Apparatus for the production of wood chips from logs

Claim 1

AN APPARATUS FOR REDUCING A LOG TO A CYLINDRICAL BOLT AND FOR PRODUCING USABLE CHIPS OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM WIDTH AND THICKNESS, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING A FRAME, A HOLLOW FRUSTO-CONICAL HEAD OPEN AT BOTH ENDS ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID FRAME, MEANS TO DRIVE SAID HEAD, SAID HEAD HAVING A CONICAL INNER SURFACE MERGING INTO A CYLINDRICAL INNER SURFACE ADJACENT THE END OF SMALLER DIAMETER, SAID HEAD HAVING A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY ELONGATED RADIAL APERTURES EXTENDING THERETHROUGH, SAID APERTURES BEING DISPOSED IN A SPIRAL HELICAL PATH EXTENDING FROM SAID CYLINDRICAL SURFACE TO A POINT ADJACENT THE LARGE END OF SAID HEAD, AN ELONGATED CUTTER SECURED IN EACH APERTURE, CUTTING EDGES ON THE INNER END OF EACH CUTTER, CERTAIN OF SAID CUTTING EDGES BEING DISPOSED INWARDLY OF SAID CYLINDRICAL SURFACE A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE AND THE REMAINDER OF SAID CUTTING EDGES BEING DISPOSED THE SAME DISTANCE INWARDLY OF SAID CONICAL SURFACE, SAID CUTTING EDGES COMPRISING A SHAVING EDGE DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID HEAD AND A PARTING EDGE DISPOSED AT AN ANGLE TO SAID SHAVING EDGE, WHEREBY UPON FEEDING A LOG LONGITUDINALLY THROUGH SAID HEAD AND ROTATION OF SAID HEAD, SAID CUTTER WILL OPERATE TO REMOVE WOOD FROM SAID LOG IN THE FORM OF HELICAL CHIPS OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM WIDTH AND THICKNESS AND TO PROVIDE A CYLINDRICAL BOLT OF A DIAMETER DETERMINED BY THE LOCATION OF THE INNERMOST SHAVING EDGE, SAID SHAVING EDGES CUTTING SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE FIBERS IN SAID LOG AND SAID PARTING EDGES CUTTING ACROSS THE FIBERS AT AN ANGLE THERETO, SAID CHIPS BEING DISCHARGED RADIALLY OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID APERTURES BY CENTRIFUGAL FORCE.

Claim 2

AN APPARATUS FOR REDUCING A LOG TO A CYLINDRICAL BOLT AND FOR PRODUCING USABLE CHIPS OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM WIDTH AND THICKNESS, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING A FRAME, A HOLLOW FRUSTO-CONICAL HEAD OPEN AT BOTH ENDS ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID FRAME, MEANS TO DRIVE SAID HEAD, SAID HEAD HAVING A CONICAL INNER SURFACE MERGING INTO A CYLINDRICAL INNER SURFACE ADJACENT THE END OF SMALLER DIAMETER, SAID HEAD HAVING A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY ELONGATED RADIAL APERTURES EXTENDING THERETHROUGH, SAID APERTURES BEING DISPOSED IN A SPIRAL HELICAL PATH EXTENDING FROM SAID CYLINDRICAL SURFACE TO A POINT ADJACENT THE LARGE END OF SAID HEAD, AN ELONGATED CUTTER SECURED IN EACH APERTURE, CUTTING EDGES ON THE INNER END OF EACH CUTTER, CERTAIN OF SAID CUTTING EDGES BEING DISPOSED INWARDLY OF SAID CYLINDRICAL SURFACE A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE AND THE REMAINDER OF SAID CUTTING EDGES BEING DISPOSED THE SAME DISTANCE INWARDLY OF SAID CONICAL SURFACE, SAID CUTTING EDGES COMPRISING A SHAVING EDGE DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID HEAD AND A PARTING EDGE DISPOSED AT AN ANGLE TO SAID SHAVING EDGE, WHEREBY UPON FEEDING A LOG LONGITUDINALLY THROUGH SAID HEAD AND ROTATION OF SAID HEAD, SAID CUTTER WILL OPERATE TO REMOVE WOOD FROM SAID LOG IN THE FORM OF HELICAL CHIPS OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM WIDTH AND THICKNESS AND TO PROVIDE A CYLINDRICAL BOLT OF A DIAMETER DETERMINED BY THE LOCATION OF THE INNERMOST SHAVING EDGE, SAID SHAVING EDGES CUTTING SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE FIBERS IN SAID LOG AND SAID PARTING EDGES CUTTING ACROSS THE FIBERS AT AN ANGLE THERETO, SAID CHIPS BEING DISCHARGED RADIALLY OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID APERTURES BY CENTRIFUGAL FORCE.