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(11) | EP 1 254 838 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Apparatus for passing bouquets into conical wraps |
| (57) A wrap filling mechanism comprises a wrap holder (12) and, above the wrap holder,
a telescopic chute (10,11) the lower or mouth part (11) of which is lowered to engage
into the open upper end of a wrap (17). The lower part of the chute fits telescopically
inside the upper part (10), and the chute is lined with a flexible lining sleeve (36)
attached at its upper end (35) to a fixed portion (10) of the chute and at its lower
end (34) to a movable portion (11) of the chute. The lining sleeve covers the upwardly
facing top end (32) of the lower part of the chute so that the bouquets cannot catch
thereon. Although the lining sleeve may wrinkle when the lower part of the chute is
retracted, it will be at its full extension and substantially smooth when the lower
part of the chute is lowered into the wrap, and there will therefore be little risk
of the bouquet catching on it. |
[0001] The present invention relates to the filling of conical wraps with bouquets of flowers and the like.
[0002] Apparatuses have been proposed for the automatic production of bouquets of flowers wrapped in conical wraps. One such apparatus is described in WO 01/10634 A1. In that and some other apparatuses, the conical wraps are preformed. A wrap is held at a filling station in the open position (after being opened from the flat state if necessary) with its wide end upwards. The bouquet is then dropped into the wrap through a chute from above by gravity. Once the bouquet is in the wrap, it can be moved to other stations if desired for further operations such as applying labels, and eventually discharged.
[0003] If the wrap can be supported sufficiently well, then this process is satisfactory. However, it may be difficult or impossible to support the wrap sufficiently firmly. The bouquet may have projecting leaves or side branches near its bottom end, and its direction of fall cannot be controlled accurately. It may therefore strike the side of the wrap and catch on the wrap at that point, instead of passing cleanly to the bottom end of the wrap, so causing the wrap to buckle, fold, or bend. In addition, the upper edge of the wrap may be distorted from the ideal circular shape, so that the bouquet may catch on that upper edge.
[0004] A technique is known for assisting in the accurate filling of sleeves with pot plants. In this known technique, an annular mounting collar has several arms mounted around it, each arm carrying on its inner end a downwardly pointing tang. The arms are linked so that they can all be turned together to bring their tangs towards or away from each other. The tangs effectively form the vertexes of a polygon which can be expanded and contracted.
[0005] In use, the tangs are brought together and the collar is lowered towards the open mouth of the sleeve. The arms are then rotated so as to move the tangs outwards. As they move outwards, the tangs engage against the inner face of the mouth of the sleeve, and pull that mouth into the form of a regular polygon. The tangs are moved until the material of the sleeve around its mouth is taut or nearly so.
[0006] This method seems to work well on sleeves for pot plants that are made from polyethylene which stretch easily and resist tearing. However, it is often desirable for the sleeves for cut flowers have a high lustre and sparkle. Such sleeves therefore have to be made from another material, generally polypropylene. This material is likely to tear when subjected to the mechanism just described.
[0007] Another technique, which can be used alone or together with the technique just mentioned, is to lower the bottom end of the chute into the wrap to assist in accurate movement of the bouquet into the wrap. To permit the movement of the chute into the upper open end of the wrap, the chute is desirably telescopic, its upper end being fixed for the delivery of bouquets into it. This may therefore provide a certain resistance to the passage of the bouquet through the telescopic throat. Further, in the case of bouquets which are being formed for onward transmission, eg to retailers, it is desirable for the bouquets to be packed as tightly as possible. In this situation, it is therefore desirable for the chute to hold the bouquet fairly tightly, to prevent it spreading out and so taking up more space.
[0008] In all these arrangements, there is the danger that a bouquet may catch during its passage through the chute and into the wrap, so becoming lodged or stuck in the chute or wrap before reaching its intended position with its bottom end protruding through the bottom end of the wrap. Sufficient clearance must obviously be provided for the bouquets to pass through the chute without becoming stuck. This can adversely affect the tightness of the resulting wrapped bouquet.
