Abstract:
A bin for storing and dispensing dry flowable material comprises a main body portion defining a chamber for receiving the flowable material, a top portion enclosing the top of the body portion and having an inlet through which the material can pass to fill the bin, a bottom portion enclosing the bottom of the body portion and having at least one outlet, the bottom portion being inclined to direct the material toward the at least one outlet, a wall extending upwardly from the at least one outlet to an elevation in the body portion for dividing at least a lower part of the chamber into adjacent sections and a valve mechanism for selectively controlling the dispensing of the material from each section.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention generally relates to storage and dispensing bins, and more particularly to bins for storing and dispensing dry flowable materials. 
         [0002]    Storage and dispensing bins are frequently used to store and dispense granular and other flowable materials, such as livestock and other animal feedstuffs, plant seed or other particulate and/or pelletized materials. In particular, feed storage bins are commonly used to store and dispense livestock feedstuffs such as oats, corn, milo, barley, and alfalfa pellets. The bins typically include a cylindrical hopper body with a conical funnel portion at a bottom end thereof, wherein the conical funnel portion includes an outlet through which the feedstuffs are dispensed. The feedstuffs are often dispensed into an augur system for delivery to livestock, but may be dispensed using less sophisticated equipment. 
         [0003]    However, common problems are associated with conventional feed storage bins. For example, as the supply within the bins is dispensed and begins to diminish, it is difficult to easily ascertain how much feedstuffs remain. The bins are usually made of steel or other non-transparent material, and are therefore not amenable to external visual inspection. Thus, it is difficult to know when to re-order feedstuffs or refill the bins. Often times, feedstuffs are entirely depleted from a storage bin before the dwindling supply is noticed, at which time immediate refilling of the bin may not be a feasible option. 
         [0004]    Additionally, animals such as horses are notoriously finicky when it comes to the freshness of their feedstuffs. Unfortunately, the shape of the conical funnel portion in combination with the inherent physical properties of the granular feedstuffs contribute to spoilage of at least a portion of the feedstuffs stored within the bins. Specifically, as the feedstuffs descend down the cylindrical hopper portion for dispensing through the conical funnel portion, there is often a residual layer that naturally forms around a portion of the inner circumference of the conical funnel portion. This phenomenon occurs because of one of the inherent physical properties of each particular feedstuff or dry flowable material, known as the angle of repose, or the angle formed with a horizontal surface when free-flowing material comes to rest. Thus, the feedstuffs will flow from top to bottom, while a residual layer around a portion of the inner circumference of the conical funnel portion remains. The residual layer typically includes the feedstuffs that were first deposited in the bin, and by the time this layer is finally dispensed, which is only after the balance of the bin has been emptied, there is a “first in, last out” result. In other words, the oldest of the feedstuffs are often dispensed last, and are frequently refused by the livestock. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    Various embodiments of the invention comprise a bin for storing and dispensing dry flowable material comprises a main body portion defining a chamber for receiving the flowable material, a top portion enclosing the top of the body portion and having an inlet through which the material can pass to fill the bin, a bottom portion enclosing the bottom of the body portion and having at least one outlet, the bottom portion being inclined to direct the material toward the at least one outlet, a wall extending upwardly from the at least one outlet to an elevation in the body portion for dividing at least a lower part of the chamber into adjacent sections and a valve mechanism for selectively controlling the dispensing of the material from each section. 
     
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the dispensing bin embodying the present invention shown from an upper front left vantage point; 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is another perspective view of the dispensing bin shown in  FIG. 1 , taken from the same vantage point as  FIG. 1 , but with the upper portion removed to reveal internal construction; 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the dispensing bin of  FIG. 1 , shown from a lower front left vantage point; 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  is a simplified diagrammatic depiction of a cross section of the storage bin embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a perspective of a portion of the storage bin shown in  FIG. 1  particularly illustrating the valve mechanism for controlling the dispensing of material, and is shown from an upper vantage point; 
           [0011]      FIG. 6  is a bottom side view of the portion shown in  FIG. 5 ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 7  is an alternative embodiment illustrating a generally square dispensing bin; and 
           [0013]      FIG. 8  is a front view of a portion of the indicator mechanism of the preferred embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0014]    Embodiments of the invention provide a storage and dispensing bin for use with dry, flowable material, such as livestock feedstuffs, that enhances the ability of a worker to ascertain an amount of feedstuffs remaining in the bin while simultaneously reducing spoilage of feedstuffs within the bin. 
