Abstract: An apparatus and associated method for forming a filter rod member of a smoking article, such as a cigarette, is provided. The apparatus comprises a rod-forming unit configured to form a continuous supply of a filter material into a continuous cylindrical rod member. An insertion unit is configured to insert an adsorbent material carried by a carrier material into the rod member. The method comprises forming a continuous supply of a filter material into a continuous cylindrical rod member, and inserting an adsorbent material carried by a carrier material into the rod member such that the adsorbent material is disposed within the rod member.

Abstract: A system is used for removal of impurities from shredded tobacco recovered from defective cigarettes, especially activated carbon particles, as used in a machine for recovering tobacco and having separating sieves and suction devices, where in a transport zone for a mixture of shredded tobacco, paper and impurities, positioned directly downstream the device for final tearing of the cigarette paper, with the zone defining a turbulent flow zone for the mixture of shredded tobacco, paper and impurities, a separating device is installed which defines a first purification zone. The device has a grid, a vacuum system for maintaining turbulent flow of the mixture of shredded tobacco, paper and lightweight impurities, positioned above the grid having a mesh size larger than the size of heavy impurities, and a vacuum system for receiving heavy impurities. Then a second purification zone includes a vibrating sieve with a mesh size larger than the size of heavy and lightweight impurities.

Abstract: A system and computer-implemented method for rendering images on a two-dimensional display, such as a computer, handheld device, or television screen, so that the images appear to be positioned in a three-dimensional space is disclosed. The images may be graphics files or standard files with an associated thumbnail image. Numerous layouts of the images on the display are disclosed.

Abstract: A flame-retardant and fireproof cigarette which aims to contain the combustion process to the cigarette. The flame-retardant and fireproof cigarette has a filter that is aligned with a tobacco body. A flame-retardant and fireproof covering is positioned over at least a portion of the tobacco body and isolates the open fire associated with the consumption of the tobacco during the course of smoking or burning the cigarettes. Such a cigarette reduces the risk of undesired, inadvertent, and latent ignition of adjacent materials.

Abstract: A wrapping paper inspection apparatus includes a nozzle arranged in a wrapping-paper discharge path, in which wrapping paper is wound and continuously discharged, for wetting one side of the wrapping paper with a liquid; an image pickup section for irradiating light to the wrapping paper wetted with the liquid by the nozzle, detecting light transmitted through or reflected from the wrapping paper, and generating an image signal; and a wrapping paper inspection section for determining defects in wrapping paper portions applied or affixed with a low flame spread material, from the image signal generated by the image pickup section, to thereby inspect such defects easily and reliably. This inspection apparatus can be mounted to a tobacco wrapping machine.

Abstract: A workstation for processing and producing a video signal comprises a video input system, a video graphics processor, and a video output system. The video input system may comprise a video input module, a first video pipeline, and a second video pipeline. The video output system may comprise a receiver, a video pipeline and a video output module. In addition, the video input system may comprise a video input module having a specific configuration and a video processing module having a connector for coupling the video input module, the specific configuration of the video input module setting the characteristics of the video processing module. The video output system may comprise a video processing module having a connector for coupling a video output module and a video output module having a specific configuration, the specific configuration of the video output module setting the characteristics of the video processing module.

Abstract: Task and data management systems methods and apparatus are disclosed. A processor event that requires more memory space than is available in a local storage of a co-processor is divided into two or more segments. Each segment has a segment size that is less than or the same as an amount of memory space available in the local storage. The segments are processed with one or more co-processors to produce two or more corresponding outputs. The two or more outputs are associated into one or more groups. Each group is less than or equal to a target data size associated with a subsequent process.

Abstract: A tobacco product is formed by rolling moistened tobacco leaves about a cylindrical form casing and allowing the leaves to dry to form a shell. After the form casing is removed a consumer can fill the shell with crushed tobacco leaves of a favorite blend, thereby eliminating some steps in the making of a “roll-your-own” tobacco product.

Abstract: A system, apparatus, method and article to perform buffering techniques are described. The apparatus may include a buffer having a fixed number of storage slots that store reconstructed picture representations received from an image processing module. Also, the apparatus may include a buffer status unit to store a multiple information items to indicate one or more buffer characteristics of the buffer. Further, the apparatus may include a buffer control module to manage storage within the buffer.

Abstract: The invention provides a process for preparing a tobacco composition suitable for use as a smokeless tobacco composition, the process including: providing a slurry comprising water and a tobacco material, the slurry comprising at least about 75% by weight water, based on the total weight of the slurry; heating the slurry to a temperature of at least about 60° C. for a time sufficient to pasteurize the tobacco material; adding an amount of a base to the slurry sufficient to raise the pH of the slurry to at least about 8.5, thereby forming a pH-adjusted slurry; and continuing to heat the pH-adjusted slurry to a temperature of at least about 60° C. for a time sufficient for the pH of the slurry to drop at least about 0.5 pH unit following the adding step.

Abstract: Combined tobacco leaf-rolled wrappers and packaging includes a water-impermeable carrying case with an open top end that is provided with a lid pivotally coupled to a longitudinal side thereof such that the lid covers the top end when articulated to a closed position. The apparatus further includes a plurality of flexible and uniformly shaped tobacco leaves adapted to a rolled and tubular position and a mechanism for maintaining the rolled tobacco leaves in a sealed and air-tight condition while nested within the carrying case so that the rolled tobacco leaves are prevented from becoming saturated with humidity in ambient air.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method includes identifying a representation of a feature of an animated character by inverting an skinned representation of the feature in one position. The inversion includes a non-linear inversion of the skinned representation of the feature. The method also includes skinning the identified feature representation to produce the animated character in another position.

Abstract: A tobacco smoking mixture including an ammonia-release compound adapted to be formed into a lit-end cigarette is provided. The ammonia-release compound is incorporated in or on tobacco cut filler in an amount effective to reduce the cytotoxicity, and/or selective smoke constituents of cigarette smoke. Exemplary ammonia-release compounds include ammonium acetate, ammonium hydroxide, hexammine cobalt (III) chloride, hexammine cobalt (III) acetate, and combinations thereof. The ammonia-release compounds can release ammonia at temperatures between about 60° C. and about 400° C. Ammonia-release compounds can be combined with additives, such as glycerine, cobalt acetate, copper (II) acetate, zinc acetate, other metal salts or combinations thereof, to further reduce the cytotoxicity of cigarette smoke.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for display image adjustment is described. More particularly, handles associated with polygon vertices of a polygon rendered image are provided as a graphical user interface (GUI). These handles may be selected and moved by a user with a cursor pointing device to adjust a displayed image for keystoning, among other types of distortion. This GUI allows a user to adjust a projected image for position of a projector with respect to imaging surface, as well as for imaging surface contour, where such contour may be at least substantially planar, cylindrical, or spherical and where such contour may comprise multiple imaging surfaces. This advantageously may be done without special optics or special equipment. An original image is used as texture for rendering polygons, where the image is applied to the rendered polygons.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a technique for efficiently creating and accessing an A-Buffer with a GPU. The A-Buffer is organized in arrays of uniformly-sized tiles. Each array represents a group of pixels, and each tile within an array includes the set of fragments at a specific depth complexity that are associated with the pixels in the pixel group represented by the array. The size of the tiles may be selected to be the minimum necessary for efficient memory access. The GPU determines the number of tiles in each array by calculating the maximum of the depth complexity associated with the pixels in the pixel group represented by the array and creates a corresponding prefix sum image to allow the GPU to efficiently locate the array associated with a given pixel group in the A-Buffer for addressing purposes.

Abstract: The present invention reduces the number of diagrams and the workload of management and the like, by aggregating spools of a common format, in plant design technology using a three-dimensional CAD system. Format specific data which is stored separately according to spool format is obtained by aggregating the respective spools in the internal data, which is generated by a data acquisition means, into respective common formats by a spool aggregation means.

Abstract: A cigarette-making machine of the tobacco-injecting type is provided that includes a tamper-holding mechanism. In one aspect, the tamper-holding mechanism provides for positively holding the tamper in its fully-retracted position. The tamper-holding mechanism includes a tamper-engaging member with a tamper-engaging portion and a bias. The side of the tamper includes a shoulder or projection that releasably interference couples with the tamper-engaging portion. In a first embodiment, the tamper-holding mechanism includes a tamper-engaging portion with a generally triangular-shaped body having a vertex that is urged against the side to releasably interference couple with the shoulder or projection on the side of the tamper. In another embodiment, the tamper-holding mechanism includes a tamper-engaging portion with a generally pentagonal-shaped body which is retained by a generally square U-shaped or C-shaped retaining portion that biases a vertex of the tamper-engaging portion to contact the side of the tamper.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer-readable storage medium are disclosed for rendering a scene with a simulated depth of field blur. In one embodiment, the scene comprises a plurality of polygons, each polygon comprises a respective plurality of vertices, and each of the vertices has a respective depth. A respective blur radius may be determined for each vertex of each polygon as a function of the depth of the vertex. A respective blur radius may be determined for each pixel in each polygon based on the blur radii for the vertices of the polygon. Each pixel in each polygon may be rendered using the respective blur radius determined for the pixel.

Abstract: A first user's avatar in a virtual world environment may be controlled by using a virtual world application enabling access to a virtual world environment within which the first user has an avatar associated with the first user. A virtual world location corresponding to the first avatar is identified. At least one second avatar proximate to the virtual world location is identified. Filtering information is accessed. Profile information related to the second avatar is accessed. Filtering information is compared to the accessed profile information. Based on the comparison results, a metric related to the second avatar is determined. The metric is related to a threshold. It is determined whether relating the metric to the threshold supports enabling communications between the first and second avatars, and if so, communications to be exchanged between the first and second avatars are enabled.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a technique for efficiently creating and accessing an A-Buffer with a GPU. The A-Buffer is organized in arrays of uniformly-sized tiles. Each array represents a group of pixels, and each tile within an array includes the set of fragments at a specific depth complexity that are associated with the pixels in the pixel group represented by the array. The size of the tiles may be selected to be the minimum necessary for efficient memory access. The GPU determines the number of tiles in each array by calculating the maximum of the depth complexity associated with the pixels in the pixel group represented by the array and creates a corresponding prefix sum image to allow the GPU to efficiently locate the array associated with a given pixel group in the A-Buffer for addressing purposes.