Apparatus for transport and temporary storage of cigarettes or the like between producing and processing machines

Apparatus for transporting cigarettes or analogous rod-shaped articles which constitute or form part of smokers' products from at least one variable-capacity producing machine to at least one variable-capacity consuming machine, comprising means for transporting a multi-layer stream of articles from the producing machine along a first path having a discharge end;

• a conveying device including a channel having a receiving end at said discharge end and defining a second path for delivery of articles of said multi-layer stream to the consuming machine, the cross-sectional area of said channel being such that the articles therein form a multi-layer stream;
• at least one variable-volume surge bin having a first inlet-outlet opening for admission of articles into or for evacuation of articles from its interior, said surge bin comprising a reciprocable bottom wall and an end wall extending upwardly from and movable with said bottom wall toward and away from said first opening to thereby respectively reduce and increase the volume of said surge bin;
• means for monitoring the upper level of the article layer in the region of said first opening, said monitoring means being installed at a predetermined distance from said bottom wall;
• means for moving said end wall away from and toward said first opening when the monitored level respectively rises and falls;
• sensor means adjacent to said discharge end and movable between a plurality of positions each indicative of a different ratio of the rate of transport of articles along said first path to the rate of delivery of articles along said second path;
• an intermediate reservoir communicating with said first opening and having a second inlet-outlet opening adjacent to said first path, said reservoir including means for conveying articles from said surge bin to said first path for introduction into said receiving end when the requirements of the consuming machine exceed the output of the producing machine and for conveying articles from said first path into said surge bin when the output of the producing machine exceeds the requirements of the consuming machine, said second opening being in communication with said discharge end and with said receiving end to admit articles from said discharge end into said reservoir when the output of the producing machine exceeds the requirements of the consuming machine and to admit articles into said receiving end when the requirements of the consuming machine exceed the output of the producing machine;
• and drive means for operating said conveying means in dependency on the position of said sensor means so as to advance articles from said surge bin to said first path when said ratio decreases and to advance articles from said first path into said surge bin when said ratio increases.