Capping device with force adjustment mechanism and method of adjusting

1. A capping device for fitting caps onto containers by applying an axial force to the caps as they are threaded onto the containers, said device comprising;

a drive member for rotating about an operational axis,

a capper body slidably coupled to said drive member and rotatably fixed to said drive member such that said capper body slides relative to said drive member along said operational axis during use and rotates with said drive member about said operational axis during use,

a biasing member urging said capper body away from said drive member with a biasing force,

an adjustment mechanism operatively coupled to said biasing member for adjusting said biasing force thereby adjusting the axial force applied to the caps as they are threaded onto the containers, and

a retaining mechanism including a locking element movable between a latched position to prevent adjustment of said biasing force and an unlatched position to allow adjustment of said biasing force,

said retaining mechanism including a plurality of discrete catches disposed radially outwardly on said drive member wherein said locking element is disposed in one of said plurality of discrete catches in said latched position to prevent adjustment of said biasing force and said locking element is movable out of said one of said plurality of discrete catches in said unlatched position to allow adjustment of said biasing force.

2. The device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said retaining mechanism includes a biasing component operatively coupled to said locking element for biasing said locking element in said latched position to prevent inadvertent adjustment of said biasing force during use.

3. The device as set forth in claim 2 wherein said drive member has an outer surface and said adjustment mechanism includes outer threads disposed on said outer surface and said adjustment mechanism further includes a collar having an inner surface with inner threads for mating with said outer threads of said drive member to allow rotation of said collar relative to said drive member between a plurality of adjustment positions.

4. The device as set forth in claim 3 wherein said biasing member is disposed between said collar and said capper body.

5. The device as set forth in claim 3 wherein said collar defines an elongated slot penetrating through said inner threads and said locking element protrudes through said slot in alignment with said inner threads of said collar in said unlatched position to mate with said outer threads of said drive member as said collar is rotated between said plurality of adjustment positions.

6. The device as set forth in claim 5 wherein said locking element protrudes through said slot out of alignment with said inner threads of said collar in said latched position to prevent mating with said outer threads of said drive member and prevent rotation of said collar relative to said drive member.

7. The device as set forth in claim 6 wherein said retaining mechanism includes a second locking element movable between a latched position to prevent rotation of said collar relative to said drive member and an unlatched position to allow rotation of said collar relative to said drive member.

8. The device as set forth in claim 7 wherein said collar includes a second elongated slot penetrating through said inner threads opposite said other slot and said second locking element protrudes through said second slot in alignment with said inner threads of said collar in said unlatched position and out of alignment with said inner threads of said collar in said latched position.

9. The device as set forth in claim 8 including a gripping member operatively coupled to said collar and said locking elements for manually moving said locking elements in said slots between said latched and unlatched positions.

10. The device as set forth in claim 9 wherein said biasing component includes a plurality of springs biasing said gripping member to place said locking elements normally in said latched position.

11. The device as set forth in claim 10 wherein said locking elements are further defined as retaining pins with each of said retaining pins including a first end fixed to said gripping member and a second end extending into said slots wherein said second end is shaped to align with said inner threads of said collar in said unlatched position.

12. The device as set forth in claim 2 wherein said plurality of discrete catches include a plurality of vertical channels defined in said outer surface of said drive member for receiving said locking element in said latched position.

13. The device as set forth in claim 12 including a plurality of visual markings on said outer surface of said drive member in said vertical channels that correspond to increments of said biasing force such that a user can determine a change in said biasing force during adjustment of said biasing force.

14. The device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said biasing member is further defined as a compression spring with said adjustment mechanism configured for adjusting compression of said compression spring to adjust said biasing force.

15. The device as set forth in claim 1 including a bearing mechanism disposed between said drive member and said capper body for allowing relative sliding movement between said drive member and said capper body while preventing relative rotational movement between said drive member and said capper body.

16. The device as set forth in claim 15 wherein said bearing mechanism includes a plurality of inner bearing grooves defined in an inner surface of said drive member, a plurality of complimentary outer bearing grooves defined in an outer surface of said capper body, and a plurality of ball bearings disposed between said grooves, each of said grooves being aligned parallel to said operational axis.