GB2185729A - Transport bodies for particulate or semi-dry material - Google Patents

Abstract

A body (1) on a motor vehicle (3) is for transporting particulate or semi-dry material, particularly mortar mixed ready for use. The body comprises hopper compartments (4A, 4B and 4C) in a row extending along the body. There are outlet gates closed by covers (9) in the base parts of the compartments for discharging the material. Within the compartments agitating blades (13, 14) are rotatable together on a common drive shaft (11) extending along the body. At the front end the drive shaft (11) is connected to a drive means (16) for driving all the agitating blades together. The blades when driven serve to sweep substantially the full height of each hopper compartment so that good agitation is achieved. In all there are outlets along each side of the body and at the rear end of the body. One or more of these outlets can be opened to achieve discharge as desired. During discharge agitation takes place in any compartment which is not opened. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Transport bodies for particulate or semi-dry material This invention relates to transport bodies for particulate or semi-dry material. In particu larthe invention is concerned with the building and construction trade, in which trade the term "semi-dry" is used to denote material having a sludge-like consistency such as wet cement, mortar, concrete and plaster mixed ready for use. Such material is delivered to site in this condition in transport bodies mounted on road vehicles.

Transport of mortar in a mixed ready for use state presents particular problems. Mortar is mixed at a plant priorto placing in a vessel fortransportto site.

If transported in a fixed vessel on a road vehicle, due to the agitation arising from normal road shocks, separation tends to occur with water rising to the top as a free layer and solids tending to form a series of layers with the coarsest elements at the bottom and layers of particles of steadily declining sizethereabove. In such a form mortar is quite useless for bricklaying, it must be delivered to site in a truly homogenous form.

Mortar can be delivered in a conventional concrete truck mixer but such a vehicle is not well suited to this purpose, and is better employed for its intended task. Transport bodies specifically intended for delivering and dispensing mortar have been proposed.

U.K. Patent Specification 2 124582 A discloses such a bodywhich comprises a plurality of hoppercompartments for the mortar disposed generally transversely across the body. Each compartment has an outlet for discharge of the mortar and within each compartment a-rotary screw, also orientated gener allytransversely of the body, is in register with the compartment outlet. The screws in the compartments can be selectively driven, one at atime, by a common drive means located externally of the compartments. The drive means is mounted for movement along one side ofthe body and is engageable with each ofthe screws, which are in register with the drive means.As the drive means is on one side of the body, and as the screws extend across the body from the drive means to the compartment outlets, all the compartment outlets must necessarily be on the other side of the body, so that delivery has to beef- fected laterally, and on one side only, ofthe body.

This can be a problem where site access is restricted.

As only one screw can be operated at a time, delivery from the compartments, and agitation ofthe mortar in the compartments, has to be effected one com partment at the time. In order to achieve good dis- charge, the screws are mounted in the bases of the hoppers, but this is not an ideal location for agitating the hopper contents.

According to the present invention there is provided a bodyfortransporting particulate or semi-dry material comprising hopper compartments in a row extending along the body, outlets in the base parts of the compartmentsfordischarging the material, agitating blades within the compartments rotatable about a common axis extending along the body, and drive means for driving all the agitating blades together, the blades when so driven serving to sweep substantially the full height of each hopper compartment. In use of this body, excellent agitation of material in the compartments is achieved by the agitating blades as they sweep substantiallythe whole heightofeach compartment. As all the blades rotatetogether, the contents of all the compartments are agitated at the same time.Discharge can be effected from any one compartment, or from more than one compartment at the same time, by opening one or more outlets as desired, the rotating blades then serving to expell the material whilst at the sametime agitating the contents of any compartmentthat remains closed. Asthe bladesare driven by a drive means that is connected to drive all the blades together, the drive input being at one end of the row, outlets can be located at more than one position around the base of each compartment, and there can be an outlet at the end of the row remote from the drive input end.If a compartment has more than one outlet, the outlet to be opened can be selected thereby to selectthe place of discharge to suit site conditions, which is advantageous where there are access problems. The variety of outlet positions is achieved with a drive arrangement that is of an uncomplicated form.

For a better understanding ofthe invention and to show howthe same may be carried into effect, referencewill now be made, byway of example, to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure lisa side view of a body fortransporting mortar in a mixed ready for use state, the body being shown mounted on a road vehicle, Figure2 is a view from above of the body of Figure 1,and Figure 3 is a rearviewofthe body.

The body 1 in the Figures is mounted on the chassis 2 of a lorry 3. The body 1 has in the form shown three compartments 4A, 4B and 4C in a row extending along the body with the compartment 4A atthe front and the compartment 4C at the back. The row of compartments could, however, be made up of other than three compartments.

As can be seen from Figure 3, in transverse crosssection each compartment has upright side walls 5 at its upper part whilst the base 6 of the compartment is formed by a part of a circle the diameter of which is nearly the width between the upright side walis. At thetopthe compartment is closed bya wall 7 on which there are covers 8 (thewall 7 and covers 8 are omitted from Figure 2). The front and intermediate compartments 4A and 4B each have two outlet gates in their bases 6, closed by covers 9. In each case one gate is at one side ofthe body 1 and the other is atthe other side. The rear compartment 4C has a single outlet gate, also closed by a cover 9, this gate being at the rear end of the row.The covers 8 and 9 are hinged covers that are are manually operated in the form shown but they could move in some other fash ion, for example the wal 7 could be closed by flexible sheeting and the covers 9 could slide, and power operation could be provided.

In the base of each compartment 4A, 4B and 4C there is a drain valve manually operated by oper ation of a hand wheel 10.

A single drive shaft 11 passes centrally through the compartments 4A, 4B, from front to rear, the base 6 of each compartment being centred on this shaft. In each compartmentthe shaft 11 carries an agitating blade arrangement 12 which in the case of each of the compartments 4A and 4B comprises four parthelical blades 13 equi-spaced apart around the shaft 11. The blade arrangement 12 in the compartment 4C comprises two opposed semi-helical blades 14. The blades 13 and 14 are supported from the shaft 11 by struts 15. The extent ofthe blades within each compartment is such that, as shown by the chain line circle AB in Figure 3, the agitating blades in each compartment serve to sweep substantiallythefull height of the compartment when the drive shaft 11 is rotated.

At the front end the shaft 11 is connected through a gear box 16 to the P.T.O. ofthe lorry.

At the rear of the body 1 there are stowed discharge spouts 17 (shown stowed only in Figure 1).

When any outlet gate has been opened, one ofthese spouts 17 can be placed to receive mortar discharged through the gate, as shown at 17A in Figures 1 and 3.

Access to the tops of the compartments 4A, 4B and 4C can be gained via ladders 18 at the rear the body 1, and side plateforms 19.

in usethetop covers 8 are lifted and the compart ments 4A, 48 and 40 are filled to nearthetop ofthe area that can be swept by the agitating blades 12with mixed ready for use mortar. Different mortars, for ex- ample mortars of different colours, can be placed in the individual compartments. When necessary during a delivery run the shaft 11 is operatedto rotate the agitating blades in the compartments to agitate the mix. The blades effect a vigorous agitation ofthe mix, particularly in the vertical sense, as they sweep through substantially the full heightofeachcom- partment.Asthe contents of the compartments are below the tops of the area swept, the blades emerge from the mix as they reach the upper part oftheir paths and as they re-enter and descend in the mixthe blades create following voids therein to provide channelsforfreewaterto re-enterthe mix and be carried down into the particulate materials.

Usually agitation ofthe mix will be effected on site immediately priorto discharge. When the mortar is in a satisfactory state for delivery, one or more discharge spouts 17 are placed in position and the appropriate outlet gates are opened. If mixes of different colours are being delivered, one spoutcan be used for one colour and another for another colour to avoid the need to clean a spout prior to use with a different colour mix.

With the spout(s) in position, the shaft 11 is rotated and the blades 13 and 14then serve to expellthe mortarthrough any gate which is open. Thus the contents ofany one compartment, or more than one compartment, can be discharged. Where gates of more than one compartment are open,the mix is expelled from these compartments simultaneously.

The mix is expelled from the front and intermediate compartments 4A and 4B by the sweeping effect of the blades 13 in these compartments. In the rear compartment 40 the blades 14 have a screw effect that serves to expel I the mix th rough the rearwardly positioned outlet gate of this compartment.

In anycompartmentthat is notopen,the mix therein is agitated throughout the time and the bla- des are driven to discharge mortar from the opened compartment(s). This can reduce the time required for agitation when discharge is effected at the next site to which mortar is delivered.

When the vehicle returns to the manufacturing plantthe drain valves in the bases of the compartments 4A, 4B and 4C are opened, by operating the hand wheels 10, and the side plafforms 19 are utilised to gain accessforthoroughlywashing down the interiors ofthe compartments. The cleansing water drains away through the opened valves, via hoses connected to these valves.

Claims (12)

1. A body for transporting particulate or semi-dry material comprising hopper compartments in a row extending along the body, outlets in the base parts of the compartments for discharging the material, agitating blades within the compartments rotatable about a common axis extending along the body, and drive means for driving all the agitating blades together, the blades when so driven serving to sweep substantially thefull height of each hopper compartment.

2. A body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the compartment at one end ofthe row has two outlets either of which can be selectively opened for discharging material, one of these outlets being at one side ofthe body and the other being at the other side ofthe body.

3. A body as claimed in claim 2, wherein there isa compartment intermediate the compartment at said one end ofthe row and the compartment that is at the other end of the row, this intermediate compartment also having two outlets either of which can be selectively opened for discharging material, one of these outlets being at one side of the body and the other being atthe other side of the body.

4. A body as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the compartment at the other end of the row has a single outlet, this outlet being at the end ofthe row.

5. A body as claimed in claim 2,3 or4,wherein in the or each compartment which has two outlets the agitating blades comprise four part-helical blades equi-spaced around said common axis.

6. A body as claimed in claims 4 and 5,wherein in the compartment having a single outlet the agitating blades comprise two opposed semi-helical blades.

7. A body as claimed in claim 5 or 6, wherein in transverse cross-section each compartment has up right side walls at its upper part, and the base of each compartment is formed by a part of a circle the diameter of which is nearly the width between the upright side walls.

8. A body as claimed in claim 7, wherein the base of each compartment is centred on the common axis of the agitating blades.

9. A body as claimed in any one ofthe preceding claims, wherein the agitating blades in all the compartments are mounted on a common drive shaft which is connected to said drive means.

10. A body as claimed in any one ofthe preceding claims provided with a plurality of discharge spouts, any of which can be positioned to discharge material expelled from any opened compartment outlet.

11. Abodyfortransporting particulateorsemidry material, substantially as herein before described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

12. A body as claimed in any one ofthe preceding claims mounted on a road vehicle.