GB624793A - Improvements in or relating to apparatus for emptying cans or the like - Google Patents

Abstract

624,793. Piercing and emptying cans &c. HEINZ CO., Ltd., H. J., and THORN, R. H. W. Feb. 19, 1947, No. 4909. [Class 21] A container such as a can is emptied by the introduction of a suction conduit, the top of the container being first cut to permit the entry of the conduit by a device incorporated in the emptying apparatus. The suction conduit comprises a tube 11 connected to a storage tank under vacuum conditions, the end of the tube forming a seat for a mushroom valve 14 controlled by a compressed-air cylinder 19. The tube 11 has a jacket 12 through which water passes via holes 22 to dilute the contents of the can and ensure its complete evacuation. The cutting device comprises a blade 10 which surrounds the conduit and descends along its axis to form the orifice. As the conduit enters the orifice, the valve 14 opens and a valve 63 permits water to flow through the jacket 12. When the conduit reaches the bottom of the can, the valve 14 closes and water is shut off. The blade 10 is withdrawn from the can as the conduit enters. The conduits may be mounted in pairs to operate simultaneously. Their weight is taken by counterweights passing over pulleys and they are raised and lowered by cam-operated levers 48. Cams on a shaft 34 also control the cutting blades 10 and the water and air supply. Air supply to the cylinder 19 is via a camoperated valve 91, and the water supply valve 63 is cam-operated through a rod 62 against a spring 64. A cam 69 on a shaft 68, chain-driven from the shaft 34, operates by means of levers 72, 73 a push rod 77 which forces a pair of cans off a conveyer 84 onto a platform 28 beneath the conduits. The conveyer 84 is driven through bevel wheels 82, 85 from a main drive shaft 36 which also chain drives the shaft 34 through a clutch mechanism.