Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The presen~ invention relates to a plant for treating materials,
e.g. foodstuffs or ~he like, and comprising a housing ~rherein conveyor means
are arranged having suppor~s for mov;ng hori~ontally arranged carriers for the
material to be ~eated in the vertical direction one above the other from an
inlet opening to an exit opening, and wherein means for circulating treatment
me~ium through the housing are provided.
According to the same applicant's prior Canadian application Serial
No. 270,883, filed 1 February 1977, a plant of the kind referred to above has
been proposed wherein the conveyor means in the housing comprise two eleva~or
devices, viz. one for upward and one for downward movement of the carriers
and a transfer device arranged between the two eleva~or devices. Moreover, a
path of transportation extends between the exit opening and the in~et opening
of the housing and along the path carriers are moved in such a way that the
front ends of the carriers followed immediately behind the trailing ends of
the preceding carriers so as to form an almost unbroken carpet. The plant
previously proposed moreover comprises means for inserting ~he carriers into
one of the elevator devices at the inlet opening and for removing the carriers
from the other elevator at the exit opening. A station for positioning the
material to be treated is arranged at ~he path of transportion before the in-
let opening and a station for removing the material treated is arranged atthe path of transpoItion after the exit opening, and the two stations are
arranged at approximately the same level.
The plant proposed by the applicant's previous application mentioned
above comprises means for circulating cold air through the housing in order
to cool or freeze the material to be treated.
It has no~ been reaIized that a plant constructed as previously
proposed by the applicant may be adapted for other advantageous sorts of
treatment.
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According to the present invention there is provided a plant for
treating material such as ~oodstuffs and the like, comprising: a housing
having an inlet opening and an outlet opening; a plurali~y o~ rectangular
carriers that are ~lexible in a longitudinal direction thereof; carrier trans-
porting means including two reversing roller devices for transporting the
carriers longitudinally through a carrier path extending from said outlet
opening to said inlet opening wi.th the leading end of each carrier immed;ately
following the trailing end of the preceding carrier so as to form a sub-
stantially unbroken carpet along said path; two elevators in said housing, one
arranged for upwards movement and the other for downwards movement, one end of
one elevator being located adjacent said inlet opening and one end of the other
elevator being locatèd adjacent said outlet opening, each elevator comprising
two vertically arranged conveyors positioned at opposite sides of the housing
and having longitudinally extending carrier supports, the supports of the two
vertical conveyors of each elevator being arranged in pairs of opposite supports
such that each elevator is adapted for vertically moving the carriers arranged
horizon*ally and one above the other; a transfer device between the elevators
for transferring carriers therebetween; inserting means for inserting carriers
into said one of said elevators at the inlet opening; removal means for remov-
ing carriers from said other of said elevators at the outlet opening; a supply
station for supplying material to be treated to said carriers in front of the
inlet opening; a discharge station for removing treated material from the
carriers, following the outlet opening; a partition wall in said housing
separating housing intercompartments containing the respective elevators, the
partition wall having a transfer opening for the transfer device; sluice means
for the transfer opening permitting movement o~ carriers through the opening
while isolating the compartments from each other; sluice means for at least
one of said inlet and outlet openings; and means for maintaining diferent
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ambient conditions in the compartmcnts.
Due to the separa~ion by means of the partition it is achieved that
the materials or goods conducted through the plant may be subjected to differ-
ent sorts of treatment. For instance, one of the chambers may be provided with
heating means or arrang~d to be fed with smoke or may be provided with both
heating means and smoke feeding means ;n order to boil or smoke or both boil
~nd smoke, e.g. sausages, and the o~her chamber may be provided with means for
treating the materials or goods in another way. If e.g. sausages are to be
treated the other chamber may be used in order to apply a temperature treatment
to tne sausage, e.g. a minor cooling from the temperature at which the boiling,
respectively the smoking is carried ou~. Such varied treatment of the materials
or the goods has been made possible due to the said sluices which secure that
the environments in the two chambers are not mixed. ~oreover, due to th~ two
elevator devices the plant according to the present invention may be con-
structed very compact, viz. with small space requirements.
According to a preferred embodiment of the plant according to the
present invention a further housing compTising two elevator devices of the
kind referred to may be arranged after the housing and the path of the transpor-
tation may extend from the exit opening of the further housin~ and ~he inlet
opening of the further housing. Moreover, means may be provided for moving
the caTriers from the exit opening of the first housing and through the further
housing. In this way it is possible in a continuous way to continue the treat-
ment to which the goods are subjected in the firsk housing, seeing that the
further housing e.g. may be used for further cooling the materials or goods.
Further advantageous features of the present invention will become
more apparent from the following description of two preferred embodiments of
the treatment plant according to the present invention taken in conjunction
~,~ with the accompanying
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drawings, on which
Figure 1~ and ls sho~ a vertical section of an embodiment
of the treatment plant according to the present in-
vention in side view,
Figure 2 shows the plant according to Figure 1 as seen
from the left hand side of Figure lA after the
line II-II,
Figure 3 a further embodiment of the plant according to
the present invention in plan view and partly in
section, and
Figure 4 shows a plan view of the plant shown in Figure 3
partly in section.
On the drawing, 1 is a housing wherein two elevator devices
2 and 3, respectively, are arranged, viz. one 2 for upward
movement as indicated by means of an arrow 4 and the other 3 for
downward movement as indicated by means of an arrow 5. The two
elevator devices 2 and 3 are almost identical and, accordingly,
only one of them,viz.the elevator device 2 will be further
explained. The elevator device 2 comprises two end frames 7 and ~.
Each of the end frames supports four sprockets, cf. Figure 2,
wherein one of the frames 7 of the elevator device 2 is shown and
from which it will be seen that the frame 7 supports four
sprockets 10, 11, 12 and 13 arranged in pairs one above the other.
~n endless chain 15 and 16, respectively, runs about each pair of
sprockets 10,11 and 12,13, respectively. At the opposite end of
the elevator device 2 four corresponding sprockets and two chains
are mounted in the frame 8. The two chains arranged at each side
of the elevator device are mutually connected by means of
supports in the form of angle irons of which only two, 17, are
indicated in Figure 2. However, such supports 17 are secured
evenly distributed along the full length of the chains. The mutual
distance between two adjacent supports is selected according
to the height of the material to be treated in the plant. From
the above explanation it will be understood that the supports
17 extend in the longitudinal direction of the housing 1 at each
side of the housing. During operation of the plant, the supports
on the runs of the chains which face each other serve to support
carriers 18 during the passage of the carriers 18 through the
elevator device.
Each carrier 18 consists, in a way known per se, of
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transversely ex-tendiny lamellae which are mutually hinged in such
a way that the carrier is flexible about axes extending perpendi-
cular to the longitudinal direction of the carrier and, according-
ly, it will be understood that, when a carrier is positioned in
one of the elevator devices, e.g. the elevator device 2, the
lamellae of a carrier extend from one of -the supports 17 secured
to the chain 15 and to the opposite support 17 on the other chain
16.
The carriers 18 are moved through the plan-t shown by means
of a system of chain conveyors. In Figures lA and lB 20 is a
first one of these chain conveyors. The first chain conveyor
comprises two endless chains, viz. one at each side of the plant.
The chain conveyor 20 runs around two reversing rollers 21 and
22 arranged outside the ends of the housing 1 and opposite the
lower part o the housing 1. At the lower right hand end of the
elevator device 2, the chain conveyor 20 runs around two rollers
23 and 24 in such a way that the chain conveyor adjacent these two
rollers will be moved along a generally Z-shaped path. Pushing
dogs 25 are secured to the chain conveyor 20 for engagement with
corresponding holes (not shown) provided at the front end of each
of the carriers 18- The mutual distance between the pushing dogs
25, as seen in the longitudinal direction of the chain conveyor
20, corresponds to the length of the carriers 18. Between the
reversing rollers 21 and 22 the lower run of the chain conveyor
20 is guided in guiding rails having U-shaped cross section and
positioned at each side of the chain conveyor with their grooves
facing each other so as to accomodate the side edges of the carriers
and the chains of -the chain conveyor 20. From the reversing roller
21 the upper run of the chain conveyor 20 extends through an inlet
opening 26 into the housing. The portlon of the upper run which
extends outside the housing 1 serves as a depositing station for
the material or goods to be treated in the housing 1. At the
opposite end of the housing 1 the chain conveyor 20 leaves
the housing through an exit opening 27 and -the part of the upper
run of the chain conveyor 20 extending be-tween the exit opening
27 and the reversing roller 22 serves as a removal station for the
material or goods which have passed through the housing 1.
Both at the inle-t opening 26 and at the exit opening 27
two rotatable guiding devices are mounted. The guiding devices
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at the inlet opening 26 are schematically illustra-ted in Figure 2
In this fiyure the two guiding devices are desi~nated 28 and 29,
respectively. Each guiding device consists of rods which extend as
generatrices of a truncated cone and are evenly distributed about
tlle longitudinal axis of the cone. Each guiding device is rotatable
about the longitudinal axis of the corresponding cone by means
not shown on -the drawing. ~rhe directions of rota-tion of the two
guiding devices are indicated on Figure 2 by means of arrows 30
and 31.
A transfer device is arranged between the two elevator device~
2 and 3 and comprises a second chain conveyor 34 also in the form
of two chains arranged at the opposite sides of the housing 1
and a bridge 35 pivotally arranged about a horizontal shaft 36
arranged in the housing 1 and extending in the transverse direc-
tion of the housing. The chain conveyor 34 runs, at one end there-
o, around a reversing roller 37 which, as illustrated in Figure
lA, is positioned at the top end of the frame 8 of the elevator
device 2. The chain conveyor 34 runs about another reversing
roller 38, which as shown in Figure lB is positioned at the
top end at the right frame of the elevator device 3. Also
the chain conveyor 34 is provided with pushing dogs 39 for
engagement with the holes at the front end of the carriers 18.
In Figure lB 40 designates a third endless chain conveyor
which runs around two reversing rollers 41, 42 one of which is
positioned at the bottom of the right end frame of the elevator
device 3, and the other of which is positioned adjacent the
exit opening 27 Also the third chain conveyor consists
of rwo chains. Between the two reversing rollers 41 and 42,
the chain conveyor 40 runs about three in-termediate rollers
44, 45 and 46. Also the third chain conveyor is provided with
pushing dogs 43 for the carriers.
By means of a partition 50 the housing is divided into two
chambers 51 and 52, viz. one for each of the elevator devices
2 and 3. In the chamber 51 air conditioning means 53 are arranged
above the elevator device 2 in order to create one sort of
environment in the chamber 51, and in the chamber 52 means 54
are arranged above the elevator device 3 in order -to maintain
another sort of environmen-t in the chamber 52. The means 53
in the chamber 51 ma~ e.g. comprise heating means in order
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to mainta:Ln an environment in the chamber Sl suitable for a heatin~,
treat~ent, e.y. boillng of goods as e.g. sausages. In the
chamber 51 further means may be arranged in order to create a
smoke atmosphere in the chamber 51 for smoking the goods being
treated. However, the means 54 for the chamber 52 may be adapted
to maintain a suitable temperature in the chamber 52 for after-
treatment of the goods, e.g. a slow cooling of the goods pre-
viously treated in the chamber 51.
In order to secure t~at the environments in the two chambers
51 and 52 are not mixed, the partltion 50 is provided with sluice
means 55 each comprising a support 56 to which outwardly extending
semi rigid flexible curtain-like closing means 57 are secured.
The sluice means 55 are arranged at an opening 58 in the parti-
tion 50. The open~ing 58 permits the passage of the transfer
device 34,35 and, moreover permits the transfer~of the carriers
however in such a way that the sluice means will form a closure
or stop for circulation of the environment in the chamber 51 into
the chamber 52 and vice versa.
Corresponding sluice means 59 are arranged at an opening 60
in the partition 50. The opening 60 permits the passage of the
conveyor 20 and the return movement of the carriers towards the
reversing roller 21.
Moreover, also the inlet opening 26 and the exit opening 27
are provided with sluice means 62 and 63, respectively, construct-
ed according to the same principle as the sluice means 55, viz.
comprising supports having upwardly or downwardly directed semi
rigid stop means which at the two openings 26 and 27 reduce
exchange between the outer atmosphere and the chambers 51 and 52
to a minimum. t-
The plant illustrated in Figures lA, lB and 2 operatesin the following way:
sy means of the chain conveyor 20 the carriers 18 are
moved along a path of transportation from the exit opening 27
through the sluice means 63, in the direction indicated by
the arrows around the reversing roller 22 and towards the
reversing roller 21 at the front end of the housing 1 by engage-
ment with the pushing dogs 25 and supported as explained above by
means of the side channels not shown. Duri~ such movement the
carriers are moved in such a way that the front end of a
carrier is positioned immediately adjacent the trailing end of
the precedi~g carrier and along the horiæontal run, before the
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inlet opening 26,-the materials or goods -to be treate~ are position~
upon the carriers. Immediately af-ter the leading end of a carrier
has been moved -through the opening 26 and the sluice means 62,
the side edges of the carrier will be supported by means o~ a
rod of each of the two rod guiding devices 28,29, viz. at the
narrow ends of the cones`wherein the rods in question are arranged
as generatrices. The movement of these guiding devices is syn -
chronized in such a way that the front ends of the rods in question,
when the front edge of the carrier in question reaches the supports
of the elevator device 2, is positioned exactly at the same height
as these supports and, accordingly, the rods in question form a
supporting path for the carrier in question. During the continued
movement of the chain conveyor 20 to the right in Figure 1, viz.
