Wild-flow loss-in-weight weighing system

Claim 1

A continous weighing means for monitoring and determining the weight flow rate of a generally continuous wild-flow stream of solid or liquid materials comprising: a generally continuous wild-flow source having an output; a separately supported loss-in-weight weighing system having a supply means connected to the output of the wild-flow source by serial connection means, and a discharge means for controlling the discharge rate of material from the loss-in-weight supply means; the serial connection means comprising a surge hopper for receiving material discharged from the output of the wild-flow source during each of a plurality of time periods and having a controllable discharge means at its lower end connected to the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system; means for controlling the operation of the controllable discharge means; the control means being operable to cause the controllable discharge means to discharge intermittently the entire volume of material received from the output of the wild-flow source during the preceding time period into the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system; and the loss-in-weight weighing system includes means for sensing the weight of the volume of material discharged into its supply means from the surge hopper and controllably adjusting the rate of output of the loss-in-weight system responsive to said sensing means.

Claim 5

A method of monitoring and weighing the unregulated flow of solid or liquid material in a system comprising a generally continuous wild-flow source of material having an output serially connected through serial connection means to a supply means of a separately supported loss-in-weight weighing system having discharge means controlling the rate of flow therefrom, said serial connection means having a surge hopper with an input for receiving material discharged from the output of the wild-flow source and controllable discharge means at its lower end connected to the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system, the method comprising the steps of: permitting the wild-flow source to feed material out of its output into the input of the surge hopper during each of a plurality of time periods; opening the controllable discharge means at the end of each time period to permit the entire volume of material in the surge hopper at the end of each time period to pass into the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system; closing the discharge means; and monitoring the weight increase of the loss-in-weight weighing system to thereby determine the weight of material discharged by the wild-flow during the preceding time period and thereafter adjusting the rate of output of the loss-in-weight discharge means in response to the amount of material recieved by the loss-in-weight supply means.

Claim 6

A method of monitoring and weighing the unregulated flow of solid or liquid material in a system comprising a generally continuous wild-flow source of material having an output serially connected through serial connection means to a supply means of a separately supported loss-in-weight weighing system having discharge means controlling the rate of flow therefrom, said serial connection means having a surge hopper with an input for receiving material discharged from the output of the wild-flow source and controllable discharge means at its lower end connected to the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system, the method comprising the steps of: permitting the wild-flow source to feed material out of its output into the input of the surge hopper during each of a plurality of time periods; opening the controllable discharge means at the end of each time period to permit the entire volume of material in the surge hopper at the end of each time period to pass into the supply means of the loss-in-weight weighing system; closing the discharge means; and monitoring the weight increase of the loss-in-weight weighing system to thereby determine the weight of material discharged by the wild-flow during the preceding time period and thereafter adjusting the rate of output of the loss-in-weight discharge means in response to the amount of material recieved by the loss-in-weight supply means.