Molins Plc

Timothy Cardell Harrington

Hugh M Arthur

John K Horsley

A ledger mechanism for a rod cutting apparatus comprises a ledger; a coupling rod on which the ledger is fixedly mounted; and a pair of spaced gear arrangements each having a gear ratio of 2:1 to generate a pair of points, one point on each gear arrangement, which reciprocate in synchronism along straight parallel paths, wherein the coupling rod is pivotally coupled at one end to one of said pair of points on one gear arrangement, and at its opposite end to the other of said pair of points on the other gear arrangement so that the ledger reciprocates linearly.

Ledger for cut-off devices in cigarette machines

Apparatus for determining the height of a column of tobacco or similar particulate material in a downwardly extending channel, comprising a first capacitor, a second capacitor formed partly by an electrode plate extending above and below the desired average level of the top surface of the tobacco column in the channel during use, a third capacitor formed partly by an electrode plate lying permanently below the top surface of the tobacco column, and an electrical circuit which compares the value of the second capacitor with the sum of the values of the first and third capacitors and from which output signal can be obtained which reflects that comparison.

Apparatus for determining the length of a column of tobacco or similar

Splicing apparatus for joining the paper web from successive reels in a cigarette or cigarette filter rod making machine includes provision for running each reel closer to the end in a controlled manner to reduce wastage of paper. For that purpose the diameter of the in-use reel may be monitored by an arm coupled to an electrical detector with an averaging or smoothing circuit so that a signal is obtained which is insensitive to reel non-circularity or eccentricity. Alternatively the end of the paper may be detected as a result of the loss of tension in the paper.

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London, United Kingdom

Timothy Cardell Harrington