GB900384A - Improvements in or relating to apparatus for the continuous treatment of finely divided materials - Google Patents

Abstract

900,384. Manures. THOMPSON INDUSTRIAL CONSTRUCTIONS Ltd., JOHN. Sept. 13, 1960 [July 14, 1959], No. 24161/59. Class 111. [Also in Group XXX]. In an installation for the preparation of compost, material is distributed over a system of tipping troughs 11 by a conveyer system comprising a first endless troughed belt 1 arranged longitudinally and centrally of the installation, and a tripper carriage 10 on which is mounted for transverse oscillation a frame 16 carrying a second transverse endless troughed belt 9 which is reversible whereby the material can be distributed evenly over the troughs which are arranged at both sides of the belt 1. The carriage is driven along rails 14 by the movement of the belt 1 which is caused to drive the carriage wheels 15 by a driving connection including a reversing gear 25 between the lower pulley 19 on the carriage and two of the carriage wheels 15 which run on the rails 14. Reversal of the drive is effected at the ends of the installation by limit abutments which engage control means on the carriage. The control means comprises a lever 28, Fig. 8, which is held in either of two positions by a spring-biased pair of toggle levers 54, 55 interconnected by a pin-and-slot connection 58. The lever 54 is engaged by each limit abutment 29. The motor 41 driving the belt 9 is reversed at the same time as the carriage through reversing switches (not shown) operated by abutments on the carriage. The frame 16 supporting belt 9 is oscillated by a screw 45, Fig. 6, driven by a reversible motor 31 on the carriage and engaging a nut 34 secured to the frame 16, motor 31 being reversed automatically by limit abutments 36, 39 co-operating with a switch 37 on the carriage. The period of movement of the carriage from one end to the other and back is very long, e.g. eight hours, so that the oscillatory movements of the frame 16 are substantially perpendicular to the belt 1, i.e. longitudinal of the troughs, material passing into the troughs on one side of the belt 1 during movement of the carriage one way and into those on the other side of the belt 1 during movement of the carriage the other way. A shoot 49 is provided at each end of frame 16 to guide the material passing into the troughs in the upper layer. When the upper layer of troughs is full the troughs are tipped simultaneously by a motor driving them through one revolution via worm gearing 75, 76 to tip the material into the next lower layer of troughs, longitudinally adjacent troughs rotating in opposite directions. Just previously the troughs in the next lower layer were tipped to deposit their contents into the troughs beneath them, through similar driving mechanism, and so on, so that the material moves step-by-step downwardly until reaching the lower layer of troughs which are tipped two at a time to deposit the composted material into transport vehicles 79.