Cigarette having distinct tobacco fillers with inert, porous, noncombustible element interposed therebetween

Abstract

The multi-sectioned cigarette includes an elongate, open-ended, tubular wrapper defining the draw end and outer end of the cigarette. The wrapper contains a first tobacco filler comprising a blend of tobaccos having a reduced amount of tar producing substances and nicotine adjacent the outer end of the cigarette, and a second tobacco filler comprising a blend of flavored tobaccos adjacent the draw end thereof. An inert, noncombustible, porous element transversely spans the interior of the tubular wrapper intermediate the first and second tobacco fillers.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is related to that class of cigarettes wherein a plurality of the tobacco fillers are placed in end-to-end spaced relationship, each filler comprising a distinct blend of tobaccos. Specifically, the invention is directed to a self-extinguishing cigarette wherein that portion of the tobacco filler which is burned while the cigarette is being smoked has been treated whereby the smoke derived therefrom is substantially free of tars, nicotine and other injurious and/or carcinogeneous constituents and that portion of the tobacco filler which is not burned, but is in contact with the mouth and lips of the smoker, is pure or untreated, allowing the smoker to enjoy the taste and bite of an unfiltered cigarette containing pure tobaccos without appreciably increasing the hazards of cigarette smoking.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Often, tobaccos for use with cigarettes are treated to eliminate a substantial quantity of the tars and nicotine which have been found to have a deleterious effect on smokers. While such removal is advantageous from the standpoint of health, the cleansed tobaccos have resulted in a reduction in the quality and taste of the cigarette. By incorporating a filter element in communication with the draw end of the cigarette, blends of tobaccos containing a higher quantity of tars and nicotine may be used as tobacco fillers, wherein the filter serves to remove at least some of the deleterious substances produced by the oxidation of tobacco. However, use of filters, as such, have not been entirely satisfactory in that a portion of the deleterious substances are passed through the filter to the smoker and the smoke is still of reduced quality and taste.

The present invention is directed to a cigarette which permits the use of a blend of tobaccos having a substantially reduced quantity of tars and nicotine in the combustible portion of the tobacco filler in combination with a flavored blend of tobaccos in the section of the cigarette which is adjacent the draw end to enhance the flavor of the smoke extracted therefrom. The smoke is drawn through the flavored tobacco, improving the taste thereof without the usual hazards resulting from smoking a cigarette having a high nicotine and tar content. Means are provided to automatically extinguish the cigarette as the point of combustion approaches the flavored blend of tobaccos adjacent the draw end, ensuring that the tobaccos containing a high content of tars and nicotine will not be oxidized.

Thus, the present invention permits use of a reduced tar and nicotine tobacco filler at the oxidation point of the cigarette without reducing the quality and taste of the smoke extracted therefrom and without requiring the use of a filter element, as now known, to eliminate deleterious by-products of combustion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention utilizes a plurality of tobacco fillers disposed in the elongate, tubular wrapper of a cigarette with an inert, noncombustible, porous element interposed between the fillers to extinguish a burning cigarette once the filler adjacent the outer end of the cigarette has been consumed.

The tobacco filler adjacent the outer end of the cigarette comprises a blend of tobaccos from which the tars, nicotine and other deleterious substances have been substantially, if not completely removed. Adjacent the first tobacco filler is an inert, noncombustible, porous, and generally inorganic element which is capable of extinguishing the fire of a burning cigarette. The inert element also serves as a filter for reducing the remaining deleterious substances in the smoke produced by oxidation of the tobacco. The inert element is followed by a second tobacco filler constituting a blend of tobaccos which may inherently contain substances such as tar producers, nicotine and other substances which have been removed from the first tobacco filler and, where desired, may include additionally various flavoring substances such as, by way of example, menthol, mint or the like. The subject cigarette is adapted to enable a smoker to enjoy the taste and pleasure of a conventional cigarette, i.e., a non-filter type, wherein the smoke entering the mouth of the smoker is substantially free from the deleterious by-products caused by oxidation of tobaccos high in tars and nicotine.

The presence of the noncombustible, inert, porous element intermediate the tobacco fillers of the cigarette effectively prevents the cigarette from burning beyond the first tobacco filler, ensuring oxidation of only the tobacco from which some tar producing substances, nicotine and other deleterious substances have been substantially removed.

One form of the invention provides for a crinkle-foil filter or the like intermediate the second tobacco filler and the inert element, cooling the smoke as it enters the draw end of the cigarette.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cigarette incorporating the features of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a section view taken along line 2--2 of FIG. 1 illustrating in detail the various sections of the cigarette.

FIG. 3 illustrates the cigarette of FIGS. 1 and 2 after the first tobacco filler has been consumed and the cigarette has been extinguished.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2, illustrating a modification of the cigarette of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating the cigarette of FIG. 4 after the first tobacco filler has been consumed and the cigarette has been extinguished.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The cigarette incorporating the features of the present invention, generally denoted 10, is illustrated in perspective in FIG. 1. An elongate, open-ended, tubular wrapper 12 defines the outer periphery, the outer end 20 and the draw end 22 of the cigarette. A first tobacco filler 14 is contained within the elongate wrapper 12 adjacent outer end 20 of the cigarette and comprises a blend of tobaccos having a reduced amount of nicotine and tar producing substances and various other deleterious substances which have been removed by various cleansing processes such as, by way of example, passing the tobaccos through particular solvents such as alcohol, alcohol-naphtha, or the like, which remove some of the tar producing substances and nicotine effectively without leaving a residual odor or residue. An inert, noncombustible, porous element 16 is disposed within wrapper 12 transversely spanning the interior thereof and in contacting relationship with end 15 of the first tobacco filler. The inert element 16 generally comprises a siliceous material or the like which will not support combustion. Uniformly suitable results have been obtained with an inert element comprising a plug of diatomaceous earth packed in such a manner as to provide a porous barrier at the end 15 of the tobacco filler, allowing free passage of smoke therethrough, as indicated by arrow A, but preventing combustion beyond end 15 of the filler 14. A second tobacco filler 18 is contained in wrapper 12 intermediate end 17 of the inert element 16 and the draw end 22 of the cigarette and comprises a blend of tobaccos which may contain the various tars, nicotine, and other substances generally found in untreated or pure tobaccos. When the cigarette is ignited at outer end 20 thereof, a fire is generated at 21 oxidizing the tobaccos in the first filler section creating ash 24 and producing smoke A which is drawn from the cigarette through draw end 22. The smoke passes through inert element 16 and second filler 18 and absorbs the flavoring of the tobaccos contained therein, as indicated by arrow B. Thus, the smoke has the taste of a blend of tobaccos having the various tar formers, nicotine and other substances which heretofore may have been removed from tobacco fillers. Where desired, various flavoring substances such as mint, menthol or the like may be added to tobacco filler 18, further enhancing the flavor of smoke B.

The flavor and quality of the cigarette of the present invention corresponds generally to the taste and texture of a normal, unfiltered cigarette having a blend of tobaccos which contain tar forming substances and nicotine but reduces the deleterious effect generally resulting from use of such tobaccos without requiring the use of filtering elements as now known. Inert element 16 ensures that the tobaccos containing tars, nicotine and other deleterious substances are not inadvertently oxidized. As illustrated, fire 21 oxidizes the tobacco in first filler 14, effectively reducing the tobacco to ash 24 until the fire 21 reaches end 15 of filler 14. Once the fire has reached end 15, inert element 16 will not support further combustion and the cigarette is automatically extinguished, see FIG. 3.

A modification of the cigarette of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 wherein a crinkle-foil heat sink 26 such as, by way of example, a strip of crinkled aluminum foil or the like is wrapped in a spiral about the axis of the cigarette. The crinkle-foil filter substantially spans the interior of wrapper 12 and is disposed intermediate second tobacco filler 18 and inert element 16, providing means for further filtering and cooling smoke A as it passed from the first filler 14 to the second filler 18, producing cooled, flavored smoke C. The cigarette of FIG. 4 has the self-extinguishing feature incorporated in the cigarette of FIGS. 1 and 2, see FIG. 5.

It is desirable to provide means marking the outer and draw ends of the cigarette to ensure that only the outer end of the cigarette is ignited. Suitable identification may be provided by simply marking the outside surface of tubular wrapper 12. One manner in which this may be accomplished is illustrated in phantom in FIG. 1, wherein an enlarged mouthpiece 28 is disposed in circumscribing relationship with tubular wrapper 12 adjacent the draw end of the cigarette. Various other means for identifying the ends of the cigarette may be utilized without departing from the scope of the present invention.

While the inert element 16 may be placed at any predetermined point along the length of tubular wrapper 12, it has been found that the deleterious effects of smoking may be substantially reduced by extinguishing the cigarette at an early stage of combustion, reducing the heat at the draw end thereof. Therefore, the first tobacco filler generally comprises from 1/2 to 2/3 of the entire length of the cigarette. It should be understood this ratio of filler lengths is not to be considered a limiting feature of the invention.

While certain embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in detail, it should be understood such is merely illustrative and not intended to limit the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A multi-sectioned cigarette comprising an elongate, open-ended, tubular wrapper defining an outer end and a draw end of the cigarette; a first tobacco filler contained in said wrapper adjacent the outer end of the cigarette comprising a blend of solvent extracted natural tobaccos having a reduced amount of tar producing substances and nicotine and extending the major portion of the overall length of the wrapper; a second tobacco filler contained in said wrapper adjacent the draw end of the cigarette comprising a blend of flavored tobaccos; an inert, noncombustible, porous element of diatomaceous earth transversely spanning the interior of the tubular wrapper between said first and second tobacco fillers; a heat-sink element transversely spanning the interior of the tubular wrapper between the said noncombustible element and the said second tobacco filler, said heat-sink element comprising a roll of crinkled, metal foil; and means on the outer periphery of the wrapper to identify the draw end and the outer end thereof, said means comprising a hollow, elongate, open-ended, tubular mouthpiece circumscribing the outer periphery of the wrapper adjacent the draw end of the cigarette.