EP3984381A2 - Method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles - Google Patents
Method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP3984381A2 EP3984381A2 EP21202253.7A EP21202253A EP3984381A2 EP 3984381 A2 EP3984381 A2 EP 3984381A2 EP 21202253 A EP21202253 A EP 21202253A EP 3984381 A2 EP3984381 A2 EP 3984381A2
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- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- drum
- components
- feed
- pitch
- seats
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
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Links
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 24
- 230000000391 smoking effect Effects 0.000 title claims abstract description 21
- 238000005096 rolling process Methods 0.000 claims description 33
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 claims description 3
- 230000003213 activating effect Effects 0.000 claims description 2
- 238000011144 upstream manufacturing Methods 0.000 claims description 2
- 238000005304 joining Methods 0.000 description 6
- 238000005520 cutting process Methods 0.000 description 4
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 4
- 230000000903 blocking effect Effects 0.000 description 3
- 235000019504 cigarettes Nutrition 0.000 description 3
- 230000005484 gravity Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000004806 packaging method and process Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000003287 optical effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 241000208125 Nicotiana Species 0.000 description 1
- 235000002637 Nicotiana tabacum Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 238000002485 combustion reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000005265 energy consumption Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000001914 filtration Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000003292 glue Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000002093 peripheral effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002699 waste material Substances 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
- A24C—MACHINES FOR MAKING CIGARS OR CIGARETTES
- A24C5/00—Making cigarettes; Making tipping materials for, or attaching filters or mouthpieces to, cigars or cigarettes
- A24C5/47—Attaching filters or mouthpieces to cigars or cigarettes, e.g. inserting filters into cigarettes or their mouthpieces
- A24C5/478—Transport means for filter- or cigarette-rods in view of their assembling
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
- A24C—MACHINES FOR MAKING CIGARS OR CIGARETTES
- A24C5/00—Making cigarettes; Making tipping materials for, or attaching filters or mouthpieces to, cigars or cigarettes
- A24C5/32—Separating, ordering, counting or examining cigarettes; Regulating the feeding of tobacco according to rod or cigarette condition
- A24C5/322—Transporting cigarettes during manufacturing
- A24C5/327—Construction details of the cigarette transport drum
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
- A24D—CIGARS; CIGARETTES; TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS; MOUTHPIECES FOR CIGARS OR CIGARETTES; MANUFACTURE OF TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS OR MOUTHPIECES
- A24D3/00—Tobacco smoke filters, e.g. filter-tips, filtering inserts; Filters specially adapted for simulated smoking devices; Mouthpieces for cigars or cigarettes
- A24D3/02—Manufacture of tobacco smoke filters
- A24D3/0275—Manufacture of tobacco smoke filters for filters with special features
- A24D3/0287—Manufacture of tobacco smoke filters for filters with special features for composite filters
Landscapes
- Feeding Of Articles To Conveyors (AREA)
- Threshing Machine Elements (AREA)
- Cigarettes, Filters, And Manufacturing Of Filters (AREA)
- Manufacturing Of Cigar And Cigarette Tobacco (AREA)
Abstract
Description
- This patent application claims priority from
Italian patent application no. 102020000023935 filed on October 12, 2020 - The present invention relates to a method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles.
- A feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles normally comprises a hopper which is arranged at the highest point and contains a mass of (cylindrical) components; a suction drum is arranged at the bottom of the hopper which is provided with peripheral suction seats and withdraws, from the mass of components, a succession of components which are transferred to the conveyor drums arranged downstream.
- Modern packaging machines for smoking articles have very high nominal speeds (close to or even higher than 18,000-20,000 smoking articles produced per minute) and at these nominal speeds a single hopper may not be sufficient to guarantee the necessary flow rate of components (the descent of the mass of components into the hopper occurs by gravity and therefore there are physical limits that are not easily overcome); for this reason, the feeding units of modern packaging machines for smoking articles often have two twin hoppers operating in parallel (therefore each hopper has a nominal flow rate which is half the flow rate required by the combining machine). The two flows of components coming from the two twin hoppers that are initially separated are brought together in a joining drum provided with seats that alternatively receive a component coming from one hopper and a component coming from the other hopper; in this way, in the seats of the joining drum the components coming from one hopper are alternated with the components coming from the other hopper.
