Patent ID: 8383991

Claim:
An adhesive melter comprising: an inlet port and an outlet port; an interior configured to heat and hold adhesive pellets, said outlet port communicating with said interior; a lid for providing access into said interior; an intake conduit coupled to said inlet port and configured to deliver the adhesive pellets and forced air into said interior; and an exhaust conduit coupled to said outlet port and configured to remove the forced air from said interior and to receive a filter for trapping particles of the adhesive pellets borne by the forced air; wherein said outlet port and said inlet port are non-concentric but centrally located on said lid, said outlet port being spaced from said inlet port so as to cause the forced air to travel in a generally U-shaped path within said interior, said generally U-shaped path defined by a first generally vertical segment extending from said inlet port, a second generally vertical segment extending from said outlet port, and a transverse segment directly connecting said first and second generally vertical segments, wherein said inlet port has a first cross-sectional area and said outlet port has a second cross-sectional area, said second cross-sectional area being at least about four times as large as said first cross-sectional area.