Ransburg Corporation

Illinois Tool Works Inc.

James A Scharfenberger

Varce Eron Howe

Jerry L McPherson, Jr

Ghaffar Kazkaz

Harold T Allen

Edward T Feldman

David R Huff

Ghazi M Khattab

Jeffrey M Stupar

C Terry Duncan

Jack L Cox

A voltage block comprises first and second reservoirs and a switching device including an inlet port, an outlet port, a first reservoir port and a second reservoir port. The switching device is mounted in a third reservoir for movement between a first position and a second position. The third reservoir includes an electrically non-conductive fluid medium in which at least a portion of the switching device is immersed.

Voltage block

A circuit is provided for the circulation of solvent to and from a valve having a movable component and a housing for movably housing the movable component. The movable component has a first orientation with respect to the housing in which it permits the flow of a valved fluid from the valve through a first port provided on the valve and a second orientation with respect to the housing in which it permits the flow of the valved fluid from the valve through a second port provided on the valve. The circuit includes a first passageway provided between the movable component and the housing. A third port is provided on the housing for the introduction of the solvent into the housing and a fourth port is provided on the housing for removal of the solvent from the housing. The first passageway couples the fourth port to the third port. The solvent is a solvent for the valved fluid. A reservoir is provided for the solvent, along with conduits for coupling the third and fourth ports to the reservoir.

Solvent circuit

A coating material dispensing and charging system comprises first electrical conductors extending between first electrically non-conductive supporting members, a power supply coupled across the first conductors and articles to be coated to maintain a high magnitude electrostatic potential difference across a space defined between the first conductors and the articles, a dispenser for dispensing the coating material into the space, and a supply of coating material for the dispenser. The first electrical conductors comprise electrically conductive filaments surrounded by electrically non-conductive sheaths.

Coating material dispensing and charging system

A valve has a housing and a component movable within the housing. The housing has first, second, third and fourth ports formed in it. The movable component has a first passageway formed in it. Movement of the movable component within the housing selectively connects the first port through the first passageway to the second port. The movable component is selectively movable to disconnect the first port and second port and to connect the second port through the first passageway to the third port. A second passageway is defined between the housing and the movable component. The fourth port is connected to the second passageway.

Valve structure

A coating system comprises a source of electrically non-insulative coating material, a dispenser for dispensing the coating material toward an article to be coated thereby, an electrostatic high potential supply for supplying charge to the coating material, means for coupling the high potential supply across the dispenser and the article, a first reservoir, and a first valve. The first valve has a first housing providing first, second, third, fourth and fifth ports, and a first component movable within the first housing and having a first passageway selectively to connect the first port to the second port to permit the flow of coating material from the first port to the second port. The first port is coupled to the coating material source, the second port to the first reservoir, and the third port to the dispenser. The second port is coupled to the third port to permit the flow of coating material from the first reservoir to the dispenser. A source is provided for an electrically non-conductive fluid. The first housing and the first movable component define between them a second passageway, and the source of electrically non-conductive fluid is coupled to the fourth port to provide a flow of the electrically non-conductive fluid from the source of electrically non-conductive fluid through the second passageway to flush coating material from surfaces of the first housing and first movable component adjacent the second passageway and exit from the fifth port.

A method and system for supplying electrically conductive coating materials to an electrostatic dispenser with a parallel arrangement of subsystems selectably coupled to the dispenser by a four-port system voltage blocking valve, which electrically isolates the subsystems. The subsystems each include first and second piston cylinders that alternatingly receive a selected coating material from a corresponding manifold and supply the coating material to the dispenser by a subsystem voltage blocking valve, which isolates the dispenser from the manifold, when coupled to the dispenser. The first and second piston cylinders of each subsystem also alternatingly receive a solvent from the corresponding manifold and direct the solvent to a waste receptacle by a corresponding subsystem voltage blocking valve when the subsystem is not coupled to the dispenser. The solvent removes previously supplied coating material from the non-selected subsystem and readies the non-selected subsystem for supplying a next selected coating material to the dispenser.

Method and system for an improved voltage block

A fluent, electrically non-insulative coating composition for an electrically non-conductive rotary atomizer comprises about one-tenth to about one-seventh, by weight, short oil alkyds, about one-fourth to about one-third, by weight, phenolic, and about one-half to about two-thirds, by weight, powdered mixture of oxides of antimony and tin, all in a fluid carrier.

