Growing medium and mulch fiber opening apparatus
AssigneeProfile Products L.L.C.
InventorsKevin Scott SPITTLE, Gary Lane BOWERS
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A compressed growing medium or mulch fiber opener comprising at least one set of adjacent rotating members, the rotating members having a surface and including at least one wire wound around at least a portion of the surface, wherein the wire includes a plurality of projections engaging compressed or partially opened growing medium or mulch fiber, and wherein a distance between the adjacent rotating members is sufficiently small to create at least one pinch point between the adjacent rotating members, the adjacent rotating members separating the fibers as the fibers pass through the at least one pinch point so that the density of the fiber is lowered.
Claims20
A growing medium or mulch fiber opener comprising:
- at least one set of adjacent rotating members, each rotating member having a surface including at least one wire wound around at least a portion of the surface and ridges on the surface, the at least one wire being disposed within the ridges and including a plurality of projections, the projections configured to open and expand compressed or partially opened growing medium or mulch fiber;
- and
- the adjacent rotating members being positioned relative to each other to provide at least one pinch point between the adjacent rotating members, the adjacent rotating members capable of separating fibers as input fiber passes through the at least one pinch point.
The fiber opener according to claim u1, wherein the growing medium or mulch fiber comprises the wood and/or bark fiber.
A method of lowering density of a compressed growing medium or mulch fiber, the method comprising:
- supplying growing medium or mulch fiber to a fiber opener including at least one set of adjacent rotating members, each rotating member having a surface including at least one wire wound around at least a portion of the surface and ridges on the surface, the at least one wire disposed within the ridges of the rotating members, the at least one wire including a plurality of projections configured to open and expand the growing medium or mulch fiber;
- and
- the adjacent rotating members being positioned relative to each other to provide at least one pinch point between the adjacent rotating members, the adjacent rotating members capable of separating fibers as input fiber passes through the at least one pinch point so that a density of passing fiber is lowered relative to a density of the input fiber;
- engaging the growing medium or mulch fiber with at least some of the plurality of projections;
- expanding and opening the growing medium or mulch fiber by passing the growing medium or mulch fiber through the at least one pinch point;
- separating the growing medium or mulch fiber into a plurality of strings of fiber in the at least one pinch point;
- lowering the density of the growing medium or mulch fiber;
- and
- discharging opened fiber.
A compressed growing medium opener comprising:
- a set of adjacent rotating members, each rotating member having an arcuate surface including a plurality of depressions and a wire wound around at least a portion of the arcuate surface, the at least one wire including a plurality of projections, the depressions and projections configured to open and expand growing medium or mulch fiber comprising wood and/or bark fiber;
- and
- the adjacent rotating members being positioned relative to each other to provide at least one pinch point between the adjacent rotating members, the adjacent rotating members capable of separating fibers as input fiber passes through the at least one pinch point so that a density of passing fiber is lowered relative to a density of the input fiber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.