US1262423A - Corn grader and separator. - Google Patents

Description

J. A. WORSHAM.

CORN GRADER AND SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION -HLED FEB- 8. Hill.

Patented Apr. 9,1918;

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

J. A. WORSHAM.

CORN GRADER AND SEPARATOR. APPLICATION FILED FEB.,8,1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- WITNESSES nw/s/vroe M MAM/WM) ATIORNEYS- Patented Apr. 9, 1918.

man

JAMES ALVIN WORSHAIVI, OF MAROA, ILLINOIS;

CORN GRADER AND SEPARATOR.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES A. WonsHAM,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Maroa, in the county of Macon .and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Gorn Grader and Separator, of-

the nature of which will more fully appear as the description proceeds the invention consists in the novel constructioncombination and arrangement of parts as herein fully described, illustrated and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of the application, similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the machine on lines 11, Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation in the direction of the arrow-2, in Fig. 1, a portion of the bran box being broken away to show the details of construction; p

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on line 33,

Fig. 1;

Fig. at is a top plan view; and

Figs. 5, 6 and T are the respective plan views of the three screens of the machine.

Referring to the drawings, 8 is a housing carried by a suitable frame The housing has a sloping top 10 and a sloping bottom 11 between which a plurality of superimposed screens 12 are provided. The said screens are disposed in planes substantially parallel to the top 10 of the housing and, consequently, slope similarly to said top. The screens are secured at the margin to transverse and longitudinal braces 13 which are, turn, supported by simila-rbraces 14 secured firmly to the side of the housing 8. The rear of the housing 8 is open through theentire width thereof so that the sieves Specification of Letters'Patent.

PatentedA'pr. a, rare.

Application filed February a, 1917. Serial No. 147,355. I

formed by the. screens and members 13;,can be easily placed into and removed from the housing.

The top lO of the housing carries a hopper 15, extending through the width of the upper sieve, into which the grain to be cleaned and graded is fed. Said hopper has an adjustable gate 16 which controls the flow from the hopper'to the upper sieve. The material fed from the hopper to the upper sieve will flow under gravity toward the lower end of the sieve. That part of the corn which passes through the upper sieve will be received by the sieve below, and that part which passes. through the second sieve will pass to the one below it, and so on. The number of sieves employed may vary in accordance with the fineness of grading'desired.

Each of the sieves has a guide 17 on the upper surface thereof fwhich directs the grain which cannot pass through onesieve to a corresponding passage 18 formed in the front wall 19 of the housing at thepoint where each screen meets the front wall 19. These openings 18 are necessarily at differ-e ent levels, and their width is such that they.

do not overlap. Partitions 20 separatethe adjacent openings 18 and extend to troughs 21 disposed on the same level. under each of the openings. These partitions 20 prevent the mixing of the grain coming from the openings 18 of the different sieves. Each of the troughs. discharges into a suitable receptacle22 provided thereunder. I V

I To prevent the clogging of the sieves by the grain and impurities carried therewith, a vibratory motion is imparted to the screens from a crank 23 forming part of a shaft 24: mounted on the frame 9. The crank 23 is connected by alink to the free end of an arm 26, the other end of said arm being pivotally connected to the frame 9. This arm 26 at the free end carries a member 27 which can be adjusted to and from the screens onthe arm 26, with which said member 27 constitutes a hammer actuated by the crank. The adjustment of the member 2 7 on the arm is regulated by bolts 28 carried by the arm 26,which engage slots 29 provided, in the said member 27. Alining with the member 2? is a head or anvil secured to the upper screen 12 by a bolt 31 which extends through the lower screens to which it is firmly secured by suitable members 32, sothat motion imparted to the head 30 by the hammer or member 27 is not only transmitted to the upper screen but to all of the screens below through the medium of the bolt 31. To distribute the vibratory motion through the entire screen a strip or bar. 33 is extended from the bolt 31 toward the opening 18 of the corresponding screen. This strip or bar is secured to the upper surface of each screen at suitable intervals.

The shaft 24 carries also a fan 3st mounted on the frame 9 above the top 10 of the housing 8. The inlet 35 of the fan is in communication with a box 36 provided at'the front of the housing 8. V This box is in communication with the openings 18 from the screens by a passage 37. This passage enters the box 36 near the top thereof and is baffled from theinlet 35 of the fan byran extension 38 at the top of the passage 37. The lower end of the passage 37 overhangs the troughs 21 and, therefore, is in communication with the atmosphere at that point. The top of the box 36 has a trapdoor 39 located in proximity to a bearing 4:0 for the shaft 2% at the inlet 35 of the fan. This door affords access to the bearing 40 when necessary. The box 36 has also a bottom trap 41 through which the contents may be removed when necessary.

The fan 34 draws the air through the passage 37. The current of air passing through said passage encounters the material coming from each of the openings 18 and carries the bran, chaff, etc., into the box 36. The sudden enlargement in the area produced by the junction of the box with the passage 3'? causes the bran and other impurities carried by the currentto drop to the bottom of the box, dueto the sudden fall in velocity and also due to the eddies created. The housing 8 has an outlet42 for the material coming from the lowermost sieve on to the inclined bottom 11. I

The inclination of the sieves is such that the material fed over the sieves will not move down until vibratory motion is imparted to the sieves; and while gravity is really the cause of the travel of the material over the screens, yet without the action of the hammer the material would not descend or move on the screens. Therefore, by varying the vibratory movement of the sieves T can vary the capacity of the machine. The vibratory movement also helps to maintain thescreens clean, that is, prevents the clogging of the screens by the material fed over 1 them. It will be noted that in my machine the sieves are not moved bodily, thus con siderably simplifying the mechanism and also reducing the moving parts generally necessary for imparting bodily movement to the sieves.

All the screens may be removed simultaneously or independently. When removed independently, the bolt'31 must be removed first.

It will be remarked that in my machine a single shaft is employed for doing all the Work of cleaning, grading, keeping the sieves clean, and causing the grain to feed.

Although the machine is primarily designed to grade corn, or cracked corn, or a mixture of any kind of grain, it can be used to grade the corn, or any grain, without being ground provided proper sieves are used.

lclaim:

1. In a separator of the class described, a housing, a plurality of vibrationsereens disposed on an incline so that. material fed thereupon moves gravitationally on said sieves, means forsecuring said sieves at the margin, said means including frames, said housing having a channel for each of the sieves, andguides supported by the upper surface of each sieve for directing the material thereupon into its respective channel.

2. In a separator of the character described, a plurality of superposed sieveseach disposed on an incline, means securing said sieve at the margins, a bar secured longitudinally to the central part of each sieve, a bolt securing all of said bars, percussive means for striking said bolt longitudinally of its axis, and means for actuating said percussive means. I

3. In a separator of the class described, a housing, a plurality of superimposed sieves each disposed on an incline, means securing said sieves at the margins, a bar secured longitudinally to the central part of the upper side of each sieve, a bolt securing all of said bars, a hammer for striking said bolt longitudinally of its axis, and means for actuat ing said hammer.

a. in a separator of the class described, a housing, superimposed sieves disposed on an incline to feed gravitationally, means securing said sieves at the margins, means for imparting to said sieves avibratory move ment between the margins, said housing having outlets, one for each of said sieves, a box, a substantially vertical conduit uniting the box with the outlets, partitions separating the outlets within the conduit, said conduit being open at the lower end and projecting intosaid box, a baffle at the upper end of said conduit, and a fan near the upper end of the box at the bafiie for drawing air therefrom, whereby, air is drawn through the conduit in a direction opposite to the movement of the grain, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. v o

5. In a separator of the class described, a

1,262,423 1 I I a housing, a plurality of superimposed sieves in the housing disposed on an angle and secured at the margin thereof, means unitin said sieves, a hammer for striking sai means uniting the sieves, said housing presenting an outlet for each of said sieves, a passage into which said outlets enter, a fan for bringing air through said passage in a direction opposite to the movement of the grain through said passage, a shaft from the fan, an eccentric on the shaft, means connecting the eccentric to the hammer, and means for rotating the shaft. JAMES ALVIN WORSHAM.

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

' Washington, D. G. i

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