Patent ID: 8366810

Claim:
A process for picking up and cleaning ballast rock comprising the steps of: providing an apparatus for picking up and cleaning ballast rock comprising: an intake having a head at one end and an outlet at the other end; a chamber having a bottom, an inside and an outside and a chamber inlet fluidly connected to the outlet end of the intake and disposed to receive an airstream from the intake and to direct at least a portion of the airstream from the intake into the chamber, the airstream capable of entraining rock and debris within the airstream, the chamber having a chamber exhaust outlet for discharging air and debris from the chamber, the chamber having a chamber discharge outlet located on the bottom of the chamber for discharging ballast rocks falling by gravity through and from the chamber; a vacuum source for producing vacuum, the vacuum source fluidly connected to the chamber, whereby the airstream is drawn into the chamber by vacuum applied through the intake to the head end of the intake; whereby ballast rock and debris is vacuumed into the intake at the head end of the intake forming an airstream with entrained ballast rock and debris and wherein the airstream with entrained ballast rock and debris is transported to the chamber whereafter the ballast rock and debris of the airstream with entrained ballast rock and debris enters the chamber at the chamber inlet and the velocity of the airstream with entrained ballast rock and debris slows thereby allowing the ballast rock to fall under gravity to the chamber discharge outlet while the debris exits the chamber through the chamber exhaust outlet; vacuuming ballast rock and debris into the intake at the head end of the intake; transporting the ballast rock into the chamber by the airstream created by applying vacuum to the head end of the intake; and, slowing the velocity of the airstream with entrained ballast rock and debris in the chamber thereby allowing the ballast rock to fall under gravity to the chamber discharge outlet while the debris exits the chamber through the chamber exhaust outlet.