This disclosure pertains to manually operated cigarette-making machines and, more particularly, to manually operated cigarette-making machines designed to rest generally on a horizontal support surface while operated by a handle at the side of the machine.
Many types of manual cigarette making machines for injecting tobacco into hollow tobacco tubes have been developed over the years including handheld and tabletop manual cigarette making machines. The prior tabletop machines are hand-driven in whole or in part by rotating a crank, handle, lever or knob in a plane parallel to the tabletop supporting the machine, by rotating a crank or handle in a plane perpendicular to the tabletop (or other surface) supporting the machine or by sliding a lever or knob in a plane parallel to the tabletop. Manual tabletop cigarette making machines operated in whole or in part by rotating a crank or a handle in a plane perpendicular to the tabletop supporting the machine are sometimes referred to as “side handle operated machines”.
Manual cigarette making machines must compress loose tobacco in a uniform, reliable and repeatable manner. They must also transport or inject the compressed tobacco into hollow cigarette tubes smoothly, and in a fashion that ensures a proper, uniform and complete fill of the tubes. And, most importantly, these machines must be easy to operate and they must stand up to repeated use over time without losing their ability to compress the loose tobacco in a uniform, reliable and repeatable manner or to inject the compressed tobacco into hollow cigarette tubes smoothly and in a way that ensures proper, uniform complete fill of the tubes.
Some users of manual cigarette making machines prefer side handle operated machines. The present application is directed to machine embodiments that are designed to be hand driven in this way and that are particularly well adapted to compressing loose tobacco in a uniform, reliable and repeatable manner. The present machine embodiments also are particularly well adapted to injecting the compressed tobacco into hollow cigarette tubes smoothly, and to ensure a proper, uniform and complete fill of the tubes. And, the present machine embodiments are easy to operate and will stand up to repeated use over time without losing their ability to compress the loose tobacco and to inject the compressed tobacco into hollow cigarette tubes.
Embodiments comprise a manual cigarette making machine with a top wall and a sidewall, and a compacting chamber access opening in the top wall located above the compacting chamber within the machine. The compacting chamber is intended to receive loose tobacco which will be compacted and injected into a hollow cigarette tube.
The machine embodiments include a handle mounted for rotation in a plane generally perpendicular to the top wall of the machine casing. The handle is attached to a driveshaft that extends through the sidewall into the machine casing.
An attachment member stub may be affixed to the driveshaft to be received in an attachment channel in the handle to enable the handle to be removably attached to the driveshaft. The stub may be provided with a spring biased pin while the channel wall is provided with a bore positioned to receive the pin. This arrangement permits the handle to be attached to the driveshaft by sliding the stub into the channel until the pin reaches and snaps into place in the bore in the channel. When it is desired to remove the handle, the pin is pushed in until it is out of engagement with the bore and the handle may be slid off the stub.
Machine embodiments also include a cam-driven tamper mechanism operated by the driveshaft. As the handle is rotated it operates a cam structure to advance a tamper toward the compacting chamber bottom to compress loose tobacco in the compacting chamber. The tamper mechanism may include a tamper member mounted for linear movement in the compacting chamber toward and away from a tobacco spoon located at the bottom of the compacting chamber. The tamper member may include one or more wheels for engaging one or more cam surfaces and advancing the tamper member in response to rotation of the cam surfaces. The tamper member preferably will have a rounded upwardly directed trough which generally corresponds to the circumference of the compacted tobacco cylinder which is to be injected into a cigarette tube.
Embodiments of the machine employ a cam-driven tobacco injection assembly operated by the rotation of the driveshaft. This tobacco injection assembly includes an injection drive plate mounted for rotation generally parallel to the top wall of the machine casing, or generally perpendicular to the plane of movement of the handle.
Embodiments of the injection plate of the injection assembly including a pivot end a free end spaced from the pivot end. A tobacco spoon is linked to the injection plate, preferably at its free end. This tobacco spoon is will rest at the bottom of the compacting chamber before the injection process initiated. The tobacco spoon is arranged to move across the bottom of the compacting chamber as the injection plate pivots about its pivot end to transport or inject compressed tobacco from the compacting chamber into an empty cigarette tube in response to rotation of the injection drive plate.
The tobacco spoon preferably is mounted for linear movement across an injection track as the free end of the injection plate moves in an arc. A swing arm is preferably rotatably mounted at one end to the machine casing and at the other end to the tobacco spoon. This swing arm may be articulated. Finally, the free end of the injection plate is linked to the swing arm causing pivotal movement of the injection plate to be converted into linear movement of the tobacco spoon.
In embodiments of the cigarette making machine a drive member is provided mounted for linear movement generally perpendicular to the axis of the driveshaft. An opening may be provided in the injection drive plate spaced from the pivot end of the plate for receiving this drive member. As a result, linear movement of the drive member within the opening will produce pivotal movement of the drive plate about its pivot end. The injection drive plate opening may include a shelf that is generally perpendicular to the injection drive plate so that the drive member engages the shelf as it moves linearly. The drive member may further have an angled flat leading surface that engages the shelf. Finally, the flat leading surface may have a hardened portion where it contacts the shelf to help reduce wear.
