Apparatus and method for producing plastic bottles

Abstract

Apparatus and method for producing plastic bottles. An apparatus for producing plastic bottles includes a blow molding machine to receive and to stretch blow mold preforms into bottles. The apparatus includes a modular machine to receive the bottles from the blow molding machine and to at least one of label or print on the bottles. The modular machine includes a first unit to perform a first task. The first unit is replaceable with a second unit. The second unit is to perform a second task different from the first task. The blow molding machine is bloc-synchronized with the modular machine to space the blow molding machine a distance from the modular machine.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An apparatus for producing plastic bottles, the apparatus comprising:
 a blow molding machine to receive and to stretch blow mold preforms into bottles; and   a modular machine to receive the bottles from the blow molding machine and to at least one of label or print on the bottles, the modular machine including a first unit to perform a first task, the first unit being replaceable with a second unit, the second unit to perform a second task different from the first task, the blow molding machine being bloc-synchronized with the modular machine to space the blow molding machine a distance from the modular machine.   
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the first unit is a printing unit and the second unit is a labeling unit. 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the distance is a first distance, and the apparatus further including a filler to fill the bottles, wherein the modular machine and the filler are bloc-synchronized to space the modular machine a second distance from the filler. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , further including a cover between the modular machine and the filler, the cover to cover the bottles as they are transferred between the modular machine and the filler. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein the cover is vapor impermeable, thereby preventing glue-containing air from diffusing to the filler. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , further including transfer starwheels interposed between the modular machine and the filler, a container bottom cooler being positioned adjacent the transfer starwheels to actively cool the bottles to enable a temperature of the bottles to satisfy a threshold temperature to deter the bottles from being damaged when being filled by the filler. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , further including an inspection module at the machine or carried by at least one of the transfer starwheels, the inspection module to inspect the bottles for defects. 
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein at least one of the transfer starwheels is to circumferentially align the bottles according to a feature of the bottles to enable the labeling or the printing. 
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 8 , further including a heating module to heat the preforms to a threshold temperature for the stretch blow molding. 
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the blow molding machine includes an infeed starwheel, a blow molding carousel, and an outfeed starwheel, the infeed starwheel being bloc-synchronized with the heating module, the blow molding carousel to receive the preforms from the infeed starwheel, and the outfeed starwheel to receive the bottles from the blow molding carousel. 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the modular machine and the filler are bloc-synchronized via the transfer starwheels. 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein no buffers are positioned between the blow molding machine and the modular machine to space the blow molding machine the first distance from the modular machine and no buffers are positioned between the modular machine and the filler to space the modular machine the second distance from the filler. 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of  claim 12 , wherein the transfer starwheels are first transfer starwheels, further including second transfer starwheels interposed between the blow molding machine and the modular machine to: 1) transfer the bottles from the blow molding machine to the modular machine; and 2) enable decoupling of the blow molding machine and the modular machine. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein at least one of the second transfer starwheels is structured to change a pitch of the bottles from the blow molding machine to the modular machine. 
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein at least one of the second transfer starwheels is independently driven. 
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the blow molding machine includes an infeed starwheel, a blow molding carousel, and an outfeed starwheel, the infeed starwheel being bloc-synchronized with one of a molding machine or a heating module, the blow molding carousel to receive the preforms from the infeed starwheel, and the outfeed starwheel to receive the bottles from the blow molding carousel. 
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , further including a third unit, the third unit to at least one of 1) replace the first unit and the second unit; or 2) provide additional functionality to the modular machine, the third unit being one or more of a printing unit or a labeling unit. 
     
     
         18 . A method of producing plastic bottles, the method comprising:
 receiving preforms and stretch blow molding the preforms into bottles using a blow molding machine, the bottles including first bottles and second bottles;   receiving the first bottles from the blow molding machine and performing a first task on the first bottles using a first unit of a modular machine;   replacing the first unit with a second unit, the first unit to perform the first task and the second unit to perform a second task different from the first task; and   receiving the second bottles from the blow molding machine and performing the second task on the second bottles using the second unit of the modular machine, the blow molding machine being bloc-synchronized with the modular labeling machine to space the blow molding machine a distance from the modular machine.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , further including covering the first and second bottles as they are transferred between the modular machine and a filler. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein covering the bottles includes preventing glue-containing air from diffusing into the filler using a vapor-impermeable cover. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the distance is a first distance, further including filling the bottles using a filler, wherein the modular machine and the filler are bloc-synchronized to space the modular machine a second distance from the filler.