US20070006564A1 - Oscillating sorting device for grape berries - Google Patents
Oscillating sorting device for grape berries Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20070006564A1 US20070006564A1 US11/394,509 US39450906A US2007006564A1 US 20070006564 A1 US20070006564 A1 US 20070006564A1 US 39450906 A US39450906 A US 39450906A US 2007006564 A1 US2007006564 A1 US 2007006564A1
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- Prior art keywords
- trough
- screen
- oscillating flow
- separator according
- flow separator
- Prior art date
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- Abandoned
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- 235000021028 berry Nutrition 0.000 title abstract description 34
- 235000014787 Vitis vinifera Nutrition 0.000 title abstract description 28
- 240000006365 Vitis vinifera Species 0.000 title abstract description 10
- 235000009754 Vitis X bourquina Nutrition 0.000 title description 19
- 235000012333 Vitis X labruscana Nutrition 0.000 title description 19
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 claims description 9
- 239000007788 liquid Substances 0.000 claims 1
- 230000000087 stabilizing effect Effects 0.000 claims 1
- 241000219094 Vitaceae Species 0.000 abstract description 13
- 235000021021 grapes Nutrition 0.000 abstract description 13
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 abstract description 7
- 238000012423 maintenance Methods 0.000 abstract description 2
- 241000219095 Vitis Species 0.000 description 18
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 13
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 10
- 238000000855 fermentation Methods 0.000 description 4
- 230000004151 fermentation Effects 0.000 description 4
- 230000005484 gravity Effects 0.000 description 4
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 description 4
- 238000011514 vinification Methods 0.000 description 4
- 235000011389 fruit/vegetable juice Nutrition 0.000 description 3
- 230000007246 mechanism Effects 0.000 description 3
- 235000014101 wine Nutrition 0.000 description 3
- 238000004140 cleaning Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000008878 coupling Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000010168 coupling process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000005859 coupling reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000000796 flavoring agent Substances 0.000 description 2
- 235000019634 flavors Nutrition 0.000 description 2
- 235000019674 grape juice Nutrition 0.000 description 2
- 230000010355 oscillation Effects 0.000 description 2
- 230000003534 oscillatory effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 241000238631 Hexapoda Species 0.000 description 1
- 230000009471 action Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000002411 adverse Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000013019 agitation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000712 assembly Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000429 assembly Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000006243 chemical reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000011109 contamination Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000013016 damping Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000994 depressogenic effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 235000013399 edible fruits Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 230000007614 genetic variation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000002803 maceration Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002245 particle Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000000717 retained effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000002441 reversible effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000011343 solid material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000007 visual effect Effects 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
- A23N—MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS
- A23N15/00—Machines or apparatus for other treatment of fruits or vegetables for human purposes; Machines or apparatus for topping or skinning flower bulbs
- A23N15/02—Machines or apparatus for other treatment of fruits or vegetables for human purposes; Machines or apparatus for topping or skinning flower bulbs for stemming, piercing, or stripping fruit; Removing sprouts of potatoes
- A23N15/025—Machines or apparatus for other treatment of fruits or vegetables for human purposes; Machines or apparatus for topping or skinning flower bulbs for stemming, piercing, or stripping fruit; Removing sprouts of potatoes for stemming grapes
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B07—SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS; SORTING
- B07B—SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS BY SIEVING, SCREENING, SIFTING OR BY USING GAS CURRENTS; SEPARATING BY OTHER DRY METHODS APPLICABLE TO BULK MATERIAL, e.g. LOOSE ARTICLES FIT TO BE HANDLED LIKE BULK MATERIAL
- B07B1/00—Sieving, screening, sifting, or sorting solid materials using networks, gratings, grids, or the like
- B07B1/12—Apparatus having only parallel elements
Landscapes
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Food Science & Technology (AREA)
- Polymers & Plastics (AREA)
- Apparatuses For Bulk Treatment Of Fruits And Vegetables And Apparatuses For Preparing Feeds (AREA)
- Combined Means For Separation Of Solids (AREA)
Abstract
An oscillating sorting conveyor is adapted for separating whole berries of wine grapes from undesirable components such as “shot berries” (immature grapes), stems, raisins, leaf material, bugs, pebbles and the like. The sorter deploys a downward tilting trough that is driven to oscillate. A screen is disposed at the bottom of the trough such that whole berries are conveyed over the screen while the undesirable components pass through the screen The preferred embodiment of the screen has a non-uniform cross-section to improve the efficiency of removal the undesirable components without clogging or requiring constant maintenance.
Description
- The current application is a Continuation of and claims priority to the application for an “Oscillating Sorting Device for Grape Berries”, filed on Jul. 6, 2005, having Ser. No. 11,176,431.
- The present invention relates to the processing of wine grapes, and more specifically to an apparatus, process and related equipment for separating wine grape berries prior to conversion into must and juice for wine making
- The manufacture of the highest quality wines requires the use of nearly perfect wines grapes, which are of perfect ripeness and free form foreign and extraneous matter that would lead to off flavors and/or hinder or degrade the fermentation process.
- Wine grapes, being a natural agriculture product that is harvested in large commercial quantities for commercial wine making, inevitably contains some quantity of foreign or otherwise undesirable matter, be it from field contamination, so-called MOG (an acronym for “material other than grapes”) or natural variation in fruit ripeness and quality as caused by weather, pestilence, genetic variation and the like. MOG may include stems or portions thereof (such as sheared stem material produced by the action of the destemming machine), leaf material, bugs, pebbles and the like.
- Current industrial practice at premium commercial wineries is to employ crews that visual inspect grapes, either before or after de-stemming, in order to manually cull and remove the undesirable matter. However, hand sorting is limited in efficiency, completeness and in particular, is not practical to remove some undesirable components. Indeed it is difficult to remove by hand sorting “shot berries” (immature grapes) as well as overripe grapes or raisins, both of which although technically grape matter, adversely effect wine taste, flavor and aroma.
- Accordingly, there is a need for automated equipment and processes to remove undesirable matter from wine grape berries after de-stemming.
- It is therefore a first object of the present invention to provide such equipment and a process that has the general attributes of removing MOG from de-stemmed grape berries.
- It is another objective of the invention to provide such equipment and a process that removes “shot berries” as well as raisins without damaging or crushing whole ripe grapes.
- It is a further objective of the invention to provide the above automated process that is highly efficient at removing undesirable components, yet does so at a high throughput of grape berries.
- Still yet another object of the invention is to provide such a process and equipment which is relatively easy to maintain, with minimum and infrequent downtime for cleaning or refreshing by removing the separated undesirable materials.
- In the present invention, the above and other objects of the invention are achieved by providing an oscillating flow platform that receives the de-stemmed grapes at one end directly from a grape de-stemming machine, and then separates out the undesirable mater through a screen as the grapes are conveyed via a trough to holding tank, press or crusher.
- The oscillating flow platform includes a support stand on which a trough having a screen at its bottom surface is oscillated back and forth by a motor driven cam mechanism. The screen in the preferred embodiments has a mesh pattern that facilitates remove of the undesirable MOG other matter without damaging whole grape berries.
- Use of the above apparatus, with a preferred screen results in the removal of MOG, “shot berries” (immature grapes), raisins, stems, leaf material, bugs, pebbles and the like from de-stemmed grape berries, while largely maintaining the integrity of the ripe grape berries. Further, the device and method provide a high efficiency of removal at a high throughput of grape berries, yet with a minimal of maintenance downtime for cleaning or refreshing the screen.
