Industrial vacuum apparatus

Claim 2

A mobile vacuum unit, comprising a mobile frame, a collection box mounted on said mobile frame, a snorkel communicating with said collection box and adapted to draw air and entrained materials into said box through suction, said box being adapted at intervals to dump materials contained therein, an outlet from said box leading to a two-way separating valve; a first conduit leading from said valve to the intake of a swirler unit having means for capturing air-entrained particles in a rotating stream of liquid, the outlet from said swirler unit leading through a second conduit to the tangential inlet to a demister unit having an exhaust outlet for gas at the top and a collection chamber for liquid at the bottom, pump means for recirculating liquid from said collection chamber to said swirler unit to enter said rotating stream of liquid, a third conduit from said exhaust outlet to one inlet of a two-way combining valve; a fourth conduit leading from said two-way separating valve to the inlet of a bag filter unit, a fifth conduit leading from the outlet of said bag filter unit to the other inlet of said two-way combining valve, the outlet of said two-way combining valve being in communication with the inlet to a screen filter unit, the outlet of said screen filter unit communicating with the suction inlet of an air-pump, the outlet of said air pump exhausting through muffling means to the atmosphere, and means for powering said air-pump.

Claim 3

A mobile vacuum unit as claimed in claim 1, in which the collection box is mounted to said vacuum unit for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis between a collection position and a dumping position, and having a dumping opening through which said materials contained therein can exit gravitationally when the box is in the dumping position, a closure member adapted to cover the opening when the box is in the collection position and to uncover the opening when the box is in the dumping position, the box having a first chamber adjacent to and in communication with said dumping opening, a second chamber adjacent the first chamber and divided therefrom by a panel depending gravitationally from a horizontal pivot axis, the panel substantially isolating lower portions of the chambers from one another when the box is in the collection position but permitting communication between the lower portions of the chambers when the box is in the dumping position, said outlet from said box communicating with thE second chamber, said snorkel communicating with said first chamber of the collection box, the collection box providing a passage for air from the first to the second chamber above the said panel, the first chamber being adapted to accumulate coarse solids entrained in the entering air, the second chamber containing separation means to facilitate the separation from the air of liquids and finer solids, the second chamber being so disposed with respect to the first chamber that upon pivoting of the box from the collection to the dumping position, the material collected in the second chamber tends to pass gravitationally into the first chamber under said panel, thus irrigating the coarser material in said first chamber and facilitating its dislodgement through said dumping opening.

Claim 4

A mobile vacuum unit, comprising a mobile frame, a collection box mounted on said mobile frame, a snorkel communicating with said collection box and adapted to draw air and entrained materials into said box through suction, said box being adapted at intervals to dump materials contained therein, an outlet from said box leading to a two-way separating valve; a first conduit leading from said valve to first means adapted to mix materials passing through said first conduit with liquid in a highly agitated state, thereby to entrain in the liquid particulate matter in said materials, second means for separating liquid and entrained particulate matter from gas in said materials, a second conduit for carrying said separated gas to one inlet of a two-way combining valve, a third conduit leading from said two-way separating valve to the inlet of a bag filter unit, a fourth conduit leading from the outlet of said bag filter unit to the other inlet of said two-way combining valve, the outlet of said two-way combining valve being in communication with the suction inlet of an air-pump, the outlet of said air pump exhausting through muffling means to the atmosphere, and means for powering said air-pump.

Claim 5

A mobile vacuum unit, comprising a mobile frame, a collection box mounted on said mobile frame, a snorkel communicating with said collection box and adapted to draw air and entrained materials into said box through suction, said box being adapted at intervals to dump materials contained therein, an outlet from said box leading to a two-way separating valve; a first conduit leading from said valve to first means adapted to mix materials passing through said first conduit with liquid in a highly agitated state, thereby to entrain in the liquid particulate matter in said materials, second means for separating liquid and entrained particulate matter from gas in said materials, a second conduit for carrying said separated gas to one inlet of a two-way combining valve, a third conduit leading from said two-way separating valve to the inlet of a bag filter unit, a fourth conduit leading from the outlet of said bag filter unit to the other inlet of said two-way combining valve, the outlet of said two-way combining valve being in communication with the suction inlet of an air-pump, the outlet of said air pump exhausting through muffling means to the atmosphere, and means for powering said air-pump.