Abstract: Apparatus for testing the wrappers of cigarettes for leaks includes means for producing a series of first electrical signals indicative of the leakage flow through the wrappers of successive cigarettes, a comparator device for producing an ejection signal to eject each faulty cigarette, and an averaging device which responds to the running average level of the first signals and continuously varies the limit of the first signal which results in the production of an ejection signal by the comparator device, whereby that limit is raised when the running average of the first signals increases, and is lowered when the running average of the first signals falls.

Abstract: This application describes various possible modifications in the cigarette machine hopper described in G.B. specification No. 2,045,595. In particular, as shown in FIG. 2, a concave member 126 around a carded roller 23 from which tobacco is removed by a picker roller 24 has a straight land 126A along which the tobacco is propelled by the picker roller.

Abstract: Apparatus for making ventilated cigarettes, includes a first perforator which is not readily susceptible to control and is arranged to perforate the tipping paper by which cigarettes are joined to filter portions, or to perforate the completed filter cigarettes. A controllable perforator is arranged to form additional perforations in the tipping paper prior to assembly of the filter cigarettes; and a control circuit is arranged to control the controllable perforator in response to a porosity measuring device and/or in response to a cigarette dilution testing device.

Abstract: A cigarette making machine includes apparatus for determining the internal pressure of an axially moving cigarette rod comprising forming a continuous rod in which a wrapper web surrounds a tobacco filler including an endless impervious flexible tape arranged to be wrapped around at least part of the circumference of the rod, a guide through which the rod and tape are arranged to pass, means for supplying air under pressure to the guide to enter a gap between the guide and the tape; and a monitor for monitoring a physical characteristic of the supplied air. Also included is compensating for the effect which moisture in the tobacco has on the internal pressure of the cigarette rod.

Abstract: In the manufacture of filter rods for the tobacco industry, plasticizer and one or more flavorants or other additives are mixed in controlled proportions in a mixing chamber (100) in a tow opening machine. This allows different flavorant mixes to be made at the machine and avoids problems with mixes that separate or have short shelf lives.

Abstract: A gravure-type gummer comprises a hollow cylindrical member 18 partly immersed in an adhesive container 10 and adapted to transfer a pattern of adhesive to a blank B movable in contact with the top of the member. The adhesive is held in a pattern of round bores 24 extending through the member, whose inside and outside peripheral surfaces are scraped clean of adhesive by scrapers 26 and 28.

Abstract: A flexible membrane (54) confines the rod-like articles in a transition zone (10) (which may be the filling head of a tray filler). The membrane is extended or retracted under tension in response to pressure of articles in the zone. The amount of extension or retraction is used to generate a signal which controls a conveyor (18) feeding articles to the zone (10) or a conveyor (38) taking articles away from the zone (e.g. in trays 36). The signal may be generated by a rotary potentiometer (64) rotatable with a spiral spring (62) to which the membrane (54) is connected.

Abstract: A device for separating a stream of rod-like articles in stack formation by projection in a direction transverse to the lengths of the articles comprises a movable support for guide means around which passes at least one flexible band. As the device is projected through the stream the part of the band in contact with the articles is held stationary thus minimizing disturbance of and possible damage to the articles. The device may be used to close off an opening through which a container is loaded or unloaded and may also by used to separate a horizontally moving stream into batches.

Abstract: A device for feeding and orienting cigarette packets includes a driven wheel 10 having a plurality of rearwardly directed resilient members, such as spring arms 12, mounted on the periphery of the wheel. Packets P are fed to the wheel down a twisted chute 20, and they leave from an outlet 23 under the wheel, where the packets are pushed out by the spring arms 12 to form a short stack. At the bottom of the stack each packet is transported away in a regular manner by a flighted horizontal conveyor 27.

Abstract: A machine for making oval cigarettes has a channel, through which tobacco is showered towards a suction conveyor, formed by walls which diverge in cross-section along at least part of the tobacco-receiving section of the conveyor so as to form a filler stream which is denser at the middle than it is at the sides, the angle of divergence being preferably at least 15.degree. (e.g. 19.degree.). In the garniture area of the machine, the cigarette filler stream is initially shaped without being significantly compressed, and is then compressed vertically by a tongue to form the desired oval cross-section (with a horizontal major axis); while the filler stream is being vertically compressed by the tongue, the garniture bed allows the radius of curvature of the underneath surface of the filler stream to increase progressively to the final value.

Abstract: Composite filters for attachment to cigarettes and containing particulate filtering material are produced by directly accelerating the particulate material, e.g. by means of a rotary impeller (62), to form a continuous stream which converges with a stream of spaced filter portions (6), both streams having approximately the same speed. The stream of particulate material is slightly laterally offset relative to the stream of filter portions, so that particulate material introduced into the spaces between filter portions has a tangential component and follows a helical motion within the space. Excess particulate material is removed by suction assisted scrapers or brushes (80-90). Delivery of particulate material may be regulated by an adjustable screen (65) or by varying the speed of the impeller (62).

Abstract: The mass and moisture content of tobacco forming the filler stream in a cigarette making machine are determined by a pair of capacitor plates placed on opposite sides of the filler stream forming a test capacitor (11). The test capacitor is connected in a series resonance circuit comprising an inductor (20) and a variable frequency voltage source (21) generating voltages which increase in frequency in finite steps over a range above 1 MHz. The voltage source is controlled by a processing unit (24) which also receives an indication of the voltage across the test capacitor (11). The mass and moisture content are derived from the resonance frequency of the capacitor voltage and the magnitude of said voltage at a chosen frequency, preferably the resonance frequency. Signals indicative of mass may be used to control a trimming device (7) preferably in combination with signals from a nucleonic scanner (16).

Abstract: A ledger mechanism for a rod cutting apparatus comprises a ledger; a coupling rod on which the ledger is fixedly mounted; and a pair of spaced gear arrangements each having a gear ratio of 2:1 to generate a pair of points, one point on each gear arrangement, which reciprocate in synchronism along straight parallel paths, wherein the coupling rod is pivotally coupled at one end to one of said pair of points on one gear arrangement, and at its opposite end to the other of said pair of points on the other gear arrangement so that the ledger reciprocates linearly.

Abstract: Apparatus for feeding tobacco pneumatically into a cigarette making machine comprises a duct (10) defined on one side by a wall (10B) whose width (i.e. in cross-section) increases along the length of the duct from an inlet end (10A) to an outlet end (10B), is concave in longitudinal section so that centrifugal force on the tobacco will urge the tobacco against that wall of the duct, and carries a splitter member (14) arranged to split the tobacco stream (12) flowing along the said wall into separate streams (12A,12B) passing along opposite sides of the splitter member, and to spread apart the two streams. From the outlet end of the duct, the air and tobacco pass into an air separator (22) from which the tobacco passes via a rotary seal (70) into the hopper of a cigarette making machine. The rotary seal may have special provision for preventing tobacco being trapped and crushed between the rotary part and the surrounding housing of the seal.

Abstract: Filler material, particularly for cigarette filters, is produced by feeding a first stream of substantially continuous filaments of filler material onto a pin roller which is driven at a speed such that the filaments are broken by the pins into irregular lengths and are projected from the roller in random orientations. The broken filaments are collected on a carrier stream, also comprising filamentary material, for delivery to a rod-making unit. More than one stream could be supplied to the pin roller so that the broken filaments can comprise a mixture of filaments of different filler materials. The carrier stream may comprise filler material which is different from that in the first stream and may comprise a fibrillated web.

Abstract: A cigarette making machine includes a chimney (12, 14) and means (10) for projecting tobacco in a direction transverse to the chimney, from which direction lighter particles of tobacco tend to be deflected upwards into the chimney by an upwardly flowing air stream while heavier particles continue past the lower end of the chimney directly towards a projector roller (26) which is arranged to project the heavier particles downwards at a controlled velocity and in a controlled direction (inclined to the vertical) into a duct (30) through which at least part of the air entering the chimney flows upwards. Lighter particles of tobacco which are entrained with the heavier particles tend to be carried upwards, into the chimney, by the air flowing up the duct, while the heavier particles drop to the bottom of the duct and are removed.

Abstract: A cigarette making machine or feed apparatus for fibrous material other than tobacco includes a pinned conveyor (20) arranged to feed material from a supply and past refusing means (22) whereby the feed conveyor will carry a metered stream of the material, characterized in that the feed conveyor has relatively high pins (36) which are substantially evenly distributed among relatively low pins (38) or lie in obliquely extending rows (34, 40, 42, 44) between rows of relatively low pins.

Abstract: A control device for re-starting a cigarette packing machine, while it is slowing down after having cleared itself of a cigarette starvation condition in a flow channel (2), comprises: a triggering circuit (A2, I1) pulsed by a stroboscopic switch (S1) at machine speed, and controlling two flip-flop counters (F1 and F2); a fault emission circuit (R1, C1, R2, C2 and A1) fed from the starvation detector switch (40); a main shut-down circuit (I2, S2) connected from the output of one flip-flop (F1); and a re-start circuit (C3, R3, S3) connected from the output of the other flip-flop (F2).

Abstract: A cut-off device for a cigarette or filter rod making machine is designed to work with a knife having an aperture which, when the knife is spent, is detected by a system including a light emitter and a detector, with an electronic timing system sensitive to specific light/dark transitions to enable the presence of an aperture to be detected at various speeds of rotation of the member carrying the knife.

Abstract: Apparatus for controlling the timing of control signals concerning operations on conveyed cigarettes or other articles of the cigarette industry comprising means for generating a first control signal; means for measuring the speed of transport of the cigarettes; processing means arranged to receive a signal representing the measured speed of transport, to receive the first control signal and to generate a second control signal which is transmitted to an operating device after a delay dependent upon the signal representing the measured speed of transport and upon the characteristics and position of the operating device.