US3987808A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Metering system
Assignee: Sandoz AG
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Filing: 1975-01-07
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Granted: 1976-10-26
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Expires: 1995-01-07
Abstract
Abstract The invention concerns a novel automatic metering system for producing a liquor containing a predetermined concentration of at least one component thereof, which comprises a mixing tank in which the liquor components are mixed, a metering device adapted to meter out at least one of the components into the mixing tank, an analyzer adapted to measure the concentration of the component(s) required at a predetermined concentration and a data processing unit, with an input from the analyzer and an output to the metering device, being programmed to effect an operational cycle which comprises computing the deviation of the measured concentration from the predetermined concentration of the component(s), correlating the deviation with the amount of at least one of the components necessary to be metered out, substantially to reduce said deviation by a reduction factor of less than 100 percent, and automatically operating the metering device to meter out the correlated amount, and to repeat said operational cycle until the predetermined concentration has been substantially reached, and a method of operating the system.
Inventors
- 👤 Jose Carbonell
- 👤 Rolf Hasler
- 👤 Roland Walliser
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 19:09
CPC Classifications
G; G05; G05D; G05D21/00; G05D21/02; B; B01; B01F; B01F35/00; B01F35/80; B01F35/82; B01J; B01J4/00; B01J4/02; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T137/00; Y10T137/0318; Y10T137/0324; Y10T137/0329; Y10T137/2496; Y10T137/2499; Y10T137/2509
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 27
Claim 1
Independent Claim
173 words
An automatic metering system for producing a liquid at least one component of which is present at a predetermined concentration which comprises a mixing tank in which the liquor components are mixed, a metering device adapted to meter out varying amounts of at least one of the components into the mixing tank, an analyser adapted to measure the concentration in the mixed liquor components of a component which is to be ultimately present at a predetermined concentration and a data processing unit with an imput from the analyser and an output to the metering device, being programmed to effect an operational cycle which comprises computing the deviation of the measured concentration from the predetermined concentration, correlating the deviation with the amount of at least one of the components necessary to be metered out substantially to reduce said deviation by a reduction factor of less than 100 percent and automatically operating the metering device to meter out the correlated amount, and to repeat said operational cycle until the predetermined concentration has been substantially reached.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
173 words
An automatic metering system for producing a liquid at least one component of which is present at a predetermined concentration which comprises a mixing tank in which the liquor components are mixed, a metering device adapted to meter out varying amounts of at least one of the components into the mixing tank, an analyser adapted to measure the concentration in the mixed liquor components of a component which is to be ultimately present at a predetermined concentration and a data processing unit with an imput from the analyser and an output to the metering device, being programmed to effect an operational cycle which comprises computing the deviation of the measured concentration from the predetermined concentration, correlating the deviation with the amount of at least one of the components necessary to be metered out substantially to reduce said deviation by a reduction factor of less than 100 percent and automatically operating the metering device to meter out the correlated amount, and to repeat said operational cycle until the predetermined concentration has been substantially reached.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
50 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing unit is programmed to operate the metering device before commencing the operational cycle to meter out into the mixing chamber a proportion of the amount of the liquor component which is to be present at a predetermined concentration.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
21 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 2, wherein said proportion corresponds to the reduction factor applied in the operational cycle.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
18 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 1, wherein said reduction factor is from 40 to 95 percent.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
18 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 4, wherein said reduction factor is from 80 to 90 percent.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
26 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing unit is programmed to repeat the operational cycle thereof from 1 to 10 times.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 6, wherein the data processing unit is programmed to repeat the operational cycle 2 or 3 times.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
14 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 1, wherein the analyser comprises a spectrophotometer.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
24 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 8, wherein the spectrophotometer incorporates a device enabling the spectrophotometer to operate over the optimum absorption range.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
16 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 9, wherein said device comprises a liquor dilution device.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
27 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 1, wherein the metering device comprises from 2 to 5 metering heads, each adapted to handle a separate liquor component.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
24 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 11, wherein the metering device comprises 3 metering heads, each adapted to handle a separate liquor component.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
88 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 11 wherein the analyser is adapted to measure the concentrations of a plurality of components which are to be present at predetermined concentrations, and the data processing unit is programmed to compute the deviation of the measured concentrations from the respective predetermined concentrations, correlate the deviations with the amounts of the respective components to be metered out to reduce said deviations by a reduction factor of less than 100% and automatically operate the metering devices to meter out the correlated amounts.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
100 words
An automatic metering system according to claim 13 wherein the analyser is a spectrophotometer having a diluting device for diluting the samples of liquor to be analysed and adapted to measure the extinction coefficient of each measured component at its respective absorption maximum and the data processing unit is additionally programmed to correct the extinction coefficient data at the absorption maximum of a particular component for the absorption due to other components in the liquor at the absorption maximum of the particular component under observation and convert the corrected extinction coefficient data into data compatible with the predetermined concentration data.
Claim 16
Independent Claim
113 words
A method of automatically producing a liquor containing a predetermined concentration of at least one component thereof which comprises effecting the operational cycle of measuring the concentration in a premixed liquor of a component which is to be ultimately present at a predetermined concentration, automatically determining the deviation of the measured concentration from the predetermined concentration, correlating the deviation with the amount of at least one of the components to be added to the liquor substantially to reduce said deviation by a reduction factor of less than 100 percent and automatically metering out the correlated amount into the premixed liquor, and repeating said operational cycle until the predetermined concentration has been substantially reached.
Claim 17
Independent Claim
113 words
A method of automatically producing a liquor containing a predetermined concentration of at least one component thereof which comprises effecting the operational cycle of measuring the concentration in a premixed liquor of a component which is to be ultimately present at a predetermined concentration, automatically determining the deviation of the measured concentration from the predetermined concentration, correlating the deviation with the amount of at least one of the components to be added to the liquor substantially to reduce said deviation by a reduction factor of less than 100 percent and automatically metering out the correlated amount into the premixed liquor, and repeating said operational cycle until the predetermined concentration has been substantially reached.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
49 words
A method according to claim 15, wherein the premixed liquor is prepared before effecting the operational cycle, the component which is to be ultimately present at the predetermined concentration being automatically metered out in an amount corresponding to a proportion of the amount necessary to give said predetermined concentration.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
20 words
A method according to claim 6, wherein the said proportion corresponds to the reduction factor applied in the operational cycle.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 15, wherein said reduction factor is from 40 to 95 percent.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 18, wherein said reduction factor is from 80 to 90 percent.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method according to claim 15, wherein the operational cycle is repeated from 1 to 10 times.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
16 words
A method according to claim 20, wherein the operational cycle is repeated 2 or 3 times.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
25 words
A method according to claim 15, when applied to the production of a liquor having a predetermined concentration of 2 to 5 separate liquor components.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
23 words
A method according to claim 22, when applied to the production of a liquor having a predetermined concentration of 3 separate liquor components.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
15 words
A method according to claim 15, when applied to the production of a dye liquor.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
135 words
A method according to claim 15 which comprises measuring, by means of a spectrophotometer, the extinction coefficients at their respective absorption maxima of each of a plurality of dyes in a dye liquor, correcting the extinction coefficient data for each dye at its absorption maximum for the absorption due to the other dyes in the liquor, converting the corrected extinction coefficients into corresponding concentration measurements for each dye, computing the deviation between the measured concentration and the predetermined concentration for each dye, correlating each deviation with the amount of each dye to be added to the liquor to reduce each deviation by a factor of 50 to 95 percent, metering out the correlated amount of each dye into the liquor and repeating the foregoing until the predetermined concentration of each dye has been substantially reached.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1979-10-26 | 1980-04-26 | 1980-10-26 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1983-10-26 | 1984-04-26 | 1984-10-26 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1987-10-26 | 1988-04-26 | 1988-10-26 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |