Feeding unit for feeding beads and apparatus for manufacturing rods

The objects of the application are a feeding unit and a rod manufacturing apparatus. The feeding unit for feeding beads comprises a supply channel for feeding a stream of beads, a transferring wheel provided with at least one transferring pocket, a pushing mechanism comprising a holding pocket for receiving the beads from the supply channel, and a pushing element for transferring the beads individually from the holding pocket to the transferring wheel. The unit is characterised in that the pushing element having a pushing edge is a rotatable element of a horizontal rotational axis. The pushing edge is arranged for passing during the rotation through the holding pocket and the transferring channel in order to push the bead out of the holding pocket through the transferring channel to the transferring pocket.

An object of the application is a feeding unit for feeding beads and an apparatus for manufacturing rods of tobacco industry.

BACKGROUND

This invention relates to a feeding of spherical or oval objects which are placed into rods being tobacco industry products or semi-finished products. For the sake of simplicity, such objects will be hereinafter referred to as beads. A known product in the market are cigarettes whose filters are provided with beads comprising aromatic or odorous substances. The substances comprised in the beads are released during smoking or yet before lighting up a cigarette by squeezing the filter resulting in crushing a bead. In the production process, the beads are placed in continuous rods which are cut into rods, and the rods are cut into segments which are connected with other semi-finished products.

A difficult and a very significant issue is the feeding of individual beads to a machine forming filters at great speeds in a way which guarantees that the beads remain undamaged and a high feeding efficiency is maintained, i.e. each manufactured filter rod actually comprises correctly placed beads.

There are known bead feeders in which, tubes are used for feeding the beads to an area from which they are transferred to a bead delivery wheel with the function of the said wheel being to place the delivered beads into the filter material, between the fibres of the filter material or between the segments made of filter or other material.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,975,877B2 discloses a bead feeder, wherein the bead feeding unit is provided with a plurality of tubes which are radially connected with a cylindrical bowl, whereas the tubes rotate together with the bowl, and the beads are picked up by means of vacuum by a bead transfer wheel from pockets situated at the outlets of the tubes, and then transferred to a bead delivery wheel.

The document WO 2009/071271 discloses a bead feeder in which the bead feeding unit is provided with passageways rotating with the bowl, where the beads are fed to a bead delivery wheel after separating the lowermost bead from those situated above it using a stationary arched wedge-ended element.

The document WO 2009/071272 discloses a similar bead feeder, where the beads are fed to a bead delivery wheel using two plates having a plurality of openings and rotating relative to each other, and a bead is fed after aligning respective openings directly on top of each other.

Patent EP2617302B1 discloses a solution, in which the beads are fed through supply channels to holding pockets from which they are further transferred to a feeding wheel after pushing them out of the pockets by means of a cam.

The object of this invention is to develop an improved feeding unit for the feeding of beads in a rod manufacturing apparatus to be applied in different configurations of the apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the invention is a feeding unit for bead feeding comprising a supply channel to feed a stream of beads, a transferring wheel provided with at least one transferring pocket, a pushing mechanism comprising a holding pocket to receive the beads from the supply channel and a pushing element to transfer the beads individually from the holding pocket to the transferring wheel. The unit according to the invention is characterised in that the pushing element having a pushing edge is a rotational element with a horizontal rotational axis, with the pushing edge being adapted to pass during the rotation through the holding pocket and the transferring channel in order to push the bead out of the holding pocket through the transferring channel to the transferring pocket.

The unit according to the invention is characterised in that the pushing element is a plate with a cylindrical surface.

The unit according to the invention is characterised in that the transferring channel leads tangentially to the transferring wheel.

The unit according to the invention is characterised by being provided with at least one guide next to the path of movement of the transferring pocket.

The unit according to the invention is characterised in that the guide on a side of supply channel has the form of two concentric circular surfaces.

The unit according to the invention is characterised in that the rotational axis of the pushing element overlaps a rotational axis of the transferring wheel.

The object of the invention is also an apparatus for manufacturing rods of a continuous rod provided with a filling material feeding unit, a feeding unit for bead feeding, a forming unit for continuous rod forming, a cutting head for continuous rod cutting into individual rods, with the feeding unit for bead feeding being provided with a feeding wheel having a plurality of transporting pockets to transfer the beads, and at least one feeding unit according to the invention.

The feeding unit according to the invention guarantees that each position of the bead after leaving the supply channel on the path to the continuous rod being formed is fully controlled. Furthermore, it is possible to use the feeding unit in different configurations of the rod manufacturing apparatus. Among others, it is possible to use the feeding unit to manufacture the rods of a continuous rod in which the beads are unevenly spaced.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An example filter rod R shown in a cross-section inFIG. 1comprises four objects in the form of beads C situated among the fibres F of the filter material. The beads C are placed along the axis k of the filter rod R and centrally relative to the axis k.FIG. 2shows a filter rod R′ comprising the segments S1, S2and the beads C placed in the spaces between the segments. A rod R″ shown inFIG. 3comprises the segments S1, S2and two kinds of beads C1and C2situated alternately in successive spaces between the segments.

FIG. 5shows an apparatus1for manufacturing the rods R of a continuous material strip2in the first embodiment. The material strip2comprises acetate fibres supplied from a material bale3, alternatively the material strip may be made of a different filling material in the form of tobacco, cellulose foil, paper or fibres having filtering properties, both smooth and corrugated. The apparatus1for manufacturing the rods R is provided with feeding unit4for feeding a material2(generally filling material) wherein the material strip2is subjected to processing. The apparatus1comprises a feeding unit5arranged to feed the beads C, a forming unit6and a cutting head7. In the manufacturing process, the beads C, generally spherical objects, are placed within the material strip, whereas the said beads C after forming a continuous rod CR in the forming unit6will be situated inside the continuous rod, and after cutting such continuous rod by means of the cutting head7will be situated inside individual rods R. The apparatus1comprises a guiding unit8for material strip guiding and preliminary material compression, a compressing unit9for strip compression and continuous rod CR forming. Whilst forming the continuous rod CR is wrapped with a band of a wrapping material P fed by a wrapping material feeding unit10. The apparatus1is provided with a forming unit12for final forming and lengthwise gluing of the continuous rod CR. The guiding unit8, the compressing unit9and the forming unit12constitute together a forming apparatus for forming the continuous rod CR.

FIG. 6shows the feeding apparatus5comprising a feeding wheel20and five feeding units21feeding the beads C to the transporting pockets22situated on a circumferential surface23of the feeding wheel20. The number of feeding units depends on the quantity of beads which are to be placed into the continuous rod CR. As shown inFIG. 7, the feeding unit21comprises a supply channel24, a pushing mechanism25and a transferring wheel26with the rotational axis m. The pushing mechanism25comprises a body27which in the embodiment shown has the shape of a cylinder. In the body27, on its lateral surface28, there are situated a holding pocket29and a transferring channel30extending from the holding pocket29towards the transferring wheel26. The transferring channel30is situated diagonally to the generator of the body27and tangentially to the transferring wheel26, whereas the transferring channel30is directed in accordance with the direction of rotation of the transferring wheel26marked with an arrow. The pushing mechanism25comprises a movable pushing element31having a pushing edge32. The pushing element31has the form of a plate which may be flat or may be shaped as a sector of a cylindrical surface. The pushing element31is rotatably mounted so as to rotate around the axis n, whereas the pushing element31moves in a groove33made in the body27, also shown inFIG. 8andFIG. 9. The rotational axis n of the pushing element31may overlap the rotational axis m of the transferring wheel26. The pushing element31moves with a speed v1. The pushing element31rotates so that the pushing edge32passes through the holding pocket29and the transferring channel30as shown inFIG. 7. The bead C fed from the supply channel24falls into the holding pocket29. The movement of the pushing element31causes that the pushing edge32pushes the bead C out of the holding pocket29through the transferring channel30towards the transferring wheel26to the transferring pocket34. The pushing element31makes a rotation as a result of which the bead C is transferred from the holding pocket29through the transferring channel30to the transferring pocket34. The transferring wheel26may be provided with two transferring pockets34, and the pushing mechanism25may be provided with two pushing elements31. A greater number of transferring pockets34and pushing elements31is also possible. The transferring pocket34moves with a speed v2, whereas the speed v2may be equal to the speed v1. At the time of pushing the bead C out of the holding pocket29and of the transferring channel30the speed v1may be momentarily greater than the speed v2, as a result of which the time of transfer of the bead C to the transferring pocket34is shortened.

The bead C, while being transferred downwards to the transporting pocket22, moves in the transferring pocket34on a circular path in a guiding channel42formed by surfaces35and36, a ring40and an outer guide41(the channel42is shown in a cross-section inFIG. 8; inFIG. 7the guide41is not shown, and the ring40is shown with a broken line). In the circumferential surface37of the transferring wheel26, there is a groove38which passes also through the transferring pocket34. In the lower part of the transferring wheel26, there is situated a plough39in the form of a flat element inserted into the groove38, the function of the plough39being to push the bead C out of the transferring pocket34to the transporting pocket22on the feeding wheel20.

In the feeding unit5inFIG. 6, in the first feeding unit21and the third feeding unit21″, the transferring wheel26takes the position before feeding the bead C from the transferring pocket34to the transporting pocket22of the feeding wheel20. In the second feeding unit21′ and the fourth feeding unit21′″, the transferring wheel26takes the position after feeding the bead C from the transferring wheel34to the transporting pocket22of the feeding wheel20. In the fifth feeding unit21″″, the transferring wheel26takes the position directly after supplying the bead C to the transferring pocket34. During a rotation of the feeding wheel20, the successive transporting pockets22are filled with the beads C so as to fill all pockets22of the feeding wheel20. For the respective feeding units21, the plough39may take different positions, and the length of the outer guide41must be respectively selected. The beads C of one kind or of different kinds may be supplied to the respective feeding units21. In the case of a need to manufacture rods comprising unevenly spaced beads the transporting pockets22have to be unevenly spaced on the circumference of the feeding wheel20. The feeding units21may be spaced at uneven intervals around the feeding wheel20.

FIG. 10shows a feeding unit wherein the body27′ has a smaller diameter than the transferring wheel26. The pushing element31′ in the pushing mechanism25′ has a rotational axis n parallel to and shifted from the rotational axis m of the transferring wheel26.

The rod manufacturing apparatus1′ in the second embodiment shown inFIG. 11is provided with a unit4′ for the feeding of filling material in the form of segments S1, S2of which the rod R′ shown inFIG. 2is made. The segments S1, S2may be segments made of filter material or any other material. The segments S1, S2are supplied by feeding modules51,52and transferred to a forming unit6′ by means of a transferring module53. The apparatus1′ is provided with the feeding unit5built similar to the first embodiment. If two different kinds of beads C1, C2are alternately supplied to successive feeding units21, the apparatus1′ according to the second embodiment may be used to manufacture the rods R″ as shown inFIG. 3.

The rod manufacturing apparatus1″ in the third embodiment shown inFIG. 12is provided with the unit4′ for feeding of filling material in the form of segments S1, S2similar to the second embodiment. The apparatus1″ is provided with two feeding units5′,5″ feeding two different kinds of beads C1, C2and may be used to manufacture rods in which the beads C1, C2are placed alternately in successive spaces between the segments S1, S2as shown inFIG. 3. Furthermore, the apparatus1″ may be used to manufacture the rods as shown inFIG. 4where in one space between the segments S1, S2two beads C1, C2are situated. The first feeding unit5′ may feed the bead C1of the first kind, and the second feeding unit5″ may feed the bead C2of the second kind.