Cell wheel rotary feeder

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING POWDERED MATERIAL AND THE LIKE BETWEEN ZONES OF DIFFERING PRESSURE WHILE MINIMIZING GAS FLOW BETWEEN SAID ZONES COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED, CIRCULAR CELL WHEEL HAVING AN INTEGRAL AND CONTINUOUS OUTER CIRCUMFERENTIAL RIM, AN INTEGRAL CENTRAL SHAFT EXTENDING SOMEWHAT ABOVE AND SOMEWHAT BELOW SAID RIM AND A PLURALITY OF RADIAL RIB VANES OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME OVERALL VERTICAL HEIGHT AS SAID RIM EACH EXTENDING IN CONTINUOUS FASHION FROM SAID SHAFT TO THE INNER PORTION OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL RIM, TWO PARALLEL SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL PLATES LOCATED RESPECTIVELY IMMEDIATELY ABOVE AND IMMEDIATELY BELOW SAID CELL WHEEL, EACH OF SAID PLATES EXTENDING BEYOND THE OUTER CIRCUMFERENTIAL RIM OF SAID CELL WHEEL AND THE CENTRAL PORTION OF EACH RESPECTIVE PLATE HAVING A CAVITY THEREIN DESIGNED TO RECEIVE THE RESPECTIVE TERMINAL PORTION OF SAID SHAFT WITHOUT RESTRICTING ROTATIONAL MOTION OF SAID SHAFT, ONE OF SAID PLATES BEING RIGIDLY FIXED IN LOCATION WHILE THE OTHER IS FLOATABLY MOUNTED AND IS VERTICALLY MOVABLE A SUBSTANTIAL DISTANCE TOWARD AND AWAY FROM SAID FIXED PLATE AND EACH PLATE HAVING AN OPENING THERETHROUGH IN AN OFFCENTER POSITION WITH SAID OPENINGS IN THE RESPECTIVE PLATES BEING POSITIONED SUBSTANTIALLY DIAGONAL TO EACH OTHER, MEANS TO RESTRAIN SAID PLATES TOGETHER INCLUDING MEANS TO CONTINUALLY RESILIENTLY URGE SAID PLATES TOWARD ONE ANOTHER AND INTO CONTACT WITH THE RESPECTIVE UPPER AND LOWER EDGES OF THE RIM AND VANES OF SAID CELL WHEEL AND MEANS TO ROTATE SAID CELL WHEEL ABOUT SAID CENTRAL SHAFT.