Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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VIBR~TORY APPARATUS
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a vibratory apparatus
for de-pilin~ or unpiling a mass of particulate material.
The apparatus is to be positioned in a recess or opening in
a base (presumably the ground) and particulate material piled
thereover. Upon being vibrated, the apparatus delivers the
material from a pile at a regulated rate into a conveyor
system for transport to a place of use.
' 10 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
De-pilers, or unpiling apparatus, have been used
for quite some time. ,,The normal application is in c,onjunction
with a power station or other coal burning facility wherein
large piles of coal are dumped over openings in the ground
which lead into tunnels communicating with the furnace or
other place of ultimate use. In such installations, a
cylindrical hopper is located in the openin~ beneatll the
pile and the hopper can be vibrated in order to deliver
material from the pile into a feeder. The feeder feeds the
material delivered thereto at a regulated rate, the outlet of
the feeder being connected to a conveyor such as a belt or
the like which carries the coal at a predetermined rate to
a furnace or other place of use. While feeders in the system
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;~ just described normally operate constantly, the hoppers are
operated at spaced intervals with periods of rest therebetween.
This is normally because the delivery rate of the hoppers far
~,' exceeds the requirement of the feeders, and if the hoppers
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were vibrated with material therein which was not being dis-
charged, the material would tend to pack and eventually bridge,
causing cessation of flow.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, the hopper per se
of the prior art is eliminated completely and an especially
designed vibratory apparatus is provided which is located
beneath an opening in the ground or base over which the material
is piled. Preferably, the vibratory apparatus is arranged so
that its rate of feed or delivery of the material can be varied.
The arrangement is such that when the feeder is stopped,
delivery of material also ceases, when the feeder is again
started, delivery will resume. Also, if desired, the feeder
may be operated continuously over relatively long periods. The
result is that~any tendency of the material to bridge or clot
is avoided, the rate of delivery from the pile to the conveyor
can be regulated, and a more efficient delivery of particulate
; material to the ultimate place of use can be achieved.
One particular aspect of the invention comprehen~s a
vibratory apparatus for delivering particulate material and
adapted for use in combination with a base having an aperture
therein communicating with a passage beneath the base. The
vibratory apparatus comprises a trough having an opening in
the bottom thereof with the opening extending from one end
of the trough to the other end thereof, the trough having side
walls sloping downwardly and inwardly from the side of the
trough to the opening. A deflector is secured to the trough
and extends upwardly therefrom, the deflector having its lower
edges spaced from the side walls of the trough and having its
center portion located above the opening in the trough. The
A angle to the horizontal of a line extending from the lower edges
of the deflector to the adjacent edge of the opening is less
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than the static angle of repose of the material. Means are
provided for mounting the vibratory apparatus in the aperture
in the base to support material piled thereover, the mounting
means including springs supporting the trough for vibratory
movement. A vibration generator is secured to the apparatus
for vibrating the same in a direction transverse to the
direction of extent of the opening, and a conveyor is provided
below the opening in the trough to receive material discharged
therethrough.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ~HE DRAWINC.S
Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the vibratory apparatus
portion of the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a vertical section along line 2 - 2 of
Fig. l;
Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of an edge portion of the
deflector forming a Part of the apparatus in Fig. 2;
Fig. 4 is a vertical section like Fig. 2 showing
the apparatus at rest but with material piled thereover;
and
Fig. 5 is a view like Fig. 4 with the apparatus in
operation.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to the embodiment of the invention
shown in Figs. 1 and 2, there is provided a vibratory apparatus
10 to be mounted just below a large opening or aperture 11 in
a base 12. Actually, the-base is formed by a concrete top 13
forming a portion of a tunnel or passage 14 beneath the opening.
Under normal circumstances, the top of the base 12 will be
at ground level and the aperture 11 is located immediately
below a dumping place for the particulate material to be handled.
In the normal installation, the material is coal, reduced to
relatively small size, and an elevated railroad track is
located over the aperture 11 so that the railroad cars carry-
ing coal can be emptied with their contents falling downwardly
and forming a pile on the base overlying the aperture 11.
Located within the aperture 11 is the vibratory apparatus
which includes a rectangular ~preferably square) trough 15
having side walls 16 and 17 sloping downwardly to a center
opening 18 which extends the entire length of the trough.
