Storage containers, products, and methods of packing a smoking product are described. An example storage container has a main body that has a first end, a second end, a lengthwise axis, a width, and defines a chamber and an indicium. The lengthwise axis has a midpoint. Each of the first end and second end is moveable from a sealed configuration to an unsealed configuration. The width of the main body tapers from the second end toward the first end. The indicium is defined at a location between the midpoint of the lengthwise axis and the first end and extends along a portion of the width of the main body. The main body has a first width at the location between the midpoint of the lengthwise axis and the first end and a second width at the second end. The first width is less than the second width.

A reconfigurable wrapping mechanism (100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600) for forming a substantially cylindrical wrapped element by wrapping a core (160, 560) within a web material, comprising: a reconfigurable garniture bed (110, 210, 310, 410) having an elongate formation channel (212) that has an elongate open side; a conveying belt (120, 220, 320, 420, 520) extending along the length of the elongate formation channel (212) for entraining the web material; a drive mechanism for driving the conveying belt (120, 220, 320, 420, 520) along the length of the elongate formation channel (212).

A device for automated loading and forming smoking articles has a conveyer unit holding and moving a plurality of conical paper wrappers. A dispensing unit is coupled to and positioned above the conveyer unit. The dispensing unit stores pre-grounded tobacco leaf/herbs, loads a predetermined amount of the pre-grounded tobacco leaf/herbs into a designated conical paper wrapper of the plurality of conical paper wrappers, and compacts the pre-grounded tobacco leaf/herbs loaded into the designated conical paper wrapper. The conveyer unit moves the designated conical paper wrapper to a desired location under the dispensing unit to load and compact the predetermined amount of the pre-grounded tobacco leaf/herbs into the designated conical paper wrapper. The conveyer unit then moves a next conical paper wrapper to the desired location after the dispensing unit loads and compacts the predetermined amount of the pre-grounded tobacco leaf/herbs into the designated conical paper wrapper.

A piston device for loading material into a tube or other implement. In an example, the material is a smoking material loaded into a smoking implement. An example piston device includes a cylinder and a piston. The piston is removed from a first end of the cylinder and inserted into a second end of the cylinder. A cap slip locks onto the second end of the cylinder to provide a surface on which to compress the material against. Withdrawing the piston from the second end of the cylinder draws the smoking material into a chamber of the cylinder through an opening in the first end of the cylinder. Pressing the piston into the second end of the cylinder compresses the smoking material within the chamber of the cylinder, and then releases the smoking material from the chamber of the cylinder into the smoking implement.

Storage containers, products, and methods of packing a smoking product are described. An example storage container has a main body that has a first end, a second end, a lengthwise axis, a width, and defines a chamber and an indicium. The lengthwise axis has a midpoint. Each of the first end and second end is moveable from a sealed configuration to an unsealed configuration. The width of the main body tapers from the second end toward the first end. The indicium is defined at a location between the midpoint of the lengthwise axis and the first end and extends along a portion of the width of the main body. The main body has a first width at the location between the midpoint of the lengthwise axis and the first end and a second width at the second end. The first width is less than the second width.

A manufacturing machine and a manufacturing method for the production of a tubular element, in particular for a smoking article. There are provided: an input conveyor, which moves at least one pocket along an input path; a wrapping conveyor, which moves at least one spindle, which has the shape of an inner cavity of the tubular element, along a wrapping path; a feeding station, where the pocket receives a wrapping sheet; and a transfer station, where the pocket releases the wrapping sheet to the spindle folding the wrapping sheet around the spindle into a “U” shape.

A system and method for closing and sealing a cone is provided. One embodiment extends a first closing head in a first downward slant onto an open top of the cone filled with the smokable material to form a first fold on the top of the cone; extends a sealing head downward onto the first fold; extends a second closing head in a second downward slant onto the open top of the cone to form a second fold on the top of the cone; extends the sealing head downward onto the first fold and the second fold; extends a third closing head in a third downward slant onto the open top of the cone to form a third fold on the top of the cone; and extends the sealing head downward onto the first fold, the second fold, and the third fold.

A cannabis joints filling system includes a cannabis joint filling apparatus for receiving and holding a paper cone along a longitudinal axis and for receiving and pre-compacting a predetermined quantity of cannabis into the paper cone; and a cannabis feeding system including i) a weighing scale, ii) a cannabis feeding apparatus adjacent the weighing scale for receiving cannabis in bulk and for controllably outputting a predetermined portion of the cannabis in bulk onto the weighing scale, and iii) a single portion cannabis distributing device, including two cups that are sequentially movable between a) a cannabis weighing position, wherein one of the two cups cooperates with the weighing scale to measure the predetermined portion of the cannabis, and b) a cannabis distributing position, where the predetermined portion of the cannabis is fed to the cannabis joint filling apparatus.

A reconfigurable wrapping mechanism (100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600) for forming a substantially cylindrical wrapped element by wrapping a core (160, 560) within a web material, comprising: a reconfigurable garniture bed (110, 210, 310, 410) having an elongate formation channel (212) that has an elongate open side; a conveying belt (120, 220, 320, 420, 520) extending along the length of the elongate formation channel (212) for entraining the web material; a drive mechanism for driving the conveying belt (120, 220, 320, 420, 520) along the length of the elongate formation channel (212).

A system and method for adding smokable material into cone is provided. One embodiment receives input at a user input device from a user that specifies an amount of the smokable material that is to be dispensed by the auger load system into an empty cone; determines, at a cone filler control system, a determined duration based on the user specified amount of smokable material received in at user input device; communicates a control signal from the cone filler control system; and operates an auger drive motor to rotate an auger for the determined duration in response to the control signal so that a helical screw blade of the auger dispenses the user specified amount of smokable material out from a lower portion of a hopper containing the smokable material into an empty cone.