Apparatus for testing and classifying cigarettes or the like

• US 4,901,860 A
• Filed: 07/19/1984
• Issued: 02/20/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/1981
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hauni Maschinenbau AG (Körber-Stiftung)
• Original Assignee: Korber AG (Körber-Stiftung)
• Inventors: Filter, Willi, Wahle, Gunter
• Primary Examiner(s): Hajec, Donald T.
• Application Number:
  US06/632,432
• Time in Patent Office: 2,042 Days
• Field of Search: 209/535-537, 209/549, 209/551, 209/555, 209/556, 209/565, 209/644, 209/912, 209/919, 209/933, 209/905, 131/906, 131/907, 131/908, 131/909, 73/41, 364/507, 364/552
• US Class Current: 209/535
• CPC Class Codes: A24C 5/34 Examining cigarettes or the rod, e.g. for regulating the feeding of tobacco; Removing defective cigarettes
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/361 Processing or control devices therefor, e.g. escort memory
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 131/908 Sensing unique characteristic or specific condition of finished product
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 209/905 Feeder conveyor holding item by suction

Abstract

Plain or filter cigarettes are tested at a first station by two or more testing devices each of which monitors the cigarettes for the presence or absence of a particular defect. The testing devices generate defect signals which are delayed by shift registers so as to ensure that the delayed defect signals are transmitted to a segregating mechanism which removes defective cigarettes from a path that is common to the satisfactory and defective cigarettes and delivers defective cigarettes to selected receptacles which are installed at a second station and each of which gathers only cigarettes exhibiting a particular defect. Actuation of a switch entails the removal of a selected number of samples from the common path for satisfactory and defective cigarettes, and such samples are gathered in an additional receptacle at the second station.

Claims

1. Apparatus for testing and classifying cigarettes or analogous rod-shaped articles which constitute or from part of smoker'"'"'s products comprising means for transporting a succession of randomly distributed satisfactory and defected articles along a common path;

a plurality of testing devices adjacent to a first portion of said path and each comprising means for monitoring successive articles for the presence of a different defect and for generating defect signals denoting the detection of articles exhibiting the respective defect;

means for segregating defective articles from satisfactory articles in a second portion of said path in response to said defect signals, including a discrete segregating unit for each of said testing devices; and

means for displaying the transmission of defect signals from said testing devices to said segregating means so that each of the thus delayed defect signals initiates the segregation of that defective article which has caused the generation of such signal, said delaying means being arranged to transmit delayed defect signals to the respective segregating units so that each such unit segregates only articles exhibiting the defect detected by the corresponding testing device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of said testing devices is installed in a machine which makes the articles.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of said testing devices is installed in a machine which processes the articles

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising discrete receptacles each associated with a different one of said segregating units to gather the articles exhibiting the respective defect.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said segregating means comprises a plurality of receptacles each arranged to receive defective articles exhibiting one of said different defects, a switching device operative to divert defective articles from said common path in response to delayed defect signals, and conveyor means for transporting defective articles from said switching device to the respective receptacles in response to the respective delayed defect signals.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said switching device includes means for pneumatically diverting defective articles from said common path onto said conveyor means.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said conveyor means includes a rotary drum-shaped conveyor having peripheral flutes for transport of defective articles from said switching device to the respective receptacles.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said segregating means further comprises means for admitting into the flutes of said rotary conveyor streams of compressed gaseous fluid in response to said delayed defect signals to thereby effect the expulsion of defective articles from such flutes into the respective receptacles at said second station.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said segregating means comprises a rotary drum-shaped conveyor having peripheral flutes for removal of defective articles from said common path and pneumatic means for expelling defective articles from such flutes at said second station in response to the respective delayed defect signals.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a plurality of receptacles adjacent to said conveyor and each arranged to receive defective articles exhibiting a particular one of said different defects, said delaying means being operative to effect the expulsion of defective articles with delays such that each of said receptacles receives only defective articles exhibiting the corresponding defect.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said delaying means includes a discrete delaying device for each of said testing devices and at least one of said delaying devices comprises a shift register.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 for testing and classifying rod-shaped articles having tubular wrappers, wherein at least one of said testing devices includes means for monitoring the condition of wrappers of the rod-shaped articles.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein one of said testing devices comprises means for testing the ends of rod-shaped articles.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein one of said testing devices comprises means for determining the weight of the articles.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 for testing and classifying rod-shaped articles wherein several rod-shaped components are connected to each other by uniting bands, wherein one of said testing devices comprises means for monitoring the connections between the rod-shaped components of the articles.

16. The apparatus of claim 10 for testing and classifying rod-shaped articles having permeable wrappers, wherein one of said testing devices comprises means for monitoring the permeability of the wrappers of rod-shaped articles.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising means for initiating removal of selected numbers of samples of articles from said common path.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising a receptacle for samples, said receptacle being disposed in said second portion of said path and said segregating means including means for transporting samples from said common path into said receptacle.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein said initiating means includes means for generating a series of successive signals at the rate at which the articles are transported along said common path and said segregating means is responsive to said series of signals to effect the diversion of a sample from said common path in response to each of said series of signals.