GB960765A - Improvements in or relating to apparatus for feeding cigarettes - Google Patents

Abstract

960,765. Delivering cigarettes in orderly arrangement. MOLINS MACHINE CO. Ltd., D. W. MOLINS, and D. T. N. WILLIAMSON. March 7, 1963 [March 8, 1962], No. 8970/62. Heading A2C. Apparatus for feeding cigarettes C into a hopper 6 so that they are distributed across the width of the hopper comprises a conveyer 1 to convey the cigarettes in a direction transverse to the direction of their longitudinal axes, attraction means to apply an attractive force between the conveyer 1 and the cigarettes C conveyed thereby so as to hold the cigarettes to the conveyer, the conveyer being arranged to move over the hopper 1 with the cigarettes C held to the conveyer while located beneath and suspended from the latter, and cut-off means to remove the attractive force so that cigarettes attracted to and suspended from the conveyer fall into the hopper across its width. The attraction means may comprise a suction chamber 5 to which suction is applied by means of a pipe 7 and valve 8. A reservoir 12 is provided for the cigarettes. In operation, when the stream of cigarettes reaches the right hand end of the hopper it operates a photoelectric device 10 which in turn operates the valve 8 to open the chamber 5 to atmosphere, thus releasing the cigarettes into the hopper 6. The rate of delivery of cigarettes into the hopper 6 is slightly greater than the rate of feed of cigarettes on to the conveyer 1 and the reservoir 12 is initially filled with cigarettes. As the reservoir empties, a pivoted plate 13 which rests on the cigarettes actuates a switch 15 to cause suction to the chamber 5 to be cut-off, the cigarettes then being fed directly from the conveyer 1 into the reservoir 12 to refill it, a suitable time delay being provided in the circuit of the switch 15. In alternative embodiments the attraction means are constituted either by electrostatically charged metal strips on the conveyer on to each of which a cigarette is fed, the strips carrying cigarettes on the underside of the conveyer being discharged periodically by a vertically reciprocating metal bar, or by an electrostatic field which is applied between the conveyer and the cigarettes.