EP1250855B1 - Method and device for eliminating a disturbance from a tobacco channel in a rod making machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A pile up of tobacco on the conveyor (17) is dislodged by moving one or both side rails (260,260a) to enlarge the belt width or to oscillate to and fro.

Description

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for eliminating a disturbance in a substantially a conveyor belt for conveying a strand of tobacco fibers and two from this downwardly extending lateral guides having tobacco channel a known cigarette rod machine "PROTOS", due to a fiber jam in the fiber strand in the channel, according to the respective preamble of claims 1 and 7.

In the production of cigarettes in the strand process, a so-called fiber strand is formed in a tobacco channel made of tobacco fibers, which after being leveled is enveloped by a cigarette paper strip to form a cigarette strand. The tobacco channel generally has a moving tobacco conveyor belt, followed by perpendicular thereto lateral guides or boundaries in the form of mostly downwardly extending stationary elongated rails, strips or the like (sometimes called "cheeks"). The tobacco channel thus has at least approximately the shape of a downwardly open U. At the side facing away from the channel of the air-permeable conveyor belt, ie a suction belt, there is negative pressure, so that the tobacco fibers adhere to the band because of the suction air flowing through the band and as Fiber strand are taken. Since the friction on the stationary side channel walls is not low, it may be due to congestion of the moving tobacco fibers to blockages and unwanted densification of tobacco fibers in the channel, which may affect the further strand promotion and thus cigarette production to a standstill. In such cases, in general, the machine must be turned off, after which the jammed tobacco fibers can be removed from the channel. Only then can the machine be restarted. In the case of channel blockages, intervention by operating personnel was thus previously required, which first had to clear the channel before it could clean it.
The problem underlying the invention is to facilitate the removal of fiber jams in channels of cigarette rod making machines.
According to the invention this is achieved in that at a fiber jam at least one of the guides is moved transversely to the direction of movement of the fiber strand such that the channel cross-section is increased. Due to the larger channel volume, the tobacco fibers may fall down out of the channel. This effect can be reinforced according to a development of the invention in that the conveyor belt is moved at a fiber jamming transversely to the direction of movement of the fiber strand to remove the fibers from the tobacco channel. In a downwardly open channel, the direction of the conveyor belt movement has a vertical component. Additional support for the obstruction removal can be achieved according to a further embodiment of the invention in that the conveyor belt is moved in a fiber jam counter to its direction of movement during undisturbed operation. According to the invention, the obstruction removal can be further improved by the fact that when using an air-permeable conveyor belt, on whose side facing away from the channel negative pressure to hold by suction through the channel and the conveyor belt, the tobacco fibers on the conveyor belt, supplied in the congestion compressed air to the conveyor belt which helps to blow out the tobacco fibers from the channel. In addition, it may be advantageous to enforce the end of the channel in the constipation case with a mechanical clearing element, preferably a scraper. The determination of a fiber jam or a blockage in the tobacco channel can be made according to the invention by means of a sensor. A correspondingly formed signal can control the movement of the guide rail and / or the conveyor belt transversely to its direction of movement and / or the return of the conveyor belt in the opposite direction to the working direction of movement and / or the use of the movement of the Räumelementes.

The above-mentioned device according to the invention is characterized by an activated at a fiber jam device for moving at least one of the lateral guides transversely to the direction of movement of the fiber strand in the sense of an enlargement of the channel cross-section.
Further device features of the invention can be found in the subordinate device claims.

The invention is not for the elimination of clogging in a cigarette rod maker limited. In the same or similar way can blockages as a result of congestion of fibers or similar components in others Machines are eliminated, for example, in machines for cigarillos or cigar production or in machines for the production of filters of tobacco processing Industry using lumpy filter material such as filter fibers.

In addition, the invention can also be used in so-called two-strand machines find in which the strands of tobacco fibers or other material in be promoted adjacent channels.

The advantage associated with the invention is that in case of blockages of aforementioned species due to fiber congestion no longer interfered by hand is needed, but such fiber jam can be automatically eliminated.

The invention will be explained in more detail with reference to embodiments in the drawing.

Show it:

FIG. 1

An overview image of a cigarette rod machine with the essential assemblies,

FIG. 2

the area of a tobacco channel in a cigarette rod machine according to FIG. 1 in a side view,

FIG. 3

a bottom view of the tobacco channel according to Figure 2 in the direction of the arrow A with a movable by a fluid-operated power element side guide for the fiber strand,

FIG. 3a

a variant of the moving device for the movable side guide using an eccentric drive,

FIG. 4

a sectional view of the tobacco channel according to Figure 2 along the line B - B from the direction of arrow C in Figure 3 in enlarged Scale.

FIG. 1 shows a cigarette extruder machine of the type PROTOS of the Applicant known in the cigarette industry.
From a lock 1, a pre-distributor 2 is charged in portions with tobacco fibers. A removal roller 3 of the pre-distributor 2 supplements controlled a reservoir 4 with tobacco, from which a rope conveyor 5 takes tobacco and fed a stowage 6 controlled. From the storage shaft 6 takes a pin roller 7 a uniform stream of tobacco, which is knocked out by a rollover roller 8 of the pins of the pin roller 7 and thrown on a circulating at a constant speed spreading cloth 9. A formed on the spreading cloth 9 tobacco fleece is thrown into a sighting device 11, which consists essentially of an air curtain, the larger or heavier tobacco particles happen while all other tobacco particles from the air in a funnel formed by a pin roller 12 and a wall 13 funnel 14th be steered. From the pin roller 12, the tobacco fibers are thrown in a tobacco channel 16 against a strand conveyor 17, where the tobacco held by means sucked into a vacuum chamber 18 air and a tobacco fiber strand is aufauert. A Egalisator 19 removes excess tobacco from the tobacco fiber strand, which is then placed on a run in synchronized cigarette paper strip 21. The cigarette paper strip 21 is withdrawn from a reel 22, passed through a printing unit 23 and placed on a driven format tape 24. The format strip 24 transports the tobacco rod and the cigarette paper strip 21 through a format 26, in which the cigarette paper strip 21 is folded around the tobacco rod, so that still protrudes an edge which is glued in a known manner by a Glimapparat, not shown. Then the bond is closed and dried by a Tandemnahtplätte 27. A thus formed cigarette rod 28 passes through a strand density meter 29, which controls the Egalizer 19, and is cut by a knife apparatus 31 in double-length cigarettes 32. The double-length cigarettes 32 are transferred from a controlled-arm transfer device 34 to a transfer drum 36 of a filter attachment machine 37, onto the cutting drum 38 of which they are divided by a circular blade into single cigarettes.

Conveyor belts 39, 41 promote excess tobacco into one under the reservoir 4 arranged container 42, from the recycled tobacco from the steep conveyor 5 is removed again.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show details of the tobacco channel 16 in the area of formation and equalization of a tobacco fiber strand.
In the housing 18 designed as a vacuum chamber according to FIG. 2, there are deflection rollers 40, 60, 80, 100, 120 and 140 and a drive roller 160 around which an air-permeable suction belt 17 serving as a strand conveyor is guided. The axes of the pulleys and the drive roller are perpendicular to the plane of the drawing. The drive roller 160 drives the suction belt 17 in the direction indicated by the arrows 200 direction. If a fiber accumulation occurs in the channel 16, the direction can be reversed.
At the bottom of the device shown in Figure 2, the suction belt 17 is perpendicular to the plane forming the bottom of the strand forming zone tobacco channel 16. This runs from the guide roller 140 to the guide roller 40. Sideways, ie parallel to the plane, the tobacco channel 16 of a guide 260 and a further guide 260a limited so that the tobacco channel 16 seen in the conveying direction 240 has a cross-section which has the shape of an upside-down U. The thus open down tobacco channel 16 is fed from below by means of the pin roller 12 (Figure 1), a fiber stream of tobacco fibers. By sucked from the vacuum chamber 18 with vacuum suction belt 17, these tobacco fibers are sucked to the suction belt, between the pulleys 140 and 40 accumulated on the suction belt 17 and suspended by the tobacco channel 16. The forming in the conveying direction 240 in the tobacco channel with increasing height tobacco rod is taken after its equalization by the known Egalisator 19 at the end formed by the guide roller 40 end of the tobacco channel finally of other, not shown in Fig.2 processing devices of the cigarette rod machine.

Just before the end formed by the guide roller 40 of the tobacco channel 16 is a Sensor 300 is provided, which as a the extent of fiber occupancy of the suction belt 17 detecting detector means is used. A possible construction of such a sensor can be taken from Figure 4 and the corresponding description. The sensor 300 outputs a signal to a controller 51 when the occupancy of the suction belt 17 with tobacco fibers exceeds a predetermined level or below. Also connected to the controller 51 is an arrangement 52 for interrupting the supply of the tobacco fiber stream to the tobacco channel 16 and an arrangement 53 for interrupting the from a vacuum source 54 via a controllable valve 56 in the vacuum chamber 18 applied negative pressure. In addition, the control device 51, a drive 55 of the drive roller 160, so that he the suction conveyor belt 17 in the arrow 240 opposite Direction 241 drives. The controller 51 is also provided with a Pulse generator 58 connected to a control signal via a line 59 to a Moving device 61, d. H. their force element 62 (Figure 3) for moving a lateral guide 260 outputs.

FIG. 3 shows details of a tobacco channel 16 in a bottom view according to arrow A in FIG. 2. It has lateral guides 260, 260a (also called "cheeks") extending downwards from the suction conveyor belt. In the U thus formed, the constructed, not shown Tabakastrang is held by the negative pressure on the suction belt 17 and moved according to arrow 240. Since the guides 260, 260a of the tobacco channel 16 are stationary, a congestion in the moving fiber strand can occur due to friction, which usually leads to disturbances and even interruptions of the strand movement. In general, then an operator must eliminate the jam, ie empty the channel of tobacco, after which the machine can resume production. This manual intervention is undesirable. Therefore, in the invention, a device 61 for moving at least one of the lateral guides 260, 260a of the channel 16 transversely to the conveying direction 240 of the suction belt 17 is provided such that the channel cross-section is increased and the tobacco can fall downwards. For this purpose, a fluid-operated force element 62, for example a power cylinder 69, serve, whose piston rod 63 is pivotally connected to the guide 260. The guide 260 is also rigidly or resiliently mounted on handlebar 64, 66 on the cigarette rod machine. 67, 81, 82, 83 and 68 are suitable partially hinged attachment points. If a fiber jam occurs in the channel 16, the sensor 300, after stopping the suction belt 17, sends a signal to the force element 62 whose non-visible piston in the cylinder 69 and thus also the piston rod 63 move in the direction of the arrow 71. The path of the guide 260 may be relatively small, as the pressure through the congestion in the channel quickly decreases, especially when the additional measures described below are used. The device 61 may also act on both guides 260, 260a. Designated at 72, 73 are stops which limit the movement of the guide 260.
If the sensor 300 continues too high or too low fiber occupancy of the suction belt 17 as a result of clogging (fiber jam), the control device 51 receives a signal. It in turn gives control signals to the arrangement 52 for interrupting the tobacco supply, to the arrangement 53 for switching off the negative pressure in the vacuum chamber 18 by closing the valve 56 and the arrangement 57 for switching off the drive motor 55 of roller 160. In addition, the force element 62 of pulse generator 58th activated via lines 59, so that it moves the guide 260 in the sense of increasing the channel cross-section (arrow 71), and the tobacco fibers can fall out. After the removal of the fibers from the channel 16 and elimination of the jam, the controller 51 again activates the vacuum supply of the vacuum chamber 18, the drive of the suction belt 17 and the return movement of the lateral guide 260 in its position shown by the force element 62nd

In addition to the movement of the side guide 260 by means of the element 62 and its action, supporting stamps 320 (FIG. 2) attached to the vacuum chamber 18 are provided. These push, as indicated by the double arrows 340, by means of actuators 360, the suction belt 17 from above from the conveying position shown by a solid line in the direction of the inlet of the tobacco channel 16 in a position shown by a dashed line 400, if a corresponding Receive signal from the controller 51. The suction belt 17 can be moved with the aid of the punch 320 in such a way, since the deflection roller 120 serving as a tensioning roller is mounted so as to be movable against the action of a clamping force (double arrow 380). By the movement of the suction belt 17 down the removal of tobacco fibers from the channel is supported. The controller 51 causes the actuators 360 to extend the plunger 320 in the direction indicated by arrows 340 from above against the suction belt 17 to push it towards the inlet of the tobacco channel 16, whereby the jammed tobacco rod is pushed out of the tobacco channel 16. Thereafter, the punch 320 go up again.
In addition to the above-described measures or independently thereof, the controller 51 may drive the suction belt 17 to clear the jam in a direction corresponding to arrow 241 against the operational conveying direction 240.
Instead of increasing the channel cross-section through the illustrated pivoting, an enlargement can also take place by displacement of a guide strip, for example by parallel displacement. In a machine stop for removing jams, a scraper 77 fastened to a belt 76 can also be activated in the region of the end of the suction conveyor belt 17. For example, it may then perform a cleaning movement while the belt 76 makes one or more orbital movements.
At the end of the fiber removal from the tobacco channel 16, the vacuum chamber 18 may be briefly connected to a compressed air source. For this purpose, for example, the direction of rotation of a negative pressure source 54 serving blower can be reversed by the controller 51. The thus acting through the suction belt 17 compressed air pulse supports the emptying of the tobacco channel 16th

FIG. 3 a shows a variant of the movement device 61 for the lateral guidance 260 of the tobacco channel 16, in which only the right end of the channel 16 is shown. A rotatable eccentric 91 is connected via a connecting element 92 with the Side guide 260 of the channel 16 connected. With a rotation of the disc 91 According to arrow 93, the guide rail 260 is slightly pivoted, so that the Channel cross-section increases and the tobacco can fall out of the channel. 94 is a resiliently formed support member.

