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EP-4737337-A2 - A METHOD FOR OPERATING AN ACTUATOR OF A PACKAGING MACHINE AND AN APPARATUS THEREOF

EP4737337A2EP 4737337 A2EP4737337 A2EP 4737337A2EP-4737337-A2

Abstract

A method (S100) for operating an actuator (102) in a packaging machine (100) producing food-filled packages is disclosed. The actuator moves a package precursor (106) along a motion axis (M-A) based on a movement profile (200). The method involves: obtaining (S102) package-specific data (400), including package status (402), from a connected database (112); obtaining (S104) a start position (300a-306a, 702a) on the motion axis; determining (S106) an end position (300b-306b, 702b) based on package status (402); defining (S108) a package precursor-adjusted movement profile by scaling (S110) the movement profile according to the start and end positions; and initiating (S112) actuator movement from start to end along the motion axis according to the adjusted movement profile.

Inventors

  • Östenson, Toni

Assignees

  • Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance S.A.

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20251030

Claims (15)

  1. A method (S100) for operating an actuator (102) of a packaging machine (100) arranged to produce packages filled with food product, wherein the actuator is arranged to move a package precursor (106) between a number of positions along a motion axis (M-A) according to a movement profile (200), wherein the package precursor is arranged to be formed into one of the packages in the packaging machine, said method comprising obtaining (S102) package-specific data (400) associated with the package precursor (106) held in a database (112) communicatively connected to the packaging machine (100), wherein the package-specific data (400) comprises information about package status (402), obtaining (S104) a start position (300a-306a, 702a) on the motion axis (M-A), determining (S106) an end position (300b-306b, 702b) on the motion axis (M-A) based on the package status (402), defining (S108) the movement profile based on the start and end position (300b-306b) into a package precursor-adjusted movement profile by scaling (S110) the movement profile based on a distance between the start position and the end position, and initiating (S112) a movement of the actuator (102) from the start position to the end position along the motion axis in accordance with the package precursor-adjusted movement profile.
  2. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the movement profile is a pre-defined movement profile.
  3. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the distance between the start position (300a-306a, 702a) and the end position (300b-306b, 702b) is an aggregate comprising a machine default set distance, an operator-adjusted start position and an operator-adjusted end position.
  4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the package-specific data (400) comprises a length deviation of the package precursor (106), wherein the aggregate further comprises the length deviation, wherein the actuator (102) forms part of a sealing station (700) of the packaging machine (100), wherein the start position (702a) is a conveyor belt position and the end position (702b) is a sealing position in which the package precursor (106) is held in position while a transversal sealing (706) in a sealing section (704) of the package precursor (106) is formed.
  5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the operator-adjusted start position and/or the operator-adjusted end position are restricted by an adjustment window (204, 206, 208), wherein the adjustment window defines a maximum allowed deviation from the start position and/or the end position.
  6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the package status (402) comprises information about whether the package precursor (106) is to be wasted.
  7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the package precursor (106) is a blank of a web of packaging material, wherein the package status (402) is set to be wasted if the blank is provided with a weld (602) from an automatic splicing operation.
  8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method further comprises determining (S114) an intermediate position (308) on the motion axis, wherein the step of defining (S108) the movement profile comprises defining (S116) the movement profile based on the start and intermediate position into a first movement profile by scaling the movement profile from a positional perspective and a temporal perspective based on a distance between the start and the intermediate position, defining (S118) the movement profile based on the intermediate and end position into a second movement profile by scaling the movement profile from the positional perspective and the temporal perspective based on a distance between the intermediate and the end position, and combining (S120) the first and second movement profile into the package-adjusted movement profile.
  9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the actuator is a servomotor arranged for picking up the package precursor (106) in the form of flat-folded sleeve of packaging material from a magazine in a pick-up position (P-U POS), transferring the flat-folded sleeve to a folding station in a folding position (F POS), and wasting the flat-folded sleeve in a waste position (W POS), wherein the waste position (W POS) is the intermediate position along the motion axis (M-A) placed between the pick-up position (P-U POS) and the folding position (F POS), wherein the package status (402) indicates whether the package precursor is to be transferred to the waste position (W POS) or transferred to the folding station (F POS).
  10. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the package-specific data (400) comprises a unique identification of the package precursor (106) and the package is provided with a physical mark associated to the unique identification.
  11. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the end position is a start position for a subsequent package precursor to be moved by the actuator (102).
  12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the steps of obtaining (S102) the package-specific data (400), obtaining (S104) the start position (300a-306a), and defining (S108) the movement profile are performed for a sequence of package precursors (600) such that a plurality of movement profiles are generated and merged prior to the step of initiating (S112) the movement of the actuator (102).
  13. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a time delay is provided between executing the step of defining (S108) the movement profile and the step of initiating (S112) the movement of actuator (102).
  14. An apparatus (108) for operating an actuator (102) of a packaging machine (100) arranged to produce packages filled with food product (FP), wherein the actuator (102) is arranged to move a package precursor (106) between a number of positions along a motion axis (M-A) according to a movement profile (200), wherein the package precursor (106) is arranged to be formed into one of the packages in the packaging machine, the apparatus (108) comprising a control circuitry (110) configured to, obtain package-specific data (400) associated with the package precursor (106) held in a database (112) communicatively connected to the packaging machine (100), wherein the package-specific data (400) comprises information about package status (402), obtain a start position (300a-306a) on the motion axis (M-A), determine an end position (300b-306b) on the motion axis (M-A) based on the package status (402), define the movement profile based on the start and end position (300a-306a, 300b-306b) into a package precursor-adjusted movement profile by scaling the movement profile based on a distance between the start position and the end position, and initiate a movement of the actuator (102) from the start position to the end position along the motion axis (M-A) in accordance with the package per-cursor-adjusted movement profile.
  15. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by a computing device, causes the computing device to carry out the method according any one of the claims 1 to 11.

