US3378935A - Apparatus for drying hides, skins and similar sheetlike articles - Google Patents

Description

3,378,935 ILAR April 23, 1968 P. AUGERE APPARATUS FOR DRYING HIDES, SKINS AND SIM SHEETLIKE ARTICLES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 16, 1966 mnuuuunuumm TTORNEB Apnl 23, 1968 P. AUGERE 3,378,935

APPARATUS FOR DRYING HLD" SKINS AND SIMILAR SHEETIJIKE A CLES Filed Sept. 16, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3,378,935 APPARATUS FOR DRYING RIDES, SKINS AND SIMILAR SHEETLIKE ARTlCLES Paul Augere, Sceaux, France, assiguor to Charvo S.A., Grenoble, Isere, France, a French jointstock company Filed Sept. 16, 1966, Ser. No. 580,077 Claims priority, application France, Sept. 23, 1965, 32,496, Patent 1,460,696 3 Claims. (Cl. 34--92) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A flat casing with two polished parallel sides is oscillatably supported by a frame to receive a hide to be dried on any of its polished sides. A hinged air-tight cover is thereafter applied on the said side, this cover having a permeable inner cushion which is pressed against the hide, and vacuum is applied to the inner space of the cover. Heating means are provided within the casing which may be locked at two positions symmetrical with respect to a vertical plane.

The present invention relates to a process and apparatus for drying under vacuum tanned or untanned hides and skins or similar sheet-like articles.

A known device for this purpose comprises a horizontal polished heating plate adapted to receive the article to be dried with its hair side against the plate, and a removable cover, in the form of a sheet of rubber or like mate rial carried by a frame, which is disposed on the plate with its edges engaging the edges of the latter, the inner side of the said cover being provided with a flat permeable resilient cushion adapted to press the article against the plate. The space comprised between the plate and the cover may be connected with a vacuum pump. In order to reduce the quantity of water to be evaporated, the article to be dried is previously submitted to a mechanical operation in, which part of its water content is expelled, as for instance by squeezing. In some apparatus of this kind the polished heating plate is in the form of a table facing upwardly, while in others the plate faces downwardly, the article being first placed on the permeable resilient cushion and the cover being thereafter raised against the plate.

In these known drying apparatus, and more particularly when polished plate faces downwardly, it is extremely difficult to stretch the moist article both longitudinally and transversely in order to obtain the maximum possible area for the dried article. Owing to the unavoidable deformation of the polished heating plate, when the latter faces upwardly water accumulates in some zones thereof and the drying of the article becomes irregular. Each drying unit is cumbersome and occupies an undesirably large portion of the available area of the drying plant.

The present invention has for its object to avoid the above-mentioned inconveniences.

In accordan e with this invention a process for drying tanned or untanned hides and skins consists in directly applying the moist article on a polished surface disposed at a small angle to the vertical, without the use of an adhesive and without any preliminary mechanical elimination of part of the water content of the article which thus adheres to the said surface, in disposing on the article a flexible air-tight cover having on its inner side a permeable resilient cushion which presses the article against the said surface, while its edges engage in an air-tight manner the said surface around the article, and in evacuating the space comprised between the said surface and the cover.

The invention further concerns an apparatus for drying tanned or untanned hides and skins or similar sheetlike articles, comprising a flat casing having two polished ice sides substantially parallel to each other, a supporting frame in which the said casing is tiltably mounted in such manner as to be capable of assuming two substantially symmetrical positions at a small angle to the vertical, means Within the said casing for heating the polished sides thereof, two air-tight cover-s, each being adapted to be applied on one of the polished sides of the said casing, a flat permeable resilient cushion provided on the inner side of each cover, means along the edges of each cover for engaging in an air-tight manner the corresponding polished side of said casing, and means to evacuate selectively the spaces comprises between the said covers and the polished sides of the said casing.

In the annexed drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front view of an apparatus according to this invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-section of the flat casing of this apparatus taken along line Il-II of FIG. 1, the covers and the supporting frame being omitted.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmental line III-III of FIG. 1.

F IG. 4 is a large scale fragmental section of a permeable resilient cushion.

