Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems, LLC

Meadwestvaco Corporation

Rafe T Patterson

Michael F Flagg

John W Cash, Iii

Jeffrey G Jacob

John Hotchkiss

Alan P Martin

Patrick King

A loading apparatus for loading blister cards into sleeves includes a blister card magazine for receiving a stack of blister cards and a sleeve magazine for receiving a stack of sleeves. A loading conveyor moves a lug along a path to load a blister card into a sleeve. A gate releasably retains the sleeve in a loading position as the blister card is loaded into the sleeve. The loading apparatus also includes a hopper that facilitates loading sleeves into the sleeve magazine and sensors that ensure the blister cards are properly loaded into sleeves.

Loading apparatus

A packaging machine having a folding apparatus for closing an end of an end loaded carton that includes leading and trailing side end flaps. The packaging machine includes a carton conveyor for transporting a carton in a flow direction along a carton path. The folding apparatus includes a lug assembly that has at least one folding lug that travels along an endless lug path. The folding lug travels in the flow direction and in parallel to the carton path along at least a portion of the lug path such that the folding lug can operate in concert with separation guide and a combination guide to fold the leading and trailing side end flaps in the desired sequence.

Packaging machine with folding apparatus

A packaging machine () includes a lane assembly () that includes one or more lanes (L) which guide cylindrical articles (B), such as cans or bottles, across a series of substantially parallel conveyors. The lane assembly () includes an adjustable guide bar () which defines an adjustable portion (V) of the lane (L) that can be adjusted to adapt to the diameter of articles (B). The lane assembly () also includes lane extensions () that can be adjusted to control the position of rows or articles (B) as the articles (B) exit the lanes (L) onto a conveyor ().

Adjustable lane assembly

An infeed station for conveying and positioning a stack of carton blanks for sequential removal by a carton feeder, for automatically adjusting the rate of advancement of the carton blanks to compensate for excessive tilting and gaps between the carton blanks, and for providing alerts to signal the need for operator intervention or automatic shutdown. The infeed station includes a hopper and a magazine that receives carton blanks from the hopper. The magazine includes a sensing mechanism including a control sensor and a warning sensor mounted in proximity to the carton blanks in the infeed station, and a processor that, according to a condition signaled by the sensing mechanism, controls the rate at which advancing belts advance a queue of carton blanks toward the magazine.

Carton magazine with control sensor

A plunger assembly () is disposed on the access side of a conveyor (). The conveyor () has a conveying surface upon which it transports articles by moving the conveying surface in a direction of flow (F). The plunger assembly () is mounted overhead vertically with respect to the conveying surface of the conveyor () such that sufficient clearance below the plunger assembly () is maintained to provide an access space through which the conveyor () and mechanisms and elements thereof can be accessed. Further, the plunger assembly () may be mounted both above and at least partially offset horizontally from the conveyor surface of the conveyor (), such that no operative portion of the plunger assembly () breaks the plane (C) of the conveyor surface.

Offset overhead plunger

A packaging machine () includes a lane assembly () that includes one or more lanes (L) which guide cylindrical articles (B), such as cans or bottles, across a series of substantially parallel conveyors. The lane assembly () includes an adjustable guide bar () which defines an adjustable portion (V) of the lane (L) that can be adjusted to adapt to the diameter of articles (B). The lane assembly () also includes lane extensions () that can be adjusted to control the position of rows of articles (B) as the articles (B) exit the lanes (L) onto a conveyor ().

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Newnan, GA, United States of America

Rafe T Patterson