US 7,320,539 B2 | ||
Concrete batching facility and method | ||
Ronald E. Christenson, Parsons, Tenn. (US); and Robert J. Horton, Rochester, Minn. (US) | ||
Assigned to McNeilus Truck and Manufacturing, Inc., Dodge Center, Minn. (US) | ||
Filed on Apr. 05, 2004, as Appl. No. 10/818,394. | ||
Prior Publication US 2005/0219941 A1, Oct. 06, 2005 | ||
Int. Cl. B28C 7/04 (2006.01); B28C 7/06 (2006.01); B28C 7/12 (2006.01) |
U.S. Cl. 366—14 [366/17; 366/18; 366/20; 366/34; 366/35; 366/50; 366/66; 366/301; 366/323] | 16 Claims |
1. A concrete batching system comprising:
(1) a pre-mixing system for pre-mixing a selected portion, but less than all, of a concrete batch, said premixing system further
comprising:
(a) a cementitious ingredient supply system including a weigh batcher for apportioning weighed amounts of cementitious ingredients
for concrete batches excluding stone and sand aggregate materials;
(b) a pre-mixer agglomerator for blending said cementitious ingredients and wetting agents excluding said aggregate materials
to form a concrete pre-mix fraction of a concrete batch, said agglomerator having spaced inlet and discharge openings toward
opposite ends thereof and including a twin screw mixing and conveying system having intermeshing screw conveyors for both
mixing and conveying said ingredients, said screw conveyors being further characterized by a variable pitch that increases
from inlet to discharge;
(c) a pre-feeder for metering said cementitious ingredients at a selected, controlled feed rate into said pre-mixer agglomerator;
(d) a liquid supply system for supplying a selected amount of wetting agents at a selected rate for blending with said cementitious
ingredients in said pre-mixer agglomerator;
(e) a control system for controlling the amounts and rates in apportioning and mixing of cementitious ingredients and wetting
agents in said concrete pre-mix;
(2) an aggregate supply system configured to supply aggregate ingredients only directly to a final mixing vessel bypassing
said pre-mixing system; and
(3) a final mixing vessel for receiving premixed material from said pre-mixing system and aggregate from said aggregate supply
system and conducting final mixing of ingredients.
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