Device for packaging a product in an envelope

Abstract

There is described a device for winding an envelope (A) around a product (B), in particular defined by a group of cigarettes or the like, to be packaged in a corresponding box-shaped body, or packet, which comprises means ( 10 ) for winding said envelope (A) around said product (B) and means ( 20 ) that are adapted to supply said product (B) and said envelope (A) to said winding means (I 0 ).

I/We claim: 
     
         1 . Winding device for winding an envelope (A) around a product (B) defined by a group of articles shaped as elongated elements, the winding device comprising winding means ( 10 ) for winding said envelope (A) around said product (B); wherein said winding device comprises:
 supplying means ( 20 ) adapted to supply said product (B) and said envelope (A), together, to said winding means ( 10 ), said supplying means ( 20 ) having seats ( 201 ) for supporting the product (B) and/or the envelope (A) and means ( 202 ) for supporting and advancing said seats ( 201 ), supplying means ( 11 ) for supplying the envelope (A), which are adapted to arrange said envelope (A) on the corresponding supplying means ( 20 ) by bending the envelope (A) around the product (B), or the respective supporting seat ( 201 ), said supplying means ( 11 ) comprising a shaped seat ( 111 ) for engaging the envelope (A), in a plane condition, operating means ( 112 ) adapted to move said shaped seat ( 111 ) between a position for taking the envelope (A) and a position for passing the envelope (A) to the supplying means ( 20 ) and a pushing device ( 117 ) passing through a hollow bottom of the shaped seat ( 111 ) and configured for moving between a retracted position and an advanced position for engaging the envelope (A) onto the seat ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ).   
     
     
         2 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) are adapted to provide bending lines (A 12 , A 13 ) defining a bottom portion (Al) and corresponding side portions (A 2 , A 3 ) of the envelope (A). 
     
     
         3 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) are adapted to move said envelope (A) perpendicularly to an advancement plane defined by the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         4 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) are adapted to move said envelope (A) in parallel with a rotation axis (R) of the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         5 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) have elastically yieldable means for pushing the envelope (A) against the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         6 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said shaped seat ( 111 ) has a “V” configuration. 
     
     
         7 . Device according to  claim 6 , wherein said shaped seat ( 111 ) with “V” configuration has side wings ( 111   a,    111   b ) arranged, in condition of passage of the envelope (A), around the corresponding faces, or surfaces, of the seats ( 201 ). 
     
     
         8 . Device according to  claim 7 , wherein said side wings ( 111   a,    111   b ) are elastically yieldable outwards so that can be moved away from or towards each other elastically, to define means for compressing the envelope (A) on the respective seat ( 201 ). 
     
     
         9 . Device according to  claim 7 , wherein said side wings ( 111   a,    111   b ) terminate with perpendicular portions ( 111 ′ a ,  111 ′ b ) of contact and pressure against corresponding external surface of walls ( 201   a,    201   b ) of the supplying means ( 20 ), in the advanced position. 
     
     
         10 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said shaped seat ( 111 ) is also defined by a base ( 111 ′) for connection to a stem of the respective operating means ( 112 ) moved through a corresponding electric motor. 
     
     
         11 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) also comprise a respective reel ( 113 ) for supporting a strip (A′) of material defining said envelope (A). 
     
     
         12 . Device according to  claim 11 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) also comprise means for unwinding and cutting a sheet defining said envelope (A) from said strip (A′). 
     
     
         13 . Device according to  claim 11 , wherein said supplying means ( 11 ) also comprise a pair of advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ) for holding and advancing the envelope (A), which extend mutually parallel and move on intermittently moving rollers ( 115 ′,  115 ′), extending totally, with a portion for supporting the envelope (A) that is in parallel to a plate ( 202 ) for supporting the seats ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         14 . Device according to  claim 13 , wherein said advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a ,  115   b ) are mutually spaced apart and extend totally radial with respect to a rotation centre (R) of the supplying means ( 20 ) and ensure that the respective sheet defining the envelope (A) is moved from a retracted cutting position to an advanced position for pick-up by said shaped seat ( 111 ) for inserting the sheet defining the envelope (A) on top of the respective seats ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         15 . Device according to  claim 13 , wherein said shaped seat ( 111 ) is configured to move, forwards and backwards, extending between said advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ). 
     
     
         16 . Device according to  claim 13 , wherein the pushing device ( 117 ) is configured to advance toward one of the seats ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ) that carries the product (B), and to intercept the envelope (A) supported, in stopped condition, by the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ), disengaging it from the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ), pushing it against a bottom ( 201 ′) of the seat ( 201 ), defining means for engaging the envelope (A) on the bottom ( 201 ′) of the seat ( 201 ). 
     
