SPIN FLOW NECKING APPARATUS AND METHOD OF HANDLING CANS THEREIN

摘要

A multi-station machine for necking-in the open end of a metal container body includes a plurality of necking spindle assemblies mounted at circumferentially spaced locations on a tooling disc turret in coaxial alignment with corresponding base pad spindle assemblies mounted to a base pad turret. The turrets are co-rotatable with a main turret shaft. Cam controlled tooling activating assemblies are mounted on the tooling disc turret to control the necking-in movement of an eccentric roll and an external forming roll in each necking spindles in synchronism with delivery of vacuum suction through the base pad spindles which clamps the container bottom walls to the respective base pads. A sequential latching arrangement associate with the tooling activating assemblies prevents tool-to-tool contact between the outer forming rolls with the eccentric rolls in the absence of container bodies on station. The vacuum manifold arrangement feature the supply of high volume, low suction vacuum to a small number of stations in the vicinity of the infeed location to rapidly locate the container bodies on the base pads. A lowe volume, high suction vacuum supply to the downstream spindles ensures proper clamping suction to properly maintain the containers on the base pads during necking. In the absence of containers at various stations, the high volume, low suction vacuum is subject to leakage only at a small number of stations at the infeed while vacuum leakage in the remainder of the stations is insufficient to lower clamping pressure to unacceptable levels.