FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENTS RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (See section 10, rule 13)
1. Title of the invention: RAW MATERIAL PROCESSING SYSTEM
2. Applicant(s)
NAME NATIONALITY ADDRESS
CEAT LIMITED Indian RPG HOUSE, 463, Dr. Annie Besant Road, Worli, Mumbai -Maharashtra 400030, India
3. Preamble to the description
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it
is to be performed.

BACKGROUND
[0001] Tire is used for providing traction to a vehicle, such as
bicycles, motorcycles, cars, busses, trucks, and so forth. Rubber is one of the main raw materials used in manufacturing of tires. As such, both natural and synthetic rubber are used as raw materials in tire manufacturing. Other raw materials are also used in the manufacturing process and may include, for example, carbon black, sulfur, etc., among other chemicals. Specific chemicals may be mixed with rubber to produce specific tire characteristics within the rubber during the manufacturing process. As may be understood, in order to produce a rubber compound with desired properties, the raw materials should be mixed together accurately, and this may be achieved when the raw materials are in pellet or granular form.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES
[0002] The detailed description is provided with reference to the
accompanying figures, wherein:
[0003] FIG. 1 illustrates a die for implementing the raw material
extruding process during raw material processing, as per an implementation of the present subject matter; and
[0004] FIG. 2 illustrates a granule production system for processing
raw material into smaller granules, as per an implementation of the present subject matter.
[0005] Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers
designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements. The figures are not necessarily to scale, and the size of some parts may be exaggerated to more clearly illustrate the example shown. Moreover, the drawings provide examples and/or implementations consistent with the description; however, the description is not limited to the examples and/or implementations provided in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0006] In order to ensure production of rubber compound with desired
characteristics such as hardness, rebound resilience, tensile strength, tear strength etc., among other characteristics, it becomes essential to ensure that raw rubber material is mixed with other essential chemicals and compounds in a uniform manner. As may be understood, if the various chemical and compounds are not mixed in a uniform manner, it may result in the processed rubber compound ending up with undesired characteristics such as resistance to aging, polarity, adhesion to other materials, linkage of anti-degradants etc., among other characteristics.
[0007] Conventionally, during the tire manufacturing process, rubber
in its raw form is fed into a mixing assembly along with other chemicals and components to form a rubber compound with desired characteristics. As may be understood, raw rubber for tire manufacturing is generally procured from various parts of the world in the form of granules or pellets. However, this procurement of rubber material usually involves extended shipping duration during which the rubber granules coalesces together to form lumps. It is pertinent to note that, this coalescing takes place. Once the raw rubber material reaches a tire manufacturing site, the raw rubber material is to be mixed with other raw materials in a mixer assembly to form the desired rubber compound for manufacturing of tires.
[0008] However, the mixer assembly is generally designed in such a
manner that it can only receive raw materials in granular form. In particular, in the mixer assembly, gravimetric feeders are generally used for feeding the raw materials inside the mixer. Such gravimetric feeders are designed considering the granule size of the rubber material. This design of the mixer assembly is essential for providing better accuracy in mixing and, hence producing a desired output, i.e., a rubber compound with desired properties and characteristics. Therefore, the raw rubber material in the form of lump (referred hereafter as rubber lump) needs to be converted to a granule or pellet form in order to enable accurate mixing of the rubber material with

other raw materials within the mixer assembly. For example, a size of a desired rubber granule may be in a range of 10 mm to 18 mm.
[0009] In certain situations, the rubber lump may be softened and
reprocessed to convert the rubber lump into granules. However, such re-processing of the rubber lump may alter certain properties of the rubber which may be unwanted for manufacturing of tires. Moreover, the softened rubber may then have to be cooled and dusted with anti-sticking agents, thereby requiring additional time before the re-processed rubber may be used. Such an increase in the amount of time before the re-processed rubber material is ready for use is not desired. Furthermore, the re¬processing of rubber lump into smaller granules may lead to unnecessary waste of the rubber material. In other words, 100% of the rubber material in the rubber lump may not be converted to the rubber granules during the re¬processing of the rubber lump. This may increase cost of production due to such waste of raw material.
[0010] To this end, approaches for converting a raw material lump
such as but not limited to a rubber lump, into granules or pellets are provided by the present subject matter. In one example, a container may be coupled to a feeding mechanism. This feeding mechanism may be responsible for receiving raw material such as rubber. In an example, rubber lumps may be placed into the feeding mechanism by heavy machinery such as hydraulic cranes. The feeding mechanism may also be responsible for transferring the raw material inside the container.
[0011] Returning to the present example, a first end of the container
may be coupled to an extruding mechanism while the other end of the container may be coupled to a die. In one example, the die may include a plurality of openings of a desired size. In another example, the extruding mechanism may include a pressure plate coupled to a piston. Once, the piston within the extruding mechanism is activated, it may apply compressive force through the pressure plate in a direction along its movement towards the second end of the container. This movement will

