Method and device for feeding groups of products of the cigarette industry to pockets of a conveyor

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for feeding groups (10) of products (13) of the cigarette industry to pockets (11) of a conveyor (12), wherein the products (13) are ejected in groups (10) from a slot (15) of a magazine (14) for the products (13) by means of a pusher (16) allocated to the slot (15) and are pushed through a mouth piece (17) allocated to the slot (15) into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12), in particular of a pocket-chain conveyor or a revolver, and wherein the magazine has a plurality of slots to which an individually actuatable pusher (16) is allocated in each case, by means of which pusher a group (10) of products (13) can be pushed out of the respective slot (15) into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12) allocated to the respective slot (15), and wherein, in a normal operating state, groups (10) of products (13) are pushed into pockets (11) of the conveyor (12) from a predefined number of slots (15) by means of a respective allocated pusher (16). According to the invention, in the event of a malfunction which results in a complete group (10) of products (13) no longer being able to be pushed out of one of the slots into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12) such that said pocket (11) would not be completely filled, by way of replacement a group (10) of products (13) from a replacement slot (30) is pushed into the unfilled pocket (11) of the conveyor (12).

Description

[0001] Method and device for feeding groups of cigarette industry products to pockets of a conveyor

[0002] Description

[0003] The invention relates to a method for feeding groups of products from the cigarette industry to pockets of a conveyor, wherein the products are pushed out in groups from a shaft of a magazine for the products by means of a slider assigned to the shaft and are pushed into a pocket of the conveyor, in particular a pocket chain conveyor or a revolver, by means of a mouthpiece assigned to the shaft, and wherein the magazine has a plurality of shafts, each of which is assigned an individually actuatable slider, with which a group of products is pushed from the respective shaft into a pocket of the conveyor assigned to the respective shaft, and wherein, in a normal operating state, groups of products are pushed into pockets of the conveyor from a predetermined number of shafts by means of a respective assigned slider, according to the preamble of claim 1.

[0004] Furthermore, the invention relates to a corresponding device according to the preamble of claim 14.

[0005] For the purposes of the application, products of the cigarette industry are understood to include tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigarillos and the like, but also novel tobacco products such as heat-not-burn products or liquid carriers for e-cigarettes.

[0006] The cigarette industry is increasingly demanding high-performance packaging machines that can be operated efficiently and with high levels of effectiveness. This applies, for example, to hinge-lid packers for cigarettes, which place the cigarette groups into outer packaging at high speeds. To achieve high device efficiency, the device's downtimes must be reduced. This occurs more frequently in cigarette magazines, for example, when the shafts of the cigarette magazine are blocked by cigarettes lying sideways. If a shaft in the cigarette magazine becomes blocked or fails, the corresponding pusher must be stopped in order to rectify the problem in the affected shaft. This automatically leads to a standstill and thus a loss of efficiency of the device, possibly also in upstream and downstream machines in the line.

[0007] To eliminate the disruption in the corresponding shafts while the machine is running, the cigarette pushers must be equipped with individual drives to stop the corresponding drive in the event of a disruption in the shaft. Such a solution is described in EP 3 439 965 B1. In the event of a disruption, the machine speed of the other pushers can be adjusted via control technology to maintain an effective production rate that is equal to or close to the predetermined production rate. In this way, the disruption can be compensated for.

[0008] EP 1 580 129 B1 describes a method for forming cigarette groups on a packaging machine, wherein a pocket chain conveyor progressively guides a sequence of pockets past a number of group-forming stations, the pockets receiving respective groups of cigarettes axially fed to the respective pockets by means of independent pushers (21) operated in a normal cyclical operating sequence (S2) to move selectively through respective group-forming stations. The formation of a gap along the pocket chain conveyor caused by the non-feeding of a defective group to a corresponding pocket can be prevented by replacing the normal cyclical operating sequence (S2) with another cyclical sequence (S3) capable of ensuring that all pockets are filled only from the fully functional group-forming stations onwards.

