Method for inspecting aerosol-generating article and method for manufacturing same

A heat-sensitive agent-based method for detecting oil adhesion on aerosol product components addresses the challenges of costly and unreliable infrared detection, ensuring high-quality production by visual inspection and reducing downtime.

WO2026094246A1PCT designated stage Publication Date: 2026-05-07JAPAN TOBACCO INC
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Patent Information

Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
JAPAN TOBACCO INC
Filing Date
2024-11-01
Publication Date
2026-05-07

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing methods for detecting mineral-derived machine oil adhesion on aerosol product components are costly and prone to interference from fragrance luminescence, necessitating a simpler and reliable detection method to ensure product quality.

Method used

A method involving the use of a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined temperature, allowing for the detection of oil adhesion through heating and visual inspection, eliminating the need for expensive infrared detection equipment.

Benefits of technology

This approach reliably detects oil adhesion with a simple configuration, improving product quality by reducing false positives and negatives, and enhancing productivity by minimizing equipment downtime.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

This method for inspecting an aerosol-generating article (1) is an inspection method for inspecting whether oil used in a machine for manufacturing a rod (R) constituting the aerosol-generating article (1) has adhered to the aerosol-generating article (1) or the rod (R), the method comprising: an addition step (S1) for adding, to the oil, a thermosensitive agent that develops color at a prescribed color development temperature or higher; an extraction step (S2) for extracting the rod (R) from a conveyance path (44) therefor; a heating step (S3) for heating the extracted rod (R) at the color development temperature or higher; and a determination step (S4) for determining whether a color development region (Ac) is present in the rod (R) after heating, and treating the rod (R) for which the color development region (Ac) is determined to be present as a defective article to which the oil has adhered.
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Description

Inspection Method and Manufacturing Method of Aerosol Generation Articles

[0001] The present invention relates to an inspection method and a manufacturing method of aerosol generation articles.

[0002] Machine oil used in the manufacturing machine of a rod constituting an aerosol generation article, or lubricating oil used for maintaining the high-speed cutting performance of a knife for cutting the rod may adhere to the rod. In some cases, plant-derived oil is used as the lubricating oil, and in this case, even if the lubricating oil adheres to the rod, it does not affect the taste of the aerosol generation article. However, since machine oil is basically mineral-derived oil, it affects the taste of the aerosol generation article. Therefore, such a rod with oil adhered thereto and an aerosol generation article including the rod need to be excluded as defective products before shipment. Thus, Patent Document 1 discloses a detection method for detecting contamination of oil or lubricant in a product.

[0003] This detection method includes steps of adding a fluorescent tagant to oil or lubricant used in a machine for processing a product, transporting the product through a detection device, irradiating the product with infrared rays from the detection device when the product passes through the detection device, and detecting infrared rays emitted from the product irradiated with infrared rays. Further, this detection device is an infrared detection device and includes a high-intensity infrared light source for irradiating the product with infrared rays and a high-speed NIR spectrometer sensor for detecting the wavelength of radiation emitted from the fluorescent tagant contained in the oil or lubricant.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-161530

[0005] In the case of Patent Document 1, the presence or absence of oil on the rod is checked by adding a fluorescent tagant to the oil and irradiating the rod with infrared light to check for the presence or absence of emission. In this case, it is necessary to precisely analyze the wavelength of the radiation and detect the presence or absence of emission using an expensive infrared detection device equipped with a high-intensity infrared light source and a high-speed NIR spectrometer sensor as described above. Furthermore, since the fragrance added to the wrapping paper of the rod also emits light when irradiated with infrared light, there is a risk that oil detection will become difficult. Therefore, there is a need to reliably detect the presence of oil on the rod with a simple configuration and improve the quality of the aerosol product.

[0006] This invention has been made in view of the above problems, and aims to provide a method for inspecting and manufacturing aerosol products that can reliably detect oil adhesion to a rod with a simple configuration and improve the quality of aerosol products.

[0007] To achieve the above objective, a method for inspecting an aerosol product according to one embodiment is a method for inspecting whether oil used in a rod manufacturing machine has adhered to an aerosol product or a rod constituting it, and includes an addition step of adding a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined color development temperature or higher to the oil; an extraction step of extracting the rod from its transport path; a heating step of heating the extracted rod at a temperature or higher than the color development temperature; and a determination step of determining whether a color development area exists on the heated rod, and treating a rod determined to have a color development area as a defective product with oil adhered to it.

[0008] Furthermore, a method for producing an aerosol product according to one embodiment includes the method for inspecting the aerosol product described above, and the extraction step described above involves extracting a rod from a series of drums forming a transport path.

[0009] According to the above embodiment, oil adhesion to the rod can be reliably detected with a simple configuration, thereby improving the quality of the aerosol product.

[0010] This is a side view of the aerosol product. This is a partial schematic diagram of the manufacturing apparatus for the aerosol product. This is a schematic diagram of the inspection apparatus for inspecting the rods. This is a flowchart explaining the method for inspecting the rods using the inspection apparatus. This is a flowchart explaining the details of the judgment step. This is a table of experimental data for examples and comparative examples of color difference. This is a photograph of an article in which a colored area was formed after heating. This is a magnified photograph of area A in Figure 7. This is a magnified photograph of area B in Figure 7.

[0011] The inspection and manufacturing methods for aerosol products will be described below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 shows a side view of aerosol product 1. Aerosol product 1 (hereinafter also simply referred to as article 1) is, for example, a combustion-heated type cigarette with a filter, and comprises a tobacco rod 2 and a filter rod 4 as its constituent segments. Article 1 is formed by wrapping these rods 2 and 4 with tip paper 6 and connecting them together. The tobacco rod 2 is formed by wrapping a filler material 8 with wrapping paper (cigarette paper) 10. The filler material 8 includes, for example, tobacco chips, flavoring particles, an aerosol base material, etc., and generates an aerosol for the user to inhale when heated.

[0012] The filter rod 4 is formed by filling it with filter material 12 and wrapping it with a filter wrapper 14. The filter material 12 is not particularly limited and may be any known material. For example, cellulose acetate tow processed into a cylindrical shape can be used, and instead of an acetate filter, a paper filter filled with sheet-like pulp paper or a nonwoven fabric may be used. The filter material 12 may also contain a plasticizer such as triacetin. Furthermore, the material of the filter wrapper 14 is not particularly limited and may be any known material. It may be paper, or it may contain a filler such as calcium carbonate. Furthermore, the filter wrapper 14 may or may not be coated, and may be made of water-resistant paper, oil-resistant paper, non-permeable paper, or highly permeable paper.

[0013] Figure 2 shows a partial schematic diagram of the manufacturing apparatus for article 1. The manufacturing apparatus for article 1 includes a tobacco rod winder 20, an attachment section 30 for filter rods 4, and a conveying section 40 for the finished article 1. The winder 20 forms a continuous body of tobacco rods 2 and cuts this body to a predetermined length to form a double tobacco rod DR having twice the length of the tobacco rod 2. Meanwhile, a filter manufacturing apparatus (not shown) forms a double filter rod DF having twice the length of the filter rod 4. The attachment section 30 receives the double tobacco rod DR manufactured by the winder 20 and the double filter rod DF manufactured by the filter manufacturing apparatus and connects them with tip paper 6.

[0014] More specifically, the attachment section 30 includes a drum row (not shown), and the double tobacco rod DR received from the hoisting machine 20 is cut into two tobacco rods 2 during the process of being conveyed on the drum row. The two tobacco rods 2 are supplied to a hopper drum 32 adjacent to the drum row, with the two tobacco rods 2 spaced apart from each other in the axial direction. The attachment section 30 also includes a conveying drum 34 adjacent to the hopper drum 32, and the double filter rod DF manufactured by the filter manufacturing apparatus is received by the conveying drum 34 and then supplied to the hopper drum 32. At this time, the double filter rod DF is positioned between the two spaced-apart tobacco rods 2, and the tobacco rods 2, double filter rod DF, and tobacco rods 2 form an array A arranged in this order with close spacing along the same axis.

[0015] Chip paper 6 is supplied to the hopper drum 32, and the chip paper 6 is attached to the outer surface of the array A. The array A with the chip paper 6 attached is then supplied to the rolling drum 36 adjacent to the hopper drum 32. As the rolling drum 36 rotates, it causes the array A to roll on its outer surface, and by causing the chip paper 6 to follow this rolling motion, the chip paper 6 is wrapped around the outer surfaces of the double filter rod DF and the two tobacco rods 2 positioned at both ends of it. Once the wrapping of the chip paper 6 is complete, the chip paper 6 is glued to the double filter rod DF and the base ends of the tobacco rods 2 on both sides thereof, and an intermediate body I, a so-called double-wound body, is formed with the tobacco rods 2 connected to both sides of the double filter rod DF.

[0016] The intermediate body I is transferred from the rolling drum 36 to the adjacent cutting drum 38. On the cutting drum 38, the intermediate body I is divided in two at the center of the double filter rod DF by a cutting knife (not shown), thereby separating it into two articles 1. The two articles 1 separated from the intermediate body I are transferred from the cutting drum 38 to a drum row consisting of multiple transport drums 42 in the transport section 40, where they are transported while undergoing reversal of orientation and displacement, and then packed in a packing section (not shown) before being shipped.

[0017] In this embodiment, the manufacturing apparatus for article 1 includes an inspection device 50 for inspecting the finished article 1, the tobacco rods 2, or the filter rods 4 (hereinafter collectively referred to as rods R) that constitute article 1. The inspection device 50 checks whether oil used in the rod manufacturing machine has adhered to the rods R, and in particular whether mineral-derived machine oil has adhered to them. This inspection is performed on rods R appropriately selected from the rod transport path 44 formed by the aforementioned drum row from the attachment section 30 to the transport section 40.

[0018] Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the inspection device 50 for inspecting rod R, and Figure 4 shows a flowchart illustrating the inspection method for rod R using the inspection device 50. In the inspection of rod R, a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined color development temperature or higher is added to the oil mentioned above (addition step S1). Specifically, in addition step S1, the heat-sensitive agent is added in a range where the hydrogen ion concentration of the oil is between pH 6.5 and pH 8.5. This maintains the oil in a neutral range after the heat-sensitive agent is added, preventing rust from forming on the manufacturing machinery due to the addition of the heat-sensitive agent.

[0019] The heat-sensitive agent used is preferably an organic acid or a sugar. Specifically, the heat-sensitive agent is an organic acid such as acetic acid or potassium citrate, a monosaccharide such as glycosyl glycol, a disaccharide such as sucrose or dimethylcellulose, or a polysaccharide such as CMC (carboxymethylcellulose) or pectin. Such organic acids and sugars are suitable because they turn brown at a predetermined color development temperature, making it easy to see if oil has adhered to the rod R, and even if they volatilize when the rod R is heated, they have little effect on the taste and are harmless to the human body. The oil used is, for example, food-grade grease that meets the H1 standard set by the NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) (hereinafter also referred to as H1 oil). Addition step S1 is performed on the oil supplied to areas in the hoisting machine 20, filter manufacturing device, attachment section 30, conveying section 40, etc., where oil leakage is suspected or oil adhesion to the rod R is suspected.

[0020] Next, the rods R to be inspected are extracted from the transport path 44 (extraction step S2). More specifically, extraction step S2 manually or automatically extracts one or more rods R to be inspected from the aforementioned drum row that forms the transport path 44 of the rods R from the attachment section 30 to the transport section 40. That is, extraction step S2 may extract the rods R from the attachment section 30 or from the transport section 40. When extracting the rods R from the attachment section 30, extraction step S2 extracts the rods R in the process of arranging multiple rods R in their axial direction and joining them with chip paper 6 to form article 1.

[0021] As shown in Figure 3, the inspection device 50 includes, for example, a heating device 52, a camera 54, a determination device 56, and a discharge duct 58. The heating device 52 and the camera 54 are electrically connected to the determination device 56. The rods R extracted from the transport path 44 are supplied to the heating device 52 and heated to a temperature above the predetermined heating temperature mentioned above (heating step S3). Specifically, in heating step S3, the rods R are heated to 110°C to 200°C for 5 to 12 minutes. Next, it is determined whether or not a colored area Ac exists in the heated rods R, and rods R determined to have a colored area Ac are treated as defective products with oil adhering to them (determination step S4).

[0022] The presence or absence of a colored area Ac in rod R is automatically determined by processing the image captured by camera 54 with determination device 56. Note that determination step S4 may also be performed visually without using camera 54 and determination device 56. If the determination result in determination step S4 is Yes, and it is determined that a colored area Ac exists, rod R is removed from the transport path 44 via the discharge duct 58 as a defective product with oil adhering to it (removal step S5). On the other hand, if the determination result in determination step S4 is No, and it is determined that a colored area Ac does not exist, the inspection of rod R is terminated.

[0023] Figure 5 shows a flowchart illustrating the details of the determination step S4. The determination step S4 includes a color difference inspection process P1 that checks the color difference ΔE of the colored region Ac before and after heating of the rod R, and an area inspection process P2 that checks the area of ​​the colored region Ac. In the determination step S4, first, the color difference inspection process P1 determines whether the color difference ΔE is 10 or more. If the determination result is Yes, the process proceeds to the area inspection process P2.

[0024] On the other hand, if the determination result is No, for example, the determination device 56 displays "Colored area Ac: None" (step S6), and the inspection of rod R is terminated. In the area inspection process P2, it is determined whether or not the colored area has a diameter D of 1.8 mm or more. If the determination result is Yes, for example, the determination device 56 displays "Colored area Ac: Present" (step S7), and the process proceeds to the exclusion step S5 described above. On the other hand, if the determination result is No, the inspection of rod R is terminated after going through step S6 described above.

[0025] Figure 6 shows experimental data for the color difference ΔE in the examples and comparative examples in a table. In this experiment, in Examples No. 1-12, the type of heat-sensitive agent and oil, and the amount of heat-sensitive agent added to the oil under certain conditions of the hydrogen ion concentration pH were changed, while in Comparative Examples No. 13-14, the type of oil was changed without adding a heat-sensitive agent. In addition, the oil used is either H1 oil, a mineral-derived machine oil as described above, or a plant-derived lubricant. H1 oil is used in the manufacturing machinery for rod R, while the lubricant is used to maintain the high-speed cutting performance of the knife used to cut rod R.

[0026] Since mineral-derived H1 oil affects the taste of Article 1, it is important to add a heat-sensitive agent to the H1 oil and to detect rods R contaminated with H1 oil through inspection, thereby preventing their use in the manufacture of Article 1. On the other hand, plant-derived lubricants do not affect the taste of Article 1 even if they adhere to the rods R, but they cause stains on the rods R, impairing the appearance of the rods R and, consequently, Article 1. Therefore, in order to ensure the quality of Article 1, it may be possible to add a heat-sensitive agent to such lubricants and to detect rods R contaminated with lubricants through inspection, thereby preventing their use in the manufacture of Article 1.

[0027] As the heat-sensitive agent, one of the aforementioned acetic acid, potassium citrate, glycosyl sucrose, CMC, or pectin is used. The experiment was conducted under heating conditions in which rod R was heated at 200°C for 5 minutes in heating step S3. As a result, when the heat-sensitive agent was an organic acid such as acetic acid or potassium citrate, or when the heat-sensitive agent was a sugar such as glycosyl sucrose, CMC, or pectin, even if the amount of heat-sensitive agent added was varied between 3.0% by weight and 10% by weight, the color difference ΔE of rod R before and after heating was at least 10, provided that the hydrogen ion concentration of the oil to which the heat-sensitive agent was added was maintained within the range of pH 6.5 to pH 8.5. Specifically, as shown in the data for examples No. 1-12 in Figure 6, the color difference ΔE of rod R before and after heating was in the range of 15.5 to 21.5. As shown in the comparative examples 13-14, when H1 oil or lubricating oil without a heat-sensitive agent was used, the presence of a colored region Ac with a color difference ΔE on the rod R after heating could not be confirmed.

[0028] Figure 7 shows a photograph of article 1 in which a colored region Ac was formed after heating, Figure 8 shows a magnified photograph of region A in Figure 7, and Figure 9 shows a magnified photograph of region B in Figure 7. Article 1 shown in Figure 7 was heated at 110°C for 12 minutes in heating step S3, and in addition step S1, approximately 5.0% by weight of potassium citrate was added to the lubricating oil as a heat-sensitive agent. The hydrogen ion concentration of the lubricating oil after the addition of potassium citrate was maintained within the range of pH 6.5 to pH 8.5. As a result, regions A, B, and C in Figure 7 were visually confirmed on the tobacco rod 2 of article 1 after heating. Region A had a diameter D of 1.0 mm, and as shown in Figure 8, even under magnification, the presence of the colored region Ac was difficult to confirm with the naked eye, and the color difference ΔE was about 5%. Region B has a diameter D of 1.8 mm, and as shown in Figure 9, when magnified, the presence of a brownish colored region Ac was easily visible to the naked eye, with a color difference ΔE of approximately 15%. Region C has a diameter D of 0.5 mm, and although not shown, even when magnified, the presence of a colored region Ac was difficult to confirm with the naked eye.

[0029] Considering the photographs shown in Figures 7 to 9 and the experimental data shown in Figure 6, as mentioned above, in the color difference inspection process P1, when the color difference ΔE is 10 or more, it is determined that a colored area Ac exists on the heated rod R. In addition, in the area inspection process P2, when the colored area Ac has a diameter D of 1.8 mm or more, it is determined that a colored area Ac exists on the heated rod R. Areas other than these, such as areas A and C, are not treated as colored area Ac, and rod R having such areas is not treated as a defective product with oil attached. This is because areas A and C have a small amount of oil attached, so they have almost no effect on the taste of item 1, and because the area of ​​oil attachment is small, they do not impair the appearance of item 1. This suppresses an increase in the rejection rate of rod R due to excessive inspection, and improves the productivity of rod R while maintaining the quality of rod R above a certain level.

[0030] As described above, the inspection method for article 1 of this embodiment includes the previously mentioned addition step S1, extraction step S2, heating step S3, determination step S4, and elimination step S5. In particular, in the addition step S1, a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined color development temperature or higher is added to the oil used in the manufacturing machine for the rod R; in the heating step S3, the extracted rod R is heated at a predetermined heat-generating temperature or higher; and in the determination step S4, it is determined whether or not a color development area Ac exists in the heated rod R. This eliminates the need to perform rigorous inspections using expensive detection equipment, and also prevents the detection of oil from becoming difficult due to the luminescence of fragrances added to the wrapping paper of the rod R. Therefore, it is possible to reliably detect the presence of oil on the rod R with a simple configuration and improve the quality of article 1. Furthermore, when a defective rod R is detected, the manufacturing equipment for article 1 is temporarily stopped to eliminate the defective product, but the time from defective product detection to the restoration of the manufacturing equipment can be significantly reduced. Therefore, the productivity of article 1 can be significantly improved.

