METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR USE IN DE-PACKAGING PACKAGED GOODS

摘要

Apparatus for a process of recovering e.g. cigarettes from faulty flip-top packets includes a rotary sorter (II) operable on packets delivered thereto to unscramble them and deliver them in a common orientation for onward feeding on edge in a direction lengthwise of the packets to a slitter (III). The slitter makes a shallow lengthwise cut in each of the front and rear or major faces of each packet which is then conveyed to an impactor unit (IV). The latter functions to strike the slit packet causing it to burst open. The burst packet, cigarettes and packaging fragments are thereafter transported to a rotary, inclined screening drum (VI) having slats spaced apart sufficiently to pass cigarettes only, for the cigarettes to be separated from the packaging. The cuts made by the slitter are too shallow to cut into the product, i.e. cigarettes.