More particularly, the present invention relates to a new device fit for reducing the diameter of a cork and for inserting it into a corresponding bottle, said bottle being previously filled with wine, oil or with any other suitable product to be preserved.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART In the technical sector to which the present invention applies, several devices for inserting corks into corresponding bottles are known, either manually operated or operated by means of suitable pneumatic or hydraulic actuators.

The process of inserting a cork into a bottle, providing that a cork has usually a substantially cylindrical shape, and a diameter greater than the corresponding inner diameter of the bottleneck, generally comprises two operating steps: radially compressing the cork, until its diameter size is reduced to a value which is small enough to allow the same cork to be inserted into the aforesaid bottleneck; and inserting the cork into the same bottleneck, by means of an axially operated punch, which pushes the cork into the bottleneck.

In the known art, the above operations can occur subsequently, or they can be partially overlapped,

depending on the compression technique which is used.

In one of these known art techniques, the cork is compressed by a plurality of clamps, which are progressively moved near one each other, by means of known mechanisms including springs and leverages.

When the diameter size reduction is completed, the cork is inserted into the bottleneck by a punch, which pushes the cork axially and produces its sliding through the clamps and into the aforesaid bottleneck.

In another known technique for inserting a cork into a corresponding bottle, the cork is placed into a lubricated, conical funnel, from the wider opening of this latter. The cork is then subjected to a punching action, and it is extruded by the opposite opening of the funnel, which is slightly less wide than the bottleneck. The bottleneck is placed just outside the aforesaid opening, thus the cork progressively slides into the bottleneck. As can be seen, in this case both steps of cork compression and insertion occur at the same time.

The above described techniques have several drawbacks, as they can produce severe defects in the corks being inserted into the respective bottlenecks, during the compression and inserting steps.

More particularly, the apparatuses which use clamps for compressing the corks tend to create longitudinal scraps or plies in the cork's external surface, especially at the interface edges between adjacent clamps. Those defects are well known to the technicians which are skilled in the art with the name of"creasing"effect.

On the other hand, when the method of extruding the cork from a conical funnel is used, only small cork diameter reductions are allowed, because of friction which occur between the cork and the narrower funnel portion; moreover, using said method often produces severe defects in the same cork, mostly consisting of creases, crevices, edges splintering and so on.

Of course, said cork defects lead, as a direct consequence, to a bad bottleneck closing ; therefore, the bottle content is insufficiently insulated from the atmosphere, and is optimal preserving conditions are not attained. Moreover, cork splinters can fall in the bottled liquid, thus polluting it and modifying its organoleptic characteristics.

Also, the visual aspect of the liquid and of its packaging are altered, and the product image can considerably get worse.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION The main object of the present invention is to present a device for inserting a cork into a corresponding bottle, which is able to regularly and homogeneously compress said cork, and which is also able to insert the same cork into the bottle without generate the aforesaid drawbacks.

A further object of the invention is to obtain a low cost device for corking a bottle, and which is moreover of simple manufacturing and maintenance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION All of the above objects are reached, according

to the Claims contents, by a new device for inserting corks into corresponding bottles, which comprises a flat, resilient strip, made of steel or of any other suitable material, folded to assume a U-shape with its opposite end portions being substantially parallel one each other, said device also comprising a plurality of blocks arranged side by side, said blocks defining a couple of slots fit to slidably receive said end portions of the above strip, and to define, together with the intermediate portion of said strip, a variable-sized space, fit to receive a cork to be compressed and inserted into an underlying bottle.

The above strip and blocks are relatively movable by means of an actuator, which is preferably a pneumatically actuated ram, in order to reduce the size of said space and, therefore, to compress the cork contained therein, until its diameter becomes equal or smaller than the diameter of the corresponding bottleneck.

The corking device of the present invention also comprises pushing means, fit to push the compressed cork and to insert it into the aforesaid bottleneck.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS All the characteristic features of the present invention, as they will result from the set of Claims, will be now described in the following detailed description, with reference to the enclosed drawings, wherein: -Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the essential members of the corking device according

to the present invention; -Figure 2 shows a schematic plain view of the corking device of figure 1, with the resilient strip in its enlarged configuration and with the cork being in an uncompressed state; -Figure 3 shows the corking device of figures 1 and 2, with the resilient strip in its reduced configuration and with the cork being in a compressed state.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION With reference to the above drawings, and to a preferred embodiment of the corking device according to the present invention, numeral 1 indicates a bottle stopper, preferably made of cork or of any other suitable material, which will be simply referred to as"cork"in the following description.

The cork 1 has a substantially cylindrical shape, as it is normally used for corking bottles 8 after they have been filled with a liquid to be preserved.

A support surface 11, belonging to the corking device, extends horizontally, and it is fit to support the above cork 1 to be compressed and inserted into a corresponding bottle 8.

The corking device according to the invention includes clamping means 10, which comprises a resilient strip 2, preferably made of resilient, high carbon steel, or of any other material having suitable elasticity and strenghtness. The above strip 2 is substantially flat, and it is folded to assume a U-shape with its opposite end portions 2b, 2c being substantially parallel one each other. An

intermediate portion 2a of said strip 2 is located between the aforesaid end portions 2b, 2c, and defines a concave area extending horizontally just above a fixed support plate 11. The strip 2 leans on this support plate 11, which also extends horizontally.

