CA1324780C

CA1324780C - Chip director

Info

Publication number: CA1324780C
Application number: CA000547799A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Pentti Raura
Original assignee: Rauma Repola Oy
Current assignee: Repola Oy
Priority date: 1986-09-29
Filing date: 1987-09-24
Publication date: 1993-11-30
Anticipated expiration: 2010-11-30
Also published as: IT1211800B; FI863931A0; DE3731322A1; IT8748416A0; FI75755C; FI75755B

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A chip director comprises a set of rollers for dispersing a chip stream onto a directing unit wherein the chips are oriented and subsequently deposited in a predetermined direction on a chip conveyor disposed below the directing unit. The directing unit comprises several rotatable elements arranged in side by side relation, with each element having a shaft from which a plurality of radially directed, uniformly spaced vanes extend along its length.

Description

:~32~780 FIELD OF THE INVE`NTION
The present invention relates to a chip directing unit for use on a chip conveyor line having a set of rollers for dispersing a chip stream onto the directing unit wherein the chips are oriented and subseguently deposited in a predetermined direction on the chip conveyor line, and more particularly to a chip directing unit having rotatable directing elements placed side by side in uniformly spaced relation.

BACKGROUND OF THE IN ENTION
A similar chip director is proposed e.g. in US
patent 4,388,055. US patents 4,058,201 and 3,896,536 also propo~e chip directors related to the art, in which the chips are deposited in a transverse position on the conveyor. The ob;ect of the present invention is to achieve a new type of chip director which is simple, cheap and reliable in operation. -SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The chip director of the invention is characterized in that the means for dir~cting the chips consist of radial vane structures axially attached on their shafts. Using the chip director of the invention, all chips passing through the director are deposited in the same orientation on the chip conveyor below the director. When the chips fall into the ~1 ':

132~780 spaces between the vanes of the directing elements, they are already turned into the same direction, and their orientation is further improved when the chips move down between the vane structures onto the conveyor line. Also, the chips flow very smoothly through the slots formed between the directing elements, so that the layer of chips deposited on the chip conveyor is very even.
A preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized in that the directing elements are partially circumscribed by jacket plates placed between the elements.
With this arrangement, the longish chips fall into wedge-shaped spaces between the director vanes and the jacket plates and slide down along the inner surface of the jacket plate, so that all the chips are oriented in the same direction when they fall down from the jacket plates onto the chip conveyor.
Another preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized in that the directing vanes are wedge-shaped structures which taper in section as seen from the shaft towards the outer edge. In this way, wedge-shaped spaces serving to enhance the orientation effect are created between the directing vanes and the jacket plates.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will now be more particularly described with reference to embodiments thereof shown, by way ' .

.

` ~ -132~780 .
,. . .
~` of example, in the accompanying drawings in which:
:
`:: Fig. 1 shows the main parts of the chip director in an oblique top view; and Fig. 2 shows a directing element according to one 5of the embodiments of the invention in an end view.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A chip director is disclosed for use on a chip conveyor line, consisting of a set of dispersing rollers 1 for dispersing the chip stream onto a directing unit 2 where 10the chips are oriented and deposited in the desired direction on the chip conveyor 3 below. The directing unit 2 consists of several directing elements 4 having rotatable shafts placed side by side in uniformly spaced relation. The elements for directing the chips consist of radial vane 15structures attached axially on their shafts. The directing elements 4 are partially circumscribed by jacket plates 6 placed between the directing elements. The directing vanes 5 are wedge-shaped structures which taper in section as seen from the shaft towards the outer edge. As the longish chips 20get into the wedge-shaped spaces 7, they are already more or less oriented in the desired direction. When the chips reach a zone designated stage 8, they slide down the steepening vane side 9 into the wedge-shaped space between the vane side 9 and the jacket surface 10, so that the directing effect is ~
25enhanced. At a zone designated stage 11 the chips - -~ : "
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, ~ . - ,. .

` 1~24780 .
momentarily stop on the jacket surface, and the vane side 12 ~- pushes them further until they fall down onto the chip conveyor 3 below. As the chips leave the director unit at point 13 in small batches, they provide mutual support to each other and do not get mixed up to any notable extent during the free fall.
It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not restricted to the above examples of its embodiments, but that it may instead be varied in the scope of the following claims. Thus the chip conveyor may also be turned horizontally into an angle of up to 90 degrees relative to the plane of the chip director, so that the chips can be deposited on the conveyor at an oblique angle or even longitudinally therealong.

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Claims

1. A chip director adapted to receive a chip stream from a set of dispersing rollers positioned above the director, and further adapted to orient the chips in a predetermined direction and to deposit the oriented chips onto a moving chip conveyor disposed in a horizontal plane below the director, the chip director comprising a plurality of directing elements arranged in fixed, uniformly spaced relation substantially parallel to the conveyor, with individual ones of the elements including a rotatable, axial shaft, and a plurality of vanes joined to and extending radially outwardly from the shaft in uniformly spaced relation for guiding the oriented chips onto the conveyor.

2. A chip director as claimed in Claim 1, wherein adjacent pairs of the directing elements are partially circumscribed by a jacket plate placed therebetween.

3. A chip director as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the directing vanes are wedge-shaped structures each having a convergingly tapering sectional form between the shaft and the outer edge of the vane.