Labeling machine

April 14, 1964

B, LERNER ETAL

LABELING MACHINE

3,129,130

Filed June 27, 1961 ₃ Sheets-Sheet 1

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April 14, 1964

B. LERNER ETAL

LABELING MACHINE

3,129,130

Sheets-Sheet 2

Filed June 27, 1961

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April 14, 1964 b. lerner etal 3,129,130

LABELING MACHINE

Filed June 27, 1961

Sheets-Sheet 3

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, INVENTORS Sernard .Lerner Milton EothsteinJ

BY

Martin. Kaftan' raeory //ramcff

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3,129,130

Patented Apr. 14, 1964

United States Patent Office

3,129,130

LABELING MACHINE

Bernard Lerner, Great Neck, Milton Rothstein, East Williston, Martin Kaplan, Oceanside, and Georg Hramoff, New York, N.Y., assignors to Willcox &amp; Gibbs ° Sewing Machine Co., New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York

Filed June 27, 1961, Ser. No. 119,922

Claims. (Cl. 156—367)

The present invention relates to a machine for applying labels, tags or the like to an article, at least one of which includes thermoplastic materials, and more particularly to a novel means for automatically removing labels from a supply thereof, applying the labels to gar- 15 ments and securing them by high frequency heating.

Heretofore, in applying labels, tags or the like to garments, it has been necessary to place the unfolded garment over a heating plate in order to affix the label thereto. If the garments were folded, it was necessary to 20 unfold the garment and to refold it after the label is applied.

This presented a problem in affixing labels in which the garments could not be prefolded and labeled as desired. The handling of the garments in unfolded condi- 25 tion or in unfolding and refolding has been a tedious and time consuming operation, and the positioning of the garment over a hot plate has under some circumstances produced scorching of the garment.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome 30 these difficulties and provide a device for quickly and accurately applying labels to an article with a minimum of handling of the garment.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple and effective means for automatically removing 35 the label from a supply, transporting the label to an applying position over the garment, at least one of which includes theremoplastic material, and securing the label to said garment by high frequency heating.

A feature of the invention resides in the ease with 40 which the label can be secured to folded garments without undue handling and without the use of a hot plate with its attendant danger of scorching the garment.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the specification and claims when con- 45 sidered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 shows a perspective of the label applying machine.

FIG. 2 shows an enlarged detail view of the label ap- 50 plying mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view of a control system for the machine.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged detail view similar to FIG. 2 of another form of the invention. 55

FIG. 5 is a partial end view looking from the left in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary detail view of another form of label applying mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a detail view similar to FIG. 6 of a still 60 further form of label applying device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the label applying machine 10 has an anvil 11 projecting from the front thereof and having electrode means 12 thereon. The machine is provided with a swinging arm 13 having a head 14 65 carrying cooperating electrode means 15 thereon movable from a normal position below a hopper 16 for labels 17 or the like to a label applying position. The label is carried by the arm into engagement with and positioned over an article disposed over the anvil 11 for the pur- 70 pose of fastening the label thereto. A pedal operated switch 18 is provided for initiating a cycle of operation employed in securing the label in position.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-3, the anvil 11 projects outwardly and is adapted to have an article 19, such as a garment, whether in folded or unfolded condition, located thereover. The swinging arm 13 is mounted on a shaft 20 rotatably carried by side frames 21 for pivotal movement about an axis parallel to the front of the machine and is provided at its outer end with the pivotal electrode carrying head 14 having the cooperating electrode 15 which is adapted, when in applying position, to overlie and cooperate with the electrode means in the anvil. While the electrode means in the anvil and the cooperating electrode carried by the arm may be energized, it is at present preferred to form the electrode means by providing positive and negative high frequency electrodes 22, 23 in the anvil and use the cooperating electrode as a bridging electrode for overlying the two electrodes and completing the path between electrodes whereby high frequency current is caused to pass from the positive to the negative electrode during the sealing operation.

While the garment may contain thermoplastic material to which the label is adhered in the labeling operation, it is at present preferred to provide the labels with a suitable quantity of thermoplastic material which, when heated by the high frequency current, softens and adheres the label to the garment. The thermoplastic material may be applied by any suitable means, such as by a surface coating or being woven into the label or parts thereof. The labels are stacked in the hopper 16 which has an open bottom 16α through which the labels can be removed. The hopper is disposed above the anvil and located in such a position that the cooperating electrode is moved under the bottom of the hopper to engage and receive the lowermost label when the arm is swung to its normal raised position. While various means may be employed to hold the label in position over the cooperating electrode, in the preferred form of the invention ports 25 are provided in the electrode carrying head and preferably in the electrode itself, as shown in the sectional view of the electrode in FIG. 4, which are connected by a flexible tube 26 through valve 27, preferably a solenoid operated valve, to a source of vacuum 28.

In order to swing the arm between label receiving position and label applying position, various means may be employed. In the form of the invention shown in FIG. 2, a fluid operated piston and cylinder means 30 is mounted on the frame and the piston rod 31 is connected to a rack 32 cooperating with a gear 33 on the shaft 20 for swinging the arm through a cycle for each complete reciprocation of the piston. A backup roller 34 is provided for maintaining the rack in proper engagement with the gear.

The piston and cylinder means is connected to a source 35 of fluid under pressure through a valve 35α, preferably a solenoid operated valve. Inasmuch as the arm moves through approximately 90° between label receiving position and label applying position, means are provided for rotating the electrode carrying head through approximately 90° with respect to the arm in order to present an electrode in proper position to receive the label and to apply the label.

In the form of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the head 14 is mounted by a pivot 36 to the end of the arm 13 and carries a plate 37 thereon provided with a cam track 38 therein cooperating with a fixed follower 39 mounted on the side frame in such a position that as the arm moves from normal position to label applying position, the follower operating in the cam track will cause the head to pivot on the arm as an incident to the movement of the arm and move the cooperating electrode into cooperating :,129,130 position in which the label is positioned in superposed relation with the garment for application thereto.

Although the electrode means, which are connected to a high frequency generator 40, may be energized continuously, it is at present preferred to connect the electrode means through a normally open switch 41 operable when the electrodes are in cooperating relation to energize the electrodes to soften the thermoplastic and adhere the label to the garment.

In operation, the arm 13 is normally disposed in its upright position, as shown in FIG. 1, in which the cooperating electrode 15 carried by the head is located below the hopper 16 in position to receive the lowermost label 17 from the hopper. The operator places a garment over the anvil and closes the pedal operated switch 18 to energize a suitable sequence control means 42 for moving the arm through a cycle by first closing the circuit to the solenoid valve 27 to connect the vacuum supply through the flexible hose or tube 26 to the ports 25 in the head. This causes the bottom label to be removed from the stack of labels in the hopper and to be positioned and held over the cooperating electrode 15. After an interval of time sufficient to secure the label in position on the head, the sequence control means 42 closes the circuit to the solenoid valve 35α connecting the pressure supply to the fluid pressure-operated cylinder and piston means to move the arm from its label receiving position to label applying position. As the arm moves, it causes the head to pivot and carry the label into label applying position. In this position the head engages and closes a normally open switch 41 to the high frequency generator 40 to apply high frequency current to the electrodes to cause the thermoplastic material to soften and adhere the label to the garment. The sequence control means operates the valve 27 to remove the vacuum from the cooperating electrode head to release the hold on the label and operates valve 35α to cause the piston and cylinder means to be reversed, driving the arm back to its normal raised position. The movement of the head from cooperating relation automatically opens the circuit at switch 41 to the high frequency generator and places the cooperating electrode carrying head under the label hopper for the next cycle of operation.

In the form of the invention shown in FIG. 4, the arm 13 is pivoted on pivot pin 20α and is connected by toggle link means 42 to a fluid piston and cylinder means 43 which is pivotally mounted in ears 44 on the frame of the machine. The toggle link is connected to the piston rod 43α in such a manner that as the piston moves to the full line position of FIG. 4 from a retracted position shown in dot and dash lines, it swings the arm from a position under the hopper to an applying position in which the label is held in contact with the garment with the cam plate 37α carried by the head 14 having cam track 38α cooperating with the fixed follower 39α pivoting the head on the arm incident to the movement of the arm. When the head is in applying position, it will close the switch and energize the electrodes 22, 23 and the sequence means will then release the suction and energize the piston and cylinder means to move the arm back to normal position.

In the form of the invention schematically shown in FIG. 6 the usual pressure ram 46 on the press is operated by the usual piston and cylinder means (not shown) for moving the electrode 15 into attaching position in contact with the article 19 disposed on the anvil 47. The ram is provided with a piston and cylinder means 48 having a rack 49 connected to the piston rod 50 and engaging a gear 51 secured to an arm 136 pivotally carried by the ram. With the ram in its normally raised position, an electrode carrying head 146 carried by the arm 136 is in the dot and dash position of FIG. 6 with the electrode disposed below the open bottom of the hopper 16 to receive a label 17 therefrom. The ports 25 in the electrode are connected to the vacuum hose or tube 26 which is connected to the source of vacuum.

When the operator starts the cycle of the label applying operation, the vacuum is applied to hold the bottom label to the electrode 156 and the piston and cylinder means 48 will operate the rack to move the head and electrode to the full line position of FIG. 6 under the ram. As the ram moves the electrode into engagement with the article, the normally open switch 41 is closed to energize the electrodes and secure the label. Thereafter, the cycle causes the ram 46 to raise and the piston and cylinder means 48 to move the arm and electrode into label receiving position.

FIG. 7 shows a modification of the form of the invention employing the ram 46 of FIG. 6 wherein a stationary rack bar 69 is mounted on the press to cooperate with a mutilated gear 61 secured to the arm 13c pivoted to the ram. With the ram in its normally raised position, the gear 61 cooperating with the rack holds the pivoted arm carrying the cooperating electrode 15c to a position under the hopper 16 carrying the supply of labels 17. When the cycle is started, vacuum applied to the cooperating electrode holds the label thereto as described before, and as the ram moves downwardly the gear and rack will cause the arm 13c to swing the head 14c to the position in which the arm carrying the cooperating electrode is located under the ram. In this position the mutilated gear 61 leaves the rack teeth and slides down the uncut portion of the rack bar as the head and label move into label applying position over the material 19 on the anvil 47. In this position the electrodes are energized to affix the label as previously described. The sequence means then causes vacuum to be released and the ram to raise to the dot and dash position. Incident to the movement, the mutilated gear will engage the rack and will swing the pivoted arm back to its normal position.

Variations and modifications may be made within the scope of the claims and portions of the improvements may be used without others.