Variable-Pitch Crimping Rollers for Uniform Crimped Webs
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for manufacturing crimped webs for aerosol-generating articles result in non-uniform distribution of crimped material, leading to variations in resistance to draw and aerosol droplet size, which affects the performance consistency of these articles.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that crimp a continuous web using rollers with varying pitch values of corrugations across the width, ensuring that crimp corrugations do not nest together, resulting in a more uniform distribution of crimped material and consistent resistance to draw.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional methods use rollers with uniform pitch values across the width, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the distribution of crimped material becomes non-uniform
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by varying the pitch values of corrugations across the width of the rollers. Different sections of the roller surface have different pitch characteristics, creating locally optimized crimp patterns that collectively achieve uniform material distribution throughout the web.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by modifying the pitch values of roller corrugations across their width. The pitch parameter varies from one location to another on the roller surface, transforming a uniform pattern into a non-uniform pattern that compensates for material distribution variations.
2Reliability
If conventional methods use uniform pitch corrugations, then the manufacturing process is straightforward, but resistance to draw varies between articles
Solution Approach 1:
The varying pitch corrugations create local variations in crimp density that compensate for variations in material properties and processing conditions, ensuring consistent resistance to draw across different articles even though the apparatus is more complex.
3Manufacturing precision
If conventional methods use uniform pitch corrugations, then the manufacturing setup is simple, but aerosol droplet size varies
Solution Approach 1:
By changing the pitch parameter across the roller width, the patent achieves uniform aerosol droplet size. The varied pitch creates corresponding variations in crimp spacing that control aerosol formation consistently across the entire web width.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for manufacturing a crimped web for an aerosol-generating article is provided, the apparatus including: a set of crimping rollers including a first roller and a second roller, each of which is corrugated across at least a portion of a width thereof, the first and the second rollers being arranged such that corrugations of the first roller substantially interleave with corrugations of the second roller, pitch values of the corrugations of one or both of the first and the second rollers varying across the width of the rollers, and the pitch values of substantially all of the corrugations of the first and the second rollers varying from about 0.5 mm to about 1.7 mm. A crimped sheet, and a method of manufacturing an aerosol-generating article component, are also provided.