H & K Inc.

Holstein Und Kappert Gmbh

H & K Machine, Inc.

Friedrich Rademacher

Siegmar Sindermann

Ulrich H Petri

Rolf Sushardt

Hans G Krohn

Hans D Deubel

Scott D Mau

A can filling machine having an improved mechanism to prevent overfill of the can. The machine includes a group of filling heads mounted on a rotatable turntable, and each head includes an outer tubular housing having an open upper end that communicates with a reservoir of the liquid, such as a beverage, which is intended to introduced into the can. A can is moved upwardly and is sealed against a cylindrical tulip that is mounted outwardly of the housing. A fill tube is mounted concentrically within the housing and the space between the fill tube and the housing defines an annular flow chamber for the liquid. Located concentrically within the fill tube is an air vent tube and the lower end of the air vent tube communicates with the can. The lower end of the fill tube carries a valve which is adapted to engage a valve seat on the lower end of the housing. Located in the lower end of the annular flow chamber is a stack of horizontal discs which are spaced vertically apart. The discs have openings so that the liquid flows through the openings and radially through the spaces between discs to the valve. The spacing between the discs is sized to be large enough to accommodate fibrous material in the liquid and when the valve is opened and the can is filled with liquid to close off the vent tube, the liquid will be held in the spaces between the discs by the surface tension of the liquid to prevent overfilling of the can.

Can filling machine having a mechanism to prevent overfill

An apparatus for filling cans with a liquid such as beer or soft drinks. The filling machine includes a turntable having a surface to support a plurality of open top cans and a reservoir containing a liquid is spaced above the supporting surface. A plurality of filling heads are mounted on the reservoir and serve to dispense the liquid into the individual cans. Each filling head includes a spring loaded cylindrical tulip adapted to seal against the upper edge of the can and a vent tube and fill tube are disposed concentrically within the tulip. The lower end of the vent tube communicates with the can while the upper end is sealed against the surface of the reservoir and when the sealing engagement is released the vent tube communicates with the headspace of the reservoir. The lower end of the fill tube carries a valve that controls flow of liquid from the reservoir into the can. After the tulip seals against the can, pure carbon dioxide is introduced into the can from a separate reservoir and air is vented from the can to the atmosphere. A differential in force acting against opposite ends of the vent tube will act to lower the vent tube into the can and the valve is opened to admit liquid to the can with the gas from the can being discharged through the vent tube to the reservoir headspace. When the liquid rises in the can to the level of the vent tube, the liquid will move partially up within the vent tube. The vent tube is elevated to compress the gas therein and force the liquid out of the vent tube. The gas is then released from the head space of the can to the atmosphere.

Apparatus for filling cans with a liquid

An apparatus for filling cans with a liquid such as beer or soft drinks. The filling machine includes a turntable having a surface to support a plurality of open top cans and a reservoir containing a liquid is spaced above the supporting surface. A plurality of filling heads are mounted on the reservoir and serve to dispense the liquid into the individual cans. Each filling head includes a spring loaded cylindrical tulip adapted to seal against the upper edge of the can and a vent tube and fill tube are disposed concentrically within the tulip. The lower end of the vent tube communicates with the can while the upper end is sealed against the surface of the reservoir and when the sealing engagement is released the vent tube communicates with the headspace of the reservoir. The lower end of the fill tube carries a valve that controls flow of liquid from the reservoir into the can. After the tulip seals against the can, pure carbon dioxide is introduced into the can from a separate reservoir and air is vented from the can to the atmosphere. A differential in force acting against opposite ends of the vent tube will act to lower the vent tube into the can and the valve is opened to admit liquid to the can with the gas from the can being discharged through the vent tube to the reservoir headspace. When the liquid rises in the can to level of the vent tube, the liquid will move partially up within the vent tube. The vent tube is elevated to compress the gas therein and force the liquid out of the vent tube. The gas is then released from the head space of the can to the atmosphere.

Can filling apparatus having a vent tube movable relative to a fill tube

Can filling apparatus having an improved gas venting mechanism

A filling valve fills liquid from a filling machine vessel into containers. When the filling valve is opened a complete pressure equalization takes place between the vessel and the container to be filled. The container is held in the filling position by a vertically movable centering member. At the end of the filling operation, with the centering member still holding the container, a return gas tube extending into the container can be emptied and the volume of the container above the liquid level can be relieved without any inflow of atmospheric air. Further, the usual expansion below the liquid level is avoided. The centering member along with the filling valve can be lowered into the filling position by a cam disc and a pressure spring and/or assisted by the overpressure within the filling machine vessel. After movement by the cam disc the centering member and filling valve can be pressed against the container opening by the pressure spring and/or the pressure in the vessel. An upwardly extending piston member forming part of the piston-cylinder unit contains the return gas tube and can move independently of the return gas tube for placing the filling valve in the open condition with complete pressure equalization by cooperation with a double lever arm arrangement. When the filling liquid within the container reaches the lower end of the return gas tube, the piston member is lifted by the cam disc and simultaneously there is an increased volume communicating with the container while the centering member is still pressed on the container with the return gas tube being emptied and with the return gas connection to the vessel being cut off whereby the increased volume is exposed to atmospheric pressure.

Filling machine for filling liquid under counterpressure

In a rotating machine for filling liquid into bottles in similar containers, a centering member including the filling valve is vertically movable between a lower centering or holding position and an upper release position. The centering member in the lower position seals the bottles during the filling operation. Accordingly, a large number of centering members and filling valves are located next to one another on the periphery of the machine. When the filling operation takes place under counterpressure, there is the danger of bottles breaking and damaging the centering members. Accordingly, a control support block on the machine includes a guide bushing laterally enclosing the centering member in its upper position. The lower section of the centering member projects from the guide bushing in the lower centering position. A seal extends between the guide bushing and the centering member and is spaced upwardly from the lower section of the centering member so that in the upper position of the centering member the lower section does not contact the seal.

Filling valve for use in the bottling of liquids

Crown corks are conveyed from a supply source along an aligning track to a helically shaped guide track and then on to a capping device. A conveying disc rotates about a central axis and has a planar surface extending transversely of the central axis adjacent to the guide track. The conveying disc moves individual crown corks from the aligning track through the guide track to receiving pockets in the capping device. The receiving pockets travel along a circular path which has a transfer point disposed tangentially to the circumferential edge of the planar surface of the conveying disc.

Method and device for transmitting crown corks

An apparatus for filling and closing containers, such as bottles. The apparatus includes a rotary filling machine for moving each bottle in a circular path of travel and filling the bottle with liquid. The bottles are crowned by a rotating crowner which is located adjacent the filling machine and the crowner moves each bottle in a circular path of travel and applies the crown to the filled bottle to close the bottle. An endless chain transfer conveyor having a plurality of pockets to receive the bottle serves to transfer the bottles from the filling machine to the crowner and from the crowner to a discharge conveyor. The chain is driven by a sprocket mounted on the crowner and the chain moves tangentially to the circular path of travel of the filling machine, so that the bottles are transferred from the filling machine to the pockets on the chain conveyor. After crowning, the bottles are transferred from the pockets in the chain to the discharge conveyor by a stripper member. As the filled, uncrowned bottles moving from the filling machine to the crowner move in a straight path of travel they are not subjected to centrifugal force and thereby liquid loss and air entrapment are minimized.

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Kamen-Sudkamen, Germany

Friedrich Rademacher