Abstract:
There is disclosed an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal during or immediately after a rainstorm. The apparatus includes a plurality of filters and a carrier. The filters filter the solids from the water while moving in and taking impact from the water. The carrier carries the filters in a cycle.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates to an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal in emergency such as during or immediately after a rainstorm when the water is too turbid for a waterworks to process.  
         [0003]     2. Related Prior Art  
         [0004]     In or immediately after a typhoon or rainstorm, tons of rocks and sand are washed to rivers and reservoirs so that water bodies used as water sources become gravely turbid. Time is often not enough for the gravely turbid water to deposit before it reaches a water treatment plant through a canal. In the water treatment plant, the gravely turbid water contains too many solids for normal equipment to treat and causes the normal equipment to malfunction. In the worst case, the water treatment plant has to be shut down.  
         [0005]     There have been various devices for removing solids from water in a canal. However, the conventional devices include screws and motors for driving the screws. It requires a lot of energy to operate each of the foregoing conventional devices. The energy is generally provided in the form of electricity. In a blackout of the electricity system or failure of the motors, the devices will be shut down and block the stream. This could be even worse than the solids could do. The conventional devices can be seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,836,919, 5,110,461, 5,296,136, 5,372,713, 5,552,044, 5,593,597, 5,798,038 and 6,733,663 for example.  
         [0006]     The present invention is therefore intended to obviate or at least alleviate the problems encountered in prior art.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0007]     The primary objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal while consuming little energy more than the water can provide.  
         [0008]     According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal. The apparatus includes a plurality of filters and a carrier. The filters filter the solids from the water while moving in and taking impact from the water. The carrier carries the filters in a cycle.  
         [0009]     Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description referring to the attached drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0010]     The present invention will be described through detailed illustration of two embodiments referring to the drawings.  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a side view of an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is similar to  FIG. 1  but shows filters in different positions.  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  is a partial top view of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a filter shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a side view of an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal according to the second embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0016]      FIG. 6  is a side view of a filter shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS  
       [0017]     Referring to the drawings, there will be described two embodiments of the present invention, an apparatus for removing solids from water in a canal  80 . The canal  80  is in communication with a waterworks so that the water and solids travel to the waterworks through the canal  80 . The apparatus is used in emergency such as during or immediately after a rainstorm when the water is too turbid for the waterworks to process.  
         [0018]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 through 4 , there is an apparatus  10  for removing large solids from water in a canal  80  according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , there is an apparatus  50  for removing small solids from the water in the canal  80  according to the second embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0019]     The term “large solids” means large solids descending fast while traveling with the water in the canal  80 . The term “small solids” means small solids traveling substantially horizontally with the water in the canal  80 . The canal  80  is formed with a floor  82 , two walls  84  and two banks  86 .  
         [0020]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 through 3 , the apparatus  10  includes a carrier  12 , a plurality of filters  14  carried on the carrier  12  in order to filter some of the large solids from the water in the canal  80  and a dumping device  16  for dumping the filtered large solids from the filters  14 .  
         [0021]     The carrier  12  includes two identical sets each including a chain  18  for carrying the filters  14  and three sprockets  20  in engagement with the chain  18 . The sprockets  20  include an upstream surface sprocket  20  installed on one of the banks  86  of the canal  80 , a submarine sprocket  20  installed on one of the walls  84  of the canal  80  near the floor  82  and a downstream surface sprocket  20  installed on the same bank  86  of the canal  80 . It requires little energy more than the water can provide to operate the apparatus. Should other energy be required, a motor could be connected to one of the surface sprockets  20 .  
         [0022]     The chain  18  includes an upstream submarine section between the upstream surface sprocket  20  and the submarine sprocket  20 , a downstream submarine section between the submarine sprocket  20  and the downstream surface sprocket  20  and a surface section between the downstream surface sprocket  20  and the upstream surface sprocket  20 . Near each of the sprockets  20  is installed a cover  22  in order to prevent the chain  18  from derailing.  
         [0023]     Although not shown, there may be an axle for connecting one of the sprockets of one of the sets to related one of the sprockets  20  of the remaining set in order to ensure that the sets operate synchronously.  
         [0024]     Referring to  FIG. 4 , each of the filters  14  looks like a dustpan in order to receive the large solids that descend fast while traveling with the water in the canal  80 . Each of the filters  14  includes a primary filtering portion  28 , a secondary filtering portion  30  on the primary filtering portion  28  so that an acute corner  32  exists between them, a buoy  34  on the secondary filtering portion  30 , two walls  36  between the primary filtering portion  28  and the secondary filtering portion  30  and two pins  38  each on one of the walls  36 .  
         [0025]     The primary filtering portion  28  includes a screen  24  for filtering the large solids and a frame (not numbered) for supporting the screen  24 .  
