NL2006786C2

NL2006786C2 - MATERIAL CONVEYING DEVICE, AND MATERIAL WEIGHING DEVICE PROVIDED WITH SUCH A MATERIAL CONVEYING DEVICE.

Info

Publication number: NL2006786C2
Application number: NL2006786A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Ronald Petrus Gerhardus Dekkers
Original assignee: Sluis Cigar Machinery B V V D
Priority date: 2011-05-16
Filing date: 2011-05-16
Publication date: 2012-11-19

Description

P30786NL00/ME

Material conveying device, and material weighing device provided with such a material conveying device

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of conveying material, and more specifically to the field of conveying material, such as material doses. The invention further relates to the field of weighing material, such as material doses. More in particular, the invention relates to a material conveying device, and to a material weighing device provided with such a material 5 conveying device. In this specification, the term “material" refers to non-liquid and non- gaseous material. The material may be solid. The material may be in one or more pieces or parts or particles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

10

When material, such as material doses (metered material quantities), are checked for their weight, each material dose is temporarily put in a holder to be weighed. After the weighing, the holder must be emptied to receive a next material dose. For such filling and emptying purposes, a known holder is constructed as a material conveying device, and 15 comprises a supply opening, usually, but not necessarily, at an upper part thereof, and an openable and closeable discharge opening, usually, but not necessarily at a lower part thereof. The discharge opening is opened and closed by moving a door or cover or flap (hereinafter commonly referred to as flap) such that for closing the flap covers the discharge opening, and for opening the flap only partially covers the discharge opening, or does not 20 cover the discharge opening at all. The flap may e.g. be pivotable or slidable.

When the holder is empty, and the discharge opening is closed, the holder may be filled with a material. The holder including the material may then be weighed to determine the weight of the material when the weight of the holder is known. When the weighing is completed, the discharge opening is opened by moving the flap, and the material discharges 25 from the holder. When the holder has been emptied, the discharge opening is closed again to prepare the holder for receiving a next material dose. Altogether, the flap is moved twice between weighing cycles, once for opening the discharge opening of the holder, and once for closing the discharge opening of the holder.

A disadvantage of the known weighing device is that the flap must be moved back and 30 forth (pivoted or slid) for emptying the holder. This movement of the flap takes relatively much -2- time, which particularly in a high-throughput production process is undesirable since it occurs at every weighing cycle.

Moreover, the movement of the flap generates opening and closing forces acting on the holder, which forces may interfere with the weighing process, so care must be taken that 5 such forces have died out before a weighing can be performed. Undesirably, this phenomenon may add to the time required between weighing cycles to perform an accurate and reliable weighing.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

10

It would be desirable to provide a material conveying device which can be filled and emptied in a short time. It would also be desirable to provide a material conveying device which can be part of a material weighing device, and which has a minimum impact on a weighing process performed by the material weighing device.

15 To better address one or more of these concerns, in a first aspect of the invention a material conveying device is provided, comprising a chamber having a supply opening and a discharge opening, the chamber defining a channel from the supply opening to the discharge opening. The material conveying device further comprises a rotatable partition wall arranged in the chamber. The partition wall has a first side and an opposite second side. The partition 20 wall is rotatable around an axis to a first position and to a second position. In the first position of the partition wall, the first side of the partition wall faces the supply opening of the chamber and the second side of the partition wall faces the discharge opening of the chamber, while the partition wall closes the channel. In the second position of the partition wall, the second side of the partition wall faces the supply opening of the chamber and the first side of the 25 partition wall faces the discharge opening of the chamber, while the partition wall closes the channel.

In this material conveying device, either the first position or the second position of the partition wall closes the channel of the material conveying device, and provides a volume in the chamber to accommodate material in the channel between the supply opening and the 30 partition wall. Thus, the material conveying device, in particular said volume of the chamber, may be filled with the material. This material may then be held or stored for some time in the material conveying device, e.g. for the material to be weighed. When the partition wall is in the first position thereof, the material conveying device may be emptied (i.e. material may be discharged from the material conveying device) by bringing the partition wall from the first 35 position to the second position (which then is and end position) thereof. The same applies when the partition wall is moved from the second position to the first position (which then is an end position) thereof. By such movement, the side of the partition wall facing the supply opening and supporting the material, comes to face the discharge opening to allow the -3- material to leave the material conveying device through the discharge opening. The emptying of the material conveying device may start and may occur when the partition wall has a third position between the first position and the second position, wherein the channel is open between the supply opening and the discharge opening so as to allow material to leave the 5 material conveying device through the discharge opening. The emptying of the material conveying device may, in some applications and depending on the material, also occur when the partition wall has reached its end position.

Accordingly, just by moving the partition wall from one (first or second) to the other (second or first, respectively) position, the material conveying device filled with material is 10 emptied, and may be filled again. This requires only one short rotational stroke of the partition wall, which takes little time, and has little impact on the mechanical stability of the material conveying device, thus facilitating and accelerating a weighing process (cycle).

Where the partition wall generally is rotatable, and thus may move in one direction only to reach the first position, the second position, the first position again, the second 15 position again and so forth, in an embodiment the partition wall is pivotable in a first direction from the first position to the second position, and pivotable in a second direction opposite to the first direction from the second position to the first position. In this embodiment, the rotation angle for a movement of the partition wall may be limited, thus requiring a limited amount of energy and time.

20 In an embodiment, in use, the channel extends generally vertically, and the partition wall in the first position thereof extends at an angle between 0° and 90° relative to a vertical line, and in the second position thereof extends at an angle between 0° and -90° relative to the vertical line. If a partition wall pivoting back and forth between the first position and the second position thereof is used, the smaller the angle, the smaller the required amount of 25 energy and time for bringing the partition wall from one position into the other position.

In an embodiment using the force of gravity for filling and emptying the material conveying device, in use, the supply opening may be located at an upper part of the chamber, and the discharge opening is located at a lower part of the chamber.

In an embodiment, part of the partition wall, in the first or second position thereof, 30 abuts a stop formed on an interior wall of the chamber. The stop may be stationary in the chamber, or may be movable e.g. such that the partition wall may pass the stop when the stop is retracted out of the path of the partition wall, and the partition wall abuts the stop when the stop is brought into the path of the partition wall. In case of a stationary stop, the partition wall will pivot back and forth in the chamber.

35 The partition wall is coupled to an actuating mechanism for rotating the partition wall.

This actuating mechanism may be located outside the chamber, where a coupling between the actuating mechanism and the partition wall is made through a chamber wall.

-4-

In an embodiment, the actuating mechanism may comprise a first driving element coupled to the partition wall, the first driving element, such as a driving arm, being provided with a first coupling part. Furthermore, the actuating mechanism may comprise a second driving element coupled to an actuator, the second driving element being provided with a 5 second coupling part adapted to be detachably coupled to the first coupling part. Using the coupling parts, the material conveying device may be conveniently coupled to, and decoupled from, a suitable actuator, e.g. when mounting or demounting the material conveying device, while leaving the actuator in place.

In a simple and effective embodiment, one of the first coupling part and the second 10 coupling part is a pin extending parallel to said axis, and mounted at a distance from said axis, and the other one of the first coupling part and the second coupling part is a hole adapted to receive the pin.

In an embodiment, the actuator comprises a pneumatic actuator. A pneumatic actuator, such as a single-acting or double-acting cylinder-piston unit is particularly suitable 15 for providing a back and forth pivoting of the partition wall.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a material weighing device is provided. The material weighing device is provided with a material conveying device as described above, for quick weighing of material contained in the material conveying device.

In an embodiment, the material conveying device is coupled to a weighing mechanism 20 through a mounting arm mounted on a wall of the chamber at the outside thereof. The mounting arm may be located at an upper part of the chamber to resist reactive forces generated while moving the partition wall.

These and other aspects of the invention will be more readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description and considered 25 in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference symbols designate like parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

30 Figure 1 depicts a perspective view of an embodiment of a material conveying device according to the present invention, with a front wall mounted.

Figures 2a and 2b depict a perspective view and front view, respectively, of the material conveying device of Figure 1, with a front wall removed, and with a partition wall in a first position.

35 Figures 3a and 3b depict a perspective view and front view, respectively, of the material conveying device of Figure 1, with a front wall removed, and with a partition wall in a second position.

-5-

Figures 4a and 4b specifically depict a perspective view of an embodiment of an actuating mechanism of the material conveying device of Figure 1, with the partition wall in the first position and second position, respectively, and a side wall of the material conveying device removed.

5 Figure 5 specifically depicts a perspective view of a part of the actuating mechanism of Figures 4a and 4b.

Figure 6 depicts a perspective view of an embodiment of a material weighing device according to the present invention, provided with a material conveying device as illustrated by reference to Figures 1-5.

10

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Figure 1 depicts a material conveying device 2 in its use position. The material conveying device 2 has a chamber delimited generally by a front wall 4, side walls 6a, 6b and 15 back wall 8. Centrally on the front wall 4 and on the back wall 8, a support 10 is provided. The back wall 8 carries a mounting arm 12. The front wall 4 and the back wall 8 are assembled with the side walls 6 through screws 14. The walls 4, 6a, 6b and 8 may each be manufactured from a plastic material or from metal.

Upper edges of the front wall 4, side walls 6a, 6b and back wall 8 define a supply 20 opening 16, while lower edges of the front wall 4, side walls 6a, 6b and back wall 8 define a discharge opening 18 (not visible in Figure 1).

As illustrated in Figures 2a, 2b, 3a and 3b, in the chamber of the material conveying device 2 a partition wall 20 is provided. The partition wall 20 is rotatable around an axis 22 extending at right angles to the front wall 4 or back wall 8. For the purpose of being rotatable 25 around the axis 22, the partition wall 20 centrally is provided with shaft 24 (or shaft parts 24) extending in the direction of the axis 22, and mounted in the supports 10 provided on the front wall 4 and the back wall 8. As shown in Figures 2a, 3a, one of the shafts 24 extends through the front wall 4. Another one of the shafts 24 extends through the back wall 8 (not visible in Figures 2a, 3a).

30 The partition wall 20 extends in opposite directions from the axis 22 to the side walls 6a, 6b. The partition wall 20, in its first position shown in Figures 2a, 2b, has a first side 21a facing the supply opening 16 of the material conveying device 2, and a second side 21b facing the discharge opening 18 of the material conveying device 2. In Figures 3a, 3b, the partition wall 20 takes a second position in which the first side 21a thereof faces the 35 discharge opening 18, and the second side 21 b thereof faces the supply opening 16.

Both in the first position and in the second position of the partition wall 20, a material supplied through the supply opening 16 into the material conveying device 2 cannot pass the partition wall 20. In other words, the channel defined by the chamber of the material -6- conveying device 2 is closed in such first and second position of the partition wall 20. However, when the partition wall takes a third position between the first and the second position, a material in the material conveying device 2, or supplied to it through the supply opening 16, may pass the partition wall 20 to leave the material conveying device 2 through 5 the discharge opening 18. In other words, the channel defined by the chamber of the material conveying device 2 is open in such third position of the partition wall 20.

The side walls 6a, 6b are each provided with a stop rib 26a, 26b, respectively, preventing the partition wall 20 at side wall 6a to rotate in a direction indicated by arrow 28 and allowing it to rotate in a direction indicated by arrow 30 there, whereas at side wall 6b the 10 partition wall 20 is prevented to rotate in the direction indicated by arrow 30, and is allowed to rotate in the direction indicated by arrow 28 there. Accordingly, the partition wall 20 may be pivoted from the first position as shown in Figures 2a, 2b to the second position as shown in Figures 3a, 3b, and vice versa.

It is noted that stop ribs 26a, 26b or similar stop elements are not essential in the 15 material conveying device 2, since first and second positions of the partition wall 20 may be set and controlled by other means also in an actuating mechanism of the partition wall.

A material supplied through supply opening 16 to the material conveying device 2 will be stored in the chamber in a first space bounded by the partition wall 20 in its first position (Figures 2a, 2b), front wall 4, side wall 6b, and back wall 8. The material rests on side 21a of 20 the partition wall 20. During pivoting of the partition wall 20 from its first position to its second position (Figures 3a, 3b), the material falls out of said first space, sliding along side 21a of the partition wall 20 and through discharge opening 18. Once the partition wall 20 has reached its second position, the material conveying device 2 will or has become empty. A material supplied through supply opening 16 to the material conveying device 2 will then be stored in 25 the chamber in a second space bounded by the partition wall 20 in its second position, front wall 4, side wall 6a, and back wall 8. The material rests on side 21 b of the partition wall 20. During pivoting of the partition wall 20 from its second position to its first position, the material falls out of said second space, sliding along side 21b of the partition wall 20 and through discharge opening 18.

30 Accordingly, with a single movement of the partition wall 20, the material conveying device 2 may be emptied at one side of the partition wall, and filled at the opposite side of the partition wall. As illustrated in Figure 3b, the partition wall 20 moves through an angle of a0 from its first position to its second position, and vice versa. The value of the angle a depends on the geometry of the material conveying device 2, and may be between about 60° and 35 about 180° (in other words: the partition wall may have a first position at an angle varying from about +30° to about +90° relative to a vertical 33, and may have a second position at an angle varying from about -30° to about -90° relative to a vertical 33, depending on the geometry of the material conveying device 2. It is noted that the absolute value of the first -7- position angle and the second position angle may be smaller than 30°. A small angle a will allow the partition wall 20 to be moved between its first position and its second position with relatively little energy and time.

Figures 4a, 4b and 5 illustrate an embodiment of an actuating mechanism of the 5 partition wall 20. A shaft 24 coupled to the partition wall 20 and extending through the back wall 8, is provided with a first arm 40 acting as a lever which can be actuated to rotate or pivot the partition wall 20. At a free end thereof, the first arm 40 is provided with a pin 42 extending parallel to axis 22 at a distance therefrom. The pin 42 may be provided with a contact element 43, e.g. comprising an energy absorbing material such as rubber. Near the free end of the 10 first arm 40, one end of a spring 44 connected. An opposite end of the spring 44 is connected to the mounting arm 12. When the first arm 40 is in its position shown in Figures 4a, 5, the partition wall 20 is in its first position. The spring 44 urges the first arm 40, and thereby the partition wall 20, in this position. When the first arm 40 is in its position shown in Figure 4b, the partition wall 20 is in its second position. Again the spring 44 urges the first arm 40, and 15 thereby the partition wall 20, in this position. Only when the spring 44 extends parallel to the first arm 40, an unstable dead point exists where the spring 44 does not urge the first arm 40, and thereby the partition wall 20, to take a specific position.

On the outside of the back wall 8, dampers 46a, 46b are provided to damp movements of the first arm 40 and the partition wall 20 towards its first and second position, 20 respectively. The dampers 46a, 46b may comprise an energy absorbing material such as rubber for contacting the first arm 40. Such dampers 46a, 46b may be used in addition to, or instead of, the stop ribs 26a, 26b or similar stop elements inside the chamber to define the first position and the second position of the partition wall 20.

The actuating mechanism further comprises a second arm 48 mounted rotatably or 25 pivotably around an axis 50 which may be coaxially with axis 22. A shaft 52 connected to the second arm 48 is supported in a support 54 which may be mounted on the same device as the material conveying device 2 is mounted on through the mounting arm 12. The second arm 48 has a first free end provided with an opening 56 which has larger inner dimensions than the outer dimensions of the contact element 43. In the positions shown in Figures 4a, 4b, the 30 contact element 43 does not contact the second arm 48 while the pin 42 with the contact element 43 extends into the opening 56 of the second arm 48.

A second free end of the second arm 48 opposite the first free end thereof is rotatably coupled to a drive rod 58 of a pneumatic actuator 60 through pin or shaft 63. The pneumatic actuator is mounted rotatably around an axis 61 parallel to axis 22. The axis 61 of the 35 pneumatic actuator 60 takes a fixed position with respect to the support 54.

With a pivoting movement of the second arm 48 driven by the pneumatic actuator 60, either to bring the partition wall 20 from its first position to its second position or vice versa, the pin 42 is taken along through contact of the contact element 43 and the first arm 40 in the -8- opening 56 of the second arm 48, thereby pivoting the first arm 40 and its connected partition wall 20. Thanks to the action of the spring 44, the pneumatic actuator 60 needs only drive the first arm 40 through the above-mentioned dead point of the first arm 40 to cause the first arm 40, and thereby the partition wall 20, to take a new position. Both in the old and in the new 5 position, the second arm 48 is not in mechanical contact with the first arm 40, and therefore can not mechanically interfere with the material conveying device 2 in such positions. Only during a transition of the partition wall 20 between first and second position thereof, the second arm 48 is briefly in mechanical contact with the first arm 40.

Figure 6 illustrates the material conveying device 2 coupled to a weighing mechanism 10 65 through the mounting arm 12. The weighing mechanism 65 comprises a force measuring device providing a signal representative of a weight. Such weighing mechanisms are known per se and need not be elucidated further here. The support 54 and the pneumatic actuator 60 may be mounted separately from the weighing mechanism 65 to avoid interference with a weighing process performed by the weighing mechanism 65.

15 In combination, the material conveying device 2 and the weighing mechanism 65 constitute a material weighing device wherein subsequent doses of material can be weighed in fast weighing cycle sequences. When material has been supplied to the material conveying device 2 through its supply opening 16, the weighing mechanism 65 may be activated the perform a weighing operation to establish the weight of the material, taking into account the 20 intrinsic weight of the material conveying device 2. Rotating or pivoting the partition wall 20 of the material conveying device 2 frees the material conveying device from the weighed material through the discharge opening 18, after which directly next material can be supplied to the material conveying device 2 through its supply opening 16.

As explained above, a material conveying device to be coupled to a material weighing 25 device comprises a chamber defining a channel from a supply opening to a discharge opening. In the chamber, a rotatable partition wall is arranged having a first side and an opposite second side, and being rotatable to a first position and to a second position in both of which the partition wall closes the channel. In the first position, the first side of the partition wall faces the supply opening and the second side faces the discharge opening, and in the 30 second position, the second side of the partition wall faces the supply opening and the first side faces the discharge opening. The partition wall may be pivotable from the first position to the second position, and back.

The material weighing device may be used for weighing tobacco, in particular doses of tobacco.

35 As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis -9- for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Further, the terms and phrases used herein are not intended to be limiting, but rather, to provide an understandable description of the invention.

5 The terms "a" or "an", as used herein, are defined as one or more than one. The term plurality, as used herein, is defined as two or more than two. The term another, as used herein, is defined as at least a second or more. The terms including and/or having, as used herein, are defined as comprising (i.e., open language, not excluding other elements or steps). Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of the 10 claims or the invention.

The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

The term coupled, as used herein, is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly.

Claims

A material transport device, comprising: a chamber with a feed opening and a discharge opening, the chamber defining a channel between the feed opening and the discharge opening; a rotatable partition wall disposed in the chamber, the partition wall having a first side and a second side opposite thereto, the partition wall being rotatable about an axis to a first position and to a second position, wherein: in the first position of the partition wall the first side of the partition wall faces the inlet opening of the chamber and the second side of the partition wall faces the outlet opening of the chamber, while the partition wall closes the channel; and in the second position of the partition wall the second side of the partition wall faces the inlet opening of the chamber and the first side of the partition wall faces the outlet opening of the chamber, while the partition wall closes off the channel.

2. Material transport device according to claim 1, wherein the partition wall is pivotable in a first direction from the first position to the second position, and pivotable in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction from the second position to the first position .

Material transport device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein - during use - the supply opening is located at an upper part of the chamber.

4. Material transport device as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein - during use - the discharge opening is located at a lower part of the chamber.

5. Material transport device as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein - during operation - the channel extends substantially vertically, and wherein the partition wall in its first position extends around an angle of 0-90 ° with respect to a vertical line and, in its second position, extends at an angle of 0-90 ° with respect to the vertical line. -11 -

Material transport device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a part of the partition wall in the first or second position thereof abuts a stop formed on an inner wall of the chamber.

Material transport device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the partition wall is coupled to an operating mechanism for rotating the partition wall.

8. Material transport device according to claim 7, wherein the operating mechanism comprises a first drive element which is coupled to the partition wall, and wherein the first drive element is provided with a first coupling part.

9. Material transport device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the operating mechanism comprises a second drive element, which is coupled to an actuator, the second drive element being provided with a second coupling part which is adapted to be releasably coupled to the first coupling part.

10. Material transporting device according to claim 8 or 9, wherein one of the first coupling part and the second coupling part is a pin extending parallel to said axis, and wherein the pin is mounted at a distance from said axis, and wherein the the other of the first coupling part and the second coupling part is a hole adapted to receive the pin.

Material transport device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the actuator comprises a pneumatic actuator.

12. Material weighing device, comprising a material conveying device according to one of the preceding claims, for weighing material that is present in the material conveying device.

A material weighing device according to claim 12, wherein the material transporting device is coupled to a weighing mechanism via a support arm mounted on the outside of a wall of the chamber. 35

A material weighing device according to claim 13, wherein the carrying arm is located near an upper part of the chamber. - 12-

Use of the material weighing device according to one of claims 12-14 for weighing tobacco, in particular tobacco portions.