Tanker unloading system

Claim 1

SOLID MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS FOR DIGGING INTO A MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL, REMOVING SOLID MATERIAL THEREFROM, SUSPENDING THE REMOVED MATERIAL, BEARING THE REMOVED MATERIAL AWAY FROM THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL, AND PLACING THE REMOVED MATERIAL IN LOOSE FORM IN A LOCATION SPACED FROM SAID MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING THE COMBINATION OF AN ENDLESS FLEXIBLE CONVEYING ELEMENT INCLUDING AN ENDLESS TRAIN OF BUCKETS EACH HAVING A BOTTOM AND A CONTINUOUS PERIPHERAL SIDE WALL ADJOINING THE BOTTOM, EACH BUCKET HAVING AN OPEN END FACING IN A DIRECTION GENERALLY PARALLEL TO THE ADJACENT PORTION OF THE CONVEYING ELEMENT, FIRST AND SECOND SUPPORT WHEELS JOURNALLED FOR ROTATION ABOUT GENERALLY PARALLEL AND GENERALLY HORIZONTAL AXES WHICH ARE SPACED APART HORIZONTALLY BY AN AMOUNT EXCEEDING THE DIAMETER OF EACH OF SAID WHEELS, SAID ENDLESS FLEXIBLE CONVEYING ELEMENT BEING TRAINED OVER SAID FIRST AND SECOND SUPPORT WHEELS TO HAVE AN UPPER RUN EXTENDING THEREBETWEEN AND A LOWER RUN SUSPENDED BETWEEN SAID WHEELS, SAID LOWER RUN HAVING SUBSTANTIAL SLACK AND EXTENDING ALONG A CURVED PATH BETWEEN SAID WHEELS, POWER DRIVING MEANS INTERCONNECTED WITH SAID FLEXIBLE CONVEYING ELEMENT TO CIRCULATE SAID CONVEYING ELEMENT IN A PREDETERMINED DIRECTION EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID SECOND WHEEL AND UPWARDLY TO SAID FIRST WHEEL, SAID BUCKETS BEING ORIENTED ON SAID ENDLESS CONVEYING ELEMENT WITH THE OPEN ENDS OF SAID BUCKETS FACING IN THE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL, A THIRD WHEEL JOURNALLED FOR ROTATION ABOUT AN AXIS GENERALLY PARALLEL TO THE AXES OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND WHEELS, SAID THIRD WHEEL BEING POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND SECOND WHEELS BUT CLOSER TO SAID FIRST WHEEL, SAID UPPER RUN OF SAID ENDLESS CONVEYING ELEMENT BEING TRAINED UNDER SAID THIRD WHEEL SO THAT A RUNNING PORTION OF SAID ENDLESS CONVEYING ELEMENT EXTENDS DOWNWARDLY AT A STEEP ANGLE BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND THIRD WHEELS TO INVERT AND DUMP SAID BUCKETS, AND SOLID MATERIAL RECEIVING MEANS POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID FIRST WHEEL FOR RECEIVING THE MATERIAL DUMPED FROM SAID BUCKETS, THE LOWER RUN OF SAID CONVEYING ELEMENT BEING FREELY SUSPENDED BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND SECOND WHEELS FOR CAUSING THE BUCKETS ALONG SAID LOWER RUN TO DIG INTO THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL SOLELY BY THE GROSS WEIGHT OF SAID CONVEYING ELEMENT AND THE TENSION THEREIN, THE LOWER RUN OF SAID ENDLESS CONVEYING ELEMENT BEING FREE TO FLEX AND MOVE VERTICALLY AND HORIZONTALLY IN ANY DIRECTION SO THAT SAID CONVEYING ELEMENT IS ENTIRELY FREE TO CONFORM ITSELF TO THE SHAPE OF THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL AS THE CONVEYING ELEMENT IS DRAGGED THEREALONG.

Claim 2

A METHOD OF DIGGING SOLID MATERIAL FROM A MASS THEREOF, SUSPENDING THE SOLID MATERIAL, AND BEARING THE SUSPENDED MATERIAL TO A LOCATION SPACED FROM THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL, SAID METHOD COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PROVIDING AN ENDLESS TRAIN OF BUCKETS, PROVIDING FIRST AND SECOND HORIZONTALLY SPACED SUPPORT WHEELS HAVING PARALLEL AND HORIZONTAL AXES, TRAINING SAID ENDLESS TRAIN OF BUCKETS AROUND SAID SUPPORT WHEELS TO PROVIDE A LOWER RUN OF BUCKETS EXTENDING ALONG A FREELY HANGING CURVE BETWEEN SAID WHEELS, CIRCULATING SAID ENDLESS TRAIN OF BUCKETS AROUND SAID WHEELS, ENGAGING SAID LOWER RUN OF BUCKETS WITH A MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL AND THEREBY DRAGGING THE LOWER RUN OF BUCKETS ALONG THE SOLID MATERIAL, EMPTYING THE BUCKETS ADJACENT SAID FIRST WHEEL, AND CONTINUOUSLY MAINTAINING SAID LOWER RUN OF BUCKETS IN A FREELY SUSPENDED CONDITION FOR FREE FLEXING MOVEMENT IN ALL HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL DIRECTIONS AND THEREBY CAUSING THE BUCKETS TO DIG INTO THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL SOLELY BY THE GROSS WEIGHT OF SAID TRAIN OF BUCKETS AND THE TENSION THEREIN, WHEREBY THE TRAIN OF BUCKETS IS ENTIRELY FREE TO CONFORM ITSELF TO THE SHAPE OF THE SOLID MATERIAL AS THE BUCKETS ARE DRAGGED ALONG THE MASS OF SOLID MATERIAL.