Tobacco – Cigar or cigarette making – Including cooperating surfaces to induce rolling
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-14
2002-05-21
Fortuna, Jose (Department: 1731)
Tobacco
Cigar or cigarette making
Including cooperating surfaces to induce rolling
C131S032000, C131S036000, C131S055000, C131S058000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06390099
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED CASES
This application claims the priority of German patent application Serial No. 198 57 576.9 filed Dec. 14, 1998. The disclosure of the above-referenced German patent application, as well as that of each U.S. and foreign patent and patent application mentioned in the specification of the present application, is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to improvements in apparatus for making composite rod-shaped commodities, such as filter cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to improvements in apparatus wherein successive groups of coaxial rod-shaped articles are connected to each other, end-to-end, by flexible bands or strips which are convoluted around abutting end portions of coaxial articles. As a rule, or at least in many instances, one side of each strip or band (hereinafter called uniting band) is coated with a suitable adhesive so that the convoluted uniting band adheres to and forms a tubular wrapper or envelope around the abutting end portions of the thus joined or assembled composite rod-shaped assemblies.
It is well known to make filter cigarettes in a so-called tipping machine wherein rod-shaped filter mouthpieces of double unit length are placed between pairs of coaxial plain cigarettes of unit length and an adhesive-coated uniting band is convoluted around each mouthpiece of double unit length as well as around the adjacent (inner) end portions of the respective plain cigarettes of unit length. The resulting filter cigarettes of double unit length are severed midway across the tubular wrappers (convoluted uniting bands) to yield pairs of filter cigarettes of unit length. One filter cigarette of each pair is inverted end-for-end and is placed between the non-inverted filter cigarettes to form therewith a row of parallel filter cigarettes which are conveyed sideways to a testing station and thereafter to storage or to a packing machine. Reference may be had to commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,008 granted Aug. 4, 1992 to Erwin Oesterling et al. for “METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING FILTER CIGARETTES”.
As a rule, the adhesive-coated uniting bands are convoluted around two or more coaxial rod-shaped articles during sidewise travel of the articles in a so-called rolling channel between two surfaces at least one of which moves relative to the other surface. For example, the rolling channel can be defined by the convex peripheral surface of a rolling drum and the complementary concave surface of a stationary rolling member. The inlet of the rolling channel receives successive groups of coaxial rod-shaped articles, and each such group already carries or can carry and adhesive-coated uniting band. The latter is convoluted around the respective group while the group rolls in the channel due to the selected difference between the speeds of the surfaces which bound the channel. Each group can be caused to turn about its longitudinal axis once or more than once depending, e.g., upon the size of the uniting band and/or upon the length of the interval of time which is required to ensure reliable adherence of the convoluted uniting band to the rod-shaped articles of the respective group and/or reliable adherence of convolutions of the rolled-up uniting band to each other.
Heretofore known apparatus for convoluting uniting bands around groups of two or more coaxial rod-shaped articles can be categorized in dependency upon their design and/or mode of operation. A first category employs a rotary drum-shaped conveyor and a stationary block or belt; the stationary part cooperates with the conveyor to define the aforementioned channel wherein successive groups of rod-shaped articles roll from the inlet to the outlet with attendant rolling of the uniting bands around the abutting end portions of the rod-shaped articles in the respective groups. Apparatus of the just outlined character are disclosed, for example, in German patents Nos. 65 90 64, 96 03 47 and 37 02 915.
German patent No. 65 90 64 discloses a filter tipping machine wherein a first rotary drum is provided with peripheral flutes for delivery of groups of coaxial plain cigarettes and filter rod sections into contact with adhesive-coated uniting bands being delivered by a second rotary drum-shaped conveyor which cooperates with a band to define an arcuate channel wherein the uniting bands are convoluted around the respective groups of coaxial rod-shaped articles.
German patent No. 96 03 47 discloses a filter tipping machine wherein the peripheral surface of a drum-shaped conveyor is provided with flutes for groups of coaxial plain cigarettes and filter rod sections. The peripheral surface turns in a first direction and cooperates with a driven belt to define a rolling channel. The belt is driven in a second direction counter to the first direction and such belt further serves to deliver discrete uniting bands to the inlet of the rolling channel; each such band is caused to adhere to and is convoluted around the oncoming group of coaxial plain cigarettes and one or more filter mouthpieces.
German patent No. 37 02 915 discloses a filter tipping machine wherein groups of coaxial plain cigarettes and filter rod sections are contacted by adhesive-coated uniting bands upstream of the inlet of the rolling channel. The groups and the respective uniting bands are delivered by a rotary drum-shaped conveyor which defines the rolling channel with a stationary block-shaped rolling member. The groups which approach the inlet of the channel are engaged by ribs or analogous protuberances provided on rollers or drums which frictionally engage the groups on the rotating conveyor and are thus entrained in a direction toward the inlet while moving at a speed less than the peripheral speed of the conveyor. This causes the groups to roll around their respective axes during advancement from the inlet toward the outlet of the rolling channel.
The aforedescribed filter tipping machines are merely three examples of presently known apparatus wherein uniting bands are caused to connect groups of coaxial rod-shaped articles by means of convoluted adhesive-coated uniting bands. All such apparatus exhibit the serious drawback that at least one of the surfaces bounding the rolling channel is stationary. This can affect the quality and/or the appearance of the thus obtained assemblies of rod-shaped articles and convoluted uniting bands, especially as a result of abrupt initiation of the rolling step at the inlet of the channel. The force which acts upon the groups entering the channel is quite pronounced, and such force does not diminish as the rolling operation progresses. The filter tipping machine which is disclosed in the aforementioned German patent No. 37 02 915 exhibits the additional drawback that the rolling channel is bounded by two stationary surfaces and the parts which are provided with such stationary surfaces cannot yield at all, i.e., the material of such parts is devoid of any elasticity. This can greatly affect the appearance and/or the integrity of the assemblies of coaxial rod-shaped articles (such as plain cigarettes and filter rod sections) and the convoluted uniting bands, especially if the tipping machine is to be operated at a relatively high speed. The engagement of successive groups by the aforementioned protuberances or projections in the form of ribs or the like, which engage successive groups while moving at a speed well below that of the rotary drum-shaped conveyor, can also result in defacing of and/or in structural damage to the ultimate products.
A second category of presently known apparatus for convoluting uniting bands around groups of coaxial rod-shaped articles differs from the aforedescribed apparatus in that the rolling channel is defined by two moving surfaces provided on driven endless belts. The belts can yield, at least to a certain extent, to thus reduce the likelihood of damage to the rod-shaped articles and to the uniting bands during advancement toward and through the rolling channel.
Fortuna Jose
Hauni Maschinenabau AG
Kinberg Robert
Lopez Carlos
Venable
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