A method for pulling a modular conveyor belt and a belt puller for performing the method. The belt puller has eyelets on one end that interleave with hinge elements on an end of a modular conveyor belt. A rod through the eyelets and the hinge elements connects the belt to the puller, which can then be used to pull the belt. Two ends of an unconnected belt can be pulled together by connecting a belt puller to each end, joining the belt pullers with a ratchet strap or other pulling tool, and tightening the strap to pull the ends together.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
F16G 3/02 - Belt fastenings, e.g. for conveyor belts with series of eyes or the like, interposed and linked by a pin to form a hinge
A hygienic, cleanable conveyor roller for use in a conveyor includes a segmented hub, a plurality of spokes and a rim for contacting a conveyor belt. The segmented hub comprises a plurality of arcuate segments in different axial planes connected to each other. The conveyor roller is mounted upon and rotatable about a mounting shaft that may axially constrain the roller. During a single revolution of the conveyor roller about the mounting shaft, all surfaces of both the conveyor roller and the mounting shaft are fully exposed, allowing the surfaces to be cleaned in place, without requiring removal of the conveyor roller from the mounting shaft.
A rotatable retainer for hinge rods in modular conveyor belts. The rod retainer includes a plug that is rotatably received in a socket in the edge portion of a conveyor belt module. An aperture through the plug is adjustable between a first locked and operational position guiding a hinge rod obliquely into a hinge-joint passageway between adjacent rows of belt modules and an unlocked second position guiding the hinge rod straight into the passageway. A sideguard, such as for a stacker belt, can optionally be formed with the plug.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
4.
MULTI-PIECE CONVEYOR COMPONENT INCLUDING HYGIENIC CONNECTION
A multi-piece component for a conveyor comprises a first section and a second section that mates with the first section around a shaft using a hygienic fastener to form a complete module. The hygienic fastener seals an interface between the fastener and the first section and between the first section and the second section. Chamfers facilitate positioning of the multi-piece component on a shaft.
F16D 1/08 - Couplings for rigidly connecting two coaxial shafts or other movable machine elements for attachment of a member on a shaft or on a shaft-end with hub and longitudinal key
5.
SELF-STACKING SPIRAL BELT CONVEYOR WITH SMOOTH DIAMETER REDUCTION
A spiral conveyor having a self-stacking conveyor belt positively driven on a helical path up or down a drive drum. Stacker supports at opposite sides of the belt support the tiers above. Locking structure on the outer stacker supports interlock consecutive tiers. Drive members on the drive drum have a belt entrance segment and a positive-drive segment. The positive-drive segment has ridges that engage the inner side of the belt without slip. The entrance segment provides a smooth reduction in drum diameter without drive ridges to multiple belt tiers entering the helical path.
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 17/38 - Chains or like traction elements; Connections between traction elements and load-carriers
A drive assembly for conveyor belt comprises a pair of opposing end plates for mounting a conveyor drive and mounting assemblies for mounting at least one of a position limiter assembly, a scraper assembly, a combined limiter-scraper assembly and side guards. The scraper assembly and combined limiter-scraper assembly include a leaf spring that is selectively tensioned by a tensioning element on an end plate to bias the scraper blade of the scraper assembly into an operational position.
A conveyor employs an adjustable product containment guard adjacent to a carryway for containing product on the carryway. The product containment guard is mounted to an end plate that includes multiple seats for moving the product containment guard between different positions.
B65G 21/20 - Means incorporated in, or attached to, framework or housings for guiding load-carriers, traction elements or loads supported on moving surfaces
B65G 21/10 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors movable, or having interchangeable or relatively- movable parts; Devices for moving framework or parts thereof
B65G 21/22 - Rails or the like engaging sliding elements or rollers attached to load-carriers or traction elements
Belt edge modules for constructing modular conveyor belts with sturdy outer edges. The edge modules have thickened outer edge regions in module edge portions that are difficult to snip or break off to access hinge rods.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
A tray conveyor with trays driven by a linear synchronous motor. The trays are supported on a pair of guide rails in a conveyor frame. The trays include a permanent-magnet array whose magnetic field interacts with a traveling electromagnetic wave produced by a linear-motor stator extending along the conveyor between the guide rails to propel the tray in a conveying direction.
