DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type granulator assembly and method of measurement thereof. Particularly, the present invention relates to an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum assembly for detecting the angle of oscillation and distance covered by the pendulum arm using an ultrasonic sensor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

US2010102152A1 discloses a method for controlling process parameters of a cone crusher. This invention relates to crushing and reducing devices, in particular to cone crushers, and can be used in the building and ore-dressing industries. The inventive method is carried out by means of a crusher which is provided with proximity sensors, the operation of which is controlled by means of a computer, and with a disc which is rigidly secured to the unbalanced-mass vibration generator of the crusher in such a way that the plane thereof is always perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the unbalanced-mass vibration generator. Said method consists in measuring a distance to the disc, in calculating the three-dimensional position of the disc plane, in calculating the amplitude of the circular vibrations of the internal cone according to said position, in calculating the size of a crushing gap according to the thus calculated amplitude, in comparing said size with the specified parameter of the gap by means of a computer and, if, according to the comparison results, the adjustment of parameters is required, in transferring a control instruction for modifying the position of an adjustment ring from the computer to hydraulic cylinders. The adjustment ring position is controlled by means of a proximity sensor which is mounted on the flange of a body top part.

WO2018077818 discloses about methods and devices for controlling the dry granulation process. The invention relates to a continuous dry granulation method and means to monitor and control said method. The invention further describes a dry granulation system and uses thereof. In particular, the invention provides methods and devices employing a sound, force, strain, vibration or acceleration sensor in order to determine the mechanical strength of a compacted material during a dry granulation process.

However, the conventional known measuring sensors used in granulator assembly produce errors in angle measurement. Also, other drawbacks associated with the known arts using conventional sensors are that they are expensive, highly affected by temperature and humidity, have limited operating range etc.

Thus, there is a need for a granulator which can overcome the errors produced by the conventional angle measuring sensors. To this end, the present invention concerns a granulation assembly and method that uses an ultrasonic sensor to measure the angle made by the pendulum arm with the vertical.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a pendulum type granulator assembly and method that illustrates the corresponding angle covered by the pendulum arm with the vertical using an ultrasonic sensor.

Yet another objective of the present invention is to overcome the errors which are produced by the conventional angle measuring sensors.

Yet another objective of the present invention is to formulate a database which provides us with the information related to the angle and the corresponding distance.

Another objective of the present invention is to calibrate a formula that comes with a lot of applications in the domain of instrumentation and measurement.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, the aspects of the present invention are disclosed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type granulator assembly and method for measurement thereof. The present invention comprises: a pendulum assembly which is composed of a pendulum based rolling mechanism, , an ultrasonic sensor, a LED/ LCD screen, a Brushless DC motor (BLDC motor), a hall sensor, a pair of LED lights and a humidity sensor. The present invention uses an ultrasonic sensor for measuring the distance traversed by the pendulum arm for compressing the manure in the granulator and further analyzing the distance at which a required/ certain angle from the mid vertical (?=90°) can be attained. The ultrasonic sensor is configured to be installed on any of the side walls of the main body, and as the pendulum-roller oscillates, the distance from the side wall either increases or decreases. This distance is calculated and its corresponding angles are found using the derived calibrated formula.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

An understanding of the present invention may be obtained by reference to the accompanying drawings, when taken in conjunction with the description herein and in which:
Figure 1 illustrates granulator assembly.

Figure 2 illustrates ultrasonic sensor.

Figure 3 (a, b) illustrates angle measurement using ultrasonic sensor through a derived calibrated formula.

Figure 4 illustrates the position of the ultrasonic sensor in granulator assembly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following description describes various features and functions of the disclosed invention with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, similar symbols identify similar components, unless context dictates otherwise. The illustrative aspects described herein are not meant to be limiting. It may be readily understood that certain aspects of the disclosed assembly and method can be arranged and combined in a wide variety of different configurations, all of which have not been contemplated herein.

Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope of invention. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.

Features that are described and/or illustrated with respect to one embodiment may be used in the same way or in a similar way in one or more other embodiments and/or in combination with or instead of the features of the other embodiments.

The terms and words used in the following description are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but are merely used to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention are provided for illustrative purposes only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

It should be emphasized that the term “comprises/comprising” when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof. The equations used in the specification are only for computation purposes.

The present invention relates to an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type granulator assembly for detecting angle of oscillation and distance covered by the pendulum arm. Figure 1 of the present invention illustrates an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type rolling assembly, an ultrasonic sensor, a LED screen, a Brushless DC motor (BLDC motor), a hall sensor, a humidity/ moisture sensor and a plurality of wheels installed at the base of the granulator assembly to ensure portability of the present invention.

In a preferred embodiment, an ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type granulator assembly, comprising: an outer assembly that is designed to cover the granulator assembly and the pendulum assembly. The granulator assembly configured inside the outer assembly configured to apply compressive force to manure through oscillatory movement of the pendulum rollers. The granulator assembly comprises of: an inlet portion of the granulator assembly for entry of manure into the granular assembly; a square sieve/ mesh configured on the inner walls of the granular assembly to filter large particles of manure; a pair of rollers configured near the inlet portion for mixing a binder to the filtered manure entering through the sieve; a funnel mounted above the pair of rollers for addition of the binder; a pendulum roller configured on a pendulum arm; the pendulum arm movably coupled to the rollers such that the rotation of the rollers actuate the pendulum movement; the pendulum arm attached with a top plate of the granular assembly; a moisture sensor integrated in the granulator assembly to measure humidity content of the manure; a brushless direct current (BLDC) motor wiredly connected to the pair of rollers; a LED screen operably connected to the moisture sensor of the granulator assembly. A graphical user interface (GUI) is connected to the pendulum type granulator assembly, which comprises of: an operator module connected to the LED screen to receive moisture content of manure; a processor module to calculate actual percentage; a display unit to display calculated actual percentage of humidity content to a user. A hanging scale is connected to the LED screen to display measured weight of manure added into the granulator assembly. An ultrasonic sensor configured on an extreme end at any side of wall of a main body of the pendulum type granulator assembly, comprising of: a transmitter configured to emit the sound using piezoelectric crystals; and a receiver positioned in close proximity of the transmitter to encounter the sound after the sound has travelled to and from the pendulum arm. A database server connected to the GUI and the pendulum type granulator assembly in real time. The ultrasonic sensor is configured to measure: distance travelled by the pendulum arm from a base point to manure, and angle of oscillation by the pendulum arm to depict the corresponding angle between the pendulum arm with vertical (?=90°) by calibrating the perpendicular distance from the ultrasonic sensor to the angle traversed by the pendulum arm. The database server constantly receives and updates angle and distance data traversed by the pendulum arm from the ultrasonic sensor to analyse distance at which a required angle from the mid vertical (?=90°) is attained. The LED lights are configured to blink on achieving the required angle by the pendulum arm, said required angle is fetched from the data updated on the database server.

The present invention of the pendulum type rolling assembly installed in the granulator is configured for turning the manure feedstocks into granules. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pendulum type rolling assembly comprises an outer cover, a pair of rollers, a pendulum roller and a sieve compartment.

The pendulum assembly configured with a pendulum roller is parallelly/ in-line positioned with respect to the pendulum assembly’s axis of symmetry. A pair of rollers provided in the outer assembly is configured to make the design portable. The pair of rollers inside the granulator assembly ensure a proper mix of binder, i.e. mixing with the feedstock, resulting in fine-grained particles. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a funnel is mounted on the pair of rollers for directly adding the binders, based on the moisture content of the manure, into the granulation assembly. Further, the present invention is configured with a sieve compartment wherein sieves of varied sizes can be attached as per the requirement of the user, to produce the granules of varied sizes to the receiving unit designed for the collection of granules of the granulation assembly.

A pendulum assembly provided in the granulator of the present invention, is configured to press the manure against the sieve to ensure consistent calibration of the granules using the extrusion principle. The granules are calibrated consistently by the oscillatory movement of the pendulum roller, which applies compressive force to the manure to break it into smaller pieces, so as to allow particles of manure to pass through the sieve through compression applied by the pendulum roller. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the moisture sensor is installed in the granulation assembly to measure the humidity/ moisture content of manure, so as to add binder into the granulation assembly based on the moisture content of the manure.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the assembly of the present invention may be installed in multiple instrumentation and measurement systems, such as but not limited to granulators, crushers. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the step wise working of the granulator assembly is as follows:

adding manure into an inlet portion of the granulator;
entering the manure feedstock into a square sieve/ mesh to filter large particles of manure;
passing the manure through the pair of roller;
adding binder into the funnel mounted on the pair of rollers;
mixing the binder with the feedstock through the pair of rollers, to achieve fine grained particles;
passing the mixed manure to pendulum roller;
compressing the manure through the pendulum roller against the sieve to produce granules;
receiving granules in a receiving unit, i.e. placed at outlet of the sieve.

