US4034536A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Packaging apparatus and techniques
Assignee: Mahaffy and Harder Engineering Co
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Filing: 1976-11-26
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Granted: 1977-07-12
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Expires: 1996-11-26
Abstract
Abstract Automatic packaging apparatus and methods for packaging food products such as bacon in evacuated or gas-filled packages. The disclosed machine is capable of convexly thermoforming two webs of packaging material into respective sets of pockets which are brought together in opposed positions to enclose the product. One preferred package made by the disclosed techniques comprises a transparent semi-rigid cup-like shell and a back-formed flexible film sealed over the shell opening. In operation of the disclosed machine, the product is loaded into the semi-rigid package shell from below, so that the upper sides of the product as introduced into the machine are pressed up against the inside surface of the shell, and after evacuation are held in that position by atmospheric pressure acting through the flexible film beneath the product. Thus, such upper sides of the product are visible through the transparent shell which serves as the display side of the package.
Inventors
- 👤 Reid A. Mahaffy
- 👤 Joel A. Hamilton
- 👤 Wesley W. Pinney
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 18:15
CPC Classifications
B; B29; B29C; B29C51/00; B29C51/18; B29C51/20; B29C51/22; B65; B65B; B65B31/00; B65B31/02; B65B31/021; B65B65/00; B65B65/02; B65B9/00; B65B9/02; B65B9/04
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
85 words
Packaging apparatus comprising: means to advance a web of flexible packaging material; means to form said web into receptacles and to position said receptacles facing upwards to receive product to be packaged; means to position over the tops of said upwardly-facing receptacles, containers adapted to register with said receptacles; means to seal said receptacles and containers together around the peripheries thereof to form packages; means to elevate said receptacles, with the products therein, into respective containers; and means to evacuate and hermetically seal said packages.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
85 words
Packaging apparatus comprising: means to advance a web of flexible packaging material; means to form said web into receptacles and to position said receptacles facing upwards to receive product to be packaged; means to position over the tops of said upwardly-facing receptacles, containers adapted to register with said receptacles; means to seal said receptacles and containers together around the peripheries thereof to form packages; means to elevate said receptacles, with the products therein, into respective containers; and means to evacuate and hermetically seal said packages.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
44 words
Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means to evacuate said packages comprises an evacuation chamber; and a die filler in the lower part of said chamber to engage the product loaded receptacle to elevate it into the spaces defined by said container.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
25 words
Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said containers are formed of semi-rigid material shaped to match at least approximately the products in said receptacles.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
110 words
The method of packaging comprising: forming a receptacle cup of flexible packaging material; placing a product in said receptacle cup and holding said receptacle with its opening facing upwards; positioning a semi-rigid container over said filled receptacle, with the peripheries in register to define a package assembly; elevating said receptacle cup and the product therein up towards said container to position the product within the spaces of said container and close to the remote surface thereof; and evacuating and sealing said package assembly, the evacuation being carried to such an extent that atmospheric pressure, acting through said flexible material, presses said product up against said remote surface of said container.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
110 words
The method of packaging comprising: forming a receptacle cup of flexible packaging material; placing a product in said receptacle cup and holding said receptacle with its opening facing upwards; positioning a semi-rigid container over said filled receptacle, with the peripheries in register to define a package assembly; elevating said receptacle cup and the product therein up towards said container to position the product within the spaces of said container and close to the remote surface thereof; and evacuating and sealing said package assembly, the evacuation being carried to such an extent that atmospheric pressure, acting through said flexible material, presses said product up against said remote surface of said container.
Claim 7
Independent Claim
298 words
A method for making a package in which two plastic sheet portions are secured together along peripheral edges to define a sealed container for a product between said sheet portions, said method comprising: supporting and advancing a first continuous web of flexible packaging material along a generally horizontal path leading to a product-loading region; stretch-forming said first web of packaging material, while it is in a region preceding said product-loading region, in a downward direction to make upright cup-shaped receptacles the mouths of which are generally in the plane of the surrounding web of material; placing a product from above into the upright receptacles while in said product-loading region; advancing said web beyond said product-loading region to a subsequent package-forming region; supporting and advancing a second continuous web of packaging material, with a movement synchronized with the movement of said first web, down from a region above said first web to said package-forming region to be brought together with said first web so as to form complete packages containing said products; pressing the bottom of the upright receptacles up, while in said package-forming region, to elevate the product loaded therein up above the plane of the mouth of the receptacle, the upward movement serving to engage the top of the product tightly with the opposite portion of said second web of packaging material serving as the inner surface of the package top; and at some stage following the forming of the package in said package-forming region, evacuating the interior of the package and completely hermetically sealing each evacuated package, the top of the product in the final package being elevated above the mouth of the upright receptacle and into tight engagement with the top surface of the package as formed by said second web of plastic packaging material.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
298 words
A method for making a package in which two plastic sheet portions are secured together along peripheral edges to define a sealed container for a product between said sheet portions, said method comprising: supporting and advancing a first continuous web of flexible packaging material along a generally horizontal path leading to a product-loading region; stretch-forming said first web of packaging material, while it is in a region preceding said product-loading region, in a downward direction to make upright cup-shaped receptacles the mouths of which are generally in the plane of the surrounding web of material; placing a product from above into the upright receptacles while in said product-loading region; advancing said web beyond said product-loading region to a subsequent package-forming region; supporting and advancing a second continuous web of packaging material, with a movement synchronized with the movement of said first web, down from a region above said first web to said package-forming region to be brought together with said first web so as to form complete packages containing said products; pressing the bottom of the upright receptacles up, while in said package-forming region, to elevate the product loaded therein up above the plane of the mouth of the receptacle, the upward movement serving to engage the top of the product tightly with the opposite portion of said second web of packaging material serving as the inner surface of the package top; and at some stage following the forming of the package in said package-forming region, evacuating the interior of the package and completely hermetically sealing each evacuated package, the top of the product in the final package being elevated above the mouth of the upright receptacle and into tight engagement with the top surface of the package as formed by said second web of plastic packaging material.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
97 words
The method of claim 5, wherein said package-forming region includes a chamber having separate isolated spaces above and below the web of packaging material, respectively; evacuating said spaces while evacuating the package defined by said webs; sealing said webs to form a hermetically-sealed package; venting one of said spaces prior to the other of said spaces; and thereafter venting said other spaces of said chamber; the sequence of venting of said spaces being selected to apply a net pressure up against the bottom of the upright receptacle to force the product tightly up against the upper web.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
132 words
The method of forming an hermetically-sealed package comprising the steps of: placing in a stretched-formed cup of flexible packaging material, having horizontal flanges around the cup opening, a product the upper surfaces of which are initially at least not substantially above said flanges; securing a plastic top to said flanges to form a package; evacuating the interior of the package while providing reduced pressure in a first evacuating space above the package top and in a second evacuating space beneath the package cup; hermetically sealing the package; sequentially venting said first and second spaces in a selected order developing an upward force against said plastic top with at least a portion of the upper surfaces of said product and the corresponding plastic top portions in contact therewith being above said horizontal flanges.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
132 words
The method of forming an hermetically-sealed package comprising the steps of: placing in a stretched-formed cup of flexible packaging material, having horizontal flanges around the cup opening, a product the upper surfaces of which are initially at least not substantially above said flanges; securing a plastic top to said flanges to form a package; evacuating the interior of the package while providing reduced pressure in a first evacuating space above the package top and in a second evacuating space beneath the package cup; hermetically sealing the package; sequentially venting said first and second spaces in a selected order developing an upward force against said plastic top with at least a portion of the upper surfaces of said product and the corresponding plastic top portions in contact therewith being above said horizontal flanges.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
148 words
In a process for producing vacuum packaging comprising upper and lower sheets of packaging material sealed together around peripheral flanges with a packaged product therebetween, the interior regions of both sheets being formed outwardly in opposite directions, away from the peripheral flanges such that an upper segment of said product is above the flanges and a lower segment is below said flanges; the improved method comprising the steps of: placing the product with the adjacent two sheets of packaging material in an evacuation-and-seal chamber having separate isolated spaces above and below the packaging material; evacuating said isolated spaces while evacuating the interior of the package; applying sealing heat to said package material after evacuation of the packages has been effected; and sequentially venting said spaces to atmosphere to develop an upwardly-directed force on the lower sheet of packaging material to push the product up against the upper sheet.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
148 words
In a process for producing vacuum packaging comprising upper and lower sheets of packaging material sealed together around peripheral flanges with a packaged product therebetween, the interior regions of both sheets being formed outwardly in opposite directions, away from the peripheral flanges such that an upper segment of said product is above the flanges and a lower segment is below said flanges; the improved method comprising the steps of: placing the product with the adjacent two sheets of packaging material in an evacuation-and-seal chamber having separate isolated spaces above and below the packaging material; evacuating said isolated spaces while evacuating the interior of the package; applying sealing heat to said package material after evacuation of the packages has been effected; and sequentially venting said spaces to atmosphere to develop an upwardly-directed force on the lower sheet of packaging material to push the product up against the upper sheet.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 8, wherein both of said sheets are formed of flexible packaging material.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 8, wherein the lower spaces are vented before the upper spaces.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1980-07-11 | 1981-01-10 | 1981-07-12 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1984-07-11 | 1985-01-10 | 1985-07-12 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1988-07-11 | 1989-01-10 | 1989-07-12 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |