The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 02, 1984
Filed:
May. 26, 1982
Rudolph E Krueger, Corona Del Mar, CA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A load cell in the bottom of a storage tank measures the weight of bulk material contained in the tank. The load cell has a flexible diaphragm to which the weight of the bulk material is applied. The flexible diaphragm moves down away from a neutral no-load position under the weight of the bulk material applied to it. A source of fluid under pressure is connected to a cavity in the load cell housing on a side of the diaphragm opposite the side that senses the weight of the bulk material. Fluid pressure is supplied to the cavity in an amount that causes the diaphragm to move to its neutral position, balancing the load applied to the diaphragm from the bulk material. A control valve senses when the diaphragm returns to its neutral position to interrupt fluid pressure supplied to the cavity. A pressure gauge coupled to the cavity senses the amount of fluid pressure required to balance the load. A reading is taken from the pressure gauge when the load applied to the diaphragm is balanced. In one embodiment, the pressure gauge is calibrated to read in feet of bulk material, which can be converted to a weight measurement knowing the cross-sectional area of the tank and the density of the material.