Liquid purification or separation – Filter – Movable medium
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-20
2001-10-02
Cooley, Charles E. (Department: 1723)
Liquid purification or separation
Filter
Movable medium
C210S380100, C029S402010, C494S036000, C494S079000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06296125
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns a centrifugal chip separator having an improved blade arrangement that facilitates adjustment, maintenance, and repair of the chip separator.
Centrifuge devices are known in prior art for continuously removing liquid from metal chips, turnings, or other agglomerated scrap material. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. Re 35307; 3,366,318; and 4,186,096. These centrifuge devices include a centrifuge bowl where the liquid is centrifugally separated from the agglomerated scrap as the bowl is spun. Blades are positioned in the bowl to motivate the agglomerated scrap around the bowl. The bowl and blades are subject to severe wear and must often be repaired or replaced, because the metal chips are abrasive and cause extensive wear as they impact and slide across the bowl and blade surfaces. The blades in particular are subject to wear since they impact and motivate the scrap as the scrap is initially introduced into the bowl and as the bowl is spun. Repair or maintenance of bowls and blades has been achieved in different ways, such as by replaceable liners, replaceable bowls, replaceable blades, hardened material welded into bowls and liners, etc. However, sooner or later, all blades and/or bowls need repair or replacement. The repair and/or mainenance is a very time-consuming and potentially hazardous job due to the confined space in which the work must be performed. Further, the repair and/or maintenance is unfortunately a very messy and smelly job due to the residue of particles and liquid in the centrifuge bowl. It is highly desirable to provide an arrangement that facilitates repair and/or lets maintenance workers do their job without placing themselves in the potentially hazardous situations.
Reissue patent Re. 35,307 discloses a centrifuge that has independently removable blades. However, in Reissue '307, the screw heads are located inside the bowl in exposed positions. As a result, the hex recess or slot in the screw heads may wear, making it difficult to engage the screw head with enough torsional force to rotate and remove the screw. In extreme cases, the screw head may wear away to such an extent that the hex recess or slot is no longer present, and/or the head is so worn that the blades may not easily be removable. This would potentially require complete replacement of the entire bowl or blade assembly. One embodiment shown in patent '307 includes multiple discrete recesses formed on an inside surface of the bowl wall. This may reduce wear on the blades in some circumstances, but discrete recesses are expensive to form in centrifuge bowls, such that this adds considerably to the expense in centrifuge devices having bowls with recesses therein. Notably, the design of
FIGS. 2-5
in Reissue '307 fails to provide the claimed advantage of the elimination of bowl wear since wear occurs not only on the wear shoe but on the bowl at the interface between the blade wear shoe and bowl recess. A blade with the wear shoe above the surface of the inner bowl wall is far better than the recessed design since the chips are elevated away from the inner bowl wall surface.
As inferred above, one reason that maintenance of the centrifuge bowl and the blades is difficult is because it requires that the mechanic enter or reach inside of the centrifuge bowl. Bowls are normally very dirty, oily, and slippery, since they are covered with particles and debris mixed with coolant, oil, cutting fluids, and residue from the centrifuging process. Not only is the environment unpleasant and potentially dangerously slippery, it is also very confined, dark, and generally difficult to work in. Depending on how unclean the bowl is, the particles and debris can make it difficult to properly “seat” a replacement blade, such as the blades shown in patent Re35307, against a bowl interior surface.
Therefore, an apparatus solving the aforementioned problems and having the aforementioned advantages is desired.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
In one aspect of the present invention, a centrifugal device for separating lubricating or other fluid from fluid impregnated scrap, metal shavings or the like, includes a separator bowl disposed within the centrifuge device, and a drive mechanism for rotating the separator bowl. The separator bowl includes a bottom wall and a side wall. At least one blade engages the bottom wall and the side wall. Threaded fasteners each include a head abutting an exterior surface of the side wall and a shaft that extends through the side wall and threadably into an associated one of the blades. The heads characteristically are positioned in a location where the heads are readily accessible from outside the separator bowl and where the heads will not be worn by the scrap and metal shavings processed through the centrifugal device.
In another aspect of the present invention, a method of maintaining a centrifugal device for separating lubricating or other fluid from fluid impregnated scrap, metal shavings or the like, includes steps of: providing a separator bowl disposed within the centrifuge device, a drive mechanism for rotating the separator bowl, and a plurality of blades engaging the bottom wall and the side wall. The method further includes extending fasteners through a side wall of the bowl, with the fasteners each including a head abutting an exterior surface of the side wall and a shaft extending through the side wall and threadably into an associated one of the blades. When installed, the heads are characteristically positioned in a location where the heads are readily accessible from outside the separator bowl and where the heads will not be worn by the scrap and metal shavings processed through the centrifugal device.
These and other features, objects, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to a person of ordinary skill upon reading the following description and claims together with reference to the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: Re. 35307 (1996-07-01), Nemedi
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Drawing—Titan Systems, Kalamazoo, Michigan (Division French Systems, Inc.) labeled “Centrifuge Assembly” and having a date appearing to be Mar. 19, 1987.
Photograph—Titan System illustrated in drawing of Exhibit A (no date).
Photograph—Titan System illustrated in drawing of Exhibit A bearing date legend of Mar. 29, 1985.
Photograph—titan System illustrated in Exhibit A (no date).
Photograph—Titan System illustrated in Exhibit A (no date).
Drawing—Titan Div./French Systems, Inc. labeled “T1-30 Centrifuge Assy”; dated Jan. 2, 1985; Drawing No. 1001-DA.
Drawing—titan Systems labeled “T1-30 Sect Thru Bo
Cooley Charles E.
Price Heneveld Cooper DeWitt & Litton
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