Method of providing erected folding boxes at the exit of a manufacturing machine and apparatus for erecting folding boxes from flat folding box sheath

Abstract

An apparatus for assembling folding boxes from flat folding box shells has a gripping unit, movable in at least one direction of motion, for grasping the folding box shells and having a suction gripping device and an assembly unit for assembling the folding box shells, and a bottom flap folding tool which is pivotable relative to the assembly unit being mounted thereon, and by which the bottom flap, trailing in the direction of motion of the gripping unit, of the folding box intermediate product resulting from assembly of the folding box shell and having open bottom flaps may be folded by swiveling the pivotable bottom flap folding tool. The assembly unit includes a support element on which the gripping unit is supported, and an assembly tool which is pivotable relative to the support element mounted thereon for assembling the folding box shell.

1 . A method for providing assembled folding boxes at an exit of a production machine at which manufactured products are present and which are to be packaged by introduction into the folding boxes, the method comprising
 keeping ready flat folding box shells at a supply station;   forming assembled folding boxes from the flat folding box shells within a palleting cell;   transporting the assembled folding boxes through delimiting means and out of the palleting cell to the exit of the production machine,   filling the assembled folding boxes with the products manufactured by the production machine, resulting in filled folding boxes;   conveying the filled folding boxes through the delimiting means and back into the palleting cell; and   palleting the filled folding boxes in the palleting cell at the palleting station by use of a palleting robot.   
   
   
       2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the step of forming the assembled folding boxes from the flat folding box shells is carried out using a gripping unit which is mounted on the palleting robot. 
   
   
       3 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the step of forming the assembled folding boxes from the flat folding box shells is carried out using a gripping unit which is mounted on a gantry support for a linear gantry which is provided in addition to the palleting robot. 
   
   
       4 . The method according to  claim 2 , wherein the flat folding box shells are provided at the storage station in the form of a stack of unaligned folding box shells, and the gripping unit takes the top folding box shell from the stack and aligns it relative to at least one reference edge. 
   
   
       5 . The method according to  claim 2 , wherein the flat folding box shells are provided at the storage station in a magazine in which they are already in an aligned position relative to a reference edge, and the gripping unit withdraws an aligned folding box shell from the magazine. 
   
   
       6 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising a step of leading the assembled folding box past an adhesive unit by means of the gripping unit in such a way that two oppositely situated bottom flaps of the folding box are adhesively joined at least to one another. 
   
   
       7 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising a step of leading the assembled folding box past a labeling unit by means of the gripping unit in such a way that the folding box is identified by at least one label. 
   
   
       8 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising a step of delivering the assembled folding boxes within the palleting cell on a transport means by which the folding boxes are transported to the exit of the production machine for filling with the products. 
   
   
       9 . An apparatus for assembling folding boxes from flat folding box shells, comprising:
 a gripping unit, movable in at least one direction of motion, for grasping the folding box shells and having a suction gripping device and an assembly unit for assembling the folding box shells, and   a bottom flap folding tool which is pivotable relative to the assembly unit being mounted thereon, and by which the bottom flap, trailing in the direction of motion of the gripping unit, of the folding box intermediate product resulting from assembly of the folding box shell and having open bottom flaps may be folded by swiveling the pivotable bottom flap folding tool,   wherein the assembly unit includes a support element on which the gripping unit is supported, and an assembly tool which is pivotable relative to the support element is mounted thereon for assembling the folding box shell, the bottom flap folding tool being mounted on the assembly tool so as to be pivotable relative thereto, and the support element being connected to the suction gripping device via a compensating element, the compensating element being mounted on the support element via a first articulated joint and mounted on the suction gripping device via a second articulated joint, and a translational degree of freedom being provided between the suction gripping device and the support element, thus enabling the suction gripping device together with a folding box shell held thereon to undergo at least one of rotational and translational compensating motions when the support element is to be moved on the reference edge in a fixed spatial orientation relative to at least one reference edge in order to align the folding box shell with the reference edge.   
   
   
       10 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein the suction gripping device has a first suction region and a second suction region which may be independently impinged on by a vacuum and which lie essentially in the same plane, so that the flat folding box shell may be picked up by the suction regions in such a way that the flat folding box shell is held on different sides of a fold line by the first and the second suction regions. 
   
   
       11 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein locking devices are provided by which the first articulated joint and the second articulated joint may be locked in a rotationally fixed manner and the translational degree of freedom may be fixed. 
   
   
       12 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein said apparatus includes a magazine which contains flat folding box shells that are already in an aligned position relative to a reference edge, so that aligned folding box shells may be withdrawn from the magazine by the gripping unit. 
   
   
       13 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein a static bottom flap folding tool for folding the bottom flap advancing in the direction of motion on the one hand, and static bottom flap folding tools for folding the side bottom flaps on the other hand, are situated one behind the other in the direction of motion of the gripping unit. 
   
   
       14 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein said apparatus has an adhesive unit past which the assembled folding box having four folded bottom flaps may be moved by the gripping unit in such a way that two oppositely situated bottom flaps are adhesively joined at least to one another. 
   
   
       15 . The apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein said apparatus has a labeling unit past which the assembled folding box may be moved by the gripping unit in such a way that the folding box may be identified by at least one label. 
   
   
       16 . Apparatus according to  claim 14 , wherein the static bottom flap folding tool for folding the bottom flap advancing in the direction of motion, the static bottom flap folding tools for folding the side bottom flaps, and the adhesive unit are mounted on a linear support. 
   
   
       17 . Apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the labeling unit is mounted on the linear support. 
   
   
       18 . Apparatus according to  claim 16 , wherein the gripping unit is mounted on the linear support, and the linear support is a gantry support for a linear gantry. 
   
   
       19 . A palleting cell for paltering folding boxes, filled with products, at a palleting station, the products being present at the exit of at least one production machine, and after introduction into the folding boxes being deliverable to the palleting cell, and the palleting cell having a paltering robot and a supply station for keeping ready flat folding box shells, wherein an apparatus according to  claim 9  provided in the palleting cell, at least one transport means being provided by which the assembled folding boxes may be transported from the palleting cell to the exit of the least one production machine in order to be filled with the products. 
   
   
       20 . A palleting cell for palleting folding boxes, filled with products, at a palleting station, the products being present at the exit of at least one production machine, and after introduction into the folding boxes being deliverable to the palleting cell, and the palleting cell having a palleting robot and a supply station for keeping ready flat folding box shells, wherein an apparatus according to  claim 9  is provided in the palleting cell, the gripping unit being mounted on the palleting robot, and at least one transport means being provided by which the assembled folding boxes may be transported from the palleting cell to the exit of the least one production machine in order to be filled with the products. 
   
   
       21 . An apparatus for aligning articles relative to at least one reference edge, including:
 a gripping unit, which is movable in a direction of motion, for grasping the articles,   wherein the gripping unit has a suction gripping device for holding the articles, a support element, and a support arm,   wherein the support arm bears the support element and is movable in the at least one direction of motion,   wherein the support element is connected to the suction gripping device via a compensating element,   wherein the compensating element is mounted on the support element via a first articulated joint and mounted on the suction gripping device via a second articulated joint, and   wherein a translational degree of freedom is provided between the suction gripping device and the support element, thus enabling the suction gripping device together with an article mounted thereon to undergo at least one of rotational and translational compensating motions when the support element is to be moved on the reference edge in a fixed spatial orientation relative to the reference edge in order to align the article with the reference edge.   
   
   
       22 . The apparatus according to  claim 21 , wherein locking devices are provided by which the first articulated joint and the second articulated joint may be locked in a rotationally fixed manner and the translational degree of freedom may be fixed.