Systems for automatically sealing a plastic bag/enclosure over containers of perishables carried on a pallet
View Patent ↗Methods and apparatus for enclosing a palletized container of fresh containers of perishables inside a modified atmosphere-containing plastic bag/enclosure stretched over the containers and over upwardly-folded and sealed margins of a plastic sheet placed between the pallet and the containers to seal the containers of perishables inside the bag/enclosure and to facilitate forming and maintaining a modified atmosphere inside the bag/enclosure.
1. A system for automatically sealing a plastic bag/enclosure over containers of perishables carried on a pallet having a plastic sheet beneath the containers with sheet margins extending upwardly alongside the containers on the pallet, comprising:
a folding system for automatically folding and sealing said margins upwardly against the sides of said containers;
a system for automatically stretching a plastic bag/enclosure over said loaded pallet with the bag/enclosure opening overlapping and sealing against the upwardly extending margins of said plastic sheet; and
a gas delivery system for automatically piercing said bag/enclosure and for delivering a gaseous modified atmosphere inside said bag/enclosure.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein said gas delivery system includes one or more needles/nozzles linked to said bagging system.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein said sealing against the upwardly extending margins of said plastic sheet is effected using a sealer that comprises a heat sealer, a tape sealer, a wrapping system, or a gluing system.
4. The system of claim 3 wherein said sealing against the upwardly extending margins of said plastic sheet is effected using a sealer that is a tape sealer that positions a tape roll in a plane parallel to the sides of the pallet and that delivers tape from a plane parallel to the sides of said pallet, and includes at least one tension control device, at least one tape guide, at least one roller, and a tape cutter.
5. The system of claim 1 further comprising an injector system for forming one or more calibrated holes in the side of the bag/enclosure after said bag/enclosure is sealed around said containers of perishables, to form and to maintain a desired modified atmosphere inside said bag/enclosure, wherein the number and size of holes is based, in part, on the weight and nature of said perishables.
6. A system for automatically sealing a plastic bag/enclosure over containers of perishables carried on a pallet having a plastic sheet beneath the containers with sheet margins extending upwardly alongside the containers on the pallet, comprising:
a folding system for automatically folding and sealing said margins upwardly against the sides of said containers;
a system for automatically stretching a plastic bag/enclosure over said loaded pallet with the bag/enclosure opening overlapping and sealing against the upwardly extending margins of said plastic sheet; and
a gas delivery system for delivering a gaseous modified atmosphere inside said bag/enclosure, said gas delivery system including an injector system that comprises a plurality of needles/nozzles for piercing said bag and for delivering said gases inside said bag/enclosure.