over the reversing roller 23, the carrier in question will be
drawn in upon two'oppositely arranged supports 17 in the elevator
device 2. During the period of time used by the chain conveyor
20 in order to move from one end to the other of the elevator
device, the pair of supports 17 supporting the carrier in question
will move exactly one pitch, viz. corresponding to the distance
between the two adjacent supports 17 on each of the chains of the
elevator device 2. Morever, the movements of the two guiding de-
vices 28 and 29 are synchronized in such a way that the two rods
supporting the carrier being inserted into the elevator device,
move upwardly a distance corresponding to the pitch of the
support 17 in such a way that also the trailing end of the
carrier being inserted will be supported. When the front end of
a carrier has reached the right frame 8 of the elevator device 2,
a downward movement of the pushing dogs 25 will be caused, viz.
due to the movement of the chains in question around the
roller 23 and ,accordingly, the pushing dogs 25 will be dis-
engaged with respect to the carrier in question,which simultaneous-
ly is moved in the upward direction due to the upward movement of
the elevator device 2.
When a carrier 18 has reached the top position in Figure lA,
a set of pushing dogs 39 carried by the chain conveyor 34 engages
the holes at the front end of the carrier from above and the
front end of the carrier in question will now be transferred
along the upper surface of the bridge 35 through the opening 58
and through the sluice means 55 and over upon a set of supports
in the elevstor device 3, viz. that sek of supports which, at
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the time co~ ernecl, is at the -top of the elevator device. The
inserting of a carrier into the elevator device 3 is carried out,
gneerally, in the same way as the inserting into the elevator
device 2. The only difEerence is that the carrier transferred to
the eleva-tor device 3 du~ing the trans-fer will be supported
by means of the bridge 35. When the fron-t end of the carrier being
transferred has reached the right frame of the elevator device 3,
disengagement o f the chain conveyor 34from the carrier in question
will be caused due to t~he fact -that the chai.n conveyor will move
upwardly around the reversing roller 38 and, accordingly, will
disengage its pushing dogs from the carrier in question which
simultaneously starts a downward movement.
When a carrier has reached the lowermost position illu-
strated in Figure..lB in the elevator device 3, the carrier is
caught by a set of pushing dogs 43 moved by the chain conveyor 40
which now draws the carrier in question to the right, viz. towards
the exit opening 27. Such engagement occurs generally in the same
way as at the top end of the elevator device 2, cr. Figure lA~
The only diference is that the side edges of the carrier being
removed will be controlled by means of the two guiding rod devices
arranged at the exit opening. . The two guiding rod devices at
the exit opening are rotated opposite to the directions of the
arrows 30 and 31 in Figure 2, and in such a way that the reverse
ends of the two rods supporting the carrier being removed,move
downwardly corresponding to the downward velocity of the supports
of the elevator device 3. The carrier will be guided by and
slide upon the guiding rods in question and be transferred to
the first chain conveyor which at the exit opening 27 catches
the front end of the carrier in question by means of a set of
pushing dogs 25 and drawsthe carrier out through the sluice
means 63.
As it appears from Figures lA and lB the two ends of the
upper run of the chain conveyor 20 form two working stations
arranged approximately at the same level which makes a positioning
of materials or goods upon carriers being moved through the
opening 26 very easy and, moreover, also the removal of treated
materials or goods from the carriers being moved out through
the exit opening 27 is easily carried out.
All the parts of the plant illustrated in Figures lA, lB
are moved continously with the exception of the pivoting movement
of the bridge 35. Such operation makes it possible to vary
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the period of time during which the material is maintained in the
housing solely by increasing or reducing the velocity o~ the
parts correspondingly. However, the bridge 35 must be pivoted
about the shaft 36 so that the front end of the bridge may follow
the set of supports 17 of the elevator device 2 which delivers a
carrier and so tha-t the rear end of the bridge follows the set of
supports 17 in the elevator device 3 which receives a carrier.
