Automation of an air-screen seed cleaner
First Claim
1. An improved cleaning system for separating lighter material from heavier material in a mixture of particulate materials, the system including an inlet for receiving the mixture, an outlet for discharging heavier material, and a vacuum air-lift means between the inlet and the outlet for separating the lighter material from the heavier material, the air-lift means having a spout for collecting the lighter material and having a first gate movable between a normal closed position for maintaining the vacuum of the air-lift means and a second open position for discharging the lighter material, the improvement comprising:
- a second gate in said air-lift spout mounted upstream from the first gate and being movable between a normal open position when the first gate is closed and a closed position when the first gate is open; and
a sensor for sensing the quantity of lighter material separated by the air-lift means, the sensor being mounted in the spout downstream from the second gate so that when the second gate is in the open position, the lighter material separated by the air-lift means enters the spout and passes the second gate for sensing by the sensor.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A cleaning system is provided for separating desired material from undesirable material in a mixture of particulate materials. The system includes an inlet for receiving the mixture of materials and an outlet for discharging the desired materials. At least one screen is provided for separating undersized material from oversized material within the mixture, and at least one vacuum air-lift is provided for separating the lighter material from the heavier material within the mixture. A first sensor is mounted below the discharge end of the screen for sensing the quantity of undersized material separated by the screen and a second sensor is mounted in the air-lift for sensing the quantity of lighter materials separated by the air-lift. The signals generated by the sensors can be received by a processing unit which adjusts the extent of separation by the screen and by the air-lift to achieve the desired efficiency of the cleaning system.
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Citations
16 Claims
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1. An improved cleaning system for separating lighter material from heavier material in a mixture of particulate materials, the system including an inlet for receiving the mixture, an outlet for discharging heavier material, and a vacuum air-lift means between the inlet and the outlet for separating the lighter material from the heavier material, the air-lift means having a spout for collecting the lighter material and having a first gate movable between a normal closed position for maintaining the vacuum of the air-lift means and a second open position for discharging the lighter material, the improvement comprising:
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a second gate in said air-lift spout mounted upstream from the first gate and being movable between a normal open position when the first gate is closed and a closed position when the first gate is open; and a sensor for sensing the quantity of lighter material separated by the air-lift means, the sensor being mounted in the spout downstream from the second gate so that when the second gate is in the open position, the lighter material separated by the air-lift means enters the spout and passes the second gate for sensing by the sensor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for separating desire material from undesirable material in a mixture of particulate materials, comprising:
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introducing the mixture onto a first screen means for separating undersized material from oversized material within the mixture, the screen means having a feed end and a discharge end; sensing the quantity of undersized material separated by the screen means adjacent the discharge end thereof and generating a signal corresponding to such quantity; depositing the oversized material into an air-lift means for separating lighter material from heavier materials within the oversized materials; sensing the quantity of lighter materials separated by the air-lift means and generating a signal corresponding to such quantity; adjusting the extent of separation by the screen means and the extent of separation by the air-lift means in response to the respective generated signals so as to achieve a desired cleaning efficiency; and sampling the separated lighter materials to determine the quality thereof. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of separating an undesired portion from a desired portion of a mixture of various size, shape and weight materials, comprising the steps of:
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feeding material into a separator means at a first rate of feed;
separating at least some of the undesirable portion of the material from the desirable portion of material in the separator means;sensing the quantity of undesirable material which is separated from the desirable material in the separator means; adjusting at least one of the set of feed rate of the material and separation of the material to change the separation process; and sampling the separated undesirable portion of materials to determine the quality thereof.
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Specification