CA1074722A - Conveyor - Google Patents
ConveyorInfo
- Publication number
- CA1074722A CA1074722A CA287,134A CA287134A CA1074722A CA 1074722 A CA1074722 A CA 1074722A CA 287134 A CA287134 A CA 287134A CA 1074722 A CA1074722 A CA 1074722A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- screw
- conveyor
- belt
- conveyors
- screw conveyors
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
- B65G47/02—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors
- B65G47/16—Devices for feeding articles or materials to conveyors for feeding materials in bulk
- B65G47/18—Arrangements or applications of hoppers or chutes
- B65G47/19—Arrangements or applications of hoppers or chutes having means for controlling material flow, e.g. to prevent overloading
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G33/00—Screw or rotary spiral conveyors
- B65G33/08—Screw or rotary spiral conveyors for fluent solid materials
- B65G33/10—Screw or rotary spiral conveyors for fluent solid materials with non-enclosed screws
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A conveyor system for refuse comprises an up-wardly inclined belt conveyor and a substantially horizontal screw conveyor extending away from the upper end of the belt.
The system provides an improved means of controlling the thickness of the layer of material on the belt.
A conveyor system for refuse comprises an up-wardly inclined belt conveyor and a substantially horizontal screw conveyor extending away from the upper end of the belt.
The system provides an improved means of controlling the thickness of the layer of material on the belt.
Description
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This invention relatsg to apparatus for conveying particulate materi~l ahd ~as particular but ~ot ~xclu~i~e reference to conveyors for use ln conveyin~ do~estic re~u~e~
So~e materials are relatively ea~lly co~vey~d when in part-iculate ~orm. I~ the ~aterial i8 dr~ it b~have~ al~o~t a~ a fluid a~d is ~imply handled and ~imply meteFed. O~her materials are more dif~icuIt to convey~ particularly i~ a controlled rate o~ supply is rsquired at some ~ta~e. ~ partiGularly dif~icult material to ha~dle i~ domestic refu~e. By it nature, domestic refuse is not a unirorm material a~d apart f~om problem~
associatsd w~th moi~ture cont~nt tend~ to cQmpaot ~ ~laced in . . _ .
pile~ havin~ thic~nesse.-s of 2 metre~ or more. I~ de3ired to convey do~estic refu~e, for example~ to an ~ncinerator ~o a boiler in wh$ch the rs~use i8 used as a ~uel suppleme~t~ there are occa~ion~ when a controlled feed rate o~ refuse is requirsd.
It ha~ proved extremely di~ficult to obtain ~uch a c~ntrolled delivery rate wit~ untreated domestic re~use. Th~ main method of obtaining controlled rate~ of refu~e ~lo~ ha~e utili et the so~called "Atlas Tank3". The~e are conical ~ank~ having ~heir apex pointing upwardly and haYing a capaoity of up to 500 tonsO
The tanks can be 100ft high. Refuss i~ ~oured in through the top of the tank and is extracted ~rom the bottom by ~ean~ of a chain of buckets which i~ pulled round the bottom o~ the tank and feeds the r~fuse into a trou~h fro~ wh ch it i5 remo~ed by mean3 of a ~-onventional endle~ belt conveyor~ Unfortunately~
hweVer~ the chaln o~ bucket3, which i~ ~ree at one end~ tonds to leave an undi~turbed conical pile in the middle o~ the ta~k .
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and this pile can fcrment and even in certain circumstances catch fire. Also the bucket chain tends to wear out the botkom of the tank meaning that the floor must be replaced at fairly regular intervals which can be as short as one year.
If a so-called "live-bottom tank" is used then there is a tendency for tlle refuse to compact onto the conveyor and very thick layers of refuse will at times be delivered. Thus if the conveyor belt operates at the bottom of a pile of refuse and is fed with very thick layers, for example 2-3 metres or more, then a very thick layer will be delivered by the belt. Attempts were made by the inventors to control the thickness of the layer by using a weir or wall across the top of the belt to restrict the passage o~ the refuse.
