Feeding rotor for dispensers of granular material

Claim 2

A feeding rotor for a machine for spreading granular material including a dispensing hopper having an elongated crosssectionally arcuate bottom portion and discharge aperture means in said bottom portion; said feeding rotor comprising an elongated rigid shaft adapted to be journaled in said hopper parallel to and adjacent said arcuate bottom portion and an elongated body member of elastomeric material mounted fast on said shaft concentric therewith; said body member comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced generally radial vanes extending longitudinally of the shaft; said vanes each having opposite sides converging generally radially outwardly and defining an outer longitudinally extending feather edge; the sides of each vane cooperating with sides of adjacent vanes to define opposite side wall surfaces of radially outwardly opening granular material receiving pockets; said feather edges being of such flexibility as to enable the edges to flex generally radially and circumferentially responsive to pressure of a granule caught therebetween and the inner surface of the hopper bottom, and to require pressure of material in a compartment rearwardly thereof with respect to the direction of rotation of the rotor to be supported against excessive circumferential flexing during feeding rotation of the rotor, so as to effectively feed granular material to said discharge aperture means.

Claim 3

The feeding rotor defined in claim 1 in which said feather edge has a thickness dimension of substantially one thirty-second of one inch in a direction circumferentially of the rotor.

Claim 4

The feeding rotor defined in claim 1 in which said body member is of a hardness between 15 and 50 durometer measurement.

Claim 5

The feeding rotor defined in claim 1 in which said body member includes a pair of generally radially outwardly projecting circumferential flanges defining the opposite ends of said body member, said flanges being integral with said vanes and each having a radius substantially equal to the radius of said vanes.

Claim 6

The feeding rotor defined in claim 3 in which said feather edge has a thickness dimension of substantially one thirty-second of one inch in a direction circumferentially of the rotor, said body member having a hardness of between 15 and 50 durometer measurement.

Claim 7

In a machine for spreading granular materials; a dispensing hopper having an elongated cross-sectional arcuate bottom portion and longitudinal discharge aperture means in said bottom portion; and a feeding rotor journalled in said hopper coaxially with said bottom portion and closely overlying said discharge aperture means; said feeding rotor comprising an elongated rigid shaft and an elongated body member of elastomeric material mounted fast on said shaft concentric therewith; said body member comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced generally radial vanes extending longitudinally of the shaft; said vanes each having opposite sides converging generally radially outwardly and defining an outer longitudinally extending feather edge; the sides of each vane cooperating with sides of adjacent vanes to define opposite side wall surfaces of radially outwardly opening granular material receiving pockets; said feather edges being of such flexibility as to enable the edges to flex generally radially and circumferentially responsive to pressure of a granule caught therebetween and the inner surface of the hopper bottom, and to require pressure of material in a compartment rearwardly thereof with respect to the direction of rotation of the rotor to be supported against excessive circumferential flexing during feeding rotation of the rotor, so as to effectively feed granular material to said discharge aperture means.

Claim 8

In a machine for spreading granular materials; a dispensing hopper having an elongated cross-sectional arcuate bottom portion and longitudinal discharge aperture means in said bottom portion; and a feeding rotor journalled in said hopper coaxially with said bottom portion and closely overlying said discharge aperture means; said feeding rotor comprising an elongated rigid shaft and an elongated body member of elastomeric material mounted fast on said shaft concentric therewith; said body member comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced generally radial vanes extending longitudinally of the shaft; said vanes each having opposite sides converging generally radially outwardly and defining an outer longitudinally extending feather edge; the sides of each vane cooperating with sides of adjacent vanes to define opposite side wall surfaces of radially outwardly opening granular material receiving pockets; said feather edges being of such flexibility as to enable the edges to flex generally radially and circumferentially responsive to pressure of a granule caught therebetween and the inner surface of the hopper bottom, and to require pressure of material in a compartment rearwardly thereof with respect to the direction of rotation of the rotor to be supported against excessive circumferential flexing during feeding rotation of the rotor, so as to effectively feed granular material to said discharge aperture means.

Claim 9

The machine defined in claim 6 in which said feather edge has a thickness dimension of substantially one thirty-second of one inch in a direction circumferentially of the rotor.

Claim 10

The machine defined in claim 6, in which said body member is of a hardness between 15 and 50 durometer measurement.

Claim 11

The machine defined in claim 6, in which said body member includes a pair of generally radially outwardly projecting circumferential flanges defining the opposite ends of said body member, said flanges being integral with said vanes and each having a radius substantially equal to the radius of said vanes.

Claim 12

The machine defined in claim 6, in which said dispensing hopper includes upwardly diverging side wall portions tangent to said arcuate bottom portion, the vanes of said rotor being at least five in number.

Claim 13

The machine defined in claim 6, in which said rotor body member is molded on said rotor shaft.