Airline seed cotton cleaner

In a cotton gin having

• a) gin stands for separating seed cotton into lint and cotton seed,
• b) a seed cotton cleaner for cleaning trash from seed cotton, and
• c) conveyors for moving the seed cotton from the seed cotton cleaner to the gin stands,
• d) said seed cotton cleaner having
• i) spaced apart cleaner bars,
• ii) spike means for wiping the seed cotton across the cleaner bars, whereby trash and some seed cotton falls between the cleaner bars;
• wherein the improved structure of a reclamation unit in combination with the above comprises:
• e) at least one saw drum positioned below the spaced apart cleaner bars to snag the seed cotton from the trash,
• f) grid bars to knock trash from seed cotton snagged on the saw drum, and
• g) at least one doffing cylinder for doffing the seed cotton from the saw drums,
• h) said seed cotton cleaner has an inlet end and outlet end,
• j) said cleaner bars are transverse of a line from the inlet end to the outlet end, and
• k) said cleaner bars spaced apart a greater distance near the inlet end than the cleaner bars are spaced apart near the outlet end.

In a cotton gin having

• a) gin stands for separating seed cotton into lint and cotton seed,
• b) a seed cotton cleaner for cleaning trash from seed cotton, and
• c) conveyors for moving the seed cotton from the seed cotton cleaner to the gin stands,
• d) said seed cotton cleaner having
• i) spaced apart cleaner bars,
• ii) spike means for wiping the seed cotton across the cleaner bars, whereby trash and some seed cotton falls between the cleaner bars;
• wherein the improved structure of a reclamation unit in combination with the above comprises:
• e) at least one saw drum positioned below the spaced apart cleaner bars to snag the seed cotton from the trash,
• f) grid bars to knock trash from seed cotton snagged on the saw drum,
• g) at least one doffing cylinder for doffing the seed cotton from the saw drums,
• h) there being at least two of said saw drums positioned below the cleaner bars,
• j) each saw drum having associated knocker bars, and
• k) means for doffing for each saw drum.

The process of operating a cotton gin having

• a) gin stands for separating seed cotton into lint and cotton seed,
• b) a seed cotton cleaner for cleaning trash from seed cotton, and
• c) conveyors for moving the seed cotton from the seed cotton cleaner to the gin stands,
• d) said seed cotton cleaner having
• i) spaced apart cleaner bars,
• ii) spike means for wiping the seed cotton across the cleaner bars, whereby trash and some seed cotton falls between the bars;
• e) a fan with its inlet pneumatically connected to the seed cotton cleaner,
• f) a plenum with walls having a rectangular cross section between the top of the seed cotton cleaner and fan, and
• g) a hemicylindrical screen having a horizontal axis in the plenum;
• wherein the improved method comprises:
• h) placing two trap doors, one along each side of the screen, between the screen and the adjacent wall of the plenum,
• j) opening the trap doors, thereby
• k) dropping trash on top of the trap doors into the seed cotton cleaner.