The invention of the vacuum conveyor in 2003 really did herald a new era in the world of packaging machine engineering. Te erecting tool transfers the box directly to the suction plates of the vacuum conveyor. Fixed at the base by vacuum, the box is conveyed to the various work stations, eliminating the need for lateral guides and holding down devices. The suction plates are configured as exchangeable transport tools, offering a positioning accuracy of 0.1 mm. They are capable of travelling at up to 9 metres per second between two stations. As a rule, a vacuum conveyor comprises three individual transport units

In the past no particular importance was ever attached to the transfer of packaging materials to the packaging plant, as in any case this process had to be reconfigured for every new application. However, with the development of TLM technology, a significant new component was created: The flexible transfer unit, a true two-axis robot. Flat carton blanks, plastic trays, reinforcing cards, brochures - whatever has to be transferred is inserted into the transfer unit's stacking magazine. The magazine cmprises the actual magazine plate, an exchangeable component (tool), the transport rails with their level control sensors and the transfer tool - an exchangeable suction plate. The magazine can be moved out of the machine for tool changeover, which takes around 3 minutes.

When the F2 was first launched in 1984, it was classified as a robot. Then, as it only had two axes, it was demoted to a movement unit. After proving its value many thousands of times over in practical operation, it was restored to the status of robot. In actual fact, it has been far more successful over the years than its four-axis counterpart, proving once again the truth behind the rule that flexibility increases with decreasing mechanical complexity. The TLM-F2 robot unit can be used for box erecting, filling and lidding. Who would ever have believed such an achievement possible with a single unit? The TLM-F2 features an ingenious tool actuation system designed to accommodate easily exchangeable product-specific tools.

consist of TLM system components are ideally suited for the packaging of all types of individual products. TLM packaging machines are a pleasure to work with - highly flexible, clear and  manageable, offering easy access and outstanding operating simplicity.

are the first digital thermoforming, filling and sealing machines to work with two continuously running film webs, pick-and-place robots equipped for the insertion of products from bulk, and ultrasound sealing and punching functions.

260 bottles a minute, 8 different pack sizes from 4-bottle mutlipacks to 24-bottle trays and shipping cartons - quite a performance spectrum for a single machine.

And what's more - the multipacks not only have to be cluster packed but also placed into shipping cartons. Mission impossible? Plenty would say so. The entire line has to be accommodated in an area of just 7 x 2,5 m - which means using one single TLM packaging machine.

Despite the highly compact technology it contains, this machine still affords an exceptionally clear arrangement and optimum accessibility to everyone of its functions - as the industry has come to expect of a Schubert TLM packaging machine.

F44 Picker Lines are purely series-production machines for picking and placing products in trays, sales and shipping cartons. On time delivery" has become a reality, as F44 picker lines are extremely flexible. F44 picker lines operate in accordance with an extremely simple concept . The product is fed freely standing or lying on a continuously moving conveyor belt. The packaging trays or boxes also run continuously to the left or right of the belt - but in the opposite direction of the product. The speed is matched to the product quantity and is controlled fully automatically.
However, what makes the entire system control absolutely unique are the picker stations themselves. A central computer is not required. Any failure of a robot system has no affect whatsoever on the operation or efficiency of the entire picker system. When F44 picker lines are used, there is also no need for the otherwise obligatory product buffer.

consist of TLM system components are ideally suited for the packaging of all types of individual products. TLM packaging machines are a pleasure to work with - highly flexible, clear and  manageable, offering easy access and outstanding operating simplicity.

are always standard machines for packaging product assortments. The products are fed into the line on conveyors, inspected by the image processing system and placed in trays, retail or shipping cartons depending on the relevant packaging scheme.

The TLM packaging line for Finlay comprises five machine frames accommodating, from right to left, two carton erecting stations, one filling station and two closing stations. After filling, the boxes are closed with an attached inner lid and an attached outer lid.

The line can currently package five different pack sizes, containing 80, 100, 120, 160 and 240 bags. The tea bags are fed into the blue bins from several different teabag machines at a rate of 8000 per minute and a TLM-F2 robot in the central part of the line fills boxes, which have been erected from flat blanks, through hoppers. During the filling process, a second TLM-F2 robot executes a cleverly designed vibration program designed to shake out and evenly distribute the teabags in the boxes.

The compact TLM line offers clear and easy access to all its functions, and can be reset within just minutes.

The world's first packaging robot was a four-axis model developed and constructed by Gerhard Schubert at the end of the seventies. Unveiled for the first time at Interpack 1981 sporting the name Roby, the unit attracted excited interest in the industry. Today, it goes by the type designation TLM-F4 robot unit. Equipped with a carbon fibre arm, it is capable of achieving acceleration levels of 10 G and speeds of 5 metres per second. And as you would expect of a robot, it does all this with practically no noise. The F4 unit, also known as a picker, generally comes exclusively in the form of a double pack regulated by a control system - a double F4 or F44 picker station. While in former times the unit's zero point had to be laboriously reset with every change of motor, this now takes place fully automatically.

The vision system

Our vision system is used in conjunction with the TLM-F44 robot unit. The vision system is capable of processing around 4000 products per minute with the aid of an incident or transmitted light scanner. The incident light scanner is a colour scanner which supplies a three-dimensional picture. The packaging machine operator can specify certain quality characteristics for the image processing system to take into consideration, so ensuring that only flawless products are ever picked off the infeed conveyor. As well as the precise position and rotational angle of the products, the surface dimensions and contour data are compared to the specified values and transmitted to the robots

Never before has it been possible to solve such a complex packaging task in such a small space.  TLM makes it possible.  160 Brita water filters per minute are packaged into 1ct, 3ct, 5ct, 10ct and 15ct boxes.  The boxes are erected from flat blanks and glued together, once they have been filled they are closed with a lid.  Providing the ultimate in flexibility, the system can be reset for the various pack sizes within 10 to 20 minutes.

The story of how the TLM packaging machine series evolved goes back to one day in 1959 when Gerhard Schubert first mooted to an older colleague the idea of inventing a modular system for packaging machines. Despite being met with no more than a derisory smile, the idea continued to haunt him. When he founded his own company in 1966, he lost no time in putting his project into practice. His first approach was to create mechanical modules in large numbers which were used to configure top-loading machines. This led him to the realization at the end of the seventies that the only real way forward was through robot technology. By 1984 a decisive milestone was reached: His first packaging robot functioned like clockwork, heralding a whole new era in packaging machine technology. Even the very first packaging robot models were equipped with a control system, confirming that true flexibility could only be achieved by underpinning mechanics with intelligent controls. The end of the nineties saw the emergence of a new philosophical direction in which machines began to be designed to emulate human characteristics. Simple mechanisms, intelligent control systems and exchangeable tools were used, and the TLM packaging machine system was born.

TLM packaging machines were launched in January 2002, since then their career has been characterized by what must be an unprecedented level of development investment. The TLM machine system today comprises an incredible seven modules. The number seven should be chewed over well and digested slowly. The TLM packaging machine system comprises just seven modules - a transfer unit, a grouping chain, the TLM-F2 packaging robot, the TLM-F44 packaging robot, a vision system, a vacuum conveyor, a machine frame and an operator guidance system. Incidentally the three letters TLM stand for Top Loading Machine.

Chocolate box selections are packaged on this line which encompasses 20 infeed belts and 10 robot arms. Each of the 5 TLM packaging stations is fitted with 2 robots (Schubert standard), picking 220 chocolates per minute off the belt and positioning them in trays. The system packs 1100 chocolates per minute in total.

Weil TLM-Maschinen reine Standardmaschinen sind, die aus nicht mehr als 7 Systemkomponenten bestehen, können wir für dieses Maschinenprogramm einen erstklassigen Service bieten, der folgende Bereiche umfasst:

ESM - das eletronische Servicemodul
Ersatzteildienst
Wartungsverträge
Ausbildungsseminare für Maschinenführer und Wartungspersonal
Hotline / Trouble Shooting
Maschinenumbauten