- In a hopper the components which descend by gravity all have a same longitudinal orientation which is necessary to allow the components to enter the seats of the suction drum arranged on the bottom of the hopper; it may happen that during the descent by gravity along the hopper a component ends up "crosswise", that is, arranged transversely relative to the other components. A possible "crosswise" component is unable to enter a seat of the suction drum and represents an obstacle that also prevents the other correctly aligned components from entering the seats of the suction drum, namely, a possible "crosswise" component generates a jamming of the hopper. When a component is arranged sideways, it is normally necessary to interrupt the operation of the feeding unit (therefore of the packaging machine) and consequently the intervention of an operator is required who manually eliminates the "crosswise" component.
- Traditionally, in a feeding unit provided with two twin hoppers and in case of blocking (jamming) of a hopper (normally due to a "crosswise" component) the entire feeding unit and therefore the entire combining machine is blocked. However, a complete stop of the combining machine even for a few minutes results in a significant loss of production and reduces the average productivity of the combining machine (generally measured as the number of pieces produced during an 8-hour work shift).
- In order to increase the average productivity of a combining machine it has been proposed to keep the combining machine operative even in case of blockage (jamming) of only one of the two hoppers of a feeding unit; in other words, all the elements that operate with the blocked (jammed) hopper are stopped (also in order to allow an operator to intervene on the blocked hopper) and therefore the feeding unit uses only the other hopper still operative. However, by keeping only one hopper operative, only the components of a single hopper arrive in the joining drum (which should alternatively receive the components from both hoppers) and therefore a series of empty spaces (namely, the seats of the joining drum instead of being all full are alternately one full and one empty) are formed in the joining drum; consequently, downstream of the joining drum it is necessary to manage the feeding of the other components, of the wrapping materials and of the glues, taking into account the fact that the combining machine is (literally) "half empty" (or, from the other point of view, "half full") . Managing a "half empty" combining machine is rather complex as feeding of the wrapping materials operates continuously and therefore it is very difficult to cyclically interrupt feeding of the wrapping materials for each empty seat; furthermore, when many empty seats remain in the drums (namely, half of the seats are empty) there is a great waste of suction which, on the one hand, increases the energy consumption of the combining machine (consuming more energy even though operating at half-service) and, on the other, the noise generated by the combining machine also significantly increases (making more noise even though operating at half-service).
- The patent application
EP3542650A2 represents the closest state of the art and describes a transport system for smoking articles provided with a cutting device to cut each double-length smoking article into at least two single-length smoking articles; the cutting device has at least one cutting blade which protrudes inside a guide channel and is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the smoking articles, and at least one rotation device to rotate the smoking articles relative to the cutting blade . - The object of the present invention is to provide a method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles, which control method allows not to stop the feeding unit in case of a hopper being jammed and, at the same time, allows to manage in a simple and efficient manner the rest of the combining machine to which the feeding unit belongs.
- According to the present invention, a method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles is provided according to what is claimed in the attached claims.
- The claims describe embodiments of the present invention forming an integral part of the present description.
