Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing tobacco smoke filter having an improved tar/carbon monoxide ratio is disclosed. The filter is obtained by sealing off the center portion of the filter with an inner member which is impermeable to the passage of smoke, thus directing all of the smoke to the periphery of the filter. In one embodiment, the inner member is formed as a thin walled tube of a material such as polypropylene, with the tube being crimped to seal one end of the tube. The crimped tube is then overwrapped with a smoke permeable material.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for producing axially elongated, self-sustaining, dimensionally stable smoke rods or the like from filamentary tow by feeding the tow into a confined zone having a non-porous section and a porous section, simultaneously feeding gas under pressure into the inlet end of the confined zone at a feed rate sufficiently high so as to pneumatically convey the tow through the confined zone in a rod-like formation substantially conforming to the cross-sectional size and shape of the confined zone, and sufficiently low so as to permit escape of at least a major portion of the feeding gas from the confined zone along the porous section, introducing a heated gas into the tow in a third section of the confined zone downstream from the porous section, maintaining the tow in contact with the heated gas for a time sufficient for the gas to contact the tow across substantially its entire cross-section and render the tow bondable and cooling the heated tow to bond the same into the rod-like shape.

Abstract: The invention concerns a method for producing a cigarette filter unit, in which filter elements are disposed on a porous or perforated covering strip and at least partially wrapped thereby and adhesively joined. The adhesive substance is applied to the covering strip along coating tracks which are at least approximately equidistant from each other and extended at an angle to the longitudinal orientation of the covering strip. The filter strand formed in this manner is subdivided by a cutting device.

Abstract: The trailing end of a running tow of filamentary filter material in a filter rod making machine is spliced to the leader of a fresh tow, and the splice is held at a preselected location ahead of the first tow treating station in the machine. An optoelectric or pressure-responsive detector generates a signal when the splice advances beyond such location on expiry of the running tow, i.e., when the second tow begins to advance through the machine. The signal is used to reduce the speed of the prime mover of the machine during travel of the splice therethrough, to increase the width of passages which are defined for the tow by the banding, spreading, stretching, plasticizer-applying and/or other units for the tow so that the splice can readily advance therethrough, and/or to effect automatic segregation of those filter rod sections which contain portions of the splice.

Abstract: In apparatus for making transverse-flow cigarette filters, a rod of cellulose acetate impregnated with a plasticizing agent and having a porous covering is cut into sections each having a length of several filters. From the cutting station, the rod sections are fed longitudinally into longitudinal grooves in the periphery of a first revolving drum. The rod sections are then transferred into longitudinal grooves in the periphery of a second revolving drum having in such grooves projections for forming indentations in one side of the rod sections. While carried by the second revolving drum, the rod sections are engaged by a third revolving drum having on its periphery projections for forming longitudinally offset indentations in the opposite side of the rod sections. In another embodiment of the apparatus, the rod sections are received in transverse grooves in a conveyor belt, and are transferred in groups between opposed punches which form indentations in opposite sides of the rod sections.

Abstract: The invention concerns a method for producing a cigarette filter unit, in which filter elements are disposed on a porous or perforated covering strip and at least partially wrapped thereby and adhesively joined. The adhesive substance is applied to the covering strip along coating tracks which are at least approximately equidistant from each other and extended at an angle to the longitudinal orientation of the covering strip. The filter strand formed in this manner is subdivided by a cutting device.

Abstract: A tobacco smoke filter is disclosed, which provides tobacco flavor enrichment of smoke passing therethrough. The filter comprises a reconstituted tobacco member formed from a coherent sheet of reconstituted tobacco which has been uniformly embossed with a series of parallel grooves, and then compacted and bonded into a self-sustaining dimensionally stable axially elongated body whose longitudinal axis extends parallel to the embossed grooves. The embossed grooves provide the reconstituted tobacco member with flow passages having a high surface area for contact with smoke passing therethrough, so as to enable the smoke to become tobacco flavor-enriched by extracting tobacco flavor from the reconstituted tobacco.

Abstract: The sensory effect of cigarette smoke is improved by using a disc (24) to shape the flow of smoke (32) leaving smoking article (10) into a divergent pattern, thus increasing the perceived flavor of the cigarette. The effect is most useful with cigarettes having relatively low delivery of particulate matter.

Abstract: A ridge remover for smoothing and shaping rod surfaces where jointure marks occur in fibrous rod manufacture when made using a porous belt garniture device.

Abstract: For producing rod-shaped tobacco-smoke filter components each having one or more annular tobacco-smoke barriers, annular grooves open at their peripheries are formed in rod-shaped bodies of smoke-filtration material, the grooved bodies are conveyed in a direction transverse to their longitudinal axes along an arcuate path, and settable barrier material is deposited in the grooves during the conveyance along said path, the bodies being rotated about their said axes during the deposition of the barrier material.

Abstract: Tobacco smoke filters comprising a rod of tobacco smoke filtering material, such as cellulose acetate tow including a thread incorporated therein or a tape wrapped therearound, the thread or tape carrying a smoke-modifying agent, such as a flavoring material and methods and apparatus for forming such filters.