KIT FOR THE ASSEMBLY OF SMOKING ARTICLES

Abstract

A kit for the assembly of smoking articles comprises a plurality of smokable tobacco rods, a plurality of filter assemblies and a package. Each one of the filter assemblies has an interface for connecting with one of the smokable tobacco rods. The plurality of smokable tobacco rods and the plurality of filters are packed in the package. In another embodiment, the kit comprises a plurality of smoking articles, a plurality of filter assemblies and a package. Each one of the smoking articles is fitted with one filter tip and is adapted to be severed into a first part and a second part, the first part containing the filter tip. Each one of the filter assemblies has an interface for connecting with the second part of one of the severed smoking articles. The smoking articles are provided in a smokable format. The plurality of smoking articles and the plurality of filter assemblies are packaged in the package. In another embodiment, a filter assembly for a smoking article is also disclosed. The filter assembly comprises a filter tip and an outer shell. The outer shell extends longitudinally outwardly from the filter tip. The outer shell has a cylindrical interior surface defining an interface coated with an adhesive for adhering to the smoking article. The cylindrical interior surface is dimensioned to fit an exterior diameter of the smoking article.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of smoking articles, including but not limited to cigarettes. More particularly, the invention relates to a kit for the assembly of smoking articles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many people are cost-conscious when it comes to selecting their smoking articles, such as cigarettes or cigarillos, for example. While some choose a less expensive product, other users decide to only partly smoke their cigarette and retain the remaining for a later time. Not withstanding economical reasons, some users would also like to briefly enjoy a cigarette, but not a complete one and feel bad about wasting a part of their cigarette. To a certain extent, cigarette manufacturers have listened to their customers' needs and provided them with products that are cheaper to manufacture. However, none have still suggested a convenient method for users to tailor the size of their cigarettes or other smoking articles, to their immediate needs.

Cigarettes sold in kits for assembly by the end user provide a solution to the economical problem. However, some of these cigarettes kits, known as “roll-your-own” are basic and require much preparation and dexterity from the end user. Such is the case with cigarette kits where the cigarettes are made from scratch from loose tobacco and cigarette wrappers without any mechanical aids. Another problem of these cigarette kits lies in obtaining a consistency in the quantity of the tobacco charge employed, and hence obtaining a consistency in smoking quality.

Several suggestions have been made in the prior art to mechanize the operation of cigarette assembly and thereby address the problem of consistency of cigarette kits. One such prior art suggestion appears in U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,830 to Brackmann et al. This patent describes a kit to assemble cigarettes using cut tobacco provided in charges in non-smokable cartridges. During assembly, the charges are inserted, with the help of a special tool, into a cigarette tube and a sheath surrounding the cartridge is removed. However, even though the special tool used in this kit is somewhat portable, a solution requiring even less manipulation would prove to be more convenient for the user to prepare his cigarettes. Other problems with this solution reside in the fact that the length of the cigarettes cannot be adjusted to the instant needs of the user, and that the tobacco charge is provided in a non-smokable format, which requires the sheath material to be present and then to be discarded, thereby increasing product costs and waste.

There is therefore a need for a solution that provides cigarettes or other smoking articles to a user at reduced costs, that requires low manipulation, that provides a good consistency of the tobacco charge and that also provides the user with the flexibility of adjusting the length of his smoking article to his needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In the following description of the invention, the terms “smoking article” should be understood to be a readily smokable article such as a cigarette or a cigarillo or other similar articles for which the invention may work.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a kit for the assembly of smoking articles that overcomes or mitigates one or more disadvantages of known smoking article kits, or at least provides a useful alternative.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a kit for the assembly of smoking articles that are lower in cost.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a kit for the assembly of smoking articles that allows a user to assemble his smoking articles with very few steps.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a kit for the assembly of smoking articles that have a consistent tobacco charge for a given length.

