JP7498972B2 - Feeding device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a supply device.

Conventionally, when transporting an object to a specified location such as a storage tank, a pneumatic transport system is used in which the object is mixed with a transport gas that is pumped into a transport passage and then transported. The pneumatic transport system includes a transport passage, a gas flow generating device that generates a gas flow in the transport passage, and a supply device that supplies the object to the transport passage.

Patent Document 1 discloses a supply device used in a pneumatic transport system. The supply device of Patent Document 1 includes a casing and a rotor that is disposed within the casing and has a plurality of compartments defined in the rotational direction by a plurality of vanes. The objects to be transported are supplied from a hopper to each compartment of the rotor of the supply device. As the rotor rotates, the supply device sequentially supplies the contained objects to be transported into the transport passage.

JP 2002-114383 A

It is preferable for a pneumatic transport system to be able to transport the objects in a shorter time. One way to increase the time efficiency of transport in a pneumatic transport system is to increase the flow rate of the transport gas flowing through the transport passage. However, this would require the use of a gas flow generator with a high output, which would result in problems of increased energy consumption and the need for a large installation space.

The supply device that solves the above problem is a supply device that supplies transported objects into a transport passage through which a transport gas is pumped, and includes a transport section connected to the transport passage and a supply section that supplies the transported objects to the transport section, the transport section includes a supply passage through which the transported objects are supplied from the supply section, and an upstream passage that is disposed upstream of the supply passage and connected to the upstream transport passage and has a flow path for the transport gas formed therein, the upstream passage includes a reduced diameter portion in which the flow path cross-sectional area gradually decreases from the upstream side to the downstream side.

According to the above configuration, the upstream passage, which is the portion through which the transport gas flows from the upstream transport passage to the supply passage, is provided with a reduced diameter portion in which the flow passage cross-sectional area gradually reduces from the upstream side to the downstream side. In this case, the transport gas is compressed when passing through the reduced diameter portion of the upstream passage, and the compressed transport gas flows into the supply passage. This strengthens the force of the transport gas pushing the transported object supplied to the supply passage to the downstream transport passage. In addition, the flow rate of the transport gas is increased when passing through the reduced diameter portion of the upstream passage. Then, as the transport gas with the increased flow rate passes through the supply passage, a suction force is generated in the supply passage due to a negative pressure effect. This suction force sucks the transported object in the supply section into the supply passage. As a result, the transported object in the supply section can be efficiently moved to the supply passage, and the transported object moved into the supply passage can be efficiently discharged to the downstream transport passage.

In particular, in an air transport system that uses a transport gas to pressurize the transported objects, the transport gas consumes a large amount of energy when moving the transported objects that are stationary in the supply device. Therefore, by using a supply device of the above configuration that can efficiently discharge the transported objects in the supply device to the transport passage, it is possible to realize an air transport system that can efficiently pressurize the transported objects with less force.

In the above supply device, the upstream passage preferably includes a helical wall for causing the transport gas flowing through the reduced diameter portion to swirl in a helical shape.
According to the above configuration, the swirling of the transport gas improves the compression efficiency of the transport gas in the reduced diameter section and improves the straightness of the transport gas. This further strengthens the force of the transport gas that is strengthened by providing the reduced diameter section. In addition, the swirling of the transport gas provides a straightening effect that suppresses turbulence of the transport gas when it flows through the supply passage. This straightening effect reduces energy loss due to turbulence of the transport gas when it flows through the supply passage. As a result, the transported objects in the supply passage can be discharged more efficiently to the downstream transport passage.

In the above supply device, the spiral wall is preferably provided in the reduced diameter portion.
According to the above-mentioned configuration, the compression efficiency of the transport gas in the reduced diameter portion is improved, and the upstream passage can be made shorter than in the case where the spiral wall is provided upstream of the reduced diameter portion.

In the above supply device, it is preferable that the upstream passage includes an outer pipe and an inner pipe disposed within the outer pipe, and the reduced diameter portion is provided in the inner pipe.
According to the above-mentioned configuration, the supply device having the above-mentioned configuration can be realized by attaching the inner pipe to an existing supply device in which the upstream passage does not have a reduced diameter portion.

The supply device of the present invention makes it possible to realize a pneumatic transport system that can efficiently pump transported items with less force.

FIG. This is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1. This is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in Figure 2. FIG.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The supply device 10 of this embodiment is used to supply transported objects into a transport passage in a pneumatic transport system in which the transported objects are mixed with a transport gas such as air that is pressure-fed into the transport passage and transported. The transported objects are not particularly limited and include all objects that are the subject of transport in known pneumatic transport systems. Examples of the transported objects include powders such as cement and wood powder, and granular objects such as metal chips, glass chips, and plastic chips.

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the supply device 10 includes a transport section 30 connected to a transport passage (not shown), a casing 11 as a supply section that sequentially supplies transported objects to the transport section, an opening/closing mechanism 16, and a rotating body 20.

(Casing and opening/closing mechanism)
1 to 3, the casing 11 includes a horizontally cylindrical peripheral wall 12, a disk-shaped upstream end wall 13 and a downstream end wall 14 closing both ends of the peripheral wall 12, and an intake tube portion 15 provided on the upper portion of the peripheral wall 12. The intake tube portion 15 is a wall portion having a vertical cylindrical shape. The upper portion of the intake tube portion 15 is an intake port 15a for taking in the transported object, and the internal space of the intake tube portion 15 communicates with the internal space of the peripheral wall 12.

An opening/closing mechanism 16 that blocks the intake port 15a is attached to the upper part of the intake tube 15 of the casing 11. The opening/closing mechanism 16 is configured to be switchable between a closed state in which the intake port 15a is closed and an open state in which the intake port 15a is open. The configuration of the opening/closing mechanism 16 is not particularly limited as long as it can be arbitrarily switched between the above-mentioned closed state and open state. In the drawings, as an example, a flap-type opening/closing mechanism 16 operated by a drive unit M1 such as a motor is shown. In addition, a bypass pipe 17 is provided on the outside of the casing 11 to connect the internal space of the peripheral wall 12 and the internal space of the intake tube 15 from the outside.

(Rotating body)
2 and 3, a rotor 20 for transporting an object is attached inside the peripheral wall 12 of the casing 11. The rotor 20 includes a rotating shaft 21 rotatably supported via bearings (not shown) on the upstream end wall 13 and downstream end wall 14 of the casing 11. One end of the rotating shaft 21 passes through the downstream end wall 14 and is positioned outside the casing 11, and is drivingly connected to a drive unit M2 such as a motor. The rotating shaft 21 rotates based on the rotational power from the drive unit M2.

A pair of disk-shaped mounting plates 22 are fixed to the rotating shaft 21. A horizontally cylindrical rotor 23 is fixed to the outer periphery of the mounting plates 22. Blade plates 24 extending radially outward from the rotor 23 are fixed to the outer periphery of the rotor 23. A plurality of blade plates 24 are attached at equal intervals around the rotor 23. A partition chamber R that opens outward in the radial direction is defined on the outer periphery of the rotor 23 by adjacent blade plates 24 that are arranged in the circumferential direction. A plurality of partition chambers R are formed so as to be aligned in the circumferential direction of the rotor 23.

As shown in FIG. 3, the rotor 20 rotates along a fixed movement path so that each compartment R passes through a supply position A1, a discharge position A2, and an exhaust position A3 in the casing 11 in sequence as the rotating shaft 21 rotates. The supply position A1 is a position for supplying the transported object to the compartment R. In this embodiment, the supply position A1 is set to a position where the opening of the compartment R faces upward and faces the internal space of the intake tube 15, that is, the position when the compartment R moves to the uppermost position. The discharge position A2 is a position for discharging the transported object contained in the compartment R, and is the position when the compartment R moves to the supply passage 31 described later. In this embodiment, the discharge position A2 is set to a position where the opening of the compartment R faces downward, that is, the position when the compartment R moves to the lowermost position.

The exhaust position A3 is a position for discharging the air in the partition chamber R after the transported objects have been discharged to the bypass pipe 17. The exhaust position A3 is a position in which the opening of the partition chamber R faces the part of the casing 11 to which the end of the bypass pipe 17 is connected. By discharging the air in the partition chamber R after the transported objects have been discharged to the bypass pipe 17, air is prevented from blowing up from the partition chamber R toward the intake tube section 15 when the partition chamber R moves to the supply position A1.

(Transportation Department)
As shown in FIG. 2 , the transport section 30 includes a supply passage 31 , an upstream passage 32 , and a downstream passage 33 .

