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US 7,011,018 B2Granted
Material compaction apparatus
AssigneeKurt Manufacturing Company, Inc.
InventorsDuane G. Schroeder, Raymond J. Koski
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The material compactor generally includes a feed apparatus and a final compaction apparatus. The final compaction apparatus generally includes a compaction chamber having confronting compression plates and an adjustably taperable portion. The area of the inner cavity of the final compaction chamber can be adjusted to become measurably smaller (tapered) or larger at the opened discharge or expelling end. Consequently, compacting movement of the material within the compaction chamber and through the chamber significantly subjects the material to restrictive compacting pressure which in turn compacts the material and performs liquid separation with each operationally continuous movement through the final compaction apparatus and out an open discharge port.
Claims27
A material compactor for compacting or separating liquid from comminuted material, the compactor comprising:
- a material feed apparatus adapted to transport the comminuted material into a compaction apparatus, the material feed apparatus having a bin and an auger to subject the comminuted material to a preliminary level of compaction;
- the compaction apparatus adapted to receive the comminuted material from the material feed apparatus, the compaction apparatus having;
- a compacting ram adapted to subject the comminuted material to a plurality of compacting hits;
- and
- an adjustably taperable compaction chamber having an inner cavity defined by first and second opposed compaction plates, the inner cavity having a material entry portion and a continuously open discharge port, wherein the compaction chamber further includes a longitudinal gap provided along a length of and between the first and second opposed compaction plates, and a groove provided generally transverse with respect to the longitudinal gap and extending into and across an outer surface of at least one of the first and second opposed compaction plates proximate the material entry portion, the longitudinal gap and the transverse groove together facilitating adjustment of the first and second opposed compaction plates by an external compression force to selectively adjust tapering of the inner cavity proximate the open discharge port such that the comminuted material within the inner cavity of the chamber is subject to funnelized pressure by the compacting hits of the compacting ram until the comminuted material is forced from the compaction chamber at the open discharge port.
2 more elements
A compaction device for receiving a comminuted material to be compacted, the compaction device comprising:
- a ram being repeatedly translatable through a stroke of known length;
- an external compression device;
- and
- an adjustably taperable chamber adapted to operably receive the ram, the chamber having two confronting plates defining a material inlet portion of known area and a gateless material discharge port of known area, one of the confronting plates having a groove formed into and along an outer surface thereof, the groove extending generally transverse to a longitudinal axis of the one confronting plate such that the gateless material discharge port area is taperable by adjustable displacement of the two confronting plates with respect to each other through bending of the one confronting plate at the groove by a force application from the external compression device.
1 more element
A compaction device for receiving a material to be compacted, the compaction device comprising:
- a ram being repeatedly translatable through a stroke of known length;
- and
- a compaction chamber being operably coupled to the ram, the chamber having opposed abuttable compaction plates defining an inner chamber cavity, with one of the opposed compaction plates including a bending groove formed in and along an outer surface thereof to facilitate taperable adjustment of the inner chamber cavity from the bending groove to an open discharge port, the chamber further including a hydraulic device operably coupled thereto to exert a force application upon the chamber to adjust the taper of the inner chamber cavity, wherein the material is advanced through the inner chamber cavity by the ram and the material is subjected to compression forces until being expelled out the open discharge port;
- and
- a control system in operable communication with the hydraulic device and the ram to monitor operational criteria of the ram as the material is advanced through the inner chamber cavity and to selectively control the force application exerted upon the chamber by the hydraulic device to adjust the taper of the inner chamber cavity from the bending groove to the open discharge port.
2 more elements
A material compactor for compacting and separating liquid from comminuted material, the compactor comprising:
- means for directing and providing a preliminary level of compaction on the comminuted material;
- and
- a compaction apparatus having:
- first means for subjecting the material to a plurality of compacting hits;
- and
- an adjustably taperable chamber having means for compression operably coupled thereto, the adjustably taperable chamber having opposed first and second compression plates to define an inner cavity with a material entry portion and a continuously open discharge port, the adjustably taperable chamber further having a longitudinal gap formed between and along a length of the first and second compression plates, and a groove extending generally transverse to the longitudinal gap and the groove extending into and along an outer surface of the first compression plate to facilitate displacement of the first plate with respect to the second plate such that selective adjustment of the means for compression tapers a portion of the chamber and the longitudinal gap proximate the open discharge port to subject the comminuted material to compression forces by the compacting hits of the first means until the comminuted material is forced from the chamber at the open discharge port.
3 more elements
A method of compacting material through a material compaction apparatus, comprising the steps of:
- directing material into an inner cavity of an adjustably taperable compaction chamber wherein an area of the inner cavity of the compaction chamber is at least partially defined by first and second confronting plates having a longitudinal gap therebetween, with the first confronting plate having a groove extending generally transverse to the longitudinal gap and the groove extending into and along an outer surface of the first confronting plate, the compaction chamber being taperable proximate a gateless material discharge port by pivoting the first plate with respect to the second plate at the groove by way of a compression device operably coupled to the chamber to taper the longitudinal gap and the area of the inner cavity proximate the gateless material discharge port;
- repeatedly advancing a compaction ram through a portion of the inner cavity of the compaction chamber such that the material is subjected to compacting resistance within the inner cavity proximate the gateless discharge port until being expelled out the chamber through the gateless discharge port;
- and
- controlling the compression of the compression device based on monitoring of operational criteria of the compaction ram.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.