Vehicle mounted concrete mixer having a noise-less, light-weight, non-chargeable electric drive

Abstract

"Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixer having a Noise-less, Light- weight, non-chargeable Electric Drive." is characterized by- a Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixing & Transporting Equipment (1) having a Mixer (2) for Mixing and Transporting Concrete, and a water Tank (3), wherein the equipment (1) is adapted to be operated electrically through an electric motor (4) by means of electric power generated by a battery (5) comprising of a plurality of inter-connected metal–air electrochemical cells (6) which use an anode (7) made from a pure metal or metal alloy and an external cathode (8) of ambient air or oxygen, typically with a compatible electrolyte (9) wherein the electrical energy is generated as a reduction reaction occurs in the ambient air cathode (8) while the metal anode (7) is oxidized.

Description

[0001]TITLE: Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixer having a Noise-less, Light-weight, non-chargeable Electric Drive. TECHNICAL FIELD: The present invention relates to a Concrete Transporting as well as Concrete producing Equipment which are installed on mobile Vehicles. To be very precise, the above-said invention specifically relates to a Vehicle-mounted or Truck-Mounted Concrete Equipment specifically comprising a concrete Mixer for production or transportation of concrete and a water Tank. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION: In recent years the Ready-Mix Concrete industry has expanded and a number of commercial ready-mix plants have become operational. The present RMC system has stationary RMC plants called central plants installed at specific locations and Wet Concrete produced by these plants is transported over a considerable distance by means of transit mixer trucks having rotating drums. This present system of WET concrete transport was invented almost 100 years back and is associated with many INHERENT problems and limitations. A few of them include very High noise pollution, air pollution, Carbon pollution & diesel wastage, water & material wastages, etc. To overcome many of these limitations Truck-mounted or Vehicle Mounted fully automatic equipment have been invented. The invention disclosed by our granted Indian patent No. 287080 is a “Weight Based Concrete Production & Transportation Vehicle” which is operated by electric or hydraulic power generated by the PTO of the Vehicle on which it is installed. Our other granted Indian patent No. 327661 discloses a “Highly Compact truck mounted compact batching & mixing plant with a Novel WCMD Device”. Our other granted Indian Patent 395657 discloses a Mobile Concrete Mixer having a VWT batching. Our one more granted Indian Patent 327080 discloses a SCMD Transit Mixer which is a Vehicle Mounted Concrete Transit Mixer having Stationary Mixing Drum and weighing mechanism. All the above granted Indian patents constitute the first PRIOR ART. Kindly refer to the Fig. No. 1 on the sheet No. 1. Which shows a Vehicle-Mounted Concrete Production plant which can transport as well as produce concrete. Similarly outside India, Various makes and designs of volumetric & gravimetric concrete mixers having continuous mixers have been invented which also work on the power output taken from the truck PTO and alternatively use dedicated slave engines when Truck engine drive is not economical. These Volumetric & Gravimetric concrete mixers which are used for concrete production & transportation constitute the second Prior art. Kindly refer to the Fig No. 2 on sheet No. 2 showing a volumetric Concrete Mixer installed on a vehicle. The Conventional Concrete Transit Mixers having rotating drums for transporting wet mixed Concrete are a common sight. Please refer to the Fig. No. 3 on sheet No.3 which shows a conventional vehicle mounted Concrete Transit Mixer having a Rotating Drum Mixer (1), Water Tank (2) and a dedicated slave engine (3) and diesel tank (D). The Conventional Transit Concrete Mixers have a huge issue and un- resolved problem of very high carbon emissions caused by the slave or dedicated diesel engines used to operate the Drum. The issues related to Noise pollution and very high carbon emissions due to the high power dedicated slave engines which operate on fossil fuels and at rpms between 1700 to 2300 becomes very critical especially in case of the Concrete Transit Mixers having rotating drums due to a very large number of equipment in operation inside the cities and close to urban areas. It becomes very critical due to the following very important points: 1. The rotating drum Mixers need to be continuously rotated during loaded transit to keep the wet concrete ALIVE. 