Patent Abstract:
A cotton seed cleaner includes an initial airwash, a shaker deck with a series of cascading shaker trays, and a plurality of pin mill drums for more efficient and thorough cleaning of seeds to be used in industrial and commercial products. The result is a more efficient and cost effective cleaning process of the seeds, yielding cleaner seed and more quality byproducts for use in commercial and industrial products.

Full Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
   This invention relates generally to cotton seed cleaners, and more particularly to an improved apparatus for cleaning cotton seeds prior to subsequent processing. 
   BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Cotton seeds are used in numerous industrial and consumer applications. Cleaned seeds are processed into cottonseed vegetable oil for cooking applications and cottonseed meal for livestock and poultry feed. The byproducts removed during the cleaning of cotton seeds also have several industrial and commercial uses; for example, the hulls are used as roughage for livestock feed and the lint removed is used in several industrial and commercial products. 
   Referring to  FIG. 1  of the drawings, there is shown a conventional cotton seed cleaner  10 , comprising a four shaker-tray system. Debris is removed as the seeds drop down through the shaker trays  12 ,  14 ,  16  and  18 . As the seeds are fed into the shaker tray system, a deflector  19  divides and guides the seeds onto the trays. Larger debris such as sticks, rocks, paper, wood, etc. is removed as the seeds drop through the orifices in the top tray  12 . Smaller debris such as loose meats, small stones, small shale, and the like are removed as the seeds drop through the orifices in the second tray  14 . Similarly, larger debris items are removed as the seeds fall through the orifices in the third tray  16 , and the smaller trash and debris is removed in the bottom tray  18 . Once the seeds have passed through the trays and fall through the orifices in the second tray  14  and the bottom tray  18 , they are cleaned and ready for processing into commercial and industrial products such as cottonseed oil and livestock feed. 
   Lint and light shale are removed at each of the four shaker trays along with the other debris, but because of the light weight of the lint and shale, they do not progress down the trays for sorting and further processing as efficiently as the larger, heavier debris. Instead, the lint and light shale get trapped in the orifices at the bottom of the trays, eventually blinding and clogging the orifices altogether and preventing any seed from falling through, thereby lessening the efficiency and speed of the cotton seed cleaner  10 . As a result, the cotton seed cleaner  10  must be cleaned and maintained frequently which reduces the efficiency and speed of production, ultimately increasing the cost of production. In addition to the production cost, the trapped lint results in lost profits which could have been realized from the sale of the lint. Further the lint recovered by unclogging the orifices for sale as a byproduct is a lesser quality, less valuable lint byproduct because it has been handled more than the lint removed off of the shaker trays. 
   The present invention comprises a cotton seed cleaner which overcomes the foregoing and other difficulties which have long since characterized the prior art. In accordance with the broader aspects of the invention, a cotton seed cleaner comprises an initial air wash which removes lint before the seed enters into a cascading shaker tray and subsequent pin mill drum system. 
   Following the initial air wash, seeds enter a shaker tray system. The shaker tray comprises a plurality of cascading trays which scalps the larger debris and trash from the seeds. Once the larger debris is removed through the shaker tray system, the seeds enter a pin mill drum system, where the seeds are completely fluffed and cleaned of the smallest debris and any embedded hull trash. 
   Because the lint is removed prior to the seeds entering the shaker trays, the trays are less likely to become clogged with debris, therefore reducing the cleaning and maintenance frequency of all components of the cotton seed cleaner. The cascading shaker trays more effectively remove the larger debris so that when the seeds enter the pin mill system, the only debris remaining on the seeds is the smallest debris and any embedded hull trash. As the seeds proceed through a plurality of pin mill drums, the seeds are fluffed and any remaining debris is removed from therefrom. The smaller lint is then sorted by a vibrating table, where the smaller lint is sorted further and collected for further processing. Not only does the cleaning method of the present invention improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the cleaner, but also enables better collection and sorting of the debris for further processing and sale. 
