WO2017001073A1 - Dispositif et procédé d'étiquetage de récipients - Google Patents

Dispositif et procédé d'étiquetage de récipients Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2017001073A1
WO2017001073A1 PCT/EP2016/058047 EP2016058047W WO2017001073A1 WO 2017001073 A1 WO2017001073 A1 WO 2017001073A1 EP 2016058047 W EP2016058047 W EP 2016058047W WO 2017001073 A1 WO2017001073 A1 WO 2017001073A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
label
labels
pallet
activating agent
vacuum
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
PCT/EP2016/058047
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Inventor
Georg Gertlowski
Josef Mayer
Stefan Richter
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Krones AG
Original Assignee
Krones AG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Krones AG filed Critical Krones AG
Publication of WO2017001073A1 publication Critical patent/WO2017001073A1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C9/00—Details of labelling machines or apparatus
    • B65C9/08—Label feeding
    • B65C9/12—Removing separate labels from stacks
    • B65C9/14—Removing separate labels from stacks by vacuum
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C9/00—Details of labelling machines or apparatus
    • B65C9/20—Gluing the labels or articles
    • B65C9/22—Gluing the labels or articles by wetting, e.g. by applying liquid glue or a liquid to a dry glue coating
    • B65C9/2204—Gluing the labels or articles by wetting, e.g. by applying liquid glue or a liquid to a dry glue coating using spraying means
    • B65C9/2213—Applying the liquid on the label
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C9/00—Details of labelling machines or apparatus
    • B65C9/20—Gluing the labels or articles
    • B65C9/22—Gluing the labels or articles by wetting, e.g. by applying liquid glue or a liquid to a dry glue coating
    • B65C9/2247—Gluing the labels or articles by wetting, e.g. by applying liquid glue or a liquid to a dry glue coating using liquid rollers or bands
    • B65C9/2256—Applying the liquid on the label
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C9/00—Details of labelling machines or apparatus
    • B65C9/0015—Preparing the labels or articles, e.g. smoothing, removing air bubbles
    • B65C2009/0059—Preparing the articles
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65C—LABELLING OR TAGGING MACHINES, APPARATUS, OR PROCESSES
    • B65C9/00—Details of labelling machines or apparatus
    • B65C9/40—Controls; Safety devices
    • B65C9/42—Label feed control

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for preparing labels, in particular film labels, for application to containers or containers, for example made of glass, metal or plastic in round and square shape.
  • labels for example in the form of wrap-around labels
  • a hot glue or an ultraviolet light-curable adhesive Particular care is required in order to achieve a smooth and warp-free applied label on the container in the finished state. From DE 20 2005 002 793 U1 an all-around labeling device is known.
  • labels that need not be prepared by a glue application after removal from a label magazine for application to the container to be labeled, but are already provided with an activatable adhesive coating.
  • DE 102 43 704A describes a labeling machine in which labels with thermally activatable coating are used. By thermal irradiation, this coating is brought into an adhesive state, so that the label can be applied to the container to be labeled.
  • DE 299 24 839 U describes a comparable device, which also shows from this document that the activation can also be effected by moistening.
  • the present invention is therefore based on the object to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art.
  • the object is to avoid the mentioned disorders.
  • a method for preparing labels provided with a moistening activatable fixing side for application to containers by the steps of: receiving a label from a label providing unit by a transfer device having at least one vacuum pallet ; and transferring the transported from the vacuum pallet label to an application cylinder such that the fixing side of the label facing away from the lateral surface of the application cylinder; wherein the fixing of the label is already pre-activated by the moistening with an activating agent, in particular with water, prior to transfer to the application cylinder.
  • the present method can be used in particular for labels, which have for attaching the labels to the containers only one can be activated only by moisture or liquid fixing side, without being additionally glued with a hot, cold or UV glue.
  • the labels in the context of the present invention are also not self-adhesive labels which do not require activation of the fixing side as described.
  • the activatable fixing side of a label can be on the back of the label or be the back of the label.
  • provided with an activatable fuser side labels can, as described below either as individual labels, eg. B. via a label container, or as a strapless label tape available.
  • the use of labels adhering solely due to the activatable adhesive coating offers a number of advantages. For example, a number of components of the labeling, such. As a Beleimungsstation a gluing plant, an glue pump and a glue reservoir, omitted. For the user, this not least results in advantages due to the eliminating of soiling by the glue and the elimination of the installation and maintenance costs as well as the costs which arise through procurement, storage and refilling of the glue.
  • the reduction in the number of components advantageously also allows a more compact design of the labeling, a reduction in energy consumption and an increase in the efficiency of the labeling. Above all, however, the inventive adhesive-free labeling allows a more environmentally friendly labeling.
  • the containers may be cans, glass bottles, plastic bottles, in particular PET bottles, or the like.
  • the labels can be applied to containers made of several of the mentioned containers.
  • the application to the container or container can be done in particular directly by means of the application cylinder, since the fixing side of the conveyed by him labels facing away from its lateral surface.
  • the containers or containers to be labeled can be guided tangentially past the application cylinder with a transport device such as, for example, a container table, wherein the containers can be rotated in a controlled manner for applying the labels.
  • Methods for placing glued labels or labels with activated fixing on containers to be labeled are well known in the art, which is why a detailed illustration is omitted here.
  • the labels are taken over by a label providing unit by a transfer device with at least one vacuum pallet.
  • the label supply unit may be one or more known label boxes or containers.
  • the provision of the labels by the label providing unit can also be carried out as explained in more detail below by separating individual labels from a continuous label tape.
  • Pallets for carrying labels are well known in the art, as already mentioned.
  • US Pat. No. 3,736,213 describes a so-called pallet carousel with a multiplicity of pallets which can be driven circumferentially around an axis of rotation of the carousel for transferring of labels from a label storage bin and transport of the accepted labels.
  • the pallets are each designed to be pivotable and / or rotatable about their own pivot axis offset radially to the axis of rotation. By controlled pivoting or rotating the pallets their respective curved contact surface is brought into contact with the label to be accepted.
  • US Pat. No. 3736,213 describes a so-called pallet carousel with a multiplicity of pallets which can be driven circumferentially around an axis of rotation of the carousel for transferring of labels from a label storage bin and transport of the accepted labels.
  • the pallets are each designed to be pivotable and / or rotatable about their own pivot axis offset radially to the
  • the adhesion of the glue applied to the contact surface of the pallet causes a single label to be removed from the label box and transported by the pallet.
  • this glue application is eliminated on the pallet.
  • adhesion of the label to be transferred can be effected.
  • the pallets according to the present invention are designed in particular as vacuum pallets.
  • Label pallets as described in US Pat. No. 3,736,213, may be mounted eccentrically on their pivot axes in such a way that the curved contact surface of the pallet is optimally, ie. H. without slippage, rolling on a flat surface, as is the case for example with a label box.
  • the pivoting of the pallets can be effected for example by control curves of the pallet carousel.
  • the pivoting movement or rotation of the pallets can take place by means of one or more servomotors.
  • the pivoting movement and the circulation of the pallets about the axis of rotation of the pallet carousel can be controlled and / or regulated by a control and / or regulating unit of the labeling machine.
  • the vacuum pallets may be formed with a plurality of, in particular, controllably activatable suction openings, at which the labels are sucked in during transport.
  • a generally curved abutment surface of the pallet may be guided past or in mechanical contact therewith by pivoting and / or advancing the pallet past the label to be transferred.
  • the label is sucked at a sufficiently small distance from the vacuum pallet and thus taken over.
  • the static friction between contact surface and label additionally acts.
  • the contact surface and / or label can be wetted with the activating agent before the takeover, so that the static friction is further increased.
  • the transfer device can thus be, in particular, the pallet carousel described above.
