US Patent 7874295 Shredded tobacco material feeder of a cigarette manufacturing apparatus

A shredded tobacco material feeder of a cigarette manufacturing apparatus has a reservoir (2) of shredded tobacco material; a first separation chamber (20) and a second separation path (28) for dividing the shredded tobacco material into normal particles and separation material having larger particle sizes than the normal particles in a process when the shredded tobacco material is fed from the reservoir (2) toward a tobacco band of the apparatus; a sieve conveyor (34) for receiving and transferring the separation material discharged from the second separation path (28), and separating the separation material into large particles having large particle sizes and medium particles having smaller particle sizes than the large particles; and a cyclone (48) for receiving the medium particles from the sieve conveyor (34), the cyclone (48) separating returnable components corresponding to the normal particles from the medium particles, and returning the returnable components to the reservoir (2).