阅读说明：本技术 碎裂装置 (Fragmentation device ) 是由 G.巴伯 于 2019-06-28 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及一种设计成使已用过的窗户的玻璃碎裂的装置,涉及一种相应的碎裂方法,以及涉及一种使用这种方法获得的碎裂的玻璃。(The present invention relates to a device designed to shatter glass of a used window, to a corresponding shattering method, and to a shattered glass obtained using such a method.)

1. A fragmentation device (1) designed to fragment glass of a used window (2) and comprising at least:

-a conveyor (3) designed to convey the windows (2) flat along a longitudinal axis (L),

-at least one breaking assembly (4) located above the conveyor (3) and designed to break the glass of the window (2) when the window (2) is conveyed on the conveyor (3),

the device (1) is characterized in that the disintegrating assembly (4) comprises a drum (5) arranged above the conveyor (3) along a rotation axis (R) transversal to the longitudinal axis (L), said drum (5) being connected by at least one chain (6 ay) to at least one striker assembly (7) comprising at least one striking head (7 az) designed to strike the conveyor (3) at each rotation of the drum (5).

2. The fragmentation device (1) according to claim 1 characterized in that the striker assembly (7) is connected to the drum (5) by a plurality of anchor points (5 a1, 5a2, …, 5 ax) preferably aligned along a transverse axis.

3. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 and 2 characterized in that the striker assembly (7) is connected to the drum (5) by a plurality of chains (6 a1, 6a2, …, 6 ay), preferably mutually parallel chains.

4. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 3 wherein the striker assembly (7) comprises a plurality of striker heads (7 a1, 7a 2.., 7 az) aligned in the transverse direction.

5. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 4 characterized in that the striker assembly (7) comprises at least one transverse bar (8) for counterweight.

6. The fragmentation device (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the transverse rod (8) connects a plurality of impact heads (7 a1, 7a 2.., 7 az) to each other.

7. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 6 characterized in that at least one impact head (7 az) is connected to the drum (5) via the transverse bar (8).

8. The fragmentation device (1) according to claim 7 characterized in that the striker assembly (7) is connected to the drum (5) by M chains (6 a1, 6a2, …, 6 ay), preferably parallel to each other, and wherein the striker assembly (7) comprises N striker heads (7 a1, 7a 2.

9. The fragmenting device (1) of any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the length of the assembly formed by said chain (6 ay) and said striker assembly (7) is less than or equal to the distance (D) inscribed along a theoretical vertical axis tangent to the rear portion of the drum (5) which separates the rear portion of the drum (5) from the conveyor (3).

10. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of striker assemblies (7) respectively connected to the drum (5) by at least one chain (6 ay).

11. The fragmentation device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the conveyor (3) comprises a belt (3 a), preferably ribbed, the drum (5) and the means for driving the belt (3 a) being designed to rotate in opposite directions.

12. A method (9) for breaking glass of a window (2), characterized in that it implements a breaking device (1) adapted to break glass of a used window (2), and in that the breaking device (1) comprises at least:

-a conveyor (3) designed to convey the windows (2) flat along a longitudinal axis (L),

-a breaking assembly (4) located above the conveyor (3) and designed to break the glass of the window (2) when the window (2) is conveyed on the conveyor (3),

the disintegrating assembly (4) comprises a drum (5) arranged above said conveyor (3) along a rotation axis (R) transversal to said longitudinal axis (L), said drum (5) being connected to a striker assembly (7) by at least one chain (6 ay), said striker assembly comprising at least one striker head (7 az) designed to strike the conveyor (3) at each rotation of said drum (5).

13. A fragmentation method (9) according to claim 12, characterized in that the drum (5) and the means for driving the conveyor (3) rotate in opposite directions.

14. The fragmentation method (9) according to any of claims 12 and 13, characterized in that the ratio between the advancement speed of the conveyor (3) belt and the rotation speed of the drum (5) is chosen such that the window is hit by the fragmentation assembly (4) at least two times, preferably at least three times, preferably at least four times, preferably at least five times, when the window (2) is conveyed flat on the conveyor (3).

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a device designed to shatter glass of a used window, to a corresponding shattering method and to the shattered glass obtained using such a method.

Background

Currently, the recycling of used windows is a crucial issue, in particular in terms of reducing the cost of the raw materials from which the glass can be made and reducing the environmental impact of new windows. Such recycling requires the separation of the glass of the used windows from their frame.

From the prior art, glass breaking devices designed for these purposes are known, including from document EP0618011, and comprise: a conveyor adapted to convey used windows flat; and a breaker assembly located above the conveyor and adapted to break the windows as they are conveyed on the conveyor. More specifically, and as shown in fig. 1, reference EP0618011, such a disintegrating assembly comprises a plurality of knives arranged to rotate on a disc which is itself driven in rotation by a motor. Each knife is offset relative to the center of the disc. When the disk is rotated, the blades strike the surface of the window on the conveyor, causing the glass to chip.

This kind of fragmentation assembly has at least the disadvantage of generating significant mechanical stress loads both on the blade and on the connection of the blade to the turntable. In particular, when the blade impacts on the glass and/or the frame of the window, a significant part of the reaction forces from the glass, from the frame and possibly from the support against which the window rests are transmitted along the entire length of the blade, and at the connection of the blade to the disc, in particular in the form of bending stresses. There is therefore a risk of premature wear of the blades and/or the turntable. To alleviate this drawback, and as described by document EP0618011, it is foreseen that the conveyor is adapted to leave an opening under the impact zone of the blade, which allows the disintegrated glass to pass through the conveyor and be collected in a dedicated box.

However, this technical solution is still highly unsatisfactory at least because it requires significant adjustments to the conveyor, thus for example excluding the implementation of conveyor belts, and it does not allow emergency planning for premature wear of the disintegrating components, with the potential for the knife to potentially strike the window frame, which would provide an abnormally high resistance.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention seeks to address the above mentioned disadvantages. More specifically, in at least one embodiment, the proposed technology relates to a fragmentation device designed to fragment the glass of a used window and comprising at least:

-a conveyor designed to convey the windows flat along a longitudinal axis,

-at least one disintegrating assembly located above the conveyor and designed to disintegrate the glass of the window when the window is conveyed on the conveyor,

said device being characterized in that the disintegrating assembly comprises a drum arranged above said conveyor along an axis of rotation transverse to said longitudinal axis, said drum being connected by at least one chain to at least one striker assembly comprising at least one striker head designed to strike the conveyor with each rotation of said drum.

Throughout the description, the fragmentation device according to the invention is designed to fragment the glass of a used window to the extent that it allows the glass and frame of the window to be separated so that they can be recycled. Fragmentation of glass refers to the act of breaking, breaking into pieces, crushing, smashing the glass of a window in order to separate it from its frame so that it can thus be recovered. A conveyor is a mechanical device designed to transfer used windows from one end of the device to the other. Such a conveyor may preferably be a conveyor with a belt or a chute conveyor. A chain refers to a series of metal rings that engage one another. Roller refers to a wooden or iron cylinder around which the chain is wound. The drum is designed to rotate, i.e. to perform a circular motion around an axis of rotation. Finally, the verb "to connect" is to be interpreted in its mechanical sense and may, instead, refer to a direct or indirect connection.

In practice, the drum of the shredding assembly according to the invention is preferably rotated by a motor about an axis of rotation transverse to the longitudinal axis of the conveyor (or in other words transverse to the direction of forward travel thereof). At each rotation of the drum, at least one impact head is first placed in a position vertically above the conveyor so that it can then impact the conveyor belt under the influence of gravity.

The flexible nature of the chain makes it possible to reduce the mechanical stresses exerted at the points where the chain is anchored to the drum on the one hand and to the striker assembly on the other hand.

In addition, such a chain does not in any way hinder the vertical acceleration of each impact head as it falls, so that the impact force of the impact head on the glass can be maximized and satisfactory glass breakage is thus obtained.

It is also noted that the striker assembly is easier to arm, given the advantageous distribution of the weight of the striker assembly and of the chain over their entire contact area with the cylinder.

According to a particular embodiment, the striker assembly is connected to the drum by a plurality of anchor points, preferably aligned along a transverse axis.

Increasing the number of anchor points allows the weight of the striker assembly and chain to be dispersed between each of the anchor points, thereby reducing the corresponding stress load thereon.

According to a particular embodiment, the striker assembly is connected to the drum by a plurality of chains, preferably mutually parallel chains.

Increasing the number of chains allows the weight of the striker assembly to be distributed therebetween, thereby reducing the corresponding stress load thereon. In addition, the use of multiple chains makes it possible to make the striker assembly easier to balance, in particular during the fragmentation step.

According to a particular embodiment, the striker assembly comprises a plurality of striker heads aligned in a lateral direction.

The simultaneous impact of multiple heads with the glass allows the instantaneous power of the impact to be maximized while spreading it over a large area of the glass. Thus, the target used window can be effectively broken into many broken glass fragments.

According to a particular embodiment, the striker assembly comprises at least one transverse bar for a counterweight.

The use of such a transverse bar for the counterweight makes it possible to increase the impact force of the striker assembly.

According to a particular embodiment, the transverse bar connects a plurality of percussion heads to each other.

In this configuration, such a rod makes it easier to align the heads laterally and thus synchronize them upon impact.

According to a particular embodiment, each impact head is connected to the drum by a respective chain.

According to a particular embodiment, at least one percussion head is connected to the drum via the transverse bar.

It is thus possible to arrange a variable number of percussion heads on the transverse bar, irrespective of the number of chains used and the position of their attachment points to the bar.

According to a particular embodiment, at least one head is connected to the transverse bar via a chain.

According to a particular embodiment, the striker assembly is connected to the drum by M chains, preferably parallel to each other, and wherein the striker assembly comprises N striker heads, and wherein N is strictly greater than M.

Thus, the number of impact points with the glass can be increased, irrespective of the number of chains employed.

According to a particular embodiment, the length of the assembly formed by the chain and the striker assembly is less than or equal to the distance inscribed along the theoretical vertical axis tangent to the rear portion of the drum, which separates the rear portion of the drum from the conveyor.

Throughout, the front and rear of the device are defined along the longitudinal axis of the conveyor, and the conveyor belt is designed to transport used windows from the rear of the device to the front of the device. The use of a chain having a length less than or equal to this distance D makes it possible to prevent the chain from taking too long on the conveyor belt, thus limiting in particular the wear of the breaking head by the accumulated glass present on the conveyor belt.

According to a particular embodiment, the fragmenting device comprises a plurality of striker assemblies respectively connected to the drum by at least one chain.

Thus, with each new rotation of the drum, the glass of the used window can be broken several times.

According to a particular embodiment, the conveyor comprises a belt, preferably ribbed, the rollers and the means for driving the belt being designed to rotate in opposite directions.

This reversal between the direction of rotation between the drum and the conveyor belt makes it possible to limit the risk of the fragmentation assembly (and in particular its impact head or heads) driving the frame of the used window backwards.

The use of ribs on the surface of the conveyor belt limits the contact area between the conveyor and the used window, so that the belt reaction forces generated upon impact are concentrated only in these areas.

The invention also relates to a method for fragmenting window glass, characterized in that it implements a fragmentation device suitable for fragmenting glass of a used window, and in that it comprises at least:

-a conveyor designed to convey the windows flat along a longitudinal axis,

-a breaking assembly located above the conveyor and designed to break the glass of the window when the window is conveyed on the conveyor,

the disintegrating assembly comprises a drum arranged above the conveyor along an axis of rotation transverse to the longitudinal axis, the drum being connected to a striker assembly by at least one chain, the striker assembly comprising at least one striker head designed to strike the conveyor with each rotation of the drum.

According to a particular embodiment, the rollers and the means for driving the belt rotate in opposite directions.

According to a particular embodiment, the ratio between the advancing speed of the conveyor belt and the rotational speed of the drums is chosen such that the window is hit by the disintegrating assembly at least twice, preferably at least three times, preferably at least four times, preferably at least five times, when the window is conveyed flat on the conveyor.

Increasing the impingement rate makes it possible to reduce the size of the broken glass fragments and thus make them easier to sort and/or recycle later.

According to a particular embodiment, the fragmentation method comprises subsequent steps of collecting the fragmented glass on the one hand and the frame of the window on the other hand, respectively.

Since the glass and the frame are of different composition, they can be collected separately, for example in separate boxes or containers, which can be more easily recycled.

The invention also relates to a disintegrated glass obtained via such a disintegration method.

Drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following description of a particular embodiment, given by way of simple illustrative and non-limiting example, and from a study of the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a fragmentation assembly as known in the prior art,

figure 2 is a schematic longitudinal cross-section of a fragmentation device according to a particular embodiment of the invention,

fig. 3 and 4 are perspective views, taken from the rear, of a fragmenting assembly located on a conveyor of a fragmenting device in accordance with a particular embodiment of the present invention.

The various elements shown in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the overall operation of the invention.

In the various figures, like reference numerals refer to similar or identical elements unless otherwise indicated.

Detailed Description

As shown in fig. 2, a fragmentation device 1 according to a particular embodiment of the invention is designed to fragment glass of a used window 2 and comprises:

a conveyor 3 designed to convey the windows 2 flat along a longitudinal axis L, an

A breaking assembly 4, which is located above the conveyor 3 and is designed to break the glass of the window 2 when it is conveyed on the conveyor 3.

More specifically, the shredding assembly 4 comprises a drum 5, which drum 5 is arranged above the conveyor 3 along a rotation axis R transversal to the longitudinal axis L.

The drum 5 is connected to two striker assemblies (7) by two sets of chains 6ay¹、7²) Each striker assembly 7¹Comprising a plurality of impact heads (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az) designed to impact conveyor 3 at each rotation of drum 5.

For each striker assembly 7, the striker head (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az) is aligned in the transverse direction Rz. Therefore, for the sake of clarity and recognizing that fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view on a plane perpendicular to the lateral direction, each striker assembly 7 shows only one chain 6ay and one striker head 7 az.

According to an alternative embodiment, the fragmentation assembly 4 can comprise only one (or, on the other hand, more than two) striker assemblies 7, each of which can comprise one or more striker heads 7 az.

In practice, the used windows 2 are first loaded onto the conveyor belt 3a at the rear of the device 1. The used window 2 is then transported by the conveyor 3 to the breaker assembly 4, which means approximately below the drum 5. The drum 5 is preferably rotated by a motor about an axis of rotation R transverse to the longitudinal axis L of the conveyor 3 (or in other words transverse to the direction of forward travel thereof). This forward direction of travel is indicated in fig. 2 by the directional arrow drawn in dashed lines.

According to the particular embodiment shown in fig. 2, the drum 5 and the means for driving the conveyor 3 rotate in opposite directions, each of these directions being indicated by a directional arrow drawn with a dashed line. Thus, for each rotation of the drum 5, at least one impact head 7az is first placed in a position vertically above the conveyor 3, so that it can then impact the conveyor belt 3a under the effect of its weight. During the fragmentation process, the glass 2a of the used window 2 is thus separated from its frame 2b, so that it can be subsequently sorted/recycled.

As shown in fig. 2, by a chainStrip 6ay and striker assembly 7¹The length of the resulting assembly is less than or equal to a distance D inscribed along a theoretical vertical axis tangent to the rear of the drum 5, separating the rear of the drum 5 from the conveyor 3. This can prevent the chain 6ay from taking too long on the conveyor belt 3a, thereby particularly limiting the case where the fragmentation head 7az is worn by the accumulated glass present on the conveyor belt.

The flexible nature of this chain 6ay makes it possible to reduce the mechanical stresses exerted on the point 5ax where the chain 6ay is anchored on the one hand to the drum 5 and on the other hand to the striker assembly 7. In addition, such a chain 6ay does not in any way hinder the vertical acceleration of each impact head 7az when it falls down, so that the impact force of the impact head on the glass 8b of the used window 2 can be maximized, thus obtaining satisfactory breakage of the glass 8 b.

It is also noted that the striker assembly 7 is easier to arm, given the advantageous distribution of the weight of the striker assembly 7 and of the chain 6ay over their entire contact area with the cylinder 5.

According to a particular embodiment, the ratio between the advancing speed of the belt of the conveyor 3 and the rotation speed of the drum 5 is chosen such that the window 2 is hit at least four times by the disintegrating assembly 4 when it is conveyed flat on said conveyor 3.

Fig. 3 and 4 are perspective views, taken from the rear, of a fragmenting assembly 4, which fragmenting assembly 4 is located above the conveyor 3 of the fragmenting device 1 according to a particular embodiment of the present invention.

The fragmentation assembly 4 comprises three striker assemblies (7)¹、7²、7³). Each striker assembly (7)¹、7²、7³) Comprises a plurality of impact heads (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az) connected to the drum 5 via a plurality of anchor points (5 a1, 5a2, …, 5 ax). The impact head (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az) and the anchor point (5 a1, 5a2, …, 5 ax) are aligned along respective transverse axes (Rz, Rx).

According to this same embodiment, the impact head (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az) and the chain (6 a1, 6a2, …, 6 ay)Connected by a transverse rod 8 for counterweight. Note that each striker assembly (7) shown in FIGS. 3 and 4¹、7²，7³) Is connected to the drum 5 by four chains (6 a1, 6a2, …, 6 ay) and comprises seven impact heads (7 a1, 7a2, …, 7 az), so that one of the two heads is connected to the drum 5 via the transverse bar 8. Thus, the number of points of impact with the glass is greatly increased, irrespective of the number of chains employed.