Patent ID: 7980843

Claim:
A concrete dispensing apparatus for use in the manufacture of pre-cast concrete structures having a form into which a hydrated concrete mixture is to be distributed, comprising: a frame; a transversely oriented hopper supported by said frame above said form to dispense said concrete mixture into the form, said hopper having upright walls defining a cavity including an upper inlet opening into which said concrete mixture is loaded into said hopper cavity and a lower discharge opening through which said concrete mixture is dispensed from said hopper into said form, said discharge opening being divided into a plurality of ports, each said port including an opening dimension defined by a transverse width, at least one of said ports having said opening dimension smaller than the other said ports; and a plurality of control gates mounted on said hopper at said discharge opening, each said control gate corresponding to one of said ports and is independently movable between a closed position in which said control gate covers the corresponding said port to prevent said concrete mixture from being dispensed therethrough and an open position in which said concrete mixture is permitted to flow through the corresponding said port, each said control gate having a transverse width substantially equal to the opening dimension of the corresponding said port, each said control gate including an actuator for affecting said movement between said open and closed positions.