Title of Invention	"PALMYRAH FIBRE SEPARATING MACHINE"
Abstract	A Palmyrah fibre separating machine to separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds which consists of a hollow drum embedded by nail mounted wooden strips rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings at each end on a rigid frame and driven by pulley mounted on a 1 h.p single phase electric motor shaft, a guiding rod to guide the fronds near to the said drum during operation is fixed on the adjustable feeding plate which in turn fixed on the said rigid frame. Wherein the drive from the motor pulley is transmitted to the drum pulley through v-belts. The Palmyrah fibre separation process traditionally practiced by the rural folk etching on livelihood involves manual beating of frond with an iron rod and combing it on a nail mounted wooden plate. Despite the drudgery of the process involving total family labour the whole day, the productivity is very low offering a meager livelihood. This drudgery also brings in chronic disability such as arthritis, chest pain and muscle contraction etc., to the workers . With a view to improve this system a mechanization concept was innovated and a machine called palmyrah fibre separator was developed to mechanically separate the fibre from palmyrah frond with higher efficiency and productivity with no drudgery at all. The machine consists of a hollow drum on which nail mounted wooden strips are embedded all around. The drum is mounted on a rigid frame and rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings which is driven by a suitable single phase electric motor. The machine reducing the wastage and improving the quality of fibre.

Title of Invention

"PALMYRAH FIBRE SEPARATING MACHINE"

Abstract

A Palmyrah fibre separating machine to separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds which consists of a hollow drum embedded by nail mounted wooden strips rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings at each end on a rigid frame and driven by pulley mounted on a 1 h.p single phase electric motor shaft, a guiding rod to guide the fronds near to the said drum during operation is fixed on the adjustable feeding plate which in turn fixed on the said rigid frame. Wherein the drive from the motor pulley is transmitted to the drum pulley through v-belts. The Palmyrah fibre separation process traditionally practiced by the rural folk etching on livelihood involves manual beating of frond with an iron rod and combing it on a nail mounted wooden plate. Despite the drudgery of the process involving total family labour the whole day, the productivity is very low offering a meager livelihood. This drudgery also brings in chronic disability such as arthritis, chest pain and muscle contraction etc., to the workers . With a view to improve this system a mechanization concept was innovated and a machine called palmyrah fibre separator was developed to mechanically separate the fibre from palmyrah frond with higher efficiency and productivity with no drudgery at all. The machine consists of a hollow drum on which nail mounted wooden strips are embedded all around. The drum is mounted on a rigid frame and rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings which is driven by a suitable single phase electric motor. The machine reducing the wastage and improving the quality of fibre.

Full Text	This invention is relates to a machine called Palmyrah fibre separating machine to mechanically separate the palmyrah fibre from the palmyarh fronds (palmyrah tree leaf bases).. IN the known art palmyrah fibre is a product obtained from separating the fibre from the fronds manually by beating the fronds with an iron rod weighing 3-5 kg. Then this softened frond is kept for retting by covering it with fibre waste for 2-3 days to get the desirable colour for export quality (preferably dark brown) and for the disintegration of fibre bonds. Then these softened fronds are combed on a nail mounted wooden plate to get the fibre. Then this fibre is dried in sunshine before selling it in the local market. Apart from domestic utility this fibre is having 100% market in foreign countries. This process of separation of fibre from palmyrah fronds is a livelihood profession for the rural folk in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Unfortunately, the rural folk who separates the fibre manually from the fronds suffer from many diseases like chest pain, arthritis, stomach pain etc., due to the heavy drudgery involved in this fibre separations process. Though the entire family works more than 8 hours a day, they cannot extract more than 10 kg of fibre. Hence the economic returns are very meager. It is also observed that the wastage of fibre is more with the manual beating process and the strength of the fibre is also reduced because of beating the frond across the length. The object of this invention was to separate the fibre mechanically from the fronds so that the drudgery related to the conventional process is removed and also to get the good quality of fibre with more tensile strength which increases its utility. It was also planned to increase the production of fibre per day with minimal labour. It was also an objective to develop simple machine with low cost which reduces the fibre loss when compared to the manual process. With the above and other objectives in view, a machine called palmyrah fibre separating machine is designed, fabricated and tested for its efficacy in the field which mainly comprises a hollow drum on which nail mounted wooden strips are embedded all around its periphery and rotates on a shaft which is supported by the ball bearings at each end which rests on a rigid frame. A guiding rod is provided near to the drum to guide the fronds entering into the feeding zone. An adjustable feeding plate nearer to the guiding rod is also provided in front of the said rotating drum to compensate the wear and tear of the said nails during fibre separation process. The said drum is driven by a standard 1 horse power single phase electric motor by belt and pulley arrangement which is fixed below the said rigid frame. The invention will now be apparent from the following non limitative description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is the front view of the invention and Figure 2 is the top view of the invention and all the dimensions are mentioned in millimeters in the drawings. The principles and features of this invention may be employed in various and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention. DISCRIPTION OF THE PALMYRAH FIBRE SEPARATING MACHINE THE SAID INVENTION Referring to the accompanying drawings, the palmyrah fibre separating machine mainly consists of a hollow drum (1) on which nail mounted wooden strips (2) are embedded all around the periphery as shown in figure 1 and 2. the drum is mounted on a rigid frame (3) and rotates on a shaft (4) supported by the ball bearings (5) at each end. The drive from the 1 h.p. single phase electric motor (6) pulley (7) is transmitted through a v-belt to a pulley (8) which rotates the said drum at 360 r.p.m. A counter weight (9) is also arranged on the other end of the said drum to balance the vibrating and centrifugal forces. A dome shaped cover (10) is provided on the said drum to prevent the spillage of fibre waste during the operation. A guiding rod (11) is also fixed on the adjustable feeding plate (12) which is in turn fixed on the said rigid frame to guide the fronds in to the drum chamber. A guard (13) is also provided to cover the driving and driven pulleys as a precautionary measure. Working process: The said palmyrah fibre separating machine uses the impact force with the said drum(l) and shear force cum combing action with the nails (2) mounted on it to be separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds. Initially, each found is held firmly by the operator under the guiding rod (11) and fed inch by inch in to the drum chamber. As the drum rotates in downward direction towards the frond, the said nail mounted wooden strips (2) separate the fibre from the frond within short time. The operator should be careful enough to protect his hands during the operation. The feeding plate (12) can be shifted forward to compensate the wear and tear of the nails after some time. If the nails are totally wears out they can be replaced by the new ones. The drum chamber can be cleaned at the end of the operation by removing the dome cover (10). Advantages with the palmyrah fibre separating machine : An amount of 40-50 kg of palmyrah fibre can be produced within a day of eight hours with the said machine when compared to 3-5 kg/day with manual separation process. Most of the drudgery can be removed when compared to the said manual operation, hence the health problems can also be prevented. The wastage of fibre can be minimized by producing good quality of fibre with more tensile strength when compared to manual process because of combing action. Only one person processes the fronds effectively with the said machine when compared to 4 laborers for manual process. We claim: 1. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine to separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds which consists of a hollow drum embedded by nail mounted wooden strips rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings at each end on a rigid frame and driven by pulley mounted on a 1 h.p single phase electric motor shaft, a guiding rod to guide the fronds near to the said drum during operation is fixed on the adjustable feeding plate which in turn fixed on the said rigid frame. Wherein the drive from the motor pulley is transmitted to the drum pulley through v-belts. 2. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 in which the said hollow drum is balanced by a counter weight to balance the vibrating and centrifugal forces A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 to 2 wherein a guard is provided as a precautionary measure to protect the operator from the rotating oarts. 4. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 to 3 wherein the said drum is provided by a dome to prevent the spillage of fibre waste during the operation.

