Astec, Inc.

Pavement Technology, Inc.

Thomas Scott Cloninger

J Donald Brock

M Earl Edwards, Jr

Herbert E Jakob

Michael Barrett

R Ronald Collins

Robert Ronald Collins

An asphalt production plant includes an asphalt binder storage tank, a mixer for mixing asphalt binder and aggregate materials, an asphalt binder pumping system for conveying asphalt binder to the mixer and an asphalt binder metering system for controlling the rate of flow of asphalt binder to the mixer. The asphalt production plant also includes a cold feed proportioning system having a plurality of cold feed bins for holding aggregate materials, with each such bin having a discharge opening through which aggregate materials may be discharged, a cold feed conveyor system that extends from beneath the discharge openings for the plurality of bins for conveying aggregate materials to the mixer and an apparatus and system for adjusting the relative proportions of aggregate materials from each of the cold feed bins that are conveyed to the mixer. The asphalt production plant also includes an aggregate sample dryer for removing volatile components from a sample of aggregate materials and an aggregate sampler for obtaining a sample of aggregate material from the cold feed conveyor system and depositing such material in the aggregate sample dryer. A preferred embodiment of the production plant includes an asphalt binder calibration tank, an oven assembly for removing asphalt binder from a sample of asphalt, an asphalt sample collector, an asphalt sample conveyor assembly for conveying a sample of asphalt to the oven assembly and an aggregate gradation assembly for determining the gradation of a sample of aggregate.

Asphalt production plant

A sample collector for aggregate material is provided. The collector includes a collector frame having a probe that is shaped so as to be insertable along a defined axis into a quantity of aggregate material. The collector also includes a plurality of elongate support rods. The first end of each rod is attached to the probe, and a seat is provided to which the second end of each of the support rods is attached. Each rod is arranged so as to be substantially parallel to the axis, and the rods are spaced apart from each other so as to define a collection space. The collector also includes a sleeve which is adapted to slide over the collector frame between an open position which exposes the collection space and a closed position which encloses the collection space. A sliding mechanism is also provided for sliding the sleeve over the collector frame between the open position and the closed position.

Method and apparatus for sampling aggregate material

Growing community of inventors

Chattanooga, TN, United States of America

Thomas Scott Cloninger