Air lock

• US 4,259,032 A
• Filed: 01/15/1979
• Issued: 03/31/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Rothmans of Pall Mall Canada Ltd (Philip Morris Limited)
• Original Assignee: Rothmans of Pall Mall Canada Ltd (Philip Morris Limited)
• Inventors: Kuhner, Albert
• Primary Examiner(s): Rowland, James L.
• Application Number:
  US06/003,290
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• Field of Search: 406/62, 406/63, 406/64, 406/65, 406/66, 406/67, 406/128, 406/154, 406/169
• US Class Current: 406/62
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 53/4633 the element having pockets, rotated from charging position to discharging position, i.e. discrete flow

Abstract

An air lock for discharge of solid particulate material, for example, cut tobacco, from a vacuum line to atmospheric pressure conditions without ingress of air to the vacuum line consists of a radially bladed rotor, an upper inlet, a lower outlet and arcuate side walls, located between and connected to the inlet and outlet, in engagement with the radial extremities of the rotor blades. The side walls are made flexible so that the vacuum in the vacuum line acting through the inlet draws the side walls into sealing engagement with the radial extremities of the rotor blades.

Claims

1. An air lock for the discharge of solid particulate material from a vacuum-conveyed stream thereof while preventing the ingress of air to the stream, comprising:

a hollow enclosed housing,

upper inlet means to said housing for receipt of said particulate material from said vacuum-conveyed stream, the lateral extremities of said inlet means being defined by first enlongate mounting means,

lower outlet means from said housing for discharge of said particulate material therefrom, the lateral extremities of said outlet means being defined by second mounting means,

rotor means mounted in said housing in fluid flow relationship with both said inlet means and said outlet means for transfer of said particulate material therebetween,

said rotor means having a rotatable hub means and a plurality of radially-projecting rigid blade means mounted to said hub means comprising at least four angularly spaced blade means, the axis of rotation of said hub means extending generally parallel to said lateral extremities of said inlet means and said outlet means,

arcuate wall means mounted on opposite lateral sides of said rotor means and having a center of curvature which is substantially the axis of rotation of said rotor means,

said arcuate wall means being constructed of semirigid or rigid material and having curvilinear extremities,

said arcuate wall means being flexibly mounted within said housing for engagement with the radial extremities of said blade means exposed to said vacuum,

said flexible mounting for each said arcuate wall means being effected by a first flexible material strip joined to one of said first elongate mounting means and joined to the adjacent curvilinear extremity of said arcuate wall means and by a second flexible material strip joined to one of said second elongate mounting means and joined to the adjacent curvilinear extremity of said arcuate wall means.

3. The air lock of claims 1 or 2 wherein said rigid blade means each has a wear-resistant low-friction material element mounted thereto and constituting the radial extremity thereof.

2. An air lock for the discharge of solid particulate material from a vacuum-conveyed stream thereof while preventing the ingress of air to the stream, comprising:

a hollow enclosed housing,

upper inlet means to said housing for receipt of said particulate material from said vacuum conveyed stream, the lateral extremities of said inlet means being defined by first elongate mounting means,

lower outlet means from said housing for discharge of said particulate material therefrom, the lateral extremities of said outlet means being defined by second mounting means,

rotor means mounted in said housing in fluid flow relationship with both said inlet means and outlet means for transfer of said particulate material therebetween,

said rotor means having a rotatable hub means and a plurality of radially-projecting rigid blade means mounted to said hub means comprising at least four angularly-spaced blade means,

the axis of rotation of said hub means extending generally parallel to said lateral extremities of said inlet means and said outlet means,

arcuate wall means mounted on opposite lateral sides of said rotor means and having a center of curvature which is substantially the axis of rotation of said rotor means,

said arcuate wall means being constructed wholly of resiliently flexible sheet metal material and having curvilinear extremities,

said arcuate wall means being flexibly mounted in said housing for engagement with the radial extremities of said blade means exposed to vacuum,

each said arcuate wall means being flexibly moved within said housing by planar strips of said resiliently flexible material integrally connected to the curvilinear extremities of said arcuate wall means and rigidly mounted respectively to one of said first elongate mounting means and to one of said second elongate mounting means.