Continuous Feed Trommel Trimmer with Nylon Mesh
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional trimmer and separator machines for plant material are expensive, aggressive in processing, require frequent maintenance, and operate in batch fashion, leading to contamination and inefficiencies in trimming and separating processes.
Innovation Solution
A continuous feed multi-purpose plant/flower trimmer and separator machine using a trommel barrel assembly with adjustable baffles and nylon mesh netting for gentle trimming and separation, eliminating the need for cutting reels and blades, and allowing for continuous processing without batch unloading.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional bladed trimmer machines are used, then trimming and separation can be achieved, but the processing becomes overly aggressive causing damage to plant material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the cutting blades and metallic cylinder components from the trimming system. Instead of using aggressive metal-to-plant contact, the invention extracts these harmful elements and replaces them with a gentler mechanism using a drum with openings and fabric screens that allow trimming through friction and abrasion against the drum surface and each other, eliminating damage while maintaining trimming precision
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces expensive, maintenance-intensive metallic blades with simpler, less aggressive trimming surfaces that don't require sharpening or lubrication. The drum and fabric screens are designed to be more durable and less prone to contamination, reducing maintenance frequency and extending operational life between replacements
2Productivity
If metal-to-metal cutting systems are used, then trimming efficiency is improved, but lubricant residue and metallic dust contaminate the processed plant material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the metal-to-metal cutting mechanism with a friction-based trimming system using fabric screens and drum surfaces. This substitution eliminates the generation of metallic dust and the need for lubricants, as the trimming action occurs through plant material rubbing against the drum and fabric surfaces rather than being sheared by metal blades
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces fabric screens as a flexible intermediary between the drum and the plant material. These fabric screens provide the necessary friction for trimming while being non-contaminating materials that don't produce dust or require lubrication, thus maintaining productivity without generating harmful contaminants
3Quantity of substance
If batch operation mode is used, then plant material can be processed, but repeated unloading and reloading increases processing time and reduces efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous feed hoppers at both the input and output ends of the drum, allowing plant material to be continuously loaded and unloaded without stopping the drum rotation. This eliminates the batch operation interruptions, maintaining continuous trimming action and significantly reducing the time lost to repeated loading and unloading cycles while increasing overall material throughput
4Manufacturing precision
If conventional trimmer designs with multiple components are used, then trimming function is achieved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into the single rotating drum structure. The drum with its openings serves both as the containment structure for plant material and as the trimming surface, eliminating the need for separate cutting reels, blade bars, and adjustment mechanisms. This merging of functions simplifies the overall machine structure while maintaining effective trimming capability
Solution Approach 2:
The drum structure is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it contains the plant material, provides the friction surface for trimming, allows separation of trimmed material through its openings, and facilitates continuous feed operation. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate components needed, lowering device complexity and cost
Data Source
AI summary
A continuous feed machine for trimming and separating plant material, the machine having one or more augers or conveyors for feeding plant material into a trommel barrel covered with mesh netting, adapted to include baffles between longitudinal sections of the trommel barrel, and sized for rotational speeds to so as to process the plant material as components of the plant material progress longitudinally through successive sections of the trommel barrel. The mesh netting trims plant material as it moves through the trommel barrel, with the trim falling through the mesh netting. One or more augers or conveyors may be used to remove trimmed plant material exiting an output end of the trommel barrel, and one or more augers or conveyors may be used to remove trim material from below one or more sections of the trommel barrel.