Apparatus for cutting apart cigarette packs in preparation for recovery of the tobacco in the cigarettes
US5001951A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 4, 1989 |
| Grant date | Mar 26, 1991 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 4, 2009 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T83/7593
- WIPO fieldHandling
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
Apparatus for cutting cigarette packs transversely in preparation for recovery of the tobacco from the cigarettes therein comprises a first belt conveyor driven at a first velocity, a device for delivering the cigarette packs in collated relation onto the first conveyor with all packs resting on one of their larger sides and oriented lengthwise of the conveyor, and a second belt conveyor arranged coaxially with and adjacent to the downstream end of first conveyor to receive the packs from the first conveyor and driven at a second velocity, the second velocity being higher than the first velocity such that the packs become spaced apart end-to-end on the second conveyor. An indexing conveyor arranged orthogonally to and adjacent to the downstream end of the second conveyor receives each pack from the second conveyor at a receiving station. A photodetector detects the arrival of each pack at the receiving station and produces a signal indicative thereof. A stepper drive advances the indexing conveyor one step to move all packs thereon a selected distance greater than the width of the largest size pack in response to each such signal and then stops the indexing conveyor until the next …
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.