Patents by Inventor Heinrich W. Ruppert

Heinrich W. Ruppert has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5967311
    Abstract: A package for accommodating at least two blocks of cigarette papers includes a longitudinal front and rear walls, a closure tab, end walls and a divider. The longitudinal front wall has at least two paper removal slots spaced apart from one another and extending parallel to one another. The longitudinal rear wall is connected to the front wall by a first fold line, and the closure tab is connected to the front wall by a second fold line. The closure tab is foldable onto the rear wall. The end walls are opposite one another and defined by foldable material side tabs each connected to at least one of the front and rear walls by a third fold line which is transverse to the longitudinal front wall. The divider is located in an area between the two paper removal slots in the front wall and configured to permanently separate the two paper blocks within the package.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 1998
    Date of Patent: October 19, 1999
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Gunter Schutze
  • Patent number: 5749378
    Abstract: A tobacco product for self-preparing a cigarette, especially a filter-tipped cigarette, includes a tobacco portion (14) matched with the tobacco filling of a finished cigarette and having an air-permeable outer surface so that it cannot be smoked per se. The outer surface of the tobacco portion is completely smokeable or consumable by smoking, is dimensionally stable and its cross-section and length match the tobacco receiving space (13) of a cigarette paper tube (11) so that the outer surface of the tobacco portion engages the cigarette paper of a cigarette paper tube with the tobacco portion shape retained. An outer bar wrap (15) over the tobacco portion, open at either end, is made of non-smokeable material and transferred from the bar wrap (15) into the paper tube (11). The bar wrap (15) is formed of poorly or non-combustible material such as aluminum-laminate, synthetic plastic film, tin foil, aluminum foil or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 12, 1998
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5615692
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for filling or packing cigarette-paper tubes is described wherein the apparatus comprises at least one tobacco-transfer means, in the form of a plunger or the like is mounted on a housing so as to be axially displaceable to transfer at least one tobacco strand out of a strand casing disposed within the housing into an associated cigarette-paper tube. At least one nozzle is mounted on the housing to which the open end of the cigarette-paper tube is connected in such a way that during transfer the tobacco passes through the nozzle into the associated tube. Within the housing is defined a receptacle in which at least one tobacco-filled strand casing is disposed and within which the strand casing is held and externally supported so that it cannot be displaced during transfer of the tobacco strand into the cigarette-paper tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1996
    Date of Patent: April 1, 1997
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Gunter Schutze, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5526825
    Abstract: Smoking tobacco is provided for self-making finished cigarettes. A tobacco unit (47) includes a plurality of sub-quantity portions (48 or 50, respectively) which are held together by inner and/or outer fixing means (49) to form a stack of separable portions. Each quantity portion (48 or 50) contains substantially the tobacco quantity required for a finished cigarette. The outer surface of the tobacco unit (47) and/or the sub-quantity portions (48 or 50) are all permeable to air such that the tobacco unit or each portion is not drawable as such and hence cannot be smoked. The tobacco portions of unit (47) are each configured like a rod and interconnected by paste to form a rod belt (51), or are configured as a flat oval tobacco unit comprising the plurality of sub-quantity portions (48) as a continuous mass.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 18, 1996
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Gunter Schutze, Klaus Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5197495
    Abstract: A "make-your-own" system for making a cigarette, especially a filter-tipped cigarette, includes a dimensionally stable tobacco portion (10) matched with the tobacco receiving volume (16) of the cigarette located within a cigarette paper wrapper. The paper wrapper is in the form of a cigarette tube (11) for closely enveloping the tobacco portion (10). The tobacco portion (10) is formed like a cigarillo including an outer wrapper (13) of tobacco or a tobacco blend which imparts to the smoker of the made tobacco portion and therefor to the cigarette approximately the taste and flavor of a factory-made cigarette or a conventional cigarillo clothed as a cigarette.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 1989
    Date of Patent: March 30, 1993
    Assignee: Efka-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5167241
    Abstract: Tobacco product, consisting of a pre-portioned tobacco supply (15) surrounded by cigarette paper (11; 17) of tubular shape. The tobacco supply is configured as a dimensionally stable tobacco charge of the finished cigarette and is unsmokable by itself but consists completely of smokable material, and it is provided for the self-making of either filterless or filter-tipped cigarettes. Preferably, the tobacco supply (15) comprises an air permeable strand wrapper (13) of smokable material, e.g. of tobacco sheet material. To facilitate insertion of the preformed dimensionally stable tobacco strand (10) into a prefabricated tubular cigarette paper wrapper (11), a funnel-like sleeve (18) is provided whose smaller-diameter end (20) is adapted to be joined to the open end of the tubular cigarette paper wrapper (11). Through this inserting funnel(18) the tobacco strand (10) may be passed without difficulty into the tubular cigarette paper wrapper (11).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 1985