- The present invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings, which illustrate some non-limiting embodiments thereof, wherein:
-
Figure 1 is a schematic and front view of a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles during normal operation; -
Figure 2 is a schematic view of part of the feeding unit ofFigure 1 during normal operation; -
Figure 3 is a schematic view of part of the feeding unit ofFigure 1 during a special operation due to jamming of a hopper; -
Figure 4 is a schematic view of part of the feeding unit ofFigure 1 according to an alternative embodiment and during normal operation. - In
Figure 1 ,number 1 denotes, as a whole, a feeding unit to feed components 2 (for example, pieces of filtering material or pieces of tobacco) which is part of a combining machine for the production of smoking articles (for example, new generation smokeless cigarettes, namely, without combustion) or of components for smoking articles (for example, filters for traditional cigarettes or for new generation cigarettes). - The
feeding unit 1 comprises ahopper 3 containing a mass ofcomponents 2 and afurther hopper 4 which is the twin of thehopper 3 and also contains a mass ofcomponents 2. According to a different embodiment, not illustrated, thefeeding unit 1 could comprise feeds of a flow ofcomponents 2 different from those of the hopper. - As illustrated in
Figures 1 ,2 and3 , thefeeding unit 1 comprises adrum 5 which is mounted rotatable around a rotation axis 6 (which is horizontal and perpendicular to the plane ofFigure 1 ) and is provided with a plurality of suction seats 7 which are formed on the side wall of thedrum 5 and are arranged with a single pitch P1 (namely, the suction seats 7 of thedrum 5 are equally spaced and a constant distance equal to the single pitch P1 is present between two consecutive suction seats 7 of the drum 5). The suction seats 7 of thedrum 5 receive thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 3 at a feeding station S1 and receive thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 4 at a feeding station S2 arranged downstream of the feeding station S1 relative to the rotation direction of thedrum 5. In the feeding station S1 thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 3 have a double pitch P2 (which is exactly double the single pitch P1 of the seats 7 of the drum 5) and therefore immediately downstream of the feeding station S1, the seats 7 of thedrum 5 are alternately empty and full; also in the feeding station S2 thecomponents 2, coming from thehopper 4, have a double pitch P2 (which is exactly double the single pitch P1 of the seats 7 of the drum 5) and therefore in the feeding station S2 thecomponents 2, coming from thehopper 4, are inserted in the seats 7 of thedrum 5 left empty downstream of the feeding station S1. In other words, the seats 7 of thedrum 5 which have the single pitch P1 are half filled in the feeding station S1 by thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 3 and the remaining half are filled in the feeding station S2 by thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 4. - The
feeding unit 1 comprises adrum 8, which is mounted rotatable around an rotation axis 9 (which is horizontal and parallel to the rotation axis 6), is arranged alongside thedrum 5, and is provided with a plurality ofsuction seats 10, which are obtained on the side wall of thedrum 8 and are arranged with the single pitch P1 (namely, thesuction seats 10 of thedrum 8 are equally spaced and a constant distance equal to the single pitch P1 is present between twoconsecutive suction seats 10 of the drum 8). Thesuction seats 10 of thedrum 8 receive thecomponents 2 from thedrum 5 in a transfer station S3 that is arranged, relative to thedrum 5, downstream of the feeding stations S1 and S2 relative to the rotation direction of thedrum 5. - The
feeding unit 1 comprises a transport system 11 (illustrated inFigure 1 ) which is formed by a cascade (succession) of drums, picks up thecomponents 2 from thehopper 3 and releases thecomponents 2 to thedrum 5; in particular, thetransport system 11 ends at the feeding station S1 in which thetransport system 11 releases thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 3 to the seats 7 of thedrum 5. Thetransport system 11 begins with asuction drum 12 that is directly coupled to a bottom of thehopper 3, namely, it is partially inserted in the bottom of thehopper 3, to cyclically pick up thecomponents 2 which are inside thehopper 3. Obviously, the drums of thetransport system 11 have suction seats which are arranged with the double pitch P2 (which is exactly double the single pitch P1 of the suction seats 7 of the drum 5). The intermediate drums of the transport system 11 (namely, the drums located between thesuction drum 12 and the drum 5) can be simple transport drums (namely, they do not perform any type of operation or control on the components 2) or they can also be operating drums that perform an operation (for example, a transversal cut, an overturning, an optical check, a pneumatic check ...) on thecomponents 2. - Similarly, the