         [0026]     The secondary filtering portion  30  includes a screen  26  for filtering the large solids and a frame (not numbered) for supporting the screen  26 . The screens  24  and  26  are identical to each other except their sizes.  
         [0027]     The buoy  34  is attached to or formed on a downstream surface of the frame of the secondary filtering portion  30 .  
         [0028]     The pins  38  are inserted in the chains  18  rotationally. The pins  38  are located on the walls  36  so that the primary filtering portion  28  will be substantially vertical when a filter  14  is completely out of the water. When a filter  14  is in the water, the primary filtering portion  28  will be substantially horizontal.  
         [0029]     Preferably, the upstream submarine section of the chain  18  is vertical, and the downstream submarine section of the chain  18  horizontal. In practice, the upstream submarine section of the chain  18  is however at a small angle from vertical, and the downstream submarine section of the chain  18  at a small angle from horizontal. The reasons for doing so will be described.  
         [0030]     The dumping device  16  includes a rod  40  near the downstream surface sprocket  20 , a ram  42  on an elastic beam  44  near the rod  40 , a nozzle  46  between the rod  40  and the ram  42  and a conveyor  48  on one of the banks  86  of the canal  80  between the rod  40  and the ram  42 .  
         [0031]     In the upstream submarine sections of the chains  18 , the primary filtering portion  28  of almost every filter  14  is horizontal. As the upstream submarine sections of the chains  18  are substantially vertical, almost all of the filters  14  are above one another. As the upstream submarine sections of the chains  18  are short, only a few filters  14  exist here and interfere the water.  
         [0032]     In the downstream submarine sections of the chains  18 , the primary filtering portion  28  of almost every filter  14  is horizontal. As the upstream submarine sections of the chains  18  are substantially horizontal, almost no filter  14  is above another filter  14 . In other words, no filter  14  interferes with another filter  14  regarding the filtering. The downstream submarine sections of the chains  18  are long so that many filters  14  exist here for filtering the solids.  
         [0033]     The water and the large solids impinge the secondary filtering portion  30  of a filter  14  so that the screen  26  filters the large solids and that the filter  14  moves. The filter  14  moves a little bit slower than the water. The secondary filtering portion  30  causes a retro-stream in a proximal region, and this retro-stream causes the large solids to slow down. Hence, the movement of the large solids relative to the primary filtering portion  28  is vertical substantially. The screen  24  intercepts the large solids at the right angle. The secondary filtering portion  30  can intercepts a little portion of the large solids.  
         [0034]     While leaving the water, a filter  14  is tilting. Out of the water, the filter  14  is substantially vertical. The acute angle  32  detains the solids. While contacting the rod  40 , the filter  14  is pivoting for dumping the large solids. When about to leave the rod  40 , the filter  14  is upside down in order to dump the large solids faster. The nozzle  46  sprays air or water through the screen  24  in order to force the large solids down to the conveyor  48 . After leaving the rod  40 , the filter  14  further pivots and finally impinges the ram  42 . Thus, further large solids drop from the filter  14 . Then, the filter  14  is carried from the ram  42 .  
         [0035]     Referring to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the apparatus  50  is like the apparatus  10  except including filters  52  instead of the filters  14  and substituting a washing device  62  for the dumping device  16 .  
         [0036]     Each of the filters  52  includes a fabric  54  for filtering the small solids and a frame  56  for supporting the fabric  54 . The fabric  54  may be Cloth Media® provided by Aqua. As the water travel through the fabric  54 , the small solids encounter and adhere to the fabric  54 . The frame  56  includes a middle portion, an upper portion extended from a downstream surface of the middle portion at an angle and a lower portion extended from the downstream surface of the middle portion at an angle. The fabric  54  is supported on the middle portion of the frame  56 . Two pins  58  are formed on the upper portion of the frame  56 . A weight  60  is formed on the lower portion of the frame  56 .  
         [0037]     The pins  58  are inserted in the chains  18  so that the filter  52  is connected to the chains  18  rotationally. Since the weight  60  is provided on the downstream surface of the middle portion of the frame  56 , the fabric  54  supported on the middle portion of the frame  56  will pivot upstream when out of the water. The fabric  54  will become vertical when impinged by the water. Thus, the fabric  54  will intercept the small solids at the right angle.  
         [0038]     The washing device  62  includes a tank  64  filled with water and rods  66  provided in the tank  64 . Ultrasonic waves or suction can be used in the tank  64  in order to remove the small solids from the fabric  54  quickly.  
         [0039]     The present invention has been described through the illustration of the embodiments. Those skilled in the art can derive variations from the embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Hence, the embodiments shall not limit the scope of the present invention defined in the claims.