Animal feed mixers can be mounted on trucks or specially designed trailers. The mixer is a specially designed bin that contains a plurality of augers. Several components of animal feed are unloaded into the bin and the augers are rotated to move the feed around within the bin, intermixing it in the process. The augers are designed so that the feed is ultimately moved to one location in the bin where it can be unloaded through an opening in a side of the bin at a desired destination by continuing rotation of the augers.
The components of animal feed mixed in the mixers vary widely in composition and texture. Some of the more troublesome components are hay, cornstalks or other elongated fibrous material. This fibrous material tends to compact between the auger and the sides of the bins, at times clogging the mixing system as well as not being efficiently intermixed with the remaining feed components.
A variety of approaches has been taken to correct the problem associated with attempting to intermix elongated fibrous materials; however, none have been completely successful in solving the problem. One suggestion is to form a blunt notch in the periphery of the flight of the auger to move the fibrous material along the auger. Although the notch is an improvement, the notch wears, changes shape and becomes ineffective after relatively short periods of use. Another suggestion has been to attach cutting blades at spaced locations along the peripheral edge of the auger flight. While this solution partly solves the problem, the cutting blades tend to de-attach from the auger periphery and also are readily damaged and broken. Yet a third suggestion has been to place a small cutting blade along the leading edge of a notch in an auger flight. This solution, too, has not been completely satisfactory because of incomplete cutting action and because the portion of the periphery of the auger flight above the cutting edge tends to wear excessively.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds