Patents by Inventor Michael Ray Thomas

Michael Ray Thomas has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20210145040
    Abstract: A system according to various embodiments can include a source for supplying a material to be treated, an extruder, at least two screws, and a drive coupled to the screws for axially rotating the screws. The extruder includes an inlet for receiving the material, which is fed therein in a controlled manner. The screws are provided within the housing of the extruder. The screws have a plurality of compression and release stages that create mechanical heat which is directly applied to the material to change the mechanical properties of the material thereby facilitating a conversion of a physical state of the material from a non-compactable state to a compactable state as the screws rotate and move the material longitudinally along the screws to produce a final product, for example, a feed tub for use as an animal feed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 15, 2020
    Publication date: May 20, 2021
    Applicant: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Patent number: 10960632
    Abstract: A process for producing a substantially dry product, according to various embodiments, may include receiving wet grain at a first screw The process includes receiving the wet grain at a second screw from the first screw. The process includes compressing the wet grain between the first screw and the second screw and dehydrating the wet grain when the wet grain is located within at least one zone of the first screw and the second screw to cause a physical property change to the wet grain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2021
    Assignee: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Patent number: 10863765
    Abstract: A system according to various embodiments can include a source for supplying a material to be treated, an extruder, at least two screws, and a drive coupled to the screws for axially rotating the screws. The extruder includes an inlet for receiving the material, which is fed therein in a controlled manner. The screws are provided within the housing of the extruder. The screws have a plurality of compression and release stages that create mechanical heat which is directly applied to the material to change the mechanical properties of the material thereby facilitating a conversion of a physical state of the material from a non-compactable state to a compactable state as the screws rotate and move the material longitudinally along the screws to produce a final product, for example, a feed tub for use as an animal feed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2020
    Assignee: NATIONWIDE 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Publication number: 20200147916
    Abstract: A device according to various embodiments for preparing wet grain can include at least a first screw configured to receive wet grain. A second screw receives the wet grain from the first screw. At least one of a compressing element and a dehydrating element is included with at least one of the first screw and the second screw to cause a physical property change to the wet grain.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Publication date: May 14, 2020
    Applicant: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Patent number: 10500805
    Abstract: A substantially dry product is produced by a process comprising the steps of: removing moisture from a raw material having a first moisture content to produce the substantially dry final product having a final moisture content; (b) advancing the raw material longitudinally along and between at least a first screw and a second screw comprising at least a compression zone and a dehydrating zone which are arranged successively within the first and second screws; and (c) entrapping and removing a predetermined percentage of moisture as the raw material moves through the compression zone and dehydrating zone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2019
    Assignee: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Publication number: 20180370171
    Abstract: A device according to various embodiments for preparing wet grain can include at least a first screw configured to receive wet grain. A second screw receives the wet grain from the first screw. At least one of a compressing element and a dehydrating element is included with at least one of the first screw and the second screw to cause a physical property change to the wet grain.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2017
    Publication date: December 27, 2018
    Applicant: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Publication number: 20170313013
    Abstract: A device according to various embodiments for preparing wet grain can include at least a first screw configured to receive wet grain. A second screw receives the wet grain from the first screw. At least one of a compressing element and a dehydrating element is included with at least one of the first screw and the second screw to cause a physical property change to the wet grain.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2017
    Publication date: November 2, 2017
    Applicant: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Publication number: 20170258125
    Abstract: A system according to various embodiments can include a source for supplying a material to be treated, an extruder, at least two screws, and a drive coupled to the screws for axially rotating the screws. The extruder includes an inlet for receiving the material, which is fed therein in a controlled manner. The screws are provided within the housing of the extruder. The screws have a plurality of compression and release stages that create mechanical heat which is directly applied to the material to change the mechanical properties of the material thereby facilitating a conversion of a physical state of the material from a non-compactable state to a compactable state as the screws rotate and move the material longitudinally along the screws to produce a final product, for example, a feed tub for use as an animal feed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 26, 2017
    Publication date: September 14, 2017
    Applicant: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Patent number: 9750268
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for processing grain material to generate a consistently high densified grain with a desired length, shape and size. The densified grain processing apparatus comprises a die assembly, a cooling assembly and a break-off assembly. The method includes receiving the grain material by the die assembly and forcing the grain material through an extrusion passageway that evenly distributes the grain material into a plurality of orifices thereby producing a high density shaped grain before the grain material exits the die assembly. A coolant is pumped to a coolant passage by means of an at least one pump and cools the shaped grain by passing the shaped grain through at least one of the cooling tube inside a cooling chamber. The break-off assembly then breaks off a predetermined length of the shaped grain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: NATIONWIDE 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Patent number: 9738047
    Abstract: An animal feed producing system comprises a compression screw assembly. The compression screw assembly includes at least a first screw, a second screw and a plurality of barrels. The first and second screws include a plurality of flights and roots. The plurality of screws is configured such that they include a plurality of sections. Each section comprises a set of plurality of flights and a plurality of roots configured to perform a specific compression function, such as perpendicular compression and lateral compression.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: Nationwide 5, LLC
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas
  • Publication number: 20170087790
    Abstract: An animal feed producing system comprises a compression screw assembly. The compression screw assembly includes at least a first screw, a second screw and a plurality of barrels. The first and second screws include a plurality of flights and roots. The plurality of screws is configured such that they include a plurality of sections. Each section comprises a set of plurality of flights and a plurality of roots configured to perform a specific compression function, such as perpendicular compression and lateral compression.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2015
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventor: Michael Ray Thomas