Sheet-like gathered material, preparation device for sheet-like gathered material, and cigarette filter rod

Abstract

Disclosed in the present invention is a sheet-like gathered material. The sheet-like gathered material is formed by gathering sheet-like materials (1); each sheet-like material (1) is provided with a plurality of protruding frames (101); a through hole (102) is formed in each protruding frame (101); the protruding frames (101) are circular, elliptical or polygonal; and the shape of the through hole (102) is the same as that of the protruding frame (101). Further disclosed in the present invention are a preparation device for the sheet-like gathered material, and a cigarette filter rod comprising the sheet-like gathered material.

Description

A sheet-like agglomerating material, an apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomerating material, and a cigarette filter rod. Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of cigarette technology, specifically relating to a sheet-like agglomerating material, a device for preparing the sheet-like agglomerating material, and a cigarette filter rod. Background Technology

[0002] As people around the world become increasingly health-conscious, heated cigarettes are gradually gaining popularity due to their perceived lower harm. Heated cigarettes are products that generate an aerosol through a heating device. The heating temperature typically reaches 200℃-400℃, and because they do not burn and undergo high-temperature decomposition, the release of harmful substances is significantly reduced. To provide consumers with a good consumption experience, the smoke inhalation temperature needs to be low, while maintaining a full and rich aroma. This requires sufficient evaporation of the cigarette core, a certain aroma-carrying capacity in the cigarette itself, and good cooling effect.

[0003] Currently, common cooling methods for heated cigarettes include using pleated, gathered films, designing spiral structures to increase airway length, and employing hollow tubes to utilize the Venturi effect. Existing cooling methods suffer from problems such as complex processing, high production costs, significant aroma retention, and poor cooling effectiveness. Regarding flavoring heated cigarettes, the mainstream methods currently involve adding flavor capsules to the filter rod or directly mixing flavorings into the filler material. However, flavor capsules are expensive to produce and result in uneven aroma release, while mixing flavorings into the filler material can lead to poor aroma release stability and affect the aroma release of the filler material itself. Patent CN109846084A reports the use of polylactic acid (PLA) filament composite filter rods for cooling, with the gaps between the PLA filaments filled by a filler material. The circumferential surfaces of the PLA filaments and the filler material are uniformly coated with a plasticizer or filter rod forming binder. However, this filler material between the PLA filaments may evaporate with the smoke during inhalation, leading to a poor smoking experience. Patent CN210043187U reports a method of enhancing fragrance and cooling by agglomerating polylactic acid (PLA) films and placing nonwoven fabric in the middle. However, the fragrance-carrying capacity of nonwoven fabric is limited, and the processing technology is complex and costly. Patent 202420931398X reports the use of PLA films with through holes to form columnar structures as cooling and / or fragrance-adding sections; however, since PLA films are sheet-like, the through holes cannot be kept open well after agglomeration, resulting in poor ventilation and cooling effect. On the other hand, the fragrance-adding material is directly carried on the surface of the cooling film, and the agglomeration of PLA films creates wrinkles or gaps to increase the fragrance-carrying capacity; in reality, the fragrance-carrying capacity in the wrinkles or gaps does not increase significantly.

[0004] This invention is proposed for this purpose. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This invention discloses a sheet-like agglomerating material, an apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomerating material, and a cigarette filter rod. The sheet-like material of this invention has several raised frames, each with a through hole; the resulting sheet-like material, after being agglomerated, achieves good results when used in the cooling section, aroma-enhancing section, and / or support section of a cigarette filter rod.

[0006] The technical solution of the present invention is as follows:

[0007] This invention discloses a sheet-like agglomerating material, which is formed by agglomerating sheet material 1. The sheet material 1 has a plurality of protruding frames 101, and each protruding frame 101 has a through hole 102. The protruding frame 101 is circular, elliptical or polygonal, and has a height of 0-5mm. The shape of the through hole 102 is the same as or different from the shape of the protruding frame 101.

[0008] Preferably, the convex frames 101 are arranged uniformly and parallelly on the sheet material 1, and the convex frames 101 in each column are staggered with the convex frames 101 in the adjacent parallel columns.

[0009] Preferably, the substrate of the sheet material 1 is polylactic acid.

[0010] The second aspect of the present invention discloses an apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomerating material, which includes: a sheet-forming component 2, an application component 3, and an agglomerating component 4; wherein the sheet-forming component 2 is upstream of the application component 3, and the agglomerating component 4 is downstream of the application component 3.

[0011] Preferably, the sheet assembly 2 includes an upper roller 21 and a lower roller 22. The surface of the upper roller 21 is provided with a plurality of grooves 211, and the surface of the lower roller 22 is provided with a boss 221 that matches the grooves 211. The grooves 211 correspond to the convex frame 101, and the boss 221 corresponds to the through hole 102.

[0012] Preferably, the coating component 3 includes a coating device and a material storage and guiding device; the coating device includes a first roller 31, and the material storage and guiding device includes a guide plate 301; the opening of the guide plate 301 is attached to the roller surface of the first roller 31.

[0013] Preferably, the applicator further includes: a mounting plate 32, a first roller 31, a second roller 33, a first tensioning shaft 34, and a second tensioning shaft 35 mounted on the mounting plate 32, wherein the second roller 35 and the first tensioning shaft 34 are respectively arranged on the lower left and right sides of the first roller 31, and the second tensioning shaft 35 is arranged on the lower right side of the first tensioning shaft 34; on the outside of the mounting plate 32, the first roller 31 is connected to a synchronous pulley 36, and the synchronous pulley 36 is connected to a reduction motor 38 through a synchronous belt 37;

[0014] The material storage and guiding device further includes: a storage bin 302, a baffle 303, and a seated spring 304. The material storage and guiding device is fixedly mounted on the mounting plate 32 via a bin mounting plate 305. The storage bin 302 is arranged such that its opening faces the roller surface of the first roller 31. The guiding plate 301 is arranged at the bottom of the storage bin 302, and the opening of the guiding plate 301 is curved, fitting against the roller surface of the first roller 31. The upper part of the guiding plate 301 near the opening has a baffle 303. The two ends of the spring are arranged in the rectangular grooves 3021 at both ends of the opening of the storage bin 302; there are two springs with seats, and the base of each spring 304 is installed in the rectangular groove 3021 with an interference fit, and the upper end of each spring 304 abuts against the lower wall of the baffle 303; the baffle 303 is provided with a baffle threaded hole 3031 in the center, and the guide plate 301 is provided with a guide plate threaded hole 3011; the baffle threaded hole 3031 and the guide plate threaded hole 3011 are adapted to the adjusting screw 306.

[0015] Preferably, the gathering component 4 includes a tapered tube 41, which is trumpet-shaped, with its wide opening 411 facing the application component 3.

[0016] A third aspect of the present invention discloses a cigarette filter rod comprising the aforementioned sheet-like agglomerating material.

[0017] Preferably, the cigarette filter rod includes: a gathering section 11 made of sheet-like gathering material and a wrapping component 12; the wrapping component 12 has a cylindrical structure and wraps around the gathering section 11 of sheet-like gathering material; the inner surface of the wrapping component 12 has an anti-permeability layer.

[0018] Effects of the invention:

[0019] 1. The sheet material of the present invention is provided with a protruding frame 101, and the protruding frame 101 has a through hole 102. The sheet agglomerated material of the present invention is agglomerated into the desired shape, such as a cylinder or rod, and can be used for cigarette filter rods, especially for heated non-combustible cigarette filter rods, such as the cooling section, flavoring section, and support section of heated non-combustible cigarette filter rods. When used as a support section, in addition to the ventilation through the through hole 102, the protruding frame 101 separates the surface of the sheet material, increasing the air permeability while ensuring support. When used as a cooling section (rod), the substrate of the sheet material can be polylactic acid or other materials. The protruding frame 101 with the through hole 102 separates the surfaces of adjacent sheet materials. In addition to the ventilation through the through hole 102, the protruding frame 101 can increase the air permeability to reduce smoke retention, and at the same time utilize the physical properties of the material itself (such as the cooling properties of polylactic acid) to cool down. When used as a fragrance-enhancing segment, the fragrance can be directly applied to the surface of the sheet material via the application component. Due to the isolation of adjacent sheet materials by the raised frame 101, it has a larger fragrance-carrying space. That is, the raised frame 101 significantly increases the fragrance-carrying capacity of the sheet material. Simultaneously, the raised frame 101 provides a certain degree of support for the fragrance-enhancing segment, resulting in good stability after fragrance addition. This invention requires the height of the raised frame to be 0-5mm. Generally, a larger raised frame results in higher ventilation, but lower support and a decrease in fragrance carrying capacity. Therefore, a higher raised frame is not always better. Compared to conventional technologies, the sheet-like agglomerating material of this invention, when used as a fragrance-enhancing segment, has a fragrance-carrying capacity 2-3 times higher than that reported in patent CN202420931398X, while also reducing the use of substrate, lowering costs, and improving stability.

[0020] 2. In the apparatus for preparing sheet-like agglomerated material of the present invention, the surface of the upper roller 21 is provided with a plurality of grooves 211 corresponding to the convex frames 101 of the sheet-like material; the surface of the lower roller 22 is provided with protrusions 221 corresponding to the through holes 102 of the sheet-like material. The frame height, shape, number, and arrangement of the convex frames 101 can be designed according to actual needs; the shape of the through holes 102 can also be changed according to requirements. The surface structure of the upper and lower rollers of the preparation apparatus of the present invention can be modified and designed according to the needs of the sheet-like material.

[0021] 3. The preparation apparatus of the present invention includes: a sheet-forming component, a coating component, and a gathering component. The apparatus has a simple structure, and each component is a common component that can be easily installed and implemented. Taking polylactic acid (PLA) film sheet substrate as an example, the preparation apparatus of the present invention uses the upper roller 21 and lower roller 22 of the sheet-forming component to roll and form PLA film sheets; the coating component can evenly coat the smoke-generating agent and / or flavorings onto the surface of the PLA film sheet, and the amount of smoke-generating agent and / or flavorings can be controlled by adjusting the gap between the baffle 303 and the guide plate 301; then the gathering component gathers and forms the gathered section, which, when used in heated cigarettes, has both cooling and aroma-enhancing functions. The entire preparation process of the preparation apparatus of the present invention is simple and has low preparation cost. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the sheet material of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 2 is a magnified view of a portion of Figure 1.

[0024] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the cigarette filter rod of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the overall appearance of the apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomeration material of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the sheet assembly of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the application component and the gathering component of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the material storage and guiding device of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 8 is an exploded view of the material storage and guiding device of the present invention.

[0030] The attached figures are labeled as follows: 1. Sheet material; 101. Frame; 102. Through hole; 11. Gathering section; 12. Wrapping component; 2. Sheet assembly; 21. Upper roller; 211. Groove; 22. Lower roller; 221. Boss; 3. Coating assembly; 301. Guide plate; 3011. Threaded hole in guide plate; 302. Storage bin; 3021. Rectangular groove; 303. Baffle; 3031. Threaded hole in baffle; 304. Spring with seat; 305. Bin mounting plate; 306. Adjusting screw; 31. First roller shaft; 32. Mounting plate; 33. Second roller shaft; 34. First tensioning shaft; 35. Second tensioning shaft; 36. Synchronous pulley; 37. Synchronous belt; 38. Gear motor; 4. Gathering assembly; 41. Tapered tube; 411. Large opening of tapered tube. Detailed Implementation

[0031] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the invention. Furthermore, the technical features involved in the various embodiments of this invention described below can be combined with each other as long as they do not conflict with each other.

[0032] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the terms "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this invention.

[0033] Furthermore, the terms “first”, “second”, etc., are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated.

[0034] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "joining," "fixing," "adhesion," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0035] In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the terms used above should not be construed as necessarily referring to the same embodiments or examples. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Moreover, those skilled in the art can combine and integrate the different embodiments or examples described in this specification.

[0036] This invention discloses a sheet-like agglomerating material, comprising sheet material 1 agglomerated together. The sheet material 1 has a plurality of raised frames 101, each raised frame 101 containing a through hole 102. The raised frames 101 are circular, elliptical, or polygonal. The shape of the through hole 102 may be the same as or different from the shape of the raised frame 101. The raised frames 101 are uniformly and parallelly arranged on the sheet material 1, with each row of raised frames 101 staggered with adjacent parallel rows, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The height, shape, number, and arrangement of the raised frames 101 can be designed and replaced according to actual needs. This invention requires the height of the raised frames 101 to be 0-5 mm.

[0037] If the gathering section 11 is used as the cooling section of a cigarette filter rod, the substrate of the sheet material 1 can be polylactic acid, because polylactic acid can be used as a cooling material.

[0038] As shown in Figures 3-8, the apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomerating material of the present invention includes: a sheet-forming component 2, an application component 3, and an agglomerating component 4; wherein the sheet-forming component 2 is upstream of the application component 3, and the agglomerating component 4 is downstream of the application component 3.

[0039] As shown in Figure 5, the sheet assembly 2 includes an upper roller 21 and a lower roller 22. The surface of the upper roller 21 is provided with a plurality of grooves 211, and the surface of the lower roller 22 is provided with a boss 221 that matches the grooves 211. The grooves 211 correspond to the convex frame 101, and the boss 221 corresponds to the through hole 102.

[0040] As shown in Figure 6, the coating component 3 includes a coating device and a material storage and guiding device; the coating device includes a first roller 31, and the material storage and guiding device includes a guide plate 301; the opening of the guide plate 301 is attached to the roller surface of the first roller 31.

[0041] The applicator further includes: a mounting plate 32, and a first roller 31, a second roller 33, a first tensioning shaft 34, and a second tensioning shaft 35 mounted on the mounting plate 32. The second roller 35 and the first tensioning shaft 34 are respectively arranged on the lower left and right sides of the first roller 31, and the second tensioning shaft 35 is arranged on the lower right side of the first tensioning shaft 34. On the outside of the mounting plate 32, the first roller 31 is connected to a synchronous pulley 36, and the synchronous pulley 36 is connected to a reduction motor 38 through a synchronous belt 37.

[0042] The material storage and guiding device further includes: a storage bin 302, a baffle 303, and a seated spring 304. The material storage and guiding device is fixedly mounted on the mounting plate 32 via a bin mounting plate 305. The storage bin 302 is arranged such that its opening faces the roller surface of the first roller 31. The guiding plate 301 is arranged at the bottom of the storage bin 302, and the opening of the guiding plate 301 is curved and fits against the roller surface of the first roller 31. The guiding plate 301 is used to discharge coating materials such as smoke generators and / or fragrances from the storage bin 302. The upper part of the guiding plate 301 near the opening has a baffle. The baffle 303 has two ends arranged in rectangular grooves 3021 at both ends of the opening of the storage bin 302; there are two seated springs 304, the base of each seated spring 304 is installed in the rectangular groove 3021 with an interference fit, and the upper end of each seated spring 304 abuts against the lower wall of the baffle 303; the baffle 303 has a baffle threaded hole 3031 in the center, and the guide plate 301 has a guide plate threaded hole 3011; the baffle threaded hole 3031 and the guide plate threaded hole 3011 are adapted to the adjusting screw 306; as shown in Figures 7 and 8.

[0043] As shown in Figure 6, the gathering component 4 includes a tapered tube 41, which is trumpet-shaped, with its large opening 411 facing the application component 3.

[0044] As shown in Figure 3, the cigarette filter rod using the sheet-like agglomerating material of the present invention includes: agglomerating section 11 made of sheet-like agglomerating material and a wrapping component 12; the wrapping component 12 has a cylindrical structure and wraps around the agglomerating section 11 of sheet-like agglomerating material; the inner surface of the wrapping component 12 has an anti-permeability layer.

[0045] Example 1: Using the preparation apparatus shown in Figures 3-8, polylactic acid film sheet aggregate material was prepared. The convex frame 101 is rectangular and the height of the convex frame 101 is 2 mm; the through hole 102 is also rectangular.

[0046] Polylactic acid (PLA) sheet substrate enters through the gap between the upper roller 21 and the lower roller 22 of the sheeting assembly 2. It is extruded and formed into a PLA sheet by the upper roller 21 and the lower roller 22, resulting in a rectangular sheet material with a raised frame 101 and through holes 102, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. This sheet then enters the coating assembly 3. At this time, the reduction motor 38 operates, driving the first roller shaft 31 to rotate through the cooperation of the synchronous belt 37 and the synchronous pulley 36. The PLA sheet film from the sheeting assembly 2 enters from above the second tensioning shaft 35, then passes through below the first tensioning shaft 31 and enters the gap between the curved surface of the guide plate 31 and the roller surface of the first roller shaft 31, before exiting from the first roller shaft 35. The upper end of the material is wound around the right side of the second roller shaft 35, and then enters the middle of the tapered tube 41 from the large opening 411 of the tapered tube 41 from the lower end of the second roller shaft 35; at the same time, the smoke-generating agent and / or flavoring in the storage bin 302 is evenly coated onto the surface of the polylactic acid sheet by the curved surface of the guide plate 301. According to product requirements, the adjusting screw 306 can be rotated to adjust the gap between the baffle 303 and the guide plate 301 with the help of the seat spring 304, thereby controlling the amount of smoke-generating agent and / or flavoring applied; the coated polylactic acid sheet is gathered and curled into a sheet-like agglomerated material through the tapered tube 41, which is roughly cylindrical; after being cut, it can be used in cigarette filter rods.

[0047] Example 2: The agglomerated segment 11 after being cut from the sheet-like agglomerated material obtained in Example 1 is used as the flavoring segment of the cigarette filter rod for heated non-combustible cigarettes, as shown in Figure 3.

[0048] As shown in Figure 3, when the sheet-like agglomerated material obtained in Example 1 is cut into agglomerated segments 11 and used as the flavoring segment of a cigarette filter rod for heated non-combustible cigarettes, the core segment releases aerosols as it heats up after passing through the heating device. When passing through the flavoring segment of this invention, the flavor gel mixture loaded within the agglomerated segment 11 releases aroma. Because the sheet-like agglomerated material of this invention has a larger aroma-carrying space and therefore a higher aroma-carrying capacity, the aroma of the gas entering the mouth from the filter segment is fuller and more abundant. Simultaneously, after the sheet-like material is agglomerated, the rectangular convex frame 101 separates the surfaces of adjacent sheet-like materials. Due to the presence of through-holes 102, there are more pores and higher air permeability, significantly reducing the retention of heated cigarette smoke. Furthermore, the substrate of the sheet-like material in this embodiment is polylactic acid. Since polylactic acid can also be used as a cooling material, the flavoring segment of this embodiment simultaneously possesses both flavoring and cooling effects. Thus, only one cylindrical segment of the sheet-like agglomerated material of this invention is needed to achieve both cooling and flavoring effects. The aroma-enhancing section in this embodiment not only has a good cooling effect, but also increases the stable release of aroma, reduces the number of heating cigarette processing steps, and lowers costs.

[0049] The above embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention, nor is the present invention limited to the examples described above. Any changes, modifications, additions, or substitutions made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present invention are also within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A sheet-like agglomerating material, characterized in that, The sheet-like agglomerating material is formed by agglomerating sheet-like material (1). The sheet-like material (1) has several protruding frames (101), and each protruding frame (101) has a through hole (102). The protruding frame (101) is circular, elliptical or polygonal, and has a height of 0-5mm.

2. The sheet-like agglomerating material according to claim 1, characterized in that, The convex frames (101) are evenly and parallelly arranged on the sheet material (1), and the convex frames (101) of each column are staggered with the convex frames (101) of the adjacent parallel columns.

3. The sheet-like agglomerating material according to claim 1, characterized in that, The substrate of the sheet material (1) is polylactic acid.

4. The apparatus for preparing the sheet-like agglomerated material according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, It includes: finished films The assembly includes a component (2), an applicator (3), and a gathering component (4); wherein the applicator (2) is upstream of the applicator (3), and the gathering component (4) is downstream of the applicator (3).

5. The preparation apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that, The sheet assembly (2) includes an upper roller (21) and a lower roller (22). The surface of the upper roller (21) is provided with a plurality of grooves (211), and the surface of the lower roller (22) is provided with a boss (221) that matches the grooves (211). The grooves (211) correspond to the convex frame (101), and the boss (221) corresponds to the through hole (102).

6. The preparation apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that, The coating assembly (3) includes a coating device and a material storage and guiding device; the coating device includes a first roller (31), and the material storage and guiding device includes a guide plate (301); the opening of the guide plate (301) is attached to the roller surface of the first roller (31).

7. The preparation apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that, The applicator further includes: a mounting plate (32), a first roller (31), a second roller (33), a first tensioning shaft (34), and a second tensioning shaft (35) mounted on the mounting plate (32). The second roller (35) and the first tensioning shaft (34) are respectively arranged on the lower left and right sides of the first roller (31), and the second tensioning shaft (35) is arranged on the lower right side of the first tensioning shaft (34). On the outside of the mounting plate (32), the first roller (31) is connected to a synchronous pulley (36), and the synchronous pulley (36) is connected to a reduction motor (38) through a synchronous belt (37). The material storage and guiding device further includes: a storage bin (302), a baffle (303), and a seated spring (304). The material storage and guiding device is fixedly installed on the mounting plate (32) via a bin mounting plate (305). The storage bin (302) is arranged with its opening facing the roller surface of the first roller (31). The guiding plate (301) is arranged at the bottom of the storage bin (302), and the opening of the guiding plate (301) is curved and fits against the roller surface of the first roller (31). The upper part of the guiding plate (301) near the opening has a baffle (303). The two ends of the spring are arranged in the rectangular grooves (3021) at both ends of the opening of the storage bin (302); there are two springs (304), the base of each spring (304) is installed in the rectangular groove (3021) with an interference fit, and the upper end of each spring (304) abuts against the lower wall of the baffle (303); the baffle (303) is provided with a baffle threaded hole (3031) in the center, and the guide plate (301) is provided with a guide plate threaded hole (3011); the baffle threaded hole (3031) and the guide plate threaded hole (3011) are adapted to the adjusting screw (306).

8. The preparation apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that, The gathering component (4) includes a tapered tube (41), which is trumpet-shaped, with its large opening (411) facing the application component (3).

9. A cigarette filter rod, characterized in that, It comprises the sheet-like agglomerating material as described in any one of claims 1-3.

10. The cigarette filter rod according to claim 9, characterized in that, The cigarette filter rod includes: a gathering section (11) made of sheet-like gathering material and a wrapping component (12); the wrapping component (12) has a cylindrical structure and is wrapped around the gathering section (11) of sheet-like gathering material; the inner surface of the wrapping component (12) has an anti-permeability layer.

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