[0031] More specifically, determination step S4 includes a color difference inspection process P1 that inspects the color difference ΔE of the colored area Ac of the rod R before and after heating. The color difference inspection process P1 determines that a colored area Ac exists on the rod R after heating if the color difference ΔE is 10 or more. This ensures that rods R that are likely to have oil adhering to them in a significant amount or more than a predetermined amount, potentially affecting the taste of article 1, can be reliably detected and eliminated. Furthermore, determination step S4 includes an area inspection process P2 that inspects the area of ​​the colored area Ac. The area inspection process P2 determines whether the colored area Ac has a diameter D of 1.8 mm or more. This ensures that rods R that are likely to have oil adhering to them in a significant amount or more than a predetermined range, potentially impairing the appearance of article 1, can be reliably detected and eliminated.

[0032] More specifically, heating step S3 involves heating rod R at a temperature of 110°C to 200°C for 5 to 12 minutes. This ensures that the heat-sensitive agent added to the oil develops color, and consequently, the oil adhering to rod R can be reliably detected. Addition step S1 involves adding the heat-sensitive agent in a range where the hydrogen ion concentration of the oil is between pH 6.5 and pH 8.5. This maintains the oil in a neutral range after the heat-sensitive agent is added, preventing rust formation on the manufacturing machinery due to the addition of the heat-sensitive agent. The heat-sensitive agent is preferably an organic acid or a sugar. This is preferable because even if the heat-sensitive agent volatilizes due to the heating of rod R, the impact on the taste is minimal, and it is harmless to the human body. The oil to which the heat-sensitive agent is added is preferably H1 oil, i.e., food-grade machinery grease that meets the H1 standard set by the NSF (National Sanitation Foundation).

[0033] This concludes the description of the embodiments. However, the above embodiments are not limiting, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the determination step S4, the area inspection process P2 may be omitted, and only the color difference inspection process P1 may be performed. Furthermore, although the inspection apparatus 50 and inspection method of the above embodiments are incorporated into the manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method of article 1, the invention is not limited to this, and the inspection apparatus 50 and inspection method may be independent of the manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method of article 1.

[0034] Furthermore, the aforementioned exclusion step S5 removes the rods R determined to be defective from the transport path 44 via the discharge duct 58. However, the exclusion step S5 can be carried out in a broader manner, including offline, not just online. Specifically, since the rods R after inspection are heated, they cannot be used as regular rods R in article 1 in the first place. Therefore, the exclusion step S5 may feed back information on the inspected rods R and the rods R determined to be defective to the rod R manufacturing process, and at least each rod R in the lot to which these rods R belong may be collected and excluded so that they are not used in the manufacture of article 1.

[0035] Furthermore, the oil to which the heat-sensitive agent is added may be an oil other than the H1 oil or lubricating oil mentioned above. In the above embodiment, the rod R to be inspected is, for example, a combustion-heated type cigarette with a filter, which includes a tobacco rod 2 and a filter rod 4. However, it is not limited to this, and various rods R can be inspected, and it is also possible to inspect a non-combustion-heated type aerosol product 1 and the rods R that constitute it.

[0036] Furthermore, some or all of the above embodiments may be expressed by the descriptions of the following embodiments. (Embodiment 1) An inspection method for inspecting whether oil used in a rod manufacturing machine has adhered to an aerosol product or a rod constituting the same, comprising: an addition step of adding a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined color development temperature or higher to the oil; an extraction step of extracting the rod from its transport path; a heating step of heating the extracted rod at a temperature or higher than the color development temperature; and a determination step of determining whether a color development region exists on the rod after heating, and treating the rod determined to have a color development region as a defective product with the oil adhered to it.

[0037] (Aspect 2) The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to Aspect 1, wherein the determination step includes a color difference inspection process for inspecting the color difference of the colored region before and after heating of the rod, and the color difference inspection process determines that the colored region exists on the rod after heating when the color difference is 10 or more. (Aspect 3) The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to Aspect 2, wherein the determination step includes an area inspection process for inspecting the area of ​​the colored region, and the area inspection process determines that the colored region exists on the rod after heating when the colored region has a diameter of 1.8 mm or more.

