US 12,110,141 B2
Packaging apparatus
Philippe Jean Marie Duperray, Châteauroux (FR); and Wim Dekocker, Leuven (BE)
Assigned to ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV S.A., Brussels (BE)
Appl. No. 17/631,314
Filed by Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A., Brussels (BE)
PCT Filed Jul. 30, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/071497
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jan. 28, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/019012, PCT Pub. Date Feb. 4, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 19189041 (EP), filed on Jul. 30, 2019; and application No. 19219856 (EP), filed on Dec. 27, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0258891 A1, Aug. 18, 2022
Int. Cl. B65B 21/20 (2006.01); B65B 35/36 (2006.01); B65B 59/00 (2006.01); B65G 47/32 (2006.01)
CPC B65B 21/20 (2013.01) [B65B 35/36 (2013.01); B65B 59/001 (2019.05); B65G 47/32 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A packaging apparatus for articles comprising:
a central packaging frame extending between a first end and a second end, the frame comprising:
a pair of spaced apart generally parallel transversal central tracks, each track having a top rail vertically spaced apart and connected to a bottom rail through a central body portion; and
a plurality of outer rails, at least one outer rail configured at each end of the pair of central tracks, the outer rails adapted to move up and down so as to optionally connect to one of the top rails and/or the bottom rails of the central track and define respectively a top path and a bottom path there through;
one or more support means, each extending generally longitudinally between the pair of central tracks, and adapted to support one of more gripper sets; each of the gripper sets comprising a plurality of individual gripping heads arranged in a predetermined configuration;
a vertical moving mechanism for enabling a vertically upward and/or downward movement of each of the outer rails independently between a top and bottom position of each of the outer rails;
a horizontal moving mechanism for moving the one or more support means through at least one of the top and/or bottom path;
wherein
the upward and/or the downward movement of each of the outer rail between the top and bottom position of each of the outer rails and the horizontal movement of each of the support means is synchronized in such a way that the gripper sets on at least one of the support means is adapted to pick up a set of articles from a first conveying line at the first end and the gripper sets on at least one other support means is adapted to release already picked up articles into a package at a second conveying line at the second end, simultaneously.