Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
I
GRAIN CART WITH AIR NOZZLE
This invention relates to an agricultural cart for transporting particulate
material such as grain, seed and fertilizer.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Grain carts are farm implements that are typically towed behind a
tractor and are used to transport harvested grain from other implements, such
as
combines, and deliver the grain to trucks or other hauling devices away from
the
harvest field. The use of grain carts allows the harvester to unload in the
field to increase
efficiency and so trucks can remain off the field.
Grain carts typically include a storage carrier that further includes at a
with a total capacity ranging from several hundred to over one thousand
bushels of
grain. To unload the grain from the cart, grain carts employ a conveying
device such
as an auger to draw grain from the bottom of the hopper and convey it to a
discharge end. At the discharge end the material is carried through a feed
tube by a
further auger that deposits the grain to a discharge location. The conveyor
transports
grain from the base of the hopper upward so that it may be deposited into
another
container which can be a transport truck when transporting grain or can be a
seeder
when the cart is used to fill the seed tank of a seeder.
At the bottom of the hopper, where the conveyor meets the hopper, is
typically a door that must be opened in order for grain to flow onto the
conveyor. The
door serves the purpose of keeping the grain or other material in the hopper
until the
operator desires to remove the material, and also of allowing the conveyor to
come
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up to speed while under minimal load before the grain is loaded onto the
conveyor.
To provide power to the conveyor, grain carts are typically driven by a Power
Take-
Off ("PTO") driveshaft typically located at the rear end of a tractor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention there is provided an agricultural cart for
transporting particulate material comprising:
a frame mounted on ground wheels for transport across agricultural
land;
a transport container including one or more hoppers for containing
particulate material for transportation of the particulate material across the
agricultural land to a required location;
a conveyor receiving the particulate material from said one or more
hoppers of the container for discharge of the particulate material from the
container;
wherein the conveyor comprises a tube having a first end and a
discharge end;
said one or more hoppers having a discharge opening for connection
to the tube at one or more locations from the first end to the discharge end
so that
the particulate material from said one or more hoppers enters the tube;
a transport device in the tube which carries the particulate material
along the tube from said one or more locations to the discharge end of the
tube;
an air blower mounted on the cart for generating a stream of air;
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and at least one nozzle mounted at or adjacent the first end of the tube
directing the stream of air into the tube so as to travel from said at least
one nozzle
at or adjacent the first end along the tube to the discharge end so as to
clean out the
tube through the discharge end.
According to the invention there is provided an agricultural cart for
transporting particulate material comprising:
a frame mounted on ground wheels for transport across agricultural
land;
a transport container including one or more hoppers for containing
particulate material for transportation of the particulate material across the
agricultural land to a required location;
a conveyor receiving the particulate material from said one or more
hoppers of the container for discharge of the particulate material from the
container;
wherein the conveyor comprises a first tube having a first end and a
discharge end, the first tube extending along the transport container at a
bottom of
the transport container;
said one or more hoppers having a discharge opening for connection
to the first tube at one or more locations from the first end to the discharge
end so
that the particulate material from said one or more hoppers enters the first
tube;
a first transport device in the first tube which carries the particulate
material along the first tube from said one or more locations to the discharge
end of
the first tube;
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wherein the conveyor comprises an upstanding tube having a first end
of the upstanding tube connected to the discharge end of the first tube for
transporting the particulate material from said bottom of the transport
container;
a second transport device in the second tube which carries the
particulate material along the second tube;
an air blower mounted on the cart for generating a stream of air;
a nozzle connected to the upstanding tube directing the stream of air
into the upstanding tube so as to travel from the nozzle along the upstanding
tube so
as to clean out the upstanding tube;
and a closure gate at the first end of the upstanding tube to prevent the
stream of air from entering the first tube.
