Chain disk conveyor corner housing

A corner assembly wheel for a tube conveyor system;

• said wheel comprising:
• a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• at least one pair of spaced apart channels formed in at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the rim;
• and
• at least one flapper mounted to said wheel inside of said rim;
• said flapper being movable between a first position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of one of said channels and a second position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of the other of said channels.

A corner assembly for a tube conveyor system;

• said corner assembly comprising:
• a housing defining a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• and
• a wheel rotatably received in said wheel receiving area;
• said wheel comprising:
• a central hub;
• a ring around said central hub, said ring defining an outer surface, and a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• spokes extending between said central hub and said ring, at least some of said spokes having a height less than the height of said ring;
• and
• at least one pair of spaced apart channels formed in at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the rim;
• the channels of said at least one pair of spaced apart channels facing away from each other.

A corner assembly for a tube conveyor system;

• said corner assembly comprising:
• a housing defining a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• said wheel receiving area having an upper surface and a lower surface and defining a height between said wheel area upper and lower surfaces;
• a wheel rotatably received in said wheel receiving area;
• said wheel comprising:
• a central hub;
• a ring around said central hub,
• two or more spokes extending between said central hub and said ring;
• and
• at least one flapper pivotally mounted to said hub;
• said flapper having a height slightly less than the height of said wheel receiving area and greater than at least a portion of said ring.

A corner assembly for a tube conveyor system;

• said corner assembly comprising:
• a housing defining a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• and
• a wheel rotatably received in said wheel receiving area;
• said wheel comprising:
• a central hub;
• a ring around said central hub, said ring defining an outer surface, and a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• spokes extending between said central hub and said ring, at least some of said spokes having a height less than the height of said ring;
• and
• guide means for guiding particulate material from an area inside of said ring to an area outside of said ring;
• said guide means comprising a reduced height portion of said ring and at least one flapper mounted to said wheel inside of said ring;
• said flapper having a height greater than the height of the reduced height portion of the ring;
• said flapper being movable relative to said ring to a position in which said flapper will guide effluent material located within said ring to a position outside said ring.

A method for operating an animal feed conveyor system;

• the system comprising a series of tubes connected by corner assemblies;
• the tubes and corner assemblies defining a continuous path through which a chain disk moves;
• the corner assembly comprising a wheel rotatably mounted in a corner assembly housing;
• the corner assembly comprising a housing defining a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• and a wheel rotatably received in said wheel receiving area;
• said wheel comprising a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• at least one pair of spaced apart channels formed in at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the rim;
• and at least one flapper mounted to said wheel inside of said rim;
• said flapper being movable between a first position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of one of said channels when said chain disk is moves in a first direction and a second position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of the other of said channels when the chain disk moves in a second direction;
• the method comprising:
• moving feed along said path;
• automatically adjusting the position of said flapper, if necessary, such that said flapper will be in a position to guide effluent material located within said ring to a position outside said ring;
• and
• automatically sweeping feed from an area inside of a perimeter of said wheel back to the flow path during operation of the conveyor without stopping the operation of the conveyor system.

A method for assembling a corner assembly of an animal feed conveyor system;

• the conveyor system comprising a series of tubes connected by corner assemblies;
• the tubes and corner assemblies defining a continuous path through which a chain disk moves;
• the corner assembly comprising a wheel rotatably mounted in a corner assembly housing;
• the method comprising:
• providing housing having a first housing portion of the of the corner assembly, which in combination define a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• said wheel receiving area having an upper surface and a lower surface and defining a height between said wheel area upper and lower surfaces;
• positioning a wheel defining a top and a bottom on the first housing portion with either said top or bottom facing away from the first housing portion;
• said wheel comprising a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• at least one pair of spaced apart channels formed in at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the rim;
• and at least one flapper mounted to said wheel inside of said rim;
• said flapper being movable between a first position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of one of said channels if the conveyor is operated in a first direction and a second position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of the other of said channels if the conveyor is operated in a second direction;
• placing the second housing portion over the first housing portion to close and complete the cover assembly.

A method of assembling an animal feed conveyor system;

• the conveyor system comprising a series of tubes connected by corner assemblies;
• the tubes and corner assemblies defining a continuous path through which a chain disk moves;
• the corner assembly comprising a housing defining a wheel receiving area and a flow path defining an angle and having ports at opposite ends of said flow path;
• and a wheel rotatably received in said wheel receiving area;
• said wheel comprising a rim having an upper surface and a lower surface;
• at least one pair of spaced apart channels formed in at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the rim;
• and at least one flapper mounted to said wheel inside of said rim;
• said flapper being movable between a first position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of one of said channels when said chain disk is moves in a first direction and a second position in which said flapper is aligned with a wall of the other of said channels when the chain disk moves in a second direction;
• the method comprising positioning the corner assembly in the conveyor system without regard to the orientation of the wheel.