GB2146214A

GB2146214A - Apparatus for discharging a container

Info

Publication number: GB2146214A
Application number: GB08422366A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Macmillan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1983-09-07
Filing date: 1984-09-05
Publication date: 1985-04-17
Also published as: GB8323923D0; GB8422366D0; GB2146214B

Abstract

Apparatus for facilitating the discharge of a container (1) includes a positionally displaceable wall (8) which is mounted by a guide track or the like (10) for displacement towards and away from the opposite end of the container. The wall (8) is intended to displace the content of the container towards the material discharge region (11) of the container. A material discharge unit is provided at the discharge region for displacing material from the front face of a body of the material to be discharged; this unit (13) including a pair of swingable arms (16, 17) mounted from a frame work (15) for pivotal movement about vertical axes. A further swingable member sweeps across the lowermost region of the material at the discharge zone, the operation of this member being related to the movements of the arms. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Discharge of material from containers This invention relates to the discharging of material from a container.

In particular the present invention is concerned with the discharge of materials such as feed stuffs for farm animals, straw based manures, fertilizers and the like, which during the discharging operation are housed in containers which are being towed by a tractor or other vehicle.

In the handling of such materials it is desirable to be able to discharge the material from either side or both sides simultaneously as required.

It is also to be noted that in the distribution of materials such as a straw based farmyard manure the material during the cartage thereof during the distribution operation tends readily to compact thereby rendering the actual discharge operation somewhat more difficult in that it is necessary to loosen frequently the material so that it will discharge from the container. With such materials the provision of an operator whose task is to ensure that the material does not compact to an extent that it will not discharge from the container is often neither convenient nor possible.

It is an object of the present invention to provide arrangements for facilitating the discharge of materials such as above mentioned from a container whilst the latter is being towed by a tractor or the like.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide such apparatus for facilitating the discharge of materials as above mentioned as may be readily mounted to a 'flat-top' form of trailer that is converted to provide a walled container.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided apparatus for facilitating the discharge of material from a container, the apparatus including a positionally displaceable wall member adapted to provide a wall of the container; means for selectively displacing the wall member with respect to the remainder of the container so as selectively to vary the volume available for the material to be discharged in such manner that material in the container is bodily moved towards a material discharge region of the container; and means co-operable with the discharge region for displacing material from the remainder of the material towards material discharge locations.

Broadly, according to a further aspect of the invention there is provided apparatus for discharging material from a container, comprising means for defining at least one material outlet region for the container; means for locally displacing material to be discharged from the container towards any selected outlet region; and means for bodily displacing the material content of the container progressively towards the means for locally displacing whereby the latter is able readily to separate material from said remainder and direct such material towards a selected outlet region.

Preferably, the locally displacing means includes at least one swingable member adapted to wipe across the face of the material within the container that is being bodily moved within the container.

Conveniently a second swingable arrangement moveable in conjunction with the first mentioned swingable member is adapted for displacing the lowermost regions of the face of the material.

For a better understanding of the invention and to show how to carry the same into effect reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a highly schematic plan view of apparatus incorporating the features of the invention, the Figure serving to illustrate the basic layout of the apparatus; Figure 2 schematically illustrates the main constructional features of a material discharging unit as seen from the towing vehicle looking towards the container, in the figure only a part of the complete apparatus is shown; Figure 3 is a schematic front view of further details of the material discharging unit; and Figure 4 is a perspective view to an enlarged scale of further details of the arrangements provided for displacing the rear wall of the container.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly Fig. 1 in which a trailer structure having a chassis carried by road wheels and a so-called flat-top load receiving surface is represented by a rectangle 1, which hereinafter will be called the flat top 1. The flat top has longer side edges 2 and 3, a rear end 4 and a front end 5. Upstanding side walls 6 and 7 are mounted to the flat top by any convenient means (not shown). An end wall 8 is mounted for controlled movement lengthwise (as shown by the arrow 9) of the flat top and between the two side walls 6 and 7 along a suitable guide track 10 mounted to the upper surface of the flat top 1.

The walls 6, 7 and 8 effectively co-operate to provide a three walled container having a generally open front end region 11 adjacent to the front end 5 of the flat top 1. The guide track 10 includes a series of regularly spaced teeth which co-operate with a ratchet mechanism 12 associated with the wall 8. This mechanism will be considered in greater detail hereinafter.

The function of the moveable wall 8 is bodily to move the material content of the container towards the said front region 11 which thus provides the material discharge end of the container.

This front end region 11 is effectively closed by means of a material discharge con trol apparatus 1 3 which enables a selective mode of discharge of material from the container. The unit 1 3 is intended to be mounted from the tow-bar arrangements provided for coupling the trailer to a towing vehicle. In the tow-bar arrangement is schematically shown at 14.