A supply port 13a is formed in the lower center of the upstream end wall 13 of the casing 11, penetrating the upstream end wall 13. A discharge port 14a is formed in the lower center of the downstream end wall 14 of the casing 11, penetrating the downstream end wall 14. The supply port 13a and the discharge port 14a are formed in opposing positions in the lower center of the upstream end wall 13 and the downstream end wall 14. The supply port 13a and the discharge port 14a are formed in a shape that is one size larger than the cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the axis of the rotation shaft 21 of the rotor 20 in the partition chamber R. In this embodiment, the area located between the supply port 13a and the discharge port 14a in the casing 11 becomes the supply passage 31 through which the transported material is supplied from the supply section. The supply passage 31 is a passage that extends linearly in the axial direction of the rotor 20.

A tubular upstream passage 32 is attached to the outer surface of the upstream end wall 13, connecting the upstream transport passage (not shown) and the casing 11. The inside of the upstream passage 32 is in communication with the supply passage 31 through the supply port 13a. A tubular downstream passage 33 is attached to the outer surface of the downstream end wall 14, connecting the downstream transport passage (not shown) and the casing 11. The inside of the downstream passage 33 is in communication with the supply passage 31 through the discharge port 14a.

The upstream passage 32 has a double-cylinder structure including an outer pipe 40 and an inner pipe 50 disposed inside the outer pipe 40. The outer pipe 40 has a cylindrical outer pipe peripheral wall 41. The upstream end opening of the outer pipe peripheral wall 41 has a shape that matches the inner circumferential shape of the transport passage, and the downstream end opening of the outer pipe peripheral wall 41 has a shape that matches the supply port 13a. The outer pipe peripheral wall 41 is formed so that the inner circumferential shape gradually approaches the shape of the downstream end opening from the upstream side to the downstream side. The upstream end of the outer pipe peripheral wall 41 is provided with a flange 42 that is fixed to the transport passage with a screw. In addition, the downstream end of the outer pipe peripheral wall 41 is provided with a flange 43 that is fixed to the casing 11 with a screw.

2 and 4, the inner pipe 50 has a cylindrical inner pipe wall 51 whose inner circumferential surface gradually narrows in diameter from the upstream side to the downstream side. The upstream end opening of the inner pipe wall 51 is smaller than the inner circumferential shape of the transport passage by the thickness of the inner pipe wall 51. The downstream end opening of the inner pipe wall 51 is smaller than the supply port 13a. In this embodiment, the inner pipe wall 51 corresponds to the narrowing portion where the flow passage cross-sectional area gradually narrows from the upstream side to the downstream side.

The diameter reduction ratio of the reduced diameter portion is, for example, preferably such that the cross-sectional area of the downstream end of the reduced diameter portion is 95% or less, and more preferably such that the cross-sectional area of the upstream end of the reduced diameter portion is 70% or less. The diameter reduction ratio of the reduced diameter portion is, for example, preferably such that the cross-sectional area of the downstream end of the reduced diameter portion is 10% or more, and more preferably such that the cross-sectional area of the upstream end of the reduced diameter portion is 60% or more. The cross-sectional area of the downstream end of the reduced diameter portion is preferably equal to or less than the cross-sectional area of the supply port 13a.

The inner pipe 50 has a helical wall 52 for spirally swirling the transport gas flowing inside the inner pipe peripheral wall 51, which is the reduced diameter portion. The helical wall 52 extends radially from the central axis P of the inner pipe peripheral wall 51 to the inner pipe peripheral wall 51, and is formed in a shape in which the position of the connection part with the inner pipe peripheral wall 51 gradually changes in the circumferential direction from the upstream side to the downstream side. The inside of the inner pipe 50 is divided in the circumferential direction by the helical wall 52, and a plurality of independent helical flow paths 53 are formed that extend helically around the central axis P.

In the drawings, the spiral wall 52 forming six spiral flow paths 53 is shown as an example.
The upstream end of the inner pipe peripheral wall 51 is provided with a flange 54 which is fixed to the flange 42 of the outer pipe 40 and the transport passage with screws. The inner pipe 50 is inserted into the outer pipe 40 from the upstream end opening of the outer pipe 40, and then the flange 54 of the inner pipe 50 is placed over the flange 42 of the inner pipe 50 and fixed to the transport passage together with the flange 42 with screws. This brings the outer pipe 40 and the inner pipe 50 into a fixed state for use. As shown in Fig. 2, in the above-mentioned state of use, the downstream end of the inner pipe peripheral wall 51 of the inner pipe 50 is contained within the outer pipe 40 without protruding from the outer pipe 40.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
When the supply device 10 is used to supply the transported object into the transport passage, the opening/closing mechanism 16 is first opened, and the transported object is input from the inlet 15a into the intake tube 15 of the casing 11. The transported object is then accommodated in the intake tube 15. Next, the opening/closing mechanism 16 is switched from the open state to the closed state to seal the inside of the casing 11.

