Method and apparatus for capping individual containers

Claim 1

A METHOD OF SUBSTANTIALLY SIMULTANEOUSLY SEALING EACH OF A PLURALITY OF CONTAINERS WITH AN INDIVIDUAL COVER FORMED FROM A SINGLE HEAT SEALABLE SHEET, SAID METHOD COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: PLACING A PLURALITY OF CONTAINERS IN A PORTABLE HOLDER IN A PLURALITY OF SUBSTANTIALLY SPACED PARALLEL ROWS WITH THEIR OPEN TOPS IN A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL PLANE; PROVIDING A HEAT SEALABLE SHEET CONTAINING A PLURALITY OF POTENTIAL COVERS FOR SAID CONTAINERS, SAID POTENTIAL COVERS ARRANGED IN THE SAME PATTERN AS SAID CONTAINERS AND SEPARATED FROM EACH OTHER BY WEAKENED AREAS IN SAID SHEET; POSITIONING SAID SHEET OVER THE OPEN TOPS OF SAID CONTAINERS WITH A POTENTIAL COVER OVER EACH OPEN TOP CONTAINER; POSITIONING SAID HOLDER, HAVING SAID OPEN TOP CONTAINERS THEREIN, IN AN APPARATUS HAVING A SEALING HEAD WITH A PLURALITY OF ROWS OF SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL RECESSES THEREIN CONFORMING TO THE EXTERNAL BRIM DIMENSIONS OF SAID OPEN TOP CONTAINERS, SO THAT SAID RECESSES AND SAID OPEN TOP CONTAINERS ARE IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT; LOWERING SAID SEALING HEAD TO FORCE SAID SHEET INTO CONTACT WITH SAID CONTAINER BRIMS, THUS SEPARATING SAID SHEET ALONG SAID WEAKENED AREAS TO PROVIDE AN INDIVIDUAL COVER FOR EACH CONTAINER AND DRAWING A COVER AROUND THE BRIM OF A CONTAINER; AND SUBSTANTIALLY SIMULTANEOUSLY HEATING AND PRESSING EACH INDIVIDUAL COVER IN ENGAGEMENT WITH A CONTAINER BRIM TO HEAT SEAL COVERS TO SAID BRIMS WHILE MAINTAINING SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL PRESSURE UPON EACH OF SAID CUP BRIMS.