Cigarette transfer assembly
United States Patent [1 1 Van Hall Apr. 22, 1975 1 1 CIGARETTE TRANSFER ASSEMBLY [75] Inventor: Floyd Van Hall, Durham, NC.  
 [73] Assignee: Liggett &amp; Myers Incorporated, New  
 York, NY.  
 [22] Filed: Feb. 28, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 446,926  
 [52] US. Cl. 131/28; 131/37; 131/58; 131/67; 198/20 C; 198/165 [51] Int. Cl. A24c 05/35 [58] Field of Search 131/28, 37, 58, 67, 29; 198/20 C165. 76  
 [56] References Cited UN1TED STATES PATENTS 437,207 9/1890 Kinney 131/67 1.000.736 8/1911 Koerner 198/20 C UX 1,550,545 8/1925 Hohn 131/37 3.495.696 2/1970 Molins ct a1. 198/165 X 3.623.598 11/1971 Anfossi 198/165 3.712.455 1/1973 Anfossi 198/165 Primary Eraminer-Joseph S. Reich Attorney, Agent, or Firml(eruyon &amp; Kenyon [57] ABSTRACT A roller with a friction surface is positioned adjacent the cigarette transfer drum and is driven by a transmission off the transfer drum drive to rotate at a greater speed than the transfer drum. The greater speed of the roller allows the roller to positively roll the cigarettes on the drum prior to ejection in order to seal the free end of the mouthpiece paper on itself while also imparting a roundness to the cigarette. The greater speed of the roller also serves to positively eject the cigarettes into a chute below the transfer drum.  
 10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures CIGARETTE TRANSFER ASSEMBLY This invention relates to a cigarette transfer assembly.  
  As disclosed in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 28.640. filed Feb. I5. 1970. now US. Pat. No. 3.799.324. issued Mar. 26. 1974. it has been known to transfer cigarettes from a cigarette making machine directly to a cigarette packaging machine on a one-toone ratio basis by the use ofa transfer apparatus. As described. the apparatus for moving the cigarettes between the making machine and the packaging machine utilizes one conveyor for moving the cigarettes from the making machine in a stream of individually spaced cigarettes to an elevated position and a second conveyor which receives the cigarettes in stacked fashion from the first conveyor for transport to the packaging machine.  
  In order to allow a shut down of one or the other of the making machine and packaging machine while the other machine continues to operate. it has also been known to incorporate a reservoir system between the conveyors of the transfer apparatus in order to accommodate the resulting fluctuations. For example. should the packaging machine be inoperative for any reason. the making machine can continue to produce with the excess cigarettes being moved into the reservoir. Once the packagine machine has resumed operation. the cigarettes within the reservoir can be slowly depleted.  
  Generally. where a reservoir is included within the system. the stream of cigarettes from the cigarette making machine are conveyed to a transfer drum at an elevated position. Thereafter. the cigarettes are directed downwardly into a chute which passes by the reservoir. In order to maintain the cigarettes on the transfer drum until deposit into the chute. a pair of parallel overlying endless belts have been disposed about a portion of the transfer drum to act as a hold-down means. These belts have been guided about a guide roller positioned astride the transfer drum at the point of exit of the cigarettes from the drum.  
  As is known. in the manufacture of filter tipped cigarettes. some cigarette making machines bring two tobacco columns in abutment with opposite ends ofa filter plug and thereafter wrap a strip of waterproof wrapping or mouthpiece paper about the abutted tobacco columns and filter plug. Usually. the wrapping paper is coated with an adhesive so that. as the paper is wrapped about the tobacco columns and filter plug, the paper seals to tobacco columns and filter plug and the trailing end sealed over the forward end to form a seam. ln these cases. the tobacco columns. filter plug and paper are rolled in the making machines before delivery. However. in order to seal the paper on itself. a relatively large amount of heat has usually been required in the making machines. Furthermore. in some instances. it has been found that so much excessive heat has been generated that the adhesive on the wrapping paper has dried out before scaling. As a result of the paper not being securely sealed. the filter plug and- /or the tobacco column can become loose and can separate from the cigarette. Further. should the wrapping paper not be uniformly sealed. a free edge will appear on the cigarette instead of a smooth seam and the appearance of the resultant cigarette will be impaired.  
  Accordingly. it is an object of the invention to provide a filter tip cigarette with a uniform round appearance at the filter tip end.  
  It is another object of the invention to eliminate the need for heat in a cigarette making machine in order to seal a strip of wrapping paper about a filter plug and a tobacco column. 1  
  lt is another object of the invention to avoid an earlier drying out of adhesive on a strip of wrapping paper used to secure a filter plug to a tobacco column.  
  Briefly. the invention provides a means for rolling a cigarette outside of a cigarette making machine in order to seal a strip of wrapping paper on itself about a filter plug and tobacco column of the cigarette. More particularly. this means is incorporated in a cigarette transfer assembly located between a cigarette making machine and a cigarette packaging machine.  
  The cigarette transfer assembly includes a rotatable transfer drum for moving a continuous stream of cigarettes from a receiving position to an ejection position. The stream of cigarettes is composed of individually spaced apart cigarettes and is delivered directly from the cigarette making machine in any suitable manner. In addition. a means is provided for retaining the stream of cigarettes on the transfer drum between the receiving position and the ejection position. According to the invention. a roller is positioned adjacent the drum at the ejection position. This roller is provided with a friction surface for engaging the cigarettes on the drum and is driven at a greater speed of rotation than the drum to cause each cigarette in the ejection position to be rolled on the drum prior to ejection. During rolling. the wrapping paper which has been adhesively coated is smoothly and uniformly adhered to itself about the circumference of the cigarette under a pressure imparted by roller and drum.  
  The friction surface of the roller is made of a gum rubber strip secured about the periphery of the roller. Alternatively. any other suitable friction surface can be utilized. in addition. the strip is of a width to extend across the width of mouthpiece paper on the cigarette well as across a substantial portion of the cigarette. Alternatively. two narrow strips can be mounted on the roller with only one of the strips used to roll the wrapping paper.  
  Since the cigarettes are rolled after being passed from the cigarette making machine. there is no need to generate any heat in the making machine in order to seal the wrapping paper on itself.  
  In order to transfer the stream of cigarettes from the cigarette making machine to the transfer drum. a suitable conveying system can be used. for example. as described in the above mentioned pending patent application. That is. the cigarettes can be conveyed of pairs of endless belts which are spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the diameter of a cigarette. Where the belts travel at the same speed. the cigarette can be held under a light friction force. In this case. it is not necessary to have the tail-end of the wrapping paper secured to the remainder of the wrapping paper before reaching the ejection position of the transfer drum. Alternatively. the conveyor belts can be timed to move at different speed to effect a rolling of the cigarettes prior to arrival at the transfer drum. This rolling effect may be such as to effect a temporary bonding of the tail-end of the wrapping paper to the remainder of the paper.  
  During operation. a strip of waterproof wrapping is initially wrapped about a filter plug and a tobacco column within the cigarette making machine as is known. The cigarette is then conveyed to the transfer drum of the transfer assembly. A small amount of heat can be generated within the maker to cause some sealing of the paper to the tobacco column and/or filter plug. However. insufficient heat is applied to seal the paper to itself. During this time. the paper becomes tacky. Thereafter. upon passing between the nip formed between the transfer drum and the roller. the cigarette is rolled and the wrapping paper is sealed to itself by the pressure of the transfer drum and roller. This gives a smooth seam to the wrapping paper along with a round appearance from the end.  
  Of course. the apparatus for sealing the wrapping paper on itselfand for rounding up the cigarette can be used in any suitable environment. such as with a cigarette making machine only.  
  These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description and appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:  
  FIGv I illustrates a side view of a cigarette transfer assembly incorporating the invention;  
  FIG. 2 illustrates a partial side view of the assembly of FIG. 1;  
  FIG. 3 illustrates an enlarged view of the roller of FIG. 2 with a pair of gum rubber strips thereon; and  
  FIG. 4 illustrates a detail front view of the transfer drum and roller according to the invention.  
  Referring to FIG. I. a transfer assembly is mounted e.g. between a cigarette making machine (not shown) and a cigarette packaging machine (not shown). The transfer assembly 10 is connected with a vertical conveyor II which is connected directly to the cigarette making machine to convey a stream of individually spaced apart cigarettes 12 directed from the maker to an elevated position. For this purpose. the vertical conveyor II has pairs of endless belts l3, 14 which convey the cigarettes upwardly. The outer belts I4 to the left as viewed. travel about a pulley wheel 15 and are driven. e.g. off the making machine. The transfer assembly 10 may communicate with a conveyor. hopper or reservoir system. none of which is shown. at the delivery end in order to facilitate transfer of the cigarettes to the cigarette packaging machine.  
  The transfer assembly 10 includes a rotatable transfer drum 16 which receives the cigarettes from the vertical conveyor 11, an ejection roller 17 and a retaining means 18.  
  Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the transfer drum I6 is constructed as a pair of spaced apart coaxial plates 19 each of which is shaped at the periphery with a ledge 20 to guide an endless belt 13 of the vertical conveyor 11. As shown (FIG. 1). the belts 13 pass around the plates I9 of the drum l6 and over a guide roller 21. In addition. the plates 19 are spaced apart a distance to receive the cigarettes lengthwise. The drum 16 is positioned astride the conveyor 11 to receive both the belts l3 and the individual cigarettes from the vertical conveyor 11 directly.  
  Referring to FIG. 1, the retaining means 18 is constructed to retain the received cigarettes 12 on the transfer drum 16. This means 18 includes a pair of endless belts 22 which are guided about the transfer drum 16 from a receiving position 23 to an ejection position 24 by a plurality of guide rolls 25 and the ejection roller 17. As shown in FIG. 2. the endless belts 22 are guided over the peripheral ledges 20 of the plates 19 to overlie the respective ends of the cigarettes 12.  
  Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3. the ejection roller 17 is provided with a friction surface in the form of a pair of gum rubber strips 26. The strips 26 are secured to the roller 17 in any suitable fashion and are spaced from the surface of the plates 19 of the transfer drum 16 so as to define a nip at the ejection position 24 substantially equal to or slightly less than the diameter of the cigarettes 12.  
  Referring to FIG. 2, the ejection roller 17 is connected to the transfer drum 16 by means of a transmission 27 of suitable construction so as to be driven at a speed greater than the speed of the transfer drum 16. The transfer drum. in turn. is connected to a suitable drive (not shown) so as to be driven at the speed of the cigarette making machine. As shown, the roller 17 is connected to a gear 28 which is in meshing engagement with a gear 29 mounted on a drive shaft 30 of the drum 16. The relative speeds of the roller 17 and drum 16 are such as to permit the roller 17 to roll a cigarette 12 for at least one circumference on the drum 16 prior to ejection. For purposes of example only. for a transfer drum l6 ofa diameter ll 25/32 inches and a roller 17 with gum rubber strips having an outer diameter of 2% inches. and with a spacing between the drum l6 and roller 17 such as to compress the cigarettes about 0.060 inch. the peripheral linear speed of the transfer drum I6 is 200 feet per minute and the peripheral linear speed of the roller 17 is 275 feet per minute. This allows the cigarette to contact the drum 16 over a distance of about seven-eighths inch.  
  The cigarettes are ejected from between the transfer drum l6 and the roller 17 at an accelerated speed. Thus. jamming of the assembly at the ejection position 24 can be effectively eliminated.  
  Referring to FIG. 4, each cigarette 12 is of the mouthpiece type in which a filter plug 31 of any suitable construction is joined to a tobacco column 32 by a strip of wrapping paper 33. These cigarettes 12 are usually delivered by the conveyor II to the drum 16 in a state in which the slightly moist or self-adhesive wrapping paper 33 is not fully bonded to the joint between the tobacco column 32 and plug 31. For purposes of illustration. the strip of wrapping paper 33 is shown as having an unsecured trailing tail end 34.  
  During operation. the vertical conveyor 11 transfers the stream of individual cigarettes 12 onto the transfer drum 16 via the belts 13 of the conveyor 11 and the belts 22 of the retaining means 18 at the receiving position 23. The drum 16 then conveys the stream of cigarettes to the ejection position 24 where the cigarettes are individually ejected. e.g. into a chute. As each cigarette l2 approaches the ejection roller 17. the overlying belts 22 begin to move away from the cigarettes 12 (FIG. 1). In this way. the cigarettes 12 are caused to be further conveyed only by the drum I6 and the ejection roller 17. As each cigarette 12 comes into contact with the friction strips 26 of the ejection roller 17, each cigarette 12 is caused to roll in clockwise manner. as viewed. on the belts 13 on the plates 19 of the drum I6 due to the difference in surface speeds between the drum l6 and roller 17. This rolling action causes the tail end 34 of the wrapping paper to be rolled down on the plug 31 and tobacco column 32 within the nip between the drum l6 and roller 17. i.e. between the belts 13 on the drum l6 and the strips 26 on the roller 17. The extent of the nip is such as to permit a complete revolution of each cigarette 12 therein prior to ejection.  
  Upon passing out of the nip. each cigarette 12 is ejected at an accelerated speed relative to the speed at which the cigarettes are conveyed about the drum 16 due to the speed differential between the drum l6 and roller 17. The ejected cigarettes are thus spaced apart as they eject from the transfer drum 16.  
 The rolling action imparted to the cigarettes 12 in the nip between the drum l6 and roller 17 occurs under a slight compressive force such that the ejected cigarette has a more uniformly rounded shape. That is. the tail end 34 of the wrapping paper 33 is pressed into the cigarette l2 and rolled to produce a smooth seam. For this purpose. the nip is of a thickness slightly less than the predetermined diameter of the cigarettes 12. The invention thus provides a means of eliminating the need of heat within a cigarette making machine to effect a sealing of a strip of wrapping paper to itself. As a result. early drying out of the adhesive material on the wrapping paper can be avoided. Further. by providing a uniform manner of positively imparting a mechanical rolling force on the cigarette. an even seal of the wrapping paper to itself can be achieved. This effects a smooth seam and imparts an aesthetically pleasing appearance to the end of a filter tipped cigarette.  
  lt is to be noted that the transfer assembly may also be used for non-filter cigarettes and in such a case the speed of the roller 17 can be reduced.  
 What is claimed is:  
 1. In a cigarette transfer assembly.  
 a rotatable transfer drum for moving a continuous stream of cigarettes from a receiving position to an ejection position. said stream being composed of individually spaced apart cigarettes.  
 means for retaining said stream of cigarettes on said transfer drum between said positions:  
 a roller positioned adjacent said drum at said ejection position. said roller having a friction surface thereon for engaging the cigarettes of said stream; and  
 means for rotating said roller at a greater speed of rotation than said drum to cause each cigarette in said ejection position to be rolled on said drum prior to ejection.  
  2. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 1, said friction surface being a gum rubber strip secured to said roller.  
  3. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said roller is spaced from said drum to form a nip slightly less than a predetermined diameter of a cigarette in said stream.  
  4. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means includes a pair of endless belts passing over said drum between said positions to hold the cigarettes of said stream on said drum.  
  5. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said roller rotates at a speed relative to said drum to roll each cigarette through one revolution of a cigarette prior to ejection to seal a strip of selfadhering wrapping paper of each cigarette to itself and to eject each cigarette at an accelerated speed.  
 6. In a cigarette transfer assembly.  
 a rotatable transfer drum for moving cigarettes from a receiving position to an ejection position; means for retaining said cigarettes on said transfer drum between said positions:  
 . a roller positioned adjacent said drum at said ejection position. said roller having a friction surface thereon for engaging the cigarettes of said stream: and  
 means for rotating said roller at a greater speed of rotation than said drum to cause each cigarette in said ejection position to be rolled on said drum prior to ejection under a pressure sufficient to impart a round cross-sectional shape to each ciga- ICIIC.  
  7. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 6 wherein said roller is spaced from said drum to form a nip substantially equal to a preset diameter of a cigarette in said stream.  
  8. In a cigarette transfer assembly as set forth in claim 6 wherein said roller rotates at a speed relative to said drum to roll each cigarette through one circumference on said roller prior to ejection to seal a strip of selfadhering wrapping paper of each cigarette to itself and to eject each cigarette at an accelerated speed.  
 9. In combination.  
 a rotatable drum for moving cigarettes from a receiving position to an ejection position. a roller positioned adjacent said drum at said ejection position. said roller having a surface for engaging a cigarette at said ejection position. and  
 means for rotating said roller at a greater speed of rotation than said drum and in an opposite sense of direction to cause a cigarette in said ejection position to be rolled on said drum prior to ejection under a pressure sufficient to impart a round crosssectional shape to each cigarette.  
  10. The combination as set forth in claim 9 further including means for retaining said cigarettes on said drum in a single stream of individually spaced cigarettes between said positions.  
 UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION PATENT NO. 1 3,878,852 DATED April 22, 1975 |NV ENTOR(S) Floyd Van Hall it is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:  
 Column 1, line 29, change &#34;packagine&#34; to packaging.  
 Column 4 line 30, change &#34;inch to inches.  
 Claim 4, line 3, change said means&#34; to said first means.  
 Signed and Scaled this [SEAL] ninth D y f Marqh1976 A ttes t:  
 RUTH C. M A SON C. MARSHALL DANN AIIeSIHIg Officer Commissioner oj&#39;Patents and Trademarks