The unit 1 3 essentially comprises an open framework 1 5 which provides a mounting assembly for arrangements for displacing material from the front face of a body of material to be discharged; means for blocking-off at least a portion of the front of the container, selectively openable discharge shutes or the like; and control mechanisms for the materialdisplacement arrangements and the shutes.

Thus in broad terms the control unit 1 3 includes a pair of swingable frame members 1 6 and 1 7 mounted from the framework 1 5 for pivotal movement about axes perpendicular to the load receiving surface of the flat-top; i.e., vertical, and such as to enable blade means 1 8 carried by the members 1 6 and 1 7 to sweep across the front face of the material.

The frame members 1 6 and 1 7 are displaced relative to the framework 1 5 by a hydraulic ram arrangement generally shown at 1 9 in Fig. 1.

Referring now to Fig. 2 this shows schematically the main structural features of the discharge unit 1 3 as seen from the side thereof adjacent to a towing vehicle, i.e., tractor or the like (not shown) this side being regarded as the front end of the unit.

It is intended that the unit 1 3 should be supported from the tow bar assembly 14 of the trailer and that the upper parts of the unit should be securable to the upper front corners 20, 21 of the side walls 6, 7 respectively.

Thus the frame unit includes a front bottom rail 22, a front top rail 23 which is positioned vertically above the rail 22 by vertical support beams 24 and 25 which are symmetrically located relative to the lengths of the rails 22 and 23. The lower rail connects via a support bracket asembly 26 including a member 27 which is engageable with the tow bar assembly 14 and two divergent support arms 28, connecting with the bottom rail 22.

Outwardly directed stub shafts 29 are provided on the support beams 24, 25 to provide lower bearing units for vertical pivot shafts 30 whose upper ends are journalled in the top rail 23. Two similarly constructed rectangular frames 31 and 32 are pivotally mounted one to each of the shafts 30. Each frame 31, 32 includes a vertical free end part 33 which is adjacent to the container discharge region 11 and which serves to mount a plurality of materialdisplacing plates 34 which are required to project into the discharge region 11. With this arrangement each frame 31, 32 is swingable about the pivot shafts 30 so that the blades are able effectively to sweep through the region 11, to either side of the medial line of the trailer.

In other words the blades 34 of the frame 31 are able to sweep material to one side of the medial line and the blades 34 of the other frame 32 are able to sweep material to the other side of the medial line.

The ends of the top rail 23 are connected to horizontal members 36, 36 whose free ends are adapted for releasable connection to th corners 20, 21 of the walls 6 and 7. These beams 35, 36 are bridged by a further upper rail 37 which is parallel to the top rail 23. A third horizontal beam 38 inter-connects the centre positions of the rails 23 and 37 to each other.

The upper ends of the frames 31 and 32 are interconnected by a bracing bar (not shown in Fig. 2) which incorporates a telescopic section which permits a limited amount of relative movement between the frames 31 and 32. The bracing bar is pivotally connected to the frames by way of stub pivots upstanding from the frames.

Since it is intended that the actual discharge locations for the material should be located at the front corner regions of the container and to accommodate this the unit 1 3 is provided at each end thereof with material flow control arrangements, each including a lower chute 39 and an upper flap like door arrangement 40. In the Fig. 2 the door and chute, 40, 39 are shown at the right hand side of the Figure only. In practice, a chute and door would be provided at the left hand side also. The chute 39 is pivotally connected to the framework 1 5 so that the chute can be lowered from the closed position shown in full lines to the open position shown in dashed lines when it is required to discharge material. Likewise the door 40 is displaced from the position shown to a raised position for the purposes of material discharge.In order to control the opening and closing of the flap doors end chutes the chutes and doors are connected by way of cable arrangements (only fragmentary parts are shown at 41 in the Figure) which include operating means such as a hydraulic ram or the like. The control arrangements are such that all of the doors and chutes may be opened at the same time to allow simultaneous discharge from both sides of the trailer or such that the door and chute at one side only are opened to enable discharge from one side only as required.

The discharge unit 1 3 is provided with a further swingable element which is intended to co-operate with the lower regions of the material to be discharged. The general structure of this element is shown in Fig. 3.

Referring now to Fig. 3, this Figure schematically illustrates a portion of the framework as seen from the rear side thereof and the portion shown includes the top rail 23, the bottom rail 22 and the two upright support beams 24 and 25. In addition, the Figure shows the swingable frames 31 and 32. The frames 31 and 32 serve to sweep the material to the left and right simultaneously. In a modified arrangement (not shown) the frames may be arranged to displace the material to the right or left as desired. In this arrangement a conveyor is provided to guide the material in the required direction.

The hydraulic ram assembly 1 9 (Fig. 1) for displacing the frames 31 and 32 is shown to include two double acting rams 42 and 43 whose cylinders are pivotally mounted to the framework 1 5 (the actual connection is not shown) whilst the rods 42A and 43A are pivotally coupled to an appropriate one of the frames 31 and 32. It will be appreciated that the rams 42 and 43 are controlled by a hydraulic control circuit (not shown) which ensures the requisite sequencing of the operation of the rams 42 and 43 to cause the frames 31 and 32 to swing to and fro relative to the framework.

A further swingable member 44 is provided for effectively directing the material within said region 11 to the left hand or right hand chute 39 according to the instantaneousdi- rection of swing of the frames 31 and 32, the material with which the member 44 is associated being that located adjacent to the bottom region of the container. The member 44 is pivoted at its upper end 45 to a mounting block 46 located at the centre of the rear face of top rail 23. This connection between the arm and block includes a telescopic connection to allow limited axial displacement of the member 44 with respect to the rail 23.

The member 44 is displaced in unison with the movements of the frames 31 and 32 by a slide element chain combination 47 including an inverted Tee member 48 whose cross piece 49 is mounted for horizontal slideable movement upon a guide bar 50 forming part of the framework 1 5. In other words the Tee member is constrained to move in a reciprocable movement in the horizontal direction. The opposite ends of the cross-piece 49 are respectively connected to the frames 31 and 32 by chains 51 and 52 whereby the swinging movement of the frames 31 and 32 produces a corresponding displacement of the member 48.

The free end of the limb 53 of the Tee member 48 is pivotally coupled at 54 to the further swingable member 44 whereby the horizontal movement of the Tee member causes the swingable member 44 to swing about its upper pivotal connection with the block 46. It will be appreciated that the telescopic connection allows a greater angle of swing than would be the case with a simple pivot connection.

The lower end 54 of the member 44 carries blade(s) tines or the like for engagement with the material adjacent the flat top surface for the purposes of sweeping material entrained thereby towards the appropriate chute 39.

In the foregoing description reference has been made to the moveable wall for displacing the material bodily towards the discharge region 11. As has been mentioned the wall 8 is mounted upon a guide arrangement 10 and is drivingly co-operable with the guide arrangement by way of an indexing and latching arrangement 11.

Fig. 4 illustrates in more detail the general constructional features of the guide arrangements and mode of mounting the wall 8 to the guide arrangement 1 0. As will be seen in Fig. 4 the guide arrangement includes a first channel member 55 which is secured to the upper surface of the flat top 1 so as to lie lengthwise of the latter. A second channel member 56 is slideably movable within the channel 55 in such manner that the channel member 56 is inverted. The upper surface of the channel member 56 is provided with a series of regularly spaced teeth or the like 56A.

A horizontally extending flange or plate 57 projects from each side of the first channel 55. The plates 57 effectively co-operate with a base plate 58 interposed between the channel member 55 and the flat top 1 to provide a pair of oppositely directed guide slots 59 which are intended to receive and locate guide bars or blocks 60 provided upon a support and slide member 61 to which the wall 8 is securely connected. In other words the wall support member 61 is able to slide lengthwise of the slots 59.

A ram unit (not shown) is located beneath the flat top 1 such that the ram is able to move the slideable channel member 56 backwards and forwards with respect to the fixed channel 55. This backwards and forwards movement is utilised to advance the wall 8 to displace the material in the container towards the discharge region 11. To achieve this the support and slide member is provided with a latching detent element (not shown) which may be caused to engage with the teeth 56A when it is desired that the movement of the moveable channel should displace the wall 8, and which may be caused to disengage from the teeth 56A when it is desired to return the movable channel 56 back to the commencement of the stroke of the ram unit, and which may be caused to reengage with the teeth when it is required to advance the wall still further. In practice, the wall 8 is advanced one tooth at a time.The cycle of engagement channel advance, disengagement, channel return, engagement channel advance, etc. is continued until the wall 8 has been advanced by the required amount.

In order to lock the wall 8 in the advanced locations during the return stroke of the ram unit a ratchet system is provided, this ratchet system including a series of rectangular tooth formations 62 located upon the upper surface of one of the plates 57. A ratchet sever or the like is pivotally mounted to the wall support member 61 such that the ratchet lever is selectively moveable between a position in which it is able to latch into the space between adjacent pairs of teeth formations 62 and a disengaged position. The formation of the ratchet lever is such that during the advance of the wall 8 by the associated ram unit the ratchet lever engages between the teeth formations 62 thereby to prevent the wall from being displaced rearwardly by the material within the container as a consequence of pressures produced by the advancing movements of the wall.

To return the wall 8 to its initial position at the rear end of the flat top 1 following discharge of the load the ratchet lever is displaced from the engagement position to the disengaged position. The sequence of drive from the ram unit is adjusted such the latching detent element engages with the teeth 56A during the return movement of the ram unit and thus the moveable channel 56, and disengages from the teeth 56A when the ram unit is undergoing its advancing stroke.

It will be understood that the change-over of the operational mode of the ram unit may be effected by any convenient control means.

In practice, the sequencing of the movement of the wall 8 and the movements of the frames 31 and 32 is such that a advance of the wall unit by one tooth space of the teeth 56A corresponds with a complete cycle of advancing movement of the frames and also the further swingable member 44.

If desired, the means provided for displacing the wall 8 can include a screw drive arrangement. For example, a screw member can be arranged lengthwise of the container and a suitable running nut member can be connected with the wall 8 in such manner that rotation of the screw member produces the displacement of the wall.

Furthermore, a chain drive may also be used. Such a chain drive can involve an endless chain system or a fixed chain with a suitable 'walking' element adapted for traversing lengthwise of the fixed chain.

Claims

1. Apparatus for discharging material from a container, comprising means defining at a predetermined zone of the container at least one outlet region for material to be discharged; means for bodily moving the material along the floor of the container towards said zone; and means adapted for co-operation with the material when in said zone for directing the material towards the or each selected outlet region.

2. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means adapted for co-operation with the material includes an assembly adapted to sweep across and engage with the material when in said zone in such manner that engaged material is directed towards the or each selected outlet region.

3. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 2, wherein said assembly includes a main member mounted for swingable movement about an axis transverse to the load receiving floor of the container.

4. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 2, wherein said assembly includes first and second main members mounted for swingable movement about parallel axes transverse to the load receiving floor of the container.

5. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 3 or 4, wherein said assembly also includes a secondary member mounted for swingable movement about an axis in such manner that the secondary member is able to engage with the lowermost regions of the material the arrangement being such that the secondary member assists in maintaining displacement of the material adjacent to said load receiving floor.

6. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 5, wherein the movements of the main and secondary members are related to each other, and wherein the means provided for displacing the or one of the main members is arranged to produce the requisite operational movements of the secondary member.

7. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 6, wherein the main member or members each comprises a frame member mounted for pivotal movement about an axis perpendicular to the load receiving floor and provided with blade means for engaging with the material, and wherein the secondary member is adapted for displacement in a horizontal plane in such manner that the material engaging region of the secondary member is able to engage with material adjacent the floor.

8. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the means adapted for co-operation with the material when in said zone includes means for controlling the opening or closing of the or each said outlet region.

9. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 8, wherein the means for controlling the opening or closing of the or each outlet region includes selectively openable discharge chutes or the like, and means for enabling the selection of the opened or closed conditions.

1 0. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in any one of the preceding claims 1 to 9, wherein the means for bodily moving the material along the floor of of the container includes a positionally displaceable wall, the latter being constrained to move lengthwise of the adjacent walls of the container, and wherein said outlet region is opposite to the displaceable wall.

11. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 10, wherein the displacement of the moveable wall and the operation of the means adapted for co-operation with the material when in said zone are operationally inter-related.

1 2. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 10 or 11, wherein a guide track and co-operable ratchet mechanism is provided for facilitating the displacement of the moveable wall, and wherein the ratchet mechanism is arranged to be reversible whereby the wall can be selectively advanced towards or away from the means adapted for co-operation with the material.

1 3. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 12, wherein the guide track and ratchet arrangement includes inter-engaging channel members one being secured to the floor of the container and the other being selectively displaceable lengthwise of the one channel by operating means, and wherein the moveable wall is connected with a guide means adapted to co-operate with the fixed channel, the arrangement being such that the operating means is able to produce relative displacement between the channels by way of the ratchet arrangement.

14. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 13, wherein the operating means includes a hydraulic ram.

1 5. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 10 or 11, wherein a screw drive arrangement is provided for effecting displacement of the moveable wall.

1 6. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in any one of the preceding claims 1 to 15, wherein the means adapted for cooperation with the material when in said zone is formed by a unit adapted for mounting to an opening in the wall of the container.

1 7. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 16, wherein the unit is adapted to replace the end wall of a container, and is arranged for mounting to the ends of the side walls of the container.

1 8. Apparatus for discharging material as claimed in claim 17, wherein the unit comprises an open framework which provides a mounting arrangement for displacing material from the front face of the material to be discharged; means defining the or each outlet region; and control mechanisms for enabling the selective opening and closing of the outlet region or regions.

1 9. Apparatus for discharging material from a container, constructed and arranged to operate substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.