Abstract: A device for the examination of the degree of filling of cigarette ends is disclosed. The device has a light transmitter, a light emitting surface which radiates light into the cigarette end to be examined, and a light receiving surface which picks up the more of the light radiated in, the worse is the degree of filling. The light emitting surface and the light receiving surface are arranged in one plane at end face of the cigarette in such a manner that both bear directly against the cigarette end face and are separated by a light impervious zone from each other transversely to the axis with respect to the cigarette axis and together lie within the cigarette cross-section.

Abstract: An apparatus for conveying articles such as cigarettes transversely to the axis thereof and for temporarily storing the articles between a machine for continuously feeding the articles to the apparatus and a removal device for periodically removing said articles from the apparatus. The apparatus includes a feeder to receive an accumulation of articles coming from the machine, a transfer conveyor to receive articles from the accumulation, a grooved belt to receive articles from the transfer conveyor, a common regulable drive to drive the transfer conveyor and the grooved belt and a gear disposed between the common drive and the grooved belt and operable to have a periodically changing gear ratio to oscillate the transfer conveyor along the grooved belt and to provide the grooved belt with a varying conveying speed. At a given instant the oscillation of the transfer conveyor has a speed equal to any difference between the speed of the grooved belt and the speed of the transfer conveyor.

Abstract: The production of blocks of rod-shaped articles such as cigarettes from a single row of such articles comprises forming the single row of articles into groups of articles, and each group of articles into sub-groups of articles. Each sub-group of each group of articles is disposed in a respective horizontal plane and in a stepped relationship, and then the sub-groups in each group is disposed in vertically overlying relationship to form a respective block of each group of articles. The sub-groups in each group may be disposed in vertically overlying relationship by means including a plurality of elements disposed above one another and each provided with a plurality of the apertures to receive the sub-groups. A cam member may be provided which upon rotation thereof causes the elements to dispose the sub-groups into blocks of articles. Instead of using such elements a plurality of conveyor belts each disposed in a respective horizontal plane may be employed.

Abstract: There is disclosed apparatus in a high speed continuous cigarette processing plant for maintaining substantially constant the length of an accumulated layer of cigarettes. The apparatus comprises a carrier for carrying cigarettes in a predetermined direction, a charging device to displace the cigarette transversely to the respective longitudinal dimensions thereof and thereby to load the cigarettes onto the carrier to be accumulated thereon side-by-side in a single gapless layer, and a discharging device disposed downstream of the carrier to remove the cigarettes in uniform sequence from the carrier.

Abstract: A device for attaching filter tips to cigarettes is disclosed. The device comprises a rotatable grooved drum provided with a plurality of peripheral recesses each adapted to hold an assembly consisting of a double length tip component and two axially aligned cigarettes disposed to abut against respective end surfaces of the tip component, a feeder to feed successive connecting sheets each provided with an adhesive coating on one surface to overlie the respective recesses in the grooved drum. The sheets each extend asymetrically of the center of the respective recess with the coated surface facing outwardly of the drum. Such assemblies are successively urged into respective recesses as the grooved drum rotates and the respective connecting sheets are thereby partially wrapped around the peripheries of the respective assemblies.