Cartoning Machine: The Structure and Performance - Guide and Tips for Evaluating a Cartoner Machine

Cited from: Cartoning Machine: The Structure and Performance

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What is a Cartoning Machine?

Cartoning machines, or cartoners, are typically those packaging machines designed for the purpose of inserting a package, substance, or material into a carton.

To put a case, the cartoning machine is set up with the capability to fold a carton blank, insert the material or package into the folded carton, and then close the carton by folding the flaps and finishing the tuck-in.

Cartoning machines, in most cases, are designed to fulfill the packaging automation of large quantity production and thus are typically used in an assembly line.

In this sense, cartoner machines must be built with rigid standards and ergonomic design to save time, minimize the malfunctions which may shut down or lag the production, save labor cost and protect labor safety.

Example of a Cartoning MachineThe Different Types of Cartoning Machines

Cartoning Machines are usually designed with patterns of horizontal cartoner or vertical cartoner. The reasons are that an exact cartoning machine may not be able to be used in a certain circumstance due to site space, cost reasons, speed requirements and so forth, and thus different types of cartoning machines may be required in different situations.

Vertical Cartoner

A vertical cartoner or cartoning machine is typical for the loading pattern that the material or package is loaded into the carton the open of which faces upwardly.

Vertical Cartoning Machine

The loading process is completed with gravity as an auxiliary force. Vertical cartoner machines are usually used for products such as cosmetics, which call for the minimum level of friction during packaging automation to protect and preserve the best appearance and status of the surface.

Horizontal Cartoners

Horizontal Cartoning Machines are just like counterpart of vertical cartoner machines, however, the loading pattern is that the package of material is inserted into the folded carton from an open that faces horizontally or sideways. Rather than vertical cartoner machines on which the package is loaded into the carton by gravity, on the horizontal one there is a series of pushrods that gradually push and insert the package into the carton. In the case of a high-speed horizontal cartoning machines, there is usually a series of barrel loaders.

Primary Sections and Components of a Cartoning Machine

Regardless of the fact that cartoner machines are defined into various categories, there are basically some common sections and components that you can found on a cartoner, no matter what kind of cartoning machine it is.

The Bucket ConveyorBucket Conveyor

The bucket conveyor consists of a pair of separate moving chains. Bucket conveyor is capable of moving the products in buckets from the loading hand to the feeding section. In some cases, the two chains are controlled by servo motors so as to automatically adjust gaps and distance between each bucket to fit to another project and thus to complete the changeover. The process is done only by setting the configurations in the touch screen.

Carton Magazine or Carton HopperCARTON HOPPER

A carton hopper or carton magazine is a station on the machine that holds a pile or a stack of flat carton blanks which are unfolded. The carton erector will pick the blanks from the hopper one by one and then fold them into erected cartons. On the carton hopper there are usually several photo eyes installed to withstand and monitor the level and quantity of carton blanks left in the hopper. For example, a low carton photo eye is installed to warn against the situation when carton blanks are just about to be used up. When the alert is triggered, the machine usually would reject to working until new blanks are filled and placed into the hopper.

Carton Erector or Picker Assembly

The carton erector or the picker assembly is such a section to which the most innovations those manufacturers of cartoner machines attach to.

Carton Erector

Carton blanks are to be picked by the picker or suction panels on the picker assembly which is connected to air. The erector can either be servo-driven or mechanical driven depending on what cartoner it is and by which manufacturer it is made.

Vacuum is applied to the suction panel on the assembly once, during the rotation, it gets in contact with the carton blank into carton hopper. Thereafter, the picker places the carton onto the lug chains of the carton transport for discharge after going through a series of guides that help to force and open the blanks in order to fold them into erected cartons.

Export Conveyor, Carton Transport

The export carton transport conveyor consists of a pair of lug chains. The carton is placed and secured between them. The space is always fixed according to the size of the carton. When it is supposed to adjust and carton size on the cartoning machine for format changeover, one of the lug chains should be adjusted in order to widen or narrow the space between the chains.

Insertion Station or the Barrel Loader

Once the carton has been opened and erected, the packages of material carried on the bucket conveyor are going to be inserted into the folded and opened cartons. There can be a single insertor that pushes the packages or materials on an intermittent basis or a series of barrel loaders that push them into the carton in a continuous manner.

Barrel LoaderFlap Folding and Tuck-In Station

In the case of tuck-end cartons, a station is nearby the discharge station to fold the dust flaps and complete the tuck-in in order to close the carton.

Discharge Station

The discharge station consists of a pair of time belts that secure the closed carton and takes them out of the cartoning machine.

Bibliography

Automatic Cartoning Machine |

• LITER Packaging Machnery

Zixin Yuan - Digital Marketing Coordinator at ÉLITER Packaging Machinery Website: https://www.eliter-packaging.com