In embodiments of the machine, the tobacco injection assembly will be driven by a cam assembly operated by the driveshaft. This cam assembly may include a central cam member with a cam surface and at least one lateral stop member. The central cam member may have a cam surface including an initial lobe, a drop and a final lobe which engages a carriage plate to which the drive member is attached. The carriage plate may have a wheel engaging the central cam member surface. The initial lobe ensures that the carriage plate and drive member remain in place during the initial rotation of the cam, while the empty cigarette tube is being locked in place by the clamping structure described below. As the central cam member continues to rotate, the wheel rides into the drop and then up upon the final lobe, which causes the carriage plate and drive member to advance at the appropriate time in the operation of the machine.
The cam assembly may also include one or more lateral stop members having engagement surfaces. These lateral stop members, which are mounted to the driveshaft adjacent the central cam member, include engagement surfaces positioned relative to the central cam member to provide a positive stop when they come into engagement with the top surface of the carriage plate, thereby establishing a positive closed position in the rotation of the handle.
Embodiments of the cigarette making machine may also including nipple for receiving an open end of the cigarette tube and a clamping structure for removably retaining the cigarette tube on the nipple to receive compacted tobacco transported from the compacting chamber. This clamping structure will be operated by the driveshaft. In the illustrated embodiment the clamping structure may include a clamp driver wheel mounted to the driveshaft to engage a structure for advancing a clamp finger against a cigarette tube positioned on the nipple.
The machine may also include an optional cigarette tube adjustment mechanism for reducing the tobacco-receiving volume of the compacting chamber to accommodate the filling of different cigarette tube lengths.
In embodiments of the invention, the tamper mechanism, injection assembly and tube clamping structure will be arranged radially on the driveshaft so that rotation of the driveshaft from its initial or “open” during insertion of tobacco in the compacting chamber, to first drive the clamping structure from an open to a closed position, then drive the tamper mechanism from a rest to a fully extended position compacting the tobacco against a cigarette spoon located at the bottom of the compacting chamber, and then drive the tobacco injection assembly from a rest to a fully tube engaged position to fill an empty cigarette tube, which will mark the end of the forward rotation of the handle, or its “closed” position. As the handle is returned to its open position, the clamping structure will be released, the spoon will be withdrawn from the now-filled cigarette tube and the tamper will be returned to its start position.
Features, objects and advantages of embodiments may be best understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the following drawings, in which like reference numerals identify like elements in the several figures, and in which:
A manually operated cigarette-making machine embodiment 10 of the invention is depicted in perspective view in
Platforms 12 and 16 are available to hold a quantity of loose tobacco, hollow cigarette tubes, etc., as desired, in preparation for operation of machine 10. Loose tobacco will be manually placed through access opening 14 into compacting chamber 18 before operating the machine.
The top and bottom machine casing components are assembled together to form casing 11. The machine embodiment as shown for example in
Cigarette-making machine embodiment 10 is shown with an optional cigarette tube adjustment mechanism 210 which may be seen in
Machine embodiments also include a handle 24 with a handle grip 25 at its distal end. Handle 24 appears, for example, in the perspective view of the machine embodiment of
As shown in
The fully assembled machine embodiment depicted in
Turning now to
We turn now to the structure and operation of the machine components illustrated in these
The drive plate has a rectangular opening 52 with an elongated shelf 56 along the top edge of the rectangular opening when the machine embodiment is viewed from the bottom as in
Drive plate 50 is pivotally attached at pivot end 60 to pivotal mounting member 62. This pivotal mounting member and hence the pivot point of the drive plate is therefore located adjacent the start point 65 (
A link arm 66 is rotatably affixed to the drive plate at end 64. The second end of link arm 66 is rotatably affixed to a swing arm 68 which articulates in two sections 72 and 74 at an articulation point 77. As can be seen in
The injector member drive plate is shown in its initial rest position in
Section 74 of the swing arm is shown pivotally attached at its distal end 79 to tobacco spoon slide support 90. This slide support is associated with tobacco spoon 91 (
The advancement of tobacco spoon slide support 90 and tobacco spoon 91 are controlled by the pivotal motion of injection drive plate 50 in the injection drive plane of movement. Thus, beginning with
Drive member 92 may be viewed more closely in
The drive member is biased into the injection start position illustrated in
As handle 24 is rotated from its initial position shown in
This movement of the drive member causes injection member drive plate 52 to pivot about pivotal mounting member 60 as the injector drive member moves toward machine front wall 36 advancing along shelf 56. As the drive plate pivots in this way, link arm 66 pushes swing arm 68, causing section 74 of the swing arm to follow the movement of the drive plate causing tobacco spoon slide support 90 and tobacco spoon 91 to move toward nipple 22 which will be holding a cigarette tube when the machine is operated to make a cigarette.
A cam assembly 110 seen from above in
Cam assembly 110 extends through cavity 102 as can be seen in the view of
Carriage plate 124 includes a wheel 126 mounted for rotation at the front 128 of the carriage plate. A spring 130 biases the carriage plate at the end of the bridge slot opposite cavity 102 with wheel 126 abutting cam surface 114 of central cam element 112. As handle 24 is rotated during the initial operation of the machine, it rotates driveshaft 100 on which the cam assembly is mounted causing cam surface 114 to drive carriage plate 124 down the track slot against the spring resistance provided by spring 130.
