Patents Assigned to Krones AG
  • Patent number: 11045994
    Abstract: Provided is an apparatus for deforming plastics parisons to form plastics containers, having a blow-molding device which is arranged at least indirectly on a main shaft which is pivotable about a pivot axis, which blow molding device has at least two mold supports, a base element and two blow mold parts, wherein the base element and the blow mold parts are suitable for forming a cavity within which the plastics parisons are deformable to form the plastic containers, and the base element is arranged on a base receptacle, and having a coupling device which couples an opening movement of the blow mold parts to a raising and lowering movement of the base part relative to the blow mold parts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Thomas Höellriegl
  • Patent number: 11040861
    Abstract: The invention relates to a filling device for filling a container to be filled with a filling product in a filling product filling plant, comprising at least one filling valve for dosing the filling product into the container that is to be filled, as well as a sterilization device for sterilizing at least a portion of the at least one filling valve, wherein a contactless temperature sensor is provided for contactlessly measuring the temperature of the filling valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Sebastian Baumgartner, Juergen Soellner, Thomas Weber, Thomas Knitl, Bernd Schafaczek
  • Patent number: 11034076
    Abstract: Provided is a machine and method for reshaping plastic parisons into plastic containers, with a mold which has a cavity for the plastic parison to be reshaped, wherein this mold has at least two blow mold parts, wherein each of these blow mold parts has an inner wall which is suitable for forming a region of the plastic parison to be reshaped, wherein these blow mold parts are mounted movably with respect to one another between an open position, in which the blow mold parts are at least partially separated from one another, and a closed position, in which the blow mold parts abut one another, in order together to form the cavity for reshaping the plastic parisons.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Klaus Voth, Armin Buess, Simon Moewes, Konrad Senn, Andreas Brunner, Thomas Hoellriegl
  • Patent number: 11029667
    Abstract: Provided is a method for operating an assembly for processing liquid food products, where the operation of the assembly comprises automatically executable steps and steps to be executed manually for various elements of the assembly, where machine readable pieces of information are applied to at least one of the various elements the machine-readable pieces of information identifying the respective element, where the steps to be executed manually are in a processing unit each associated with an execution status which is set to “executed” under the condition that the machine-readable pieces of information are read out at at least one predetermined element by way of a mobile terminal, and where a control device controls the automatically executable steps taking into account the execution status.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Felix Wildsfeuer
  • Patent number: 11014283
    Abstract: Provided is a method for operating a device for shaping plastic preforms to form plastic containers, wherein the device has a movable support on which a plurality of shaping stations for shaping plastic preforms to form plastic containers are arranged, and these shaping stations each have blow molds that are suitable for and intended for molding the plastic preforms and are arranged at least indirectly on blow mold supports. The blow molds are kept at least temporarily in a magazine device, wherein this magazine device is suitable for and intended for receiving several sets of blow molds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Andreas Hack, Florian Geltinger, Jochen Hirdina
  • Patent number: 11014799
    Abstract: A device for filling a container with a sterilized filling product, preferably for filling a beverage container with a sterilized beverage in a beverage bottling installation, comprising a sterilization device for sterilizing the filling product, a sterile tank for buffered receiving of the filling product sterilized in the sterilization device, and a filling device which has a filling valve for the filling of the container to be filled, wherein the filling valve is a proportional valve for controlling and/or regulating the filling-product flow of the filling product into the container to be filled, and the proportional valve is connected in a buffer-free manner to the sterile tank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Holger Mueller, Juergen Soellner, Sebastian Baumgartner, Josef Doblinger
  • Patent number: 11014023
    Abstract: A degassing system includes a degassing tank with a first space area configured for having liquid introduced therein and a second space area configured for having the liquid from the first space area introduced therein. The first and the second space area are partially separated from one another by a separation element. The degassing system includes a controllable pump configured to pump liquid from the first space area to the second space area for a two-stage vacuum degassing process responsive to the pump being operated. The degassing system includes a control device configured to control the pump to not be operated for a single-stage vacuum degassing process and to be operated for a two-stage vacuum degassing process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventor: Johanna Justl
