Abstract: A bucket and a corresponding bucket elevator, the bucket has a bucket wall surrounding a filling and discharge opening and having a rear wall and a front bucket wall, the front bucket wall having a front edge delimiting the filling and discharge opening, and the bucket being connectable to a conveyor device via the rear wall, wherein the ratio between the bucket depth, which corresponds to the horizontal distance between the rear wall and the front edge, and the bucket height, which corresponds to the vertical distance between a bucket low point and the front edge, is greater than 1, preferably greater than 1.3, more preferably greater than 1.5.

Abstract: A particulate pump includes a posimetric rotary drive that has a hub affixed to a pair of discs. The posimetric rotary drive and chain together provides a working surface for a coal plug against a wall. A chain has a plurality of overlapping links and is integral with the hub.

Abstract: A belt conveyor and a crushing unit includes a conveying upper run presenting a feed end and a discharge end, and a return lower run, with the conveying upper end including a curved extension, which is concave and ascending and presents an inlet lower portion and an outlet upper portion of the conveying upper run, where the belt conveyor imparts to the material a path that is substantially coplanar and opposite in relation to that imparted to the material in the inlet portion, and with ascending curved path presenting at a determined belt speed, a centrifugal force sufficient to maintain the material seated against the curved extension of the conveying upper run until reaching the discharge end.

Abstract: A material transporting system comprises a material transporting apparatus (100) including a material transporting apparatus hopper structure (200, 202), which comprises at least one rotary transporting apparatus; a stationary hub structure (900) constraining and assisting the at least one rotary transporting apparatus; an outlet duct configuration (700) configured to permit material to exit therefrom and comprising at least one diverging portion (702, 702?); an outlet abutment configuration (800) configured to direct material to the outlet duct configuration; an outlet valve assembly from the material transporting system venting the material transporting system; and a moving wall configuration in the material transporting apparatus capable of assisting the material transporting apparatus in transporting material in the material transporting system.

Abstract: A cargo loading apparatus and method tightly and efficiently disperse material pieces such as wood chips into a cargo space. The loading apparatus includes an elongated symmetrical body such as an elongated cylinder having vanes or blades along the surface thereof. The apparatus is mounted across the stream of material pieces. As the body rotates through the stream of pieces, the vanes strike the pieces and disperse them within the cargo space. In one embodiment the vanes are mounted parallel to the axis of rotation of the apparatus and thus disperse the pieces primarily in a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation. In another embodiment, at least some of the vanes are mounted at an angle with respect to the axis of rotation and thus disperse the materials in a fan-shaped pattern. The vanes can include a detachable wear plate mounted to a support bracket which may be readily replaced without having to repair or replace other parts of the apparatus.

Abstract: An agricultural harvesting machine that comprises a crop processing mechanism and an elevator assembly for conveying harvested crop material to the crop processing mechanism is provided. The elevator assembly comprises an elevator housing, an elevator mechanism mounted in the housing, at least two flexible endless members, and a plurality of slats mounted transversely to the flexible members. The slats have an S-shaped cross section that provides additional strength tot the slats while reducing the chance of damage to the crop conveyed by these slats.

Abstract: A device for controlling the conveyance of particulate material on a conveyor belt comprises a frame with an endless belt attached thereto. The apparatus is positioned above the conveyor belt and in frictional contact therewith whereby the motion of the conveyor results in motion of the endless belt on the apparatus. The particulate material thereby is passes between the endless belt and the conveyor belt and any bouncing movement of such material is prevented. Use of the present invention on conventional conveyor belts controls the dispersion of the particulate material carried thereon and allows for the speed of the conveyor to be increased. The present invention is suitable for use with a conveyor apparatus used with a truck and commonly known as a “stone slinger”.

Abstract: A carrier (4) with articles (2) provided thereon is moved quickly toward a package (3) and is slowed down at the package (3) such that by utilizing the articles (2) kinetic energy, they slide off the carrier (4) and move into the package (3). The carrier (4) can thus be returned to an article receiving position during the feed-in process for the articles (2) in order to receive new articles (2), which can be, for example filled tubular bags.

