Bag supply apparatus and bag supply method

Abstract

A bag supply apparatus supplies a bag to a packaging machine for performing a packaging process to a bag containing a content. The bag supply apparatus includes a transfer apparatus, a detection apparatus, a takeout apparatus, and a delivery apparatus. The transfer apparatus transfers a bag containing the content, with its bag mouth being not yet sealed, in substantially a horizontal posture and along substantially a width direction of the bag, to a takeout area. The detection apparatus detects a bag on the transfer apparatus upstream of the takeout area. The takeout apparatus takes out a bag from the takeout area, with sandwiching both side edges of the bag positioned in the takeout area by a pair of sandwiching members. The delivery apparatus delivers a bag to the packaging machine. The takeout apparatus holds a bag based on a predicted position and an inclination of the bag, the predicted position being calculated from a transfer speed of the transfer apparatus and a difference between a current time and a time at which the bag was detected by the detection apparatus, and the inclination of the bag being calculated from a detection result of the detection apparatus.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A bag supply apparatus that supplies a packaging machine for performing a packaging process to a bag containing a content, with the bag, the bag supply apparatus comprising:
 a transfer apparatus that transfers the bag containing the content, with its bag mouth being not yet sealed, in substantially a horizontal posture and along substantially a width direction of the bag, to a takeout area;   a detection apparatus that detects the bag on the transfer apparatus upstream of the takeout area;   a takeout apparatus that takes out the bag from the takeout area, with sandwiching both side edges of the bag positioned in the takeout area by a pair of sandwiching members; and   a delivery apparatus that delivers the bag to the packaging machine;   wherein the takeout apparatus holds the bag based on a predicted position and an inclination of the bag, the predicted position being calculated from a transfer speed of the transfer apparatus and a difference between a current time and a time at which the bag was detected by the detection apparatus, and the inclination of the bag being calculated from a detection result of the detection apparatus.   
     
     
         2 . The bag supply apparatus according to  claim 1 , comprising a plurality of the takeout areas corresponding to a plurality of the packaging machines,
 wherein the bag having been taken out from each takeout area is delivered to each packaging machine corresponding to each takeout area.   
     
     
         3 . The bag supply apparatus according to  claim 2 , comprising a plurality of the detection apparatuses,
 wherein each detection apparatus is disposed upstream of each takeout area correspondingly to each of the plurality of takeout areas.   
     
     
         4 . A bag supply method of supplying a packaging machine for performing a packaging process to a bag containing a content, with the bag, the bag supply method comprising:
 a transfer step in which a plurality of the bags each containing the content, with its bag mouth being not yet sealed, at pitches unequal to one another respectively in substantially a horizontal posture and along substantially a width direction of the bag, to a takeout area;   a detection step in which the bag is detected upstream of the takeout area;   a takeout step in which the bag is taken out from the takeout area, with both side edges of the bag positioned in the takeout area being sandwiched by a pair of sandwiching members; and   a delivery step in which the bag having been taken out in the takeout step is delivered to the packaging machine;   wherein, in the takeout step, the bag is held based on a predicted position and an inclination of the bag, the predicted position being calculated from a transfer speed in the transfer step and a difference between a current time and a time at which the bag was detected in the detection step, and the inclination of the bag being calculated from a detection result of the detection step.