Point-of-sale display cards are widely utilized as a means for dispensing small bags or packets of snack foods and other products to the customer. While such cards may assume any of several forms, the product bags of are normally either stapled to the card, or the card itself is formed with integral gripping means by which the bags can be disengageably mounted. Typical of the latter are the constructions shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,030,996 to Lustig and 2,656,918 to Hollis; United Kingdom patent specification Nos. 1,250,656, 1,487,365, 1,492,741, 1,492,742, 1,492,743, and 1,600,047; and United Kingdom patent application Nos. GB 2 041 743A and GB 2 055 741A, all of the foregoing United Kingdom patent properties being in the name of Allen Davies & Company. In copending application Ser. No. 385,881, entitled CARD FOR MOUNTING BAGS AND THE LIKE, filed on June 7, 1982, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,422,552, issued Dec. 27, 1983 and of common assignment herewith, a novel display card is disclosed, which has a matched pair of locking tabs to provide two-point, corner support for the product bags.
While it is generally feasible to mount the bags upon all such tab-formed product display cards by manually loading them into the slots behind the tabs, such an approach is obviously cumbersome, time-consuming and far from ideal. Despite this, and despite the prior recognition of the desirability of carrying out the product-loading operations by automatic mechanical means, there appears to be scant disclosure in the art of machinery and mechanisms by which such operations can be effected.
In the above-mentioned United Kingdom patent application No. 2 055 741 A, apparatus for attaching articles to support cards is described, wherein the cards are carried on a conveyor about a roller to the package-loading station. When properly positioned, a deflector member displaces the tongue of the gripping structure, permitting the end flange of the product package to enter therebehind, following which a presser member pushes the tongue back through the body of the card to grasp the inserted portion. This apparatus suffers from several serious deficiencies, paramount amongst which is the fact that the packets are loaded upside-down, with the product filling the area directly adjacent the flange that is to be inserted. This limits the level of gripping force that can be developed, and inhibits facile and effective loading.
A device for assisting the insertion of bags behind tongues of a display card is disclosed in United Kingdom patent No. 1 492 741, also mentioned above. Apparatus for use in attaching product bags to a supporting strip, by stapling, adhesive bonding or punching, is taught in Mahnken U.S. Pat. No. 3,465,411. Neither of these patents, however, addresses the need for an automatic mechanism for mounting products bags upon display cards.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a novel mechanism by which product bags can be mounted automatically upon a display card, rapidly and in a highly effective and reliable manner, with the bags being arranged in a multiple column and row pattern, if so desired.
It is a more specific object of the invention to provide such a novel mechanism wherein the bag is so disposed, prior to the loading operation, as to promote movement of its contents away from the flange to be engaged by the card, thereby contributing substantially to the level of support ultimately provided, and to the effectiveness and facility of loading.
Another object of the invention is to provide a mechanism having the foregoing features and advantages, which is of relatively uncomplicated design, and is especially well-adapted for use in an integrated packaging system.
Yet an additional object of the invention is to provide a novel method for the mounting of product bags upon a display card, which method is rapid, facile, highly effective, and reliable.