Description

Technical Field The invention relates to packaging technology. More particularly, it is related to a method for operating an actuator in a packaging machine, and an apparatus for operating an actuator. Background Art During the last couple of decades, packaging machines have become more and more advanced. There are several reasons for this transformation. One reason is cost-efficiency. By being able to produce more packages per hour, cost per package can be lowered, in turn providing the possibility to increase margins both for the food producer as well as the retailer. Another reason is that food safety regulations have been made more and more strict over the years. In order to deliver on the food safety regulations of today, high standards of the operation of the packaging machine should be fulfilled. Still a reason for the increased complexity of the packaging machines is that the standards related to the appearance of the packages have been tightened. Put differently, what may have passed as sufficient a couple of decades ago may not be considered fulfilling today's standards. For instance, a slightly incorrectly folded carton package that was considered to meet the standards a couple of decades ago may be considered out of specification, i.e., not fulfilling the standards, today. All in all, the increased requirements on the output of the packaging machines have resulted in that the requirements on the package machines have increased. An effect of that the requirements of the packaging machines have increased is that also the standards of the components used in the packaging machines have increased. One such component forming part of most packaging machines of today is actuators, e.g., servomotors. The actuators may be used for a wide range of different purposes in the packaging machines. For instance, the actuators may be used for picking blanks from a magazine. Further, they may be used for lowering the package during a filling process such that food product can be filled into the package time efficiently. They may also be used for grouping packages in a cardboard packer, i.e., a piece of equipment used for forming a secondary package of cardboard holding a group of packages, in this context often referred to as primary packages. Servomotors and other types of actuators have developed over the years both in terms of accuracy as well as reliability. By way of example, a distance the servomotor is set to move from one position to another may be set more precisely. Regarding reliability, the servomotors of today are more reliable over time compared to their predecessors. In addition, deviations between different servomotors are also not as prominent today compared to a couple of decades ago. Even though the components used in the packaging machines of today have improved, there is nevertheless room for improvement with respect to the operation of the packaging machine. More particularly, by being able to control the operation of the actuators of the packaging machine on a more granular level, the overall operation of the packaging machine can be further improved. Summary It is an object of the invention to at least partly overcome one or more of the above-identified limitations of the prior art. In particular, it is an object to provide a method for operating an actuator of a packaging machine such that package precursor specific deviations can be compensated for. For instance, by being able to compensate for package status of an individual blank, which is an example of the package precursor, it is made possible to control the operation of both the actuator as well as the packaging machine as a whole in an improved manner. According to a first aspect it is provided a method for operating an actuator of a packaging machine arranged to produce packages filled with food product, wherein the actuator is arranged to move a package precursor between a number of positions along a motion axis according to a movement profile, wherein the package precursor is arranged to be formed into one of the packages in the packaging machine, said method comprising obtaining package-specific data associated with the package precursor held in a database communicatively connected to the packaging machine, wherein the package-specific data comprises information about package status,obtaining a start position on the motion axis,determining an end position on the motion axis based on the package status,defining the movement profile based on the start and end position into a package precursor-adjusted movement profile by scaling the movement profile based on a distance between the start position and the end position, andinitiating a movement of the actuator from the start position to the end position along the motion axis in accordance with the package precursor-adjusted movement profile. By using this approach it is made possible to use a so-called one cycle approach, that is, each package precursor is handled separately. A benef