Claims:We Claim:

1. An apparatus (100) for crushing granules (P) to determine crush strength, the apparatus (100) comprising:
a base frame (1);
a crush plate (2) rigidly supported by the base frame (1), wherein the crush plate (2) is movable between an open position (OP) and a crush position (CP);
a cam member (3) coupled to the crush plate (2), wherein rotation of the cam member (3) actuates the crush plate (2) from the open position (OP) to the crush position (CP) for crushing the granules (P).

2. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 1 comprises a load cell (4) fixed to the crush plate (2) to determine load applied by the crush plate (2) on the granules (P).

3. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 1, the crush plate (2) is supported by a support unit (SU), wherein one end of the support unit (SU) is movably disposed on a support bracket (SB), and the other end of the support unit (SU) is configured to support at least one roller (5).

4. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least one roller (5) contacts the cam member (3).

5. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 4, wherein the cam member (3) is defined with a cam profile (6), and the at least one roller (5) traces the cam profile (6) for displacement of the crush plate (2) between the open position (OP) and the crush position (CP).

6. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cam member (3) is mounted on a cam shaft (7), the cam shaft (7) is actuated by an actuator.

7. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 1, comprises a biasing member (BM) provided on a crush plate bracket (2a), wherein the biasing member (BM) is configured to retract the crush plate (2) from the crush position (CP) to the open position (OP).

8. The apparatus (100) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the biasing member (BM) is a spring.
9. A system (200) for crushing granules (P) to determine crush strength, the system (200) comprising:
a sampler unit (8) positioned above a conveyor line (9), the sampler unit (8) is configured to selectively collect the granules (P) for determining crush strength;
a filter unit (11) connected to the sampler unit (8), the filter unit (11) is configured to receive the granules (P) from the sampler unit (8), to filter the granules (P) based on size;
a revolver cartridge (13) defined with plurality of slots (14) is configured to receive each of the granules (P);
an apparatus (100) for crushing granules (P) to determine crush strength, the apparatus (100) comprising:
a base frame (1);
a crush plate (2) rigidly supported by the base frame (1), wherein the crush plate (2) is movable between an open position (OP) and a crush position (CP);
a cam member (3) coupled to the crush plate (2), wherein rotation of the cam member (3) actuates the crush plate (2) from the open position (OP) to the crush position (CP) for crushing the granules (P).

10. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the sampler unit (8) is configured with a scooper (10) to scoop the granules (P) from the conveyor line (9).

11. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the at least one filter unit (11) is configured to sieve the granules (P) based on the size of the granule (P) for crushing.

12. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, comprises a cyclone chute (12) configured with one or more chutes (12a) for grouping the granules (P) one after the other linearly.

13. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cyclone chute (12) is connected to the at least one filter unit (11) and receives the granules (P), wherein the cyclone chute (12) groups the granules (P).

14. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the revolver cartridge (13) is connected to another actuator to rotate at a predetermined rotational speed for receiving and dispensing the granules (P).

15. The system (200) as claimed in claim 9, comprises at least one guide (15) provided blow the revolver cartridge (13), wherein the at least one guide (15) receives and guides the granules (P) into the apparatus (100) for crushing.
, Description:TECHNICAL FIELD
Present disclosure generally relates to a field of metallurgy. Particularly, but not exclusively the present disclosure relates to an apparatus and a system for determining crush strength of granules. Further, embodiments of the disclosure discloses the system for determining crush strength of the granules in real time.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Blast furnaces utilize a variety of charges for melting ores. Some of these charges may include iron ore pellets or granules, sinters, lump ores, coke and the like. Crushing strengths of these charges is an important factor as it determines the load bearing capacity of each of the charge that is deposited in the blast furnace. Since these charges are stacked up to large heights, it is important to understand the crush strength of the granules. Moreover, crushing strength popularly known as cold crushing strength (CCS), is a crucial parameter of granules as it indicates the load bearing capacity of the granules. During granule charging into the blast furnace, the granules form a bed portion in the blast furnace which aid in combustion of the ore and also aid in reducing the amount of fuel used during combustion of the ore. Moreover, as the charge is loaded into the blast furnace the granules causes a uniform bed permeability in comparison to iron-ore or sinter. This leads to better gas-solid contact resulting in higher productivity at reduced coke and fuel rate.

