阅读说明：本技术 一种全自动粉末料仓料位实时显示装置 (Full-automatic powder bin material level real-time display device ) 是由 蒋奇军 郑奇 郇昌永 王亚楠 于 2021-07-12 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明公开了一种全自动粉末料仓料位实时显示装置,包括驱动电机、摊料装置、拢料装置和驱动装置,所述驱动电机安装在料筒顶部,所述驱动电机的输出端安装有卷筒,所述卷筒上设有卷绳,所述卷绳贯穿料筒顶部的一端固定有连接块,所述摊料装置安装在料筒内,所述拢料装置安装在料筒内,所述驱动装置安装在料筒内,所述驱动装置上安装有料位计,本发明通过摊料装置将添加物料相成的隆起摊开,分布在原物料上,并通过料位计实时检测料位状态,并通过驱动电机将摊料装置提升,实现添料时,实时物料料位的检测,并通过拢料装置将放料时形成的凹陷区域外的物料拢至凹陷区,能更准确的通过料位计检测实时的物料料位。(The invention discloses a full-automatic powder bin material level real-time display device, which comprises a driving motor, a material spreading device, a material gathering device and a driving device, wherein the driving motor is arranged at the top of a material barrel, a winding drum is arranged at the output end of the driving motor, a winding rope is arranged on the winding drum, a connecting block is fixed at one end of the winding rope penetrating through the top of the material barrel, the material spreading device is arranged in the material barrel, the material gathering device is arranged in the material barrel, the driving device is arranged in the material barrel, and a material level meter is arranged on the driving device. The real-time material level can be detected more accurately through the level indicator.)

1. The utility model provides a full-automatic powder feed bin material level real-time display device which characterized in that includes:

the device comprises a driving motor (1), wherein the driving motor (1) is installed at the top of a charging barrel, a winding drum (2) is installed at the output end of the driving motor (1), a winding rope (3) is arranged on the winding drum (2), and a connecting block (4) is fixed at one end, penetrating through the top of the charging barrel, of the winding rope (3);

the material spreading device (5) is used for spreading the raised materials when the materials are added into the material cylinder, and the material spreading device (5) is arranged in the material cylinder;

the material collecting device (6) is used for collecting peripheral materials to the central depression when the material cylinder discharges materials, and the material collecting device (6) is installed in the material cylinder;

drive arrangement (7) for the drive is spread out material device (5) and is held together material device (6) and move, install in the feed cylinder drive arrangement (7), install charge level indicator (33) on drive arrangement (7).

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the device comprises: spread out material device (5) and include first stand (8), first stand (8) are rotated with connecting block (4) and are connected, be fixed with on first stand (8) and spread out material spiral (9), it is fixed with a plurality of head rods (10) that differ in size to spread out between material spiral (9) and first stand (8), it down diameter grow gradually from last to spread out material spiral (9), the cross-section top-down of spreading out material spiral (9) diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is greater than topside length.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the device comprises: gather together material device (6) and include second stand (11), be fixed with on second stand (11) and gather together material spiral (12), it is fixed with second connecting rod (13) that a plurality of different in size between material spiral (12) and second stand (11) to gather together, it diminishes gradually to gather together material spiral (12) from last down diameter, the cross-section top-down that gathers together material spiral (12) diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is less than topside length.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the device comprises: drive arrangement (7) include all rotate box (14) of connection with first stand (8) and second stand (11), box (14) both sides all are fixed with a plurality of third connecting rods (15), a plurality of the same side the one end that box (14) were kept away from in third connecting rod (15) all is fixed with slider (16), slider (16) outer equal sliding connection have with feed bin inner wall fixed connection's slide rail (17), charge level indicator (33) are fixed in box (14), and the sense terminal of charge level indicator (33) runs through in box (14) arranges the feed bin in, install drive assembly (18) in box (14).

