Quick change system or vibratory tray system

Claim 1

In combination, a vibratory shaker traY assembly including at least three vertically spaced generally horizontal decks with corresponding discharge end portions, said decks including foraminous segments thereof each defining openings therethrough, the openings of each lower segment being smaller than the openings of the segment disposed immediately thereabove, each of the lower decks disposed below the uppermost deck including a dump opening formed in the discharge end portion thereof, a closure flap for each of said openings supported for movement between a closed position closing said opening and disposed in generally planar relation with the upper surface of said one deck and an open out-of-the-way position opening said dump opening to the downward movement of aggregates therethrough supported on the foraminous segment of said one deck and moving toward the discharge end thereof, each lower dump opening being at least slightly displaced along the corresponding deck toward the discharge end portion thereof relative to the dump opening of the next higher deck, said flaps being supported along their marginal edge portions adjacent the corresponding discharge end portion for angular displacement from the closed positions thereof to the open positions thereof with the free marginal edge portions of said flaps remote from said discharge end portions swung upwardly toward the deck disposed thereabove, the first mentioned marginal edge portions of said flaps being carried by pivot shafts extending therealong, said shaker tray assembly including opposite side walls between which said decks are supported, the opposite ends of said pivot shafts being journaled from the corresponding side walls, one pair of corresponding end portions of said pivot shafts projecting through the corresponding side wall and provided with handle means for angularly displacing said pivot shafts, one pair of latch element shafts being provided for each of said flaps, each pair of latch element shafts being journaled between and from said side walls and extending along the free edge portion of the corresponding flap when the latter is in its open position and its closed position, each latch shaft having a plurality of axially spaced rotary latches mounted thereon for releasable engagement with the free edge portion of the corresponding closure flap to retain the flap in position against angular displacement to swing its free edge portion away from the associated latch element shaft, the set of ends of said latch element shafts corresponding to said one set of corresponding ends of said pivot shafts projecting through the corresponding side wall of said shaker tray assembly and having handle means operatively associated therewith operable from the exterior of the side wall to selectively angularly displace the latch element shafts between latching and unlatching positions, and spring means operatively connected between the handle means of said latch element shafts and the corresponding side wall of said tray assembly yieldingly biasing said latch element shafts to positions with the rotary latches thereof in the latching positions.