Defibrated material manufacturing device, and sheet manufacturing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11028536-B2
Application number	US-202016871080-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 11, 2020
Priority date	Jul 31, 2017
Publication date	Jun 8, 2021
Grant date	Jun 8, 2021

Abstract

A sheet manufacturing apparatus includes a defibrator configured to produce defibrated material, a feedstock supply unit, a monitoring device, and a cleaning device. The feedstock supply unit includes a conveyance device configured to convey feedstock, a storage device configured to accumulate the feedstock conveyed from the conveyance device and supply the feedstock to the defibrator, and a measuring device configured to measure a state of the feedstock accumulated on the storage device. The monitoring device is configured to predict stopping of conveyance of the feedstock by the feedstock supply unit and activate the cleaning device when a conveyance speed of the feedstock by the feedstock supply unit becomes slower than during normal operation. The cleaning device is configured to execute on at least one of the conveyance device and the storage device a cleaning process that preemptively prevents the stopping of conveyance.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A defibrated material manufacturing device comprising:
a defibrator configured to defibrate feedstock containing fiber and produce defibrated material; and
a first feedstock supply unit and a second feedstock supply unit that are configured to supply the feedstock to the defibrator, each of the first feedstock supply unit and the second feedstock supply unit including
a conveyance device configured to convey the feedstock,
a storage device configured to accumulate the feedstock conveyed from the conveyance device and supply the feedstock to the defibrator, and
a measuring device configured to measure a weight of the feedstock accumulated on the storage device,

the first feedstock supply unit and the second feedstock supply unit alternately supplying the feedstock accumulated on each storage device to the defibrator, when the weight of the feedstock accumulated on the each storage device reaches a specific level.

2. The defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 1 , wherein
the feedstock includes recovered paper.

3. The defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 1 , further comprising
a monitoring device, and
a cleaning device,
the monitoring device being configured to predict stopping of conveyance of the feedstock by the first feedstock supply unit and the second feedstock supply unit and activate the cleaning device in response to a conveyance speed of the feedstock by the first feedstock supply unit and the second feedstock supply unit becoming slower than during normal operation, and
the cleaning device being configured to execute, on at least one of the conveyance device or the storage device, or both, a cleaning process that preemptively prevents the stopping of conveyance.

4. The defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 3 , wherein
the cleaning device has a nozzle configured to discharge a fluid, and
the cleaning device is configured to, as the cleaning process, discharge the fluid from the nozzle to at least one of the conveyance device or the storage device, or both.

5. The defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 3 , wherein
the measuring device is configured to measure the weight of the feedstock accumulated on the storage device, and a time until the weight of the feedstock reaches a specific amount, and
the monitoring device is configured to activate the cleaning device when the time exceeds a specific value.

6. The defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 3 , wherein
the measuring device is configured to measure a weight of feedstock newly accumulated on the storage device and time from when the feedstock is newly accumulated on the storage device, and
the monitoring device is configured to activate the cleaning device when the weight of feedstock newly accumulated on the storage device has not reached a specific value when the time has passed a specific time.

7. A sheet manufacturing apparatus comprising:
the defibrated material manufacturing device according to claim 1 .

8. The sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7 , further comprising:
a mixing device configured to mix the defibrated material supplied from the defibrated material manufacturing device with resin;
a web forming device configured to form a web from a mixture of the defibrated material and the resin; and
a sheet forming device configured to form a sheet by a process including at least one of compressing and heating the web.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Miyasaka Yoichi

Classifications

• Y02W30/64

  Paper recycling · CPC title

• D21B1/08

  the raw material being waste paper (chemical part D21C5/02); the raw material being rags · CPC title

• D04H1/425

  Cellulose series · CPC title

• D01G25/00

  Lap-forming devices not integral with machines specified above (forming mats or batts of continuous filaments for non-woven fabrics D04H) · CPC title

• D21B1/04

  by dividing raw materials into small particles, e.g. fibres (breaking-up or cutting wood or the like by dry methods B27L; mechanical separation of fibres from plant material D01B1/00; hackling or heckling machines D01B5/00) · CPC title