System and method for placing and circulating concrete
AssigneeSteelike, Inc.
InventorsWilliam Thomas KULISH, Timothy ROSS
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method for placing and circulating concrete is disclosed. The system includes a hopper body, a feed auger, one or more circulating elements, a pump, a valve with two or more outlets, a return conduit, and two or more hoses. The hopper body of the system may additionally include a heat exchanger. Concrete slurry is placed into the hopper body, continuously circulated within the hopper body, and drawn from the hopper body by the pump and conveyed through the hoses, or through the return conduit, or both. Concrete slurry within the hoses may be returned to the hopper body.
Claims20
A system for placing concrete comprising:
- a hopper body that holds concrete slurry;
- a feed auger mounted in the hopper body;
- at least one circulating element mounted in the hopper body;
- a pump in fluid communication with the hopper body to draw the concrete slurry from the hopper body;
- and
- a junction in fluid communication with the pump and the hopper body, wherein in a recirculation mode of operation, at least a portion of the concrete slurry drawn by the pump is recirculated into the hopper body through the junction.
A system for placing concrete comprising:
- a hopper body that holds concrete slurry, the hopper body comprising a hopper outlet;
- a feed auger mounted in the hopper body;
- two or more circulating elements mounted in the hopper body;
- a pump that draws the concrete slurry from the hopper body, the pump having a pump inlet and a pump outlet, wherein the pump inlet is in fluid communication with the hopper outlet;
- a junction having a junction inlet and two or more junction outlets, wherein the junction inlet is in fluid communication with the pump outlet;
- and
- a conduit having a conduit inlet and a conduit outlet, wherein the conduit inlet is in fluid communication with one of the two or more junction outlets and the conduit outlet is situated so that when the concrete slurry travels through the conduit, the concrete slurry passes into the hopper body.
A method for placing and circulating concrete comprising:
- adding concrete slurry into a hopper body;
- continuously circulating the concrete slurry in the hopper body;
- and
- drawing concrete slurry from the hopper body and propelling the concrete slurry through one or more hoses.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.