engages the end of a rocker 4 arm 64.
The rocker arm 64 is attached to a shaft 63 which is m,ounted 6 for a rotation between a pair of rocker arlr support blocks (not 7 shown here, but describe2 in Patent ~4,728,239). One end of the 8 shaft 63 extends through a bearing block 60 where it is attached 9 to an operating lever arm 68 extending to the lef~ of the shaft 64, as viewed in Figure lA. The outer end of the lever 68 has a 11 removable projection 66 mounted on it. The projec.ion 66 extends t2 to one side (out of the surface of the paper, as illustrated in 13 Figure lA) over a plunger 84 mounted in an air cyl inder 79 14 attached to a common base plate (not shown) for the apparatus.
1~ When the punch block 45 is in its retracted position, as 16 shown in Figure lA, the projection 66 is locatec in a position 17 just touchin~ or spaced slightly above the end of the plunger 84.
18 As a punch block 45 is drawn downwardly to commence and complete 19 the punching cycle, the projection 66 engages ~he end of the 20 plunger 84 causing the rocker arm,, comprising the lever arms 68 21 and 64, to rotate in a clockwise direction abou. the shaf. 63.
22 The ratio of the length of the lever arm 68 to that of the arm 6~' 23 is approxiJr.ately 1:2. This _ause.s the righthand end of the lever 24 64 to move the upper end of the tamper rod 78 downwardly against 25 the bias of the sprins 81 at a rate and to a 2istance twice that 26 of the aownwara movement of the punch 70, 90. As the punch 1 portion 70 completes the severance of the insert liner 74 fro~
2 the web 48, the enlarged end 86 of the tamper 78 engages the top 3 side of the liner insert 74, as shown most clearly in Figure lC.
4 Continuation of the downward movement of the punch 70 and tamper 78 against the bias of the s?ring 81, however, causes the tamper 6 78 to move the portion 86 past the end of the punch 70, as 7 indicated in Figure lD.
8 Completion of the movement of the tamper head 86 through the 9 operation of the rod 78, to firmly seat the insert 74 (with the tab 75 folded under it) in the cap lO, is effected by operation 11 of the air cylinder 79 to ~ush the plunger 84 upwardly upon 12 termination of the downward movement of the punch block 45. The 13 air cylinder 79 and plunger 84 also act as a gas spring to effect 14 cushioned sea.ing of the liner 74 in the cap lO. This "gas 1~ sprins" also absorbs the consequences of an upside down cap or 16 jam up without damage to the m,achine.
17 The punch block 45 then is raised from .he position shown in 18 Figure lD back to the retracted position shown in Figure lA by 19 any suitable manner, such as described in Patent ~4,728,239. The machine then is ready to commence another cvcle of operation, 21 followino the movement of a new cap lO into position beneath the 22 a~paratus as shown in Figure l~.
23 ~'hen the ca~ lO, with i~s liner insert 7~ in place, as shown 24 in Figure l~, is movea out Oc the punch mechanism, it is ready to 2~ be installed on the upper end of â container, such as 2 glass or 26 plastic bo'tle neck. I is readilv apparent from the foregoing lG
-- 20~334 1 description that the sealing liner insert 74 initially is independent of the bottle and is ready to be shipped to a 3 bottler, where it subsequently is assembled mechanically to the 4 bottle. The sealing liner insert is captured in the bottle cap lO, so that it can be handled in any suitable manner. Typically, 6 the sealing liner, as described previously, is a sandwich of 7 aluminu~ foil bonded to a mylar backing. The mylar backing side 8 of this sandwich faces the open end of the cap 10.
9 After the bottler has filled the bottle or other container, 0 the cap lO is mechanically ~laced on the bottle and securely 11 tightened in a conventional manner. The combined closure 12 consisting of the cap 10 and sealing liner insert 74, with its 13 attached tab 75, then is subjected to induc~ive heat, such as 14 produced in a high frequency tunnel, to cause the mylar or other polymer to fuse to the upper end of the bottle neck to close the 16 mouth of the bottle. This provides the desired tampe. evident 17 safety seal. ~hen the cap 10 subsequentlv is removed by a 18 customer, the aluminum foil side of the inser_ 74 is visible, ana 19 the laminated tamper evident seal is adhered to the bott~e. The tab 75 then is visible to assist in subsequent removal of the 21 Seal 7~.
