Rotating self-cleaning strainer

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY SEPARATING PARTICLES FROM A FLOWING FLUID, COMPRISING A HOUSING PROVIDING A HORIZONTALLY ELONGATED CHAMBER, A SKELETON DRUM SUPPORTED IN SAID CHAMBER FOR ROTATION ABOUT A HORIZONTAL LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING AXIS OFFSET TOWARD A FIRST INTERIOR SIDE WALL OF SAID HOUSING, SAID DRUM BEING ADAPTED TO CARRY A POROUS FILTER MEDIUM ON ITS CYLINDRICAL SURFACE, SAID HOUSING HAVING AN INLET LOCATED ABOVE THE SURFACE OF SAID DRUM AND ARRANGED TO DIRECT FLUID TO BE FILTERED INTO SAID CHAMBER AGAINST THE DRUM SURFACE AT A LOCATION ADJACENT SAID FIRST WALL, A FILTRATE OUTLET IN SAID HOUSING IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE DRUM INTERIOR, A VERTICAL LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING BAFFLE WITHIN SAID CHAMBER BETWEEN SAID DRUM AND A SECOND INTERIOR SIDE WALL OF SAID HOUSING, SAID BAFFLE HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING OPENING THEREIN OPPOSITE THE SURFACE OF THE DRUM AT THE LEVEL OF THE DRUM AXIS, SAID BAFFLE FURTHER HAVING A DEPENDING PORTION EXTENDING AT AN ANGLE BENEATH THE DRUM TO SAID FIRST WALL AND PROVIDED WITH HOLES FOR THE PASSAGE OF PARTICLES WHICH SETTLE OUT OF THE INCOMING FLUID, A BACKWARD DEVICE MOUNTED WITHIN SAID DRUM AND HAVIND DISCHARGE JET OPENINGS LOCATED OPPOSITE AND DIRECTED TOWARD SAID LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING OPENING IN SAID BAFFLE,