| 摘要 |
An automatic bagging machine and method gently and efficiently handle bruisable articles to be automatically bagged, such as apples. The bagger includes a weighing pan, a bag supply, a source of compressed air for inflating a plastic bag while it is held open at spaced points adjacent its top, and a cushioning arm assembly for engaging the exterior of the bag as it is being filled with articles to cushion the fall of the articles. A piston and cylinder moves the cushioning arm into engagement with the bag exterior while it is being filled, and away from the bag after the fall of articles has been effectively broken (cushioned). A number of conveyors that are independently controlled feed articles to the pan, and an ultrasound sensor senses the volume of the next article or articles to be fed to the pan in each conveyor path, and that conveyor or conveyors is or are operated which contains the next article or articles closest to the desired weight of articles in the pan, or slightly above it. After being filled, the bag is moved by a pair of spaced grippers in a horizontal plane, with at least a slight twist imparted to the bag as it is moved, so that the open top of the bag at least starts to move to be closed. The open top is then moved into operative association with an automatic tier, and tied closed.
|