22 Since the seal 74 and tab 75 are simul.aneously formed in 23 the manner describe~, there is no possibilitv of cutting off the 24 tab 75 or form.ina slits or lines of weakenin~ between the tab 75 and the seal 74. The opera_ion si~ply and effec.ively for~s the 26 tab simultaneously with the liner inserl 7~, and in the sa~e 1 sequence of operation of the punch mechanism described in Patent 2 $4,728,239, completes the folding under of the tab 75 to a 3 location which effectively presents it for non-interfering 4 insertion into a cap 10.
The modifications to the punch and die mechanism of Patent 6 #4,728,239 .o accomplish this purpose actually reauire very few 7 additional parts. None of the basic operating mechanism of the 8 punch and die mechanism of the '239 Patent needs to be changed.
9 The die 71 is cut to include the tab opening 101; and the punch is modified to include the tab punching portion 90, with its 11 inwardly sloped surface 91, as described previously. Finally, 12 the only other addition is the folding ring 104, with the rib 13 107.
14 Various changes and modifications will occur to those skillec in the art without departing from the true scope of this 16 invention as defined in the appended claims. The foregoing 17 desc-iplion of the apparatus, particularly as it is described in 18 conjunctior. with a specific punch and die operating mechanism, is 19 to be considered illustrative and not as limitins. The operation Of the punch anc die may be effected by various standard cam or 21 gear operatec mechanisms, as well as the one aescribed in 22 conjunction with the preferred embodiment, without departing from 23 the scope o, the invention.
2~ -
18 While such tamper evident seals serve the intended purpose 19 of protectlng the bottle contents from unauthorized access, they are difficult to remove. Generally, it is necessary to use a 21 knife or other sharp object to break the seal and tear it away 22 from the edge of the bottle neck. This usually leaves a ragged 23 opening around the edge of the bottle and sometimes results in a 24 spilling of some of the contents of the bottle durins the efforts to remove the seal.
26 Patent #4,754,890 to Ullman discloses a seal and a machine ., ~
1 for making it which forms a tab or protuberance on the edge of 2 the seal. This tab projects upwardly from the seal when the cap 3 is removed from the top of the bottle. The tab then may be 4 grasped by the user to peel the seal off the top of the bottle.
The tab and seal formed by the device of the Ullman Patent are 6 formed in a single punch operation, but it is necessary first to 7 fold the foil material under itself along both-edges prior to the 8 punch operation. The punch then extends past this folded portion 9 to form a folded under tab at the time the cap insert is made.
Thus, it is necessary to provide separate apparatus to fold under 11 the edges of the foil strip from which the seals are formed. A
12 problem also exists in maintaining the precise alignment 13 necessary to insure that the tab is not cut off ana that it is of 4 sufficient strength to prevent it from being torn away when the seal is to be removed fro~ the bottle. In addition, forming the 16 tab in this manner causes a flat edge to be also formed on the 17 seal i~self, which limits the size of the tab which can be 18 formec. I is difficult to maintain the necessary alignment to 19 overcome these problems.
Two other patents which disclose the need for providing a 21 pull ab on a membrane cover over the opening in a metal can, are 22 the Patents to Hardt ~4,328,905 and Wright et al. ~4,544,08C.
23 Neither o~ these patenls, however, disclose the manner in which 24 the tabs are formec.
Ano~her techni~ue which has been employe~ is to utilize 26 prog essive dies to first form a tab from a sheet of liner 2(~15334 . _ 1 material passing through the liner insert machine. The tab is punched at a first position with a tab punch; and as the liner advances, the tab is folded under the liner material. This 4 punched-folded tab then advances to the liner punch station where it is punched out as a part of the liner insert. Since the tab 6 is folded under the insert, which then is inserted into 2 cap 7 with the tab located between the cap and the line , it 8 subsequently can be utilized to remove the insert from a 9 container on which the cap ultimately is attached. For a progressive die system of this type to work properly, the tab 11 must be folded and creased without any defects, and then held 12 folded until it reaches the liner insert punch station. Once the 13 tab is located at the liner insert punch station, alignment is 4 critical. If the tab fold is not far enough into the punch station, the tab will be cut off. Also, if the tab is too far 16 into the punch station, slits between the tab and the liner 17 insert will result. These slits ultimately will cause the tab to 18 tea- away from the main liner insert when it is pulled to remove 19 the insert from the container on which the insert ultimate'y is attached. This then leaves the main portion of the insert 21 unremoved, with a rip or opening through i'. Consequen~ly, if 22 significant precision is not maintained in such a progressive die 23 system, faulty product results.
