Tobacco rod forming device

Claim 1

IN A CIGARETTE MAKING MACHINE HAVING A FIRST LINEAR CONVEYOR ON WHICH SHREDDED TOBACCO IN EXCESS OF THAT REQUIRED FOR A UNIFORM ROD IS SHOWERED FORMING A FILLER STREAM, A SECOND LINER CONVEYOR SPACED FROM THE FIRST CONVEYOR AND ADAPTED TO ADVANCE A ROD STREAM TO MEANS FOR FORMING INDIVIDUAL CIGARETTES, AND PNEUMATIC MEANS BETWEEN SAID CONVEYORS FOR TRANSPORTING AND CONVERTING THE FILLER STREAM INTO A ROD STREAM, THE IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN SAID PNEUMATIC MEANS COMPRISES A PLURALITY OF ROTATING SUCTION WHEELS EACH FORMED WITH A PERIPHERAL GROOVE HAVING A FORAMINOUS BOTTOM AND MEANS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH A SOURCE OF SUCTION, AND AN ARCUATE SHOE MEMBER ASSOCIATED WITH SAID GROOVE FOR BLOCKING THE FLOW OF AIR THROUGH A PORTION OF THE PERIPHERY OF SAID GROOVE SO AS TO PERMIT ONLY A PORTION OF EACH WHEEL TO BE PLACED UNDER SUCTION, SAID WHEELS SERIALLY SPANNING THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID LINEAR CONVEYORS, THE SHOE IN EACH CONVEYOR BEING SO LOCATED AND THE DIRECTION OF ROTATION OF EACH WHEEL BEING SUCH THAT TOBACCO IS TRANSFERRED FROM THE FIRST LINEAR CONVEYOR TO THE FIRST OF SAID WHEELS AT THE INITIAL SUCTION BOUNDARY OF THAT PORTION OF THE GROOVE WHICH IS ADAPTED TO BE PLACED UNDER SUCTION, AND TRANSPORTED THEREON TO THE TERMINAL SUCTION BOUNDARY OF THE SAME ADJACENT TO THE INITIAL SUCRION BOUNDARY IN A SECOND WHEEL WHEREBY TOBACCO IS TRANSFERRED FROM THE GROOVE IN THE FIRST WHEEL TO THAT IN THE SECOND WHEEL UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF CENTRIFUGAL FORCE AND SUCTION FROM THE SECOND WHEEL AND A THIRD WHEEL BETWEEN THE SECOND WHEEL AND THE SECOND LINEAR CONVEYOR ADAPTED TO RECEIVE AND TRANSFER TOBACCO THEREBETWEEN UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF CENTRIFUGAL FORCE OF THE SECOND WHEEL AND SUCTION FROM THE THIRD WHEEL, THE SUCTION IN THE PERIPHERY SAID THIRD WHEEL TERMINATING ADJACENT THE ROD CONVEYOR, AND MEANS ADJACENT TO THE GROOVE IN THE SECOND WHEEL FOR REMOVING EXCESS TOBACCO THEREFROM THEREBY FORMING A UNIFORM ROD STREAM.