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US 7,314,131 B2Granted
Elevating conveyor
AssigneeOlds Elevator, LLC
InventorPeter John Olds
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An elevating conveyor for flowable material comprises an inlet (14) and an outlet (20) at opposite ends of a tubular barrel (1) surrounding a helical elevating member (2). Elevating member (2) is restrained against rotation about a longitudinal axis and tubular barrel (1) is co-axially rotated about elevating member (2) by a drive mechanism (16).
Claims34
An elongate elevating conveyor for flowable materials, said conveyor comprising:
- an inlet and an outlet;
- a helical elevating member supported, in use, with a longitudinal axis in a substantially upright position, said elevating member being secured at at least one end to a support structure, said elevating member being secured against rotation about said longitudinal axis;
- a tubular barrel surrounding said elevating member and rotatable coaxially therewith said tubular barrel being rotatably journalled in bearing members spaced intermediate opposite ends of said barrel, said bearing members being secured to said support structure;
- and,
- a drive mechanism to rotatably drive said tubular barrel, said conveyor characterized in that a predefined working clearance between a cylindrical volume occupied by said helical elevating member and an inner surface of said tubular barrel is such that, in use, a stable layer of flowable material is formed against said inner surface of said tubular barrel, said stable layer urging a mass of flowable material within said barrel along an upward helical path by frictional engagement between said stable layer and said mass of flowable material.
2 more elements
A method for elevation of a flowable material, said method comprising the steps of:
- feeding a flowable material to an Inlet of an elevating conveyor comprising a stationary helical elevating member surrounded by a rotatable tubular barrel with a predefined working clearance between said helical elevating member and an inner surface of said barrel;
- and,
- rotating said barrel at a speed sufficient to urge said flowable material towards said inner wall of said barrel to form a stable layer of flowable material thereon, whereby a mass of flowable material within said tubular barrel is urged upwardly along a helical path by frictional engagement between said mass of flowable material and said stable layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.