GB2518896A

GB2518896A - A sweep auger

Info

Publication number: GB2518896A
Application number: GB1317679.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jon Pace
Original assignee: GUTTRIDGE Ltd
Current assignee: GUTTRIDGE Ltd
Priority date: 2013-10-07
Filing date: 2013-10-07
Publication date: 2015-04-08
Also published as: GB201317679D0

Abstract

A sweep auger features a housing 15, which may be located over a material outlet 18 of a flatÂ bottomed silo, a continuous screw 19 extending radially from the housing 15, and a flangeÂ mounted motor (24 fig.8) on a mounting bracket within the housing 15, coupled via aÂ gearbox (27,fig.8) to the screw 19. Such an arrangement may be used to remove anyÂ remaining material, such as a grain, from the bottom of a silo, after flow under gravity hasÂ expired. This particular arrangement may provide for easier installation compared to prior art designs.

Description

A SWEEP AUGER

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a sweep auger of the type used in a flat-bottomed silo in order to remove leftover material (e.g. grain, etc.) that was unable to be removed via gravity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When grain or other particulate material is stored in a flat-bottomed silo, it is common to use a sweep auger, comprised of a continuous screw mounted radially from an axis at the centre of the silo. The sweep auger slowly turns about an opening through which the material can fall through, urged toward said opening by the auger. In this way remaining IS material stored in the silo can be transferred to a conveyor system below the silo. Figure 1 illustrates a known system of the prior art where a silo 10 is filled with material through an opening 11 in the roof 12 of silo 10. Material (such as seed, etc.) is able to fill the silo up until the apex of roof 12 for storage. When the material is required for further processing, the silo is emptied by opening apertures 13 at the lower end or floor of the silo which allows material to drain by gravity onto a conveyor system and onto further processing or transport etc. However, the nature of a flat-bottomed silo is that not all of the material will naturally drain away by gravity, leaving a residual amount of material behind. Accordingly, a sweep auger 14 is employed which rotates radially around the silo, drawing the remaining material toward an inlet 15 to the conveyor system below, by virtue of the auger screw.

Sweep auger systems have been known for many years, operating on the principle described above. A sweep auger is an expensive piece of apparatus which must be assembled and installed by a relatively skilled workforce. The components of a sweep auger can also be inconvenient to transport and install.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention seeks to provide a sweep auger with improved simplicity of design, thereby enabling reduced assembly and installation time. Furthermore, assembly and installation may be performed by a less-skilled operator as a result of the construction choices made according to the invention.

In a broad aspect the invention provides: a sweep auger device including a housing for axial location adjacent an inlet; a continuous screw mounted to extend radially from the housing; wherein there is a flange mounted motor, located within the housing, coupled via a gear box to the continuous screw.

The housing may also be broadly defined herein as an "axial mounting unit" because it is located at a centre point (axis) of a circular flat-bottomed silo within which the sweep auger is located. Furthermore, its primary function is to mount and protect an electric motor and other operating gear associated with the auger that extends therefrom. It is preferable that the housing partially or completely encloses the motor, but this is not essential for operation. Preferably the mounting unit includes a shaft providing an axis of rotation for the sweep auger around the silo. Preferably the shaft includes or is associated with a slip ring enabling electrical power transfer between a silo power supply and the mounting unit and internal components thereof, i.e. the electric motor.

The flange mounted motor, preferably powered by electricity, provides the advantage that less time is required for assembly to achieve an appropriate axial and parallel shaft alignment between the motor shaft and gear box input shaft, compared to a conventional foot mounted motor which is installed in an entirely different orientation and must be pushed into engagement. According to the invention, the flange mounted motor has a drive shaft rotation that is parallel to the axis of rotation for the axial mounting unit and could be dropped into position by a suitable hoist or the like. Preferably the axial mounting unit is mounted on or otherwise coupled to a shaft (axle) supported by a bracket spanning across the inlet, located on a floor of a flat-bottomed silo.

Preferably the auger screw is housed at least partially within deflector or beam sections that provide a deflection surface against which material can travel along the auger.

Preferably, the beam sections include flange portions at each end to enable suitable fastening means to join multiple beam sections together, i.e. to extend to also accommodate an additional auger length on final assembly. Preferably the fastening means is a rivet or bolt-on construction.

Preferably the deflector/beam sections are comprised of two pieces, joined together by riveting along a mating face of a longitudinal flange.

Preferably a guide roller or wheel mechanism is provided at a distal end of the auger from the axial mounting unit, which dictates the clearance of the auger from a floor surface of the silo. Preferably the guide roller is powered via a suitable gear arrangement driven by the auger rotation, which in turn is driven by the electric motor.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the sweep auger device is provided in combination with an inlet assembly for installation in a floor portion of the silo. The inlet is of a fully bolted construction. By contrast, it is known to provide an inlet assembly with all components welded together, but such joints have residual stresses that can have a detrimental effect on structural integrity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 is a general view of a prior art silo with a sweep auger installed; Figure 2 illustrates a plan view of an auger according to the present invention installed in a flat-bottomed silo; Figure 3 illustrates a general perspective view of a sweep auger according to the invention from the leading side of rotational movement; Figure 4 illustrates a general perspective view of the auger from a trailing side relative to rotational movement about the silo; Figures 4 and S illustrate the construction of beam components for the invention; Figure 7 illustrates the bolted construction of an inlet assembly; and Figures 8-11 illustrate various views of an axial mounting unit/housing, incorporating a flange mounted motor according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Figures 3 and 4 best illustrate the general appearance and configuration of the present invention. Specifically, a housing or axial mounting unit 15 is shown which is arranged for rotational movement via a shaft 17 mounted into a bracket 16 of an inlet construction 18 which is installed into the floor of a flat-bottomed silo. Extending from the mounting unit is an auger screw 19 that is powered by a drive means located within the mounting unit 15. The configuration of the drive means is best illustrated by Figures 8-11.

The auger screw 19 is at least partially surrounded by a beam or casing 20 which provides a surface to assist in moving material in the direction of arrow M of Figure 3. Material is generally urged by the continuous screw in the direction of arrow M toward inlet 18 where it will exit the silo onto an under-floor conveyor (not illustrated) and taken for further processing. It will be apparent that the general movement of a sweep auger as illustrated will be in a clockwise direction D where the open leading face of the auger 19 is exposed to material on the floor of the silo. Movement in the direction of arrow D is enabled by the auger itself "biting" into material on the floor of the silo and assisted by the use of a roller 21 at the end of auger 19 distant from the axial mounting unit 15.

Roller 21 is generally driven via a suitable gear arrangement located within housing unit 22 at the end of the beam/auger extension.

It will be apparent from Figure 3 that the beam/auger length has a join in at least one place (indicated by reference letter i) such that the apparatus can be broken down to a shorter length for storage and transport. According to Figure 4 a foot 31 or blade/skid rail may be included midway along the beam, in this case adjacent join i.

As shown in Figures S and 6, the beam components are manufactured with distal flange portions 23 that enable subsequent beam lengths to be easily connected with each other in situ. Flanges are also provided on the mating lengths of the two half-beam components (e.g. components 20A and 20B as shown in Figure 5) for the purposes of enabling quick assembly by riveting or comparable fastening means. Figure 6 also illustrates a removable cover 20C on the leading side of beam 20 that can expose a greater surface of the auger for servicing, or to remove any material which is causing a jam etc. Figures 8-11 illustrate the internal components of axial mounting unit 15 and, particularly, a flange mounted electric motor 24 which is bolted in an inverted position where the motor shaft 25 is coupled to a gearbox input shaft 26 of a gearbox 27. During assembly this requires less time to achieve axial and parallel shaft alignment as the motor shaft is dropped into place.

An output shaft 28 from gearbox 27 is coupled to the auger screw to cause rotation thereof perpendicularly to motor shaft 25.

Also visible in Figures 10 and 11 are a slip ring cap assembly 29, located above a vertically fixed tube/shaft 17 that provides the axis of rotation for the axial mounting unit and overall clockwise rotation of the auger as seen in Figure 2. Slip ring 29 enables electrical power to be supplied to the rotating mounting unit 15 and its components via cabling C introduced through a conduit 32 (Figure 7) built into the inlet assembly 18. Cabling C and the inlet assembly 18 are static, while the mounting unit 15 with its auger rotate. A slipring allows an electrical connection between moving parts.

Mounted on the side of the vertical fixed pivot 17 is also a drive end horizontal and vertical pivoting assembly 30. The horizontai and vertcal pivoting assembly (30) connects the slipring 29, vertical shaft and drive end assembly together. The vertical shaft allows the sweep to rotate at the centre 2' axis whereas the pivoting assembly aliows rotation on the X' axis, Rotation on the X' axis allows the whole beam secilon to rise up and down vertically with the contours of the floor. Some prIor art systems adopt a similar engineering solution, however, these use welded components and the present invention does not. This reduces costs and is better for the environment.

By way of example, the flange mounted electric motor is rated at approximately 5.5kw which is sufficient to drive the components of the apparatus. The number of sweeps per hour of the auger around a silo as illustrated by Figure 2 may be 1 to 5 times, depending on the nature of the material being emptied from the silo.

Figure 7 illustrates a bolt-together inlet construction 18, preferably provided in combination with the sweep auger device as described above. This component effectively suspends the housing 15 above an opening 0 through which material may fall, after having been urged toward a central axis by the auger. The bolted construction provides structural advantages over a welded equivalent and may be assembled on-site.

Such a construction also enables repair/replacement of individual sections in a simpler manner than a welded or single piece construction.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A sweep auger device including: a housing for axial location over a material inlet/outlet from a flat-bottomed silo; a continuous screw mounted to extend radially from the housing; wherein there is a flange mounted motor, located on a mounting bracket within the housing, coupled via a gear box to the continuous screw.
2. The sweep auger of claim 1 wherein the continuous screw extends perpendicularly relative to a drive shaft of the motor.
3. The sweep auger of claim 1 or 2 wherein the housing is mounted on or otherwise coupled to an axle/shaft supported by a bracket spanning across the inlet/outlet, located on a floor of a flat-bottomed silo.
4. The sweep auger of any preceding claim including a deflector or beam section to partially enclose the continuous screw suitable for providing a surface against which material can travel along the auger.
5. The sweep auger of claim 4 wherein the deflector or beam sections include flange portions at at least one end to enable suitable fastening means to join multiple beam sections together.
6. The sweep auger of claim 4 or 5 wherein a deflector or beam section is comprised of two or more portions, with mating flange edges that are riveted together.7. The sweep auger of any preceding claim including a guide roller or wheel mechanism at a distal end of the auger from the housing.
7. The sweep auger of any preceding claim in combination with an inlet assembly for installation in a floor portion of the silo, the inlet being of a fully bolted construction.
8. A method of installing a sweep auger according to any preceding claim including installing an axial mounting unit or housing over an opening in a flat-bottomed silo, wherein the flange mounted motor is manoeuvred for axial and parallel shaft alignment between a motor drive shaft and a gear box input shaft.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein the drive shaft is parallel to the axis of rotation of the axial mounting unit and is lowered into position by a suitable hoist or the like.
10. The method of claim 8 or 9 wherein the opening has had an inlet assembly installed thereinto, said assembly being of bolt-together construction.
11. The method according to any of claims 8 to 10 wherein deflector or beam sections are assembled to partially enclose the continuous screw, said deflector or beam sections including mating flanges that are fastened together during installation.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein the fastening function is by way of riveting.
13. A sweep auger device substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 2 toll of the drawings.
14. A method of installing a sweep auger substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 2 toll of the drawings.