Bagging machine for flowable materials

Abstract

A bagging device adapted for filling a bag includes a hopper trolley and a hopper. The hopper trolley is configured to move in a lateral direction along the ground. The hopper is coupled to the hopper trolley for movement therewith.

1 . A method comprising
 providing a first bag including
 a bottom wall, and 
 a variable-length expansible sleeve having a first end coupled to the bottom wall of the first bag to block accumulated material from flowing out of an interior region of the variable-length expansible sleeve through the first end and a second end formed to include an inlet port that opens to the interior region; 
   providing a bag filler including
 a hopper trolley configured to move in a lateral direction along the ground, and 
 a hopper coupled to the hopper trolley for movement therewith, the hopper formed to include a bin that defines a material-storage region and a dispense nozzle coupled to the bin that defines an outlet opening in fluid communication with the material-storage region; 
   coupling the second end of the variable-length expansible sleeve to the dispense nozzle while the first bag is in a contracted configuration associated with an empty mode of the first bag in which the interior region of the variable-length expansible sleeve of the first bag is free of material;   adding a flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin to begin filling the variable-length expansible sleeve of the first bag so that the bottom of the first bag is held in a stationary position on the ground; and   moving the bag filler in the lateral direction relative to and away the bottom wall of the first bag to cause the bag filler to dispense more of the material from the material-storage region of the bin under gravity through the dispensing outlet and the inlet port into the interior region of the variable-length expansible sleeve of the first bag to continue to fill the variable-length expansible sleeve of the first bag so that a length of the variable-length expansible sleeve continuously increases as the bag filler is moved in the lateral direction relative to and away from the bottom wall of the first bag until the variable-length expansible sleeve is in an expanded configuration associated with a filled mode of the first bag in which the variable-length expansible sleeve has attained a desired volume or length.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising adding more of the flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin after moving the bag filler in the lateral direction and moving the bag filler in the lateral direction after adding more of the flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising
 removing the second end of the first bag from the dispense nozzle after the first bag has is in the expanded configuration associated with the filled mode;   coupling the second end of a second bag to the dispense nozzle of the hopper; and   repeating the steps of adding the material to the material-storage region of the bin and moving the bag filler in the lateral direction relative to and away the bottom wall of the second bag to cause the bag filler to dispense more of the flowable material from the material-storage region of the bin under gravity through the inlet port into the interior region of the second bag.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein adding flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin is continuous. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the bin of the hopper comprises:
 a pair of side walls located in spaced apart relation to each other,   a rear wall that extends between and interconnects the side walls, and   a flow-surface wall that extends between and interconnects the side walls,   wherein the pair of side walls, the rear wall, and the flow-surface wall define the material-storage region of the bin and the flow-surface wall is spaced apart from the rear wall to define a throat opening of the material-storage region.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the flow-surface wall extends at an angle relative to the ground so that the flowable material in the material-storage region moves through the throat opening and out the outlet opening of the dispense nozzle as the bag filler is moved in the lateral direction. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the angle of the flow-surface wall is about 40 degrees. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the flow-surface wall is shaped to include an upper end, a lower end spaced apart from the upper end that defines a portion of the outlet opening, and a flow-surface wall that extends between and interconnects the upper end and the lower end, and wherein the throat opening is defined between the flow surface of the flow-surface wall and the rear wall. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the rear wall extends at an angle relative to the ground. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the angle of the rear wall is about 68 degrees. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing a conveyor coupled to the hopper trolley for movement therewith and configured to transport the flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the conveyor extends between and interconnects a base of the hopper trolley and a flow-surface wall of the bin included in the hopper. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the hopper trolley includes a wheeled base that extends laterally between a first end having a first wheel assembly coupled thereto and a second end having a second wheel assembly coupled thereto and a support structure arranged to extend between and interconnect the hopper to the wheeled base. 
     
     
         14 . A bagging device adapted for filling a bag, the bagging device comprising
 a hopper trolley configured to move in a lateral direction along the ground,   a hopper coupled to the hopper trolley for movement therewith, the hopper including
 a bin including a pair of side walls located in spaced apart relation to each other, a rear wall that extends between and interconnects the side walls, and a flow-surface wall that extends between and interconnects the side walls, the pair of side walls, the rear wall, and the flow-surface wall define a material-storage region configured to receive a flowable material, and the flow-surface wall spaced apart from the rear wall to define a throat opening of the material-storage region, and 
 a dispense nozzle that extends between and interconnects the rear wall and the flow-surface wall and extends laterally from the rear wall away from the flow-surface wall to define an outlet opening between the dispense nozzle and the flow-surface wall, 
   wherein the hopper is configured to dispense the flowable material from the material-storage region of the bin under gravity through the outlet opening of the dispense nozzle into an interior region of a bag coupled to the dispense nozzle of the hopper that is in a contracted configuration associated with an empty mode to continuously fill the bag as the bagging device is moved in the lateral direction relative to and away from a stationary end of the bag until the bag is in an expanded configuration associated with a filled mode.   
     
     
         15 . The device of  claim 14 , wherein the flow-surface wall extends at an angle relative to the ground. 
     
     
         16 . The device of  claim 15 , wherein the angle of the flow-surface wall is about 40 degrees. 
     
     
         17 . The device of  claim 14 , wherein the rear wall extends at an angle relative to the ground. 
     
     
         18 . The device of  claim 17 , wherein the angle of the rear wall is about 68 degrees. 
     
     
         19 . The device of  claim 14 , wherein the flow-surface wall is shaped to include an upper end, a lower end spaced apart from the upper end that defines a portion of the outlet opening, and a flow surface that extends between and interconnects the upper end and the lower end, and wherein the throat opening is defined between the flow surface of the flow-surface wall and the rear wall. 
     
     
         20 . The device of  claim 14 , further comprising a conveyor coupled to the hopper trolley for movement therewith and configured to transport the flowable material to the material-storage region of the bin. 
     
     
         21 . The device of  claim 20 , wherein the conveyor includes a conveyor belt that extends between and interconnects a base of the hopper trolley and the flow-surface wall of the bin included in the hopper and a motor coupled to the conveyor belt to drive movement of the conveyor belt. 
     
     
         22 . The device of  claim 14 , wherein the hopper trolley includes a wheeled base that extends laterally between a first end having a first wheel assembly coupled thereto and a second end having a second wheel assembly coupled thereto and a support structure arranged to extend between and interconnect the hopper to the wheeled base.