Patent Description:
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.

Patent <CIT> 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 <CIT> 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 <CIT> 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 <CIT> 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.

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.

The object of the invention is shown in a preferred embodiment in a drawing in which:.

An example filter rod R shown in a cross-section in <FIG> comprises 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> shows a filter rod R' comprising the segments S1, S2 and the beads C placed in the spaces between the segments. A rod R" shown in <FIG> comprises the segments S1, S2 and two kinds of beads C1 and C2 situated alternately in successive spaces between the segments.

<FIG> shows an apparatus <NUM> for manufacturing the rods R of a continuous material strip <NUM> in the first embodiment. The material strip <NUM> comprises acetate fibres supplied from a material bale <NUM>, 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 apparatus <NUM> for manufacturing the rods R is provided with feeding unit <NUM> for feeding a material <NUM> (generally filling material) wherein the material strip <NUM> is subjected to processing. The apparatus <NUM> comprises a feeding unit <NUM> arranged to feed the beads C, a forming unit <NUM> and a cutting head <NUM>. 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 unit <NUM> will be situated inside the continuous rod, and after cutting such continuous rod by means of the cutting head <NUM> will be situated inside individual rods R. The apparatus <NUM> comprises a guiding unit <NUM> for material strip guiding and preliminary material compression, a compressing unit <NUM> for 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 unit <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM> is provided with a forming unit <NUM> for final forming and lengthwise gluing of the continuous rod CR. The guiding unit <NUM>, the compressing unit <NUM> and the forming unit <NUM> constitute together a forming apparatus for forming the continuous rod CR.

<FIG> shows the feeding apparatus <NUM> comprising a feeding wheel <NUM> and five feeding units <NUM> feeding the beads C to the transporting pockets <NUM> situated on a circumferential surface <NUM> of the feeding wheel <NUM>. The number of feeding units depends on the quantity of beads which are to be placed into the continuous rod CR. As shown in <FIG>, the feeding unit <NUM> comprises a supply channel <NUM>, a pushing mechanism <NUM> and a transferring wheel <NUM> with the rotational axis m. The pushing mechanism <NUM> comprises a body <NUM> which in the embodiment shown has the shape of a cylinder. In the body <NUM>, on its lateral surface <NUM>, there are situated a holding pocket <NUM> and a transferring channel <NUM> extending from the holding pocket <NUM> towards the transferring wheel <NUM>. The transferring channel <NUM> is situated diagonally to the generator of the body <NUM> and tangentially to the transferring wheel <NUM>, whereas the transferring channel <NUM> is directed in accordance with the direction of rotation of the transferring wheel <NUM> marked with an arrow. The pushing mechanism <NUM> comprises a movable pushing element <NUM> having a pushing edge <NUM>. The pushing element <NUM> has the form of a plate which may be flat or may be shaped as a sector of a cylindrical surface. The pushing element <NUM> is rotatably mounted so as to rotate around the axis n, whereas the pushing element <NUM> moves in a groove <NUM> made in the body <NUM>, also shown in <FIG>. The rotational axis n of the pushing element <NUM> may overlap the rotational axis m of the transferring wheel <NUM>. The pushing element <NUM> moves with a speed v1. The pushing element <NUM> rotates so that the pushing edge <NUM> passes through the holding pocket <NUM> and the transferring channel <NUM> as shown in <FIG>. The bead C fed from the supply channel <NUM> falls into the holding pocket <NUM>. The movement of the pushing element <NUM> causes that the pushing edge <NUM> pushes the bead C out of the holding pocket <NUM> through the transferring channel <NUM> towards the transferring wheel <NUM> to the transferring pocket <NUM>. The pushing element <NUM> makes a rotation as a result of which the bead C is transferred from the holding pocket <NUM> through the transferring channel <NUM> to the transferring pocket <NUM>. The transferring wheel <NUM> may be provided with two transferring pockets <NUM>, and the pushing mechanism <NUM> may be provided with two pushing elements <NUM>. A greater number of transferring pockets <NUM> and pushing elements <NUM> is also possible. The transferring pocket <NUM> moves with a speed v2, whereas the speed v2 may be equal to the speed v1. At the time of pushing the bead C out of the holding pocket <NUM> and of the transferring channel <NUM> the speed v1 may be momentarily greater than the speed v2, as a result of which the time of transfer of the bead C to the transferring pocket <NUM> is shortened.

The bead C, while being transferred downwards to the transporting pocket <NUM>, moves in the transferring pocket <NUM> on a circular path in a guiding channel <NUM> formed by surfaces <NUM> and <NUM>, a ring <NUM> and an outer guide <NUM> (the channel <NUM> is shown in a cross-section in <FIG>; in <FIG> the guide <NUM> is not shown, and the ring <NUM> is shown with a broken line). In the circumferential surface <NUM> of the transferring wheel <NUM>, there is a groove <NUM> which passes also through the transferring pocket <NUM>. In the lower part of the transferring wheel <NUM>, there is situated a plough <NUM> in the form of a flat element inserted into the groove <NUM>, the function of the plough <NUM> being to push the bead C out of the transferring pocket <NUM> to the transporting pocket <NUM> on the feeding wheel <NUM>.

In the feeding unit <NUM> in <FIG>, in the first feeding unit <NUM> and the third feeding unit <NUM>", the transferring wheel <NUM> takes the position before feeding the bead C from the transferring pocket <NUM> to the transporting pocket <NUM> of the feeding wheel <NUM>. In the second feeding unit <NUM>' and the fourth feeding unit <NUM>‴, the transferring wheel <NUM> takes the position after feeding the bead C from the transferring wheel <NUM> to the transporting pocket <NUM> of the feeding wheel <NUM>. In the fifth feeding unit 21ʺʺ, the transferring wheel <NUM> takes the position directly after supplying the bead C to the transferring pocket <NUM>. During a rotation of the feeding wheel <NUM>, the successive transporting pockets <NUM> are filled with the beads C so as to fill all pockets <NUM> of the feeding wheel <NUM>. For the respective feeding units <NUM>, the plough <NUM> may take different positions, and the length of the outer guide <NUM> must be respectively selected. The beads C of one kind or of different kinds may be supplied to the respective feeding units <NUM>. In the case of a need to manufacture rods comprising unevenly spaced beads the transporting pockets <NUM> have to be unevenly spaced on the circumference of the feeding wheel <NUM>. The feeding units <NUM> may be spaced at uneven intervals around the feeding wheel <NUM>.

<FIG> shows a feeding unit wherein the body <NUM>' has a smaller diameter than the transferring wheel <NUM>. The pushing element <NUM>' in the pushing mechanism <NUM>' has a rotational axis n parallel to and shifted from the rotational axis m of the transferring wheel <NUM>.

The rod manufacturing apparatus <NUM>' in the second embodiment shown in <FIG> is provided with a unit <NUM>' for the feeding of filling material in the form of segments S1, S2 of which the rod R' shown in <FIG> is made. The segments S1, S2 may be segments made of filter material or any other material. The segments S1, S2 are supplied by feeding modules <NUM>, <NUM> and transferred to a forming unit <NUM>' by means of a transferring module <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM>' is provided with the feeding unit <NUM> built similar to the first embodiment. If two different kinds of beads C1, C2 are alternately supplied to successive feeding units <NUM>, the apparatus <NUM>' according to the second embodiment may be used to manufacture the rods R" as shown in <FIG>.

Claim 1:
A feeding unit (<NUM>) for feeding beads (C) comprising
a supply channel (<NUM>) for feeding a stream of beads (C),
a transferring wheel (<NUM>) provided with at least one transferring pocket (<NUM>),
a pushing mechanism (<NUM>) comprising a holding pocket (<NUM>) for receiving the beads (C) from the supply channel (<NUM>), a transferring channel (<NUM>), and a pushing element (<NUM>) for transferring the beads (C) individually from the holding pocket (<NUM>) via the transferring channel (<NUM>) to the transferring wheel (<NUM>),
characterised in that
the pushing element (<NUM>) having a pushing edge (<NUM>) is a rotatable element with a horizontal rotational axis (n),
the pushing edge (<NUM>) being arranged for passing during the rotation through the holding pocket (<NUM>) and the transferring channel (<NUM>) in order to push the bead (C) out of the holding pocket (<NUM>) through the transferring channel (<NUM>) to the transferring pocket (<NUM>).