Robert J Sterner, 59Philadelphia, PA

6021629, Feb 8, 2000

Oct 12, 1998

9/169100

Robert A. Sterner - Oakford PA

SKS Equipment Co, Inc. - Warminster PA

B65B 728
B65B 5704

53471

A registration system for a packaging machine, which machine seals tray tops with thermoplastic film. The trays are carried through the machine on a moving conveyor and the sealing film is fed in a ribbon from a feed roll to move in a position above the line of trays carried on the moving conveyor. The film ribbon carries printing or decorations, in repetitive segments, which must each be centered on a respective tray top when the film is sealed thereto. Repetitive registration marks carried on the film ribbon indicate the position of each film segment as it moves toward a heat seal station. The registration marks are optically sensed in time with the timing pulses of the packaging machine. When miss-registration is sensed the film position, relative to the leading edge of the tray adjacent to and next to enter the heat seal station, is indexed forward a predetermined increment by a downward operating blade and then a heat bar contacts the film and tacks it to the leading edge of that tray. The movement of the conveyor, rolls assisting the movement of the film, the indexing blade, the heat station, and a timing cam are controlled by a chain drive from a single motor.