Semi-automatic, power-driven, columnized, flat-plastic bag closure

Abstract

From the bottom of a vertical magazine, relatively large-sized stiffly flexible 'Kwik Lok' bag closures (die stamped from 0.032' sheet polystyrene), and vertically stacked therein, compacted flatwise on each other, are individually power fed edge to edge sequentially along a rigid guide extending at a right angle forwardly from the bottom of the magazine and then dipping at its forward end to incline the front portion of the leading closure downward and thus facilitate manual insertion of a bunched polyethylene bag neck into a bag neck capturing aperture opening from the forward edge of the closure. The closures are fed one at a time from the magazine into the guide by a single revolution clutch which is triggered by each manual application to a bag neck of the forwardmost closure in the guide. This power cycle replaces the latter closure, as it is withdrawn from the machine with the bag, with another closure properly positioned in the guide to receive the neck of the next bag presented by the operator to the machine. Tardy manual removal of an endmost closure from the machine after applying it to a bag and coincidentally triggering the clutch, automatically aborts the clutch cycle (pending the final withdrawal of the bag captured closure) whereupon the aborted clutch cycle is automatically resumed, replacing the closure with another foremost closure, likewise downward dipped at its forward end.