Apparatus and method for forming a continuous web of fibers
A vacuum draw apparatus for preparing a fiber and/or particle web comprising a means for drawing a vacuum on a mass of fibers and/or particles, said vacuum draw means having an opening for applying a vacuum to said mass of fibers and/or particles, an access gate having a patterned opening located between the mass of fibers and/or particles and opening of said vacuum means, and means for moving said access gate, whereby the vacuum draw system will provide an oscillating pull on a mass of fibers and/or particles to work said mass to redistribute and/or further consolidate the fibers and/or particles.
1. A vacuum draw apparatus for preparing a fiber and/or particle web comprising
a) a means for drawing a vacuum on a mass of fibers and/or particles,
b) said vacuum draw means having an opening for applying a vacuum to said mass of fibers and/or particles,
c) an access gate having a patterned opening located between the mass of fibers and/or particles and said opening of said vacuum means, and
d) a means for moving said access gate, whereby the vacuum draw system creates an oscillating pull on said mass of fibers and/or particles to work said mass to redistribute and/or further consolidate the fibers and/or particles.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the access gate rotates.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the access gate rotates and has rotation speeds from 1 to 5000 revolutions per minute.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the patterned openings of the access gate are selected from the group consisting of squares, rectangles, trapezoids, circles, triangles, diamond shapes, and combination of these patterns.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the vacuum system housing is rectangular.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the vacuum system housing is cylindrical and said access gate rotates inside said cylindrical housing.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 further incorporating a fixed screen between the fibers and/or particles and said vacuum opening.
8. A process for consolidating and/or redistributing the fibers and/or particles in a mass of fibers and/or particles comprising the steps of:
producing a mass of fibers and/or particles;
collecting said mass of fibers and/or particles;
passing said mass of fibers and/or particles over a vacuum draw system;
said vacuum draw system comprising:
a) means for drawing a vacuum on a mass of fibers and/or particles,
b) said vacuum draw means having an opening for applying a vacuum to said mass of fibers and/or particles,
c) an access gate having a patterned opening located between the mass of fibers and/or particles and said opening for said vacuum means, and
d) means for moving the access gate, whereby the vacuum draw system provides an oscillating pull on a mass of fibers and/or particles to work said mass to redistribute and/or further consolidate the fibers and/or particles whereby said vacuum draw system provides an oscillating pattern of vacuum draw on the fiber and/or particle mass as it passes over said vacuum draw system to work the mass to redistribute the fibers or particles,
redistributing and/or consolidating said mass of fibers and/or particles, and
collecting said mass of fibers and/or particles.
9. The process of claim 8 wherein the access gate rotates.
10. The process of claim 8 wherein the access gate rotates and has rotation speeds from 1 to 5000 revolutions per minute.
11. The process of claim 8 wherein the patterned opening of the access gate is spiral, square, rectangular, circular, or triangular, diamond shape, other geometric pattern, or a combination of patterns.
12. The process of claim 8 wherein the vacuum system housing is rectangular.
13. The process of claim 8 wherein the vacuum system housing is cylindrical and has a moving screen that rotates inside said cylindrical housing.
14. The process of claim 8 wherein the fibers and/or particles are replaced with another solid such as a powder or other fiber and/or particle and the laydown of the solids is to a substrate or other carrier.