A cigarette butt decontamination device

Abstract

This utility model provides a cigarette butt removal device, relating to the field of cigarette butt removal technology. The device includes an upper air chamber and a lower air chamber connected vertically. The upper air chamber has an inlet for bulk entry of collected cigarette butts, and the lower air chamber has an outlet for discharging the removed cigarette butts. Both the upper and lower air chambers are equipped with fans to remove impurities from the cigarette butts, and each chamber has an outlet corresponding to its respective fan. The fan in the lower air chamber has a stronger airflow than the fan in the upper air chamber, ensuring that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the outlet in the upper air chamber, while normal cigarette butts are discharged from the outlet in the lower air chamber. This solves the technical problem of low impurity separation efficiency in waste cigarette butts. This utility model also provides another cigarette butt removal device that uses an upper and lower air chamber to separate impurities, allowing impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts to be discharged from the outlet in the upper air chamber, and impurities heavier than normal cigarette butts to be discharged from the outlet in the lower air chamber, while normal cigarette butts are collected within the device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of cigarette butt removal technology, and in particular relates to a cigarette butt removal device. Background Technology

[0002] Cigarette butts are the residue left after smoking a filter cigarette and are a common type of tobacco waste. To accurately obtain information about cigarette consumers' smoking habits and preferred product styles, existing technologies have developed methods based on collecting cigarette butt image information to determine their smoking behavior.

[0003] For example, the Chinese invention patent application CN117496186A disclosed by this applicant discloses a method and apparatus for determining smoking behavior based on cigarette butt images. This method collects image information of cigarette butts after smoking and finished cigarettes, then compares the image information of cigarette butts and finished cigarettes, and determines the remaining length of various types of cigarettes after smoking based on the image information comparison. Thus, the proportion of the remaining length of the cigarette to the length of the finished cigarette pack of that type can be calculated. Based on this proportion, the smoking behavior of each brand and specification of cigarette can be determined, thereby providing direction and ideas for subsequent product development and maintenance.

[0004] The first step in the aforementioned method is to collect image information of discarded cigarette butts. This requires collecting discarded cigarette butts from various public smoking areas and manually pre-processing them to initially screen out irregularly shaped cigarette butts that are inconvenient for image information collection. However, in addition to irregularly shaped cigarette butts, discarded cigarette butts usually carry impurities such as ash, dust, water-soaked cigarette butts, and lumpy solids. Since water-soaked cigarette butts can affect subsequent judgments of smoking behavior such as cigarette smoking volume, and impurities such as ash, dust, and lumpy solids can reduce the accuracy of cigarette butt image information collection and image information comparison results, these impurities need to be separated from the cigarette butts. However, there is currently no dedicated impurity separation device for cigarette butts, and manual removal of these impurities is inefficient. Therefore, there is an urgent need for an impurity removal device that can quickly separate impurities from the collected cigarette butts to facilitate subsequent cigarette butt image collection and image information comparison. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a cigarette butt removal device to solve the technical problem of low separation efficiency of impurities carried in waste cigarette butts in the prior art.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution of the cigarette butt removal device provided by this utility model is as follows:

[0007] A cigarette butt removal device includes an upper air chamber and a lower air chamber connected vertically. The upper air chamber has an inlet for the batch entry of collected cigarette butts, and the lower air chamber has a cigarette butt outlet for the discharge of cigarette butts after removal. The upper and lower air chambers are each equipped with a fan to remove impurities from the cigarette butts, and each air chamber has an air outlet corresponding to its respective fan. The fan force in the lower air chamber is greater than that in the upper air chamber, so that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the air outlet in the upper air chamber, and normal cigarette butts are discharged from the cigarette butt outlet in the lower air chamber.

[0008] This utility model is a pioneering invention, and its beneficial effects are as follows: Utilizing the significant weight difference between normal cigarette butts and dust-like impurities, water-soaked cigarette butts, and lumpy solid impurities, cigarette butts and impurities are separated by air separation. Normal cigarette butts are heavier than dust and not easily blown away, while they are lighter than water-soaked cigarette butts and lumpy solids and are easily blown away. By controlling the fan speeds inside the upper and lower air chambers to match different air forces, dust is separated, and normal cigarette butts are screened and discharged. Normal cigarette butts are discharged from the lower air chamber for subsequent processing and cigarette butt image acquisition, greatly improving the efficiency of impurity separation from waste cigarette butts.

[0009] As a further improvement, a base plate is provided at the bottom of the downdraft chamber, and the cigarette butt outlet is located on the base plate at a position adjacent to the downdraft chamber outlet.

[0010] As a further improvement, a sludge discharge port is provided on the base plate, and the sludge discharge port is equipped with an openable and closable gate.

[0011] As a further improvement, a debris collection bin is provided below the discharge port.

[0012] As a further improvement, the fan in the upper air chamber is installed in the lower middle part of one side of the upper air chamber, and the fan in the lower air chamber is installed in the upper middle part of one side of the lower air chamber.

[0013] As a further improvement, the bottom of the downdraft chamber is provided with a cigarette butt collection chamber that communicates with the cigarette butt outlet to collect the cigarette butts discharged from the cigarette butt outlet and guide the cigarette butts to be transported backward.

[0014] As a further improvement, the volume of the downwind chamber is larger than that of the upwind chamber.

[0015] As a further improvement, filters are connected to the air outlets of both the upper and lower air chambers to prevent cigarette butts from being discharged from the air outlets.

[0016] As a further improvement, exhaust pipes are connected to the air outlets of both the upper and lower air chambers to direct impurities to the pre-set collection buckets.

[0017] To achieve the above objectives, another technical solution for a cigarette butt removal device provided by this utility model is as follows:

[0018] A cigarette butt removal device includes an upper air chamber and a lower air chamber connected vertically. The upper air chamber has an inlet for the batch entry of collected cigarette butts, and the lower air chamber has a bottom plate with a discharge port for discharging impurities heavier than normal cigarette butts and a cigarette butt collection section for collecting cigarette butts. The upper and lower air chambers are each equipped with a fan for removing impurities from the cigarette butts, and each air chamber has an air outlet corresponding to its respective fan. The fan force in the lower air chamber is greater than that in the upper air chamber, so that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the air outlet in the upper air chamber, and impurities heavier than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the discharge port in the lower air chamber.

[0019] This utility model is a pioneering invention, and its beneficial effects are as follows: Utilizing the significant weight difference between normal cigarette butts and dust-like impurities, water-soaked cigarette butts, and blocky solid impurities, cigarette butts and impurities are separated by air separation; by controlling the fan speed inside the upper and lower air chambers to match different air forces, the dust, which is lighter than normal cigarette butts, is separated in the upper air chamber, while the water-soaked cigarette butts and blocky solid impurities, which are heavier than normal cigarette butts, are separated in the lower air chamber. This allows for the separation of impurities from cigarette butts in one go, greatly improving the efficiency of impurity separation from cigarette butts. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of an embodiment of the cigarette butt removal device of this utility model;

[0021] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of another embodiment of the cigarette butt removal device of this utility model.

[0022] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0023] 1. Cigarette butt; 2. Upper air chamber; 3. Lower air chamber; 4. Fan; 5. Filter screen; 6. Exhaust pipe; 7. Valve; 8. Debris collection bin; 9. Cigarette butt collection bin; 10. Funnel. Detailed Implementation

[0024] To address the technical problem of low separation efficiency of impurities carried in discarded cigarette butts, the basic technical concept of this utility model is to utilize the significant weight difference between normal cigarette butts and cigarette ash, dust, water-soaked cigarette butts, and blocky solid impurities, and to sequentially separate impurities that are lighter and heavier than normal cigarette butts through air separation, thereby improving the efficiency of impurity separation from cigarette butts.

[0025] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the embodiments.

[0026] Specific embodiments of the cigarette butt removal device provided by this utility model:

[0027] A cigarette butt removal device, such as Figure 1As shown, the space comprises a double-layered space with an inlet and an outlet, enclosed by a top plate, a bottom plate, and side plates. The upper space forms an upper air chamber 2, which is enclosed by side plates. The top opening of the upper air chamber 2 serves as an inlet for collecting cigarette butts 1. A fan 4 is connected to the side plates of the upper air chamber 2, and an air outlet is provided at the position opposite to the fan 4, so that an airflow channel can be formed inside the upper air chamber 2 to separate the cigarette butts 1 and other debris entering the upper air chamber 2.

[0028] like Figure 1 As shown, the lower space below the upper air chamber 2 constitutes the lower air chamber 3. The lower air chamber 3 is enclosed by a top plate, a bottom plate, and side plates. A through hole is provided on the top plate of the lower air chamber 3, communicating with the bottom opening of the upper air chamber 2, allowing the bottom of the upper air chamber 2 to connect with the lower air chamber 3, thus facilitating the entry of the mixture inside the upper air chamber 2 into the lower air chamber 3. A fan 4 is connected to the side plate of the lower air chamber 3, and an air outlet is provided opposite to the fan 4, creating an airflow channel inside the lower air chamber 3 to separate the cigarette butts 1 and debris entering the lower air chamber 3. The bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3 has a cigarette butt outlet for discharging the filtered cigarette butts 1 and a debris outlet for discharging debris. Filters 5 are connected to the air outlets of the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3, and exhaust pipes 6 are connected to the air outlets of the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3.

[0029] Specifically, both the upper wind chamber 2 and the lower wind chamber 3 are cylindrical in shape. The lower wind chamber 3 is mounted on a bracket (not shown in the figure), and the upper wind chamber 2 can be mounted on and supported by the lower wind chamber 3. Of course, in other alternative embodiments, the upper wind chamber 2 and the lower wind chamber 3 can also be cubic in shape. The upper wind chamber 2 and the lower wind chamber 3 can also be fixed at a certain height by hoisting, or a separate bracket can be configured for the upper wind chamber 2, but in all cases, the upper wind chamber 2 and the lower wind chamber 3 should be connected.

[0030] Because the weight difference between cigarette butt 1 and cigarette ash, dust, water-soaked cigarette butts, and lumpy solids is significant, this invention employs air separation to separate cigarette butt 1 from impurities. Specifically, normal cigarette butt 1 is heavier than dust and less easily blown away, while it is lighter than water-soaked cigarette butts and lumpy solids and more easily blown away. This characteristic can be utilized to separate cigarette butt 1 from cigarette ash, dust, and lumpy solids through air separation.

[0031] To separately remove debris lighter and heavier than cigarette butt 1, the airflow (i.e., air pressure) in the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 is different. The upper air chamber 2 separates cigarette butt 1 from debris lighter than cigarette butt 1, while the lower air chamber 3 separates cigarette butt 1 from debris heavier than cigarette butt 1. Specifically, different airflow forces are matched by controlling the rotation speed of the fans 4 inside the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3. By detecting and calculating the average weight of cigarette butt 1, the rotation speed of the fans 4 in the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 is set respectively, with the fan 4 in the lower air chamber 3 rotating at a higher speed than the fan 4 in the upper air chamber 2.

[0032] Specifically, when the collected cigarette butts 1 are put into the feed inlet of the cigarette butt removal device, the cigarette butts 1 gradually disperse as they fall in the upper air chamber 2. Under the action of the fan 4 in the upper air chamber 2, the lighter debris (such as cigarette ash and dust) carried by the cigarette butts 1 are blown to the right and discharged from the upper air chamber 2, and enter the exhaust pipe 6. The exhaust pipe 6 then transports the debris to the pre-set collection bucket. Meanwhile, the mixture of normal cigarette butts 1 and heavier debris (such as water-soaked cigarette butts and lumpy solids) falls in a basically vertical position and enters the lower air chamber 3. When normal cigarette butts 1, water-soaked cigarette butts, and lumpy solids fall into the lower air chamber 3, because the debris is heavier than normal cigarette butts 1, the normal cigarette butts 1 are blown to the right by the wind force of the fan 4 in the lower air chamber 3 and discharged from the cigarette butt outlet on the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3. The debris is discharged through the debris discharge port on the bottom plate into the debris collection bin 8 (e.g., a trash can) located below the lower air chamber 3 for subsequent disposal. Alternatively, in other alternative embodiments, the debris discharge port may not be provided on the bottom plate, and the debris falls directly onto the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3 and is removed after accumulating to a certain extent. For example, a high-powered vacuum cleaner can be used to remove it.

[0033] Specifically, the advantage of having a base plate in the lower air chamber 3 is that both the cigarette butt outlet and the debris discharge outlet are located on the base plate. This ensures that, apart from the air outlet, the lower air chamber 3 has no other gas outlets, facilitating a stable airflow and preventing external airflow from affecting the separation of debris in the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3. However, it should be emphasized that in other alternative embodiments, the lower air chamber 3 can also be an open structure, allowing normal cigarette butts 1 and heavier debris to fall from different positions within the lower air chamber 3.

