| 摘要 |
The present invention is directed to an apparatus for moving articles in a continuous manner through a fluid bath and for cleaning such articles by electrical energy comprising: a trough for holding said fluid bath, having an article feeding area and an article dispensing area; a ratchet conveyor having ratchet surfaces consisting of a plurality of ratchet floors and ratchet walls arranged in a stepwise fashion along a baseline, said ratchet conveyor having at least a portion thereof which is nonconductive; electrical energy cleaning structure including a plurality of electrodes, at least one of which is located substantially at said nonconductive portion of said ratchet conveyor, said structure capable of passing electrical current between said electrodes while in a fluid bath and at a current density sufficient to enhance cleaning of said articles; suspension structure connected to said ratchet conveyor so as to permit movement of said ratchet conveyor cyclically through an arc; and, drive structure connected to said ratchet conveyor in a manner so as to cyclically traverse said ratchet conveyor from its initial position forwardly and upwardly through an arc, and so as to abruptly return said ratchet conveyor to its initial position to thereby cause articles on the ratchet conveyor to move successively forward thereon in a stepwise fashion.
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