Patent ID: 6840468

Claim:
A hand-portable spreader for blowing particles with an air stream for melting ice or snow, the spreader comprising: a grip; a storage chamber holding particles which melt ice or snow to be spread; an air blower affixed to the top of the storage chamber for generating an air stream that carries the particles through an air conduit which has an orifice between the storage chamber and the air conduit; and a nozzle downstream of the orifice, from which the air stream and particles shoots; wherein the air blower has a vane impeller capable of breaking the particles into smaller particles prior to being shot out of the nozzle with the vane impeller including curved vanes that impact the particles to direct the trajectory of the particles out of the nozzle, and a velocity of the air stream in the conduit is sufficient to carry the particles from the orifice to the nozzle and be shot therefrom with the air stream for depositing the particles on ice or snow to be melted.