JP2001333758A - Combustion test apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a combustion test apparatus for a cigarette capable of readily reproducing a usually smoking environment of the cigarette, and simply and efficiently measuring the burning velocity of the cigarette. SOLUTION: This combustion test apparatus is equipped with a combustion chamber 2 having a holder for retaining a cigarette and sucking the cigarette at a fixed suction force, a sensor for measuring the combustion position of the cigarette, an ashtray part which is arranged at the lower part of the combustion chamber and is provided with an inlet for air to the combustion chamber and a hood part 4 arranged at the upper part of the combustion chamber. Especially the hood part is equipped with an air flow formation part 4a having an opened front part positioned at the upper part of the combustion chamber, an air discharge part 4b which is laid at the side part of the air flow formation part and discharges air through an exhaust fan 4d and an auxiliary air inlet part 4e which blows air from the upper front side of the combustion chamber toward the air flow formation part, sucks air from the combustion chamber into the air flow formation part and forms a spiral air flow.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a combustion test apparatus suitable for measuring a burning rate of a cigarette in a natural state.

[0002]

[Related Background Art] Cigarette smoke, which affects the taste of cigarettes, is produced through a complicated burning process. The amount and chemical composition of the smoke are not limited to the composition and properties of the raw leaf tobacco, but also the burning characteristics such as the burning rate. Depends on. Therefore, when designing a cigarette product or managing its quality,
It is important to determine the burning rate of cigarettes.

Conventionally, the measurement of the burning speed of this type of cigarette, particularly the burning speed in the natural state, focuses on the propagation time at an arbitrary constant temperature and the propagation distance during the burning of the cigarette, and focuses on the center axis of the cigarette. This is performed by determining a time lag of a temperature change between the two inserted thermocouples. Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-9949, the radiant heat accompanying the combustion of a cigarette is detected to determine its two-dimensional temperature distribution, and the average of the isothermal portion at a preset temperature in the instantaneous temperature distribution The burning position of the cigarette is obtained from the position, and the burning speed is measured.

[0004]

However, the structure of the conventional combustion test apparatus is large and complicated. In addition, since a process such as attaching a thermocouple to a cigarette or obtaining a two-dimensional temperature distribution is required, there is a problem that the combustion speed cannot be easily obtained. There is also an issue of how to build a natural burning environment for cigarettes. For this reason, there is a strong demand for the development of a combustion test device that can more easily and accurately measure the burning speed of a cigarette in its natural state.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to easily realize a combustion environment in a natural state of a cigarette and easily and efficiently measure the combustion speed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a highly practical combustion test apparatus that can perform the test.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, a combustion test apparatus according to the present invention generally includes a holder for holding a cigarette to be subjected to a combustion test horizontally and burning the cigarette spontaneously. A combustion chamber provided, and a sensor for measuring a combustion position of the cigarette held by the holder,
An ashtray portion provided below the combustion chamber and provided with an air inlet to the combustion chamber, for receiving ash accompanying the combustion of the cigarette held by the holder; and an ashtray portion communicating with the combustion chamber. And a hood portion provided above the combustion chamber, and in particular, the hood portion has an open front portion positioned above the combustion chamber, and a side portion of the air flow formation portion. And an air discharge unit that discharges the air of the air flow forming unit through an exhaust fan, and blows air toward the air flow forming unit from the upper front side of the combustion chamber to the air flow forming unit. An auxiliary air introduction unit that forms a spiral air flow that sucks air from the combustion chamber, and drives the auxiliary air introduction unit and the air discharge unit to move the air into the combustion chamber. Air at a constant speed from bottom to top To achieve a natural combustion environment of the cigarette stable by causing flow through, it is characterized by measuring the burn rate of the cigarette in this environment.

Preferably, the air flow forming portions are provided on both sides of the air discharge portion with the air discharge portion interposed therebetween. In other words, the air forming part is divided into left and right parts, and the air discharge part is provided at the center.
In addition, the auxiliary air introduction unit includes a suction fan that sucks air from the outside and blows the air to the air flow forming unit, as described in claim 3.

It is preferable that a plurality of holders, which are driven to be sucked when the cigarette is ignited, are provided side by side in the combustion chamber, and a plurality of cigarettes are collectively subjected to a combustion test.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A combustion test apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing a schematic overall configuration of a cigarette combustion test apparatus according to this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. The apparatus main body housed in the box-shaped housing 1 is roughly a combustion chamber 2 for burning a cigarette to be subjected to a combustion test.
And an ashtray section 3 provided below the combustion chamber 2 and a hood section 4 provided above the combustion chamber 2 in communication with the combustion chamber 2. The combustion chamber 2 is provided with a plurality of holders 5 arranged side by side and side by side to attach a cigarette to a tip thereof and spontaneously burn the cigarette.
The cigarette is mounted on the front side by opening a door 2a provided on the front surface of the cigarette so as to be freely opened and closed to open the combustion chamber 2. Further, a suction pump 6 for sucking cigarettes through the respective holders 5 is incorporated on the back side of the combustion chamber 2. The suction pump 6 is driven when the cigarette is ignited, and the tip of the cigarette is reliably ignited by the suction of the cigarette.

The ashtray 3 plays a role in receiving ash, which is a cinder generated as cigarettes are burned, and the front of the ashtray 3 introduces air into the combustion chamber 2. Air inlet 3a is formed. The air guided to the combustion chamber 2 through the air inlet 3a is sucked by a hood 4 described later in detail, flows through the combustion chamber 2 at a constant speed, and passes through the hood 4 to the housing 1. Is discharged to the outside.

A control section 7 for controlling a cigarette combustion test in the apparatus main body is provided on a side portion of the housing 1. The setting of the test conditions of the cigarette and the operation control of the apparatus main body are executed through an I / O interface including a touch panel 7a incorporated in the control unit 7, and the result of the cigarette combustion test is obtained through a small printer 7b. It is designed to be printed out.

Here, the holder 5 incorporated in the combustion chamber 2 will be described. As shown in FIG.
A cylindrical holder body 5a for holding the cigarette by attaching a filter portion of the cigarette to the tip thereof, and eccentrically supporting the holder body 5a to position the holder body 5a;
The holder support mechanism 5b is capable of displacing the holding position of the cigarette around its axis. Then, by connecting a suction path (not shown) provided from the holder main body 5a to the inside of the holder support mechanism 5b to the suction pump 6, the cigarettes respectively mounted on the ten holders 5 can be connected. At the time of ignition, suction is performed with a constant suction force (for example, a suction force of 6 liters per minute).

The combustion chamber 2 is provided with a sensor 8 which is supported by the holder 5 and detects the combustion state of a cigarette to be subjected to a combustion test. The sensor 8 detects the timing of burning at two positions separated by a predetermined distance in the axial direction of the cigarette, respectively. For example, the sensor 8 is provided on a pedestal 8 a provided along the longitudinal direction of the cigarette supported by the holder 5. Two sensors with built-in thread hook system
Consists of units. Incidentally, these sensor units are composed of a pair of guide poles 8b, 8 erected on the base 8a.
b, one end of which is a limit switch 8c
Is provided with a thread 8d tied to the operating piece. Then, the thread 8d stretched between the pair of guide poles 8b, 8b is brought into contact with the peripheral surface of the cigarette, and the limit switch 8c is operated when the thread is cut due to the burning of the cigarette. The cigarette combustion at the sensing position is detected.

Specifically, each of the above-mentioned sensor units is provided at a distance L (for example, 40 mm) in the axial direction of the cigarette held by the holder 5 as shown in FIG. The thread 8d is stretched between the guide poles 8b, 8b of these sensor units, whereby the thread 8d is provided across the cigarette at right angles. For such two yarns 8d, FIG.
By rotating the holder main body 5a and displacing the cigarette in the circumferential direction as shown in (b), the peripheral surface of the cigarette is brought into contact with the yarn 8d, and the cigarette is burned as the cigarette burns.
Set so that d can be cut.

After the preparation for the combustion test is completed in this manner, the tip of the cigarette is ignited while the cigarette is sucked by operating the aforementioned suction pump 6. Thereafter, by stopping the suction of the cigarette, the combustion test is performed while the cigarette is spontaneously burned. By detecting the timing at which the yarn 8d is cut with the burning of the cigarette by the limit switch 8c, the burning speed of the cigarette can be measured from the relationship between the detection timing and the distance L described above. It becomes possible.

As described above, the combustion environment of the cigarette subjected to the combustion test is set as a natural condition in which the hood section 4 is given a constant condition, for example, a weak wind speed of 0.2 m per second as described above. It has become. As shown schematically in FIG. 5, the hood section 4 for realizing such a combustion environment has an upper portion of a portion (machine chamber) on the back of the combustion chamber 2 where the above-described suction pump 6 and the like are incorporated. And an air flow forming portion 4a having an open front portion positioned above the combustion chamber 2 and an air flow forming portion 4a
And an air discharging portion 4b provided on the side of the air outlet.

In this example, the air discharge section 4b is formed at the center of the air flow forming section 4a by dividing the air flow forming section 4a into right and left sections. The air discharge part 4b is provided with a circular communication port 4c in a partition part which obliquely partitions the air discharge part 4a from the air flow formation part 4a, and is provided with an exhaust fan 4d in the back part thereof. By the operation of the exhaust fan 4d, the air in the air flow forming portion 4a is sucked through the communication port 4c and discharged to the outside through the exhaust fan 4b. By the way, the partition wall which obliquely partitions between the air discharge section 4b and the air flow forming section 4a sets the opening front area of the air flow forming section 4a as wide as possible, and sucks air from the combustion chamber 2 over the entire area. (Full width).

