JPH0158026B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to the supply of particulate materials, especially powdered materials, and particularly, but not exclusively, to the provision of abrasive materials in pressurized gas streams. Particulate matter (abrasine)
The present invention relates to a device for feeding powder particles into a pressurized gaseous stream suitable for feeding powder particles (particulate materials).

Since the invention is particularly suited for this type of application, an example of its use for polishing purposes will be described below.

The present invention provides a reservoir supply container associated with the particle supply mechanism as well as the particle supply mechanism itself.
(supply containers). More specifically, the present invention provides a vibrating helical feed channel.
Regarding the use of particle feeding devices with
The invention also relates to the use in combination with the above-mentioned supply device of a reserve supply container adapted to deliver a reserve supply of particulate material to the supply mechanism in a novel manner.

Prior Art and its Problems For example, it has been proposed to transport abrasive particulate materials by pressurized gas for use in abrasive operations.

However, conventional devices have suffered from problems in feeding particulate matter into a pressurized gas stream, such as clogging or uneven delivery.

Furthermore, conventional devices that have a practical supply capacity also have the problem of being extremely large in size.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, in order to solve the problems as described above, a supply chamber includes an upright cylindrical wall and a bottom wall connected to the lower end of the cylindrical wall. means for forming a powder deposit on the upper surface of the bottom wall; an inlet portion adjacent to and receiving powder from the powder deposit on the upper surface of the bottom wall; a helical particle feed channel provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical wall, the channel having a delivery opening; a reservoir supply container comprising a cylindrical wall and means for vibrating said bottom wall, said means for forming a deposit of powder on an upper surface of said bottom wall disposed on said supply chamber; means for supplying powder from the reservoir supply container onto the bottom wall of the supply chamber at a substantially constant pressure even when the amount of powder in the reservoir supply container decreases; pressurized gas flow means for entraining powder delivered from the helical particle supply channel, the delivery duct comprising a delivery duct communicating with the helical particle delivery channel through the delivery opening; Powder particles in a pressurized gas stream, characterized in that it has a tubular inlet end portion that communicates with said helical particle feed channel and provides for the delivery of all of the powder fed upwardly within said helical particle feed channel. A device is provided for supplying.

In accordance with one important aspect of the present invention, the reservoir supply vessel is a large vessel, but despite the large amount of reservoir supply available in the reservoir supply vessel, there is no possibility of packing or accumulation of particulate material. The particles are arranged in relation to the particle supply mechanism in such a manner as to provide uniform introduction of the flow of reservoir material into the supply mechanism without causing backing up.

According to another aspect of the invention, proposals are made to pressurize both the supply chamber and the reservoir feed container. This pressurization is done to establish the same pressure in both the reservoir supply container and the supply chamber.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, a proposal is made for the use of a particle supply mechanism of very small dimensions in view of the volume of reservoir particulate material available for dispensing from the reservoir supply vessel. This is accomplished by a specific arrangement of the delivery mechanism for controlling the delivery of particulate material from the storage supply container to the delivery chamber.

Operation Firstly, the apparatus of the invention comprises means for forming a deposit of powder on the upper surface of the bottom wall of the supply chamber.

Means for forming a deposit of powder on the upper surface of the bottom wall is provided in a manner that the reservoir supply vessel provided above the supply chamber and the reservoir supply vessel provided above the supply chamber, even when the amount of powder in the reservoir supply vessel is reduced, are substantially and means for supplying powder at a constant pressure from the reservoir supply container onto the bottom wall of the supply chamber.

In this way, a predetermined powder deposit is formed on the upper surface of the bottom wall of the supply chamber.

The present invention further provides a feed chamber including an upright cylindrical wall and a bottom wall connected to a lower end of the cylindrical wall, adjacent to the deposit of powder on the upper surface of the bottom wall; It has an inlet portion for receiving powder from said powder deposit, and a delivery opening in the upper region. a helical particle feed channel provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical wall and the cylindrical wall and the and means for vibrating the bottom wall.

In this way, the powder is fed upwards by vibrating the helical particle feed channel provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical wall. By supplying in this way, the amount of powder supplied per predetermined time can be maintained constant,
Moreover, it is possible to prevent the powder from hardening.

and the apparatus of the invention comprises pressurized gas flow means for entraining powder delivered from the helical particle supply channel, including a delivery duct communicating with the helical particle supply channel through a delivery opening; The delivery duct has a tubular inlet end portion which opens the delivery opening and communicates with the helical particle supply channel and provides for the delivery of all powder fed upwardly within the helical particle supply channel.

In this way, the pressurized gas flow entrains the powder.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS How the above-mentioned and other objects and advantages are achieved will become more fully apparent from the following description, which refers to the accompanying drawings.

The device of the present invention comprises a pressurized gas having particles dispersed therein, such as a gas adapted to be controlled by a normally closed valve 10 which acts to direct a flow of air and which is controlled by a solenoid 11. Through the flow duct 8 particulate material, for example an abrasive powder, is supplied. For example, a nozzle such as shown at 9 can be used to direct the air/abrasive stream to the point of use, eg, a mechanical or electronic component requiring controlled abrasion.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 6, the gas flow duct 8 extends through the wall of a feed chamber 12 in which a vibratory particle feeder is incorporated. The gas flow duct 8 can be sloped downwards to facilitate flow. This feeding device comprises a cylinder 13 opening upwardly at the top inside a feeding chamber 12 having a bottom wall 14 with a closed end, as shown in the drawings. This cylinder 13 constitutes an upright cylindrical wall.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the supply chamber 12 is closed by a top lid portion 15, and the two parts of the container are bolted together by bolts 16 as shown in FIGS. connected. The cylinder 13 of the feeding device has a helical particle feed channel 1 on its inner surface.
7, the lower end of which communicates with the bottom of the cylinder 13 immediately above its bottom wall 14 and the upper end of which communicates with the delivery duct 18.
directs the particulate material to be fed from the feed channel 17 to an upwardly opening funnel 19;
The bottom of the funnel 19 communicates with the gas flow duct 8.

The cylinder 13 is a feeding mechanism of the vibratory type, and for this purpose the device may in this case include parts of any of a number of known devices for generating the vibratory movement transmitted to the cylinder 13. It is attached to a base 20 consisting of.

The electrically operated devices that make up the base 20 are well known and, as mentioned hereinafter, include:
The operating current can be provided via a suitable circuit.

Vibration generators have the trade name SYNTRON, e.g.
Any model available on the market below Model EB-00 may be used. This type of vibratory device serves to generate vibratory oscillations of the cylinder 13,
Thereby a supply of particulate material is supplied upwardly from the bottom of the cylinder 13 through the supply channel 17 for delivery to the gas flow duct 8 .

According to the invention, the helical particle feed channel 1
Particulate material for supply from 7 to the delivery duct 18 is supplied to the supply chamber 12 from a storage supply container 21 . This storage supply container 21 can be of substantial capacity so that it requires filling or refilling only at infrequent intervals. The supply is carried out from the bottom of the reservoir supply vessel 21 via a supply tube 22 which communicates with the bottom of the reservoir supply vessel 21 and extends downwardly to a level proximate to the inner surface of the bottom wall 14 of the supply chamber 12. ing. The supply tube 22 has an easily separable threaded fitting 22a so that it can be easily removed and replaced by tubes of other dimensions adapted to the supply of various types of particulate matter. The spacing between the lower end of the supply tube 22 and the bottom wall 14 is indicated by the symbol AB. The distance AB is selected according to the characteristics of the material to be fed, in particular the particle size.

The walls of the reservoir supply vessel 21 converge downwardly in a section 21b, and the slope of this converging section 21b of the vessel also depends on its characteristics, including in particular the particle size of the particulate material being handled.
The angle of the portion 21b is such that the remaining material in the reservoir supply chamber 21 is fed downwardly by gravity into the supply mechanism as long as there is material remaining in the reservoir supply container 21. This angle therefore relates to the "angle of repose" of the material being handled. In other words, the angle of the container portion 21b is
It should be steep enough so that the material does not rest on the bottom wall of the container but continues to flow into the feed tube 22 and keeps the feed tube 22 full of particulate material. As an example of the slope of the wall of section 21b for a particulate material such as aluminum oxide having an average particle size of 50 microns, the angle should be about 60 DEG with respect to the vertical. In the case of aluminum oxide with an average particle size of 10 microns, the angle should be approximately 30° to the vertical.

The lower end of the supply pipe 22 and the bottom wall 14 of the cylinder 13
The interval 〓AB is also related to the angle of repose of the particulate matter being handled. During this time, AB is the bottom wall 1 of the supply container.
4 and thus to the inlet end of the feed channel 17. However, the interval AB should not be so large as to flood the bottom of the feed vessel, thereby unduly increasing the amount of particulate material fed upwardly into the feed channel 17.

The reservoir supply container 21 is adapted to be connected to the underlying supply chamber 12 by a bolt 21a. It is undesirable to form the storage supply container 21 separately from the supply chamber 12. This is because it allows for the exchange of storage supply containers of different sizes, thereby making the device suitable for different uses.

With respect to the reservoir supply container 21 , a generally conically shaped device 23 is preferably provided for the reservoir supply container 21 .
The inclined wall of this device 23 has holes 24 for providing a supply of granular material to the lower part of the storage supply vessel and thus to the supply pipe 22. This device 23 is a storage supply container 21
It also acts to take on part of the weight of the material supply inside.

The reservoir supply container 21 can be configured as a cartridge and adapted to receive a cartridge, if desired.

In the method as described below, supply chamber 1
It will be seen that 2 is supplied with gas under pressure, for example air, through connection 25. Similarly, the connection 26 connects the gas under pressure to the storage supply container 2.
Preferably, the supply chamber and the reservoir supply vessel are operated under equalized pressure conditions. This pressure directs the gas flow into the gas flow duct 8, into which the flow of particles is delivered according to the feed rate established by the helical particle feed channel 17 in the cylinder 13 constituting the vibrating feed chamber. .

Owing to the arrangement described above, it is possible to charge large volumes of particulate material into the entire installation without adversely affecting the rate of supply of particulate material or gas introduced into the gas flow duct 8 for delivery to the point of use. It becomes possible.

Because of the handling of the reservoir supply of particulate material in a separate upper chamber, the reservoir supply vessel 21, and because of the manner in which the particulate material is fed from the reservoir supply vessel 21 through the supply pipe 22 to the bottom of the cylinder 13, which is the vibratory supply chamber, there are various It is possible to provide a given feed rate with a vibrating device of much smaller dimensions than is practicable with other forms of known devices. In other words, these features make it possible to reduce the dimensions of the vibration supply chamber and other related parts.

These features have the further advantage that even particulate matter of very fine particle size can be easily handled and uniformly dispensed despite the large overall storage capacity of the device.

Before considering the electrical and pneumatic control systems, attention is directed to the structure at the top of the reservoir supply vessel 21. A lid 27 is provided which can be inserted into the circular cavity of the reservoir of the reservoir supply container 21. The lid is provided with a latching mechanism indicated at 28 which is adapted to be moved radially into engagement under an annular ring 29. The action of these latching mechanisms 28 is effected by a rotor-cut knob 30 or by an annular ring 2.
9 and other suitable mechanism for providing alternate engagement and disengagement of the latch mechanism 28. In FIG. 1, pressure connections 25 and 26 for supply chamber 12 and reservoir supply vessel 21 are shown.
It will be seen that the are interconnected by pipes 31, thereby ensuring that the pressures are equalized. The system can be supplied with gas under pressure, for example air, in any desired manner, for example by a supply line schematically indicated at 32;
This supply line 32 is then preferably connected to a pressure regulated source of the gas used.
Supply line 32 is connected to connections 25 and 26 and is adapted to also connect to pipe 31 via connection 33 which also has a check valve 34 and a solenoid control valve 35. The solenoid control valve 35 is adapted to be operated by a solenoid 36 and the device provides a normally closed valve that can be opened by the solenoid when the device's matser control is turned on.

