EP4565085A1

EP4565085A1 - A method of manufacturing a component for use in a delivery system

Info

Publication number: EP4565085A1
Application number: EP23754374.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Andrei GRISHCHENKO; Junior KABIRAT; Rosa GALATI
Original assignee: Nicoventures Trading Ltd
Current assignee: Nicoventures Trading Ltd
Priority date: 2022-08-01
Filing date: 2023-08-01
Publication date: 2025-06-11
Also published as: GB202211186D0; WO2024028595A1

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a component comprising a crimped sheet of material for use in a delivery system is disclosed. The method comprises crimping a sheet of material by feeding the sheet of material along a conveyance path extending between a pair of rollers (4) configured to crimp the sheet of material and which are heated to a temperature of at least 30'C. The method also comprises forming a component for use in a delivery system from the crimped sheet. An apparatus (1) for manufacturing a component comprising a crimped sheet of material for use in a delivery system, a component for use in a delivery system and a delivery system are also disclosed. Furthermore, a pack is also disclosed. The pack comprises a plurality of delivery systems, each delivery system comprising a component formed from a crimped sheet of material. The percentage pressure drop standard deviation in the components of the plurality of delivery systems in the pack is less than 10%.

Description

A method of manufacturing a component for use in a delivery system Technical Field The present disclosure relates to a method of manufacturing a component for use in a delivery system, a component, for use in a delivery system, formed by said method, and a delivery system comprising said component. A method of optimising the pressure drop in a component for use in a delivery system is also disclosed. Background It is known to form components for delivery systems, such as combustible and non- combustible aerosol provision devices, from a crimped sheet of material. A sheet of material, with which to form the component, is usually fed through a pair of crimping rollers which are configured to impart crimps in the sheet of material. Summary According to the present disclosure, there is provided a method of manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system, the method comprising: crimping a sheet of material by feeding the sheet of material along a conveyance path extending between a pair of rollers configured to crimp the sheet of material and which are heated to a temperature of at least 30°C; and forming a component for use in a delivery system from said crimped sheet. The method may comprise feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 30°C and 90°C. The method may comprise feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 45°C and 75°C. The method may comprise feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 60°C and 200°C. The method may comprise feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 60°C and 80°C. The method may comprise sensing a temperature of the pair of rollers. The method may comprise controlling the temperature of the pair of rollers, based on the sensed temperature. The method may comprise gathering the crimped sheet of material to form a continuous rod of material. The method may comprise wrapping the continuous rod of material in a wrapper to form a continuous wrapped rod of material. The method may comprise cutting the continuous wrapped rod of material to form discrete rods of material. According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of optimising the hardness of a component for use in a delivery system, the method comprising: manufacturing the component using the method according to the present disclosure. According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an apparatus for manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system, the apparatus comprising: a feeding unit configured to convey a sheet of material along a conveyance path, a pair of rollers configured to crimp said sheet of material as said sheet of material is fed along said conveyance path extending between the pair of rollers; a heater configured to heat the pair of rollers to a temperature of at least 30°C, and a controller configured to control the feeding unit to convey the sheet of material along the conveyance path when the temperature of the rollers has reached at least 30°C. The apparatus may comprise a sensor configured to sense the temperature of the pair of rollers and to supply a signal indicative of said sensed temperature to the controller. According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a component, for use in a delivery system, formed by a method according to the present disclosure. According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a delivery system comprising a component according to the present disclosure. The mean hardness of the component may be at least 80%. The mean hardness of the component may be between 80% and 90% According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a pack comprising a plurality of delivery systems, each delivery system comprising a component formed form a crimped sheet of material, wherein the percentage pressure drop standard deviation in the components of the plurality of delivery systems in the pack is less than 10%. The component may be formed by the method and/or apparatus according to the present disclosure. The pressure drop standard deviation of the components in the delivery systems in the pack may be less than 1 mmWG. The pack may comprise at least ten delivery systems. Each component may have a length of around 12 mm. Each component may be a filter component. Brief description of the drawings Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method of manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet, for use in a delivery system; Figure 2 is a table displaying data obtained from a pressure drop test; Figure 3 is a table displaying data obtained from a hardness test; Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an apparatus for manufacturing a component, that comprises a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system; and Figure 5 is an isometric view of a pre-folding unit. Detailed description As used herein, the term “delivery system” is intended to encompass systems that deliver at least one substance to a user, and includes: combustible aerosol provision systems, such as cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, and tobacco for pipes or for roll-your-own or for make-your-own cigarettes (whether based on tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco, tobacco substitutes or other smokable material); and non-combustible aerosol provision systems that release compounds from an aerosol-generating material without combusting the aerosol-generating material, such as electronic cigarettes, tobacco heating products, and hybrid systems to generate aerosol using a combination of aerosol-generating materials. According to the present disclosure, a “combustible” aerosol provision system is one where a constituent aerosol-generating material of the aerosol provision system (or component thereof) is combusted or burned during use in order to facilitate delivery of at least one substance to a user. In some embodiments, the delivery system is a combustible aerosol provision system, such as a system selected from the group consisting of a cigarette, a cigarillo and a cigar. In some embodiments, the disclosure relates to a component for use in a combustible aerosol provision system, such as a filter, a filter rod, a filter segment, a tobacco rod, a spill, an aerosol-modifying agent release component such as a capsule, a thread, or a bead, or a paper such as a plug wrap, a tipping paper or a cigarette paper. According to the present disclosure, a “non-combustible” aerosol provision system is one where a constituent aerosol-generating material of the aerosol provision system (or component thereof) is not combusted or burned in order to facilitate delivery of at least one substance to a user. In some embodiments, the delivery system is a non-combustible aerosol provision system, such as a powered non-combustible aerosol provision system. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is an electronic cigarette, also known as a vaping device or electronic nicotine delivery system (END), although it is noted that the presence of nicotine in the aerosol-generating material is not a requirement. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is an aerosol- generating material heating system, also known as a heat-not-burn system. An example of such a system is a tobacco heating system. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system is a hybrid system to generate aerosol using a combination of aerosol-generating materials, one or a plurality of which may be heated. Each of the aerosol-generating materials may be, for example, in the form of a solid, liquid or gel and may or may not contain nicotine. In some embodiments, the hybrid system comprises a liquid or gel aerosol-generating material and a solid aerosol-generating material. The solid aerosol-generating material may comprise, for example, tobacco or a non-tobacco product. Typically, the non-combustible aerosol provision system may comprise a non- combustible aerosol provision device and a consumable for use with the non- combustible aerosol provision device. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system, such as a non- combustible aerosol provision device thereof, may comprise a power source and a controller. The power source may, for example, be an electric power source or an exothermic power source. In some embodiments, the exothermic power source comprises a carbon substrate which may be energised so as to distribute power in the form of heat to an aerosol-generating material or to a heat transfer material in proximity to the exothermic power source. In some embodiments, the non-combustible aerosol provision system may comprise an area for receiving the consumable, an aerosol generator, an aerosol generation area, a housing, a mouthpiece, a filter and/or an aerosol-modifying agent. In some embodiments, the consumable for use with the non-combustible aerosol provision device may comprise aerosol-generating material, an aerosol-generating material storage area, an aerosol-generating material transfer component, an aerosol generator, an aerosol generation area, a housing, a wrapper, a filter, a mouthpiece, and/or an aerosol-modifying agent. In some embodiments, the disclosure relates to a component for use in a non- combustible aerosol provision system, such as a filter, a filter rod, a filter segment, a tobacco rod, a spill, an aerosol-modifying agent release component such as a capsule, a thread, or a bead, or a paper such as a plug wrap, a tipping paper or a cigarette paper. Figure 1 illustrates an embodiment of a method of manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system. The delivery system is configured to deliver at least one substance to a user and includes combustible and non-combustible aerosol provision devices. In the present example, the component for use in the delivery system is a filtration component. However, it is to be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, the component may have a different configuration. As seen in Figure 1, the method comprises a first step S1 of crimping a sheet of material by feeding the sheet of material along a conveyance path extending between a pair of rollers configured to crimp the sheet of material and which are heated to a temperature of at least 30°C. In some embodiments, the pair of rollers are heated to a temperature between 30°C and 90°C, between 45°C and 75°C and between 60°C and 200°C, in particular between 60°C and 150°C, between 60°C and 100°C or between 60°C and 