Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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"SMOKING ARTICLE AND MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR A SMOKING
ARTICLE"
Invention Field
The present invention relates to a smoking article comprising a space between
a
smoking material rod and a filtering element so as to form a chamber that is
peripherally sealed by a wrapper that unites the smoking material rod to the
filtering element, said wrapper having at least one ventilation opening.
State of the Art
Conventional ventilated cigarettes known in the art, which do not possess a
space
between a tobacco rod and a filtering element, usually provide cigarette smoke
with variable characteristics. These variable characteristics may result in
flavor
alterations. These variable characteristics arise because the ventilation may
vary in
accordance with the conditions in which the cigarette is being smoked.
Documents P18303783 and P19001386 disclose cigarettes that possess a chamber
located between two filters. Additionally, said documents disclose at least
one
ventilation opening in the wrapper that unites the tobacco rod to each
filtering
element in order to ventilate the chamber. In contrast with the objective of
the
present invention, said documents seek to optimize the smoke characteristics
by
means of better filtering of the same, without considering the standard
deviation of
the cigarette ventilation that could influence the smoke characteristics.
Document P19401850-2 discloses a coaxial cigarette that provides a chamber
between a coaxial tobacco rod and a filter to mix the smokes of the two types
of
tobacco present in the tobacco rod. The volume of said chamber is also
adjustable
in order to enable the change in smoke flavor perceived by the smoker. In
contrast
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with the main objective of the present invention, in said document the chamber
is
designed to only mix the two types of smoke. In this document, there is also
no
consideration regarding the effect of the standard deviation of the cigarette
ventilation.
No state of the art document reveals a ventilated smoking article consisting
of a
chamber located between a tobacco rod and a filter designed to homogenize the
smoke in order to maintain the product flavor characteristics and
simultaneously
increase the diffusion of the smoke vapor phase.
Invention Summary
In a first aspect, the invention provides a smoking article comprising a
smoking
material rod, at least one filtering element and a wrapper, wherein:
said wrapper connects the at least one filtering element and the smoking
material
rod;
the smoking material rod and the at least one filtering element are spaced
apart
and this space is enclosed by the wrapper to form a chamber; and
the wrapper comprises at least one ventilation opening.
In another aspect, the invention provides a method for manufacturing a smoking
article as described herein, comprising the steps of:
providing a smoking material rod and at least one filtering element in a
spaced
apart relationship to form a space between the smoking material rod and the
filter
element; and
connecting the smoking material rod to the at least one filtering element by
means
of a wrapper comprising at least one ventilation opening wherein the wrapper
encloses the space between the smoking material rod and the at least one
filtering
element to form a chamber.
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In another aspect, the present invention provides a smoking article comprising
a
tobacco rod, at least one filtering element and a wrapper, being that said
wrapper
fastened to the at least one filtering element and the tobacco rod in order to
allow
the coupling of the two, the wrapper having at least one ventilation opening,
wherein the smoking article comprises a chamber that is formed in the space
between the tobacco rod and the filtering element, and is enclosed by the
wrapper.
The smoking article described herein may consist of a tobacco rod, at least
one
filtering element and a wrapper.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a manufacturing method for a
smoking article, comprising the steps of formation of a tobacco rod and
formation
of a filtering element, wherein the method additionally comprises the steps of
formation of a space between the tobacco rod and the filtering element and the
coupling of the tobacco rod to the filtering element by fastening a wrapper
over
both, thus forming a chamber in the space between the tobacco rod and the
filtering element.
Preferably the at least one ventilation opening is located over the chamber.
Preferably the wrapper comprises a plurality of ventilation openings.
Preferably the
plurality of openings are circumferentially positioned on the wrapper.
Preferably the
plurality of openings are positioned in a line on the wrapper. Preferably the
plurality
of openings are located over the middle of the chamber. Preferably the
plurality of
openings are a ventilation perforation line on the wrapper.
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Preferably the spacing between the smoking material rod and the filtering
element
is between 2 to 5 mm. Preferably the spacing between the smoking material rod
and the filtering element is between 2 to 3 mm.
In a further aspect, the spacing between the smoking material rod and the
filtering
element is from 1.1 to 5.0 mm. Preferably the spacing is from 1.2 to 3.5 mm.
Preferably the spacing is from 1.3 to 2.7. Preferably the spacing is from 1.5
to 2.5.
Preferably the smoking material rod is a tobacco rod. A tobacco rod is a
smoking
1o material rod that comprises tobacco.
Preferably the extremity of the tobacco rod adjacent to the chamber comprises
tobacco that is fastened to a tobacco rod liner. A tobacco rod liner is a
wrapper
that enwraps the tobacco rod.
Preferably the tobacco is fastened to the tobacco rod liner by means of an
adhesive or by adjusting the quantity of tobacco on the tobacco rod
extremities.
Preferably spacing guides are installed in a closing drum of a filter coupling
machine to form the space between the smoking material rod and the at least
one
filtering element.
Preferably the method _further comprises the step of fastening tobacco located
at
the tobacco rod extremity adjacent to the chamber to a tobacco rod liner.
Preferably the smoking article has a CO/TAR reduction of at least 5% as
compared
to an equivalent smoking article that does not comprise a chamber. Preferably
the
smoking article has a CO/TAR reduction of at least 6%. Preferably the smoking
article has a CO/TAR reduction of at least 7%.
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Preferably the smoking article has a ventilation standard deviation of less
than
2.00. Preferably the smoking article has a ventilation standard deviation of
less
than 1.95. Preferably the smoking article has a ventilation standard deviation
of
5 less than 1.57. Preferably the smoking article has a ventilation standard
deviation
of less than 1Ø Preferably the smoking article has a ventilation standard
deviation
of less than 0.74.
Description of the Figures
-
Figure 1 represents an example of a conventional cigarette, without an air
chamber.
Figure 2 represents a preferred embodiment of the present invention in which
the
ventilation is located over the air chamber.
Figure 3 represents another preferential embodiment of the present invention
in
which the ventilation is located over the air chamber.
Figure 4 represents a drawing of a machine on which the method of
manufacturing
of the smoking article object of the present invention is performed.
Detailed Description of the Invention
The present invention will now be described in further detail in the following
examples.
A suitable smoking article 1, which comprises a tobacco rod 2, at least one
filtering
element 3 and a wrapper 4, may have said wrapper fastened over the at least
one
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filtering element and the tobacco rod so as to connect the same, the wrapper
having at least one ventilation opening 5 (see figure 2).
The smoking article comprises a chamber 6 that is formed in the space located
between the tobacco rod 2 and the filtering element 3, and is enclosed by the
wrapper 4. Typically, the space measures between 2 and 5 mm, for example,
between 2 and 3 mm (figure 2).
As shown in figure 2, the at least one ventilation opening 5 may be located
over the
chamber 6. However, acceptable results may also be obtained when the
ventilation
opening(s) is (are) located over the filtering element (figure 3).
In order to avoid that the smoke present in the extremity 8 of the tobacco rod
2
adjacent to the chamber 6 is deposited inside the same, part of the tobacco
may
be fastened on the liner 9 of the tobacco rod. Normally, this fixation is
performed by
means of an adhesive or by adjusting the quantity of tobacco on the
extremities of
the tobacco rod.
The smoking article may be manufactured by means of a manufacturing technique
that comprises the steps of formation of a tobacco rod 2, formation of at
least one
filtering element 3 and the formation of at least one ventilation opening 5 in
the
wrapper 4; followed by the formation of a space between the tobacco rod 2 and
the
at least one filtering element 3; and connecting the tobacco rod 2 to the at
least
one filtering element 3 by means of fastening of a wrapper 4 over the same,
such
that a chamber 6 is formed by the space located between the tobacco rod and
the
at least one filtering element. Alternatively, suitable tobacco rods 2, at
least one
filtering element 3, and wrapper 4 with at least one ventilation opening 5 may
be
obtained commercially. Thus, the method may be carried out without the steps
of
forming such materials.
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The method may additionally comprise the step of fastening on the tobacco rod
liner 9 the tobacco present on the extremity 8 of the tobacco rod 2 adjacent
to the
chamber 6. This fixation is preferably made by means of an adhesive or by
means
of the adjustment of the quantity of tobaccos located at the extremities of
the
tobacco rod.
The method of the present invention can be implemented on state of the art
filter
coupling machines, such as model MAX 100 manufactured by the Hauni Hamburg
Company. The spacing between the tobacco rod 2 and the at least one filtering
element 3 may be obtained by the installation of spacing guides 11 on a double
closing drum 12 of a filter coupling machine 10 (figure 4).
The main benefit of the smoking article of the present invention is the
reduction in
the TIP ventilation standard deviation, conferring increased cigarette
quality. TIP
ventilation is the percentage measurement of the quantity of air that passes
through the filter, promoting the dilution of the smoke resulting from the
burning of
the tobacco rod.
The secondary benefit of the present invention is the reduction of the
concentration
of carbon monoxide in the main smoke.
Table 1 below presents the experimental results observed in laboratory tests
of the
reduction in the ventilation standard deviation and of the reduction of carbon
monoxide content obtained with the use of smoking articles of the present
invention compared to commercial products with both high and low ventilation
levels.
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Product Low Ventilation High Ventilation
Alternative 135300 135302 135304 135301 135303 135305
Spacing 0 2 2 0 2 2
(mm)
Mouth End 10 15 10 10 15 10
(mm)
TAR 9,3 10.1 9.4 7.6 8.0 8.1
(mg/cigarette)
Nicotine 0.72 0.82 0.75 0.64 0.75 0.7
(mg/cigarette)
CO 9.2 9.3 8.7 7.2 6.5 7.1
(mg/cigarette)
Inhalations 7.3 7.0 7.2 7.6 7.2 7.5
CO/TAR 0.99 0.92 0.92 0.94 0.81 0.88
CO/TAR - 7 7 - 14 6
reduction (%)
Ventilation 17 19 17 34 41 36
(%)
Ventilation 2.01 0.74 1.95 3.32 1.57 6.71
Standard
Deviation
Ventilation 11.8 4.0 11.6 9.7 3.8 18.1
Variation
Coefficient
TABLE 1
In Table 1, six cigarette alternatives were used, identified by numbers 135300
to
135305. Alternatives 135300 and 135301 refer to conventional cigarettes with
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ventilation over the filtering element and the remaining alternatives refer to
the type
of cigarette of the present invention that have a spacing of 2mm.
The expression mouth end represents the distance between the extremity of the
filter closest to the smoker's mouth and the ventilation perforation line. TAR
is the
term used to describe the total substances present in the smoke excluding
water
and nicotine. Inhalations represent the number of times the cigarette is
smoked by
the smoking machine.
The measurement of the ventilation consists in the application of a vacuum to
the
cigarette extremity containing the filter, generating an airflow of 17.5 mUs
through
the cigarette (tobacco rod + ventilation). The airflow that passes through the
cigarette tip and the tobacco rod are measured using a low-pressure transducer
and these individual measurements of the cigarette are performed by adequately
isolating the areas with coils lined with a latex glove. The result of
ventilation is
expressed as the total % of air that passes through the tobacco rod and the
ventilation.
Alternatives 135305 and 135304 provide the ventilation openings positioned
over
the filtering element and alternatives 135302 and 135303 provide the
ventilation
openings over the space between the filtering element and the tobacco rod. As
can
be seen, the lowest ventilation standard deviation and variation coefficient
was
obtained for alternatives 135302 and 135303. However, all the alternatives
cigarettes of the present invention provided a reduction of CO/TAR.
All publications mentioned in the above specification are herein incorporated
by
reference. Various modifications and variations of the described methods and
system of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art without
departing
from the scope and spirit of the invention. Although the invention has been
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described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be
understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such
specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for
carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in chemistry or
related
5 fields are intended to be within the scope of the following claims