Then, by rotating the rotor 20, the compartment R repeatedly moves from the supply position A1 to the discharge position A2 and from the discharge position A2 to the supply position A1. When the compartment R reaches the supply position A1, it is filled with the transported material contained in the intake tube 15. Then, the compartment R filled with the transported material reaches the discharge position A2, which is the supply passage 31.

At this time, the transported objects filled in the partition R are mixed with the transport gas supplied from the upstream transport passage through the upstream passage 32 to the supply passage 31, and are pressurized and sent to the downstream transport passage through the downstream passage 33. In this way, as the rotor 20 rotates, the filling of the transported objects into the partition R at the supply position A1 and the pressurization of the transported objects in the partition R at the discharge position A2 are repeated. As a result, the transported objects contained in the intake tube 15 are sequentially supplied to the transport passage.

In this embodiment, the upstream passage 32 is provided with a reduced diameter section in which the flow path cross-sectional area gradually reduces from the upstream side to the downstream side. In this case, the transport gas is compressed when passing through the reduced diameter section of the upstream passage 32, and the compressed transport gas flows into the supply passage 31. This increases the force of the transport gas pushing out the transported objects filled in the partition chamber R, allowing the transported objects to be efficiently discharged into the downstream transport passage.

The flow rate of the transport gas is also increased as it passes through the reduced diameter portion of the upstream passage 32. As the transport gas with increased flow rate passes through the supply passage 31, a suction force is generated in the supply passage 31 due to a negative pressure effect. This suction force causes the transported objects filled in the partition chamber R of the rotor 20 to be sucked into the supply passage 31. As a result, the transported objects in the partition chamber R can be efficiently moved to the supply passage 31, and the transported objects that have moved into the supply passage 31 can be efficiently discharged to the downstream transport passage.

In addition, in this embodiment, the spiral wall 52 is provided in the upstream passage 32, so that the transport gas flowing through the narrowing portion is a swirling flow that swirls in a spiral shape. The swirling of the transport gas improves the compression efficiency of the transport gas in the narrowing portion and improves the linearity of the transport gas. This further strengthens the force of the transport gas that was strengthened by providing the narrowing portion. In addition, the swirling of the transport gas efficiently mixes the transported material filled in the partition chamber R with the transport gas. As a result, the transported material filled in the partition chamber R can be more efficiently discharged to the downstream transport passage. In addition, the swirling of the transport gas provides a rectifying effect that suppresses turbulence of the transport gas when it flows through the supply passage 31. This rectifying effect reduces energy loss due to turbulence of the transport gas when it flows through the supply passage 31.

Next, the effects of this embodiment will be described.
(1) The supply device 10 includes a transport section 30 connected to the feed passage, and a supply section that supplies the transported object to the transport section 30. The transport section 30 includes a supply passage 31 to which the transported object is supplied from the supply section, and an upstream passage 32 that is disposed upstream of the supply passage 31, is connected to the upstream transport passage, and has a flow path for the transport gas formed therein. The upstream passage 32 includes a reduced diameter portion whose flow path cross-sectional area gradually reduces from the upstream side to the downstream side.

In an air transport system that uses a transport gas to pressurize transported objects, the transport gas consumes a large amount of energy when moving the transported objects that are stationary inside the supply device 10. Therefore, by using the supply device 10 configured as described above that can efficiently discharge the transported objects into the transport passage, an air transport system can be realized that can efficiently pressurize the transported objects with less force. It also becomes possible to adopt a gas flow generating device with a smaller output that generates a gas flow in the transport passage.

(2) The upstream passage 32 has a spiral wall 52 for causing the transport gas flowing through the reduced diameter portion to swirl in a spiral shape.
According to the above configuration, the effect of (1) can be obtained more significantly.