The end portions 2b, 2c are fixed, at their tips, to an actuator of known type (not shown), preferably consisting of a pneumatically or hydraulically actuated ram. Said actuator is fit for reciprocally moving the above strip 2 in a direction, indicated by the literal K in figure 1, which is substantially parallel to the surface of support plate 11. The reciprocating motion occurs between an extended position (see figures 1,2) and a withdrawn position (see figure 3). When being moved to this latter position, the strip 2 compresses the cork 1 until its diameter is reduced enough to become compatible with insertion of the same cork 1 into the bottle 8.

The clamping means 10 also comprises guiding and opposing means 3, fit to slidably engage and guide the aforesaid end portions 2b, 2c of strip 2 and to define, together with its intermediate portion 2a, a substantially annular zone 13 of variable size. This latter is fit to receive the cork 1 to be inserted into the bottle 8.

More particularly, the guiding and opposing means 3 comprise a central block 31, interposed between a pair of side blocks 32,33. The central block 31 has its inner face 31a, which faces the annular zone 13, shaped complementary to the side external face la of the compressed cork 1. Substantially, the inner face 31a is shaped according to a concave cylinder

portion.

The side blocks 32,33 have a parallelepipedal shape and, together with the above central block 31, define a pair of slots 34,35, fit to slidably receive the end portions 2b, 2c of strip 2.

The support plate 11 has, at its portion placed in front and underlying the inner face 31a of the central block 31, a bore 14, which is large just enough to allow the compressed cork 1 to pass through the same bore when being inserted into the bottle 8.

This latter is held, in a known way, under the bore 14, with its bottleneck 9 being axially aligned with the same bore 14 and with its mouth placed in contact with the bottom face of the support plate 11.

In fact, if the corking device according to the present invention is used for industrial purposes in an automated corking apparatus, it could be installed on an operating head, and it could be placed on the bottled being currently corked with a corresponding cork 1.

Sideways of the annular zone 13, and externally with respect of the intermediate portion 2a of strip 2, a pair of side guides 36,37 are provided, fit to guide the two sides of the same strip 2 toward the slots 34,35 during the cork compression phase. For this purpose, side guides 36,37 are made convergent toward the slots 34,35. In the present, preferred embodiment of the corking device, the side guides 34,35 have a parallelepipedal shape, but they can be obviously shaped according to any other suitable shape.

The corking device of the present invention

moreover comprises pushing means 7, which include a punch placed above the annular zone 13, axially aligned with bore 14. Punch 7 is operated by known operating means, and is reciprocally movable in a known way, for pushing the cork 1, subsequently to its diameter reduction phase, into the bottleneck 9, passing through the bore 14 of support plate 11.

The operating procedure of the present corking device will be described in the following starting from a starting position, shown in figures 1 and 2, wherein the strip 2 lays in its extended position, punch 7 is a lifted position, and a bottle 8 to be corked is placed immediately below bore 14.

A cork 1 is first placed in the annular zone 13, in an upright position, casually inside the same annular zone 13. The above described actuator, not shown, is then operated, which draws the end portions 2b, 2c of the resilient strip 2 in a direction indicated with W in figure 3. The strip 2 sliding is helped by the side guides 36,37. This leads to a progressive size reduction of the annular zone 13, whose shape is defined by the strip 2 parameters of elasticity, together with the action of central block 31, side blocks 32,33 and side guides 36,37.

The cork 1 is then progressively lead to an alignment with bore 14, and against the inner face 31a of central block 31. At this point the intermediate portion 2a of strip 2 and the central block 31 wrap the cork 1 completely. The further sliding of strip 2 then causes the same cork 1 to be compressed, and its diameter to be progressively reduced. The aforesaid actuator is stopped when the

diameter reduction of cork 1 has become compatible with its insertion into the bottle 8 (see figure 3).

The stop position is obtained, i. e., by empirically setting the position of a sensor which detects the position of the actuator ram, according to the bottleneck inner size.

Punch 7 is then operated, which axially engages the upper face of cork 1 and pushes it through the bore 14 and into the bottleneck 9.

The actuator ram is then operated reversely, in order to move the strip 2 in the opposite direction.

This latter, due to its elasticity, returns to its original configuration, thus enlarging the annular zone 13.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, not shown since it is immediately arguable, the end portions 2b, 2c of the resilient strip 2 are locked to the support plate 11, while the central block 31 and side blocks 32,33 are made reciprocally movable parallel to the support plate 11 itself and to the end portions 2b, 2c.

The central block 31 and the side blocks 32,33 are operated by an actuator, in a way similar to the one disclosed for the previous embodiment, in a phase relationship with the operating of the above punch 7.

With this alternative embodiment of the corking device, the same results of those described for the preferred embodiment are attained. The cork 1 diameter is then progressively and homogeneously reduced until it becomes compatible with the insertion of the same cork 1 into the bottleneck 9.

However, in this case, a better force distribution

over the whole cork 1 can be applied. The corresponding cost is perhaps in terms of a more complex blocks moving mechanism.

The present invention leads to several advantages with respect of the prior art corking devices. First, the corking device manufactured according to the invention operates a perfectly homogeneous diameter reduction in the cork 1, and allows it to be inserted into the corresponding bottleneck 9 while keeping it perfectly unbroken, allowing the bottle 8 to be corked optimally.

Further advantages are that the corking device made as above described has a few mechanically coupled parts, is very strong, and is low cost and easy to maintain.

It will be understood that the above description has been made by way of example, and in a non- limitative way. However, all possible modifications or variation of the aforesaid embodiments are intended to be enclosed in the present invention, as above described and as claimed in the following.