KINDLING WOOD

Technical Field to which the Invention Relates

The invention belongs to the field of machines, apparatuses or devices or procedures for packaging subjects or materials in broader sense, and relates to packaging of fiber material into individual compartments.

According to the International Patent Classification (IPC), the invention can be classified as:

B65B 13/02 - Tying articles into packages, applying and securing binding material around articles or groups of articles, e.g. using strings, wires, strips, bands or tapes;

B65B 27/12 - Baling or bundling of compressible fibrous material.

B65B 1/24 - Procedure of material compression that is charged by mechanical compression;

B65B 63/02 - Various auxiliary equipment for processing packages or materials to be packaged, for compressing or compacting articles or materials being packed;

Technical Problem

The technical problem that is solved by this invention is how to structurally solve the handle package for the kindling wood and which procedure to use to pack the chopped wood, so that the handle package constructed in that way would be compact, easily portable, wood quickly available in the desired amount, provided that after consumption of kindling wood, there aren’t any debris left.

Currently Used Techniques

Kindling wood is prepared in machines for wood processing by cutting it to the appropriate length, typically 200 mm to 350 mm in length, whereupon the cut off part of the wood is chopped to slats of desired thickness. Slats are made of soft or hard wood cleaned of bark and impurities, completely natural. Kindling wood, as such, is not suitable for storage and use in bulk, because it is not stable, so it is necessary to wrap it.

Through a search, it was found that in the patent documents there are several published patent applications and patents relating to the packing of firewood, kindling wood and compressible material which can be considered relevant in relation to the solution which will be shown in this application as the invention.

So for example: The patent application ES314257 (Al), which became available to the public on July 16, 1966, entitled "A method of packing compressible material, device therefore and package made thereby" shows a method of packing the compressible material, device and formed package, so that the formed package would have the desired form and compactness, and also a small volume. The device is made of a press with a frame and foil. The foil is somewhat larger than the dimensions of the frame. Once the foil is placed on the frame, a tubular element is placed on the foil, which in volume corresponds to the amount of material in bulk, which should fill the tubular element. The second foil, of the same size as the first one, is placed over the upper edge of the tubular element. The tubular element has openings in the wall, in order to release the excess air. Under the press, the material is compressed at the appropriate height, and the air from the material is extruded in the process of compression. After compression to a certain height, the foils through the electrodes that are lowering, get connected together, thereby forming a package of the desired dimensions and compactness.

The patent application DE102007050004 (Al), which became available to the public on

April 23, 2009, entitled "Firewood in the shape of a circular roller" Kaminholztrommel) shows a method of packing in a device and binding a transportable solid wood, which can be transported by muscle power and stacked without additional assistance. The device consists of two plates which are firmly connected at the inter-distance and which have circular openings. Solid wood is cut to the appropriate length and stacked through both openings, provided that the wood is longer than the inter-distance of the plates. The wood is stacked through the opening, until the opening is completely full, after which it is tightened by clamping strips, thereby reducing the outer diameter of the circular roller of the stacked wood. The roller retains the circular shape after tightening, and the diameter of the roller after the tightening is smaller than the diameter of the opening in the tool, and can easily be taken out from the tool.

The patent application EP2796377 (A2), which became available to the public on October 29, 2014, entitled "An apparatus and method for packaging firewood, in particular wood for fireplaces" shows an invention which relates to an apparatus and method for packing the firewood, in particular for fireplaces, and which is, in particular, used for the preparation of a relatively small packages of wood in containers, such as plastic mesh bags. For this device is characteristic that the length of firewood is the only characteristic by which the wood is sorted. The basic feature of the device is an inclined conveyor which is filled with pieces of the cut wood via an inlet plank located above the drain basket. In addition to the transport line there is a screw conveyor which feeds the chopped pieces of wood from the inclined cover. The loading ramp has at least two cells in rectangular shape through which the pieces of the cut wood pass. Two or more cells open and close by sliding lids.

In the non-patent documents there are several published packages than can also be considered relevant in relation to the solution that will be shown.

So, for example, on the website: https://www.iutarnii.hr/domidizain/inspiraciie/ciepanice-kao -rustikalni-ukras/5281059/ which became available to the public on November 20, 2016, the images show two ways of packing the kindling wood, one with binding straps, and the other by stacking them between built posts.

On the website: http://www.ielastar.rs/drvo-za-potpalu/ of "Jela" from Prijepolje, which became available to the public on March 15, 2017, a packing the kindling wood in the mash bags was presented.

On the website: http://legno-service.com.ba/drva za potpalu.php which became available to the public on March 10, 2017, a packing the kindling wood in bags, boxes and crates, or at the customer’s request was presented.

On the website: https://www.niuskalo.hr/griianie-hladenie-ostalo/drva-potpal u-oglas-1022l764 which became available to the public on October 29, 2014, a packing the kindling wood in mesh bags, which were then packed together on a pallet secured with mesh lining was presented.

However, all the above solutions for packing and procedures of packing the firewood, kindling wood and bulk materials have disadvantages.

Disadvantages of packing the kindling wood in mesh bags are:

• difficult stacking of wood, because wood is not straight and during packing, the slats get caught in the bags;

• it is large in volume, because, although stacked, it is still in bulk;

• there is waste - the bag, and the experience shows that holding and packing firewood in mesh bags endangers the environment;

• the box, after the wood is spent, must be chopped and put in fire, which results in the spreading of waste and too much flame and soot;

• one needs tools to take the crate apart, debris spread in the environment and, after combustion, metal "ammunition" with which the crates are bound together, remains in the ashes.

Disadvantages of packing the kindling wood in plastic bags are: • condensation on the wood;

• there is waste - the bag, and the experience shows that holding and packing firewood in plastic bags endangers the environment.

Disadvantages of packing the kindling wood and firewood with ropes, straps, etc. are:

• there is waste - ropes, bands, etc., and the experience shows that holding and packing firewood in plastic bags endangers the environment;

• it is large in volume, because, although stacked, it is still in bulk.

Essence of the Invention

The handle package and the packaging procedure of the kindling wood is a novelty in solving the problems of packing, carrying and use of kindling wood packed after the pressing i.e. compression. The essence of the invention is that prepared wood (wood chopped in the form of slats, dryness of up to 20%), are mutually pressed under high pressure in the device that uses hydraulic drive, forming a bundle of wood in the form of a roller in which, prior to compression, a carrying handle is inserted in the axis of the roller. Diameter of the wood bundle is 150 mm to 350 mm, preferably 200 mm, a length of 200 mm to 500 mm, preferably 250 mm. After mutual compression of the kindling wood with a handle, one end of the roller-shaped wood, one without a handle, is secured with a bottom. The bottom includes the base and a part of the roller wrapper closer to the base. The other end of the roller-shaped wood, the one with the handle, is secured with a ring that includes the wrapper closer to the other side of the roller. The bottom, ring and handle are made of recycled paper, trade name "Srenc". Thus formed handle packing for the kindling wood has a weight of 2 kg to 3.5 kg depending on the type and dryness of the wood.

The bottom consists of two parts. One part is the substrate made of up to 160 g/m ² grammage paper, in the circular shape. Diameter of the circle is larger than the diameter of the compressed kindling wood by at least the width of the lower ring, and preferably the diameter is 240 mm if the diameter of the compressed kindling wood is 200 mm. The other part is the lower ring made of up to 300 g/m ² grammage paper, which is cut out of the paper tube to a width of 35 mm to 50 mm, preferably to 40 mm.

The upper ring is also made of up to 300 g/m ² grammage paper, which is cut out of the paper tube to a width of 25 mm to 35 mm, preferably to 25 mm.

The tube is used here as a semi-finished product, and is made by gluing three layers of up to 300 g/m ² grammage paper. The gluing is done with an adhesive on a natural basis, of corn starch.

The handle package is made of up to 160 g/m ² grammage paper. The paper is cut into a rectangular shape of a width of 100 mm and a length of 400 mm to 500 mm. The rectangle is further folded, by bending it lengthwise, without gluing, twice in form of a strip 25 m wide. In this way, a soft strip is made that forms a flexible handle with no sharp edges.

The packaging procedure for kindling wood in the handle package is performed with a tool, in the form of pliers, which consist of jaws which are driven hydraulically. The jaws, when they are closed, are in a circular shape, and when they are open they are in the shape of an ellipse. The jaws are fixed to the base so that when they are open, the longer axis of the ellipse of the open jaws is parallel to the base, i.e., the open jaws are fixed to the axis using the tube level. In the open jaws of the tool, chopped kindling wood is inserted, up to the half of the height of the shorter axis of the ellipse. At the half the height of the shorter axis of the ellipse, and at the center of the longer axis of the ellipse, a strip is placed on the stacked wood, which, when folded in half widthwise, forms a handle. The folded strip is placed along the length of the wood, in parallel with them. The closed part of the strip must jut out on one side of the chopped wood. After the handle package is made, this closed part of the strip makes the handle for holding and carrying in the form of a loop. Handle size must be such that one can freely squeeze a hand through it for holding and carrying the so made handle package, and preferably the folded part is 100 mm long.

After placing the strip to form a handle, a new quantity of kindling wood is added to fill in the cross-section of the jaws in the form of an ellipse. Then the jaws of the device are closed under high pressure, until the complete closing of the jaws. When the jaws are closed, the cross- section of the jaws is in the shape of a circle with a diameter of 190 mm. It should be noted that during the compression of stacked kindling wood, the wood, along with a part of the strip which does not cover the handle, are pressed together. Thus, a bundle of kindling wood is formed in the shape of a roller with a diameter of 190 mm. One end of the wood, the one without a handle, is secured with a bottom which includes the base and a part of the roller wrapper closer to the base. The other end of the wood in the roller shape, the one with the handle, is secured with a ring that includes the wrapper closer to the other side of the roller. In order to make the setting of the bottom and the upper ring easier, for example, for a wood bundle of 190 mm diameter, diameters of the upper and lower rings are 200 mm. It can be said that, at the installation phase, the bottom and the upper ring are very loosely connected to the wood bundle. After that, the tool jaws open. Diameter of the bundle of the kindling wood in the form of a roller, after the jaws open, increases to the diameter of the upper and lower rings, i.e. to a 200 mm diameter. At that time, the bottom and the upper ring are firmly connected to the bundle of the kindling wood in the form of a roller. By using the handle, the bundle of the stacked wood in the form of the handle package is removed from the open jaws of the tool.

The handle package made using the process described above is suitable for carrying, use and sale. For transportation, the best way is to pack four handle packages in one box made of corrugated cardboard. Boxes are loaded on pallets, and it is best to pack 60 boxes on one palette.

Advantages of the handle package for the kindling wood in relation to techniques currently used are:

S packed kindling wood does 'not sweat' - there is no condensation;

it is environment friendly, because in the process of packing, and after the consumption of wood, there is no waste of packaging, which is in line with green technology;

f is quickly packed;

easy to carry and use;

S convenient for transportation. Brief Description of the Draft Drawings

The invention is described in detail in the example shown in the draft, in which:

Figure 1 Illustrates the drawing of the handle package, front view;

Figure 2 Shows a schematic view of the open jaws in perspective;

Figure 3 Shows a schematic view of the open jaws, in the procedure phase, with stacked wood and the carrying handle in perspective;

Figure 4 is the detail "A" in Fig. 1.

Detailed Description

A handle package 10 in which the kindling wood 4 is packed is best made in a form of a roller. It consists of a bottom 1, upper ring 2, handle 3 and compressed kindling wood 4 in the form of a roller. The bottom 1 includes the base and part of the roller wrapper of compressed wood 4 at one end. The upper ring 2 is put on the roller wrapper at other end of the wood 4. The handle 3 is, with its ends jutting out, in the production process for the handle package 10, inserted in the axis of the handle package 10. The ends of the handle 3 are held by the wood 4, while a part of the handle 3 in the form of a loop juts out the end of the wood 4 where the ring 2 is set. The bottom 1 consists of a substrate lb in the circular shape and a lower ring la.

The material from which the bottom 1, upper ring 2 and handle 3 of the handle package 10 are made is recycled craft paper (trade name "Srenc"). The substrate lb and handle 3 are made of up to 160 g/m ² grammage paper, and the rings la, 2 are made of up to 300 g/m ² grammage paper.

The handle package 10 weights 2 kg to 3.5 kg, and it depends on the diameter of the handle package 10, the length of slats, type, and dryness of the wood.

Wood 4 of up to 20% dryness, which is to be packaged, is previously chopped to slats. The slats are made from a trunk, hard or soft wood, a length of 200 to 500 mm, preferably 250 mm, although the length of the kindling wood 4 is not a limiting factor for the invention.

The production procedure for the handle package 10 is done in two phases. The preparation phase involves making the bottom 1, ring 2 and handle 3.

Of up to 160 g/m ² grammage paper, a substrate lb in the circular shape is cut. The circle diameter must be greater than the diameter of the compressed kindling wood 4 by at least the width of the lower ring la, and preferably the diameter of the circle is 240 mm if the diameter of the compressed kindling wood 4 is 200 mm.

Of up to 300 g/m ² grammage paper, which is formed, as a semi-finished product, in the form of a tube with a diameter of 200 mm, the ring la is cut in a width of 35 mm to 50 mm, preferably 40 mm.

Of the same paper in the form of a tube, the upper ring 2 is also cut. The upper ring 2 is cut at a width of 25 mm to 35 mm, preferably 25 mm.

The tube, which as a semi-finished product, used in the handle package 10, of which the rings la, 2 are cut, is made by gluing the three layers of the "Srenc" paper, of up to 300 g/m ² grammage. Gluing of the paper to make a tube is done with an adhesive on a natural basis, from corn starch.

The handle package 3 is made of up to 160 g/m ² grammage paper. The paper is cut into a rectangular shape of a width of 100 mm and a length of 400 mm to 500 mm. The rectangle is further folded, by bending it lengthwise, without gluing, twice in form of a strip 25 mm wide and 400 mm to 500 mm long. In this way, a soft strip is made that forms a flexible handle with no sharp edges.

The second phase of making a handle package 10, is done in the tool 5, which consists of the jaws 5a, 5b, which are mutually rotatably connected in the form of pliers, and opening and closing of the jaws 5a, 5b is hydraulically powered. The jaws 5a, 5b are attached to the base so that the jaw 5b is firmly connected with the base, and the jaw 5a is rotatably connected to the jaw 5b and slidingly with the hydraulic roller which powers it. In order to stack wood 4 for packaging, the jaws 5a, 5b should be open, and the cross-section of the tool 5 and the open jaws 5a, 5b is roughly in the shape of an ellipse. The long axis of the ellipse of the open jaws 5a, 5b is parallel with the base, i.e., the open jaws 5a, 5b are fixed to the axis using the tube level. For example, if a handle package 10 which has an outer diameter of 200 mm is made, the cross- section of the jaws 5a, 5b, when closed, is in the circular shape with a diameter of 190 mm. Length of the jaws 5a, 5b is shorter than the length of the kindling wood 4 by at least the sum of the widths of the rings la, 2, and preferably the jaws 5a, 5b are shorter by about 100 mm. Hydraulic drive of the jaws 5a, 5b of the tool 5, can be achieved with a machine for chopping the kindling wood 4.

In the open jaws 5a, 5b of the tool 5, when the cross-section is in the shape of an ellipse, between the jaws 5a, 5b stacked kindling wood 4 is inserted, chopped in the form of slats. Wood 4 when being inserted must jut out of both ends of the jaws 5a, 5b, at least by a width of the rings la, 2. One side of the wood 4 juts out at least by a width of the ring 1 a, and the other side of the wood 4 juts out at least by a width of the ring 2. Previously inserted wood 4 fills the space between the jaws 5a, 5b up to the half of the height of the shorter axis of the ellipse formed by the jaws 5a, 5b.

At the half the height of the shorter axis of the ellipse, and at the center of the longer axis of the ellipse, a narrow strip of four layers of paper is placed on the stacked wood 4. The narrow strip is firstly folded in half widthwise. The folded strip is placed along the length of the wood 4, and in parallel with the wood 4, and on one wider side the stacked slats of wood 4 are placed. Then the narrow strip is wrapped with the other wider side of the wood slat 4, so that the narrow strip would not wrinkle when compressing the wood 4. The closed part of the narrow strip in the form of a loop, for forming the handle, must jut out on one side of the chopped wood 4, where later the ring 2 is set. The handle 3 size must be such that one can freely squeeze a hand through it for holding and carrying the so made handle package 10, and preferably the folded part is 100 mm long.

After setting the narrow strip to form the handle 3, a new quantity of kindling wood 4 is added to fill in the cross-section of the jaws 5a, 5b in the shape of an ellipse. Then the jaws 5a, 5b of the device are closed under pressure of 80 bar, until the complete closing of the jaws 5a, 5b, when the cross-section of the tool 5 is in the circular shape. If a handle package 10 is being formed with a diameter of 200 mm, the cross-section of the closed jaws 5a, 5b is 190 mm. It should be noted that during the compression of stacked kindling wood 4, the wood 4, along with a part of the strip which does not wrap the handle 3, is pressed together. Thus, a bundle of kindling wood 4 is formed in the form of a roller with a diameter of 190 mm.

One end of the wood, the one without a handle 3, is secured with a bottom which includes the base and a part of the roller wrapper of the stacked wood 4 closer to the base. Bottom 1 is positioned in the way that the substrate lb is pressed against the base of the wood 4 (without the handle 3), and then over the substrate lb and the roller wrapper, the lower ring l a is placed.

The other end of the wood 4 in the roller shape (with the handle 3), is secured with the upper ring 2 that includes the wrapper closer to the other side of the roller. In order to make the setting of the bottom 1 and the ring 2 easier, the diameters of the rings la, 2 are by 10 mm wider than the diameter of the wood 4 roller, meaning they are very loosely connected.

After setting the bottom 1 and the ring 2, the jaws 5a, 5b of the tool are open, the diameter of the kindling wood 4 in the roller form after the opening of the jaws 5a, 5b increases until the wood 4 lays onto the rings la 2. After that, the bottom 1 and the ring 2 are in the solid connection with the bundle of the kindling wood 4, and thereby the handle package 10 is created. The handle package 10 is removed from the open jaws 5a, 5b of the tool 5 and the tool 5 is ready for the next handle package 10.

The substrate lb of the handle package 10 serves to protect, against damage, the base on which the handle package 10 rests, as well as to prevent the spilling of possible waste. As the bottom 1, ring 2 and handle 3 are made of paper, the paper can be recycled again after the consumption of wood 4.

The handle package 10 made using the process described above is suitable for carrying, use and sale. For transportation, the best way is to pack four handle packages 10 in one box. Boxes are loaded on pallets, and it is best to pack 60 boxes on one palette.

In this document, one of the forms (roller) of the handle package 10 is presented, where the kindling wood 4 is packed. However, professionals in this field understand that it is possible to achieve various forms of the handle package bases, such as rectangle, square, triangle, ellipse, without deviating from the concept of the invention. Therefore, the object of the invention cannot be restricted except in the spirit of the submitted patent claims.