US1194652A - Veneer-drying apparatus - Google Patents

Description

I.. G. MERRTT.

VENEER DRYING APPARATUS. APPLxcATloNFILED MAY e. 1915.

Patented Aug. 15, 1916. v

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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L. G. MERRITT.

VENEER DRYING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 6. I9|5 Patented Aug. l5, 1916.-

L. G. MERRiTT.

VENEER DRYING APPARATUS.

w 4 APPLICATION FILED MAY 6,1915. 119.652.,

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

Patented Aug. 15, 1916.

UNTTE STATES PATENT TFTTTQTL.

LOUIS G. MEER/ITT, 01E' LOCKPORT, NEW YORK.

VENEER-DRYNG APPARATUS.

Application tiled May 6, 193.5.

To @ZZ whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, Louis G. MERRITT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lockport, in the county of Niagara and .State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Veneer- Drying Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which shall ei'iiciently dry a number of layers of veneer, and, at the same time, permit fresh layers of veneer to be placed in position to be subsequently dried, while the first named layers are being removed.

To attain the above object in a practical and satisfactory manner, provide a machine which will exert an equal pressure upon each of the layers of veneer, While they are being dried. I also provide means whereby the pressure is intermittently relieved in order to permit the veneer to shrink while drying. l further provide for securing the best effect from the heating devices by making them in sections so that they adjust themselves to any irregularities in thickness of the sheet of veneer which is being pressed between them.

@ther objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction., combinations of elements and arrangements of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter' set forth, and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings wherein is illustrated one of the various possible enibodiments of this invention,-Figure 1 is a side elevation thereof; Fig. 2 is a front ele- 'ation thereof; Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof; Fig. -i is an enlarged detail, partly in section, of means for locking the rack bar and operating lever in operative position; Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail, partly in section, showing the return bends and supporting devices of the pipes composing the drying platens; and Fig. G is an enlarged partial detail showing the method of covering the same pipes.

lPatented Aue'. 15, 119ML Serial No. 26,268.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.-

Referring now to the drawings, the base of the machine comprises two l-beams 1 connected by four tie-rods 2. Upon each I- beam are bearings 3 supporting the shafts fi, adapted to be rotated by plates G attached thereto. The plates G, at each side of the machine, are moved synchronously by links 7 and S pivoted, respectively, to the upper and lower extensions of the plates 6. Pivoted at 9 to the plates `6 are'bearing members 10, fastened to upright channel bars 11 which form part of the framework for supporting the drying platens, which will be hereinafter described. The tops of corresponding channel bars on opposite sides of the machine are connected together by braces 12. As shown in Fig. 1 there are three pairs of channel bars on each side of the machine, and the right-hand bars of each pair are connected together by one set of horizontal angle-irons 13, while the lefthand bars are connected together by a corresponding set of horizontal angle-irons 13. The drying platens 14 are supported on these angle-irons, and it will be seen that in the construction disclosed, rotation of the plates G in one direction causes one set of channel bars with the angle-irons and platens carried thereon to be raised, while the other' set of channel bars with its angleirons and platens is, at the same time, lowered, and vice versa. rThis movement has the effect of bringing the drying platens of the two s ries into surface Contact, first as to one side of the platens, then as to the other, leaving spaces between the sides of the platens which are not in contact. When the platens come together in the alternative position of the channel-bars, what was a drying contact before now becomes a space, and vice versa. The effect of this arrangement is to permit one-half of the platen surface of the machine to be available for unloading and loading veneer, while an equal platen surface is exerting an effective drying` action' upon other layers of veneer.

As stated above, the drying platens 14C are carried by the angle- irons 13 and 13 attached to the channel bars, and the construction of the platens will now be described. Each platen consists of a coil of pipes through which steam is adapted to pass. In order to permit the platens to exert the best effect upon the layer of veneer held between them, I preferably make them up in sections in the manner shown in detail in Figs. 5 and G, in which 16 represents return bends into which pipes 17 are adapted to be screwed. Each return bend is hollow, as shown at 18, in order to provide a. passage between openings 16, and to each of them are attached lugs 19 adapted to restupon the angle- irons 13 and 13. As shown in Fig. 3 the return bends of each platen are on one side of the machine displaced with respect to those on the other side of the machine so that the pipes connected between them form a continuous coil.

20 and 21 are sets of manifolds, the former serving as a source of steam or heat supply and the latter as the exhaust. The opposite ends 22 and 23 of each platen are connected respectively to one of the manifolds of each set by means of pipes 24. The use of a. plurality of manifolds in the sets 2O and 2l forms a convenient method of compensating for the relative movement of adjacent platens. It will be noted from Fig. 1 that the angle-irons are inclined slightly from the horizontal to permit water of condensation to drain to the lower end of each coil. The pipes 24 may be of suicient rigidity to carry the manifolds to which they are attached without it being necessary to provide any other support. The other connections to the manifolds 'may be made of suliicient flexibility to permit of the slight raising and lowering of the manifolds due to the movement of the platens to which they are connected.

In order to permit the pipes of adjacent platens to come closely together during the operation of the machine the return bends 16 are depressed, as indicated at points 25, the depression of one coinciding with the position of the pipe of an adjacent platen.

It is apparent that it would not do to dry veneer between coils of hot steam pipes, as the veneer would not be between flat surfaces, and the drying would be uneven, being greatest in contact with the pipes and least midway between them. It is therefore necessary to cover the pipes by some means which will serve the double purpose of distributing the heat and holding the veneer flat. It has been found, however, that if the entire coil be covered by one sheet of metal, the latter may warp and a sheet of veneer held between two such platens is not subject to equal pressure. In the present invention a sectional drying surface for each platen is obtained by attaching to the pipes 17, in pairs, a series of plates 26, as shown most clearly in Fig. G. These plates may be of any desired thickness of metal,

l and are clamped to the pipes 17 by being for.

riveted to members 27. The last-named members are formed with an upright portion to which the plates of the platen are attached, as at 28, and a horizontal tongue which spaces the edges of the plates a proper| distance from the adjacent return bends. If desired, additional posts may be used between the plates 26 at intermediate points. The edges of the plates are turned inward, as indicated at 29, to prevent the veneer from being caught when it is being inserted or removed from the machine. The plates are perforated, as at 30, for the purpose of allowing escape of the moisture as the veneer dries.

It will be seen from the above-described construction of the platens that each one rests by its own weight upon the angle-irons at the sides of the machine. The movement of the platens of one series with respect to those of the other is such that, when the layer of veneer is pressed between them, the upper platens will be lifted off of their supporting angle-irons and rest entirely upon the veneer. Thus any differences of thickness of the layers of veneer are compensated Furthermore, owing to the sectional construction of the platens, each one of them adapts itself to any irregularities in thickness of the particular layer of veneer upon which it rests. There is thus attained the maximum efficiency in drying of veneer, which is the object of my invention.

As has been previously explained, the two sets of platens are adapted to be moved relatively to each other by raising and lowering the upright channel bars l1 by motion of the members 6. The means for moving the members G will now be described. It is apparent from what has been stated that two degrees of motion must be provided for. After each drying operation has been completed the platens must be separated sufficiently to allow the dried veneer to be removed while other veneer which has been placed in the machine is brought between platens to be in turn dried. During each drying process, however, the upper platens must be intermittently raised from the veneer upon which they rest to permit the same to shrink; otherwise it would split. In the embodiment of my invention disclosed herein, the wide separation of the plates is produced by a manual operation at the completion of each drying operation, while the lesser separation is caused automatically at the required intervals. The mechanism for effecting these operations is shown, as a whole, in Fig. 1, while a detail thereof is shown in Fig. 4;.

To one of the plates 6 is connected an arm 31 bolted on an extension 32 on said plate. One end of the arm 31 has a yoke 33 through which a shaft 34: passes. Fastened upon the shaft 34 and between the arms of the yoke is a pinion 35 meshing with a rack 36 on the .on the other end a gear 41,

under side of a rack bar 37. Near the middle of the shaft 34 is rigidly attached an arm 3S, the oscillation of which causes the pinion 35 to revolve in the rack 36 carrying the arm 31 to the right or left along the rack bar 37.

Tf the weight of the platens and their supporting frames was always in a balanced condition, the above-described mechanism would be sullicient to reverse the machine; but when the platens of one set engage the platens above them, the latter are lifted ofil of their supports, and hence at this point in the operation of the machine it is necessary to lift the weight of all of the platens. It is also necessary, in order to provide for the intermittent raising of the platens, that an oscillatory motion be transmitted to the arm 31 by corresponding motion of the rack bar 37, which is caused by means which will be described hereinafter.

In order to meet the above requirements, one end of the arm 33 carries a short shaft 39, on one end of which is a )inion 40 and oth fastened upon the shaft. Loosely centered about the pinion shaft 34 is a mortised block 42 having a stationary or box gear 43 on its face. This block provides a sliding attachment between the arm 31 and the rack bar 37, which passes freely through the mortise therein. Box gear 43 and pinion 40 constitute a planetary gearing, which, if the gear 41 attached to the pinion 40 be rotated, will cause the latter to travel about the box gear 43. A pinion 44 is loosely mounted upon the shaft 34, and keyed thereto is a handwheel 45. It will be seen that when the hand-wheel is turned, the pinion 40 will, by means of the intermediate gearing, be rotated, causing the pinion to travel around the box gear 43, rotating the arm 33. Since the shaft 34 is rigidly connected to the arm 33, the pinion 35 will be rotated, causing'it to travel along the rack 36 and carrying with it the arm 31. Movement of the arm 31 actuates the mechanism for raising or lowering the channel bars 11 and the platens carried thereon, and through the increased leverage derived from the gearing the whole weight of the frames and platens is easily lifted. The mortise block 42 is provided with a supporting arm 46 which receives the end of the shaft 34. The hub of the arm 33 is provided with a conical friction surface 47 adapted to be received within a conical recess 43 in the pinion 44. The end of the shaft 34 is threaded, as at 4?), to receive the threaded hub of a locking wheel 50.

Considering now the mechanism whereby the automatic raising and lowering of the platens to permit the shrinkage of the veneer held betweenthem is attained, the rack bar 37 is connected to an arm 51 pivoted at 52 to the base of the machine, Two rollers 53 disposed at opposite ends of a slot 54 in the upper end of the arm 51 coperate with a cam or eccentric wheel 55 attached to a gear wheel 56 running loosely upon the shaft 57 passing through the slot 54 and supported by appropriate means. Gear 5G meshes with a pinion 58 upon one end of a shaft 59, to the other end of which a pulley GO, through which power may be applied, is attached. The revolution of pulley (i0 causes the cam or eccentric wheel 55 to impart oscillatory movement to the arm 51 and reciprocatory movement to the rack bar 37, which in turn transmits to the arm 31 suflicient movement for lifting the plates to permit the shrinkage of the veneer.

In order that the arm 37 may transmit motion to the arm 31, the `locking wheel 50 is operated to bring conical surfaces 47 and 4S into engagement. This forces the pinion 44 into locked relation with the arm 33, and so prevents any movement of the gear 35. In this condition, when the rack bar 37 is reciprocated the pinion 35 acts simply as a pivotal connection between it and the arm .31, which is thus given an oscillatory motion of proper amplitude to cause suflicient separation of the platens.

In order to know at what points to make the locking connection between the arm 31 and the rack bar 37, stop pins 61 adapted to be placed in any one of a series of holes 62 in the bar near the extreme right and left-hand positions of the arm 31, are provided.

Tn order to retain the heat of the platens within the machine as much as possible, sheets of asbestos 63 are provided. These sheets are made up in sections adapted to be fitted between the channel bars 11 and retained in position by being attached to the supporting angle-irons of one series of platens. At the front and rear of the machine are provided asbestos curtains G4 wound upon rollers 65 actuated by a chain 6G passing over a sprocket wheel 67.

It will therefore be seen that there is provided apparatus well adapted to accomplish, among others, all of the ends and objects hereinbefore set forth in an exceedingly simple and eflicient manner and that structurally considered the apparatus is of the greatest possible simplicity, which the nature thereof will permit, and is well adapted to be made at a minimum of cost and to be readily assembled into a neat and compact arrangement for accon'iplishing the purposes intended.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a plurality of movable frames, each of said frames comprising upright columns and substantially horizontal supporting bars attached thereto, a plurality of fixed bearings, shafts mounted in said bearings, devices attached to said shafts and connected to the bottoms of said upright columns, means for rotating said shafts whereby each of said frames is moved relatively to the other, and drying platens adapted to be supported lby said horizontal bars, said platens being so formed and mounted that they may adapt themselves to variations in the thickness of sheets of veneer held between them.

2. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, drying coils adapted to rest upon said bars, each of said coils comprising a plurality of tubes, a plurality of return bends to which said tubes are connected, lugs upon said return bends adapted to engage said supporting bars, and plates attached to said tubes.

3. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of movable frames, each frame consisting of upright members and substantially horizontal members connected thereto, drying platens carried b\y said hori zontal members, and means adapted vto relatively move said frames to impose the weight of the platens carried by one frame upon the platens carried by the other frame.

4L. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, a plu 'ality of hollow members, lugs mounted upon said members adapted to engage said supporting bars, a plurality of pipes connected to said hollow members in such a manner as to form a continuous coil, a plurality of plates, each of said plates being adapted to cover a relatively small number of said pipes, and means whereby said plates are attached to said pipes.

5. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of substantially horizontal bars, a plurality of pipes, return bends connecting the ends of said pipes, lugs upon said return bends adapted to engage said horizontal bars, perforated plates, and means whereby said plates are attached to said pipes, each of said plates engaging a number of pipes which is a relatively small fraction of the total number of pipes.

6. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of substantially horizontal supporting bars on opposite sides of the machine, a plurality of return bends, means on said bends whereby they may be supported upon said bars, a plurality of pipes connecting said return bends on opposite sides of the machine, said return bends on one side of the machine being disposed with relation to corresponding bends on the other side of the machine in such a manner that the pipes connecting them form a continuous coil, and a plurality of plates, each of said plates being connected to a relatively small number of said pipes.

7. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of supporting frames, platens carried by each of said frames, means for moving each of said frames relatively to the other so that a portion of the platens may rest upon the remainder of the platens, and means whereby said platens automatically adjust themselves to any variations of the surface upon which they rest.

S. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of movable frames, each of said frames comprising upright columns and substantially horizontal angle-irons attached thereto, a plurality of fixed bearings, shafts mounted in said bearings, studs on the ends of said shafts, members connected to the bottoms of said upright columns and pivoted about said studs, means for rotating said shafts whereby each of said frames may be moved relatively to the other, and drying platens adapted to be supported upon said angle-irons, said platens being constructed of a plurality of sections adapted for movement with respect to other sections whereby the platens may adjust themselves to variations in the thickness of sheets of veneer held between them.

9. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a plurality of oppositely disposed supporting members, drying platens adapted to be carried upon each pair of corresponding supporting members opposite each of said platens comprising two series of hollow members having apertures therein, lugs attached to said hollow members adapted to rest upon said supporting members, a plurality of tubes adapted to connect the apertures of one series of hollow members with apertures of the opposite series of hollow members in such a manner as to form a continuous coil, connections to permit the entrance of a heating medium into said coil, an exhaust connection for said heating medium, a plurality of plates constituting the upper and lower surfaces of the platen, each of said plates engaging a pair of said tubes and having its edges slightly curved about said tubes, and a device for clamping said plates upon said tubes comprising an upright portion and a horizontal extension adapted to engage said hollow members to maintain said plates in proper relation thereto.

10. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, drying coils adapted to rest upon said bars, each of said coils comprising a plurality of tubes, a plurality of return bends to which said tubes are connected, lugs upon said return bends adapted to rest upon said supporting bars, a plurality of plates, and means for attaching said plates to said tubes, said plates being formed with inwardly turned edges and having perforations therein.

11. In a drying platen, in combination, a plurality of hollow members, supporting devices attached to one end of said members, pipes attached to the other end of said members, and plates fastened to said pipes in such a manner as to form a substantially plane surface of said platen.

12. In a drying platen, in combination, a plurality of pipes, a plurality of return bends connecting adjacent ends of said pipes, means attached to said return bends by which the same may be supported, a plurality of perforated plates, said plates being attached in pairs to each group of a relatively small number of said pipes, and entrance and exit connections for permitting the passage of a heating medium through said apparatus.

13. In an apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of movable frames, each of said frames comprising upright Acolumns and substantially horizontal supporting bars attached thereto, drying platens carried upon said supporting bars, each of said platens comprising a plurality of pipes, plates attached to said pipes, return bends to' which said pipes are connected, and lugs on said return bends adapted to rest upon said supporting bars, said return bends being formed and those of one platen being so disposed With relation to those of an adjacent platen that theplates of said platens may come into contact Without contact between the return bends of said adjacent platens.

111. In a machine for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of movable frames, each frame consisting of upright members and substantially horizontal members connected thereto, drying platens carried by said horizontal members, and means adapted to relatively move said frames to impose the Weight of the platens carried by one frame upon the platens carried by the other frame, said platens being so constructed that they may automatically adjust themselves to any variations of the surface upon Which they rest.

15. In apparatus for drying veneer, .in combination, a frame, supporting bars disposed in a substantially horizontal plane upon said frame, a fieXible drying platen composed of a plurality of tubes, means connecting the ends of adjacent tubes, lugs upon said means adapted to rest upon said supporting bars, a second frame having a plurality of drying platens similarly supported thereon, one of said drying platens being disposed above the other, and means adapted to relatively move said frames to cause adjacent platens to alternately contact and separate.

1G. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a frame provided with substantially horizontal supporting bars, a plurality of flexible drying platens having lugs adapted to rest upon said supporting bars, each platen comprising a plurality of pipes arranged adjacent to one another in a substantially horizontal plane, a second frame provided With platens similarly supported and arranged, the platens of one frame being alternately disposed With respect to the platens of the other, and means adapted to relatively move said frames to impose the Weight of the platens of one thereof upon the platens of the other.

17. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, drying coils adapted to rest upon said bars, each of said coils comprising a plurality of tubes, a plurality of return bends to which said tubes are connected, lugsupon said return bends adapted to engage said supporting bars, and means attached to said tubes adapted to prevent the same from coming in contact with the veneer.

18. In a drying platen, in combination, a plurality of hollow members, supporting devices attached to one end of said members, pipes attached to the other end of said members, and means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface of said platen.

19. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, drying platens adapted to rest upon said bars, each of said platens comprising a plurality of tubes, a plurality of return bends connecting the ends of said tubes and adapted to engage said bars, and plates attached to said tubes.

Q0. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, drying platens adapted to rest on said vbars, each of said platens comprising a plurality of tubes, a plurality of return bends connecting the ends of said tubes and adapted to engage said bars, and means fastened to said tubes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface of said platen.

21. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, a plurality of hollow members adapted to engage said supporting bars, a plurality of Apipes connected to said hollow members, a plurality of plates, each of said plates being adapted to cover a relatively small number of said pipes, and means whereby said plates are attached to said pipes.

22. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of supporting bars, a plurality of hollow members adapted to engage said supporting bars, a plurality of pipes connected to said hollow members, and means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface.

23. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a series of substantially horizontal supporting' bars on opposite sides of the machine, a plurality of return bends adapted. to be supported upon said bars, a plurality of pipes connecting said return bends on opposite sides of the machine, said return bends at one side of the machine being disposed with relation to corresponding bends on the other side of the machine in such a manner that the pipes connecting them form a continuous coil, and means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface.

2li. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a movable frame comprising upright columns and substantially horizontal supporting bars attached thereto, a plurality of fixed bearings, a shaft mounted in said bearings, means attached to said shaft and connected to said upright columns, means for rotating said shaft whereby said frame is moved, and drying platens adapted to be supported by said horizontal bars, said platens being so formed and mounted that they may adapt themselves to variations in the thickness of sheets of veneer upon which they are adapted to rest while drying the same.

25. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of frames, each of said frames comprising upright columns and substantially horizontal supporting bars attached thereto, drying platens carried upon said supporting bars, each of said platens comprising a plurality of pipes, means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface, and return bends to which said pipes are connected,

said return bends being adapted to rest upon said supporting bars and being formed and those of one platen being so disposed with relation to those of an adjacent platen that the plane surfaces of said platens may come into contact without contact between the return bends of said adjacent platens.

26. In a machine for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of frames, eachA frame consisting of upright members and substantially horizontal members connected thereto, drying platens carried by said horizontal members, and means adapted to relatively move one of said frames to impose the weight of the platens carried thereby upon the platens carried by the other frame, said platens being so constructed that they may automatically adjust themselves to any variations of the surface upon which they rest.

27. In apparatus for drying veneer, in combination, a pair of frames, each of said frames comprising upright columns and substantially horizontal supporting bars attached thereto, drying platens carried upon said supporting bars, each of said platens comprising a plurality of pipes, means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface, return bends to which said pipes are connected, and means adapted to relatively move one of said frames to impose the weight of the platens carried thereby upon the platens carried by the other frame, the return bends being formed and those of one platen being so disposed with relation to those of an adjacent platen that the plane surfaces of said platens may come into contact without contact between the return bends'of said adjacent platens.

28. In a drying platen, in combination, a plurality of pipes, means fastened to said pipes forming a substantially plane drying and pressing surface of said platen, and means attached to the ends of said pipes permitting the passage of a heating medium through said pipes.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS G. MERRIT'I.

Vitnesses:

Monteroni) C. IIOLLEY, ETI-rm, C. IIoLLnY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ive cents each, by addressing' the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

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