80°C. The pair of crimping rollers are configured to create a series of crimps in the sheet of material as the sheet of material is fed between the crimping rollers. In the present example, the pair of rollers are configured to generate a series of crimps along the width of the sheet of material and which extend longitudinally in a direction along the length of the sheet of material. However, it is to be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, the sheet of material may be crimped in another configuration. In the present example, the sheet of material is formed from a fibrous material such as paper. Additionally, in some embodiments, the sheet of material is a non-woven sheet of material, such as lyocell or viscose. It should be recognised that in alternative embodiments, the sheet of material may have a different configuration. The sheet of material may be stored as a reel on a bobbin. The second step S2 involves forming a component for use in a delivery system from the crimped sheet of material. The step S2 of forming the component may comprise gathering the crimped sheet of material to form a continuous rod of material, wrapping the continuous rod of material in a wrapper and cutting the wrapped continuous rod of material to form discrete wrapped rods of material. In some embodiments, the discrete rods produced, commonly known as base rods, have a total length of around 96 mm. Each base rod may then be cut into eight 12 mm rods that each form a component for use in a delivery system. It has been found that forming a component from a crimped sheet of material which has been crimped by a pair of rollers that have been heated to a temperature of at least 30°C provides a number of benefits in the characteristics of the component produced from the crimped sheet of material. In particular, heating the pair of rollers to at least 30°C optimises the hardness of the components whilst providing the lowest pressure drop variability. Figure 2 is a data table displaying the results of a pressure drop test executed by the inventors in relation to the 96 mm base rods produced by the disclosed method. As used herein, pressure drop is expressed with the units of pressure ‘mmWG’ or ‘mm of water gauge’ and is measured in accordance with ISO 6565:2002 and under the test conditions as defined in ISO 3402:1999. The table shows the results of the test when using the disclosed method to form components for delivery systems when the pair of rollers are at room temperature and when the rollers are heated to 60°C, 80°C, 100°C and 150°C. As seen in Figure 2, the pressure drop standard deviation in the base rods was reduced in each test by heating the pair of rollers to at least 60°C. For example, in test 1 the pressure drop standard deviation was reduced from 12.5 mmWG to 6.7 mmWG when using rollers heated to 100°C rather than rollers at room temperature. In test 2 the pressure drop standard deviation was reduced from 11.0 mmWG to 7.1 mmWG when using rollers heated to 60°C rather than rollers at room temperature. In test 3 the pressure drop standard deviation was reduced from 17.5 mmWG to 9.0 mmWG when using rollers heated to 60°C rather than rollers at room temperature. A lower pressure drop standard deviation in the base rods produced by the disclosed method indicates increased uniformity in the base rods which results in a better uniformity of delivery systems containing components formed from said base rods. As explained above, the 96 mm base rods may be further cut to produce eight 12 mm components for use in delivery systems. A pack may be produced comprising a plurality of delivery systems each containing a component formed by the base rod. In some embodiments, the pack comprises at least ten delivery systems. Therefore, based on the data displayed in Figure 2, the pressure drop standard deviation in the components of the delivery systems in a pack is less than 10 mmWG, 5 mmWG or 1 mmWG. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, the percentage standard deviation, calculated as the pressure drop standard deviation as a percentage of the mean pressure drop, was reduced in each test by heating the pair of rollers to at least 60°C. For example, in test 1 the percentage standard deviation was reduced from 8.37% to 4.46% when using rollers heated to 100°C rather than rollers at room temperature. In test 2 the percentage standard deviation was reduced from 6.23% to 4.13% when using rollers heated to 150°C rather than rollers at room temperature. In test 3 the percentage standard deviation was reduced from 8.20% to 4.33%. Thus, it can be said that the percentage standard deviation in the components of the delivery systems in a pack is less than 10%, 5% or 1%. Figure 3 is a data table displaying the results of a hardness test executed by the inventors in relation to the 96 mm base rods produced by the disclosed method. Borgwaldt H10 equipment was used to measure the hardness at the centre of the base rods. To measure the hardness, a base rod is placed in a measurement position at which point a stamp moves down until contact is made with the base rod and the starting height of the base rod is recorded. The base rod is subject to a loading weight and a final height of the base rod is determined. The hardness value is calculated as the final height of the base rod as a percentage of the starting height of the base rod. The table shows the results of the test when using the disclosed method to form components for delivery systems when the pair of rollers are at room temperature and when the rollers are heated to 60°C, 80°C, 100°C and 150°C. As seen in Figure 3, the mean hardness of the base rods was increased in each test by heating the pair of rollers to at least 60°C. For example, in test 2 the mean hardness of the base rods was increased from below 80% when the crimping rollers were at room temperature to 84.1% when the crimping rollers were heated to 60°C. Additionally, the method step S1 may comprise