US-20260124851-A1 - MULTIMODAL ENVELOPE SEALER

US20260124851A1US 20260124851 A1US20260124851 A1US 20260124851A1US-20260124851-A1

Abstract

Envelope sealing machines include a sealer that can operate in different sealing modes in which the values of the sealing parameters are tailored to the specific material configuration of the envelope being sealed. For example, a first sealing mode can be used to apply sealing conditions appropriate for paper envelopes, and a second sealing mode can be used to apply sealing conditions appropriate for plastic film. A controller can receive inputs identifying the material configuration of the envelope to be sealed, select the appropriate values for the sealing parameters for that material configuration, and provide inputs to the sealer that cause the sealer to apply the sealing conditions appropriate for the material configuration.

Inventors

Argenis Almodovar

Assignees

PREGIS LLC

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251030

Claims (20)

1 . An envelope sealing machine, comprising: a controller including a processor, the controller configured to: obtain ranges of at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to a material configuration of a first envelope, the at least two variable sealing parameters including a sealing pressure, a sealing temperature, and/or a dwell time over which the sealing pressure and the sealing temperature are applied to the first envelope, and select values for each of the at least two variable sealing parameters within their respective ranges; and a sealer communicatively coupled to the controller and including: two opposing surfaces configured to apply the sealing pressure to a closure area on first and second walls of the first envelope, and a heat source configured to heat the closure area to apply the sealing temperature to the closure area; wherein the sealing pressure, the sealing temperature, and the dwell time in accordance with the selected values of the at least two variable sealing parameters produce sealing conditions sufficient to form a closure seal between the first and second walls of the first envelope in the closure area.
2 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 1 , wherein the sealing conditions are sufficient to form the closure seal with sufficient strength to retain an item within an envelope pocket defined by the first and second walls of the first envelope.
3 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to: obtain ranges of at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to a material configuration of a second envelope, the at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope including a sealing pressure, a sealing temperature, and/or a dwell time over which the sealing pressure and the sealing temperature are applied to the second envelope, and select values for each of the at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to the material configuration of a second envelope within their respective ranges; wherein the opposing surfaces of the sealer are configured to apply the sealing pressure to a closure area on first and second walls of the second envelope, and the heat source is configured to heat the closure area of the second envelope to apply the sealing temperature to the closure area of the second envelope; and wherein the sealing pressure, the sealing temperature, and the dwell time in accordance with the selected values of the at least two variable sealing parameters for the second envelope produce sealing conditions sufficient to form a closure seal between the first and second walls of the second envelope in the closure area of the second envelope.
4 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 3 , wherein: the at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to the material configurations of the first and second envelopes include the sealing temperature and the dwell time; and the sealing pressures corresponding to the material configurations of the first and second envelopes are non-variable.
5 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 4 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope is about equal to the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope.
6 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 5 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope and the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope are less than or equal to about 200 psi.
7 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 6 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope and the sealing pressure corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope are between about 45 psi and about 60 psi.
8 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 6 , wherein: the dwell time corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope is within a range of about 0.3 second to about 1.5 seconds; the sealing temperature corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope is within a range of about 300°F to about 380°F; the dwell time corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope is within a range of about 0.2 second to about 0.3 second; and the sealing temperature corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope is within a range of about 250°F to about 290°F.
9 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 1 , wherein the material configuration of the first envelope includes: a type of material forming the first envelope, a type of heat-activatable material present on at least one of the first and second walls of the first envelope in the closure area; and/or an amount of the heat-activatable material.
10 . An envelope sealing system, comprising: the envelope sealing machine of claim 6 ; the first envelope, wherein the material type of the first envelope is paper; and the second envelope, wherein the material type of the second envelope is plastic.
11 . The envelope sealing system of claim 10 , wherein: the dwell time corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope is within a range of about 0.3 second to about 1.5 seconds; the sealing temperature corresponding to the material configuration of the first envelope is within a range of about 300°F to about 380°F; the dwell time corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope is within a range of about 0.2 second to about 0.3 second; and the sealing temperature corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope is within a range of about 250°F to about 290°F.
12 . An envelope sealing machine, comprising: a controller including a processor; and a sealer communicatively coupled to the controller and including: two opposing surfaces configured to, in response to inputs provided by the controller, apply a sealing pressure to a closure area on first and second walls of an envelope over a dwell time, and a heat source configured to, in response to the inputs provided by the controller, heat the closure area to apply a sealing temperature to the closure area over the dwell time; wherein: the controller is configured to select and provide as the inputs to the sealer a first set of values for the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time corresponding to a first material configuration of the envelope, the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time, when applied by the sealer to the closure area of the envelope in accordance with the first set of values and with the envelope in the first material configuration, produce sealing conditions sufficient to form a closure seal between the first and second walls of the envelope in the closure area, the controller is configured to select and provide as the inputs to the sealer a second set of values for the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time corresponding to a second material configuration of the envelope, and the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time, when received by the sealer and applied by the sealer to the closure area in accordance with the second set of values and with the envelope in the second material configuration, producing sealing conditions sufficient to form the closure seal between the first and second walls of the envelope in the closure area.