However, such pivot motion m,ay also easily be synchronized with the
movements of the other parts of the plant, because an increasing
velocity of -these parts need only be converted into a corresponding
more rapid pivoting of the bridge 35.
The plant shown in Figures 3 and 4 comprises a housing 1
corresponding to the housing 1 of the plant according to Figure lA,
lB and 2, viz. containing two elevator devices 2,and 3 of which the
first is adapted for upward movement and the other of which is
adapted for downward movement. Moreov~r, the housing is divided
into two c hambers 51 and 52 by means of a petition 50. Also
according to the second embodiment and opening provided with
sluice means 55 is provided in the partition 50 and allows
transfer of carriers from the elevator device 2 to the elevator
device 3. ~oreover, sluice means 62 and 63 are arranged at the
inlet opening 26 and the outlet opening 27, respectively. More-
over, the housing according to Figures 3 and ~ is provided with
conveyor means for moving carriers as explained with reference
to Figures lA, lB and 2. Each of the chambers 51 and 52 is connect-
ed with air conditioning means 53 and 54, respectively which, how-
ever, according to the embodiment in Figures 3 and ~, are arranged
sideways with r~espect to the elevator devices 2 and 3 in the
corresponding chambers 51 and 52, respectively.
The plant according to Figures 3 and 4 has been supplemented
by a further housing 70, wherein an upwardly transporting eleva-
tor device 71 corresponding to the elevator 2 in the housing 1
and a downwardly transporting elevator device 72 corresponding -to
the elevator 3 in the housing 1 are arranged. Moreover, sluice
means 73 are arranged at an inlet opening 74 in the housing and
sluice means 75 are arranged at an exit opening 76. Also the
housing 70 is provided with conveyor devices for moving carriers
through the ~using 70 in the way expla:ined above as regards the
housing 1. According -to the embodiment in Figures 3 and 4 the
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conveyor 20 whlch according to the embodiment illustrated in
~igures lA, lB and 2 moves the carriers from the exit opening 27
in the housing 1 and to the inlet opening 26, has been extended
in such a way that -this conveyor also serves the housing 70~
When a carrier has been connected to the conveyor 20 a-t the exit
opening 27 from the housing 1, the carrier in question is moved
by means of the conveyor 20 through the inlet opening 74 and during
such movement -the sluice means 73 reduce exchange between the outer
atmosphere and the atmosphere within the housing 70. After the
inserting of the carrier into the housing 70, the carrier is
moved as explained above with referen~e to Figures lA, ls and 2,
viz. upwards by means of the elevator device 71, is transferred to
the elevator device 72, is moved downwardly by means of this
elevator, whereafter the carrier in question is caught by the
conveyor 20 which now moves the carrier out through the exit
opening 75 whereby the sluice means 76 reduce atmosphere exchanges
with respect to the surroundings. From a reversing roller 22
arranged at the exit end of the housing 70~the conveyor 20 returns
to the reversing roller 21 in front of the housing 1 and the
conveyor thereafter operates in the way previously explained
with reference to Figures lA, lB and 2.
Air conditioning means 78 and 79 are arranged within the
housing 70 and may e.g. consist of cooling means in order to main-
tain a cold atmosphere in the housing 70, e.g. for after~treatment
of s~usages which previously have been boiled, smoked and heat
treated in the housing 1 so as to bè further cooled in the
housing 70.
It will be understood that also the plant according to
Figures 3 and 4 operates continuously and according to the
embodiment in Figures 3 and 4 it is possible to supplement the
treatment to which the go~ds are subjected in the housing 1
by a further treatment. According to the circu~stances also the
housing 70 may be divided into two chambers by means of a parti-
tion, viz. may be constructed in accordance with the housing 1
according to the embodiment in E`igures lA, Is and 2 in such a
way that a further treatment stage may be arranged for also in a
continuous manner and in a very space saving way due to the
two elevator devices 71 and 720
According to both the embodiments e~plained above the
sets of pushing dogs 25 moved by means of the chain conveyor 20
are arranged spaced in the longitudinal direction of the con-
veyor 20 corresponding to the length of the carriers and,
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accordingly, -the carriers when being moved from the exit opening
and to the inlet opening w:lll move with the front end of one
carrier following immediately behind the tralling and of a
preceding carrier in such a way that the carriers will form an
almost unbroken carpet or belt extending from the exit opening
and to the inlet opening of the plant.
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