Patent Application
20240215635
The accompanying drawings illustrate a number of exemplary embodiments and are a part of the specification. Together with the following description, these drawings demonstrate and explain various principles of the instant disclosure.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference characters and descriptions indicate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements. While the exemplary embodiments described herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. However, the exemplary embodiments described herein are not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the instant disclosure covers all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the appended claims.
Features from any of the embodiments described herein may be used in combination with one another in accordance with the general principles described herein. These and other embodiments, features, and advantages will be more fully understood upon reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and claims.
The present disclosure is generally directed to an apparatus, systems, and methods for filling prerolls. Existing technologies are either very bulky or suffer from a lack of consistency between preroll fills. An apparatus incorporating support pods along with a tamper module and ejector module may facilitate easy filling and packing of prerolls, improving packing throughput and minimizing deviation in fill quantities, densities, and positioning within the preroll. In some embodiments, the support pods may be configured to fit within a centrifuge bucket, thereby allowing packing of the prerolls through application of centrifugal force.
In some embodiments, the apparatuses and systems described herein may improve the functioning of a preroll packing system or process by allowing an individual user to quickly and precisely set large quantities of prerolls for filling within the pod. The user may then volumetrically fill the prerolls, with the volume of the fill being based on the headspace between the top of the preroll and the top of the pod. Users can fill prerolls using different pods to adjust for preroll size, shape, and/or desired fill amount. The tamper module ensures that each preroll is seated within the pod at a similar depth, while the ejector module facilitates rapid retrieval of the filled and packed prerolls without damage.
The term “preroll” as used herein can refer to a container for combustible material, the smoke of which is intended for inhalation. Prerolls are typically used for cannabis consumption, though they may be filled with other combustible material as well. A preroll typically includes a paper or other combustible wrapper that has been rolled and secured into a tube or cone shape with a filter at one end. In the case of cone shapes, the filter is typically placed at the narrower end of the preroll. Prerolls can be filled with combustible material by depositing the material in the open end opposite the filter. After filling, a preroll can be closed by folding or twisting the open end shut. Cone-shaped prerolls are sometimes simply referred to as “cones”.
Pod 100 can be loaded by placing prerolls into each of fill chambers 106, which are configured to hold prerolls of a specific shape and size. As will be described below, the fill chambers of different pods can be configured to hold prerolls of different specific shapes and sizes. In some examples, the fill chambers may be straight-sided with a diameter configured to support a particular model of preroll. In other examples, the fill chambers may be tapered to be narrower at the bottom. Pods with tapered fill chambers may be especially useful for filling and packing cone-shaped prerolls, as the tapered shape allows for more even support of the preroll paper thereby minimizing the possibility of damage to the preroll during filling and packing. The fill chambers may be configured to correspond to a specific make and/or model of prerolls produced by a manufacturer. In some embodiments, the mouth of the fill chamber (i.e., the opening on the upper surface of pod body 102) may be configured to be approximately 0.25 millimeters smaller in diameter than the widest point of the corresponding preroll to ensure enough empty space in the preroll to form a closure, such as a twist closure.
In other embodiments, the fill chambers may be configured to have headspace above the top of a fully seated preroll. When prerolls are properly tamped into a pod as will be described in greater detail below in connection with the tamper accessory, the topmost edge of the preroll may rest below the upper surface of the pod. The space between the topmost edge of the preroll can be referred to as the “headspace” of a particular pod. Different pods configured to accommodate a particular family or configuration of preroll can be configured to fill the prerolls to differing degrees by allowing for differing headspace at the top of the pod when the prerolls are tamped into position. A larger headspace results in more material being loaded into the headspace and therefore packed into the preroll during the packing process, while conversely using a smaller headspace will result in less material being packed into the preroll. In some examples, the headspace may extend between 7 and 12 millimeters above the topmost edge of the seated preroll. In some embodiments, the headspace may be a straight-sided cylindrical space. In further embodiments, the headspace may follow a taper. However, the headspace may be any suitable shape or configuration to ensure adequate and reliable filling of prerolls.
The fill chambers may also taper to a narrower diameter at the bottom of the fill chamber (sometimes referred to as the “foot” of the fill chamber), with the bottom opening of the fill chamber configured to be up to 0.2 millimeters smaller in diameter than the narrowest point of the preroll to 0.25 millimeters larger in diameter than the narrowest point of the preroll to allow the tip of the preroll to protrude through a lower surface of pod body 102. In some embodiments, the sidewalls of the fill chambers may be smooth. In other embodiments, specific portions or the entirety of the sidewalls of the fill chambers may be textured to facilitate increased friction and therefore a stronger grip on any prerolls inserted into the pod.