If was found, however, that this resulted in jamming because the domestic refuse bridged the gap between the weir and the belt forming a solid block which prevented the conveyor belt from opera~ing.
The present invention provides a method of conveyin~ particulate matter for delivery at a controlled ra~e co~prising feeding said matter onto a moving upwardly inclined surface and during conveyance by the said surface subjecting said matter to the actionl~o-f a plurality of driven screw conveyors arranged side by side in spaced substantially parallel relationship, each screw conveyor having its axis of rotation in a vertical plane which extends longitudinally of ~he inclined surface and converging towards the discharge end of the~upwardly inclined surface, and adjusting the direction and speed of the screw conveyors to control the delivery of matter at the upper end of the moving upwardly inclined surface.
The present invention also provides apparatus for conveying particu- ;
late material, the apparatus comprising an inclined conveyor operable to convey said material in an upward direc~ion and, located above the upper end -~, ,,; .
region of the inclined conveyor, a rotatable drivable screw conveyor orienked - 3 _ -: . , : ~ . , . " , ~7~7~
with its axis of rotation lying substantially in a vertical plane tha* extends longitudinally of the inclined conveyor and said axis and the line of movement -of the inclined conveyor converging towards the discharge end of the conveyor so as to co-operate with the inclined conveyor in controlling, in use, the amount of material that is delivered at the upper end of the inclined conveyor.
There is preferably a space between the bottom of the screw conveyor(s) and the conveyor belt. The space may be fixed or may be adjustable.
The axis of rotation of the or each screw conveyor is advantageously substantially horizontal.
The belt is preferably an endless belt.
Preferably there is at least one pair of screw conveyors operating, in use, to screw material in a direction substantially opposite to the hori zontal component of the conveyor belt i.e. in a reverse direction. There may be a plurality of pairs of screw conveyors operating in the reyerse direction.
The or each pair of screw conveyors preferably comprises a first conveyor - having a right-handed thread and a second conveyor having a left-handed thread, the direction of rotation of the first conveyor being opposite to the direc-tion of rotation of the second conveyor~
Alternatively one or more screw conveyors may operate in a forward direction ~i.e. in the same general direction as the movement of the belt~ and preferably in such a circumstance each such screw conveyor has a material-moving capacity in excess of the moving capacity of the belt. The material to be conveyed is preferably fed onto the conveyor or in the form of discrete, preformed blocks, the length of the screw conveyor(s) preferably being equal to or greater than the length of each block of particulate material i.e. the ` dimension of each block in the direction o movement of the belt presented to ; the screw conveyor(s) by the belt.
The belt conveyor may be located so as to form at least part of the .~
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base of a container into which the particulate material is loaded. The belt conveyor may have transversely extending slats across at least part of its surface.
In a preferred embodiment there is a plurality of screw conveyors which are preferably uniformly spaced over substantially the whole width of the belt conveyor, the screw conveyors operate in the forward direction. The right-hand side ~; - 4a ~
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conveyor(s), viewed ir, the direction of movement of the belt, may have right-handed screws and the left-hand side screw conveyor(s) may have a left-handed screw. In an alternative form, the conveyors ~ay have right- and left-handed screws alterna~ely-across the width of the belt.
There may be one or more central screw conveyor(s) in the arrangement in which there is a plurality of screw conveyors adapted to operate, in use, in the forward direction of the movement of the conveyor belt, the central screw conveyor(s) operating in the reverse direction. In-such an arrangement, a single central screw conveyor will act to split the output material of the conveyor into two separate portions. If three or more portions are required then two or more conveyors operating in the reverse direction may be used.
The screw conveyors may all be operated by a single motor drivably connected to the conveyors by suitable ~ear means to maintain a fixed rate of operation of the conveyors.
For dry refuse, screw conveyors operating in the forward or backward direction may be used. For wet refuse, however, reverse acting screw conveyors are preferred.
By way o~ example embodiments of the present inventior- will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings of which:-Figure 1 is a schematic cross-section of a conveyor system not in accordance with the invention;
Fiæure 2 is a schematic cross-section of a live-botto~
pit conveyor constructed in accordance with the invention.