A roller for a conveyor system comprises a nonlinear bore hole to facilitate retention of the roller on a roller-receiving portion of a corresponding shaft. A nonlinear bore hole comprises a central cylindrical portion for receiving a roller-receiving portion of the shaft and unaligned slots in communication with the central cylindrical portion to prevent migration of the roller from the roller-receiving portion.
A sealed sprocket for a conveyor belt comprises a sprocket mounted on a drive shaft and a seal system sealing an interface between the sprocket and the drive shaft. The seal system comprises a seal cap housing ring seals for sealing interfaces between the sprocket and seal cap and between the seal cap and drive shaft.
A bonder and a method for bonding corrugated sidewalls to a thermoplastic belt at a splice joint. Two heating jaw assemblies with complementary and confronting corrugated vertical faces clamp a thermoplastic belt to a base of the bonder with a corrugated sidewall section separated from the belt across a splice joint received in a corrugated slot formed between the confronting vertical faces. Corrugated bonding strips at the bottoms of the corrugated vertical faces apply heat to melt the bottom of the sidewall section on opposite sides to bond the corrugated sidewall section to the base.
A direct-drive spiral conveyor and a method for operating a spiral conveyor in which a sideflexing conveyor belt is positively driven in a helical path about the periphery of a rotating cylindrical drive drum. Parallel drive members extend in length along the periphery from the top to the bottom of the drive drum. The drive members engage drive faces on the inside edge of the conveyor belt and positively drive the inside edges along the helical path. The helical path is steeper at the entrance end-the bottom in an upgoing spiral, the top in a downgoing spiral-than at the opposite exit end and along a majority of the path.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
14.
CONVEYOR BELT AND MODULE WITH SKEWED AIR-FLOW PASSAGES
A conveyor belt and a belt module having airflow passages that direct air exiting the module in different directions to agitate conveyed products. The airflow passages of injection-molded belt modules are formed with no undercut regions to accommodate the clean parting of the mold halves.
A belt splicer for splicing butt ends of thermoplastic belts together. The splicer uses a plurality of cranks in conjunction with heavy springs to close and rapidly open jaws holding butt ends of a belt in place against a heating wand for melting and against each other for welding the melted ends together. The rapid opening of the jaw also lowers the wand, which is locked in place by a wand lock during the melting of the butt ends.
B29C 65/20 - Joining of preformed parts; Apparatus therefor by heating, with or without pressure using heated tool with direct contact, e.g. using "mirror"
B29C 65/00 - Joining of preformed parts; Apparatus therefor
A drone comprises at least one propeller for generating lift and an article containment area for containing an article to be carried by the drone. The floor of the article containment area comprises a dynamic support surface for supporting the article and allowing the article to move into, out of and through the article containment area. The dynamic support surface may be a conveyor belt forming the floor of the article containment area.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/52 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices
A conveyor employs an infeed assembly and outfeed assembly. The infeed assembly and outfeed assembly components may be easily mounted to and removed from the conveyor frame to facilitate replacement, cleaning or maintenance. The conveyor comprises a frame including opposing side plates at an end of the conveyor, each side plate including at least one outward-facing protrusion; and a removable belt-guiding assembly mounted to the opposing side plates, the belt-guiding assembly comprising a support beam extending from a first side to a second side, arms extending from the support beam, an axle having a curved end and supported by the arms, and a rotatable nosebar mounted on the axle, wherein the removable belt-guiding assembly is mounted to the frame using the outward-facing protrusion.
B65G 15/60 - Arrangements for supporting or guiding belts, e.g. by fluid jets
B65G 21/10 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors movable, or having interchangeable or relatively- movable parts; Devices for moving framework or parts thereof
B65G 23/06 - Drums, rollers, or wheels with projections engaging abutments on belts or chains, e.g. sprocket wheels
A conveyor employs an infeed assembly and outfeed assembly, each comprising a nosebar assembly that may be mounted to a conveyor frame to transition a conveyor belt between a returnway and a carryway. The outfeed assembly further includes a drive sprocket and a limiter to ensure engagement of drive elements on the conveyor belt with the drive sprockets. A limiter plate ensures proper placement of the limiter relative to the drive sprocket. The infeed assembly and outfeed assembly components may be easily mounted to and removed from the conveyor frame to facilitate replacement, cleaning or maintenance.
B65G 15/60 - Arrangements for supporting or guiding belts, e.g. by fluid jets
B65G 21/10 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors movable, or having interchangeable or relatively- movable parts; Devices for moving framework or parts thereof
B65G 23/06 - Drums, rollers, or wheels with projections engaging abutments on belts or chains, e.g. sprocket wheels
19.
