Bag conveyor system with automatic edge pressing

Claim 1

In a conveyor system including a conveyor moving longitudinally and supporting at spaced postions, bags thereon, laterally spaced first and second pressing units movable with said conveyor and parallel thereto, each pressing unit including a series of vertically displaceable pressing means in proximity to opposed edges of said baGs, for selectively clamping the respective edges thereof with said bags extending horizontally between respective pressing means, the improvement wherein: each pressing means of one of said pressing units is mounted on said conveyor means for limited lateral movement towards the pressing means respectively of said other pressing unit but is spring biased therefrom, and said conveyor system further comprises: a fixed horizontal cam rail extending parallel to said one pressing unit and having a horizontally offset portion operatively associated with said pressing means of said one unit to shift in sequence said pressing means towards said other unit to operatively position one edge of said bags carried by said moving conveyor into operative position with respect to said vertically displaceable pressing means of said one unit, and a pair of fixed vertical cam rails extending parallel to said conveyor means, overlying respective pressing units, in operative engagement with said pressing means of both units and having vertically offset portions to forcibly shift said pressing means of both units into pressing engagement with respective edges of said bags during conveyor movement.