US2633389A - Apparatus for the pneumatic evacuation of materials from receptacles - Google Patents

Description

March 31, 1953 v R. A. NORBOM APPARATUS FOR THE PNEUMATIC EVACUATION- OF MATERIALS FROM RECEPTACLES 3 Sheet S-Sheet 1 Fild Nov. 29, 1949 JNVENTOR. Rayner J7 fi e r5077? March 31, 1953 R. A. NQRBOM 2,633,389

APPARATUS FOR THE." PNEUMATIC EVACUATION OF MATERIALS FROM RECEPTACLES Filed NOV. 29, 1949 3 Sh'eets -Sheet 2 JNVEN TOR.

March 31, 1953 R. A. NORBOM 2,633,389 APPARATUS FOR THE PNEUMATIC EVACUATION v OF MATERIALS FROM RECEPTACLES 5 SheetsSheet 3 Filed Nov. 29, 1949 N ml M mM H I HM M M IH A INVENTOR. flaynarfljl wom Patented Mar. 31, 1953 APPARATUS FOR THE PNEUMATIC EVACUA- TION OF MATERIALS FROM RECEPTACLES Ragnar A. Norbom, New York, N. Y., assignor to Finnie & Norbom, New York, N. Y., a partnership Application November 29, 1949, Serial No. 129,990 7 Claims. (01. 302-21) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in apparatus for the removal of material from tanks, cars, bins and the like and especially such material as flour, grain, powdered material and the like.

A main object of the invention is to provide a Simple and efiicient apparatus for sucking out the material quickly and easily and with economy.

A further object is to remove the material with an apparatus which is simple, and formed of few simple parts easily operated with minimum power requirements.

A still further object is to operate the apparatus with a minimum of wear and friction between the parts which extend into the tanks so that small particles of metal or other substances from the moving parts will not get into the removed material.

Further and more specific objects, features, and advantages will more clearly appear from a consideration of the detailed specifications hereinafter set forth especially when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a present preferred form which the invention may assume and which form part of the specification.

In brief and general terms the invention includes a tank or other receptacle having sloping side walls and at the bottom thereof a longitudinal trough or recess opening at its tap into the interior of the tank or receptacle. Along this bottom and resting snugly on the lower surfaces of the side walls above the trough is disposed a longitudinally slidable pipe through which air is allowed to pass. This trough is connected to a source of suction and the air pipe is connected to means for sliding it along the'tank so that as the suction is produced, air is sucked into the air pipe and enters the material at the end of the pipe and then is sucked out through the trough to a suitable collection point.

Preferably the portion of the side walls contacted by the air pipe, as it is moved back and forth, is formed with suitable bearing metal to permit easy frictionless movement of the pipe back and forth along and in contact with the walls of the receptacle. The bearing material and the pipe are so related and designed that when the pipe rests on the walls it forms a seal along the lines of contact so that when suction is applied to the trough it will draw air into and through the pipe to the end thereof wherever it happens to be. Thus, it will be seen that by moving the pipe back and forth its end will sweep along the bottom of the receptacle and $110k out the material. By repeated reciprocations along the bottom of the tank above the trough the material is removed rapidly and gradually in small quantities.

The invention further has to do with simple means for moving the air pipe in this reciprocatory manner and to a simple effective seal where the air pipe enters the tank so that material, which may leak by the pipe, is caught in the seal and carried out through the suction pipe.

A present preferred form which the invention may assume is illustrated in the drawings, of which,

Fig. l is a longitudinal side elevation, partly in section, showing the apparatus associated with a bin or tank;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a vertical, transverse section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 4:

Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through part of the apparatus and taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section taken through the apparatus outside the tank and showing certain o erating elements;

Fi 6 is a schematic plan view of several tanks sho ing the manner in which t e evacuating suction may be connected selectively thereto; and,

Fig. '7 is an enlar ed cross section showing, so ewhat diagrammatically the alternate possibilities of connection to one tank or another.