FIG. 4 shows a section of the tobacco channel 16 at the level of the sensor 300. Below of the suction belt 17 are in the lateral guides 260 and 260a holes 261 introduced, which at the channel 16 side facing Window 262 are sealed. On the side of the guide 260a are two light sources 301, 302 mounted adjacent to the bores, located on the side of the guide 260 there are two photoreceptors 303, 304. The receivers 303, 304 are provided with evaluation circuits 305,306 connected, in turn, not shown are connected to the controller 51 (Figure 2). The mode of action of the sensor 300 is as follows: The light of the sources 301, 302 falls through the holes 261 and the Window 262 and through the channel 16 to the receiver 303, 304. Is the channel in Operation partially filled with tobacco, so for example, the light is the upper Light source 301 shaded by the tobacco, not shown, so that the upper Receiver 303 receives no light while the lower receiver 304 continues illuminated by the light source 302. Now step upstream of the sensor 300 a tobacco accumulation in the channel 16, so that is located in the region of the sensor 300 Tobacco transported by the suction belt 17 while the jam prevents that new tobacco enters the area. Therefore, also the light of the upper Source 301 pass the channel 16 and the upper receiver 303 is illuminated. As soon as this condition persists for longer than e.g. one millisecond at the evaluation circuit 305 of the upper receiver 303 is registered, this reports a congestion the controller 51. If a jam occurs in the opposite direction downstream of the sensor 300, so the tobacco is upstream of the jam, including in the area of the sensor 300, dammed in the channel, so that the light from the lower source 302 shaded and the lower receiver 304 is not illuminated. The corresponding Evaluation circuit 306 will report a congestion to the controller 51 as soon as this condition is longer than e.g. one millisecond is registered. The window 262 prevent the penetration of tobacco fibers into the holes 261, resulting in interference the function of the sensor 300 would lead.

Claims (15)

1. Method for eliminating a fault in a tobacco channel of a cigarette strand machine due to a fibre jam in the channel, said tobacco channel having, in essence, a conveyor belt, for conveying a strand of tobacco fibres, and two lateral guides extending downwards from said conveyor belt, characterized in that, in the event of a fibre jam, at least one of the guides is moved across the direction of movement of the fibre strand in such a way that the cross-section of the channel is enlarged.
2. Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that, in the event of a fibre jam, the conveyor belt is moved across the direction of movement of the fibre strand for the purpose of removing the fibres from the tobacco channel.
3. Method according to Claim 1 and/or 2, characterized in that, in the event of a fibre jam, the conveyor belt is moved contrary to its direction of movement during fault-free operation.
4. Method according to one or more of the preceding Claims, characterized in that, during fault-free operation, negative pressure is applied on the side of the conveyor belt, designed to be air-permeable, that faces away from the fibre strand, and, in the event of a fibre jam, positive pressure is applied to the conveyor belt.
5. Method according to one or more of the preceding Claims, characterized in that, in the event of a fibre jam, a clearing element, preferably a scraper blade, which extends at least partially into the tobacco channel, is activated.
6. Method according to one or more of the preceding Claims, characterized in that a signal generated upon the occurrence of a fibre jam in the channel is used to move at least one guide and also, possibly, the conveyor belt itself.
7. Device for eliminating a fault in a tobacco channel of a cigarette strand machine due to a fibre jam in the fibre strand in the channel, said tobacco channel having, in essence, a conveyor belt, for conveying a strand of tobacco fibres, and two lateral guides extending downwards from said conveyor belt, characterized by a device (61), activated in the event of a fibre jam, for moving at least one of the lateral guides (260) across the direction of movement (240) of the fibre strand so as to enlarge the cross-section of the channel.
8. Device according to Claim 7, characterized by a drive (320, 360), activated in the event of a fibre jam, for displacing the conveyor belt (17) across the direction of movement (240) of the fibre strand for the purpose of removing tobacco fibres from the channel (16).
9. Device according to Claim 7 and/or 8, characterized by a drive (55) for the conveyor belt (17), which reverses (241) the direction of movement (240) of the latter in the event of a conveying jam.
10. Device according to one or more of Claims 7 to 9, characterized by a negative-pressure chamber (18) on the side of the air-permeable conveyor belt (17) that faces away from the fibre strand, said negative-pressure chamber being connectable to a positive-pressure source in the event of a fibre jam.
11. Device according to one or more of Claims 7 to 10, characterized by a scraper blade (77) which, in the event of a fibre jam, can be moved to execute a cleaning movement through at least a portion of the channel (16).
12. Device according to one or more of Claims 7 to 11, characterized by a measuring device (300), for the occurrence of a fibre jam, the output signal of which is supplied to the device (61) for displacing a lateral guide (260).
13. Device according to one or more of Claims 7 to 12, characterized in that the movement device (61) for at least one of the lateral guides (26) has a fluid-actuated force element (62).
14. Device according to Claim 13, characterized in that the force element has a fluid-actuated cylinder-piston arrangement (62, 63).
15. Device according to one or more of Claims 7 to 12, characterized in that the movement device 61 for at least one of the lateral guides (260) has an eccentric arrangement (91...93).

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