Cigarette-making machine and method

Abstract

A cigarette-making machine comprises a casing, a tobacco slot in the casing, and a nipple for retaining a cigarette tube outside the casing. A handle/handle drive is accessible from an exterior of the casing to be manually handled. An internal mechanism has a compactor to compact tobacco inserted into the machine through the tobacco slot, and a spoon to eject the compacted tobacco into the cigarette tube through the nipple. The internal mechanism is operatively connected to the handle/handle drive so as to be actuated by manual handling of the handle/handle drive to compact and eject tobacco into the cigarette tube. A cigarette receiver supports a filled cigarette released from the nipple. A method to operate the machine is also provided

1 . A cigarette-making machine comprising:
 a casing;   a tobacco slot in the casing;   a nipple for retaining a cigarette tube outside the casing;   a handle/handle drive accessible from an exterior of the casing to be manually handled;   an internal mechanism having a compactor to compact tobacco inserted into the machine through the tobacco slot, and a spoon to eject the compacted tobacco into the cigarette tube through the nipple, the internal mechanism being operatively connected to the handle/handle drive so as to be actuated by manual handling of the handle/handle drive to compact and eject tobacco into the cigarette tube; and   a cigarette receptacle to support a filled cigarette released from the nipple.   
     
     
         2 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 1 , wherein the cigarette receptacle is a slot aligned with the nipple. 
     
     
         3 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 2 , wherein the slot is generally at the same height as the nipple, such that the cigarette tube is guided by the slot when engaged with the nipple, and is supported by the slot when the cigarette is being filled. 
     
     
         4 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 2 , wherein the cigarette receptacle has a pair of collecting surfaces on opposed sides of the slot to collect residual tobacco. 
     
     
         5 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 1 , wherein the cigarette receptacle is in a concavity of the casing. 
     
     
         6 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 1 , wherein a surrounding of the tobacco slot in the casing is funnel-shaped. 
     
     
         7 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 1 , wherein the casing defines a grasping volume grasped by a first hand of the user while a second hand of the user actuates the handle drive, the grasping volume being away from a path of motion of the handle drive. 
     
     
         8 . The cigarette-making machine of  claim 1 , wherein the internal mechanism has a tube retainer retaining the cigarette tube when being filled, and releasing the cigarette tube once filled. 
     
     
         9 . The cigarette-making machine according to  claim 1 , wherein the internal mechanism has a integrally-formed block supporting and guiding a motion of the compactor and the spoon. 
     
     
         10 . A method for filling an empty cigarette tube with tobacco with a manually operable machine, comprising the steps of:
 positioning the empty cigarette tube on a tobacco outlet of the machine;   filling a tobacco slot of the machine with a tobacco portion;   grasping the machine by inserting fingers of a first hand in a grasping volume of the machine and resting a palm of the first hand on a support surface above the grasping volume;   rotating a drive of the machine in a forward direction with a second hand such that the machine outlets said tobacco portion into the cigarette tube; and   rotating the drive in the reverse direction to release the filled cigarette from the tobacco outlet.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising a step of collecting the filled cigarette from a cigarette receptacle of the machine. 
     
     
         12 . The method according to  claim 11 , further comprising a step of tilting the machine to manually collect residual tobacco accumulated in the cigarette receptacle of the machine for subsequent use, after having collected the filled cigarette from the cigarette receptacle. 
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein the step of positioning the empty cigarette tube in a tobacco outlet of the machine is performed by placing the empty cigarette tube in a cigarette receptacle of the machine, and by sliding the empty cigarette tube guidingly along the cigarette receptacle and into engagement with the tobacco outlet.