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the device comprises: the driving assembly (18) comprises a supporting block (19) fixedly connected with the box body (14), a driving motor (20) is fixed on the supporting block (19), the output end of the driving motor (20) is fixedly connected with a driving gear (21), and the driving gear (21) is symmetrically connected with a transmission assembly (22) connected with the first upright post (8) or the second upright post (11).

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the device comprises: the transmission assembly (22) comprises a driven gear (23) meshed with the driving gear (21), the driven gear (23) is sleeved on the corresponding first upright post (8) or second upright post (11), a connecting ring (24) is fixed on the driven gear (23), the connecting ring (24) is sleeved on the corresponding first upright post (8) or second upright post (11), a first limit ring (25), a second limit ring (26) and a third limit ring (27) are fixed on the first upright post (8) and the second upright post (11), the first limit ring (25) is jointed with one side of the driven gear (23), the second limit ring (26) is jointed with one side of the connecting ring (24), and the other side is attached to the inner wall of the box body (14), one side of the third connecting ring (24) is attached to the outer wall of the box body (14), and the connecting ring (24) is provided with a transmission part (28).

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the device comprises: the transmission piece (28) comprises a ratchet (29) fixedly connected with the corresponding first upright post (8) or the corresponding second upright post (11), a plurality of limiting blocks (30) are attached to the ratchet (29), the limiting blocks (30) are rotatably connected with the connecting ring (24), and an elastic piece (31) is arranged between the limiting blocks (30) and the connecting ring (24).

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the device comprises: the elastic piece (31) comprises a spring (32), and two ends of the spring (32) are respectively and fixedly connected with the inner wall of the connecting ring (24) and the limiting block (30).

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of material level display devices, in particular to a full-automatic real-time material level display device for a powder storage bin.

Background

The powder feed bin is the feed bin that is used for saving the powder material, and at the in-process of storing and releasing, the reserve volume condition of the powder material in the real-time detection granary of staff is required to prevent to explode the storehouse when storing reinforced, and release powder material processing and can't in time discover the problem in empty storehouse, lead to the material to add untimely, influence production, at present, install the charge level indicator in the feed bin usually, come the condition of the interior material of real-time supervision feed bin. The level meter is mainly classified into a radar level meter, a tuning fork level meter, etc., and detects a level by fixing it on a sidewall of a bin.

When adding the material in to the feed bin, the material flows in the feed bin, and the middle part is the form of swelling, and during the ejection of compact, the middle part is sunken form, and the material level that the unable real-time detection of current charge level indicator all added material and ejection of compact in-process leads to judging easily to postpone, leads to exploding the problem in storehouse and empty storehouse, for this reason, we provide a full-automatic powder feed bin material level real-time display device.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a full-automatic powder bin material level real-time display device with high detection precision, so as to solve the problems in the background technology.

In order to achieve the purpose, the invention provides the following technical scheme: the utility model provides a full-automatic powder feed bin material level real-time display device, includes driving motor, stand the material device, holds together material device and drive arrangement, driving motor installs at the feed cylinder top, the reel is installed to driving motor's output, be equipped with the serving rope on the reel, the one end that the serving rope runs through the feed cylinder top is fixed with the connecting block, when the stand material device is used for adding the material in the feed cylinder, the material of uplift is shakeout, the stand material device is installed in the feed cylinder, when holding together the material device and being used for the feed cylinder blowing, hold together peripheral material to central depressed part, hold together the material device and install in the feed cylinder, drive arrangement is used for the drive to stand the material device and holds together the motion of material device, drive arrangement installs in the feed cylinder, the last charge level indicator of installing of drive arrangement.

Preferably, the stand material device includes first stand, first stand rotates with the connecting block to be connected, be fixed with the stand material spiral on the first stand, be fixed with a plurality of head rods different in size between stand material spiral and the first stand, the stand material spiral is from last down the diameter grow gradually, the cross-section top-down of stand material spiral diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is greater than topside length, is convenient for dial the material of uplift to peripheral position, improves and detects the precision.

