Placer recovery of particles and related systems, methods, and devices
OwnerJerry Pledgerinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Material collection devices, placer recovery systems, and related methods are disclosed. A material collection device includes a filter tube including a wall defining apertures, an inlet through which fluid and material enter the filter tube, protrusions extending inwardly from the wall of the filter tube, the protrusions in front of the apertures from a perspective of the inlet, and an outlet through which the fluid and material exit the filter tube. The material collection device also includes a collector positioned below the filter tube, the collector configured to collect particles of the material that exit the filter tube through the apertures.
Claims16
A material collection device, comprising:
- a filter tube including:
- a wall defining apertures;
- an inlet through which fluid and material enter the filter tube;
- protrusions extending inwardly from the wall of the filter tube, the protrusions in front of the apertures from a perspective of the inlet;
- and
- an outlet through which the fluid and material exit the filter tube;
- a collector positioned below the filter tube, the collector configured to collect particles of the material that exit the filter tube through the apertures;
- and
- a shell defining a collection chamber, the filter tube extending through the collection chamber, the collector positioned within the collection chamber, the collector including rollers configured to engage with an inner surface of the shell to maintain the collector in a substantially horizontal orientation under the filter tube regardless of an orientation of the material collection device.
A placer recovery system, comprising:
- a material collection device, comprising:
- a filter tube extending therethrough, the filter tube including apertures and protrusions in front of the apertures from a perspective of an inlet of the filter tube, the protrusions extending inward into the filter tube;
- and
- a collector positioned below the filter tube;
- a material intake device to intake material from a streambed and fluid from a stream;
- a material transmission device to deliver the material and fluid from the material intake device to the material collection device;
- and
- a shell defining a collection chamber, the filter tube extending through the collection chamber, the collector positioned within the collection chamber, the collector including rollers configured to engage with an inner surface of the shell to maintain the collector in a substantially horizontal orientation under the filter tube regardless of an orientation of the material collection device.
A method of operating a material collection device, the method comprising:
- intaking, by a material intake device, material from a streambed and fluid from a stream;
- delivering the material and the fluid from the material intake device to an inlet of a filter tube extending through a collection chamber defined by a shell, the filter tube including a wall defining apertures and protrusions extending inwardly from the wall of the filter tube, the protrusions in front of the apertures from a perspective of the inlet;
- and
- collecting first particles that exit the filter tube through the apertures on a collector of the material collection device, the first particles sufficiently dense to exit the filter tube through the apertures;
- maintaining the collector in a substantially horizontal orientation under the filter tube regardless of an orientation of the material collection device responsive to rollers of the collector engaging with an inner surface of the shell;
- and
- discarding, through an outlet of the filter tube, second particles of the material, the second particles too buoyant to exit the filter tube through the apertures.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.