It is another object of an aspect of the present invention to provide a kit for the assembly of smoking articles that allows the user to tailor the length of the smoking article to his needs.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a kit for the assembly of smoking articles comprising a plurality of tobacco rods, a plurality of filter assemblies and a package. Each one of the filter assemblies has an interface for connecting with one of the tobacco rods. The plurality of tobacco rods and the plurality of filters are packed in the package.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a filter assembly for a smoking article having an exterior diameter. The filter assembly comprises a filter tip and an outer shell. The outer shell extends longitudinally outwardly from the filter tip. The outer shell has a cylindrical interior surface defining an interface coated with an adhesive for adhering to the smoking article. The cylindrical interior surface is dimensioned to fit the exterior diameter of the smoking article.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided a kit for the assembly of smoking articles comprising a plurality of smoking articles, a plurality of filter assemblies and a package. Each one of the smoking articles is fitted with one filter tip. Each one of the smoking articles is adapted to be severed into a first part and a second part, the first part comprising the filter tip. Each one of the filter assemblies has an interface for connecting with the second part of one of the severed smoking articles. The plurality of smoking articles and the plurality of filter assemblies are packaged in the package. The smoking articles are provided in a readily smokable format.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a kit for the assembly of smoking articles in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a filter assembly in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of an assembled smoking article built with the filter assembly of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a filter assembly in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an assembled smoking article built with the filter assembly of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a cutter in action in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a partially sectioned perspective view of the kit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a kit for the assembly of smoking articles in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a severed assembled smoking article contained in the kit of FIG. 8.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention discloses a kit for assembling smoking articles. The smoking articles, such as cigarettes or cigarillos or other similar articles, are produced in a smokable format. The kit includes tobacco rods, filter assemblies and optionally, a cutter. The cutter allows the user to cut his smoking articles to a desired length. The user fits a filter assembly to the smoking article before or after cuting it to the desired length, and is ready to consume it. Conveniently, a new filter assembly allows the user to easily fix it to the smoking article.

In the present description, an example of the invention will be described by making reference to a cigarette. However, the person skilled in the art will readily understand that the same principles may be applied to other types of smoking articles such as cigarillos for example. Specific reference to a cigarette in the description should therefore not be considered limiting.

FIG. 1 depicts a kit 10 for the assembly of smoking articles, such as cigarettes. The kit 10 comprises a plurality of smokable tobacco rods 12, a plurality of filter assemblies 14 and a package 16. Optionally, the kit may also include a cutter 18 adapted to sever the smokable tobacco rods 12.

The smokable tobacco rods 12 may be supplied in different lengths. For example, the smokable tobacco rod 12 could be provided in a length of 140 mm and then cut in equal parts of 70 mm. Alternatively, the length of the parts could be unequal.

In smokable format, the smokable tobacco rod 12 must be made with a cigarette paper 19, best shown in FIG. 3 such that the cigarette remains smokable. By contrast, tobacco rods provided in non-smokable format need to use a porous wrapper made of a material that lets sufficient air flow through, thereby rendering the tobacco rod non-smokable.

FIG. 2 is now referred to. Each filter assembly 14 comprises a filter tip 20 and an outer shell 22. In order to fit properly with the smokable tobacco rods 12, shown in FIG. 3, the filter assemblies 14 are provided with an interface 24 for connecting with the smokable tobacco rod 12 so that the filter assembly 14 may easily be assembled with the smokable tobacco rod 12. In an embodiment of the present invention, the filter assembly 14 has its outer shell 22 extending longitudinally from the filter tip 20, thereby defining the interface 24. The interface 24 is provided with sufficient length to ensure anchorage to the smokable tobacco rod 12. Normally, the interface 24 extends from the filter tip 20 by 10 mm or less, typically by approximately 5 mm. The outer shell 22 is cylindrical in shape, to match the shape of the smokable tobacco rod 12. An interior surface 26 of the outer shell 22, defining the interface 24, has its interior diameter dimensioned to fit an exterior diameter of the smokable tobacco rod 12. In an example of the present invention, the interface 24 is coated with an adhesive for adhering to the smokable tobacco rod 12. Conveniently, the adhesive is of the type that is activated by moisture. FIG. 3 depicts an exploded view of the filter assembly 14 and the smokable tobacco rod 12. The outer shell 22 of the filter assembly 14 may be made of different materials such as paper or plastic. When the outer shell 22 is made of paper, the filter assembly 14 is normally discarded once a cigarette has been completely consumed. On the other hand, if the outer shell 22 is made of plastic, it may be reusable. Then, only the filter tip 20 may need to be replaced inside the outer shell 22. Optionally, the filter tip 20 may also be flavoured.