13 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 12 , wherein the sealing conditions are sufficient to form the closure seal with sufficient strength to retain an item within an envelope pocket defined by the first and second walls of the envelope.
14 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 12 , wherein: the sealer is configured to operate in a first sealing mode in which the sealer applies the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time to the closure area of the envelope in accordance with the first set of values for the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time; and the sealer is configured to operate in a second sealing mode in which the sealer applies the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time to the closure area of the envelope in accordance with the second set of values for the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time.
15 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 14 , wherein: the controller is configured to receive an input indicating the material configuration of the envelope, and to select the sealing mode of the sealer in response to the input; the controller is communicatively coupled to a memory storing the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time corresponding to the first and second material configurations of the envelope; and the controller is configured to select the values of the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time to be applied by the sealer to the closure area of the envelope by: identifying the material configuration of the envelope based on the input indicating the material configuration of the envelope, and retrieving, from the memory, the values of the sealing pressure, sealing temperature, and dwell time corresponding to the material configuration of the envelope.
16 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 12 , wherein: the first material configuration of the envelope is paper; and the second material configuration of the envelope is plastic.
17 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 16 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the first material configuration of the envelope is about equal to the sealing pressure corresponding to the second material configuration of the envelope.
18 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 17 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the first material configuration of the envelope and the sealing pressure corresponding to the second material configuration of the envelope are less than or equal to about 200 psi.
19 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 18 , wherein the sealing pressure corresponding to the first material configuration of the envelope and the sealing pressure corresponding to the second material configuration of the envelope are between about 45 psi and about 60 psi.
20 . The envelope sealing machine of claim 18 , wherein: the dwell time corresponding to the first material configuration of the envelope is within a range of about 0.3 second to about 1.5 seconds; the sealing temperature corresponding to the first material configuration of the envelope is within a range of about 300°F to about 380°F; the dwell time corresponding to the second material configuration of the envelope is within a range of about 0.2 second to about 0.3 second; and the sealing temperature corresponding to the second material configuration of the envelope is within a range of about 250°F to about 290°F.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Application No. 63/715,514, filed November 1, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety. BACKGROUND Automated bagging machines typically are configured to seal envelopes made of a single type of material, such as paper or plastic. Plastics such as polyethylene have been used widely in the manufacture of envelopes for decades. The use of paper envelopes, however, is becoming common due to paper’s environmentally friendly characteristics, such as recyclability. Accordingly, a bagging machine with the ability to seal both paper and plastic envelopes could provide a shipper with greater flexibility in tailoring the packaging for a particular item with the optimum type of packaging for that item. Automated bagging machines typically apply sealing conditions to the loaded envelope to form a closure seal that maintains the envelope in a closed state so that the packaged item is retained within the envelope during shipping. In applications where a heat-activatable material is used to form the closure seal, the sealing parameters usually include sealing temperature, sealing pressure, and dwell time, i.e., the length of time over which the sealing conditions are applied. The optimal sealing parameters for paper and plastic differ. These differences arise from differences in the material composition, material geometry, and manner of sealing of paper and plastic. For example, in the case of plastic envelopes, the envelope walls are heated and pressed together so that the walls weld together to form the closure seal. In the case of paper envelopes, by contrast, the walls and the heat-activatable material are heated and pressed together so that heat-activatable material, upon cooling, fixes the walls to each other. The differences between the optimal sealing parameters for paper and plastic present challenges in configuring an automated bagging machine to process both paper and plastic envelopes in a seamless manner that allows changes between paper and plastic envelopes without slowing down the bagging process. For example, the optimal sealing pressure for plastic envelopes can be substantially lower than that of paper envelopes when using the same dwell time. This difference can arise, for example, due to the higher thermal conductivity of plastic in relation to paper, the thicker walls of a typical paper envelope, the need to heat the heat-activatable material in the paper envelope, etc. The need to adjust operational parameters such as sealing pressure when transitioning between paper and plastic envelopes can reduce the maximum available throughput of the bagging machine when such adjustments are needed. SUMMARY In one aspect of the disclosed technology, an envelope sealing machine includes a controller including a processor. The controller is configured to obtain ranges of at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to a material configuration of a first envelope. The at least two variable sealing parameters include a sealing pressure, a sealing temperature, and/or a dwell time over which the sealing pressure and the sealing temperature are applied to the first envelope. The controller also is configured to select values for each of the at least two variable sealing parameters within their respective ranges. The envelope sealing machine also includes a sealer communicatively coupled to the controller. The sealer also includes two opposing surfaces configured to apply the sealing pressure to a closure area on first and second walls of the first envelope, and a heat source configured to heat the closure area to apply the sealing temperature to the closure area. The sealing pressure, the sealing temperature, and the dwell time in accordance with the selected values of the at least two variable sealing parameters produce sealing conditions sufficient to form a closure seal between the first and second walls of the first envelope in the closure area. In another aspect of the disclosed technology, the sealing conditions are sufficient to form the closure seal with sufficient strength to retain an item within an envelope pocket defined by the first and second walls of the first envelope. In another aspect of the disclosed technology, the controller is configured to obtain ranges of at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to a material configuration of a second envelope, the at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to the material configuration of the second envelope including a sealing pressure, a sealing temperature, and/or a dwell time over which the sealing pressure and the sealing temperature are applied to the second envelope, and select values for each of the at least two variable sealing parameters corresponding to the material configuration of a second envelope within their respective ranges. The opposing surfaces of the sealer