24 Il is desirable to provide a cap-linins machine which 2~ produces pull tab liner insert disks whic~ are no' subject to the 26 disadvantages of the prior art. Ideally, it is desirable to 1 provide a one-step punch and die and insert operation to produce 2 a tab liner insert seated in a cap, all as part of a single 3 machine operation.
Summary of the Invention 6 It is an object of this invention to provide an improved 7 one-step tab liner insert for~ing machine.
8 It is another object of this invention to provide an 9 improvement in the provision of a ta~per evident safety seal having an at.ached tab to faciliate subseouent removal of the 11 seal from the container on which il is placed.
12 It is an additional object of this invention to provide an 13 improvea cap lining machine.
14 It is a further object of this invention to provide an improveZ machine for producina a tamper evident insert seal with 16 a grasping tab and for installing such seals in a cap.
17 In accordance with a preferred e~.bodiment of the invention, 18 a -aF-lininc machine proauces tab liners and places such liners 19 in a caF in a single step operation. To do this, the machine incluaes 2 stamping die with 2 first portion shapec to correspond 21 with 'he internal size of a cap to be lined with a liner. A
22 secona S~2l ler aZjacent portion extenas from the first portion 23 anc is shapec to form ar. extending pull tab, so tha. the two 24 portions of the die together form 2 single opening in the die. A
punch has first and secona por-ions which mate, respec.ively, 26 wilh the firs ana seconc por.ions of the die. The punch is 1 moveable between retracted and punching positions to punch cap inserts with an extending tab on them from liner material located 3 at the punching position. The structure of the punch and the die 4 is such that, during the punching operation, the tab first is cut and folded under the liner insert portion as the punch moves 6 through its punching position. Once the liner with the attached 7 tab has been punched, it is seated into a cap located beneath the 8 punch as the final portion of the one-step punching and seating 9 operation.
11 Brief Description of the Drawing 12 Figure lA is a partially cut-away side view of a preferred 13 embodiment of the invention in a first stage of operation;
14 Figures lB throuqh lD illustrate a portion of the embodiment of Figure l in three successive stages of operation;
16 Figure 2 illustrates a pull tab insert of the type formed by 17 the apparatus of Figure l;
18 Figure 3 is a view taken along the line 3-3 of Figure l; and 19 Figure 4 is a view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure l showing details of a por~ion of the apparatus of the embodiment 21 of Fiaure l.
23 Detailed Description 24 Reference now should be made to the drawing, in which the same reference numbers are used throughout the different figures 26 to designate the same components. In addi~ion, reference also should be made to the Patent ~4,728,239 to ~ieran and Rickenbach, 2 assigned to the same assignee as the present application. This 3 patent illustrates a cap lining ~r,achine of a type which 11~2y be 4 modified to incorporate the present invention and describes in S greater detail the overall operation of a system for forTr.ing cap 6 inserts and placing theJr; in caps in a high speed automatic 7 operation.
8 Figures lA through lI~ of the present application are similar 9 in ~r,any respects to ~igures iA through 5C of Patent $~4,728,239, 10 and those colrponents whic~. are su~stantially the same as the 11 coJrponents of Patent ~4,728,239 have been given the same 12 reference numbers in Figures lA through lD as they are given in ~3 ~igures 5A through 5C of the '23g Patent. Reference should be 14 ~r,ade to the specification of Patent ~4,728,239 for a more 15 com~lete aescription of the overall operation of the basic cap 16 lining Tr.achine.
18 ~eference now shoulà be made to ~igure lA. In the operation t9 of the ~r,achine aescribea in Patent ~4,728,2~9, a cap l0, into 20 which an insert is to be placea, first is centered ~irectly 21 benea'h an opening l0Q in 2 die 71, which is locatec beneath c 22 punch block 45. In the -e~racted position shown in Figure lA, 23 the punch block 45 ano 2 punclh coIrp-isinS a first portion 70 and 24 c seconc ta~ cu.~in~ portion gn, is located in the retrac.eo 25 position. Once the cap l0 is locatea as shown in Figure lA, the 26 punch ~lock 45 is lowerec 2S aesc.ibeo in the '2~9 Patent, 'o .~
2~1S334 1 punch out a liner insert. The se~uence of operation for accomplishing.this is shown in Figures lA, lB, lC, and lD.
The punch portions 70 and 90 move downwardly together from 4 the position shown in ~igure lA first to ~he position shown in Figure 1~. As illustrated in Figure lB, the tab cutting portion 6 go of the punch first enters into a tab opening 101 in the die 71 7 to cut a tab 75 from a web 48 of the liner ~,aterial. The side of 8 the punch portion 90 which faces the main cap insert opening 100 9 in the die 71 is tapered at a relatively sharp angle 91 to cause 0 the tab 75 which is cut by the punch 90 to curl toward the left, 11 as viewed in Figure lB, as the punch block 45 moves downwardly to 12 effect the punching operation.
13 The punch block 45 continues its downward movement to the 14 final punching position shown in ~igure lC. In this position, it can be seen that the punch portion 7.0, cooperating with the 16 circular aperature 100 in the die 71, causes a circular cap liner 17 insert 74 to be cut fro~l the web 48. The punch carries the 18 liner insert 74 ana the curled under tab 75 to a position where 19 it engages the upper eage of a circular opening in a folding member 104 attached to the bottom of the die 71. This folding 21 member 104 is not present in the device of Patent ~4,728,239, and 22 it hac a c oss section as illustrated in ~igure 4.
23 It can be seen that there is a circular opening in the 24 member 104 which conforms with and is aligned with the opening 100 in the die 71. In addition, there is a second opening 108 26 which per~,its the cutting tip of the punch portion 90 to pass 20~5334 through it as the punch continues the downward movement shown in 2Figure lC. The two openings in the melr.ber 104 are joined by a 3folding rib 107.
4The folded edge of the liner insert, where the tab 7~ joins 5the main body portion 74 of the insert, engages the thin folding 6rib 107 to crease the tab 75 firlrlly underneath the main body 7portion 74 of the insert. This is illustrated in Figure lC which 8shows the folded edge of the tab 75 engaging the top of the 9folding rib 107. Also, it is readily apparent from an 10examination of Figure lC that once the punch block 45 has reached 11this lowermost position, the cutting end of the punch portion 90 12is inserted through the opening lC8 in the folding mem.ber 104.
13In the position shown in ~igure lC, the liner insert 74 with 14its connected tab 75 is located adjacent the lower edge of the 15die block 71 and above the open top of the cap 10. his location 16also is significantly above the bottom of the cap 10 into which 17the insert 74 is to be pressed.
18As aescribed in Patent #4,728,2~9, placemen of the liner 19inserts 74 in the cap 10 is accorGpllshed by means of a 20reciprocating tamper 86 attachec to a shaft 78. The tamper shaft 2178, which terlr.inates in the tamper 86, is concentrically mounted 22in a cartridge 80 located within the hollow ?unch 70. A flange 23on the top of the cartridge 80 extends outwardly over the upper 24ena of the punch 70 for su?port; and the tamper shaft 78 is 25sprins '~iased to an upwara or retracted position by a spring 81, 26 ~ as bes' il lustratea in Figure 1~. The compression spring 81 21~1~;334 extends between the top of the cartridge 80 and a circular flange attached to the upper end of the tamper shaft 78. The flange on 3 the upper end of the tamper 78 then engages the end of a rocker 4 arm 64.
The rocker arm 64 is attached to a shaft 63 which is m,ounted 6 for a rotation between a pair of rocker arlr support blocks (not 7 shown here, but describe2 in Patent ~4,728,239). One end of the 8 shaft 63 extends through a bearing block 60 where it is attached 9 to an operating lever arm 68 extending to the lef~ of the shaft 64, as viewed in Figure lA. The outer end of the lever 68 has a 11 removable projection 66 mounted on it. The projec.ion 66 extends t2 to one side (out of the surface of the paper, as illustrated in 13 Figure lA) over a plunger 84 mounted in an air cyl inder 79 14 attached to a common base plate (not shown) for the apparatus.
