Continuous Cold Water Trichome Extraction System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for separating trichomes from cannabis plant flowers are inefficient and batch-based, requiring multiple filters and manual handling, which limits throughput and quality of trichome extraction.
Innovation Solution
A continuous process and system involving a hopper, a perforated drum submerged in cold water, and a series of filters with decreasing mesh sizes, where cannabis material is agitated and moved through the water to release trichomes, which are then filtered and separated from plant matter, allowing for automated and scalable processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If batch processing with multiple bag filters is used, then trichomes can be separated from cannabis plant material, but the process requires manual handling and has limited throughput
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a continuous flow extraction system where cannabis plant material is fed continuously through a hopper and processed through a single porous container in cold water. The system maintains continuous operation with automated feeding, processing, and collection mechanisms, eliminating the batch processing interruptions and manual handling required by traditional multi-filter methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the processing function into distinct automated components: a hopper for continuous material feeding, a porous container for extraction, cold water circulation system, and automated collection mechanism. This segmentation allows each component to perform its function continuously without manual intervention, resolving the contradiction between simplified device operation and high productivity.
2Manufacturing precision
If manual handling and multiple filters are used, then trichome separation can be achieved, but the quality and efficiency of extraction are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the critical parameter from room temperature to cold water temperature (below 70°F, preferably 32-50°F). This temperature change causes trichomes to become brittle and detach easily from plant material, significantly improving extraction quality. The continuous flow system maintains this cold temperature throughout the process, ensuring consistent high-quality extraction while processing large volumes efficiently.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces cold water as an intermediary medium between the plant material and the collection system. The cold water facilitates trichome detachment and serves as the transport medium that carries separated trichomes through the porous container and into collection containers. This intermediary enables both high-quality separation and continuous high-volume processing.
3Extent of automation
If a single porous container in cold water is used, then continuous automated processing is enabled, but the system must maintain precise temperature control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-chilling system where the cold water circulation naturally maintains the required low temperature through continuous flow and exposure to ambient cold conditions. The system design allows the cold water to self-regulate temperature without complex active cooling mechanisms, enabling automated processing while keeping temperature control requirements manageable through passive thermal management.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method enables efficient and continuous separation of trichomes from cannabis plant material, improving throughput and quality by using a controlled and automated process that maintains the integrity of trichomes and reduces manual handling, making it suitable for industrial-scale processing.
Implementation Method 1
Cold water causes the trichomes to become brittle and detach easily
Implementation Method 2
The water from the bath is substantially continuously filtered thereby separating the trichomes from the cold water
Data Source
AI summary
A method of separating trichomes from cannabis plant flowers that begins with delivering the cannabis plant material to a hopper and continuously moving the cannabis material from the hopper to a porous container in a bath of cold water, at a controllable rate, and moving the cannabis material contained in the porous container, through the cold bath from an entrance end, to an exit end, thereby removing trichomes, which exit the porous container into the cold water. The remaining cannabis plant material is moved out of the exit end of the bath, at substantially the same rate as the cannabis plant material enters the bath. Finally, the water from the bath is substantially continuously filtered thereby separating the trichomes from the cold water.