Blending apparatus

Claim 1

A BLENDING APPARATUS FOR UNIFORMLY MIXING SOLID GRANULATED MATERIALS COMPRISING A TANK, A RECEIVER DISPOSED BELOW SAID TANK, A PLURALITY OF CONDUITS EXTENDING UPWARDLY OF SAID TANK AND FORMED WITH A SERIES OF APERTURES AT VERTICALLY SPACED INTERVALS THEREALONG DISPOSED IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID TANK FOR UNIFORMLY SAMPLING AND WITHDRAWING MATERIAL FROM SAID TANK, SAID CONDUITS AND APERTURES BEING SO SPACED THAT SUBSTANTIALLY GEOMETRICALLY SIMILAR SECTIONS OF THE MATERIALS IN THE HOPPER ARE DISPOSED IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE UPPERMOST COVERED APERTURES OF EACH OF THE CONDUITS REGARDLESS OF THE LEVEL OF MATERIAL IN THE HOPPER, SAID CONDUITS HAVING OUTLET ENDS FOR DISCHARGING THE MATERIAL INTO SAID RECEIVER, AND MEANS FOR MAINTAINING A SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL FLOW RATE OF MATERIAL DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID CONDUITS AND IN AN AMOUNT SUCH THAT THE MATERIALS PASSING DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID CONDUITS IS LESS THAN THE FREE-FALL RATE OF THE MATERIALS AND SUCH THAT ONLY THE UPPERMOST OF THE APERTURES IN EACH SAID CONDUIT DISPOSED BELOW THE LEVEL OF THE MATERIALS IN SAID TANK IS OPERATIVE TO WITHDRAW MATERIALS FROM SAID TANK.