Additionally during charging, there are high chances that the granules are not in uniform size and shape. This non-uniformity leads to irregularities in formation of the bed in the blast furnace which is undesirable. Also, this leads to premature pulverisation of the granules that is being charged into the blast furnace due to non-uniform bed. Moreover, as the granules are being charged into the blast furnace, a series of crush strength analysis needs to be carried out. This crush strength analysis involves manual collection and testing of the granules and to determine crush strength of the granules that is dumped on to a conveyor before being charged into the blast furnace. This process may be labour intensive as each of the granules needs to be extracted individually and tested for crush strength.

Conventionally, manual presses are deployed proximal to the conveyor lines, wherein these presses are manually loaded with collected granules and the crush strength of the granules being fed into the blast furnace are determined. Moreover, this type of crush strength testing may involve time consuming operations such as sampling, filtration and then crushing. During sampling process the, specific sized granules are manually collected and then passed through a filter mechanism such as a sieve filter. The sieve filter then filters the granules to required sizes. Once the granules are filtered, they are then transported to a manual crusher. This manual crusher may be the type of a press crusher or a manually operated hydraulic or pneumatic crusher. The manual crusher is equipped with load cells to determine the amount of crush strength to determine the pulverization force required for each granule.

This way each and every granule needs to be manually fed into the crusher to determine the crush strength. Additionally, the crush strength of each granule may be manually recorded. This data of the crush strength may then be analysed to determine crush acceptance of the granules.

During determination of the crush strength of the granules, if the crushing strength of the granules is less than acceptable range, then the granule production needs to be throttled until next determination of the granule crush strength. This increases the downtime of the ore plant and may lead to production loses. Also, analysis of the crush strength data obtained sometimes need to be manually calculated and tabulated which further increases the downtime of the granules crush strength determination.

The present disclosure is directed to address one or more problems as discussed above.

The information disclosed in this background of the disclosure section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
One or more drawbacks of conventional apparatus and the system for determining crush strength of the granules is overcome, and additional advantages are provided through the claims of the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the technicalities of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered to be a part of the claimed disclosure.

In one non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, an apparatus for crushing granules to determine crush strength. The apparatus comprises a base frame and a crush plate rigidly supported by the base frame, wherein the crush plate is movable between an open position and a crush position. A cam member coupled to the crush plate, wherein rotation of the cam member actuates the crush plate from the open position to the crush position for crushing the granules.

In an embodiment, the apparatus comprises a load cell fixed to the crush plate to determine load applied by the crush plate on the granules.

In an embodiment, the crush plate is supported by a support unit, wherein one end of the support unit is movably disposed on a support bracket, and the other end of the support unit is configured to support at least one roller.

In an embodiment, the at least one roller contacts the cam member.

In an embodiment, the cam member is defined with a cam profile, and the at least one roller traces the cam profile for displacement of the crush plate between the open position and the crush position.

In an embodiment, the cam member is mounted on a cam shaft, the cam shaft is actuated by an actuator.

In an embodiment, a biasing member provided on a crush plate bracket, wherein the biasing member is configured to displace the crush plate from the crush position to the open position.

In an embodiment, the biasing member is a spring.

In an embodiment, the support member is biased by a resilient member.

In an embodiment, the resilient member is a spring.

In another non-limiting embodiment, a system for crushing granules to determine crush strength, the system comprising, a sampler unit positioned above a conveyor line, the sampler unit is configured to selectively collect the granules for determining crush strength. A filter unit connected to the sampler unit, the filter unit is configured to receive the granules from the sampler unit, and filter the granules based on size. A revolver cartridge defined with plurality of voids is configured to receive each of the granules from the at least one feeder unit. An apparatus for crushing granules to determine crush strength. The apparatus comprises a base frame and a crush plate rigidly supported by the base frame, wherein the crush plate is movable between an open position and a crush position. A cam member coupled to the crush plate, wherein rotation of the cam member actuates the crush plate from the open position to the crush position for crushing the granules.

In an embodiment, the sampler unit is configured with a scooper to scoop the granules from the conveyor line.

In an embodiment, the at least one filter unit is configured to sieve the granules based on the size of the granule for crushing.

In an embodiment, the at least one feeder unit is configured with a cyclone chute for grouping the granules one after the other linearly.
In an embodiment, the system comprises at least one feeder unit connected to the at least one filter unit which receives the granules, wherein the at least one feeder unit groups the granules.

In an embodiment, the revolver cartridge is connected to an actuator to rotate at a predetermined rotational speed for receiving and dispensing the granules.

