US587549A - Sepaeatoe foe geain - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 4 SheetsSh.eet 1.

G. P. FULLMER. SEPARATOR FOR GRAIN, &c. No. 587,549. Patented Aug. 3,1897.

Inventor".

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Fig.1.

Witnesses (No Model.) 48hee ts-Sheet 2. G. P. PULLM'ER. SEPARATOR FOR GRAIN, &c.

No. 587,549. Patented Aug. 3,1897.

Fig. 2.

Witnesses.- Inventor (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

C. P. PULLMER.

SEPARATOR FOR GRAIN, 8w.

N0. 587,549. Patented Aug. 3, 1897.

Inventcm Iii M r I I H// m M m m m m w m U m w w A m T X Z R B 7 \I////////// E IHII 5 R D D D w G m 4 6 S s Witnesses PATENT OFFICE. 2

CHARLES P. FULLMER, OF BENTON,

PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF- ONE- HALF TO IVILLIAM H. MAGILL, OF SAME PLACE.

SEPARATOR FOR GRAIN, 80C.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Application filed June 17, 1896.

.T 0 M5 whom it may concern:.

Be it known that I, CHARLES P. FULLMER, of Benton, Columbia county, Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvemen ts in Separators for Grain and other Materials, of which the following is a description, referring to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

The invention relates to grain-separators; and its object is to simplify and at the same time render more efficient, compact, and economic in operation such apparatus. Indeed the improvements are of so simple a nature that they will be readily understood from a description of the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one preferred embodiment of my invention.

Briefly stated, by the operation of my improved separator the grain or other material is subjected to a fractional or successive separating process by which first only the dust and similar materials are carried 06, and in the following separations the heavier materials are carried over by the draft of air, so that not only can the grain be far more ef ficientl y separated from the impurities than where it is attempted to make the separation at a single operation, but also it is both possible and convenient with my improved separator to grade the different qualities or sizes of grain and other materials to which the separator is applied. The air-drafts are so delicately regulated and so directed that only the finest dust and impurities can follow the windings of the air-passages and be carried out by the blower. The heavier impurities and the grain will be severally received in the separator-chutes beneath the apparatus, while nails, ore, stones, and other heavy for eign objects will be delivered from another chute.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the separator. Fig. 2 is a similarview of the separator, the top being removed, as indicated by the planes 2 2 of Figs. 3 and 4. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on the plane 3 3 of Figs. 1, 2, and 4, looking from the right. Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the plane at 4: of Figs. 1, 2, and 3, looking from the left of Fig. and Fig. 5 is a detail view of the de- Patent No. 587,549, dated August 3, 1897.

Serial No. 595,833. (No model.)

livery-chutes, the cover and upper walls of the chutes being removed.

Throughout the drawings like letters of reference indicate like parts.

The supporting-framework B may be of any wooden or other construction, and is of course not material to the principles of my invention.

It will be most convenient to consider the various parts of my apparatus in the order of their normal operation.

At 0 is shown the receiving-hopper, which for the purpose of explanation we will consider is intended for grain, the separator illustrated being particularly adapted for the separation of wheat and other grain. hopper C thechute c delivers the grain into the vertical air passage or flue D, up which is drawn a constant current of air which can be carefully and accurately regulated to suit the requirements and eifeet the desiredv operation of the separator. This air-draft is produced by the blower E, which creates a partial vacuum within the inclosed housing or casing of the apparatus. The direction of the air-current is indicated by long arrows in all the figures, particularly in Fig. 3, and from these it will be clear that constant drafts of air pass up the flues D, D, D", and D'. Each of these air blasts or drafts is deflected downward in its respective passage upon entering the casing, as at F, and thence passes under the vertical deflector f and again upward through the rising flue G into the main chamber of the housing or casin g, from which the air is exhausted by the fan or blower E.

It will be seen from the plan View Fig. 2 up to the point where the current of air leaves the flue G and enters the main chamber each of the air-passages is distinct from the others, being separated by the partitions g gv g".

* In order to maintain a constant air-exhaustion within the housing, I provide the automatic regulator-valve II, which, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, is a trap which opens downward and is provided with the counterweight h, which may be delicately adj usted to regulate the exhaustion to a nic-ety. The area of the valve H being considerable, an almost inappreciable increase of exhaustion beneath From the the trap will cause it to open slightly and alalent devicej, may be controlled from the outside of the casing to regulate the width of opening between the transverse sill K and the edge of the valve J. In addition to the main passages for the air through the fines ,F F F F and G, G, G, and G some air escapes from the fine F bypassing up through the opening L between the defiecting-sillsl Z.-

At M is shown a vertical gate-valve for regulating the communicating passage between the fines d and F, there being one such gatevalve for each of the fines D d, D d, D d, and D d, so that besides the regulation of draft by means of the speed of the blower and the automatic regulator-valve H and adj ustable valve J, whichis common to all the fines, each of the fines may beseparately regulated or entirely shut off, if desired, by means of these valves or gates M, M, M, and M'. I control these valves by means of the bellcrank levers m, one arm of each lever extending through a hole in its respective valve and the other extending through a slide, as at N, N, N, and N. It is clear that when a slide, as at N, is drawn upward it closes the corresponding valve, as M, and in so doing it opens an air-passage in the top of the box, as at 0, Figs. 1 and 3. In order to provide for the regulation of this opening 0 independently of the regulation of the respective valves M, M, M, and M", the slides P are provided, which are entirely disconnected from the levers'm and may be set as desired to regulate the admission of air through the openings 0. p projecting through the top of the housing for the purpose of adjusting the slide-valves P.

