Patent GB-880061-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to overhead apparatus for charging flowable solid materials into chambers
Inventor: VERITY JAMES
IPC: C10B31/04
Filed: 1957-04-01
Abstract: 880,061. Charging retorts. WOODALL DUCKHAM CONSTRUCTION CO. Ltd. March 28, 1958 [April 1, 1957], No. 10600/57. Class 51 (2). In apparatus for charging retorts of the general type disclosed in Specifications 494,225 and 502,928, a charging car 1 running on wheels 6 and 7 over rails 2 above a bench of intermittent vertical retorts comprises a box-like frame or cab 8 at one end of its main frame carrying a motor 9, reduction gearing 10 and a two - speed chain drive 11 and a lower auxiliary frame 12 carrying auxiliary carriages 15 on rollers 16. The carriages 15 are traversed along the car 1 by sprocket chains 19 attached to each end of the ears and passing over sprockets 21 on a shaft 17 at one end of the car and sprockets 22 on horizontal cam-shafts 23 at the other end, the shaft 17 being driven from the main shaft 5 by chain 18. Co-ordinated clutches 25, 26 respectively bring the shaft 17 into gear with the shaft 5 and selectively engage one of the driving chains 11. At thelow rate the relative speeds of the car 1 and the auxiliary carriages are equal and opposite, resulting in the carriages remaining over the same point. The car carries a coal hopper 27 and a measuring hopper 28 for each charging opening, the measuring hopper introducing a coke pad at the bottom of the retort as in Specification 732,418. Each pair of hoppers 27, 28 is controlled by a single quadrant gate 31, which first opens automatically to free the coke pad, the movement being completed manually from the cab by a lever 38 on a shaft 34 through linkage 36, 37. A reserve coke hopper 29 above each measuring hopper 28 has a quadrant gate 30, operated from the cab by a lever 33 and linkage 32. Charging shoots 45 are supported on the carriages in a normally off-set position in relation to the hoppers 27, 28, which latter are brought into line therewith over the charging openings. Each shoot is suspended by four chains 46 which run over pulley 48 on the carriage, over pulley 49 on the cab, and forwardly over pulleys 50, 51 on the carriage to support a counterweight 52. As car 1 moves relative to the auxiliary carriage 15 the gap between pulley 49 and pulleys 48, 50, 51 narrows, lowering the shoot 45 and when the latter seats over a charging opening the counterweight descends. Operation.-As a measuring hopper moves into position over a shoot 45, the arm 40 of a V-shaped bell-crank trip lever on shaft 34 is rocked by cam surface 43 on carriage 15 opening gate 31 to discharge the coke pad from hopper 28. As previously indicated, opening movement of gate 31 to discharge hopper 27 is completed by lever 38 from the cab. Reverse movement of car 1 closes gate 31 by engagement of arm 39 of said V-shaped trip lever with cam surface 43 and also raises shoot 45 which discharges sufficient coal to fill the retort. Clutches 25, 26 are operated to disengage driving shaft 17, and rotate shaft 5 at high speed returning car 1 to a charging bunker at the end of the retort bench. Tension in the chains 46 which would tend to urge carriages 15 to the rear of the car is resisted by providing counterweight 55 attached to the cam-shafts 23. The sides of hoppers 27, 28 are inclined at considerably less than 45 degrees to the vertical. The shoots 45 may be associated with smoke hoods as in Specification 517,553.