The present invention relates to a package of cigarettes with a pull-up tape, and relative packing method and machine.

In the following description, reference is made, for the sake of simplicity and purely by way of example, to a rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes.

A rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes normally comprises an inner package enclosing a group of cigarettes; and a rigid outer container housing the inner package. The inner package is initially closed completely, and has a tear-off top portion, which is removed, when the packet of cigarettes is unsealed, to withdraw the cigarettes from the inner package.

The inner package and outer container often exert lateral pressure on the group of cigarettes inside the inner package. And, in the case of a new packet with a full group of cigarettes, this lateral pressure may make it difficult to extract the first cigarette from the group, due to friction between the first and surrounding cigarettes. To simplify removal of the first cigarette from the group, it has been proposed to fit at least one cigarette in the group with a pull-up tape having a grip end, which projects from the top wall of the group of cigarettes, and is pulled to slide the cigarette up.

A major drawback of known pull-up tapes lies in the inner end opposite the grip end having to be glued to a wall of the inner package. The inner packages of packets of cigarettes, however, have always been made without glue, on account of the potential of glue on or near the cigarettes to release volatile substances, which are absorbed by the cigarettes and spoil the aroma and/or taste of the tobacco.

Moreover, standard packing machines are difficult to equip with a gumming device capable of applying glue to the inner surface of the inner package.

FR1092516A discloses a package of cigarettes with a pull-up tape as recited in the pre-characterizing portion of independent claim 1. EP 2008935 A1 discloses a packing method and machine according respectively to the preambles of claim 9 and 10.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a package of cigarettes with a pull-up tape, designed to eliminate the above drawbacks, and which at the same time is cheap and easy to produce. Another object of the present invention is to provide a packing method and machine for producing such a package of cigarettes.

According to the present invention, there are provided a package of cigarettes with a pull-up tape, and relative packing method and machine, as claimed respectively in claims 1, 9 and 10.

A non-limiting embodiment of the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :

• Figure 1 shows a front view in perspective of a packet of cigarettes, in accordance with the present invention, in a closed configuration;
• Figure 2 shows a front view in perspective of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes in an open configuration;
• Figure 3 shows a rear view in perspective of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes in a closed configuration;
• Figure 4 shows a front view in perspective of an inner package of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes with a tear-off top portion removed;
• Figure 5 shows a front view in perspective of a group of cigarettes enclosed in the Figure 4 inner package;
• Figure 6 shows a front view in perspective of the Figure 5 group of cigarettes when extracting the first cigarette;
• Figure 7 shows a front view in perspective of the Figure 5 group of cigarettes when extracting the first cigarette, and with the first cigarette removed for the sake of clarity;
• Figure 8 shows a side view of a pull-up tape fitted to the first cigarette to be extracted from the group;
• Figure 9 shows a schematic view in perspective, with parts removed for clarity, of part of a packing machine for producing the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes;
• Figure 10 shows a schematic view in perspective, with parts removed for clarity, of a group-forming unit of the Figure 9 packing machine, for forming groups of cigarettes;
• Figure 11 shows a schematic cross section, with parts removed for clarity, of the Figure 10 group-forming unit;
• Figure 12 shows a front view of a detail in Figure 11.

Number 1 in Figures 1, 2 and 3 indicates as a whole a rigid packet of cigarettes comprising a cup-shaped outer container 2 of rigid cardboard; and an inner package 3 housed inside container 2. Inner package 3 encloses a parallelepiped-shaped group of cigarettes (Figures 4-7) and has, at the top and front, a cigarette extraction opening 5 closed by a tear-off closing portion 6, and which extends over part of a front wall and part of a top wall of inner package 3. Tear-off closing portion 6 is removed, when packet 1 of cigarettes is unsealed, to withdraw the cigarettes from inner package 3. In other words, when packet 1 of cigarettes is unsealed, inner package 3 goes from the Figure 2 configuration (with tear-off closing portion 6) to the Figure 4 configuration (without tear-off closing portion 6).

In a different embodiment not shown, inner package 3 is sealed, and tear-off closing portion 6 initially closing extraction opening 5 is replaced with a reclosable (i.e. open-close) sealing panel 6 movable between a closed position closing extraction opening 5, and an open position opening extraction opening 5.