Abstract: There is provided an apparatus which can simplify, expedite and enhance the segregation of undesirable particles from desirable particles in a multiple-layer flow wherein the desirable and undesirable particles are randomly intermixed with each other. This is accomplished by a stepwise reduction of the thickness of the flow to thus locate all or nearly all undesirable particles at or close to the exposed sides of the resulting relatively thin flow so that the undesirable particles can be readily detected and segregated from the thin flow.

Abstract: The present invention relates to sorting apparatuses and sorting methods. According to one aspect of the present invention, a sorting apparatus includes an intake section configured to receive plural articles to be sorted; an exhaust section located downstream of the intake section; and an air manifold adjacent the intake section and positioned to emit an air stream in a generally downstream direction and wherein the articles move in a given direction of movement, and the emitted air stream sorts at least some articles from remaining articles and directs the at least some articles in the downstream direction from the intake section to the exhaust section.

Abstract: A bulk product stabilization conveyor 10 is described having a continuous-length wide belt 30 extending in an upper flight 44 and in a lower flight 46 between an infeed end 32 and an outfeed end 34. The outfeed end 34 is elevationally below the infeed end 32 and the distance between the infeed end 32 and outfeed end 34 is such that the upper flight 44 is slack with the upper flight forming a dynamic catenary profile as it is being driven at a high velocity in excess of 400 feet per minute and preferably between 400-800 feet per minute. The upper flight 44 has an inclined downward and forward section 52 adjacent the infeed end that has an inclination of between 30 and 45 degrees to initially receive a wide swath of articles from an article feeder 14. The upper flight 44 has an intermediate section 54 with a progressively decreasing radius of curvatures to progressively apply an increasing centrifugal force on the articles to stabilize the articles on the high velocity upper flight.

Abstract: A grain sorting apparatus includes a conveyor belt mechanism for conveying grains, fed by a feed mechanism onto a conveying surface separately from each other at an upstream region with respect to a conveying direction, to a downstream end so that the grains are discriminated and sorted by a discriminating mechanism and a sorting mechanism when dropping from the downstream end along a predetermined path, the belt mechanism being disposed so that the conveying surface thereof declines as going downstream with respect to the conveying direction to prevent the grains being carried by the belt mechanism from rolling toward the upstream direction on the conveying surface of the belt mechanism. It is therefore possible to prevent the grains from rolling on the conveying surface of the conveyor belt mechanism toward the upstream direction relative to the conveying surface of the conveyor belt even when a conveying velocity of the conveyor belt mechanism is high.

Abstract: A moving walkway comprising at least one fiat slider belt (6) entrained around rollers (8) and a termination plate (2) at the discharge end of the belt (6). The termination plate (2) may be an end plate or a transfer plate. The configuration of the termination plate (2) is such in relation to the speed of the belt (6) and diameter of the end roller (8) that an object travelling at the speed of the belt and leaving the belt will strike the plate at a position downstream of the leading edge (4) of the plate. The leading edge (4) of the plate is so shaped that it defines with the adjacent portion of the belt (6) a nip (10) of small depth in a vertical direction and which permits easy removal of any material which might happen to become ingested into the gap between the leading edge (4) of the plate (2) and the belt (6).

Abstract: An improved apparatus for transporting and metering particulate material including a transport duct having an inlet, an outlet, and at least one moving surface located therebetween having a downstream facing drive surface. The apparatus further includes drive device for moving the moving surface between the inlet and the outlet towards the outlet, and compacting the particulate material sufficiently to cause the formation of a bridge composed of substantially interlocking particulate spanning the width of the transport duct. The apparatus is used to transport and meter particulate material under ambient conditions and against pressure.

Abstract: The material slinger includes an upper section with feed hopper suitable for rotatably connecting to a vertically disposed feed chute or tube. Affixed below the feed hopper is a pivotal main body which can be repositioned to alter the angle of the dispensed material. The material is fed from the feed hopper to a funnel shaped hopper in the main body where it is directed onto the curved surface of a high speed rotating throwing belt. The belt, along with the positionable main body, allows the material to be thrown a significant distance and at a wide range of readily changed angles. Also included is an air vent located between the feed hopper and funnel hopper which allows free circulation of air into and or out of the material feed path. The air vent serves as a pressure relief and a vacuum preventing arrangement depending upon the circumstances of material flow.

Abstract: An opaque foreign article sorting apparatus which can sort an opaque foreign article during dropping from a conveyor precisely with a high degree of accuracy. Objects including transparent bodies in which opaque foreign articles may mix are scanned, during dropping, horizontally linearly with a laser beam, and reflected light is detected by a CCD image sensor. Whether an object scanned is a transparent body or an opaque foreign article is judged at each CCD block including N CCDs, and when an opaque foreign article is judged at a CCD block, air is jetted from a corresponding nozzle block and adjacent nozzle blocks to blow off the object.

Abstract: An arrangement for transferring castable material without pipes or conduits from a feeding point to a destination, particularly in underground mining. The arrangement includes a driven centrifugal wheel with blades. The centrifugal wheel is radially open and is surrounded in the manner of a jacket by an endless housing belt which is guided on guide rollers. The portion of the centrifugal wheel which is radially open is bordered by the guide roller which causes the housing belt to contact the centrifugal wheel and by the guide roller which raises the housing belt from the centrifugal wheel. The material is radially discharged in a concentrated manner through this radially open portion. The material is supplied axially to the centrifugal wheel through a feed tube and enters through a discharge opening of the feed tube on the vertical level of the blades into the centrifugal wheel.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for the high volume loading of produce or other material into a bulk container such as a truck or rail car. The invention includes an endless belt driven across the opening of a hopper, and a driven rotor assembly utilizing a series of semi-flexible loops to urge the material to be loaded into engagement with the belt. The radially disposed portions of these loops provides an essentially continuous yet flexible circumferential surface for contact with the material being moved. The cooperation of these loops with the belt gives the flexibility to accommodate various sizes of material, and yet provide sufficient contact with the material to forcefully and accurately propel it from a discharge chute into the bulk container.

Abstract: A tracked vehicle is tethered so that as it skids on a pile of bulk material, the cleated tracks transfer the material toward the tethered end. The tethering rope hitch point on the vehicle is translatable laterally to effect controlled sideward skiding for sweeping bulk material from a wide area and is located at one end above the vehicle center of gravity so that the vehicle can be lowered by the tethering rope through narrow openings in storage chambers yet come to rest upright. The tracks comprise cleated endless belts coupled to endless wire ropes at the end pulleys by resilient rail members made of two rows of discrete blocks bolted to the belts which are wedged against the wire ropes by grooves in the pulleys so that tension induced in the wire ropes resists the lateral forces tending to cause the belts to creep along the pulleys.

Abstract: The thrower is attached to the discharge end of a baler in position to receive bales successively issuing therefrom. A pair of generally superimposed conveyors of the thrower operate at relatively high speeds compared to the speed at which the bales issue from the baler, and as the leading end of each bale enters the awaiting thrower, the high speed conveyors grab the bale and propel it upwardly and rearwardly toward an awaiting receptacle such as a trailing wagon. The upper conveyor is so mounted that it clamps down in a self-actuating manner against the bale as the latter enters the thrower and makes engagement with the propelling surfaces of the conveyors, such clamping action arising from the reaction force generated by the slowly moving bale contacting the rapidly moving surface of the upper conveyor.

Abstract: An improved bale thrower for use with a hay baler is disclosed. The thrower affixes to the discharge end of the bale case of the baler and can be selectively pivoted vertically about at least one horizontal axis between a first operative position for directionally ejecting bales and a second inoperative position which allows the bales to be deposited directly on the ground behind the baler.

Abstract: An inertial bulk material dispensing device for transporting and propellantly dispensing bulk material including an endless belt movably supported along a conveyor path, an impeller wheel drivingly positioned to engage the endless belt and to drive the same at a high linear velocity along said path so that as bulk material, such as wheat, sand, salt or any other like bulk material is presented to said belt, it is rapidly transported by said belt along said path and propelled to a predisposed location.

Abstract: Method for the manufacturing of molded products from pre-formed clods of kneadable material in which the preformed clods are transported to a molding station, whereat molds are supplied in succession at a lower level. A stationary guide is disposed above the molds for receiving a clod and vertically guiding the same for discharge at a pre-determined velocity into a waiting mold where the clod substantially fills the mold of its own accord.