Turning now to FIG. 4, there is depicted another embodiment of the filter assembly 14. The filter assembly 14 still comprises the outer shell 22. However, this latter does not necessarily extend from the filter tip 20. The interface 24 in this case is an extremity of the filter tip 20 so that when the filter assembly 14 is fitted to the smokable tobacco rod 12, it abuts on an extremity of the smokable tobacco rod 12, as shown in FIG. 5, which is now concurrently referred to. A sticker 28 is provided to bond the filter assembly 14 to the smokable tobacco rod 12 by being placed around a joint 29 between the filter assembly 14 and the smokable tobacco rod 12. The sticker 28 may use a moisture activated adhesive on its sticking surface 30. Alternatively, the sticker 28 may be of the peel-off type. In this case, the user simply has to peel-off a protective layer from the sticking surface 30 of the sticker 28 and apply the sticker 28 over the joint between the filter assembly 14 and the smokable tobacco rod 12, as shown in FIG. 5.

Reference is now made to FIG. 6, which depicts a smokable tobacco rod 12 being severed by the cutter 18. The cuter 18 is equipped with an aperture 32, through which the smokable tobacco rod 12 is inserted for severing. The aperture 32 is dimensioned to conform to the exterior diameter of the smokable tobacco rod 12. Once inserted in the aperture 32, the smokable tobacco rod 12 is severed in two parts 33, not necessarily of the same length, according to the needs of the user. Although conventional scissors or a knife may be used to sever the smokable tobacco rod 12, the cutter 18 allows a clean cut of the smokable tobacco rod 12 during the severing operation. A conical shaped depression 31 is provided on the cutter 18 to round and taper an end of the smokable tobacco rod 12 to facilitate the assembly of the smokable tobacco rod 12 with the filter assembly 14. Conveniently, the user may sever the smokable tobacco rod 12 in two or more pieces, allowing tailoring the length to his needs. The cutter 18 may be packaged with the filter assemblies 14, as shown in FIG. 1.

Now turning to FIG. 7, there is depicted the kit 10 comprising the package 16 for packaging the smokable tobacco rods 12, the filter assemblies 14 and, optionally, the cutter 18 (not shown in FIG. 7, best shown in FIG. 1). Although the smokable tobacco rods 12, the filter assemblies 14 and the cutter 18 may be packaged in the same package, it may be preferable to package them separately. For example, the smokable tobacco rods 12 may be packaged in cigarette containers 34 and the filter assemblies 14 may be packaged in a filter container 36. Conveniently, the cutter 18, if provided with the kit 10, may also be provided inside either the filter container 36 or one of the rod containers 34. Since most users will sever the smokable tobacco rods 12 in two, twice as many filter assemblies 14 as smokable tobacco rods 12 are provided. However, since some users may sever their smokable tobacco rods 12 in more than two parts, the number of filter assemblies 14 provided in the kit 10 may even be more than twice the number of smokable tobacco rods 12. When required, a sufficient quantity of stickers 28 (not shown) may also be included in the kit 10. The smokable tobacco rods 12 may be provided in one or many separate rod containers 34. However, for convenience, smaller rod containers 34 are used and the smokable tobacco rods 12 are packaged in an wrapper 38, better shown in FIG. 1 and concurrently referred to, such as to preserve tobacco freshness. To further protect product freshness and to provide a convenient and attractive package 16, the package 16 may further include a wrapper 40. The wrapper 40 may either be made of a plastic film or an aluminized material, or any other equivalent material.

In an example of the product, the kit 10 may comprise four rod containers 34, each comprising 25 smokable tobacco rods 12, for a total of 100 smokable tobacco rods 12. The filter container 36 comprises at least 200 filter assemblies 14, or at least twice the quantity of smokable tobacco rods 12. If more rod containers 34 are provided, each containing 25 smokable tobacco rods, a minimum matching quantity of filter assemblies 14 must be provided in multiples of 50.

FIG. 8 represents another embodiment of the present invention. The kit 10 comprises a plurality of smokable cigarettes 42, a plurality of filter assemblies 14 and the package 16. In the present embodiment, each smokable cigarette 42 is fitted with one filter tip 20, as best shown in FIG. 9, now concurrently referred to. The smokable cigarettes 42 are provided in a readily smokable format. Optionally, the kit 10 may comprise the cutter 18. The cutter 18 is used to sever the smokable cigarette 42 into a first part 44 and a second part 46. The first part 44 retains the filter tip 20 and may readily be smoked like a regular filter cigarette. The second part 46 is not readily equipped with a filter tip 20 and may need to be equipped with one prior to use by a user. Hence, in order to prepare a cigarette for smoking, a similar approach as described before is used and one filter assembly 14 is fitted to one end of the second part 46. Since the first part 44 is already equipped with a filter tip 20, only at least one filter assembly 14 needs to be provided for each smokable cigarette 42. In the present case, the user could either decide to smoke directly the smokable cigarette 42, or cut it in two or more smaller parts and fit each additional part with one filter assembly 14.

