A system for manufacturing cigarettes is provided. The system can include an easily removable and/or replaceable metering device that use a cavity drum to dispense a filler material, a modular garniture format parts bank that can be removed and replaced as a single unit from the cigarette manufacturing machinery, and a cutter head having components operated with a single motor that turns a spline shaft.

A filling unit, configured to fill a succession of tubular wrappers of the tobacco industry. The tubular wrappers extend along a main axis of extension and internally define respective containment chambers adapted to contain a filling material of the tobacco industry and have an access opening on at least one of its ends for access to the containment chamber. The unit also includes a filling station configured to insert the filling material into respective containment chambers of the succession of tubular wrappers through a filling end of them and a closing station disposed downstream of the filling station and comprising a plurality of closing means configured to make respective walls which close the filling ends and which are transverse to the respective main axes of extension.

A filling unit, configured to fill a succession of tubular wrappers of the tobacco industry. The tubular wrappers extend along a main axis of extension and internally define respective containment chambers adapted to contain a filling material of the tobacco industry and have an access opening on at least one of its ends for access to the containment chamber. The unit also includes a filling station configured to insert the filling material into respective containment chambers of the succession of tubular wrappers through a filling end of them and a closing station disposed downstream of the filling station and comprising a plurality of closing means configured to make respective walls which close the filling ends and which are transverse to the respective main axes of extension.

A method for manufacturing rod-like articles for tobacco industry, the rod-like articles comprising longitudinal inserts located in a filling material, the method comprising: feeding a continuous tape-like wrapper; feeding a strand of the filling material onto the moving wrapper; feeding an insert material, in a form of a tape having weakenings, into the strand of the filling material; forming a continuous rod by wrapping the wrapper around the strand of the filling material with the insert material; cutting the moving continuous rod into discrete rod-like articles by a cutting head at a cutting plane that traverses the weakening in the tape of the insert material; the method being characterized by: inspecting ends of the insert in the rod like article cut from the continuous rod and comparing the ends with a predefined model to obtain a measure of similarity; and depending on the similarity, adjusting the action of the cutting head with respect to the movement of the continuous rod such as to increase the similarity between the ends of the insert to the model in a following rod like article.

A method for manufacturing rod-like articles for tobacco industry, the rod-like articles comprising longitudinal inserts located in a filling material, the method comprising: feeding a continuous tape-like wrapper; feeding a strand of the filling material onto the moving wrapper; feeding an insert material, in a form of a tape having weakenings, into the strand of the filling material; forming a continuous rod by wrapping the wrapper around the strand of the filling material with the insert material; cutting the moving continuous rod into discrete rod-like articles by a cutting head at a cutting plane that traverses the weakening in the tape of the insert material; the method being characterized by: inspecting ends of the insert in the rod like article cut from the continuous rod and comparing the ends with a predefined model to obtain a measure of similarity; and depending on the similarity, adjusting the action of the cutting head with respect to the movement of the continuous rod such as to increase the similarity between the ends of the insert to the model in a following rod like article.

A method and an apparatus (1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E) for axial centering of a rod-like article (3) or a group of rod-like articles wherein the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles is conveyed in a flute (4) situated on the circumference of a drum conveyor (5), moreover, the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles in the successive flutes (4) have the same or varying length, with the apparatus (1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E) being provided with pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) of a shifting mechanism axially acting on the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles so as to change the position of the rod-like article (3) or the groups of articles in the flute (4), characterized in that the coupled pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) make swinging movements having opposite senses, moreover, the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) have contact surfaces (10A, 13A, 20A, 23A, 30A, 33A, 40A, 43A) adapted to axially act on the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles, the contact surfaces (10A, 13A, 20A, 23A, 30A, 33A, 40A, 43A) of the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) being convergently positioned in the direction of movement (T) of the rod-like articles, at least one pusher element (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) being connected with a dynamic element (6, 26, 37, 47) placing the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) in a position enabling them to axially act on the rod-like articles (3, 3L, 3R) or the groups of rod-like articles conveyed on the drum conveyor (5) so that the centers of the rod-like articles (3) or the groups of rod-like articles are positioned principally in a common plane (S, SL, SR).

A method and an apparatus (1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E) for axial centering of a rod-like article (3) or a group of rod-like articles wherein the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles is conveyed in a flute (4) situated on the circumference of a drum conveyor (5), moreover, the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles in the successive flutes (4) have the same or varying length, with the apparatus (1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E) being provided with pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) of a shifting mechanism axially acting on the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles so as to change the position of the rod-like article (3) or the groups of articles in the flute (4), characterized in that the coupled pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) make swinging movements having opposite senses, moreover, the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) have contact surfaces (10A, 13A, 20A, 23A, 30A, 33A, 40A, 43A) adapted to axially act on the rod-like article (3) or the group of rod-like articles, the contact surfaces (10A, 13A, 20A, 23A, 30A, 33A, 40A, 43A) of the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) being convergently positioned in the direction of movement (T) of the rod-like articles, at least one pusher element (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) being connected with a dynamic element (6, 26, 37, 47) placing the pusher elements (10, 13, 20, 23, 30, 33, 40, 43) in a position enabling them to axially act on the rod-like articles (3, 3L, 3R) or the groups of rod-like articles conveyed on the drum conveyor (5) so that the centers of the rod-like articles (3) or the groups of rod-like articles are positioned principally in a common plane (S, SL, SR).

A knife is provided for a cutting device for cutting continuous rods in a manufacturing process, the knife including: a knife body having a distal end and a proximal end opposite the distal end, the knife body configured to be attached to a cutting device; and a cutting edge located at the distal end of the knife body, the cutting edge including at least two cutting edge segments, each cutting edge segment including a profile, the profile including one maximum protrusion from the knife body, and at least a portion of a second cutting edge segment of the at least two cutting edge segments protruding, from the knife body, to a greater extent than the maximum protrusion of a first cutting edge segment of the at least two cutting edge segments, from the knife body. A cutting device, and a method of manufacturing a cutting device, are also provided.

A knife is provided for a cutting device for cutting continuous rods in a manufacturing process, the knife including: a knife body having a distal end and a proximal end opposite the distal end, the knife body configured to be attached to a cutting device; and a cutting edge located at the distal end of the knife body, the cutting edge including at least two cutting edge segments, each cutting edge segment including a profile, the profile including one maximum protrusion from the knife body, and at least a portion of a second cutting edge segment of the at least two cutting edge segments protruding, from the knife body, to a greater extent than the maximum protrusion of a first cutting edge segment of the at least two cutting edge segments, from the knife body. A cutting device, and a method of manufacturing a cutting device, are also provided.

A machine for wrapping smokable material in a wrapper includes a garniture defining a straight path along a longitudinal axis on which a wrapper is guided. A garniture belt transports the wrapper along the straight path. A feeding device for feeding a smokable material to the garniture includes a first conveyor having an upper section on which the smokable material is supported, the first conveyor being actuatable to move the smokable material in a feed direction toward a downstream side of the first conveyor. A holding container has a bottom defined at least partially by the first conveyor. A feed transports the smokable material from a supply container to the holding container so that that an amount of smokable material in the holding container is maintained within a range including a predetermined minimum amount and a predetermined maximum amount. A metering device meters the amount of smokable material that is moved by the first conveyor from the holding container toward the garniture.