Patent ID: 7067040

Claim:
A headbox of a papermaking machine comprising: a pulp flow manifold; a lip cone having a lip discharge opening through which stock flows to a former; wherein a pulp flow direction is defined from the pulp flow manifold to the lip opening; a turbulence generator extending between the pulp flow manifold and the lip cone, the turbulence generator comprised of a plurality of first pipes each having a first inside diameter, each first pipe terminating in a fluidization element step comprising an annular wall structure, which extends to an inner flow surface of a second pipe which has a circular cross-section, the second pipe being coaxial with the first pipe, and the second pipe inner flow surface having an inside diameter which is greater than the first inside diameter, the second pipes having outlet ends leading into the lip cone, each second pipe defining an interior flow surface; lamellas positioned in the lip cone, and joined at their inlet ends to the outlet ends of the turbulence generator second pipes; wherein between the turbulence generator, and the lip discharge opening, there exists no vertical step which is more than approximately 2 mm.