In typical cases where the apparatus is used with abrasive powder, the pressure within both the supply chamber and the reservoir supply vessel is on the order of 5 to 300 psi (approximately 0.35 to 21.1 Kg/ ^cm2 ), such as approximately 85 psi (approximately 85 psi). 6.0Kg/cm ² ).

Proposals are also made to discharge pressurized air from both the supply chamber 12 and the storage supply vessel 21 via the discharge connection 37. This discharge connection 3
7 can be vented to the atmosphere via exhaust pipe 38 when valve 39 is open. Valve 39 is adapted to be controlled by a solenoid 40, which is a normally open solenoid valve such that valve 39 remains open except when the main controller is turned on.

The two solenoids 36 and 40 are supplied with current via a control switch 41. Control switch 41 receives current through a main power switch, indicated generally at 42. The circuit extending from the control switch 41 to the solenoids 36 and 40 is also controlled by an automatic shut-off device 43;
is arranged in the lid part of the storage supply container 21 and is shiftably movable under the influence of one of the latch mechanisms 28. When the knob 30 is operated to engage the latch mechanism 28, the latch mechanism associated with the automatic shut-off device 43 closes the solenoids 36 and 4.
0, the control switch 41
is shifted to a position where the circuit through it is completed. When latch mechanism 28 is retracted by the action of knob 30, automatic shutoff device 43 prevents current from being delivered to solenoids 36 and 40. This automatically prevents the introduction of pressurized gas when the lid and latch are not closed.

It will be appreciated that with the control system as described above, closing of main power switch 42 provides pressurization of both supply chamber 12 and reservoir supply vessel 21. When main power switch 42 is opened, NC solenoid 36 closes solenoid control valve 35, thereby cutting off the supply of compressed air, and NO solenoid 40 opens valve 39, thereby causing supply chamber 12 and reservoir supply vessel 21 to close. Allowing pressure to bleed off from both.

The main power switch 42 also controls the delivery of current to certain other devices including the NC solenoid 11 which controls the delivery of the air/abrasive flow through the gas flow duct 8. This action can be controlled manually using switch 4.
It is under the control of 4. The switch 44 also controls the sending of current to the vibration adjustment device 45 .
The current is supplied via the vibration mechanism 46 to which the base 20 for the vibration cylinder 13 is attached. The vibration adjustment device 45 is similar to a control box that adjusts the intensity of the vibrations transmitted to the vibration cylinder 13 and thus the rate of supply of powdered material to the gas flow duct 8. Because of this device, the vibration effect only occurs when the gas flow duct 8 is open.

It should further be noted that the pressurization of supply chamber 12 and reservoir supply vessel 21 is accomplished independently of the actual delivery of the air/abrasive flow, which is desirable. This is because the desired pressure is preferably pre-established before the time the abrasive particles are used in the actual polishing operation. The time interval is
Of course, it is necessary to create a pressure in the reservoir supply vessel and supply chamber, and once this is established, substantially instantaneous action of feeding the abrasive stream can be effected at will by operation of switch 44. can.

The apparatus disclosed herein is suitable for handling any of a variety of particulate materials, and is particularly suitable for handling fine or small particle size abrasive materials. Due to the use of a storage supply container 21 in combination with the supply chamber 12, it is possible to charge relatively large volumes of the material to be handled into the device, and at the same time a miniaturization of the vibrating device and the vibrating cylinder 13 is possible. possible.