SELF-STACKING SPIRAL MODULAR PLASTIC CONVEYOR BELT WITH INTERMEDIATE SUPPORT
A modular spiral belt constructed of a series of hingedly interconnected belt modules arranged in a helical stack. The modular spiral belt includes outer side plates, inner side plates and intermediate attachment members. The intermediate attachment members provide support for the conveyor belt to prevent sagging in an intermediate region.
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
B65G 15/02 - Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration for conveying in a circular arc
B65G 17/06 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms
B65G 17/30 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface - Details; Auxiliary devices
20.
CONVEYOR BELT MODULE WITH STEPPED HINGE PASSAGEWAY
A conveyor belt module comprises a module body and offset hinge elements extending from each end of the module body. On one end, the hinge elements include a progressively widening hinge passageway having hinge openings extending at different angles. The hinge openings progressively widen in a stepped manner to facilitate load sharing.
B65G 17/06 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms
A conveyance device comprises a sorting plate housing a plurality of roller assemblies and a series of narrow conveyor belts for conveying articles towards the sorting plate. In a first mode, the narrow conveyor belts bypass the roller assemblies and convey articles over the sorting plate. In a second mode, the conveyor belts bring an article into contact with the roller assemblies, which then manipulate the trajectory of the article.
B65G 21/12 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors movable, or having interchangeable or relatively- movable parts; Devices for moving framework or parts thereof to allow adjustment of position of load-carrier or traction element as a whole
A conveyor system with a pop-up transfer assembly for transferring articles off the end of conveyor belt having protrusions extending above the belt's outer conveying surface. The transfer assembly is cantilevered over the reversing path of the conveyor belt from a pivot. When a protrusion from the belt hits the transfer assembly, the transfer assembly pivots away from the belt about the pivot. When the protrusion is clear, the transfer assembly drops, by gravity, back to its home position proximate the belt. A bilateral transfer assembly is cantilevered in opposite directions to transfer articles off the end of one conveyor belt onto another conveyor belt that may or may not have protrusions.
A cleanable shoe-type diverter belt having narrow translatable pushers forming article-diverting shoes. Cam followers on the shoes below the pushers follow guides under the belt along an upper carryway run to translate the shoes along one or more transverse tracks across the width of the belt. Monolithic diverters support the belt on the carryway run and direct the shoes along different paths. Pusher returns in a lower returnway run guide diverted pushers back to a home position.
B65G 47/52 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices
B65G 15/00 - Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration
B65G 47/46 - Devices for discharging articles or materials from conveyors with distribution, e.g. automatically, to desired points
24.
CLEANABLE CONVEYOR FRAME ASSEMBLY INCLUDING SNAP-ON COMPONENTS
A cleanable belt conveyor and a method for making a cleanable belt conveyor having a simplified frame design. The conveyor includes at least one toolbar and one or more auxiliary components mounted to the toolbar using a snap clamp having a protrusion that mates with a channel on the toolbar.
A conveyor employs a low-tension, direct drive conveyor belt, and a snap-on position limiter for ensuring proper engagement of the belt and a drive sprocket. The position limiter includes a body, a limiting surface and a snap clap opposite the limiting surface for snapping the position limiter to a mounting shaft. The limiting surface may comprise rotatable rollers mounted to the body, or a continuous arcuate surface. The position limiter may include a mounting arm for mounting a conveyor belt scraper at the front of the position limiter.
An article induction system for preparing a stream of articles, such as mail parcels, for processing employs a series of conveyors operating under control of a controller for feeding articles to an operator at a cull belt at an optimal paced rate. The article induction system includes a destacking section, a separation and alignment section, a buffer section and a culling section manned by an operator. A controller controls the speed of each component based on measurements provided by sensors so as to feed articles to the operator at a desired paced rate.
B65G 43/08 - Control devices operated by article or material being fed, conveyed, or discharged
B65G 47/30 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles during transit by a series of conveyors
A spiral conveyor and a method for taking up slack in a modular conveyor belt traveling a helical path. The spiral conveyor includes a rotating cylindrical drive drum with parallel drive members extending from the bottom to the top of the drum on its periphery. Each drive member includes an outwardly protruding ridge extending from the bottom to the top of the drum for engaging the inside edges of the belt. A motor-driven take-up shaft and shaft-mounted sprocket set takes up slack in the belt after its release from the drum. To control tension at the discharge of the belt from the drive drum, the take-up motor is normally operated in a closed-loop control mode, but switches to an open-loop constant-speed control mode when the take-up motor stalls.
