Smokers pipe

Abstract

A disposable pipe comprising an elongated body having a draw end and a pack end, said body being comprised of one of paper or cardboard, including a non-flammable coating or impregnate.

Description

Traditionally, the bowl and stem of a smoker's pipe are formed by shaping wood, such as briar root, or meerschaum, or sometimes a combination of a wooden bowl with a closely fitting meerschaum lining. The shaping of the essential parts of a pipe from such materials makes the pipes expensive. The object of the invention is to create a pipe, which can be manufactured simply and cheaply enough to be considered a disposable item.

A typical smoking pipe has a bowl joined to a stem. The bowl holds the tobacco or other smoking material and has an air passageway at the bottom that connects to the stem. The stem is a tubular structure having a bit opposite the bowl through which a user draws smoke. The tobacco and the ash that results from burning are typically isolated from the stem by a screen or narrow region or baffle in the air passageway.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,422,821 is a moulded plastic pipe bowl with a cup-shaped refractory liner is arranged to hold the charge of tobacco, and has, in its bottom, a hole leading via a smoke duct through the pipe stem to a mouthpiece.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,138,322 discloses a smoker's pipe comprising a moulded plastic bowl and stem and, within the bowl, a refractory cup-shaped liner having at its bottom a hole which leads via a smoke duct through the stem to a mouthpiece, the upper edge of the liner being formed with an integral radially outwardly projecting flange which overlies an upper rim of the bowl, substantially the whole of the liner beneath the flange being held out of direct contact with the bowl with an annular thermally insulating zone therebetween. The liner is a friction fit with the bowl. This has the disadvantages that a tight direct fit is essential and this inevitably involved good thermal contact and hence the danger of degradation of the plastics material from which the bowl is made. Also differential thermal expansion of the bowl and liner will cause problems with the security of the connection between the liner and bowl.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,058,130 discloses a disposable pipe that is formed by folding a T-shaped single sheet of flexible material into a functional pipe with a stem and bowl. The sheet has several interconnected panels, made of paper, that are folded and formed into a stem, with overlapping panels that are fastened together with glue. The sheet also has several interconnected panels, made of paper lined with fire proof materials like aluminum foil, that are folded to form a bowl, with overlapping panels that are fastened together with glue. Inside the stem is a filter that extends from near the bowl to the bit end of the pipe. This pipe is disposable and is intended to be distributed in its assembled form, with or without tobacco.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,505 discloses a disposable pipe formed from a foldable flat blank, made of paper or plastic, with a collapsed metal foil bowl. The body of the pipe is made by folding the panels of the flat blank and using tabs coated with adhesive to hold the structure together. The bowl is initially installed in a flattened condition, and can be unfolded into a bowl shape. The bottom of the bowl is perforated to allow smoke to be drawn into the body of the pipe. Although this pipe in its flat form prior to assembly is less bulky than traditional pipes, the flattened bowl adds substantially to the thickness of the pipe and to cost of construction.

Each of the above-referenced patents is herein incorporated by reference.

The present invention is directed to a disposable pipe used for smoking tobacco or any other smokable material made of paper, cardboard, or any other disposable material having a fire retardant, fire resistant, or fire proof coating or, made of non-flammable paper, cardboard or any other non-flammable disposable material.

Referring to the FIGURE, an exemplary disposable pipe is displayed, the pipe 1 comprises a paper body 10, including a draw end 12 and a pack end 14. The pack end 14 includes a recessed area 16 which can receive tobacco (not shown). A cap member 18 is provided to contain the tobacco after its insertion. The draw end may include a filter element as employed in traditional cigarettes, or may include a hole running the length of the pipe to the pack end.

Exemplary compounds suitable for use in the present invention to treat a paper or cardboard material to achieve a non-flammable condition include Paper Shield P3000, a non-toxic fire retardant, available from Universal Fire Shield, LLC, 400 Avenue R S.W., Winter Haven, Fla., 33800.

Claims

1. A disposable pipe comprising an elongated body having a draw end and a pack end, said body being comprised of one of paper or cardboard, including a non-flammable coating or impregnate.