Preferably, it includes the second stand to hold together the material device, be fixed with on the second stand and hold together the material spiral, hold together and be fixed with a plurality of second connecting rods different in size between material spiral and the second stand, it diminishes gradually to hold together the material spiral from last down diameter, the cross-section top-down that holds together the material spiral diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is less than topside length, is convenient for dial the material outside the sunken material region to sunken region, improves the detection precision of charge level indicator.

Preferably, drive arrangement includes and all rotates the box of being connected with first stand and second stand, the box both sides all are fixed with a plurality of third connecting rods, and is a plurality of the same side the one end that the box was kept away from to the third connecting rod all is fixed with the slider, equal sliding connection has the slide rail with feed bin inner wall fixed connection outside the slider, the charge level indicator is fixed in the box, and the sense terminal of charge level indicator runs through the box and arranges the feed bin in, install drive assembly in the box, be convenient for driving motor to the promotion and the release of box through both sides slide rail, simple structure realizes conveniently.

Preferably, the driving assembly comprises a supporting block fixedly connected with the box body, a driving motor is fixed on the supporting block, an output end of the driving motor is fixedly connected with a driving gear, the driving gear is symmetrically connected with transmission assemblies connected with a first stand column or a second stand column, the material spreading device and the material gathering device move through the two transmission assemblies, and meanwhile, the driving motor is guaranteed to only drive one of the material spreading device and the material gathering device to move at the same time so as to adapt to material adding and discharging of the charging barrel.

Preferably, the transmission assembly comprises a driven gear engaged with the driving gear, the driven gear is sleeved on a corresponding first stand column or a corresponding second stand column, a connecting ring is fixed on the driven gear, the connecting ring is sleeved on the corresponding first stand column or the corresponding second stand column, a first limiting ring, a second limiting ring and a third limiting ring are fixed on the first stand column and the second stand column, the first limiting ring is attached to one side of the driven gear, the second limiting ring is attached to one side of the connecting ring, the other side of the second limiting ring is attached to the inner wall of the box body, one side of the third connecting ring is attached to the outer wall of the box body, and a transmission part is arranged on the connecting ring.

Preferably, the transmission part comprises a ratchet fixedly connected with the corresponding first stand column or the second stand column, a plurality of limiting blocks are attached to the ratchet, the limiting blocks are rotatably connected with the connecting ring, an elastic part is arranged between the limiting blocks and the connecting ring, and force transmission and release are realized through relative clamping or relative sliding of the limiting blocks and the ratchet.

Preferably, the elastic part comprises a spring, and two ends of the spring are fixedly connected with the inner wall of the connecting ring and the limiting block respectively, so that the limiting block is continuously attached to the ratchet.

Compared with the prior art, the invention has the beneficial effects that:

1. according to the invention, the bulges formed by adding materials are spread by the material spreading device and distributed on the raw materials, the material level state is detected in real time by the material level meter, the material spreading device is lifted by the driving motor, the detection of the material level of the materials is realized in real time when the materials are added, the materials outside a sunken area formed during discharging are gathered to the sunken area by the material gathering device, and the real-time material level can be detected by the material level meter more accurately.

2. According to the invention, the cross section of the spreading spiral is firstly reduced from top to bottom and then enlarged, the length of the bottom edge is greater than that of the top edge, so that the raised materials can be conveniently pushed to the peripheral position, the cross section of the gathering spiral is firstly reduced from top to bottom and then enlarged, and the length of the bottom edge is less than that of the top edge, so that the materials outside the sunken material area can be conveniently pushed to the sunken area, and the detection precision is improved.

3. According to the ratchet wheel, the two ends of the spring are respectively and fixedly connected with the inner wall of the connecting ring and the limiting block, so that the limiting block and the ratchet are continuously attached.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the overall structure of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the spreading device of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural view of a material gathering device of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a driving device according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a driving assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the drive assembly of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of area A of FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of area B of FIG. 2;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of area C of FIG. 3;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of area D of FIG. 4;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of area E in FIG. 4;

fig. 12 is an enlarged view of region F in fig. 6.

In the figure: 1-driving a motor; 2-winding drum; 3-rope winding; 4, connecting blocks; 5-spreading the material; 6-material gathering device; 7-a drive device; 8-a first upright; 9-spreading the material to spiral; 10-a first connecting rod; 11-a second upright; 12-gathering material and spirally; 13-a second connecting rod; 14-a box body; 15-a third connecting rod; 16-a slide block; 17-a slide rail; 18-a drive assembly; 19-a support block; 20-a drive motor; 21-a drive gear; 22-a transmission assembly; 23-a driven gear; 24-a connecting ring; 25-a first stop collar; 26-a second stop collar; 27-a third stop collar; 28-a transmission member; 29-ratchet; 30-a limiting block; 31-an elastic member; 32-a spring; 33-a level gauge.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Example one

Referring to fig. 1-12, the present invention provides a technical solution: the utility model provides a real-time display device of full-automatic powder feed bin material level, includes driving motor 1, stand material device 5, holds together material device 6 and drive arrangement 7, driving motor 1 installs at the feed cylinder top, reel 2 is installed to driving motor 1's output, be equipped with serving 3 on reel 2, the one end that serving 3 runs through the feed cylinder top of serving 3 is fixed with connecting block 4, when stand material device 5 is used for adding the material in the feed cylinder, shakeouts the material of uplift and paves, it installs in the feed cylinder to stand material device 5, when holding together material device 6 and being used for the feed cylinder blowing, hold together peripheral material to central depressed part, it installs in the feed cylinder to hold together material device 6, drive arrangement 7 is used for the drive to stand material device 5 and holds together material device 6 motion, drive arrangement 7 installs in the feed cylinder, install charge level indicator 33 on the drive arrangement 7.

Wherein, stand material device 5 includes first stand 8, first stand 8 rotates with connecting block 4 to be connected, be fixed with on the first stand 8 and stand material spiral 9, be fixed with a plurality of different in size's head rod 10 between stand material spiral 9 and the first stand 8, stand material spiral 9 is from last down the diameter grow gradually, stand material spiral 9's cross-section top-down diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is greater than topside length, is convenient for dial the material of uplift to peripheral position, improves and detects the precision.

In addition, hold together material device 6 and include second stand 11, be fixed with on the second stand 11 and hold together material spiral 12, hold together and be fixed with a plurality of second connecting rods 13 that differ in size between material spiral 12 and the second stand 11, hold together material spiral 12 from the top down the diameter and diminish gradually, the cross-section top-down that holds together material spiral 12 diminishes earlier at the grow, and base length is less than topside length, is convenient for dial the material outside the sunken material region to the depressed area, improves charge level indicator 33's detection precision.

In the scheme, the drive motor 1 is preferably Y80M1-2 in model, the motor is supplied by mains supply, the motor operation circuit is a normal and reverse rotation control program of a conventional motor, the circuit operation is a conventional circuit, the circuits and the control related in the scheme are the prior art, and too much description is not repeated herein.

In this scheme, the theory of operation that the material level detected in the feed bin: when materials are added into the charging barrel, the driving device 7 is started to drive the first upright post 8 in the material spreading device 5 to rotate, further driving the spreading screw 9 to spread the raised materials, scattering the materials under the action of the first connecting rod 10, facilitating the spreading screw 9 to spread the materials, in the process of discharging the charging barrel, the driving device 7 is started to drive the second upright post 11 in the material collecting device 6 to rotate, so as to drive the material collecting screw 12 to collect the materials around the concave area to the concave area, in the process of feeding and discharging, the material level meter 33 can detect the material level in real time, and according to the detected material level, the driving motor 1 drives the winding rope 3 to lift or release a corresponding device, meanwhile, the driving device 7 can only drive one of the material spreading device 5 and the material gathering device 6 at the same time, so that energy is saved, and the efficiency and the real-time detection precision are improved.

