Altria Client Services LLC

Philip Morris USA Inc.

Dwight David Williams

Martin T Garthaffner

Charles David Howe

Munmaya K Mishra

Danielle R Crawford

Eric Hawes

Jeremy Jay Straight

Terry Bache

Carl Gregory Miller

Patrick Sean McElhinney

David J Webb

Raymond W Lau

James David Evans

Jarrod Wayne Chalkley

Shaoyong Yu

Rosana C Altoveros

San Li

Raquel M Olegario

Richard Jupe

Rowland W Dwyer

Alex Jordan

Gerald M Dale

Mark A Derigo

Kathryn M Draper

William Eugene Rabbitt

Christopher R Newcomb

Ryan Newcomb

Robert V Powell

Mike Braunshteyn

Dmitriy S Kirzhner

Carl Roy Stevens

Georgios D Karles

Feng Gao

Marc D Belcastro

David Phillips

Steve R Rinehart

Robert E Lee

Ahmet Ercelebi

Michael S Braunshteyn

Herbert Carrington Longest, Jr

Jeffrey Allen

Cary Longest

Maria Del Carmen Jarquin

Rebecca Secrist

Gregory H Ray

Anthony Kieu

An apparatus and methods for producing at extremely high production speeds small pouches filled with tobacco or other granular, powdered or solid content is provided. An endless web substrate, with or without flavor film thereon, is formed into a tubular shape with a longitudinal seam. The tube is cut to individual lengths, and a procession of tubes is crimp-closed at one end, filled and crimp-closed at the other end to complete pouch production. During production, the seams formed at the crimped ends of the pouch are parallel to one another and the longitudinal seam of the pouch is midway between the sides of the pouch and orthogonal to the seams formed at the crimped ends of the pouch.

High speed poucher

The package includes an inner package including a first panel defining a first compartment, the first panel including a first end that is at least partially heat sealed, the first end defining a first tear-point, a second panel defining a second compartment, a first interfacing edge of the first panel being connected to a second interfacing edge of the second panel, the second panel including a second end that is at least partially heat sealed, the second end defining a second tear-point, the first re-closeable seal and the second re-closeable seal being on a third end of the first compartment and a fourth end of the at least one second compartment, respectively.

Package with multiple compartments

The method includes first configuring a first cross-sectional flow area of a throat within a first air accelerator to discharge a target quantity of a particulate material, the first air accelerator including a body and an adjustable member, an interior surface of the body defining a cavity containing the adjustable member, the throat being at an air outlet of a chamber defined between the body and the adjustable member, the throat being near a discharge end of a singular bore defined by the adjustable member, the first configuring including axially moving the adjustable member along a first longitudinal length of the cavity.

Method of configuring air accelerator

A doser mechanism includes a cylindrical shell, an auger conveyor, and a check valve. The cylindrical shell includes a hollow cylinder and an end plate. The hollow cylinder at least partially defines an internal enclosure extending between first and second ends of the hollow cylinder, a first opening at the first end, and a second opening through a thickness of the hollow cylinder. The end plate covers the second end. The auger conveyor includes an auger at least partially extending through the internal enclosure through the first end. The check valve has a valve member configured to selectively cover the second opening. The check valve may cause the valve member to move between a rest position and an open position to cover or expose the second opening in response to a magnitude of a force applied to the valve member from the internal enclosure through the second opening.

Doser mechanisms

Die for gum forming

An apparatus configured to provide portioned instances of a compressible material includes a channel assembly, a gas source, a cutting assembly, and a discharge assembly. The channel assembly holds a bulk instance of the material extending through upper and lower channels of a continuous channel. The gas source supplies gas to compress the bulk instance. The cutting assembly moves in relation to the channel assembly to isolate the upper and lower channels, severing upper and lower material portions of the bulk instance. The discharge assembly directs gas to impinge on a lower face of the cutting assembly to discharge the lower material portion as a portioned instance. The channel assembly may be moveable, where operation of the gas source, cutting assembly, and/or discharge assembly are based on moving the channel assembly between various positions. The gas supply may be controlled based on a determined property of the portioned instance.

Gas-based material compression and portioning

The method including providing a filler material that is water insoluble, the providing provides the filler material with more than 98% alpha-cellulose, 0.01% to less than 2% ash and a remainder hemicellulose, infusing at least one first consumable within the filler material and inserting a matrix within at least one first containing structure to form an insert, the matrix including the filler material.

Method of making E-vaping device with insert

A bead delivery disk, system and method of delivering flavor beads to a tobacco rod or tow including a bead source, a bead delivery disk in communication with the bead source, including a central disk portion having front and back sides and a first central thickness, an inner annular rim around the central disk portion, the inner annular rim having a second thickness less than said first thickness, a series of pockets spaced around the inner annular rim and multiple vacuum transmission apertures located on one side of the disk, each aperture communicating with at least one of the pockets.

Bead feed unit and method

The method includes transporting tobacco into and through a shaft of a tongue of a compression box, and compressing the tobacco into a tobacco rod as the tobacco is transported through the compression box, the compression box including a first plate, a first portion of the first plate being formed over an upper portion of the shaft, the first portion running along a majority of a longitudinal length of the shaft.

Method of making tobacco rod using tongue of compression box

At least one example embodiment relates to an apparatus including a dosing tube and a plate. The dosing tube is configured to receive an auger. The dosing tube includes a cylindrical sidewall extending from a first end to a second end opposite the first end. The dosing tube defines an opening in the cylindrical sidewall. The plate is coupled to the second end of the dosing tube. The dosing tube is configured to rotate with respect to the plate. In at least one example embodiment, the apparatus further includes an auger configured to rotate and move a material from the second end to the first end of the dosing tube.

Apparatuses and methods for dosing loose material

An apparatus for the formation of machine-made tobacco rods for use in the production of smoking articles, such as cigars, from tobacco comprising a tacky material. The apparatus includes a pair of transfer and compression belts for receiving and compressing the stream of tobacco, the transfer and compression; a pair of squeeze bars for compressing the tobacco in a direction perpendicular to the pair of transfer and compression belts, the pair of squeeze bars produced from a material comprising a poly(aryl ether ketone); a tongue for receiving the compressed tobacco, the tongue produced from a material comprising a poly(aryl ether ketone); and a folder for folding a wrapper material around the compressed tobacco so as to form a continuous rod of tobacco, the wrapper material provided from a source of wrapper material, the folder produced from a material comprising a poly(aryl ether ketone).

Rod forming apparatus

A method of forming a wrapped article, comprising the steps of: forming a continuous stream of material such as an agricultural product; moving the continuous stream of material along an elongated path; compressing the continuous stream of material to reduce the cross-sectional area thereof until a predetermined cross-sectional dimension is achieved; drawing the compressed continuous stream of material through a rod-forming arrangement, the rod-forming arrangement having a non-contact displacement transducer associated therewith; folding at least one web longitudinally around the compressed continuous stream of material to form a continuous rod of material; and detecting variations in rod density within the rod-forming arrangement from a signal obtained from the non-contact displacement transducer.

Rod forming apparatus and method

The garniture includes at least one first garniture section with a first longitudinal length and a first upper surface, a first groove being defined within the first upper surface along the first longitudinal length, the first groove being defined by one or more first mating surfaces, and at least one first insert overlaying the first groove, an upper end of the at least first insert defining a second groove within a second upper surface of the at least one first insert, a lower end of the at least one insert including one or more second mating surfaces, a first upper portion of the first upper surface and a second upper portion of the second upper surface being substantially flush with each other.

Garniture with insert

A vapor cartridge for a non-combustible vaping device may be configured to receive a flavor cartridge, generate a vapor, and direct the generated vapor through the flavor cartridge to provide a flavored vapor. The flavor cartridge may include an instance of electrically conductive material extending at least partially around the flavor cartridge. The vapor cartridge may include an authentication assembly including a set of electrically conductive instruments may independently and directly contact the instance of electrically conductive material of the flavor cartridge inserted into the vapor cartridge, such that the electrically conductive instruments are electrically connected to each other through the instance of electrically conductive material of the flavor cartridge. The vapor cartridge may be coupled with a base that includes a control circuitry configured to control vapor generation by the vapor generator, based on the electrically conductive instruments being electrically connected to each other through the flavor cartridge.

Non-combustible vaping device

Growing community of inventors

Powhatan, VA, United States of America

Dwight David Williams