Outer container 2 has an open top end 7; and a cup-shaped lid 8 hinged to container 2 along a hinge 9 to rotate, with respect to container 2, between an open position (Figure 2) and a closed position (Figures 1 and 3) opening and closing open top end 7 respectively.

When lid 8 is in the closed position, outer container 2 is in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped comprising a top wall 10 and bottom wall 11 opposite and parallel to each other; two opposite parallel major lateral walls 12, 13; and two opposite parallel minor lateral walls 14. More specifically, one major lateral wall 12 defines a front wall 12 of outer container 2, and the other major lateral wall 13 defines a rear wall 13 of outer container 2. Four longitudinal edges 15 are defined between lateral walls 14 and front and rear walls 12, 13; and eight transverse edges 16 are defined between top and bottom walls 10, 11 and front, rear, and lateral walls 12, 13, 14.

In the Figure 1-3 embodiment, edges 15 and 16 are all square, but in alternative embodiments not shown, some of edges 15 and 16 may be bevelled or rounded.

Packet 1 also comprises a rigid (i.e. rigid-cardboard) collar 17, which is folded into a U and fixed (glued) to the inside of container 2, projects partly outwards of open top end 7, and engages a corresponding inner surface of lid 8 when lid 8 is closed. In a preferred embodiment, collar 17 has two projections 18, which project laterally to interfere with the lateral walls of lid 8 and keep lid 8 in the closed position. Collar 17 comprises a front wall 19 positioned contacting front wall 12 of container 2; and two lateral walls 20 located on opposite sides of front wall 19, and positioned contacting minor lateral walls 14 of container 2.

As shown in Figures 4-8, a pull-up tape 21 is fitted to a cigarette 22 in group 4, and has a grip end 23, which projects from the top wall of group 4, at extraction opening 5 of inner package 3, and is pulled to slide cigarette 22 up. As shown more clearly in Figure 8, pull-up tape 21 is folded into a U about the bottom end 24, inside inner package 3, of cigarette 22, and is completely detached from and therefore movable freely with respect to inner package 3. In other words, being in no way connected mechanically to inner package 3, all parts of pull-up tape 21 can slide freely with respect to inner package 3.

As shown more clearly in Figure 8, pull-up tape 21 comprises a vertical wall 25 terminating with grip end 23 and positioned contacting a cylindrical lateral wall 26 of cigarette 22; a horizontal wall 27 perpendicular to vertical wall 25 and positioned contacting the bottom end 24 of cigarette 22; and a vertical wall 28, which terminates with an inner end 29 of pull-up tape 21 opposite grip end 23, is parallel to and faces vertical wall 25, and is positioned contacting cylindrical lateral wall 26 of cigarette 22, on the opposite side of cigarette 22 to vertical wall 25.

According to the invention, vertical wall 28 of pull-up tape 21 comprises a wider portion 30 wider (i.e. transversely) than the rest of pull-up tape 21 (and in particular horizontal wall 27). Wider portion 30 is wider than (preferably two to three times) the diameter of a cigarette, and the rest of pull-tap tape 21 is narrower than the diameter of a cigarette.

In other words, pull-up tape 21 comprises a narrow portion extending from grip end 23; and a wider portion 30 extending from inner end 29 opposite grip end 23, and wider than the narrow portion.

When packet 1 of cigarettes is sealed, and therefore inner package 3 unopened, extraction opening 5 of inner package 3 is closed by tear-off closing portion 6, which presses the grip end 23 of pull-up tape 21 down onto the top wall of group 4 of cigarettes. When packet 1 of cigarettes is unsealed and closing portion 6 torn off by the user, grip end 23 of pull-up tape 21 springs up off the top wall of group 4 of cigarettes for easy grip by the user (as shown in Figures 4 and 5). Holding grip end 23, the user pulls tape 21 up vertically (as shown in Figure 6), thus also sliding cigarette 22 vertically upwards together with pull-up tape 21 and with respect to the rest of group 4 (as shown in Figure 6) for easy withdrawal through extraction opening 5 of inner package 3.

Wider portion 30 of pull-up tape 21 has a dual function.

Firstly, when the user pulls grip end 23 of tape 21 upwards to extract cigarette 22, wider portion 30 prevents pull-up tape 21 from slipping with respect to, as opposed to sliding upwards with, cigarette 22 (i.e. prevents pull-up tape 21 from being withdrawn from group 4 of cigarettes, while cigarette 22 remains in place). In other words, should pull-up tape 21 begin to slip with respect to cigarette 22 (i.e. to withdraw from group 4) when the user exerts pull on grip end 23, wider portion 30 would have to deform to slide under group 4. Because of its size, however, deforming wider portion 30 takes more force than to slide tape 21 upwards together with cigarette 22, so any slippage of pull-up tape 21 with respect to cigarette 22 is stopped by failure of wider portion 30 to deform and slide under group 4.

Secondly, wider portion 30 holds pull-up tape 21 in the correct position about cigarette 22, and prevents any undesired lateral (transverse) movement of pull-up tape 21 as cigarette 22 is raised.

As stated, at least horizontal wall 27 of pull-up tape 21 is narrower than the diameter of a cigarette, to ensure pull-up tape 21 only raises cigarette 22, i.e. if horizontal wall 27 of pull-up tape 21 were wider than the diameter of a cigarette, it would also contact the two cigarettes adjacent to cigarette 22; and wider portion 30 of pull-up tape 21 is wider than the diameter of a cigarette, to ensure it contacts cigarette 22 and the two cigarettes adjacent to cigarette 22, as shown in Figures 5-7. In a preferred embodiment, wider portion 30 of pull-up tape 21 is from two to three times as wide as the diameter of a cigarette, to ensure it contacts only three cigarettes : cigarette 22 and the two cigarettes adjacent to cigarette 22. If much narrower than twice the diameter of a cigarette, wider portion 30 would fail to ensure sufficient stability of pull-up tape 21; and conversely, if much wider than three (or even four) times the diameter of a cigarette, wider portion 30 of pull-up tape 21 could generate severe friction when raising cigarette 22.

Figure 9 shows part of an X2 or X3 type cigarette packing machine, manufactured by G.D. Società per Azioni, for producing packet 1 of cigarettes as described above and shown in Figures 1-3.

Packing machine 31 comprises a group-forming unit 32 for forming groups 4 of cigarettes; a packing unit 33 for forming inner packages 3 by folding sheets 34 of packing material about groups 4 of cigarettes; and a packing unit 35 for forming outer containers 2 by folding collars 17 and blanks 36 about inner packages 3.

As shown in Figure 10, unit 32 for forming groups 4 of cigarettes comprises a group-forming conveyor 37 fitted with a number of group-forming pockets 38 (only one shown in Figure 10), each of which supports a group 4 of cigarettes comprising three superimposed layers 39 of cigarettes. Group-forming conveyor 37 feeds group-forming pockets 38 past three outlets of a hopper 40 (shown schematically in Figure 9), where three respective pushers 41 (one shown in Figure 11) insert the three layers 39 of cigarettes successively into a group-forming pocket 38 to form a group 4 of cigarettes.

As shown in Figure 11, group-forming unit 32 comprises a feed device 42, which feeds a pull-up tape 21 into position in front of a group-forming pocket 38, before a layer 39a of cigarettes is inserted inside pocket 38. Accordingly, when inserted by pusher 41 into group-forming pocket 38, layer 39a of cigarettes intercepts pull-up tape 21 and folds it into a U about cigarette 22 in layer 39a of cigarettes.

Feed device 42 comprises a suction conveyor belt 43 for successively conveying pull-up tapes 21 horizontally; and a diverter 44 located at the output end of conveyor belt 43 to direct pull-up tapes 21 vertically downwards into the path of layers 39a of cigarettes. A vertical channel 45, defined by two fixed parallel vertical walls 46 facing each other a given distance apart, is located beneath diverter 44; and, in a preferred embodiment, vertical walls 46 have holes, from which compressed-air jets are directed downwards to assist and guide the downward movement of pull-up tapes 21 along vertical channel 45.

Packet 1 of cigarettes described has numerous advantages.

Firstly, it comprises a pull-tape 21 with a grip end 23, which projects from the top wall of group 4 of cigarettes, at extraction opening 5 of inner package 3, and is pulled by the user, when unsealing packet 1 of cigarettes, to raise cigarette 22 quickly and easily.

Secondly, pull-up tape 21, being completely devoid of glue, can even be applied on a standard packing machine, and poses no risk of contaminating the cigarette tobacco.

Finally, packet 1 of cigarettes described can be produced easily on a standard packing machine (which only requires a few minor alterations) as opposed to a high-cost packing machine specially designed for packets of cigarettes of this type.