Method and apparatus for supplying pellets to arc tube for discharge lamp

Abstract

Supplying pellets without the risk of enlarging the apparatus size or moisture absorption of the pellets by disposing a rotation drum provided with a pellet storage room in a sealed case with an inert gas supply. The apparatus according to the present invention has a main body case with a rotation drum storage part formed therein, a lid mounted on the front surface opening part of the main body case, a rotation drum disposed rotatably in the rotation drum storage part, and a pellet supply nozzle elongating from the main body. Through holes having a size capable of inserting a pellet are provided on the circumferential wall of the rotation drum with an equal interval in the circumferential direction as well as the side wall of the main body case to be contacted slidably with the circumferential wall of the rotation drum. A gas supply hole for supplying an inert gas into the pellet storage room via the through holes, and a pellet discharging hole for discharging the pellets in the through holes at the time it coincides with the pellet storing through holes according to rotation of the rotation drum.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.