Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids – Process – Gas or vapor contact with treated material
Reexamination Certificate
2001-11-30
2003-07-15
Lazarus, Ira S. (Department: 3749)
Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids
Process
Gas or vapor contact with treated material
C034S463000, C034S510000, C034S629000, C034S636000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06591518
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to driers used to dry printed matter and more particularly to drier cassettes, mounting brackets and expander units for drier cassettes used in these driers for printed matter.
2. Description of Related Art
In the prior art wetted printed matter, such as a paper web or paper sheets, are dried in a drier after production by passing the printed matter under a series of individually mounted drier cassettes situated within the drier housing. These driers are, for example, used to dry printed matter from a sheet-fed offset printing press.
A drier cassette is essentially a box having an interior, an air input port to that interior and a plurality of exhaust openings on at least one side. Gas or air is pumped through the air input port into the interior and exhausts through the exhaust openings on the side of the box. In typical use the exhaust openings of the drier cassettes are oriented downwardly so that the printed matter may be successively carried under the drier cassettes on a track or conveyor belt, through the exhausting gas. A guide pan that both supports and moves the printed matter is frequently used to position the wet printed matter. The guide pan is a type of track having a multiplicity of holes exhausting air upwardly to support and move the printed matter.
A drier cassette may also include one or more radiant heat emitters, such as infrared emitters, to increase drying efficiency. These radiant heat emitters are mounted on a side of the drier cassette having the exhaust openings. As the printed matter is passed under the drier cassette exhaust the radiant heat emitter additionally warms the printed matter to aid drying. The exhaust disperses the additional humidity generated by the heating of the printed matter and otherwise further aids in the drying process.
This type of drier, employing a plurality of drier cassettes, is sometimes referred to as an air knife drier. A typical air knife drier includes series of drier cassettes that are releasably mounted on brackets fixedly attached to the housing of the drier or to framework within the housing of the drier. Although this type of drier configuration is typically directed to drying printed matter, the term “printed matter” as used herein is not limiting, but used as an example of a type of application to which the present invention may be applied. The invention might also be used for a sheet or ream of any material that may be dried or cooled after exiting a production unit or is otherwise amendable to being dried or cooled by an air knife drier, for example, the drying of fabric from a production unit producing a ream of fabric or other sheet material. The invention then, is not limited to any particular type of matter that may be dried.
The drying efficiency of using such a series of drier cassettes of the prior art is less than optimal, however, because the drier cassette mounting brackets present spaces or gaps between the drier cassettes where the printed matter is not exposed to either the radiant heating or to the exhausting gas or air. Moreover, as the printed matter passes under each successive drier cassette, the paper's path is disturbed or disrupted as it successively encounters the exhaust of each individual drier cassette. This disruption in the paper path can cause the paper to flutter or be misdirected, leading to jamming and limiting the speed at which the paper can be passed under the exhaust.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The inefficiencies of air knife driers of the prior art have been attenuated or eliminated by providing an expander unit for drier cassettes that is not only also a support bracket, but performs many of the drying functions of the drying cassette itself, eliminating the gaps or spaces occurring between the drier cassettes held by brackets of the prior art.
In a broad aspect the invention encompasses providing an expander unit, which acts as a stationary bracket for a drier cassette and that is also an enclosed box like a drier cassette, has an interior and is adapted to be supplied with a flow of gas to the interior, and, exhausts the gas through a plurality of exhaust openings. The expander unit is fixedly attached to a surface of the housing or framework within the drier and is adapted to be joined to and support one or more drier cassettes.
Another aspect of this invention is a drier cassette that is adapted to function with one or more expander units. Like a drier cassette of the prior art, the drier cassette of the present invention is an enclosure having an interior adapted to be supplied with a flow of gas to the interior and the gas exhausts through a plurality of exhaust openings on a side of the drier cassette. When the drier cassette of the present invention is joined together with one or more expander units, with their respective exhaust openings oriented in the same direction, the combination of one or more expander units and drier cassettes create an uninterrupted path of drying exhaust gas for printed matter to travel through.
In one embodiment the gas is supplied to either a first drier cassette or a first expander unit by sharing the gas supplied to a second drier cassette or to an expander unit. In the case where gas is supplied to the second expander unit, the gas communicates into an adjoining drier cassette through a conduit or interfacing exhaust openings. A window aperture, for example, may be provided in an expander unit and also provided in an adjoined drier cassette, so that the gas may communicate between the expander unit and the joined drier cassette through the two window apertures.
In the preferred embodiment the expander units are each formed as a rectangular box having top, bottom, front, back and two lengthwise sides. One or more of the lengthwise sides is adapted to releasably join to and support a drier cassette and the bottom side of the box has a plurality of exhaust openings to exhaust the gas. The expander units are mounted within the drier with their exhaust openings facing downwardly.
Where only a single lengthwise side of an expander unit is adapted to releasably join to a drier cassette, this unit is termed an end expander unit. Where both lengthwise sides of an expander unit are adapted to releasably join to a drier cassette, this unit is termed an intermediate expander unit.
The drier cassettes of the preferred embodiment of the present invention are also each formed as a rectangular box having top, bottom, front, back and two lengthwise sides, and in the preferred embodiment each of the lengthwise sides is adapted to be releasably joined to the expander unit. The bottom side of the drier cassette also has a plurality of exhaust openings to exhaust the gas.
One or more drier cassettes and one or more expander units are joined such that their bottom sides are oriented in the same direction, so that the exhaust openings of drier cassettes are oriented in the same direction as the exhaust openings of the expander units, causing the gas of these units to be exhausted in the same direction. Heat emitters, for example infrared tubes, are provided on the bottom side of the expander unit and are also provided on the bottom side of the drier cassette to enhance the drying process.
A series of drier cassettes releasably joined to expander units creates a cassette expander unit system for a drier for drying printed matter. Paper is moved in a direction under the cassette expander unit system. The series of drier cassettes and expander units comprises, discussed in the direction of paper flow, an end expander unit having a single window aperture in a single lengthwise side. This end expander unit is affixed to the housing or framework of the drier and releasably joined to support a drier cassette. The end expander unit is joined to a drier cassette having window apertures in both lengthwise sides, wherein each lengthwise side is formed to releasably join to and be supported by an expander unit. A second end expander unit having a single window aperture is releasably joi
Haymond Philip H.
Lazarus Ira S.
O'Malley Kathryn S.
Technotrans America West, Inc.
LandOfFree
Integral expander support brackets for air knife drier... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Integral expander support brackets for air knife drier..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Integral expander support brackets for air knife drier... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3009324