Patent ID: 7025888

Claim:
A floating decanter for decanting a supernatant liquid from a vessel or basin comprising: (I) a weir having a central opening, and a solid bottom side; (II) a float for buoyantly supporting the weir adjacent to an outer edge of the weir; (III) a weir lift drive assembly; and (IV) a discharge pipe attached to the bottom side of the weir communicating the decanter with a discharge area outside of the vessel or basin, wherein the weir lift drive assembly of (III) comprises: (A) a support frame disposed generally above the weir and attached to a top surface of the float; (B) a first screw drive jack attached near a first end of the support frame; (C) a second screw drive jack attached near a second end of the support frame; (D) a motor attached to the support frame and located above a central portion of the weir; (E) a first drive shaft extending from the motor to the first screw drive jack; (F) a second drive shaft extending from the motor to the second screw drive jack; (G) a first jack screw having a threaded surface extending along its length attached to the weir and extending through the first screw drive jack; and (H) a second jack screw having a threaded surface extending along its length attached to the weir and extending through the second screw drive jack.