DESCRIPTION Technical field

The present invention relates to the field of damping devices and in particular it refers to a damping device with cavitating pump assigned to damp hides and various products. Background Art

Vaporizers fit to dampness of dried hides which are hanged up to a transport chain are known. Such dried hides are rigid as cardboards and hard to work and then they need to be softened by means of hot humid air travelling along a tunnel to work them.

The known vaporizers produce humidified air by means of a gas boiler vapour generator, and such vapour is introduced in the humidification chamber where the hides travel. A disadvantage of the known systems is given by the presence of the gas boiler, which presents excessive overall dimensions, which has to be periodically examined and which has to respect exact fire fighting rules, anti-explosion rules etc.

Another disadvantage of the known systems is given by the presence of a tank which contains at least 50 litres of water, which need to be regularly controlled and have to respect exact regulations.

Disclosure of Invention An aim of the present invention is to propose a damping device with cavitating pump with limited dimensions. Another aim of the present invention is to propose a safe device, which is efficient and which does not need controls and restrictions to prevent fires and bursts.

Another aim of the present invention is to propose a device which uses a water tank with limited dimensions and which is not subjected to controls as per regulation.

Another aim of the present invention is to propose a device having low operating and functioning costs. Documents EP 1310572 Al, EP 1690950 A2 and DE 23 25 118 Al disclose a device provided with the features of the preamble of claim 1.

Brief description of drawing The characteristics of the invention are underlined below with particular reference to the joined drawing in which:

Figure 1 shows a schematic view of the damping device with cavitating pump object of the present invention.

Best mode for carrying out the invention

With reference to figure 1, with 1 indicating the damping device with cavitating pump assigned to damp or in other word to humidify a material M, object of the present invention. In this document the term "cavitating pump" refers to a pump with hydrodynamic cavitation.

The material M can consist, for example, of bolts of hide or of other materials for various fields from food to clothes accessories, to tapestry and to saddlery. The device comprises a humidification chamber 2 assigned to contain the material M, for example hide, to soften by means of damping and heating, or semi-finished food products to rehydrate. Such materials M are placed in motion inside, along or through the humidification chamber 2 by means of a motorized conveyor for the materials M, for example such conveyor is of chain type equipped with hooks or pliers for bolts of hide or with small baskets hanged up or of belt conveyor type or of transport chains.

Into the humidification chamber 2 flows an adducting duct 4 which feeds such chamber 2 with air having temperature and humidity ranging into a predetermined range of values, which depend on the nature of the material and on the effect we want to obtain. Such values of temperature and humidity can be regulated in a predictive way or can be controlled in negative feedback by control means 20 described below.

The device 1 comprises a cavitating pump means 6 which is operated by its own motor and having an entrance fed by water which is heated by such cavitating pump 6 and which is provided to its own outlet.

A cavitating pump, for example as described in PATENT US 5,188,090, is a device assigned to heat fluids. Such cavitating pump is composed by a cylindrical rotor, which has irregular surfaces, which rotates at a very high speed into a cylinder which also has irregular surfaces, such rotation moves the fluid which is inside it. Such fluid clashes with the irregular surfaces of the cylindrical rotor increasing pressure and temperature. The device is efficient in a thermodynamic way and the augmentation of temperature compared to the energy consumption is such as to exploit such device to heat civil and industrial buildings.

A duct connects such outlet of the cavitating pump 6 to a separator tank 7 feeding it 7 with water heated by the cavitating pump 6 itself. Such duct connected to the outlet of the pump can be optionally equipped with pumping means, valves and/or bypasses towards the inlet for the control of the water flow.

The motor of the cavitating pump 6 is electric and can be remotely controlled in speed and power supplied or the power of such cavitating pump can be reduced by means of intermittent electric power feeding, appropriately controlled.

The separator tank 7 has a first outlet 8, which sucks in the lower portion of the tank the heated water and has a second outlet 9, which sucks in the upper portion or at the top of the tank the water vapour.

The first outlet 8 of the separator tank 7 is connected, by means of a duct, to a first pipe 10 of a heat exchanger 11. The second outlet 9 of the separator tank 7 is connected, by means of a duct, to the adducting duct 4 to feed it with said vapour.

The heat exchanger 11, which is of a liquid/gas type, has a second pipe 12 equipped with a respective inlet for the air which is heated by the water of the first pipe 10 and it 12 goes out from a respective outlet of the second pipe 12 from which the heated air is aspirated by an aspirator 14, of a motorized type, and such air is introduced by this latter 14 into the adducting duct 4 from which it flows into the humidification chamber.

The connection duct of the second outlet 9 for the water vapour to the adducting duct 4, flows into this latter 4 downstream of the aspirator 14 and upstream of the humidification chamber 2, moreover such duct is equipped with its own valve, preferably remotely controlled, to control the quantity of water vapour which is introduced into the humidification chamber 2.

The outlet of the first pipe 10 is connected, by means of a duct, to the entrance of the cavitating pump 6 carrying out a circular circuit of the heating water of the air which circulates through at least the cavitating pump 6, the separator tank 7 and the first pipe 10 of the heat exchanger 11 through the interposed connection ducts. Such circuit of the water can be connected by means of its own valve to a water source to restore the lost water quantities for example after rehydration of the material M which, when reached the desired value of humidity and/or flexibility, is extracted from the humidification chamber which, depending on the nature of the motorized conveyors, can be closed of a carousel type or of a tunnel type in which the materials cross it from a respective way in to a respective way out.

The connection ducts of the inlet and the outlet of the first pipe 10 of the heat exchanger 11 respectively of the first outlet 8 of the separator tank 7 and at the entrance of the cavitating pump 6, are placed in mutual flow connection from a bypass shunt pipe 16 of the first pipe 10 and controlled by a respective valve, preferably remotely controlled, to control the air heating.

The adducting duct 4 crosses all the humidification chamber 2 and flows in it 2 by means of a plurality of slits or passing openings obtained in its own 4 inner tract, internal to said chamber 2. The adducting duct 4 continues further on the humidification chamber 2 to then flows into an air collecting chamber 18 of the device 1 described below. The humidification chamber 2 is closed, can be closed or almost closed and it is equipped with an air outlet 17 connected to a portion of the adducting duct 4 which is placed immediately downstream of the humidification chamber 2.

The air collecting chamber 18 is of the closed type and contains at least the inlet and the outlet of the air of the second pipe 12 of the heat exchanger 11 and the suction mouth of the aspirator 14.

The portion of the adducting duct 4 placed downstream of the humidification chamber 2 flows into the air collecting chamber 18 realizing a circuit of the heating and damping air of the material M which involves at least the humidification chamber 2 and the air collecting chamber 18 and the adducting duct 4.

It must be noticed that the circularity of the water and the air allow to maximize the efficiency of the device 1.

The portion of the humidification chamber 2 placed immediately downstream of the outlet of the adducting duct 4 in the air collecting chamber 18 itself, has a filter means which intercepts the air flowing through the air collecting chamber 18 and which keeps the impurities carried by the air flow.

The device comprises a plurality of temperature and humidity sensor means placed at least in the humidification chamber 2; the sensor means can comprise also pressure sensors which can be associated, eventually together with other thermic sensors or other kind of sensors, with the heat exchanger 11, with the cavitating pump 6 and with other members of the device. The device 1 furthermore comprises control means 20 preferably of a digital microprocessor-based programmable type and equipped with input gates at least for the temperature signals, the humidity signals and eventually for the pressure signals provided by said sensors. The control means 20 are also equipped with control gates connected to the valve of the connection duct of the second outlet 9 to the adducting duct 4, to the valve of the shunt pipe 16, to the motor of the cavitating pump 6 of the motor of the motorized conveyor of the materials M, to the motor of the aspirator 14 and eventually to other active members of the device.

The control means 20 can therefore be provided with application programs for example for the coordinated management of the cavitating pump 6, of the aspirator 14 and of the motorized conveyor of the materials M to control and to optimize the values of temperature and humidity of the humidification chamber. It is also provided to equip the device with sensors or detectors of the status and condition of the materials, during the entrance, in the humidification chamber and/or during the exit from it, to control the device itself in function of the contingent conditions of the materials.

The operation of the device provides that inside the air collecting chamber 18 a cavitating pump 6, activated by an electric motor (known and not described), provides thermic energy to the water heating it and generating vapour, such heated water and such vapour are introduced in a separator tank 7, which is controlled by a set of valves which allow to manage the inner pressure and the transfer of the water or of the vapour to water and vapour ducts.

The water present in such separator tank 7, by means of a three-way valve (known and not illustrated), in introduced in the second pipe 12 which will heat the heat exchanger 11 which will heat an air flow, run by an aspirator 14.

A vapour manage valve will control the quantity of vapour which will be introduced in the air flow which by means of the adducting duct 4 will go into the humidification chamber to damp the material.

Such air flow will be sucked from another air outlet 17 which will bring such flow again in the air collecting chamber 18, passing through a filter (known and not described) which will filter such air flow recovered from possible impurities.

Downstream of the filter will be present temperature and humidity sensors (known and not described) which interact with the control means 20 which by means of the various application programs will control the operating of the cavitating pump 6 and of the valves present on the separator tank 7, so as to increase or reduce the temperature of the heat exchanger 11 and the quantity of vapour introduced in the adducting duct 4, so as to optimize temperature and humidity of the air which will go inside the humidification chamber and therefore the damping of the material to damp.