Metering gate for metering a fluid material as it is discharged from a hopper

摘要

An improved metering gate for metering fluid materials discharged from a hopper of the type including a vertically oriented discharge opening. The metering gate is characterized by a pair of closure panels arranged in coplanar relation, a drive mechanism including a plurality of rams connected with said closure panels for displacing the closure panels in opposite directions along a pair of aligned linear paths traversing the opening, and a motion balancing mechanism interconnecting the panels for equalizing the distances through which the panels are displaced by said drive mechanism, and a lag-elimination mechanism for eliminating lag in the displacement imparted to the opposite ends of each panel of said pair, whereby each portion of each panel of said pair of closure panels is displaced through a distance equal to the distance through which any other portion of either panel of said pair of closure panels is displaced by said drive mechanism.