At the upper part of the air flow forming part 4a, air is blown from the upper front side of the combustion chamber 2 toward the air flow forming part 4a, and the air is blown from the combustion chamber 2 to the air flow forming part 4a. An auxiliary air introduction part 4e for forming a spiral air flow for sucking air is provided. The auxiliary air introduction unit 4e blows air sucked from outside by the auxiliary suction fan 4f along the upper surface of the air flow forming unit 4a, so that the air flows into the air flow forming unit 4a from the upper surface to the rear surface. To form an airflow that flows toward the bottom surface. By such an air flow and the above-mentioned air suction force by the air discharge unit 4b, a spiral air flow is formed in the air flow forming unit 4a as indicated by an arrow in the drawing, and the air in the combustion chamber 2 is sucked. Is done. When a suction fan 4d is provided so as to suck air from the rear side of the housing 1 as shown in the figure, a sirocco fan may be used as the suction fan 4d, so that the auxiliary air introduction section 4e can be used. The thickness can be reduced.

According to the combustion test apparatus provided with the hood portion 4 of the so-called tornado type having such a structure, the combustion is performed by the spiral air flow formed in the air flow forming chamber 4a. Since the air in the chamber 2 is sucked almost uniformly with a constant suction force regardless of the difference in the area, it is possible to flow the air at a constant wind speed over the entire area of the combustion chamber 2. It becomes possible. As a result, it is possible to easily realize the natural combustion environment of the cigarette. In order to change the wind speed of the air flowing through the combustion chamber 2, the amount of air blown out from the auxiliary air introduction unit 4e by the auxiliary suction fan 4f and the amount of air exhausted by the exhaust fan 4d are determined. You only need to adjust each.

According to the combustion test apparatus configured as described above, the hood section 4 provided above the combustion chamber 2
As a result, the velocity of the air flowing through the combustion chamber 2 can be kept constant over the entire area, so that the combustion environment of the cigarette subjected to the combustion test in the combustion chamber 2 is stably maintained in a natural state. Can be. Then, in this natural state, the cigarette is spontaneously burned, and the combustion timing between two predetermined points of the cigarette is measured to determine the burning speed. Therefore, it is possible to simply and efficiently test the burning characteristics of the cigarette. it can. In addition, since a fixed test environment can be formed in the whole area of the combustion chamber 2, it is easy to perform a combustion test on a plurality of cigarettes at a time, and it is possible to improve the test efficiency. .

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the number of the holders 5 provided in the combustion chamber 2, that is, the number of cigarettes to be collectively provided for the combustion test may be determined according to the specifications of the apparatus. In addition, here, the combustion position of the cigarette is detected by using the threading type sensor 8, but a temperature sensor such as an infrared ray may be used.
It is also possible to use a photoelectric sensor or the like that detects the position of the tip of a cigarette that changes due to combustion. Further, when the width of the combustion chamber 2 is narrow, the air exhaust portion 4d of the tornado type hood portion 4 is replaced with the air flow forming portion 4a.
If the width of the combustion chamber 2 is wide, the air flow forming portion 4a is divided into three or more regions, and air exhaust is performed for each region. The portion 4d may be provided. In addition, the present invention can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the gist thereof.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to simply and effectively realize a combustion environment based on the natural state of a cigarette. The combustion environment can be changed as needed. Therefore, the present invention has a great effect in practical use, such as that the cigarette combustion test can be easily and efficiently performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a combustion test apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of the combustion test apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a holder and a sensor provided in a combustion chamber.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a relationship between a cigarette subjected to a combustion test and a sensor for detecting a combustion position thereof.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a hood unit incorporated in an upper portion of a combustion chamber and an air flow formed by the hood unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 2 combustion chamber 3 ashtray 4 hood 4a air flow forming section 4b air discharge section 4c communication port 4d exhaust fan 4e auxiliary air introduction section 4f suction fan 5 holder 5a holder body 5b holder support mechanism 6 suction pump 7 control section 8 sensor 8a Base 8b Guide pole 8c Limit switch 8d Thread

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A combustion chamber provided with a holder for mounting a cigarette to be subjected to a combustion test and spontaneously burning the cigarette; a sensor for measuring a burning position of the cigarette held by the holder; And an ashtray portion provided below and having an inlet for air to the combustion chamber and receiving ash accompanying the combustion of the cigarette held by the holder, and communicating with the combustion chamber and above the combustion chamber. A hood portion provided, wherein the hood portion has an open air front portion positioned above the combustion chamber, and an air flow forming portion provided on a side portion of the air flow forming portion. An air discharge unit that discharges air of the unit through an exhaust fan, and blows air from an upper front side of the combustion chamber toward the air flow forming unit to suck air from the combustion chamber into the air flow forming unit. Swirl An auxiliary air introduction section for forming an air flow of the air. The auxiliary air introduction section and the air discharge section are driven to allow air to flow through the combustion chamber at a constant speed from below to above the combustion chamber. A combustion test device characterized by flowing. 2. The combustion test apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air flow forming sections are provided on both sides of the air discharge section with the air discharge section interposed therebetween. 3. The combustion test apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary air introduction unit includes a suction fan that sucks air from the outside and blows the air to the air flow forming unit. 4. The combustion test apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of holders that are driven to be sucked when the cigarette is ignited are provided side by side in the combustion chamber. 5. The combustion test apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensor detects a timing at which two positions separated by a predetermined distance in the axial direction of the cigarette burn.