Michigan Technological University

Anders E Lund

Gordon P Krueger

Bruce A Haataja

Roy D Adams

James F Hamilton

Tauno B Kilpela

Darrell D Nicholas

Tauno B Kipela

Lynn B Sandberg

An apparatus is provided for forming a continuous loosely felted mat of wood flakes, the wood flakes being elongated and being aligned in mutually parallel relation and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the mat. The apparatus includes a conveyor having an upper surface adapted to support a mat of wood flakes and formers for continuously depositing wood flakes on the conveyor as it moves under the former. Also included are continuous lengths of baffle material positioned between the formers and the conveyor, and oriented so as to define parallel adjacent vertical planes, the planes being parallel to the direction of movement of the upper surface. The lengths of baffle material are positioned in closely spaced side-by-side relation and move with the upper surface beneath the formers as the loosely felted mat is formed and are adapted to cause the flakes to become aligned and to be held in alignment during formation of the mat.

Apparatus for forming mat of aligned flake composite wood material with

Apparatus for forming an elongated continuous mat of elongated wood flakes mixed with a binder and adapted to be compressed to form a densified composite wood product for continuously depositing wood flakes on that supporting surface and for aligning the elongated wood flakes being deposited in mutually parallel relation and in alignment with the direction of movement of the supporting surface. A hopper for containing wood flakes deposits wood flakes into the upper end of a fan-shaped flake loader comprised of a plurality of channels positioned in side-by-side relation and sloping downwardly from the hopper to a supporting surface. The channels are generally V-shaped in cross-section and converge toward their lower ends such that the wood flakes deposited in the upper ends of the channels become aligned in mutually parallel relation as the flakes slide down the channels and are deposited on the supporting surface.

Fan-shaped loader for making a loosely felted mat of aligned wood flakes

Apparatus are provided for forming a loosely felted mat of elongated wood flakes, the wood flakes being supported on an elongated caul. The flakes are deposited between a plurality of closely spaced parallel baffles so as to be aligned in mutually parallel relation. The caul is supported adjacent the lower edges of the baffles and is support for vertical movement to facilitate buildup of the mat. Apparatus movable back and forth along the length of the caul is provided to deposit wood flakes in an evenly dispursed manner. At least one picker wheel also moves along the length of the baffles, the picker wheel including fingers extending downwardly between baffles and adapted to engage the flakes to cause them to fall between the baffles.

Static dropless flake aligner for producing composite wood material

Apparatus for forming an elongated loosely felted mat of thin elongated wood flakes with the flakes being aligned in mutually parallel relation and being aligned with the longitudinal direction of the elongated mat. The apparatus comprises a plurality of conveyor belts positioned in closely adjacent side-by-side relation and defining a mat supporting surface adapted to support the aligned wood flakes, the belts being supported on the surface of a cylinder. Wood flakes are deposited in loosely felted relation on the belts, and a plurality of closely spaced parallel planar baffles surround the cylinder, the baffles comprising plates positioned between the belts and functioning to cause alignment of the flakes as they are deposited on the belts. The mat is compressed against the supporting surface by a plurality of belts positioned in adjacent side-by-side relation, the belts being positionable between the baffles and engageable against the mat.

Apparatus for making continuous lengths of composite wood material, the

Apparatus for forming a continuous elongated loosely felted mat of thin elongated wood flakes with the flakes being aligned in mutually parallel interleaved relation. The apparatus includes a plurality of belts positioned in adjacent side-by-side relation and for continuous movement so as to define a supporting surface for the mat. A plurality of sets of thin planar baffle plates are provided, each set including a plurality of thin planar baffle plates supported in coplanar alignment and in edge-to-edge adjacent relation. The baffle plates are positioned between a hopper for depositing wood flakes and the supporting surface and function to align the wood flakes in substantially mutually parallel relation in substantially parallel relation to the direction of movement of the supporting surface and to maintain the wood flakes in substantially parallel alignment as the flakes fall from the hopper onto the supporting surface. Each of the sets of baffle plates are positioned between pairs of belts and are supported for movement with the belts, and the baffle plates of one set are parallel to and spaced closely adjacent to baffle plates of an adjacent set.

Flake aligner including baffles supported on continuously moving conveyor

An article having non-planar portions, such as a pallet having a substantially flat deck member and a plurality of hollow leg members projecting integrally from the deck member, is molded as a one-piece unit from a loosely-felted, layered mat formed from a mixture of a resinous particle board binder and flake-like wood particles. The wood flakes have an average length of about 11/4 to about 6 inches, preferably about 2 to about 3 inches, an average thickness of about 0.005 to about 0.075 inch, preferably about 0.015 to about 0.025 inch, and an average width of 3 inches or less and no greater than the average length. Each layer of wood flakes in the mat lie substantially flat on a plane generally parallel to the major plane thereof and are randomly oriented to each other. The mat is placed between the male and female dies of a mold or press and compressed therein to substantially the desired shape under temperature and pressure conditions sufficient to bond the flakes together.

Method for molding articles having non-planar portions from matted wood

A method and apparatus for forming a loosely felted mat of elongated wood flakes mixed with a binder, the mat including a longitudinal axis and the wood flakes being aligned in mutually parallel relation and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the mat. The wood flakes are held in alignment in the mat by a plurality of closely spaced thin planar baffles, the baffles being comprised of a material which can form an integral part of the mat.

Method and apparatus for making aligned flake composite wood material

The disclosed invention includes an improved construction of structural members such as railroad crossties, highway spin posts and highway guard posts and to construction of said members from composite wood material including elongated wood flakes and to a method for making such improved structures.

Structural members comprised of composite wood material and having zones

Pallets molded from matted wood flakes

An article, such as a pallet having a substantially flat deck member and a plurality of hollow legs projecting from the deck member, is molded as a one-piece unit from a papermill sludge. Dried, comminuted papermill sludge is blended with a fibrous reinforcing material, preferably a cellulosic material such as fibrous bark particles, and a resinous particle board binder, the resulting mixture of furnish is formed into a loosely fitted mat, and the mat is placed between dyes of a mold and press and compressed to substantially the desired shape under temperature and pressure conditions sufficient to bond the sludge and bark particles together.

Articles molded from papermill sludge

Structural members having strength properties comparable or superior to those of solid wood are made from a composite wood material comprised of elongated wood flakes bonded together with a binder. The grain direction of the flakes extend generally parallel to their longitudinal axis and the flakes are oriented so that the longitudinal axis of at least a majority is generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the structural member. The structural member is formed as a solid one-piece unit or assembled from two or more structural components which are made from the composite wood material and are joined together in angular relationship with an adhesive.

Growing community of inventors

Houghton, MI, United States of America

Anders E Lund