Claims
- 1. A system for manufacturing a filter, comprising:an arrangement for establishing a continuous strand of material and moving the strand along a path: a particle delivery arrangement for repetitively drawing a metered amount of particulate material at a first location and releasing the drawn, metered amount of particulate material at a delivery location, the delivery location being along the strand path; the establishing arrangement including a unit located upstream of the delivery location for at least partially opening the established continuous strand of fibrous material so that at the delivery location the released particulate material is released into the at least partially opened continuous strand, whereby a particle location is defined along the strand; a unit located downstream of the delivery location for closing the at least partially opened continuous strand of fibrous material so as to fixedly capture the metered, released particulate material at the particle location in the closed strand; and a first drum adjacent the delivery location, the drum including a plurality of vacuum communicating holes along a perimeter of the drum adapted to form a recess at spaced locations along the continuous strand of fibrous material, wherein the first drum is located beneath the continuous strand of fibrous material at the delivery location such that the released particulate material is at least partially received in one of the recesses at the delivery location.
- 2. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a cutter downstream of the closing unit for cutting the continuous, particle bearing, fibrous rod into discrete rod plugs.
- 3. The system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the closing unit is arranged adjacent the drum so that closing action of the closing unit initiates coextensively with vacuum communication to the recesses.
- 4. The system as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a fluid application station, the fluid application station being disposed between the closing unit and the establishing arrangement, for applying the fluid to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations along the continuous stream apart from the released particulate matter.
- 5. The system as set forth in claim 4, wherein the fluid application station is disposed upstream of the particle delivery arrangement.
- 6. The system as set forth in claim 4, wherein the fluid application station is disposed downstream of the particle delivery arrangement.
- 7. The system as set forth in claim 4, wherein the delivery arrangement comprises a delivery wheel, the delivery wheel including a plurality of spaced apart pockets, the pockets being in opposing relation to the vacuum communicating holes of the first drum at the delivery location.
- 8. The system as set forth in claim 7, wherein the delivery arrangement further comprises a metering wheel arranged to repetitively transfer charges of particles to the pockets of the delivery wheel.
- 9. The system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the first drum and the closing unit are arranged relative to each other such that closing the continuous strand of fibrous material is initiated while a vacuum is applied to the continuous strand of fibrous material through the vacuum communicating holes.
- 10. A system for manufacturing a filter, comprising:an arrangement for establishing a continuous strand of material and moving the strand along a path; a particle delivery arrangement for repetitively drawing a metered amount of particulate material at a first location and releasing the drawn, metered amount of particulate material at a delivery location, the delivery location being along the strand path; the establishing arrangement including a unit located upstream of the delivery location for at least partially opening the established continuous strand of fibrous material so that at the delivery location the released particulate material is released into the at least partially opened continuous strand, whereby a particle location is defined along the strand; a unit located downstream of the delivery location for closing the at least partially opened continuous strand of fibrous material so as to fixedly capture the metered, released particulate material at the particle location in the closed strand a first drum adjacent the delivery location, the drum including a plurality of vacuum communicating holes along a perimeter of the drum for imparting a recess at spaced locations along the continuous strand of fibrous material, whereby the released particulate material is at least partially received in one of the recesses at the delivery location; and a fluid application station disposed between the closing unit and the establishing arrangement for applying the fluid to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations along the continuous stream apart from the released particulate matter, wherein the continuous stream of fibrous material moves through the fluid application station along a second path, and the fluid station includes a fluid applicator portion that is movable with the continuous stream of fibrous material along at least a portion of the second path.
- 11. The system as set forth in claim 10, wherein the fluid comprises a plasticizer the fluid application station includes a first wheel having a plurality of openings extending to a radial surface thereof and in flow communication with a source of liquid plasticizer, and a second wheel having a plurality of openings therein extending to a radial surface thereof and in flow communication with a vacuum source, the first and second wheel being arranged relative to each other such that, as the continuous stream of fibrous material moves through the plasticizer station along the second path, a nip between the first and second wheel defines a location on the second path and, when one of the plurality of openings on the first wheel is disposed in the nip, a corresponding one of the plurality of openings on the second wheel is also disposed in the nip on an opposite side of the continuous stream of fibrous material.
- 12. A system for manufacturing a filter, comprising:an arrangement for establishing a continuous strand of material and moving the strand along a path; a particle delivery arrangement for repetitively drawing a metered amount of particulate material at a first location and releasing the drawn, metered amount of particulate material at a delivery location, the delivery location being along the strand path; the establishing arrangement including a unit located upstream of the delivery location for at least partially opening the established continuous strand of fibrous material so that at the delivery location the released particulate material is released into the at least partially opened continuous strand, whereby a particle location is defined along the strand; a unit located downstream of the delivery location for closing the at least partially opened continuous strand of fibrous material so as to fixedly capture the metered, released particulate material at the particle location in the closed strand a first drum adjacent the delivery location, the drum including a plurality of vacuum communicating holes along a perimeter of the drum for imparting a recess at spaced locations along the continuous strand of fibrous material, whereby the released particulate material is at least partially received in one of the recesses at the delivery location; and a fluid application station disposed between the closing unit and the establishing arrangement for applying the fluid to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations along the continuous stream apart from the released particulate matter, wherein the delivery arrangement comprises a delivery wheel, the delivery wheel including a plurality of spaced apart pockets, the pockets being in opposing relation to the vacuum communicating holes of the first drum at the delivery location, and wherein the fluid applicator comprises a second drum and a third drum in mutually opposing relation along the strand path, at least one of the drums including fluid transferring portions at spaced locations along a rotatable perimeter thereof.
- 13. The system as set forth in claim 12, wherein the both the second and third drums included fluid transferring portions.
- 14. The system as set forth in claim 13, wherein the fluid transferring portions of the second drum mesh with fluid transferring portions of the second drums at a nip defined between the second and third drums.
- 15. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the other of the second and third drum includes vacuum communicating portions at spaced locations along a rotatable perimeter thereof, the vacuum communicating portions meshing with the fluid transferring portions at a nip defined between the second and third drums.
- 16. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein at least one of the drums includes a plurality of vacuum communicating retention holes.
- 17. A system for manufacturing a filter, comprising:an arrangement for establishing a continuous strand of material and moving the strand along a path; a particle delivery arrangement for repetitively drawing a metered amount of particulate material at a first location and releasing the drawn, metered amount of particulate material at a delivery location, the delivery location being along the strand path; the establishing arrangement including a unit located upstream of the delivery location for at least partially opening the established continuous strand of fibrous material so that at the delivery location the released particulate material is released into the at least partially opened continuous strand, whereby a particle location is defined along the strand; a unit located downstream of the delivery location for closing the at least partially opened continuous strand of fibrous material so as to fixedly capture the metered, released particulate material at the particle location in the closed strand a first drum adjacent the delivery location, the drum including a plurality of vacuum communicating holes along a perimeter of the drum for imparting a recess at spaced locations along the continuous strand of fibrous material, whereby the released particulate material is at least partially received in one of the recesses at the delivery location; and a fluid application station disposed between the closing unit and the establishing arrangement for applying the fluid to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations along the continuous stream apart from the released particulate matter, wherein the delivery arrangement comprises a delivery wheel, the delivery wheel including a plurality of spaced apart pockets, the pockets being in opposing relation to the vacuum communicating holes of the first drum at the delivery location, and wherein the closing unit comprises at least a pair of rollers located adjacent the first drum.
- 18. The system as set forth in claim 17, wherein the first drum and the rollers are mutually arranged so that the rollers initiate folding of portions of the strand about released particulate material while the released particulate material is retained in one of the recesses formed by the vacuum communicating holes of the first drum.
- 19. A system for the production of particle bearing filters comprising:a treatment apparatus arranged to produce a continuous stream of fibrous material; a fibrous rod maker at a second location downstream of the treatment apparatus for wrapping a plug wrap about the continuous stream of fibrous material and sealing the plug wrap wrapped about the continuous stream of fibrous material; a particle inserter operative at a location between the rod maker and the tow treatment apparatus for inserting predetermined, metered amounts of particles in spaced, discrete locations along the continuous stream of fibrous material; the particle inserter being arranged so that the particles are delivered by first establishing a continuous stream of fibrous material along a feed path; establishing a flow of particles along a first path; moving a first pocket along an endless path at least partially coinciding with the first path; drawing an amount of the particles into the pocket as the pocket moves in proximate relationship with the particles flow; transferring the drawn amount of particles from the first pocket to a second pocket while moving the second pocket along a second endless path which coincides with the feed path at a release location; curling a portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material upstream of the release location; releasing the drawn amount of particles from the second pocket into the curled portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material at the release location; and subsequently closing the curled portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material about the released, drawn amount of particles; further comprising a drum adjacent the release location, the drum including a plurality of vacuum communicating recesses for imparting a cupped shape at spaced locations along the fibrous material, whereby the released drawn amount of particulate material is at least partially received in one of the cupped shaped portions of the fibrous material at the release location.
- 20. The system as claimed in claim 19, further comprising a cutter downstream of the filter rod maker for cutting the continuous, particle bearing, fibrous rod into discrete rod plugs.
- 21. The system as claimed in claim 19, wherein tow treatment apparatus is configured to produce a continuous ribbon of fibrous material.
- 22. The system as set forth in claim 19, further comprising a plasticizer application station disposed between the rod maker and the tow treatment apparatus for applying plasticizer to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations apart from the amounts of particles.
- 23. The system as set forth in claim 22, wherein the plasticizer application station is disposed upstream of the particle inserter.
- 24. The system as set forth in claim 23, wherein the plasticizer station is disposed downstream of the particle inserter.
- 25. The system as claimed in claim 19, wherein a chute is in communication with a reservoir, the chute adjacent the metering wheel.
- 26. The system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the metering wheel comprises a rim and a plurality of radially-inwardly directed, metering pockets at spaced locations about the rim.
- 27. The system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the rim includes a plurality of channels, the channels arranged to communicate the metering pockets with an interior of the metering wheel, the metering pockets communicating with the channels through a plurality of screens, the metering pockets following a first rotational path upon rotation of the metering wheel.
- 28. A system for the production of particle bearing filters comprising:a treatment apparatus arranged to produce a continuous stream of fibrous material; a fibrous rod maker at a second location downstream of the treatment apparatus for wrapping a plug wrap about the continuous stream of fibrous material and sealing same; a particle inserter operative at a location between the rod maker and the tow treatment apparatus for inserting predetermined, metered amounts of particles in spaced, discrete locations along the continuous stream of fibrous material; the particle inserter being arranged so that the particles are delivered by first establishing a continuous stream of fibrous material along a feed path; establishing a flow of particles along a first path; moving a first pocket along an endless path at least partially coinciding with the first path; drawing an amount of the particles into the pocket as the pocket moves in proximate relationship with the particles flow; transferring the drawn amount of particles from the first pocket to a second pocket while moving the second pocket along a second endless path which coincides with the feed path at a release location; curling a portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material upstream of the release location; releasing the drawn amount of particles from the second pocket into the curled portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material at the release location; and subsequently closing the curled portion of the continuous stream of fibrous material about the released, drawn amount of particles; a plasticizer application station disposed between the rod maker and the tow treatment apparatus for applying plasticizer to the continuous stream of fibrous material at locations apart from the amounts of particles, wherein continuous stream of fibrous material moves through the plasticizer station along a second path, and the plasticizer station includes a plasticizer applicator that is movable with the continuous stream of fibrous material along at least a portion of the second path.
- 29. The system as set forth in claim 28, wherein the plasticizer applicator includes a first wheel having a plurality of openings extending to a radial surface thereof and in flow communication with a source of liquid plasticizer, and a second wheel having a plurality of openings therein extending to a radial surface thereof and in flow communication with a vacuum source, the first and second wheel being arranged relative to each other such that, as the continuous stream of fibrous material moves through the plasticizer station along the second path, a nip between the first and second wheel defines a location on the second path and, when one of the plurality of openings on the first wheel is disposed in the nip, a corresponding one of the plurality of openings on the second wheel is also disposed in the nip on an opposite side of the continuous stream of fibrous material.
Parent Case Info
The present application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C.§ 119(e) to U.S. Provisional application No. 60/122,507, filed Mar. 2, 1999.
US Referenced Citations (33)
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60/122507 |
Mar 1999 |
US |