  • Patent number: 11014376
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for printing objects, in particular containers, wherein the containers are transported along a specified transport path, and the outer surface of the containers is printed at least temporarily by means of at least one printing unit, wherein a controller controls the printing of the containers by means of the at least one printing unit on the basis of at least one printing parameter. According to the invention, at least one object to be printed is printed with at least one test marking in order to ascertain the printing parameter, and the object provided with the test marking is then inspected by means of at least one inspection device, wherein the printing parameter is derived from the result of the inspection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Andreas Sonnauer, Florian Lauterbach, Peter Lindner
  • Patent number: 11000052
    Abstract: Filling line for heat-treating and filling a liquid into containers (e.g., bottles), comprising a pre-heater for pre-heating the liquid, a heater for heating the liquid after pre-heating, a cooler for cooling down the liquid after heating, and a filling unit for filling the liquid into the containers, where the filling line is suitable for hot filling and cold filling, where the liquid path from the pre-heater to the filling unit for hot filling differs from the liquid path from the pre-heater to the filling unit for cold filling, and the filling line comprises a switching option for switching between the two liquid paths; and a method for heat-treating and filling containers with a liquid in which such a filling line is used.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventors: Torsten Runge, Katja Enzmann, Roland Amann, Roland Feilner, Pascal Luthe-Grundler
  • Patent number: 10994977
    Abstract: A device for filling a container with a filling product, preferably for filling a beverage container in a beverage filling plant, comprising a filling product reservoir for accommodating the filling product to be filled and a first fill level probe for determining the filling product level in the filling product reservoir during a filling mode, wherein a second fill level probe is provided for determining a cleaning fluid level in the filling product reservoir during a cleaning mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Manfred Ziegler
  • Patent number: 10988317
    Abstract: A format part for deflecting containers, comprising a toggle lever which comprises a toggle joint and two ankle joints, wherein the format part comprises a railing fastened to the toggle joint of the toggle lever, wherein the ankle joints are displaceable in one plane, which is parallel to the running direction of the railing, and wherein the railing is displaceable parallel to said plane by the displacement of the ankle joints, wherein the format part is adaptable for different container formats by the displacement of the railing, accumulating conveyor comprising such a format part, and method for adjusting such a format part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Helmut Schuesslburner, Konrad Senn
  • Patent number: 10981685
    Abstract: A container handling plant and a method for a container handling plant are shown. The container handling plant comprises at least one container handling machine for handling containers, wherein at least one container handling machine comprises a type preselection memory in which different types are preselectable for a handling to be performed by the container handling machine, at least one output device positioned at the at least one container handling machine for outputting an audio signal and/or an optical signal, and a control device configured to control the at least one output device such that the output device acoustically outputs a predetermined audio signal made of tone sequences comprising at least two different tones and/or optically outputs an optical signal, if due to the type preselected in the type preselection memory a change of a type or a refilling for the preselected type at the container handling machine is scheduled in the future at the end of a predetermined time period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventors: Robert Klein, Wolfgang Hahn, Timo Pronold, Markus Zoelfl
  • Patent number: 10976909
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an operating module for dynamically creating the user interface on the operating module for controlling and operating a machine of the food industry, in particular the beverage industry. The operating module comprises a plurality of operating elements having attributes, which can assume the value of a parameter and can be activated or deactivated depending on the user. By means of an operating module context, operating elements having certain attributes and values can be selected in order to be displayed on the operating module. The invention further relates to a method for dynamically creating and displaying an operating interface for operating a machine of the food industry.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventors: Theodor Bielmeier, Sebastian Vogl, Raymon Seidl, Timo Pronold, Thomas Stauber, Johannes Boehm, Stefan Schmidt, Pino-Giuseppe Palumbo
  • Patent number: 10974909
