Shrink tunnel

摘要

#CMT# #/CMT# The tunnel has a transport plane (TE) including a conveyor belt for bottles, which are covered by a shrink film. An outer shaft wall and an inner shaft wall (60a) are arranged on both sides along the belt. The covered bottles are applied with hot air (42) by the shaft walls. The shaft walls include a deflecting device (70) e.g. turning channel (71), for the hot air, where flow directions (SR1, SR2) of the hot air are reversed by the deflecting device. The deflecting device divides the shaft walls into a middle inflow chamber (74) and two outer outflow chambers (76) for the hot air. #CMT# : #/CMT# An independent claim is also included for a method for shrinking package units to a collection of articles. #CMT#USE : #/CMT# Shrink tunnel for shrinking package units i.e. shrink films, around a set of articles such as beverage containers i.e. bottles, for combining bundle layers into large packaging units, and for shrinking labels on the articles. Can also be used for cans. #CMT#ADVANTAGE : #/CMT# The tunnel ensures upwardly directed flows of the hot air, thus supporting upwardly directed overlapping of the package units, and avoiding downward pressing of upwardly directed packaging projections in a false direction by the hot air. The tunnel prevents formation of swirls of the hot air, and avoids hot air supply in determined regions of the tunnel, thus enabling optimal adaptation of the supply of the hot air to the product, and hence reducing energy consumption of the tunnel. #CMT#DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS : #/CMT# The drawing shows a cross-sectional view of an inner shaft wall with a deflecting device. SR1, SR2 : Flow directions of hot air TE : Transport plane 42 : Hot air 60a : Inner shaft wall 70 : Deflecting device 71 : Turning channel 74 : Middle inflow chamber 76 : Outer outflow chambers.