1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates to smoking articles, such as filtered cigarettes, and, more particularly, to a filtered smoking article inspection system and associated method.
2. Description of Related Art
Popular smoking articles, such as cigarettes, have a substantially cylindrical rod shaped structure and include a charge, roll, or column of smokable material such as shredded tobacco (e.g., in cut filler form) surrounded by a paper wrapper thereby forming a so-called “smokable rod” or “tobacco rod.” Normally, a cigarette has a cylindrical filter element aligned in an end-to-end relationship with the tobacco rod. Typically, a filter element comprises cellulose acetate tow plasticized using triacetin, and the tow is circumscribed by a paper material known as “plug wrap.” A cigarette can incorporate a filter element having multiple segments, and one of those segments can comprise activated charcoal particles. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,537,186 to Veluz; PCT Publication No. WO 2006/064371 to Banerjea; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2007/0056600 to Coleman III, et al.; each of which is incorporated herein by reference. Typically, the filter element is attached to one end of the tobacco rod using a circumscribing wrapping material known as “tipping paper,” in order to provide a so-called “filtered cigarette.” It also has become desirable to perforate the tipping material and plug wrap, in order to provide dilution of drawn mainstream smoke with ambient air. Descriptions of cigarettes and the various components thereof are set forth Tobacco Production, Chemistry and Technology, Davis et al. (Eds.) (1999). A cigarette is employed by a smoker by lighting the lighting end terminus thereof opposite the filter element and burning the tobacco rod. The smoker then receives mainstream smoke into his/her mouth by drawing on the opposite end (e.g., the filter element or mouth end terminus) of the cigarette.
More particularly, the filter element may be attached to the tobacco rod using tipping material (e.g., essentially air impermeable tipping paper), that circumscribes both the entire length of the filter element and an adjacent region of the tobacco rod. The inner surface of the tipping material is fixedly secured to the outer surface of the plug wrap circumscribing the filter tow and the outer surface of the wrapping material/paper wrapper surrounding the smokable material of the tobacco rod, using a suitable adhesive; and hence, the filter element and the tobacco rod are connected to one another. The adhesive may also function to secure the overlapping ends of the tipping material circumscribing the filter element and tobacco rod.
A ventilated or air diluted smoking article can be provided with an optional air dilution provisions, such as a series of perforations, each of which extend through the tipping material and plug wrap. The optional perforations can be made by various techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art, such as laser perforation techniques. Otherwise, so-called off-line air dilution techniques can be used (e.g., through the use of porous paper plug wrap and pre-perforated tipping paper). For cigarettes that are air diluted or ventilated, the amount or degree of air dilution or ventilation can vary. Frequently, the amount of air dilution for an air diluted cigarette is greater than about 10 percent, generally is greater than about 20 percent, often is greater than about 30 percent, and sometimes is greater than about 40 percent. Typically, the upper level for air dilution for an air diluted cigarette is less than about 80 percent, and often is less than about 70 percent. As used herein, the term “air dilution” is the ratio (expressed as a percentage) of the volume of air drawn through the air dilution provisions to the total volume and air and smoke drawn through the cigarette and exiting the extreme mouth end portion of the cigarette.
The dimensions of a representative filtered cigarette can vary. Preferred cigarettes are rod-shaped, and can have diameters of about 7.5 mm (e.g., circumferences of about 20 mm to about 27 mm, often about 22.5 mm to about 25 mm); and can have total lengths of about 70 mm to about 120 mm, often about 80 mm to about 100 mm. The length of the filter element can vary. Typical filter elements can have total lengths of about 15 mm to about 40 mm, often about 20 mm to about 35 mm. For a typical dual-segment filter element, the downstream or mouth end filter segment often has a length of about 10 mm to about 20 mm; and the upstream or tobacco rod end filter segment often has a length of about 10 mm to about 20 mm.
However, in the manufacture of filtered smoking articles, such as filtered cigarettes, the procedure for securing the filter element to the tobacco rod during the tipping process or for forming the tobacco rod itself (i.e., wrapping a smokable material with an outer circumscribing layer of a wrapping material) may result in certain undesirable defects in the smoking article formed thereby. For example, the tipping material may be misaligned with respect to the smoking article (i.e., forming a spiral instead of a cylinder when wrapped about the smoking article), the wrapping material may be misaligned with respect to the smokable material, the tipping material or the wrapping material may be wrinkled, the tipping material or the wrapping material may be visibly contaminated (i.e., spots or other undesirable discolorations or stains), the wrong tipping material may be used (i.e., the actual tipping material may not correspond to the specified material), the wrong wrapping material may be used, multiple units of the tipping material may be applied to the smoking article (i.e., units of the tipping paper, in excess of the specified amount, may get stuck together and applied about the smoking article), multiple units of the wrapping material may be applied to the smokable material, the adhesive securing the tipping material may not be evenly applied about the smoking article or the tipping material may be inconsistently adhered to the smoking article (or the overlapping ends of the tipping paper may not be securely adhered together), the overlapping ends of the wrapping material may not be securely adhered together (thus exposing the smokable material), the tipping material may be rolled over itself along the portion of the longitudinal periphery of the smokable rod (i.e., forming a raised “collar” about the smoking article), the tipping material may not completely secure the tobacco rod to the filter element (i.e., the tobacco rod may not be secured to and may thus easily separate from the filter element), the tipping material may not extend at least along the portion of the longitudinal periphery of the smokable rod, as specified, the wrapping material may have been punctured (i.e., torn, pulled, or had a hole formed therein, for instance, by stem portions in the tobacco material comprising the smokable material) to expose the smokable material, and (excess) adhesive securing one of the tipping material about the smoking article and the wrapping material about the smokable material may be exposed.
It follows that, due to the high speed nature of the cigarette manufacturing process, many of the defects that may occur during the tipping process may not be readily apparent or otherwise detected before the product is packaged for sale. As such, it may often be the smoker (end user) opening the pack of cigarettes discovering any defects in individual cigarettes. Such a situation is generally undesirable to the perception of the quality of the product. As such, there exists a need for a method and system for inspecting individual smoking articles, such as filtered cigarettes, for defects prior to the products being packaged for distribution and sale. In some instances, such an apparatus and method may desirably be used to halt or pause the production process upon detection of certain defects, amount of defects, and/or frequency of defects, such that the cause of the defects can be expediently addressed. It may also be desirable for such a solution to be readily implemented with respect to existing cigarette production machinery.