Abstract: The transportation of a tobacco layer, in which the tobacco lamina or leaves are horizontally oriented, on a vertically-reciprocating conveyor surface to a cutting machine wherein tobacco shreds are formed from the tobacco in the layer is assisted, so that the orientation and juxtaposition of the tobacco in the layer is maintained to the cutting machine.

Abstract: Novel shredded tobacco stem material having a much lower burn rate than other stem material and other beneficial properties and useful in the formation of cigarettes is formed by a novel procedure which produces only a relatively minor proportion of particulate material. The procedure, which is also applicable to tobacco stalk and tobacco winnowing, involves an initial thorough soaking of the stem, stalk or winnowings to a relatively high moisture level and mechanical fiberizing of the soaked material in a disc refiner at atmospheric pressure and preferably at ambient temperatures. The resulting shredded stem, stalk or winnowings in fibrous form is dried to the desired moisture level.

Abstract: Tobacco shreds of substantially less impaired filling power result from a tobacco lamina shredding machine when the lamina are formed into a tobacco layer in which the lamina are horizontally oriented and which is precompacted without the use of any force other than gravity and vibration and the tobacco layer is fed to the cutting operation without any substantial change in tobacco lamina orientation.

Abstract: A steaming doffer for use in the moistening and opening of tobacco from bales is described. The device includes a plurality of pairs of arms fixedly mounted to a rotatable axle. Each arm member pair is angularly offset from each adjacent pair so that the outer extremities of the arm members lie on helices. A plurality of axially-directed steam-jet forming openings are provided at the outer extremity of each arm member and communicate with an external source of steam through a bore in the axle member which feeds a bore in each arm member.

Abstract: A steaming doffer for use in the moistening and opening of tobacco from bales is described. The device includes a plurality of pairs of arms fixedly mounted to a rotatable axle. Each arm member pair is angularly offset from each adjacent pair so that the outer extremities of the arm members lie on helices. A plurality of axially-directed steam-jet forming openings are provided at the outer extremity of each arm member and communicate with an external source of steam through a bore in the axle member which feeds a bore in each arm member.

Abstract: Burlap-clad bales of turkish or other oriental small leaf tobacco are passed between two upright steam applicators each having a plurality of individual steam jet openings. The openings cause injection of steam through the outer burlap cover and penetration into the loosely packed bale along the grain of the bale. The outer burlap cover is then removed and the bale opened by placing the same on a vibrating conveyor.

Abstract: Leaf tobacco is processed to form cut tobacco suitable for direct formation of cigarettes therefrom. The leaf is cut into shreds dimensioned for direct use in cigarette rod-forming, the shreds are air classified into a heavier stem containing fraction and a lighter stem-free lamina fraction, the heavier fraction is threshed to separate lamina from associated stem, and the separated lamina and lighter fraction are mixed. The procedure results in an improved rod-forming feed quality.

Abstract: Bales of tobacco are moistened and opened by impinging steam onto one end face of a tobacco bale to cause penetration of steam into the face and removing tobacco from the moistened face. The bale is located on a horizontal surface with the grain of the tobacco layers extending vertically and from one end face to the other. The tobacco is removed from the moistened end face by forces acting transverse to the face perpendicularly to the grain.

Abstract: A tobacco feeding system for feeding tobacco from a source thereof to a plurality of individual cigarette-making machines includes a tobacco distribution system for the distribution of source tobacco sequentially to a plurality of tobacco reservoirs and a tobacco metering system associated with each reservoir for feed of tobacco to the machine feeds. The system avoids the necessity to recycle tobacco to the source and hence minimizes tobacco degradation.

Abstract: An extrusion head is provided in which molten polymeric material is formed into fibres by providing individual air streams for each orifice of a plurality of extrusion orifices formed in a straight line across the width of the head to draw out and convey individual polymeric material fibres from polymeric material extruded from each orifice, the individual fibres being separated from each other by the individual air streams to prevent coalescing of the fibres to form bundles while they are still molten. Each orifice is formed at the line of intersection of two sloping surfaces of a unitary wedge shaped body and preferably has a circular cross section in the elevational view and a part-elliptical cross section in the plan view to allow metering of the extruded molten material into the air streams over a flow path immediately upstream of the line of intersection.

Abstract: A tobacco smoke filter comprising a single filter element consisting wholly of a plurality of randomly-oriented non-crimped smooth-surfaced solid fibers of thermoplastic polymeric non-absorbent material, each of the fibers having a uniform diameter less than about 5 microns. The filter element has a generally circular cross-section taken across the intended flow path of the tobacco smoke and a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of a tobacco smoke flow path. The weight of polymeric material exceeds about 6 mg and the filter element has a pressure drop thereacross of from 1 to 10 inches of water at a flow rate of 17.5 ml/sec.

Abstract: Improved winnowing and tobacco feeder techniques are described. Tobacco particles in substantially separated condition are subjected to air flow transverse to the direction of movement thereof to cause separation of usable tobacco particles from heavy stem and debris, collecting the separated particles on the outer foraminous surface of a vacuum drum and gripping the collected particles to the foraminous surface so that the particles assume the speed of the surface, preferably greater than in the stream subjected to air flow, prior to discharging the gripped particles into a chute as a broad stream of vertically-moving particles, particularly downwardly-moving, from which a filler stream for cigarette formation is collected.

Abstract: A tobacco filler rod having an increased filling power or selected areas of increased quantity of tobacco in the cross section of the rod is formed from a broad stream of tobacco particles.

Abstract: A tobacco filler rod having improved filling power, improved uniformity of quality of tobacco along its length and improved distribution of sizes of tobacco particles in the cross section of the filler rod is formed by dividing the tobacco particles of a vertically-moving relatively wide and thin stream of tobacco particles into a plurality of narrow continuous substreams of tobacco each having substantially the same quantity of tobacco therein by the use of suction, conveying the substreams under the influence of suction out of contact with the relatively wide stream and forming the filler rod by gentle intact layering of the substreams one on top of another on a filler rod-forming surface.

Abstract: An extrusion head is provided in which molten polymeric material is formed into fibres by providing individual air streams for each orifice of a plurality of extrusion orifices formed in a straight line across the width of the head to draw out and convey individual polymeric material fibres from polymeric material extruded from each orifice, the individual fibres being separated from each other by the individual air streams to prevent coalescing of the fibres to form bundles while they are still molten. Each orifice is formed at the line of intersection of two sloping surfaces of a unitary wedge shaped body and preferably has a circular cross section in the elevational view and a part-elliptical cross section in the plan view to allow metering of the extruded molten material into the air streams over a flow path immediately upstream of the line of intersection.

Abstract: A cigarette filler rod forming apparatus includes a cylindrical vacuum wheel of diameter greater than the width of the chute confining the relatively wide stream rotatable about a horizontal axis, and having a recessed air-permeable and tobacco-impermeable surface on which the filler rod is formed and conveyed. A plurality of substantially arcuately arranged shallow cylindrical disc members is positioned adjacent the end of the chute across the width thereof and adjacent an arcuate length of the periphery of the vacuum wheel for forming a plurality of narrow substreams of tobacco thereon from the tobacco particles of the relatively wide stream and conveying the substreams to the recessed surface of the cylindrical vacuum wheel for formation of the filler rod thereon by gentle intact layering of the narrow substreams one on another.

Abstract: The tension of tow fed to the nip of a pair of differential stretching rollers is controlled by drag rollers. The inertia of the drag rollers limiting their speed of response to tow density changes is compensated for by maintaining the tension at a constant value during periods of speed up and slow down of the drag rollers by utilization of an inertialess means for applying force to the tow between the drag rollers and the differential stretching rollers.

Abstract: Hardness variations in a tobacco filler rod are detected and corrected in a single operation in conjunction with trimming of the tobacco to provide a trimmed filler rod of uniform height and uniform hardness. The single operation detection and correction is achieved by using force-applying member to compress the tobacco to a greater or lesser extent immediately prior to trimming, the degree of compression depending on the compressive force applied and the resistance of the tobacco to compression.

Abstract: Method and apparatus are provided to package beer bottles in a reusable tray with a sleeve to be used just once. A blank for the sleeve is wrapped around the tray to grip the side and end walls of the tray and close the open top and cooperating parts of the blank are glued together to provide the finished structure.