APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING PARTICULATE MATERIALS

摘要

APPARATUS FOR DISPENSING PARTICULATE MATERIALS Apparatus for dispensing particulate material, comprising a supply hopper for holding a supply of the material, and including an inlet for receiving the material and an outlet for discharging the material, and a rotary dispenser extending into the hopper and supported for rotational movement therein to discharge material from the hopper through the outlet thereof. The apparatus further comprises a stepper motor connected to the rotary dispenser to rotate that dispenser; and a control connected to the stepper motor to actuate that motor at each of a multitude of times to discharge a preset volume of material from the hopper and through the outlet thereof. The stepper motor may be used to achieve very precise control over movement of the rotary dispenser, resulting in a corresponding very precise control over both the volume and weight of the material discharged form the supply hopper, while at the same time, simplifying the design, construction and operation of the entire dispensing apparatus. LPATCASE:124