Title of Invention	A DEVICE FOR FEEDING AN INFUSION PRODUCT TO A PACKAGING MACHINE
Abstract	A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging machine is of the type comprising means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product and means (8) for conveying the product itself. The conveying means (8) are of the type with vibrating channelling means and are connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to an operating station (10) of the packaging machine.

Title of Invention

A DEVICE FOR FEEDING AN INFUSION PRODUCT TO A PACKAGING MACHINE

Abstract

A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging machine is of the type comprising means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product and means (8) for conveying the product itself. The conveying means (8) are of the type with vibrating channelling means and are connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to an operating station (10) of the packaging machine.

Full Text	WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361 Description A device for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging machine Technical Field This invention relates to a device for feeding a product to a packaging machine. In particular, this invention can be advantageously used for 5 feeding an infusion product such as tea, coffee, camomile, herbs or the like to an automatic packaging machine for making infusion packets, which the present specification expressly refers to but without restricting the scope of the invention. 10 Background Art Usually, an automatic machine for making infusion packets such as filter bags, sachets, filter-paper pods, etc. comprises a plurality of stations located one after the other along a production line forming part of the automatic machine itself, and 15 including, in particular, a feed station for placing measured quantities of infusion product on a web of filter material used to make the packets. The feed station as a whole is in turn of known type and is defined by an upright tubular duct, into the open, funnel-shaped 20 top end of which the infusion product is placed, and whose bottom end is connected with conveyor means designed to receive the infusion product from the tubular duct and to feed it to the hopper of a metering device which places measured quantities of the product on a web of filter paper. 25 At present, the conveyor means most widely used for applications of this kind can be divided broadly into the following two types: a first type, described for example in US patent US 4,628,973, comprises a rotary drum consisting basically of a hollow frustoconical body. The flared top end of the WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361 2 frustoconical body receives the bottom end of the aforementioned tubular duct, whilst the bottom end of the frustoconical body is partly inserted into the hopper of the metering device. Feed stations equipped with rotary drums of this kind are 5 very effective for feeding the infusion product and have for many years been the most widely used. These feed stations have inherent operating limits, however, particularly at the high speeds at which modern packaging machines now normally operate. A second type of conveyor means, described for example in 10 European patent application No. EP 1.34 0.669 A2, comprises an endless conveyor belt trained around a pair of pulleys, mounted under the upright tubular duct and leading into the hopper of the metering device, preferably at an angle to the hopper itself. This solution has considerable disadvantages, due in 15 particular to the powdery nature of the infusion product fed to the metering device hopper. Indeed, the infusion product particles tend to adhere to the conveyor pulleys, causing them to jam and eventually leading to conveyor failure and prolonged down time. 2 0 Moreover, cleaning the conveyor and conveyor pulleys to remove infusion product particles and dust may be a difficult and laborious task, often requiring the conveyor drive mechanisms and components to be completely dismantled. The aim of this invention is to provide an infusion product 25 feeding device that overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art described above. In particular, it is an aim of the present invention to provide feed device that is at once simple and efficient and that is capable of feeding the infusion product to a packaging machine 3 0 that operates at high production speeds. Disclosure of the invention This invention accordingly provides a device for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging 3 5 machine, the device being of the type comprising means for collecting and transporting the product and means for conveying the product itself, the conveying means being connected to the WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361 3 collection means to receive the product from the collection means and to feed the product to an operating station of the packaging machine, the device being characterised in that the conveying means comprise vibrating channelling means. 5 Brief Description of the Drawings The technical characteristics of the invention, with reference to the above aims, are clearly described in the claims below and its advantages are apparent from the detailed 10 description which follows, with reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates a preferred, non restricting embodiment of the invention provided merely by way of example, and which represents a feeding device according to the invention in a front view. 15 Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments of the Invention With reference to the accompanying drawing, the numeral 1 denotes in its entirety, a feeding device used for feeding an infusion product (tea, coffee, camomile, etc.) to an automatic 2 0 packaging machine (of known type and therefore not illustrated) which is designed to make packets (also of known type and not illustrated). More specifically, the device 1 forms an integral part of an operating feed station of the packaging machine itself. ■ As illustrated in the accompanying drawing, the device 1 25 comprises a substantially funnel-shaped container 2 having a flared open top end 3 which is fitted with a lid 4 and into which the infusion product is placed, and a bottom end 5 which is connected to a hollow vertical tubular element 6. The bottom end 7 of the tubular element 6 ends at and gives 3 0 onto conveying means 8 which are designed to receive the infusion product falling out of the container 2 through the tubular element 6 itself and to feed it (arrow F) to a hopper 9 of a customary metering device 10 forming part of the operating feed station of the packaging machine. 3 5 More specifically, the tubular element S is equipped with manual adjustment means 11 for adjusting the distance of its bottom end 7 from the conveying means 8 in such a way as to WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361 4 control the quantity of infusion product falling onto the conveying means 8. With reference to the accompanying drawing, the conveying means 8 comprise a substantially tube-shaped duct 12, a first 5 portion 13 of which is located under the end 7 of the tubular element 6 and a second portion 14 of which is tilted towards the hopper 9 and leads into the hopper 9 itself. The duct 12, in particular at its first portion 13, is supported by and coupled with vibrating actuating means 15 10 designed to impart to the duct 12 a vibrating motion of defined amplitude in order to feed the infusion product on the duct 12 itself quickly towards the hopper 9 of the metering device 10. At the top of it, the duct 12 is preferably equipped with opening/closing elements 16 providing easy access to the inside of 15 the duct 12 for maintenance purposes so as to enable cleaning to be carried out quickly and easily. Positioned and operating on the tubular element 6 there are permanent magnet means 17 for retaining any metal particles that may be present in the infusion product, thereby preventing such 2 0 metal particles from advancing along the element 6 and reaching the hopper 9. During use, the metal particles retained by the means 17 can be removed by staff responsible for the maintenance of the packaging machine. 25 The invention described can be modified and adapted in several ways without thereby departing from the scope of the inventive concept. Moreover, all the details of the invention may be substituted by technically equivalent elements. WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361 Claims 1. A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging machine, being of the type comprising means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product and means (8) for conveying said product, the conveying means (8) being 5 connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to an operating station (10) of the packaging machine, the device being characterised in that the conveying means (8) comprise vibrating channelling means (12) . 10 2. The device according to claim 1, characterised in that the channelling means (12) comprise a substantially tube-shaped duct (12) , at least one portion (13) of the duct (12) being connected to actuating means (15) designed to impart to the duct (12) itself a vibrating motion of defined amplitude. 15 3. The device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the channelling means (12) are equipped, at the top of them, with opening/closing elements (16) providing access to the inside of the channelling means (12) themselves. 4. The device according to any of the foregoing claims from 1 to 3, 20 characterised in that the means (2,6) for collecting and transporting the infusion product are coupled with permanent magnet means (17) for retaining any metal particles that may be present in the infusion product. A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging machine is of the type comprising means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product and means (8) for conveying the product itself. The conveying means (8) are of the type with vibrating channelling means and are connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to an operating station (10) of the packaging machine.