results in the material being pushed as a result of the compressive force through the die present at the second end of the container. That is, due to the presence of the internal compressive force, the raw material may be extruded out of the first end of the die present on the second end of the container.
[0012] In another example, a cutting mechanism may be present
adjacent to the second end of the die for cutting the raw material extruding through the second end of the die with a predetermined cutting rate. In an example, the cutting mechanism may further include a cutting unit and a control unit. In one example, the cutting unit may include a rotating blade for cutting the raw material. In another example, the control unit may determine the predetermined cutting rate. In yet another example, the control unit may determine the predetermined cutting rate based on the compressive force being applied by the extruding mechanism.
[0013] Further, it may be noted that, although the present description
has been described with respect to converting rubber lumps into granules, such example is only illustrative and should not be construed to limit the scope of the present subject matter. Any number of multiple materials may be converted to smaller granules or pellets without deviating from the scope of the present subject matter
[0014] As would be appreciated, the approaches provided by the
present subject matter provides a system for converting the rubber lumps into smaller granules. As may be understood, by extruding rubber compound through the die and cutting it with the provided cutting mechanism at predetermined cutting rate enables the system to produce rubber granules of a desired size and at a desired rate. This approach avoids reprocessing the raw material thus, allowing the conversion of the rubber lump into pellets or granules without changing its chemical properties. Further, the present approach avoids wastage of time and raw material that may occur due to reprocessing. Furthermore, in yet another advantage of the present subject matter, by adjusting the predetermined

cutting rate of the cutting mechanism, the size of the granules can be easily configured according to the desired requirements.
[0015] These, and other aspects, are described herein with reference
to the accompanying FIGS. 1 and 2. It should be noted that the description and figures relate to certain examples and should not be construed as a limitation to the present subject matter. It is also to be understood that various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present subject matter. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present subject matter, as well as specific examples, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0016] FIG. 1 depicts an example of a die 100 for implementing the
raw material extruding process during raw material processing. As may be understood, although the die 100 being depicted in Fig. 1 is circular in shape, this is not a limitation and other die 100 shapes such as but not limited to a square, a rectangle, an oval, etc., among other possible shapes may also be used to implement the die 100. As depicted by Fig. 1, the die 100 comprises a plurality of openings 102. In an example, these openings 100 may be in circular shape as well. However, the shape of the openings is not limited to a circular shape and these openings 100 may be implemented using other shapes such as but not limited to a square, a rectangle, an oval etc., among other possible shapes.
[0017] Returning to the present example, each these openings 102
within the die 100 may be located at a predetermined distance from each other. In an example, the predetermined distance between the openings 102 may be determined based on the raw material being processed. Various characteristics of the raw material being processed may be considered while determining the distance between the openings 102 within the die 100. In an example, when the raw material is rubber its physical property known as tackiness may be considered while determining the distance between the plurality of openings 102 within the die 100. As may

be understood, if the openings 102 within the die 100 are placed very close to each other then there is a possibility that the rubber granules being produced by the system may stick together and thus, defeating the purpose of the granule production process. In another example, if the openings 102 are spaced far apart from each other then the overall efficiency of the system will be reduced significantly. Therefore, it is essential to space the plurality of openings 102 within the die 100 at a predetermined distance such that the granules being produced don’t coalesce together and form lumps again while also being highly efficient while processing the raw material. As would be appreciated, different raw materials would correspond to different distances between the plurality of openings 102 based on their own distinct characteristics.
[0018] In yet another example, the dimensions or size of the
openings 102 may be related to a desired dimension of the granule. In one example, the desired dimensions for rubber granules required for use in mixer assembly may be 10 mm to 18 mm, therefore the dimensions, i.e., the diameter of the circular openings should be 10 mm to 18 mm. Returning to the present example, various dimensions may be selected as desired for the granule production process. The following description will now explain how the present die 100 as explained in conjunction with FIG. 1 is used for the purposes of processing raw material to produce granules or pellets within a granule production system as described by FIG. 2.
[0019] To that end, FIG. 2 describes an example of a granule
production system for processing raw material into smaller granules, as per an implementation of the present subject matter. The granule production system 200 (hereafter, referred to as “system 200”) may include a feeding mechanism 202 for feeding measured portions of raw material 210 to the system 200. In an example, the feeding mechanism may be implemented using a feed hopper or a gravimetric feeder (not shown here for the sake of brevity). The raw material 210 may be placed inside the feed hopper with the help of heavy machinery such as but not limited to hydraulic crains. In

an example, a predefined quantity of the raw material such as a rubber lump to be processed may be placed inside the system 200 for processing into granules 218 with the help of the feeding mechanism 202. In another example, in case of a gravimetric feeder, the feeding mechanism 202 may be coupled to the container 204 from a top end so as to allow the raw material 210 to move inside the container 204 using gravity. In an example, a predefined quantity of raw material 210 may me retained and stored in the container 204. In one example, the container 204 may be implemented using a barrel. Here, it is pertinent to note that although the container 204 as depicted by Fig. 2 is cylindrical in shape, the same should not be construed to limit the scope of the present subject matter. Other shapes such as but not limited to cubical, cuboidal, etc., among other possible shapes may also be used to implement the container 204 without deviating from the scope of the present subject matter.
[0020] Further, a first end of the container 204 may be engageable
with an extruding mechanism 206. In an example, the extruding mechanism 206 may include a piston coupled with a pressure plate. As per one example, the piston may be implemented with a hydraulic piston. The extruding mechanism 206 may apply compressive force from the first end on the raw material 210 present inside the container 204 in the direction along its movement towards the second end of the container 204. In one example, the hydraulic piston may move the pressure plate towards the second end of the container 204, thereby applying compressive force on the raw material 210 present within the container 204. This compressive force may in turn push the raw material 210 towards a second end of the container 204. In an example, a die 100 may be affixed at the second end of the container 204. Returning to the present example, as the raw material 210 is pushed towards the second end of the container 204, it starts to extrude outwards from the plurality of openings 102 within the die 100. In an example, the compressive force being applied by the pressure plate of the extruding mechanism 206 on the raw material 210 may be determined

based on a variety of parameters that will be discussed later in the present disclosure.
[0021] The system 200 may also include a cutting mechanism 208,
wherein the cutting mechanism 208 may be present adjacent to the second end of the die 100. The cutting mechanism 208 may further include a cutting unit 212. In an example, the cutting unit 212 may be responsible for cutting the raw material 210 being extruded through the second end of the die 100 due to the compressive force being applied by the pressure plate of the extruding mechanism 206 at a predetermined cutting rate. In one example, the cutting unit 212 may include an axial shaft having transversally extending blades from outer side of the axial shaft, wherein the axial shaft rotates causing revolution of blades near the second of the die 100. Other types of blades may also be used to implement the cutting action being performed by the cutting unit 212 without deviating from the scope of the present disclosure.
[0022] The cutting mechanism 208 may further include a control unit
214 that may be responsible for controlling the operation of the overall system 200. In an example, the control unit 214 may adjust the cutting rate of the cutting unit 212 in a manner such that the cutting rate is proportional to the compressive force applied by the pressure plate of the extruding mechanism 206 on the raw material 210. In another example, the compressive force being applied by the extruding mechanism 206 may also be varied in accordance with the cutting rate of the cutting unit 212 by the control unit 214. As may be understood, this aspect of the present subject matter ensures that the granules 218 being produced by the system 200 are consistent in nature. Further, the control unit 214 allows the size of the granules 218 to be varied as desired by varying the cutting rate of the cutting unit 212. In yet another example, the control unit 214 may control the feeding mechanism 202 to control the feeding rate of the raw material 210 moving inside the container 204 such that it is proportional to the cutting rate of the cutting unit 212 of the cutting mechanism 208. It should be noted