     
         17 . Device according to  claim 7 , wherein the shaped seat ( 111 ) is configured to advance with said wings ( 111 ′ a ,  111 ′ b ) that engage the envelope A, laterally to the pushing device ( 117 ), and to push the envelope (A) onto external faces of circumferential walls ( 201   a,    201   b ) of the seat ( 201 ), defining bends (A 12 , A 13 ) of the envelope (A) through which transverse, or side, portions (A 2 , A 3 ) of the envelope (A) extend from a bottom portion (A 1 ) of the envelope (A), and to continue to advance to a position completely superimposed on the seat ( 201 ) where said side wings ( 111   a,    111   b ) superimpose the external surface of the walls ( 201   a,    201   b ) of the respective seat ( 201 ). 
     
     
         18 . Device according to  claim 17 , wherein the shaped seat ( 111 ), once the envelope (A) has been completely bent and transferred to the supplying means ( 20 ) is configured to return to a retracted position upstream of the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ) and the pushing device ( 117 ) is configured to return to the retracted position inside the shaped seat ( 111 ). 
     
     
         19 . Device according to  claim 1 , wherein the supply means ( 20 ) are shaped as a wheel rotating about a respective rotation axis (R), according to an angular direction (G), configured to move with intermittent movement, having advancement steps alternated with stop steps. 
     
     
         20 . A method for winding an envelope (A) around a product (B) defined by a group of articles shaped as elongated elements, the method comprising winding said envelope (A) around said product (B) by winding means ( 10 ); wherein the method comprises:
 supplying said product (B) and said envelope (A), together, to said winding means ( 10 ) by supplying means ( 20 ) having seats ( 201 ) which support the product (B) and/or the envelope (A) and means ( 202 ) which support and advance said seats ( 201 ),   supplying the envelope (A) by arranging said envelope (A) on the corresponding supplying means ( 20 ) by bending the envelope (A) around the product (B), or the respective supporting seat ( 201 ),   wherein supplying the envelope (A) comprises engaging the envelope (A) by a shaped seat ( 111 ), in a plane condition, moving said shaped seat ( 111 ) between a position for taking the envelope (A) and a position for passing the envelope (A) to the supplying means ( 20 ) by operating means ( 112 ) and engaging the envelope (A) onto the seat ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ) by a pushing device ( 117 ) passing through a hollow bottom of the shaped seat ( 111 ) and moving between a retracted position and an advanced position for engaging the envelope (A) onto the seat ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ).   
     
     
         21 . Method according to  claim 20 , wherein supplying the envelope (A) comprises moving said envelope (A) perpendicularly to an advancement plane defined by the supplying means ( 20 ) and in parallel with a rotation axis (R) of the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         22 . Method according to  claim 20 , wherein supplying the envelope (A) comprises pushing the envelope (A) against the supplying means ( 20 ) by elastically yieldable means. 
     
     
         23 . Method according to  claim 20 , wherein supplying the envelope (A) also comprises holding and advancing the envelope (A) by a pair of advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ) which extend mutually parallel and move on intermittently moving rollers ( 115 ′,  115 ′), extending totally, with a portion for supporting the envelope (A) that is in parallel to a plate ( 202 ) for supporting the seats ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ). 
     
     
         24 . Method according to  claim 23 , wherein the pushing device ( 117 ) advances toward one of the seats ( 201 ) of the supplying means ( 20 ) that carries the product (B), and intercepts the envelope (A) supported, in stopped condition, by the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ), disengages it from the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ), pushes it against a bottom ( 201 ′) of the seat ( 201 ), defining means for engaging the envelope (A) on the bottom ( 201 ′) of the seat ( 201 ). 
     
     
         25 . Method according to  claim 24 , wherein the shaped seat ( 111 ) advances with wings ( 111 ′ a ,  111 ′ b ) that engage the envelope A, laterally to the pushing device ( 117 ), and pushes the envelope (A) onto external faces of circumferential walls ( 201   a,    201   b ) of the seat ( 201 ), defining bends (A 12 , A 13 ) of the envelope (A) through which transverse, or side, portions (A 2 , A 3 ) of the envelope (A) extend from a bottom portion (Al) of the envelope (A), and continues to advance to a position completely superimposed on the seat ( 201 ) where said side wings ( 111   a,    111   b ) superimpose the external surface of the walls ( 201   a,    201   b ) of the respective seat ( 201 ). 
     
     
         26 . Method according to  claim 25 , wherein once the envelope (A) has been completely bent and transferred to the supplying means ( 20 ) the shaped seat ( 111 ) returns to a retracted position upstream of the advancing and supporting belts ( 115   a,    115   b ) and the pushing device ( 117 ) returns to the retracted position inside the shaped seat ( 111 ). 
     
     
         27 . Method according to  claim 20 , wherein said supplying means ( 20 ) supplying said product (B) and said envelope (A), together, to said winding means ( 10 ) are shaped as a wheel, wherein supplying said product (B) and said envelope (A), together, to said winding means ( 10 ) comprises rotating said wheel about a respective rotation axis (R), according to an angular direction (G), moving with intermittent movement, having advancement steps alternated with stop steps.