Patent Grant
10745165
The present invention relates to a method and a device for crushing and discharging a granular clump material, which has solidified in a flexible container, as a bag container used for transporting and storing the granular clump material.
In order to effectively transport and store a granular clump material in a flexible container, the granular clump material is compacted and solidified in the container.
The granular clump material in the form of a compacted and solidified mass in the container cannot be taken out as it is, from within the container through a discharge tube of small diameter of the container. It is therefore required to brake or crush the granular clump material.
A device for crushing and discharging such a granular clump material in a container has already been proposed (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: JP 2004-89927 A
In the crushing and discharging device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a flexible container containing a granular clump material is put in a frame along a vertical reception plate, and a planar plate is provided such that the flexible container is located between the vertical reception plate and the planar plate. The planar plate is attached to free ends of rods of upper and lower cylinders. The planar plate is adapted to be advanced and retracted in an attitude inclined relative to vertical direction by independent operations of the upper and lower cylinders.
To carry out crushing operation, an upper portion of the planar plate is thrust against a lateral part of an upper portion of the flexible container by the operation of the upper cylinder, so as to compact and crush an upper portion of the granular clump material in the flexible container put between the reception plate and the planar plate. Then, a lower portion of the planar plate is thrust against a lateral part of a lower portion of the flexible container by the operation of the lower cylinder, so as to initiate compaction and crushing of the granular clump material in the flexible container between the reception plate and the planar plate. By the operation of the lower cylinder, a lower portion or a part of the granular clump material is thrusted upward, accompanied by crushing operation.
The thus crushed granular clump material is discharged by opening a bottom opening of the flexible container.
After the granular clump material in the flexible container has been crushed by operating the upper and lower cylinders to move the planar plate toward the reception plate to compact the flexible container located between the planar plate and the reception plate, the shape of the flexible container tends to be retained as it is after the compaction. For this reason, even if the same compacting operation were carried out repetitively, a good crushing effect cannot be obtained.
Therefore, in case the above crushing operation has been carried out but non-crushed material partly remains in the container, it was difficult to crush the remaining non-crushed material.
The flexible container used with the crushing and discharging device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is of a cylindrical shape. In case the flexible container were of a rectangular shape, it is not easy for the device disclosed in Patent Document 1 to discharge crushed material remaining in the four corners of the flexible container through a bottom opening of the container.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is the object of the present invention to provide a method and a device for crushing and discharging a granular clump material, which has solidified in a flexible container, wherein the granular clump material in the flexible container can be effectively crushed and almost entire amount of the crushed granular clump material can be discharged.
To attain the above object, the present invention provides a method for crushing and discharging a granular clump material comprising the steps of: hanging down a flexible container containing the granular clump material; thrusting top portions of contact units against a bottom wall of the flexible container, which has a discharge tube extending downward from a central region of the bottom wall, in regions of the bottom wall on opposite sides of the discharge tube; and pressing side portions of the contact units onto portions of the flexible container in regions from the bottom wall to sides of the flexible container.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the thrusting step and the pressing step are performed repetitively a plurality of times.
The present invention also provides a device for crushing and discharging a granular clump material comprising: a hanger for hanging down a flexible container containing the granular clump material therein and having a discharge tube extending downward from a central region of a bottom wall of the container; pairs of opposite contact units arranged in a symmetrically swingable manner below the flexible container hung by the hanger, the contact units having top portions shiftable between closed and opened positions; a swing mechanism for causing swinging movement of the contact units; a lift table supporting the contact units and the swing mechanism thereon; and a lift mechanism for raising and lowering the lift table.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the pairs of opposite contact units have vertically erected attitudes in which the top portions thereof are in the closed positions, the contact units being disposed at such positions that the top portions thereof are thrust against the bottom wall of the flexible container in regions on opposite sides of the discharge tube, when the contact units are raised in the vertically erected attitudes.
In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the pairs of contact units include a pair of left and right contact units and a pair of front and rear contact units.
According to the method for crushing and discharging a granular clump material in a flexible container in the present invention, the thrusting of the top portions of the contact units against the bottom wall of the flexible container in regions of the bottom wall on opposite sides of the discharge tube, in the thrusting step, causes the compressed granular clump material in the container to be cracked so as to be disintegrated. Consequently, central mass portion of the cracked and disintegrated granular clump material is caused to fall and flow by gravity through the discharge tube in the center of the bottom wall of the flexible container and is discharged from the container. Thereafter, by carrying out the pressing step, the side portions of the contact units are pressed onto portions of the flexible container in regions from the bottom wall to the sides of the flexible container, so that the flexible container is squeezed in such a manner that material masses remaining in the peripheral regions of the container are forced to move to the central region of the container thereby to be discharged through the discharge tube provided in the central region of the bottom wall.