Method for treating non-conductive rotary atomizer

Nonincendive rotary atomizer

A coating system comprises a source of electrically non-insulative coating material, a dispenser for dispensing the coating material toward an article to be coated thereby, an electrostatic high potential for supplying charge to the coating material, means for coupling the high potential supply across the dispenser and the article, a first reservoir, and a first valve. The first valve has a first housing providing first, second, third, fourth and fifth ports, and a first component movable within the first housing and having a first passageway selectively to connect the first port to second port to permit the flow of coating material from the first port to the second port. The first port is coupled to the coating material source, the second port to the first reservoir, and the third port to the dispenser. The second port is coupled to the third port to permit the flow of coating material from the first reservoir to the dispenser. A source is provided for an electrically non-conductive fluid. The first housing and the first movable component define between them a second passageway, and the source of electrically non-conductive fluid is coupled to the fourth port to provide a flow of the electrically non-conductive fluid from the source of electrically non-conductive fluid through the second passageway to flush coating material from surfaces of the first housing and first movable component adjacent the second passageway and exit from the fifth port.

A resistor housing includes passageways to accommodate high potential electrical connectors. Connection is made from one of the connectors through a high voltage cable assembly to one output of a power supply. The cable assembly includes a length of high voltage, high-flex, shielded coaxial high voltage cable. The center conductor of the cable is finished at both ends with a banana plug. The shield of the cable is terminated. A sleeve of, for example, heat-shrinkable semi-rigid, multiple wall polyolefin, is slipped onto the stripped end of the cable over the exposed shield and the end of the cable jacket. A length of heat-shrinkable tetrafluroethylene (TFE) is slipped over the sleeve and the adjacent region of cable jacket, shrunk, and trimmed flush with the end of the polyolefin sleeve. Paint or solvent from a trigger/dump/solvent manifold is supplied through a feed tube. The feed tube is constructed from an electrically non-conductive material. Toward the feed tube's distal end, an electrically conductive pin is press fitted into a passageway which extends transversely across the longitudinal extent of the feed tube. Coating material passing through the feed tube is charged as it passes the pin owing to the close spacing of the ends of the pin to a rotary atomizer drive shaft through which the feed tube extends.

Nonincedive rotary atomizer

A rotary atomizer includes an inside surface onto which a coating material is deposited, an opposite outside surface and a discharge zone adjacent the rotary atomizer's inside and outside surfaces, coating material being discharged from the discharge zone. A housing substantially surrounds and houses the rotary atomizer except for a region of the rotary atomizer adjacent and including the discharge zone. The housing includes an inside surface, an outside surface and an opening adjacent the inside and outside surfaces of the housing. The inside surface of the housing and the outside surface of the rotary atomizer are treated so as to render them electrically non-insulative. An electrostatic potential difference maintained across the electrically non-insulative inside surface of the housing and an article to be coated by material atomized by the rotary atomizer causes charge to be transferred from the electrically non-insulative inside surface of the housing to the outside surface of the atomizer.

System for dispensing of both water base and organic solvent base

Automatic finish coating equipment employs a selectively variable low-pressure or 'soft' air or solvent signal to control pushing of coating material through a feed tube from a coating material source to a coating material atomizing and dispensing device. This 'soft fluid push' method maximizes the finish quality which can be achieved with coating materials having different characteristics, such as viscosities, in any operation in which frequent changes in coating material characteristics are experienced, such as, when frequent changes of coating material color are employed. The disclosure also describes that the 'soft push' through the delivery lines should be reduced as the length of the slug of coating material in the delivery lines decreases.

Variable low-pressure fluid color change cycle

A recovery system for solvent used to clean coating material from a multiple-color coating material dispensing system which undergoes frequent color changes includes a vacuum source over the recovered solvent in a recovery tank. The system is switched during the color change cycle from a mode in which solvent is dispensed to clean a pre-change color from a dispensing device to a mode in which the vacuum withdraws solvent remaining in a solvent delivery line to the dispensing device into the recovery tank. Solvent usage, disposal of discarded solvent, and other environmental considerations are salutarily affected.

Growing community of inventors

Indianapolis, IN, United States of America

James A Scharfenberger