Figure 3 is a partial schematic view along the line of the arrow III of Figure 2; and .
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~igure 4 is a partial schematic view similar to that of FigurP 3.
Re~erring to Figure 1 this shows a live-bottom pit generally indicated by 1 having a fixed side wall 2 and an endless belt conveyor 3 which forms the base/side of the pit. Domestic refuse may be tipped into the pit as shown by the arrows 4. When the conveyor 3 is operated the surface 5 moves in the direction Or arrow 6 and carries with it a very thick layer of domestic 10 refuse 7.
In order that the domestic refuse could be delivered at a controlled rate a weir or wall 8 was placed across the top of the conveyor. Initially a controlled layer 9 of domestic refuse passed underneath the wall 8 and fell off the end of the con-15 VeyOr. It was found, however, that the small gap 9 rapidly became bridged by the domestic refuse which piled up against the wall 8 jamming the conveyor and preventing further operation of the system. Solutions to this problem have been found by utilisin~ the conveyor-as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4.
Again domestic refuse 4 is tipped into the live pit which has side walls 2 and a live base constituted by endless conveyor belt. Five screw conveyors 10 are located above the upper end region of the belt 3. Four of the screw conveyors 10 operate in the forward direction of travel as illustrated by the arrow 11, the fifth, central conveyor, operating in the reverse direction (see Fig. 3). The length L of the conve~ors 10 is grsater than or equal to the length of preformed blocks o~ domestic refuse presented to the conveyors by the endless belt 3 and, as can be seen, the right-hand end of each conveyor 10 lies directly above - 6 ~
7'~2 the upper end of belt 3.
Referring now to Figure 3, the outer two conveyors 12 and 13 are rotated in a counter-clockwi~e direction when viewed in th~
direction III indicated in Fig.2. The conveyors 12 and 13 each have a right-hand screw and tend to push the material kowards the centre of the conveyor belt 3. The outer two conveyors 14 and 15 each have a le~t-hand screw and are rotated in a clockwise direction when viewed along the arrow III. Conveyors 14 and 15, therefore, also screw the material towards the centre of the conveyor belt 3. The central conveyor 16 alf~o has left-hand thread but is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction so as to screw material backwards against the direction of travel of the belt 3. This results in the refuse falling off the upper end of belt 3 in distinct portions 17 and 1~.
It will be appreciated that the conveyors 12 to 16 could be alternatively right and left-handed rather than being paired as shown in Figure 3.
; In operation the screw conveyors 10 are operated at a faster delivery rate ~hat the belt conveyor 3. The belt conveyor 3 can therefore, ba regarded as presenting material to the screw conveyors for ~urther movement o~ the material. Since the screw conveyors 10 are operating at a ~aster rate than the rate o~
delivery of the belt 3 they do not become jammed or clogged and this means that a ~ree-running conveyor system is provided.
It will be appreciated, however, that the rate o~` delivery of material overall is dictated by the rate of movement o~ the belt 3. This is because the belt 3 delivers material to the conveyors 10 which is subsequently moved away by the conveyors. Clearly, however, screw conveyors can only move material presented :, . . . :
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to them and varying thc rate of feed supplied by the belt 3 will alter the rate of feed of the conveyors 10.
Although such an arrangment including forward operating screw conveyors 10 works satisfactorily on dry refuse it has been found that with refuse containing large quantities of water ~during the winter months the water content can increase to 50% by weight of the total refuse handled) the refuse tends to jam and is not properly metered but is passed out in large lumps.
A solution to this is to run all of the screw conveyors in the reverse direction. In particular if the conveyors are arranged as shown in Figure 4, in pairs, particular advantages can be obtained. By running the conveyors 17 and 18 in the opposite directions - the conveyors 17 and 18 themselves are opposite handed - the refuse is churned up and aerated. This breaks down the compacted refuse-into a light aerated stat~
which means it is more easily handled. The conveyors may be operated as shown in Figure 4 at 19 and 20 in which case the aeration action would take place on the outside of each pair rather than at the centre.
Preferably the gap 21 between the belt conveyor and the screw conveyors is adjustable to take account o~ the vari~tion in density of the material being handled. Tbe gap should be larger for low density material such as waste paper and smaller for higher density material such as waste sawdust. Once set the gap can be 'eft durin~ normal running~ Because the screw conveyors are operating in the reverse direction to the belt conveyor there is a considerable amount of shear taking place in the refuse between the conveyors. This means that adequate torque must be available to drive the belt and the screw conveyors.
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Although the invention is particularly adapted for conveyin~
~omestic refuse any other suitable particulate material may be conveyed by the conveyors of the invention. Thus, for example, material such as damp sand or other difficult to-handle material could easily be dealt with by the invention.
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This invention relatsg to apparatus for conveying particulate materi~l ahd ~as particular but ~ot ~xclu~i~e reference to conveyors for use ln conveyin~ do~estic re~u~e~
So~e materials are relatively ea~lly co~vey~d when in part-iculate ~orm. I~ the ~aterial i8 dr~ it b~have~ al~o~t a~ a fluid a~d is ~imply handled and ~imply meteFed. O~her materials are more dif~icuIt to convey~ particularly i~ a controlled rate o~ supply is rsquired at some ~ta~e. ~ partiGularly dif~icult material to ha~dle i~ domestic refu~e. By it nature, domestic refuse is not a unirorm material a~d apart f~om problem~
associatsd w~th moi~ture cont~nt tend~ to cQmpaot ~ ~laced in . . _ .
pile~ havin~ thic~nesse.-s of 2 metre~ or more. I~ de3ired to convey do~estic refu~e, for example~ to an ~ncinerator ~o a boiler in wh$ch the rs~use i8 used as a ~uel suppleme~t~ there are occa~ion~ when a controlled feed rate o~ refuse is requirsd.
It ha~ proved extremely di~ficult to obtain ~uch a c~ntrolled delivery rate wit~ untreated domestic re~use. Th~ main method of obtaining controlled rate~ of refu~e ~lo~ ha~e utili et the so~called "Atlas Tank3". The~e are conical ~ank~ having ~heir apex pointing upwardly and haYing a capaoity of up to 500 tonsO
The tanks can be 100ft high. Refuss i~ ~oured in through the top of the tank and is extracted ~rom the bottom by ~ean~ of a chain of buckets which i~ pulled round the bottom o~ the tank and feeds the r~fuse into a trou~h fro~ wh ch it i5 remo~ed by mean3 of a ~-onventional endle~ belt conveyor~ Unfortunately~
hweVer~ the chaln o~ bucket3, which i~ ~ree at one end~ tonds to leave an undi~turbed conical pile in the middle o~ the ta~k .
,: , . : ,, ' ' ,' , . ., : , ~
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and this pile can fcrment and even in certain circumstances catch fire. Also the bucket chain tends to wear out the botkom of the tank meaning that the floor must be replaced at fairly regular intervals which can be as short as one year.
If a so-called "live-bottom tank" is used then there is a tendency for tlle refuse to compact onto the conveyor and very thick layers of refuse will at times be delivered. Thus if the conveyor belt operates at the bottom of a pile of refuse and is fed with very thick layers, for example 2-3 metres or more, then a very thick layer will be delivered by the belt. Attempts were made by the inventors to control the thickness of the layer by using a weir or wall across the top of the belt to restrict the passage o~ the refuse.
If was found, however, that this resulted in jamming because the domestic refuse bridged the gap between the weir and the belt forming a solid block which prevented the conveyor belt from opera~ing.
The present invention provides a method of conveyin~ particulate matter for delivery at a controlled ra~e co~prising feeding said matter onto a moving upwardly inclined surface and during conveyance by the said surface subjecting said matter to the actionl~o-f a plurality of driven screw conveyors arranged side by side in spaced substantially parallel relationship, each screw conveyor having its axis of rotation in a vertical plane which extends longitudinally of ~he inclined surface and converging towards the discharge end of the~upwardly inclined surface, and adjusting the direction and speed of the screw conveyors to control the delivery of matter at the upper end of the moving upwardly inclined surface.
The present invention also provides apparatus for conveying particu- ;
late material, the apparatus comprising an inclined conveyor operable to convey said material in an upward direc~ion and, located above the upper end -~, ,,; .
region of the inclined conveyor, a rotatable drivable screw conveyor orienked - 3 _ -: . , : ~ . , . " , ~7~7~
with its axis of rotation lying substantially in a vertical plane tha* extends longitudinally of the inclined conveyor and said axis and the line of movement -of the inclined conveyor converging towards the discharge end of the conveyor so as to co-operate with the inclined conveyor in controlling, in use, the amount of material that is delivered at the upper end of the inclined conveyor.
There is preferably a space between the bottom of the screw conveyor(s) and the conveyor belt. The space may be fixed or may be adjustable.
The axis of rotation of the or each screw conveyor is advantageously substantially horizontal.
The belt is preferably an endless belt.
Preferably there is at least one pair of screw conveyors operating, in use, to screw material in a direction substantially opposite to the hori zontal component of the conveyor belt i.e. in a reverse direction. There may be a plurality of pairs of screw conveyors operating in the reyerse direction.
The or each pair of screw conveyors preferably comprises a first conveyor - having a right-handed thread and a second conveyor having a left-handed thread, the direction of rotation of the first conveyor being opposite to the direc-tion of rotation of the second conveyor~
Alternatively one or more screw conveyors may operate in a forward direction ~i.e. in the same general direction as the movement of the belt~ and preferably in such a circumstance each such screw conveyor has a material-moving capacity in excess of the moving capacity of the belt. The material to be conveyed is preferably fed onto the conveyor or in the form of discrete, preformed blocks, the length of the screw conveyor(s) preferably being equal to or greater than the length of each block of particulate material i.e. the ` dimension of each block in the direction o movement of the belt presented to ; the screw conveyor(s) by the belt.
The belt conveyor may be located so as to form at least part of the .~
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base of a container into which the particulate material is loaded. The belt conveyor may have transversely extending slats across at least part of its surface.
In a preferred embodiment there is a plurality of screw conveyors which are preferably uniformly spaced over substantially the whole width of the belt conveyor, the screw conveyors operate in the forward direction. The right-hand side ~; - 4a ~
.
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conveyor(s), viewed ir, the direction of movement of the belt, may have right-handed screws and the left-hand side screw conveyor(s) may have a left-handed screw. In an alternative form, the conveyors ~ay have right- and left-handed screws alterna~ely-across the width of the belt.
There may be one or more central screw conveyor(s) in the arrangement in which there is a plurality of screw conveyors adapted to operate, in use, in the forward direction of the movement of the conveyor belt, the central screw conveyor(s) operating in the reverse direction. In-such an arrangement, a single central screw conveyor will act to split the output material of the conveyor into two separate portions. If three or more portions are required then two or more conveyors operating in the reverse direction may be used.
The screw conveyors may all be operated by a single motor drivably connected to the conveyors by suitable ~ear means to maintain a fixed rate of operation of the conveyors.
For dry refuse, screw conveyors operating in the forward or backward direction may be used. For wet refuse, however, reverse acting screw conveyors are preferred.
By way o~ example embodiments of the present inventior- will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings of which:-Figure 1 is a schematic cross-section of a conveyor system not in accordance with the invention;
Fiæure 2 is a schematic cross-section of a live-botto~
pit conveyor constructed in accordance with the invention.
Figure 3 is a partial schematic view along the line of the arrow III of Figure 2; and .
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. .
~igure 4 is a partial schematic view similar to that of FigurP 3.
Re~erring to Figure 1 this shows a live-bottom pit generally indicated by 1 having a fixed side wall 2 and an endless belt conveyor 3 which forms the base/side of the pit. Domestic refuse may be tipped into the pit as shown by the arrows 4. When the conveyor 3 is operated the surface 5 moves in the direction Or arrow 6 and carries with it a very thick layer of domestic 10 refuse 7.
In order that the domestic refuse could be delivered at a controlled rate a weir or wall 8 was placed across the top of the conveyor. Initially a controlled layer 9 of domestic refuse passed underneath the wall 8 and fell off the end of the con-15 VeyOr. It was found, however, that the small gap 9 rapidly became bridged by the domestic refuse which piled up against the wall 8 jamming the conveyor and preventing further operation of the system. Solutions to this problem have been found by utilisin~ the conveyor-as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4.
Again domestic refuse 4 is tipped into the live pit which has side walls 2 and a live base constituted by endless conveyor belt. Five screw conveyors 10 are located above the upper end region of the belt 3. Four of the screw conveyors 10 operate in the forward direction of travel as illustrated by the arrow 11, the fifth, central conveyor, operating in the reverse direction (see Fig. 3). The length L of the conve~ors 10 is grsater than or equal to the length of preformed blocks o~ domestic refuse presented to the conveyors by the endless belt 3 and, as can be seen, the right-hand end of each conveyor 10 lies directly above - 6 ~
7'~2 the upper end of belt 3.
Referring now to Figure 3, the outer two conveyors 12 and 13 are rotated in a counter-clockwi~e direction when viewed in th~
direction III indicated in Fig.2. The conveyors 12 and 13 each have a right-hand screw and tend to push the material kowards the centre of the conveyor belt 3. The outer two conveyors 14 and 15 each have a le~t-hand screw and are rotated in a clockwise direction when viewed along the arrow III. Conveyors 14 and 15, therefore, also screw the material towards the centre of the conveyor belt 3. The central conveyor 16 alf~o has left-hand thread but is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction so as to screw material backwards against the direction of travel of the belt 3. This results in the refuse falling off the upper end of belt 3 in distinct portions 17 and 1~.
It will be appreciated that the conveyors 12 to 16 could be alternatively right and left-handed rather than being paired as shown in Figure 3.
; In operation the screw conveyors 10 are operated at a faster delivery rate ~hat the belt conveyor 3. The belt conveyor 3 can therefore, ba regarded as presenting material to the screw conveyors for ~urther movement o~ the material. Since the screw conveyors 10 are operating at a ~aster rate than the rate o~
delivery of the belt 3 they do not become jammed or clogged and this means that a ~ree-running conveyor system is provided.
It will be appreciated, however, that the rate o~` delivery of material overall is dictated by the rate of movement o~ the belt 3. This is because the belt 3 delivers material to the conveyors 10 which is subsequently moved away by the conveyors. Clearly, however, screw conveyors can only move material presented :, . . . :
: . . : .
:
- - : .:, ... . . .
:: . . ,. :: . . , , , . , ' ::; ' . . : :, 7'~
to them and varying thc rate of feed supplied by the belt 3 will alter the rate of feed of the conveyors 10.
Although such an arrangment including forward operating screw conveyors 10 works satisfactorily on dry refuse it has been found that with refuse containing large quantities of water ~during the winter months the water content can increase to 50% by weight of the total refuse handled) the refuse tends to jam and is not properly metered but is passed out in large lumps.
A solution to this is to run all of the screw conveyors in the reverse direction. In particular if the conveyors are arranged as shown in Figure 4, in pairs, particular advantages can be obtained. By running the conveyors 17 and 18 in the opposite directions - the conveyors 17 and 18 themselves are opposite handed - the refuse is churned up and aerated. This breaks down the compacted refuse-into a light aerated stat~
which means it is more easily handled. The conveyors may be operated as shown in Figure 4 at 19 and 20 in which case the aeration action would take place on the outside of each pair rather than at the centre.
Preferably the gap 21 between the belt conveyor and the screw conveyors is adjustable to take account o~ the vari~tion in density of the material being handled. Tbe gap should be larger for low density material such as waste paper and smaller for higher density material such as waste sawdust. Once set the gap can be 'eft durin~ normal running~ Because the screw conveyors are operating in the reverse direction to the belt conveyor there is a considerable amount of shear taking place in the refuse between the conveyors. This means that adequate torque must be available to drive the belt and the screw conveyors.
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.
1~747~
Although the invention is particularly adapted for conveyin~
~omestic refuse any other suitable particulate material may be conveyed by the conveyors of the invention. Thus, for example, material such as damp sand or other difficult to-handle material could easily be dealt with by the invention.
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Claims (23)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. Apparatus for conveying particulate material, the apparatus com-prising an inclined conveyor operable to convey said material in an upward direction and, located above the upper end region of the inclined conveyor, a rotatable drivable screw conveyor oriented with its axis of rotation lying substantially in a vertical plane that extends longitudinally of the inclined conveyor and said axis and the line of movement of the inclined conveyor con-verging towards the discharge end of the conveyor so as to co-operate with the inclined conveyor in controlling, in use, the amount of material that is delivered at the upper end of the inclined conveyor.
2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the inclined conveyor is of the belt type and wherein there is a plurality of said screw conveyors arranged side by side in spaced parallel relationships.
3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising screw conveyors which are reversible in direction.
4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein each screw conveyor is spaced from the conveyor belt.
5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the spacing of each screw conveyor from the belt is variable.
6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the rotational axis of each screw conveyor is substantially horizontal.
7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising a pair of said screw con-veyors operable, in use, to screw said material in a direction substantially opposite to the horizontal movement imparted to the material by the belt, the rotational axis of one screw conveyor of said pair lying to one side of a vertical plane containing the centre line of the belt and the rotational axis of the other screw conveyor of said pair lying to the other side of said plane.
8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising two pairs of said screw conveyors operable, in use, to screw said material in a direction substantially opposite to the horizontal movement imparted to the material by the belt, the rotational axes of the screw conveyors of one pair lying to one side of a vertical plane containing the centre line of the belt and the rotational axes of the screw conveyors of the other pair lying to the other side of said plane.
9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising a pair of said screw con-veyors operable, in use, to screw said material in substantially the same direction as the horizontal movement imparted to the material by the belt, the rotational axis of one screw conveyor of said pair lying to one side of a vertical plane containing the centre line of the belt, and the rotational axis of the other screw conveyor of said pair lying to the other side of said plane.
10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising two pairs of said screw conveyors operable, in use, to screw said material in a direction substantially the same as that of the horizontal movement imparted to the material by the belt, the rotational axis of the screw conveyors of one pair lying to one side of the vertical plane containing the centre line of the belt and the rotational axis of the screw conveyors of the other pair lying to the other side of said plane.
11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein the screw conveyors of the pair are opposite handed and are arranged to be rotated in opposite directions.
12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein the screw conveyors of the pair are of the same hand and are arranged to be rotated in the same direction.
13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein there is a central screw con-veyor positioned between said two pairs of screw conveyors, the central screw conveyor being rotatable, in use, to screw material in substantially the same direction as the horizontal movement imparted, in use, to the material by the belt.
14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein the five screw conveyors are uniformly spaced from one another over substantially the whole width of the conveyor belt.
15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the screw conveyors are rotatable at such a rate that the material throughput rate of the screw con-veyors together is greater than the material throughput rate of the conveyor belt.
16. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the conveyor of belt type is an endless belt.
17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein at least part of the con-veyor belt constitutes a part or the whole of the base of a container into which said material is, in use, loaded.
18. A method of conveying particulate matter for delivery at a controlled rate comprising feeding said matter onto a moving upwardly inclined surface and during conveyance by the said surface subjecting said matter to the action of a plurality of driven screw conveyors arranged side by side in spaced sub-stantially parallel relationship, each screw conveyor having its axis of rotation in a vertical plane which extends longitudinally of the inclined surface and converging towards the discharge end of the upwardly inclined surface, and adjusting the direction and speed of the screw conveyors to control the delivery of matter at the upper end of the moving upwardly inclined surface.
19. A method as claimed in claim 18 wherein said material is fed onto the moving surface in the form of compacted blocks, the dimension of each block in the direction of movement on the moving surface being at most equal to the length of the screw conveyors.
20. A method as claimed in claim 18 wherein the particulate material is combustible refuse.
21. A method as claimed in any of claims 18, 19 or 20 wherein at least some of the screw conveyors are operated to screw material in a direction sub-stantially opposite to the horizontal movement imparted by the moving surface.
22. A method as claimed in any of claims 18, 19 or 20 wherein at least some of the screw conveyors are operated to screw material in a direction sub-stantially opposite to the horizontal movement imparted by the moving surface and a central screw conveyor is operated to screw material in substantially the same direction as the said horizontal movement.
23. A method as claimed in claim 19 wherein the particulate material is combustible refuse.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB38878/76A GB1543237A (en) | 1976-09-20 | 1976-09-20 | Apparatus for and method of conveying particulate material |
| GB1822377 | 1977-05-02 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1074722A true CA1074722A (en) | 1980-04-01 |
Family
ID=26253244
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA287,134A Expired CA1074722A (en) | 1976-09-20 | 1977-09-20 | Conveyor |
Country Status (12)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| AT (1) | AT356582B (en) |
| AU (1) | AU2846677A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1074722A (en) |
| DE (1) | DE2742287A1 (en) |
| DK (1) | DK415577A (en) |
| FI (1) | FI772726A (en) |
| FR (1) | FR2364834A1 (en) |
| IT (1) | IT1085185B (en) |
| NL (1) | NL7710112A (en) |
| NO (1) | NO773027L (en) |
| NZ (1) | NZ185041A (en) |
| SE (1) | SE7710475L (en) |
Family Cites Families (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR1008917A (en) * | 1950-01-20 | 1952-05-23 | Method and device for the transport and distribution of powdery, granular, wet materials, etc. | |
| FR1448613A (en) * | 1965-09-30 | 1966-08-05 | Automatic grass reception and dosing system | |
| DE1781279A1 (en) * | 1967-10-13 | 1972-06-08 | Trioliet Fa | Device for reloading hay, straw or similar material from a loading wagon to a conveyor or the like. |
| US3873032A (en) * | 1973-11-12 | 1975-03-25 | Jr James C Jellis | Material feeding apparatus |
| DE2439505A1 (en) * | 1974-08-17 | 1976-03-04 | Wolf Stahlbau Kg | Silo with attached conveyors - has conveyors below and above silo adjustable for angle of incline and speed |
-
1977
- 1977-08-29 NZ NZ185041A patent/NZ185041A/en unknown
- 1977-09-01 NO NO773027A patent/NO773027L/en unknown
- 1977-09-01 AU AU28466/77A patent/AU2846677A/en active Pending
- 1977-09-12 IT IT27460/77A patent/IT1085185B/en active
- 1977-09-15 NL NL7710112A patent/NL7710112A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1977-09-16 FI FI772726A patent/FI772726A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1977-09-19 SE SE7710475A patent/SE7710475L/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1977-09-19 FR FR7728155A patent/FR2364834A1/en active Pending
- 1977-09-20 CA CA287,134A patent/CA1074722A/en not_active Expired
- 1977-09-20 DE DE19772742287 patent/DE2742287A1/en active Pending
- 1977-09-20 DK DK415577A patent/DK415577A/en unknown
- 1977-09-20 AT AT674577A patent/AT356582B/en active
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| ATA674577A (en) | 1979-09-15 |
| SE7710475L (en) | 1978-03-21 |
| NO773027L (en) | 1978-03-21 |
| FI772726A (en) | 1978-03-21 |
| DE2742287A1 (en) | 1978-03-23 |
| DK415577A (en) | 1978-03-21 |
| AU2846677A (en) | 1979-03-08 |
| NZ185041A (en) | 1980-08-26 |
| AT356582B (en) | 1980-05-12 |
| NL7710112A (en) | 1978-03-22 |
| IT1085185B (en) | 1985-05-28 |
| FR2364834A1 (en) | 1978-04-14 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry |