Improvements in Apparatus for Subjecting Materials to the Action of Hot Air, more especially intended for Use in Drying Tea Leaves and other Produce.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd June, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 18th July, 1895-Accepted, 24th Aug., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Subjecting Materials to the Action
of Hot Air, more especially intended for Use in Drying Tea
Leaves and other Produce.
I WILLIAM JACKSON of Thorn Grove Mannofield Aberdeen Scotland
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in apparatus for subjecting materials to
the action of hot air wherein superposed endless bands or webs of pivoted trays
conveying the material to be dried are carried over rollers the trays being
supported by rails or the like which retain them in position but which are formed
with breaks or openings so that the trays turn over on their pivots when passing
these breaks or openings and discharge their contents onto the surface of the
endless web or band travelling beneath. The said trays are preferably pivoted
along one edge so that when the break in the rails is reached the tray will drop
down into a vertical position discharging its load or the trays may be so pivoted
that a catch, trap, or other like device is caused to tilt them at the proper time.
In either case where such trays discharge their load it is found that the material
has a tendency to fall onto the band or web beneath in the form of a ridge or drill
and is not properly spread out thereou and consequently is not presented in the
most effective way to the action of the heated air nor are the tea leaves efficiently
turned over or shaken up.
The object of my present invention is to provide means in such drying apparatus
for properly spreading out the tea leaves (or other material) as they fall onto the
band beneath and for efficiently turning over and shaking them during their
descent.
According to my invention I arrange in the drying chamber or the like an
obstruction such as a roller, bar or tube for example beneath each break in the
rails between the tray discharging its load and the face of the band or web
receiving the deposit beneath so that the leaves or other material shall, in their
descent, fall against the said obstruction and so become spread out and distributed.
The obstruction when in the form of a roller, bar or tube may be of any
convenient cross section and may be smooth on its external surface or have flutes
or projections thereon, and it may be fixedly secured to the sides of the apparatus
or it may be cranked at its ends and mounted in bearings or fulcrums so that it
can yield in the case of an overcharge of material being fed into or accumulating
in the apparatus; when pivoted it may have a vibratory or agitating motion
imparted thereto and when mounted in stationary bearings it may be caused to
receive a simple revolving motion so as to thoroughly agitate, shake up, and spread
out the material as it falls against it in its descent.
Dated this 22nd day of June 1895.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Apparatus for Subjecting Materials to the Action
of Hot Air, more especially intended for Use in Drying Tea
Leaves and other Produce.
I WILLIAM JACKSON of Thorn Grove, Mannofield, Aberdeen, Scotland,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
My invention relates to improvements in apparatus for subjecting materials to
the action of hot air wherein superposed endless bands, or webs, of pivoted trays,
conveying the material to be dried; are carried over rollers the trays being
supported by rails, or the like, which retain them in position but which are formed
with breaks, or openings, so that the trays turn over on their pivots when passing
these breaks, or openings, and discharge their contents onto the surface of the
endless web, or band, travelling beneath. The said trays are preferably pivotted
along one edge so that when the breaks, or openings, in the rails are reached the
trays will successively drop into a vertical position discharging their loads, or the
trays may be so pivotted that a catch, trap, or other like device, is caused to tilt
them at the proper time. In either case where such trays discharge their loads
it is found that the material has a tendency to fall onto the band, or web, beneath
in the form of a ridge, or drill, and is not properly spread out thereon and,
consequently, is not presented in the most effective way to the action of the heated
air nor are the tea leaves or other matters being treated efficiently turned over, or
shaken up.
The object of my present invention is to provide means in such drying apparatus
for properly spreading out the tea leaves (or other materials) as they fall on to the
band or web beneath and for efficiently turning them over, and shaking, them,
during their descent.
According to my invention I arrange in the drying chamber, or the like,.an
obstruction such as a roller, bar, or tube, for example, beneath each break or
opening in the rails between the tray discharging its load and the face of the band
or web receiving the deposit beneath, so that the leaves, or other material, shall, in
their descent, fall against the said obstruction and so become turned over spread
out and distributed.
The obstruction when in the form of a roller, bar, or tube, may be of any
convenient cross section and may be smooth on its external surface or have flutes,
or projections, thereon, and it may be fixed to the sides of the apparatus, or it may
be cranked at its ends and mounted in bearings, or fulcra, so that it can yield in
the case of an overcharge of material being fed into, or accumulating in, the
apparatus; when pivotted it may have a vibratory, or agitating, motion imparted
thereto and when mounted in stationary bearings it may be caused to receive a
simple revolving motion so as to thoroughly agitate, shake up,. and spread out
the material as it falls against it in its descent.
The accompanying drawings illustrate a convenient way of carrying my invention
into effect but I do not limit myself to the details shewn therein.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a portion of a drying chamber and Figure 2
is a transverse section of the same.
A are the trays pivotted at a' to endless bands a² (here shewn as chains) driven
by sprocket wheels C, secured on the shafts of rollers B round which the trays
pass. The trays A are supported in their horizontal position between the rollers B
by guiding rails D in which are breaks or openings E so that when the trays pass
thereover, they will drop into a vertical position discharging their contents onto

page_text: the surface of the endless band of trays travelling beneath. In order to preven
the material falling from the trays being deposited in ridges, or drills, on the tray
beneath I provide obstruction rods F beneath each break in the rails so that the
material in its descent falls against the said rods and so becomes spread out and
distributed. The obstruction rods F may be cranked as at F1 and mounted loosely
in bearings G so as to yield, in the case of an overcharge of material, or the said
rods may be mounted in stationary bearings as at fl and may if desired have a
simple rotary motion imparted to them and the said rods may be provided with
flutes, projections, or the like.
I do not limit myself to the precise form or arrangement of the obstruction
employed which may vary according to the particular machine for which it
is used.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
1. In apparatus of the kind described, the use of an obstruction, or obstructions,
for spreading, distributing, and otherwise separating, the material under treatment
substantially as hereinbefore set forth.
2. In combination with apparatus of the kind described for subjecting materials
to the action of hot air, obstructors F, arranged substantially as and for the
purposes hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 18th day of Jul 1805
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.