GB2047763A

GB2047763A - Apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material

Info

Publication number: GB2047763A
Application number: GB8011805A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Gefa Masch & Blech GmbH; Gefa Maschinen- und Blechwarenfabrik GmbH
Current assignee: Gefa Masch & Blech GmbH; Gefa Maschinen- und Blechwarenfabrik GmbH
Priority date: 1979-04-11
Filing date: 1980-04-10
Publication date: 1980-12-03
Also published as: IT1188924B; GB2047763B; IT8048371A0; IT8048371A1; DE2914676A1; BE882735A

Abstract

In apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material by feeding the bales to co- operating toothed cylinders or rollers and delivering the thus separated fibres via a discharge passage situated beneath the cylinder and roller assembly to a pneumatic conveyor (9) which removes the fibres from the apparatus for further processing, the invention provides a perforated plate (8) arranged in the discharge passage above the bottom (13) thereof to limit the fall of the separated fibres from the cylinder roller assembly, the passage space beneath the perforated plate being connected to a source of compressed air which passes through the plate (8) to maintain the fibres in separated condition and prevent them from balling-up as they move to the delivery end of the discharge passage. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material This invention concerns an apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material.

It has already been proposed in such apparatus to provide an apron conveyor or other feed table to convey bales of fibrous material towards a housing containing a horizontally arranged main cylinder which is disposed at the delivery end of the conveyor, a fine opener roller which is disposed above the main cylinder and which co-operates with the main cylinder to the bales, a back-stripper or clearer roller preferably being disposed above the fine opener roller, a stripper or doffing roller positioned downstream of the main cylinder, a discharge passage for receiving and discharging the separated fibres and a delivery or suction funnel contiguous with the discharge passage. The fibres are conveyed pneumatically from the delivery funnel for further processing.

Before the fibres in the delivery funnel are entrained by the flow of delivery air, the separated fibres dropping from the main cylinder and the stripper roller onto a conveyor belt have a tendency to execute a rolling movement on the conveyor belt and to re-form into balls. This, however, is disadvantageous for further processing. Furthermore the conveyor belt has to be constantly serviced and cleaned.

The invention seeks to improve the apparatus referred to above such that the separated fibres dropping from the main cylinder and the stripper roller are fed in a separated state to the delivery funnel and thus into the region of the pneumatic conveyor arrangement.

In accordance with the present invention, this object is achieved by arranging a perforated plate in the discharge passage to limit the fall of the separated fibres stripped from the main cylinder, the perforated plate being spaced above the bottom of the passage, and by connecting the space between the bottom of the passage and the perforated plate is connected to a source of compressed air.

The air entering the space between the bottom of the passage and the perforated plate prevents the separated fibres from re-forming into balls. The individual jets of air emerging from the perforated plate carry the separated fibres towards the delivery funnel, where they are entrained by the delivery air of the pneumatic conveyor.

The compressed air source may comprise a blower and air passages leading therefrom to the space below the perforated plate, wherein the blower conveniently being disposed on the housing of the apparatus above the rollers and connected to the space below the perforated plate by way of vertical air passages disposed on both sides of the housing and horizontal air ducts connected to the said air passages. In this manner, a uniform, strong flow of air can be produced over the entire width of the passage which is provided below the main cylinder, for receiving and discharging the separated fibres, thus avoiding accumulation and balling-together of the fibres.

In order to obtain uniformly strong jets of air emerging from the perforated plate over the entire length thereof when viewed in the direction in which the fibres are moved forwardly, the bottom of the passage can be inclined slightly upwardly towards its end, while the perforated plate extends in a horizontal plane.

If it is necessary to match the intensity of the jets of air emerging from the perforated plate to the nature of the fibres, an externally adjustable throttle flap may be provided in the upstream portion of the space below the perforated plate.

If it is desired additionally to dry the separated fibres after the fibrous material has been opened and separated, an air heater may be disposed in the air duct upstream or downstream of the blower. In this manner, air heated in conformity with the nature of the fibres can be fed for drying and conveying the fibres.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the openings in the perforated plate may have associated baffle plates which deflect the jets of air, emerging from the upper surfaces of the plates, towards the delivery funnel. The directed jets of air not only prevent the separated fibres, falling from the main cylinder, from balling together, but also convey them to the delivery funnel where they are entrained by the flow of air of the pneumatic conveyor for further processing.

The invention will be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation, partially broken away, of one apparatus embodying the invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of the apparatus, Figure 3 is a longitudinal section to an enlarged scale, through the perforated plate, and Figure 4 is a section, similar to that of Figure 3, through a different embodiment of perforated plate.

The illustrated apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material comprises a feeding table in the form of an apron conveyor 1, the tubular bars of which extend across the width of the table and are guided at both ends in endless chains.

The apron conveyor 1 serves to feed bales 2 of fibrous material (one of which is shown by dash-dot lines) to the opening device proper, which includes a conveyor 3 by which the bales are carried to a main cylinder 4 and a fine opener roll 5 arranged above it.

Projections on the main cylinder 4 and on the roll 5 act upon the fibrous material compressed in the bale and open and separate the fibres thereof. A backstripper or cleaner roller 6 is arranged above the fine opener roll 5, and a stripper or doffing roller 7 is positioned downstream of the main cylinder 4. All the rollers are disposed in a housing 16 and are rotatable by individual drives. This is necessary in order to be able to adjust the desired rotational speed of the individual rollers and of the main cylinder to suit the nature of the fibrous material.

A passage for receiving and discharging the separated fibres is formed in the housing 16 below the main cylinder 4 and the stripper roller 7. An outlet or delivery funnel 9 is contiguous with the discharge passage. As will be seen in Figure 2, the delivery funnel is a suction funnel which tapers from the entire width of the apparatus to the diameter of a pipe usually provided for pneumatically conveying the material for further processing. The bottom 13 of the passage is located below the level of the bottom 15 of the delivery funnel. A horizontal, perforated plate 8 is aligned with the funnel bottom 15 and limits the fall of the fibres separated by the main cylinder 4. A space is formed below the perforated plate 8 and extends across the entire width of the housing 16, from the main cylinder 4 up to the delivery funnel 9.

This space located between the bottom 13 of the passage and the perforated plate 8 is connected to a compressed air source. The compressed air source comprises a blower 10 which is disposed on the housing 16 above the rollers 4,5,6 and 7, the compressed air which it produces being split up by way of a T-piece 19 into a right-hand flow component and a left-hand flow component. The two flow components are conducted downwardly to an air duct 12 by way of perpendicular air passages 11 and 11' arranged one at each side of the housing 16. The air duct 12 conducts the flow of air into the space, located below the perforated plate 8, at that end thereof which is remote from the delivery funnel 9.If, in addition to loosening the fibres in the passage located below the main cylinder 4, it is also desired to use the compressed air in the air duct for the purpose of drying the fibres, an air heater can be connected to the blower intake. Alternatively, however, it is possible to dispose an air heater between the blower 10 and theT-piece, orthe T-piece itself may be provided with an air heating device.

For the purpose of metering the compressed air flowing out of the air duct 12, a manually pivotable regulating flap 14 is provided above the bottom 13 of the passage in the space located below the perfo rated plate 8, at that end of the space which is remote from the delivery funnel. The compressed air entering the space below the perforated plate 8 is indicated by arrows. The compressed air is conducted upwardly in individual jets of air through the perforations in the perforated plate 8 and into the passage located above the perforated plate. In order to direct the separated fibres F to the delivery funnel and also to prevent them from reforming into balls, baffle plates are associated with the openings in the perforated plate 8.As shown in Figure 3, the baffle plates 17 of the embodiment illustrated in Figure 1 are formed below the perforated plate 8 and are associated with respective flow-through openings 18. Each baffle plate 17 is bent upwardly from the horizontally extending portion of the sheet metal part 16 such that the air flowing through the opening 18 deflected to the left as viewed in the drawing, that is to say, it is deflected towards the delivery funnel 9.

An alternative design of perforated plate 8a is shown in Figure 4 and has air baffle plates 17a which are disposed above the horizontal sheet metal part 16a and are associated with openings 18a. The air baffle plates 17a again slope to the left as viewed in the drawing in order to deflect the jets of air, flowing through the openings 1 8a, to the left as viewed in the drawing, that is to say, towards the delivery funnel 9.

The bottom 13 of the passage slopes upwardly towards the delivery funnel 9 from that end of the space which is adjacent to the air duct 12, in order to ensure uniform distribution of air over the entire length of the perforated plate 8 and thus to ensure uniform strength of the air jets emerging from the perforated plate. The emerging jets of air hold the separated fibres, dropping from the main cylinder, in suspension and prevent them from re-forming into balls. In this manner, fibrous material which is not balled together, and which comprises satisfactorily separated fibres, is conveyed pneumatically for further processing.

Claims

1. Apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material, comprising a housing, an apron conveyor or other feed table for conveying bales to a main cylinder arranged in said housing with its axis horizontal, said cylinder being disposed at the delivery end of the apron conveyor, a fine opener roller in said housing above the main cylinder and co-operating with said cylinder to open the bales, a stripping or doffing roller disposed downstream of the main cylinder, a discharge passage in said housing for receiving and discharging the separated fibres and a delivery or suction funnel contiguous with said passage, in which a perforated plate is arranged in the discharge passage to limit the fall of the separated fibres stripped from the main cylinder, said perforated plate being spaced above the bottom of the passage, and in which the space between the bottom of the passage and the perforated plate is connected to a source of compressed air.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the source of compressed air comprises a blower connected to air passages leading to the space beneath the perforated plate.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, in which the blower is mounted on the housing above the main cylinder and the fine opening roller and is connected to the space below the perforated plate by way of vertical air passages arranged one at each side of the housing and a horizontal air duct extending between said blower and said air passages.

4. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the bottom of the discharge passage rises slightly towards the discharge end thereof, while the perforated plate is horizontal.

5. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, in which an externally adjustable regulating flap is disposed in the upstream end portion of the space below the perforated plate.

6. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 5, in which an air heater is disposed in the air flow path upstream or downstream of the blower.

7. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, in which at least some of the openings in the perforated plate have adjacent baffles by means of which the jets of air emerging from the upper surface of the plate are deflected towards the delivery funnel.

8. Apparatus for opening and separating the fibres in bales of fibrous material and constructed, arranged and adapted to operate substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.