  • the label conveyed by the vacuum pallet is then transferred to an application cylinder such that the fixing side of the label faces away from the lateral surface of the application cylinder.
  • an application cylinder such that the fixing side of the label faces away from the lateral surface of the application cylinder.
  • the labels are sucked by vacuum and / or taken over by gripper fingers.
  • the accepted labels are then rotated the application cylinder to the labeled to be labeled and transported by the transport container containers and placed on the surface of the container. At this time, the outward-facing side of the labels must be activated to the extent that the attached labels adhere securely to the surface of the container.
  • the activating agent may in particular be water or a solution based on water, for example a water-alcohol solution, but also a volatile solvent.
  • the activating agent may also be varied for a particular adhesive composition to improve the properties of the adhesive composition or activation.
  • Suitable activating agents are, for. Water, acetone; acetonitrile; Lower alcohols (ie, having 1 to 10 carbons), including, but not limited to, methanol, ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, n-propanol, n-butanol, 2-butanol, isobutanol, 2-methyl-2-butanol, n-pentanol, n Hexanol, 2-hexanol, cyclohexanol, n-heptanol, n-octanol, n-nonanol, n-decanol; Glycols, including, but not limited to, propylene glycol, ethylene glycol and butylene glycol; Fatty alcohols (i.e., greater than 10 carbons) including, but not limited to, undecanol, dodecanol, 1-tetradecanol, arachidyl alcohol, docosanol, tetraco
  • Lower acetates i.e., having 1 to 10 carbons
  • acetates including, but not limited to, methyl acetate, ethyl acetate, n-propyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, isobutyl acetate, sec-butyl acetate, tert-butyl acetate, 3-methyl-1-butyl acetate; Gasoline, oils, such. As linseed oil and vegetable oil, citrus-based solvents such. As limonene, as well as other primary, secondary and tertiary alcohols and mixtures. Further activating agents are described in the utility model DE 20 2012 013 164 U1.
  • the activation of the chemical processes that cause the adhesive properties of the adhesive coating applied to the fixing side starts.
  • the adhesive properties of the fixing page designed such that a secure application of the label can be made on the container surface to be labeled.
  • a preactivation of the fixing side is to be understood as meaning a partial activation of the fixing side, which is completed by a subsequent activation step, for example in the region of the application cylinder.
  • the pre-activation may be limited in space by only a part of the adhesive coating to be activated is moistened on the fixing side.
  • the pre-activation may also be chemically limited by the amount or type of activating agent used. For example, while a minor order of activator may initiate the chemical process, the process is completed by the subsequent activation step.
  • a first activating agent for preactivation can be used which activates a first chemical process or process step, while the activation is completed only by applying a second activating agent different from the first activating agent.
  • the decisive factor is that the pre-activation by wetting the label before the transfer to the application cylinder extends the total exposure time, so that the labeling machine in reverse with a higher throughput, d. H. a higher speed of the conveyed labels, can be operated.
  • the method may further comprise fully activating the fixing side of the label by wetting by means of a dampening unit arranged peripherally on the application cylinder.
  • a dampening unit arranged peripherally on the application cylinder.
  • the further activation step is carried out by means of a dampening unit arranged on the circumference, ie in the periphery of the application cylinder, which can be designed according to one of the further developments described below.
  • the dampening unit is arranged in particular between the point of transfer of the label to the application cylinder and the point of transfer of the label to the container to be labeled.
  • the position of the dampening unit can be adjusted due to the pre-activation of are selected so that the adhesive coating of the fixing is fully activated even at high throughput of the labeling machine to touch down on the container surface.
  • the two-stage method for activating the fixing side has the advantage here that the adhesive effect of the fixing side resting on the contact surface of the pallet during transport through the pallets is not yet so high that significant contamination of the pallet by detaching parts of the adhesive coating would occur could not release the transported labels from the pallet without damage.
  • the moistening by means of the dampening unit can take place by spraying the fixing side with the activating agent and / or by unrolling the fixing side on a surface of a softwalt impregnated with the activating agent.
  • the dampening unit for example, have at least one spray head for the targeted application of the activating agent.
  • the spray head can be embodied as an inkjet print head which, instead of ink, applies the activating agent to the activatable fixing side of the label.
  • the dampening unit has at least one roller or a roller, preferably a soft roller, for applying activating agent to the activatable fixing side of the label.
  • the roller or roller can be driven mechanically or via a servo motor.
  • the roller or roller can be driven by the friction of the label moved by the application cylinder itself.
  • Said rollers or rollers can also be operated so that they are not constantly in engagement with the fixing side of the labels, but optionally, for example, pneumatically controlled, are switchable.
  • a Softwalze can be used, the surface material z. B. sponge, felt or sintered material or the like contains or consists thereof.
  • Said roll or roller, or said Softwalze can be soaked or wetted with activating agent, which can be applied for example by a spray head on the roll or roller, or said Softwalze.
  • activating agent which can be applied for example by a spray head on the roll or roller, or said Softwalze.
  • Other possibilities for applying activating agent to the roll or roller, or said Softwalze are conceivable, such.
  • the soft roller may be formed with a drilled hollow shaft which has a plurality of holes distributed over its lateral surface.
  • Activating agent which is pumped into the hollow shaft via a supply line, for example by means of a controllable pump, can pass into these holes via the absorbent surface layer of the softsalt which rests on the hollow shaft, so that they are always impregnated with activating agent is.
  • the activating agent is transmitted by the dampening unit less focused in the form of mist or steam on the activatable fixing side of the label.
  • the amount of activating agent applied can, in particular by controlling the spray head or heads of the dampening unit, be regulated as a function of the adhesive coating to be activated and the area to be activated. Excessive, dripping from the fixing side activating agent can be collected in a drip tray and fed to the circuit again or disposed of.
  • the fixing side of the label can already be pre-activated by the transfer device in the region of the label supply unit by wetting with the activating agent before the label is accepted.
  • the fixing of the label is already pre-activated transferred to the contact surface of the pallet of the transfer device.
  • the activating agent continues to act, so that the entire exposure time is additionally extended.
  • the throughput of the labeling machine can be further increased by the reverse conclusion.
  • the label supply unit may comprise at least one label container for providing a plurality of individual labels on the front side of the label container, wherein the pre-activation of the fixing of a provided by the label container for acceptance by the vacuum pallet label by spraying the exposed on the front side of the label container fixing the activating agent takes place.
  • the spraying can be carried out as described above with one or more spray heads, in particular by the ink jet method.
  • the spray head (s) can either be arranged firmly on the front side of the label container or circulate around the pallet carousel together with the pallets, the spray head in each case being activated for spraying the label to be transferred, which immediately precedes the pallet which is to take over the label ,
  • the fixing of the label to be accepted is thus already partially activated when the contact surface of the pallet is guided past the label container. Due to the resulting static friction, the adoption of the label is further simplified.
  • the label container can also be automatically loaded with labels from a label memory, the labels are always aligned so that their fixing pages to the front, d. H. towards the output side of the label container.
  • the provision of the labels can also be done by separating individual labels from a continuous label tape.
  • the label supply unit can do this, As known per se, comprise a storage unit for one or more label tape rolls, a feeding device for feeding the label tape and a cutting device for separating individual labels from the label tape.
  • the separation can be effected for example by means of a rotating perforation or cutting roller in engagement with the lateral surface of a counter-cutting cylinder, wherein the label tape is guided between the roller and the counter-cutting cylinder.
  • the labels can be torn off the belt by increased conveying speed.
  • the separated labels can then be transferred to the pallet via a vacuum roller.
  • the orientation of the label strip or of the separated labels is such that the fixing side of the labels taken over by the pallets point towards the contact surfaces of the pallets.
