US3758267A — Apparatus for preheating scrap material or the li…

Claim 1

Independent Claim 211 words

An apparatus for delivering preheated scrap to a furnace or the like, said apparatus comprising an elongated conveyor trough supported for reciprocal movement and including an upwardly open outer shell having a bottom wall and side walls, an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls, said inner shell being disposed within said outer shell with said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell being separated from said bottom wall and side walls respectively of said outer shell to define a space therebetween, said bottom wall of said inner shell being substantially planar and providing an unobstructed path along which the scrap material may be conveyed, a semi-solid bulk insulating material disposed within said space and coextensive therewith, means for effecting reciprocal movement of said conveyor trough effective to advance scrap material therealong, means for delivering scrap material to one end of said trough, means for heating the scrap material within said trough to a predetermined temperature sufficient to vaporize contaminants on the surface of the scrap, means for containing gases produced incident to the heating of the scrap to hinder such gases from escaping to the atmosphere surrounding said trough, and means for conveying said contained gases to a location remote from said trough.

Claim 2

Independent Claim 211 words

An apparatus for delivering preheated scrap to a furnace or the like, said apparatus comprising an elongated conveyor trough supported for reciprocal movement and including an upwardly open outer shell having a bottom wall and side walls, an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls, said inner shell being disposed within said outer shell with said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell being separated from said bottom wall and side walls respectively of said outer shell to define a space therebetween, said bottom wall of said inner shell being substantially planar and providing an unobstructed path along which the scrap material may be conveyed, a semi-solid bulk insulating material disposed within said space and coextensive therewith, means for effecting reciprocal movement of said conveyor trough effective to advance scrap material therealong, means for delivering scrap material to one end of said trough, means for heating the scrap material within said trough to a predetermined temperature sufficient to vaporize contaminants on the surface of the scrap, means for containing gases produced incident to the heating of the scrap to hinder such gases from escaping to the atmosphere surrounding said trough, and means for conveying said contained gases to a location remote from said trough.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 121 words

An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for delivering scrap material to said elongated shaker conveyor trough insulated with a semi-solid bulk material incLudes at least one additional elongated trough connected to said one end of said elongated shaker conveyor trough and mounted for reciprocal movement therewith, said additional trough including an upwardly open outer shell having a bottom wall and side walls, and an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls, said inner shell being disposed within said outer shell with said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell being separated from said bottom wall and said side walls, respectively, of said outer shell to define an insulating space therebetween.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 140 words

An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein said means for containing gases produced incident to the heating of the scrap includes a hood disposed above that portion of said trough containing scrap being heated, said hood being formed of a gas-impervious material and including upwardly extending side walls, a top wall and end walls, said hood being disposed relative to said trough with the lower edges of said side walls of said hood in close proximity to the upper edges of said side walls of said trough to hinder the passage of gases outwardly therebetween, and a movable gate extending from adjacent the lower edge of each of said end walls of said hood downwardly into the interior of said trough to hinder a flow of gases from beneath said hood outwardly therefrom at the ends of said hood.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 30 words

An apparatus in accordance with claim 3, wherein each of said gates is mounted for hinged movement to the lower edge of one of said end walls of said hood.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 40 words

A shaker conveyor trough capable of withstanding exposure to high temperatures, said trough comprising A. an upwardly open outer shell having a bottom wall and side walls, B. an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls,

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 40 words

A shaker conveyor trough capable of withstanding exposure to high temperatures, said trough comprising A. an upwardly open outer shell having a bottom wall and side walls, B. an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls,

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 39 words

A shaker conveyor trough in accordance with claim 5, wherein means are provided within said space for maintaining said separation between said walls of said inner shell and said walls of said outer shell when said trough is loaded.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 28 words

A shaker conveyor trough in accordance with claim 6, wherein said means for maintaining said separation includes load-supporting ribs extending longitudinally of said trough along the length thereof.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 90 words

A shaker conveoyor trough in accordance with claim 5, wherein said means for supporting said trough for reciprocal movement comprises means defining a pair of horizontally spaced tracks beneath said trough arranged in parallel relation to the longitudinal axis thereof, said tracks being adapted to cooperate with rollers mounted on a stationary surface for rotation about horizontal axes, and means securing said tracks to said trough in spaced relation to the bottom wall of said outer shell to provide an insulating air space between said bottom wall and said tracks.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 16 words

A shaker conveyor trough in accordance with claim 5, wherein said insulating material comprises silica-alumina fibers.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 41 words

A shaker conveyor in accordance with claim 5, wherein a vertically disposed gate member is mounted at the discharge end of said trough for selective vertical movement relative to said trough to facilitate accumulation within said trough of material advancing therealong.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 211 words

A shaker conveyor trough capable of withstanding exposure to high temperatures, said trough comprising an upwardly open outer shell having an outer wall and side walls, an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls, said inner shell being disposed within said outer shell with said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell being separated from said bottom wall and said side walls, respectively, of said outer wall to define a space therebetween, a semi-solid bulk insulating material disposed within said space and coextensive therewith, means for supporting said trough for reciprocal movement, and a discharge throat having a bottom wall and side walls affixed at one end of said trough for reciprocal movement therewith, said inner shell being of lesser length than said outer shell at ambient temperature and being positioned within said outer shell to provide a gap between one end of said inner shell and the adjacent end of said outer shell, said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell having a groove at one end of said inner shell, and an edge of said bottom wall and said side walls of said discharge throat being disposed in said groove to bridge said gap and protect the insulation therebeneath.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 211 words

A shaker conveyor trough capable of withstanding exposure to high temperatures, said trough comprising an upwardly open outer shell having an outer wall and side walls, an upwardly open inner shell having a bottom wall and side walls, said inner shell being disposed within said outer shell with said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell being separated from said bottom wall and said side walls, respectively, of said outer wall to define a space therebetween, a semi-solid bulk insulating material disposed within said space and coextensive therewith, means for supporting said trough for reciprocal movement, and a discharge throat having a bottom wall and side walls affixed at one end of said trough for reciprocal movement therewith, said inner shell being of lesser length than said outer shell at ambient temperature and being positioned within said outer shell to provide a gap between one end of said inner shell and the adjacent end of said outer shell, said bottom wall and said side walls of said inner shell having a groove at one end of said inner shell, and an edge of said bottom wall and said side walls of said discharge throat being disposed in said groove to bridge said gap and protect the insulation therebeneath.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1976-09-10	1977-03-12	1977-09-11	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1980-09-10	1981-03-12	1981-09-11	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	1984-09-10	1985-03-12	1985-09-11	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Apparatus for preheating scrap material or the like

Abstract

Inventors

Bibliographic Details

Claims Analysis

References Cited (Backward Citations)

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Assigned Categories & Tags

Assign Category Tag