Full Text

WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361
Description
A device for feeding a product, in particular an infusion product,
to a packaging machine
Technical Field
This invention relates to a device for feeding a product to
a packaging machine.
In particular, this invention can be advantageously used for
5 feeding an infusion product such as tea, coffee, camomile, herbs
or the like to an automatic packaging machine for making infusion
packets, which the present specification expressly refers to but
without restricting the scope of the invention.
10 Background Art
Usually, an automatic machine for making infusion packets
such as filter bags, sachets, filter-paper pods, etc. comprises a
plurality of stations located one after the other along a
production line forming part of the automatic machine itself, and
15 including, in particular, a feed station for placing measured
quantities of infusion product on a web of filter material used to
make the packets.
The feed station as a whole is in turn of known type and is
defined by an upright tubular duct, into the open, funnel-shaped
20 top end of which the infusion product is placed, and whose bottom
end is connected with conveyor means designed to receive the
infusion product from the tubular duct and to feed it to the
hopper of a metering device which places measured quantities of
the product on a web of filter paper.
25 At present, the conveyor means most widely used for
applications of this kind can be divided broadly into the
following two types: a first type, described for example in US
patent US 4,628,973, comprises a rotary drum consisting basically
of a hollow frustoconical body. The flared top end of the

WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361
2
frustoconical body receives the bottom end of the aforementioned
tubular duct, whilst the bottom end of the frustoconical body is
partly inserted into the hopper of the metering device.
Feed stations equipped with rotary drums of this kind are
5 very effective for feeding the infusion product and have for many
years been the most widely used. These feed stations have inherent
operating limits, however, particularly at the high speeds at
which modern packaging machines now normally operate.
A second type of conveyor means, described for example in
10 European patent application No. EP 1.34 0.669 A2, comprises an
endless conveyor belt trained around a pair of pulleys, mounted
under the upright tubular duct and leading into the hopper of the
metering device, preferably at an angle to the hopper itself.
This solution has considerable disadvantages, due in
15 particular to the powdery nature of the infusion product fed to
the metering device hopper.
Indeed, the infusion product particles tend to adhere to the
conveyor pulleys, causing them to jam and eventually leading to
conveyor failure and prolonged down time.
2 0 Moreover, cleaning the conveyor and conveyor pulleys to
remove infusion product particles and dust may be a difficult and
laborious task, often requiring the conveyor drive mechanisms and
components to be completely dismantled.
The aim of this invention is to provide an infusion product
25 feeding device that overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art
described above.
In particular, it is an aim of the present invention to
provide feed device that is at once simple and efficient and that
is capable of feeding the infusion product to a packaging machine
3 0 that operates at high production speeds.
Disclosure of the invention
This invention accordingly provides a device for feeding a
product, in particular an infusion product, to a packaging
3 5 machine, the device being of the type comprising means for
collecting and transporting the product and means for conveying
the product itself, the conveying means being connected to the

WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361
3
collection means to receive the product from the collection means
and to feed the product to an operating station of the packaging
machine, the device being characterised in that the conveying
means comprise vibrating channelling means.
5
Brief Description of the Drawings
The technical characteristics of the invention, with
reference to the above aims, are clearly described in the claims
below and its advantages are apparent from the detailed
10 description which follows, with reference to the accompanying
drawing which illustrates a preferred, non restricting embodiment
of the invention provided merely by way of example, and which
represents a feeding device according to the invention in a front
view.
15
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments of the Invention
With reference to the accompanying drawing, the numeral 1
denotes in its entirety, a feeding device used for feeding an
infusion product (tea, coffee, camomile, etc.) to an automatic
2 0 packaging machine (of known type and therefore not illustrated)
which is designed to make packets (also of known type and not
illustrated). More specifically, the device 1 forms an integral
part of an operating feed station of the packaging machine itself.
■ As illustrated in the accompanying drawing, the device 1
25 comprises a substantially funnel-shaped container 2 having a
flared open top end 3 which is fitted with a lid 4 and into which
the infusion product is placed, and a bottom end 5 which is
connected to a hollow vertical tubular element 6.
The bottom end 7 of the tubular element 6 ends at and gives
3 0 onto conveying means 8 which are designed to receive the infusion
product falling out of the container 2 through the tubular element
6 itself and to feed it (arrow F) to a hopper 9 of a customary
metering device 10 forming part of the operating feed station of
the packaging machine.
3 5 More specifically, the tubular element S is equipped with
manual adjustment means 11 for adjusting the distance of its
bottom end 7 from the conveying means 8 in such a way as to

WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361
4
control the quantity of infusion product falling onto the
conveying means 8.
With reference to the accompanying drawing, the conveying
means 8 comprise a substantially tube-shaped duct 12, a first
5 portion 13 of which is located under the end 7 of the tubular
element 6 and a second portion 14 of which is tilted towards the
hopper 9 and leads into the hopper 9 itself.
The duct 12, in particular at its first portion 13, is
supported by and coupled with vibrating actuating means 15
10 designed to impart to the duct 12 a vibrating motion of defined
amplitude in order to feed the infusion product on the duct 12
itself quickly towards the hopper 9 of the metering device 10.
At the top of it, the duct 12 is preferably equipped with
opening/closing elements 16 providing easy access to the inside of
15 the duct 12 for maintenance purposes so as to enable cleaning to
be carried out quickly and easily.
Positioned and operating on the tubular element 6 there are
permanent magnet means 17 for retaining any metal particles that
may be present in the infusion product, thereby preventing such
2 0 metal particles from advancing along the element 6 and reaching
the hopper 9.
During use, the metal particles retained by the means 17 can
be removed by staff responsible for the maintenance of the
packaging machine.
25 The invention described can be modified and adapted in several
ways without thereby departing from the scope of the inventive
concept. Moreover, all the details of the invention may be
substituted by technically equivalent elements.

WO 2006/048762 PCT/IB2005/003361
Claims
1. A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular an infusion
product, to a packaging machine, being of the type comprising
means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product and means
(8) for conveying said product, the conveying means (8) being
5 connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product
from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to an
operating station (10) of the packaging machine, the device being
characterised in that the conveying means (8) comprise vibrating
channelling means (12) .
10 2. The device according to claim 1, characterised in that the
channelling means (12) comprise a substantially tube-shaped duct
(12) , at least one portion (13) of the duct (12) being connected
to actuating means (15) designed to impart to the duct (12) itself
a vibrating motion of defined amplitude.
15 3. The device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the
channelling means (12) are equipped, at the top of them, with
opening/closing elements (16) providing access to the inside of
the channelling means (12) themselves.
4. The device according to any of the foregoing claims from 1 to 3,
20 characterised in that the means (2,6) for collecting and
transporting the infusion product are coupled with permanent
magnet means (17) for retaining any metal particles that may be
present in the infusion product.

A device (1) for feeding a product, in particular
an infusion product, to a packaging machine is of the type comprising means (2, 6) for collecting and transporting the product
and means (8) for conveying the product itself. The conveying
means (8) are of the type with vibrating channelling means and
are connected to the collection means (2, 6) to receive the product from the collection means (2, 6) and to feed the product to
an operating station (10) of the packaging machine.

Documents:

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Patent Number

269839

Indian Patent Application Number

1176/KOLNP/2007

PG Journal Number

46/2015

Publication Date

13-Nov-2015

Grant Date

10-Nov-2015

Date of Filing

04-Apr-2007

Name of Patentee

IMA FLAVOUR S.R.L.

Applicant Address

VIA EMILIA NO. 428-442, I-40064 OZZANO DELL'EMILIA, BOLOGNA

Inventors:

#	Inventor's Name	Inventor's Address
1	RIVOLA, SAURO	VIA FANTAGUZZI, 5,48025 RIOLO TERME RAVENNA
2	REA, DARIO	VIA DELLA ROCCA, 8/3, 40050 MONTERENZIO BOLOGNA

PCT International Classification Number

B65G 65/44

PCT International Application Number

PCT/IB2005/003361

PCT International Filing date

2005-10-25

PCT Conventions:

#	PCT Application Number	Date of Convention	Priority Country
1	BO2004A000680	2004-11-03	Italy