As can best be seen in
The advancing movement of drive member 92 as the cam assembly is rotated and carriage plate 124 driven down track slot 120 can be seen, for example, by comparing
This advancing movement of the drive member will cause it to move along elongated shelf 56 of drive plate rectangular opening 52 (
As the cam surface moves past the high point 114e of the initial lobe 114a of the cam surface, drive member 92 backs off as wheel 126 moves (in response to tension supplied by biasing spring 130) toward and into cam surface drop 114b. The continued rotation of handle 24 and therefore cam element 112 further advances drive member 92 toward machine housing front wall 36 to complete the injection process.
The rotary movement of cam assembly 110 is halted as the engagement surfaces 118a and 118b of the lateral stop members 116a and 116b of the cam assembly come into abutment with a stop surface. The stop surface may comprise the top surface 124a of carriage plate 124 in the illustrated embodiment. The lateral stop members are positioned radially on driveshaft 100 and relative to central cam element 112 to ensure that the lateral stop members come into abutment with the stop surface when the earlier formed compacted tobacco cylinder has been properly and fully injected into a hollow tobacco-receiving cylinder of the cigarette tube. These stop members ensure that the user operating handle 24 will receive a positive tactile signal corresponding to the completion of the injection process so that tobacco spoon 91 may be withdrawn from the fully formed tobacco-containing cigarette tube cylinder 23b, as explained earlier.
A tamper mechanism 148 four compacting or compressing loose tobacco in compacting chamber 18 can be seen in
A tamping edge 158 is located at the distal edge of tamper member 154. Preferably, the edge will be a rounded trough 160 generally corresponding to the circumference of the compacted tobacco cylinder which is to be injected into the cigarette tube. Preferably a second corresponding trough of like configuration will be located at the bottom of the compacting chamber (not shown).
Thus, when tobacco is placed in compacting chamber 18 (
This compacted tobacco cylinder will then be transported into a hollow tube (not shown) mounted to nipple 22 by the operation of tobacco injection assembly 48 described above. The relative rotary positions of cam assembly 110 and twin tamper cams 150a and 150b are set so that when the tamper member reaches its final position opposite spoon 91 it is maintained in that position by the maintenance section of the tamper cams at which point surface 114 of central cam element 112 takes over driving the operation of the tobacco injection assembly. Handle 24 and driveshaft 100 will continue to be rotated until engagement surfaces 118a and 118b of the lateral stop members come to rest against the top surface of bottom machine casing component 11b. Handle 24 will be at position 24a (
We turn now to the tube clamp mechanism 170 of the illustrated embodiment which can be seen in
The tube clamp mechanism includes, in addition to driver wheel 172, a clamping structure 174 comprising a fixed top slidable clamping structure portion 176, a movable bottom clamping structure portion 178, a compression spring 180, a distal clamp finger 182 and a proximal drive portion 184 which may best be viewed in
As can best be seen in
Distal clamp finger 172 preferably has a circular distal end cutout 200 of a diameter generally corresponding to the diameter of nipple 22 to maximize contact with an empty cigarette tube mounted to the nipple when the tube clamp mechanism is operated to engage and retain the tube on the nipple.
Finally, proximal drive portion 184 of the tube clamp mechanism includes a clearance slot 202 with a follower finger 204 having ramp edges 206a and 206b on either side of a landing 208.
The tube clamp mechanism is shown prior to clamping an empty cigarette tube in place on nipple 22 in
As handle 24 is continue to be rotated toward position 24a (
Cigarette-making machine embodiment 10 is shown with an optional cigarette tube adjustment mechanism 210 which may be seen in
Cigarette tube adjustment mechanism 210 includes a slide member 212 which is arranged to move laterally between first and second side walls 20 and 40 of the machine housing and directly below compacting chamber access opening 14. The slide member is moved laterally by a slide control plate 214 accessible from front 36 of the machine housing. The slide plate includes a dimpled section 215 to increase friction when a user presses his or her finger against the slide plate in order to change the position of the cigarette tube adjustment mechanism.
Slide member 212 includes a base element 216, a generally perpendicularly directed extension element 218 and a top element 219 which is generally perpendicular to the extension element and parallel to the base element. The base element, extension element, and top element preferably lie in a common plane. Slide member 212 also includes a generally flat tab element 220 directed downwardly into compacting chamber 18. The distal edge 222 of tab element 220 preferably sits against the bottom 19 of compacting chamber 18 (
The operation of the cigarette tube adjustment mechanism may be understood, for example, from
When a second shorter cigarette tube tobacco-receiving the cylinder is to be filled, slide control plate 214 is slid to the left as shown in
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar references in the context of describing embodiments (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable other unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (i.e., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to illuminate embodiments and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the embodiments unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the embodiments.
Preferred embodiments are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying them out. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the embodiments to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, embodiments include all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed embodiments unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
201810551983.6 | May 2018 | CN | national |