Abstract: A liquid impregnating system for impregnating, with a liquid, absorbent, compressible product maintained at least in part within the interior compartment of a tub or other container. The impregnating operation is carried out by compressing the product to increase the residence volume in the tub for the impregnating liquid, and directing the liquid into engagement with the product while it is maintained in its compressed condition. Most preferably, the product is a stack of absorbent sheets and the compressing operation is carried out by pressing downwardly on the uppermost sheet of the stack in localized areas intermediate end margins to cause end margins of at least some adjacent sheets in the stack to fan apart. This increases the accessibility of absorbent surface area within the stack to the impregnating liquid.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a machine which is adapted to fill a line of containers passing through a filling zone. The machine includes apparatus for delivering material to the containers which is arranged compactly yet is easily accessible for maintenance and cleaning. The material delivery apparatus includes a hopper located at the outlet end of the machine and an inclined endless belt conveyor extending upwardly from the hopper to a discharge location laterally spaced from and above the line of containers to be filled. The conveyor belt has flights which pick up portions of material from the hopper and deliver the portions to a shaker tray mounted for reciprocation offset and parallel to the line of containers. The shaker tray has a diagonal discharge edge for uniformly distributing an elongated flow of the material to a lower shaker tray mounted for reciprocation transversely to the line of containers.

Abstract: This invention is a method and apparatus for performing said method wherein a drinking straw having a flexible section thereof is inserted into a container for fluids, and which is particularly characterized by the use of means for folding the straw about the flexible portion and inserting the same within a liquid filled container prior to the sealing of said container, in such a manner that the straw is angularly disposed so as to be readily accessable on opening of the container.

Abstract: An apparatus and method according to which articles such as pickles are packed into open top containers such as jars and concurrently with operation of a compacting device filled with a desired liquid. By way of example while pickles are pressed into jars brine is filled into the jars, thereby avoiding the necessity of brining means separare from the pickle packing apparatus.

Abstract: An improved method for handling and transporting thermoplastic materials such as chewing gum base is disclosed. Chewing gum base, formulated as a hot viscous blend, is initially extruded and then pelletized. The pellets are subsequently cooled in a liquid medium such as water. Instead of drying the pellets and coating the pellets with a lubricating powder for packaging and shipment, a slurry of the cooling medium and pellets is conveyed to bulk containers or railroad tank cars for transport to the customer-user, a chewing gum manufacturer. By transporting in a liquid the tendency of the tacky pellets to agglomerate is eliminated, and the prior steps of drying and coating the pellets with a lubricating power are unnecessary. The customer-user, in the case of chewing gum base, furthermore, does not have to separate agglomerated pellets before use, and the pellets need only be strained and conveyed directly to a blender for formulation into chewing gum compositions.

Abstract: Vaporizers with flat wicks folded into U-shape within open-topped, laterally apertured generally prismatic casings, capped by complementary covers which are vertically slidable thereon to control the escape of a volatile liquid impregnating the wicks, are mass-produced on a plurality of assembly lines each comprising a wick-loading station, an impregnating station, an insertion station and a capping station. The dry and unfolded wicks are successively advanced from their loading station along an upper track past the impregnating station, where they are permeated with the liquid, to the insertion station in which a plunger thrusts each wick through a narrow central slit into an aligned casing waiting on a lower track, the wick being doubled in passing through the slit into the casing.

Abstract: In successive aligned groups, flower pots are gravity filled with earth in slight excess, the top compacted and leveled and a conical hole drilled in each to receive a plant, each successive operation being simultaneously carried out for the several pots in each group.

Abstract: A filling and sealing process and apparatus for retort foods, in which a plurality of retort pouches are treated at the same time. The retort pouches are gripped by a plurality of grippers fixedly connected to an endless transfer chain and fed through first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth stations. The endless transfer chain is arranged to be intermittently movable around the outer periphery of a platform mounted on a base. At the first station, a plurality of retort pouches are gripped by the grippers and opened and dilated at the second station. The opened retort pouches are fed to third station where a defectively opened retort pouch is sensed and released from the gripper. The retort pouches gripped by the grippers are fed to the fourth station, where solid food materials are introduced into the retort pouches. At the fifth station, the retort pouches are supplied with viscous liquid.

Abstract: In the packaging of moist towelettes in sealed envelopes part of the liquid is inserted before the towellette is thrust into the envelope and the balance is subsequently injected.