Cigarette cathcing mechanism

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLES FROM A CONTINUOUSLY MOVING CONVEYOR IN BATCHES EACH CONSISTING OF A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF ARTICLES, COMPRISING A BATCH REMOVAL STATION TO WHICH ARTICLES ARE, IN OPERATION LED BY SUCH CONVEYOR, MEANS FOR ARRESTING THE MOVEMENT OF THE MOST DOWNSTREAM ARTICLES, IN EACH BATCH AT THE MOST DOWNSTREAM EXTREMITY OF SUCH STATION, SWEEP MEANS AT SAID REMOVAL STATION, SUCH SWEEP MEANS BEING MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT TRANSVERSE TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF THE CONVEYOR AND OPERATIVE UPON MOVEMENT TO SWEEP ARTICLES AT THE REMOVAL STATION FROM THE CONVEYOR, AND SENSING MEANS FOR CAUSING OPERATION OF SAID SWEEP MEANS THE SAID SENSING MEANS COMPRISES A DEVICE SITUATED UPSTREAM OF THE REMOVAL STATION FOR COUNTING THE ARTICLES AS THEY PASS AND ADAPTED TO ACTUATE STOP MEANS TO CUT OFF THE STREAM OF ARTICLES AT A POINT UPSTREAM OF THE REMOVAL STATION WHEN A NUMBER OF ARTICLES CONSTITUTING ONE BATCH HAS PASSED SUCH STOP MEANS, RELEASE MECHANISM FOR SUCH STOP MEANS BEING PROVIDED AND BEING AUTOMATICALLY ACTUABLE IN CONSEQUENCE OF THE REMOVAL OF EACH BATCH FROM THE CONVEYOR SO AS TO INITIATE THE DELIVERY OF ARTICLES IN THE NEXT SUCCEEDING BATCH.