1~ When the punch block 45 is in its retracted position, as 16 shown in Figure lA, the projection 66 is locatec in a position 17 just touchin~ or spaced slightly above the end of the plunger 84.
18 As a punch block 45 is drawn downwardly to commence and complete 19 the punching cycle, the projection 66 engages ~he end of the 20 plunger 84 causing the rocker arm,, comprising the lever arms 68 21 and 64, to rotate in a clockwise direction abou. the shaf. 63.
22 The ratio of the length of the lever arm 68 to that of the arm 6~' 23 is approxiJr.ately 1:2. This _ause.s the righthand end of the lever 24 64 to move the upper end of the tamper rod 78 downwardly against 25 the bias of the sprins 81 at a rate and to a 2istance twice that 26 of the aownwara movement of the punch 70, 90. As the punch 1 portion 70 completes the severance of the insert liner 74 fro~
2 the web 48, the enlarged end 86 of the tamper 78 engages the top 3 side of the liner insert 74, as shown most clearly in Figure lC.
4 Continuation of the downward movement of the punch 70 and tamper 78 against the bias of the s?ring 81, however, causes the tamper 6 78 to move the portion 86 past the end of the punch 70, as 7 indicated in Figure lD.
8 Completion of the movement of the tamper head 86 through the 9 operation of the rod 78, to firmly seat the insert 74 (with the tab 75 folded under it) in the cap lO, is effected by operation 11 of the air cylinder 79 to ~ush the plunger 84 upwardly upon 12 termination of the downward movement of the punch block 45. The 13 air cylinder 79 and plunger 84 also act as a gas spring to effect 14 cushioned sea.ing of the liner 74 in the cap lO. This "gas 1~ sprins" also absorbs the consequences of an upside down cap or 16 jam up without damage to the m,achine.
17 The punch block 45 then is raised from .he position shown in 18 Figure lD back to the retracted position shown in Figure lA by 19 any suitable manner, such as described in Patent ~4,728,239. The machine then is ready to commence another cvcle of operation, 21 followino the movement of a new cap lO into position beneath the 22 a~paratus as shown in Figure l~.
23 ~'hen the ca~ lO, with i~s liner insert 7~ in place, as shown 24 in Figure l~, is movea out Oc the punch mechanism, it is ready to 2~ be installed on the upper end of â container, such as 2 glass or 26 plastic bo'tle neck. I is readilv apparent from the foregoing lG
-- 20~334 1 description that the sealing liner insert 74 initially is independent of the bottle and is ready to be shipped to a 3 bottler, where it subsequently is assembled mechanically to the 4 bottle. The sealing liner insert is captured in the bottle cap lO, so that it can be handled in any suitable manner. Typically, 6 the sealing liner, as described previously, is a sandwich of 7 aluminu~ foil bonded to a mylar backing. The mylar backing side 8 of this sandwich faces the open end of the cap 10.
9 After the bottler has filled the bottle or other container, 0 the cap lO is mechanically ~laced on the bottle and securely 11 tightened in a conventional manner. The combined closure 12 consisting of the cap 10 and sealing liner insert 74, with its 13 attached tab 75, then is subjected to induc~ive heat, such as 14 produced in a high frequency tunnel, to cause the mylar or other polymer to fuse to the upper end of the bottle neck to close the 16 mouth of the bottle. This provides the desired tampe. evident 17 safety seal. ~hen the cap 10 subsequentlv is removed by a 18 customer, the aluminum foil side of the inser_ 74 is visible, ana 19 the laminated tamper evident seal is adhered to the bott~e. The tab 75 then is visible to assist in subsequent removal of the 21 Seal 7~.
22 Since the seal 74 and tab 75 are simul.aneously formed in 23 the manner describe~, there is no possibilitv of cutting off the 24 tab 75 or form.ina slits or lines of weakenin~ between the tab 75 and the seal 74. The opera_ion si~ply and effec.ively for~s the 26 tab simultaneously with the liner inserl 7~, and in the sa~e 1 sequence of operation of the punch mechanism described in Patent 2 $4,728,239, completes the folding under of the tab 75 to a 3 location which effectively presents it for non-interfering 4 insertion into a cap 10.