  • their fixing sides can be pre-activated by wetting with activating agent according to the present development.
  • the moistening can take place by spraying with activating agent, for example by means of a spray head arranged on the circumference of the vacuum roller, or by unrolling the fixing side on a surface of another softwalt impregnated with the activating agent.
  • the contact surface of the vacuum pallet can be acted upon by the activating agent in such a way that the fixing side of the label subsequently taken over by the label supply unit is preactivated by the activating means before the label is taken over.
  • the transfer of the activating agent to the fixing side of the label thus takes place indirectly over the contact surface of the pallet.
  • the contact surface may for example be formed with depressions such as holes, grooves or the like, which hold the applied activating agent long enough on the pallet until the label is taken from the pallet and its fixing side comes to rest on the contact surface of the pallet.
  • excess activating agent can simply run down from the pallet and be collected by a suitable collecting device.
  • the entire contact surface of the vacuum pallet that is to say including any suction openings provided therein, can be acted upon with activating agent, ie. H. sprayed or wetted.
  • activating agent ie. H. sprayed or wetted.
  • the contact surface of the vacuum pallet can be sprayed with the activating agent as usual, for example by means of one or more controllable spray heads, in particular by the ink jet method.
  • the order of activating agents can be duelles controlling the spray heads are controlled so that the said suction openings are recessed, whereby less activating agent enters the vacuum system.
  • the label can be sucked in the acquisition with its fixing on the vacuum pallet and optionally repelled by the application of pressure to the transfer to the application cylinder.
  • the vacuum pallet as explained in greater detail below, can have a multiplicity of suction openings, which can be individually or group-specifically subjected to negative pressure.
  • the same or separately provided openings in the contact surface of the pallet can be subjected to targeted compressed air, so that an adjoining label is lifted from the pallet.
  • the application of negative pressure can be controlled by means of a control and / or regulating unit or a control curve such that the label to be accepted is sucked by the vacuum pallet during the transfer and adheres to the contact surface by the negative pressure during transport.
  • the application of compressed air can be controlled such that the label is repelled from the pallet during the transfer to the application cylinder.
  • the activation of the suction openings can be done by controlled opening and closing of control valves in the vacuum supply lines or compressed air supply lines.
  • the suction openings may be in the form of suction cups with feeler valves which are automatically activated by mechanical contact with the label to be transferred. In the latter case can be dispensed with a central control of the vacuum supply.
  • the application cylinder can also be connected to a vacuum supply, for example in the form of a vacuum cylinder or a combined vacuum gripper cylinder.
  • the lateral surface of the application cylinder can be divided in the circumferential direction into segments, which can be acted upon independently of one another with negative pressure or compressed air.
  • the corresponding segment can be subjected to negative pressure, while optionally being supplied with compressed air when the label is transferred to the container to be labeled, or at least separated from the vacuum.
  • the label supply unit can be temporarily switched away from the pallets of the transfer device, for example via a drive block circuit with controllable servomotor, so that no more labels are taken over by the pallets.
  • the spray heads for the activator can be deactivated as long as no fuser pages are to be activated.
  • a single vacuum pallet can be targeted by the vacuum supply. be disconnected, for example, by a control valve in the main supply line of this range is closed. As a result, the pallet does not accept a label from the label supply unit.
  • Sensors in the incoming container stream register occurring gaps and report them to the control and / or regulating unit of the labeling machine on. Even with individual gaps, the spray heads can be disabled for a short time accordingly.
  • a control of the amount of sprayed on activating both in the preactivation and in the subsequent activation via sensors, probes and / or cameras, which determine the degree of humidification in the transfer device and / or the application cylinder and the control and / or pass control unit, which in turn controls the spray heads for preactivation and the dampening unit.
  • a controlled temperature of the activating agent via a flow heater or cooler, preferably at 30 ° C to 40 ° C prior to spraying onto the fixing side of the label.
  • the device can be designed in particular with the device features described below.
  • the label supply unit may be one or more known label boxes or containers.
  • the provision of the labels by the label providing unit can also be carried out as explained in more detail below by separating individual labels from a continuous label tape.
  • the transfer device comprises a pallet carrier that can be driven circumferentially around an axis of rotation. The drive can be done for example by means of a controllable servo motor. At least one vacuum pallet is arranged on the pallet carrier and is designed to be pivotable and / or rotatable about its own pivot axis offset radially to the axis of rotation.
  • the transfer device is formed with at least one pallet for accepting a label and for feeding the label to the application cylinder.
  • the transfer device can comprise a pallet carousel with a large number of pallets which can be driven circumferentially about an axis of rotation and are pivotably and / or rotatably controlled in particular about individual axes of rotation displaced relative to the axis of rotation.
  • a pallet carousel is known in principle from US Pat. No. 3,736,213.
  • the pallets may be mounted eccentrically on their pivot axes, that the curved contact surfaces of the pallets optimally, d. H.
  • the curved contact surfaces of the pallets are formed as circular segments of a cylinder.
  • the curvature of the contact surface can also vary along the contact surface in such a way that an optimal rolling behavior results even with centric mounting.
  • an eccentric bearing is generally more space-saving than a centric bearing, so that more pallets can be accommodated on the pallet carrier rotating about the rotation axis.
  • the controlled pivoting or rotating of the pallets can take place via a control cam of the pallet carousel or via control of individual servomotors provided for the pallets. In the latter case, a control and / or regulating unit takes over the control of the servomotors.
  • the label supply unit is arranged on a circumference of the transfer device such that the circulating pallets can take over the labels provided by the label supply unit on their contact surfaces.
  • the application cylinder is arranged on the circumference of the transfer device such that it can take over the labels transported by the pallets.
  • the transfer device can be arranged as a, in particular modular, labeling device on a transport device for the containers or containers in such a way that the Application cylinder can put the labels with their activated Fixiergraphy on the passing of the transport device container or container.
  • the labeling device can be constructed in a modular manner so that it is also suitable for labeling with sheet-shaped labels.
  • a modular labeling device is advantageous. In this case, the labeling can be interchangeable and by means of rollers mounted on the machine periphery, in particular on the machine carousel on a height-adjustable, ground-based aggregate recording docked.
  • the labeling can also be used as part of a machine block together with other components such.
  • a filling machine for filling the container may be provided.
  • a machine block is to be understood as meaning that at least the filling, closing and labeling machines enclosed by the machine block are fastened to a common machine frame and / or that their machine frames can be mechanically fixed to one another for production operation, for example by screwing, Clamp or the like.
  • the machine racks can be composed of several modules, mounting platforms or the like which can be fixedly connected to one another for individual machines, treatment units and / or transfer stars of the machine block.
  • the machine block may further comprise a stretch blow molding machine formed upstream of the filling machine for producing containers made of a plastic, in particular of PET.
  • a stretch blow molding machine formed upstream of the filling machine for producing containers made of a plastic, in particular of PET. This allows a particularly compact design and reduces the risk of contamination of the container on the way to the filling machine and the subsequent machines of the machine block.
  • the engine block may include an inspection unit and / or a rinser for glass containers upstream of the filling machine.
  • the filling machine, the capping machine and the labeling machine can be designed as rotary machines with continuous container transport, in particular in this order. This enables high machine performance of the machine block.
  • the filling machine, the capping machine and the labeling machine can be directly coupled to one another by transfer stars, such as inlet stars, outlet stars, transport stars or the like. Between discharge stars and inlet stars also Einteilschnecken or the like may be present.
  • additional machines of the machine block such as the stretch blow molding machine, can be coupled in the same way as a conveyor.
  • the transport device which may be part of a parent container treatment plant with filler, stretch blow molding machine and the like, as known per se in the art as a container table, circulating carriage / rail system or the like with a plurality of self-rotatable brackets, for example in the form of Turntables, be designed for the container or container. Controlled rotation of the turntables when transferring the labels to the containers or containers rolls the labels onto the surface of the containers or containers.
  • the path of the containers in the region of the label transfer may, for example, be circularly curved, as in the case of a carousel-like container table, or be straight, as in the case of a long-stator linear motor drive or belt drive for the holders.
  • the brackets can be provided with individually controllable drive units, for example in the form of servomotors. With these, the brackets can be controlled to rotate to perform predetermined operations of a rotary movement for taking over and winding the labels on the container.
  • the transport device can comprise further elements known per se in the prior art, such as a container feed, for example in the form of an inlet star, a container discharge, for example in the form of an outlet star, a dividing screw or the like.
  • the at least one pallet is designed as a vacuum pallet.
  • the vacuum pallets may be formed with a plurality of, in particular, controllably activatable suction openings, at which the labels are sucked in during transport.
  • the generally curved abutment surface of the pallet may be passed or brought into mechanical contact therewith by pivoting and / or advancing the pallet to the label to be transferred.
  • the label is sucked at a sufficiently small distance from the vacuum pallet and thus taken over.
  • the static friction between contact surface and label additionally acts.
  • the contact surface and / or label can be wetted with the activating agent even before the takeover, so that the static friction is further increased.
  • the label conveyed by the vacuum pallet is then transferred to an application cylinder such that the fixing side of the label faces away from the lateral surface of the application cylinder.
  • the application cylinder is designed to take over the labels from the transfer device and place them on the containers or containers transported by the transport device.
  • the application cylinder is designed to be rotatable and arranged with respect to the transport device such that the labels conveyed by the application cylinder on its lateral surface are pressed against containers or containers guided tangentially past the application cylinder by the transport device.
  • the application cylinder can be driven by means of a, in particular controllable drive such that it rotates continuously and synchronously with the tangential conveying speed of the transport device.
  • the application cylinder can be designed as a vacuum cylinder in the sense of a vacuum roller, wherein suction openings in the lateral surface are used to suck and hold the overlying labels.
  • the application cylinder may be designed as a gripper cylinder which removes the labels from the pallets by means of a plurality of gripper fingers and releases them again upon transfer to the containers.
  • the application cylinder can have a corresponding control cam.
  • the application cylinder can also be segmented, wherein segments are provided in its lateral surface for receiving the labels. Within the segments, a plurality of suction openings may be provided in the lateral surface of the application cylinder, which can be subjected to targeted negative pressure.
  • the application cylinder via vacuum lines, for example via a rotary distributor, be connected to a vacuum system, in particular with a vacuum pump.
  • the application cylinder can be connected to a compressed air system, for example a compressor, in such a way that compressed air can be applied to the intake openings or separately provided openings within the segments in a controlled manner.
  • the labels By applying compressed air, the labels can be more easily passed to the containers to be labeled, especially if no gripper fingers are provided.
  • a blowing air ring guide on the application cylinder is conceivable for particularly long labels up to label transfer.
  • the labeling unit comprising the transfer device and the label supply unit can be pivotably mounted about the axis of rotation of the application cylinder. This allows the path of the labels along the circumference of the application cylinder and thus the action of influence the duration of the applied activating agent after the second activation step and in particular adapt to the desired throughput.
  • the transfer device can have means which are designed to perform a pre-activation by wetting with activating agent on the fixing sides of the labels even before the transfer to the application cylinder.
  • this pre-activation designates the partial activation of the adhesive side of the fixing side in such a way that the adhesive coating is activated only partially and / or only incompletely.
  • the pre-activation can be carried out with a different activating agent than the final activation and / or with an insufficient amount of activating agent.
  • the activating agent can be applied by spraying, unrolling and / or vapor deposition.
  • the pre-activation can be effected by means of water vapor, while the final activation can be effected by means of water or a water-alcohol solution.
  • the means provided for this purpose of the transfer device are accordingly designed as described in more detail below. Since the pre-activation takes place before the transfer of the labels to the application cylinder, there is a prolonged exposure time of the activating agent and thus a higher possible throughput of the labeling device. Since the activation has not yet been completed during the transport of the labels resting on the fixing surface of the pallets, the labels can be transferred to the application cylinder without damage and detachment of parts of the adhesive coating.
  • the labeling device may further comprise a dampening unit, which is arranged on the application cylinder such that the fixing sides of the labels conveyed by the application cylinder are subjected to the activating agent prior to application to the containers.
  • dampening unit and transfer device are preferably arranged on the circumference of the application cylinder such that a rotation angle of the application cylinder between the position of the dampening unit and the point of transfer of the labels to the container to be labeled is preferably greater than 90 °, more preferably greater than 180 °.
  • this angle can be changed by means of a pivotable mounting of the transfer device with respect to the axis of rotation of the application cylinder, wherein the dampening unit is preferably pivoted with the transfer device.
  • the application of activating agent by the dampening unit thus serves to complete the activation of the adhesive coating of the fixing side of the labels.
  • the dampening unit can have at least one nozzle, in particular an inkjet printhead, for moistening the fixing sides by spraying with the activating agent and / or a softwalt for moistening the fixing sides rolling on it.
  • the nozzles When forming the dampening unit with a plurality of nozzles according to the principle of an inkjet printhead, the nozzles can be arranged in one or more parallel rows, which in particular form a matrix of individual or group-controllable nozzles.
  • the nozzles By means of a control and / or regulating unit, the nozzles can be activated and deactivated in such a way that an area of the fixing side predetermined, for example, by the label format is sprayed with activating agent. Also parts of the fixing can be sprayed specifically with activating agent.
  • the dampening unit may have a soft roller which is arranged on the circumference of the application cylinder such that the fixing sides of the labels conveyed by the application cylinder roll on the surface of the soft roller.
  • the Softwalze can be driven mechanically or via a servo motor or driven by the friction on the lateral surface of the application cylinder. Said Softwalze can also be designed such that it can be switched pneumatically controlled.
  • a Softwalze can be used, the surface material z. B. sponge, felt or sintered material or the like contains or consists thereof.
  • Said Softwalze can be soaked with activating agent or wetted, which can be applied for example by a spray head on the Softwalze. Other options for applying activating agent on the Softwalze are conceivable, such. B. immersion in an activator bath.
  • the soft roller may be formed with a drilled hollow shaft which has a plurality of holes distributed in its lateral surface.
  • Activating agent which is pumped into the hollow shaft via a supply line, for example by means of a controllable pump, can pass into these holes via the absorbent surface layer of the softwalt lying on the hollow shaft, so that it is always saturated with activating agent.
  • a softwalt By eliminating the spray head for applying the activating agent, such a softwalt can be used in a particularly space-saving manner.
  • the activating agent is transmitted by the dampening unit less focused in the form of mist or steam on the activatable fixing side of the label.
  • the amount of activating agent applied can, in particular by controlling the spray head or heads of the dampening unit, be regulated as a function of the adhesive coating to be activated and the area to be activated. Excessive, dripping from the fixing side activating agent can be collected in a drip tray and fed to the circuit again or disposed of.
  • the means of the transfer device for each pallet can comprise a nozzle arranged in the circumferential direction of the transfer device, in particular an inkjet printhead, for spraying or steaming the fixing sides of the labels to be taken over by the transfer device with the activating means.
  • a label provided by the label supply unit at a position along the circumference of the transfer device with the fixing side toward the transfer device is thus first sprayed or steamed by passing a nozzle arranged on the pallet carrier with the activating agent, whereby the pre-activation of the adhesive coating takes place.
  • On the nozzle in the circulation of the pallet carrier always follows a vacuum pallet, which takes over the sprayed label such that its fixing side is sucked on the contact surface of the vacuum pallet.
