Patents by Inventor Andre Graffin

Andre Graffin 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).

  • Publication number: 20030197391
    Abstract: The gripping device for taking hold of receptacles comprises tongs having a first jaw fixed to a rotary platform and a second jaw mounted to pivot relative to the first jaw and provided with a control arm, and a locking member mounted to pivot eccentrically about an axis constrained to move with the rotary platform to act on the control arm of the second jaw, said locking member being provided with a drive member disposed to come to face an opening actuating member and a closing actuating member, which members are carried by a stationary frame element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2003
    Publication date: October 23, 2003
    Applicant: SERAC GROUP
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Publication number: 20030196519
    Abstract: The device for screwing on a cap comprises a gripping head fixed to a rotary spindle, and a drive shaft connected to a drive member carried by a frame, the rotary spindle and the drive shaft are connected to each other on the same axis by a resilient coupling member, connected both to the rotary spindle and to the drive shaft, and the device further comprises a detector member for detecting relative rotation between the rotary spindle and the drive shaft, and a control member for interrupting tightening of the cap when the relative rotation reaches a predetermined threshold.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2003
    Publication date: October 23, 2003
    Applicant: SERAC GROUP
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Publication number: 20030196721
    Abstract: The filler spout comprises a tubular body having mounted therein a valve member and a magnetic actuator element connected to the valve member via a coupling member comprising two elements that are coupled to each other via a coupling that includes radial clearance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2003
    Publication date: October 23, 2003
    Applicant: SERAC GROUP
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Publication number: 20020167185
    Abstract: The invention relates to a gripping clamp for receptacles, each comprising a body and a neck having a projecting collar presenting a substantially radial bearing face beside the body, the clamp having first and second jaws, the first jaw being arranged to co-operate with the bearing face of the collar and the second jaw being arranged to co-operate with a zone of the neck that extends in the vicinity of the bearing face on its side facing away from the body, when the clamp is in a closed, gripping position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 9, 2002
    Publication date: November 14, 2002
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 6334471
    Abstract: A method of filling a receptacle with a net weight substance by means of a filler member disposed to introduce the substance into the receptacle while the receptacle is being carried by a force sensor, the method comprising at least one cycle comprising the steps of: placing the receptacle on the force sensor; commanding the filler member to start a flow of the substance; repeatedly measuring the time for which the substance has been flowing since the start-of-flow command was issued; measuring a value of a signal supplied by the force sensor at least at first and second separate measurement instants; calculating a mean flow rate of the substance over the time interval between the measurement instants; making at least one computed evaluation of a filling time on the basis of the calculated mean flow rate and a reference weight; and commanding the flow of substance to stop when the flow time of the substance is equal to the evaluated filling time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2002
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: André Graffin
  • Patent number: 6073667
    Abstract: A method of weight-filling a receptacle having a cylindrical neck and a collar extending around the neck, comprising the steps of suspending the receptacle by the collar and filling and weighing the receptacle while it is suspended, and a weight-filler device for filling, by means of a filler spout, a receptacle having a cylindrical neck and a collar extending around the neck. The device has a weighing device including a holding element having a top surface forming a support for the collar of the receptacle so that the receptacle extends vertically beneath the filler spout and is cantilevered out from a support member mounted on a structure to extend laterally therefrom and associated with a weighing sensor comprising an elastically flexible bar having one end rigidly secured to the structure and an opposite end connected to the support member so that the support member extends substantially horizontally irrespective of a presence of an absence of a container on the support member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 1998
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2000
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5904067
    Abstract: A screwdriving spindle assembly comprising a spindle shaft provided with a holding device and secured to a gear wheel rotated by a drive assembly which comprises a pressurized fluid actuating cylinder having a piston rod secured to a transmission system, and a member for adjusting pressure disposed on a line for feeding fluid to the cylinder in the screw-tightening direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 1997
    Date of Patent: May 18, 1999
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5816456
    Abstract: A tubular body has a conical wall portion adjacent to a flow orifice. A conical valve member disposed facing the conical wall portion is connected to a position control member. A flow rate regulation member disposed upstream from the valve member relative to the fluid flow direction is connected to a position control member independent from the position control member of a valve member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 1996
    Date of Patent: October 6, 1998
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5676344
    Abstract: A drive member of magnetic material is coupled to a shutter member and co-operates with a magnetic field generator connected to a control member. The magnetic field generator is mounted inside a sleeve of non-magnetic material secured to the tubular body. The sleeve extends substantially along the axis of the tubular body having one end closed and having its opposite end opening out to the outside of the tubular body. The drive member extends outside the sleeve facing the magnetic field generator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 1996
    Date of Patent: October 14, 1997
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5562129
    Abstract: The manifold is secured to the dispenser duct adjacent an outflow nozzle and comprises an outlet orifice arranged directly above the outflow nozzle and is associated with a removable closure member secured to a lower end of a support member and associated with a control member which ensures that the closure member is applied against the outlet orifice of the manifold by a toggle action of the support member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 1995
    Date of Patent: October 8, 1996
    Assignee: Serac
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5542233
    Abstract: It comprises a transport member on which the receptacles have a displacement direction corresponding to their long sides, at least one rotary packaging platform, and a rotary transfer member for transferring the receptacles from the transport member to the packaging platform, and a swivelling member disposed between the transport member and the transfer member to position the receptacles on the transfer member with their long sides extending in substantially radial manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 1994
    Date of Patent: August 6, 1996
    Assignee: SERAC
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5515888
    Abstract: The method comprises the steps of:controlling the flow of substance by means of the filler member;measuring, over successive time intervals, the instantaneous flow rate of substance filled into the receptacle;calculating the total weight of substance filled into the receptacle on the basis of the instantaneous flow rate over each time interval; andcausing the flow of substance to stop when the calculated total weight reaches the reference net weight minus a tail-back weight for the substance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 14, 1996
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5450877
    Abstract: The valve includes a tubular body made of a non-magnetic material, a seat carried by the tubular body, a closure member disposed inside the tubular body and facing the seat, the closure member including a valve member connected to a drive ring made of a magnetic material extending substantially coaxially with the tubular body and facing a magnetic field generator disposed outside the tubular body and associated with a control member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 1994
    Date of Patent: September 19, 1995
    Assignee: Serac
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5408805
    Abstract: The method applies to a receptacle-closing carousel that includes a rotary platform fitted with receptacle holding members and associated with a receptacle insertion member and with a receptacle extraction member. The method consists in cantilevering out a length of heat-sealable strip in the receptacle insertion direction over a sector of the platform that extends between the receptacle extraction member and the receptacle insertion member, relative to the direction of rotation of the platform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 1993
    Date of Patent: April 25, 1995
    Assignee: Serac France
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5363629
    Abstract: The closure device includes a roll of heat-fusible strip material, an end-of-strip support member, a receptacle placing member for placing successive receptacles at a receptacle closure location facing the end-of-strip support member, a weld head disposed above a placed receptacle, a grasping member disposed facing the end-of-strip support member, and a drive member disposed relative to the receptacle closure location on a side opposite to the end-of-strip support member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 1993
    Date of Patent: November 15, 1994
    Assignee: Serac France
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5292236
    Abstract: The pump comprises a cylinder delimiting a pumping chamber in which a piston is mounted to slide between an admission orifice and a delivery orifice, the piston including a pumping orifice which is associated with a closure member mounted to pivot about an axis adjacent to the pumping orifice and including a closure face that is substantially plane and that faces the piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 1993
    Date of Patent: March 8, 1994
    Assignee: Serac France
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5287896
    Abstract: The method comprises the following steps: inserting a substance into a receptacle with at least one filling stage of fixed duration during which filling is performed at a servo-controlled flow rate using a servo-control loop including a weighing member, a weighing processor unit, and a flow rate control member; measuring the weight of substance contained in the receptacle after filling; comparing the weight of substance contained in the receptacle with a reference weight; and adjusting the servo-control relationship as a function of a difference between the weight of substance contained in the receptacle and the reference weight. An apparatus is provided to accomplish the above functions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 1992
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1994
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 5148841
    Abstract: Filling apparatus for filling receptacles, the apparatus comprising a feed member connected to at least one filling spout via a flow control member connected to an output of a weight processing unit having an input connected to a weighing member in order to deliver opening or closing signals to the flow control member as a function of a weight measured by the weighing member, the apparatus further including a time measuring member associated with the weight processing unit for enabling the processing unit to calculate the flow rate of substance through the flow control member and to compare the calculated flow rate with a flow rate reference value, and to adjust the flow rate of the substance as a function of the result of the comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 1990
    Date of Patent: September 22, 1992
    Assignee: Serac Group
    Inventor: Andre Graffin
  • Patent number: 4741144
    Abstract: Composite beam of polygonal cross-section comprises wooden external walls and a core of a material, such as concrete, providing the beam with its mechanical strength. The walls comprise flat elements assembled by means of bonded groove and tongue corner joints. Screws are embedded partially in the walls and partially in the core to bond the walls to the core.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 23, 1986
    Date of Patent: May 3, 1988
    Inventor: Andre Graffin