Cigarette Compacting Chamber With Retractable Sizing Member
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current semi-automatic and fully-automatic cigarette-making machines are limited to producing cigarettes of a single length, requiring multiple machines for different lengths, which is inconvenient, wasteful, and uneconomic.
Innovation Solution
The machines feature a compacting chamber with a retractable sizing member that allows adjustment of the chamber length by introducing a tab, enabling the production of cigarettes of varying lengths through a slot system that accommodates different cigarette tube lengths, and includes a compacting member with a slot to facilitate movement despite the tab's presence, along with external controls for easy manipulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single compacting chamber is used, then the machine structure remains simple, but it can only produce cigarettes of one length
Solution Approach 1:
The compacting chamber incorporates a movable wall that can be positioned at different locations to change the chamber length dynamically. This allows the same machine to produce cigarettes of multiple lengths (e.g., 84mm and 100mm) by simply repositioning the wall, rather than requiring separate machines for each length.
Solution Approach 2:
The compacting chamber is designed to perform multiple functions by accommodating different lengths. The movable wall mechanism enables a single chamber to serve as both an 84mm compacting chamber and a 100mm compacting chamber, making the machine universal for producing different cigarette sizes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the compacting chamber length is fixed, then the machine operation is simple, but it cannot accommodate different cigarette tube lengths
Solution Approach 1:
The compacting chamber includes a movable wall that can be repositioned to accommodate different cigarette tube lengths. The wall can be moved to create either an 84mm or 100mm chamber length, allowing the machine to adapt to different tube sizes while maintaining straightforward operation through a single adjustment mechanism.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple machines are used for different cigarette lengths, then each machine is optimized for its specific length, but it increases operational complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the functionality of multiple single-length machines into one multi-length machine. By combining the capability to produce both 84mm and 100mm cigarettes in a single device with a shared compacting chamber and movable wall, it eliminates the need for separate machines, thereby improving operational efficiency and reducing costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The machine achieves universality by enabling a single compacting chamber to produce cigarettes of different lengths. This multi-functional capability allows one machine to replace multiple specialized machines, improving productivity by reducing machine changes, setup time, and operational complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A cigarette tobacco compacting mechanism for making cigarettes in two or more different lengths having a compacting chamber for receiving loose tobacco, a compacting member mounted for reciprocal motion in the compacting chamber to compact the loose tobacco, and one or more retractable sizing members each having a tab mounted for movement across the compacting chamber for shortening the effective width of the compacting chamber to enable the compacting chamber to accommodate hollow cigarette tubes of varying lengths.