This disclosure relates to an automatic unloading system that aids in the bulk material unloading, handling, transport and incorporating the bottom drop form of unloading, the controls for which are conveniently located for initiation of an unloading activity from a convenient position or location for an operator, normally within the vicinity, or in the cab of the vehicle. The automatic unloading system is also used for pneumatic conveyance line transfer of material from a tank trailer.
This disclosure relates generally to bulk material handling, and more specifically to a control system optimized to accelerate the flow of granular material, generally while being processed through a transfer system, such as from a tank trailer, railway car, or other hauling vehicle, as when they are to be unloaded. The unloading of such material, of more routine performance, requires the vehicle operator to manually open the various valves from the tank trailer to attain an unloading of the material stored within the tank trailer. This is particularly true with respect to the bottom form of delivery of material to another location, after conveyance. Usually, there are various conveyance stimulating systems that aid in the unloading of granular material, such as pressurized pneumatic air that is conveyed through various piping, and associated tees, in order to facilitate the removal of the bulk material from the bottom of the hauling vehicle, and frequently various aerators that stimulate product fluidization are operatively associated with the lower sides of the vehicle hopper cones, to aid in the discharge process. And, in many instances, as stated, the operator needs to manually control these types of instruments, in order to attain the removal of the granular material, or even to aid in its dispensing, through a bottom drop from the hopper cone, to an area of collection for conveyance, such as upon a conveyor belt, or the like.
There are many devices that are used to aid in the discharge of such bulk materials, as stated, such as the vibratory aeration devices, high pressure air conveying pipes, various types of valves, such as butterfly valves, that must be opened, all of which require substantial participation on the part of the vehicle operator, to attain and complete an unloading process. As can be appreciated, the body of the operator must be maneuvered underneath the tank trailer to manually operate the various valves. This can be at times dangerous and lead to injury of the operator or other personnel located near the tank trailer.
Many of these various devices or means to aid in the unloading process include such high pressure type of aerator valves, such as can be seen in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,893, which is upon a high pressure aerator valve. Other earlier devices that enhance the flow of granular material from tank trailers or other containers can be seen in the fluidizing devices having expansive air passage that stimulates the enhanced flow of granular material from tank trailers and containers, such as shown in the patent to Sisk, U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,976 and U.S. Pat. No. 8,087,816, upon another aerator device. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,867, shows a further fluidized device for enhancing granular material flow. Other patents show the various tees, air conveying lines, related structures that are used in the unloading process, such as can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 8,727,306. Furthermore, the various valving, such as butterfly valves, that usually are manually operative and provided at the bottom of the hopper tanks or cones, can also be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 9,328,855.
The current disclosure is designed to automate the controls and operations of all of these various components, to greatly assist the operator in achieving their collective performance during an unloading process, and to centralize the automatic controls from a singular control panel, such as one that may be located within the cab of the vehicle, or in very close proximity therewith. This assists in the operator in the unloading process without having to be in proximity to various valves and to the material or product being unloaded.
This disclosure provides a fully automatic or driver controlled system to aid in bulk material handling and transport, and which can be operated from a centralized location, such as in the cab of the vehicle. A control box enclosure can provide for the various controls necessary for operating the components that are operatively associated with the unloading of granular material, such as from a hauling vehicle, a tank trailer, a railroad car, or any other means for bulk material conveyance.
Initially, the disclosure includes the usage of the butterfly valves at the bottom of the various hopper cones for the conveying vehicle. These butterfly valves, within the concept of this invention, will be automatic, and which can be actuated by solenoids, that provide for the opening or closing of the valves, when an unloading process is initiated, or when it has been completed, at which time such valves may be automatically closed. In addition, the various aerators that provide for product fluidization can likewise be automatic for operation through their connection to air lines, that may connect with the pneumatic conveying unload line, or the pressurized air pump that is operatively associated with the conveying line, in order to deliver the pressurized air to the aerators to initiate their automatic functioning, during an unloading process.
Various control panels or boxes, are also provided, and one such tractor or cab control box may even be located within the drivers area, of the bulk material transfer trailer, so that it is in close proximity to the vehicle operator, when an unloading process is to be initiated, or curtailed. The tractor control box may be conveniently connected through a coiled cable, to a junction box, normally forwardly located within the trailer, and the junction box may further connect with fender mounted control boxes, that may allow the operator to also control the operations of this automatic system, from select locations. Then, the junction box electrically connects with the bottom drop actuator solenoids, that control the opening or closing of the butterfly valves, at the bottom of each hopper cone, in order to attain that bottom dropping discharging of the granular material, from the tank trailer, during an unloading process.
Obviously, the same tractor control box may be operatively associated with the air pump, that elevates the air pressure within the system for transfer through the unloading air line, that receives the granular material through the opening of the butterfly valves, for dispensing the granular material into the associated tees, for conveyance of the granular material to another location for collection, or to attain a straight dropping of the granular material through the butterfly valves, when the bottom drop form of discharge of such material is performed.
Various types of pneumatic and electrical sources are operatively associated with this automatic system, and can be provided by either battery charge or the electrical system of the tractor vehicle. The pressurized air may be generated through an air pump, or it may derive from the air container for the air break system for the vehicle, or from any other independent source.
Printed circuit boards are used in the tractor control box, the junction boxes, all integrated into the control panel, which optimizes the control of the system from a convenient singular location. All of these may be placed within a control box enclosure.
In one form of the present disclosure, an automatic unloading system for a tank trailer or other bulk material conveying vehicle is disclosed which comprises a valve capable of being opened or closed, a solenoid connected to the valve to open or close the valve, a junction box having a connection to the solenoid, and a control box having a connection to the junction box, the control box having a control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the solenoid to open or close the valve with operation of the control device for opening the valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer.
In another form of the present disclosure, an automatic unloading system for a tank trailer or other bulk material conveying vehicle comprises a valve capable of being opened or closed, a solenoid connected to the valve to open or close the valve, a junction box having a connection to the solenoid, a fender mounted control box having a connection to the junction box, the fender mounted control box having a control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the solenoid to open or close the valve with the operation of the control device for opening the valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, and a control box having a connection to the junction box, the control box having a control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the solenoid to open or close the valve with operation of the control device for opening the valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer.
In still another form of the present disclosure, an automatic unloading system for a tank trailer or other bulk material conveying vehicle having a first unloading assembly, a second unloading assembly, and a third unloading assembly is disclosed with the automatic unloading system comprising a first valve capable of being opened or closed, the first valve being associated with the first unloading assembly, a second valve capable of being opened or closed, the second valve being associated with the second unloading assembly, a third valve capable of being opened or closed, the third valve being associated with the third unloading assembly, a first solenoid connected to the first valve to open or close the first valve, a second solenoid connected to the second valve to open or close the second valve, a third solenoid connected to the third valve to open or close the third valve, a junction box having a first connection to the first solenoid, a second connection to the second solenoid, and a third connection to the third solenoid, a fender mounted control box having a connection to the junction box, the fender mounted control box having a first control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the first solenoid to open or close the first valve with the operation of the first control device for opening the first valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, a second control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the second solenoid to open or close the second valve with the operation of the second control device for opening the second valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, a third control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the third solenoid to open or close the third valve with the operation of the third control device for opening the third valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, and a control box having a connection to the junction box, the control box having a first control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the first solenoid to open or close the first valve with operation of the first control device for opening the first valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, a second control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the second solenoid to open or close the second valve with the operation of the second control device for opening the second valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer, a third control device that may be operated for controlling operation of the third solenoid to open or close the third valve with the operation of the third control device for opening the third valve to initiate discharge of granular material stored within the tank trailer.
It is, therefore, the principal object of this disclosure to provide a system, generally electrically operated, for furnishing an automatic discharge of granular material from trailer hoppers, or for the initiating the operations of an air conveyance system, through the generation of pressurized air from a source, for conveying granular material during discharge.
A further object of this disclosure is to provide a control box, or panel, that may conveniently allow the vehicle operator to control the unloading of a tank trailer, or other vehicle, from a handy location, such as from the cab of the vehicle.
Another object of this disclosure is to provide a granular material unloading system that operates in conjunction with electronic controls of a control box, which may be switched on by the operator of the vehicle within the cab, without necessitating the individual manipulation of manual controls, as done in the prior art.
A further object of this disclosure is to provide the operations of multiple aeration devices, either for loosening of granular material, or for their conveyance, all controlled from within the vehicle by the operator, at a convenient location.
These and other objects may become more apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the summary of the disclosure as provided herein, and upon undertaken a study of the description of its preferred embodiments, in view of the drawings.
In referring to the drawings:
With reference now to the drawings, where like identification symbols in any given figure refer to like items,
The system 10 also has a trailer mounted control box 34 which may be located within a cab 36 of the tank trailer 12, or in close proximity therewith. This allows the system 10 to be operated from a convenient location or position when initiating an unloading process. As can be appreciated, an operator of the system 10 does not need to manually operate the butterfly valves 22 or be near the butterfly valves 22 during an unloading of the granular material within the tank trailer 12. This provides for added safety during an unloading process and reduces any harm or injury to an operator.
Referring now to
With particular reference now to
Referring now to
The solenoids 24 have been defined as being a standard electrically controlled solenoid, it is just as likely that other types of controls, whether they be mechanically or pneumatically controlled, could be used in this system 10, for furnishing the opening or closing of the various butterfly valves 22, to control operations of the butterfly valves 22. Further, although not shown in detail, there are various other connections, circuit boards, power supplies, and components that can be part of the system 10.
In operation, the tank trailer 12 has been reached a destination in which the contents of the tank trailer 12 need to be discharged or removed for further use or processing. In order to operate the system 10, the unloading assemblies 14, 16, and 18 are connected to an airline or to a pneumatic conveying system. Once connected, the material or product stored within the tank trailer 12 may be discharged by operation of the switches 136, 138, and 140 of the control box 34 which will activate the solenoids 50, 52, and 54 which in turn operate the valves, such as the valves 22, the valve 88, or the valve 106. Further, if the fender mounted control boxes 64 and 68 are provided then these boxes 64 and 68 may be utilized to operate the system 10. When the boxes 64 and 68 are employed, the operator can watch the unloading process or verify that the unloading process is proceeding without any problems.
The foregoing provides an analysis of the design and schematics of the automated operations of the discharge and unloading features of a tank trailer, or for any other conveying vehicle, particularly of granular material.
Variations or modifications to the subject matter of the present automatic unloading system may occur to those skilled in the art upon review of the summary of the disclosure as provided herein, and when undertaken a study of the description of its preferred embodiment, in view of the drawings. Such variations, if within the spirit of this disclosure, are intended to be encompassed within the scope of any claims to patent protection issuing herein. The description of the subject automatic unloading system previously, and its depiction in the drawings, are set forth for illustrative purposes only.
This application claims priority to the provisional patent application having Ser. No. 62/498,470, filed on Dec. 23, 2016, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by this reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62498470 | Dec 2016 | US |