US 12,351,408 B2
Blank feeding unit for a packer machine and provided with a series of interchangeable hoppers
Salvatore Carboni, Bologna (IT); and Antonio Vitali, Bologna (IT)
Assigned to G.D SOCIETA' PER AZIONI, Bologna (IT)
Appl. No. 17/921,050
Filed by G.D SOCIETA' PER AZIONI, Bologna (IT)
PCT Filed Jul. 8, 2021, PCT No. PCT/IB2021/056135
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 24, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2022/009141, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 13, 2022.
Claims priority of application No. 102020000016729 (IT), filed on Jul. 9, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0192426 A1, Jun. 22, 2023
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. B65H 1/02 (2006.01)
CPC B65H 1/025 (2013.01) [B65H 2402/10 (2013.01); B65H 2404/71 (2013.01); B65H 2405/212 (2013.01); B65H 2407/20 (2013.01); B65H 2701/1764 (2013.01)] 22 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A feeding unit (13) to feed blanks (1) in a packer machine and comprising:
a frame (14);
a hopper (15), which is supported by the frame (14), is designed to hold a stack of blanks (1) and has a pick-up opening (16), through which one blank (1) at a time can be picked up from the stack of blanks (1); and
a conveyor (17), which is supported by the frame (14) and moves the blanks (1) along a moving path (P), which ends in the hopper (15);
wherein, in order to contain blanks (1) with different formats, the feeding unit (13) can be adjusted by means of a format change operation, which entails changing the feeding unit (13) from a first configuration, which is suited to contain a first format of the blanks (1), to a second configuration, which is suited to contain a second format of the blanks (1), which is different from the first format;
wherein a plurality of different and interchangeable hoppers (15) is provided, each associated with a corresponding format of the blanks (1);
wherein each hopper (15) is fixed to the frame (14) in a removable manner in order to be replaced during a format change operation so that the format change operation entails replacing a first hopper (15) associated with the first format with a second hopper (15) associated with the second format;
wherein the frame (14) comprises a support body (25), which is provided with a seat designed to house the hopper (15); and
wherein the support body (25) is movable on the frame (14) so as to move, during a format change operation, between a work position, in which the hopper (15) housed in the support body (25) is coupled to and aligned with the conveyor (17), and a replacement position, in which the hopper (15) housed in the support body (25) is uncoupled from and not aligned with the conveyor (17).