2. The slave engines need huge amount of torque to mix and discharge high quantities of concrete and hence the slave engines need huge power. For example the dedicated slave engine for a standard 6 cubic meter concrete mixer drum is a 4 cylinder diesel engine developing 49 Kw of power at 2300 rpm. 3. The biggest problem in India as on date is that though the vehicle is having a BS-6 Automotive Chassis, the Concrete Mixers have BS-3 or BS-4 engines having high Noise and Carbon Emissions because the Concrete Mixers have been classified as construction equipment and not automotive vehicles. In the view of the above the Concrete Transit Mixers having rotating drum Mixers as shown in the Fig. No.3 on sheet No.3 constitute the Third Prior Art. TECHNICAL PROBLEM OR LIMITATIONS OF PRIOR ARTS: Many efforts have been made in the recent past to eliminate the following issues associated with all the above equipment which either produce or transport concrete- 1. To eliminate the Very High Noise Pollution specifically due to the dedicated slave diesel engines. 2. To eliminate the very high carbon Emissions caused by the dedicated slave engines. We will refer to one of the closest efforts, in order to clearly bring out the Novelty and inventive step of the present Invention in detail- Document EP 2807007B2: The document EP 2807007B2 discloses a Concrete Transit Mixer having a rotating drum Mixer, installed on a vehicle wherein- (i) The said Concrete Mixer is operated by means of a re-chargeable battery (accumulator 40) eliminating the dedicated slave engine. (ii) Wherein an alternator (35) connected to the heat engine of vehicle charges the battery through a mechanical arrangement. (iii) The said battery (40) can be selectively re-charged by means of the alternator (35) from the vehicle heat engine as well as an external source of power and also through recovery of Kinetic / mechanical energy. However the equipment as disclosed by the said document EP2807007B2 has the following serious problems or serious Limitations: a. The Document EP 2807007B2 discloses a re-chargeable battery or an electric energy accumulator (40) which needs charging by one or the other method as claimed by the said document. b. When the accumulator (40) representing the battery is charged by alternator (35) taking power from the heat engine of the vehicle, a considerable amount of power which is generated by burning fuels is consumed in charging the high capacity accumulators (40) due to very high required charging power. c. The most common re-chargeable batteries available today are Lithium Ion Batteries or batteries having similar construction which need considerable amount of input charging power & Time for re-charging if the batteries are discharged. d. The Biggest problem associated with the re-chargeable batteries as disclosed by Document EP2807007B2 is the weight per KWH. These batteries have huge weight making the equipment very heavy which results into unnecessary power loss. For example a Lithium Ion Re-chargeable battery of 100 KWH capacity may weigh between 400 to 600 kg. Since the Concrete Mixing and Concrete Transport are highly energy intensive activities, such a high battery weight results into a Huge dead weight resulting in unnecessary power consumption as these equipment are mobile Equipment. Therefore the present invention is disclosed in order to overcome all the above issues associated with the Concrete Production and Transportation activities. OBJECT OF INVENTION & SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM: As mentioned above, the primary objective of the present invention is- a. To eliminate the Huge Noise associated with the activities of all the above mentioned Concrete Producing & Transporting Equipment by eliminating the dedicated slave engine which is pre-dominantly used for operation of the equipment installed on the vehicle. b. To eliminate any power consumption from the vehicle engine for the purpose of charging the batteries. c. To completely eliminate any use of the power from vehicle engine to operate or drive the said concrete production or transport equipment. d. To have a non-rechargeable means to provide SILENT Noiseless clean electric power for operation of the rear equipment. e. To significantly reduce the dead weight of the battery system so as to eliminate any un-necessary power loss in moving the dead weight. f. To completely eliminate the charging need and TIME associated with charging. g. To have a Noiseless, environment friendly light-weight electric drive for the high power intensive activities of concrete production and transportation applicable to any type of concrete producing & transporting equipment. Another important objective is to eliminate the GHG pollution, Particulate matter pollution & Noise pollution happening due to the High power diesel engine of the construction vehicle used for production or transportation of concrete in the “URBAN Residential Areas” while supplying or producing fresh