Device for making blocks of vegetable, animal, or mineral matter

Claim 1

IN DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS MANUFACTURE OF SUBSTANTIALLY SOLID COMPRESSED BLOCKS OF RADIALLY UNIFORM DENSITY FROM THE INTERIOR TO THE EXTERIOR, APPARATUS COMPRISING A FEED HOUSING, MEANS INTERMIXING AND CONVEYING THE INGREDIENTS OF SAID BLOCK INCLUDING A SCREW HAVING A SHAFT AND FLIGHT THEREON RECEIVED IN SAID HOUSING, SAID HOUSING HAVING A PORTION OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM CROSS-SECTION RECEIVING SAID SCREW, MEANS FORMING AN ELONGATED EXTRUSION DIE OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA CORRESPONDING GENERALLY TO THAT OF SAID HOUSING AT THE DISCHARGE END OF SAID HOUSING, THE OUTLET END OF SAID DIE BEING NORMALLY UNOBSTRUCTED TO PERMIT THE BLOCKED MATERIAL TO NORMALLY FLOW UNIMPEDED FROM THE DIE, AND A TAPERED CORE MEMBER HAVING AN UNOBSTRUCTED EXTERIOR SURFACE EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF TO PERMIT MATERIAL TO SLIDE OVER SAID CORE MEMBER, SAID TAPERED CORE MEMBER BEING FORMED AS AN EXTENSION OF SAID SHAFT AND EXTENDING BEYOND THE END OF SAID FLIGHT INTO SAID DIE IN SUCH FASHION AS TO RADIALLY INWARDLY RELIEVE COMPRESSION WITHIN A MASS OF INTERMIXED BLOCK MATERIAL ENTERING THE DIE, SAID SCREW SERVING TO RECEIVE AND FEED SAID MIXED INGREDIENTS CONTINUOUSLY INTO SAID DIE AND COMPRESS THE MATERIALS THEREIN INTO SUBSTANTIALLY SOLIDIFIED FORM, SAID CORE MEMBER INCLUDING A FIRST PORTION OF SHARPLY DIMINISHING DIAMETER COMMENCING AT THE ENTRY END OF SAID DIE AND A SECOND PORTION OF LESS SHARPLY DIMINISHING DIAMETER TO FURTHER DIMINISH THE DIAMETER OF THE CORE ALONG THE LENGTH OF THE DIE AT AN INTERIOR PORTION OF SAID DIE, AND HEATING MEANS SUPPORTED ADJACENT THE SIDE WALLS OF THE DIE ADAPTED TO PROVIDE CONTROLLED HEATING SUBSTANTIALLY ALONG THE ENTIRE LENGTH THEREOF TO CONDITION THE EXTERIOR SURFACE OF THE BLOCK FORMING MATERIALS WITHIN THE DIE AND SURROUNDING SAID TAPERED CORE MEMBER WHEREBY THE SCREW AND TAPERED CORE EFFECTIVELY COOPERATE WITH THE INTERIOR SURFACES OF THE DIE TO CONTROL THE DENSIFICATION OF THE BLOCK WHILE IMPARTING CHARACTERISTICS OF UNIFORM RADIAL DENSITY WITHIN THE CONDENSED BLOCK OF MATERIAL.