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FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention refers to a procedure for airtight packaging with a thermoseal and waterproof material of a product that is already packaged in a closed envelope, and it is hope to preserve the natural environment.

Also, the current invention is referred as an inventive secondary object to a machine to finish in automatic form the packaging procedure described as a principal object of this invention.

A secondary aspect of the present invention is directed to a process and a machine for automatically fit a set of enveloped products inside a container box. BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

The materials to seal a product in a airtight container are many and are used for the direct packaging of the same, with which justifies the use of the material whose cost does not make up a large part of the final cost of the packaged product in a material of fixed characteristics, for example, non waterproof, and then this container should be protected in a second container of a more economical material.

As an example, we will sight the case of tea bags. These should first be packaged in a laminated material, whose permeability allows the passing of hot water through the tea bag in both directions towards the interior and vice versa.

The tea packaged in the stated laminated material, due to the feature of being permeable, with time looses its own aroma of tea and in some cases, the corresponding flavor.

CONFIRMATION COPV

Two different ways have been used to try a solve the problem. One, is sealing a box of 25 or more tea bags in cellophane paper but this sealing does not achieve the airtightness necessary to conserve the aroma of the tea. Although is like this outside, when the box is opened to use the tea bags, the rest begin to lose the aroma, continuing more and more per day until all of the tea in this opened box is finally consumed.

Another choice is check out back and package the tea bag in a second bag of resisting paper, but not to achieve an airtight seal, and for this it is necessary to leave a small flap for its opening.

It should be said that all this second packages considerable raise the price of the product, because of the quality of the laminated material that must be used.

Currently, an economical laminated material has been developed that has two features, it is waterproof and can be heat sealed. It is made from a laminated material of biorientated polypropylene, very thin, but at the same time resistant. It could also be a complex lamination of a various layers, according to the needs of the packaging, but the remarkable fact is the low cost of all of this.

Of course, the inconvenience that said laminated material has, is that its physical characteristics are different from those of the laminated materials commonly used as paper or cellophane, and for this reason difficult to handle with the techniques and conventional machines.

It is for this reason that the current invention has developed a process for the airtight sealing with a waterproof and

thermosealed material of a pre-packaged product in a closed envelope characterized by the stages of: a: to fold a long, narrow strip of a waterproof and laminated material in half along its longitudinal axis, b: to introduce between the superimposed parts of the stated laminated material the closed envelope that contains the stated product, c : to produce the former transversal seal of the folded laminated material in front of the stated closed envelope, and the partial longitudinal seal of the free superimposed edges to the referred closed envelope, d: to produce the backward transversal seal of the folded laminated material behind the stated closed envelope and to complete the longitudinal seal of the free superimposed edges and, e: to cut the strip of folded laminated material closed in this way, through the transversal seal.

Likewise a secondary object of the current invention is a machine for the airtight sealing with a thermoseal waterproof material and a packaged product in a closed envelope, characterized because it makes up a media feeder of a continuous strip of the thermoseal material by its longitudinal axis, a transporting means of sealed envelopes, whose unloading end faces the stated narrow strip of folded laminated material by its longitudinal axis and selector means which pushes each closed envelope between the superimposed faces of the strip of folded laminated material, and a sealer means of the preceding transverse portion positioning said closed envelope at the stated strip of folded edges that extends the both side of the transversal section, being its longitude slightly greater than the longitude of the stated closed envelope, being located in front of the

stated sealer means a pair of pulling rollers of a strip of folded laminated material and means of shearing of the said strip justly synchronized, capable of cutting the middle part of the stated transversal seal. The present invention is also referred to a process and a machine for automatically packing a set of pre-packed products in a container. For example, packing in a cardboard box a set of tea bags which has been pre-packed with a waterproof and thermosealed material in a closed envelope. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For better clearly and understanding of the inventive object it is illustrated with various figures which one of its preferred realizations forms has been represented all at the simple title of illustrated examples. Figure 1 shows a perspective view of one of the machines of the current invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation view of the machine illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 3 shows in perspective an example of a possible feeding and folding system of laminated material

Figure 4 is a cut view taken along lines IV-IV of Figure 2. Figure 5 is a cut transversal view taken along lines V-V of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a cut transversal view taken along lines VI-VI of Figure 2.

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the finished container with the process and machine of this invention.

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the final end of the machine of Figure 1.

Figure 9 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of the invention, that shows a feeding system of laminated material and the position of the transporting means of the closed envelope of the product to be newly packaged. Figure 10 shows a perspective view of the folding device of the laminated material, illustrated in accordance with the embodiment shown in Figure 9.

Figure 11 shows a schematic elevated lateral view of an alternative embodiment of the machine illustrated in Figure 1, that uses the feeding means of the embodiment of Figure 9, where the alternative sealing press is replaced by a rotating stamping press.

Figure 12 shows a plant view of the embodiment of Figure 11.

Figure 13 is a view of a lateral elevation that shows another embodiment for the present invention, allowing the constitution of the pushing mechanism to be observed, just as a part of a threading arm.

Figure 14 is a lateral view in perspective that allow a pushing mechanism of the machine of Figure 13 to be appreciated m detail.

Figure 15 is another view in perspective of the pushing mechanism of Figure 14, but from the opposite lateral.

Figure 16 is a perspective view that shows the exit of the sealing turret, Figure 17 is a perspective view that allows the arrangement of the threading arm of the pulling mechanism corresponding to the machine in Figure 13.

Figure 18 is a perspective view of an automatic packing machine which is a secondary aspect of the present invention, from

which the envelopes entry and container boxes in different positions can be observed.

Figure 19 is a frontal view of the envelopes entry at the rotatably loader while a charge ready to be taken by the temporal holder can be observed at the side load station.

Figure 20 is a cross section of a packing station of the machine illustrated in Figure 18.

Figure 21 is a front view of the rotatably loader from which a set of four elementary loaders can be observed. The upper elementary loader is receiving envelopes which move down the movable bottom, while right elementary loader has a complete charge ready to be taken by the temporal holder.

Figure 22 is a perspective view from which the angular driver, advance and position controllers can be observed. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

For a detailed specification the process for the airtight packaging with thermoplastic, waterproof material of the product contained in a closed envelope, is characterized by the steps of,

1) to fold a long, narrow strip of waterproof and thermosealed 12, by its half longitudinal axis,

2) to introduce between the superimposed parts of the stated laminated material 12, the closed envelope 14 that contains the product,

3) to produce the transversal seal 42 before the folded laminating material and partially the longitudinal seal 43 at the free edges,

4) to produce the transversal seal 42 posterior of the folded laminated material 12 and to complete the longitudinal stamping 43 at the free superimposed edges, and to cut the strip of laminated material 12, which is closed by the transversal stamp.

A secondary aspect of the present invention is referred to a process for fitting a complete set of enveloped products inside a container box. This process comprise the following steps:

1) shaping each container box so as to upwardly arrange its entrance;

2) pushing the so shaped and arranged container box to an envelope fitting station;

3) piling up by way of a unitary and aligned superposition a set of envelopes until a preset charge of envelopes for each container box has been completed;

4) positionally withhold the referred set of arranged envelopes taking at least by its border's adjacent zone until the alignment with the box entrance is reached;

5) fitting the said envelopes set to the container box. The machine of the present invention comprise a cylinder 10 upon which a roll 11 of laminated material 12 is mounted so as to perform the airtight packaging of the paper bag 14 that contains the aromatic product, just like a example, tea. (see Figure 3)

Parallel to the cylinder 10 there is a plurality of guiding rollers 15 of laminated material 12 along its longitudinal axis that is complemented with the pair of encased rollers 17 of the folded material 12, which passes through a channeled roller 18 through an opening 19 of the wall 20 in which the cylinders are mounted, the guiding roller 15, and the folding device 16 are mounted, being the encased rollers 17 and the channeled roller 18 located on the perpendicular support 21 at the stated wall 20 in a way that, they stay in a perpendicular place with respect to the other rollers 15 and cylinders 10.

For the other side of the opening 20 there is a platform 22 fixed to a support 23 that has a longitudinal edge that presents a

pair of hinges that allow the folded laminated material 12 to slide from the said platform 22, with the folded edge displacing against the hinges 24 while the open edge allows the placement of the scoop 25 between the higher level 26 and the lower level 27 of the laminating material 12 folded according to its longitudinal axis .

The stated scoop 25 is connected to a handle 28 that extends about the higher level 26 of the material 12 and parallel to the said scoop 25. The handle 28 extends further than the sweep of the folded laminated material 12 and a free side it is jointed to the structure 29 of the machine, being controlled by a automatic mechanism 30 for its angular displacement, which permits its own position, the separation of higher levels 26 with respect to the lower level 27. Perpendicularly to the stated scoop 25 and in an opposite position to the referred handle 28, but following this, a transporting-feeding means of paper bags 13 is foreseen, comprising a chain 31 including dividers 32 between which is positioned each paper bag 13 and a pair of pushing rods 33 jointed in its eccentric point 34 of a disc 35 rotatable mounted on a support 36 fixed to the stated transporting means and controlling by way of a transmission means 37 synchronized with the displacement of the chain 31.

In another form of the fulfillment of the machine, the pushing means of each closed envelope is established by an axis 105 rotatable mounted to the framework of the machine. This axis 105 has projecting sections from which the end of the first pushing arm 108 is fixed into its other extreme ends with the pushing foot 108' while through the opposite section the axis 105 is mounted on a second action arm 106.

This second action arm 106, project itself from the same axis

105 and in the same sense as the first arm 108. In addition the sided second action arm 106 is clearly connected to the dynamic end of an automatic cylinder 107, of the alternative angle action. See figures 13, 14 and 15.

On the other side next to the transport feeder of tea bags and in the trajectory of the folded laminated material 12 is located a sealing press 38, that has a base 39 attached to the structure 29 of the machine and an upper movable part 40 that moves vertically over the fixed base 39, which is mounted on an integral support 41 of the machine's structure 29.

The surfaces of the fixed base 39 and the upper movable parts 40 have individual grooves, in such a manner that the above mentioned contact surfaces has a central zone 42 that extends transversely in relation to the width and the total distance of the laminated folded material 12, in the middle area of said fixed base 39 and upper movable parts 40.

The contact surfaces are connected to a lateral zone 43 which extends longitudinally in relation to the folded laminated material 12 and over a longitudinal border in which open borders are superimposed over the upper 26 and lower 27 surfaces of said laminated material 12, in such a manner that the aforementioned central and lateral zones form a "T" .

At the union of the central area 42 with the lateral area 43 of the upper movable part 40, there is a cutting blade 44 that faces a corresponding groove 45 foreseen on the fixed base 39.

Next to the sealing press 38, and always on the trajectory of the folded laminated material 12, there is a pulling mechanism that includes a first lower roller 47 which is driven by a chain

48 that has a pair of roller barrels 49, mounted on a support 50 to the structure of the machine 29.

On one end there is a gear 51 that drives the foreseen gear 52 on a carrier axis of a second upper roller 53 that is placed parallel to the lower roller 47 with a pair of rolling bands 54 that are in tangential contact with the rolling bands 49.

The upper rolling axis 53 is mounted on two movable swivel guns 55 movably mounted on lateral supports 56 fixed to an upper support 57 attached to the structure of the machine 29. The swivel guns 55 are linked to springs 58 that press said swivel guns 55 against the lower roller 47 in such a manner as to force contact between the rolling bands 49 and 54 in such a manner as to pull the laminated material 12 beginning with the carrier roller itself 11. The aforementioned traction rollers 53 and 47 are mounted so as to rotate on a support connected with a threading forked arm 67. This arm 67 is connected on one end with the frame of the machine, while in the opposite end it has mounted a rotating and free lower press 66 supported against the periphery of the lower roller 63 that is mounted so as to rotate freely on the same frame C of the machine. Together with this, the aforementioned forked threading arm 67 is raisable about its joint with relation to the sided lower roller 63, with at least one of the traction rollers 47 rotating actively by way of the transmission of movement. At the exit of the traction mechanism 46 there is located a shears 59 that has a fixed blade 60 attached to the structure 29 of the machine and located above the trajectory of the folded laminated material 12, and a movable blade 61 located below the said trajectory and joined to the structure 29 on one end while

the opposite end is connected to a piston 62 capable of moving the folded laminated material 12 in position to be cut.

Next to the blade 59 and in a shorter distance that the length of the envelope-package that is shaped at the machine, there is located a roller 63 including rolling bands 64 similar to the bands 49 and 54 placed below the trajectory of the laminated material 12 and connected to the lower roller 47 by way of a transmission chain 65. Above the said pulling roller 63 there is a free spinning roller 66 mounted on the forked arm 67 joined to the structure 29. The weight of the roller 66 is such that permits the passage of the conformed envelope-package, shifting upward by the joint of the aforementioned forket arm 67.

A variant of this feeding system of laminated material 12, its pleat about a longitudinal axis and feeding a paper bag 14, is illustrated in the figure 10.

In said variant the wall 20 is eliminated and the whole feeding and folding structure of laminated material 12, supplying itself over the structure 29 of the machine and laterally to the trajectory of displacement of the laminated material 12, is established by the sealing press 38 in the traction mechanism 46, a vertical axis 68 carrying the roller 11 of laminated material, that is guided on a perpendicular surface to the referred trajectory of the displacement by a roller 69 to a folding device 70 has a first guiding surface 71 that afterwards continues in a pleated surfaces 72 that continue on an ending surfaces 73 and form a dihedral angle with a little opening, whose exit faces the scoop 25.

The paper bag transporting-feeding means is located in line with the preferred trajectory of displacement of laminated material 12 and adjacent to the entrance of the dihedral angle

form by the surfaces 73, in such a manner that the chain 31 with the separators 32, feeds the paper bags 14, pushed by the pushing rods 33 directly at said dihedral angle, between the upper 26 and lower 27 plans of the laminated material folded as such over the longitudinal axis.

In the variant illustrated in figures 11 and 12 there is a folding device 70 at the exit of the paper bag feeding system 14, that feeds said paper bags 14 of the referred folder 70, enclosing them with laminated material 12 between the upper 26 and lower 27 planes, after which there is a transversal rotating sealing device 80 that comprise the lower rotating sealing element 81 and another upper sealer 82. Each one of the said elements has at least four sealing devices 83 distributed at 90 degrees each. In at least one of the said elements 82 or 81, there are foreseen heating means capable of producing the seal of the laminated material 14 between the superior surface 26 and the inferior 27, when between both sealing surface 83 is enclosed the said laminated material 14. At least one of the rotating sealing elements 81 or 82 are mounted in such a form so as to press elastically against each other, and can be fixed or mounted in such a way as to yield elasticity.

The sealing surfaces 83 have the same design as a base surfaces 39 and the movable part 40 of said sealing press 38.

After the rotating sealing device 80 there are several traction rollers 84, placed in pairs one on top of the sealed laminated material 14 and the other below, in such a manner as to enclose the lateral area 43 and pull the laminated material 14 in the general system.

Next it is foreseen a cutting mechanism 85, followed by a pair of blades 86 and 87.

The aforementioned functioning of the machine with the illustrated variant of Figure 10 is the following.

The laminated material 12, which is fed from the spool 49, is directed by the roller 69 towards the folding device 70, making contact with the guiding surface 71, and after then slide along pleated surfaces 72, and bring the surfaces together 73, to form a dihedral angle leaving the laminated material 12 folded over the longitudinal axis which is carried by the operator of the scoop 25, so that it remains between the upper 26 and lower 27 surfaces. It then passes between the fixed base 39 and the upper movable part 40 of the sealing press 38 to continue its pass to the pulling mechanism 46 and position the folded laminated material 12 between the rollers 47 and 63.

The separation of the upper roller 53 in relation to the lower roller 47 in order to position the laminated material, is possible because of the handle 74 of an eccentric mechanism 65 comprise of levers 58 and swivel guns 55, producing such the displacement of referred upper roller 53.

Then, the folded laminated material 12 is passed under the fixed blade 60 of shears 59. The movement of the folded laminated material 12 is continued by the operator until the press roller 66, that is scrolled toward both, raising its forked arm 67, after which it own weight lowers and encloses the folded laminated material 12 against the rolling bands 64 of roller 63. To conclude the preparation of the machine, there is a lever 74 of the eccentric mechanism 75 that is moved inversely, which frees the levers 58 that press the swivel guns 55, and this in turn press the upper rollers 53 against the lower rollers 47, in such a manner that the rolling bands 54 press the folded laminated

material 12 against the borders of the rolling bands 49 of roller

47.

With the folded laminated material 12 in position the machine is driven by a chain 48 that yield the lower roller movement, that by way of the upper rolling bearing bands 54 press the folded laminated material through the sealing press 38, the scoop 25, the folding device 70 and the spool 49.