feeding unit 1 comprises a transport system 13 (illustrated inFigure 1 ) which is formed by a cascade (succession) of drums, picks up thecomponents 2 from thehopper 4 and releases thecomponents 2 to thedrum 5; in particular, thetransport system 13 ends at the feeding station S2 in which thetransport system 13 releases thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 4 to the seats 7 of thedrum 5. Thetransport system 13 begins with asuction drum 14 which is directly coupled to a bottom of thehopper 4, namely, it is partially inserted in the bottom of thehopper 4, to cyclically pick up thecomponents 2 that are inside thehopper 4. Obviously, the drums of thetransport system 13 have suction seats, which are arranged with the double pitch P2 (which is exactly double the single pitch P1 of the suction seats 7 of the drum 5). The intermediate drums of the transport system 13 (namely, the drums located between thesuction drum 14 and the drum 5) can be simple transport drums (namely, they do not perform any type of operation or control on the components 2) or they can also be operating drums that perform an operation (for example, a transversal cut, an overturning, an optical check, a pneumatic check ...) on thecomponents 2. - According to what is illustrated in
Figures 2 and3 , thefeeding unit 1 comprises arolling device 15, which is arranged in the transfer station S3 and can be switched inserted and removed (namely, it can be activated and deactivated): when therolling device 15 is inserted (activated) it subjects thecomponents 2 to rolling (namely, to a rotation around a longitudinal central axis thereof) at the transfer station S3 whereas when therolling device 15 is removed (deactivated) it does not subject thecomponents 2 to rolling. Therolling device 15 comprises a rolling tile 16 (rolling bed), which (when therolling device 15 is inserted) is arranged alongside thedrum 5 to define, together with thedrum 5, a rolling channel inside which eachcomponent 2 is made to rotate on itself by rolling on the external surface of thedrum 5; an example of a rolling device similar to therolling device 15 is described in the patent applicationUS5349968A1 . - The
rolling device 15 further comprises an actuator device 17 (for example, an electric motor) which moves therolling tile 16 between an active position (illustrated inFigure 3 ), in which therolling tile 16 engages thecomponents 2 located in the transfer station S3 subjecting thecomponents 2 to rolling and a deactivated position (illustrated inFigure 2 ), in which therolling tile 16 does not engage thecomponents 2 that are in the transfer station S3 and which therefore are not subjected to rolling. - With reference to
Figures 2 and3 , the operation of the feeding unit illustrated inFigures 1-3 is described in the following, both in case of regular operation of bothhoppers hopper 3 or 4 (in particular, blockage of hopper 4). - As illustrated in
Figure 2 , in case of regular operation of bothhoppers drum 5 thecomponents 2, coming from thehopper 3, are transferred (therefore by means of the transport system 11); at the same time, in the feeding station S2 and, in the remaining half of the seats 7 of thedrum 5 thecomponents 2, coming from the hopper 4 (therefore by means of the transport system 13), are transferred so that in the seats 7 of thedrum 5 thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 3 are alternated with thecomponents 2 coming from thehopper 4. In this operating mode, thedrum 5 and thedrum 8 are made to rotate at the same rotation speed and thecomponents 2 are transferred to the transfer station S3 from thedrum 5 to thedrum 8 keeping the pitch between thecomponents 2 unchanged; namely, at the transfer station S3 (therefore downstream of the feeding station S2) in thedrum 5 thecomponents 2 have the single pitch P1, and at the transfer station S3 also in thedrum 8 thecomponents 2 have the single pitch P1. In other words, across the transfer station S3 in bothdrums 5 and 8 (rotating at the same rotation speed) thecomponents 2 have the same single pitch P1. - As illustrated in
Figure 3 , in case of blockage of thehopper 4, in the feeding station S1 in half of the seats 7 of thedrum 5 thecomponents 2 coming from the hopper 3 (therefore through the transport system 11) are transferred, while in the feeding station S2 thecomponents 2 coming from the hopper 4 (therefore through the transport system 13) are not transferred, since thehopper 4 is blocked; consequently, only half of the seats 7 of thedrum 5 receive thecomponents 2 coming only from thehopper 3 and therefore half of the seats 7 of thedrum 5 remain empty and in the seats 7 of thedrum 5 thecomponents 2, coming from thehopper 3, are alternated with the empty seats 7. In this operating mode, thedrum 5 is made to rotate at a rotation speed that is twice the rotation speed of the drum 8 (namely, the rotation speed of thedrum 8 is half the rotation speed of the drum 5) and thecomponents 2 are transferred to the transfer station S3 from thedrum 5 to thedrum 8, halving the pitch between thecomponents 2; namely, at the transfer station S3 (therefore downstream of the feeding station S2), in thedrum 5, thecomponents 2 have the double pitch P2 (half of the seats 7 of thedrum 5 being empty due to the blocking of the hopper 4), while at the transfer station S3, in thedrum 8, thecomponents 2 have the single pitch P1 (which is half the double pitch P2). In other words, across the transfer station S3 the pitch between thecomponents 2 is reduced by half by passing from the double pitch P2 provided in thedrum 5 to the single pitch P1 provided in thedrum 8. - By operating in this way, starting from the drum 8 (namely, in the
drum 8 and in everything downstream of the drum 8) thecomponents 2 have the same pitch (namely, the single pitch P1) that they have when bothhoppers hopper 4 are completely compensated; to obtain this result it is necessary to reduce by half the rotation speed of thedrum 8 relative to the rotation speed of thedrum 5, namely, relative to the rotation speed that thedrum 8 would have if bothhoppers drum 8 and in everything downstream of the drum 8) it is chosen to reduce by half the rotation speed (namely, the productivity) to ensure that all theseats 10 of thedrum 8 are full (namely, have respective components 2) and therefore to ensure that thefeeding unit 1 and the combining machine can have a completely normal operation (but obviously slowed down relative to the nominal capacity). It is important to note that the limitation on the productivity of the combining machine (namely, the reduction by half of the productivity of the combining machine) is completely logical and expected: if half of thehoppers hoppers 3 and 4), it is a natural consequence that the combining machine can only operate at half of the nominal capacity. - To summarize the above, in case of regular operation of both
hoppers feeding unit 1 operate with the same rotation speed while in case of blockage of ahopper drum 5 and all the elements of thefeeding unit 1 upstream of thedrum 5 operate with a double rotation speed and a double pitch relative to thedrum 8 and to all the elements of thefeeding unit 1 downstream of thedrum 8. - What has been described above in case of blockage of the
hopper 4 applies mutatis mutandis also in case of blockage of thehopper 3. - As is clear by observing
Figures 2 and3 , thecomponents 2 are rolled (namely, subjected to rolling) at the transfer station S3 to reduce by half the pitch between thecomponents 2; namely, in case of regular operation of bothhoppers rolling device 15 is kept deactivated (as illustrated inFigure 2 ), while in case of blockage of ahopper rolling device 15 is activated (as illustrated inFigure 3 ) to subject thecomponents 2 to a rolling at the transfer station S3 so as to reduce by half the pitch between thecomponents 2. - In the embodiment illustrated in
Figures 1 ,2 and3 , the reduction by half of the pitch between the components 2 (from the double pitch P2 to the single pitch P1) in the transfer of thecomponents 2 from thedrum 5 to thedrum 8 is obtained (when necessary, namely, in case of blockage of ahopper 3 or 4) by activating therolling device 15 and then by rolling thecomponents 2 at the transfer station S3. In the alternative embodiment illustrated inFigure 4 , the reduction by half of the pitch between the components 2 (from the double pitch P2 to the single pitch P1) in the transfer of thecomponents 2 from thedrum 5 to thedrum 8 is obtained (when necessary, namely, in case of blockage of ahopper 3 or 4) by interposing, between thedrum 5 and thedrum 8, afurther drum 18 which can be configured between a normal configuration, in which the pitch between thecomponents 2 does not change between an input station S4 at thedrum 5 and a output station S5 at thedrum 8, and a special configuration, in which the pitch betweencomponents 2 is half between the input station S4 and the output station S5. - In other words, according to what is illustrated in
Figure 4 , thedrum 18 is provided, which is mounted rotatable around a rotation axis 19 (that is horizontal and parallel to therotation axes 6 and 9), is interposed between thedrums components 2 from thedrum 5 in the input station S4 and releases thecomponents 2 to thedrum 8 in the output station S5. Thedrum 18 comprises a plurality of suction holding heads 20, each of which is designed to receive and hold arespective component 2 and is mounted movably on thedrum 18 to move, in use, relative to thedrum 18; in particular, eachsuction head 20 is mounted rotatable on thedrum 18 to rotate relative to thedrum 18 around arotation axis 21 parallel to therotation axis 19. - According to a possible embodiment, the
drum 18 comprises acam operator 22 which controls the movement (rotation) of the suction holding heads 20 relative to thedrum 18 and anactuator device 23 which, between the normal configuration and the special configuration, changes thecam operator 22 to change the law of motion applied by thecam operator 22 on the suction holding heads 20. By way of example, theactuator device 23 could be an electric motor that rotates a cam of thecam operator 22. - When it is not necessary to change the pitch of the
components 2 in the transfer from thedrum 5 to the drum 8 (namely, when bothhoppers drum 5 downstream of the feeding station S2), thedrum 18 is configured by theactuator device 23 so as not to perform any variation in the pitch of thecomponents 2 between the input station S4 and the output station S5; namely, thecomponents 2 arrive in the input station S4 with the single pitch P1 and leave the output station S5 with the same single pitch P1. This result is obtained thanks to the fact that the suction holding heads 20 in the output station S5 have the same reciprocal spacing as the suction holding heads 20 in the input station S4. - On the other hand, when it is necessary to change the pitch of the
components 2 in the transfer from thedrum 5 to the drum 8 (namely, when ahopper drum 5 downstream of the feeding station S2), thedrum 18 is configured by theactuator device 23 to change the pitch of thecomponents 2 between the input station S4 and the output station S5; namely, thecomponents 2 arrive in the input station S4 with the double pitch P2 and leave the output station S5 with the single pitch P1 which is half the double pitch P2. This result is obtained thanks to the fact that the suction holding heads 20 in the output station S5 have a reduced (half) mutual spacing compared to the suction holding heads 20 in the input station S4. - The embodiments described herein can be combined with each other without departing from the scope of the present invention.
- The control method described above makes it possible not to stop the
feeding unit 1 in case of jamming of ahopper feeding unit 1 belongs. This result is obtained thanks to the fact that the output of thefeeding unit 1 does not have empty seats even in case of jamming of afeed
Claims (13)
- A method to control a feeding unit (1) to feed components (2) for smoking articles and comprising the steps of:feeding, by means of a first feed (3), a first flow of components (2) having a first pitch (PI); andfeeding, by means of a second feed (4), a second flow of components (2) having a second pitch (P1), which is the same as the first pitch (PI);in case of regular operation of both feeds (3, 4), combining, in the area of a first drum (5), the components (2) of the first flow and of the second flow so as to create a third flow of components (2), in which the components (2) of the first flow are alternated with the components (2) of the second flow andhave a third pitch (P3), which is smaller than, in particular half, the first pitch (PI) and the second pitch (PI);in case of regular operation of both feeds (3, 4) transferring the components (2) of the third flow from the first drum (5) to a second drum (8) having the same speed as the first drum (5); the control method is characterized in that it comprises, in case the first feed (3) stops, the steps of:reducing the pitch of the components (2) of the second flow, in particular at the output of the first drum (5), so as to obtain a third flow of components (2) having a third pitch (P3), which is smaller than, in particular half, the first pitch (PI) and the second pitch (PI); andtransferring the components (2) of the third flow from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8).