Referring now merely to the specific form of the invention shown in the drawing, and turning to Fig. 6, there is indicated a lay-out of several tanks or bins H] from which the contained material is to be evacuated at will and selectively. Associated with this battery of tanks or the like is a suction line represented by t e pipe I I which extends along between the tanks and may be made continuous by means of several intermediate cou ling pieces such as [2. These coupling pieces i2 may also be used to connect the suction lineto one or the other tank or bin it] as shown in the upper portion of Fig. 6 and in Fig. '7, wherein the connection piece or coupling member 12 is connected between a section of the suction pipe H and an exhaust or outlet pipe I3 leading to one of the tanks or bins Hi to be evacuated at will. It is also obvious that this particular arrangement will permit only one tank or bin to be evacuated at a time.

This exhaust pipe It in connection with each tank is related to the bottom of each tank or bin and this relation and construction is illustrated on somewhat enlarged scale in Figs. 3 and 4. Preferably the longitudinal side walls I4 of each tank or bin are sloped downwardly in a convergent manner as shown in Fig. 3, and near their bottom edges and along the entire length of the walls are disposed bearing wearing plates i5.

Beneath the lower edges of these side walls the bottom of the tanks are formed as a chute or trough I 6 which opens into the tank all along its length and at one end, as shown in Fig. 4, opens to the exhaust or outlet pipe l3. Of course, with the tank full of powdered or granular material such as flour, grain or similar material, the trough IE will be filled up. A source of suction, not shown, is connected to the end of the pipe H, as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 6, and this will, therefore, through the exhaust pipe 13, tend to suck the material out of the tank. In order to facilitate and make more effective this suction, an air admission pipe I! is extensible into the tank through an opening therein above the suction connection and in such an axial line that the lower walls of the pipe I! rest on the bearing plates 15 to form a sort of scaled connection between the upper portion of the tank and the trough. It will be, therefore, apparent that the further the pipe 1'! is extended in this manner into the tank, the more will the upper portion of the tank be sealed off. The pipe I! has openings at both ends so that air is free to flow therethrough. When, therefore, suction is applied to the pipe l3 from the main suction line, as above described, then air will be pulled into the pipe I! and will pass out of its inner end within the tank in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1, whereby, the incoming air will sweep down around the end of the pipe I? and through the material and into the suction pipe [3 and out through the main suction line H to some suitable point of collection (not shown). As the air thus sweeps it will carry some of the material with it.

The front end of the pipe l? is closed by a tapered r pointed end wall [8 but has slotted openings [9 in its periphery near this end wall to permit the passage of air but by having the end of the pipe pointed, it makes it easier to advance the pipe slowly into a body of granulated or powdered material.

In its movement back and forth in the tank the pipe 17 passes through the end wall 20 of the tank and this opening is closed by what may be called a floating seal. This seal Fig. 4 comprises leather ring gasket 2i surrounding the pipe I? outside the line of the end wall 20. Around this gasket is disposed a tight coiled tension spring 22. Disposed around the pipe 17 on each side of the gasket 2| are flanged aluminum rings 23 and 24 with their flanges resting on top of the sides of the gasket, and with their inner walls spaced slightly from the surface of the pipe 17. A cover plate 25 surrounds the pipe I? and bears against the outer ring 23 and has a flange 26 disposed against the wall 20 of the tank and fastened there by a bolt 21. The space radially outside of the gasket and the aluminum rings, and within the cover plate, will permit any tank material drawn thereinto to pass around this annular space and drop into the suction pipe [3, as shown at the bottom of Fig. 14.

In order to slowly reciprocate the air pipe 41 backward and forward within the tank, it is supported outside the tank largely on a pair of large rollers 28 and 29 suitably supported on pedestals 30 and 31 from the floor. In order to reciprocate the pipe ll, a pair of chains 32 and 33 are provided and disposed respectively on opposite sides along the length of the pipe, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Each chain passes over sprockets, such as 34 and 35 at their ends. These sprockets are mounted on horizontal frame plates 36 and 37 which are supported at each end by means of pedestal members 38 and 39. The sprockets 34 are mounted on a common hub 40, which is connected to and driven by a motor 4H mounted on a suitable base. The top runs of the chains are connected by means of a cross bar 43 and this bar passes through a hole on a lug 44, projecting up from the top of the pipe 17. Any suitable means (not shown) may be employed to move the motor in one direction or another at regulated speeds and to reverse the direction at will.

In the operation of this apparatus it will be assumed that the tank is filled with granular material and is to be emptied. The air pipe will normally be disposed in the tank about as it is shown in Fig. 1. The proper coupling is then made between the suction line i i and the exhaust pipe 83 of the particular tank to be evacuated by means of the cooperating coupling connection 12. The suction source is started and the drive motor 4! energized so that immediately the air pipe is started to move into the tank and by means of suitable devices well known but not shown the motion is reversed at the end of its forward travel so that the direction is reversed and the pipe is pulled back to its initial position. All this time the suction is pulling air into the pipe i7 and this air is being drawn down around the end of this pipe into the material adjacent this and then out through the trough i6 and the connection l3 to a suitable collection point (not shown).

The sliding movement of this single pipe I! is made with minimum power requirements and with minimum friction because of the friction reducing bearing plates I 5 referred to. In thus providing only one sliding pipe and reducing the friction resulting from this sliding movement there is avoided the possibility that any small particles of the pipe metal or material will be rubbed off and get into the evacuated material which would be a serious matter especially if the material happened to be food products such as flour or rains.

While the invention has been described in detail and shown with respect to the accompanying drawing, it is not to be limited to such details, since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Hence, it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the language and scope of any one or more of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having downwardly converging side walls forming a longitudinal opening between their lower edges, said receptacle having a trough disposed below and opening into said receptacle, said trough connected to asource of suction, and an air pipe projecting into said receptacle and slidable along and in contact with the lower edges of said walls.

2. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having converging walls, a slidable air pipe extending into said receptacle and resting in sealing contact between said walls to divide the receptacle into upper and lower compartments, the compartment below the pipe being connected to a source of suction.

3. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having converging walls, a slidable air pipe extending into said receptacle and resting in sealing contact wi h said walls, said walls having bearing means along their surfaces in contact with said pipe to effect the sealing action, said receptacle having an elongate space below the pipe opening into the receptacle said elongate space being connected to a source of suction.

4. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having converging walls and a trough at the bottom thereof opening into said receptacle, an open air pipe extending into said receptacle and adapted to sealingly rest on opposite wall faces above the trough, means to slide the pipe along the receptacle to alter the area sealed oii by the pipe, the trough connected to a source of suction.

5. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having a trough-like recess in the bottom thereof co-extensive with the length of the receptacle and opening at its top into said receptacle, said trough connected to a source of suction, the walls of the receptacle narrowing down to lie closely adjacent each other above the trough, an open air pipe projecting into said receptacle and slidable in sealing contact along the walls of said receptacle just above the trough, means connected to the pipe outside the receptacle to slide it along within the receptacle, the length of the pipe being greater than the length of the receptacle.

6. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having a trough-like recess in the bottom thereof co-extensive with the length of the receptacle and opening at its top into said receptacle, said trough connected to a source of suction, the walls of the receptacle narrowing down to lie closely adjacent each other above the trough, an open air pipe projecting into said receptacle and slidable in sealing contact along the walls of said receptacle just above the trough, means connected to the pipe outside the receptacle to slide it along within the receptacle, the length of the pipe being greater than the length of the receptacle, and a sealed chamber around the pipe as it enters the receptacle, said chamber connected to the connection leading to the source of suction whereby material leaking past the seal will be sucked out.

7. In a device of the class described, a receptacle having a trough-like recess in the bottom thereof coextensive with the length of the receptacle and, opening at its top into said receptacle, said trough connected to a source of suction, the walls of the receptacle narrowing down to lie closely adjacent each other above the trough, an open air pipe projecting into said receptacle and sildable in sealing contact along the walls of said receptacle just above the trough, means connected to the pipe outside the receptacle to slide it along within the receptacle, the length of the pipe being greater than the length of the receptacle, the inner end of the air pipe having a pointed end wall, and lateral openings in the sides of the pipe near the end wall, whereby air can pass out of the pipe and the entry of the pipe into the material in the receptacle is facilitated.

RAGNAR A. NORBOM.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,337,738 VonPorat Apr. 20, 1920 1,778,100 Webb Oct. 14, 1930 2,030,553 Tiley Feb. 11, 1936 2,190,726 McKenna Feb. 20, 1940 2,190,727 McKenna Feb. 20, 1940 2,311,758 Johansson Feb. 23, 1943 2,440,379 Norbom Apr. 27, 1948 2,477,334 Hibner July 26, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 596,034 Germany Apr. 26, 1934

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