[0034] Specifically, the mesh size of filter 5 is designed according to the diameter of cigarette butt 1, ensuring that the smallest diameter cigarette butt 1 will not leave the impurity removal device through the mesh structure, so that filter 5 can ensure normal airflow and dust discharge while preventing cigarette butt 1 from "escaping" from the air outlet.

[0035] Specifically, the advantage of connecting the exhaust pipe 6 at the air outlet of the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 is that it can both discharge the airflow inside the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 to the outside and guide the direction of airflow discharge, so as to avoid the airflow affecting the movement direction of debris and cigarette butt 1.

[0036] In addition, when a waste discharge port is provided, an openable and closable gate can be installed at the discharge port, and a valve 7 is installed on the downwind chamber 3 to control the opening and closing of the gate. After the waste accumulates to a certain level, the gate can be opened by the valve 7 to allow the waste to fall automatically into the waste collection device 8. Specifically, the gate can be connected to the valve 7 through a connecting frame or transmission mechanism, so that when the valve 7 is rotated, the gate rotates synchronously with the valve 7 to open or close the waste discharge port.

[0037] In a preferred embodiment, the fan 4 of the upper air chamber 2 is installed in the lower middle part of the upper air chamber 2, and the fan 4 of the lower air chamber 3 is installed in the upper middle part of the lower air chamber 3. Specifically, the upper air chamber 2 is used to separate debris lighter than cigarette butts 1. The blower 4 blows the debris lighter than cigarette butts 1 to the air outlet. Since a batch of cigarette butts 1 enter from the feed inlet of the upper air chamber 2, the cigarette butts 1 are relatively clustered. However, the cigarette butts 1 will gradually disperse during the falling process in the upper air chamber 2. Therefore, the blower 4 is installed in the middle and lower part of the upper air chamber 2 so that the blower 4 can separate the relatively dispersed cigarette butts 1, making the separation effect better. The lower air chamber 3 is used to separate debris heavier than cigarette butts 1. The blower 4 blows the cigarette butts 1 to the cigarette butt outlet adjacent to the air outlet. The blower 4 of the lower air chamber 3 is installed in the middle and upper part of the lower air chamber 3 to give the cigarette butts 1 more falling space, so that more cigarette butts 1 can move from the initial position to the cigarette butt outlet during the falling process, avoiding the cigarette butts 1 being stuck on the bottom plate of the lower air chamber.

[0038] In a preferred embodiment, the cigarette butt outlet is located on the bottom plate, immediately adjacent to the air outlet of the lower air chamber 3. Specifically, the lower air chamber 3 is used to remove debris heavier than the cigarette butt 1. Since the debris is heavier, the lower air chamber 3 actually blows away normal cigarette butts 1. The cigarette butt outlet is located immediately adjacent to the air outlet, which ensures that all cigarette butts 1 blown towards the air outlet in the lower air chamber 3 can be discharged from the cigarette butt outlet, while debris can fall onto the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3 and be removed after accumulating to a certain extent.

[0039] In a preferred embodiment, the volume of the lower air chamber 3 is larger than that of the upper air chamber 2. This results in a longer airflow path within the lower air chamber 3, ensuring effective separation of the cigarette butt 1 and other debris.

[0040] In addition, in some embodiments, a cigarette butt collection chamber 9 can be connected to the bottom of the downwind chamber 3, and the cigarette butt collection chamber 9 can be connected to the cigarette butt outlet. Cigarette butts 1 discharged from the cigarette butt outlet of the downwind chamber 3 fall into the cigarette butt collection chamber 9, facilitating the collection of the removed cigarette butts 1. Furthermore, the removed cigarette butts 1, guided by the cigarette butt collection chamber 9, are transported to downstream devices, which also facilitates the dispersion of piled cigarette butts 1 and the acquisition of images of the cigarette butts 1. Preferably, as... Figure 2 As shown, the cigarette butt collection chamber 9 is funnel-shaped. Specifically, a funnel 10 is used as the cigarette butt collection chamber 9. The structural feature of the funnel 10, with a large inlet and a small outlet, allows the cigarette butts 1 to enter quickly and exit slowly, thus slowing down the flow of the cigarette butts 1 into the subsequent device.