  • the nozzles can be activated by means of a control and / or regulating unit in a targeted manner for spraying the label presented by the label supply unit and then deactivated so that as little activating agent as possible is lost.
  • the spraying can be controlled as described above after the ink jet method.
  • the development described is particularly advantageous when using a label container as a label providing unit, since thus the adhesive coating of the labels is already pre-activated in the label container.
  • the development is not limited to label containers.
  • the label supply unit for label strips described below can also be used if the separated labels are brought into a rest position for transfer to the pallets, for example on a guide rail provided for the labels.
  • the label supply unit may comprise a label container arranged peripherally on the transfer device, the nozzles being arranged such that a label provided by the label container can be sprayed with the activating agent on its fixing side.
  • the label container can be arranged on the circumference of the transfer device such that a rotation angle between the position of the label container and the point at which the label is transferred to the application cylinder, preferably greater than 180 °, more preferably greater than 270 °.
  • the path traveled by the preactivated label along the circumference of the transfer device becomes particularly long, which can increase the throughput of the labeling device.
  • the label container can be mounted pivotably with respect to the axis of rotation of the pallet carrier, so that the angle and thus the throughput can be adjusted.
  • the means of the transfer device can comprise an activation unit, in particular with a nozzle and / or software roll, which is arranged peripherally in advance of the label supply unit and is designed to apply a contact surface of the at least one vacuum pallet to the activation means.
  • an activation unit is thus provided on the periphery of the transfer device in such a way that the unloaded pallets loaded with the activating agent are subsequently moved further to take over a label to the label supply unit.
  • the distance between the activation unit and the label providing unit can be selected as small as possible within the scope of the design, since a pre-activation of the fixing side does not begin until the label is transferred to the moistened contact surface of the pallet.
  • the widest possible rotation angle preferably greater than 180 °, more preferably greater than 270 °, between the label providing unit and the transfer point to the application cylinder desirable.
  • the vacuum pallets can be formed in particular with hole or groove-like depressions for receiving the activating agent.
  • the nozzle and / or soft roller can be designed and controlled as already described several times.
  • the soft roller can be arranged on the transfer device in such a way that the contact surfaces of the pallets roll on the surface of the soft roller soaked with activating agent.
  • the label supply unit may comprise a storage unit for one or more label tape rolls, a supply means for feeding the label tape and a cutter for separating individual labels from the label tape.
  • the separation can be effected for example by means of a rotating perforation or cutting roller in engagement with the lateral surface of a counter-cutting cylinder, wherein the label tape is guided between the roller and the counter-cutting cylinder.
  • the labels can be torn off the belt by increased conveying speed.
  • the separated labels can then be transferred to the pallet via a vacuum roller.
  • the orientation of the label strip or of the separated labels is such that the fixing side of the label taken over from the pallet faces the contact surface of the pallet.
  • an activation unit in the lead of the label supply unit, an activation unit, likewise with at least one nozzle and / or soft roller, may be arranged on the mentioned vacuum roller or the counter-cutting cylinder in such a way that the fixing side of the separated labels is already pre-activated in the region of the label supply unit. is fourth. This results in a particularly long exposure time for the activating agent, whereby the throughput of the labeling device can be further increased.
  • the vacuum pallet can have a multiplicity of, in particular individually controllably activatable, suction openings and, optionally, one or more bores which can be acted upon under controlled pressure.
  • the suction openings can result from the natural porosity of a vacuum surface, in particular a replaceable vacuum pad, forming, for example, a plastic sintered material.
  • the suction openings can be formed by bores in the contact surface of the pallet, which can be arranged in a matrix.
  • the suction openings may also be distributed over the contact surface of the pallet according to a probability that they are needed for transport for a particular label format, so that more suction openings are provided where a high probability of a part of the label to be transported comes to rest.
  • the labeling apparatus may comprise further known elements of a vacuum system, such as vacuum lines, which supply the suction openings continuously or under control with negative pressure from a vacuum pump.
  • the vacuum pump can also be designed to be controllable.
  • the vacuum system may in particular be designed to be tolerant to the suction of activating agent.
  • the pallets When forming the pallets as vacuum pallets, direct mechanical contact between the pallet and the label provided by the label supply unit can be dispensed with in that the suction force of the suction openings at short distances is sufficient to take over the labels from the label supply unit. This simplifies the control of the pallets, in particular their pivotal movement, and reduces the wear of the labeling machine. In addition, the adhesion mediated by the suction openings simplifies the acceptance of the labels by the pallets.
  • the pallet can be designed such that the intake openings can be supplied individually or in groups with negative pressure.
  • the intake ports may have individual or in groups control valves in their vacuum supply lines, which may be formed, for example piezoelectric in miniaturization.
  • the suction can also be connected in groups, each with a closable by a control valve vacuum line.
  • the groups may preferably be defined depending on frequently used label formats.
  • a single vacuum pallet can thus be flexibly used to transport a variety of label formats.
  • the control valves may be provided as part of a control and / or regulating unit of the labeling device, which is designed to supply the suction openings of the pallet specifically with negative pressure.
  • control valves can be connected via corresponding signal lines to the control and / or regulating unit, which opens or closes the valves as needed, depending on the processed label format.
  • Which valves are opened for a particular label format and which valves are to be closed can be stored in the manner of a variety management in a memory unit of the control and / or regulating unit and from a processor unit of the control and / or regulating unit to change to another label format be read out. This makes it particularly easy to carry out a product change.
  • suction openings are designed with valves in such a way that they are automatically connected to the vacuum supply in the case of mechanical contact with the label to be transferred.
  • This can be achieved, for example, by equipping the intake openings with individual feeler valves, which are opened by pressing a button.
  • the voltage applied to the sensing valve label surface is thus automatically exposed to the communicated through the associated suction vacuum and thereby adheres to the pallet.
  • the suction openings can be designed with or without a feeler valve in the form of suction cups in order to maximize the effect of the negative pressure.
  • the suction cups protrude, unlike the previously described holes, beyond a base area of the pallet, wherein the control as described can be done via control valves or Tastventile.
  • the order of activating agent is in this case also on the suction cups.
  • the vacuum pallets can also be designed such that by inserting or inserting a set-up part, for example in the form of a hole template, a conversion to another label format can take place.
  • the fitting part blocks the access of the unneeded suction openings to the vacuum supply.
  • the vacuum pallets can be made sufficiently large to handle a variety of processed label formats can.
  • the vacuum supply of the vacuum pallet as a whole can be controlled in dependence on a position of the vacuum pallet along its orbit about the axis of rotation.
  • the vacuum supply for the entire range in the area of label supply unit are activated to accept a label and deactivated again in the area of the application cylinder in order to transfer the label.
  • the vacuum supply unit can have one or more corresponding control valves in the supply lines of the pallets, which are controlled by the control and / or regulating unit.
  • a rotary distributor for the vacuum transfer to the pallets is also conceivable.
  • the labeling device may comprise a breaker, which is designed to interrupt the vacuum supply of the pallet upon transfer of the label to the application cylinder.
  • This breaker may be designed as a mechanical element that blocks the supply of negative pressure in the area of the transfer of the label, or as part of the control and / or regulating unit, which ensures that the control valves of the pallet or supply line are closed to transfer the label. By interrupting the vacuum supply, the transfer of the label to the application cylinder can be facilitated.
  • the labeling can have a compressed air system, which is connected to the pallets via compressed air lines, that at least a portion of the intake or separately provided holes in the contact surface controlled by compressed air can be applied.
  • the control can also take place here via corresponding control valves and by means of the control and / or regulating unit. Due to the escaping compressed air, the label can be easily detached from the contact surface or the suction cups and transferred to the application cylinder.
