Improvements in Tables for Cutting Out the Wrapping Leaves and for Rolling Cigars.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Oct., 1896-Accepted. 19th Dec., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Tables for Cutting Out the Wrapping Leaves and
for Rolling Cigars.
1. PIETRO VERACI, Engineer, of Fuori di Porta Romana Florence, in the
Kingdom of Italy, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:-
In the improved table for manufacturing cigars, and forming the object of this
invention, the tobacco leaf is placed on a die with cutting edges having approxi-
inately the shape of a wrapper for a given form of cigar, the leaf being retained
thereon by air suction from below and cut during such suction by a suitable roller
passing over the die and rolled immediately on the cigar bunch by the hand of the
operator who thus disengages the die for the next cut.
For this purpose the dies of the improved tables are connected in series to a
common conduit in which a partial vacuum is maintained by the air suction and
with which communication may be automatically provided or broken by means of
an intermediate valve; and the wrapper cutting roller has a reciprocating action
imparted to it by means of a horizontal lever pivoted on the table and controlled
by the feet of the operator.
By the said arrangement the operator does not touch nor work by hand any one
of the table appliances, but has his hands always free for use exclusively in the
manipulation of the leaves and cigars in view of very rapid manufacturing. The
improved table forms a permanent fixture and, together with the improved
arrangement of its several appliances, will be described in detail hereafter,
reference being made to the annexed drawings of which ;-
Fig. 1 is a transverse section of the complete machine.
Fig. 2 is an elevation thereof.
Fig. 3 is a plan.
Fig. 4 is a plan of the lower mechanism for the control of the roller.
Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the new fixed table on a larger scale.
Fig. 6 is a plan thereof.
Fig. 7 is a vertical section of the automatic valve on a larger scale.
Fig. 8 is a modification of the latter.
The die M, cousisting of a sheet of steel sharpened at the upper edge and bent
so as to take the approximate shape of the wrapper, is mounted on a plate T fitted
to the frame K. Inside the die M is arranged a perforated bottom F which is
normally level with the cutting edge of the die and on which is placed the tobacco
leaf to be cut out, the ribs of which slightly depress the bottom on the passage
of the roller, and which rises level again under the pressure of the two spiral
springs bb coiled round two rods tt adjustable by screw nuts e e underneath the
plate T as shown in Figs. 1 and 5.
Around the die is mounted on the plate T the fixed table of special construction
consisting of two parts X and X1 situated at different heights. The front
part X 1, which is the larger, is at a much lower level than the cutting edge of
the die and gives this advantage that the operator may strongly stretch the leaf
without any difficulty as soon as he puts it on the table so as to obtain very
thin and regular wrappers. Further, this arrangement of the front part of the
[Price Bd.

page_text: table lower than the die edge extends around the ends of the die as shown in
Fig. 6, so that the said ends of the die may be free as well as the front, to further
facilitate the stretching of the leaf which may thus be cut by the passage of the
roller over the table and of the projecting portion of the die, which projection is
extended for the same reason also to the back part of the die along the table
portion X, also fixed on the plate T, but not so low as the fore part, that is to
say, in such position as to allow the cutting edge of the die to project only by
about the thickness of the tobacco leaf or just enough for it to be cut on the
passage of the roller, but without this projection being otherwise appreciable
or sufficient to prevent the cigar being rolled up or offering any danger to the
operator's hand which can thus be passed without fear over the back cutting
edge as well as over the front entting edge, both being level with the bottom F.
The roller is composed of two halves R R adjustable on a shaft a seated in the
front end of the horizontal lever L pivoted at its lower end between two points pp
permitting it to be adjusted in height and rigidly held in a horizontal direction
during its oscillations to the right or left for the purpose of passing the roller R R
over the die M to cut the leaf.
In order to control the cutting roller by the operator's feet the lever Lis
provided at the lower part of its vertical pivot P with a horizontal arm B, to the
end of which are attached two cords oo which are carried over two grooved
pulleys E running loosely un suitable attachments, to the plate T. The opposite
ends of the cords are attached to two rods T 2 the lower ends of which are jointed
to two pedals P1, P1. It will thus be clearly understood that if the operator
presses his right foot on the corresponding pedal the lever system BLR
oscillates towards the right and is brought back to the left by the left foot so that
in a very short time he can pass the roller R R forwards and backwards over the
die thus securing a perfectly clear cut of the wrapper.
By arranging the valve V so as to work automatically for opening and closing
the suction conduit C always at the proper moment and without any supervision,
the operator has in no way to look at it, but certain and regular action will be
always insured.
To this effect the die M forins part with a valve box S in which is fitted a valve
of very simple construction. It consists of a sphere V of any suitable material
suspended within the box S in front of the branch conduit C 1.
It follows that if the perforated bottom F of the disc is covered by a leaf of
tobacco, and the suction of the conduit C rarifies the air in the box S and the die,
there is an equality of pressure, and the valve remains open under the action of its
own weight which keeps it vertically suspended. This condition will subsist so
long as the leaf is kept quite flat on the perforated bottom F of the die, but
when the former has been cut and the operator rolls therein the cigar bunch, the
leaf, in rolling up uncovers the perforations in the bottom and the external air
then enters into the box and exerts on the valve V a pressure which deflects it
towards the conduit C1 and partially closes the latter, that is to say in such
manner as to leave at the edge a small slot f which has for its object to enable
an equilibrium of pressure in the box S and the die M to be re-established as soon
as the operator applies on the latter a fresh leaf of tobacco, whereupon the valve
drops again and the suction is fully exerted again on the leaf covering the die.
The slot fat the edge of the valve is formed by the slightly eccentric suspension
of the sphere in front of the conduit C 1.
Fig. 8 is a modification of the automatic valve which in this case consists of a
disc valve moved by a rod tl running in an arm, s and resting on a counter-
weighted lever L1. Normally the counterweight keeps the valve raised, but
under the external pressure the valve drops on to its seat which divides the
box S into two parts, thus closing the conduit and acting against the counter-
weight. In this case also a small air passage through the valve is afforded by
the three small points of o on the valve seating which hold the valve slightly
raised from its seat. It will be seen that this, or still other modifications may, if

page_text: desired, he substituted for the spherical valve, but the latter is preferable in
any way.
The action will easily be seen from what precedes.
The operator places the leaf of tobacco on the die and stretches it over the
edges thereof by pressing it on the lower table portion X 1, the lever L1 being
at its initial left hand position. He then presses successively on the right hand
and the left hand pedal, making the roller R R pass once or twice over the leaf
held down by suction on the die M, thus cutting out the wrapper clearly which
remains held on the bottom F until it uncovers the latter on the rolling up of the
cigar by the operator, at which monent the valve closes. The same action is-
repeated, the valve opening again through the continuance of the suction by
means of the small slot f. It will thus be seen that the only manipulations
required from the operator are the stretching of the leaf and the rolling of the
wrapper, the other operations being effected by the fees or automatically, so that
he can manufacture a great quantity of cigars in a very short time, and by reason
of the simplicity of the whole of the table the learning of the rolling is as easy as
possible.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. In a machine for cutting out tobacco wrappers and rolling cigars, the
combination with a cutting die on which the leaf is held by air suction and cut by
a roller passing over it, of a fixed table composed of two parts arranged around the
said die in such manner that the fore part extending around the ends of the die is
at a lower level of about the thickness of a finger and the back part of about the
thickness of the leaf below the cutting edge of the die as set forth and shown in
the drawings.
2. In a machine for cutting out tobacco wrappers and rolling cigars, the
combination with a cutting die, a cutting roller and a fixed table made of two-
parts at different levels below the cutting edge as set forth, of mechanism for
controlling the cutting roller by the feet of the operator, through pedals connected
by cords passing over grooved pulleys with an under arm of the roller lever as set
forth.
3. In a machine for cutting out tobacco wrappers and rolling cigars, the
combination with a cutting die, a fixed table made of two parts at distinct levels, a
cutting roller and mechanism for controlling the latter by the feet of the operator,.
of an automatically acting ball shaped valve suspended in the valve chest below
the die so as to remain open by the action of its own gravity when the leaf
covers the die but to close imperfectly the air conduit when the leaf is removed
by atmospheric pressure by leaving a small slot allowing of the re-establishment
of equilibrium and thus re-opening of the valve when the die is again covered as
set forth.
4. For the above described valve arrangement a variety of the valve construction
in shape of a disc resting on a counter weighted lever acting as set forth, the said
disc closing imperfectly the air passage by resting on projecting knobs on the seat
as set forth and shown in the drawings.
Jantában 1802
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents..