US2511970A - Method of and means for handling - Google Patents

Description

June 20, 1950 c w cox I 2,511,970

111mm 01' AND mus FOR mum stuns Hams med June 21. 1947 X v 7//%/fl///////////////////// s E m 1 L n M ./Q. M m w k 0 M. M N\ g N [1 A ox! Patented June 20, 1950 METHOD'OF AND MEANS FOR HANDLING STAPLE FIBERS Charles W. Cox, St. Albans, W. Va., assignor. to

American Viscose Corporation, Wilmington,

Del., a corporation oi Delaware I Application June 21, 1947, Serial No. 756,261 a 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved method of and means for preparing bales of staple fibers, and particularly staple fibers of regenerated'celiulose.

According to the common practice, staple fibers ,oi regenerated cellulose, subsequent to the usual after-treatments, including final washing and drying, are conditioned in moist air so that they pick up about 7 to 11% by weight of moisture, which is equivalent to their normal regain moistture, that is the moisture held by the fibers in equilibrium with the atmosphere at normal temperatures and humidities. Theconditioned fibers, after separation from the conditioning air and venting of the latter to the atmosphere, are then sent to an opener,in which they are opened, that is to say any clumps of fibers are broken up. The opened fibers aresuspended in a stream of dry air introduced irom'an outside sourcefand conveyed in the air stream to the baling press. The opened fibers constitute a mass oi considerable bulk and occupy a large area. In order to minimize the dimensions of the equipment required for transferring the opened fibers to the baling press, they are subjected to compaction, incidental to their separation from the carrier air, along their path of travel from the opener to the baling zone. Commonly, this compaction is efiected by throwing the fibers into a rotating cylinder having wall perforations through which the carrier air escapes. The fibers are packed against the inner wall of the cylinder. This practice has the disadvantage that a portion of the fibers delivered to the rotating cylinder are trapped around the shaft which'projects horizontally through the center of the cylinder, forming strings or tails of fibers which become soiled and, frequently, oily, from contact with the lubricating oil on the surface of the shaft. Such strings or soiled fibers when they are eventually dislodged from the shaft, intermingle with the remaining fibers from which they cannot be separated. The presence of the strings or tails of soiled fibers in the bales are undesirable, since,

although the tails are opened out during subsequent carding and combing operations, the soiled fibers are not removed automatically by such treatments but persist through the yarn spinning stages, and into the finished yarn itself, complicating dyeing and other treatments to which such yarn is normally subjected.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of and means for preparing bales of staple fibers which are entirely free from strings or tails of soiled fibers. Another object is 2. to provide a method of and means for utilizing the conditioning air separated from conditioned staple fibers oi regenerated cellulose as a medium ior conveying the fibers, after final opening, from the opener to the baling press. Another object is to provide very simple and inexpensive apparatus for rapidly transferring the opened staple fibers from the opener to the baling press, comprising means for automatically and continuously separating the fibers from the conveying air and compacting the fibers, which, separating means does not require power output. A further and more specific object is to convey openedfibers of regenerated cellulose from the opener to a baling press, simultaneously with completing their conditioning with respect to retained moisture.

The and other objects of the invention are accomplished by conditioning staple fibers oi regenerated cellulose in moist air, separating the fibers from the air, delivering the fibers to an opener, diverting the conditioning air separated from the fibers in a stream along a predetermined path, subjecting the fibers. in the opener to suction created by the stream of conditioning air separated from the fibers, whereby the fibers are drawn from the opener into the air stream, directing the stream of air and fibers suspended therein against a perforated surface disposed in thepath of the air and fibers, to separate the fibers from the air and compact the fibers on the surface, collecting the compacted fibers in a baling press, and baling the fibers.

The attached drawing is illustrative of apparatus for carrying out the invention, the apparatus being shown diagrammatically.

In the drawing, there is shown a closed conditioning chamber 2 in which fibers oi regenerated cellulose are exposed to moist air and conditioned to a moisture content of about 7 to 11% by weight, The treated fibers 3 are withdrawn at the lower end of chamber 2 on the surface of endless belt I and projected through the seal I into the opener 6 which is of conventional type and equipped with the usual pins for opening and separating the fiber clumps. The conditioning air is withdrawn at the top of chamber 2,'by the action of fan I, along a closed path defined by the conduit 8 which projects into the conduit comprising horizontal portion 9 and vertical portion III to provide a continuous path for the air stream; The lower end of portion III of the conduit communicates with opener 6. The air stream traveling at high velocity through the continuous enclosed passage formed by conduit I and conduit portion 9 creates suction in the opener],

so that the opened fibers are sucked upwardly from the opener, through conduit portion l9, and suspended in the stream of air. The fibers suspended in the air are projected into a receiving system comprising a triangular shaped upper portion II communicating with a conduit [2 the lower end of which in turn communicates with baling press [3. Suspended in portion I i of the receiving system, and centrally disposed therein, is a fiat perforated target plate ll which extends across the width of portion H. The fibers and air are thrown forcefully against the target plate, the air passing through the perforations and the fibers being compacted against the surface of the plate, from which they drop downwardly through the conduit l2 to the baling press. The fibers collected in the press are subjected to pressure by means of a hydraulically operated ram, and baled in the usual manner. Screen I5 is fixed across the top of section II of the receiving system to permit escape of the air to the atmosphere.

Means may be provided for conditioning the air withdrawn from chamber 2 to insure that it is in equilibrium with the fibers sucked out of opener 6, with respect to moisture content. However, in the preferred embodiment, the moist air is not subjected to any drying step prior to suspension of the opened fibers therein. Since the fibers in chamber 2 frequently occur in the form of clumps, and those fibers at the interior of the clumps may not be sufiiciently exposed to the conditioning air in the chamber, all of the fibers, after opening of the clumps in opener 6, may not be conditioned uniformly. Advantage is taken of the use of the moist air employed initially in conditioning the fibers as conveying medium for the opened fibers, to complete uniform conditioning of all the fibers simultaneously with their transfer from the opener to the baling press.

The invention has the advantages that the fibers are transferred from the opener to the baling press at a rapid rate under conditions such that the bales finally obtained are entirely free of soiled fibers, and all of the fibers are uniformly conditioned.

Modifications and variations may be made in carrying out the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Method of handling staple fibers which normally retain moisture when in equilibrium with the atmosphere under ordinary conditions of temperature and humidity, and subsequent to initial drying thereof, which comprises treating the fibers in a conditioning zone with moist air so that at least a portion of the fibers pick up an amount of moisture equivalent to the amount of moisture retained by the fibers under ordinary temperature and humidity conditions, separating the fibers and conditioning air, projecting the fibers into an opener, directing the conditioning air separated from the fibers in the form of a stream along a predetermined enclosed path, subjecting the fibers in the opener to suction created by the stream of air moving along the enclosed path so that the fibers are drawn from the opener into the air stream,

throwing the fibers suspended in the air stream against a perforated surface disposed in the path of the air stream whereby to separate the air arid compact the fibers against the surface.

2. Method of claim 1 wherein the fibers are fibers of regenerated cellulose.

3. Means for handling staple fibers which comprises a closed conditioning chamber for accommodating the fibers and moist conditioning air. means for opening the fibers, means for withdrawing the fibers from the conditioning cham-- her and delivering them to the opening means, a conduit connected with the conditioning chamber, another conduit connected with the firstmentioned conduit and with the opening means, means for withdrawing the conditioning air from the chamber into the first-mentioned conduit, the first-mentioned conduit having a discharge opening inside the second conduit disposed to direct the discharging stream longitudinally of the second conduit away from the opening means so that suction is created in the opening means, a perforated surface disposed in the path of the air stream adjacent the exit end of the seccud-mentioned conduit, and means belowthc surface for collecting the staple fibers.

4. Means for handling staple fibers which comprises a closed conditioning chamber for accommodating the fibers and moist conditioning air, means for opening the fibers, an endless surface disposed for travel between the conditioning chamber and the opening means for conveying the fibers from the chamber to the opening means, a conduit connected with the conditioning chamber, another conduit connected with the first-mentioned conduit and with the opening means, means for withdrawing the conditioningair from the chamber into the first-mentioned conduit and directing it in a stream along a predetermined path across the juncture of the first and second conduits whereby the fibers are drawn from the opening means and conveyed by the conditioning air to the exit end of the secondmentioned conduit, a perforated surface disposed in the path of the air stream adjacent the exit end of the second-mentioned conduit, and means below the perforated surface for collecting the staple fibers.

CHARLES W. COX.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,533,903 Rylander Apr. 14, 1925 1,942,868 Mitchell Jan. 9, 1934 2,078,309 Bennett Apr. 27, 1937 2,401,438 Smith June 4, 1946 2,409,747 Folmer Oct. 22, 1946

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