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
Components of a conveyor system designed to facilitate tight transfer of products onto and off a positively-driven, low tension conveyor belt. The conveyor system includes a tension amplifier in a returnway of a conveyor belt circuit for selectively increasing tension in the conveyor belt prior to infeed without increasing the low tension in the returnway prior to the tension amplifier. A positively-driven, low tension conveyor system (400) includes a tension amplifier (480) in a returnway of a conveyor belt circuit for increasing tension in the conveyor belt (460) prior to infeed without increasing the low tension in the returnway (450) prior to the tension amplifier (480).
A conveyor belt and a belt module having multiple roller sets, each roller set including a bottom roller in contact with an axially elongated top roller. Driving the bottom roller in a first direction causes rotation of the top roller in an opposite angular direction. The bottom rollers in first longitudinal lanes are arranged to rotate obliquely toward one side of the belt, and the bottom rollers in second lanes are arranged to rotate toward the other side of the belt. Either the first lanes of roller sets or the second lanes can be selectively actuated to direct articles conveyed atop the top rollers rearward and toward one side of the belt or the other or to receive articles fed onto the belt from either side.
A modular spiral belt constructed of a series of hingedly interconnected belt modules arranged in a helical stack. The modular spiral belt includes outer side plates (50) that include openings for airflow and inner side plates (80) that are solid to block airflow. The openings may include valves for selectively opening and closing the openings. A locking mechanism may lock two tiers together. A hold down may apply pressure to prevent destacking of the belt, or a guide may be disposed with the helical stack for preventing destacking.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
A conveyor belt has a plurality of belt modules arranged end to end, some of which includes an intermediate portion and an elongated slot formed therein from a top side to a bottom side and extending across the width of the intermediate portion. A monolithic pusher is movably retained in the intermediate portion to move along the elongated slot, and has an article-engaging upper portion above the top side of the intermediate portion and a lower cam portion below the bottom side of the intermediate portion. The belt module is flexible enough to allow the monolithic pusher to be installed in the elongated slot by flexing the belt module at the elongated slot to temporarily widen the elongated slot to admit the monolithic pusher into place.
A cleanable belt conveyor and a method for making a cleanable belt conveyor having a simplified frame design. One version of such a conveyor comprises a frame and an insertable conveyor belt support. Another version comprises a modular frame formed by a plurality of shafts connected using connectors. Another version comprises a unitary frame and carryway structure, whereby the carryway for supporting a conveyor belt constitutes support structure for the frame. Another version comprises a carryway support rail including an integral curved reversing element. Another version comprises components connected through curvaceous connecting members.
B65G 21/02 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors consisting essentially of struts, ties, or like structural elements
B65G 15/00 - Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration
A multi-directional roller assembly for directing articles in a conveying system. The multi-directional roller assembly has a rotatable roller frame housing at least one set of mutually-actuating rollers. The multi-directional roller assembly directs an article supported by the assembly along a trajectory determined by the orientation of the multi-directional roller assembly relative to an input force. The orientation of the multi-directional roller assembly may be changed to change the trajectory. A conveyor system may include an array of multi-directional roller assemblies. An actuator controls the orientation of the multi-directional roller assemblies individually and may also control an array of multi-directional roller assemblies as a group.
B65G 47/53 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices between conveyors which cross one another
F16C 13/00 - Rolls, drums, discs, or the like; Bearings or mountings therefor
A fastening system for joining two ends of a conveyor belt (200) segment includes an inhibiting surface (252) for controlling movement of the ends relative to each other. The inhibiting surface is offset from an inner surface of a conveyor belt segment employing the fastening system and engages a surface of a corresponding conveyor belt segment to reduce tenting of the conveyor belt segment ends.
F16G 3/02 - Belt fastenings, e.g. for conveyor belts with series of eyes or the like, interposed and linked by a pin to form a hinge
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
A case turner and associated method for rotating conveyed articles. The case turner includes a pair of conveyor belts (14, 16) advancing side by side in a conveying direction (18). The belts, which are tilted downward toward each other, have rows of article - supporting rollers (20) that can rotate freely on axes parallel to the conveying direction. Each of the belts advances at a different speed so that an article bridging both belts is rotated as it is conveyed along the belt. The speed differential is set to provide a desired degree of rotation for the length of the two belts.
B65G 47/244 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors orientating the articles by turning them about an axis substantially perpendicular to the conveying plane
A transverse - roller conveyor belt (58) and a conveyor system (56) providing a drive mechanism (60) for driving the rollers in the belt to divert conveyed articles. The conveyor belt includes belt rollers (18) that each engage a pair of smaller- diameter, article - conveying rollers (30). The conveyor system's drive mechanism (60), when selectively actuated, rotates the belt rollers (18), which rotate the article - supporting rollers (30) to divert conveyed articles toward or off the side of the belt. Gaps between at least some of the pairs of article - supporting rollers admit the teeth (74) of a transfer comb (73) to strip remaining articles off the downstream end of the belt.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
A spiral conveyor for positively driving a conveyor belt (20) along a helical path. The spiral conveyor includes a rotating cylindrical tower (10) with parallel drive members (14) extending from the bottom to the top of the tower on its periphery. Each drive member includes an outwardly protruding ridge (28) that varies in height from the bottom to the top of the tower. The variations in height facilitate the belt's entry onto and exit from the tower and robust, positive driving engagement with the inside edge of the belt along the majority of its path along the tower. In another version, a conveyor belt has teeth (62) with guide surfaces (78, 79 ) at the inside edge of the belt. The teeth guide the drive members between belt rows into driving engagement with drive faces at the inside edge of the belt.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
A spiral conveyor for positively driving a conveyor belt along a helical path. The spiral conveyor includes a rotating cylindrical tower with parallel drive members extending from the bottom to the top of the tower on its periphery. Each drive member includes an outwardly protruding ridge that varies in height from the bottom to the top of the tower. The variations in height facilitate the belt's entry onto and exit from the tower and robust, positive driving engagement with the inside edge of the belt along the majority of its path along the tower. In another version, a conveyor belt has teeth with guide surfaces at the inside edge of the belt. The teeth guide the drive members between belt rows into driving engagement with drive faces at the inside edge of the belt.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 21/18 - Supporting or protective framework or housings for endless load-carriers or traction elements of belt or chain conveyors for conveyors having endless load-carriers movable in curved paths in three-dimensionally curved paths
A package -culling conveyor system and a method for culling flat packages from a bulk flow of flat and non-flat packages. The conveyor system includes a tilted conveyor belt (24) conveying flat packages while non-flat packages tumble off its lower side. A high - friction conveying surface or a raised barrier along the length of the conveying surface of the tilted conveyor belt (24) holds flat packages on the tilted belt. The separated packages are more fully culled in a conveyor comprising a roller conveyor belt (36) with belt rollers (38) rotated in a direction to push packages sidewise toward a culling element that extends along the belt's length. Culling elements include powered rollers (55) or vertical walls forming side guards. The culling elements block the non-flat packages from exiting off the side of the belt so that they are conveyed off the end of the belt separate from the flat packages.
B65G 47/71 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor the articles being discharged to several conveyors
B07C 1/10 - Sorting according to size or flexibility
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
A conveyor system and methods for conveying and unstacking flat and non-flat packages. The conveyor system includes an inclined conveyor belt delivering packages to a tilted conveyor belt that conveys flat packages along its length while non-flat packages tumble off its lower side edge to initially cull flat packages from a bulk flow of packages. Retention means, such as a high-friction outer conveying surface or a raised barrier along the length of the outer conveying surface of the tilted conveyor belt, holds flat packages on the tilted conveyor belt. The inclined conveyor belt has stop elements spaced apart along the belt's length and is advanced in stop-and-go fashion to help unstack piggy-backed packages as they are conveyed up the incline.
B65G 47/71 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor the articles being discharged to several conveyors
B07C 1/10 - Sorting according to size or flexibility
B65G 15/28 - Conveyors with a load-conveying surface formed by a single flat belt, not otherwise provided for
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
41.
RAPID-RELEASE BELT SPLICER AND METHOD OF OPERATION
A belt splicer for butt-welding conveyor belts and methods for its operation. The belt splicer has clamp jaws (12,13) that close to contact the butt edges of two belt sections (26,27) against opposite ends of a heating wand (60) and to hold the two melted butt edges together as they weld to each other. A toggle linkage assembly (36) locks the clamped jaws closed and stores energy in a spring mechanism (56,57). The toggle linkage assembly allows the rapid release of the spring energy to accelerate the clamp jaws open to pull the melted butt ends rapidly away from the sides of the wand to avoid sticking. In another version, an air cylinder is used instead of the toggle linkage assembly and spring mechanism to close and rapidly open the splicer.