creating a feedback loop in order to control the temperature of the pair of rollers. The method may comprise sensing a temperature of the pair of crimping rollers, for example by using a sensor, such as a temperature sensor. The sensed temperature indicates whether the temperature of the pair of crimping rollers is lower or higher than the desired temperature. Additionally, the method may comprise controlling the temperature of the pair of rollers based on the sensed temperature . This step may be performed by a controller which receives information indicative of the sensed temperature of the pair of rollers sensed by the temperature sensor. Thus, a feedback loop is created whereby the pair of rollers can be maintained at a desired temperature. If the sensed temperature indicates that the temperature of the pair of rollers is below the desired value, the controller is configured to initiate heating of the pair of rollers to increase the temperature of said pair of rollers. Alternatively, if the sensed temperature indicates that the temperature of the pair of rollers is higher than a desired temperature, the controller is configured to cease heating of the pair of rollers to reduce the temperature of said pair of rollers. Figure 4 illustrates a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an apparatus 1 for manufacturing a component that comprises a crimped sheet of material, the component being for use in a delivery system. In the present example, the component is a filtration component. However, it should be recognised that in alternative embodiments the component may have a different configuration. The apparatus 1 comprises a crimping unit 2, which receives a sheet of material 3 and is configured to crimp said sheet of material 3 to from a crimped sheet of material 3a. The crimping unit 2 comprises a pair of crimping rollers 4 through which the sheet of material 3 is fed. The pair of crimping rollers 4 are configured to form a series of crimps along the width of the sheet of material 3 which extend in a direction along the length of the crimped sheet of material 3a. The apparatus comprises a feeding unit 9 which receives a supply of a sheet of material 3 and is configured to supply said sheet of material 3 along a conveyance path A. In the present example, the sheet of material 3 is formed from a fibrous material, such as paper. However, it is to be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, the sheet of material 3 may be formed from a different material. In some embodiments, the sheet of material is a non-woven sheet of material, such as lyocell or viscose. The feeding unit 9 comprises a receiving mechanism 10 which receives a supply of a sheet of material 3. In the present example, the receiving mechanism 10 is configured to receive a bobbin 11 of a paper material. The bobbin 11 supplies a continuous sheet of paper material along the conveyance path A. In an alternative embodiment (not shown) the feeding unit 9 supplies individual sheets of paper material along the conveyance path A. The sheet of material 3 may be fed along the conveyance path A by any suitable mechanism, for example, a plurality of rollers. Additionally, the apparatus 1 comprises a heater (not shown) configured to heat the pair off rollers 4 to a temperature of at least 30°C. The advantages of heating the pair of rollers 4 is discussed above and includes improvements in the pressure drop standard deviation of components in delivery systems in a package and also the hardness of the components formed by the apparatus 1. The apparatus 1 further comprises a controller (not shown) configured to control the feeding unit 9 to convey the sheet of material 3 along the conveyance path A when the temperature of the pair of rollers 4 has reached at least 30°C. In other words, the controller is configured to only begin conveyance of the sheet of material 3 along the conveyance path A once the pair of rollers 4 have reached a temperature of at least 30°C. In alternative embodiments, the controller is configured to initiate conveyance of the sheet of material 3 along the conveyance path A when the temperature of the pair of rollers has reached between 30°C and 90°C , 45°C and 75°C , 60°C and 200°C, 60°C and 150°C, 60°C and 100°C, and between 60°C and 80°C. The apparatus 1 comprises a sensor (not shown) configured to sense the temperature of the pair of rollers 4 and to supply a signal indicative of the sensed temperature to the controller. Once the sensor has detected that the pair of rollers 4 have reached the minimum temperature of 30°C, the sensor is configured to supply the controller with a signal to indicate that the minimum temperature has been reached and that the feeding unit 9 should commence conveyance of the sheet of material 3 along the conveyance path A and through the pair of rollers 4 which have been heated to the desired temperature. Downstream of the crimping unit 2, the apparatus 1 comprises a gathering unit 6, configured to gather the crimped sheet of material 3a to form a continuous rod of material 7. The term “downstream” refers to the direction of travel of the sheet of material 3 as the sheet of material is fed towards the gathering unit 6. The gathering unit 6 may comprise a funnel or cone (not shown) that is configured to gather the crimped sheet of material 3a to form the continuous rod of material 7. Immediately upstream of the funnel or cone, the gathering unit 6 may comprise a pre- folding unit 14 as depicted in Figure 5. The pre-folding unit 14 comprises at least one groove 15 in a curved outer surface 16 of the pre-folding unit 14. In this example, the curved outer surface 16 is the curved outer wall of a solid frusto-conical, single piece component 17. However, it is to be appreciated that in some embodiments, the component is cylindrical in shape with a constant diameter. The component 17 comprises an upstream end U which is configured to face the direction of the incoming crimped