Removable Cap and Sleeve for Filter-Tipped Cigarette Tobacco Tip Protection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing manufacturing processes for filter-tipped cigarettes result in significant economic losses due to poorly filled tips, which are prone to tobacco fallout during transfer and packing, and previous solutions either lack protection for the tobacco tip or involve complex folding operations that reduce production speed.
Innovation Solution
A filter-tipped cigarette design featuring a cap and sleeve structure with an annular tear line, where the cap is removable to expose the tobacco tip, providing mechanical protection and allowing for easy quality control without compromising production speed, and a manufacturing method that modifies conventional machines to integrate cap and filter assembly efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If no protection is provided for the tobacco tip, then the structure remains simple and production speed is maintained, but tobacco fallout occurs during transfer and packing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a disposable cap and sleeve assembly that protects the tobacco tip during manufacturing and packaging, then is removed before smoking. This temporary protective structure prevents tobacco fallout during critical handling phases while maintaining simplicity for the actual smoking product.
Solution Approach 2:
The cap and sleeve are applied to the tobacco portion before the cigarette undergoes transfer and packaging operations. This preliminary protective action prevents tobacco fallout during these vulnerable stages, addressing the harmful effect before it can occur.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If complex folding operations are used to protect the tobacco tip, then tobacco fallout is prevented, but production speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the protective function from complex folding operations and implements it through a separate cap and sleeve component. This allows the protective function to be applied independently without interfering with the high-speed rolling and assembly processes, maintaining productivity while preventing tobacco fallout.
Solution Approach 2:
The protection system is segmented into distinct components (cap and sleeve) that can be applied separately to the tobacco portion. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured and applied independently at high speed, avoiding the need for complex integrated folding operations that would slow production.
3Ease of operation
If the tip is left exposed for easy access, then user convenience is improved, but quality control becomes difficult due to tobacco fallout
Solution Approach 1:
The cap and sleeve are applied to the tobacco portion before quality control inspection occurs during manufacturing. This preliminary protective action ensures the tip remains firmly filled and intact during handling and inspection, enabling accurate quality control without compromising future tip accessibility for the user.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A filter-tipped cigarette (1) having: a tobacco portion (2) having an outer end (3) and an inner end (4); a filter (5) butt-connected to the inner end (4) of the tobacco portion (2); a first sleeve (6) wound about the tobacco portion (2) and the filter (5) to connect the filter (5) permanently and non-detachably to the tobacco portion (2); a cap (7) butt -connected to the outer end (3) of the tobacco portion (2), at the opposite end from the filter (5), and removable to smoke the filter-tipped cigarette (1); and a second sleeve (S), which is wound about the cap (7) and the tobacco portion (2), is integral with the cap (7), and is at least partly removable axially from the tobacco portion (2) together with and to remove the cap (7).