Lifting Facility Strut in Drying Furnace
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Solution Overview
Problem
Drying furnaces experience low thermal efficiency due to heat loss from the high-temperature zone, as existing lifting facilities require a slit for movement, allowing hot air to escape outside the furnace.
Innovation Solution
A lifting facility with a strut extended into the high-temperature zone to support the lifting apparatus, eliminating the need for a slit and incorporating a detector for the upper limit position and mechanical locking mechanisms to manage workpiece movement within the zone.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a lifting facility with external strut is used, then the lifting apparatus can be supported outside the drying booth, but air leakage occurs through the slit (clearance) causing heat loss
Solution Approach 1:
The strut is extended from the external support configuration into the high-temperature zone along the conveyance path, changing the spatial dimension of support. This allows the strut to be positioned where it does not interfere with the sealing of the drying booth, eliminating the need for slits while maintaining structural support for the lifting apparatus.
Solution Approach 2:
The extended strut acts as an intermediary element that transfers the support function from the external environment into the high-temperature zone. By positioning the strut within the drying furnace structure, it mediates between the lifting apparatus and the furnace body, enabling support without requiring external clearances that would compromise thermal efficiency.
2Loss of energy
If the conveyance path is located at a high position, then thermal efficiency improves by preventing hot air release, but the inclined part becomes longer upsizing the furnace
Solution Approach 1:
The lifting apparatus provides dynamic vertical movement capability, allowing the conveyance path to be positioned at a high level without requiring long fixed inclined sections. The workpieces are lifted vertically rather than transported through extended inclined passages, making the system adaptable to compact spatial arrangements while maintaining high-temperature zone effectiveness.
3Loss of energy
If the conveyance path is located at a high position, then hot air is retained in the furnace, but a lifting facility is required to raise and lower workpieces
Solution Approach 1:
The lifting apparatus serves multiple functions: it supports workpieces during conveyance, provides vertical movement between different elevation levels, and enables access to the high-temperature zone. By integrating these functions into a single mechanism positioned within the high-temperature zone, the system achieves thermal efficiency without excessive complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A lifting facility for a workpiece is provided in a drying furnace for drying the workpiece, and comprises: a drop lift that conveys the workpiece so as to raise and lower the workpiece between one of a carrying-in position at which the workpiece is carried in the drying furnace and a carrying-out position at which the workpiece is carried out from the drying furnace and a high-temperature zone which is formed above the carrying-in position and the carrying-out position and in which the workpiece is dried; and a strut that supports the drop lift so as to raise and lower the drop lift. The strut is extended to the high-temperature zone in the drying furnace.