    Date of Patent: December 1, 1992
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5141000
    Abstract: A tobacco product consists of a preportioned tobacco strand (10) surrounded by a preformed tubular cigarette paper wrapper (11; 17). The tobacco strand is formed of individual tobacco fibers which are interconnected to each other by a binding agent to form a dimensionally stable tobacco strand. The binding agent and the fibers are each smokable but the outer surface of the tubular dimensionally stable tobacco strand is air pervious so that the strand as such is not directly smokable. The dimensionally stable strand (10) is inserted into the preformed tubular cigarette paper wrapper (11) to form a smokable cigarette. The one end of the strand is tapered for easier insertion of the strand into the preformed cigarette paper wrapper.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 1990
    Date of Patent: August 25, 1992
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 5009237
    Abstract: A device for the do-it-yourself making of cigarettes employs a pre-proportioned tobacco rod (16) which is transferred from a cylindrical rod wrapping (18) into a cigarette paper tube (14) by an axially moveable pusher member (10; 110), which is associated with a tube-like insertion nozzle (12; 112) having an insertion end (6; 106) formed with an outer diameter which is slightly less than that of the cigarette tube (14).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 1984
    Date of Patent: April 23, 1991
    Assignee: Martin Brinkmann AG
    Inventors: Ernst Schmidt, Heinz Stehmeier, Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann, Gunter Schutze
  • Patent number: 4887617
    Abstract: A tobacco product for the personal preparation of a cigarette, in particular a filter cigarette, includes an inherently stale tobacco portion (10) corresponding to the tobacco filling of a finished cigarette. The surface of the tobacco portion is defined by a wrapping or sheath (13), which consists of completely smokeable material. The sheath is permeable to air and the tobacco portion can only be smoked after tight wrapping of the sheath 13 with cigarette paper. The diameter of the tobacco portion (10) is smaller--preferably only slightly--than the inner diameter of the wrapping of cigarette paper or the like such as a preformed cigarette paper sleeve (11) for easy insertion of the tobacco portion (10) into the sleeve. In order to ensure that the tobacco portion (10) bears tightly within the cigarette paper, the tobacco portion (10) is responsive to heating to expand and tightly engages the cigarette paper and at least in the region of the glowing area (17).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1987
    Date of Patent: December 19, 1989
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus G. Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 4658837
    Abstract: In a manual apparatus for tamping cigarette tubes with tobacco, comprising a casing having a tobacco compressing chamber disposed in the longitudinal direction thereof, a cover-type press bar associated with this tobacco compressing chamber and located in a cover that covers the casing and being swingable about an axis, as well as an ejector slide, which is connected with a spoon 25 that carries a plug of tobacco, for introducing the pressed tobacco plug into a cigarette tube intermittently clampingly held against a short socket, a clamping element embodied such as to separate the clamping operation from the filling operation is provided. The clamping element (14) for a cigarette tube (4) mounted on the short socket (3) is independent of the cover (6) and is controlled by the ejector slide (7). It is spring loaded and disposed laterally beside the short socket (3).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 1984
    Date of Patent: April 21, 1987
    Assignee: EFKA-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 4620551
    Abstract: In an apparatus for filling cigarette tubes in particular filter cigarette tubes, comprising a casing having a tobacco compressing chamber disposed in the longitudinal direction thereof, a coverlike press bar associated with this tobacco compressing chamber and located in a cover, that covers the casing housing and hinged on a shaft, as well as an ejector pusher for introducing a pressed plug of cut tobacco into a cigarette tube, that is intermittently retained by clamping on a short socket, the clamping device is intended to be embodied such that the clamping operation is completely divided from the filling operation, wherein the functional reliability of the individual elements of the filling apparatus is increased without making the apparatus less convenient to use.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 1984
    Date of Patent: November 4, 1986
    Assignee: Efka-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus Gatschmann
  • Patent number: 4167091
    Abstract: A chute filling device for handling cigarette filter tubes has a funnel and a chute divided by partitions, as well as a discharge opening and a pushing arm, wherein the partitions are loosely suspended with play in slots in a swing frame, the partitions being capable of being set to oscillating in such manner that the cigarette filter tubes are braked as they fall by frequent contact with the chute walls and move downwardly while maintaining their horizontal attitude.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 1977
    Date of Patent: September 11, 1979
    Assignee: Efka-Werke Fritz Kiehn GmbH
    Inventors: Heinrich W. Ruppert, Klaus Gatschmann, Hans Haller