US 12,076,836 B2
Rotary crusher and feeder for ice blasting system
Kristjan Gottfried, Port Alberni (CA)
Assigned to Coulson Ice Blast Ltd., Port Alberni (CA)
Appl. No. 17/442,008
Filed by Coulson Ice Blast Ltd., Port Alberni (CA)
PCT Filed Mar. 23, 2020, PCT No. PCT/CA2020/050381
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 22, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/191487, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 1, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/822,819, filed on Mar. 23, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0176516 A1, Jun. 9, 2022
Int. Cl. B24C 1/00 (2006.01); B24C 3/06 (2006.01); B24C 7/00 (2006.01)
CPC B24C 1/003 (2013.01) [B24C 3/06 (2013.01); B24C 7/0092 (2013.01)] 8 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An ice blasting system comprising:
a hopper to receive bulk ice;
a V-shaped crusher having crushing teeth to crush the bulk ice to make crushed ice;
a rotary feeder mechanism disposed below the hopper, the rotary feeder mechanism having a rotor that includes ice-receiving pockets for receiving the crushed ice, wherein the rotor rotates against an airtight seal block and delivers the crushed ice into a high-pressure airstream passing through the rotary feeder mechanism to thereby entrain the crushed ice into the high-pressure airstream, the ice-entrained airstream subsequently exiting the ice blasting system through an outlet;
a hopper agitation system to facilitate entry of the crushed ice into the ice-receiving pockets, wherein the hopper agitation system comprises a mechanism to displace the hopper relative to a frame of the ice blasting system to jostle the crushed ice in the hopper; and
a comb-block attached to an ice piston to push the crushed ice into the ice-receiving pockets, wherein the ice-receiving pockets are holes spaced in a spiral pattern, the holes having circular tops and oval bottoms to maximize a volume flow rate per revolution.