WO2020049581A1 - System, method and device for apportioning and dosing of granulated oral tobacco into vendible sachets - Google Patents

Abstract

A machine for manufacturing sachets containing flavoured tobacco, in apportioned quantities is described. Accordingly, a rotating disk with peripheral holes sucks tobacco from a rotating trough and via a pressurized hot air blow dispenses the collected portion of tobacco through a Funnel with an air vortex into an open sachet which is then sealed laterally and cut to form individual sachets. A general Vacuum is maintained in the center of the disk for suction of tobacco. A Straight Double walled tube guides the portioned tobacco into the waiting pouch and forms a film sheet into a tube by overlapping and sealing the edges. Longitudinal and Transverse Sealers seal the pouch and pulling arrangement pulls the formed tube. This ensures the sachets contain the pulverized tobacco product with its total qualities of aroma, flavour, tang and bite intact for its end users and also, provides the contents intact for immediate consumption.

Description

FIELD OF INVENTION :-

The technical field of invention relates to the field of packaging and packaging machinery. Still particularly this invention relates to making and manufacture of vendible sachets of flavoured tobacco . Further particularly this invention relates to filling up of sachets / pouches continuously with measured and apportioned quantities of snus, a form of chewable tobacco . Furthermore the invention talks about. Still further the invention is related to the manufacture and preparation of small pouches / packets / sachets filled with pulverized tobacco for commercial usage.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

Consumption of oral tobacco in form of chewable mass is quite prevalent in countries like India and gaining prominence even in Americas, Africa and Europe of late. An alternate to cigarettes, chewable tobacco, is provided by many manufacturers with selective ingredients to impart aroma, taste, flavor, tang and bite as suited to the preferences of the users, and various parameters and the ingredients, are kept as trade secrets by the manufacturers of it, who have created a niche for their products among their clientele, the tobacco lovers.

Thus, it can be stated, that Snus, packaged in porous filter paper, is also known as filter-snus and is a popular alternative to smoking tobacco and its production and packaging is now a well-established and mature business world-wide and Oral tobacco or Snus is available in both loose tin-packed or portioned in sachet form for the consumers.

It is quite evident that packing of Snus, in measured quantities in sachets, enabling their easy sales across various vendors is of primary importance as the packages should not only be attractive but must be able to retain the Snus, in good condition with all its inherent characteristics, till it reaches the end user from its place of manufacture and packaging.

Quite a few approaches, made hitherto for packaging of snus, in pouches / sachets, have failed to address few of the core issues. For example, United States Patent Application US20120060446A1 of Holger Merz, titled‘Dosing Method and dosing device’ discusses about using a rotating disk with a vertical axis and holes on the face which are filled with tobacco via gravity. This portioned tobacco is then blown upwards via pressurized air and through a rectilinear duct which is conveyed into the open sachet. The rectilinear duct usually forms an inverted‘IT in which the tobacco first travels upwards and then downwards into the sachet. Due to this complex path and long travel distance, the tobacco ends up sticking onto the walls of the rectilinear duct and frequently clogs the machine. Moreover, the duct being made of multiple sections, contains funnels at the intersections which increase the chances of clogging. Also, due to the complex path, Air at high pressures is used to convey the tobacco into the sachet. This high-pressure air forces the tobacco into one end of the sachet causing lumping and moreover blows the fine dust particles in the tobacco into the pores of the packaging material causing staining of the sachet.

Yet another approach discusses about usage of a rotating disk with horizontal axis that has a continuous slot on its periphery. Tobacco is dispensed into the slot and forms a rope around the disk. A portion of tobacco is blown into the sachet via pressured air. The portion sizes are controlled by the amount of tobacco exposed to the funnel. Certain improvements such as a double walled vibrating funnel increase this concepts performance efficiency. However, the tobacco still clogs the former tube through which it is transferred into the open sachet. Other disadvantages include the rubbing of Tobacco inside the disk housing which causes wear and tear and damages the tobacco grain structure.

Thus, it can be observed that the aforesaid approaches, have inherent limitations, in handling of tobacco with high moisture content in efficient manner and further it should be understood that the pulverized tobacco product of snus should be packed with minimal handling so as to retain its properties of texture, aroma and taste for which they have made an everlasting impact on the customers and on no account, the packaging methods should tamper with these qualities, which would render the snus bereft of such properties and entail losing their customer choice / preference.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide, a system for achieving sachets / pouches filled with chewable tobacco, i.e., snus, in apportioned quantities, retaining all the desired qualities of the tobacco content contained in them.

It is a further an object of the invention to provide a method for continuous production of sachets filled with snus, in measured quantities, ensuring the delivery of tobacco portions in a straight line, prevented clogging of tobacco in funnels using air flow and ensuring a jam free distribution of tobacco uniformly onto the sachets.

It is still further, an object of the invention, to provide a machine for continuous production of snus sachets, with pre determined quantities of chewable tobacco, with its preferred ingredients with minimal handling of the material thereby to ensure that the material filled in the sachets, i.e., snus is retained with all its inherent qualities ensuring the customer / end user of the snus its preferred qualities for which it is being sought for.

Still further, its an object of the invention to provide a packaging machine which can be used in applications where it is difficult to handle powders are packaged into small pouches.

Furthermore, it is an object of the invention to provide a system and method for continuous manufacture of filling of sachets with predetermined quantities of vendible materials with uniform apportioning of the contents.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it can be seen from the figures, the Snus packaging machine, comprises of a rotating trough (Al) which is rotating around a vertical axis and contains tobacco (A2) whose level is crucial to consistent portioning and is maintained through external means. The disk contains peripheral holes (A3) with an in-built Mesh (A13) that defines the volume of the tobacco portion. Vacuum (A4) is maintained inside the disk and when the holes are immersed into the tobacco (A2) contained in the rotating trough (Al) a suitable volume of tobacco is sucked into the holes and contained therein. The disk is continuously rotated in the clockwise direction and the filled holes are presented sequentially to the dispensing station.

The dispensing station consists of a Pressured Hot Air Blow Nozzle (A12) and the Vortex Air Flow Funnel (A6). When a Hole (A3) matches with the funnel (A6), the Nozzle (A12) blows pressured hot air such that the tobacco contained inside the hole (A3) is pushed into the Funnel (A6) and further into the double walled former Tube (A15). The Funnel (A6) has been designed with holes on the periphery located and angled such that when pressurized Hot Air is blown through them from external means simultaneously, the Air forms a helical vortex and pushes the tobacco through the former Tube. This feature ensures that the Funnel (A6) does not get jammed.

A flat web of film (Al l) is formed into a continuous tube on top of the Former Tube (A15) through conventional means and is pulled along by the Pulling Arrangement (A10). Sealer Arrange (A8) seals the web longitudinally to form a closed tube. The Former tube (A15) conveys the tobacco portion into the open sachet waiting at the lateral sealers (A9). Sealing Arrangement (A9) creates the lateral seals thereby creating a chain of Snus sachets which are then cut and dispensed out of the machine.

The former Tube (A15) is double walled with the inner wall being made of a material with low friction coefficient, Low adhesion, cohesion properties and a good thermal insulator. The outer wall is made of Stainless Steel A304. The combination of Hot Air and double walled tube ensure that the tobacco does not coat the walls and thereby prevents Jamming.

Intermittently, very Hot air at High pressures is blown through the system to ensure any residual tobacco particles stuck to the walls are cleaned out.

Through this method, it can be observed that the distance between the portioning assembly and formed sachet, has been shortened to ensured that the delivery of tobacco portions is in a straight line, thus ensuring prevention of clogging of tobacco in funnels using air flow and ensured a jam free Former tube by creating a double walled structure and using hot air to convey the Tobacco portions.

Claims

What is claimed is

1) A machine for continuous production of sachets / pouches of pre determined

quantities of pulverized tobacco, the said machine comprising of

A rotating trough capable of rotating around a vertical axis and contains tobacco whose level is crucial to consistent portioning and is maintained through external means ;

A disk is provided which contains peripheral holes with an in-built Mesh that defines the predetermined volume of the tobacco portion to be filled in the sachets ;

Negative pressure, is maintained inside the disk and when the holes are immersed into the tobacco contained in the rotating trough a suitable volume of tobacco is sucked into the holes and contained therein. The disk is continuously rotated in the clockwise direction and the filled holes are presented sequentially to the dispensing station

2) The dispensing station as claimed in claim 1, essentially comprises consists of a

Pressured Hot Air Blow Nozzle and the Vortex Air Flow Funnel and when a Hole matches with the funnel the said Nozzle blows pressured hot air such that the tobacco contained inside the hole is pushed into the Funnel and further into the double walled former Tube, wherein the said funnel, has been designed with holes located on its periphery and angled in such a way, that when pressurized Hot Air is blown through them from external means simultaneously, with the Air forming a helical vortex and pushing the tobacco through the former Tube ensuring that it does not get jammed with the tobacco material

3) The dispensing station of the tobacco sachets filling machine as claimed in claim 1, further comprises of a double walled former tube on top of it, is formed a flat web of film by conventional means and is pulled along by the Pulling Arrangement and Sealer Arrange means seals the web longitudinally to form a closed tube and the said Former tube conveys the tobacco portion into the open sachet waiting at the lateral sealers and sealing Arrangement creates the lateral seals thereby creating a chain of Snus sachets which are then cut and dispensed out of the machine

4) The machine for continuous production of sachets / pouches of pre determined

quantities of pulverized tobacco as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tobacco material, snus, after being filled in apportioned quantities onto the sachets, possess their characteristic content of aroma, taste, flavour and tag 5) A system and method for production of sachets with powdered and pulverized materials, packed therein, the system comprising of

A rotating trough capable of rotating around a vertical axis and contains tobacco whose level is crucial to consistent portioning and is maintained through external means ;

A disk is provided which contains peripheral holes with an in-built Mesh that defines the predetermined volume of the tobacco portion to be filled in the sachets ;

Negative pressure, is maintained inside the disk and when the holes are immersed into the tobacco contained in the rotating trough a suitable volume of tobacco is sucked into the holes and contained therein. The disk is continuously rotated in the clockwise direction and the filled holes are presented sequentially to the dispensing station ;

the said dispensing station essentially comprising of a Pressured Hot Air Blow Nozzle and the Vortex Air Flow Funnel and when a Hole matches with the funnel the said Nozzle blows pressured hot air such that the tobacco contained inside the hole is pushed into the Funnel and further into the double walled former Tube, wherein the said funnel, has been designed with holes located on its periphery and angled in such a way, that when pressurized Hot Air is blown through them from external means simultaneously, with the Air forming a helical vortex and pushing the tobacco through the former Tube ensuring that it does not get jammed with the tobacco material