Patent ID: 7922638

Claim:
A machine for manufacturing composite filters, comprising: an assembly unit by which filter plugs having different filtration characteristics are assembled to form composite groups of plugs; a conveyor positioned downstream of the assembly unit and having a plurality of flutes by which composite groups of plugs are accommodated singly and advanced in a vertically oriented plane transverse to the axes of the groups of plugs; a rotating member positioned downstream of the conveyor and rotating around a horizontal rotation axis transverse to the axes of the groups of plugs, the rotating member having a plurality of carriers acting on the composite groups of plugs advanced by the conveyor to transfer the composite groups of plugs from the conveyor to a garniture tongue; the garniture tongue being positioned downstream of the rotating member and having two channels extending parallel to each other and to the axes of the groups of plugs and transversal to the rotation axis of the rotating member; a stream of the groups of plugs remaining in a same vertical plane between receipt into the plurality of carriers respectively and deposit into one of the channels of the garniture tongue; and a rotary cutter by which two continuous filter rods formed in the channels of the garniture tongue are divided up simultaneously into single composite filters.