Conveying apparatus using unstable electric power supply

A conveying apparatus which employs an unstable electric power supply as its power source for conveying fine powder, said apparatus comprising:

• a first route for conveying the fine powder from an intake of the fine powder to a pump;
• a second route for conveying the fine powder from said pump to a discharge portion of the fine powder which is provided above said pump;
• a third route for conveying the fine powder from said pump to a storage means provided at a position which is below said discharge portion and above said pump;
• a fourth route for conveying the fine powder from said storage means to said pump;
• operating means for opening and closing said first, second, third and fourth routes;
• and
• means for detecting an electric power level,
• wherein in a case where available electric power level which can be supplied from said unstable electric power supply to said pump is detected to exceed a predetermined electric power level, said first and second routes are opened and said third and fourth routes are closed by said operating means to convey the fine powder from said intake to said discharge portion, and in a case where the available electric power level is detected to be lower than the predetermined electric power level, said first and third routes are opened and said second and fourth routes are closed by said operating means to convey the fine powder from said intake to said storage means.

A conveying apparatus for conveying liquid or fine powder by employing an unstable electric power supply as its power source, said apparatus comprising:

• a first pipe connecting an intake and a pump;
• a second pipe connecting said pump and a discharge portion which is provided above said pump;
• a third pipe connecting said pump and a tank provided at a position which is below said discharge portion and above said pump;
• a fourth pipe connecting said tank and said pump;
• first to fourth valves which are respectively provided in the middle of said first to fourth pipes;
• and
• control means for detecting available electric power level supplied from said unstable electric power supply to said pump and a storage amount in said tank, and controlling at least said third and fourth valves out of said first to fourth valves in accordance with a detection result,
• wherein, in a case where available electric power level exceeds a predetermined electric power level, said control means controls said first and second valves to open and said third and fourth valves to close to convey the liquid or fine powder from said intake to said discharge portion, and in a case where the available electric power level is equal or less than the predetermined electric power level and the storage amount in said tank exceeds a first predetermined amount, said control means controls said first and third valves to open and said second and fourth valves to close to convey the liquid or fine powder from said tank to said discharge portion, and in a case where the available electric power level is equal or less than the predetermined electric power level and the storage amount in said tank is equal or less than a second predetermined amount which is smaller than the first predetermined amount, said control means controls said first and third valves to open and said second and fourth valves to close to convey the liquid or fine powder from said intake to said tank.

A conveying apparatus which employs an unstable electric power supply as its power source for conveying conveyable matter, said apparatus comprising:

• a first route for conveying the conveyable matter from an intake to a conveyor;
• a second route for conveying the conveyable matter from said conveyor to an outlet;
• a third route for conveying the conveyable matter from said conveyor to an intermediate position which is between said intake and said outlet;
• a fourth route for conveying the conveyable matter from said intermediate position to said conveyor;
• and
• control means for controlling a flow of the conveyable matter based on an output of said unstable electric power supply which is supplied to said conveyor,
• wherein in a case where the output of said unstable electric power supply exceeds a predetermined output, said control means opens said first and second routes and closes said third and fourth routes to allow conveyance of the conveyable matter from said intake to said outlet, and
• in a case where the output of said unstable electric power supply does not exceed the predetermined output, said control means opens said first and third routes and closes said second and fourth routes to allow conveyance of the conveyable matter from said intake to said intermediate position.