    Abstract: A switch of a transport system for a movable transport element includes a main track and a secondary track branching off the main track. The movable transport element can be guided from a transition region in which the secondary track branches off from the main track. Devices for increasing a switching force to guide a moveable transport element along the main track or transfer the movable transport element to the secondary track are provided in the transition region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventors: Hartmut Davidson, Thomas Kiendl, Stefan Poeschl, Michael Neubauer, Martin Kammerl
  • Patent number: 10968046
    Abstract: A cascade conveyor for sorting and conveying container closures, such as for conveying and sorting screw closures in a drinks filling installation, comprising at least one sorting bar which can be moved in a conveying direction and which is orientated transversely relative to the conveying direction for conveying the container closures from a collection receptacle which receives unsorted container closures to a closure unloading zone. There may also be provided in the closure unloading zone a conveyor belt which extends when viewed in the gravitational direction below the sorting bar in order to laterally discharge container closures conveyed by the sorting bar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 6, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Tobias Schaeffer
  • Patent number: 10953589
    Abstract: A method for operating a forming device for forming plastic preforms into plastic containers, wherein in a working mode of the apparatus, the plastic preforms are transported by means of a plurality of forming stations along a predefined transport path, and by loading with a fluid medium are expanded into plastic containers, wherein to expand the plastic preforms, blow-moulding devices are used, inside which the plastic preforms are expanded into plastic containers, wherein in a change mode, at least one of the blow-moulding devices is removed from the apparatus and/or one of the blow-moulding devices is arranged on a blow-mould carrier of the apparatus, wherein to change the blow-moulding devices, a change device is used which has a gripper device for gripping the blow-moulding device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Florian Geltinger
  • Patent number: 10933385
    Abstract: Fluid mixing system for mixing components for a fluid product comprising a mixing regulator for mixing the components and a feed comprising at least two separate conduits, where a base component can be supplied to the mixing regulator in a first conduit and a component to be admixed in a second conduit, where a first sensor for determining the concentration of a chemical compound in the component to be admixed and a Brix sensor for determining a Brix value of the component to be admixed are disposed upstream of the mixing regulator in the second conduit and where a control unit is provided which can control the mixing process of the components by the mixing regulator in dependence of the concentration measured and the Brix value measured.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Erwin Engel
  • Patent number: 10934103
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to a conveying storage device for containers, comprising: a first/second drivable conveyor which can convey containers on a first/second conveying surface in a first/second direction, the first and the second conveyor being positioned parallel to one another such that containers are transferable from the first to the second conveying surface; a transfer device, which is movable along the conveyor, for transferring containers from the first to the second conveying surface; a guide body which is movable along a region between the first and the second conveyor above the first and the second conveying surface; and a guide railing for guiding and separating containers, said guide rail extending at an angle to the second direction and above the second conveying surface. The guide railing is variable in length and cooperates with the guide body such that the length of the guide railing and the angle can be varied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: Krones AG
    Inventors: Matthias Meier, Torsten Kilgenstein
  • Patent number: 10926909
    Abstract: A method for moving to a reference feed position of a label tape with respect to a dispensing edge of a container labeller and a corresponding device is described. The label tape may be first pulled back beyond the reference feed position by rewinding to its supply roller and then conveyed in the normal feed direction to the reference feed position prevents unwanted detachment of labels at the dispensing edge as a result of the label tape unwinding from the supply roller as well as the use of pusher roller systems upstream of the dispensing edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2021
    Assignee: KRONES AG
    Inventor: Bernhard Högl
  • Publication number: 20210048395
    Abstract: Provided is a method for inspecting containers, wherein the containers are conveyed along a predetermined transport path by a transport device and wherein an image recording device takes at least one locally resolved inspection image of at least one area of the containers during transport of the containers. A triggering of the inspection image recording of this locally resolved image is controlled, wherein this controlling takes place in consideration of a triggering image recording of an image of the container.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2018
    Publication date: February 18, 2021
    Applicant: KRONES AG
    Inventors: Christof Will, Stefan Piana, Peter Lindner