US-12617570-B2 - Flap folding device, box manufacturing device, box sealing device, and box packaging device

US12617570B2US 12617570 B2US12617570 B2US 12617570B2US-12617570-B2

Abstract

A flap folding device includes a first member that folds a pair of first flaps toward an inside of an opening of a cardboard box, a second member that folds a pair of second flaps toward the inside of the opening, and a holding member including a rod-shaped or plate-shaped elongated portion extending along a long side direction of the opening, and pressing and holding the pair of folded first flaps by the elongated portion. The second member folds the pair of second flaps in a state where the pair of first flaps are held by the holding member after the first member folds the pair of first flaps. The holding member is attached to be swingable.

Inventors

Tatsuya Iwasa
Yuji Yokota

Assignees

ISHIDA CO., LTD.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20250125
Priority Date: 20240201

Claims (9)

1 . A flap folding device that folds a pair of first flaps provided on a short side of an opening of a spread cardboard sheet and a pair of second flaps provided on a long side of the opening to form a bottom or a lid of a cardboard box, the device comprising: a first member that folds the pair of first flaps toward an inside of the opening; a second member that folds the pair of second flaps toward the inside of the opening; and a holding member including a rod-shaped or plate-shaped elongated portion extending along a long side direction of the opening, and pressing and holding the pair of folded first flaps by the elongated portion, wherein the second member folds the pair of second flaps in a state where the pair of first flaps are held by the holding member after the first member folds the pair of first flaps, and the holding member is attached to be swingable and the holding member is configured to be swingable around an axis extending along the long side direction.
2 . The flap folding device according to claim 1 , wherein when the opening has a substantially square shape, the flap folded first is the first flap, and the flap folded later is the second flap.
3 . The flap folding device according to claim 1 , wherein the holding member partitions a portion between the pair of second flaps folded by the second member such that the pair of second flaps do not overlap each other, in a state where the holding member presses and holds the pair of folded first flaps.
4 . The flap folding device according to claim 1 , wherein a portion of the first member is provided integrally with the holding member.
5 . The flap folding device according to claim 1 , wherein the holding member is swingable by at least 5° on each of one side and the other side in a rotation direction around the axis with respect to a reference position.
6 . A box manufacturing device comprising: a spreading unit that grips a cardboard sheet in a folded state and spreads the cardboard sheet into a rectangular tubular shape; and the flap folding device according to claim 1 , which folds the pair of first flaps and the pair of second flaps of the cardboard sheet spread into the rectangular tubular shape by the spreading unit to form the bottom of the cardboard box.
7 . A box packaging device comprising: the box manufacturing device according to claim 6 ; and a box packaging unit that accommodates an article in a cardboard box manufactured by the box manufacturing device.
8 . A box sealing device comprising: the flap folding device according to claim 1 , which folds the pair of first flaps and the pair of second flaps in the opening of the spread cardboard sheet having a bottom to form the lid of the cardboard box; and a tape attachment unit that attaches a tape to the lid to hold a state where the pair of second flaps is folded.
9 . A box packaging device comprising: the box sealing device according to claim 8 ; and a box packaging unit that accommodates an article in a cardboard box sealed by the box sealing device.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a flap folding device, a box manufacturing device, a box sealing device, and a box packaging device. BACKGROUND A flap folding device that folds a pair of first flaps provided on a short side of an opening of a spread cardboard sheet and a pair of second flaps provided on a long side of the opening to form a lid of a cardboard box is known (for example, refer to Japanese Patent No. 6952466). This flap folding device includes a holding member (pressing member) that presses and holds the pair of folded first flaps. SUMMARY In the above-described flap folding device, for example, when a position of the holding member or the second flap deviates, the holding member and the second flap may come into strong contact with each other, thereby causing a possibility of a problem in that the second flap is bent or the like. In the present disclosure, a flap folding device, a box manufacturing device, a box sealing device, and a box packaging device which can avoid strong contact between a holding member and a second flap will be described. (1) According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a flap folding device that folds a pair of first flaps provided on a short side of an opening of a spread cardboard sheet and a pair of second flaps provided on a long side of the opening to form a bottom or a lid of a cardboard box. The flap folding device includes a first member that folds the pair of first flaps toward an inside of the opening, a second member that folds the pair of second flaps toward the inside of the opening, and a holding member including a rod-shaped or plate-shaped elongated portion extending along a long side direction of the opening, and pressing and holding the pair of folded first flaps by the elongated portion. The second member folds the pair of second flaps in a state where the pair of first flaps are held by the holding member after the first member folds the pair of first flaps. The holding member is attached to be swingable. In the flap folding device, even when a position of the holding member with respect to the second flap deviates and the holding member and the second flap come into contact with each other, the holding member swings. In this manner, it is possible to avoid strong contact between the holding member and the second flap. (2) In the flap folding device according to (1), when the opening has a substantially square shape, the flap folded first may be the first flap, and the flap folded later may be the second flap. In this way, in the aspect of the present disclosure, even when the opening of the spread cardboard sheet has the substantially square shape, the present invention is applicable. (3) In the flap folding device according to (1) or (2), the holding member may be configured to be swingable around an axis extending along the long side direction. In this case, the holding member can swing around the axis extending along the long side direction. (4) In the flap folding device according to any one of (1) to (3), the holding member may partition a portion between the pair of second flaps folded by the second member such that the pair of second flaps do not overlap each other, in a state where the holding member presses and holds the pair of folded first flaps. In this case, the holding member can avoid overlapping between the pair of second flaps. (5) In the flap folding device according to any one of (1) to (4), a portion of the first member may be provided integrally with the holding member. In this case, a device configuration can be simplified. (6) In the flap folding device according to (3), the holding member may be swingable by at least 5° on each of one side and the other side in a rotation direction around the axis with respect to a reference position. In this case, the holding member can be effectively swung to avoid strong contact between the holding member and the second flap. (7) According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a box manufacturing device including a spreading unit that grips a cardboard sheet in a folded state and spreads the cardboard sheet into a rectangular tubular shape, and the flap folding device according to any one of (1) to (6), which folds the pair of first flaps and the pair of second flaps of the cardboard sheet spread into the rectangular tubular shape by the spreading unit to form the bottom of the cardboard box. Even in the box manufacturing device, the flap folding device achieves an operational effect of avoiding strong contact between the holding member and the second flap. (8) According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a box sealing device including the flap folding device according to any one of (1) to (6), which folds the pair of first flaps and the pair of second flaps in the opening of the spread cardboard sheet having a bottom to form the lid of the cardboard box, and a tape attachment unit that att