The modifications to the punch and die mechanism of Patent 6 #4,728,239 .o accomplish this purpose actually reauire very few 7 additional parts. None of the basic operating mechanism of the 8 punch and die mechanism of the '239 Patent needs to be changed.
9 The die 71 is cut to include the tab opening 101; and the punch is modified to include the tab punching portion 90, with its 11 inwardly sloped surface 91, as described previously. Finally, 12 the only other addition is the folding ring 104, with the rib 13 107.
14 Various changes and modifications will occur to those skillec in the art without departing from the true scope of this 16 invention as defined in the appended claims. The foregoing 17 desc-iplion of the apparatus, particularly as it is described in 18 conjunctior. with a specific punch and die operating mechanism, is 19 to be considered illustrative and not as limitins. The operation Of the punch anc die may be effected by various standard cam or 21 gear operatec mechanisms, as well as the one aescribed in 22 conjunction with the preferred embodiment, without departing from 23 the scope o, the invention.
2~ -
Claims (8)
1. A cap-lining machine for producing tab liners and placing such liners in a cap in a single step operation, said machine including in combination:
a stamping die having a first portion shaped to correspond with the size of a cap to be lined with a liner, and a second smaller adjacent portion shaped to form an extending tab, said first and second portions together forming a single opening in said die;
a punch having first and second portions mating, respectively, with said first and second portions of said die, said punch moveable between retracted and punching positions for punching a cap insert with an extending tab thereon from a liner located at said punching position;
folding means in the form of a flat angled cam surface on the second portion of said punch for folding the extending tab punched from a liner by a second portion of said punch under the cap insert punched from a liner by the first portion of said punch as said punch moves through the punching position thereof; and a thin rib located beneath said die, and in a position between the first and second portions thereof, for engaging the edge of a folded-under extending tab as the second portion of said punch moves downwardly past said rib to complete the folding of said tab to a position underlying a cap insert formed from liner located at the punching position of said machine.
a stamping die having a first portion shaped to correspond with the size of a cap to be lined with a liner, and a second smaller adjacent portion shaped to form an extending tab, said first and second portions together forming a single opening in said die;
a punch having first and second portions mating, respectively, with said first and second portions of said die, said punch moveable between retracted and punching positions for punching a cap insert with an extending tab thereon from a liner located at said punching position;
folding means in the form of a flat angled cam surface on the second portion of said punch for folding the extending tab punched from a liner by a second portion of said punch under the cap insert punched from a liner by the first portion of said punch as said punch moves through the punching position thereof; and a thin rib located beneath said die, and in a position between the first and second portions thereof, for engaging the edge of a folded-under extending tab as the second portion of said punch moves downwardly past said rib to complete the folding of said tab to a position underlying a cap insert formed from liner located at the punching position of said machine.
2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein the second portion of said punch moves into said second portion of said die prior to movement of said first portion of said punch through said first portion of said die as said punch is moved to the punching position thereof.
3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said second portion of said punch extends downwardly below said first portion thereof, with said second portion having a cam surface thereon facing said first portion thereof, so that when said punch is moved from the retracted to the punching position thereof, said second portion cooperating with said second portion of said die forms said extending tab, and the cam surface of said second portion of said punch causes such extending tab to be curled under a liner cap insert formed from a liner by said first portion of said punch and said first portion of said die.
4. The combination according to claim 1 further including tamper means for seating cap inserts with folded under tabs thereon into caps located beneath the punch when said punch is in the punching position thereof.
5. The combination according to claim 4 wherein at least the first portion of said punch has hollow body, with openings in the top and bottom thereof; and said tamper means comprises a tamper assembly inserted into the hollow body of said punching means, with a tamper member moveable from a retracted position relative to said punch to an extended position, wherein a portion of said tamper member extends below the bottom of both of said first and second portions of said punch when said punch has completed movement to the punching position thereof for pushing cap inserts formed by said machine into a cap located beneath the punch to seat a cap insert in such a cap with the tab thereon located between the cap insert and the cap.