Simultaneously, the movement of the feeder-transport means of paper bags 14 is initiated ( as illustrated in Figure 10 ) that introduces the referred paper bags between the upper and lower surfaces 26 and 27 of folded laminated material 12, with the paper bag 14 inside, arrives at the sealing press 38. When the tea bag

14 is about to reach the point that faces the central area 42 of the base 49 and the movable part 40, it produces the driving force of the sealing press 38 in such a way which makes the central area

42, the lateral zones, the fixed base 39 as well as the upper movable part 40 come together, producing a heat seal in the referred central zone 42, and in the borders of the upper 26 and lower 27 surfaces, therefore closing the lateral openings of the same surfaces.

A partial cut is also produced in the union of the transversal zone 42 with the lateral zone 43 by the action of a blade 44 within the groove 45.

In this way, the interior transversal closure is produced in folded laminated material 12 as well as the partial closure of the free borders from the middle of the upper 26 and lower 27 surfaces to the middle of a contained paper bag.

Next, laminar material which is tractioned by the pulling mechanism 46, creating a new movement by the sealing press 38 produces the transverse closure of the folded laminated material

12 as well as the closure of the other half of the contained tea bag.

Once closed, the airtight package 13 of the paper envelope 14, so forming a part of a strip of folded laminar material 12 passes through a pulling mechanism 46. Thereafter the package moves under the blade 60 of the shears 59, and when has almost completely passed the airtight container 13 of the laminated material 12, it produces the driven motion of the movable blade 61 which cut the strip of the folded laminated material 12, exactly in the middle portion of the central area 42 by the partial cut produced by the blade 44 and the groove 45.

When the aforementioned cut is produced, the leading border of the airtight package 13 has already reached the roller rolling bands 63 and 66, by which roller 63, through the movement driven by the chain 65, discharges the airtight container 13 into the packaging mechanism.

Finally, as is illustrated in Figures 18-22, a secondary object of the present invention is referred to a machine for automatically fit a set of arranged enveloped product inside a cardboard container box.

This machine comprise a rotatably loader (e) of tea bags containers or envelopes (250) located at the exit of an envelope packing machine (d) . This loader (e) is driven by an angular driver (f) and controlled by an advance controller (g) and a positional holder device (f' A Under the rotatably loader (e) there is located a table (a) over which a feeding hopper (b) of box containers as well as an arranging device thereof are set. Between the hopper (b) and arranging device (h) zone and the rotatably loader zone there is a fitting device (k' ) and a temporal holder (k) comprised of envelopes holder brushes 220.

The machine also includes an angular driver (f) comprising a wheel 212 and a ratchet 213, an advance controller (g) with a locking wheel 214 whose periphery includes positioning notches 214' and positional holder device (f) comprising a cylinder 216 with a locking member 215 whose end fits on the referred notches 214' of locking wheel 214.

The above cited mechanism is driven by a driving belt 209 and is mounted on an axis 210 which rotates on a bearing 211 fixed to a supporting lid 243. The rotatably loader (e) located between the upper load and lateral unload stations E-E' comprises a pair of arms 206 defining a set of four elementary loaders (e' ) .

At the upper load station E there is located the envelope packing machine exit (d) whose envelope feeding rolls 201 loads a receiving box 202 with a pushing device 203 towards each elemental loader (e' ) .

The loader arms 206 define long containers comprising 205- 205a-205b-205c movable bottoms linked with each other through stiff bars 208-208' whose length is like the container's bottom depth. Each bottom 205-205a-205b-205c intermittently goes down a length equivalent to an envelope's length until a preset load is completed. The intermittently going down movement is created by a pushing device 203.

At the lateral load station (E') the machine includes a temporal holder device (k) comprising a pair of movable brushes 220 whose bristles are capable of crossing the elemental loader structure (e') defining a temporal envelopes holder device.

The box feeding hopper (b) comprise a curved big box 223 with a retaining device 223' and a container box rotatably end 224. At the hopper's exit an arranging device (h) providing a bar 225 is

located with a pushing head 226 and grabbing means 229 for taking and locating each container box to the fitting position.

Over the fitting station E'' a fitting device (k' ) including a cylinder 217 with a bar 217' ' is located including a load pushing head 217' ' for moving the envelopes 250 to the container box entrance.

At the exit of the fitting station a lid closing device (j) which complete the fitting operation is located comprising a folder device 230 of lid 242 and a closing finger 230' . It is possible to introduce certain modifications on details of construction and form are concerned, without affect the fundamental principles which are clearly stated in the set of claims that follow .