Coupling device between elements driven by relative rotational motion

Abstract

A device (1) for mutually coupling a rotating element (10) and at least a first non-rotating element (11) is provided, comprising a plurality of rollers (12) which have axes radially oriented relative to the rotation axis of the rotating element (10) and lying in a common plane, and which are fastened to either the rotating element (10) or the at least a first non- rotating element (11) and are arranged to rest on the other one of the rotating element (10) and the at least a first non-rotating element (11) so as to roll thereon while the rotating element (10) is rotating. Actuating members (15, 16) are also provided, acting only on the non-rotating element (11), to cause a translatory movement of the two elements (10, 11) along the axis of rotation of the rotating element (10) while keeping the relative position of said two elements constant.

Description

[0001] “Coupling device between elements driven by relative rotational motion ”

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] Technical Field

[0004] This invention relates to a coupling device for mutually connecting two elements driven by relative rotational motion, in particular a rotating element and a non-rotating element (hereinafter in description referred to for simplicity as stationary element), which belong to an apparatus used within an environment with high hygiene and safety requirements, such as in the packaging of foodstuffs or food-grade beverages, medicines, etc.

[0005] Preferably, the invention relates to a device for use in capping plants (for example, for a food-grade beverage) intended to operate in one of these environments, and the following detailed description is mainly intended as an example for the use in a capping machine belonging to one of such plants.

[0006] The invention further relates to an apparatus employing a device according to the invention.

[0007] Background Art

[0008] In the field of mechanical technology, there is a common need to couple elements driven by relative rotational motion, namely a stationary element and a rotating element. A common solution to this problem is to interpose between the two elements a rolling bearing or, if the dimensions and loads involved are significant, a slewing ring. The latter is the case of interest for the preferred application of the invention.

[0009] The use of a slewing ring is a universally known solution absolutely valid from a mechanical point of view, but it has the following limitations if it is used within an environment with high hygiene and safety requirements:

[0010] 1. The slewing ring, due to its geometry, has numerous cavities and recesses that are difficult to wash out and could harbour bacterial colonies.

[0011] 2. The slewing ring, unlike some types of rolling bearings, is not permanently lubricated, but requires periodic top-ups of grease. Sliding seals are also not made to withstand external washing. Finally, the exhausted grease over time is pushed away by the newly introduced grease and tends to pass outwards through the sliding seals: this would lead to a spread of exhausted grease in the packaging area, with possible contamination of the product.

[0012] It is also common to allow a relative translatory movement of the two elements. In such cases, in applications which, as with the invention, require high hygiene and safety requirements, it is usually preferred to keep the two elements to be coupled not in contact with each other and to manage the translation of each independently.

[0013] For example, EP2684805A1 and WO2014 / 198824Aldisclose a device for guiding and stabilising containers in a bottling apparatus, with an internal rotating disc and an external stationary guide whose facing surfaces are shaped so as to define pockets to receive the containers. The rotating disc and the stationary guide are translated vertically so as to be able to accommodate containers of different sizes. The height adjustment is carried out by means of independent actuators located both on the stationary part and the rotating part. Such actuators make the machinery complex, because they require the presence of a rotating electrical manifold for signal and power transport and electric motors as well as of electric motors.

[0014] Summary of Invention

[0015] The object of present invention is to provide a device intended for mutually coupling a stationary element and at least a first rotating element that is suitable for use in an environment with high hygiene and safety requirements and that eliminates the drawbacks of prior art.

[0016] Another object of the present invention is to provide a coupling device of the aforementioned type that also allows a simultaneous translatory movement of both said elements along the axis of rotation of the rotating element, while keeping the relative position of said two elements constant.

[0017] To achieve these objects, according to a first aspect of the invention, a device is provided comprising a plurality of rollers which have axes radially oriented relative to the rotation axis of the rotating element and lying in a common plane, and which are fastened to either the rotating element or the at least a first stationary element and are arranged to rest on the other one of the rotating element and the at least a first stationary element so as to roll thereon while the rotating element is rotating.

[0018] Preferably, the rollers are circumferentially distributed in a substantially uniform manner over a surface of the element by which they are carried, and the first stationary element is coaxially arranged relative to the rotating element and extends along the whole or part thereof.

[0019] In a preferred application of the invention, these two elements are meant to perform simultaneously a translatory movement along the rotation axis of the rotating element while keeping their relative position constant, and the device further includes actuating members arranged to cause the translatory movement without acting on the rotating element. In this preferred application, at least in the case of rotation of the rotating element around a non-vertical axis, the rollers are fastened to the rotating element, are arranged between the first stationary element and a second stationary element parallel to the first one and they rest and roll also on a surface of the second stationary element facing the first one, and the actuating members are associated with the two stationary elements so that the rollers are caused to translate in a first direction by the first stationary element and in a second direction, opposite to the first direction, by the second stationary element.

[0020] Preferably, the device finds application in a bottling apparatus in which the containers to be handled are carried by the rotating element and is intended to adjust, during a setting step, the vertical position of the rotating element depending on the format of the containers.

[0021] Advantageously, in this use, the first non-rotating element has a cam that is engaged by means arranged to cause, during each rotation of the rotating element, also a vertical translation of guiding and stabilising members for the containers for the engagement and the disengagement between said guiding and stabilising members and the containers.

[0022] According to another aspect of the invention, there is also provided an apparatus intended to operate inside an environment having high hygiene and safety requirements, and comprising, inside said environment, a rotating element and at least one stationary element and a device according to the invention for the coupling between these elements.

[0023] Preferably, the apparatus is a bottling apparatus in which the containers to be handled are carried by the rotating element and the coupling device is intended to control the vertical translation of the rotating element at least in a setting step to arrange it in a desired vertical working position.

[0024] Brief Description of Drawings

[0025] These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become evident from the following description of preferred embodiments given by way of nonlimiting example with reference to the annexed drawings, wherein elements having the same or a similar functionality and construction are indicated with the same or similar reference numerals, and wherein:

[0026] Fig.l is a partial view of a rotary capping machine equipped with a coupling device according to the invention;

[0027] Fig.2 in an enlarged view of a detail of Fig. 1;

[0028] Fig.3 is a schematic view of the application of the invention to rotary capping machines equipped with guiding a stabilising means of a different type; Fig.4 is a schematic view of the application of the invention to rotary capping machines equipped with guiding and stabilising means of a different type;

[0029] Fig.5 is a schematic view of the application of the invention to rotary capping machines equipped with guiding and stabilising means of a different type.

[0030] Description of Embodiments

[0031] Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the reference numeral 100 indicates the rotating shaft of a rotary capping machine equipped with devices (not shown) for guiding and stabilising bottles during capping, which devices are carried by a flange 10 fastened to the shaft 100 and rotating therewith and capable of vertically translating relative thereto. Since, in general, a capping machine can operate, in different work cycles, on bottles of different sizes, translation serves to bring the guiding and stabilising devices to the height required by a particular bottle size.

[0032] The device according to the invention, indicated as a whole with 1, is intended to couple the inner flange 10 to a non-rotating outer cam or plate 11, concentric to the flange 10 and vertically translatable. The device 1 is configured so that a vertical translation of the plate 11 causes translation of the flange 10, and therefore of the guiding devices, while keeping the relative vertical position of flange and plate constant.

[0033] The flange 10 rests on the plate 11 by means of a crown of rollers 12 (at least two) with horizontal axis, fastened to the rotating flange 10 and arranged, for example, along the periphery thereof. The axes of all rollers 12 are arranged on the same horizontal plane and are radially oriented relative to the axis of symmetry of the flange 10 (i.e. to the axis of rotation of the shaft 100). The rollers 12 are distributed roughly evenly over 360° of rotation of the flange 10, although they are not necessarily equispaced. The rollers 12 are fastened to the flange 10 by means of respective shafts 13.

[0034] The rollers 12 rest on the outer plate 11 and rotate thereon during rotation of the flange 10, thereby supporting the flange 10 and at the same time decoupling the rotary movement. Said rotary movement can be transmitted from the shaft 100 of the capping machine to the flange 10 through various means, such as dragging columns 14 (as in the figures) or a tongue mounted to the shaft 100. The columns 14, where provided, perform at the same time a function of axially guiding the flange 10 during translation. Should it be preferred to transmit the rotary movement via a tongue, the axial guiding function could be performed by the shaft 100 itself.

[0035] The translation of the plate 11 can be achieved electrically, pneumatically or even manually. It is easy to understand that, when the plate 11 is lifted, the flange 10 is pushed upwards by the thrust exerted by the rollers 12. When the plate 11 is lowered, the flange 10 will lower by gravity and its own weight will keep it in contact with the rollers 12, thereby ensuring that the relative distance between cam and flange is kept constant.

[0036] The plate 11 is not necessarily closed like a ring but can only extend over a fraction of round angle. Indeed, due to the regular distribution of the rollers 12 over the entire circumference of the flange 10, those resting on the plate 11 will be able to keep the rotating flange 10 horizontally stable (of course, on condition that the extension of the plate 11 is large enough). Figs. 1 and 2 show a plate 11 with an extension of less than 360°.

[0037] In Figs. 3 - 5 there is schematically shown the application of the invention to three rotary capping machines that use three different guiding and stabilising devices for the bottles B. Conventionally, during capping, the bottles B travel hanging by the neck from a support whose profile is indicated by S. It has also been assumed that the translation movement of the plate 11 , which is transmitted to the flange 10, is achieved with an actuator 15, whose shaft is indicated by 16.

[0038] In the capping machine of Fig. 3, the bottle B is guided and stabilised by means of a cup 2 with internal conical or frustoconical shape, which accommodates the lower portion of the bottle B and extends over 360° around the bottle axis. Depending on the diameter of the bottom and the height of the bottle B, the cup 2 will have to be adjusted to a different height. This adjustment, to be undertaken in a pre-production setting step, is carried out by vertically translating the rotating flange 10 with the plate 11 as described above. In order to be able to accommodate the bottle B and release it after handling, the cup 2 can lower relative to the working position to an exchange position in which its top is located under the bottom of the bottle B. A cup 2 is provided for each capping axis, each cup being provided with an independent translatory motion between the working position and the exchange position. The change from one position to the other is controlled in any of the usual ways in rotary capping machines, e.g. by mechanical or electronic cam systems.

[0039] In the capping machine of Fig. 4, the bottle B is guided and stabilised by means of a pin 8 having a frustoconical or otherwise tapered end 8a, capable of engaging with a recess or recessed bottom 7 having a complementary shape and provided at the centre of the bottom of the bottle B. In order to be able to accommodate the bottle and release it after capping thereof, the pin 8 can lower relative to the working position, illustrated by a continuous line, until complete disengagement of the bottom is achieved, as shown by a dashed line. To control the change between the working position and the exchange position, a roller 40 is shown in the figure, which roller, during rotation of the flange 10, engages with the upper side of a suitably shaped drum cam, not shown. Of course, the same system can be used to control the change between the two positions of the cup 2 of Fig. 3. The adjustment of the working height, to be undertaken during the pre-production setting step, depending on the height of the bottle B, is again carried out by vertically translating the rotating flange 10 by means of the plate 11.

[0040] In the capping machine of Fig. 5, as in the one of Fig. 3, the bottle B is guided and stabilised by acting on the lower end portion of the bottle flank by means of a conical or frustoconical cup 22 extending over 360° around the bottle axis. However, in this case the cup 22 consists of two parts or half-cups 22', 22", one of which (the inner half-cup 22' with convexity facing the shaft 100) is stationary, whereas the other one (the outer half-cup 22", with convexity facing away from the shaft 100) is moveable relative to the stationary halfcup 22' to give access to the inner cavity of the cup. For example, the outer half-cup 22" may be hinged on a pivot pin 9, (with horizontal axis, as shown in the figure, or a vertical axis) or may translate vertically. Unlike the previous solutions, however, no engagement and disengagement movement at each rotation of the capping machine is provided for, since, when the cup 22 is open, the bottle can be exchanged.

[0041] The invention effectively obviates the drawbacks of prior art, as there are no elements requiring periodic lubrication with the risk of polluting the environment in which the device is to operate, and the control of translation is achieved by acting only on the external element, thus eliminating the problems associated with the presence of drives and a rotating manifold for transporting signals and power to the rotating element.

[0042] It is evident that the above description has been provided merely by way of example and that variants and modifications are possible without departing from the scope of protection of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

[0043] In particular, even if with the preferred application the case has been illustrated in which the two elements 10, 11 are translated jointly in the vertical direction, the invention can also be applied to the case in which the two elements do not have to be translated but remain in a fixed position, or they are translated in a non-vertical direction. In the latter case, a second plate will be provided parallel to the plate 11 and also driven by the actuator 15, 16 and arranged so that the rollers 12 also rest on the surface of said second plate facing the plate 11. In this way, in the event of a translation in a direction that would result in the loss of contact between plate 11 and rollers 12, the second plate exerts, on said rollers, the thrust action necessary to keep the relative distance between plate 11 and flange 10 constant. Obviously, this solution can also be adopted in the case of vertical translation, to ensure that there is no loss of synchronism between plate 11 and flange 10 during lowering of the flange. This second plate is indicated by IT in the Figs. 3 - 5, where it is shown by a dashed line.

[0044] In addition, where the movement of engagement and disengagement of the cups 2 or the pins 8 is controlled by a drum cam, this cam could be provided on the plate 11 and thus be adjusted in height together with said plate.

[0045] Also, although the above description illustrates the case where the rollers 12 are fastened to the flange 10, in the case where the second plate 11' is not present, they could instead be carried by the plate 11 and it would be the flange 10 to rotate in contact with them. In this case, too, the plate 11 may only extend over a fraction of round angle such as to keep the flange 10 horizontally stable.

Claims

CLAIMS1. Device (1) for mutually coupling a rotating element (10) and at least a first nonrotating element (11) that are intended to operate inside an environment having high hygiene and safety requirements, characterised in that the device (1) includes a plurality of rollers (12), which have axes radially oriented relative to the rotation axis of the rotating element (10) and lying in a common plane, and which are fastened to either the rotating element (10) or the at least a first non-rotating element (11) and are arranged to rest on the other one of the rotating element (10) and the at least a first non-rotating element (11) so as to roll thereon while the rotating element (10) is rotating.

2. Device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the rollers (12) are circumferentially distributed in a substantially uniform manner over a surface of the element (10, 11) by which they are carried.

3. Device (1) according to any preceding claim, wherein the at least a first non-rotating element (11) is coaxially arranged relative to the rotating element (10) and extends along the whole or part thereof.

4. Device (1) according to any preceding claim, wherein the rotating element (10) and the at least a first non-rotating element (11) are also to perform a translatory movement along the rotation axis of the rotating element (10) while keeping their relative position constant, and the device (1) further includes actuating members (15, 16) arranged to cause the translatory movement without acting on the rotating element (10).

5. Device (1) according to claim 4, wherein the rollers (12) are fastened to the rotating element (10), are arranged between the first non-rotating element (11) and a second nonrotating element (IT) parallel to the first non-rotating element (11) and they rest and roll also on a surface of the second non-rotating element (IT) facing the first non-rotating element (11), and wherein the actuating members (15, 16) are associated with the two nonrotating elements (11, 11') so that the rollers (12) are caused to translate in a first direction by the first non-rotating element (11) and in a second direction, opposite to the first direction, by the second non-rotating element (IT).

6. Device (1) according to any preceding claim for use in a bottling apparatus, wherein the rotating element (10, S) carries and supports a plurality of containers (B) to be handled, the device (1) being intended to adjust, during a setting step, the vertical position of the rotating element (10) depending on the format of the containers (B).

7. Device (1) according to claim 6, wherein the rollers (12) are fastened to the rotating element (10) and the first non-rotating element (11) has a cam that is engaged by meansarranged to cause, during each rotation of the rotating element (10), also a vertical translation of guiding and stabilising members (2; 8, 8a; 22) for the containers for the engagement and the disengagement between said guiding and stabilising members and the containers.

8. Apparatus intended to operate inside an environment with high hygiene and safety requirements and including, inside said environment, a rotating element (10) and at least a first non-rotating element (11) and means for coupling said elements, characterised in that the coupling means comprise a coupling device (1) according to any preceding claim.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 belonging to a bottling plant, wherein the coupling device (1) is arranged to adjust, during a setting step, the vertical position of the rotating element (10) depending on the format of containers (B) carried and supported by the rotating element (10, S).

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