Technique for coating articles using streams of particles in laminar flow

Claim 1

THE METHOD OF COATING SPECIFIC SURFACE AREAS OF AN OBJECT WITH SOLID POWDER PARTICLES OF COATING MATERIAL CAPABLE OF BEING FUSED UPON A HOT SURFACE UPON CONTACT COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, THE STEPS OF: (A) SUSPENDING THE SOLID PARTICLES IN AN ADVANCING STREAM OF GAS, (B) DIRECTING THE ADVANCING STREAM WITH THE PARTICLES ENTRAINED THEREIN THROUGH A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY SPACED APART TRANSVERSE SCREEN MEANS, AND PRODUCING IN THE GAS STREAM SUBSTANTIALLY LAMINAR FLOW CHARACTERISTICS, INCLUDING SUBSTANTIALLY SMOOTH, PARALLEL, UNINFLECTED STREAMLINES PASSING THROUGH AND ISSUING FROM THE SCREEN MEANS, WITH SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL PRESSURES AND PARTICLE VELOCITIES AT LATERALLY CONTIGUOUS POINTS OF ADJACENT STREAMLINES BETWEEN THE SPACED APART SCREEN MEANS, (C) DIRECTING THE ISSUING GAS-POWDER STREAM TO IMPINGE UPON A HEATED OBJECT POSITIONED IN THE PATH OF AT LEAST SOME OF THE UNINFLECTED STREAMLINES ISSUING FROM THE SCREEN MEANS, AND (D) POSITIONING A VACUUM EXHAUST VENT IN THE PATH OF THE GAS-POWDERD STREAM BEYOND THE OBJECT TO COLLECT AND RECIRCULATE UNUSED POWDER COATING MATERIAL FOR RE-USE.

Claim 2

THE METHOD OF COATING SPECIFIC SURFACE AREAS OF AN OBJECT WITH SOLID POWDER PARTICLES OF COATING MATERIAL CAPABLE OF BEING FUSED UPON A HOT SURFACE UPON CONTACT COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, THE STEPS OF: (A) SUSPENDING THE SOLID PARTICLES IN AN ADVANCING STREAM OF GAS, (B) DIRECTING THE ADVANCING STREAM WITH THE PARTICLES ENTRAINED THEREIN THROUGH A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY SPACED APART TRANSVERSE SCREEN MEANS, AND PRODUCING IN THE GAS STREAM SUBSTANTIALLY LAMINAR FLOW CHARACTERISTICS, INCLUDING SUBSTANTIALLY SMOOTH, PARALLEL, UNINFLECTED STREAMLINES PASSING THROUGH AND ISSUING FROM THE SCREEN MEANS, WITH SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL PRESSURES AND PARTICLE VELOCITIES AT LATERALLY CONTIGUOUS POINTS OF ADJACENT STREAMLINES BETWEEN THE SPACED APART SCREEN MEANS, (C) DIRECTING THE ISSUING GAS-POWDER STREAM TO IMPINGE UPON A HEATED OBJECT POSITIONED IN THE PATH OF AT LEAST SOME OF THE UNINFLECTED STREAMLINES ISSUING FROM THE SCREEN MEANS, AND (D) POSITIONING A VACUUM EXHAUST VENT IN THE PATH OF THE GAS-POWDERD STREAM BEYOND THE OBJECT TO COLLECT AND RECIRCULATE UNUSED POWDER COATING MATERIAL FOR RE-USE.