Example two

Referring to fig. X, the present embodiment is a further description of the first embodiment, and a full-automatic powder bin material level real-time display device includes a driving motor 1, a material spreading device 5, a material collecting device 6, and a driving device 7, the driving motor 1 is arranged at the top of the charging barrel, the output end of the driving motor 1 is provided with a winding drum 2, a coiling rope 3 is arranged on the winding drum 2, a connecting block 4 is fixed at one end of the coiling rope 3 penetrating through the top of the charging barrel, the material spreading device 5 is used for spreading the raised materials when the materials are added into the material cylinder, the material spreading device 5 is arranged in the material cylinder, the material gathering device 6 is used for gathering the peripheral materials to the central depression when the material cylinder discharges the materials, the material gathering device 6 is arranged in the material cylinder, the driving device 7 is used for driving the material spreading device 5 and the material collecting device 6 to move, the driving device 7 is installed in the charging barrel, and the material level indicator 33 is installed on the driving device 7.

Wherein, drive arrangement 7 includes and all rotates the box 14 of being connected with first stand 8 and second stand 11, 14 both sides of box all are fixed with a plurality of third connecting rods 15, and a plurality of the looks dead side the one end that box 14 was kept away from to third connecting rod 15 all is fixed with slider 16, slider 16 outer equal sliding connection have with feed bin inner wall fixed connection's slide rail 17, charge level indicator 33 is fixed in box 14, and the sense terminal of charge level indicator 33 runs through box 14 and arranges in the feed bin, install drive assembly 18 in the box 14, be convenient for driving motor 1 through both sides slide rail 17 to the promotion and the release of box 14, simple structure, it is convenient to realize.

The driving assembly 18 comprises a supporting block 19 fixedly connected with the box 14, a driving motor 20 is fixed on the supporting block 19, a driving gear 21 is fixedly connected to the output end of the driving motor 20, transmission assemblies 22 connected with the first upright post 8 or the second upright post 11 are symmetrically connected to the driving gear 21, the material spreading device 5 and the material gathering device 6 move through the two transmission assemblies 22, and meanwhile, the driving motor 20 is guaranteed to only drive one of the material spreading device 5 and the material gathering device 6 to move at the same time so as to adapt to material adding and discharging of the charging barrel.

In the scheme, the drive motor 20 is preferably of a Y80M1-2 model, the motor is supplied by commercial power, the motor operation circuit is a normal and reverse rotation control program of a conventional motor, the circuit operation is a conventional circuit, the circuits and the control related in the scheme are the prior art, and too much description is not repeated herein.

In this embodiment, the operation principle of the driving device 7 is as follows: start actuating motor 20, drive driving gear 21 and rotate, and then drive the motion of both sides drive assembly 22, two sets of drive assembly 22 corotation and reversal respectively, wherein effective transmission of power is realized to a set of drive assembly 22, another group idle running, realize that actuating motor 20 drives single group motion, realize actuating motor 20 in the same time, only can drive the motion of spreading out material device 5 and holding together in the material device 6, the in-process of actuating device 7 motion, charge level indicator 33 detects the material level in real time, the promotion and the decline of box 14 are driven through driving motor 1 simultaneously, with the interpolation and the blowing in the adaptation feed cylinder.

EXAMPLE III

Referring to fig. X, this embodiment is a further description of other embodiments, and a full-automatic powder bin material level real-time display device includes a driving motor 1, a material spreading device 5, a material collecting device 6, and a driving device 7, the driving motor 1 is arranged at the top of the charging barrel, the output end of the driving motor 1 is provided with a winding drum 2, a coiling rope 3 is arranged on the winding drum 2, a connecting block 4 is fixed at one end of the coiling rope 3 penetrating through the top of the charging barrel, the material spreading device 5 is used for spreading the raised materials when the materials are added into the material cylinder, the material spreading device 5 is arranged in the material cylinder, the material gathering device 6 is used for gathering the peripheral materials to the central depression when the material cylinder discharges the materials, the material gathering device 6 is arranged in the material cylinder, the driving device 7 is used for driving the material spreading device 5 and the material collecting device 6 to move, the driving device 7 is installed in the charging barrel, and the material level indicator 33 is installed on the driving device 7.