Full Text

This invention is relates to a machine called Palmyrah fibre separating machine to mechanically separate the palmyrah fibre from the palmyarh fronds (palmyrah tree leaf bases)..
IN the known art palmyrah fibre is a product obtained from separating the fibre from the fronds manually by beating the fronds with an iron rod weighing 3-5 kg. Then this softened frond is kept for retting by covering it with fibre waste for 2-3 days to get the desirable colour for export quality (preferably dark brown) and for the disintegration of fibre bonds. Then these softened fronds are combed on a nail mounted wooden plate to get the fibre. Then this fibre is dried in sunshine before selling it in the local market. Apart from domestic utility this fibre is having 100% market in foreign countries.
This process of separation of fibre from palmyrah fronds is a livelihood profession for the rural folk in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Unfortunately, the rural folk who separates the fibre manually from the fronds suffer from many diseases like chest pain, arthritis, stomach pain etc., due to the heavy drudgery involved in this fibre separations process. Though the entire family works more than 8 hours a day, they cannot extract more than 10 kg of fibre. Hence the economic returns are very meager. It is also observed that the wastage of fibre is more with the manual beating process and the strength of the fibre is also reduced because of beating the frond across the length.
The object of this invention was to separate the fibre mechanically from the fronds so that the drudgery related to the conventional process is removed and also to get the good quality of fibre with more tensile strength which increases its utility. It was also planned to increase the production of fibre per day with minimal labour. It was also an objective to develop simple machine with low cost which reduces the fibre loss when compared to the manual process.
With the above and other objectives in view, a machine called palmyrah fibre separating machine is designed, fabricated and tested for its efficacy in the field which mainly comprises a hollow drum on which nail mounted wooden strips are embedded all around its periphery and rotates on a shaft which is supported by the ball bearings at each end which rests on a rigid frame. A guiding rod is provided near to the drum to guide the fronds entering into the feeding zone. An adjustable feeding plate nearer to the guiding rod is also provided in front of the said rotating drum to compensate the wear and tear of the said nails during fibre separation process. The said drum is driven by a standard 1 horse power single phase electric motor by belt and pulley arrangement which is fixed below the said rigid frame.
The invention will now be apparent from the following non limitative description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is the front view of the invention and
Figure 2 is the top view of the invention and all the dimensions are mentioned in millimeters in the drawings.
The principles and features of this invention may be employed in various and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.
DISCRIPTION OF THE PALMYRAH FIBRE SEPARATING MACHINE
THE SAID INVENTION
Referring to the accompanying drawings, the palmyrah fibre separating machine mainly consists of a hollow drum (1) on which nail mounted wooden strips (2) are embedded all around the periphery as shown in figure 1 and 2. the drum is mounted on a rigid frame (3) and rotates on a shaft (4) supported by the ball bearings (5) at each end. The drive from the 1 h.p. single phase electric motor (6) pulley (7) is transmitted through a v-belt to a pulley (8) which rotates the said drum at 360 r.p.m. A counter weight (9) is also arranged on the other end of the said drum to balance the vibrating and centrifugal forces. A dome shaped cover (10) is provided on the said drum to prevent the spillage of fibre waste during the operation. A guiding rod
(11) is also fixed on the adjustable feeding plate (12) which is in turn fixed on the
said rigid frame to guide the fronds in to the drum chamber. A guard (13) is also
provided to cover the driving and driven pulleys as a precautionary measure.
Working process:
The said palmyrah fibre separating machine uses the impact force with the said drum(l) and shear force cum combing action with the nails (2) mounted on it to be separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds. Initially, each found is held firmly by the operator under the guiding rod (11) and fed inch by inch in to the drum chamber. As the drum rotates in downward direction towards the frond, the said nail mounted wooden strips (2) separate the fibre from the frond within short time. The operator should be careful enough to protect his hands during the operation. The feeding plate
(12) can be shifted forward to compensate the wear and tear of the nails after some
time. If the nails are totally wears out they can be replaced by the new ones. The
drum chamber can be cleaned at the end of the operation by removing the dome cover
(10).
Advantages with the palmyrah fibre separating machine :
An amount of 40-50 kg of palmyrah fibre can be produced within a day of eight hours with the said machine when compared to 3-5 kg/day with manual separation process. Most of the drudgery can be removed when compared to the said manual operation, hence the health problems can also be prevented. The wastage of fibre can be minimized by producing good quality of fibre with more tensile strength when compared to manual process because of combing action. Only one person processes the fronds effectively with the said machine when compared to 4 laborers for manual process.

We claim:
1. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine to separate the fibre from palmyrah fronds
which consists of a hollow drum embedded by nail mounted wooden strips
rotates on a shaft supported by the ball bearings at each end on a rigid frame and
driven by pulley mounted on a 1 h.p single phase electric motor shaft, a guiding
rod to guide the fronds near to the said drum during operation is fixed on the
adjustable feeding plate which in turn fixed on the said rigid frame. Wherein the
drive from the motor pulley is transmitted to the drum pulley through v-belts.
2. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 in which the said hollow
drum is balanced by a counter weight to balance the vibrating and centrifugal
forces
A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 to 2 wherein a guard is provided as a precautionary measure to protect the operator from the rotating oarts.
4. A Palmyrah fibre separating machine as claimed in 1 to 3 wherein the said drum is provided by a dome to prevent the spillage of fibre waste during the operation.

Documents:

459-del-2001-abstract.pdf

459-del-2001-claims.pdf

459-del-2001-complete specification (granted).pdf

459-del-2001-correspondence-others.pdf

459-del-2001-correspondence-po.pdf

459-del-2001-description (complete).pdf

459-del-2001-drawings.pdf

459-del-2001-form-1.pdf

459-del-2001-form-19.pdf

459-del-2001-form-2.pdf

459-del-2001-form-3.pdf

459-del-2001-form-4.pdf

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Patent Number

227533

Indian Patent Application Number

459/DEL/2001

PG Journal Number

13/2009

Publication Date

27-Mar-2009

Grant Date

13-Jan-2009

Date of Filing

04-Apr-2001

Name of Patentee

THE INDIAN COUNCIL OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH,

Applicant Address

KRISHI BHAVAN, DR. RAJENDRA PRASAD ROAD, NEW DELHI-110001, INDIA.

Inventors:

#	Inventor's Name	Inventor's Address
1	INDAVARAPU SRINIVAS	SCIENTIST (FARM MACHINERY & POWER), CENTRAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR INDIAN DRYLAND AGRICULTURE, SANTOSHNAGAR, HYDERABAD-500069.
2	RUPAKULA SUDHAKAR	TECHNICAL OFFICER, KRISHI VIGYAN, KENDRA, CENTRAL TOBACCO RESEARCH INDIAN INSTITUTE, RAJAHMUNDRY-533105.
3	KISIVISWANATHAN NAGARAJAN	DIRECTOR, CENTRAL TOBACCO RESEARCH INDIAN INSTITUTE, RAJAHMUNDRY-533105.

PCT International Classification Number

PCT International Application Number

N/A

PCT International Filing date

PCT Conventions:

#	PCT Application Number	Date of Convention	Priority Country
1			NA