The present invention has been described with regard to preferred embodiments. The description as much as the drawings were intended to help the understanding of the invention, rather than to limit its scope. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the scope of the invention as described herein, and such modifications are intended to be covered by the present description.

Claims

1. A kit for assembly of smoking articles comprising:

a plurality of smokable tobacco rods;

a plurality of filter assemblies, each one of said filter assemblies having an interface for connecting with one of said smokable tobacco rods; and

a package for packaging said plurality of smokable cigarettes and said plurality of filters.

2. The kit of claim 1 further comprising a cutter adapted to sever one of said plurality of smokable tobacco rods, said cutter being packaged within said package.

3. The kit of claim 2 wherein each one of said plurality of filter assemblies comprises a filter tip and an outer shell, said outer shell extending longitudinally outwardly from said filter tip, said outer shell having a cylindrical interior surface, said cylindrical interior surface defining said interface, said cylindrical interior surface having a diameter dimensioned to fit an exterior diameter of each one of said plurality of smokable tobacco rods.

4. The kit of claim 3 wherein said interface is coated with an adhesive for adhering to said one of said plurality of smokable tobacco rods.

5. The kit of claim 4 wherein said adhesive is activated by moisture.

6. The kit of claim 5 wherein said receiving interface extends sufficiently from said filter tip to ensure proper anchorage with one of said smokable tobacco rods.

7. The kit of claim 6 wherein said interface extends from said filter tip by 10 mm or less.

8. The kit of claim 3 wherein said filter tip is flavoured.

9. The kit of claim 2 further comprising stickers for circumferentially assembling one of said filter assemblies to one of said smokable tobacco rods.

10. The kit of claim 2 comprising at least twice as many of said filter assemblies as smokable tobacco rods.

11. The kit of claim 2 wherein said plurality of smokable tobacco rods are packaged in at least one rod container and said plurality of filter assemblies are separately packaged in at least one filter container.

12. The kit of claim 11 wherein said plurality of smokable tobacco rods are packaged in packs of 25 smokable tobacco rods and said plurality of filter assemblies are packaged in multiples of 50.

13. A filter assembly for a smoking article having an exterior diameter, said filter assembly comprising:

a filter tip;

an outer shell, said outer shell extending longitudinally outwardly from said filter tip, said outer shell having a cylindrical interior surface, said cylindrical interior surface defining an interface coated with an adhesive for adhering to the smoking article, said cylindrical interior surface being dimensioned to fit the exterior diameter of the smoking article.

14. The filter assembly of claim 13 wherein said adhesive is activated by moisture.

15. The filter assembly of claim 14 wherein said interface extends from said filter tip by 10 mm or less.

16. The filter assembly of claim 13 wherein said filter tip is flavoured.

17. A kit for assembly of smoking articles comprising:

a plurality of smoking articles, each one of said smoking article having one filter tip, each one of said smoking articles being adapted to be severed into a first part and a second part, said first part comprising said filter tip;

a plurality of filter assemblies, each one of said filter assemblies having an interface for connecting with said second part of one of said severed smoking articles; and

a package for packaging said plurality of smoking articles and said plurality of filter assemblies,

wherein said smoking article is readily smokable.

18. The kit of claim 17 further comprising a cutter adapted to sever one of said smoking articles into said first part and said second part.

19. The kit of claim 18 wherein each one of said filter assemblies comprises a filter tip and an outer shell, said outer shell extending longitudinally outwardly from said filter tip, said outer shell having a cylindrical interior surface, said cylindrical interior surface defining said interface, said cylindrical interior surface having a diameter dimensioned to fit an exterior diameter of said second part.

20. The kit of claim 19 wherein said interface is coated with an adhesive for adhering to said second part.

21. The kit of claim 20 comprising at least as many of said filter assemblies as smoking articles.

22. The kit of claim 17 wherein said smoking articles are cigarettes.