Polymer encased smokeless tobacco products

• US 10,384,816 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2018
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Altria Client Services LLC (Altria Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Altria Client Services LLC (Altria Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Carroll, Andrew Nathan, Black, Shannon Maxwell, Sun, Yan Helen, Burke, William J., DiNovi, Christopher Joseph, Phillips, David, Macko, Jason Andrew, Smith, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Rodriguez, Michael P.
• Application Number:
  US15/899,889
• Publication Number:
  US 20180170593A1
• Time in Patent Office: 546 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A24B 13/00 Tobacco for pipes, for cigars, e.g. cigar inserts, or for cigarettes; Chewing tobacco; Snuff reconstituted tobacco products A24B3/14
• CPC Class Codes: A24B 15/186 by coating with a coating composition, encapsulation of tobacco particles encapsulation of additives other than tobacco : A24B15/283
• CPC Class Codes: A24B 15/28 by chemical substances
• CPC Class Codes: A24F 23/00 Cases for tobacco, snuff, or chewing tobacco
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 1/007 using an electrostatic field B05D1/02 - B05D1/16 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 3/067 Curing or cross-linking the coating
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 3/108 Curing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 10/00 Processes of additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 29/02 Packaging of substances, e.g. tea, which are intended to be infused in the package
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 53/02 by heat
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 63/02 for compressing or compacting articles or materials prior to wrapping or insertion in containers or receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 9/10 Enclosing successive articles, or quantities of material, in preformed tubular webs, or in webs formed into tubes around filling nozzles, e.g. extruded tubular webs

Abstract

Methods for encasing bodies including smokeless tobacco or a tobacco substitute with a polymeric casing can include coating a compressed body with microfibers, applying tubular casings to compressed bodies, printing netting and webs on compressed bodies, injection molding around compressed bodies, applying a webbing to compressed bodies, placing compressed bodies into a skin forming bath, and including thermoplastic polymers in a compressed body.

Claims

1. A method of making a polymer encased smokeless tobacco or tobacco substitute product, the method comprising:

forming a compressed body including smokeless tobacco, a tobacco substitute, or both the smokeless tobacco and the tobacco substitute;

applying an electrostatic charge to the compressed body to form a charged body;

coating the charged body with microfibers to form a microfiber-coated body, the microfibers including a polymeric material; and

heating the microfiber-coated body to melt bond the microfibers to form an encased body.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the coating the charged body with microfibers is performed in a chamber having circulating microfibers.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the coating the charged body with microfibers comprises:

carrying the charged body through the chamber on a conveyor.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the coating the charged body with microfibers comprises:

rotating, using the conveyor, the charged body.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the conveyor comprises at least two rods.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the coating the charged body with microfibers comprises:

rolling, tumbling, or both rolling and tumbling the charged body down a sloped surface, the microfibers being disposed on the surface.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the coating the charged body with microfibers further comprises:

vibrating the surface during the rolling, the tumbling, or both the rolling and the tumbling the charged body down the surface.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the charged body has less than about 10 weight percent oven volatiles during coating the charged body with microfibers.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

hydrating the encased body to form an encased product having greater than about 10 weight percent oven volatiles.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the heating the microfiber-coated body includes exposing the microfiber-coated body to infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), convection heat, or combinations thereof.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the polymeric material is selected from the group consisting of:

polypropylene, polyurethane, styrene, and combinations thereof.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the polymeric material includes an elastomer and a polyolefin.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the compressed body further comprises a flavorant comprising wintergreen, cherry, berry, Drambuie, bourbon, scotch, whiskey, spearmint, peppermint, lavender, cinnamon, cardamom, apium graveolens, clove, cascarilla, nutmeg, sandalwood, bergamot, geranium, honey essence, rose oil, vanilla, lemon oil, orange oil, Japanese mint, cassia, caraway, cognac, jasmine, chamomile, menthol, ylang-ylang, sage, fennel, piment, ginger, anise, coriander, coffee, liquorish, mint oils from a species of the genus Mentha, a sub-combination thereof, or a combination thereof.