- The control method according to claim 1, wherein:in case of regular operation of both feeds (3, 4), the method comprises the steps of: transferring the components (2) coming from the first feed (3) into the seats (7) of the first drum (5), in particular into half the seats (7), and the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) into further seats (7) of the first drum (5), in particular into the remaining half of the seats (7), so that, in the seats (7) of the first drum (5), the components (2) coming from the first feed (3) are alternated with the components (2) coming from the second feed (4); andtransferring the components (2) from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8) keeping the pitch between the components (2) unchanged; andin case the first feed (3) stops, the method comprises the alternative steps of: transferring the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) into part of, in particular half, the seats (7) of the first drum (5) so that a remaining part, in particular a remaining half, of the seats (7) of the first drum (5) remain empty and so that, in the seats (7) of the first drum (5), the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) are alternated with the empty seats (7); causing the first drum (5) to rotate with a speed that is greater than, in particular twice, a rotation speed of the second drum (8); and transferring the components (2) from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8) reducing, in particular halving, the pitch between the components (2).
- The control method according to claim 1 or 2 and comprising the further step of rolling the components (2) in a transfer station (S3) between the first drum (5) and the second drum (8) so as to reduce, in particular half, the pitch between the components (2).
- The control method according to claim 3, wherein:in a transfer station (S3) between the first drum (5) and the second drum (8) there is a rolling device (15), which can be activated or deactivated; andthe pitch reduction, in particular halving, while transferring the components (2) from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8) is carried out by activating the rolling device (15).
- The control method according to claim 4, wherein the rolling device (15) comprises:a rolling tile (16), which is movable between an active position, in which the rolling tile (16) engages the components (2) in the transfer station (S3), and a deactivated position, in which the rolling tile (16) does not engage the components (2) in the transfer station (S3); anda first actuator device (17), which moves the rolling tile (16) between the active position and the deactivated position.
- The control method according to claim 3, 4 or 5, wherein the components (2) are caused to roll against an outer surface of the first drum (5).
- The control method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein between the first drum (5) and the second drum (8) there is interposed a third drum (18), which can be configured either in a normal configuration, in which it does not change the pitch between the components (2) between an input station (S4) in the area of the first drum (5) and an output station (S5) in the area of the second drum (8), or in a special configuration, in which it reduces, in particular halves, the pitch between the components (2) between the input station (S4) and the output station (S5).
- The control drum according to claim 7, wherein the third drum (18) comprises a plurality of holding heads (20), each mounted on the third drum (18) in a movable manner so as to move, in use, relative to the third drum (18).
- The control method according to claim 8, wherein the third drum (18) comprises:a cam operator (22), which controls the movement of the holding heads (20) relative to the third drum (18); anda second actuator device (23), which, between the normal configuration and the special configuration, changes the cam operator (22) so as to change the law of motion applied by the cam operator (22) to the holding heads (20).
- The control method according to one of the claims from 1 to 9, wherein the feeding unit (1) comprises:a first transport system (11), which receives the components (2) from the first feed (3) and releases the components (2) to the first drum (5); anda second transport system (13), which receives the components (2) from the second feed (4) and releases the components (2) to the first drum (5) in a different position compared to the first transport system (11).
- The control method according to one of the claims from 1 to 10, wherein:in case of regular operation of both feeds (3, 4), all the elements of the feeding unit (1) operate with the same rotation speed; andin case the first feed (3) stops, the first drum (5) and all the elements of the feeding unit (1) upstream of the first drum (5) operate with a greater, in particular double, rotation speed and a greater, in particular double, pitch compared to the second drum (8) and all the elements of the feeding unit (1) downstream of the second drum (8).