The trough has end walls 19 and 20 and a center wall 21
which are vertically arranged as shown.
Overlying the opening 18 in the trough is a
deflector generally designated 22 which has a first portion
22a arching downwardly from the center of the deflector toward
the side wall 17 of the trough, and a second portion 22b
arching downwardly from the center toward the side wall 16.
The highest portion of the deflector 22 is spaced above the
center of the opening 18.
The width of the deflector 22 may be varied for
reasons hereinafter set forth. For this purpose, there is
provided a pair of extension members 23a and 23b which are
ad~ustably secured to the side edges of the portions 22a and
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22b. To this end each extension member 23-is provided with
a plurality of slots 24 into which bolts 24a fixed in side
portion 22a, and bolts 24b fixed in side portion 22b, are
received. The extension members are of the same len~th as
deflector 2~ and when fixed in place at the desired location,
form a part of the deflector.
The trough 15 is secured to beams 25 and 26 extend-
ing along the sides thereof with the beams being supported
on isolation springs 27 carried by posts 28 supported on the
floor 29 of the tunnel 14.
A vibration generator 30 is secured by means of
springs 30a and 30b to the beam 26 in order to impart vibra-
tions to the trough 15. Preferably, the vibration generating
apparatus 30 is similar to that shown in my United States
patent No. 3,358,815, so that the amplitude of the vibrations
generated thereby may be varied in order to vary the rate of
discharge of the particulate material.
Material discharged from the trough 15 through the
opening 18 falls upon a conveyor belt 33 moving on idlers 34
through the tunnel 1~. The return of the belt is indicated
at 35.
Dust seals 36 and 37 extend between a pair of
vertical plates 31 forming the edges of the aperture 11,
and the top of the beams 25 and 26. A second pair of dust
seals 38 and 39 extend between the bottom of the trough 15
and the edges of the conveyor.
When the material is piled on the trough 15, it
utlimately forms a large pile over the base 12 completely
covering the opening 11. The material tends to pile up and
stop betwecn the outer edges of the extension mem~ers alld
the tops of the adjacent side walls 16 and 17 of the trougll.
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In this condition, with the trough at rest, no material is
delivered through the opening 18 onto the conveyor 33.
The angle of repose, sometimes called the slump
angle, of a partlculate material depends upon the nature of
the particular matcrial involved. Some materials may be
piled higher (large angle of repose) than other material.
When the piling continues after the pile of material has
reached its angle of repose, the material will slump, in-
creasing the diameter of the base of the pile while maintaining
the angle of repose constant. Vibrating a pile of material
dramatically reduces the angle of repose.
In the present apparatus, the width of the deflector
22 is made adjustable by the provision of extension members
23a and 23b. It is the object to position the extension
members where tHe angle of a line drawn from the outer edge
of each extension member to the inner edge of the opening 18
relative to the horizontal is less than the angle of repose `~
of the particular material handled. When this condition
prevails, and the apparatus is at rest as shown in Fig. 4,
the upper surface of the material below the deflector 22
lies along a line 40 which represents the angle of repose
of the material. As can be seen, the lower edge of the
material is short of the opening 18 and hence no flow occurs.
When the vibrating apparatus is started, as shown in Fig. 5,
the angle of repose of the material greatly lesscns and
the upper surface of the material lies along line ~1 which,
because it extends beyond the edges of opening 18, permits
flow of material therethrough. The provision of the extension
members 23a and 23b permits the deflector width to be adjusted
to suit the slump angle characteristics of the particular
material being handled.
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A further feature of the apparatus is that, because
the vibration is horizontal and normal to the longitudinal
axis of the trough 15, each sloping side wall 16 and 17
acts as a vibratory feeder, feeding the material carried
thereon toward the adjacent edge of the opening 18.
, Also, when the vibrator is in operation, vibratory
forces are transmitted into the pile 42 of particulate material
overlying the opening 11, the primary vibrating forces being
along the lines of the arrows 43 which are yenerally parallel
10 to the internal sheer angles of the material, such sheer
angles being themselves generally parallel to the angle of
repose of the material at rest. Thus, de-piling freely
occurs as the vibrator is actuated, and flow ceases when
the vibrator is stopped.
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