Abstract: A bucket elevator includes a continuous driven chain supporting inter-engaging buckets on swinging links. The links carry rollers which travel along guidance tracks which diverge from the track which guides the chain. Thus, the buckets pass around a curve of greater radius than the chain due to movement of the swinging links and will separate from each other while remaining horizontal.

Abstract: A bucket for attachment to the chain in a mill duty bucket elevator, includes a one piece wrapper member bent into a U-shaped trough defined by a sloping front wall, a horizontal bottom wall, an upright rear wall, a forwardly sloping rear wall, and a horizontal top lip. A rectangular hole in the wrapper plate defines the outside edges of a chain channel in which the chain lies when the bucket is fastened to the chain. Four side pieces having identical shapes and outside dimensions lie transversely across the trough to provide two end walls and two inside partitions. The partitions brace the front wall and act as side walls of the chain channel. A back plate fastened to the partitions and to the top lip and bottom wall adjacent the rectangular hole acts as the front face of the chain channel. The top lip, fastened to the two end walls and the two partitions, provides torsional stiffness to the bucket.

Abstract: A harvester comprising a vehicle (11) supported on wheels (12) and forming a loading platform (51) on which packers can stand to pack the produce in cartons. Wings (17, 18) extend from opposite sides of the vehicle and include hinged assemblies (22, 24) to allow folding for turning and road transportation. A continuous conveyor (50) extends the length of both wings and along the vehicle loading platform to carry produce from field level to be packed. The conveyor comprises a flexible cable (61) on which are suspended baskets (70) for carrying produce. A drive wheel (71) powers the cable and means are provided for moving this wheel relative to the vehicle to maintain the cable taut and make the conveyor operable in all positions of the wings.

Abstract: A system for evacuating sand, paraffin, and other particulate matter from an oil well, while simultaneously lifting the oil to the surface and stimulating its rate of production, comprises a series of transport units attached to an endless belt. The belt is positively driven between a wellhead station at the surface and a downhole module which is self centering within the well casing, thereby avoiding damage and wear to the casing. Preferably, the belt comprises a roller chain which enables the depth and rate of production of the evacuation system to be easily adjusted. The transport units are replaceably mounted on the belt and are specially designed to agitate and accumulate the particulate member in the oil well.

Abstract: A bucket elevator including a bucket having a bottom wall and an integral, upwardly-extending rear wall. The bottom wall includes a longitudinal slot therein which receives one of a plurality of links of an endless link chain. A shield is provided to cover each link to inhibit product being conveyed from passing between laterally-spaced side bars of the link.

Abstract: A continuous bucket elevator used in a method of separating coal according to its size and for cleaning refuse material from the coal in a Baum-type jigging apparatus wherein each bucket is connected to the adjacent bucket by a link received by a roll pin held by a bushing at each end in each bucket and the flange of a plate which is centrally welded to the bucket and has portions biased outwardly therefrom which merge into further portions having openings for receiving the roll pins, the diameter of the aligned openings in the further part, in the bushings, and in intervening link and the diameter of the roll pins being such so as to restrict wear due to the abrasive nature of the material being handled so that all components of the elevator wear out at about the same time and need not be replaced until after two or three cycles of use, each cycle being normally for seven and ten months.

Abstract: Apparatus for removing bulk material from dumps, mixed-bed installations or the like. The apparatus includes two horizontally spaced apart, parallel endless roller chains which have side bars and form substantially horizontal upper and lower courses. The chains are driven so that the lower courses move in a predetermined horizontal direction. A plurality of carrying elements are disposed between the chains, each carrying element comprises a frame secured to both chains at respective side bars thereof and a bottom secured to the lower courses to protrude from the frame substantially horizontally opposite to the predetermined horizontal direction and close to the bottom of the next adjacent carrying element. The frame and bottoms of the carrying elements define spaces which are open on both sides.

Abstract: A continuous conveyance system comprising a series of ship-shaped conveyance containers whereby bulk load is conveyed, two pairs of endless chains adapted to support and carry said conveyance containers at both front and rear portions thereof, said pairs of endless chains consisting of a pair of inner chains adapted to carry the front portion of each said container and a pair of outer chains adapted to carry the rear portion of said container, chain wheels around which said endless chains are passed, said chain wheels consisting of the inner chain wheels around which said inner endless chains are passed and the outer chain wheels around which said outer endless chains are passed, said both inner and outer chain wheels being secured to a common shaft at the rotatory section where the bulk load is received, the rotatory section where bulk load is dropped and the rotatory section where the direction of movement of the conveyance container is merely changed by 90.degree.

Abstract: In this assembly of conveyor elements each element is corrugated to comprise a regular series of alternating hollow portions and projecting portions to constitute bucket-like elements having each at one end a bellows structure and at the other end a plain end wall preferably higher in the center of the hollow portions than near the projecting portion; a transverse lip may be formed integrally on one side of the projecting portion, and the bottom of each element is secured to a link of a longitudinally non-extensive drive member, for instance a chain, the assembly of elements being adapted to undergo a certain deformation not only in directions at right angles to the longitudinal direction but also in any other direction. Two adjacent assemblies of elements may be imbricated with each other along their edges formed with plain end walls for clearing possible obstacles engaged therebetween.

Abstract: The buckets of a bucket elevator are attached to selected links of a drive chain by means of brackets on their bottom walls fastened to two projecting lugs on the chain links, the brackets being spaced further apart than the link pins securing the associated links to adjacent links. An apron on one transverse end wall of each bucket covers the gap between consecutive buckets during travel in a straight path.

Abstract: A dough proofing apparatus is for use in association with a dough forming apparatus having a dough piece receiving means which receives preformed dough pieces from a dough dividing machine and directs them toward a toroid forming apparatus wherein the proofing apparatus includes dough conveyance means for receiving and conveying dough pieces in a proofing mode of travel through a closed loop path of travel of the conveyor belt between generally adjacent dough entry and dough exit locations on the toroid forming apparatus. The conveyance belt is passed over vertically spaced pulleys with dough pieces retained thereon by adjacent dough support means on the conveyance belt which cooperate to form open-ended cage-like dough retaining receptacles for dough pieces as they travel on the conveyance means over and about the vertically spaced pulleys.