- A control method to control a feeding unit (1) to feed components (2) for smoking articles; the feeding unit (1) comprises: a first feed (3), which feeds a first flow of components (2), a second feed (4), which feeds a second flow of components (2), a first drum (5), which is provided with seats (7) receiving the components (2) from the first feed (3) and from the second feed (4), and a second drum (8), which receives the components (2) from the first drum (5);
the control method, in case of regular operation of both feeds (3, 4), comprises the steps of:transferring the components (2) coming from the first feed (3) into the seats (7) of the first drum (5), in particular into half the seats (7), and the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) into further seats (7) of the first drum (5), in particular into the remaining half of the seats (7), so that, in the seats (7) of the first drum (5), the components (2) coming from the first feed (3) are alternated with the components (2) coming from the second feed (4); andtransferring the components (2) from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8) keeping the pitch between the components (2) unchanged;the control method is characterized in that it comprises, in case the first feed (3) stops, the alternative steps of:transferring the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) into half the seats (7) of the first drum (5) so that half the seats (7) of the first drum (5) remain empty and so that, in the seats (7) of the first drum (5), the components (2) coming from the second feed (4) are alternated with the empty seats (7); causing the first drum (5) to rotate with a rotation speed which is greater than, in particular twice, a rotation speed of the second drum (8); andtransferring the components (2) from the first drum (5) to the second drum (8) reducing, in particular halving, the pitch between the components (2). - A combining machine for the production of smoking articles or of components of smoking articles; the combining machine comprising:a feeding unit (1) having: a first feed (3) for a first flow of components (2), a second feed (4) for a second flow of components (2), a first drum (5), which is provided with seats (7) receiving the components (2) from the first feed (3) and from the second feed (4), and a second drum (8), which receives the components (2) from the first drum (5); anda control system implementing the control method according to one of the claims from 1 to 12.
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
IT102020000023935A IT202000023935A1 (en) | 2020-10-12 | 2020-10-12 | METHOD OF CONTROLLING A SUPPLY UNIT FOR SUPPLYING COMPONENTS FOR TOUGH PRODUCTS |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP3984381A2 true EP3984381A2 (en) | 2022-04-20 |
EP3984381A3 EP3984381A3 (en) | 2022-05-18 |
EP3984381B1 EP3984381B1 (en) | 2023-12-06 |
Family
ID=74068414
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP21202253.7A Active EP3984381B1 (en) | 2020-10-12 | 2021-10-12 | Method to control a feeding unit to feed components for smoking articles |
Country Status (3)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP3984381B1 (en) |
IT (1) | IT202000023935A1 (en) |
PL (1) | PL3984381T3 (en) |
Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5349968A (en) | 1992-07-22 | 1994-09-27 | G.D Societa' Per Azioni | Method of producing filter-tipped cigarettes |
EP3542650A2 (en) | 2018-03-22 | 2019-09-25 | Hauni Maschinenbau GmbH | Conveying and cutting device for rod-shaped tobacco articles |
Family Cites Families (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE102011115713A1 (en) * | 2011-10-12 | 2013-04-18 | Hauni Maschinenbau Ag | Transfer drum for a machine for the production of products of the tobacco processing industry |
DE102019101988A1 (en) * | 2019-01-28 | 2020-07-30 | Hauni Maschinenbau Gmbh | Manufacture of rod-shaped smoking products |
-
2020
- 2020-10-12 IT IT102020000023935A patent/IT202000023935A1/en unknown
-
2021
- 2021-10-12 PL PL21202253.7T patent/PL3984381T3/en unknown
- 2021-10-12 EP EP21202253.7A patent/EP3984381B1/en active Active
Patent Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US5349968A (en) | 1992-07-22 | 1994-09-27 | G.D Societa' Per Azioni | Method of producing filter-tipped cigarettes |
EP3542650A2 (en) | 2018-03-22 | 2019-09-25 | Hauni Maschinenbau GmbH | Conveying and cutting device for rod-shaped tobacco articles |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
IT202000023935A1 (en) | 2022-04-12 |
EP3984381A3 (en) | 2022-05-18 |
EP3984381B1 (en) | 2023-12-06 |
PL3984381T3 (en) | 2024-04-22 |
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