US2661089A - Bucket elevator housing - Google Patents

Description

S. M. MERCIER BUCKET ELEVATOR HOUSING Dec. 1, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Oct. 5, 1946 [N VEN TOE;

TA'NLEY M. MEECIEE) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 7 4 [N VEN TOE S. M. MERCIER BUCKET ELEVATOR HOUSING Dec. 1, 1953 Original Filed Oct. 5, 1946 STANLEY M.ME.ECIEE,

l I l I l IIBHHFI Dec. 1, 1953 s. M. MERCIER BUCKET ELEVATOR HOUSING Original Filed Oct. 5, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 fNVE/VTOE STANLEY M. MERGER,

Patented Dec. 1, 1953 Stanley M. Mercier, Bexley, flhio, assfgnor to The Jelfrey Manufacturing Company; acomporation of: Ohio:

Original application October 3; 1946, Serial No. 700,928. Divided and this application. May 27, 1950} Serial Nb". 164L771 13 claims.- (Cl.1-98 -206:)

This invention relates to a bucket elevator or conveyor.

object of the" invention is toprovide an improved casing structure which is suspended substantially as a unit and provides for free expansionand contraction of the casing'in response totemperat'ure changes.

Another object of the" invention is to provide an improved elevator casing which is supported by a circumferential skirt, the casing being free to expand vertically in at least one direction a substantial amount.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a casing, as above set forth, with guide means whichguide the casing dining its vertical expansion and contraction.

Still another object of the invention. is to provide an eievat'or casing of the above mentioned typein which a circumferential supporting ring is empioyed preferably combination with the mentioned circumferential skirt.

Another object of the invention is to: provide an elevator in which there is a head shaft supporting draft means and a floating frame carry"- ing' a foot shaft, there preferably" being a casing totally enclosing the draft means with bearings for the head shaft outside the casing and heariii'gs for the foot shaft carried by said: floating frame and within said casing. Y

A further object of the invention isto provide improved bearing construction for an elevator or conveyor in which fluid is employed to keep grit out of the hearing.

Still another object of the invention is to providean improved seal betweenan elevator" or conveyor casing and a rotating shaft.

A further obgiect of the invention is to provide a totally enclosed elevator in which the foot shaft is mounted on a floating frame and is carried on bearings, boththe shaft and the bearings being an "rely within the elevator casing, there being in eating means outside: the casing to indicate the height of the shaft relative-to said' casing.

other objectsof the invention will appear hereinafter, the novel features and combinations heing set forth in. the appended claims:

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. i is a side elevational view of an elevator involving my invention showing a portion of the guiding and supporting superstructure, the casing insulation being omitted; j

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 of amodined form of elevator involving features of my invention;

Fig. 2* is an enlarged. detail View taken on the 2s-2 of Fig. 1' looking: in. the direction of the arrows;

Fig; 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing particularly the: skirt: which supports the head section: and; associated: mechanism inthe elevator ofiEig; 2;,

4 is an elevational view of the boot or foot section. of. the elevator of! Fig. 2, the showing also generally applying to the elevator of Fig. 1 exceptfor the supporting skirt Big 5 is. an enlarged sideview of. the elevator casing-of Fig. l showing also the: associatedfeed chuteand observation: window;

Fig. 6 is an: enlarged sectional elevational view showing the foot shaft and associated mechanism;

Fig. 7 is. an enlarged view of the casing adjacent the tool; shaft showing the shaft indicator mechanism, parts being broken away; and- 8- is a transverse sectional elevationalview of one end. of. the head shaft and associated bearing and; seal This application is a; division of my applicationserial 700,928, filed October 3, 1946, now Patent No.. 2,570,363; dated October 9,. 19-51. Fig. 1 oi the drawings illustrates the. casing and its mounting means for an elevator 33 incorporating features. of my invention, Figs. 2*, 3 and- 4 illustrating another form of elevator I33: also incorporating suchfeatures, it being understood that the elevators 33 and I 33 are similar in construction. except. for Such differences as are obvione or are po-inted out hereinafter. I

Each of the elevators 33 and L33 includes a generally cylindrical elongated upstanding casing or housing 3-8 which provides a complete enclosure for endless chain bucket elevator conveyor mechanism.v which is shown in detail in my parent application above identified. At thebottom is. a feed chute 32-.

