Abstract:
A machine for manually making cigarettes having a frame, a pair of generally parallel rollers rotatably mounted to the frame with at least one of the rollers also being slidably mounted so that it may be moved laterally toward the other roller, and an endless belt trained over the rollers.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    Embodiments relate to conveniently handled and carried machines for manually forming loose tobacco into improved uniform size and tightness manually made cigarettes. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Portable machines for manually making cigarettes that employ a belt running over a plurality of rollers are well known. The belt in these cigarette rollers has always been made of a rectangular sheet in which two corresponding shorter ends are attached by appropriate means to form a continuous belt. In these prior machines, the attachment of the sheet ends has always produced material protruding from the surface of the belt along the attachment area. 
         [0003]    Although this protruding material interferes with the smooth operation of the device and ultimately with the uniformity, tightness and quality of the final cigarette product, it did not previously strike those of ordinary skill in the art that the problem could be overcome. The present inventor has overcome this problem by eliminating the protruding belt material to produce an “endless” belt, thereby insuring smooth and even operation of embodiments of the machine of the present invention. 
         [0004]    It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a machine for manually making cigarettes having an endless belt operable over rollers carried by a portable frame. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0005]    In order to aid in understanding embodiments of the invention, it will now be described in connection with exemplary embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like numbers will be given to like feature and in which: 
           [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a machine for manually making cigarettes constructed in accordance with embodiments of the invention; 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an endless belt employed in embodiments of the invention; and 
           [0008]      FIGS. 3A-3E  are a series of perspective views illustrating the operation of the embodiment of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0009]    Turning now to the figures, a cigarette-making machine  10  having a substantially U-shaped frame  11  is shown, with generally parallel rollers  12  and  14  rotatably mounted to side portions  16  and  18  of the frame. Roller  12  includes a pair of pins  20  positioned along the axis of the roller and protruding from the opposite ends of the roller. These pins are rotatably mounted in bores  22  in side portions  16  and  18  of frame  11 . Thus, in the illustrated embodiment, roller  12  may rotate in place and will not move along the frame side portions. 
         [0010]    Roller  14 , however, is mounted in slots  24  in frame side portions  16  and  18  by way of a pair of pins  26  located along the axis of roller  14  and protruding from the opposite ends of the roller which extend into slots  24 . 
         [0011]    Slots  24  include a bottom end  27 , an angularly disposed transition portion  28  and an arcuate top end  30  which includes a hook portion  32 . Pins  26  of roller  14  are mounted in slots  24  to permit the pins to both rotate within and slide along the slots. Thus,  FIG. 1  illustrates machine  10  in an open configuration in which the pins of roller  14  are at the bottoms  27  of slots  24 . 
         [0012]    A uniform surface endless belt  40  is shown trained over and loosely mounted to rollers  12  and  14  in  FIG. 1  to provide a tobacco-receiving area  42  between the rollers. Belt  40  is shown in perspective view in  FIG. 2  in a configuration corresponding to its disposition as illustrated in  FIG. 1 , where rollers  12  and  14  would be present at A and B in this figure. As can be seen in this figure, the belt is “endless” because it is formed in one piece and there are no points of attachment between the ends of a rectangular sheet used to make the belt, as in the prior art. Belt  40  may be made of nylon or any other appropriate resin or other flexible material. Also, belt  40  may be smooth or it may have generally parallel, laterally extending ridges if desired. These ridges increase the friction between the user&#39;s finger pads and the belt when the machine is operated. In other embodiments the belt may have a roughened outer surface or it may be uniformly covered by small protuberances, also to increase the friction between the user&#39;s finger pads and the belt when the machine is operated. 
         [0013]    Cigarette-making machine  10  may be operated as follows: 
         [0014]    1. Open the machine as shown in  FIG. 3A  by moving roller  14  so that pins  26  rest in the bottom ends  27  of slots  24  and uniformly distribute loose tobacco  50  in tobacco receiving area  42 . 
         [0015]    2. Grasp frame  10  between forefingers and thumbs so that the thumbs are opposite roller  14  and push roller  14  upwardly as shown in  FIG. 3A  to move its pins along slot  24  and into slot hook portion  32  to close the rollers and band over the loose tobacco in tobacco receiving area  42 . 
         [0016]    3. Roll roller  14  forward preferably a full turn to help shape the loose tobacco into a uniform column, as shown in  FIG. 3C . 
         [0017]    4. Insert a cigarette paper  52  with a gummed edge  54  vertically into the pinch line  56  between the belt-covered rollers with the gummed edge at the top and facing forward and rotate roller  14  with the thumbs until the paper enters the tobacco receiving area as shown in  FIGS. 3D and 3E . 
         [0018]    5. After rolling the paper all the way into the machine, retract roller  14  back to its resting position as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3A  and remove the finished cigarette. 
         [0019]    6. Cigarettes produced in this way will be superior to those obtained in prior machines because of the smooth, continuous rolling operation made possible by the embodiments of the present invention. 
       FEATURES IN THE FIGURES 
       [0000]    
       
           10 . cigarette-making machine 
           11  U-shaped frame 
           12  and  14  rollers 
           16  and  18  side portions of frame 
           20  pins protruding from roller 
           22  bores in side portions  16  and  18   
           24  slots in frame side portions 
           26  pins protruding from opposite ends of roller  14   
           27  bottom end of slots  24   
           28  angularly disposed transition portion of slots 
           30  arcuate slots 
           32  hook portion of slots 
           40  endless belt 
           42  tobacco-receiving area between rollers 
           44  laterally extending ridges on endless belts 
           52  cigarette paper 
           54  gummed edge of cigarette paper 
           56  pinch line between belt-covered rollers 
       
     
         [0038]    All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein. 
         [0039]    The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing embodiments of the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. It should be understood that the illustrated embodiments are exemplary only, and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.