Bulk bed

• US 4,055,265 A
• Filed: 09/10/1976
• Issued: 10/25/1977
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/1976
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Leonard J. Eisenman
• Original Assignee: Leonard J. Eisenman
• Inventors: Eisenman, Leonard J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheridan, Robert G.
• Application Number:
  US05/722,040
• Time in Patent Office: 410 Days
• Field of Search: 214/17 D, 214/83.18, 214/83.2, 214/83.36, 198/802, 198/844, 198/847
• US Class Current: 414/327
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 1/38 forming the main load-transporting element or part thereof B60P1/365 takes precedence

Abstract

A bulk bed for receiving and discharging bulk quantities of articles such as sugar beets, potatoes, grain, and other material that may be stored in bulk condition. The bulk bed includes an upwardly open bin having downwardly converging side walls. An endless conveyor belt extends along a bottom wall of the bin. It is utilized to urge the material toward a discharge end of the bin. Material exits through a door at one end of the bin. The conveyor belt is made up of a multiplicity of overlapped sections of belting material that are rigidly connected at their leading edges to an endless chain. The chain is in meshing engagement with sprockets at opposite ends of the bin. The belting sections include trailing edges that are not fixed to the chains and are thus able to drop clear of the chain as it moves around the conveyor discharge end. This feature serves to clear dirt and other material from the area beneath the belt working flight and to prevent binding of the chain links. The trailing edges of the belt sections overlap the adjacent leading edges of successive belt sections in order to form a continuous flat surface across the full length of the bed. One of two doors may be opened at the rearward end of the bed to enable discharge of material in response to movement of the conveyor working flight toward the discharge end. Thus, bulk material may be quickly and efficiently discharge from the bin.

Claims

1. A bulk bed for receiving and discharging loads of bulk agricultural products, comprising:

a central elongated floor having a horizontal upper surface bounded by parallel side edges;

a pair of longitudinal side walls converging downwardly and inwardly to the respective side edges of the floor;

upright front and rear end walls joined to the side walls at the respective opposite ends thereof;

said floor, side walls and front and rear end walls presenting an upwardly open bin for the storage or transport of bulk agricultural products;

access means formed at the rear end wall and leading upward from the floor for selectively opening the interior of the bin at the rear end thereof for discharging bulk agricultural products therefrom;

drive sprocket means rotatably mounted to said bin about a transverse horizontal axis adjacent the rear end wall;

idler sprocket means rotatably mounted to said bin about a transverse horizontal axis adjacent the front end wall;

endless chain conveyor means entrained in meshing engagement about said drive sprocket means and said idler sprocket means, thereby forming coplanar working flights slidably supported along the full length of the floor adjacent the side edges thereof and parallel return flights beneath said floor, the working flights leading from a forward end at said idler sprocket means to a rear discharge end at said drive sprocket means;

power means operatively connected to said drive sprocket means for moving said endless chain conveyor means in a direction such that the working flights move rearwardly along the floor;

a plurality of flexible conveyor belt sections fixed to said endless chain conveyor means and covering the working flights thereof, each belt section along the working flights having a leading edge facing toward the rear end wall and fastened to said chain conveyor means and a free trailing edge facing toward the front end wall and loosely lapped over the leading edge of a successive belt section located adjacent to it along the working flight of said endless chain conveyor means;

transverse support bars mounted to said endless chain conveyor means at longitudinally spaced locations thereon for supporting the overlapped belt sections as they move along the working flight; and

supporting plate means fixed below and parallel to the floor, said plate means extending substantially the full length of the floor and having an upper surface leading to a downwardly bent rear section positioned forwardly adjacent to the rear discharge end of the conveyor working flight, said supporting plate means being adapted to be slidably engaged by successive belt sections on the endless chain conveyor means after movement over said drive sprocket means for shifting the belt sections to an overlapped condition and supporting them in such condition as they move along the return flights of said chain conveyor means to said idler sprocket means.

2. The bulk bed as recited by claim 1 wherein the rear end wall is pivotably hinged to one side wall to form a portion of said access means and wherein the access means further includes a door formed in the rear end wall adjacent the rearward end of the conveyor working flight.

3. The bulk bed as recited by claim 1 further comprising transverse belt section mounting bars fixed to the chain conveyor at longitudinal spaces thereon for receiving and fixedly mounting the leading edges of the belt sections.

4. The bulk bed as recited by claim 3 wherein the chain conveyor means is comprised of two laterally spaced endless chains interconnected for simultaneous movement by the transverse support bars and belt section mounting bars and wherein the drive and idler sprocket means includes rotatable sprockets in meshing engagement with the endless chains.