Apparatus and methods for manufacturing cigarettes

Abstract

Small quantities of cigarettes may be manufactured in a substantially simultaneous fashion while maintaining consistent quality between the cigarettes using the disclosed apparatus and methods. The apparatus and method include features for simultaneously inserting charges of tobacco into pre-formed tubular cigarette wrappers. In another aspect, a system enables making cigarettes from pre-formed tubular cigarette wrappers and pre-packaged charges of tobacco.

1 . A device for manufacturing cigarettes from tobacco and pre-formed tubular wrapping portions, the device comprising: 
 a magazine comprising a plurality of lumens, said lumens configured to hold tobacco filler;    a wrapper-holding cartridge configured for supporting a plurality of pre-formed tubular wrappers, each wrapper including a hollow region at one end configured for receiving tobacco filler;    a first support configured for positioning the wrapper-holding cartridge relative to the lumens such that a pre-determined number of the pre-formed tubular wrappers are aligned with and adjacent to a corresponding predetermined number of the lumens;    an insertion mechanism configured for moving the tobacco filler from the predetermined number of the lumens into the hollow region of each pre-formed tubular wrapper aligned adjacent thereto, the insertion mechanism comprising at least one elongate member in mechanical communication with at least one of the predetermined number of the lumens; and    a second support configured for positioning the magazine such that the at least one of the predetermined number of the lumens is aligned with the at least one elongate member of the insertion mechanism.    
   
   
       2 . The device of  claim 1  wherein at least one of the predetermined number of the lumens is configured to receive tobacco filler provided as a pre-formed charge of tobacco.  
   
   
       3 . The device of  claim 1 , the magazine including a first number of lumens, and the wrapper-holding cartridge including a plurality of surfaces for supporting at least the same first number of pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       4 . The device of  claim 3 , the magazine including at least five lumens and the wrapper-holding cartridge configured to support at least five pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       5 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the wrapper-holding cartridge is movably positioned upon the first support and is removable from the first support.  
   
   
       6 . The device of  claim 1  including a first number of lumens, and wherein the wrapper-holding cartridge includes a plurality of surfaces for supporting a number of pre-formed tubular wrappers equal to or greater than the first number of lumens.  
   
   
       7 . The device of  claim 6  wherein the first number of lumens is five, and the wrapper-holding cartridge includes a plurality of surfaces for supporting at least ten pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       8 . The device of  claim 6  wherein the first number of lumens is at least two, and the wrapper-holding cartridge includes a plurality of surfaces for supporting at least ten pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       9 . The device of  claim 6  wherein the first number of lumens is twenty, and the wrapper-holding cartridge includes a plurality of surfaces for supporting twenty pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       10 . The device of  claim 6  wherein the first number of lumens is at least five, and the wrapper-holding cartridge includes a plurality of surfaces configured for supporting more than twenty pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       11 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the magazine is configured to be refillable by a user.  
   
   
       12 . The device of  claim 1  wherein the magazine is movable upon the second support and is removable from the second support.  
   
   
       13 . The device of  claim 1  wherein each elongate member of the insertion mechanism comprises a longitudinally reciprocating member configured for pushing tobacco from at least one of the lumens into the hollow region of a tubular wrapper.  
   
   
       14 . A method for manufacturing cigarettes from a quantity of tobacco and pre-formed tubular wrappers, the method comprising the steps of: 
 providing tobacco in a plurality of parallel aligned lumens in a portable magazine;    providing a wrapper-holding cartridge, the wrapper-holding cartridge supporting a plurality of parallel aligned pre-formed tubular wrappers, each wrapper including a hollow region at one end;    positioning the magazine on a first support such that a predetermined number of the lumens is aligned with elongate members of an insertion mechanism    positioning the wrapper-holding cartridge on a second support such that at least a pre-determined number of the pre-formed tubular wrappers are aligned with and adjacent to a corresponding pre-determined number of the lumens; and    actuating an insertion mechanism in a manner such that the elongate members contact and move tobacco from each lumen into the hollow region of each pre-formed tubular wrapper aligned adjacent thereto.    
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 14  wherein the tobacco is provided as a plurality of pre-formed charges of tobacco.  
   
   
       16 . A system for manufacturing cigarettes from tobacco and pre-formed tubular wrappers, the system comprising: 
 a magazine comprising a plurality of lumens, said lumens configured to hold tobacco filler;    a wrapper-holding container, said container configured to support a plurality of pre-formed tubular wrappers, each wrapper including a hollow region at one end configured for receiving tobacco filler;    a first support configured for positioning the wrapper-holding container relative to the lumens such that a pre-determined number of the pre-formed tubular wrappers are aligned with and adjacent to a corresponding predetermined number of the lumens;    an insertion mechanism configured for moving the tobacco filler from the predetermined number of the lumens into the hollow region of each pre-formed tubular wrapper aligned adjacent thereto, the insertion mechanism comprising a tobacco-moving means in mechanical communication with each of the predetermined number of the lumens; and    a second support configured for positioning the magazine such that the pre-determined number of the lumens is aligned with the tobacco-moving means of the insertion mechanism.    
   
   
       17 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the tobacco-moving means comprises at least one elongate member.  
   
   
       18 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the tobacco-moving means comprises a compressed gas means configured to direct a charge of compressed gas against the tobacco filler in each of the pre-determined number of lumens, said charge of compressed gas providing sufficient force to move the tobacco filler from the pre-determined number of lumens into the pre-determined number of the pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       19 . The system of  claim 16  wherein at least one of the predetermined number of the lumens is configured to receive tobacco filler provided as a pre-formed charge of tobacco.  
   
   
       20 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the wrapper-holding container comprises a wrapper-holding cartridge.  
   
   
       21 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the predetermined number of lumens is configured as a single row of lumens.  
   
   
       22 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the predetermined number of lumens is configured as a plurality of rows of lumens.  
   
   
       23 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the predetermined number of lumens is configured as a two rows of lumens.  
   
   
       24 . The system of  claim 16  wherein the predetermined number of lumens is configured as a three rows of lumens.  
   
   
       25 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold a single row of pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       26 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold a plurality of rows of pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       27 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold two rows of pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       28 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold three rows of pre-formed tubular wrappers.  
   
   
       29 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the predetermined number of lumens is configured as a plurality of rows of lumens, and the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold a plurality of rows of pre-formed tubular wrappers; and wherein at least one of the predetermined number of lumens is configured to align with at least one of the pre-formed tubular wrappers of the wrapper-holding container.  
   
   
       30 . The system of  claim 29 , wherein 20 lumens are configured in three substantially parallel rows of lumens; the wrapper-holding container is configured to hold a three corresponding rows of 20 pre-formed tubular wrappers; and wherein each of the 20 lumens is configured to align with corresponding pre-formed tubular wrappers in the wrapper-holding container.  
   
   
       31 . A method for manufacturing cigarettes comprising: 
 providing different tobacco types appropriate for use in cigarettes, each of said tobacco types being configured in a separate pre-formed tobacco charge, each pre-formed tobacco charge comprising a generally cylindrical rod of tobacco;    providing a container that is configured to receive a pre-determined number of cigarettes;    receiving a designation of at least one tobacco of the different tobacco types to be incorporated into cigarettes;    loading the designated tobacco types and a plurality of pre-formed tubular wrappers to a cigarette manufacturing apparatus that is configured to move a plurality of the pre-formed charges of the different tobacco types from a magazine into pre-formed tubular wrappers;    actuating the apparatus to move the plurality of pre-formed tobacco charges substantially simultaneously into a corresponding plurality of the pre-formed tubular wrappers to form cigarettes;    repeating the loading and actuating steps as needed to form the pre-determined number of cigarettes; and    placing the cigarettes into the container.