Abstract: A plate filter press has a horizontal guide carrier extending in the length dimension of the plate filter press; a plurality of vertically oriented filter plates shiftably supported on the guide carrier; and a filter plate shifting apparatus for individually displacing the filter plates from a closed side towards an open side of the press. The filter plate shifting apparatus has a motor driving a traveling carrier element and filter plate engaging elements mounted on the traveling carrier element. There is further provided a displacement sensor for emitting signals in response to the motion of the filter plate engaging elements and a monitoring and control device connected to the displacement sensor for receiving its signals for determining the position of the successive traveling paths of the filter plate engaging elements with respect to the guide carrier to determine the required displacement characteristics for each filter plate.

Abstract: A filter press has a support frame; a plurality of face-to-face oriented filter plates movable towards and away from one another and forming a filter plate stack; a closing device connected to the filter plates for exerting thereon a pressure with which the filter plates are urged to one another; a closing pressure regulator coupled to the closing device; a stationarily supported path-sensing signal transmitter connected to the closing device; and a sensor arm connected at least indirectly to one of the filter plates for displacing the sensor arm by, and as a function of the motion of, that filter plate. The sensor arm is coupled to the path-sensing signal transmitter for controlling the closing pressure of the closing device by the signal transmitter as a function of the position of the sensor arm.