Drying device

Details Drying device Drying device

2000-11-22

2001-12-25

Walberg, Teresa (Department: 3742)

Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids

Apparatus

Rotary drums or receptacles

C034S446000, C034S542000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06332279

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a drying device, more particularly, to a device for drying the surface necessary to be dried by feeding a gas flow, especially by multi-steps, to an object necessary to be dried (a drying object), which has a surface desired to be dried, such as a long web-shaped drying object with a coating solution coated thereon and the like.
BACKGROUND
As a device for drying the surface necessary to be dried by feeding a drying gas flow to a long belt-shaped drying object having the surface necessary to be dried such as coating film and the like, for example, those disclosed in JP-B-48-44151/1973, JP-B-51-22115/1975, JP-A-7-289971/1995 and JP-A-9-152274/1997 (the term “JP-A” as used herein means a Kokai-Publication, i.e., “unexamined laid-open Japanese patent application” and the term “JP-B” as used herein means a Kokoku-Publication, i.e., “examined published Japanese patent application”) are known.
In a conventional drying device, as disclosed in, for example, JP-A-7-289971/1995, a drying gas flow (blow) is sent from a blower through a duct (pipe line) to a temperature and relative humidity control unit for controlling temperature and humidity, and then, fed through another duct to a blowing unit (dryer) of the drying gas flow in a drying room.
A gas flow, which has been exhausted for drying by colliding with a coated surface (the surface necessary to be dried) of a drying object in a drying room, is used for feeding again into another drying room after being recovered through an exhaust vent of the drying room and then heated up to a desired temperature in a duct equipped with a heater for heating the gas flow up to any desired temperature. As disclosed in JP-A-9-152274/1997, in some case, the gas flow before feeding is admixed with a fresh gas if necessary and then reused.
An embodiment of a conventional drying device is shown in reference to
FIG. 5
in the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 5
is a schematic view showing a general composition of units contained in a conventional drying device.
A conventional drying device shown in
FIG. 5
has a component unit (or assembly unit) P including ducts (D
2
, D
3
, D
4
) so as to let a gas flow come out of a blower
41
a,
pass through an inner space of temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
a,
helical dryer
43
a,
and drying room
44
a
consecutively in this order, and arrive at a blower
41
b.
This details will be explained as follows.
The blower
41
a
feeds a gas blow, after being dehumidified in a dehumidifying facility
40
and then passing through a duct D
1
, through the duct D
2
into the temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
a.
The temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
a
can set the temperature and the humidity of the gas flow to a predetermined value which is appropriate for drying a drying object. The gas flow, after setting the temperature and the humidity to the predetermined value in the temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
a,
is fed through the duct D
3
to an end of the helical dryer
43
a,
which has approximately a cylindrical shape, into an inner space of the helical dryer.
The helical dryer
43
a
is installed in the drying room
44
a
(the inner space of the dryer). In the outer periphery (wall) of the helical dryer
43
a
having a cylindrical shape, exhaust vents (e.g., holes or slits) are disposed, and a drying gas flow is exhausted out of the exhaust vents. A drying object is placed so as to bring its surface necessary to be dried into contact with a drying gas flow exhausted out of the exhaust vents of the helical dryer
43
a,
so that the surface of the drying object necessary to be dried is dried. The gas flow after drying the drying object will pass through the duct D
4
and arrive at a blower
41
b
placed outside the drying room
44
a.
The conventional drying device shown in
FIG. 5
further has a component unit Q including ducts (D
5
, D
6
, D
7
) arranged so as to make a gas flow come out of a blower
41
b,
pass through temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
b,
helical dryer
43
b,
and drying room
44
b
in this order, and arrive at a blower
41
c.
The conventional drying device shown in
FIG. 5
also has a component unit R including ducts (D
8
, D
9
, D
10
) arranged so as to make a gas flow come out of a blower
41
c,
pass through temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
c,
helical dryer
43
c,
and drying room
44
c
in this order, and arrive at a blower
41
d.
The conventional drying device shown in
FIG. 5
still more has a component unit S including ducts (D
11
, D
12
, D
13
) arranged so as to make a gas flow come out of a blower
41
d,
pass through temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
d,
helical dryer
43
d,
and drying room
44
d
in this order, and arrive at a dehumidifying facility
40
.
The blowers, the temperature and relative humidity control units, the helical dryers and the drying rooms found in the component units Q, R and S are same with the blower
41
a,
the temperature and relative humidity control unit
42
a,
the helical dryer
43
a
and the drying room
44
a
found in the component unit P, respectively, and the former units have the same functions as the latter ones, respectively.
A gas flow, returned through the duct D
13
to the dehumidifying facility
40
, is dehumidified, passed through the duct D
1
and fed into the blower
41
a.
Then, the aforementioned procedure is repeated.
In case of drying a long web-shaped drying object having a surface necessary to be dried by using the conventional drying device shown in
FIG. 5
, each drying room has slits through which a drying object passes, rolls for guide and the like, so that the drying object can be passed through the drying rooms
44
a,
44
b,
44
c
and
44
d
successively. Further, the drying gas flow can be fed out of the helical dryers installed in the drying rooms, respectively. Consequently, the drying object can be dried.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
Though each of the helical dryers is equipped with a temperature and relative humidity control unit on the upstream side of a flowing gas flow, the aforementioned conventional drying device employs a system in which the dehumidified gas flow (blow) fed out of one dehumidifying facility is used sequentially in series in the plural number of the helical dryers. Accordingly, for instance, in case of drying a drying object having an aqueous coating using a dehumidified gas flow, the dew point of gas of the dehumidified gas flow gradually rises with water evaporated out of the drying object as it is used sequentially in the respective drying rooms. Consequently, it is difficult to control the dew point of a gas flow fed into each of the helical dryers (therefore, the dew point of an exhausted gas flow) independent of the other dryers.
Accordingly, an object according to an aspect of the present invention is to solve the problem in the prior art and to provide a drying device in which the temperature and humidity of a gas flow fed into each of plural (e.g., helical) dryers (therefore, the temperature and humidity of an exhausted gas flow) can be controlled respectively independent of the other dryers. Other aspects and objects will become apparent in the entire disclosure.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a novel drying device having a casing including therein at least a cylindrical drying cylinder which exhausts a drying gas flow fed in it out of gas-blowing area (of openings) disposed on its outer periphery to feed the gas on a drying object, and a fan connected to an entrance side of the drying cylinder. The fan intakes a gas flow blown out of the drying cylinder into the casing inside the casing and feeds the gas into the drying cylinder again to circulate the gas flow. A part of a gas flow intaken by the fan has a depressed dew point which results from splitting a gas flow blown out of the drying cylinder and depressing the dew point of the split gas flow outside the casing. The drying device of

Affiliated with

Also associated with

Rating

Drying device does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.

If you have personal experience with Drying device, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Drying device will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2557024