Equipment and method for automatically wrapping a film around an object

Abstract

The present invention refers to an equipment and a method for wrapping a film around an object placed on a pallet. The equipment includes: a) a reel-holder carriage equipped with an outlet designed to allow the film to come out of the carriage through it; and b) at least one device suitable for blowing air, placed at the outlet and integral with the carriage, which allows the end strip of the film, once it has come out of the carriage, to spread slowly, without any tension, on the ground around the base of the object to be wrapped. The rotation around the object to be wrapped of a movable body forming part of the equipment of the present invention, or, alternatively, the rotation on itself of the object to be wound in proximity to the equipment, allows tensioning of the strip of the film and the subsequent superimposition on it of a portion of the film that gradually emerges from the carriage during rotation, so as to fix the film to the object to be wrapped.

1 . Equipment ( 10 ) for wrapping a film ( 6 ) around an object ( 4 ) arranged on a pallet ( 15 ), wherein said equipment ( 10 ) comprises:
 a) a carriage ( 1 ) adapted to house a reel of said film ( 6 ) and wherein said carriage ( 1 ) is provided with an outlet ( 11 ) adapted to allow said film ( 6 ) to exit from the carriage ( 1 ) through said outlet ( 11 ); and   b) at least one device suitable for blowing air ( 7 ) placed in correspondence with said outlet ( 11 ) and integral with said carriage ( 1 ) and able to allow the end strip ( 9 ) of said film ( 6 ), once it has come out of the carriage ( 1 ), to lie on the ground around the base of said object to be wrapped ( 4 ) with said film ( 6 ).   
     
     
         2 . Equipment ( 10 ) for wrapping a film ( 6 ) according to  claim 1  further comprising a first ( 7 ) and a second device suitable for blowing air ( 8 ), placed one on each side with respect to the film ( 6 ) at said outlet ( 11 ) of the carriage ( 1 ). 
     
     
         3 . Equipment ( 10 ) for wrapping a film ( 6 ) according to  claim 1  further comprising a movable body ( 12 ) integral with said carriage ( 1 ) able to rotate around said object to be wrapped ( 4 ). 
     
     
         4 . Equipment ( 10 ) for wrapping a film ( 6 ) according to  claim 1  further comprising a vertical column ( 2 ) along which said carriage ( 1 ) is able to slide up and/or down. 
     
     
         5 . Equipment ( 10 ) for wrapping a film ( 6 ) according to  claim 1  further comprising at least one suction element positioned at the base of said object to be wrapped ( 4 ) and able to attract said end strip ( 9 ) towards itself of the film ( 6 ) once it has come out of said outlet ( 11 ) of the carriage ( 1 ). 
     
     
         6 . Method for wrapping an object ( 4 ) placed on a pallet ( 15 ) with a film ( 6 ) using the equipment ( 10 ) according to  claim 1 , wherein said method comprises the steps of:
 a) loading a reel of said film ( 6 ) into a special reel-holder carriage ( 1 ) equipped with a suitable outlet ( 11 ) so as to allow the end strip ( 9 ) of said film ( 6 ) to come out of the carriage ( 1 ) through said outlet ( 11 );   b) activating at least one device suitable for blowing air ( 7 ) located in correspondence with said outlet ( 11 ) and integral with said carriage ( 1 ), so as to allow said end strip ( 9 ) of said film ( 6 ) to stretch, without tension, around the base of said object to be wrapped ( 4 );   c) activating the supply of the film ( 6 ) still inside the carriage ( 1 );   d) activating the rotation of said object to be wrapped ( 4 ) on itself in proximity to said equipment ( 10 ), or, alternatively, activating the rotation of said movable body ( 12 ) of said equipment ( 10 ) around said object to be wound ( 4 ), so that said end strip ( 9 ) of said film ( 6 ) begins to wrap around said object to be wrapped ( 4 ), and with it, thereafter, also the remaining portion of film ( 6 ) gradually coming out of said carriage ( 1 );   e) continuing to carry out said rotation until an amount of film ( 6 ) has been dispensed such as to be tensioned so as to fixe said film ( 6 ) to said object to be wrapped ( 4 ).   
     
     
         7 . Method according to  claim 6  wherein, in said step e), said film ( 6 ) is tensioned when it overlaps said end strip ( 9 ) of said film ( 6 ) already wrapped to said object to be wrapped ( 4 ) or as soon as the film ( 6 ) already exited from the carriage ( 1 ) presents a certain resistance to dragging. 
     
     
         8 . Method according to  claim 7  further comprising, at the end of said step e), the step of:
 f) deactivating said at least one first device suitable for blowing air ( 7 ). 
 
     
     
         9 . Method according to  claim 8  further comprising, at the end of said step f), the step of:
 g) continuing said rotation and, consequently, said wrapping of said film ( 6 ) put under tension around said object to be wrapped ( 4 ), until the object to be wrapped ( 4 ) with said film has been wrapped for a number of times desired. 
 
     
     
         10 . Method according to  claim 6 , wherein in said step b) a first ( 7 ) and a second device ( 8 ) suitable for blowing air are activated and placed one on each side with respect to the film ( 6 ) in correspondence with said outlet ( 11 ).