According to the invention there is provided an agricultural cart for
transporting particulate material comprising:
a frame mounted on ground wheels for transport across agricultural
land;
a transport container including one or more hoppers for containing
particulate material for transportation of the particulate material across the
agricultural land to a required location;
a conveyor receiving the particulate material from said one or more
hoppers of the container for discharge of the particulate material from the
container;
wherein the conveyor comprises a tube having a first end and a
discharge end;
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said one or more hoppers having a discharge opening for connection
to the tube at one or more locations from the first end to the discharge end
so that
the particulate material from said one or more hoppers enters the tube;
a transport device in the tube which carries the particulate material
along the tube from said one or more locations to the discharge end of the
tube;
an air blower mounted on the cart for generating a stream of air;
and a nozzle mounted in an end wall of the tube at the first end of the
tube directing the stream of air longitudinally along the tube so as to travel
from the
nozzle along the tube to the discharge end so as to clean out the tube through
the
discharge end.
According to the invention there is provided an agricultural cart for
transporting particulate material comprising:
a frame mounted on ground wheels for transport across agricultural
land;
a transport container including one or more hoppers for containing
particulate material for transportation of the particulate material across the
agricultural land to a required location;
a conveyor receiving the particulate material from said one or more
hoppers of the container for discharge of the particulate material from the
container;
wherein the conveyor comprises a tube having a first end and a
discharge end;
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said one or more hoppers having a discharge opening for connection
to the tube at one or more locations from the first end to the discharge end
so that
the particulate material from said one or more hoppers enters the tube;
a transport device in the tube which carries the particulate material
along the tube from said one or more locations to the discharge end of the
tube;
an air blower mounted on the cart for generating a stream of air;
a nozzle connected to the tube directing the stream of air into the tube
so as to travel from the nozzle along the tube so as to clean out the tube;
wherein said one or more hopper includes a closure door for closing off
.. the discharge opening thereof so that air is prevented from escaping from
the tube
through the discharge opening.
According to the invention there is provided an agricultural cart for
transporting particulate material comprising:
a frame mounted on ground wheels for transport across agricultural
.. land;
a transport container including one or more hoppers for containing
particulate material for transportation of the particulate material across the
agricultural land to a required location;
a conveyor receiving the particulate material from said one or more
hoppers of the container for unloading the particulate material from the
container;
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wherein the conveyor comprises a tube connected to said one or more
hoppers so that the particulate material from said one or more hoppers enters
the
tube for transport therealong;
an auger flight in the tube arranged such that rotation of the auger
flight in an angular direction carries the particulate material in a
longitudinal direction
along the tube;
an air blower mounted on the cart for generating a stream of air;
and at least one nozzle directing the stream of air into the tube so as to
travel from said at least one nozzle along the tube to an opening though which
material is discharged;
said at least one nozzle directing the stream of air along the tube in
said longitudinal direction so that said at least one nozzle and the flight
both carry
the material in said longitudinal direction along the tube to said opening.
In many cases the conveyor also has a upstanding portion for
transporting the particulate material from a bottom of the container to a
discharge
location and the nozzle is arranged to direct the stream of air into the
upstanding
portion to clean out the upstanding portion. In this arrangement preferably
there is
provided a closure gate at an inlet end of the upstanding portion or between
the two
portions so that the stream of air cannot back up into the bottom portion and
can
only escape at the discharge end.
Preferably the conveyor comprises a tube containing an auger flight
and the nozzle is arranged to direct the stream of air into the tube at the
end wall so
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as to impinge on the auger flight and swirls around the flight to clean out
the tube.
However this arrangement herein can also be used with other types of conveyor.
In addition or as an alternative to the clean out described above, the
nozzle can also be arranged to direct the stream of air toward the discharge
end to
accelerate flow of the particulate material along the tube.
Preferably the container comprises a plurality of hoppers in a row
along the container and the conveyor comprises a tube underneath the hoppers
for
carrying the particulate material to one end of the container with each hopper
including a closure door for closing off passage of the particulate material
into the
tube. In this arrangement preferably the closure door of at least one hopper
moves
to a side of the tube opposite to that of at least one other hopper.
The air blower is preferably mounted on a front end of the cart adjacent
a hitch of the cart and is arranged to be driven by a PTO coupling for
receiving
power from a tractor and includes a hose extending from the front end of the
cart to
the rear end for connection to the nozzle.
Preferably the air blower includes a splitter feeding two separate hoses
and a diverter valve for selecting one or both of the hoses for the stream of
air.
Preferably the upstanding portion of the conveyor includes a spout
having an upper spout portion and a lower spout portion connected to the upper
spout portion for rotation about an upright axis, and defining a mouth
arranged to
discharge substantially vertically downwardly at a position offset from the
axis so
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that rotation of the lower spout portion about the axis acts to move the mouth
to
different positions around the axis.
The arrangement herein therefore provides the advantage that the cart
is arranged for transporting different materials and the nozzle is arranged to
clean
out the conveyor after discharge of one material before discharging another
material.
The unit thus is able to act as a grain cart as well as a seed tender
vehicle. In the spring it will be used to fill air tanks behind air drills
very quickly and
in the fall be used as a grain cart alongside combines.
In order to be used as a seed tender cart the augers are cleaned
completely out when changing from product to product. To accomplish this,
forced
air is blown into the end of both the horizontal auger along the bottom of the
cart as
well as the vertical auger going up to air tank or truck. This air can go
through one
auger at a time or possibly both at the same time. In order to achieve a
sealed
chamber (auger) for air to successfully clean out product in the horizontal
auger
there are sliding doors at the bottom of the hoppers that close, thus stopping
the flow
of grain into the auger as well as sealing it off so it can be blown out.
The arrangement herein can also be used as an air assist for the auger
where the air stream injected into the auger tube is used to increase flow
capacity of
the auger. This arrangement can be used for example in regular grain augers,
combines, frac-sand applications, and augers that move shavings and all kinds
of
products.
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The application of cleaning both in the horizontal and inclined augers
tubes is typically used when this machine is used as a seed tender cart for
filling air
tanks behind seeding equipment. When changing from seed to fertilizer no
excess
material remains in the augers which will prevent contamination of seed and
fertilizer. As well, the operator does not have to contend with the excess
material
that typically remains in fill augers of air tanks which typically requires
reversing the
auger then having to carry pails of it to the top of the tank and dumping them
in. the
arrangement herein is cleaner, faster, and more safe. When this machine is
used as
a grain cart the doors on the bottom of the hoppers all open in unison. The
centre
door opens from the opposite side to ensure material empties evenly from both
sides
of the tank so as to not overload one side. The blower system typically is not
be
used during this application for clean out, but it can be used to increase
capacity of
flow of the material in the augers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
One embodiment of the invention will now be described in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of an agricultural cart according to the
present invention.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-section of the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is isometric view of the operating components of the cart of
Figure 1.
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Figure 5 is an isometric view of one door at one end of the operating
components the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 6 is an isometric view of one door and a closure gate at an
opposed end of the operating components the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 7 is a partial longitudinal cross-section along the lines 7-7 Of
figure 4 of the bottom discharge auger of the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 8 is a partial longitudinal cross-section along the lines 6-6 of
figure 6 of the bottom discharge auger of the cart of Figure 1.
Figure 9 is a side elevational view of the discharge spout of the
-- inclined side auger portion.
In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in the different figures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The agricultural cart 10 shown in Figures 1 to 6 for transporting
particulate material includes a frame schematically indicated at 11 mounted on
ground wheels or tracks 12 for transport across agricultural land. The cart
carries a
transport container 13 including three hoppers 131, 132 and 133 arranged in a
row
between a front end wall 14 and a rear end wall 15 each for containing
agricultural
product for transportation of the product across the agricultural land to a
required
location. As set above the cart can be used as a grain cart or as a filling
system for
seeders, but also other uses are possible. The ground wheels therefore are
typically
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selected for travel over agricultural land rather than as highway wheels
intended for
high speed travel.
As best shown in Figure 2 there is provided a conveyor 16 receiving
the particulate material from the hoppers of the container for discharge of
the
particulate material from the hoppers. The conveyor 16 has a horizontal bottom
portion 161 for transporting the particulate material across a bottom of the
container
to a discharge end at the front wall 14 and an upstanding portion 162 in front
of the
wall 14 for transporting the particulate material from a bottom of the
container to a
discharge location. The upstanding portion 162 is inclined upwardly and to one
side
of the cart and includes a hinged upper section 163 which can be folded at a
hinge
line 164 relative to a lower second section 165.
A discharge spout shown in Figure 9 at the upper end can be provided
and can be connected to feed conduits to provide filling of adjacent
containers such
as a container of a seeder or a hopper of a separate feed auger.
An air blower 17 is mounted on the front wall 14 the cart for generating
a stream of air. The blower 17 is driven by a belt 171 between a pulley 172 on
the
blower and a pulley 181 on a PTO coupling 18 connected to a tractor. The PTO
coupling 18 at the front wall is adjacent a hitch (not shown) connecting the
frame 11
to a towing tractor, again typically used for agricultural use rather than
highway
speeds.
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The blower 17 has an air output 173 at the bottom of a housing carried
on the front wall 14. An air intake 174 for the blower on top of the housing
includes
a silencer 175.
The PTO coupling 18 also connects to a first gear box 182 which
drives a second gear box 183 at the rear wall 15 through a shaft 184 which
extends
along the underside of the conveyor tube positon 161. The right angle gear box
183
drives a third right angle gear box 185 through a shaft 186. The gear box 185
drives
a shaft 187 of the conveyor as best shown in Figure 7. That is the conveyor
161
comprises an auger tube 166 containing a flight 167 mounted on the shaft 187.
The gear box 182 also provides an output shaft 188 which forms the
auger shaft of the inclined conveyor 162 and carries an auger flight 189
within the
tube portion 162.
The bottom tube 165 Is located underneath the hoppers 131, 132 and
133 for carrying the particulate materials therefrom to a discharge end of the
tube at
the front end wall 14 of the container. As best shown in Figure 4, each hopper
includes a respective closure door 134, 135, 136 for closing off passage of
the
particulate material from the hopper into the tube. The doors are each
provided as a
rectangular horizontal plate sliding across a rectangular horizontal opening
formed
across the top of the tube 165. Each door is actuated by a pair of linear
actuators
one at each end in the form of a rack 19 driven by a gear 20 from a motor 21.
The cart thus has three separate hoppers, each with a sliding
adjustable door at the bottom. The doors can be controlled so that all are
open or
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only specific ones depending on which hopper is to be emptied. The amount of
opening can be controlled between fully closed and fully open to vary feed
rate. They are controlled via a single orbital motor 21 for each door. Each
motor
turns gear 20 that in turn moves the rack 19 that is attached to the doors to
control
the flow of product and to seal the horizontal auger at the time of clean out.
As shown in Figure 4, the closure door 135 of the hopper 132 moves to
a side of the tube opposite to the doors 134 and 136 of the hoppers 131 and
133.
This acts to balance the unloading.
The outlet 173 of the blower 17 is connected to an air supply system
22 including a splitter 221 feeding two separate hoses 223 and 224 and a
diverter
valve 222 operable by a slider 225 for selecting one or both of the hoses for
the
stream of air. The hose 224 extends from diverter valve 222 at the front end
14 of
the cart to the rear end 15 for connection to the rear end of the tube 161.
The hose
223 extends from the diverter valve 222 to the bottom end of the tube 162. As
best
shown in Figure 7, the hose 224 connects to an end wall 23 of the tube 161
where
there is provided a nozzle 24 which is arranged at the bottom of the tube 161
so that
the air stream from the hose passes longitudinally along the tube and
particularly
along the bottom part of that wall.
The nozzle 24 is thus mounted on the cart and arranged to direct the
stream of air toward a surface of the cart and in this case against the
surface of the
auger flight 167 within the tube 161. The injected air is forced by the flight
outwardly
against the inside surface of the tube and thus tends to swirl around the
outside
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edge of the flight at the tube acting to drive any collected material at this
location
along the tube to the discharge end thus cleaning out the whole tube
effectively and
completely. In one example the airflow can be of the order of 1400 cfm and is
arranged to pass through a pipe of the order of 2-3 inch diameter to a smaller
nozzle
at a pressure of around 15 psi into a 17 inch diameter auger tube and this has
been
found to provide full cleaning of any remaining material after the auger
flight has
carried out as much as it is able to do.
The hose 223 is connected at its end 226 to a second nozzle 241
similar to the nozzle 24 but located at the bottom end of the tube 162. This
acts to
inject the air into the tube at the bottom in the same manner to clean out the
tube
161.
A similar nozzle is mounted at the bottom of the incline auger and has
the same construction and operation as described above.
A hydraulically actuated slide gate 26 is mounted across the tube 161
at the junction with the tube 162 so that when the gate is actuated the duct
161 is
closed off from the duct 162 to prevent air injected into the tube 162 from
going
backwards into the tube 161.
The doors 134, 135 and 136 are controlled automatically according to
how much weight of product has left the tank while unloading. When a required
weight has been delivered or the hoppers are empty, the doors are closed and
the
horizontal auger is still running. This causes the majority of product
remaining in the
auger tube 161 to generally clean out. However there is always small amounts
of
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seed or fertilizer remaining in the auger. To completely clean this horizontal
auger
the blower 17 is now activated. To turn the blower on the system uses a
controlled idler (not shown) to tighten the belt 171 and start the blower
turning. The
air diverter valve 222 sends all of the air from the blower to the rear of the
machine
through hose 224 and forces it into the horizontal auger. While the auger is
turning
the forced air carries all remaining seeds and product to the inclined auger.
At this
point the hydraulic activated sliding gate 26 mounted between the horizontal
auger
and the incline auger is closed sealing the inclined auger tube 162 so that it
may be
blown out while the auger flight in the tube 162 is running. In order to have
the
sliding gate 26 at the front beyond the shaft 187, the shaft is driven from
the rear end
by the gear box 185 previously describe. Thus the two gearboxes 183, 185 are
mounted at the rear of the machine to turn the horizontal auger flight 187.
The air
diverter valve 222 now sends the air through the hose 223 to the base of the
inclined
auger tube 162 forcing air through it while the auger flight is running
carrying all
15 product out the top and completely cleaning it of all material. At this
point the blower
is deactivated and the auger flights stopped.
A shown in Figure 9, the spout 28 of the auger portion 163 includes an
upper spout portion 281 which is fixed to the auger portion 163 and discharges
downwardly at a horizontal ring 282 into a lower spout portion 284. The ring
282
defines an upstanding swivel axis 286 The portion 284 is inclined downwardly
and
outwardly from the axis 286 so as to form a downwardly facing mouth 285 spaced
by
a distance of the order of 24 inches from the axis. The lower portion is
rotatable
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around the axis 286 at the ring 282 so that the mouth follows an annular path
around
the axis 286. This allows the spout and particularly the mouth to discharge
vertically
downwardly at different locations and at different spacing from the side wall
of the
container.
There are two main functions of the doors 134, 135 and 136. One is to
control the flow of product flowing into the horizontal auger. The other is to
seal the
horizontal auger 167 so that while the auger is running and the air is turned
on no air
escapes out of the horizontal tube other than out the one end. The doors are
designed to leave the least amount of blank space between the flighting of the
auger
and the door when it is closed. This encourages the flow of air to be directed
in the
direction desired and not leave product suspended in the air between the
flighting
and the bottom side of a door (inside the auger). It also helps to maintain a
better air
pressure inside the horizontal tube.
Figure 5 shows a close up of one of the orbital motors which opens
and closes the door. It turns two to three spur gears (two are shown) per door
which
are seated into a rack. Using this system allows the doors to be opened evenly
and
easily. They can be opened partially or completely depending on the amount of
product flow the operator desires. Using this orbital motor/spur/rack system
will
allow the door to be closed quickly for an emergency stop or where the desired
amount of product has been dropped out of the hopper.
As shown in Figure 8, each door such as door 136 has bevelled front
edges 29 bevelled rearwardly and downwardly which cooperate with bevelled
edges
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30 at the side edge of the respective opening 139 to shed any resting
material. The
reason for those edges is so that material does not hang up along the edges of
the
door frames. If the edges were not bevelled, material would become lodged in
the
crevices of the door frame when the door is opened and material flows out.
Also
upon the door closing, product that is passing by the door will not become
pinched
or squashed along the edge of the door and door frame.
Above the doors on the inside of the hoppers as shown in Figure 1 is
provided a triangular or roof shaped cover 31 with an upstanding apex along
the
center of the cover. The cover is spaced from the bottom wall of the hopper so
that
the material slides under the cover to the underlying opening. It is commonly
used
to take the weight of material off the auger but will be used here to aid in
taking
some of the weight off of the doors so that they may be opened and closed
easier.
The doors 134, 135 and 136 can be opened and closed manually with
a hydraulic lever or they can be controlled via a remote which an operator can
use
while standing on the top of an air tank observing how full his seeding tank
is.
Once the operator has closed the door 134, 135, 136 of the hopper
that is presently being emptied, he can then remotely turn on the blower and
allow
the air to clean out the horizontal auger of remaining product. Then the gate
26
between the augers is closed as to seal both augers from each other. This
horizontal/vertical separator gate 26 s opened and closed with a hydraulic
cylinder
261 and can also be controlled remotely. Once again as above with the doors
this
gate is designed to allow the least amount of empty air space between the
flighting
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of the vertical auger and the gate. The surfaces of the frame of the gate is
also
angled downwardly to shed the material and so as to not allow material to hang
up
or become lodged in any crevice or ledges.
The blower turns at approximately 3600 rpm and is driven off of the
driveline that runs the main gearbox at the bottom of the incline auger. The
driveline
is driven by a tractor and PTO that turns at a rated speed of 1000 rpm. Belts
and
pulleys are used to achieve the proper speed of the blower. It puts out 1400
cfm at
around 12-15 psi. A silencer 175 is mounted near the air intake of the blower
for
operator comfort.
The air diverter valve 222 is used to direct the air flow from the blower
to either the horizontal auger or the vertical or incline auger. As the
control system
is activated and is closing, this valve will switch to direct air flow from
the horizontal
auger to the vertical auger. As the gate 26 is activated hydraulically then so
is this
diverter valve 222. They work in unison as when the gate is open air is always
diverted to the horizontal tube. As the gate is closed air will always be
diverted to
the incline auger.
At the top of the incline auger is a unique spout. The spout is designed
with a downward angle and can be turned to fill 2-3 hoppers of an air tank
from one
position. The turning of the spout is controlled electrically. An electric
motor turns a
worm gear which allows the spout to turn 360 degrees. So from one position of
the
incline auger the operator can turn the spout to fill one hole then spin it
remotely to
the next hole in the air tank. The spout is designed to direct product
vertically
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straight down as opposed to exiting the spout at an angle which competitors
do.
This will allow a more accurate placement of exiting product and will allow
proper
filling procedures of air tanks. Product leaving an inclined spout at an angle
to the
vertical acts fill one side of the air tank more than the other leaving empty
space and
an inconsistent load.
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