Filling Heads
Filling Heads are designed for safe and easy filling and evacuation of all types of LPG cylinders. Different methods of filling have been developed not only to accommodate the different characteristics of the product but also to achieve various accuracies of fill, because while for a low value product there may be no incentive to fill more accurately than the statutory requirements, for high value product increased accuracy can represent a considerable saving in product "giveaway".
The filling of powders and free flowing solids poses particular problems because of the generation of dust and variations in bulk density. Very dusty products are typically filled using auger fillers or vacuum fillers, but where the bulk density of product varies significantly it will usually be necessary to combine this with a weight correction mechanism like a checkweigher because typically these products are sold by weight.
The filling of carbonated drinks like soft drinks or beer and products like liquid detergents which have a tendency to foam also poses significant problems which are typically solved using a technique called "bottom up filling", where the filling nozzle is inserted into the container and slowly raised during the filling process so that the mouth of the filling nozzle is always kept below the level of the liquid.
At their simplest filling machines can be single head bench mounted devices that are manually operated and at their most sophisticated rotary fillers which can incorporate scores of filling heads and be able to fill and seal thousands of cans every minute.
The two most common arrangements of fillers with multiple filling heads are 'in line' where the filling heads are fixed and containers are moved under the heads and then removed when filled in an intermittent process, and 'Rotary' where several filling heads are mounted on a rotating carousel and containers are fed onto the carousel, filled and then discharged continuously.
Some weigh filling machines for filling liquids like oils look remarkably similar to their volumetric or level equivalent, however, large machines for filling sacks or bags have little physical resemblance to liquid fillers, but the techniques of weighing, dosing or counting, etc, remain broadly similar.
The sub pages have been arranged according to the filling technique e.g. volumetric, level, gravimetric (weighing).
Typical Features
- Easy and fast coupling and decoupling
- Minimum gas discharge at coupling and decoupling
- No gas discharge at sudden interruptions in compressed air supply
- Manual and semi-automatic filling heads are operated by single hand
- Flexible suspension for coupling of valves which are not in central position for filling
- Ergonomic operation of manual and semi-automatic filling heads thanks to balanced suspension
- Minimum maintenance
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