  • the diameter of the application cylinder can be at least 500 mm, in particular at least 700 mm.
  • a larger diameter a higher throughput of containers can be achieved at the same rotational frequency.
  • a larger diameter also leads to a higher exposure time of the activating agent at the same conveying speed of the labels.
  • the application cylinder for picking up the labels can be equipped with a large number of gripper fingers, each with a steel anvil strip and a sprung steel finger with a width of about 3 mm. As a result, glue carryover or soiling can be reduced.
  • the mentioned ink-jet printheads for spraying the activating agent can in particular be designed according to the DoD principle (drop-on-demand).
  • the described developments make it possible to operate a labeling device with high labeling performance. Due to the division of the activation process into a pre-activation and a final activation, the pre-activation can take place much earlier in the process flow. This results in a significantly longer exposure time for the activating agent and, conversely, a significantly increased throughput of the labeling device.
  • the method according to the invention can be used particularly advantageously in combination with label containers as the label providing unit.
  • Figure 1 shows a schematic plan view of a labeling device according to the present invention with pre-activation by circulating nozzles.
  • FIG. 2 shows a variation of the labeling device shown in FIG. 1 with preactivation by moistening the pallet contact surface.
  • Figure 3a shows a side view of an exemplary vacuum pallet according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 3b shows a front view of the vacuum pallet of FIG. 3a.
  • Figure 4a shows a schematic cross section of an alternative embodiment of a vacuum pallet according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 4b shows a perspective view of the vacuum pallet of FIG. 4a.
  • the labeling device 100 comprises a container Table 1 14 trained transport device along which the container to be labeled 1 13 or container on a plurality of rotatable about itself holders (not shown) rotate on a curved path.
  • the non-limiting development shown also shows other frequently used elements of a labeling device.
  • a pretreatment unit 1 12 may be provided which prepares the container 1 13 to be labeled for labeling by cleaning the surface of the container to be labeled, pre-moistening or blasting, a heating and / or radiation and / or plasma and / or Corona treatment subjects.
  • sensors 1 10 may be provided which determine the state of the surface to be labeled, for. B. smooth, rough, etc., and / or environmental conditions, such. As an ambient temperature or humidity, measure and pass to control the labeling device to the control and / or regulating unit 160.
  • a roll-on unit 15 and / or a brushing unit 16 can be provided in the wake of the labeling position 118 in order to completely apply and press the label 120f placed on the container.
  • the containers provided with the label 1 17 are then transferred to a subsequent treatment station, for example, a filling station for filling with a liquid food.
  • the labeling device 100 comprises a transfer device 130 with at least one vacuum pallet 132a-c.
  • the transfer device 130 is formed as a pallet carousel with a plurality of circulating around a rotation axis Y of the pallet carousel pallets 132a-c, which in turn are pivotally formed around their own, eccentrically mounted pivot axes 131.
  • the pallets have on their outwardly facing side a contact surface 133, which may be formed large enough that it can accommodate a variety of different label formats.
  • the pallet 132a which is initially unloaded, is guided past the rotation axis Y of the pallet carousel 130 in a label box at the periphery of the pallet carousel and pivoted so that the contact surface 133 of the pallet reaches the foremost label 120a presented with the fixing side takes over from the label box 140. Since the pallets 132a-c are described in more detail below as vacuum pallets, this assumption is reliably possible even without prior gluing of the contact surface 133. In order to be able to adapt the distance of the foremost label 120a to the pallet carousel 130, the label box 140 can be designed to be switchable via a pneumatic cylinder 141.
  • the label supply unit can also be designed for the use of label strips as shown in FIG. to be.
  • the separated labels can be brought into a rest position, for example, by being transferred from the counter-cutting cylinder to a cyclically operated vacuum roller or a guide rail for labels. In the rest position, the fixing sides of the labels can then be moistened, after which the labels can be taken over by the pallets.
  • the transfer device 130 to each vacuum pallet 132a-c arranged on the pallet support and thus revolving around the rotation axis Y nozzle 135a-c, by means of which the activating agent, in particular water, as steam, when passing the label box 140 is sprayed onto the fixing sides of the labels 120a provided there.
  • the circulating nozzles 135a-c are controlled activated or deactivated, wherein the activation or deactivation of the nozzles by means of a control and / or regulating unit 160 of the labeling 100 can take place.
  • the nozzle 135a guided past the label 120a is currently active in the illustrated embodiment, while the nozzles 135b and 135c are inactive.
  • nozzles of the inkjet printhead can be arranged in the form of a matrix in rows, which are aligned perpendicular to the direction of movement of the Tintentstahldruckkopfes 132a-c.
  • activating agent can thus be applied selectively to parts of the fixing side of the label 120a.
  • the circulating nozzles or ink jet printheads 132a-c can be supplied, for example, with activating means via a rotary distributor.
  • the now preactivated label 120a is taken over by the subsequent vacuum pallet 132a from the label box 140 in such a way that its moistened fixing side comes to lie against the contact surface 133 of the pallet.
  • the applied activating agent thus acts on the adhesive coating of the fixing side.
  • the label box 140 may be disposed on the circumference of the transfer device 130 such that the rotation angle ⁇ about the rotation axis Y between the point where the label 120a is taken from the pallet 132a and the point where the pre-activated label 120c of the pallet 132c is transferred to the application cylinder 150, as large as possible, in particular greater than 180 °, preferably greater than 270 °.
  • the pallet carousel 130 may be operated at a higher rotational speed, thereby the throughput of labels can be increased.
  • the label supply unit 140 can be pivotably mounted about the axis of rotation Y, so that the angle ⁇ can be varied.
  • the preactivation can also take place by means of the moistening of the contact surfaces of the pallets shown in FIG. 2 before the label is accepted.
  • the pallets 132a-c are designed as vacuum pallets which, as described below, have a multiplicity of controllably activatable suction openings and optionally bores which can be acted upon with compressed air.
  • the vacuum pallets are supplied via a vacuum system (not shown) with negative pressure and optionally via a compressed air system (not shown) supplied with compressed air.
  • the control and / or regulating unit 160 can apply vacuum to the vacuum pallets 132a-c for taking over and transporting the labels.
  • the vacuum supply of the vacuum pallet 132c can be interrupted.
  • the holes mentioned can be pressurized with compressed air to safely pass the label 120c.
  • the labels 120c can generally be transferred to the application cylinder 150 without residues of the adhesive coating on the pallets.
  • the application cylinder 150 is formed segmented in the illustrated embodiment, wherein a plurality of segments 151 ac are provided in the lateral surface of the application cylinder, which are equipped with gripper fingers and / or suction for receiving the labels.
  • the application cylinder 150 is driven in rotation about the rotation axis X by means of a controllable drive unit 152, in particular a servomotor, indicated by dashed lines.
  • an unloaded segment 151a takes over an already preactivated label 120c from the transfer device 130.
  • the outwardly directed fixing side of the label 120d taken over by the segment 151b is then arranged on the application cylinder 150 on the circumference Dampening unit 180 moistens to complete the activation of the adhesive coating.
  • a dampening unit with a software roller 180 is provided, on the surface of which the fixing side of the labels 120d to be activated rolls and is moistened.
  • the Softwalze is this means a spray head 182 sprayed with one or more nozzles with activating agent, so that their surface layer is impregnated with activating agent.
  • activation can be achieved by direct spraying of the fixing side.
  • the softsalt may be immersed in an activator bath as described above or formed with a hollow shaft.
  • the applied activating agent acts during the transport of the label 120 d to the transfer region 1 18, so that the activation of the adhesive coating at the time of placing the label 120 c transported from the segment 151 c onto the container 1 13 is completed. Thereby, a secure adhesion of the applied label 120f to the container surface can be guaranteed.