In some embodiments, the headspace in a pod (and therefore the volume of material packed into each preroll) can be adjusted by changing the tamping depth of the prerolls. For example, tamping prerolls in a pod at a shallower depth will reduce the headspace and result in a corresponding reduction in fill volume. Adjustments to the tamping depth can be accomplished in a variety of ways. For example, a tamper accessory with shorter tamping rods will press the prerolls to a shallower depth than a tamper accessory with longer tamping rods. Additionally or alternatively, some example systems can make use of a fill restrictor accessory. Much like the ejector accessory that will be described in greater detail below, a fill restrictor can include an outer ring dimensioned to snugly fit a pod, an ejector key configured to fit into the keying grove of the pod, ensuring that the pod is properly aligned with the fill restrictor, a ring groove configured to fit the support flange of the pod, and a central plate configured to partially fill the foot space of the pod.
The central plate of a fill restrictor can be configured to occupy a portion of the foot space of a pod can prevent the tips of the prerolls from being tamped past a certain point, thereby causing the prerolls to be seated higher in the pod and reducing the headspace. The platform of such a fill restrictor can provide a level surface that serves as a stop for the tips of the prerolls, ensuring that all the prerolls in the pod are tamped to the same reduced depth relative to the top of the pod. In some examples, a fill restrictor may have a removable central plate that can be interchanged with other central plates of differing thickness. These plates of differing thickness can enable a user to adjust the tamping depth of prerolls (and thereby adjust the fill volume) by changing the swapping out the plate in the fill restrictor for a thicker or thinner plate as desired. Additionally, these central plates can have a variety of markings, colorings, text labels, or other indica to aid users in selecting an appropriate central plate when preparing a pod for filling.
The pods and accessories described herein may be manufactured using a variety of materials or combinations of materials. For example, pod bodies and/or accessories may be formed from ABS plastic, polypropylene plastic, aluminum, or any other suitable material.
Pods may be manufactured using any suitable method, including 3D printing, injection molding, milling, extrusion, or any other suitable method of manufacture.
Different pods can be manufactured and configured to accommodate different shapes and sizes of preroll. Different pods can also be manufactured and configured to accommodate the same shape and size of preroll but provide for different packing volumes via differing amounts of headspace.
Pods can also be differentiated from each other based on color. For example, pod 402 may be manufactured out of a red plastic, pod 404 may be manufactured out of a green plastic, and pod 406 may be manufactured out of a blue plastic. This color coding can allow for easy identification of pods even when they aren't being stored directly next to each other. For example, red pods may be configured for use with family A of prerolls, green pods configured for use with family B, and blue pods configured for use with family C. Although the mapping of pod color to preroll family is discussed here, pod color or size can be mapped to any suitable feature of the pod such as preroll family, fill volume, fill percentage, fill density, and the like.
Pods may also include information or identifiers printed, etched, cut, or otherwise displayed on the size of the pod. Although not illustrated in these examples, pods may include numbers or other symbols detailing a fill amount in volume, expected mass, or other suitable fill metric. Pods may likewise include indicators for the pod configuration (i.e., which family of prerolls are intended for use with the pod) or other information that may aid operators in selecting the appropriate pod for filling an assortment of prerolls.
Tamping rods 506 can be configured to align with the fill chambers of the pod and push any prerolls loaded into the pod to a uniform depth within the pod. Tamping rods 506 may be tapered to provide even pressure across the interior surface of prerolls loaded into a pod and thereby minimize the possibility of damage to the prerolls during the tamping or filling process. In some examples, the tamping rods may be configured to match the taper of the fill chambers in the pod (e.g., following a parallel taper to the corresponding fill chamber). The tamper accessory ensures that each preroll is pushed to a uniform depth within the pod. In embodiments where the pod is configured to have headspace above a properly seated preroll, tamping each preroll to the same depth can ensure that each preroll has consistent headspace above it and thus be packed with the same volume of material.
As with the pods described with respect to
Once loaded with prerolls and tamped, pods can be filled in a variety of ways. In some examples, a user loads the pod by sprinkling fill material over the top of the pod, allowing the material to settle into the headspace of each well or fill chamber. Any suitable fill material (e.g., dried and processed cannabis or tobacco) for prerolls can be used with the apparatuses, systems and methods described herein. Consistent volumetric loading of each headspace can be accomplished by filling the fill chambers past the headspace of the pod and then scraping the top of the pod with a straight-edged tool such as a spatula or the back of the tamper accessory, i.e., to fill each fill chamber or well until the top of the fill material is flush with the surface of the pod. The material can simply fall through the open bottom of any fill chambers that do not have a preroll inserted and can be recovered for later use or loading into other pods.
Once the pod has been loaded with material, the pod can then be used with any suitable packing mechanism such as vibratory packing machines, centrifuges, rod-based tamping/packing mechanisms, and the like. Packing ensures that the material within each preroll is appropriate dense to achieve combustion without self-extinguishing.
After the prerolls have been filled and packed, the pod is ready for the prerolls to be ejected.
The combination of an ejector key and outer ring of an ejector accessory can ensure that the ejection force caused by pressing a pod into the ejector accessory is applied along the long axis of the prerolls and is uniformly applied across all the prerolls in the pod.
As described above in connection with other example pods, pod 1102 may include a number of tapered fill chambers (illustrated as fill chambers 1106) for holding and filling prerolls. As described above, prerolls may be placed within some or all of fill chambers 1106 and then seated into place using tamper accessory 1120 such that the narrow end of the preroll (which typically includes a filter) protrudes from the bottom of its respective fill chamber into the foot space of pod 1102. The foot space is defined by the space enclosed by support flange 1108, which prevents the tips of the prerolls from contacting table surfaces or other container surfaces, such as centrifuge buckets. As also described above, pod 1108 mayinclude a keying groove 1104 to aid with the alignment and proper use of tamper accessories and ejector accessories such as tamper accessory 1120 and ejector accessory 1110.
The lowermost element of
As may be appreciated from the preceding descriptions of pods and tamper accessories, ejector accessories can likewise be configured in a variety of ways to ensure that they are capable of properly ejecting filled prerolls from a pod without damaging the prerolls. For example, different ejector accessories can have central pedestals of differing heights. These differently sized central pedestals, in conjunction with the configuration of the foot space of various pods as well as the corresponding keying grooves and keying segments, can ensure that ejector accessories are only used with pods they are designed to work with. For example, a central pedestal of a certain height might be unable to eject prerolls from a pod with a foot space that is deeper than the central pedestal is tall. As a specific example, a central pedestal that is half an inch in height will not be able to eject prerolls from a pod with a foot space of three quarters of an inch, as the central pedestal will not be tall enough to come into contact with the exposed ends of the prerolls before the support flange of the pod comes into contact with the bottom of the ring groove.
As described above, pods may include any number, size, and/or configuration of keying grooves. For example, a pod may include two, three, or four keying grooves. Pods can include any number of keying grooves, and accessories designed for use with that model of pod can have a corresponding number of keying segments (i.e., pod model A has one keying groove, model B has two, model C has three, and the corresponding accessories for each model have the corresponding number of keying segments). Keying grooves and/or keying segments may also be arranged in different ways, such as evenly distributed about the circumference of the pod or accessories or unevenly distributed to serve as a pattern key to ensure that the correct accessories are used with a given model of pod.
Keying grooves can also be of differing sizes and/or shapes to facilitate proper alignment of the pod relative to other accessories and/or ensure that the proper accessories are used with a given model of pod. In some examples, a keying groove may be roughly semicircular in profile, rectangular in profile, or any other suitable shape. The tamper accessory and ejector accessory can likewise include any number of corresponding keying segments that are configured to align with and fit into the keying grooves of the pods to ensure proper alignment of the pod relative to the accessory. Similarly, the pods may be configured with differing headspaces and/or foot spaces depending on the model or models of prerolls the pods are configured to accept. Accessories configured to work with such pods may likewise be configured with longer tamping rods to properly fill a larger headspace, taller ejection pedestals to fill a deeper foot space or support flange, or any other adjustments to their physical parameters to ensure that prerolls are consistently filled and packed. Similarly, the pods may be sized to accommodate any suitable number of prerolls based on the size and shape of the prerolls. Furthermore, the pods can be sized to fit into receptacles of a variety of different packing solutions such as vibration packing machines and/or centrifuge buckets.
Although the pods and accessories shown herein are round in shape, pods and accessories may be constructed according to any suitable form factor. For example, a pod may have a square footprint, and the corresponding accessories for that model of pod may likewise be configured to fit the square footprint of the square pod. Specifically, the base plate of the corresponding tamper accessory as well as the outer ring and ring groove of the ejector accessory may likewise be substantially square in shape to accommodate the square footprint of the pod. Pods and corresponding accessories may likewise be configured for any suitable profile of pod, such as triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, irregular shapes, etc.
In some embodiments, the pods may be sized to fit into buckets of packing solutions or packing machines. A packing machine may for example, apply vibrations to the pods to cause the material to settle into the prerolls. Additionally or alternatively, a packing machine may include a centrifuge that applies centripetal force to the pods, causing the material to settle towards the bottom or filter end of the prerolls. Loaded and filled pods may simply be dropped into an appropriately sized buckets for centrifugation. Centrifugation of the prerolls may allow for a density gradient, with the material being packed at a greater density at the filter end/bottom of the preroll and a lower density at the open end/top of the preroll. This density gradient may allow for easier ignition of the combustible material and/or allow the combustible material to hold a flame better than prerolls with uniform density while allowing for a richer burn later in the smoking process thanks to the increased material density further towards the filter end of the preroll.
The preceding description has been provided to enable others skilled in the art to best utilize various aspects of the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein. This exemplary description is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to any precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects illustrative and not restrictive. Reference should be made to the appended claims and their equivalents in determining the scope of the present disclosure.
Unless otherwise noted, the terms “connected to” and “coupled to” (and their derivatives), as used in the specification and claims, are to be construed as permitting both direct and indirect (i.e., via other elements or components) connection. In addition, the terms “a” or “an,” as used in the specification and claims, are to be construed as meaning “at least one of.” Finally, for ease of use, the terms “including” and “having” (and their derivatives), as used in the specification and claims, are interchangeable with and have the same meaning as the word “comprising.”
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/477,721, filed 29 Dec. 2022, the disclosure of which is incorporated, in its entirety, by this reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63477721 | Dec 2022 | US |