6. The combination according to claim 5 wherein said tamper member is spring biased to a retracted position within said punch above the bottom thereof when said punch is in its retracted position; and further including means for moving said tamper member to its extended position to overcome said spring bias to extend said tamper member downwardly beyond the bottom of said punch with said punch in the punching position thereof.
7. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said second portion of said punch extends downwardly below said first portion thereof, with said second portion having a cam surface thereon facing said first portion thereof, so that when said punch is moved from the retracted to the punching position thereof, said second portion cooperating with said second portion of said die forms said extending tab, and the cam surface of said second portion of said punch causes such extending tab to be curled under a liner cap insert formed from a liner by said first portion of said punch and said first portion of said die.
8. The combination according to claim 7 further including tamper means for seating cap inserts with folded under tabs thereon into caps located beneath the punch when said punch is in the punching position thereof.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US07/481,064 US5108356A (en) | 1990-02-16 | 1990-02-16 | One step pull tab cap-lining machine |
| US481,064 | 1990-02-16 |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2015334A1 CA2015334A1 (en) | 1991-08-16 |
| CA2015334C true CA2015334C (en) | 1994-05-17 |
Family
ID=23910436
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002015334A Expired - Fee Related CA2015334C (en) | 1990-02-16 | 1990-04-25 | One step pull tab cap-lining machine |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| US (1) | US5108356A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2015334C (en) |
Families Citing this family (11)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US5797509A (en) * | 1997-02-18 | 1998-08-25 | Phoenix Closures, Inc. | Closure package having a crimped liner pull tab and forming method therefor |
| US6174274B1 (en) * | 1997-10-08 | 2001-01-16 | Rexam Plastics, Inc. | Method and apparatus for creating preformed bonded pull tabs over a reseal liner |
| US6848235B2 (en) * | 2002-02-08 | 2005-02-01 | Scholle Corporation | Adverse environment foil cap seal system |
| US7012032B2 (en) * | 2002-11-20 | 2006-03-14 | Dupont Teijin Films U.S. Limited Partnership | Tear resistant peelable seal for containers |
| US8038826B2 (en) * | 2007-02-01 | 2011-10-18 | Scott Office Systems, Llc | Tabbed divider making apparatus and method |
| US8002688B2 (en) * | 2008-02-12 | 2011-08-23 | Scott Office Systems Llc | Customized tab machine |
| RU2566476C2 (en) * | 2011-07-11 | 2015-10-27 | О Энд Р Картон Лунд Аб | Device and process for production of containers |
| US8561778B2 (en) | 2012-02-24 | 2013-10-22 | Thomas G. Kieran | Cap-lining machine feed assembly and method |
| US9457940B2 (en) | 2014-08-18 | 2016-10-04 | Mathew L. Grell | Drizzle safety seal and methods of use |
| US9469456B2 (en) | 2014-08-18 | 2016-10-18 | Mathew L. Grell | Rim tabbed drizzle safety seal and methods of use |
| US10589338B1 (en) | 2017-08-09 | 2020-03-17 | Thomas G. Kieran | Feed assembly for automated machines |
Family Cites Families (7)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US1306920A (en) * | 1919-06-17 | Eotch | ||
| CA578997A (en) * | 1959-07-07 | Aluminum Company Of America | Hood forming apparatus and method | |
| CH643502A5 (en) * | 1980-03-25 | 1984-06-15 | Alusuisse | METAL CAN WITH MEMBRANE CLOSURE. |
| US4341498A (en) * | 1980-06-23 | 1982-07-27 | Aluminum Company Of America | Method and apparatus for blanking, folding and inserting membrane into container covercap |
| US4544080A (en) * | 1984-10-25 | 1985-10-01 | General Can Company, Inc. | Closure having reinforced pull tab |
| US4728239A (en) * | 1986-10-17 | 1988-03-01 | Top Seal Corporation | Cap lining machine |
| US4754890A (en) * | 1987-08-20 | 1988-07-05 | Ullman Myron E | Tamper evident safety seal |
-
1990
- 1990-02-16 US US07/481,064 patent/US5108356A/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1990-04-25 CA CA002015334A patent/CA2015334C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CA2015334A1 (en) | 1991-08-16 |
| US5108356A (en) | 1992-04-28 |
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| EEER | Examination request | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed |