CA1265953A - Device for fragmenting, compacting and discharging of voluminous bulk goods, in particular household waste - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT

The device for fractioning, compacting and discharging of voluminous bulk goods, in particular household waste, which exists of a housing supporting an essentially vertical feeding shaft with a circular discharge opening. Under the feeding shaft, a number of rings are constructed on top of each other for mutual relative rotational movement around the discharging openings' central axle. Each ring is formed with an eccentric opening towards the rings' centre pushing the shovel-like formed part which, for each ring, pushes more in towards the centre than the above one. The rings are constructed in such a way that by relative rotational influence, bulk goods, gravitationally fed through the rings, can be simultaneously fractioned, through interaction between the rings contra-rotating shovel-like formed parts. Under the bottom ring, a cylindrical discharging chamber is constructed with therein a horizontal forward and backward moving plunger device for cutting and compacting out of the lowest ring fragmented bulk goods coming into a discharging pipe.

Description

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The present invention relates to constructlons for handling and forwarding volumlnous bulk goods, in particular household waste and refuse.
A ratlonal handling of voluminous bulk goods, such as household waste and refuse, places high demands on the equipment used, not only from a hygienic and envlronmental point of view, but also from an economic point of view. Some known arrangements for the handling of household waste are discussed below in greater detail.
A device known on the market for handling hou~ehold waste comprises a 50-called sack-changer with a compactor. The sacX-changer is available in different designs, of which the so-called carousel changer is commonly used.
It consists of a frame which is stepwise rotatabla around a vertical shaft, said frame having holders for a number of sacks which, by stepwise rotating the frame, one by one can be placed into a position below the opening of the disposal chute. When a sack has been filled up wlth waste, the frame is rotated one step so that the filled sack is brought into a position below a compactor, comprising a plunger by means of which the content of the sack is compacted to spproximataly half its volume. The frame is then rotated bacX
lnto position under the chute. When the sack is completely filled, the frame is rotated one step in order to bring an empty sack into position under the opening of the disposal chute.
A disadvantage of the above sack-changer wlth compactor i8 that due to its constructional height, it requires a relatively high ceiling height in the ~aste-disposal room, which makes it less suitable for installation in older buildings with insufficient ceiling height in the waste di~posal room. Even if the constructional height læ made sufficiently low, the sacks have to be transported from the sack-changer manually which, according to the present workers protection standards, is not accepted in waste-disposal rooms with a celling height less than 2.1 m. The sacXs filled with their compacted content are heavy and difflcult to manage and, thsrefore, if the waste-disposal room is located below ground level, a so-called stair lift is required, by means of which the sac~s or wagon with sacks are transported along the stalrs up to the ground floor for further transportation.
According to another known arrangement for thc processlng of household waste, 8 so-called waste-screw i5 used. The waste is transported from the chute openin~ ln a drum of ~teel plate by means of a motor driven, rotatlng ~, . . .

, - : ., ~ . ,: , shafkless steel spiral to a central collecting gtation withln the area, where the waste is compacted in a closed container.
A disadvantage of the waste screw is that it requires extensive installation work includin~ locating below ground the level of a pipe includin~
a spiral. The ingtallation of the waste-~crew i8 thus quite costly and is most suitable for installation in colmection with new building of residential blocks or block complexes.
Accordlng to a third Xnown arrangement for handling of household waste, a so-called waste suction unit is used, which means that the waste is transported by sir in a closed system to a collecting station where the waste is compacted in a container. The pipes in this waste structure are usually about 400 mm in diameter but if the waste suction unit is combined with grinders which are disposed under each chute, and which grinds the waste, a pipe having a diameter of 160 mm is sufficient. The combination of waste suction unit and grinder is often called a mini waste suction unit and i5, due to its size, suitable for installation in older buildings.
The waste suction unit, as well as the waste-screw mentionad previously, suffers from the disadvantage that it requires extensive installation work and is, therefore9 costly. Furthermore, ln order to obtain sufficient reliability in operation, high air speeds are needed, resulting in an unwanted high noise level. The mini waste suction unit which, due to its smaller size, is more advantageous from an installation point of view, requires, however, more maintenance wor~ in order to function satlsfactorily. The cuttlng blade of the wastage grinder is exposea to much strain and has to be replaced often. In the waste ~rinder, waste is crushed but no compactlng is effected.
DE-A 2 412 065 discloses a device for compacting and discharging bulk materlal as specified in the introductory part of the appended claim 1. In thls Xnown apparatus, there is a considerable risk that the bulk material which, by gravitational force is fed in the vertical direction, only is sub~ected to a compactlng operation, which may result in a compacted, conical plug, stopping further feeding of material through the appAratus.
The ob~ect of the present invention i8 to provide a device for fra~menting, compscting and di~charging of voluminous bulk 8oodg~ in particulsr hou~ehold waste and refuse, avoiding or lessening the above mentioned disadvantage~ of the known tevices and which fragments, compacts and discharges bulX goods, is PAT 7000~1 ~ 2 --,, ,, - , :
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~;26~ 3 simple in construction and has a low constructional height and is, therefore, well suited for installation in waste-disposal rooms having a low ceiling height.
According to the invention, the object refsrred to above i5 obtained by means of a device for fragmenting, compacting and discharging voluminous bulk goods, in particular household waste, which comprlses a substantially vertical, tubular feeding shaft supported by a frams and having a circular discharge opening; at least two cylindrical rings disposed one above the other under the feeding shaft for relative rotational movement in oppositè directions substantially about the geometrical axis of the dischar~a op~ning, thereby affecting bulk gsods present in the rlngs in a direction towards the centre of the rings characterized in that each ring is provided with an eccentrically protruding, shovel-like portion having a substantially vertical, helically curved wall and defining an eccentric through opening through the ring, the shovel-like portion of each ring extending closer towards the centrs of the ring than the shovel-liXe portion of the rlng situated above, the curvature of the shovel-liXe portion of every secont ring being basically mirror-inverted compared to the curvature of intermediate rings.
The invention is described below in connection with an example of an embodiment and with reference to the enclosed drawings, of which:
Fig. 1 shows a schematic, vertical cross-section of the device;
Fig. 2 is a vertical partial cross-section through ths rings;
Fig. 3 is a section taken as indicated at I-I in Fig. l;
Figs. 4-9 are horizontal views of the rings 4-8 in Fig; l; and Fi~ 10 is a schematic perspective view illustrating the interaction o f the rings.
As most clearly appears in Fig. 1, the device shown in the drawings consists of a frame 1, e.g. in the form o a ~teel construction of plating or a square tube, etc. In the top of the frame is fastened a circular, cylindrical, essentially vertical feeding shaft 2 with an inner diameter corresponding to the diameter of the mouth of 8 connected waste chute 3, preferably somewhat larger, enabling the waste chute to protrude a short distance lnto the feeding shaft 2. Vertically under the faeding shaft there are mounted a number of rings 4-8, provided with shovel formed, inwardly protrudlng parts lOA-E, and arranged so that, on relative rotational movement of the rings around a : - 3 -.: .

' ' ~2~ 3 geometrical axis substantially coaxial with the geometrical axis of the feeding shaft, the rings will affect bulk goods, w~ich are fe~ by gravitation, through the rings, towards the central parts of the rings, at the same time fractloning the bulk goods by interaction between the shovel-like parts of the opposltely rotating rlngs. Rings 4-~ can be mounted for ro~ation in opposite directions to each other but as shown in the preferred embodiment according to Figure 1, every second ring 5, 7 is fixed to the ~rame 1 and every second ring 4, 6 and 8 is rotatable.
Disposed immediately under the feeding shaft 2 is a rotatable ring 4, supported by the rin~ 5 which is attached to the frame. Rin~ 4 consists of a circular cylindrical casing 9 and a horizontal top plate lOA, w~ich forms an annular flange, which rests upon and is attached to a shoulder of a circular cylindrical support profile ll surrounding the ring. Support profile 11 has on the outside been provided with grooves 12 for a V belt which is part of a drive transmission for the rotation of the ring.
As appears particularly in the schematic Fig. 4, the ring 4 is provided with a shovel formed portion lOA protruding towards the mlddle of the ring and occupying a part of the surface enclosed by the ring and having a shovel surface 14 facing the centre axis of the ring 4 and prefèrably having a curvature as in the so-called Archimedes spiral, i.e. having an inwardly decreasing radius. The dimensions of the shovel formed portion lOA are growing radially towards the middle of the ring as seen in a direction opposite the rotationsl directlon of the ring 4, as marXed with an arrow in Fig. 3. The portion lOA which protrudes towards the centre of the ring thus de-limit~ an eccentric opening through the ring, the restrictlng walls of which extend p~rallel to the rotational axis of the ring, the eccentric opening having a cross sectlon which is at least partly enclosed by an arched line, the radius of which decreases towards the centre of the rin~. By rotation of the ring, the shovel surface 14 definss a passage, free of obstacles, through the ring 4, as is marked by a dotted circular line in Fig. 4.
Both of the other rotatable rings 6 and B are constructed in a manner corresponding to that described in connection wlth ring 4. Ring 6 thus includes, as particularly appears from the schematic Fi~. 6, a shovel formed portion lOC protruding towards the centre of the ring and having a shovel surface lS. The essential difference in comparison to the ring 4 is that the ,, :
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shovel formed portion lOC protrudeg further in~o the cen~re of ring 6 compared to the corresponding portion lOA of the ring 4. When the ring 6 is rotated, shovel formed part lOC defineg a pagsage without obstructions, as marked with the dot~ed circle-line in Fig. 6, which i9 les~ than the equivalent free passage through the ring 4. Correspondingly, ring 8, as appears from the schematic Fig. 8, has a shovel formed portion lOE with a shovel surface 16.
The shovel formed portion lOE protrudes even a blt urther to~ards the centre of ring 8 so that when rotating ring 8, a passage free of obstacles is demarcated as marXed by the dotted circular line in Fig 8, which is less than the corresponding free passage of ring 6.
Under the uppermost rotatable ring 4 and supporting this ring, is a non-rotatable ring 5 which, by fixing means 17, is attached to the housing 1. The flxed ring 5 is constructed in a slmilar manner as the rotatable rings previously described but differs, however, partly in that the supporting profile 18 which surrounds the rin~ does not have any grooves for V-ropes, partly in that the shovel Pormed portion 20 of the ring has a design substsntially mirror-reversed compared to the shovel formed p~rtion lOA of ring 4, as particulsrly appears from the schematlc Flg. 4. The dimensions of the shovel ~ormed portion lOB are thus decr2aslng towards the centre of the ring as ~0 seen in a direction opposite the rotatlonal direction of the rotatable ring.
Corresponding to what is the case in rlng 4, the shovel formed portion lOB is designed with a shovel surface 20 facing the centre axis of the ring, said shovel surface extending from the periphery of the ring in a concave curvature towards the csntre of the rin~, prefarably in a curvature corresponding to a so-callsd Archimedee spiral. The shovel formed portion lOB protrudes a bit further towards the centre of the ring than the corresponding shovel formed portion lOA of rlng 4.
Ring 7, which is fixedly attached to the f rame 1 and supports the rotatable ring 6, is designed in a corresponding manner as the previously described fixed ring 5. The shovel formed portion of ring 7 protrudes a bit further towards the centre of the ring than the correspondin~ portion of the rotatable ring 6 disposed above.
Tha lowermost rotatsble ring 8 is supported by a supporting rlng 22 attached to a bottom 19 which is fixed to the frame and includes a central discharge-opening 23 for discharging of bul~ good~ frsgmented by the rings. As PA~ 7000-1 '' : ' ~ .:
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-'' ~ i3 shown in Fig. 9, the opening 23 may have a ~orm which basically corresponds tothe form of the free openlng in rlng 8.
As most clearly appears in Fig. 2, the supporting profile 11; 18 of the rings 4-8 protrudes above ~he upper plate 10 of the rings, whereas the bottom edge of the circular shells 9 of the rings extendg below the upper surface of the support profile ll, 18 for the next ring. The labyrinth like passage thus formed at the lower, peripheral part of the ring, contributes effectively to prevent bulk goods particles from penetrating into the surroundings.
The propulsion for simultaneous rotation of the rotatable rings is effected by a drive motor not shown in the figure~ via a drive transmission. The drive transmission comprises three ~ertical shafts 34, 35 and 36 journalled in the frame and, seen from above, disposed in the corner oP an equally sided triangle. Three V-belt pulleys are mounted on each oP the shafts and are situated ~ust opposite the respective rotata~le ring. Preferably, two of the shafts are connected each with its own drive motor. As appears from Figs. 4, 6 and 8, the shafts 34, 35 and 36 are situated such a distancs from the rotational axis of the rings that the V-belts 37 engage with the V-belt grooves 12 in each respective ring with a certain dimensional angle, which should be sufficient for transferring the propulsive moment to the ring. The traction forces of the V-belt thereby have a radial component force which affects the rin~s on three sides and contributes to the centering of tha rings. In the device shown in the drawings, the rings are driven for rotation counter-clockwise as Qhown by the arrow in Figs. 4, 6, 8 and 10.
The bottom 19 disposed below the lowermost rotatable ring 8 forms, by means of its opening 23, a connection between the rings and a chamber 24 disposed under the bottom 19, said chamber preferably being formed as a cylinder with a substantially hori20ntal axis and opening into the discharge pipe 26. Disposed in the cylindrical chamber 24 is a plunger devlce 25 whlch is moveable in the cylinder 24 in tha longitudinal direction thereoE between a rear position indicated by continuous lines, in which the opening 23 is completely exposed for feeding a string oP fractioned bulk goods through said opening, and a forward ~osition In which the ront of the plunger device is situated on the opposite side of openin~ 23, as indicated by dotted lines in Pig. 1. The reciprocating movement of the plungar device in the cylinder 24 is achieved by means of a drlving davice disposed under the cyllndrical chamber and consl~tlng -~: - 6 -. :
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of an electric motor 31 wi~h an angular gear 32. The output shaf~ o~ the gear supports a crank arm 33 which, at one end, i8 flexlbly attached to a linking device 28 and which, at the other end, i8 flexibly attached to the plunger device 25 at the rear end thereof, via link fittings 27. Through this mechanism, the rotating movement of the motor and the angular gear is converted into a reciprocating movement of the plunger device 25 in cylinder 24.
The plunger device consists of a horizontal flat bar 25A and a vertical flat bar 25B having a width which, with a suitable play, corresponds to the inner diameter of cylinder ~4. The cross section of the plunger device thus has the form of a cross as shown in Fig. 3. On both sides of that part of the flat rod 25B of the plunger device which protrudes above the horizontal flat rod 25A, two scraping washers 29 are attached to the cylinder. The scraping washers 29 are located immediately behind the rear ed~e of opening 23 and serve as an object to prevent fragments of bulk goods and particles from following the plunger on lts return stroke. At the underside of the horizontal flat bar of the plunger device 25A two scraping washers 30 are arranged in a similar manner, said scraping washers being attached to the bottom of the horizontal flat bar 25A of the plunger device betwe0n this and the vertical flat bar 25B.
The purpose of the scraping washers 30 i~ to keep the bottom of the cylinder free from bulk goods fragments and particles by scraping action during forward movement of the plunger. The scraping washers 29 and 30 are thu~ shaped as circle quadrants and are provided with s~lf ad~usting border linings, not shown in the figures, for fitting-up against the plunger and the cylinder respectively. During feeding movement of the plunger, bulk ~oods are thus fed into the discharge tube 26 while simultaneously being compacted. Thanks to the above described design of the plunger, it does not need to cut off the strlng of bulk goods during each ~eeding movement of the plunger, which would have been the case if the working surface of the plunger against the bulk good~
would have been entlrely circular. Dus to this, the driving means for the plunger device may be dimensioned for signlficantly lower power demand, which also considerably decreases the wear of the plunger and cyllnder. When pa~slng opening 23, the upper, vertical protruding part of the plunger device 25 cuts through the string of bulk goods~ The plunger devlce illustrated in the figures is mechanically driven but, of course, hydraulic or pneumatlc plunger devices whlch bring about a linear reciprocating fesding movement may be used . -- 7 --.

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As rin~s 4, 6 and 8, via the drivR tran8m~ssion, ar~ made to rotate, the household waste, which is charged into the ~eeding ghaft 2 from the waRte chute 3, is affected by the shov~l formed portion lOA protruding from the first rin~
4 towards the centre of the ring. The bulk goods are th~reby affected partly in the direction of the centre of the ring, partly due to the gravitational forces, in axial direction downwards. The bulk goods are thereby brought into contact with ~he shovel surface 20 in the fixed ring S situated below ring 4.
The bulk goods are torn into rags, i.e. fractione~ and, in this ring, also forced partly towards the centre of the ring and partly ln axial direction towards the following rotating ring. ~uring transport through all of the rin~s, radial variations are brought about in the bulk goods and thus a fractioning and a simultaneous axial feeding of the strings of bulk goods into the cylindrical chamber 24 located under the lowermost ring. Under influence of the reciprocating movement of the plunger in this cylindrical chamber, the string of bulk goodR is deflected towards the discharge pipe 26 while the plunger movement affects a compacting of the bulk goods, at the same time feeding it into pipe 26 which has a larger diameter than the cylinder 24. The extent of compacting can be made varlable by ad~usting the length of the cylinder 24 and the length of stro~e of the plungsr. The household waste discharged into the pipe 26 in the form of a compacted string is further transported in the pipe by using compressed alr or vacuum, to a central collecting site, e.g. a container.
Due to its ~lmple design, the device according to the invention can be produced at a moderate C09t and is, due to its compact construction, well suited for installation in narrow spaces. As the device compacts as well as di~charges the household waste, the transport pipQ9 for the compacted household waste can be kept relatively small, which is advanta~eous for the installation and tubing.
The invention as described above with reference to the drawings, is not limited to this but can be sub~ect to var~ations within the scope of the following claims. The curved surfaces of the shovel formed portions may thus be provided with an edge or a toothing for further improving the fractionation.
The number of rings may also vary depanding on the type of bulk goods to be treated in the device and depending on the desired extent of compacting. Nor ^ : - 8 -,, : :
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i9~S3 is the invention limited to treatment of hougehold wa~ts and refuse but may advantageously be used for compactlng an~ feeding other bulk goods, e.g. peat or chips.

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Claims (5)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE
IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. Device for fragmenting, compacting and discharging voluminous bulk goods, in particular household waste, comprising a substantially vertical, tubular feeding shaft supported by a frame and having a circular discharge opening; at least two cylindrical rings disposed one above the other under the feeding shaft for relative rotational movement in opposite directions substantially about the geometrical axis of the discharge opening, thereby affecting bulk goods present in the rings in a direction towards the centre of the rings characterized in that each ring is provided with an eccentrically protruding, shovel-like portion having a substantially vertical, helically curved wall and defining an eccentric through opening through the ring, the shovel-like portion of each ring extending closer towards the centre of the ring than the shovel-like portion of the ring situated above, the curvature of the shovel-like portion of every second ring being basically mirror-inverted compared to the curvature of intermediate rings.

2. Device according to claim 1 characterized in that the first ring, which is located directly under the feeding shaft, and each second of the following rings are rotatable, and that the ring located directly under the first rotatable ring and each second of the following rings are fixedly attached to the housing.

3. Device according to claim 1 and 2 characterized in that said shovel-like portion covers a part of the surface enclosed by the ring in order to restrict the through flow area of the ring, said shovel-like portion being provided with a shovel surface facing the centre of the ring and extending in a concave curvature, the radius of which decreases towards the centre of the ring.

4. Device according to any of claims 1 or 2 characterized in that the dimensions of the shovel-formed parts of the first ring located directly under the feeding shaft and of every second one of the following rings, are growing as seen in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of said rings, and that the corresponding dimensions of the ring located directly under the first ring and of every second one of the following rings, are decreasing as seen in the same direction.

5. Device according to claim 1 or 2 characterized by a preferably cylindrical chamber disposed under the lowermost ring, said chamber opening into a substantially horizontal discharge pipe for discharging compacted bulk goods, said chamber being provided with reciprocating piston means which, on forward movement, deviates the string of fragmented bulk goods discharged from the lowermost ring, at the same time feeding it into the discharge pipe.