[0038] (Aspect 4) The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to Aspect 1, wherein the heating step involves heating the rod at a temperature of 110°C to 200°C, which is the color development temperature, for 5 to 12 minutes. (Aspect 5) The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to Aspect 1, wherein the addition step involves adding the heat-sensitive agent in a range where the hydrogen ion concentration of the oil is pH 6.5 to pH 8.5.

[0039] (Aspect 6) The method for inspecting aerosol products according to aspect 1, further comprising a discard step of feeding back information on the rods that have been inspected and the rods that have been determined to be defective products with oil adhering to them to the manufacturing process of the rods, and recovering and discarding each of the rods in the lot to which at least these rods belong.

[0040] (Aspect 7) The method for testing aerosol products according to Aspect 1, wherein the heat-sensitive agent is an organic acid. (Aspect 8) The method for testing aerosol products according to Aspect 1, wherein the heat-sensitive agent is a sugar. (Aspect 9) The method for testing aerosol products according to Aspect 1, wherein the oil is a food-grade grease that meets the H1 standard set by the NSF (National Sanitation Foundation).

[0041] (Aspect 10) A method for producing an aerosol product, comprising a method for inspecting an aerosol product according to any one of aspects 1 to 8, wherein the extraction step is to extract the rod from the drum row forming the transport path.

[0042] (Aspect 11) The method for producing an aerosol product according to aspect 10, wherein the extraction step involves extracting the rods in the process of forming the aerosol product by arranging a plurality of rods in their axial direction and bonding them together with tip paper.

[0043] 1 Aerosol product 2 Tobacco rod 4 Filter rod 6 Tip paper 32 Hopper drum (drum row) 34 Conveyor drum (drum row) 36 Rolling drum (drum row) 38 Cutting drum (drum row) 42 Conveyor drum (drum row) 44 Conveyor path R Rod S1 Addition step S2 Extraction step S3 Heating step S4 Judgment step S5 Rejection step ΔE Color difference P1 Color difference inspection process P2 Area inspection process D Diameter Ac Color development area

Claims

1. An inspection method for inspecting whether oil used in a rod manufacturing machine has adhered to an aerosol product or a rod constituting the product, comprising: an addition step of adding a heat-sensitive agent that develops color at a predetermined color development temperature or higher to the oil; an extraction step of extracting the rod from its transport path; a heating step of heating the extracted rod at a temperature or higher than the color development temperature; and a determination step of determining whether a color development area exists on the heated rod, and treating a rod determined to have a color development area as a defective product with the oil adhering to it.

2. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the determination step includes a color difference inspection process for inspecting the color difference of the colored region before and after heating of the rod, and the color difference inspection process determines that the colored region exists on the rod after heating when the color difference is 10 or more.

3. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 2, wherein the determination step includes an area inspection process for inspecting the area of ​​the colored region, and the area inspection process determines that the colored region is present on the heated rod when the colored region has a diameter of 1.8 mm or more.

4. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the heating step involves heating the rod at a temperature of 110°C to 200°C, which is the color development temperature, for 5 to 12 minutes.

5. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the addition step involves adding the heat-sensitive agent in a range where the hydrogen ion concentration of the oil is between pH 6.5 and pH 8.

5.

6. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, further comprising a rejection step of feeding back information on the rods that have been inspected and the rods that have been determined to be defective due to the presence of oil to the manufacturing process of the rods, and recovering and discarding each of the rods in the lot to which at least these rods belong.

7. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the heat-sensitive agent is an organic acid.

8. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the heat-sensitive agent is a sugar.

9. The method for inspecting an aerosol product according to claim 1, wherein the oil is a food processing grease that meets the H1 standard set forth by the NSF (National Sanitation Foundation).

10. A method for producing an aerosol product, comprising a method for inspecting an aerosol product according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the extraction step is to extract the rod from a row of drums forming the transport path.

11. The method for producing an aerosol product according to claim 10, wherein the extraction step involves extracting the rods in the process of forming the aerosol product by aligning a plurality of rods in their axial direction and bonding them together with tip paper.

Citation Information

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