The granulation assembly provided in the present invention, is configured to monitor the humidity of the manure. In an embodiment of the present invention, the feedstock manure is added through the funnel into a test container for determining its moisture content. The fertilizers are also added into a test container such that it completely covers the moisture sensor of the assembly. The moisture sensor is operably coupled with the LED/ LCD screen, so as to display/ notify the moisture content units on the LED / LCD screen. The LED screen is wirelessly connected to an operator module installed in a graphical user interface (GUI). The user, on receiving a constant moisture content unit on the screen, updates the value into the operator module of the graphical user interface (GUI). The operator module on receiving, the constant moisture content of the fertilizer and the manure, runs a processor unit installed in the graphical user interface (GUI) to calculate and notify actual percentage of humidity content to the user. The operator module coupled with the granulation assembly, ensures to provide real time updates of the humidity percentage of the fertilizers to the user. The operator module on calculation of the humidity content of the fertilizer, notifies the user about the amount of binder that needs to be added into the granulator. The user is also notified about the quantity of the binder to be added into the specified weight of the manure. The weight of the manure is measured by a hanging scale, which is connected to the LED screen. The hanging scale provided in the present invention, displays the weight of the manure to the user via the LED screen, so as to enable the user to enter the correct weighed amount of the manure to the granulator assembly. In another exemplary embodiment, when the humidity level in the fertilizer exceeds the specified value, the operator module alerts the user, so that the user can add salt or any dehydrating agent to reduce the humidity content of the fertilizer.

The pendulum assembly is installed with a Brushless direct current (BLDC) motor to drive the pendulum rollers. In order to adjust the speed of the BLDC Motor, the user is configured to adjust the knob installed by rotating it in either direction and obtaining the speed results on the operator module or through SMS.

The pendulum assembly provided in the granulator of the present invention, is configured to measure/ determine the distance from a base point to an object and the angle of oscillation by the pendulum to depict the corresponding angle between the pendulum arm with the vertical (?=90°). The distance in the present invention, is detected by an ultrasonic sensor to further calculate the angle made by the pendulum arm with the vertical by calibrating the perpendicular distance from the ultrasonic sensor to the angle traversed by the pendulum arm.

Figure 2 illustrates the ultrasonic sensors of the present invention. The ultrasonic sensor comprises of two components: a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter is configured to emit the sound using piezoelectric crystals and the receiver is configured to encounter the sound after the sound has travelled to and from the target, wherein the target is the pendulum arm i.e., the arm which connects the pair of rollers to the top plate which (pendulum arm) performs oscillatory motion analogous to that of a pendulum thread. In an embodiment of the present invention, the receiver is positioned near to the transmitter to enable the sound to travel in a straighter line from the transmitter to the detected object and back to the receiver which reduces the chances of error while measuring the distance.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ultrasonic sensor is installed at the extreme ends of the scope of the pendulum arm, which can be at any side wall of the main body. As the pendulum arm oscillates, the distance from the opposite wall either increases or decreases. This distance is measured by the ultrasonic sensor and its corresponding angles are found using the formula.
Figure 3(a & b) of the present invention illustrates the formula for measuring the angle and distance of the pendulum arm is as follow:

a =sin -1 (( x1 – distance)/ l)
distance = x1 – l * sin (a)

The values of x1 and l are calculated from the pendulum inspired granulator based on the position of the sensor in the design and a formula for the same is calculated.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the graphical user interface (GUI) connected to the ultrasonic based pendulum type granulator assembly is linked to a database server to store the calculated data for future reference of the user. The database server receives the data from the assembly and updates the angle and distance traversed by the pendulum arm. The distance of the pendulum arm is calibrated by updating the database constantly to analyse the distance at which a required/ certain angle from the mid vertical (?=90°) can be attained, which enables to indirectly provide the information to the user regarding what angle has traversed by the pendulum arm.

Further, the ultrasonic based pendulum assembly is provided with a pair of LED lights that are configured to blink on achieving the required angle by the pendulum arm. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the response is obtained through blinking of the LED lights such that the user comes to know whether the arm has reached its desired angle i.e., 60 degrees on the either side hence making a total of 120 degree motion span.

In an embodiment the method for measuring the distance and analysing the angle of oscillation comprises of following steps:

emitting sound from the transmitter using piezoelectric crystal;
receiving the sound through the receiver, installed near the transmitter, after the sound has travelled to and from the target;
measuring the distance of the sound travelled, from the transmitter to the detected object and back to the receiver;
notifying the user on obtaining the distance by blinking the pair of LED lights, so that the user may come to know whether the arm has reached its desired angle i.e., 60 degrees on the either side hence making a total of 120-degree motion span.

Figure 4 illustrates the positioning of the ultrasonic sensor in the granulation assembly. In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ultrasonic sensor is installed at the right or left side of the main body wall. As the pendulum type arm oscillates, the distance from the opposite wall may either increase or decrease. The distance is measured by the Ultrasonic Distance sensor. The calibration of distance is managed, such that a database illustrates that at what distance of the pendulum, will be a certain angle from the mid vertical. The database enables the user to indirectly get the information regarding what angle has been traversed by the pendulum arm.

This present invention seems to be the most reliable and trustworthy solution. Few advantages of the present invention are:

Angle measurement between jaws in crushers/ measuring repose angle of granulators;
The present invention can be configured in multiple instrumentation and measurement systems;
Ultrasonic sensors reflect sound off of objects, so the color or transparency have no effect on the reading of sensor ;

Unlike proximity sensors using light or cameras, dark environments have no effect on an ultrasonic sensor’s detection ability;

Fully calibrated and ready to use. A low cost, high-quality product suited for specific needs;

Not highly affected by dust, dirt, or high-moisture environments due to self-cleaning which allows for continuous running and less downtime and can help decrease the effects of things like condensation, thus less affected by dirt or water;

Greater accuracy than many other methods at measuring thickness and distance;

Easy to use and not dangerous during operation to nearby objects, people or equipment;

Easily interface with microcontrollers or any type of controller.

While this invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the scope of the appended claims.
,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM:
1. An ultrasonic sensor based pendulum type granulator assembly, comprising:
a) an outer assembly;
b) the granulator assembly configured inside the outer assembly, comprising of:
i. an inlet portion of the granulator assembly for entry of manure into the granular assembly;
ii. a square sieve/ mesh configured on the inner walls of the granular assembly to filter large particles of manure;
iii. a pair of rollers configured near the inlet portion for mixing a binder to the filtered manure entering through the sieve;
iv. a funnel mounted above the pair of rollers for addition of the binder;
v. a pendulum roller configured on a pendulum arm;
vi. the pendulum arm movably coupled to the rollers such that the rotation of the rollers actuate the pendulum movement;
vii. the pendulum arm attached with a top plate of the granular assembly;
viii. a moisture sensor integrated in the granulator assembly to measure humidity content of the manure;
c) a brushless direct current (BLDC) motor wiredly connected to the pair of rollers;
d) a LED screen operably connected to the moisture sensor of the granulator assembly;
e) a graphical user interface (GUI) connected to the pendulum type granulator assembly, comprising of:
i. an operator module connected to the LED screen to receive moisture content of manure;
ii. a processor module to calculate actual percentage;
iii. a display unit to display calculated actual percentage of humidity content to a user;
f) a hanging scale connected to the LED screen to display measured weight of manure added into the granulator assembly;
g) an ultrasonic sensor configured on an extreme end at any side of wall of a main body of the pendulum type granulator assembly, comprising of:
i. a transmitter configured to emit the sound using piezoelectric crystals; and
ii. a receiver positioned in close proximity of the transmitter to encounter the sound after the sound has travelled to and from the pendulum arm
h) a database server connected to the GUI and the pendulum type granulator assembly in real time;
wherein,
the ultrasonic sensor is configured to measure: distance travelled by the pendulum arm from a base point to manure, and angle of oscillation by the pendulum arm to depict the corresponding angle between the pendulum arm with vertical (?=90°) by calibrating the perpendicular distance from the ultrasonic sensor to the angle traversed by the pendulum arm;
the database server constantly receives and updates angle and distance data traversed by the pendulum arm from the ultrasonic sensor to analyse distance at which a required angle from the mid vertical (?=90°) is attained;
the LED lights are configured to blink on achieving the required angle by the pendulum arm, said required angle is fetched from the data updated on the database server.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pendulum roller applies compressive force to manure to allow particles to pass through the sieve.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the LED screen connected to the moisture sensor displays moisture content to the user, so as to add binder into the granulation assembly based on moisture content of the manure.

4. A process of granulating manure using granulator assembly is as follows:
I. adding manure into an inlet portion of the granulator;
II. entering the manure feedstock into a square sieve/ mesh to filter large particles of manure;
III. passing the manure through the pair of roller;
IV. adding binder into the funnel mounted on the pair of rollers;
V. mixing the binder with the feedstock through the pair of rollers, to achieve fine grained particles;
VI. passing the mixed manure to pendulum roller;
VII. compressing the manure through the pendulum roller against the sieve to produce granules; and
VIII. receiving granules in a receiving unit, i.e. placed at outlet of the sieve.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, the method for measuring the distance and analysing the angle of oscillation comprises of following steps:

I. emitting sound from the transmitter using piezoelectric crystal;
II. receiving the sound through the receiver, installed near the transmitter, after sound travelled to and from the manure;
III. measuring the distance of the sound travelled, from the transmitter to the detected object and back to the receiver;
IV. notifying the user on obtaining the distance by blinking the pair of LED lights, so that the user may come to on reaching of the arm at desired angle i.e., 60 degrees on the either side hence making a total of 120-degree motion span.