FILLING DEVICE AND/OR PACKING MACHINE

The present invention relates to devices or machines for compressing and/or filling diverse types of products and materials. The present invention relates particularly to a filling device for corpuscular material such as grain, maize, wood shavings, sawdust, hay, flax and other materials which can be compressed to a relatively high degree. It likewise relates however to materials which are to be compressed to a lesser degree or not at all, or which are not to be compressed because of a risk of damage, such as granulates, powders, fodder meal, glass objects and so on.

Some of these products even require compression thereof prior to or during packing, or this is desirable in the case of such products in order to save space, for instance during transport, while other materials are hardly compressible and compression thereof can then be deemed pointless or undesirable. It was usual in the past for separate filling devices or machines to be provided for this purpose. For the non-compressible or little compressible materials it was possible to suffice with a device without press which need comprise not much more than a kind of funnel, which then debouches in a package. Such a known device is thus suitable for filling a package, such as a container, for instance a bag, with such materials which cannot or need not be compressed. Such known devices can then not be employed or utilized in conditions where compression of the material to be packed in the package is desired; this is because these known devices lack the press required for this purpose. The materials compressible to a desirable extent were packed using a separate filling device with a press.

A filling device with a press is known from JP-A-09. /225.691. This known device comprises a pusher at the discharge for the

purpose, after the release of a quantity of material compressed with the press, of laterally discharging this quantity, while exerting a compressing force thereon, in the lateral direction to a second discharge to which the package may be connected or to which the package can be connected. Using such a known pressing or compressing filling device it is not possible, or at least not desirable, to process fragile materials which can be damaged by the action thereon of the lateral pusher, even if the press itself were or could be deactivated. The invention has for its object to provide a filling device which does not have the stated drawbacks of the known art, or at least much less so, and which comprises for this purpose: a feed for infeed of material for packing; a press with a pressing chamber for selectively compressing the material, this press being connected to the feed; and a discharge where the package can be arranged in order to be filled with material for packing, wherein at least the pressing chamber and the discharge lie substantially in line. The feed can optionally also be oriented in the same line, although this is not required. The filling device according to the invention is particularly well able and suitable to process both types of material, so that it is possible to economize on at least one type of known device or machine, and a wide versatility of the filling device or machine according to the invention can be realized. This invention makes it possible to perform both operations with one machine, i.e. packing with or without compression, although the machine can however also be used only for pressing or only for filling. The invention particularly addresses the question of whether and the manner in which the products are, if desired, compressed and packed.

Feed of these products and materials to the machine can take place via a conveyor belt, bulldozer or other random feed method.

Products can be packed while being pressed. These products must be compressed if it is the intention to place the greatest possible volume and/or weight in the smallest possible package.

The press can be set into operation for such materials. Products or materials with varying characteristics and/or specific weight, which do not have to be pressed in order to be placed in the chosen package, are packed without pressing operation by (temporarily and selectively) deactivating the press. Because the pressing chamber and the discharge with the package lie in line, and a lateral pusher forming part of the prior art press can therefore be omitted, damage to such materials for packing can be effectively avoided.

In a preferred embodiment the discharge can be closed with a selectively operable closing valve. It is thus possible to ensure that no material escapes when the press is set into operation. The closing valve can also serve to prevent the escape of material not to be compressed during the time necessary to arrange on or behind the discharge a new empty package to be filled. It can be favourable here, when the press is to be set into operation, to close the discharge subject to actuating of the closing valve. It can further be favourable when the press can only be set into operation in a closed position of the closing valve. This ensures that no material escapes the pressing operation. The closing valve can preferably be actuated selectively and independently of the press, wherein in a non-actuated situation of the press the pressing chamber forms a supply chamber for the unpressed material for filling the package. The closing valve then forms only a kind of gate for selective passage of the materials which are not to be compressed, and for interruption of this passage, for instance for the purpose of arranging a new empty package.

The closing valve can be formed as a slidable or tiltable valve, although any other conceivable embodiment which can withstand forces released during pressing can be utilized.

In another preferred embodiment the pressing chamber is bounded by at least one pressing plate. This pressing plate can be mounted pivotally on shafts or hinges, preferably in the direct vicinity of the discharge and/or the closing valve, in order to form a funnel to the discharge in a non-compressing operating mode, or can likewise be designed as a pressing plate lineraly displaceable as a whole. It can be favourable here for such an embodiment to comprise at least two pressing plates oriented in opposite directions. Except for the orientation, the pressing plates can be identical elements, although the pressing plates can also be of different types (pivotable or tiltable and translatable) . The pressing plates can preferably be actuated simultaneously by means of a press drive. Additionally or alternatively, it is preferably also possible that the pressing plates can be actuated sequentially by means of separate press drives. These options are very much associated with and depend on the designs of drives to be selected in a practical embodiment, and in this respect the invention is not limited to one choice. It is noted that, in an embodiment of the filling device with press drives for the separate pressing plates to be simultaneously or sequentially actuated, to prevent bridge formation in a filling operative mode without compression. The movement of the pressing plates relative to each other can then prevent the forming at or in the discharge of a bridge of material to be packed in the package. For this purpose the pressing plates can be driven in phase and/or in counter-phase. It is noted by way of example that the filling device can comprise one or more than one press drive from the group comprising: a cylinder connected to an oil pump or to an air compressor, an electric motor or any other drive.

In a preferred embodiment the filling device can further comprise an ejector, which is then preferably disposed substantially opposite the closing valve in relation to the pressing chamber. The pressing-out of pressed material can hereby be facilitated.

In yet another preferred embodiment the filling device can have the feature that the line defined by the pressing chamber and the discharge is vertically oriented.

Several advantages of the thus resulting vertical pressing are:

- the machine takes up less space, or at least less floor area;

- a higher capacity can be realized because of the reduced number of changes in forward movements of the material for packaging;

- no products will remain between the closure of the package, since these will stream, flow or move into the package under the influence of gravitational force; and

- no loss of product occurs during pressing.

The single figure shows an embodiment of a filling device according to the present invention. Herein a pressing chamber is adapted such that it can be used to press all kinds of products and materials with varying characteristics, wherein the dimensions are of secondary importance. The quantity, dimensions and material used of fixed plates (1), pressing plates (2), cylinders (3, 8, 9), closing valve (4), ejector (5), feed (6), hinges (7) are of secondary importance since the operation of the filling device in general and of these components and elements in particular remains the same.

Before and during the filling of the pressing chamber via feed (6) this pressing chamber is held closed by closing valve (4) . This may be the case when a package under the discharge is being replaced or during a pressing operation.

The pressing chamber is filled along feed (6) . Once a new package has been arranged the closing valve can be opened,

particularly when it is desired only to fill the package without compression of the filling materials. This is referred to again below as a second application.

Conversely, when compression of the filling materials is desired, and when the pressing chamber is sufficiently filled, pressing plates (2) between fixed plates (1) are pressed toward each other in order to compress the product, wherein pressing plates (2) are mounted on the underside on hinges (7) and are pressed together by cylinders (3) . Fixed plates (1) form a frame on which pressing plates (2) are hingedly or pivotally arranged. Pressing plates (2) are here pivotable or rotatable reciprocally in the direction of double arrows A in the figure.

When pressing plates (2) between fixed plates (1) have compressed the product sufficiently, ejector (5) presses the product between pressing plates (2) and fixed plates (1) to the desired volume or length on closing valve (4) . The material or product then has a desired or chosen volume or length and is compressed for this purpose between fixed plates (1), pressing plates (2), closing valve (4) and ejector (5). The desired volume or length is in accordance with the adjustment of the pressing chamber and can thus be chosen as such by the user of the filling device.

Once the chosen volume or length has been reached, closing valve (4) opens so that ejector (5) can push the product out of the pressing chamber. The closing valve then slides away in the direction of double arrow B in the figure in order to leave clear the outflow opening or discharge. In order to reclose this latter, closing valve (4) is simply displaced back in the direction defined by double arrow B using cylinder (8). The operation and/or pressure of fixed plates (1) , pressing plates (2), cylinders (3, 8, 9), closing valve (4), ejector (5), feed (6), hinges (7) can be controlled manually or electronically.

A second application is further described here. As noted, the pressing chamber can be used to fill a package with products and materials with varying characteristics which do not have to be pressed to get them in a chosen package. Feed (6) remains the same .

During filling the pressing plates (2) and ejector (5) can be switched off. Closing valve (4) can optionally still be active so that the pressing chamber can be used as supply chamber for non-compressed filling of a package with material. On the other hand pressing plates (2) in particular can be driven in a movement in order to prevent bridge formation of the material for packaging. The pressing plates can then be driven in counter-phase (i.e. away from and toward each other) when a slight compression of products is less relevant. The pressing plates must however be driven in phase (i.e. moving but with a space therebetween which does not vary) if the products must not be compressed.

Components of the filling device or machine as shown in fig. 1 are: 1: fixed plates which form a frame, 2: pressing plates,

3: cylinders for driving the pressing plates, 4: closing valve, 5: ejector, 6: feed,

7: hinges,

8: cylinder for driving the closing valve, and

9: cylinder for driving the ejector.

After examination of the foregoing many alternative and additional embodiments will occur to the skilled person which all lie within the scope of protection of the invention according to the claims, unless such alternatives of the explicitly shown and described embodiments depart from the letter or the spirit

of the definitions in accordance with the following claims of the invention. It is thus possible for the closing valve in the form of a pusher to be replaced by a pivotable or tiltable valve. The drives of diverse components are shown and described as cylinders, although electric motors and other drives are likewise possible. The packages are not shown in the figure, nor are they described in the foregoing, but may for instance be bag-like containers which can be tied up or otherwise closed in a random manner once the filling material has flowed therein or been pushed out of the discharge closable with closing valve (4) . An embodiment has further been described in the foregoing with reference to the figure in which pressing plates are arranged hingedly in the immediate vicinity of the discharge. The tilt or hinge/points of the pressing plates can however also be disposed at a distance from the discharge with the free ends of these pressing elements directed toward the discharge. In order to avoid accumulation of material to be compressed the pressing elements can then be pivoted away from the discharge and pivoted toward the discharge when the material must be compressed. For the purpose of packaging materials and products without compression the pressing plates can be held in a position pivoted toward the discharge.