US486302A - Plug tobacco seaper - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) z 'sheets-sheet 1. C. 'D. SOURS.

.PLUG TOBACCO SHAPBR, l No.48f6-,30f2- l Patented 1\Imr.`15,.18 .a2 .4

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

CHARLES D. SOURS, OF MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO NAT. R. MORRIS AND JAMES H. SPENCER, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

PLUG-TOBACCO SHAPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 486,302, dated'November 15, 1892.

Application filed July 9, 1890. Serial No.- 358,178. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES D. SOURs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Martinsville, in the county of Henry and State of Virginia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Plug-Tobacco Shapers, of which the following is a specification.

In plug-tobacco shapers a mold-frame having cells corresponding in form to the shape Io of the plugs desired is placed on a-plane-sur faced backing or base-plate,and-into the cells at a point opposite the base-plate are inserted the sinkers, secured to the usual sinker-plate for pressing the tobacco contained in the cells into plugs between the base-plate andthe inner ends of the sinkers-as, for example, in Letters Patent No. 73,354, issued January 4, 1868. In this type of plug-Shapers some of the tobacco will be pressed out between the zo adjacent surface of the base-plate and the lower end walls of the cells, in consequence of which itis essential to trim the plugs after they are shaped, which results in a serious loss of tobacco, in addition to which the time and labor required for trimming is expensive,

while the plugs are not all produced of uniform size and exactly true at the edges.

In the manufacture of plug-tobacco in the manner described it is desirable to employ 3o a set of twelve (more or less) mold-frames and their concomitants, which vare placed in the press to simultaneously shape and produce a large number of plugs; but in the prior construction if the mold-frames are arranged in a set some of the tobacco passes out at the lower edges of all the cells, as before stated, and for this reason the prior construction is very objectionable.

Tho present invent-ion has for its object to avoid the objections mentioned; to provide a novel sinker-frame having sinkers on both surfaces, those on one surface being thicker than those on the opposite surface, whereby the sinkers project into the cells of the moldframes for producing plugs exact and truein shape and size; to provide novel means whereby a sinker-plate for pressing tobacco in one mold-frame also subserves the function of preventing the passage of tobacco from the o lower ends of the cells in a mold-frame placed above and resting thereupon, and, finally, to

improve the construct-ion of plug'tobacco Shapers, whereby the tobacco is prevented from being pressed out at the ends of the cells, the loss of tobacco is avoided, more accurate work is produced with less labor and expense, racking or sliding of the mold-frames is avoided, and plugs are produced of uniform size and shape. To accomplish all these objects, my invention involves the features of 6o construction and the combination or arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective View of an upper 65 sinker-frame constructed in accordance with' my invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one of the mold-frames with its cells. Fig. 3 j is a perspective View of a lower sinker-frame. Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view of a se- 7c ries of the sinker-fram'es and mold-frame arranged in proper relation to form tobacco' plugs, and Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional View of the same.

In order to enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will now describe the same in detail, referring to the drawings, wherein* The numeral 1 indicates a cell mold-frame constructed of longitudinal and transverse 8o strips 2 and 3, so connected and organized as to provide a series of cells 4 ofuniform shape and size. The sinker-frame is composed of a rectangular plate 5, having at each longitudinal edge a rectilinear bar 6, extended at each endinto a handle 7,-which flanges or bars serve to receive between them one of the mold-frames, while the handles serve to manipulate the sinker-frames.

The sinker-frame is provided with a series 9o height of a stack of the sinker and mold frames. Those on the opposite. surface, in other words the sinkers 8, are of greatly-reduced thickness as compared with the sinkers 9. The thinnest sinkers 8 correspond in number with the thickest sinkers 9, and all the sinkers on each sinker-frarne are 'coextensive in length and breadth in order to accurately tit the cells of two adjacent moldframes, and in practice the sinkers` 9 enter the cells of a lower mold-frame and the sinkers 8 enter the cells of an upper mold-frame,

thesuperimposedarrangementof mold-frames and sinker-frames being clearly shown 1n 1 on both surfaces a series of sinkers, those on Figs. 4 and 5.

The tobacco to be shaped into plugs occupies the cells between the adjacent faces of the sinkers on an upper and a lower sinkerframe, and when a set of the mold-frames is placed in the press to effect the pressing operation the thinnest sinkers accurately fill up the lower ends of the cells and eectually prevent any tobacco from being pressed out at such points, while the thickest sinkers follow up the tobacco in the cells of the moldframes until the tobacco is properly `compacted into the form of plugs desired.

In the construction described and shown the upper and lower vedges of the cells in the mold-frame are locked against movement by abutment against the edges of the sinkers on the sinker-frames, `while the longitudinal strips 3 of the mold-frames 'are located between and bear against the rectilinear side bars 6 of the sinker-frames, whereby racking of all fthe frames is prevented, or, in other words, the mold-frf-unes` and si-nker-frames cannot slide one upon the other, but lare all held in correct relation throughout the series.

I have exhibited each sinker frame as formed integral with its thi-n Vand thick sinkers; but I do not confine myself to this particular construction.

`By 'my invention I avoid the necessity of trimming the `plugs after the sinker operation and` produce nice and accurate work with comparatively-little labor and expense, while the engagement of `the sinker-frames and mold-frames with each other, tolavoid racking,

renders such frames durable and efficient in practice. The construction also prevents the mold-frames and the pressing-frames from being set up untruly and causes the plugs to be prized up in the center of the cells and not at the edges thereof. The sinker-frames and -the ginold-fram'es may be arranged in a set of twelve,inore or less, and thus a large number of tobacco-plugs can be simultaneously produced without loss of tobacco or subsequent trimmi'ng of the plugs.

Vhat I claim isl. 4The combination, in a plug-tobaccoshap ing apparatus, of sinker-frarnes each having one surface being thicker than those on the opposite surface and each series of sinkers separated from each other to provide longitudinal `and transverse spaces, with the `cellmold frames composed of longitudinal and transverse strips and interposed alternately between the sinker-frames, so that the sinkers on one surface 4of a sinker-frame project into the cells of one mold-frame while the sinkers on the opposite surface project into the cells of anothermold-frame, substantially as described.

2. The combination, in a plug-tobacco-shaping apparatus, of sinker-frames each having upwardly-projecting side bars and provided on both surfaces with a series Iof sinkers, those on one surface being thicker than those on the opposite surface and each series of sinkers separated from each `other to provide intervening longitudinal 'and transverse spaces, with the cell mold-frames composed of longitudinal and transverse strips and interposed alternately between the sinkerframes, said `cell mold-frames having their outer 'longitudinal strips located betweenand bearing `against 'the upwardly-projecting side bars on 'the siriker-frames, substantially as described.

In testimony vwhereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

Y CHARLES D. SOURS Witnesses:

R. L. LEWIS, F. R. BROWN.

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