sheet of material 3a and a downstream end D, opposite the upstream end. The upstream end is the larger diameter end of the frustum-cone. In the illustrated example, the component 17 comprises seven grooves 15 that each follow a linear path about the outer surface 16 of the component 17, though any number of grooves may be adopted as required. Additionally, in some embodiments, each groove 15 follows a helical path about the outer surface 16 of the component 17. As grooves with a helical structure are longer compared to grooves with a linear structure, providing the pre- folding unit 14 with helical grooves results in a larger amount of material being present per unit length within the formed continuous rod of material. In embodiments where the formed rods are used as filter components in aerosol delivery systems, this results in better filtration. In operation, the crimped sheet of material 3a is drawn over the upstream end U the component 17 and into the funnel/cone of the gathering unit 6. An inlet to the funnel/cone has a diameter equal to or less than the diameter of the downstream end D of the component 17 so that the crimped sheet of material 3a is drawn tightly over its curved surface 16 and into the grooves 15, causing the crimped sheet of material 3a to adopt the profile of the grooves. In this way the crimped sheet of material 3a is pre folded as the crimped sheet of material 3a remains in the shape imparted by the grooves 15 as it leaves the component 17. In some embodiments, the pre-folding unit 14 additionally comprises a plurality of rods (not shown) extending in proximity to the component 17, and in particular, extending into, and in a direction along, the grooves 15. In this arrangement, the plurality of rods are configured to force the crimped sheet of material 3a into the grooves such that the shape of the grooves 15 is better imparted into the crimped sheet of material 3a. Furthermore, the position of the rods relative to the grooves may be adjustable such that the pushing force provided by the rods onto the crimped sheet of material can be reduced or increased. Additionally, in other embodiments, the pre-folding unit 14 may comprise an outer member (not shown) surrounding the component 17 which directs the crimped sheet of material 3a into the grooves 15. For example, in some embodiments the outer member may be a constant diameter funnel or conical/frusto- conical shape. In some embodiments, which do not form part of the present invention, the pre-folding unit as described above can also be used with non-crimped sheets of material (i.e. sheets of material which have not undergone a crimping process) in a substantially similar way. For example, a non-crimped sheet of material can be drawn tightly over the curved outer surface and grooves, causing the non-crimped sheet of material to adopt the profile of the grooves. In this way a non-crimped sheet of material is pre- folded as the non-crimped sheet of material remains in the shape imparted by the grooves as it leaves the pre-folding unit. The apparatus 1 may comprise a wrapping unit 12, downstream of the gathering unit 6, configured to wrap the continuous rod of material 7 in a wrapper and to form a continuous wrapped rod of material 7a. The wrapping unit 12 comprises a garniture (not shown) that is configured to receive the continuous rod of material 7 and wrap the continuous rod of material 7 in a wrapper. The wrapper may be fed as a continuous web through the garniture on a garniture belt (not shown) that is configured to wrap around the continuous rod of material 7 as the belt, wrapper and crimped sheet of material 3a pass through a narrowing cone or tongue of the garniture. The wrapper may then be secured in position using adhesive that is applied or pre-applied to an edge of the wrapper. It should be recognised that in alternative embodiments the wrapping unit 12 may be of an alternate configuration, for example, comprising a wrapping drum that wraps the wrapper about the continuous rod of material 7. In the example of Figure 1, the crimped sheet of material 3a is gathered by the gathering unit 6 and then the continuous rod of material 7 is passed to the wrapping unit 12. However, in an alternative embodiment (not shown), a combined gathering and wrapping unit gathers the crimped sheet of material 3a into a continuous rod of material 7 and wraps the continuous rod of material 7 in a wrapper. For instance, the crimped sheet of material 3a could be fed into a garniture that gathers the crimped sheet of material 3a into a continuous rod of material 7 and simultaneously wraps the continuous rod of material 7 in a wrapper. Additionally, the apparatus 1 may comprise a cutting unit 13 that is downstream of the wrapping unit 12 and is configured to cut the continuous wrapped rod of material 7a into discrete rods of wrapped material 7b. In some embodiments, the discrete rods produced by the cutting unit 13, commonly known as base rods, have a total length of around 96 mm. Each base rod is then cut into eight 12 mm rods that each form a component for use in a delivery system. The various embodiments described herein are presented only to assist in understanding and teaching the claimed features. These embodiments are provided as a representative sample of embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. It is to be understood that advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and/or other aspects described herein are not to be considered limitations on the scope of the invention as defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that other embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Various embodiments of the invention may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, appropriate combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc, other than those specifically described herein. In addition, this disclosure may include other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.