Due to the slope of the section 21b at the bottom of the reservoir supply vessel 21 and because of the arrangement of the conically shaped device 23 in the lower part of the reservoir supply vessel 21, and also because of the close distance of the supply pipe 22 to the bottom wall 14 of the cylinder 13. , a continuous and controlled supply of particulate matter is guaranteed even from large volume storage vessels,
There is no excessive build-up at any point in the system, including inside the cylinder 13. Using equipment of the type illustrated and described, for example, when dealing with abrasive particulate materials ranging from about 0.3 microns to 100 microns on average, the cylinder 13 may have dimensions of 1 inch in diameter depending on the powder being dispensed. (approximately 2.54 cm).

(Effects) As described above, according to the present invention, by vibrating the cylindrical wall and the bottom wall, the powder can be supplied upward in a spiral manner, and the powder can be entrained in the pressurized gas flow. can. The amount of powder fed can be precisely controlled by adjusting the vibration mode.

By supplying the powder by vibration in this manner, the powder can be suitably entrained in the pressurized gas flow. The amount of powder supplied is substantially unaffected by the pressure of the pressurized gas flow, etc.

It further includes means for supplying powder from said reservoir supply vessel onto the bottom wall of said supply chamber at a substantially constant pressure even as the amount of powder in said reservoir supply vessel decreases, thereby reducing the amount of powder. The feed rate is also not affected by the amount of powder in the reservoir feed container.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of one example of a device according to the invention, also schematically illustrating the preferred electrical and pressure control system. FIG. 2 is a top view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, also showing a cross-sectional view at line 2--2 of FIG. 1 and a horizontal cross-sectional view of a portion. Third
The figure is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the reservoir supply vessel taken along cross-sectional line 3--3 in FIG. FIG. 4 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the feed chamber taken along line 4--4 of FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial view of a portion of the lid closure mechanism of the reservoir supply container, with some elements shown in vertical section. FIG. 6 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of the helical feed channels arranged within the feed chamber. FIG. 7 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the apparatus taken along line 7--7 of FIG. 8... Gas flow duct, 9... Nozzle, 10...
Normally closed valve, 12... supply chamber, 13... cylinder, 17... spiral particle supply channel, 20...
... base, 21 ... storage and supply container, 22 ... supply pipe, 23 ... conical device, 25, 26 ... connection section, 27 ... lid, 28 ... latch mechanism, 31 ...
...Pipe, 32...Gas supply line, 35...Solenoid control valve, 41...Control switch, 42...
...Main power switch, 43...Automatic cut-off device.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An upright cylindrical wall 13 and this cylindrical wall 1
a supply chamber comprising a bottom wall 14 connected to the lower end of 3; and means 21, 21b, 22, 23, 24 for forming a deposit of powder on the upper surface of said bottom wall 14;
and an inlet portion adjacent to and receiving powder from the powder deposit on the upper surface of the bottom wall 14, and a delivery opening in the upper region. a helical particle feed channel 17; and means 20 for vibrating the cylindrical wall 13 and the bottom wall 14 so as to feed powder spirally upwards from the deposit of powder on the upper surface of the bottom wall 14; said means 21, 21b, 22, 23 for forming a deposit of powder on the upper surface of said bottom wall 14;
24 comprises a reservoir supply vessel 21 disposed above the supply chamber; and a reservoir supply vessel 24 for supplying powder to the reservoir supply vessel 21 at a substantially constant pressure even when the amount of powder in the reservoir supply vessel 21 decreases. and means 21b, 22, 23 for feeding from the feed chamber onto the bottom wall of the feed chamber, further comprising a delivery duct 18 communicating with the helical particle feed channel via the delivery opening.
Pressurized gas flow means 18,1 entraining the powder delivered from said helical particle supply channel 17.
9; Apparatus for supplying powder particles into a pressurized gas stream, characterized in that it has a tubular inlet end section. 2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the tubular inlet end of the delivery duct extends substantially tangentially from the helical particle supply channel. 3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the tubular inlet end of the delivery duct extends substantially horizontally from the helical particle supply channel.