         [0015]    Turning to  FIGS. 1-4 , the preferred embodiment is a storage and dispensing bin, designated generally at  10 , that includes a generally cylindrical hopper body  12 , a conical-shaped receiving end portion  14  at an upper end of the hopper body, and a conical-shaped funnel portion  16  at a lower end of the hopper body. The body is supported by a support frame  18  that includes three legs although a greater number of legs may be utilized. An inlet  19  is disposed at an upper end of the receiving end portion  14 , while an outlet  20  is provided at a tapered lower end of the funnel portion  16 . An internal chamber  22  of the bin  10  includes the combined volumes defined by the hopper body  12 , the receiving end portion  14  and the funnel portion  16 . The internal chamber  22  is configured to receive material therein via the inlet  19 , and includes features to reduce spoilage and promote monitoring of the volume of material disposed therein. 
         [0016]    More specifically, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the internal chamber  22  includes a refill portion  24  (also identified as volume A), a reserve portion  26  (also identified as volume B), with a guide divider  28  provided for maintaining the separation of the refill portion from the reserve portion. The guide divider  28  is generally planar and is configured to correspondingly extend upwardly from the outlet  20  at least a predetermined portion of the internal chamber  22 . As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4 , it preferably extends from slightly above the top elevation of the conical funnel portion  16  downwardly to the outlet  20 . Thus, the guide divider  28  generally extends across the hopper body  12  and funnel portion  16  to divide the lower portion of the internal chamber  22  into two preferably equal halves. Similarly, the outlet  20  is also divided into two parts, preferably left and right halves  30 ,  32  as shown. It should be understood that while a single outlet  20  is shown and described herein, there could be a separate outlet for each section, i.e., an outlet for each of the left and right halves  30 ,  32 . Moreover, while only two sections are shown and described, additional sections are considered to be within the scope of the present invention. 
         [0017]    Assuming that the outlet  20  is closed, as the particular feedstuffs are deposited into the dispensing bin  10  via the inlet  19 , the internal chamber  22  begins to fill uniformly on both sides of the guide divider  28  until the internal chamber has reached its full holding capacity. The invention accordingly preferably provides a mechanism whereby first and second halves  30 ,  32  of the outlet  20  may be selectively opened or closed to permit dispensing of the material via one or the other of the halves. 
         [0018]    More particularly, the preferred embodiment of the invention includes first and second slide valves, indicated generally at  34 ,  36  that correspond respectively to the first and second halves  30 ,  32  of the outlet  20  and that slide relative to a valve frame structure  38 . The valve frame structure  38  is generally flat and is mounted on the bottom of the bin  10  adjacent to the outlet  20 . The valve frame structure  38  also includes a generally circular opening (not shown) that is generally coextensive with the outlet  20 . Each of the slide valves  34 ,  36  has respective handle portions  40  and  42  that are disposed on a top side of the valve frame structure  38 . The respective handle portions  40  and  42  are mounted on respective brackets  44  and  46  that wrap around a side of the frame structure  38 , where they are attached to elongated flat valve body structures  48  and  50 . 
         [0019]    As is best shown in  FIGS. 4 ,  5  and  6 , the slide valve  34  is closed, so that the body structure  48  is in position where it covers the outlet half  30  as the handle  40  is positioned very near the outlet. Also, slide valve  36  is shown in its open position, wherein the body structure  50  is retracted from the outlet half  32 . The handle  42  is located in its retracted position near the outer end of the frame structure  38 . 
         [0020]    To promote selective dispensing of material from the bin  10 , only one of the slide valves  34 ,  36  is preferably open at a time, with the other of the slide valves remaining closed. In this regard, and referring again to  FIG. 4 , whether a particular side of the internal chamber  22  is considered to be the refill portion  24  or the reserve portion  26  depends on which half  30 ,  32  of the outlet  20  is dispensing material, and the respective identities of these portions reverse upon the emptying of the refill portion  24 . 
         [0021]    More specifically, the height of the guide divider  28 , together with the angle of repose of the material in the chamber determines the relative size of the reserve volume. The angle of repose is the angle formed by the free-flowing material at rest with respect to a horizontal surface, and in the instant embodiment, a plane that includes the top edge of the guide divider  28  becomes the horizontal surface with which the angle of repose is determined. Thus, rather than forming a layer of residual material along a portion of the funnel portion  16  as in conventional bins, a natural divide is formed between the refill and reserve portions  24 ,  26  at the angle of repose, designated in  FIG. 4  at  52 . The angle of repose is usually different for different flowable materials, but is generally within the range of about 19° to about 32° for most foodstuffs. The angle of repose  52  in  FIG. 4  is shown to be 30°. While the guide divider  28  is shown to extend upwardly to a finite predetermined elevation, it should be understood that an adjustable divider construction could be used to vary the proportion of the reserve volume to the working volume. 
         [0022]    As an example of the manner in which feedstuffs are dispensed, and referring to  FIG. 4 , when the slide valve  34  is in the open position while the slide valve  36  is in the closed position, the left half  30  of the outlet  20  is open for dispensing material from the bin  10 , while the other half  32  of the outlet is blocked by the slide valve  36 . Material therefore begins to flow from the “left” of the guide divider  28  to be dispensed from the left half  30  of the outlet  20 . The angle of repose  52  will form as shown, thereby relegating the volume of material to the “left” of the guide divider as the refill portion  24  and the volume of material to the “right” of the guide divider  28  as the reserve portion  26 . Material will continue to be dispensed from the refill portion  24  until the volume of material disposed on that side of the guide divider  28  is depleted. 
         [0023]    At that time, the fact that no further material is being dispensed gives the worker a clear indicator that the bin  10  needs to be refilled and/or feedstuffs re-ordered. However, in the meantime, the worker may simply slide the slide valve  34  into the closed position, while sliding the slide valve  36  into the open position, thereby opening the right half  32  of the outlet  20  to dispense material from the reserve portion  26 . It should be understood that a worker can open either of the slide valves  34  or  36  for a short time, such as that needed to fill a small feed wagon for example. The important point is that feedstuffs should be taken from whatever side is the “working” side until that side is depleted, at which time the reserve side can be used until the bin is refilled and the reserve side becomes the working side until it eventually is depleted. 
         [0024]    One particular advantage of the invention is that the material may be refilled at any time subsequent to the emptying of a working side, such as portion  24  of  FIG. 4 . That is, once the slide valve is opened to permit dispensing of material from the reserve portion  26 , the worker may either wait for a time estimated to correspond to the amount of material in the reserve portion  26 , or may begin refilling the bin  10  to capacity. As the bin  10  is filled, the angle of repose  52  will be established in symmetrically opposite direction, so that the reserve portion  26  becomes the refill portion  24 , and vice versa. Thus, the reserve portion  26  will empty itself of the material originally contained therein, and if the bin  10  has been refilled, will then commence emptying the additional volume of material associated with the refill portion  24 , leaving a new reserve portion  26  on the opposite side of the guide divider  28 . 