  • the dampening unit 180 is arranged on the application cylinder 150 such that the angle of rotation ⁇ between the point of transfer of the transfer device 130 and the point of placement on the container 1 13 is preferably greater than 90 °, more preferably greater than 180 °.
  • transfer device 130 and activation unit 180 may be pivotally provided about the rotation axis X, so that the rotation angle ß can be varied.
  • the label is unrolled by the rotational movement of the holders of the container table 1 14 and their circulation around the container table on the container surfaces.
  • the applied label 120f is pressed completely and without warpage to the container surface by means of a roll-on unit 15 and a brushing unit 16.
  • bores of the segment 151c intended for this purpose can be subjected to compressed air for a short time.
  • the circulating movements of the pallets 132a-c, the rotation of the application cylinder 150 and the orbital movement of the holders of the container table 1 14 can be controlled by means of controllable drives via the control and / or regulating unit 160 of the labeling device 100.
  • the rotational movement of the holders for the containers for example via individually provided servomotors, can be controlled and / or regulated by means of the control and / or regulating unit.
  • the pivoting movements of the pallets 132a-c can be controlled and / or regulated by means of the control and / or regulating unit via corresponding control cams or likewise via dedicated servomotors.
  • control and / or regulating unit 180 can be controlled via the control and / or regulating unit 180, wherein corresponding control valves may be provided.
  • the control and / or regulating unit 180 may also control or regulate the activation or deactivation of the nozzles or print heads 135a-b and 182, for example, depending on a measured from the sensor 1 10 humidity and / or temperature.
  • the control and / or regulating unit 160 may be a programmable logic control unit which has a memory unit, for example in the form of a flash memory, in which the memory parameters required for control, for. B. in relation to the desired activation pattern, are stored.
  • a central control and / or regulating unit 160 a plurality of separate control and / or regulating units may be provided.
  • FIG. 2 shows a variation of the labeling device 200 shown in FIG. 1 with preactivation by wetting the abutment surface 133 of the vacuum pallets 132a before accepting a label 220a from the label supply unit 240.
  • the same reference numbers designate the same or similar elements, so that a further description is omitted can be.
  • the pallet carousel 130 and the application cylinder 150 are designed as described in connection with FIG.
  • the labeling apparatus 200 instead of a label box, the labeling apparatus 200 has a label providing unit 240 for label tapes.
  • the label providing unit 240 has a feeder 237 for feeding a carrierless label tape 238 having a plurality of labels provided with a fixable side activatable by moistening.
  • the feed device 237 comprises two storage holders 237a, for example in the form of label tape rolls, an automatic splice splicer 237b, deflection rollers 237c, a loop buffer 239, a tracking control unit 237d for guiding the label strip 238 and a delivery unit 237e, for example with a sprung one Drive roller for the label tape 238.
  • a cutter 242 and a transfer cylinder 243 are further provided.
  • the cutting device 242 is shown in this development with a rotor which is driven by an individually controllable drive unit 242a with the desired rotational frequency.
  • the attached to the rotor cutting (not shown) thereby cut the supplied label tape 238 in individual labels 220 a, the fixing side is not yet activated. For this reason, abrasion of the not yet activated adhesive coating is low.
  • the cutting of the label strip 238 further occurs in engagement with the counter-cutting cylinder 243, which also serves as a transfer cylinder for transferring the labels 220a to the pallets 132a of the pallet carousel 130.
  • the transfer cylinder 243 is preferably designed as a vacuum cylinder with suction in its lateral surface, for example as a so-called vacuum roller on which the labels are sucked and held.
  • the transfer cylinder 243 can be rotated by means of the controllable drive unit 243a in such a way that the labels 220a can be transferred precisely to the vacuum pallets 132a pivoted past its lateral surface.
  • a spray head 285 with one or more nozzles for wetting the fixing side of the label 220a with the activating means is provided circumferentially on the counter-cutting cylinder 243.
  • a pre-activation can already take place in the area of the label supply unit 240 and before the transfer of the label to the transfer device 130, whereby the exposure time is extended again or alternatively the throughput is further increased.
  • an activation unit may be arranged on the circumference of the pallet carousel 130.
  • this activation unit comprises a soft roller 286 which is arranged on the orbit of the pallets 132a-c in such a way that the contact surface 133 rolls on the activating agent-impregnated surface layer of the soft roller 286 due to the pivotal movement of the pallet 132a, which thereby simultaneously is turned.
  • the contact surface 133 is moistened with the activating agent, wherein depressions such as grooves or pits in the contact surface support the inclusion of activating agent.
  • the activating agent is sprayed by means of a spray head 287 on the lateral surface of the soft roller 286. It is understood that alternatively the variants described above can be used. It is further understood that instead of the soft roller 286, a spray nozzle as in Figure 1 can be used.
  • the dampening unit is designed as a spray head 280, which of course also the dampening unit shown in Figure 1 can be used.
  • the control of the spray heads 280, 285 and 287 may, as mentioned, take place by means of the control and / or regulating unit 160 of the labeling device 200.
  • FIG. 3a shows a side view of an exemplary vacuum pallet 332 according to the present invention.
  • FIG. 3b shows the associated front view of the pallet.
  • the pallet shown is mounted eccentrically in this non-limiting development about a pivot axis 331 pivotally.
  • the vacuum pallet 332 shown is formed with a vacuum pad 361 of a porous plastic sintered material such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or high-density polyethylene (HDPE), the microchannels thereof via a vacuum supply line 343 from a vacuum pump 349 generated vacuum to the label abutment surface 333 of the vacuum pallet 332 pass.
  • PTFE polytetrafluoroethylene
  • HDPE high-density polyethylene
  • a plurality of suction openings 346 may be provided in the abutment surface 333, which are connected via channels 345 to one or more main channels 347.
  • the main channel 347 may in turn be connected to the vacuum supply line 343 and thus be supplied with negative pressure.
  • the main channel 347 may be connected via a compressed air supply line 344 to a compressed air supply unit 348, for example a pump, so that compressed air can be applied to the openings 346 for detaching a transported label.
  • the vacuum supply lines 343 and the compressed air supply lines 344 of a plurality of pallets via a common or two separate rotary distributor with the vacuum pump 349 and the compressed air supply unit 348 may be connected.
  • FIG. 3b shows a plurality of karoartig arranged grooves in the contact surface 333 of the pallet 332, which serve to receive the applied activating agent.
  • suction openings 346 can also be provided only in an initial and end region of the pallet 332.
  • the vacuum pump 349 and the compressor 348 may be designed so controllable that by means of the control and / or regulating unit 160 of the labeling as described above, applying the vacuum pallet 332 with vacuum or compressed air depending on the position of the pallet in circulation around the pallet carousel 130 can be done.
  • control valves (not shown) in the supply lines 343 and 344 may be provided, which are opened and closed controlled by the control and / or regulating unit 160.
  • piezoelectrically formed control valves may be provided in individual channels 345 for the suction openings 346, which can be opened and closed individually or in groups by means of the control and / or regulating unit 160. In this way, it is possible to realize a supply of the suction openings adapted to the format of the label to be transported with negative pressure.
  • FIG. 4a shows a schematic cross section of an alternative embodiment of a vacuum pallet according to the present invention.
  • a partial cross-section of an activation unit designed as an inkjet printhead 467 is shown in this subfigure.
  • FIG. 4b additionally shows a perspective view of the vacuum pallet 432.
  • a vacuum pallet 432 mounted eccentrically on a pivot axis 431 is shown, which in this development however on its curved outer surface via a multiplicity of suction openings in the form of suction cups 446 features.
  • the openings of the suction cups 446 thus form the label contact surface 433 located above the base area 466 of the pallet.