In an embodiment, comprises at least one guide member which is provided below the revolver cartridge, wherein the at least one guide member receives and guides the granules into the apparatus for crushing.

It is to be understood that the aspects and embodiments of the disclosure described above may be used in any combination with each other. Several of the aspects and embodiments may be combined to form a further embodiment of the disclosure.

The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
The novel features and characteristics of the disclosure are set forth in the appended description. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. One or more embodiments are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements and in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a schematic view of an apparatus for crushing granules to determine crush strength, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Figure 2 illustrates a schematic view of a system for crushing granules to determine crush strength, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The figures depict embodiments of the disclosure for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

While the embodiments of the disclosure are subjected to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiment thereof have been shown by way of example in the figures and will be described below. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the scope of the disclosure.

It is to be noted that a person skilled in the art would be motivated from the present disclosure to arrive at an apparatus and a system for crushing granules in order to determine the crush strength of granules. However, such modifications should be construed within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the drawings illustrate only those specific details that are pertinent to understand the embodiments of the present disclosure, so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be clear to those of ordinary skill in the art having benefit of the description herein.

The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof used in the disclosure, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a device, system, assembly that comprises a list of components does not include only those components but may include other components not expressly listed or inherent to such system, or assembly, or device. In other words, one or more elements in a system or device proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or device.

The present disclosure provides an apparatus for crushing granules to determine crush strength of the granules. The granules are fed into an ore extracting plant, more specifically into a blast furnace. The granules are charged into the blast furnace as fuel for melting an iron carrier. As the granules are dumped onto a conveyor line that is configured to lead into the mouth of the blast furnace. It is important to determine the crush strength of the granules before charging the granules in to the blast furnace. The granules as they are charged in to the blast furnace form a layer of granule bed in the blast furnace. Hence, the crush strength of the granules needs to be determined, so that the amount of charge can be determined for each cycle of charging without subjecting the granules to pulverization under its own weight. Accordingly, embodiments of the disclosure discloses an apparatus for determining crush strength of granules. The apparatus includes a base frame provided proximal to the conveyor line. The base frame is configured with a crush plate for receiving and crushing the granules. The crush plate is operable between an open position and a crush position. The granules before fed into the crush plate are filtered according to the size requirement through a sieve system or a filter. At least one loader is positioned below the filter to load at least one granule into the apparatus for crushing. The granules are loaded into the crush plates to determine the crush strength of the granules. A plurality of load cells are connected to the crush plates which determine the crush strength of the granules.

The present disclosure also provides a continuous real time process for determining the crush strength of the granules. This way, the down time in sampling and testing the crush strength of the granules being charged into the blast furnace is reduced. Moreover, since the granules are procured directly from the conveyor line leading up to the blast furnace, there is no need for manual labor in sampling granules, crushing granules and tabulating data received for determining the crush strength of the granules.

The present disclosure discloses an apparatus and system for crushing granules to determine the crush strength of granules. The system and apparatus of the present disclosure also reduces downtime and labor costs.

The following paragraphs describe the present disclosure with reference to Figures 1 to 2. In the figures, the same element or elements which have similar functions are indicated by the same reference signs.

Figure 1 is an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure which illustrates a schematic view of an apparatus (100) for crushing granules (P) to determine crush strength.

The apparatus (100) comprises a base frame (1) which is configured with a crush plate (2). The crush plate (2) is connected to a crush plate bracket (2a), wherein the crush plate bracket (2a) is supported on the base frame (1). The crush plate (2) is configured to move between an open position (OP) and a crush position (CP) [not shown in figure]. The base frame (1) further supports a cam member (3) which is concentrically mounted on a cam shaft (7). The cam shaft (7) is further connected to an actuator [not shown in figures]. The cam member (3) is further defined with predefined cam profile (6) which is calibrated to impart predefined movement to the crush plate (2). In an embodiment, the cam member (3) may be provided in-between two crush plates (2) wherein, the profile of the cam member (3) may be defined to impart actuation to the two or more crush plates (2). In an embodiment, as the cam member (3) rotates, the crush plate (2) is configured to impart to and fro motion tracing the cam profile (6).

In an embodiment, each of the crush plate (2) on one end is configured with at least one roller (5). The at least one roller (5) is in continuous contact with the cam member (3), thereby tracing the cam profile (6) of the cam member (3). As the cam member (3) rotates, the crush plate (2) imparts to and fro motion. In an embodiment, the crush plate bracket (2a) is mounted on a support unit (SU), wherein one end of the support unit (SU) is movably disposed on a support bracket (SB), and the other end of the support unit (SU) is configured to support at least one roller (5). Additionally, a biasing member (BM) is provided on the crush plate bracket (2a), wherein the biasing member (BM) is configured to retract the crush plate (2) from the crush position (CP) to the open position (OP).

Further, the apparatus (100) may include one or more load cells (4) fixed to the crush plate (2). The one or more load cells (4) determines the amount of load applied to the crush plate (2) to crush the granules (P). Moreover, the load cells (4) are connected to a display device such as a computer or smart device (SD) which receives continuous data in order to determine the crush strength of the granules (P).

Figure 2 illustrates a system (100) for crushing granules (P) to determine crush strength. The system (100) comprises of a sampler unit (8) configured above a conveyor line (9). The conveyor line (9) carries loads of granules (P) from a raw material dumping site towards an opening in a blast furnace [not shown]. As the load of granules (P) is carried by the conveyor line (9), the sampler unit (8) with a scooper (10) extracts few of the granules (P) from the conveyor line (9). The scooper (10) then transfers these granules (P) onto an adjacent conveyor (9a) which leads to at least one filter unit (11) for filtration. As the granules (P) traverses into the at least one filter unit (11), granules (P) of various sizes are filtered out based on the requirement. The at least one filter unit (11) is divided into multiple filtration sieves, wherein each sieve of the multiple filtration sieves is configured with different sizes of sieves. As the sample of granules (P) comes into the multiple filtration sieves, each granules (P) having specific dimensions will filter out through the different sieves. In an embodiment, the required sieve size may be pre-defined for filtering the requires size of the granules (P) for determining the crush strength of the granules (P).

A cyclone chute (12) may be configured below the at least one filter unit (11). The cyclone chute (12) may be configured to receive the filtered granules (P) for determining crush strength of the granules (P). As the granules (P) are collected within the cyclone chute (12), each of the granules (P) are segregated and lined one after the other. The granules (P) then drop into a revolver cartridge (13). The revolver cartridge (13) may be mounted on a shaft which may be further connected to another actuator (not shown in figures) to rotate the revolver cartridge (13) in sync with the to and fro motion of the crush plate (2). In an embodiment, the revolver cartridge (13) receives granules (P) individually from the cyclone chute (12) and is loaded onto each slot of a plurality of slots (14) provided on the revolver cartridge (13). Further, the revolver cartridge (13) is positioned above at least one guide (15), wherein individual granule (P) drops into the at least one guide (15) and into the crush plate (2). Due to the timed rotation of the revolver cartridge (13) and after crushing of every granule (P), a new granule (P) may be immediately fed into the crush plate (2) for crushing. This configuration creates continuous crush cycles for crushing the granules (P). As the granules (P) are continuously crushed, real time data with respect to the crush strength of the granules (P) is continuously tabulated. The data or rather the load required to crush each of the granules (P) is determined by the load cells (4) and these results may be tabulated and stored within the computer or smart device (SD). These data or results may be extracted by a user, as and when required in order to understand the crush strength of the granules (P).
In an embodiment, at least one collection unit (16) may be disposed underneath the apparatus (100) to collect the pulverised or crushed granules (P).

In an embodiment, the load cell (4) connected to the crush plate (2) may be at least one of low capacity load cells, medium capacity load cells and high capacity load cells based on the application and requirement.

In an embodiment, the cyclone chute (12) comprises one or more chutes (12a) which are arranged in a slanted manner such that the granules (P) are segregated and lined one after the other to load it on to the revolver cartridge (13).

In an embodiment, crush strength of the granules (P) are determined in real time and stored in storable media which may be accessed by the user. This allows the user to determine if the load of granules (P) that is being charged in to the blast furnace meets the crush requirements.

Equivalents
With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should typically be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system (100) having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances, where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system (100) having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B."

While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

REFERRAL NUMERALS:

Referral numerals
Description
100 Apparatus
200 System
1 Base frame
2 Crush plate
2a Crush plate bracket
3 Cam member
4 Load cell
5 At least one roller
6 Cam profile
7 Cam shaft
8 Sampler unit
9 Conveyor line
9a Adjacent conveyor line
10 Scooper
11 Filter unit
12 Cyclone chute
12a One or more chutes
13 Revolver cartridge
14 Plurality of slots
15 At least one guide