   The cotton seed cleaner of the present invention produces cleaner seeds and better byproducts, increasing revenue realized from both the cleaned seeds and the byproducts. In addition to the increased revenue from the sale of raw goods, the decrease in maintenance and cleaning frequencies reduces the operating cost, which positively impacts revenue gains. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A more complete understanding of the present invention may be had by reference to the following Detailed Description when taken in connection with the accompanying Drawings, wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is an illustration of a prior art cottonseed cleaner; 
       FIG. 2  is an illustration of the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  is similar to  FIG. 2  showing the apparatus of the present invention in use; 
       FIG. 4  is an enlarged view of one portion of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged view of another portion of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 6  is an enlarged view of yet another portion of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ; and 
       FIG. 7  is an enlarged view of yet another portion of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   Referring now to the Drawings, and particularly to  FIGS. 2 and 3  thereof, there is shown a cotton seed cleaner  20  incorporating the present invention. Dirty seeds are fed into the cleaner  20  through a metered feeder  22 . The seeds fall through a vertical chute  24  and onto a shaker deck  26  containing a series of cascading shaker trays  28 . As seeds fall down through the vertical chute  24 , an airwash removes the majority of fly lint from the seeds and is extracted through a discharge duct  30 . 
   At the bottom of the vertical chute  24  the substantially lint free seed travels down the series of cascading shaker trays  28 . As the seeds progress down the cascading trays  28 , large debris such as sticks, stems, cotton tufts, grabbots, and the like are scavenged off and fall into a discard chute  32  for collection and further processing. Having the larger debris removed, the seeds fall through perforated shaker trays  28  onto a slide  34 . The seeds then fall off the end of the slide  34  into a housing  36  comprising a series of pin mill drums  38 . Seeds progress through the pin mill drums  38  which remove any remaining debris. The remaining debris is discarded onto a vibrating table  40  located below the pin mill drums  38  where the debris is sorted further and carried into debris collection bins  42  located at the bottom of the discard chute  32  for extraction and further processing. After complete cleaning by pin mill drums  38  the seeds enter a collection chute  44  and fall into a clean seed collection bin  46  to await packaging or further processing. 
   As is best shown in  FIG. 4 , the seeds enter the vertical chute  24  through a metered feeder  22 . A feeder motor  50  provides the power for the metered feeder  22 . Located at the bottom of the metered feeder  22  is a spring-loaded panel  52  which prevents large debris such as concrete chunks, large rocks, scrap metal, and the like from entering into the cleaner  20 . When the panel  52  catches a large debris item the metered feeder  22  pauses and triggers an alarm to alert an operator to remove the large debris item. 
   Located below the inlet of the vertical chute  24  is a removable plate magnet  54  which catches ferric debris thereby preventing it from continuing into the cleaning process. As the seeds fall down the vertical chute  24  a suction fan located at the end of a discharge duct  30  creates a counter-current airwash in the vertical chute  24  for removing fly lint and the lightest debris from the seeds. The lint and other light debris is removed through the discharge duct  30  for collection and further processing. The suction fan creating the airwash is sized according to the size of the cotton seed cleaner  20 . For example, a cotton seed cleaner  20  comprising a vertical chute  24  having a diameter of 16 to 18 inches requires a 6500 CFM fan. 
   The vertical chute  24  is formed with two inclined panels  56 . The inclined panels  56  help to break up any clumps or large wads of seeds so the seeds reach the shaker deck  26  in a more atomized and loose formation. Located at the bottom of the vertical chute  24  is a gate  58  which may be manually adjusted vertically to regulate the seed flow into the shaker deck  26 . Two inspection windows  59  are located on the vertical chute for inspection of the seedflow therethrough. 
