Conveying assembly for snowmaking apparatus

A snow conveying assembly for use with a snow making machine comprising:

• an impeller for receiving snow from the snow making machine and for accelerating the snow;
• an ejector tube having an inlet end for receiving snow from said impeller, a venturi throat in said tube downstream of said inlet end in the direction of snow travel through the ejector tube, and an outlet end for discharging snow from the conveying assembly;
• a snow inlet tube extending into the ejector tube for introducing snow from said impeller into said ejector tube immediately upstream of said venturi throat in the direction of snow travel through the ejector tube;
• an air inlet in the inlet end of said ejector tube upstream of said venturi throat;
• and
• a fan for introducing air under pressure through said air inlet into said inlet end of the ejector tube;
• said snow inlet tube having a discharge end spaced apart from the venturi throat, creating a small gap between said discharge end and the venturi throat, whereby, when the air under pressure passes through said gap and then through said venturi throat, the resulting snow and air mixture is accelerated out of said outlet end of the ejector tube,
• and wherein said impeller includes:
• a tray having a cylindrical side wall, an open top end for receiving the snow from the snow making machine, and a closed circular bottom end;
• a rotatable transmission shaft extending through the center of said closed bottom end, wherein the transmission is in the form of a 90° gearbox connected to a motor;
• a plurality of blades connected to said shaft and extending radially outwardly therefrom to locations proximate and spaced apart from said cylindrical side wall for regrinding the snow;
• and
• a snow outlet tube extending tangentially from said side wall to an inlet end of said snow inlet tube for accelerating the snow out of the conveying assembly.