Wherein, drive arrangement 7 includes and all rotates the box 14 of being connected with first stand 8 and second stand 11, 14 both sides of box all are fixed with a plurality of third connecting rods 15, and a plurality of the looks dead side the one end that box 14 was kept away from to third connecting rod 15 all is fixed with slider 16, slider 16 outer equal sliding connection have with feed bin inner wall fixed connection's slide rail 17, charge level indicator 33 is fixed in box 14, and the sense terminal of charge level indicator 33 runs through box 14 and arranges in the feed bin, install drive assembly 18 in the box 14, be convenient for driving motor 1 through both sides slide rail 17 to the promotion and the release of box 14, simple structure, it is convenient to realize.

The driving assembly 18 comprises a supporting block 19 fixedly connected with the box 14, a driving motor 20 is fixed on the supporting block 19, a driving gear 21 is fixedly connected to the output end of the driving motor 20, transmission assemblies 22 connected with the first upright post 8 or the second upright post 11 are symmetrically connected to the driving gear 21, the material spreading device 5 and the material gathering device 6 move through the two transmission assemblies 22, and meanwhile, the driving motor 20 is guaranteed to only drive one of the material spreading device 5 and the material gathering device 6 to move at the same time so as to adapt to material adding and discharging of the charging barrel.

The transmission assembly 22 comprises a driven gear 23 engaged with the driving gear 21, the driven gear 23 is sleeved on the corresponding first upright column 8 or second upright column 11, a connecting ring 24 is fixed on the driven gear 23, the connecting ring 24 is sleeved on the corresponding first upright column 8 or second upright column 11, a first limiting ring 25, a second limiting ring 26 and a third limiting ring 27 are fixed on the first upright column 8 and the second upright column 11, the first limiting ring 25 is attached to one side of the driven gear 23, the second limiting ring 26 is attached to one side of the connecting ring 24, the other side of the second limiting ring is attached to the inner wall of the box 14, one side of the third connecting ring 24 is attached to the outer wall of the box 14, and a transmission member 28 is arranged on the connecting ring 24.

The transmission member 28 includes a ratchet 29 fixedly connected to the corresponding first upright 8 or the second upright 11, the ratchet 29 is externally attached with a plurality of limiting blocks 30, the limiting blocks 30 are rotatably connected to the connection ring 24, an elastic member 31 is disposed between the limiting blocks 30 and the connection ring 24, and the limiting blocks 30 and the ratchet 29 are relatively clamped or relatively slid to realize force transmission and release.

The elastic member 31 includes a spring 32, and two ends of the spring 32 are respectively and fixedly connected with the inner wall of the connecting ring 24 and the limiting block 30, so as to ensure continuous attachment between the limiting block 30 and the ratchet 29.

In this embodiment, the operation principle of the driving device 7 is as follows: when adding materials, the driving motor 20 is started, the driving motor 20 rotates anticlockwise to drive the driving gear 21 to rotate, further drive the driven gears 23 on the two-side transmission assemblies 22 to rotate, the connecting ring 24 above rotates and drives the corresponding ratchets 29 to rotate, further drive the first upright post 8 to rotate, so that the spreading material screw 9 rotates to realize spreading of the raised materials, meanwhile, the connecting ring 24 below and the ratchets 29 rotate relatively, force transmission cannot be realized, the material collecting screw 12 below does not rotate, when discharging, the driving motor 20 is started to rotate clockwise to drive the connecting ring 24 below to rotate, further drive the ratchets 29 to rotate, drive the second upright post 11 to rotate, simultaneously drive the material collecting screw 12 to rotate, the materials around the depressed area are collected into the depressed area, and similarly, the material spreading screw 9 above does not rotate, when the spreading device 5 and the material collecting device 6 move correspondingly, according to the real-time detection of the material level meter 33, the driving motor 1 correspondingly drives the box body 14 to ascend and descend, and the material level detection precision is high.

It is noted that, herein, relational terms such as first and second, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. Also, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.