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Dissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparataRelated Patent Categories: Classifying, Separating, And Assorting Solids, Plural, Diverse Separating OperationsDissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparata description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070187299, Dissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparata. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims the benefit of and priority based on U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/777,868, filed Mar. 1, 2006, as well as Provisional Application No. 60/729,966 filed Oct. 24, 2005. The application also claims the benefit of and priority based on U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/255,850 filed Oct. 21, 2005, which in turn claims the benefit of and priority based on U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/621,125 for METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SORTING METAL PIECES filed on Oct. 21, 2004. The application also claims the benefit of and priority based on U.S. patent application Ser. No. ________ [not assigned yet], filed Oct. 20, 2006, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SORTING CONTAMINATED GLASS, and its prior U.S. Provisional Application 60/728,581,for METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SORTING CONTAMINATED GLASS filed on Oct. 20, 2005. All of these U.S. Patent Applications are hereby incorporated by reference. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to materials sorting processes and systems, and more particularly relates to processes, systems, apparata and techniques for sorting dissimilar materials such as for the purpose of recycling some or all of such materials. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Recycling of waste materials is highly desirable from many viewpoints, not the least of which are financial and ecological. Properly sorted recyclable materials can often be sold for significant revenue. Many of the more valuable recyclable materials do not biodegrade within a short period, and so their recycling significantly reduces the strain on local landfills. [0004] However, in many instances there has been no cost-effective method for achieving the necessary sorting. This has been particularly true for, for example, non-ferrous materials, and particularly for non-metallics such as high density plastics. For example, one approach to recycling plastics has been to station a number of laborers along a sorting line, each of whom manually sorts through shredded waste and manually selects the desired recyclables from the sorting line. This approach is not sustainable in most economics since the labor component is too high. [0005] While ferrous recycling has been automated for some time, mainly through the use of magnets, this technique plainly is ineffective for sorting non-ferrous materials. [0006] As a result, there has been a need for a cost-effective, efficient process, system and apparata for sorting dissimilar materials, including plastics, in a manner which facilitates significant revenue recovery while also significantly reducing landfill. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0007] Recyclable wood, rubber, metal, wire and plastics account for a significant share of the solid waste generated. It is highly desirable to avoid disposing of wood, rubber, metal, wire and plastics in a landfill, and instead to recycle these materials. In order to recycle different materials from a mixed waste, the wood, rubber, metal, wire and plastics must be identified and separated. The present invention provides a process,for sorting, without human intervention, dissimilar materials such as wood, rubber, metal, wire and plastics, from a group of mixed materials where, in at least some arrangements, each such material may appear at random times or in random quantities within the mix. In addition, the present invention provides a system for executing the process, and also provides novel apparata for performing certain of the steps of the process. The exemplary arrangements discussed hereinafter include a variety of steps, or a variety of modules, and not all steps or all modules need be implemented in every embodiment of the invention. Likewise, the sequence in which various of the process steps are executed can be varied in appropriate circumstances without departing from the invention. [0008] In one arrangement, the process comprises a sequence of sorting steps for extracting from a mixed material stream a component of that stream, or a group of related components. As each component or group is removed, the residue is passed to the next step for further processing. Once each preliminary component is removed, the remaining residue is also a desired component or group. [0009] The system of the present invention includes a plurality of modules or stages, where each stage typically performs a different sorting function, with the result that different materials are separated out of the mix at different times, until finally each type of recyclable has been sorted out of the mix and the residue--now typically substantially smaller in volume than the original mix--may be routed for other processing or discarded. [0010] Depending upon the particular implementation, the system of the present invention includes a plurality, though not necessarily all, of a group of apparata comprising a magnetic separator, a friction separator which may, for example, be a rollback friction separator, a dielectric sensor sortation bed, shaker screening, a ballistic separator, and an inductive sensor sortation system. The dielectric sensor sortation system may be either analog or digital, depending upon the particular implementation. An air separation module may also be provided, which may include an air knife or other system which uses air to separate a lighter fraction from a heavier fraction. In addition, multiples of the same general type of module may be used, although the specific configuration of each such module may be optimized to select somewhat different elements of the mix. One or more float/sink tanks may also be implemented, by which to separate less dense materials from more dense materials, and the specific gravity of the tank media may be adjusted for each tank to permit selection of the materials intended to float versus those intended to sink. For some floatsink tanks, the media may be water, or water plus an additional compound, depending upon the particular materials to be sorted and the volumes to be handled. Alternatively, a heavy media plant can be used. If a dry process is preferred, a sand float tank can be used. [0011] Depending upon the implementation, various types of dielectric sensors and sensor array configurations can be used in the inventive sorting system. Typically, each of the sensor arrays includes a number of proximity sensors placed in a pattern across the path of the mixed materials. The sensors can be analog or digital, shielded or unshielded, capacitive or inductive proximity sensors. Each type of sensor has specific material detection characteristics and in turn generate different signals when metal, glass, plastic, wood or rubber pieces are detected, as discussed in more detail hereinafter. [0012] In addition, where the sorting process may be aided by ensuring a suitable moisture content, a mister or humidifier may be included in the appropriate module. While adding moisture can be helpful in some steps of the sorting process, particularly with regard to increasing the dielectric constant of absorbent materials, in other sorting steps of some embodiments an IR heat source of sufficient BTU's to `flash` dry the materials can provide better uniformity of operation, the details of which are discussed hereinafter. Still further, in some sorting steps for certain embodiments, for example where dielectric sensors are used, the use of temperature and humidity control around the sensors can provide improved uniformity of operation. [0013] In addition, multiple groups of modules may be configured as multiple sorting lines, for example to sort different sizes of materials. In one such arrangement, a first sorting line may sort material over a predetermined size, while another sorting line may sort material less than that predetermined size. The number of such sorting lines is not limited, and may be matched to the volume of the mix, and the type of mix, which is desired to be sorted. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES [0014] FIG. 1A shows a process flow diagrams of an implementation of the process of the present invention. [0015] FIG. 1B shows a process flow diagram of an implementation of the process of the invention particularly suited to recovery of wire and metals, and shows the alternatives of a float/sink tank, a heavy media system, or a dry sand float process. [0016] FIGS. 2A-2C, taken together, show in side elevational view a system in accordance with the present invention. [0017] FIGS. 3A-3B show, in side elevational view and in top plan view, respectively, a magnetic sorting module in accordance with the present invention. [0018] FIGS. 4A-4B show, in side elevational view and in top plan view, respectively, a rollback friction separator module in accordance with the present invention. [0019] FIG. 5 shows in side elevational view a low pass dielectric sensor module in accordance with the present invention. Continue reading about Dissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparata... Full patent description for Dissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparata Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Dissimilar materials sorting process, system and apparata patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. 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