Patent ID: 7946302

Claim:
An apparatus for applying a chemical solution to parts, the apparatus comprising a conveyor belt on which the parts are placed, a trough having a channel through which the conveyor belt is routed, the trough having a pair of sidewalls interconnected by a bottom wall with no end walls, the trough having opposite terminal ends, the conveyor belt extending past both of the opposite terminal ends of the trough, wherein the conveyor belt extends along the sidewalls past the ends of the trough, a liquid delivery system operable to introduce the chemical solution into the trough upwardly through an opening in the bottom wall of the trough with sufficient velocity to jostle the parts and change points of contact between the parts, wherein the chemical solution in the channel of the trough flows toward at least one terminal end of the trough to be discharged downwardly directly from the trough at the at least one terminal end under the influence of gravity, and wherein the parts on the conveyor belt have a tendency to retard movement of the chemical solution toward the at least one terminal end of the trough thereby enhancing accumulation of the chemical solution in the trough and resulting in a greater immersion of the parts in the chemical solution.