Abstract: In order to minimize defective tray/box filling of rod shaped products such as filter rods and cigarettes, a new tray/box filling device was designed. The device mainly consists of a first filling mechanism, a second filling mechanism, a tray/box elevator and a filled tray/box discharge mechanism. The pushing plates in the two filling mechanisms cooperate with each other to achieve the filling function. In the tray/box elevator a U-shaped container with parallel grooves on its three side walls is moveable vertically. It is filled with neatly stacked rod-shaped products when it moves up to the highest position, and when it moves down to the filling position, the rod-shaped products in the container are removed into an empty tray/box by the pushing plates in the two filling mechanisms. When it further moves down to the lowest position, the filled tray/box is discharged by the tray/box discharge mechanism. The new device was tested with filter rods 5.4 mm in diameter and 120 mm in length. The results showed that the designed device operated stably in YJ36B tray filler; at a filling speed of 16 000 filter rods per minute, the filter rods were arranged neatly and properly in the box without any defects. The average number of missing rods is 3.5 filter rods per minute, satisfying the filling requirements of rod shaped materials. This device can provide technical support for improving the automation of cigarette production process.