Patent ID: 11945178
Assignee: BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (INVESTMENTS) LIMITED
Field: Other special machines (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  A | IPC A  B

Claim 11:
12. Equipment for forming a tubular rod of fibrous material from a plurality of fibers produced by a fiber supply module using a melt-blowing process comprising:
gathering equipment constructed to receive a continuous supply of fibers from said fiber supply module and to gather the fibers into a bundle as the fibers advance through the gathering equipment;
a divider arranged in a path of the fibers through the gathering equipment and constructed to form a cleft along a length of the bundle as the bundle advances through the gathering equipment;
a mandrel assembly comprising an open-ended tubular casing configured to receive the bundle of fibers, and a mandrel mounted in the casing and positioned in the path of the bundle of fibers downstream of the divider, the mandrel comprising a mandrel support including a divider plate that carries the mandrel and which extends between the mandrel and the casing, the divider plate being in alignment with the divider to keep the cleft formed in the bundle by the divider upstream of the divider plate open as the bundle of fibers passes through the casing and advances over the mandrel; and
a die positioned downstream of the casing of the mandrel assembly, the die being constructed and arranged to cooperate with the mandrel to form the fibers in a tubular configuration around the mandrel.