[0010] According to the invention, there is provided a wrap filling mechanism comprising a wrap holder and, above the wrap holder, a telescopic chute the lower or mouth part of which is lowered to engage into the open upper end of a wrap, characterized in that the lower part of the chute fits telescopically inside the upper part and in that the chute is lined with a flexible lining sleeve attached at its upper end to a fixed portion of the chute and at its lower end to a movable portion of the chute. The lining sleeve covers the upwardly facing top end of the lower part of the chute so that the bouquets cannot catch thereon. Although the lining sleeve may wrinkle when the lower part of the chute is retracted, it will be at its full extension and substantially smooth when the lower part of the chute is lowered into the wrap, and there will therefore be little risk of the bouquet catching on it.
[0011] A wrap filling mechanism embodying the invention will now be described, by way of example and with reference to the drawings, in which:
Fig. 1 is a side view of a chute above a packet of sleeves;
Fig. 2 is a top view of a packet of sleeves; and
Fig. 3 is a side view of the chute showing its two parts.
[0012] Fig. 1 shows the lower end of the mouth part 11 of a chute down which the cut flowers may be guided, from an elevator or other infeed device or conveyor. A booklet 16 of sleeves in flat form is held against a platen 12 by means of pins 13 and clamps 14. Typically, commercial sleeves are made with perforations 15 along which they are torn from the booklet, and with the front (top) sheet of each sleeve shorter than the rear (bottom) sheet.
[0013] Fig. 2 shows the booklet 16 and associated elements from above. The top wrap 17 is opened by pulling the front face with a device 20, which can conveniently be a vacuum device, along axis 21. The mechanism, vacuum or otherwise, is unable to consistently open the wrap to form a perfectly round shape. Also, if the apparatus is such that there is a gap 18 between the wrap and the chute, there is a high risk of the flowers and leaves catching on the edge of the wrap and causing an unattractive presentation.
[0014] The mouth or bottom end of the chute assembly can be raised and lowered along axis 24. The assembly would need to be raised, to enable the removal and replacement of the wrap (by some suitable mechanism). Once the new wrap is in place and opened by a combination of mechanisms 20, 12, 13, and 14, the assembly can be lowered such that the chute mouth penetrates a good distance inside the wrap, so aiding reliable entry of the bouquets into the wrap.
[0015] Fig. 3 shows the lower part or mouth 11 of the chute mounted in the bottom of a hopper or guide unit 10 which, together with the mouth 11, forms the chute assembly. The hopper or upper part of the bouquet funnelling and guidance system has a bouquet 27 fed into it from a feed mechanism 26 such as an elevator or conveyor belt. The bouquet falls into the hopper and turns into the required vertical position during the initial part of its fall. It then completes its passage into the wrap, stems first. The hopper 10 and chute mouth 11 must be shaped and sized to substantially obviate the danger that the bouquet may become caught in the hopper or on the top edge 32 of the chute mouth 11.
[0016] When the chute mouth is in its lowermost position, edges 32 and 33 should be aligned to present a smooth funnel contour to the introduced bouquet. However, as by nature the stems may often be of small diameter or splayed ends, there is a tendency for the bouquet to catch and become trapped on any ledge or overlapping joint such as 32/33. To prevent this, a liner 36 is fitted. This is made from flexible sheet or woven fabric to form a smooth lining that is attached along lines 34 and 35, such that when the chute mouth is extended, the liner is pulled taut, presenting a smooth surface to the bunch. The surface is preferably seamless, though if manufacturing reasons dictate seams, it may have vertical seams or seams which are without protrusions as seen from above.
1. A wrap filling mechanism comprising a wrap holder and, above the wrap holder, a telescopic
chute the lower or mouth part of which is lowered to engage into the open upper end
of a wrap, characterized in that the lower part of the chute fits telescopically inside the upper part and in that the chute is lined with a flexible lining sleeve attached at its upper end to a fixed
portion of the chute and at its lower end to a movable portion of the chute.
2. Any novel and inventive feature or combination of features specifically disclosed
herein within the meaning of Article 4H of the International Convention (Paris Convention).