Claims

Claims 1. A method of manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system, the method comprising: crimping a sheet of material by feeding the sheet of material along a conveyance path extending between a pair of rollers configured to crimp the sheet of material and which are heated to a temperature of at least 30°C; and forming a component for use in a delivery system from said crimped sheet. 2. A method according to claim 1, comprising feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 30°C and 90°C. 3. A method according to claims 1 or 2, comprising feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 45°C and 75°C. 4. A method according to claim 1, comprising feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 60°C and 200°C. 5. A method according to claims 1 or 4, comprising feeding the sheet of material between the pair of rollers heated to a temperature between 60°C and 80°C. 6. A method according to any of claims 1 to 5, comprising sensing a temperature of the pair of rollers. A method according to claim 6, comprising controlling the temperature of the pair of rollers, based on the sensed temperature. 8. A method according to any claims 1 to 7, comprising gathering the crimped sheet of material to form a continuous rod of material. 9. A method according to claim 8, comprising wrapping the continuous rod of material in a wrapper to form a continuous wrapped rod of material. 10. A method according to claim 9, comprising cutting the continuous wrapped rod of material to form discrete rods of material. 11. A method of optimising the hardness of a component for use in a delivery system, the method comprising: manufacturing the component using the method according to any of claims 1 to 10. 12. An apparatus for manufacturing a component, comprising a crimped sheet of material, for use in a delivery system, the apparatus comprising: a feeding unit configured to convey a sheet of material along a conveyance path, a pair of rollers configured to crimp said sheet of material as said sheet of material is fed along said conveyance path extending between the pair of rollers; a heater configured to heat the pair of rollers to a temperature of at least 30°C, and a controller configured to control the feeding unit to convey the sheet of material along the conveyance path when the temperature of the rollers has reached at least 30°C. 13. An apparatus according to claim 12, comprising a sensor configured to sense the temperature of the pair of rollers and to supply a signal indicative of said sensed temperature to the controller. 14. A component, for use in a delivery system, formed by a method according to any of claims 1 to 10 and/or the apparatus according to claims 12 or 13. 15. A delivery system comprising a component according to claim 14. 16. A delivery system according to claim 14, wherein the mean hardness of the component is at least 80%. 17. A delivery system according to claim 16, wherein the mean hardness of the component is between 80% and 90%. 18. A pack comprising a plurality of delivery systems, each delivery system comprising a component formed from a crimped sheet of material, wherein the percentage pressure drop standard deviation in the components of the plurality of delivery systems in the pack is less than 10%. 19. A pack according to claim 18, wherein the component is formed by the method according to claims 1 to 11 and/or the apparatus according to claims 12 or 13. 20. A pack according to claim 18, wherein the pressure drop standard deviation of the components in the delivery systems in the pack is less than 1 mmWG. 21. A pack according to claims 18 or 19, wherein the pack comprises at least ten delivery systems. 22. A pack according to any of claims 18 to 20, wherein each component has a length of around 12 mm. 23. A pack according to any of claims 18 to 21, wherein each component is a filter component.