mixed wet concrete. SUMMARY & DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION: “Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixer having a Noise-less, Light- weight, non-chargeable Electric Drive.” is characterized by- A Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixing & Transporting Equipment (1) having at-least one Mixer (2) for Mixing and Transporting Concrete, and at-least one water Tank (3), wherein the equipment (1) is adapted to be operated electrically through an electric motor (4) by means of electric power generated by a battery (5) comprising of a plurality of inter-connected metal–air electrochemical cells (6) which use an anode (7) made from a pure metal or metal alloy and an external cathode (8) of ambient air or oxygen, typically with a compatible electrolyte (9) wherein the electrical energy is generated as a reduction reaction occurs in the ambient air cathode (8) while the metal anode (7) is oxidized. Theory behind the Invention: Metal-air batteries theoretically possess much higher specific energy than Li-ion batteries. Metal-air batteries are a set of interconnected electrochemical cells which use a variety of metals or metal alloys as fuel. A simple metal-air battery contains a metal anode (7), an air cathode (8) which is open to air and a suitable electrolyte (9). It is important to note here that the Lithium Ion battery as disclosed by the prior art document is a secondary battery which can be recharged however the metal Air battery as disclosed above is a primary battery wherein the metal is consumed while generating electricity and the metal anode (7) and electrolyte (9) can be simply replaced once fully consumed. A variety of materials can be used as anode (7), cathode (8) and electrolyte (9). When the anode (7) material is consumed, different by- products are formed depending upon the metal and the electrolyte used. The recycling or commercial use of by-products is techno- commercially important so as to have the lowest possible running cost. The most techno-commercially suitable anode material is Aluminium or Aluminium alloy. Aluminium is the third most abundant element in earth’s crust after Oxygen and Silicon while its extraction and processing industry is well established in India. A no. of additional components such as but not limited to voltage regulators, stabilizers, safety devices, meters, operating panels, etc are used but not specifically mentioned in this application for simplicity and clarity. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS: 1. The fig. No. 1 on sheet No. 1 discloses a Mobile Concrete Production Plant (1) installed on a vehicle chassis (v) having at- least one Mixer (2), at least one water tank (3) described as the Prior Art No.1. 2. The fig No.2 on sheet No.2 discloses the Prior Art No.2 which is a vehicle (v) mounted Volumetric Concrete Mixer having a continuous Mixer (2) and a water tank (3). 3. The fig No. 3 on sheet No. 3 discloses the conventional Transit Concrete Mixer installed on a vehicle (V) and having a rotating Mixer Drum (1) and a water tank (2) wherein it is powered by a dedicated slave engine (3) separate from the vehicle engine and diesel Tank (D). 4. The fig. No. 4 on sheet No. 4 discloses the most preferred embodiment of the present invention in its schematic diagram and working diagram as disclosed. 5. The fig no.5 on sheet No.5 shows the working schematic of the most preferred embodiment for further elaboration. DETAILED DISCRIPTION & BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION: Though many embodies of the invention can be made and used commercially, without limiting the scope of the invention, the most preferred embodiment is as shown in the Fig. No.4 on the sheet no.4. As shown in the Fig. 4 on sheet No.4, a vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixing & Transporting Equipment (1) is having a Mixer (2) for Mixing and Transporting Concrete, and a water Tank (3), wherein the equipment (1) is adapted to be operated electrically through an electric motor (4). It is very important to note here that the electric Motor (4) is an electric prime mover to which a plurality of hydraulic pumps (H) can be attached. The said electric Motor (4) is adapted to operate by means of electric power generated by a primary metal-air battery (5) comprising of a plurality of inter-connected metal–air electrochemical cells (6). For simplicity just one electrochemical cell is shown for easy understanding. The electrochemical cell (6) uses an anode (7) made from a pure metal or metal alloy and an external cathode (8) of ambient air or oxygen, typically with a compatible electrolyte (9) wherein the electrical energy is generated as a reduction reaction occurs in the ambient air cathode (8) while the metal anode (7) is oxidized. Kindly refer to the fig. No.5 on sheet No.5 which shows the schematic working of the best mode of carrying out the invention. Working: The basic structure of primary Al–air battery is composed of an aluminium anode (7), an air Or oxygen cathode (8) and an appropriate electrolyte; the general electrolytes which can be used for primary Al– air batteries are aqueous solutions of sodium hydroxide (NaOH), potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium chloride (NaCl), in which electrochemical reactions in alkaline electrolytes at the electrodes can be expressed as follows: At Anode: Al→Al3++3e− At Cathode: O2+2H2O +4e−→4OH− Overall: 4Al +3O2+6H2O →4Al(OH)3. Thus aluminum metal is consumed to generate electricity and the by- product of the reaction is retrieved and recycled for maximum benefit. There are many complex issues related to the choice of cathode (8) materials and electrolyte (9) materials in order to have certain advantages and overcome certain challenges which are not the subject of this application and hence not discussed in details in the interest of simplicity and clarity. The air cathode (8) materials are categorized based on the material type into the following: carbon materials, transition metals and metal oxides, noble metals, perovskites and spinel oxides, metal–organic frameworks and their derivatives, pyrochlore oxides, and other cathode materials. The electrolyte (9) materials include such as but not limited to aqueous solutions, organic solvents, ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents. As it is evident from the above description and working, the said battery (5) can operate a plurality of electric prime movers (4) in specific embodiments such as the Prior art No.1. As shown in the fig. No.4 on sheet No.4, the battery (5) is adapted to produce electric energy at the cost of aluminum anode (7) and the electrolyte (9) and both of them can be replenished when the anode is totally consumed without any need of power to charge. The by- products are retrieved and are recycled for maximum environmental and commercial benefit. As shown in the fig no.4 on sheet no.4, the electric motor (4) is adapted to operate the mixer motor (M), water pump motor etc through a hydraulic pump (H) and a hydrostatic drive. Alternatively the said motor (4) can directly drive the load. The fig. No. 5 on sheet No. 5 discloses the schematic of the most preferred embodiment of present invention. TECHNO-COMMERCIAL SIGNIFICANCE: The present invention as disclosed reduces the city air pollution by huge margin by completely eliminating the burning of fossil fuels inside the city atmosphere for production and transportation of concrete. The present invention is ideal and result in a new set of completely new techno-commercial advantages not available in prior arts due to the following basic reasons: a. Vehicle mounted concrete mixers operate in a particular area and ultimately return to a fixed loading station at the end of the work in the same city on daily basis unlike the transport vehicles which may be travelling all over the country as and when needed. b. Since the vehicle mounted concrete mixers come back to a fixed loading station every single day, it is possible to maintain a stock of electrolyte and metal (aluminum) at the said fixed location and can easily be replenished when exhausted. c. As the Vehicle mounted concrete mixers are used in fleets, belonging to same owner, it results in a very big advantage in terms of electrolyte and metal handling. d. As the Vehicle mounted concrete mixers operate in a fixed radius and come back to a fixed loading station every single day, the by- products of the battery such as the exhausted electrolyte can be mass collected from a single location resulting in huge techno- commercial advantage. Because of the above said reasons, the invention as disclosed by the present application results in a completely new set of techno- commercial advantages which cannot be derived from the available and earlier prior arts. Reference Numerals No.DescriptionNo.Description 1 Vehicle mounted concrete Mixer 6 Individual cell 2 Mixer 7 Metal Anode 3 Water Tank8Air / Oxygen Cathode 4 Electric Motor9Electrolyte 5 Battery assembly H Hydraulic pump (s) V VehicleMMixer-Motor

Claims

AMENDED CLAIMS received by the International Bureau on 18 January 2025 (18.01.2025)

1. : [Amended]1. “Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixer having a Noise-less, Lightio weight, non-chargeable Electric Drive.” is characterized by- A Vehicle Mounted Concrete Mixing & Transporting Equipment (1) having at-least one Mixer (2) for Mixing and Transporting Concrete, and at-least one water Tank (3), wherein the equipment (1) is adapted to be operated electrically through an electric motor15 (4) by means of electric power generated by a battery (5) which is electrically non-chargeable.253013AMENDED SHEET (ARTICLE 19)

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