Patents by Inventor Ron Whitehead

Ron Whitehead has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7464521
    Abstract: A vacuum packaging machine and a conveyor to deliver a product package from an upstream station to a position adjacent a vacuum chamber. The conveyor has a longitudinal direction defined by the direction of travel of the product package. The vacuum chamber has a heat sealing and cutting assembly oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the conveyor and in a position with sufficient spacing between end walls of the vacuum chamber and the assembly for the product package containing two or more products to be loaded into the vacuum chamber with at least one product located in front of the heat sealing and cutting assembly and at least one other product located behind the heat sealing and cutting assembly. The heat sealing and cutting assembly seals and cuts between two products to form two separate evacuated packages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: Sealed Air Corporation, New Zealand
    Inventors: John Paul Koke, Jacob Brinkman, Ron Whitehead, David Stevens
  • Patent number: 7296390
    Abstract: A vacuum packaging machine includes a plurality of vacuum chambers (3a, 3b) each arranged to receive at least one unsealed product package and operable to perform an independent vacuum sealing operation, each vacuum chamber having a longitudinal direction defined by a direction of travel of the respective product package through the chamber (3a, 3b), each chamber having a heat seal assembly (15) therein which extends transversely to the longitudinal direction. An infeed conveyor (17) can be provided with a telescoping portion (17a) which can extend over the heat seal assembly or a part thereof. Each vacuum chamber can have a respective bed (9) and independently moveable hood (11), and the beds (9) can be synchronously vertically moveable. The vacuum packaging machine can be used in combination with a suitable product bagging or wrapping machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 20, 2007
    Assignee: Sealed Air New Zealand
    Inventors: John Koke, Jacob Brinkman, Ron Whitehead, David Stevens
  • Publication number: 20060272291
    Abstract: A vacuum packaging machine 141 and a conveyor 17 to deliver a product package from an upstream station 140 to a position adjacent a vacuum chamber 3a. The conveyor 17 has a longitudinal direction defined by the direction of travel of the product package. The vacuum chamber has a heat sealing and cutting assembly 143 oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the conveyor and in a position with sufficient spacing between end walls of the vacuum chamber and the assembly 143 for the product package containing two or more products to be loaded into the vacuum chamber 3a with at least one product located in front of the heat sealing and cutting assembly and at least one other product located behind the heat sealing and cutting assembly. The heat sealing and cutting assembly 143 seals and cuts between two products to form two separate evacuated packages.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2003
    Publication date: December 7, 2006
    Inventors: John Koke, Jacob Brinkman, Ron Whitehead, David Stevens
  • Publication number: 20050178090
    Abstract: A vacuum packaging machine includes a plurality of vacuum chambers (3a, 3b) each arranged to receive at least one unsealed product package and operable to perform an independent vacuum sealing operation, each vacuum chamber having a longitudinal direction defined by a direction of travel of the respective product package through the chamber (3a, 3b), each chamber having a heat seal assembly (15) therein which extends transversely to the longitudinal direction. An infeed conveyor (17) can be provided with a telescoping portion (17a) which can extend over the heat seal assembly or a part thereof. Each vacuum chamber can have a respective bed (9) and independently moveable hood (11), and the beds (9) can be synchronously vertically moveable. The vacuum packaging machine can be used in combination with a suitable product bagging or wrapping machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2003
    Publication date: August 18, 2005
    Inventors: John Koke, Jacob Brinkman, Ron Whitehead, David Stevens