' In. the completed unit the exterior surface of the, casing or housing 38 includes a layer of insulating material which has not been shown in the drawings. This is because of the fact that catalytic material both its regenerated and spent tormu to be handled by said elevator, is very hot, as a consequence of. whichv there. is a high temperature within the casing 38 when the system is in, operation. Because of the temperature diiierences which exist within the. casing 38v when it is inoperation as compared. with when it is shut down and; particularly in view of the fact that. the casing has appreciable height, for ex.- ample in one installation it is approximately one hundred and. seventy-five feet high, it is. necessary to provide for the free expansion and contraction of said casing 38, particularly along its length. To this end I provide novel supporting or suspending and guiding features in said casings 38 of elevators 33 and I33.

In elevator 33 this supporting or suspending mechanism is in the form of a peripheral frustoconical petticoat, skirt or flange 40 which is located near the top of said elevator and adjacent the bottom of the head section 4| of said casing or housing 38. The top of the skirt 40 is rigidly attached, as by welding, preferably around its entire periphery, to a supporting and reinforcing ring or belt 42 which in turn is rigidly attached to and forms a reinforced supporting area on the periphery of the casing or housing 38. The bottom of the skirt 40 is provided with an integral circumferential bearing flange or ring 43 about which it is rigidly attached, as by welding, which flange or ring 43 rests upon a supporting superstructure 44 which may include a pair of spaced I-beams and interconnecting cross-beams which form a part of or are attached to a building or other independent supporting structure.

The entire load or weight of the casing 38, including the head section 4| of the elevator 33, is supported by the superstructure 44 through the skirt 40 and ring 42. As a consequence of this fact it is evident that the casing 38, including the head section 4|, is rigidly connected to the external supporting superstructure 44 in only one horizontal plane which is the plane of connection of the skirt 4!] and the ring 42, and consequently the casing 38 is free to expand without strain under the conditions of varying temperature which occur particularly between operating and non-operating conditions. For example, if the head section 4| expands it will expand upwardly from the ring 42. If the casing 38 below the ring 42 expands it can freely expand downwardly therefrom since it is hanging free except for its connection to skirt 48 through ring 42.

The skirt 44 also provides for diametric expansion of the casing 38. As previously set forth,

the skirt 4!] is in the form of a peripheral frustoconical petticoat or flange, the small diameter end of which is attached to the ring 42 and the base or large diameter end of which rests upon the stationary I-beams of the superstructure 44.

In providing for the expansion of the casing relative to the superstructure the skirt 40 functions as an upstanding load supporting moment memher which connects the casing 38 with the superstructure. Because the ends of the skirt substantially follow the temperatures of those memhere to which they are connected through conduction, the ends will expand and/or contract according to the temperatures of those members and since the superstructure is never as hot as the casing 38 the smaller end of the skirt will expand and contract with the casing while the large end of the skirt will remain more nearly at a constant temperature.

In view of the height of the casing 38 it is desirable to provide guide or anti-sway means 45 at spaced vertical intervals to guide and brace said casing 38 against excessive lateral movement which, for example, may be caused by the wind, since in most installations these elevators are built outdoors and are merely supported by open frames, of which the superstructure 44 is a part. The details of these guide or anti-sway means 45 are shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings and are described hereinafter in connection with the description of the modification of Fig. 2.

The elevator head shaft 46 i shown in detail in Fig. 8 of the drawings, but for the time bein it is sufficient to point out that it is mounted upon a pair of spaced bearings, one of which is seen at 41, there being a bearing 4'! adjacent each end of the shaft, each bearingbein car ried in a bearing block supported upon an I-beam or other structural member 48 of the superstructure 44.

The structure of the shaft 46 and bearing 4! preferably follows the disclosure of my Patent No. 2,430,236, dated November 4, 1947. The shaft 46 is preferably covered with insulating material 49 (see Fig. 8) and preferably includes a pair of friction rings 56 which are built up of a plurality of interconnected welded rings to form friction traction wheels 5| which support and drive endless spaced-apart conveyer chains (not shown).- The structure of the traction wheels 5| and associated chains preferably follows in general the construction disclosed and claimed in my application, Serial No. 607,115, filed July 26, 1945, now Patent No. 2,525,041, dated October 10, 1950.

Of particular significance in connection with this phase of the invention is the fact that the complete casing or housing 38, including the head section 4|, is supported from the superstructure 44, while the bucket conveyer mechanism and head shaft 46 are supported from a spaced part of the superstructure including the I-beams 48. In view of the temperature variations to which the casing head 4| is subjected it is necessary to provide for relative movement between said shaft 46 and the casing head 4| so that the side walls of the head section 4| can move in planes at right angles to the axi of head shaft 46. To provide for this and still preserve the enclosing characteristic of the casing 38 I employ a novel seal 53 which is disclosed in detail in Fig. 8 of the drawings and hereinafter fully described.

The head shaft 46 is driven from an appropriate motor and speed reducing drive mechanism 54 mounted on the I-beams 48. I also preferably provide a normally closed explosion door 55 adjacent the top of the head section 4|. Said head section 4| also includes a discharge chute 56. A hood and vent pipe BI is provided for the three sections of the chute 56.

Attention is now directed particularly to Figs. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings and to certain details by which the elevator I33 differs from the elevator 33 and to certain particulars in which they are similar. Except for differences in the construction of the head section |4| of the elevator |33, as compared with the head section 4| of elevator 33 and the method of supporting the casing 38 of the two elevators 33 and I33, both elevators are of substantially similar construction. The differences in support, however, provide for one difference in the relation of parts previously described in connection with the elevator 33, in that the head shaft 46 and supported conveyer mechanism 39 in the elevator 33 is supported directly from the casing 38 through the head section |4| instead of being supported independently thereof from superstructure I- bearns 48. This will be evident from the following detailed description of elevator I33.

Said elevator I33 includes a petticoat, skirt or flange. I40, similar to the skirt 4!! of elevator 33, with'which there is an associated ring I42 and ring 'or flange I43, the elements I40, I42 and I43 having essentially the same relative relation as the elements 40, 42 and 43. Ring I42, however, is

rigidly attached to the casing 38 or elevator I33 to form a supporting area adjacent its bottom rather than adjacent its top, and ring H3 is supported by I-beams of superstructure M4 which are adjacent the bottom thereof rather than adjacent its top.- As a consequence, the easing 38 of elevator B3 is suspended or supported by the skirt I40 from the superstructure I44, with the major portion thereof projecting abovethe plane of support and only the foot section or bottom thereof hanging down from said plane 01' support. I

The head shaft Mi of the elevator #33 is supported through bearings 41 and associated bearing blocks which are mounted upon channels of a head framework 53 which in turn is supported on a torsion ring 59 which circumscribes the top of casing 38 and which isattached thereto by a frusto-conical petticoat, skirt or flange so, the bottom of which is welded to the torsion ring 59 and the top of which is welded to a supporting area formed by the top of the casing 38 and the bottom of the head section I4! thereof. It is thus evident that the frame 58 as well as the head shaft 46 and bucket elevator mechanism is directly Supported from the casing 38 in this embodiment of the invention. The drive mechanism lid for the head. shalt 46 is supported by the framework 58 and is similar to the drive mechanism 54. Other feature Of the head secf tion 14! follow those of headv section 4! which were previously described.

In elevator I33 guides are provided between the head and foot sections and. of course, in this instance they areabove the supporting skirt m, while they are below the supporting skirt 4!! in elevator 33. They are, however, of similar construction in each instance. Said guides are provided by forming circumferential bands or belts 62 preferably constructed of angles, which belts 62 are rigidly attached to the casing 38 by welding. It may be pointed out that the casing 38 is preferably formed of a plurality oi interconnected tubular sections which are bolted or welded together by to and bottom section flanges which are clearly seen in both Figs. I and 2 0! the drawings.

At spaced intervals around the belt 62 are upstanding guide bars 63 which are welded tothe outwardly projecting legs of the angle belts 52 and which slidably extend into notches 64 formed in brackets or clips 65 which are mounted on channel. members 244 of the superstructure 44, there preferably being guides 45 located at 90 degree intervals around the periphery of the frame 38 adjacent each of the belts 62. It is thus evident that the bars 63- are rigidly attached to the casing 38 and are free to slide upwardly and downwardly in the notches 64 of the brackets 65' which are rigid with the superstructure 44. These guides 45, of course, help brace the casing 38 and. prevent undesirable lateral movement or twisting thereof under atmospheric influences or under the influence of the high temperature gases within said housing 38. It is to be noted that there is a small space or clearance between the outer edges of thebars 63 and the bottoms of the notches 64 of the brackets 65 that permits diametrieal expansion of the casing38y v Attention is now directed to Fig. 6 and to the structure of the foot shaft and its associated mechanism, which structure is applicableto both elevators 33 and. [33. In the bottom of the cats- 38' there a root shall; 66 provided with spaced wheels 61 adjacent opposite ends thereof which receive and guide the chains of the elevator mechanism 39,. the knuckles or said chains contacting the peripheries of the wheels 61 and the side straps thereof overlapping the wheel rims. Opposite ends of the shaft 66' are supported in roller bearings 68 which are carried in a floating framework 69. The framework 59 is mounted for free vertical or up and down movement while being restrained against all other movement, it being mounted on. a pair of upstanding rods or shafts 10 (see Fig. 5), there being a rod or shaft- Hl adjacent each side of the casing 38, both said rods 19 being on one side of the shaft 68. The rods it are attached by appropriate plates or brackets Tl both at the top and bottom to the frame 38:.

Upper and lower guide sleeves F2 are carried by and form a part of the floating frame 69 and are adapted to receive the rods 10 and. slide freely therealong, thus providing for guiding of the floating frame 69 so that the shaft 65 is always in proper position to maintain the chains of the bucket elevator mechanism 39 in proper alignment with chain guides "i3 which are adjustably mounted by supporting brackets on the individual sections of the casing 38., That is, the guides I3 are sectionalized with the sections of casing 38, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings, and each guide T3 may be individually adjusted in right angle directions so as to align it properly to receive and guide a run of a chain 52 which is adapted to be guided through substantially the entire length of the casing 38.

The details of the bearings 68 can be seen by reference to Fig. 6 of the drawings, the other bearing and associated mechanism being of substantially identical construction. Each said hearing 68 therefore includes a block, casting or shell 14 removabl'y bolted to frame 59 and roller bearing's 15 which include inner and outer races mounted on the shaft 65 and casting M, respectively. A set screw It holds the outer race against rotation. A disc or plate H is attached by screw means 18 to the end of shaft 66 and holds the inner race of the bearing E5 in place. A thrust washer I9 is interposed between a disc T! and a removable cover plate or cap 8i: tor the casting 14 Thrust washer i9 is held against rotation and can be adjusted toward andv from the disc 1! by a pair of set screws that extend into recesses in. the washer TR, one of which set screws is seen at Bl in Fig. 7 of the drawings.

It to be particularly noted that the shaft 65 and the bearings 68 are entirely within the casing; 38,. as a consequence of which there is no need for cooling said shaft 6 5 since it and the bearings 68 are subject to substantially the same temperature. Furthermore, this eliminates all of the normally present intricate mechanism involved providing a seal between: the shaft 66 and the casing 38 which would otherwise be necessary to retain the totally enclosing characteristic of said casing 33. Access to the bearings 58 and associated mechanism. is provided by removable circular or disc-like cover plates 82, there being one such cover plate adjacent each side of the casing, or, in other words, adjacent each end at the shaft 66. These cover plates are provided on the ends of proj'ectlmg drums 83 which are formed near the bottom of the foot section of the elevator 33 or l33, as the case may be.

In order to indicate the position of. the shaft 85 at all times and also to provide means for keeping the bearings 15 free of grit, dirt, foreign material, catalyst dust or the like and preferably Sillllllr taneously to lubricate them, I provide mechanism which is shown particularly in Figs. 6 and '7 of the drawings and which will now be described. Each bearing cover plate 86 is provided with a bracket 84 which extends into a drum 83 and is attached to the bottom of a drilled rod 85. Rod 85 extends through the top of drum 83 through a stufiing box 86 and carries an outwardly extending arm 81 which in turn carries a downwardly extending pointer arm 86 which cooperates with an indicating scale 39 carried on the plate 82. This pointer arm 88 at all times indicates the position of the adjacent end of the shaft 66. The rod 65 is partially drilled or bored as indicated by bore 66 and adjacent its bottom is connected by a flexible tube 9| which is preferably coiled about the rod 85 and communicates with the bore 90, said tube 9% leading through a fitting provided in a hole lo-' cated centrally in plate 80 so that a fluid, such as air, flue gas, or the like, may be introduced under pressure into the bearing 68. Such fluid will create pressure within the bearing 68 and flow inwardly therethrough through a non-positive seal 92, thus acting to prevent the entry of foreign material into the bearing and to blow out any grit or abrasive material or any other foreign matter which may have worked past the seal 62.

In addition to cleaning out and maintaining the bearing 68 free of foreign substances, it is possible to lubricate it by utilizing the flowing fluid as a carrier medium for a lubricant. To this end a graphite pct 93 is provided which is con nected to the bore 90 through pipe 94 and control valve 65, the previously mentioned source of fluid pressure being derived by pipe or conduit 96 and control valve 91. A control valve 98 is interposed between valves 95 and 91 and the bore 56. If control valve 95 is closed and valves 6'5 and 98 open, it is evident that cleaning fluid or gas will be delivered to the bearing 68. If valve 91 is closed and valve 65 is open, lubricating material, such as graphite, oil or the like, will be delivered to the pipe leading from valve 91 and some of it may find its way into bore 90. Thereafter, when valve 53 is closed and valves 91 and 98 are both open, any such graphite or lubricating material will, of course, be carried by the flowing fluid to lubricate the bearing 58. If valve 98 is closed all access to the bore 90 is shut off.

It is thus evident that the position of the shaft 66 at each side of the elevator may be determined at all times by visual indication outside the elevator casing, that the shaft 66 and associated bearings are totally enclosed, and that they may be cleaned and lubricated or just cleaned without opening the enclosing casing 38, as aiconsequence of which they may be cleaned and lubricated and then maintained clean while the unit is in operation.

Directly above the feed chute 32 is an observation window I29. This window I29 makes it possible for an operator to view the material within the buckets of the elevator mechanism without disturbing the enclosing character of the casing 38'.

Attention is now directed'particularly to Fig. 8 of the drawings and to the construction of the traction wheel and associated mechanism and the seal 53. Near opposite ends the shaft 46 is provided with the traction wheels 5| which are formed of a plurality of welded rings, as disclosed and claimed in my application, Serial No. 607,115, now Patent No. 2,525,041, except for certain minor differences. These concentric rings are preferably under tension at normal temperatures so that when they expand under high temperatures they still frictionally engage each other. In addition, they are welded together adjacent their peripheral edges. The major portion of the shaft 46 is imbedded in insulating material 49 which is built up around the traction wheel 5| except for a portion of the outer ring and the friction ring or tire 50 thereof.

The outer ends of shaft 46 are supported in bearings 41 and they are cooled, as disclosed and claimed in my Patent No. 2,491,899, dated December 20, 1949. The shaft 46 extends through oppositely positioned openings I39 in the head section 4| of casing 38 to reach the separately housed bearings 41, and the totally enclosed character of the casing 38 is preserved by the shaft seals 53 which provide not only for rotation of shaft 46 but also movement thereof in aplane at right angles to its axis with respect to head section 4| of said casing 38.

The seal 53 includes casting or manifold I45 in the form of a ring which surrounds or circumscribes the shaft 46 and which at its inner end is provided with a stufling box I48 including packing rings which cooperate with a steel sleeve I4I directly attached to the shaft 46 and in effect providing a renewable packing surface thereof which cooperates with the relatively stationary stuffing box I46. Adjacent the interior edge of the casting I45 which is adjacent the sleeve I41 there is a manifold ring I48 which is attached to the manifold or casting I45 and the interior circular edge of which is spaced slightly from the sleeve I41.

A conduit I49 is provided in the casting I 45 and leads to the circumferential chamber I50 formed between the manifold ring I48 and said casting I45. Air, flue gas or other fluid may be introduced through conduit I49 into the chamber I50 which will flow inwardly into the casing 38 through the peripheral orifice formed adjacent the sleeve I4I, thus removing and/or preventing the entry of grit, catalyst dust, or other foreign matter into the stufiing box I46, thereby preventing undue wearing of the sleeve I41 and the packing rings of the stufiing box I46. Sleeve I41 is of such length as to provide for expansion or contraction of shaft 46 relative to casing head 41 since it can slide axially relative to packing I46. This also provides for diametrical expans1on and contraction of head section 4|.

Adjacent its outer periphery the casting I45 is provided with a peripheral groove which receives an adjustable seal ring I5I which has contact in a vertical plane with a seat or seal ring I52 which is rigidly but removably attached to a ring-like plate I 53 which eifectively forms a part of the head section 4| of the casing 38, since it is welded thereto by a rin I55. Insulating material is preferably provided on the interior of ring I55 between the main plate of head section 4| and the above-mentioned plate I53 and extends to a frusto-conical plate I56 which defines the opening I39 and forms one supporting plate for the above-mentioned insulation.

The seat or seal ring I52 is clamped rigidly to the plate I53 and compresses a gasket against the plate I53, thus providing a removable but tight connection between said ring I52 and said plate I53; The clamping of these two members is effected'by two half clamping rings I58 which are clamped by cooperating nuts and bolts I59. A clamp ring I also mounted on nuts and bolts I59 clamps the casting I45 to the seal ring I52.

with'the previously mentioned seal l I interp sed. thus providing for relative sliding m vement in an upright o vertical plane between the casting I45 and the seat or seal ring I52, thus allowing for the relative movement of the head section 4| of casing 38 in an upright plane or at right angles to the axis of shaft 46. 7

As previously mentioned, the casing 38 is made up of a plurality of vertically superposed and attached sections removably connected together by top and bottom flanges and is preferably provided with insulating material on its external surface. In the form of the elevator illustrated in. F g, l, the major portion of the casing 38 is suspended and hangs downwardly along an upright axis from its single support adjacent the belt 42 near its top. It is guided at spaced intervals and held against lateral swinging by the guide or anti-sway means 45 which provide for its free expansion and contraction.

In the elevator I33 of Fig. 2 the single support is adjacent its bottom at the belt I42, the major portion thereof extending upwardly and'b'eing similarly guided by guides '45. As also previously mentioned, in the elevator 33 of Fig. 1 the bucket elevating mechanism is supported from head shaft 46 by superstructure 48 independently of the supporting of casing 38, while in the form of the elevator I33 of Fig. 2, bucket elevator mechanism 33 is supported directly from the casing 38, since the head shaft supporting framework 58 is supported through the skirt 60 from the casing 38. Except for these differences the two elevators 33 and I33 are of similar construction. This applies particularly to the bucket elevator mechanism which is the same in both cases as Well as the feed chutes 32, observation windows I29, discharge chutes 5E, guides 45, seals 53, and foot shaft 66 and all associated mechanism described particularly in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawing-s.

Obviously those skilled in the art may make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended, and applicant wishes not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed.

Having thus described and shown an embodiment of the invention, what it is desired to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, said casing including means forming a circumferential supporting area adjacent its top, means including a circumferential skirt for supporting said supporting area forming means, said casing being supported at least largely from said supporting area forming means and extending therefrom vertically at least in one direction a substantial amount whereby it is free to expand and contract as a unit, guide means for said casing spaced vertically from said supporting area forming means and having guiding contact with said casing while providing for its free expansion and contraction as aforesaid, and elevator conveyer mechanism in said casing.

2. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, said casing including means forming a circumferential supporting area adjacent its bottom, means including a circumferential skirt for supporting said supporting area forming means, said casing being supported at least largely from said supporting area forming means and extending therefrom vertically at least in one direction a substantial amount whereby it is 10 free to expand and contract as a unit, guide means for said casing spaced vertically from said supporting area forming means and having guiding contact with said casing while providing for its free expansion and contraction as aforesaid, and elevator conveyer mechanism in said casing.

3. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, said casing including means forming a circumferential supportin area, means including a circumferential skirt for supporting said supporting area forming means, said casing being supported at least largely from said supporting area forming means and extending therefrom vertically at least in one direction a substantial amount whereby it is free to expand and contract as a unit, guide means for said casing spaced vertically from said supportin area forming means and having guiding contact with said casing while providing for its free expansion and contraction as aforesaid, and elevator conveyer mechanism in said casing.

4. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, said casing including means forming a circumferential supporting area, means for supporting said supporting area forming means, said casing bein supported at least largely from said supporting area forming means and extending therefrom vertically at least in one direction a substantial amount whereby it is free to expand and contract as a unit, guide means for said casing spaced vertically from said supporting area forming means and having guiding contact with said casing while providing for its free expansion and contraction as aforesaid, and elevator conveyer mechanism in said casing.

' 5. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, means forming a supporting area adjacent the top of said casing, means supporting said supporting area forming means, with substantially the entire casing hanging downwardly therefrom and suspended thereby, an endless elevator conveyer within said casing including a head shaft, and means for supporting said endless conveyer including said head shaft independently of said casing.

6. An elevator including an elongated upstanding casing, means forming a supporting area adjacent the top of said casing, means supporting said supporting area forming means, with substantially the entire casing hanging downwardly therefrom and suspended thereby, an endless elevator conveyer within said casing including a head shaft, means for supporting said endless conveyer including said head shaft independently of said casing, and means providing a seal between said shaft and said casing, said shaft projecting through said casing.

7. An elongated conveyer casing adapted to be supported for expansion and contraction in an upright position including a circumferential supporting ring, means supporting said ring, said casing being supported upright substantially entirely from said ring, and vertically spaced guides for said casing providing for free expansion thereof while holding it against lateral movement.

8. An elevator for elevating hot material ineluding endless draft means, a head shaft supporting said draft means, a foot shaft, a floating frame carrying bearings supporting said foot shaft, a casing totally enclosing said draft means, said foot shaft and said bearings, bearing means outside said casing for said head shaft, and indicator means for said foot shaft located in part cluding a head shaft extending therethrough,

means supporting said head shaft independently of said casing, and a sliding seal between said head shaft and casing providing for relative movement between them along rectilinear paths at right angles to the axis of said head shaft.

11. In an elevator including an upstanding casing, means supporting said casing adjacent its top with the casing hanging downwardly therefrom and suspended thereby, said supporting means including a frusto-conical skirt means surrounding said casing and carrying it through one of its ends, structure supporting said skirt means through the other of its ends, and anti-sway means for said casing spaced below said skirt for restricting swinging movement of said casing.

12. In an elevator including an upstanding c'as'= ing, means supporting said casing including a skirt means surrounding said casing and carrying it through one of its ends, structure support ing said skirt means through the other of its ends, and anti-sway means for said casing spaced from said skirt for restricting swinging movement of said casing.

13. In an elevator including an upstanding casing, means supporting substantially the entire weight of said casing in a horizontal plane whereby said casing hangs'there'from along an upright axis, and anti-sway means for said casing spaced from said supporting means for restricting swinging movement of said casing.

STANLEY M. MERCIER.

References Cited in the file or this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,064,443 Chadwick June 10, 1913 1,433,754 Stone- Oct. 31, 1922 1,705,478 Hartley Mar. 19, 1929 1,957,054 Waldorf May 1, 1934 2,133,487 Spargo Oct. 18, 1938 2,246,912 Baudry June 24, 1941 2,384,189 Mercier Sept. 4, 1945 2,572,484 Howle et a1. Oct. 23, 1951

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