  • the suction cups 446 of the vacuum pallet 432 are connected in the illustrated, non-limiting development via supply channels 445 in groups both with a vacuum distributor 462 and with a compressed air distributor 463. To this end, one ends of the supply channels are connected to vacuum supply lines 443, while the opposite ends are connected to compressed air supply lines 444.
  • the vacuum distributor 462 and / or the compressed air distributor 463 can be designed in particular as a rotary distributor, for example by providing an annular compressed air supply 464.
  • the pallet 432 can be supplied with vacuum or compressed air around the pallet carousel 130 during the entire cycle.
  • corresponding control valves can also be provided here, but they are not shown for the sake of clarity.
  • Partial figure 4a also shows a schematic cross-section of an activation unit according to the ink jet method with a printhead 467.
  • the activating agent for example by means of a pump, fed in a well-dosed manner to the print head 467, which sprays it over a plurality of nozzles 465 directly onto the fixing side of a label transported by the vacuum pallet 432.
  • the fixing side is preferably guided past the nozzles 465 at a constant distance d, so that by controlled activation and deactivation of the nozzles Almost any activation pattern can be generated on the fixing side of the label.
  • control of the nozzles can in this case be taken over by the control and / or regulating unit 160.
  • a simple spray nozzle for the activator may also be used which uniformly sprays the entire area of the fixer side with activator.
  • the described developments allow due to the spatial separation of pre-activation and end activation of the adhesive coating to achieve a significantly higher throughput of the labeling.
  • almost no abrasion of the adhesive coating takes place on the pallets, so that disturbances can be avoided.
  • the method used allows safe activation of the adhesive coating and thus guarantees a secure hold of the applied labels on the labeled containers.

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  • Labeling Devices (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un dispositif et un procédé d'étiquetage de récipients, et un dispositif et un procédé de préparation d'étiquettes (120a, 220a) qui sont munies d'une face de fixation pouvant être activée par humidification pour leur application sur des récipients (113). Le procédé comprend les étapes suivantes : le transfert d'une étiquette d'une unité de préparation d'étiquettes (140, 240) par un dispositif de transport (130) muni d'au moins une palette à vide (132a-132c, 332, 432) ; et le transfert de l'étiquette acheminée par la palette à vide à un cylindre d'application (150) de telle manière que la face de fixation de l'étiquette est opposée à la surface extérieure du cylindre d'application, la face de fixation de l'étiquette étant pré-activée dès avant le transfert au dispositif d'application par humidification par un agent d'activation, en particulier par de l'eau.
PCT/EP2016/058047 2015-06-30 2016-04-13 Dispositif et procédé d'étiquetage de récipients Ceased WO2017001073A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

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DE102015212134.8A DE102015212134A1 (de) 2015-06-30 2015-06-30 Vorrichtung und Verfahren zum Etikettieren von Behältern
DE102015212134.8 2015-06-30

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WO2017001073A1 true WO2017001073A1 (fr) 2017-01-05

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE102024105456A1 (de) * 2024-02-27 2025-08-28 Krones Aktiengesellschaft Etikettiermaschine zum Etikettieren von Behältern

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE102020130531A1 (de) 2020-11-19 2022-05-19 Krones Ag Vorrichtung und Verfahren zum Beleimen von Etiketten für Behälter und Etikettiermaschine

Citations (10)

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US3736213A (en) 1970-03-06 1973-05-29 Kronseder H Label extractor in a labeling machine
EP0499818A1 (fr) * 1991-02-22 1992-08-26 KRONES AG Hermann Kronseder Maschinenfabrik Procédé et dispositif pour la pose d'étiquettes sur des récipients
DE10243704A1 (de) 2002-09-20 2004-03-25 Khs Maschinen- Und Anlagenbau Ag Etikettiermaschine für die Verarbeitung von mit thermoaktivierbarem Leim beschichteten Einzelblattetiketten
DE202005002793U1 (de) 2005-02-22 2005-04-21 Krones Ag Rundumetikettiervorrichtung
DE29924839U1 (de) 1999-09-30 2006-01-05 Krones Ag Getränkedose mit einer Schutzabdeckung sowie Zuschnitt hierfür
US20070119542A1 (en) * 2005-11-30 2007-05-31 Williams David R Labeling method and apparatus
WO2009024357A1 (fr) * 2007-08-23 2009-02-26 Renner Gmbh Dispositif et procédé d'étiquetage d'objets, en particulier de récipients pour liquide
EP2567902A1 (fr) * 2011-09-09 2013-03-13 Krones AG Dispositif d'application d'une étiquette sur un récipient
US8616259B1 (en) * 2012-11-30 2013-12-31 Nulabel Technologies, Inc. Automated labeling apparatus using labels having a fluid activatable adhesive
DE202012013164U1 (de) 2011-02-07 2015-02-23 Nulabel Technologies, Inc. Flüssigkeits-aktivierbare Klebstoffe und Flüssigkeiten zu ihrer Aktivierung zur Verwendung mit trägerlosen Etiketten

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FR1446880A (fr) * 1965-09-14 1966-07-22 Procédé notamment pour le collage d'étiquettes sur des récipients ou autres articles, dispositif et installation pour la mise en oeuvre de ce procédé ou procédé similaire
DE8400995U1 (de) * 1984-01-14 1984-04-26 Anker-Maschinenbau GmbH & Co, 2000 Hamburg Leimsegment fuer etikettiermaschinen
DE3508150A1 (de) * 1984-04-17 1985-10-24 Töpfer GmbH Kulmbach, 8650 Kulmbach Etikett und verfahren und vorrichtung zum aufbringen eines etiketts sowie verfahren und vorrichtung zum abloesen eines etiketts
CN204368567U (zh) * 2014-12-29 2015-06-03 张新建 预涂胶激光切标干式贴标机
CN204368565U (zh) * 2014-12-29 2015-06-03 张新建 预涂胶及预切标干式贴标机

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3736213A (en) 1970-03-06 1973-05-29 Kronseder H Label extractor in a labeling machine
EP0499818A1 (fr) * 1991-02-22 1992-08-26 KRONES AG Hermann Kronseder Maschinenfabrik Procédé et dispositif pour la pose d'étiquettes sur des récipients
DE29924839U1 (de) 1999-09-30 2006-01-05 Krones Ag Getränkedose mit einer Schutzabdeckung sowie Zuschnitt hierfür
DE10243704A1 (de) 2002-09-20 2004-03-25 Khs Maschinen- Und Anlagenbau Ag Etikettiermaschine für die Verarbeitung von mit thermoaktivierbarem Leim beschichteten Einzelblattetiketten
DE202005002793U1 (de) 2005-02-22 2005-04-21 Krones Ag Rundumetikettiervorrichtung
US20070119542A1 (en) * 2005-11-30 2007-05-31 Williams David R Labeling method and apparatus
WO2009024357A1 (fr) * 2007-08-23 2009-02-26 Renner Gmbh Dispositif et procédé d'étiquetage d'objets, en particulier de récipients pour liquide
DE202012013164U1 (de) 2011-02-07 2015-02-23 Nulabel Technologies, Inc. Flüssigkeits-aktivierbare Klebstoffe und Flüssigkeiten zu ihrer Aktivierung zur Verwendung mit trägerlosen Etiketten
EP2567902A1 (fr) * 2011-09-09 2013-03-13 Krones AG Dispositif d'application d'une étiquette sur un récipient
US8616259B1 (en) * 2012-11-30 2013-12-31 Nulabel Technologies, Inc. Automated labeling apparatus using labels having a fluid activatable adhesive

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE102024105456A1 (de) * 2024-02-27 2025-08-28 Krones Aktiengesellschaft Etikettiermaschine zum Etikettieren von Behältern

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