         [0025]    Preferably, the capacity of the reserve portion  26  is configured to correspond to a predetermined period of time, such as five to ten day supply of feedstuffs. Generally, the guide divider  28 , as measured from the bottom edge to the top edge, corresponds in height to approximately ⅓ to ½of the total height of the internal chamber  22 . A shorter guide divider  28  generally corresponds to a smaller volume reserve portion  26 , while a taller guide divider generally corresponds to a larger volume reserve portion. Because the material that may be placed in the bin can be quite heavy, particularly if the size of the bin is large, it is desirable to place stiffening members on one or both sides of the guide divider  28  at one or more elevations. As shown in  FIG. 2 , stiffening members  54  are provided on both sides of the top of the guide divider  28  and on one side generally midway up the divider  28 . 
         [0026]    As shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  8 , the preferred embodiment also includes an indicator mechanism, indicated generally at  60 , to indicate which of the respective slide valves  34 ,  36  are to be used, i.e., which side is to be the working side. The mechanism  60  has a directional arrow indicator  62  that is pivotable around its point so that it can point to the left or to the right. The mechanism is placed between the two slide valve handle portions  40  and  42  can also operate as a physical barrier to opening one of the valves. The mechanism  60  includes a mounting member  64  for coupling to the valve frame structure  38  and an elongated, rotating arrow indicator  62  affixed thereto. The mounting member  64  is preferably attached to the valve frame structure  38  intermediate the slide valves  34 ,  36 . 
         [0027]    When the right slide valve  36  is to be used, the rotating arrow indicator  62  is rotated such that a length of the arrow is aligned with the handle portion  40  of the slide valve  34  to effectively block the handle portion  40  from being grasped by the worker. At the same time, the arrowhead of the rotating arrow indicator  62  points to the opposite side to indicate that the slide valve  36  should be used. The arrow indicator also has the instruction “USE RIGHT SLIDE” that is visible to the worker. Once the worker determines that the working side has been depleted, worker may close the slide valve  36 , rotate the rotating arrow indicator  62  such that the elongated portion of the rotating arrow blocks the handle portion  42  of the slide valve  36 . When the arrow indicator  62  is rotated, the previously upside down text will be visible for normal reading, i.e., “USE LEFT SLIDE”. The slide valve  34  is then unblocked and can be used to dispense material from the other side. 
         [0028]    To guard against someone inadvertently or intentionally changing the position of the arrow indicator  62  when it should not be changed, the mounting member has a front flange  66  to which the arrow indicator  62  rotates and it has an aperture  68  that is aligned with a corresponding aperture (not shown) in the front flange  66  when in the position illustrated in  FIG. 8 . This enables a padlock to be placed through the apertures and lock the arrow in the illustrated position. When the arrow indicator  62  is rotated to the opposite direction, an aperture  70  is then aligned with the aperture in the front flange  66  enabling a padlock to lock the arrow indicator  62  in the opposite direction. 
         [0029]    Similarly, to guard against theft or unintended manipulation of the slide valves  34  and  36 , the valve frame structure  38  has an aperture  72  that a padlock can be used to lock the slide valve  34  in a closed position as shown in  FIGS. 1-3  and  8 , as well as an aperture  74  for a padlock to lock it in an open position, as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 6 . Corresponding apertures  76  and  78  can have a padlock installed to lock the slide valve  36  in the open position and closed positions (see  FIGS. 3 and 6 ). 
         [0030]    While the preferred embodiment of the invention includes slide valves  34 ,  36  for selectively opening or closing first and second halves  30 ,  32  of the outlet  20 , other types of valves, such as clam gate valves, rack and pinion valves as well as various motor driven valves can be used as is known to those of ordinary skill in the art. The slide valves described are easy to operate, effective, reliable and relatively inexpensive. 
         [0031]    While the preferred embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-3 ,  5 ,  6  and  8  has a cylindrical housing  12  and a three legged support frame structure  18 , as is shown in  FIG. 7 , the housing can be generally rectangular, preferably with rounded corners, if desired. This alternative embodiment also has a support frame with four legs. 
         [0032]    While various embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it should be understood that other modifications, substitutions and alternatives are apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art. Such modifications, substitutions and alternatives can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which should be determined from the appended claims. 
         [0033]    Various features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.