(3) The spiral wall 52 is provided in the reduced diameter portion.
According to the above-mentioned configuration, the compression efficiency of the transport gas in the reduced diameter portion is improved. As a result, the effect of (1) above can be obtained more significantly. Moreover, the upstream passage 32 can be made shorter than when the spiral wall 52 is provided upstream of the reduced diameter portion in the upstream passage 32.

(4) The upstream passage 32 includes the outer pipe 40 and the inner pipe 50 disposed within the outer pipe 40. The reduced diameter portion is provided in the inner pipe 50.
According to the above configuration, the supply device 10 of the present embodiment can be realized by attaching the inner pipe 50 to an existing supply device in which the upstream passage 32 does not have a tapered portion. In addition, when the inner pipe 50 is detachable from the outer pipe 40, replacement and maintenance of the tapered portion can be easily performed.

This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that no technical contradiction occurs.
The upstream passage 32 may have a portion with a constant flow passage cross-sectional area upstream of the reduced diameter portion. The upstream passage 32 may have a portion with a constant flow passage cross-sectional area downstream of the reduced diameter portion.

- The specific shape of the spiral wall 52 is not particularly limited, and may be any shape that allows the transport gas to swirl in a spiral. For example, in the above embodiment, the spiral wall 52 is shaped to divide the flow path into multiple spiral flow paths 53, but the spiral wall 52 may be shaped not to divide the flow path.

The spiral wall 52 may be provided in a portion upstream of the reduced diameter portion in the upstream passage 32. Also, the upstream passage 32 may be configured without the spiral wall 52.
The upstream passage 32 may be a single-pipe passage instead of the double-pipe passage 32 having the outer pipe 40 and the inner pipe 50. For example, the upstream passage 32 may be formed of only the inner pipe 50.

The downstream passage 33 may be omitted, and the downstream transport passage may be directly connected to the casing 11 .
Next, technical ideas that can be understood from the above embodiment and modified examples will be described below.

(i) The supply device, wherein a flow path cross-sectional area of the downstream end of the reduced diameter portion is equal to or smaller than a flow path cross-sectional area of the supply passage.
(b) A supply device comprising a rotor that divides a plurality of partition chambers in the rotational direction using a plurality of blades, the movement trajectory of each of the partition chambers accompanying the rotation of the rotor being made to correspond to a transport passage through which the transport gas is pressurized, and the transported material filled in the partition chambers is supplied into the transport passage based on the rotation of the rotor.

Reference Signs List 10: Supply device 11: Casing 17: Opening/closing mechanism 20: Rotating body 30: Transport section 31: Supply passage 32: Upstream passage 40: Outer pipe 50: Inner pipe 52: Spiral wall 53: Spiral flow path

Claims (4)

A supply device for supplying an object to be transported into a transport passage through which a transport gas is pumped, comprising:
A transport section connected to the transport passage;
a supply unit that supplies the transported object to the transport unit,
the transport section includes a supply passage through which the transported object is supplied from the supply section, and an upstream passage disposed upstream of the supply passage and connected to the upstream transport passage, the upstream passage having a flow path for the transport gas formed therein;
the upstream passage includes a reduced diameter portion in which a flow passage cross-sectional area is gradually reduced from the upstream side to the downstream side ,
the upstream passage includes an outer pipe and an inner pipe disposed within the outer pipe,
The supply device according to claim 1, wherein the reduced diameter portion is provided on the inner tube . A supply device for supplying an object to be transported into a transport passage through which a transport gas is pumped, comprising:
A transport section connected to the transport passage;
a supply unit that supplies the transported object to the transport unit,
the transport section includes a supply passage through which the transported object is supplied from the supply section, and an upstream passage disposed upstream of the supply passage and connected to the upstream transport passage, the upstream passage having a flow path for a transport gas formed therein;
the upstream passage includes a reduced diameter portion in which a flow passage cross-sectional area is gradually reduced from the upstream side to the downstream side ,
A casing is provided as the supply unit,
The casing includes a supply port and a discharge port formed at positions opposite to each other,
the supply passage is an area located between the supply port and the discharge port in the casing,
the upstream passage is connected to the supply port,
A supply device according to claim 1, wherein a center position of a downstream end of said reduced diameter portion is located below said supply port in a vertical direction . 3. The supply device according to claim 1, wherein the upstream passage includes a helical wall for causing the transport gas flowing through the reduced diameter portion to swirl in a helical manner. 4. The delivery device of claim 3 , wherein the spiral wall is disposed in the reduced diameter portion.

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