- The above and other objects, effects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the embodiments thereof taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
-
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the oscillating flow platform; -
FIG. 2A is rear elevation of the oscillating flow platform; -
FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional elevation of the oscillating flow platform at section line II-II′ inFIG. 1 ; -
FIG. 3A is a detailed view of a portion of the rear elevation inFIG. 2 to illustrate the powered drive mechanism of the oscillating flow platform; -
FIG. 3B is a side elevation of a portion of the power drive mechanism ofFIG. 3A ; -
FIG. 4 is a plan view of the oscillating flow platform inFIG. 1 ; -
FIG. 5A is a plan view of the screen portion of the oscillating flow platform inFIG. 1 ; -
FIG. 5B is a detailed view of a portion of the plan view ofFIG. 5A ; -
FIG. 6 is a first cross sectional elevation of section VI-VI′ of the screen inFIG. 5B ; -
FIG. 7 is a second cross sectional elevation of section VII-VII′ of the screen inFIG. 5B ; -
FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional elevation of section VIII-VIII′ of the screen inFIG. 5B ; and -
FIG. 9 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of the screen portion of the oscillating flow platform inFIG. 1 . - Referring to
FIGS. 1 through 9 , wherein like reference numerals refer to like components in the various views, there is illustrated therein a new and improved oscillating flow platform, generally denominated 100 herein. - In accordance with the present invention,
FIG. 1 . is an exterior side elevation of oscillatingflow platform 100. The platform comprises a support frame or stand 110 to whichtrough 160 is mounted by fourpivots legs 101. The trough is tilted downward fromgrape receiving end 160 a toward anopen mouth 166. The trough has anaperture 163 that spans the midsection of the bottom surface for receiving ascreen 500. Thus, in a winemaking operation oscillatingflow platform 100 receives grape berries atend 160 a after de-stemming. Astrough 160 oscillates in the plane ofFIG. 1 , about the fourpivot legs 101, the de-stemmed grape berries and MOG arriving from the de-stemmer are agitated as they flow downward with gravity towardopen mouth 166.Open mouth 166 is preferably tapered inward, as shown inFIG. 4 , so that the still oscillating berries are directed into the next conveyor, storage or process vessel in the winemaking process. - The agitation induced by the oscillating
trough 160 results in multiple opportunities for the MOG, raisons and shot berries to contact and pass throughscreen 500. In contrast, the larger whole berries, being bigger than the slots in thescreen 500, pass over it and exit thetrough 160 atopen mouth 166. As will be further described with respect toFIG. 5-8 , thescreen 500 is configured such that whole berries pass over the screen while the majority of the undesirable mater falls through the screen. As a preferred embodiment, the trough has asolid area 161 for receiving de-stemmed grapes before entry to screen area. Initially dispensing grape berries on thesolid area 161 has been discovered to result in a lower yield of juice being produced by the rupture of berries during the separation process. While the percentages of berries that rupture during the separation process is small, it can be significant for winemakers that plan to use a carbonic maceration process during the initial stages of fermentation, wherein fermentation initially occurs within the whole, un-ruptured berries. Further, avoiding the rupture of berries also minimizes the possibility that a portion of the grape juice will become oxidized before the start of fermentation. - The matter passing through
screen 500 is directed byfunnel trough 106, placed there under, into a removable open box-like catch basin 108.Catch basin 108 has asecondary screen 560 its bottom surface.Secondary screen 560 has a finer mesh pattern thanscreen 500 so that solid MOG is now retained, but grape juice generated from broken berries passes through, to be collected in the underlyingsecondary trough 167.Secondary trough 167 has a solid bottom surface that tapers toward adrain hole 168 andconnected drain pipe 169. Thus, any juice produced by rupturing the grape berries, either during the de-stemming process or separation of MOG in oscillatingflow platform 100, is readily removed and collected via a hose line or bucket placed underdrain 168.Catch basin 108 rests onsecondary trough 167 so that it is readily removed therefrom to periodically disposed of the solid materials separated from the grape berries byscreen 500. It should be appreciated thatcatch basin 108 need not be limited to a discrete fixed member as illustrated, but in other embodiments may take the form of a screen conveyer belt so that that MOG, raisons and shot berries are continuously removed from the apparatus, before they have a chance to accumulate as they would in thediscrete catch basin 108 illustrated herein. -
Trough 160 is oscillated about the fourpivot legs 101 viamotor 120 and driveassembly 125. The upper ends of thepivot legs 101 are connected totrough 160 viaupper bearings 164, whereas the lower ends of thepivot legs 101 are connected totrough 160 vialower bearings 102. The upper 164 and lower 102 bearing structures are preferably bushings, but are alternatively a roller bearing, a ball bearing and the like. - The
motor 120 and drive assembly 125 are mounted to supportframe 110 just below theupper end 160 a of thetrough 160. The oscillation frequency oftrough 160 is readily varied to suit the characteristics of the grape variety being treated by modulating the speed ofmotor 120 viafrequency drive controller 125.Frequency drive controller 125 allows the user to control the speed ofelectric motor 120 by modulating the applied current. - As shown in further detail in
FIGS. 3A and 3B , drive assembly 125 also comprises adrive shaft 140 supported for free rotary motion within a pair of block bearing 142, which are mounted to frame 110. Adrive belt 130 is mounted at one end to surround thebelt sheeve 132 attached to themotor drive shaft 121. The opposite end ofdrive belt 130 is wrapped to surround driveshaft belt sheeve 134. Thus, the rotation ofmotor 120 rotates driveshaft 140 viadrive belt 130. Laterally disposed about the center ofdrive shaft 140 is acam 150. Thecam 150 has a cam follower 155 attached, which extends perpendicular to driveshaft 140. The cam follower 155 is coupled to thecam 150 to oscillate back and forth along its principle axis as the cam surface is displaced in the same direction with every rotation ofdrive shaft 140. The other end of the cam follower 155 is attached via the rotary coupling of central bearing block 162 (shown inFIG. 1 ) to the bottom oftrough 160, just forward ofscreen aperture 163. Thus, as thecam 150 rotates eccentrically with respect to driveshaft 140, the cam follower 155 is driven to oscillate in the plane ofFIG. 1 and likewise drivestrough 160 to oscillate in the same plane via pivotinglegs 101. - Still referring now to
FIGS. 3A and 3B , further details of the preferred embodiment of thedrive system 125 will now be described. Driveshaft 140 has at each end, outward ofcam 150 and block bearings 142, a pair of driveshaft counterweight assemblies 145. An external side elevation of the drive shaftcounter weight assembly 145 is shown inFIG. 3B . - It should be appreciated that support stand 110 is attached to or rests on the ground via
stand feet 105. The stand support feet terminate inrubber damping pads 104 which contact the supporting floor orground surface 10 to minimize vibration transmitted from the oscillatory motion of thetrough 160. However, it has been discovered that thecounterweight assembly 145 vastly minimizes such vibration. In the most preferred embodiment, the counter weight is configured to provide a non-uniform radial distribution of weight with respect to the axis ofdrive shaft 140. The weight is distributed such that the center of gravity of eachcounterweight assembly 145 is directly on the opposite side ofdrive shaft 140 fromcam 150 and cam follower 155. - In
FIG. 3B the driveshaft counterweight assembly 145 is shown as composted of two disks segments (145 a and 145 b) and two annular segments (145 c and 145 d) secured together bycommon bolts 146 bolted together. However, each counterweight assembly can also be constructed as a monolithic component. Eachcounterweight assembly 145 is preferably secured to the end ofdrive shaft 140 as shown byend bolt 147. The non-uniform radial distribution ofcounter weight 145 is provided in this embodiment by the stacking two wedge shapedsegments 145 d and 145 e. The two wedge shapedsegments 145 d and 145 e affixed to the other portions of counterweight assembly on the end ofdrive shaft 140 such that center of gravity of thecounterweight assembly 145 with respect to driveshaft 140 is opposed to the center of gravity ofcam 150. The preferred masses ofcounterweights 145 a-e are 6, 3, 3 and 1.5 pound respectively, for a total mass of 13.5 pounds on each side ofdrive shaft 140. - Reducing vibration of oscillating
flow platform 100 not only reduces noise to nearby workers, but also greatly reduces the tendency for the unit to move during use, and is expected to generally extend the useful product life. Without wishing to rely on theory, it is believed that as vibration is reduced withcounterweight assembly 145 there is also a more efficient coupling of the rotary motion ofmotor 120, into the oscillatory motion oftrough 160, increasing the potential throughput of whole berries intrough 160 while maintaining the high separation yield of undesirable material throughscreen 500. - The optimum construction and function of
screen 500 is more fully described below with respect toFIGS. 5-9 . However, it should be appreciated that one method of mountingscreen 500 inaperture 163 is with the long axis of theslots 502 parallel with the principle axis of thetrough 160; oriented to incline downward with thetrough 160. An alternative method of mounting a different screen, shown inFIG. 9 , results in the long axis of theslots 502′ oriented perpendicular to the principle axis of thetrough 160. Referring now to the first embodiment shown inFIG. 5 ,screen 500 has arectangular frame 530. Inset and connected to each interior corner offrame 530 are four solid rectangular mountingcorners 540. Each mountingcorner 540 has a stud 541 for receiving a wing nut assembly (not shown) for secure attachment to thetrough 160 to fillaperture 163. The remainder of thescreen 500 withinframe 530 is formed from an interconnected array of triangular shafts and wires. The spacing between the shafts is less than that between the wires to define the array ofrectangular slots 502. Thus, connected to opposing sides of theframe 530 is a parallel array oftriangular shafts 510, each shaft being oriented so that sides of equal width define acommon plane 505 at the entrance side ofscreen 500, as shown in section VI-VI′, inFIG. 6 . The wires withinparallel array 520 are connected at the ends to other pair of opposing sides offrame 530. Each wire in the parallel 520 is connected to each of the triangular shafts inarray 510 that it traverses so as to stabilize the entire parallel ray of shafts. As shown inFIG. 7 , corresponding to section line VII-VIl′ inFIG. 5 , it can be seen that each wire connects to the traversing triangular shaft at the apex thereof, opposite the side that defines a portion ofplane 505. - In the embodiment of
screen 500 inFIGS. 5-9 , it is preferable that the edge to edge spacing of the triangular shafts at the upper surface, W, withinscreen 500 is about 0.25 inches, with the orthogonal wires separated by a distance, L, of about 1.75 inches. The sides of each triangular shaft preferably has a width of about 0.25 inches wide. The wire preferably have a diameter of about 0.25 inches. Thus, in thispreferred embodiment screen 500 consists ofslots 502 having an aspect ratio of L/W. L/W is preferably greater than about 3, and more preferably greater than about 4, and most preferably at least about 6. - In the preferred embodiment of the
oscillating flow platform 100screen 500 is mounted with the leading edge (that is the side closer togrape receiving end 160 a) depressed or at least level with the bottom of the trough and the trailing edge (the side closer to open mouth 166) above or at least level with the interior bottom of thetrough 160. - The screen construction shown in
FIGS. 5-9 has several surprising advantages for separating grapes. From the interior of thetrough 160,plane 505, the screen appears to the arriving grape matter as a series of slots. The slot spacing W is narrow enough to return ripe whole berries, yet let smaller raisons, shot berries and most forms of MOG pass through. It should be noted that as thewires 520 are connected to thetriangular shafts 510 near the lower and downward faxing apex, this adjacent area is wider, having a width, w, as shown inFIG. 7 . - Not wishing to be bound by theory, it is currently believed that one reason for the higher throughput of
screen 500 is that once MOG particles passes throughaperture 501, they are unlikely to re-enter in the opposite direction. Further, the size and spacing of the triangular rods and wires is such that high aspect ratio MOG, (such as stems, twigs and insects and the like) will not collect on these members, but rather fall downward towardsecondary screen 560 for catching separated MOG. Likewise, it is believed that the inverted shape of thetriangular shafts 510, with the narrow opening W at the upper or entry surface atplane 505 makes it unlikely that matter vibrating free or hittingwires 520 will reverse direction and pass back up aboveplane 505 intotrough 160. Although thewires 520 are a locus for the potential buildup of matter that passes through the gap W (between triangular shafts in plane 505), the tendency toward build-up is reduced as the inverted triangular shape of theshafts 510 provides a wider gap, w, and hence more space for such matter to tumble free of thewires 520 due to the oscillation induced vibration of the matter as it enters and then traversesscreen 500. - It should be appreciated that for some varieties of grapes it has been discovered that the orientation of the
rectangular slots 502′ inscreen 500, as shown inFIG. 9 , may be preferable for removing MOG and other undesirable components.Screen 500 has arectangular frame 530. Inset and connected to each interior corner offrame 530 are four solid rectangular mountingcorners 540. The remainder of thescreen 500 withinframe 530 is formed from an interconnected array of triangular shafts and wires that as in the embodiment ofFIG. 5 , to define theslots 502′. However, the array of triangular shafts and wires are now reversed in orientation with respect to the long and short sides ofscreen 500. That is the parallel array ofshafts 510 is now oriented parallel to the short axis ofscreen 500 and the parallel array of wires is oriented in the transverse direction or parallel to the long axis ofscreen 500. The spacing between the shafts is less than that between the wires to orient therectangular slots 502′ with their longer axis parallel to the shorter side ofscreen 500. - While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims (16)
1. An oscillating flow separator comprising:
a) a substantially rectangular trough open at the top and enclosed by three substantially upright sides, said trough being open on one of the shorter sides of the rectangle for dispensing purified solid matter,
b) a screen disposed on the bottom of said trough,
c) a catch basin disposed below the screen of said substantially rectangular trough that comprises a secondary screen disposed at the bottom thereof,
d) a secondary trough disposed below said catch basis for collected liquid separated by said secondary screen.
2. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 2 further comprising a funnel trough disposed below the screen of said substantially rectangular trough for directing matter separated by the screen into said catch basin.
3. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 1 wherein said secondary trough has a substantially solid bottom surface that tapers toward a drain hole.
4. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 2 wherein said secondary trough has a substantially solid bottom surface that tapers toward a drain hole.
5. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 1 wherein the oscillating trough is tilted such that the open side is lower than the opposite and surrounding side.
6. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 1 wherein said screen is a series of apertures formed in the bottom of the trough.
7. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 1 wherein said screen has a substantially rectangular frame and is removed from a matching rectangular apertures formed in the bottom of the trough.
8. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 7 wherein the top side of the screen disposed parallel and distal to the open end of the trough is disposed slightly above the bottom of the trough.
9. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 7 wherein the top side of the screen disposed parallel and proximal to the open end of the trough is disposed slightly below the bottom of the trough.
10. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 7 wherein said screen comprises
a) a first parallel array of triangular shafts, each shaft oriented so that the sides define an upper plane,
b) a second parallel array of wires cross-connecting and stabilizing said array of triangular shafts,
c) wherein said second parallel array of wires is connected to each of the triangular shafts of said first parallel array near the apex thereof, opposite the side that defines a portion of the upper plane.
11. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 10 wherein the spacing between the triangular shafts of the screen at the upper plane is less than about 0.5 inches
12. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 11 wherein the spacing between the triangular shafts at the upper plane is less than about 0.35 inches
13. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 12 wherein the spacing between the triangular shafts at the upper plane is less than about 0.25 inches
14. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 10 wherein the spacing between wires is about 3 times the spacing between the triangular shafts at the upper plane.
15. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 10 wherein the spacing between wires is about 4 times the spacing between the triangular shafts at the upper plane.
16. An oscillating flow separator according to claim 10 wherein the spacing between wires is about 6 times the spacing between the triangular shafts at the upper plane.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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US11/394,509 US20070006564A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2006-03-31 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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US11/176,431 US20070006563A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2005-07-06 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
US11/394,509 US20070006564A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2006-03-31 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
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Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US11/176,431 Continuation US20070006563A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2005-07-06 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
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US20070006564A1 true US20070006564A1 (en) | 2007-01-11 |
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US11/176,431 Abandoned US20070006563A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2005-07-06 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
US11/394,509 Abandoned US20070006564A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2006-03-31 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
US12/181,509 Active US7581646B2 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2008-07-29 | Process for sorting grape berries |
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US11/176,431 Abandoned US20070006563A1 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2005-07-06 | Oscillating sorting device for grape berries |
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US12/181,509 Active US7581646B2 (en) | 2005-07-06 | 2008-07-29 | Process for sorting grape berries |
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US20110197563A1 (en) * | 2008-10-10 | 2011-08-18 | Christine Nakas | Method for eliminating leafstalks from a harvested stream |
US8479484B2 (en) * | 2008-10-10 | 2013-07-09 | CNH France S. A. | Method for eliminating leafstalks using continuous and discontinuous belts |
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US9027759B2 (en) | 2011-11-22 | 2015-05-12 | Key Technology, Inc. | Sorting apparatus |
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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US20070006563A1 (en) | 2007-01-11 |
US20080283452A1 (en) | 2008-11-20 |
US7581646B2 (en) | 2009-09-01 |
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STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |