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US 11,802,012 B1Granted
Delivery box system and method
OwnerRein Posthumusinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
According to embodiments disclosed herein, there is provided a delivery box system to deliver a commodity material. In various instances, a single auger configuration, a dual auger configuration, a vertical auger configuration and/or further configurations or combinations of configurations are contemplated as described. One or more auger facilitates the metered release of the commodity material and ameliorates jamming of the commodity material against aspects of the delivery box system.
Claims17
A delivery box system comprising:
- a translation mechanism configured to mechanically move a stored commodity material within a delivery box toward at least one of an expulsion mechanism and a metering aperture mechanism;
- the expulsion mechanism configured to mechanically release stored commodity material from the delivery box through the metering aperture mechanism;
- and
- the metering aperture mechanism comprising a controllable aperture through which commodity material mechanically released from the delivery box passes,
- wherein the expulsion mechanism comprises:
- an agitation mechanism to regulate feeding of the stored commodity material moved by the translation mechanism toward the controllable aperture, wherein the agitation mechanism comprises an upper mixer extending across at least a portion of the delivery box and a lower mixer extending across at least a portion of the delivery box and closer to the translation mechanism than the upper mixer;
- an expulsion effector comprising an auger set with at least one auger;
- and
- an adjustable cavity guard comprising a slidable impingement plate proximate to at least a portion of the auger set and slidably adjustable in position relative to the auger set.
6 more elements
A delivery box system comprising:
- a longitudinally oriented conveyor belt disposed along a floor of the delivery box;
- and
- a controllable aperture through which commodity material mechanically released from the delivery box passes;
- at least one primary flow horizontal auger oriented normal to the controllable aperture of a metering aperture mechanism and configured to impel at least a portion of a stored commodity material toward the controllable aperture;
- and
- at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger oriented normal to the controllable aperture of the metering aperture mechanism and configured to impel at least a portion of the stored commodity material away from the metering aperture mechanism.
3 more elements
A delivery box system comprising:
- a longitudinally oriented conveyor belt disposed along a floor of the delivery box;
- a laterally oriented conveyor belt disposed along the floor of the delivery box at an end of the longitudinally oriented conveyor belt;
- a metering aperture mechanism comprising a controllable aperture through which commodity material mechanically released from the delivery box passes, wherein the size of the aperture may be controlled to meter the expulsion of the commodity material from the delivery box;
- and
- at least one primary flow horizontal auger spaced apart from and generally aligned with the laterally oriented conveyer belt and oriented to the controllable aperture of the metering aperture mechanism so as to impel commodity material stored in the delivery box toward the controllable aperture.
2 more elements
A method of commodity delivery from a delivery box system comprising:
- rotating in a first direction at least one primary flow horizontal auger oriented normal to an aperture of a metering aperture mechanism;
- impelling commodity material toward the metering aperture mechanism by the at least one primary flow horizontal auger in response to the rotating in the first direction;
- rotating in a second direction at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger oriented normal to the aperture of the metering aperture mechanism;
- and
- impelling commodity material away from the metering aperture mechanism by the at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger in response to the rotating in the second direction,
- wherein the at least one primary flow horizontal auger and the at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger operate simultaneously to ameliorate jamming of commodity material against a door of the metering aperture mechanism.
3 more elements
A method of commodity delivery from a delivery box system comprising:
- rotating in a first direction at least one primary flow horizontal auger oriented normal to an aperture of a metering aperture mechanism;
- impelling commodity material toward the metering aperture mechanism by the at least one primary flow horizontal auger in response to the rotating in the first direction;
- rotating in a second direction at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger oriented normal to the aperture of the metering aperture mechanism;
- impelling commodity material away from the metering aperture mechanism by the at least one reciprocal flow horizontal auger in response to the rotating in the second direction;
- and
- translating, in a longitudinal direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction, a commodity material toward the at least one primary flow horizontal auger, by a longitudinally oriented conveyor belt disposed along a floor of the delivery box.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.