Returning now to the receiving-hopper G, the grain passing from the hopper 0 through the chute c is shot downward diagonally across the risingcnrrent of air in the fine D. The draft is so regulated that the air acts upon the line dust and even the lighter grain, carrying it up through the short flue D into the enlarged portion of the flue d, while the heavier materials and almost all the grain falls directly into the hopper O. The current of air in D, expanding into the enlarged portion (1 of the chute, is necessarily checked, and

the rising effect being thereby decreased the grain and indeed all materials except the dust and the like, after passing upward a few inches by their own impetus, fall back again and drop through the constricted portion of the fine D into the hopper O; I attribute considerable importance to this arrangement of fines D d and chutes c, by which the grain as it comes from the chute 0- without much downward impetus is acted upon by the strong draft within the constricted portion or month D of In the drawings I indicate pins the fine and particles thereby carried upward into the enlarged portion d and there allowed to fall back under the decreasing draft and back through the constricted portion of the fine D, owing to their increased impetus. Moreover, in the case of fiat stones or scales I find that falling from the chute c and often presenting a fiat surface to the rising draft they are carried up into the enlarged flue d, where they turn edgewise and instantly drop back through the chute into the hopper 0. Such dust and fine particles as are carried by the draft of air into the casing and into the fine F are again separated to some extent, some of the finer dust passing through the opening L and thence directly to the blower, while most of the dust and all the heavier dust is; carried down through the fine F and thence up through the fine G to the blower; Fine particles of broken grain and other solids of appreciable size are prevented from passing through the opening L by means of the two deflected sillsl Z, for the tendency of such particles is of course to be projected in straight lines rather than to, follow the sudden tnrn in the air-current. Striking against the vertical deflector F, they are thrown down into the first of the series of delivery-chutes R, and even such particles as are drawn up into the fine G are thrown down by the deflecting-sill K and fall back into the chute R.

If the draft is regulated so-as to be very light in the first fine D, the delivery-chute R maybe made to contain nothing but the heavier particles of dust; but in practice I prefer to so regulate the draft in the first fine that the first delivery-chute R will receive the broken grain or the finest grade of the grain.

The operation in the second fine D and-its enlarged portion d" are substantially similar to the operation just described,the constricted portion of the fine D receiving the grain and heavy impurities from the hopper O. 1 prefer to so regulate the draft in the second chute that it carries over about a third to one-halfof the grain, though this will vary with the grain, and in case the separator is used to separate two or more kinds of grain it will depend on the relative sizes and weights of the kernels or grains. ner the third and fourth series of fines operate, the third fines preferably carrying over from a third to a half of the total amount of grain, the fourth fine carrying over all the remaining grain, which will be the largest 1 kernels only. Small stones, broken ore, nails,

and other heavy foreign substances will fall by their own gravity from the bottom of the flue d.

It will be seen that the first fines D d are the shortest, while the last D d are the longest, this being my preferred construction not only because of the convenience in arranging the hoppers C O O 0 so that they will deliver by gravity successively from one fine to the other, but because there should In a similar man-t 7 be the greatest draft ordinarily in the last flue. It is an advantage for the more perfect operation of this last flue to have it considerably longer than the others, since such particles as are first carried up by the draft and afterward fall back require a greater free rise when they are drawn up at a greater speed and by greater draft. All these matters of proportion, however, may be considerably varied without departing from the principles of operation, which from the foregoing description will be clearly apparent to those skilled in the art.

The drafts in the respective fines are separately regulated by means of the valves M M M M and by the admission of air in greater or less quantities through the openings 0. The fan should be run at a speed which produces the necessary exhaustion without opening the automatic regulator-valve H more than a fraction of an inch, as it is clear that air admitted at this point means a waste of mechanical power in driving the blower.

In order to facilitate the regulation of the drafts, I make one or more of the sides of the fiues D D D D of glass, as indicated at S in Fig. 3. Through this glass the separation of the material as it passes through the hoppers into the fines may be seen and the drafts regulated accordingly.

\Vhere but a single kind of grain is being separated from the dust and impurities and where it is not necessary to grade the grain,

ing provided with the pivoted partitions T,

by which any three adjacent chutes may be made to deliver together. If two of the pivoted partitions are turned, as indicated in the through these chutes into the interior of the casing, I provide the automatic flap-valves Z, which remain closed until the weight of accumulating grain or other material within the hopper or chute R, R, R, or R' opens them.

Having now fully described one preferred embodiment of my invention, I claim and desire to secure by these Letters Patent, together with such modifications as may be made without departing from the principles thereof, as follows:

1. In a separator, the combination with a main or common chamber, and means for eX- hausting the air therefrom, of a plurality of fiues or grain-tubes leading upwardly into said chamber said fines enlarging abruptly toward their upper ends thus producing whirls 0r eddies within said enlarged portions Whereby any of the heavier particles that may have been carried up through the lower portions of the flues may be separated and returned down and out of the fiues against the upfiowin g blast, means for separately regulating the draft in each of said fines, means for delivering the grain and other material which is not carried through the first flue into the second fine and so on in succession, and a separate hopper or receiving-chute for each fiue opening from the main'chamber, the whole operating to simultaneously clean and grade the grain, substantially as set forth.-

2. In combination in the fiue of a separator, a gate or valve for closing the said flue, and another gate or valve for regulating the draft, and connections, for simultaneously operating the two said gates or valves, substantially as set forth.

3. In combination in the flue of a separator, a gate or valve for closing the said fiue, another gate or valve for regulating the draft, connections for simultaneously operating the two said gates or valves, and an independently-adjustable gate or valve cooperating with the said gate or valve for regulating the

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