FIGS. 5 to are explanatory diagrams illustrating the successive steps of an operating cycle.

The apparatus comprises a supporting frame 1 which carries two spaced bearings 2 disposed along the same horizontal axis and in which are ro-tatably mounted two trunnions 3 secured to the lateral edges of a flat rectangular casing 4. This casing may thus oscillate about the common horizontal axis of the bearings 2 and it may be locked at two positions substantially symmetrical to each other with respect to the vertical plane containing the said axis, the casing being at a small angle to the said plane at each position, this angle being comprised between 0 and 45, preferably between rbout 10 and The means used for this purpose may be of any conventional construction. They have been indicated in FIG. 1 in the form of a sector 5 carried by the frame 1, of an arm 6 secured to the edge of the casing 4 and of a removable pin 7 threaded through holes provided in the sector and in the arm, but it is obvious that any other device could be used, as for instance an endless worm gearing actuaed manually or by means of an electric motor, a hydraulic ram, etc.

The casing 4 comprises two spaced side plates and 4b (FIGS. 2 and 3) parallel to each other and connected with each other by transverse walls such as 40, 4d (FIG. 2) so as to define an inner space or chamber 8 in which a heating fluid, as for instance water or oil, may be circulated between an inlet 9 and an outlet 10 (FIG. 1), the connection with the stationary lines being effected by means of flexible hoses 11 and 12. Alternatively the casing may be heated by means of steam. The lateral plates 4a, 4b are connected with each other by inner stays 4e in order to form a quite rigid unit. Their outer sides are carefully polished. They are preferably made of stainless steel.

While the lower and the lateral transverse walls which together with the side plates 4a and 4b, define the inner space 8, are situated along the corresponding edges of the plates, the upper Wall 4d is at a distance from their upper edge, as clearly shown in FIG. 3 and there is provided an additional transverse wall 4 along the latter, the rectangular channel thus formed being divided in two separate conduits 13 and 14 by an intermediate partition 4g substantially parallel to the side plates 4a and 4b. Horizontally elongated openings 4h, 4i are formed in the respective side plates 4a and 41) at a small distance from the upper edge thereof so as to open into the said conduits 13 and 14.

Each one of the upper conduits 13 and 14 is connected by a flexible hose such as 15 (FIG. 1) and through a three-way valve such as 16 either with the outer atmossection taken along photo or with a condenser 17 having a lower draining outlet 18, the upper portion of this condenser being in turn connected by a pipe 19 with the inlet 20 of a vacuum pump 21 having an outlet 22 with an exhaust pipe 23, the said pump being driven by an electric motor 24.

The upper edge of the fiat casing 4 supports two spaced blocks 25 (FIGS. 1 and 3) disposed along the same longitudinal axis and which carry a horizontal shaft 26 on which are rotatably mounted two pairs of L-shaped arms, respectively 27 and 28. The lower ends of the depending branches of the arms of each pair are welded to a longitudinal tubular member, respectively 29, 30, to the ends of which are secured, as for instance by means of screws, the vertical elements of a rectangular frame, respectively 31, 32 whose dimensions are slightly smaller than those of the casing 4. A rectangular cup shaped hood, respectively 33, 34, made of sheet-metal and having substantially the same dimensions as the casing 4 itself, is interposed between each frame 31, 32 and the corresponding longitudinal member 29, 30, this hood opening towards the casing 4. On the inner side of each frame 31, 32 are disposed in superposition a sheet 35, 36 of rubber or like resilient and air-tight material, and a flat permeable resilient cushion 36, 38, the whole being removably secured to the frame by means of screws such as 39, 40. While each cushion 37, 38 has substantially the same dimensions as the corresponding frame, each sheet 35, 36 protrudes outwardly, its dimensions being almost equal to those of the casing 4. The protruding marginal portion of each sheet 35, 36 has on its side facing the casing 4 a strip 41, 42 of rubber or like material adapted to engage in an air-tight manner the marginal portion of the corresponding side plates 4a, 4b when the frame is applied against the casing.

Each unit comprising for instance a frame 31, a hood 33, a sheet and a cushion 37, forms a cover hinged to the casing 4 about the shaft 26, these two covers being generally referenced A and B.

The arms 27, 28 of each pair are connected with each other by a short longitudinal member 43, 44 disposed well above the above-mentioned longitudinal member 29, 30. To the central portion of each member 43, 44 is Welded a fork 45, 46 between the ends of which is pivoted a nut 47, 48. Each nut 47, 48 cooperates with one end portion 49a, 49b of a common transverse -rod 49, the said end portions being formed with threads of opposite pitch. The central portion of the rod 49 carries a worm wheel 50 which meshes with a worm 51 driven by an electric motor 52 (FIG. 1), the latter being supported by the casing 53 of the worm-end-wheel gearing 50-51 and the whole unit 52-53 being rotatably carried by the rod 49 and being prevented from rotating by a rod 54 pivoted to the unit and to the upper transverse wall 4] of the casing 4.

FIG. 4 shows a possible construction of a permeable resilient cushion such as 37 and 38. This cushion, generally referenced C, comprises three superposed grids 55 formed of metallic wires or of cords of a resilient plastic material, these grids being separated from each other by two perforated sheets 56 of plastic material.

In operation, the casing 4 being locked at one of its two inclined portions and the covers A and B being disposed against the side plates 4a and 41; (FIG. 5), vacuum is applied to the conduit 14-, i.e. to the conduit situated on the side of the intermediate partition 4g which faces downwardly, while the conduit 13 is connected with the outer atmosphere. The space comprised between the rubiii) her sheet 36 and the side plate 4]; is thus evacuated through the openings 41'. The electric motor 52 is then energized so as to rotate the rod 49 in such a direction as to tend to displace the nuts 47, 48 towards each other thereon. Since the cover B is now maintained against the casing 4 by atmosphere pressure, cover A is progressively raised to the position of FIG. 6, the rod 49 assuming the position in dash lines in FIG. 3. The motor is then stopped.

A hide to be dried is then applied on the exposed side plate 4a without any preliminary elimination of any portion of its water content. In such a moist state the hide strongly adheres to the polished surface and it may be fully stretched thereon by a single operator by scraping its outer side (flesh side).

The cover A is then lowered by means of the electric motor 52, the cushion 37 being thus pressed against the hide H (FIG. 3). The apparatus is now at the position of FIG. 7. Vacuum is then applied to the conduit 13 and the casing 4 is tilted to its second position (FIG. 8).

While water evaporates from the hide H under the combined effect of heat and vacuum, the operator connects the conduit 14 with the outer atmosphere, raises cover B and disposes another hide H on the exposed side plate 41) (position of FIG. 9). He then lowers the cover B and connects the conduit 14 with the vacuum pump 21 (position of FIG. 10). The operating cycle is now completed. i

The subsequent cycles are effected as the first one with this sole difference that when a cover is raised, the operator removes the hide which has been dried under it during the preceding cycle.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for drying hides and skins or similar sheet-like articles, comprising a stationary supporting frame; a fiat casing rotatably carried by said frame so as to be capable of oscillating about a substantially horizontal axis, said flat casing having two polished sides substantially parallel to each other; means on said frame and on said casing to lock said casing at two positions substantially symmetrical to each other with respect to the vertical plane containing said horizontal axis and at a small angle to said plane; means within said casing to heat the polished sides thereof; an air-tight cover removably applied against each of said polished sides, said cover having an inner side and a number of edges; 2. flat permeable resilient cushion on the inner side of each of said covers; means along the edges of each of said covers to engage in an air-tight manner the corresponding polished side of said casing to create a closed space between each polished side and the cover co-operating therewith; and means to selectively evacuate each of said spaces.

2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, said flat casing having an upper edge and said covers being hinged to said upper edge about a substantially horizontal axis.

3. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, said small angle being comprised between 0 and References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,661,543 12/1953 Tyndall 34-16 3,151,952 10/1964- Turato 34-92 3,244,109 12/1965 Turato 34-92 3,253,351 5/1966 Bettamin 34-92 3,303,574 2/1967 Hohmann 34-5 WILLIAM J. WYE, Primary Examiner.

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