GB2524809A

GB2524809A - Bulk hopper

Info

Publication number: GB2524809A
Application number: GB1406035.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Guy Martin
Original assignee: NECTAR GROUP Ltd
Current assignee: NECTAR GROUP Ltd
Priority date: 2014-04-03
Filing date: 2014-04-03
Publication date: 2015-10-07
Also published as: WO2015150764A1; AU2015242445A1; GB201406035D0; HK1209400A1

Abstract

A modular bulk hopper arrangement may be demountable into two modules, 101, 102, each featuring at least a part of the hopper 105. A support frame may feature a foldable arrangement (figs.13A-13C). The modularity of the bulk hopper arrangement may help in transporting the item between sites such as shipping ports or freight hubs.

Description

Bulk Hopper

Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a bulk hopper for transferring products in bulk from one bulk container into another, usually smaller volume container, In particular, the invention relates to a modular bulk hopper which can be dismantled and therefore can be more easily transported from one location to another.

Background

Bulk hoppers are traditionally used in locations where bulk material transfer takes place, such as shipping ports or freight hubs, where materials are transferred in bulk from one transport means to another. For example, any flowable product, including liquids, granular products, such as, for example, sand or fertiliser, or even relatively small components, which are flowable when transported in bulk, such as, for example, nuts, bolts or small solid, e.g., mbber or plastic components, may be shipped to a port in a freight ship. The transported product then needs to be transferred from the ship to surface transport vehicles, such as freight train containers, or into lorries, for onward surface transport from the port to other locations, where packaging may occur, Further transport may also be direct to an agricultural or construction site for immediate use. The transfer between containers can be carried out via bulk hoppers, to direct product removed from the ship into surface transport containers. Smaller scale bu'k hoppers may also be used to facilitate further division of the product into smaller containers, such as bags or smaller trailers or containers, Some products are only temporarily imported or transferred via a particular port or freight hub. For example, a construction site needing sand or other bulk products may only need those products to be delivered via a certain hub or port for a finite period of time, until a certain phase of construction is complete. For agricultural products, such as fertilisers, use of a port for delivery and transfer of bulk products is predominantly seasonal and so a bulk hopper in a particular port may only see use for a small proportion of the year. Movement of known bulk hoppers within and between locations is a generally labour intensive, costly, and often dangerous process, since much manual labour is required to carry out any assembly or disassembly steps, often at height.

Summary of the invention

There is a need to address one or more of the above-mentioned problems.

The present invention seeks to address these problems by providing a modular bulk hopper and related assembly and assembly method, which is better suited to transfer between ports or freight hubs.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a bulk hopper, comprising one or more tapered hopper side walls, for guiding bulk product from an open top of the hopper to a lower aperture of the hopper; the bulk hopper being modular, such that it can be divided into a plurality of modules, comprising a first hopper module and at least a second module; each of the modules comprising separate wall sections of the hopper side wall(s) and configured to be releasably assembled together to form the hopper.

The invention allows a bulk hopper to be efficiently transported to a site, assembled for use and subsequently dismantled for storage or transport between sites.

Each of the first and second hopper modules may comprise a support frame for supporting the wall section of the bulk hopper comprised in each hopper module. This adds rigidity to the wall sections, which may be less rigid once separated into sub-sections.

The support frame of each of the first and second hopper modules may comprise releasable connecting means for releasably connecting the support frames to one another, or to leg modules, to form the bulk hopper.

Parts of the hopper side walls comprised in each hopper module may be located entirely within an outer envelope defined by the support frame of the hopper module. This can protect the wall sections from damage during transport and can prevent the wall sections from damaging other items outside of the frame envelope. This has been found to be necessary in some cases to meet certification regulations, such as for ISO shipping or transport containers.

First and second hopper modules may be configured such that when the hopper modules are assembled to form the hopper, at least one gap is provided between adjacent wall sections of the hopper. The gap can be the result of having to provide the wall section entirely within the frame. Further the frame corner castings or connecting members may protrude outwardly from the frame, causing a gap between frame elements to be created, meaning that a gap between wall sections contained within the frame may be unavoidaNe in certain cases.

The bulk hopper may further comprise a sealing member for sealing the gap between adjacent wall sections of the hopper. This can avoid product being passed through the bulk hopper being lost through the gap.

At least one of the first and second hopper modules may comprise a guide section located toward a top edge of the wall section, oriented away from the gap, at a non-zero angie relative to the wall section, to guide material deposited in the hopper away from the gap.

The guide portion may comprise a first, upright section, directed substantially parallel to an edge of the wall section and a second, oblique section, directed away from the gap between adjacent wall sections.

At least one of the wall sections may comprise a connecting edge ocated adjacent a neighbouring wall section, and a lip arranged to prevent bulk material from spilling over the connecting edge into the gap. The lip can also help to engage the sealing member.

The sealing member may therefore engage the lip to prevent buflc material from exiting the hopper via the gap between adjacent wall sections of the hopper.

Each of the first and second hopper modules may comprise an aperture for releasing bulk material from the bulk hopper. The aperture is normally provided at the bottom of the bulk hopper so that gravity draws material deposited in the hopper toward the aperture.

The bulk hopper may further comprise at least one leg module for maintaining the bulk hopper above a container into which the hopper will deposit bulk material in use, the leg module being releasably attached to the bulk hopper. This facilitates easy dismantling and re-assembly of the hopper and leg modules for storage and/or transport. The releasable attachment can be achieved with releasable attachments which can be attached and released without the need for specialist tools or powered tools. At least some of the attachment means can therefore be manual attachment means, suitable for manual operation. They may also be known as quick release attachment or engagement means, in that the attachment means are configured to be attached and released quickly, with minimal user operations. They may include a twist-lock, as is known in the transport and container industry.

The bulk hopper may further comprise leg module engagement means for engaging the releasable leg module of the bulk hopper. This can take numerous forms as described herein to enable connection of the leg module to the bulk hopper.

The leg module engagement means may comprises first leg module engagement means, preferably located on a side member of a frame of one of the hopper modules, and second leg module engagement means, preferably located on a bottom member of the frame of the hopper module, This can allow the leg module to be connected at separate points on the hopper module to retain the modules in a fixed orientation relative to one another.

There may be provided, 1, 2, 3, 4 or more connection points, which may be arranged on one, or two or more connection axes.

First and second hopper modules of the bulk hopper may each comprise the first and second leg module engagement means.

One of the first and second leg module engagement means may comprise a rotatable connection, configured to retain the leg rotatably on the hopper module. The other of the first and second leg module engagement means may comprise a further connection, configured to prevent the leg from rotating about the rotatable connection. The rotatable connection may comprise a bar and a ring member or members, arranged around the bar to allow rotation about a single axis.

At least one of the plurality of hopper modules may comprises a floor comprising an access opening, for accessing an upper side of the floor on the inside of the support frame, from beneath.

The support frame of at least one of the hopper modules may comprises one or more of: a plurality of substantially parallel top side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel bottom side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel parallel corner posts connected to the top and/or bottom side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel corner posts; a protection frame connected to the top side rails; at least one diagonal support for supporting the hopper wall section.

A flirther aspect of the invention provides removable leg module for a bulk hopper, comprising: at least one upright member, for providing a leg to hold the bulk hopper above a container, into which the hopper will deposit bulk material in use; and first and/or second engagement means for releasably connecting the leg module to the hopper.

The first and second engagement means may be spaced relative to one another along the length of the upright member. This can provide rigidity relative to the bulk hopper when assembled and prevent rotation ofthe leg module relative to the hopper.

The leg module may thrther comprise a horizontal support member, preferably arranged substantially perpendicularly to the upright member, to support a horizontally extending part of the hopper. This can allow a hopper or hopper module to be supported at horizontally spaced locations when mounted on the leg module.

The leg module may further comprise a diagonal bracing support, bracing the preferably horizontal support member relative to the upright member, to provide additional support to the horizontal member. The upright member may be considered a longitudinal member and the horizontal member may be considered a lateral member by virtue of its substantially lateral projection relative to the longitudinal member.

The first engagement means of the leg module may be connected to the upright or longitudinal member and the second engagement means may be connected to the horizontal or lateral support member.

The leg module may comprise plural upright members, horizontal support members and diagonal bracing members, preferably in substantially parallel pairs. At least some of these members may also be arranged in a common plane.

The leg module may further comprise rotational hopper engagement means, for engaging the hopper, or a hopper module of the hopper, and retaining the leg module on the hopper, while allowing rotation of the leg module relative to the hopper or hopper module.

The rotation of the leg module relative to the hopper or hopper module may be about a single axis of rotation, preferably a substantially horizontal or lateral axis.

The single axis of rotation may be substantially in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to an axis aligned from the input opening to the output aperture of the hopper. This may be termed a vertical axis since in use the hopper is aligned with the input opening above the output aperture.

The leg module may comprise leg module engagement means, located on the leg module and configured to engage corresponding leg module engagement means of an adjacent leg module. This allows neighbouring leg modules to be attached to one another to maintain or improve structural rigidity. This connection may be used to maintain hopper modules adjacent one another.

The leg module engagement means may comprise sloped guides for guiding the leg module engagement means into connection with corresponding leg module engagement means of a neighbouring leg module.

A further aspect of the invention provides a set of leg modules comprising first and second leg modules, wherein the first leg module comprises male leg module engagement means and the second leg module comprises female leg module engagement means, at least one of the male and female leg module engagement means comprising a sloped guide for guiding engagement with the other of the male and female leg module engagement means.

The set of leg modules may comprising a hook provided on one leg module, and a recess for engaging the hook provided on the other leg module, to maintain the leg modules in connection with one another.

The set of leg modules may comprise locking means for locking the engagement means in an engaged configuration. The locking means may comprise a pin located in openings in engaging male and female leg module engagement means, to retain them in an engaged configuration.

A further aspect of the invention provides a bulk hopper assembly, comprising a bulk hopper and a plurality of detachable leg modules.

A further aspect of the invention provides a method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly, comprising the steps of: providing a bulk hopper module comprising all or part of a bulk hopper; attaching a leg module to the bulk hopper module at a rotatable connection point; raising the bulk hopper module so that gravity swings the leg module into a position to hold the bulk hopper module at height; locking the leg module in position to support the bulk hopper on the leg module.

The method may further comprise the step of providing plural hopper modules comprising separate sections of the hopper; and releasably connecting the hopper modules to one another to form the hopper.

Each of the hopper modules preferably comprises separate wall sections of the side wall(s) of the hopper.

The method may further comprise the steps of: raising the separate bulk hopper modules so that gravity swings at least one leg module connected to each respective hopper module into position, to allow the bulk hopper module to be supported on the leg module; and subsequently assembling the hopper modules, with leg modules attached, ad] acent to one another to form the hopper.

The method may further comprise the steps of engaging male engagement means on leg modules attached to one of the hopper module assemblies with female engagement means attached to the other of the hopper module assemblies; and preferably, engaging locking means to lock the male and female engagement means in an engaged configuration.

The method may further comprise the step of: placing one or more sealing member(s) over one or more gaps located between adjacent wall sections of the bulk hopper.

The method may further comprise the step of directly releasably connecting the hopper modules to one another with direct engagement means.

A further aspect of the invention provides a method of transferring bulk material from a first container to a second container, comprising the steps of assembling a bulk hopper by means described herein; providing a container below the bulk hopper; and providing bulk material to the upper opening of the bulk hopper to be guided to the container by the bulk hopper.

A further aspect of the invention provides a kit of parts for making a bulk hopper as described herein.

A further aspect of the invention provides a hopper module as described for use in the bulk hopper of the invention.

Description of drawings

Embodiment(s) of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a bulk hopper according to the present invention; Figure 2 shows a bulk hopper of the present invention, viewed from an upper angle; Figure 3 shows a hopper module of the bulk hopper of the present invention; Figure 4 shows an alternative view of a hopper module of the bulk hopper of the present invention; Figures SA and SB show detail of a material guide of a hopper module of the present invention; Figure 6 shows a section through adjacent wall sections of the bulk hopper of the present invention; Figure 7 shows detail of a leg module attachment section of a hopper module of the present invention; Figure 8 shows a first leg module of the present invention; Figure 9 shows a second leg module of the present invention; Figure 10 shows a rotatable leg attachment arrangement of the present invention; Figure II shows a section through a leg module engagement means of the present invention; Figures t2A and t2B show male and female leg module engagement means; Figures 13A to 13C illustrate steps in an assembly method for the bulk hopper assembly of the present invention; and Figures 14A to 14C illustrate further steps in an assembly method of the present invention,

Detailed description

Figure 1 shows a bulk hopper 100 according to the present invention. The invention addresses a particular problem with standard bulk hoppers, in that in order to perform their function, of allowing bulk materials to be quickly transferred from one container to another, the bulk hopper must necessarily have a relatively large upper opening, so that bulk material can be disposed in the hopper relatively quickly and easily, without necessarily requiring great precision. Materials are often deposited in bulk hoppers to transfer materials from one container to another using mechanical grabs, diggers or other mechanised transfer devices, Accurate placement of material with such devices can be difficult to achieve, or may require a lot of time to operate them with the required accuracy to place bulk materials into relatively small containers, This means that bulk hoppers are generally relatively large structures and can be difficult to transport between different locations, The bulk hopper of the present invention is therefore modularised, to allow it to be broken down into easily transportable modules, which can fit in to or on to a road going vehicle, such as a lorry, or be transported by rail on a train, or easily transported throughout the standard ISO container network, which comprises road, rail and marine transport vehicles, i.e. lorries, trains and ships, and related infrastructure such as lifting gear, which are configured to deal with containers of specific sizes, Illustrated embodiments show a bulk hopper designed to be broken down into elements which will either fit into a standard ISO shipping container, or which are themselves the size of a standard ISO shipping container. The illustrated hopper modules are of dimensions which comply with ISO 668. In this instance the container is of length 6058mm, width 2438mm and height 2591mm and meets with all specifications also detailed in that specification. However, it will be appreciated that modular hopper components can be created in other sizes as necessary, to suit particular applications or ii transport means, However, there is a general need for a modular bulk hopper which can be broken down into smaller parts and the principles described herein could be applied to bulk hoppers of larger or smaller sizes than are described herein.

The illustrated container 100 comprises a hopper which is formed from a pair of hopper modules 101 and 102. In this embodiment, the hopper modules are substantially the same, or preferably identical, in form. This can help to reduce the complexity of the manufacturing process and thus reduce overall manufacturing costs.

The hopper assembly is arranged to have a container receiving area 103 located beneath the hopper, for receiving a container 200, into which bulk material will be deposited, via the hopper. The container 200 may also be an ISO standard container and may be disposed on a vehicle, such as a lorry or a train.

Bulk material is transferred into the bulk hopper as indicated by arrow 104. Gravity then draws the material in a downward direction towards container 200, through an aperture or apertures in the bottom of the hopper. Therefore, when discussing bulk hoppers in general, the larger opening is located at a top or upper side of the hopper, and a smaller opening or openings are located at a lower or bottom side of the hopper. A sloping side wall or side walls 105 are provided, which form tapered guides for guiding the material diagonally downward towards an aperture in the bottom of the hopper. The side wall 105 in the illustrated embodiment is substantially planar and has four planar side sections, two of which are split into two to facilitate breaking down of the hopper into half-sized sub-modules. However, the hopper wall 105 could alternatively be made of one or more curved sections to give a substantially conical form, or to have rounded corners in place of the sharp diagonal joins between adjacent wall sections shown in the figures. Such a conical or smoothed wall can also be broken down into sub-sections as described herein.

The assembly shown in Figure 1 comprises four leg modules 201, 202, 203, 204.

However, for different hopper arrangements, different numbers of leg modules are envisaged. The leg modules are releasably attachable to the hopper modules 101 and 102, so that the assembly as a whole can be disassembled for transport. This allows the modular hopper assembly of the illustrated embodiment to be transported to a location using infrastructure which is designed and approved for standard sea container transport.

However, the modules could be further modularised to allow them to be transported in smaller containers or vehicles if so desired, or the modules could be made to a smaller size to allow transport of the hopper, or a smaller hopper, between locations via different means of transport.

Figure 2 shows a bulk hopper assembly 100 viewed from a higher angle, and further interior features of the bulk hopper can be seen. Each of the hopper modules comprises a protection frame t06, which acts to provide structural integrity to the upper side of the module and to those parts of the hopper walls 105 connected to it. It can also be seen that the hopper modules 101 and 102 are each provided with an aperture 107 through which bulk material placed in the upper side of the bulk hopper can flow when the aperture 107 is open. These apertures are commonly provided with a slide valve to enable the aperture to be slidably opened and closed. Generally, a bulk hopper is provided with a single aperture, however, to simplify manufacture of each of the hopper modules 101 and 102, and to avoid excessive complication at the interface between halves of the bulk hopper 100, the apertures 107 can be provided completely and separately, in separate halves of the bulk hopper as illustrated.

To facilitate the provision of the bulk hopper in separate parts, particular features, such as guides t08 and sealing members 109 are provided, as will be described in further detail later. A particular difficulty which can arise when providing a bulk hopper in modular parts, is that the frame and connections around it can make it difficult or impossible to have continuous joins between sections of the side wall tOS of the bulk hopper which are provided in each hopper module. Further, it can be dangerous to provide sections of the wall 105 which project outside of the supporting frame of the hopper module 101 or 102.

Indeed, under certain requirements, such as those of standard ISO shipping containers, it is prohibited that any element projects outside of the envelope defined by the frame.

Further, corner castings 110 provided at the corners of the frame can necessarily create a gap between the frame members connected to those corner castings, and between separate sections of the wall 105 of the hopper. For this reason, a sealing member 109 is located at a gap created between wall sections 105, to substantially seal the gap and to prevent bulk material from falling through those gaps. It can be difficult to provide a seal member 109 along the entire height from bottom edge to top edge of the walls 105 and so to address this problem, guide members 108 can be provided to guide material entering at the top edges of the walls, to the bottom of the hopper, avoiding the gap covered by seal member 109 altogether.

Figure 3 shows an example of a hopper module 101 of the present invention. The module comprises a partial wall section 105 of the bulk hopper of Figures 1 arid 2. The wall section 105 is supported by a support frame. The illustrated support frame comprises a pair of top side rails 111, bottom side rails 112, four corner posts 113, a pair of headers t t 4, at each end of the container, and side supports t t 5. Any or all of these can be provided alone or in combination to support the wall section 05. Diagonal supports 116 are also provided, to provide additional strength to the wall section 105 of the bulk hopper contained in the support frame. The support frame also comprises forklift pockets 117, which are preferably located in the bottom side rails 112 and which are configured to receive the forks of a forklift truck, This can enable manoeuvring and transport of the hopper module 101 and these can also be used in a novel assembly method, which will be described in more detail later on.

The support frame also has corner castings 110 in each corner of the frame, which act both as connection members to join the different frame members, and which can also act as engagement means for adjoining different modules of the assembly to one another, or for engaging parts of transport infrastructure during transport of the module, such as for locking on to ships, trains or lorries, or for gripping by lifting means such as a crane.

As well as providing these connection members 110 in the form of corner castings at the corners of the frame, the hopper module tot also has connection members 118, which are located distal from the corner castings, in the illustrated example at points along the length of the bottom side rail. These can be utilised as leg member attachment means in the present invention, which will be described in greater detail in the following. A substantially cylindrical side member 119 is also provided, and this provides a point for rotational attachment of leg modules to the hopper module 101, as will be described in

greater detail later in the following description.

Figure 4 shows an alternative view of a hopper module 10], Here, it can be seen more clearly that a floor 120 is provided in the bottom of the support frame and the floor comprises an opening 121. When the bulk hopper is assembled, the opening 121 is configured to correspond with a ladder provided on a leg module for the hopper, to allow user access to the outside of the hopper at the level of the floor 120. This can allow ease of operation of the slide valve 122 and also provides access for some of the connecting operations required to secure the bulk hopper in an assembled state when the modules 101 and 102 are assembled with leg models or brought together side by side. Handrails 123 are also provided for increased safety of the user when working on the floor 120 at height. As can be seen in the figure, the hopper module 101 is entirely contained within an outer support frame, and the support frame comprises a number of orthogonal and diagonal elements, which provide both stiffness to the frame itself and also to the partial wall section 105, which is comprised within the support frame of the module 101.

Figure SA shows greater detail of a corner guide member 50 of the hopper module 101.

The guide member comprises a first guide portion 51, which is provided substantially orthogonally to the wall 105 of the module and is substantially aligned with the support frame of the module 101. A second portion 52 of the guide member 50 is angled obliquely relative to the first portion 51, to assist with guiding bulk material away from the lip 124. Lip 124 is provided on the wall section 105 adjacent a connecting edge of the wall 105, which is arranged to be located substantially adjacent a neighbouring wall section of a neighbouring module.

Figure SB shows a different view of the guide member 50 located on wall section 105, from which it can be seen that the guide member has a substantially triangular form and can be configured to provide a partial barrier between an upper frame member or upper side member of the frame iii and the wall 105 or diagonal member 116. The guide member projects upwardly from the wall section to prevent bulk material from flowing into the gap created between adjacent wall sections when assembled side by side.

Figure 6 shows how the sealing member 109 can be located over adjacent lips 124 of adjacent wall sections 105 of adjacent modules 101, 102, by showing a section through the seal member 109, wall sections 105 and diagonal members 116. With this arrangement, bulk material arriving into the bulk hopper in the direction of arrow 61 can be directed away from gap 62 and so the ingress of material into gap 62 can be at least limited and potentially eliminated.

Figure 7 shows greater detail how leg module connection means 118 can be provided in the bottom side rail 112 of the module 101. The connecting means comprises a substantially U-shaped opening 7t which opens into a cavity within the casting 70. A lateral opening 72 is also provided to provide a visual check for correct engagement of the leg module engagement means. It will be described in further detail in the following sections how these features can engage with releasable engagement means to releasably connect leg modules to the hopper module 101.

Figure 8 shows a leg module 80 of the present invention, which is equivalent to the leg module 202 shown in the assembly of figure 1. The leg module 80 comprises upright members 81 and cross members 82, joining the upright members 8 t to one another.

Internal diagonal braces 83 are provided to provide additional strength and support to the upright members 81 and to provide general lateral stability to the leg module 80. The leg module also comprises a horizontal support member 84. In the illustrated case, the horizontal support member is arranged substantially perpendicularly to the upright member 81. The horizontal support member 84 is therefore configured to support the bottom side rail 112 of the hopper module, as can be seen in Figure 1, when the leg module is assembled with the hopper module. Diagonal support members 85 are provided to diagonally join the horizontal support members 84 to the upright members 81 and to provide additional strength to the horizontal supports.

Rotational attachment means 86 are provided at an upper end of upright members 81.

These are provided in the form of swivel shoe which has a body section 87, which is provided with a recess 88 having a substantially arcuate profile for engagement with a bar 119 provided on the hopper module 101. The inner bearing face of the body section can be provided with a low friction or self-lubricating material such as Nylon or Teflon, to permit smooth rotation of the connection around the bar 19. In this configuration, the hopper engagement means 86 can retain the leg module 80 on the hopper module 101, whilst permitting relative rotation between the two parts of the assembly. The permitted rotation is about the bar member I t9 of the hopper module 101, which, when the hopper module is in an upright orientation with its large opening toward the top, is a substantially horizontal axis of rotation.

The leg module 80 is also provided with second form of hopper module engagement means, these are in the form of twist locks 89, which are configured to engage with the leg member engagement means 118 provided on the bottom side rail 112 of the hopper module 101, as will be described in greater detail. Lifting eyes 851, 821, 811 are provided on the diagonal bracing members 85, cross members 82 and upright members 8], respectively. These lifting eyes permit the attachment of lifting means, such as chains or ropes, to the leg members, so that they can be lifted into position by mechanical lifting means such as a forklift, hydraulic grab, crane or other suitable lifting means.

Adjacent leg member engagement means are provided in the form of hooks 812, provided on the upright members 81. The connectors shown are male leg module engagement members 812, configured on a side of the leg module 80, to engage corresponding engagement means provided on an adjacent leg module when the modules are assembled together side by side. The detailed configuration of these leg module engagement means will be described in greater detail in relation to Figures 12A and 12B.

A further leg module 801 is illustrated in Figure 9, Similarly to the leg module of Figure 8, the leg module comprises upright members 81, horizontal members 82, internal diagonal braces 83, horizontal supports 84, and diagonal support members 85. An optional ladder arrangement 802 is illustrated, and is arranged at a location to correspond with opening 12] in floor 120 of the hopper module 101 illustrated in Figure 4. Lifting rings 811 are also provided, similarly to those present on leg module 80.

Differently to the leg module of Figure 8, the leg module of Figure 9 comprises female leg module engagement means 813, which are located on an opposite side of the leg module to the male leg module engagement means 812 described in relation to Figure 8.

The female leg module engagement means 813 are configured to receive the male leg module engagement means 8]2 of the leg module 80 when placed adjacent the leg module 801, as will be described in greater detail in the following. Similar hopper module engagement means 86 are provided, to allow rotational engagement relative to a connected hopper module, as described in relation to Figure 8.

Figure 10 illustrates in greater detail the rotational hopper module engagement means.

The shoe 87, provided with a part-cylindrical liner 1010 can be engaged with the horizontal bar 119 of the hopper module 101. The engagement means 86 can be known as a swivel shoe and can be welded to the leg module. They can be bolted in place using fixing means such as bolt 1020, to locate arcuate ring section 1030 around the bar 119.

In this way, the leg module 80 can be rotationally secured to the hopper module 101 to permit it to rotate about the axis of the bar 119.

Figure 11 shows a section through the second hopper module engaging means 89 of the leg modules when engaged with the leg module engagement feature 118 provided on the bottom side rail 112 of the hopper module 101. The illustrated twist lock 1100 can be engaged with the casting 70 on the lower side bar 112 of the hopper module. Such twist locks are well known in the transport and container industry. Head 1101 of the twist lock 1100 can be located in the cavity inside the casting 70, The u-shaped opening 71 of the casting is oriented in line with the leg module attachment point, to allow the head 101 of the twist lock 1100 to enter the cavity of the casting 70 as the leg module is rotated into place on the hopper module, as will be described in relation to figures 13A to 13C. Once the head 1101 is located in the casting, the head can be rotated by 90 degrees to prevent the head from being extracted from the casting 70. Then, by tightening the nut 1102 on the shaft 1103, the horizontal member 84 of the leg module is securely fastened to the hopper module lower side bar 112.

Figure 2A shows in greater detail the engagement of male leg module engagement means 812 of the leg module 80 with the female leg module engagement means 813 of the leg module 801, A cross-section through the assembly is shown in Figure 12B.

The leg module engagement means are designed to be engaged by substantially vertical insertion of the male member 812 into the female member 813, in a direction of the upright member 81. However, this must be done by movement of at least the whole leg module 80 relative to leg module 801, and as will be described in the following, it may be done by movement of two leg modules and a hopper module in unison. Facilitating positive guiding and location of the male member 812 and the female member 813 is therefore important. There are at least three axes along which the respective members must be aligned, namely laterally, in the direction of arrows 1201, longitudinally, in the direction of arrows 1202 and vertically in the direction of arrows 1203. To facilitate alignment in the direction of arrows 1201, a sloped region 1211 is provided on the female member, on either side of the aperture and this assists the male member 812, when located over the female member 813, to be aligned laterally in the direction of arrows 1201 as it is advanced toward the female member 813. A farther sloped portion t2t2 is provided on the end of male member 812, which assists with longitudinal alignment in the direction of arrows 1202 as the male member 8 t2 is advanced into female member 813. A further sloped portion 1213 on the male member assists with alignment as the male member is advanced longitudinally, in the direction of arrows 1202 towards the female member 813, since this sloped portion 12t3, at the bottom of the leg members 80 and 801 at least, will engage the upright member 81 of the leg module if it is marginally misaligned. This engagement will align the male and female members as the leg modules are brought alongside one another side by side as described in relation to Figure t4B.

The male member 82 comprises a longitudinally extending body portion 1214, and a vertically extending body portion 1215. The vertically extending body portion 1215 is provided with sloped portions 1212 at its distal end, to assist with engagement in the female portion 813. The female member 813 comprises an opening at its upper side, which is flanked by sloped portions t21 1, which are angled downwardly and inwardly towards the aperture to assist with alignment of the male member 812 and the female member 813. The female member 813 also has a vertically-oriented aperture for receiving the vertically extending member t215 of the male member 8t2. The two complimentary parts 812 and 813 of the engagement means can be locked in place with a pin 1216. The pin 1216 can be provided with a locking protrusion 1217, which can be aligned with an eccentric handle provided on the pin. The handle and the locking protrusion 1217 can be introduced into the engagement assembly 812, 813, with the eccentric handle and the locking protrusion 1217 in an upward facing direction, above the axis of rotation of the pin, and thus gravity encourages the pin to rotate around into a locked position, where the centre of gravity of the eccentric handle and locking node 1217 are oriented downwardly. Locking protrusion 1217 is then no longer aligned with the slot 1218 of the engagement members 812 and 813. This can provide further safety in maintaining the engagement members in an engaged configuration and provides a locking member for locking the engagement members in an engaged configuration.

Figures 13A -13C illustrate an assembly method for assembling a hopper module 101 with leg modules 801 and 802. The hopper module illustrated is a hopper module carrying a partial wall section as illustrated in Figures 1 to 4. However, the method could equally be applied to a hopper module comprising a whole hopper, or another proportion of a hopper other than the half hopper shown in the figures.

In a first assembly step, leg modules 131 and 132 are attached, rotatably, to a hopper module 130, as can be achieved with the rotatable hopper attachment assembly illustrated in Figure 10.

In a second method step, the hopper module 30 is raised in a direction ofarow 130]. In the illustrated examples, this can be done by a forklift truck engaging with the apertures 117 in the boftom side members 112 of the hopper module 101. However, equivalent features could be provided on other hopper modules or the hopper module could be raised by other means, such as cranes, or even by man power if the hopper module is on a small enough scale.

As can be seen in Figure 13B, gravity causes the leg modules 131 and 132 to be biased downwardly relative to the hopper module 130, so that they swing inwardly and under the hopper module 130 in the direction of arrows 1302 and 1303. A first attachment step, followed by a second, rotation step, are therefore provided.

When the hopper module HO has been raised to a suitable degree, the leg modules 131 and 132 will have swung to a near-upright position. However, the centre of gravity of the leg modules in some cases may not (and will not in the case of the leg modules 80 and 80]), bring the leg modules into a sufficiently vertical position. Additional force may therefore be required to bring the leg modules into a frilly aligned position for fixing to the hopper module, This can be done by providing a force drawing the leg modules toward one another, such as by using a ratchet strap connected to lift rings on the leg modules, preferably toward the lower end of the leg modules, more preferably at the lift ring on the lower cross member.

Once in the upright position, in the case of leg modules 80 and 80], the twist locks 89 will engage with the casings 70 provided in bottom side rails 112 and these can then be accessed from the hopper floor if necessary to engage the twist locks.

For the assembly of the bulk hopper assembly of the main embodiment, this process will be carried out twice, once for hopper module 101 with leg modules 201 and 204 and again for hopper module t02 with leg modules 202 and 203 as illustrated in Figure t.

Figures 14A to 14C illustrate a second stage in the assembly process which is suited to the assembly illustrated in Figure 1 In between the assembly steps of Figures 1 3A to 13B and 14A to 14C, or before the assembly steps of Figures 13A to 13B, the seal member t09 is fixed, preferably bolted, to the angled wall section 105 of the male hopper. In this way, when the two sections are brought together as described in the following steps, the seal member 109 will be located over the corresponding lip of the female assembly as illustrated in Figures 2 and 14C.

Hopper module 0l has leg modules comprising female leg module engagement means 813 and so will be termed the female assembly during these steps. Since the hopper module 102 is equipped with leg modules comprising the male leg module engagement means 812, it will be termed the male assembly 142 in this section. It can be advantageous to locate the female assembly 141 in tracks 1400 which may preferably be attached to the ground. These tracks 1400 provide greater stability during the assembly process and can help prevent the female assembly 14 t from being knocked over when the male assembly 142 is brought towards it, In this part of the assembly method, it is necessary to lift the male assembly 142 upwardly relative to female assembly 141 in the direction of arrow 143. This can be done with a forklift engaging engagement openings 117 shown in the earlier figures in the bottom side rail 112. However, other lifting means may be used as available, and as appropriate to the size of the overall assembly. In a second step illustrated in Figure 14B, the male assembly 142 is advanced substantially horizontally towards the female assembly 141 in a direction of arrow 144. During this advancement, as can be seen in figure 14B, sloped portion 1213 of male attachment means 813, at the lower end of leg module 80, will engage the upright member 81 of leg module 801 to align the male 812 and female SE leg module engagement means. The equivalent will happen at the opposite end of the male and female assemblies 141 and 142, which is hidden from view in Figure 14B. Therefore, as the male assembly 142 is brought toward the female assembly 141, the male and female engagement means will be aligned with one another.

Finally, as illustrated in Figure 14C, once the male module 142 is lowered in the direction of arrow 145, then the sloped section 1211 and 1212 of the corresponding engagement members will assist with the final alignment of the corresponding engagement members and the locking pins 1216 can then be put in place to lock the assembly together.

It can therefore be seen how the modular system of the present invention enables assembly to be carried out without significant need for manual labour at height, and where this is necessary, it can be cathed out on the raised floor of the hopper module, where the work space is safely surrounded by handrails and accessible by a fixed ladder.

The main fixing operations, namely the attachment of rotational fixing means 86 can be done at ground level before the assembly steps of Figures 13 A to 13 C are carried out and thus safety is improved. Overall, the system of the present invention provides a modularised bulk hopper assembly, which can be rapidly and safely assembled and disassembled into modular parts which are suitable for easy transport, in particular within the containerised transport systems commonly used between ports and freight terminals.

Claims

Claims 1 A bulk hopper, comprising one or more tapered hopper side walls, for guiding bulk product from an open top of the hopper to a lower aperture of the hopper; the bulk hopper being modular, such that it can be divided into a plurality of modules, comprising a first hopper module and at least a second hopper module; each of the hopper modules comprising separate wall sections of the hopper side wall(s) and configured to be releasably assembled together to form the hopper.
2. A bulk hopper according to claim I, wherein each of the first and second hopper modules comprises a support frame for supporting the wall section of the bulk hopper comprised in each hopper module.
3. A bulk hopper according to claim 2, wherein the support frame of each of the first and second hopper modules comprises releasable connecting means for releasably connecting the support frames to one another, or to leg modules, to form the bulk hopper.
4, A bulk hopper according to any of claims 2 or 3, wherein the parts of the hopper side walls comprised in each hopper module are located entirely within an outer envelope defined by the support frame of the hopper module.
5. A bulk hopper according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the first and second hopper modules are configured such that when the hopper modules are assembled to form the hopper, at least one gap is provided between adj acent wall sections of the hopper.
6. A bulk hopper according to claim 5, further comprising a sealing member for sealing the gap between adj acent wall sections of the hopper.
7. A bulk hopper according to claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second hopper modules comprises a guide section located toward a top edge of the wall section, oriented away from the gap, at a non-zero angle relative to the wall section, to guide material deposited in the hopper away from the gap.
8. A bulk hopper according to claim 7, wherein the guide portion comprises a first, upright section, directed substantially parallel to an edge of the wall section and a second, oblique section, directed away from the gap between adjacent wall sections.
9, A bulk hopper according to any of claims 5 to 8, wherein at least one of the wall sections comprises a connecting edge located adjacent a neighbouring wall section and a lip, arranged to prevent bulk material from spilling over the connecting edge into the gap.
10. A bulk hopper according to claim 9, wherein the sealing member engages the lip to prevent bulk material from exiting the hopper via the gap between adjacent wall sections of the hopper.
11. A bulk hopper according to any of the preceding claims, wherein each of the first and second hopper modules comprises an aperture for releasing bulk material from the bulk hopper.
12. A bulk hopper according to any of the preceding claims, further comprising at least one leg module for maintaining the bulk hopper above a container into which the hopper will deposit bulk material in use, the leg module being releasably attached to the bulk hopper.
13. A bulk hopper according to claim 12, further comprising leg module engagement means for engaging the releasable leg module of the bulk hopper.
14. A bulk hopper according to claim 12 or claim t3, wherein the leg module engagement means comprises first leg module engagement means located on a side member of a frame of one of the hopper modules, and second leg module engagement means located on a bottom member of the frame of the hopper module.
15. A bulk hopper according to claim 14, wherein first and second hopper modules of the bulk hopper each comprise the first and second leg module engagement means.
16. A bulk hopper according to claim 12 or claim 13, wherein one of the first and second leg module engagement means comprises a rotatable connection, configured to retain the leg rotatably on the hopper module and the other of the first and second leg module engagement means comprises a further connection, configured to prevent the leg from rotating about the rotatable connection.
17. A bulk hopper according to any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the plurality of hopper modules comprises a floor comprising an access opening, for accessing an upper side of the floor on the inside of the support frame, from beneath.
18, A bulk hopper according to any preceding claim, wherein the support frame of at least one of the hopper modules comprises one or more of: a plurality of substantially parallel top side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel bottom side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel parallel corner posts connected to the top and/or bottom side rails; a plurality of substantially parallel corner posts; a protection frame connected to the top side rails; at least one diagonal support for supporting the hopper wall section.
19. A removable leg module for a bulk hopper of any of the preceding claims, comprising: at least one upright member, for providing a leg to hold the bulk hopper above a container, into which the hopper will deposit bulk material in use; and first and second engagement means for releasably connecting the leg module to the hopper.
20. A leg module according to claim 19, wherein the first and second engagement means are spaced relative to one another along the length of the upright member.
21. A leg module according to claim 19 or claim 20, further comprising a horizontal support member, arranged substantially perpendicularly to the upright member, to support a horizontally extending part of the hopper.
22. A leg module according to any of claims 19 to 21, further comprising a diagonal bracing support, bracing the horizontal support member relative to the upright member to provide additional support to the horizontal member.
23. A leg module according to any of claims 21 or 22, wherein the first engagement means are connected to the upright member and the second engagement means are connected to the horizontal support member.
24. A leg module according to any of claims 21 to 23, comprising plural upright members, horizontal support members and diagonal bracing members, preferably in substantially parallel pairs.
25. A leg module according to any of claims 21 to 23, further comprising rotational hopper engagement means, for engaging the hopper, or a hopper module of the hopper, and retaining the leg module on the hopper, while allowing rotation of the leg module relative to the hopper or hopper module.
26. A leg module according to claim 25, wherein the rotation of the leg module relative to the hopper or hopper module is about a single axis of rotation.
27. A leg module according to claim 26, wherein the single axis of rotation is substantially horizontal.
28. A leg module according to claim 26, wherein the single axis of rotation is substantially in a plane perpendicular to an axis aligned from the input opening to the output aperture of the hopper.
29. A leg module according to any of claims 9 to 28, comprising leg module engagement means, located on the leg module and configured to engage corresponding leg module engagement means of an adj acent leg module.
30. A leg module according to claim 29, wherein the leg module engagement means comprise sloped guides for guiding the leg module engagement means into connection with corresponding leg module engagement means.
3], A set of leg modules comprising first and second leg modules according to claim 30, wherein the first leg module comprises male leg module engagement means and the second leg module comprises female leg module engagement means, at least one of the male and female leg module engagement means comprising a sloped guide for guiding engagement with the other of the male and female leg module engagement means.
32. A set of leg modules according to claim 31, comprising a hook provided on one leg module, and a recess for engaging the hook provided on the other leg module, to maintain the leg modules in connection with one another.
33. A set of leg modules according to any of claims 31 to 32, comprising locking means for locking the engagement means in an engaged configuration.
34. A set of leg modules according to claim 33, wherein the locking means comprises a pin located in openings in engaging male and female leg module engagement means, to retain them in an engaged configuration.
35. A bulk hopper assembly, comprising a bulk hopper and a plurality of detachable leg modules according to any of claims 19 to 34.
36. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly, comprising the steps of': providing a bulk hopper module comprising all or part of a bulk hopper; attaching a leg module to the bulk hopper module at a rotatable connection point; raising the bulk hopper module so that gravity swings the leg module into a position to hold the bulk hopper module at height; locking the leg module in position to support the bulk hopper on the leg module.
37, A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to claim 36, further comprising the step of: providing plural hopper modules comprising separate sections of the hopper; and releasably connecting the hopper modules to one another to form the hopper.
38. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to claim 37, wherein each of the hopper modules comprises separate wall sections of the side wall(s) of the hopper.
39. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to claim 37 or claim 38, comprising the steps of: raising the separate bulk hopper modules so that gravity swings at least one leg module connected to each respective hopper module into position, to allow the bulk hopper module to be supported on the leg module; and subsequently assembling the hopper modules, with leg modules attached, adjacent to one another to form the hopper.
40. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to any of claims 37 to 3c,further comprising the steps of engaging male engagement means on leg modules attached to one of the hopper module assemblies with female engagement means attached to the other of the hopper module assemblies; and preferably, engaging locking means to lock the male and female engagement means in an engaged configuration.
41. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to any of claims 37 to 40, further comprising the step of placing one or more sealing member(s) over one or more gaps located between adj acent wall sections of the bulk hopper.
42. A method of assembling a bulk hopper assembly according to any of claims 37 to 41, further comprising the step of: directly releasably connecting the hopper modules to one another with direct engagement means.
43, A method of transferring bulk material from a first container to a second container, comprising the steps of: assembling a bulk hopper according to the method of any of claims 36 to 42, or providing a bulk hopper according to any of claims Ito 18 or 35; providing a container below the bulk hopper; and providing bulk material to the upper opening of the bulk hopper to be guided to the container by the bulk hopper.
44. A bulk hopper substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to and/or as shown in the Figures.
45. A hopper module for a bulk hopper according to any of claims Ito 19 or 44.
46. A leg module as hereinbefore described, with reference to and/or as shown in the Figures.
47. A method of assembling a bulk hopper as hereinbefore described, with reference to and/or as shown in the Figures.
48. A hopper module as hereinbefore described, with reference to and/or as shown in the Figures.
49. A kit of parts for making a bulk hopper according to any of claims Ito 19 or 44, or a bulk hopper assembly according to claim 33.