The granular clump material mass in the flexible container can thus be disintegrated and discharged substantially entirely from the container.
According to the preferred embodiment of the invention, the thrusting step and the pressing step are performed repetitively a plurality of times, whereby it is ensured that granular clump material mass in the flexible container is disintegrated entirely and be fully discharged from the container.
According to the device for crushing and discharging a granular clump material in the present invention, there are provided a hanger for hanging down a flexible container containing a granular clump material therein and having a downwardly extendable discharge tube extending downward from a central region of a bottom wall of the container, pairs of opposite contact units arranged in a symmetrically swingable manner below the flexible container hung by the hanger, the contact units having top portions shiftable between closed and opened positions, a swing mechanism for causing swinging movement of the contact units, and a lift mechanism for raising and lowering a lift table supporting the contact units and the swing mechanism thereon. Consequently, when the upwardly directed top portions of the pairs of opposite contact units are raised and thrust against the container bottom walls by the operation of the lift mechanism, the compressed granular clump material in the flexible container hung down by the hanger is subjected to thrusting forces and disintegrated due to cracks produced by the thrusting forces, and central mass portion of the cracked and disintegrated granular clump material is caused to fall and flow down by gravity through the discharge tube in the center of the bottom wall of the flexible container and is discharged from the container. Thereafter, when the pairs of the contact units in oblique attitude or in inclined opened state are raised by the lift mechanism while the contact units are being changed in attitude from the inclined opened state to erected state, side portions of the contact units are pressed onto portions of the flexible container in regions from the bottom wall to the sides of the container, so that the flexible container is squeezed in such a manner that material masses remaining in the peripheral regions of the container are forced to move to the central region of the container, thereby to be discharged through the discharge tube in the central region of the bottom wall.
The granular clump material mass in the flexible container can thus be disintegrated and be discharged substantially entirely from the container.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, when the pairs of opposite contact units are raised in the vertically erected attitudes in which the top portions thereof are in the closed positions, the top portions of the contact units are thrust against the bottom wall of the flexible container in regions on opposite sides of the discharge tube. Consequently, the granular clump material in the flexible container is cracked in the regions on the opposite sides of the discharge tube connected to the bottom wall. The cracks thus produced develop with resultant disintegration of the granular clump material, whereby central mass portion of the cracked and disintegrated granular clump material falls and flows down by gravity through the discharge tube in the center of the bottom wall of the container to be easily discharged through the discharge tube.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the pairs of contact units are made up of a pair of left and right contact units and a pair of front and rear contact units. When the two pairs of the contact units in the erected attitudes are raised and thrust at their top portions against the bottom wall of the flexible container, the granular clump material in the flexible container is cracked in the regions on opposite sides of the discharge tube connected to the bottom wall, and the cracks thus produced develop rapidly with resultant disintegration of central mass portion of the cracked granular clump material, which falls through the discharge tube in the center of the container bottom wall to be discharged in an easy way.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to
A device 1 for crushing and discharging a granular clump material according to an embodiment of the invention has a lift table 5 supported on upwardly extending cylinder rods 3r of four air cylinders 3, which are arranged on a table feeder 2.
Referring to
Referring to
Four vertical walls 6 are erected on the lift table 5 so as to surround the central circular opening 5h of the table 5 and in an arrangement parallel to the four sides of the table 5. A swingable contact unit 10 is provided on each of the vertical walls 6 with the lower end of the contact unit 10 pivotally mounted on each the vertical wall 6.
With reference to
The thrusting rod 12 is disposed at the highest position, the elongated pressing roller 13 at an intermediate position, and the short pressing rollers 14 at the lowest positions.
On the lift table 5 are provided two air cylinders 21 in side-by-side disposition on the outside of each of the four vertical walls 6 in rectangular arrangement.
Each of the air cylinders 21 has its lower end supported by a pivot pin 20 on the lift table 5 so as to be swingable, while a cylinder rod 21r extending upward from within each of the air cylinders 21 has a free end thereof connected by a pivot pin 22 to the outer wall of the swing plate 11.
When the cylinder rod 21r of the air cylinder 21 moves fully upward, the swing plate 11 (contact unit 10) is caused to be erected vertically as indicated in solid line in
As will be understood, the sets of one contact unit 10 and the air cylinders 21 are arranged in the front, rear, left and right sides of the lift table 5 in mutually symmetrical arrangement.
The contact units 10 in the front and rear sides are concurrently moved in unison to take the vertical and inclined attitudes, which are closed and opened attitudes, respectively. In the vertical or closed attitude, the front and rear contact units 10 are erected in mutually parallel relation, while, in the inclined or opened attitude, the front and rear contact units 10 are in a relation wherein the upper edges thereof are shifted outward apart from each other.
A similar relation exists for the left and right side contact units 10.
A circular-cylindrical hopper 25 extends from below through the central circular opening 5h of the lift table 5.
Below the lift table 5, the hopper 25 has a portion expanding in diameter, which is connected to the table feeder 2.
A hook 30 is provided above the swingable contact units 10, to serve as a hanger for hanging a flexible container 40 containing a granular clump material. As shown, the flexible container 40 is hung down by the hook 30.
The flexible container 40 is a rectangular bag container which can be deformed flexibly. The material in the flexible container 40 is compacted and solidified to reduce its volume for efficient transportation and storage thereof.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, zinc oxide material in granular clump state is supposed to be used, but any material other than zinc oxide, which can be solidified when compacted, can be used under the principle of the invention.
It is preferred that the flexible container is in the form of a rectangular bag. A rectangular bag is more efficient in the use of the material-containing space for transportation and storage, than a cylindrical bag.
Referring to
In the upper region of the discharge tube 41 are provided a binder code 42, which is used to bind the upper part of the discharge tube 41 to close the outlet of the discharge tube 41.
When transporting and storing the flexible container, the upper part of the discharge tube 41 is closed by binding the binder code 42, and the discharge tube 41 is deformed or bent into contact with the bottom wall 40b of the container 40. When granular clump material is to be discharged from within the flexible container 40, the discharge tube 41 is stretched downward and the binder code 42 is released to open the discharge opening of the discharge tube 41.
The flexible container 40 is provided with two hanger belts 45 with which the container 40 is hung.
One hanger belt 45 has its ends sewed on two end portions of the upper edge of the front lateral side 40a of the flexible container 40, while the other hanger belt 45 has its ends sewed on two end portions of the upper edge of the rear lateral side 40a of the flexible container 40.
These two hanger belts 45 are passed on the hook 30 to hang the flexible container 40 containing granular clump material at a position above the contact units 10.
Below the table feeder 2 of the device 1 for crushing and discharging a granular clump material is put a flexible canvas hopper 50 with a cone-shaped bottom, and a discharge pipe 2a extends downward from the table feeder 2 into the canvas hopper 50.
How the crushing and discharging device 1 as described above operates will be described with reference to
In the front views (
In these figures, lattice-like broken line hatchings are applied to the flexible container 40 and the discharge tube 41.
In this hanging step, all the front, rear, left and right contact units 10 are in the closed attitudes in which all the swing plates 11 are in vertically extending upright attitudes.
Then, the discharge tube 41 connected to the central region of the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container is stretched downward and inserted into the upper opening of the circular-cylindrical hopper 25. The binder code 42 is then untied to open the discharge opening of the discharge tube 41.
Even when the discharge opening of the discharge tube 41 is opened, the granular clump material in the flexible container 40 is not discharged automatically because the granular clump material is compacted and solidified.
In this state, the air cylinders 3 are operated to raise the lift table 5 and the front, rear, left and right contact units 10 on the lift table 5.
As a result, the four thrusting rods 12 in rectangular arrangement, which are on the top portions of the front, rear, left and right contact units 10 in closed attitudes, are caused to be moved and thrust against the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container 40.
The four thrusting rods 12 are moved and struck against the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container 40 in regions adjoining the front, rear, left and right outer edges of the discharge tube 41, whereby the granular clump material in the flexible container 40 is subjected to shocks and impacts in its bottom region. This creates cracks in the granular clump material, and the cracks lead to crushing of the material.
The front, rear, left and right contact units 10, which have been thrust up against the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container 40, are then lowered apart from the bottom wall 40b, and are thereafter raised again to be thrust against the bottom wall 40b. Such raising and lowering operation is repeated several times and completed. This is a thrusting step.
The thrusting step is useful in promoting crushing of the granular clump material by repetitively thrusting up the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container 40 by means of the front, rear, left and right contact units 10 taking the closed attitudes.
