US3106427A

US3106427A - Apparatus for distributing tobacco

Info

Publication number: US3106427A
Application number: US133384A
Authority: US
Inventors: Noel R F Mortimer
Original assignee: Vokes Ltd
Current assignee: Vokes Ltd
Priority date: 1960-08-24
Filing date: 1961-08-23
Publication date: 1963-10-08
Anticipated expiration: 1980-10-08
Also published as: DE1191730B

Description

Oct. 8, 1963 3,106,427

N. R- F. MORTIMER APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING TOBACCO Filed Aug. 23, 1961 //l/l/4/TOR N051. QFM RT/MER United States Patent APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING TOBACCO Noel R. F. Mortimer, Guildford, Surrey, England, assignor to Vokes Limited, Guildford, Surrey, England Filed Aug. 23, 1961, Ser. No. 133,384 Claims priority, application Great Britain Aug. 24, 1960 2 Claims. (Cl. 302-28) This invention relates to distributing systems for prepared tobacco to tobacco-utilising machines such as cigarette-making machines.

It is usual practice to use an air conveyor system comprising a number of conduits for transporting tobacco from a common feed-in station to several utilising machines and to employ a single suction fan for this purpose. Hoppers including a separating screen and a discharge door (conveniently referred to as dischargers) are provided at each utilising machine, and such dischargers-are operated in accordance with individual utilising machine demand by opening them to the suction source for a requisite period.

In such known systems, when a discharger is filled and ready to deposit its contents, a flap or exit door is opened to permit tobacco to fall under gravity from the discharger to the supply hopper of the machine which it feeds.

When such flap or door is open in a system where a single conduit from the feed-in station is manifolded to several distinct transporting conduits ambient air from the vicinity of the machine enters the transporting conduit to join conveying air flowing from the feed-in point through the manifold to other dischargers, which may be connected to the suction source. This returning air tends to carry with it towards the feedin station tobacco which was being transported away from that stationand also reduces the suction available at the feed-in point for the new tobacco required for the other dischargers.

According to the invention we provide a pneumatic tobacco distributing system comprising a feed-in station, a feed pipe led from the station to a utilising zone and including a vertical leg of conduit leading upwardly and manifolded to several transporting conduits leading to dischargers, at least one fan for creating suction in the" transporting conduits and a non-return valve situated between the inlet of each discharger and the said manifold operating to prevent draw-back of air through the discharger to the vertical leg and other transporting conduits when the discharge door is open.

In preferred forms of the invention the non-return valves are sited immediately above the manifold arrangements so that a minimum of air can enter the conveying system by leakage in the transporting conduits not ourently being used themselves.

The non-return valves may be of the kind urged to their closed position by gravity, a spring or like means and opened upon incidence of suction in the transporting conduit in which they are situated. Normally such transhand-fed) in the form of a hopper or chute connected porting conduit is subjected to suction upon the opening of a valve at the air outlet side of the discharger which it feeds, and such opening is regulated by an automatic timer circuit controlled by machine demand.

A prefer-red form of the invention will now-be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of a pneumatic tobacco distributing system according to the invention,

FIG. 2 is a detail of the system of FIG. 1 in the vertical plane through IIII of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a detail of a tobacco distributing system according to the invention in which a large distance separates hoppers.

to a vertical conduit 3. Tobacco could be fed to the chute or hopper by manual means or alternatively, as is preferred, by automatically controlled mechanical or pneumatic feeding means and a signal device such as a lampor buzzer may be provided at the feed-in station to indicate to the operator when tobacco should be fed to the chute or hopper.

A vertical air-lift conduit 3 leads from the chute or hopper 2 and is branched or manifolded to several separate transporting

conduits

4, 5, 6 and 7 whose function is to serve each of several tobacco utilizing machines (not shown). elude inclined or vertical sections, but is normally largely horizontal.

If it is desirable to have the feed-in point 2 situated some distance away from the utilising machines, it is convenient to keep the manifold and the vertical pipe 3 near the machines and to carry the tobacco in a long substantially horizontal pipe 26 from the feed-in point 2 to the vertical pipe 3 as shown in FIG. 3.

All of the transporting conduits are brought into conjunction at a convenient portion and are jointly connected through a common conduit 8 to a suction fan 9 preferably in the neighbourhood of the feed-in point.

Each separate transporting

conduit

4, 5, 6 and 7 includes a discharger 10, I l, 12 and 13 for the intermittent supply of a predetermined quantity of tobacco to a tobacco utilising machine. Such dischargers are of a kind (known per se) which include a separating screen and a hopper beneath the screen fitted with a

door

22, 23, i251 and 25 which is opened when the hopper is sufiiciently The dischargers are opened to influence of the fan 9 by opening an associated flap valve 18, '19, 20 and 21.

In the system as described above it will be clear that the opening of a discharge door of any

discharger

10, 11, 12 and 13 will permit air to pass into the conjoined conduits 4, 5, '6 and 7 from the neighbourhood of the machine being served. Such in-flow of air not only increases the load upon the suction fan 9, but seriously interferes with the normal flow of tobacco along the conduits. To obviate this a

non-return valve

14, 15, 16 and 17 is fitted in the conveying

conduit

4, 5, 6 and 7 between each

discharger

10, 11, :12 and '13 and the conduit manifold adjacent to the feed-in point. These

nonreturn valves

14, 15, 16 and 17 are opened automatically when the air

outlet flap valves

18, 19, 20 and 21 from the'disch-argers are opened in order to subject them to suction and are closed under gravity or by spring or like means when not subjected to suction.

When any one discharger is requisitely filled with tobacco, the flap or like

valve

18, 19, 20 or 21 associated with it is closed to cut it off from the influence of the suction fan 9', and when the discharger tobacco outlet door is opened .the non-return valve at its inlet side is immediately closed under atmospheric pressure assisted by gravity or the spring means above referred to, preventing reverse flow in that conduit induced by suction applied to another conduit. As the non-return valve in a transporting conduit closes air flow in that conduit ceases and tobacco in transit falls to the conduit base. At this time also any tobacco in the vertical conduit 3 leading from the feed-in station ceases to be subject to air flow due to suction and is free to fall back to the feed-in chute or hopper 2, thus clearing the vertical conduit and branch conduit ends preparatory The run of the transporting conduits may into a subsequent incidence of suction when a further discharger is set for a filling operation.

It will be understood that the above example is merely illustrative of the invention and that modifications are envisaged which do not affect its general scope as delimited in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A pneumatic tobacco distributing system comprising a feed-in station, a plurality of dischargers each having a tobacco intake opening, a suction inlet and an outlet door normally opened when the discharger is filled rwith tobacco, a feed pipe leading from the feed-in station to said dischargers and including a manifold and a plurality of transporting conduits connected to said intake openings of the dischargers, at least one fan connected to said suction inlets of said discharger creating suction therein and in said transporting conduits, a valve between each discharger suction inlet and the fan for selectively opening the associated transporting conduit to suction, and a nonretum valve in each transporting conduit between the discharger intake opening and said manifold and normally biased to close said conduit, said nonreturn valve being operative to open said conduit tupon presence of suction therein and being moved by said bias to close the conduit and prevent drawback of air through the discharger to the manifold and other transporting conduits by reason of suction in such other conduits when the associated discharger outlet door is open.

2. A pneumatic tobacco distributing system according to claim 1 in which the nonreturn valves are sited immediately adjacent to the manifold.

References Cited in the file of this patent FOREIGN PATENTS 413,219 Great Britain July 12, 1934

Claims

1. A PNEUMATIC TOBACCO DISTRIBUTING SYSTEM COMPRISING A FEED-IN STATION, A PLURALITY OF DISCHARGERS EACH HAVING A TOBACCO INTAKE OPENING, A SUCTION INLET AND AN OUTLET DOOR NORMALLY OPENED WHEN THE DISCHARGER IS FILLED WITH TOBACCO, A FEED PIPE LEADIING FROM THE FEED-IN STATION TO SAID DISCHARGERS AND INCLUDING A MANIFOLD AND A PLURALITY OF TRANSPORTING CONDUITS CONNECTED TO SAID INTAKE OPENINGS OF THE DISCHARGERS, AT LEAST ONE FAN CONNECTED TO SAID SUCTION INLETS OF SAID DISCHARGER CREATING SUCTION THEREIN AND IN SAID TRANSPORTING CONDUITS, A VALVE BETWEEN EACH DISCHARGER SUCTION INLET AND THE FAN FOR SELECTIVELY OPENING THE ASSOCIATED TRANSPORTING CONDUIT TO SUCTION, AND A NONRETURN VALVE IN EACH TRANSPORTING CONDUIT BETWEEN THE DISCHARGER INTAKE OPENING AND SAID MANIFOLD AND A NORMALLY BIASED TO CLOSE SAID CONDUIT, SAID NONRETURN VALVE BEING OPERATIVE TO OPEN SAID CONDUIT UPON PRESENCE OF SUCTION THEREIN AND BEING MOVED BY SAID BIAS TO CLOSE THE CONDUIT AND PREVENT DRAWBACK OF AIR THROUGH THE DISCHARGER TO THE MANIFOLD AND OTHER TRANSPORTING CONDUITS BY REASON OF SUCTION IN SUCH OTHER CONDUITS WHEN THE ASSOCIATED DISCHARGER OUTLET DOOR IS OPEN.