Method and apparatus for handling palleted loads comprising bulk material contained in bags

Claim 1

An apparatus for handling palleted loads of bulk material contained in bags, comprising, in combination and in sequence, (1) a downwardly tapering receiving hopper having an inlet opening at the top thereof receiving a plurality of bags of a pallet load dumped together into the hopper; (2) a screw conveyor having a housing with a smooth inside face and a conveyor screw rotatably mounted therein, the conveyor screw having a sharp edge at least in the area of the lower opening of the hopper, and the lower end of the hopper being connected to and opening into the housing and feeding bags therefrom to the screw; (3) cutting and tearing means on the conveyor screw projecting outwardly towards the smooth inside face of the housing, cutting through and opening bags received from said hopper with rotation of the screw; (4) grid means at the bottom of the housing of the screw conveyor allowing bulk material freed from the bags to be discharged from the housing, said smooth inside surface being formed by the innermost curved surfaces of said grid means with said innermost surfaces being slightly spaced from said conveyor screw; and (5) a device for separating bag material from bulk material, the outlet end of the screw conveyor being operatively connected to the separating device and feeding bag material and bulk material axially to the separating device.

Claim 2

An apparatus for handling palleted loads of bulk material contained in bags, comprising, in combination and in sequence, (1) a downwardly tapering receiving hopper having an inlet opening at the top thereof receiving a plurality of bags of a pallet load dumped together into the hopper; (2) a screw conveyor having a housing with a smooth inside face and a conveyor screw rotatably mounted therein, the conveyor screw having a sharp edge at least in the area of the lower opening of the hopper, and the lower end of the hopper being connected to and opening into the housing and feeding bags therefrom to the screw; (3) cutting and tearing means on the conveyor screw projecting outwardly towards the smooth inside face of the housing, cutting through and opening bags received from said hopper with rotation of the screw; (4) grid means at the bottom of the housing of the screw conveyor allowing bulk material freed from the bags to be discharged from the housing, said smooth inside surface being formed by the innermost curved surfaces of said grid means with said innermost surfaces being slightly spaced from said conveyor screw; and (5) a device for separating bag material from bulk material, the outlet end of the screw conveyor being operatively connected to the separating device and feeding bag material and bulk material axially to the separating device.

Claim 6

An apparatus for handling palleted loads of bulk material contained in bags, comprising, in combination and in sequence, (1) a downwardly tapering receiving hopper having an inlet opening at the top thereof receiving a plurality of bags of a pallet load dumped together into the hopper; (2) a screw conveyor having a housing with a smooth inside face and a conveyor screw rotatably mounted therein, the conveyor screw having a sharp edge at least in the area of the lower opening of the hopper, and the lower end of the hopper being connected to and opening into the housing and feeding bags therefrom to the screw; (3) cutting and tearing means on the conveyor screw projecting outwardly towards the smooth inside face of the housing, cutting through and opening bags received from said hopper with rotation of the screw; (4) a device for separating bag material from bulk material, the outlet end of the screw conveyor being operatively connected to the separating device and feeding bag material and bulk material axially to the separating device; (5) grid means at the bottom of the housing of the screw conveyor allowing bulk material freed from the bags to be discharged from the housing, and (6) sieving means receiving bulk material discharged from the conveyor housing through the grid means and from the separating device.

Claim 7

An apparatus for handling palleted loads of bulk material contained in bags, comprising, in combination and in sequence, (1) a downwardly tapering receiving hopper having an inlet opening at the top thereof receiving a plurality of bags of a pallet load dumped together into the hopper; (2) a screw conveyor having a housing with a smooth inside face and a conveyor screw rotatably mounted therein, the conveyor screw having a sharp edge at least in the area of the lower opening of the hopper, and the lower end of the hopper being connected to and opening into the housing and feeding bags therefrom to the screw; (3) cutting and tearing means on the conveyor screw projecting outwardly towards the smooth inside face of the housing, cutting through and opening bags received from said hopper with rotation of the screw; (4) a device for separating bag material from bulk material, the outlet end of the screw conveyor being operatively connected to the separating device and feeding bag material and bulk material axially to the separating device; (5) grid means at the bottom of the housing of the screw conveyor allowing bulk material freed from the bags to be discharged from the housing, and (6) sieving means receiving bulk material discharged from the conveyor housing through the grid means and from the separating device.