Bin unloading apparatus

• US 5,511,925 A
• Filed: 11/07/1994
• Issued: 04/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Muth, Gordon E.
• Original Assignee: Muth, Gordon E.
• Inventors: Muth, Gordon E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Werner, Frank E.
• Application Number:
  US08/336,735
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 414/304, 414/310, 414/311, 414/312, 414/287, 414/306, 414/307, 414/208, 414/309, 414/305, 414/313, 414/317, 414/318, 414/319, 414/320, 414/321, 414/322, 414/325, 414/326 , 414/133, 198/550.1, 198/550.01, 198/550.2, 198/550.5, 198/550.6, 222/410, 222/411, 222/412, 222/413
• US Class Current: 414/310
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 65/466 arranged to be movable

Abstract

A bin unloading apparatus includes a housing attachable to a bin floor. The housing has an interior cavity, a rotatable lower portion with an intake opening, and a stationary upper portion with an output opening. A sweep auger is secured to the rotatable lower portion of the housing. The sweep auger has a first end extending through the intake opening and a second end. The rotatable portion of the housing rotates as the sweep auger moves radially about the housing. A discharge auger trough is secured to the stationary upper portion of the housing. A discharge auger is disposed in the discharge auger trough. The discharge auger has a first end extending through the output opening and a second end. As the sweep auger moves radially around the housing material is moved by the sweep auger through the intake opening into the interior cavity of the housing. A vertical lift auger is disposed in the interior cavity of the housing having a lower end and an upper end. The lower end is connected through a first gear box with the first end of the sweep auger. The upper end is connected through a second gear box with the first end of the discharge auger. A drive device disposed exterior of the bin is secured to the second end of the discharge auger to rotate the discharge auger, the vertical lift auger, and the sweep auger.

Claims

1. A bin unloading apparatus comprising:

a bin having a bin floor and a peripheral bin wall;

a housing attached to the bin floor, the housing defining an interior cavity and having a lower portion rotatable about a vertical axis of the housing with an intake opening and a stationary upper portion with an output opening;

a sweep auger secured to the rotatable lower portion of the housing, the sweep auger having a sweep auger flight with a first end extending through the intake opening and a second end, the rotatable portion rotating as the sweep auger rotates about the axis;

a shroud covering the sweep auger flight, the shroud having an elongate intake aperture facing a direction of travel of the sweep auger, such that as the sweep auger moves radially material passes through the elongate intake aperture and is moved by the sweep auger along a passage defined by the shroud through the intake opening into the interior cavity of the housing;

a discharge auger having a hollow tubular discharge auger tube connected to the housing and a discharge auger flight, the discharge auger having a first end extending through the output opening and a second end;

a vertical lift auger flight disposed in the interior cavity of the housing having a lower end and an upper end, the lower end being connected through a first gear box with the first end of the sweep auger flight;

a closure on the top of the upper portion of the housing movable between a closed position and an open position such that when the closure is in the open position material falls from above onto the first end of the discharge auger flight;

an activation rod having a first end secured to the closure and a second end disposed outside of the bin whereby the closure is movable between the closed and open positions from outside of the bin;

drive means disposed exteriorly of the bin for driving the second end of the discharge auger flight and the upper end of the vertical lift auger;

the upper portion of the housing including a first cylindrical part closely coaxially surrounding the vertical lift auger flight, a second cylindrical part closely coaxially surrounding the discharge auger flight and a third part intermediate the first and second parts which, in a vertical cross-section containing the axes of the vertical lift auger and the discharge auger, defines a surface interconnecting the first and second parts which is smoothly curved and extends to a height above the second cylindrical part.

2. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the surface defines substantially an arc of a circle.

3. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the surface extends to a position spaced outwardly from the discharge auger tube to a distance greater than that of the second cylindrical part.

4. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the third part defines substantially a part of a sphere.

5. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the third part is arranged so as to define a substantially smooth transition between each part of the periphery of the first part and the second part.

6. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the vertical lift auger flight is of a larger diameter than the sweep auger flight.

7. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the intake aperture of the shroud is substantially continuous along the length of the sweep auger flight and wherein there is provided a movable flow regulator member that restricts the size of the elongate intake aperture on the shroud, the member comprising an elongate flap member extending substantially along the full length of the sweep auger flight with the flap member being movable in a direction transverse to the length to increase and decrease a distance of a bottom edge of the flap member from the bin floor.

8. The bin unloading apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the discharge auger flight has a hollow drive tube and a secondary shaft extends through the hollow drive tube, the secondary shaft having a first end connected to a second gear box at an upper end of the vertical lift auger flight and a second end extending to adjacent the second end of the discharge auger, and wherein there is provided a transverse coupling pin for non-rotatably coupling the secondary shaft with the hollow drive tube of the discharge auger flight, such that, when the secondary shaft is non-rotatably coupled with the hollow drive tube of the discharge auger flight, the vertical lift auger flight and the sweep auger flight rotate with the discharge auger flight and, when the coupling pin is removed, the discharge auger flight rotates while the vertical lift auger flight and the sweep auger flight remain stationary.

9. A bin unloading apparatus comprising:

a bin having a bin floor and a peripheral bin wall;

a housing attached to the bin floor, the housing defining an interior cavity and having a lower portion rotatable about a vertical axis of the housing with an intake opening and a stationary upper portion with an output opening;

a sweep auger secured to the rotatable lower portion of the housing, the sweep auger having a sweep auger flight with a first end extending through the intake opening and a second end, the rotatable portion rotating as the sweep auger rotates about the axis;

a shroud covering the sweep auger flight, the shroud having an elongate intake aperture facing a direction of travel of the sweep auger, such that as the sweep auger moves radially material passes through the elongate intake aperture and is moved by the sweep auger along a passage defined by the shroud through the intake opening into the interior cavity of the housing;

a discharge auger having a hollow tubular discharge auger tube connected to the housing and a discharge auger flight, the discharge auger having a first end extending through the output opening and a second end;

a vertical lift auger flight disposed in the interior cavity of the housing having a lower end and an upper end, the lower end being connected through a first gear box with the first end of the sweep auger flight;

a closure on the top of the upper portion of the housing movable between a closed position and an open position such that when the closure is in the open position material falls from above onto the first end of the discharge auger flight;

an activation rod having a first end secured to the closure and a second end disposed outside of the bin whereby the closure is movable between the closed and open positions from outside of the bin;

drive means disposed exteriorly of the bin for driving the second end of the discharge auger flight and the upper end of the vertical lift auger;

wherein the intake aperture of the shroud is substantially continuous along the length of the sweep auger flight and wherein there is provided a movable flow regulator member that restricts the size of the elongate intake aperture on the shroud, the member comprising an elongate flap member extending substantially along the full length of the sweep auger flight with the flap member being movable in a direction transverse to the length to increase and decrease a distance of a bottom edge of the flap member from the bin floor.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the flap member is movable to a position to substantially close the intake aperture.