Improvements in Cigarette-making Machines.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Mar., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 7th Dec., 1894 -Accepted, 12th Jan., 1895
Improvements in Cigarette-making Machines.
We ANTOTNE GROUVELLE and EMILE BELOT of 16 Rue Dronot, Paris in the
Republic of France, Tobacco Manufacturers, do hereby déclare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:
This improved multiple cigarette machine is designed to make cigarettes of any
size or length covered with paper or tobacco leaves and filled with any kind of
tobacco. It rolls the tobacco in the paper exactly the same as does the smoker.
It
may be worked by hand or by a motor.
A machine worked by hand will be first described, which is capable of making
four cigarettes at a time.
The machine is composed of a drum-shaped support, flattened at its lower and
rear sides and covered on its curved surface with indiarubber or moleskin cloth,
fixed thereon by means of adjustable plates or discs and screws, and capable of fitting
into a longitudinal groove in the drum. Two levers, keyed one on each side of a
spindle passing through the drum, carry between pivots, or pointed screws, a roller
free to run on the periphery of the drum, and are limited in their travel by wedges
or blocks which act as stops at the lowest point of their course.
The cloth on the
drum passes over the said roller when the latter is in its position of rest against
the stops. By filling the drum-groove, which is close to the stopped position of the
roller, with tobacco and taking hold of the handles or knobs of the levers, and then
pushing them towards the rear position of the machine, the work-girl encloses the
tobacco, which is thus rolled up on itself ready to enter the cigarette.
The tobacco thus rolled encounters in its travel the sheets of paper placed ready
gummed by the following arrangement, which is supported by two side pieces fixed
to the drum :-
A gumming roller dips into a basin half filled with gum, and which is supported
by the said side pieces. Four plates, which take the gum from the gumming roller,
are fixed on a carrier, which is hinged to levers oscillating on an axle. By taking
hold of the carrier by the side knobs with which it is provided, the gummed plates
may be brought on to the paper placed on a slope in compartments of a table which
is provided with edges. By again raising the carrier, four sheets of paper are thus
brought into an inclined position, determined by projections, in such a way that the
papers hang down lightly touching the cloth of the drum.
In the movement of the roller with its levers towards the rear, the papers are thus
gripped between the cloth and the rolled tobacco; and are detached from the
gummed plates, and roll round the tobacco. The cigarettes, when completed, then
fall into a box placed behind the drum. It is then only necessary to separate them
one from another by means of scissors, and, for this purpose, it is ouly necessary

page_text: to cut the tobacco, as the cigarette papers are separated by an interstice of
1-5 millimetres, and the cutting, therefore, of the cigarettes offers no difficulty.
When the machine is driven by means of a motor, 6 or 8 cigarettes can be made
simultaneously. It is then preferable to arrange the machine in the following
manner :-
A work-girl, placed at the side of the operator, feeds the tobacco continuously
into the groove, from which an endless cloth, parallel to the roller, brings the tobacco
to the level of this game roller. The operator, after having arranged the sheets of
paper as hereinbefore described, throws the motor, by means of a pedal, into gear,
and this produces the oscillating movement of the roller-levers. The operator, in
this case, having no longer to move the levers by hand, and having the tobacco
brought along the groove of the drum, can thus produce twice as many cigarettes
as when working alone by hand.
In order to form cigarettes covered with tobacco leaf, the leaves of tobacco, which
are to serve as wrappers, are stretched diagonally across the cloth. When it is
desired to change the length of the cigarettes, it suffices to change the gummed
plates, and the table divided into compartments for the papers.
If it be desired, at the same time, to change the thickness of the cigarettes, it is
only necessary to change the length of the roller and cloth by means of the
regulating plates and screws.
Dated this 8th day of March 1894.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicants.
We, ANTOINE GROUVELLE and EMILE BELOT of 16 Rue Drouot, Paris in the
Republic of France, Tobacco Manufacturers, 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 :-
This machine is characterised by the combination of a lever arrangement and
movable rollers serving to roll the tobacco on a table provided for the purpose
together with parts arranged for gumming the sheet and bringing it in this condition
in contact with the tobacco which has already commenced to be rolled and the
rolling of which is continued in the sheet of paper itself.
In order to facilitate the comprehension of the Specification, we will now refer
to the accompanying drawings, which show as an example in Figures 1 and 2
respectively front and side elevations of a machine on this system arranged to make
four cigarettes at a time.
The same letters of reference represent the same parts in the two figures.
The machine is composed of a drum-shaped support A flattened at its lower and
rear sides and covered on its curved surface with an apron of indiarubber, moleskin
or parchment well calendered fixed thereon by means of plates B B, one of which
has slots bb whereby the length of the apron may be regulated. A longitudinal
groove C is formed in the face of the drum in which lies the apron T in order to
receive the tobacco. Two levers D D secured one on each end of a spindle E
passing through the drum, carry at their extremities between pivots or pointed
screws Fa roller Falso covered by the apron T and free to run on the periphery
of the drum, said levers D D being limited in their travel by inclined pieces or
blocks G which act as stops at the lowest point of their course.
On the drum A two brackets fare fixed which support the parts for gumming the

page_text: papers. These parts consist of 1st. a lever K hinged to the brackets fat L. and
limited in its course by a stop k fixed on the said brackets; second a gumming
roller H dipping in a vessel 4 half filled with gum, and on which rest blades I serving
to take up gum from the gumming roller. These blades, which are four in number
in the machine shown in the drawing, because of it being arranged for four
cigarettes, are fixed on a carrier J hinged to the levers K oscillating on the spindle L.
In front of the gumming roller there is an inclined table M provided with partitions S
on which table the packets of cigarette papers are placed, the sheets of these
packets of papers being detached one from another by means of the blades I.
Taking hold of the carrier J by means of the side knobs J', the operator brings
the gumming blades I onto the paper placed on a slope in the compartments of the
table M. By again raising the carrier J four sheets of paper are thus brought into
an inclined position determined by the stops N so that the papers gummed on one
edge by which they adhere to the gumming blades, hang down slightly touching the
apron of the drum A. It then suffices to take hold of the knobs F fixed on the
screws F¹ and to thus raise the levers D carrying the roller F in order to first roll
the tobacco and in such movement of the roller with its levers towards the rear, the
papers are thus gripped between the cloth and the rolled tobacco, and are detached
from the gummed blades and rolled round the tobacco. The cigarettes, when
completed, then fall into a box placed behind the drum.
It is then only necessary to separate the cigarettes from one another by means of
scissors, and, for this purpose, it is only required to cut the tobacco as the cigarette
papers are slightly separated say about 15 millimeters apart, and the cutting
therefore, of the cigarettes offers no difficulty.
The movement of the levers instead of being made by hand may also be obtained
by means of a treadle acting on the spindle E, or in any other suitable manner.
It is also evident that the relative movements of the different parts of the machine
may easily be combined in such a way that these movements may be effected
simultaneously or successively by means of a common motor, so that the working of
the machine would be continuous, the operator having no longer anything to do,
except to direct the machine, occupying herself more particularly with feeding it
with tobacco.
In this case, the tobacco prepared on a table by the operator is seized by a suitable
grip, and forced by a suitable mechanism into the groove or pocket C of the drum,
these parts being arranged in such a way as to take the place of the operator's hand.
The movements of the levers D (which are identical with those of a machine
working by hand) are obtained by means of a crank actuating the spindle E and
operated by means of a suitable cam.
The levers K and carrier J are moved in such a way that the blades or strips I
take gum
from the roller H and the lever J rests at the end of the movement on the
stop N as was described in the operation by hand.
The paper may be presented to the gumming blade or strips I during the passage
of the latter over the table M which for this purpose is rendered movable
vertically.
In case a continuous roll of paper travelling on the table M be employed, the
movable partitions S are removed and the cigarette is only cut to a certain length
after it has been made.
In order to make cigarettes covered with tobacco leaf, the leaves of tobacco
intended to serve as wrappers are spread diagonally across the apron. When it is
desired to alter the length of the cigarettes, it is only necessary to change the
gumming blades and the table divided into compartments for the papers or to allow
the movable partitions S to slide along the paper tables M M.
When it is desired at the same time to change the thickness of the cigarettes, it
is only necessary to change the length of the rolling apron by means of the regulating
plates B B.
Our improved system of machine for rolling cigarettes enables a considerably

page_text: greater production to be obtained with it than with any other machine rolling the
tobacco in the same way as by hand, by reason of the arrangement of the machine
which allows, if desired, 4 to 8 cigarettes to be made at a time. With a four
cigarette machine five to six thousand cigarettes according to their size may be
produced by hand per day of 10 hours. The production may be doubled with a
machine driven by means of a motor, and attended by two operators.
It allows also several cigarettes to be made at a time without necessitating the
cutting of the paper of the wrappers in order to separate them which causes some
considerable difficulty, the interval of tobacco existing between the cigarettes,
indicating the place where they must be cut. The method of charging the tobacco
into the machine prevents any accumulation of refuse or dust on the paper or on the
gumming apparatus. Further; the gummed paper is presented in such a way that
the hand of the operator neither touches the paper nor the gum, and that it is
always parallel to the axes of the mechanism which prevents cigarettes being made
conical or rolled in spirals.
The cigarettes emerge from the machine in such a way that they fall out at the
side of the machine at a different place to where the tobacco and the paper are
introduced.
The metallic gumming strips afford a perfectly rectilinear gumming and as narrow
as possible although regular.
With this machine, finally, a mechanical arrangement driven by a motor may be
employed, the levers D being caused to oscillate and the roll of tobacco. ready to
enter the cigarette making machine being brought on an endless belt which enables
the production of the machine by hand to be doubled whereby a production equal
to that of machines much more complicated is attained. On the other hand by
regulating certain parts, cigarettes of any suitable size or length may be made with
this machine which cannot be effected by machines turning out large quantities,
which pack or force the tobacco into tubes already prepared in place of rolling the
tobacco.
We reserve the right of varying the forms, dimensions, proportions and accessory
parts, and of employing for their construction any material which we may deem
suitable.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that we are
aware of Rickard's Patents Nos. 4630 and 10074 both of 1894, and we wish it to
be understood that we make no claim to anything. described and claimed therein,
but what we claim is :-
1. An improved machine for rolling and making cigarettes, characterised by the
combination with a frame on which a roller, covered by an apron or cloth of suitable
material and length and adjustable at will which also covers the frame, may move,
with the object of rolling the tobacco, of a system of hinged levers, supporting a
blade or blades, which after being gummed are applied to the paper and then
displaced in order to carry away the gummed sheet and bring it on to the frame in
such a way that the cigarette will by a single movement be rolled and enveloped
with the paper; the whole substantially as hereiubefore described and shown as an
example in the accompanying. drawings.
2. As a constituent part of our system of machine, the application of a metallic
strip for effecting the gumming, which strip bears against a revolving roller and
serves to take up and present the paper to the rolling device; substantially as
described and shown in the accompanying drawings.
3. As a constituent part of our system of machine, the combination of means for
allowing an automatic discharge of the cigarette from the rolling apparatus, and for
bringing the paper and the tobacco from opposite points to the machine without
their being able to soil the gum of the gumming device and without the tobacco
dust being able to fall on the paper; substantially as described and shown.

page_text: 4. The combination of parts for rolling the tobacco with those for gumming th
paper, and for presenting it to the previously rolled tobacco, in order to produc
cigarettes, which may be of any suitable length, and which allows the production o
the machine to be much increased; substantially as herein before described an 1.
shown as an example in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 6th day of December 1894.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicants.