Patent ID: 9745148
Date: 2017-08-29
CPC Classifications: B05B,B05C,B65G,F04F

Claim:
1. A powder conveyor for coating powder, wherein the powder conveyor comprises the following: a pneumatically actuatable dense phase powder pump comprising at least one conveyor chamber having a powder inlet valve and a powder outlet valve, wherein the powder inlet valve and powder outlet valve are respectively designed as pneumatically actuatable pinch valves which close upon application of an actuation pressure; a pressure regulator for adjusting and maintaining a predefined or definable set pressure on the at least one conveyor chamber of the dense phase powder pump and/or for adjusting and maintaining a predefined or definable actuation pressure on the powder inlet valve and/or powder outlet valve; a gas flow detection device for detecting or determining the volume of gas fed to or discharged from the at least one conveyor chamber per unit of time when adjusting and maintaining the predefined or definable set pressure and/or for detecting or determining the volume of gas fed to the powder inlet valve and/or powder outlet valve per unit of time when adjusting and maintaining a predefined or definable actuation pressure; and an evaluation device designed to compare at least one detected or determined volumetric gas flow vary flow value to a corresponding set value, wherein the evaluation device is further designed to automatically issue an error and/or warning signal upon the at least one detected volumetric gas flow value deviating from the respective set value, preferably as a function of the magnitude of the deviation; wherein the pressure regulator comprises an inlet and at least one outlet, wherein the inlet of the pressure regulator is fluidly connected or connectable to a compressed air source providing a predefined or definable constant supply pressure, and wherein the pressure regulator comprises at least one throttle device for localized adjusting of a discharge cross section so as to provide the set pressure to be applied on the at least one conveyor chamber and/or the actuation pressure to be applied on the powder inlet valve or powder outlet valve at the at least one outlet of the pressure regulator; and wherein the gas flow detection device is designed to detect the value of the volume of gas fed to or discharged from the at least one conveyor chamber per unit of time when adjusting and maintaining the set pressure and/or the value of the volume of gas supplied to the powder inlet valve or powder outlet valve per unit of time when adjusting and maintaining the actuation pressure based on a flow cross section of the at least one throttle device set by the pressure regulator.