An apparatus and method for continuously at atmospheric pressure rotary steam fry potato slices, the apparatus comprising an inlet conveyer for taking the slices from a lower atmospherically opened inlet into a rotary conveyor with steam permeable mantle surface for tumbling and conveying potato slices inside a hermetically closed top through a pre heat zone and a frying zone until gravity fed out through an atmospherically opened outlet below the hermetically closed top, an oiler for totally covering the slices with oil before entering the frying zone, a loop heating system consisting of at least one separator, one gas blower and one heat exchanger adapted for pushing superheated stem, with temperature of 110 to 300 C, through the conveyor with steam permeable mantle surface and through a deep bed of potato slices, heating the oil on the potato slices surface which in tum heats the potato slices.

A bearer for bearing a honeycomb green body includes a solid main body provided with a groove in which a concave arc surface extends along one direction; and a single-layer or multi-layer sponge layer attached to the arc surface of the groove. The sponge layer is curved along the arc surface of the groove and has a bearing surface curved along the arc surface.

Zero tension system conveyor. A conveyor belt is driven by at least a portion of the conveyor belt being in continuous contact with a block chain within at least a portion of an overall conveyor belt system. Such a conveyor belt system may be implemented in a spiral configuration such that a relatively small portion of the overall width of the conveyor belt is in contact with the block chain above and/or below the conveyor belt. The static force/weight of the conveyor belt in conjunction with the continuous contact between at least a portion of the conveyor belt and the block chain effectuates the driving of the conveyor belt through the overall conveyor belt system. The block chain is composed of a number of links, at least some of which include a respective hook/protrusion on one side thereof, for being directly engaged by drum bars implemented within a drum assembly.

Zero tension system conveyor. A conveyor belt is driven by at least a portion of the conveyor belt being in continuous contact with a block chain within at least a portion of an overall conveyor belt system. Such a conveyor belt system may be implemented in a spiral configuration such that a relatively small portion of the overall width of the conveyor belt is in contact with the block chain above and/or below the conveyor belt. The static force/weight of the conveyor belt in conjunction with the continuous contact between at least a portion of the conveyor belt and the block chain effectuates the driving of the conveyor belt through the overall conveyor belt system. The block chain is composed of a number of links, at least some of which include a respective hook/protrusion on one side thereof, for being directly engaged by drum bars implemented within a drum assembly.

A workpiece conveyance jig, which is formed of a threaded shaft made of a ceramic, includes an inner member, which is formed of a solid shaft having a constant diameter, and is configured to receive a rotational driving force, and an outer member, which has a hollow shaft-like shape, has a helical protrusion, and is mounted on an outer periphery of the inner member so as to be rotatable integrally with the inner member. The outer member includes a plurality of cylindrical bodies arranged in a row in an axial direction of the workpiece conveyance jig, and has a convex and concave fitting portion formed between two adjacent ones of the plurality of cylindrical bodies, which is configured to engage the two adjacent cylindrical bodies with each other in a direction of rotation of the inner member.

An auger mover for moving and steering an auger is provided. The auger mover can have a frame having a front end and a rear end, the rear end connectable to an auger axle on the auger, a first pivotal wheel attached to a front end of the frame and pivotal relative to the frame, a second pivotal wheel attached to a front end of the frame and pivotal relative to the frame independently of the first pivotal wheel, an auger connection assembly connected to the frame and connectable to the auger and a steering assembly operatively connected to the first pivotal wheel to pivot the first pivotal wheel.

An auger mover for moving and steering an auger is provided. The auger mover can have a frame having a front end and a rear end, the rear end connectable to an auger axle on the auger, a first pivotal wheel attached to a front end of the frame and pivotal relative to the frame, a second pivotal wheel attached to a front end of the frame and pivotal relative to the frame independently of the first pivotal wheel, an auger connection assembly connected to the frame and connectable to the auger and a steering assembly operatively connected to the first pivotal wheel to pivot the first pivotal wheel.

A spiral conveyor having a novel structure that is adapted to handle any chip while having a simple structure and is capable of achieving low vibration and low noise is provided. A tray for a spiral conveyor is configured from an outer tray, an inner tray which is placed over the inside of the outer tray, and a vibration damping material which is interposed between the outer tray and the inner tray. The tray has a fixing means for detachably fixing the inner tray and the vibration damping material to the outer tray on the outside of a conveyance spiral casing. The vibration damping material may be a single vibration damping material which is continuous over substantially all of the area between the outer tray and the inner tray, or may alternatively be arranged so as to be separated into a lower vibration damping material that is provided in a noise generation area with which a conveyance spiral is brought into contact and upper vibration damping materials that are provided in a noise propagation area including the fixed portion.

A bearer for bearing a honeycomb green body includes a solid main body provided with a groove in which a concave arc surface extends along one direction; and a single-layer or multi-layer sponge layer attached to the arc surface of the groove. The sponge layer is curved along the arc surface of the groove and has a bearing surface curved along the arc surface.

A continuous converter for pyrolyzing or otherwise processing biomass or other solid organic feed materials includes a reaction chamber (5) for producing a solid carbon-containing product and a gas product and optionally a liquid water product via pyrolysis or other reaction mechanisms from a solid organic feed material. The chamber has an inlet (41) for supplying a solid organic feed material to the chamber and separate outlets (15, 35) for the solid carbon-containing product and the gas product produced in the reaction chamber. The inlet and the solid carbon-containing product outlet are configured so that the solid materials in the inlet and in the outlet form respective gas seals in the inlet and the outlet.