[0041] Another embodiment of the cigarette butt removal device provided by this utility model:

[0042] The main difference between this embodiment and the above embodiments is that, in this embodiment, a cigarette butt outlet is no longer provided for the lower air chamber 3. Instead, a discharge port for impurities heavier than cigarette butt 1 is provided only on the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3. Impurities heavier than cigarette butt 1 are discharged from the lower air chamber 3 through the discharge port, while normal cigarette butts 1 remain on the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3. When normal cigarette butts 1 accumulate to a certain extent, a high-powered vacuum cleaner can be used to suck the normal cigarette butts 1 from the bottom plate of the lower air chamber 3 through the discharge port, thereby achieving the removal of impurities from the cigarette butts 1. Specifically, the cigarette butt removal device in this embodiment includes an upper air chamber 2 and a lower air chamber 3 that are connected vertically. The upper air chamber 2 is provided with an inlet for the batch entry of collected cigarette butts 1. The lower air chamber 3 is provided with a bottom plate, on which a discharge port for impurities heavier than normal cigarette butt 1 are provided, as well as a cigarette butt collection part located next to the discharge port for collecting cigarette butts. The upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 are respectively equipped with a fan 4 to remove impurities from the cigarette butt 1. Both the upper air chamber 2 and the lower air chamber 3 have air outlets corresponding to their respective fans 4. The fan 4 in the lower air chamber 3 has a stronger air force than the fan 4 in the upper air chamber 2, so that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butt 1 are discharged from the air outlet of the upper air chamber 2, and impurities heavier than normal cigarette butt 1 are discharged from the discharge port of the lower air chamber 3. Normal cigarette butt 1 can be blown by the wind to the cigarette butt collection section and collected.

[0043] Finally, it should be noted that the above description is only a preferred embodiment of this utility model and is not intended to limit this utility model. Although this utility model has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still make modifications to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments without creative effort, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this utility model should be included within the protection scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A cigarette butt decontamination device, characterized in that, It includes an upper air chamber and a lower air chamber that are connected vertically. The upper air chamber has an inlet for the batch entry of collected cigarette butts, and the lower air chamber has an outlet for the discharge of cigarette butts after impurities have been removed. The upper and lower air chambers are each equipped with a fan to remove impurities from the cigarette butts, and each of the upper and lower air chambers has an air outlet corresponding to its respective fan. The fan in the lower air chamber has a stronger air force than the fan in the upper air chamber, so that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the air outlet in the upper air chamber, and normal cigarette butts are discharged from the cigarette butt outlet in the lower air chamber.

2. The cigarette butt debris removal device of claim 1, wherein, The bottom of the downdraft chamber is equipped with a base plate, and the cigarette butt outlet is located on the base plate, adjacent to the air outlet of the downdraft chamber.

3. The cigarette butt debris removal device of claim 2, wherein, The base plate is equipped with a waste discharge port, and the waste discharge port is equipped with an openable and closable gate.

4. The cigarette butt removal device according to claim 3, characterized in that, A waste collection bin is located below the waste outlet.

5. The cigarette butt removal device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The fan in the upper air chamber is installed in the lower middle part of one side of the upper air chamber, and the fan in the lower air chamber is installed in the upper middle part of one side of the lower air chamber.

6. The cigarette butt removal device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The bottom of the downdraft chamber is equipped with a cigarette butt collection chamber that is connected to the cigarette butt outlet to collect the cigarette butts discharged from the cigarette butt outlet and guide the cigarette butts to be transported backward.

7. The cigarette butt removal device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The volume of the downwind chamber is larger than that of the upwind chamber.

8. The cigarette butt removal device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, Both the upper and lower air chambers have filters at their air outlets to prevent cigarette butts from being discharged.

9. The cigarette butt removal device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, Both the upper and lower air chambers are connected to exhaust pipes at their air outlets to direct impurities to the pre-set collection buckets.

10. A cigarette butt removal device, characterized in that, It includes an upper air chamber and a lower air chamber that are connected vertically. The upper air chamber has an inlet for the batch entry of collected cigarette butts, and the lower air chamber has a bottom plate with a discharge port for impurities heavier than normal cigarette butts and a cigarette butt collection section. The upper and lower air chambers are each equipped with a fan to remove impurities from the cigarette butts, and each air chamber has an air outlet corresponding to its respective fan. The fan in the lower air chamber has a stronger airflow than the fan in the upper air chamber, so that impurities lighter than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the air outlet in the upper air chamber, and impurities heavier than normal cigarette butts are discharged from the discharge port in the lower air chamber.

Images