Cracks initially produced in the granular clump material in the flexible container 40 gradually develop upward, extending from the regions of the bottom wall 40b corresponding to the regions of the front, rear, left and right outer edges of the discharge tube 41. Cracks developing as a result of the thrusting operation of the four thrusting rods 12 in rectangular arrangement against the bottom wall 40b of the flexible container are, for example, as indicated by reference characters c shown in
The granular clump material, as indicated by the two-dot chain lines in the plan view of
Crushing of the granular clump material proceeds in each of the blocks, and the crushed material in the central block is first discharged or drop through the discharge tube 41 in the center of the container bottom wall 40b.
As the thrusting operation by the thrusting rods 12 is repeated against the container bottom wall 40b, crushed material in the central block is first discharged, and then clump material masses in the front, rear, left and right four blocks surrounding the central block are induced to move into the vacant central block and discharged through the discharge tube 41.
Therefore, when the thrusting step is completed, crushed material mass in the central block and crushed material masses in the front, rear, left and right four blocks adjoining the central block are discharged through the discharge tube 41, with clump material masses remaining only in the four bottom corner parts of the container. More particularly, as shown in
Clump material masses still remain in the four corners of the container 40. Therefore, a pushing step (shown in
As shown in
For this reason, the outwardly protruding four bottom corners of the flexible container 40, which corners have been somewhat deformed inwardly by the pushing step, are subjected to pressing actions from below and from the left and right sides toward the center. Consequently, clump material masses remaining in the corners are caused to be moved from the left and right sides to the center, so that the clump material masses are permitted to flow downward through the funnel-shaped bottom wall 40b and then discharged through the discharge tube 41.
Thereafter, as shown in
Therefore, the outwardly protruding four bottom corners of the flexible container 40 are subjected to pressing actions from below and from the front and rear sides toward the center. Consequently, clump material masses remaining in the corners are caused to be moved from the front and rear sides toward the center, so that the clump material masses are permitted to flow down through the funnel-shaped bottom wall 40b and then discharged through the discharge tube 41.
When the pushing step of forcing the clump material in the flexible container 40 by means of the pair of the left and right contact units 10 and the pushing step of forcing the clump material in the container 40 by means of the pair of the front and rear contact units 10 are carried out alternately and a plurality of times, clump material masses remaining in the four corners of the flexible container 40 are discharged repetitively through the discharge tube 41. When the pushing step thus performed repetitively is completed, substantially full amount of the clump material in the flexible container 40 is crushed and discharged through the discharge tube 41.
It will be understood that the above-described steps obviate the need for manual crushing of granular clump material and provide a safe crushing operation with a high dust collecting effect.
The discharge tube 41 extending downward from the central region of the container bottom wall 40b is inserted into the upper opening of the cylindrical hopper 25. Therefore, crushed material discharged through the discharge tube 41 drops onto the table feeder 2 through the cylindrical hopper 25 and is conveyed into the canvas hoper 50 through the discharge pipe 2a.
Crushing operation is performed in the table feeder 2 if there remains clump material therein.
The flexible container 40 used in the above-described embodiment has no inner bag therein. However, a flexible container having an inner bag can also be used in the granular clump material crushing and discharging device 1.
When the pushing step is performed after the thrusting step with the use of the flexible container with an inner bag, the inner bag is forced to be drawn by the downward flow of the crushed material at a time when the pushing step is going to be completed, with a result that the inner bag is hung down from within the flexible container and finally leaves the flexible container to drop off the flexible container.
Substantially entire crushed material continues to be discharged through the discharge tube 41 until the inner bag drops off the flexible container.
If a net is installed below the lower opening of the cylindrical hopper 25, the inner bag that has dropped can be collected by trapping the inner bag by the net.
1 . . . Device for crushing and discharging granular clump material, 2 . . . Table feeder, 3 . . . Air cylinder, 5 . . . Lift table, 6 . . . Vertical wall, 7 . . . Pivot pin, 10 . . . Contact unit, 11 . . . Swing plate, 12 . . . Thrusting rod, 13 . . . Elongated pressing roller, 14 . . . Short pressing roller, 20 . . . Pivot pin, 21 . . . Air cylinder, 22 . . . Pivot pin, 23 . . . Swing mechanism, 24 . . . Lift mechanism, 25 . . . Cylindrical hopper, 30 . . . Hook, 40 . . . Flexible container, 41 . . . Discharge tube, 42 . . . Binder code, 45 . . . Hanger belt, 50 . . . Canvas hopper.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-139723 | Jul 2013 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2014/066356 | 6/19/2014 | WO | 00 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2015/001983 | 1/8/2015 | WO | A |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
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| 20160167819 A1 | Jun 2016 | US |