     FIG. 5  illustrates the seeds progressing through the shaker deck  26 . The shaker trays  28  are fabricated from metal and have perforated top surfaces. The shaker trays  28  may also be fabricated from other rigid materials known to those skilled in the art and commonly used in the food processing industry. The perforations in the top surfaces of the shaker trays  28  are sized to allow only seeds to fit through. The preferred size of the perforations of the upper shaker trays  28  at the top of the shaker deck  26  is ⅝ inch +/−10%. The remaining shaker trays  28  have ¾ inch +/−10% sized perforations in the top surfaces thereof. As a result, the larger debris is scavenged from the seeds and the clean seeds fall through the perforations of the trays  28  onto the slide  34 . 
   The shaker deck  26  is supported by angle irons  60  and leaf springs  62 . The shaker trays  28  are agitated by an arm  64 , which is oscillated by an eccentric  66  secured to a drive shaft  68  driven by a motor  70 . The arm  64  threads into the eccentric  66  and is secured in place by a nut. The preferred embodiment comprises a shaker deck  26  which vibrates at a frequency of 500-550 RPM. The larger debris falls through the chute  32  to the debris collection bins  42  below. Any small or loose debris that does not fall into the collection bins  42  is carried away by a suction airwash into a duct  72 . The airflow through the duct  72  is regulated by a damper  74  controlled by a handle  76  located above the debris collection bins  42 . The preferred embodiment comprises a duct  72  having a diameter of 6 inches, requiring an airflow of 750 CFM. 
   At the end of the slide  34  the seeds continue into the housing  36  containing the series of pin mill drums  38 . Referring specifically to  FIG. 6 , the series of pin mill drums  38  is driven by a belt  78  turned by a motor  80 . A timing drive connects all of the pin mill drums  38  and causes all the pin mill drums  38  to rotate in the same direction, at a preferred rotation of 300-350 RPM. 
   Encased in each pin mill drum  38  is a wheel  82  with pins  84  protruding therefrom. The pins  84  fluff the seeds and loosen any remaining debris. The preferred embodiment comprises pins  84  which are ⅜ inch in diameter. Below each pin mill drum  38  are drawers  86  with perforated bottom surfaces. These drawers  86  may be fabricated from metals or other rigid materials known to those skilled in the art and suitable for use in the food processing industry. The perforations in the bottom surface of the drawers  86  are sized to prevent seed from passing through and allowing only debris sized smaller than the seeds to pass through. The preferred size of the perforations in the bottom of drawers  86  is 3/16 to 5/16 inch +/−10%. 
   As is best shown in  FIG. 7  the smaller sized debris falls through the perforated bottom surface of the drawers  86  onto the vibrating table  40  located below the pin mill drums  38 . The vibrating table  40  has a perforated surface and vibrates at a very high frequency, short stroke vibration, preferably 650-680 RPM. The vibrating table is vibrated by an arm  92  which is oscillated by an eccentric  94  on a small drive shaft  96  controlled by a motor  98 . The perforations of the vibrating table  40  are sized to sort the small debris which has fallen from the pin mill drums  38 . The preferred size of the perforations of the vibrating table  40  is 1/16 to ⅛ inch +/−10%. The smallest debris such as bran, sand, and dirt fall through the vibrating table  40  and onto a bottom chute  90  which carries the debris to the debris collection bins  42 . The vibrating table  40  and bottom chute  90  are supported by a plurality of angle irons  100  and leaf springs  102 . 
   When the seeds reach the end of the series of pin mill drums  38  they are completely clean of debris. Any remaining lint or loose debris that did not fall through the drawers  86  going through the pin mill drums  38  is separated and pulled into a vertical discharge duct  104  by an airwash caused by the same suction fan that created the airwash which is the vertical chute  24 . The suction airflow into the vertical discharge duct  104  is regulated by a damper  106  controlled by an external handle  108 . The preferred embodiment comprises a discharge duct  104  having a diameter of 10 inches, requiring an airflow of 1200 CFM. The completely cleaned seeds fall through the collection chute  44  and into a clean seed collection bin  46  for packaging and/or further processing. 
   Although preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated in the accompanying Drawings and described in the foregoing Detailed Description, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications, and substitutions of parts and elements without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Technology Classification (CPC): 3