[0009] The device according to EP 3 439 965 B1 is intended to be able to continue production at essentially the same power in the event of a malfunction. However, it seems questionable whether this is actually possible in practice or whether it is no longer a theoretically conceivable solution. In order to operate the valves at a significantly higher speed in the event of a malfunction than under normal conditions, at least drives with significantly higher power or corresponding power reserves would have to be used than those required under normal conditions. However, such drives are more expensive, have lower efficiency, require additional space, and possibly also cooling.

[0010] Furthermore, this solution has the disadvantage that if a certain shaft / slider fails, individual pockets cannot be filled, for which packaging materials (tin foil, collars, cut pieces) must be blocked or ejected during the further course of the packaging process in order to continue to operate the process safely.

[0011] Based on this, the invention seeks to propose methods and devices of the type mentioned above that appear more suitable for maintaining production in the event of a disruption. At the very least, however, further or alternative solutions should be added.

[0012] A method according to the invention has the features of claim 1. It is accordingly provided that in the event of a malfunction which results in a complete group of products no longer being able to be pushed from one of the shafts into a pocket of the conveyor, so that this pocket would not be completely filled, a group of products is pushed from a replacement shaft into the unfilled pocket of the conveyor as an alternative.

[0013] The spare shaft is a shaft that is kept in standby mode during normal operation, i.e. it is in standby mode.

[0014] This solution has the particular advantage that the shafts or their valves not affected by the disruption can continue operating at their normal rate, and the failed shaft or valve can be compensated for by the replacement shaft. This eliminates the need to oversize the shafts or valves that are active during normal operation.

[0015] Preferably, in the event of a malfunction, groups of products are pushed into the conveyor pockets from the shafts not affected by the malfunction, as in normal operating mode. Furthermore, it is preferably provided that, in the event of a malfunction, the cycle rate of the shafts not affected by the malfunction is maintained as in normal operating mode.

[0016] In this case, cycle rate refers to the speed or cycle at which the groups of products are pushed out of the shaft into a pocket of the conveyor by means of the pusher.

[0017] In particular, it is provided that, with a number of n shafts, in normal operation from a number of n-1 shafts, groups of products are pushed into a pocket of the conveyor assigned to the respective shaft by means of a slider assigned to the respective shaft, and that the remaining spare shaft is only used in the event of a malfunction in order to push groups of products into pockets of the conveyor which, due to the malfunction, were not filled from the shafts active in normal operation.

[0018] Another special feature may be that, in the event of a malfunction, groups of products are first pushed out from the shafts not affected by the malfunction, and then the replacement shaft is switched on to fill any empty pockets on the conveyor.

[0019] Furthermore, it may be provided that the groups of products from the replacement shaft are pushed out synchronously or asynchronously with the groups of products from the shafts not affected by the disruption.

[0020] In this way, it can be ensured that empty pockets in the conveyor can be avoided.

[0021] Preferably, the shafts and the replacement shaft are arranged in a row along the conveyor, with the replacement shaft preferably being provided as the last shaft in the conveying direction of the conveyor pockets. The arrangement of the replacement shaft as the last shaft in the conveying direction enables synchronous operation of the slides of all shafts active during normal operation.

[0022] Alternatively, any shaft can be provided to serve as a backup shaft in the event of a fault.

[0023] Preferably, it is provided that in the event of a malfunction, the slide valve of the shaft affected by the malfunction is shut down, wherein it is preferably provided that the slide valve is moved, preferably retracted, into a rest position in which it does not protrude into the shaft or the mouthpiece or the pocket.

[0024] Furthermore, it can be provided that a contactless inspection station is provided along the conveyor, which checks the completeness of the products in the pockets, their orientation and / or their quality.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment, it can be provided that an ejection station is arranged downstream of the inspection station for separating groups of products that have been assessed as defective by the inspection station.

[0026] A special feature may be that in the event of a fault, the cycle rate or speed of the valves not affected by the fault is reduced in order to reduce the time required for the valve of the replacement shaft to reach the cycle rate or speed of the valves not affected by the fault, and that thereafter the cycle rate or speed of all active valves is increased again to the cycle rate or speed in the normal operating state.

[0027] This solution has the advantage of making it easier for the gate valve of the replacement shaft to reach the speed of the other gate valves. Whether this is necessary depends largely on the specific circumstances of the individual case, e.g., the speed of the gate valves during normal operation, the masses to be moved, the power of the drives, etc.

[0028] In principle, it can be provided that, in normal operating conditions, groups of products are pushed out from at least one or preferably from several shafts and that at least one spare shaft is provided in the event of malfunctions.

[0029] A device for achieving the object mentioned at the outset has the features of claim 14. Accordingly, it is provided that in the event of a malfunction which results in a complete group of products no longer being able to be fed from one of the shafts into a pocket of the conveyor, so that this pocket would not be completely filled, a group of products can be fed from a replacement shaft into the unfilled pocket of the conveyor.

[0030] Preferably, it can be provided that a contactless control station is arranged along the conveyor to check the completeness of the products in the pockets, their position and / or their quality.

[0031] In this way, the completeness, position and, if applicable, the filter and / or tobacco end of the cigarettes can be checked.

[0032] Preferably, it can be provided that an ejection station is arranged downstream of the control station for separating groups of products which have been assessed as defective by the Kontra II station.

[0033] In this way, groups of products that are rated as defective can be rejected.

[0034] Preferably, it can be provided that the shafts and their associated slides are arranged on the same side of the conveyor or are at least partially arranged on different sides of the conveyor.

[0035] Preferably, it can be provided that the groups of products are transferred to a discharge conveyor following the conveyor, wherein the discharge conveyor is arranged transversely to the transport direction of the conveyor.

[0036] Alternatively, it can be provided that the groups of products are transferred to a discharge conveyor after the conveyor, with the discharge conveyor being arranged parallel to the conveyor's transport direction. In this case, it can also be provided that an intermediate conveyor is provided in the transition between the conveyor and the discharge conveyor to transfer the groups of products from the conveyor to the discharge conveyor.

[0037] Preferably, it can further be provided that the intermediate conveyor is designed to change the orientation of the groups of products or of the products when transferring the groups of products from the conveyor to the discharge conveyor.

[0038] In one embodiment, it can be provided that the device is designed with two tracks, such that the device is set up to simultaneously push out two groups of products from adjacent shafts by means of two sliders coupled to one another and to push the two groups of products together into adjacent pockets of the conveyor.

[0039] In principle, it can be provided that, in normal operating conditions, groups of products can be pushed out from at least one or preferably from several shafts and that at least one spare shaft is provided in the event of malfunctions.

[0040] Preferred embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to the drawings, in which:

[0041] Fig. 1 shows a device for feeding groups of products to pockets of a conveyor in a schematic spatial representation,

[0042] Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device in normal operation,

[0043] Fig. 3a is a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a first (double) shaft,

[0044] Fig. 3b is a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a first (double) shaft and the use of a (double) replacement shaft, Fig. 4a is a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a second (double) shaft,

[0045] Fig. 4b a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a second (double) shaft and use of a (double) replacement shaft,

[0046] Fig. 5a is a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a third (double) shaft,

[0047] Fig. 5b a plan view of the device in the event of a fault in a third (double) shaft and use of a (double) replacement shaft,

[0048] Fig. 6 is a schematic representation of a clock sequence in normal operation,

[0049] Fig. 7 is a schematic representation of the cycle sequence according to Fig. 6 in the event of a fault in a first (double) shaft,

[0050] Fig. 8 is a schematic representation of the cycle sequence according to Fig. 6 in the event of a fault in a second (double) shaft,

[0051] Fig. 9 is a schematic representation of the cycle sequence according to Fig. 6 in the event of a fault in a third (double) shaft,

[0052] Fig. 10 is a schematic representation of another cycle sequence in normal operation,

[0053] Fig. 11 is a schematic representation of the cycle sequence according to Fig. 10 in the event of a fault in the first shaft and

[0054] Fig. 12 is a schematic representation of the cycle sequence according to Fig. 10 in the event of a fault in the second shaft.

[0055] The exemplary embodiments described below deal with the feeding of groups 10 of cigarettes to pockets 11 of a conveyor 12. However, since the device is also suitable for other products of the cigarette industry, we will generally refer to products 13 below. The conveyor 12 is designed as a pocket chain conveyor in the present case, but could also be designed as a revolver. Other conventional conveyors are also conceivable.

[0056] The products 13 are transferred from a conventional magazine 14, which is only partially shown in Fig. 1, in a sealed position or in a mass flow to chutes 15 assigned to the magazine 14. In practice, the chutes 15 are each divided into several tracks, in which the products 13 are moved downwards individually by gravity. At the lower end of the chutes 15, a group 10 of products 13 is pushed out by means of a reciprocating slide 16 and inserted into an assigned pocket 11 of the conveyor 13 through a mouthpiece 17 assigned to the respective chute 15. In this way, a group 10 is formed as the package contents in the present case.

[0057] The groups 10 are subsequently pushed out of the pockets 11 by carriers 18 and transported along a transverse discharge conveyor 19. In this case, the groups 10 are then pushed through another die 20 and subsequently wound into a blank for an inner wrapping. This occurs, as is customary in the prior art, in the area of ​​a suction disc knife block 21, whose fixed knives 22 separate the required blanks from a material web 23 and then hold them ready for collection by a group 10.

[0058] Fig. 1 further shows that the slides 16 can be individually actuated by drives 24. In this case, the slides 16 are actuated by servo drives. A further drive 25 or servo drive serves to transport the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 in the conveying direction 32. The transport of the pockets 11 and the movement of the slides 16 occur in cycles and are coordinated with one another. A control system not shown in the figures is used for this purpose.

[0059] In this case, the feeding of the groups 10 to the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 takes place in the area of ​​the upper run of the conveyor 12, whereas the ejection of the groups 10 from the pockets 11 takes place in the area of ​​the lower run of the conveyor 12. The shafts 15 are arranged next to one another in the conveying direction 32 and laterally adjacent to the conveyor 12, so that the groups 10 are all inserted from the same side. However, it is also conceivable that one or more shafts 15 are arranged on different sides of the conveyor 12, if this appears expedient in the individual case.

[0060] As an alternative to the transverse arrangement of conveyor 12 and discharge conveyor 19, a parallel arrangement of the two elements can also be provided, for example, one above the other. In this case, it may be expedient to provide an intermediate conveyor in the transition between conveyor 12 and discharge conveyor 19 to transfer the groups 10 of products 13 from conveyor 12 to discharge conveyor 19. If necessary, the intermediate conveyor can be configured to change the orientation of the groups 10 of products 13 or the products 13 during the transfer of the groups of products from conveyor 12 to discharge conveyor 19.

[0061] Also shown, although of secondary importance to the present invention, are sensors 26 and a camera system 27, which can be used in a control station 28 to monitor the groups 10, for example, for a head check, position check, and / or completeness check. Groups 10 identified as defective can be removed from the conveyor 12 in a subsequent ejection station 29.

[0062] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the device is designed with two tracks. Accordingly, two groups 10 are conveyed side by side along the discharge conveyor 19 and simultaneously removed from the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12. The shafts 15 are also designed as double shafts, with the respective slides 16 of a double shaft being coupled to one another as double slides and actuated together accordingly. Accordingly, only half the number of drives 24 is required, as with single actuation. Of course, the device can also be designed with a single track, so that instead of double shafts, individual shafts 15 are used, each having an individually actuated conveyor 12. Of course, the number of shafts 15 can also be adapted to the respective requirements or individual case.A special feature of the device is that, during normal operation, not all shafts 15 discharge groups 10 into pockets 11 of the conveyor 12. In the present case, during normal operation, only the first six shafts 15 or the first three double shafts discharge groups 10, whereas the last two shafts or the last double shaft are used as backup shafts 30 or their slides 16 only in the event of a malfunction. Outside of a malfunction, the backup shaft(s) 30 are in standby mode, i.e., the backup shaft(s) 30 are filled with products 13 and ready to be put into operation.

[0063] A relevant malfunction can occur, for example, if products 13 are not arranged correctly in the magazine 14 or in the shafts 15 or the mouthpieces 20, for example, if they are lying sideways, and thus hinder the product flow in the magazine 14 and / or the shafts 15 and / or the ejection of the groups 10 from the shafts 15 into the mouthpieces 17 and / or the pockets 11. In the present case, a malfunction is therefore understood to mean that no complete group 10 of products 13 can be pushed into a pocket 11 of the conveyor 12 from one of the shafts 15 that are active in normal operating mode.

[0064] In the event of a failure of a shaft 15 or double shaft, the replacement shaft(s) 30 take over the filling of the pocket 11 that could not be filled as intended by the shaft 15 or double shaft affected by the malfunction, thus avoiding an empty pocket 11 on the conveyor 12. The (replacement) shafts 16, 30 are controlled by the device's control system.

[0065] During the change between the normal operating state and operation during the malfunction, a transitional behavior can be provided when filling the pockets 11, in which there are initially a few empty pockets 11 on the conveyor 12, which are then filled by appropriate timing of the slides 16. The aim of using a switching strategy in the control of the drives 24 is to suppress the formation of empty pockets 11. In this case, when the slides 16 are changed, the control system adjusts the actuation of the slides 16 at the beginning of the first cycles after the malfunction until a new temporary operating state during the malfunction is reached in the subsequent cycles. In the new temporary operating state, depending on the position of the failed shaft 15, the slide movement is partly synchronous and partly asynchronous.When returning to the original normal operating state after the fault has been rectified, a transitional behavior can also be provided. In this case, a brief use of all existing slides 16 may be necessary, or an adjustment of the actuation of the slides 16 may be necessary. Specific examples will be explained later.

[0066] There are two options for the arrangement of the replacement shaft(s) 30:

[0067] 1. Option with fixed arrangement of the replacement shaft(s) 30:

[0068] In this case, the replacement shaft(s) 30 are the last remaining shafts in the product flow direction 32 (conveying or transport direction) and can thus ideally switch to the temporary operating state without generating empty pockets. Once the failed shaft 15 is operational again, the system switches back to the original operating state without generating empty pockets. This allows for the least loss of efficiency in the event of a shaft failure.

[0069] 2. Option with changing arrangement (not shown):

[0070] Another measure to maintain product quality is the planned, regular replacement of the shaft(s) 30 in standby redundancy, so that no products 13 have to remain there for an extended period. The key advantage of the switchover strategy is that the device can continue production if one or more shafts 16 are blocked, without the device coming to a standstill. In a configuration of n shafts 15 and one (double) spare shaft 30, full production output is maintained if no more than one shaft 15 fails. In the device according to Fig. 1, the magazine 14 has four double shafts (double block design), with the last two shafts serving as spare shafts 30.In normal operation, the first three (double) pushers 16 operate synchronously, pushing the groups 10 into the associated pockets 11 of the cyclically driven conveyor 12 every third cycle of the device during a temporary standstill. The two spare shafts 30 remain stationary and wait to be called by the control system (Fig. 2).

[0071] The cycle sequence or the filling of the pockets 11 during normal operation of the device is shown in Fig. 6. The cycle sequence is shown in the left-hand column. The rectangles symbolize the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 and the hatching of the rectangles symbolizes the status of the respective pocket 11. A rectangle without hatching represents an empty pocket 11. A rectangle with single hatching represents the filling of a pocket 11 and a rectangle with double hatching represents a filled pocket 11. This also applies to Figures 7 to 11. The top line shows the status of the shafts 15 or the associated slides 16. A circle 31 with no filling represents a shaft 15 in normal operation. A completely filled circle 31 represents a shaft 15 with a fault. A hatched circle 31 symbolizes the replacement shaft(s) 30. These symbols can also be found in Figures 3a to 5b at the level of the respective mouthpieces.The vertically directed double arrow indicates the operation of slider 16.

[0072] Figures 3a to 5b illustrate a switching strategy for controlling the remaining drives 24 and the activation of the drive 24 of the (double) slide valve 16 of the backup shafts 30, which is initiated and executed by the control system in the event of a failure of the respective shaft 15. The switching strategy is required to prevent empty pockets 11 from forming in the downward direction of the product flow.

[0073] The double shafts and the associated pockets 11 are assigned to imaginary stations 1 to 3 in the following according to their order in the conveying direction 32.

[0074] If a shaft 15 of station 1 fails (Fig. 3a), the filling of the pockets 11 is initially continued by the sliders 16 of stations 2 and 3, whereby the pockets 11 to be filled by the slider 16 of station 1 initially remain empty. The conveyor 12 is then moved further in cycles in the product flow direction 32 and the (double) pockets 11 are shifted to the next insertion station. After a further two cycles, the slider 16 of the replacement shafts 30 is switched on synchronously with the sliders 16 of the stations 2 and 3 that remain in operation. The six pockets 11 are then filled synchronously again, whereby the pockets 11 that were actually supposed to be filled by the failed station 1 are refilled from the replacement shafts 30 (Fig. 3b). From now on, the temporary operating state with the replacement shafts 30 is achieved. The temporary operating mode will continue until the failed station 1 is operational again. The cycle sequence orThe filling of the pockets 11 in the event of a fault in station 1 is shown in Fig. 7.

[0075] If a shaft 15 of station 2 fails, the filling of the conveyor 12 is also continued with the remaining sliders 16 (Fig. 4a). The pockets 11 to be filled by the slider 16 of the second station remain empty and form a gap in the filling pattern of the conveyor 12. The pockets 11 are moved further in cycles for two cycles in the product flow direction 32, whereby in the second cycle only the slider 16 of the replacement shafts 30 is initially switched on (asynchronously) to the sliders 16 of the stations 1 and 3 that are still in operation. The slider 16 of the replacement shafts 30 pushes the groups 10 from the replacement shafts into the empty pockets 11 that were created due to the failure of the sliders 16 of station 2. In the next cycle, stations 1 and 3 again fill the double pockets of the conveyor 12 (Fig. 4b).This temporary operating mode with the replacement shafts 30 will also be maintained until the failed shafts 15 of station 2 are operational again. The cycle sequence or the filling of the pockets 11 in the event of a malfunction of station 2 is shown in Fig. 8.

[0076] Even if station 3 fails, the filling of the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 continues with the remaining pushers 16 (Fig. 5a). The pockets 11 to be filled by the pusher 16 of station 3 remain (initially) empty and also form a gap in the filling pattern of the conveyor 12. The pockets 11 are moved further in cycles in the product flow direction 32, whereby during this cycle initially only the pusher 16 of the replacement shafts 30 is added (asynchronously) to the pushers 16 of stations 1 and 2. The pusher 16 of the replacement shafts 30 pushes the groups 10 from the replacement shafts 30 into the empty pockets 11 that were created due to the failure of station 3. After a further two cycles, the double pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 are filled again by means of the pushers 16 of stations 1 and 2 (Fig. 5b).This temporary operating mode with the replacement shafts 30 will also be maintained until the failed station 3 is operational again. The cycle sequence or filling of the pockets 11 in the event of a malfunction of station 2 is shown in Fig. 9.

[0077] Once the failed shafts 15 are operational again, the system switches back to the original operating state without generating empty pockets, with the pockets 11 of the conveyor 12 being filled three times synchronously. The on-the-fly change from a normal operating state to the temporary emergency operating state and back to a normal operating state enables the device to achieve the lowest possible loss of efficiency.

[0078] It should be noted that due to the dual-track design of the device and the use of dual shafts, a corresponding number of spare shafts 30 are also provided. If the device is designed with a single track, 1 to 3 individual shafts 15 can be used in each station, as well as a single spare shaft 30.

[0079] Figures 10 to 12 show an alternative embodiment with the use of two stations 1 and 2 active in the normal operating state and a spare shaft 30 in standby redundancy. In this case, the slides 16 are actuated every other cycle.

[0080] Fig. 10 shows the normal operating state, whereas Fig. 11 shows a fault in station 1 and Fig. 12 shows a fault in station 2, whereby as a special feature the filling of the conveyor 12 must take place at each cycle in the event of a fault in station 2 (Fig. 12).

[0081] ***** 16 September 17, 2024

[0082] List of reference symbols

[0083] 10 Group

[0084] 11 bag

[0085] 12 sponsors

[0086] 13 Product

[0087] 14 Magazine

[0088] 15 shaft

[0089] 16 sliders

[0090] 17 Mouthpiece

[0091] 18 carriers

[0092] 19 discharge conveyors

[0093] 20 mouthpiece

[0094] 21 Suction disc knife block

[0095] 22 knives

[0096] 23 Material web

[0097] 24 drive

[0098] 25 Drive

[0099] 26 Sensor

[0100] 27 Camera system

[0101] 28 Control Station

[0102] 29 Ejection station

[0103] 30 replacement shaft

[0104] 31 Circle

[0105] 32 Conveying direction

Claims

September 17, 2024 17 Patent claims 1. A method for feeding groups (10) of products (13) of the cigarette industry to pockets (11) of a conveyor (12), wherein the products (13) are pushed out in groups (10) from a shaft (15) of a magazine (14) for the products (13) by means of a slider (16) associated with the shaft (15) and are pushed into a pocket (11) of the conveyor by means of a mouthpiece (17) associated with the shaft (15) (12), in particular a pocket chain conveyor or a revolver, and wherein the magazine has a plurality of shafts, each of which is assigned an individually operable slider (16), with which a group (10) of products (13) is pushed from the respective shaft (15) into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12) assigned to the respective shaft (15), and wherein, in a normal operating state, groups (10) of products (13) are pushed from a predetermined number of shafts (15) into pockets (11) of the conveyor (12) by means of a respective assigned slider (16), characterized in that in the event of a malfunction which leads to a complete group (10) of products (13) no longer being able to be pushed from one of the shafts into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12), so that this pocket (11) would not be completely filled,alternatively, a group (10) of products (13) is pushed from a replacement shaft (30) into the unfilled pocket (11) of the conveyor (12).

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that in the event of a malfunction, groups (10) of products (13) are pushed into pockets (11) of the conveyor (12) from the shafts (15) not affected by the malfunction, as in the normal operating state.

3. Method according to claim 2, characterized in that in the event of a fault, the clock rate of the shafts (15) not affected by the fault is maintained as in the normal operating state.

4. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that with a number of n shafts (15), in normal operation from a number of n-1 shafts (15) groups (10) of products (13) by means of a slide (16) assigned to the respective shaft (15) into a the respective shaft (15) assigned pocket (11) of the conveyor (12), and that the remaining spare shaft (30) is only used in the event of a malfunction to push groups (10) of products (13) into pockets (11) of the conveyor (12) which, due to the fault, were not filled from the shafts (15) active during normal operation.

5. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that in the event of a malfunction, groups (10) of products (13) are first pushed out from the shafts (15) not affected by the malfunction, and that the replacement shaft (30) is then switched on in order to fill any empty pockets (11) of the conveyor (12).

6. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that the groups (10) of products (13) from the replacement shaft (30) are removed synchronously or asynchronously with the groups (10) of products (13) are pushed out of the shafts (15) not affected by the disturbance.

7. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that the shafts (15) and the replacement shaft (30) are arranged in a row following one another along the conveyor (12), wherein the replacement shaft (30) is preferably provided as the last shaft (15) in the conveying direction of the pockets (11) of the conveyor (12).

8. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims 1 to 6, characterized in that any shaft (15) serves as a replacement shaft (30) in the event of a fault.

9. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that in the event of a malfunction, the slide (16) of the shaft (15) affected by the malfunction is shut down, wherein it is preferably provided that the slide (16) is moved, preferably retracted, into a rest position in which it does not protrude into the shaft (15) or the mouthpiece (17) or the pocket (11).

10. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that a contactless control station (28) is provided along the conveyor (12), with which the completeness of the products (13) in the pockets (11), their orientation and / or their quality is checked.

11. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that downstream of the control station (28) there is arranged an ejection station 29 for separating groups (10) of products (13) which have been assessed as defective by means of the control station (28).

12. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that in the event of a fault, the clock rate or speed of the slides (16) not affected by the fault is reduced in order to reduce the time required for the slide (16) of the replacement shaft (30) to reach the clock rate or speed of the slides (16) not affected by the fault, and that thereafter the clock rate or speed of all active slides (16) is increased again to the clock rate or speed in the normal operating state.

13. Method according to claim 1 or one of the other preceding claims, characterized in that in the normal operating state groups (10) of products (13) are pushed out from at least one or preferably from several shafts (15), and that at least one spare shaft (30) is provided in the event of malfunctions.

14. Device for feeding groups (10) of products (13) of the cigarette industry to pockets (11) of a conveyor (12), in particular a pocket chain conveyor or a revolver, with a magazine (14) for the products (13) having shafts (15) and sliders assigned to each shaft (15) for pushing out a group (10) of products (13) from the respective shaft (15), and with mouthpieces assigned to each shaft (15), through which the groups (10) of products (13) can be fed into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12), and wherein the magazine (14) has a plurality of shafts (15), each of which is assigned an individually actuatable slider (16), with in which a group (10) of products (13) can be fed from the respective shaft (15) into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12) assigned to the respective shaft (15), and wherein, in a normal operating state, groups (10) of products (13) can be fed from a predetermined number of shafts (15) into pockets (11) of the conveyor (12) by means of a respective assigned slide (16), in particular for carrying out the method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in the event of a malfunction which results in a complete group (10) of products (13) no longer being able to be fed from one of the shafts (15) into a pocket (11) of the conveyor (12), so that this pocket (11) would not be completely filled, a group (10) of products (13) can be fed from a replacement shaft (30) into the unfilled pocket (11) of the conveyor (12) as a substitute.

15. Device according to claim 14, characterized in that a contactless control station (28) is arranged along the conveyor (12) for checking the completeness of the products (13) in the pockets (11), their position and / or their quality.

16. Device according to claim 15, characterized in that downstream of the control station (28) there is arranged an ejection station (29) for separating groups (10) of products (13) which have been assessed as defective by means of the control station (28).

17. Device according to claim 14 or one of the other preceding claims 15 or 16, characterized in that the shafts (15) and their associated slides (16) are arranged on the same side of the conveyor (12) or are at least partially arranged on different sides of the conveyor (12).

18. Device according to claim 14, characterized in that the groups (10) of products (13) are transferred to a discharge conveyor (19) following the conveyor, wherein the discharge conveyor (19) is arranged transversely to the transport direction (32) of the conveyor (12).

19. Device according to claim 14, characterized in that the groups (10) of products (13) are conveyed to a discharge conveyor (19) following the conveyor. are transferred, wherein the discharge conveyor (19) is arranged parallel to the transport direction (32) of the conveyor (12).

20. Device according to claim 19, characterized in that, when the conveyor and the discharge conveyor (19) are arranged in parallel, an intermediate conveyor is provided in the transition between the conveyor and the discharge conveyor (19) in order to transfer the groups (10) of products (13) from the conveyor to the discharge conveyor (19).

21. Device according to claim 20, characterized in that the intermediate conveyor is designed to change the orientation of the groups (10) of products (13) or of the products (13) when transferring the groups (10) of products (13) from the conveyor to the discharge conveyor (19).

22. Device according to claim 21, characterized in that the device is designed with two tracks, such that the device is set up to push out two groups (10) of products (13) from adjacent shafts (15) simultaneously by means of two sliders (16) coupled to one another and to push the two groups (10) of products (13) together into adjacent pockets (11) of the conveyor (12).

23. Device according to claim 14, characterized in that in the normal operating state groups (10) of products (13) can be pushed out from at least one or preferably from several shafts (15), and that at least one spare shaft (30) is provided in the event of malfunctions. *****

Images