Conveyors: fluid current – With means to control conveying fluid or movement of load in... – Control of conveying fluid
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-26
2002-05-14
Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)
Conveyors: fluid current
With means to control conveying fluid or movement of load in...
Control of conveying fluid
C406S088000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06386799
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to an air flow control mechanism for a multi-channel air conveyor that enables the flow rate of air ejected from air outlets of inner channels of the air conveyor to be adjusted without changing the flow of air ejected from air outlets of the outer channels of the air conveyor.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Air conveyors are typically employed in the rapid transport of empty plastic bottles of the type having an annular rim or a neck ring at the top of the bottle neck. A typical air conveyor includes a pair of flanges that are spaced from each other defining an elongated slot between the flanges. The slot between the spaced flanges defines a conveyor path or a channel of the air conveyor. The lateral spacings between the pairs of flanges of the conveyor channel is sufficiently large to enable a portion of the bottle neck just below the neck ring to pass through the spacing between the flanges with the bottle suspended from the top surfaces of the pairs of flanges by the neck ring resting on the top surfaces. A series of air jets or air outlet orifices are arranged along the longitudinal lengths of the pairs of flanges positioned above and/or below the flanges. A plenum of the air conveyor supplies a flow of air to the air outlet orifices. The air outlet orifices on the opposite sides of the channel are oriented so that air supplied from the plenum and ejected from the air outlet orifices will contact the plastic bottles and push the bottles along the conveyor path of the channel defined by the elongated slots between the pairs of flanges with the neck rings of the bottles sliding along the top surfaces of the pairs of flanges.
For air conveyors of considerable longitudinal length, conveyor sections are connected end-to-end so that the pairs of flanges of one conveyor section are aligned with the pairs of flanges of the adjacent conveyor section and the pairs of flanges, aligned end-to-end, define the conveyor path or the channel of the air conveyor.
A multi-channel air conveyor includes a multiple of channels and their associated pairs of flanges arranged laterally side-by-side, with the multiple of pairs of flanges extending longitudinally along the length of the multi-channel air conveyor, thereby defining a multiple of side-by-side conveyor paths or channels. Like a single channel air conveyor, a multi-channel air conveyor includes a series of air jets or air outlet orifices that are arranged along the longitudinal lengths of each of the pairs of flanges that define the channels of the multi-channel air conveyor. A plenum of the air conveyor supplies the flow of air to the air outlet orifices of the multiple channels.
For manufacturing convenience and to reduce costs, all of the air outlet orifices of each of the channels of a multi-channel air conveyor are typically supplied with a flow of air from the same air plenum positioned above the channels. The air outlet orifices on the opposite sides of each of the channels are oriented so that air supplied from the plenum and ejected from the air outlet orifices will contact the plastic bottles, pushing the bottles along the air conveyor channels defined by the pairs of conveyor flanges with the neck rings of the bottles sliding along the top surfaces of the pairs of flanges.
A drawback encountered with multi-channel air conveyors is that the side-by-side positioning of the slots or channels allows the interaction of jets of air ejected from the air outlet orifices of adjacent air conveyor channels. This is most evident in the inner air conveyor channels that are positioned between the outer pair of air conveyor channels that extend along the laterally opposite sides of the multi-channel conveyor. The air outlet orifices spacially arranged along the longitudinal lengths of the air conveyor channels are dimensioned to push plastic bottles along the channels at a desirable speed and at a desirable orientation of the bottles relative to the channels and the flanges defining the channels. However, with multi-channel air conveyors having a plurality of adjacent conveyor channels and their associated pairs of outlet orifices, the air ejected from pairs of outlet orifices along one conveyor channel will influence the air ejected from the air outlet orifices along an adjacent conveyor channel. This is most evident along the inner air conveyor channels or those channels that are positioned between the pair of air conveyor channels that extend along the laterally opposite sides of the multi-channel air conveyor. Each of the inner air conveyor channels will convey bottles that are pushed along the channels not only by the force of air ejected from the rows of air outlet orifices of the particular inner channel, but also by the force of some of the air ejected from the air outlet orifices of adjacent air conveyor channels. The outer air conveyor channels that extend along the laterally opposite sides of the multi-channel air conveyor are only influenced by air ejected from the air outlet orifices of the adjacent inner air conveyor channel. Therefore, the effect of air ejected from adjacent air conveyor channels on the bottles conveyed by the outer pair of air conveyor channels of the multi-channel air conveyor is not appreciable. However, the plastic bottles conveyed by the inner air conveyor channels are subjected to not only the force of air ejected from the air outlet orifices arranged along the particular inner air channel, but also a portion of the air ejected from air outlet orifices of air conveyor channels on both sides of the particular inner channel. This results in the bottles being conveyed along the inner air conveyor channels at a greater speed than intended and at a greater speed than the bottles conveyed along the outer air conveyor channels.
In addition, in single channel air conveyors it may be desirable to control the flow of air ejected from the air outlet orifices of a section of the channel to control the speed of bottles conveyed through the channel or to control the pressure exerted on a forward most bottle or bottles of a slug or series of bottles accumulated in the particular air conveyor channel. It may also be desirable to quickly adjust the flow of air ejected from air outlet orifices of the air conveyor channel depending on what size of bottle is being conveyed through the air conveyor channel.
What is needed to overcome these problems associated with single channel or multi-channel air conveyors is a mechanism by which the flow of air ejected through the air outlet orifices of the air conveyor channels of an air conveyor can be adjusted and reduced to thereby control the speed of the bottles conveyed through the air conveyor channels.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The air conveyor of the present invention overcomes the above described disadvantage associated with multi-channel air conveyors by providing an adjustable air flow control mechanism for a multi-channel air conveyor that can adjust the flow of air ejected from the air outlet orifices of the inner channels. In the preferred embodiment, the air flow control mechanism for the multi-channel air conveyor is employed with a multi-channel air conveyor of the type described earlier. The multi-channel air conveyor is assembled in sections. Each section has a longitudinal length along which the multi-channels extend and a lateral width across which the multi-channels are arranged side-by-side. A base of the air conveyor is connected to an air plenum that extends across the top of the base. Pluralities of pairs of side walls extend downwardly from the base and support pairs of mutually opposed, laterally spaced flanges. The spacings between the pairs of flanges define the conveyor slots or the conveyed paths of the air channels of the multi-channel air conveyor. Air ducts extend through each of the side walls between air inlet orifices that open through the top of the base and air outlet orifices that open near the bottoms of the side walls. The air outlet orifices are orient
Dillon, Jr. Joe
Ouellette Machinery Systems, Inc.
Thompson & Coburn LLP
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