that once all of the raw material 210 is extruded out of the die 100, the piston within the extruding mechanism 206 may retreat the pressure plate back to an initial state then, the feeding mechanism 202 may begin to move more raw material 210 inside the container 204 at a feeding rate determined by the control unit 214. This allows the system 200 to operate continuously without clogging or overflowing the container 204 or die 100 with excess raw material 210.
[0023] Further, the system 200 may also include a conveyor unit 216
for receiving the granules 218 that are being produced by the cutting mechanism 208 and transport them towards either a storage unit 220 or a mixing assembly (not shown here for the sake of brevity). In an example, the conveyor unit 216 may be implemented using a conveyor belt that may be attached to a motor. In an example, the motor of the conveyor unit 216 may operate at a predetermined speed. The speed of the conveyor unit 216 may be controlled by the control unit 214. In an example, the speed of the conveyor unit 216 may be proportional with the cutting rate of the cutting mechanism 212. It should be noted, by varying the speed of the conveyor unit 216 on the basis of the cutting rate, the granules 218 being produced by the system 200 are prevented from sticking together or forming lumps again on the conveyor belt itself. As would be understood, if the speed of the conveyor belt is slow then the granules being produced by the cutting mechanism 208 may fall on top of each other and lump together, leading to an undesirable outcome. Thus, by ensuring that the cutting rate is proportional to the speed of the conveyor unit 216 such an outcome may be avoided.
[0024] Although examples for the present disclosure have been
described in language specific to structural features and/or methods, it should be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed and explained as examples of the present disclosure.

I/We Claim:
1. A granule production system (200) comprising:
a container (204) to retain and store a predefined quantity of raw
material (210) having a first end and a second end;
a die (100) having a first end and a second end, affixed at the second
end of the container (204);
an extruding mechanism (206) engageable with the first end of the
container (204), wherein the extruding mechanism (202) is to:
apply compressive force on the raw material (210) present inside the container (204) from the first end of the container (204) to cause the raw material (210) to extrude though the first end of the die (100) present at the second end of the container (204), wherein the raw material (210) extrudes out of the second end of the die (100); a cutting mechanism (208) present adjacent to the second end of the
die (100), wherein the cutting mechanism (208) comprises:
a control unit (214) coupled to the cutting mechanism (208) wherein the control unit (214) is to control the cutting mechanism (208) to cut the raw material (210) being extruded from the second end of the die (100) at a rate which is proportional to the compressive force applied by the extruding mechanism (206).
2. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the die (100) comprises a plurality of openings (102), wherein the plurality of openings (102) are located at a predetermined distance from each other.
3. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the granule production system (200) further comprises: a feeding mechanism (202) coupled to the container (204), wherein the feeding mechanism is to:
receive raw material (210) and transfer it inside the container (204).

4. The system (200) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the feeding mechanism (202) comprises a feed hopper for feeding the predefined quantity of raw material (210) inside the container (204).
5. The system (200) as claimed in claim 3, wherein the feeding rate of the raw material (210) inside the container (204) by the feeding mechanism (202) is proportional to the cutting rate of the cutting mechanism (208).
6. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the extruding mechanism (206) comprises a pressure plate coupled to a piston for applying compressive force on the raw material (210).
7. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cutting mechanism (208) further comprises a cutting unit (212), wherein the cutting unit (212) is to:
cut the raw material (210) extruding through the second end of the die (202) with the predetermined cutting rate.
8. The system (200) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cutting unit (212) comprises an axial shaft having transversally extending blades from outer side of the axial shaft, wherein the axial shaft rotates causing revolution of blades near the second of the die (100).
9. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the granule production system (200) further comprises: a conveyor unit (216), wherein the conveyor unit (216) is to:
receive granules (218) produced by the cutting mechanism (208);
continuously convey the granules (218) to one of a mixing assembly and a storage unit (220) at a predetermined speed, wherein the speed of the conveyor unit (216) is proportional to the cutting rate of the cutting mechanism (208).

10. The system (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cutting unit (208)
adjusts the cutting rate to produce granules (218) of different sizes.