F16G 3/16 - Devices or machines for connecting driving-belts or the like
B29C 65/20 - Joining of preformed parts; Apparatus therefor by heating, with or without pressure using heated tool with direct contact, e.g. using "mirror"
Peeling apparatus and a method for biasing lower idle rollers of a roller-type peeling machine against power rollers to maintain the rollers in contact as the rollers wear. The apparatus includes biasing means, such as a cylinder applying upward pressure against the upper ends of the lower rollers to keep the rollers in constant contact.
A conveyor system (100) includes a conveyor belt (102) having belt rollers (118) configured to divert articles on the belt (102) and a drive mechanism that engages the belt rollers (118). The drive mechanism is configured to drive the belt rollers (118) and is adjustable to selectively drive the belt rollers (118) in a first angular direction and, optionally, a second, opposite angular direction so that articles can be selectively diverted to either side of the belt at a desired angle. One version of the drive mechanism has drive rollers (308) mounted in cartridges (334) and rack gears (342) engaging pinion gears on the cartridges to adjust the orientation of the drive rollers (308) relative to the belt rollers. Such a conveyor system with a series of sequential roller actuation zones (430) driven by separately actuated drive mechanisms is arranged diagonally to an infeed conveyor (418) and a multi-lane outbound conveyor (424) to realize a switch conveyor.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/52 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices
A continuous cooker having a conveyor capable of repositioning product and cleaning itself of debris and a method for its operation. The cooker includes a conveyor that transports food atop a conveyor belt to a cooking chamber. Upper and lower diverting rollers guide the belt along an S-shaped product- repositioning path segment. The lower diverting roller is ro-tated at a speed different from the speed of the conveyor belt to cause the belt to slip on the roller's periphery, which effects a scraping action against the conveying side of the belt to dislodge debris.
Methods and apparatus for cleaning the peeling section of a roller-type peeling machine. The apparatus includes an x-y robot disposed above the peeling section of the peeling machine. The robot has a cleaning tool, such as a liquid spray nozzle, as an end effector. A controller commands the robot to control the movement of the cleaning tool along a pre-determined cleaning path to clean the peeling section. One such cleaning path follows each of the insert rollers in the peeling section of a peeling machine. An underside cleaner may be used in conjunction with the robot to simultaneously clean the underside of the peeling section.
In one embodiment, a conveyor system (300) includes a conveyor belt (302) having a plurality of conveyor belt rollers (304) configured to divert objects (o) on the conveyor belt, and a drive mechanism that engages the conveyor belt rollers, the drive mechanism being configured to drive the conveyor belt rollers, the drive mechanism being adjustable such that the con-veyor belt rollers can be selectively driven in a first angular direction and a second, opposite angular direction so that objects can be selectively diverted to either side of the conveyor belt at a desired diverting angle. One version of the drive mechanism has drive rollers (308) mounted in cartridges (320) and rack gears (342) engaging pinion gears (334) on the cartridges to adjust the orientation of the drive rollers relative to the belt rollers to drive them in selectively opposite angular directions.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/53 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices between conveyors which cross one another
47.
APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SENSING CONDITIONS LOCAL TO A MODULAR CONVEYOR BELT
Apparatus and method for sensing conditions local to a modular conveyor belt and Wirelessly transmitting signals representing those conditions to an off-belt belt monitoring system. A load cell pin (46) installed in a clevis formed at a hinge joint between adjacent rows of a modular conveyor belt serves as a clevis pin to interconnect the rows and as a sensor sensing belt tension transmitted through the clevis. A load-sensing belt module (28) forms the clevis and holds electronic circuitry (92) that takes the sensor measurements, logs them in a memory element, and transmits them wirelessly to the monitoring system. The measurements may be used as part of a closed-loop control system to control the speed or other operating characteristics of the conveyor system. A variety of sensors housed in sensor modules similar to standard conveyor belt modules may be installed in the belt as drop-in replacements for standard modules.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 43/02 - Control devices, e.g. for safety, warning or fault-correcting detecting dangerous physical condition of load- carriers, e.g. for interrupting the drive in the event of overheating
48.
APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR CONTROLLING SPACING OF CONVEYED OBJECTS
In one embodiment, apparatus for controlling spacing of objects conveyed by an object conveyor include flights (30.) that can he actuated from a retracted state to an extended state in which the flights extend transversely across the object conveyor (12), the flights limiting travel of the object (0) to control their relative spacing, wherein the flights actuate with relatively little force such that a retracted flight will not extend once it contacts a directly adjacent object that occupies space into which the retracted flight would normally extend.
B65G 47/28 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles during transit by a single conveyor
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
49.
CONVEYOR BELTS HAVING ROLLERS THAT DISPLACE OBJECTS
In one embodiment, a conveyor belt includes multiple roller sets, each roller set including a first roller and a second roller, the first and second rollers being placed in contact with each other such that driving of one of the rollers in a first angular direction causes rotation of the other roller in a second, opposite angular direction.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
A conveyor includes a conveyor belt, a plurality of rollers, and a flight. The rollers have lower surfaces configured to engage a roller-engagement surface, and upper surfaces that substantially form a plane, such that the rollers engage the roller-engagement surface and rotate to move an object supported by the rollers over the plane. The flight includes a cam configured to engage a cam surface below the conveyor belt to impart a moment on the flight, and a projection that responds to the moment by rotating from a retracted position to an extended position.
A compressible boot seal for sealing the side of a vertical traveling water screen with flights. The boot seal is formed by a U-shaped, bent nylon plate having a bottom base that resides in the boot section at the lower end of the traveling water screen and two upwardly extending arms that are attached at their distal ends to a side of the water screen support. The plate is bent at the intersection of the base and the arms to form a living hinge that allows the plate to deflect toward the side of the support on contact with side edges of the flights. The hinge seals the plate against the side edges of the flights. A resilient filler material fills the void between the plate and the side of the support to prevent sand and debris from interfering with the deflection of the side seal.
B01D 33/056 - Construction of filtering bands or supporting belts, e.g. devices for centering, mounting or sealing the filtering bands or the supporting belts
E02B 5/08 - Artificial water canals - Details, e.g. gates, screens
An endless conveyor belt (10) comprises a flat belt portion (12) with strips (20) of teeth (28) attached to one side of the flat belt, near the side edges (26) of the flat belt. In another embodiment, the side edges of the strips are attached to the side edges of the flat belt. In either embodiment, the strips are first attached to the flat belt, and then machined to form a plurality of teeth on each strip. The strips can be of a different material than the flat belt. The conveyor belt can be employed with conveyors having small radius pulleys (54) and nose bars (58).
A curved conveyor comprises a toothed, endless belt and a slider bed that supports a portion of the belt. The slider bed can include at least one guide in the form of a rail extending along the slider bed in the direction of belt travel. Each of the belt teeth are discontinuous and have at least one gap sized to receive the at least one guide; thus, the at least one guide prevents inward radial migration of the belt during movement of the belt. The conveyor can further comprise a center guide wheel or a guide post to prevent belt radial migration.
B65G 15/02 - Conveyors having endless load-conveying surfaces, i.e. belts and like continuous members, to which tractive effort is transmitted by means other than endless driving elements of similar configuration for conveying in a circular arc
In one embodiment, a conveyor system includes a conveyor belt having a plurality of conveyor belt rollers configured to divert objects on the conveyor belt, and a drive mechanism that engages the conveyor belt rollers, the drive mechanism being configured to drive the conveyor belt rollers, the drive mechanism being adjustable such that the conveyor belt rollers can be selectively driven in a first angular direction and a second, opposite angular direction so that objects can be selectively diverted to either side of the conveyor belt at a desired diverting angle.
A toothed belt connector for making an endless belt has two leaves, adapted to be connected to each other by knuckles along one or more teeth. Each knuckle has at least one hole extending through tooth portions so that when the holes are in registry, a pin can be extended through the holes to connect the leaves at the teeth. The leaves can be adjoined to the ends of a belt to make the belt endless. The tip end of each knuckle can be beveled or it can have a stepped finger that fits into a cutout on the opposite leaf to keep the end of the knuckle from protruding as the belt wraps around a sprocket.
B65G 19/00 - Conveyors comprising an impeller or a series of impellers carried by an endless traction element and arranged to move articles or materials over a supporting surface or underlying material, e.g. endless scraper conveyors
56.
CONVEYOR WITH TROUGHED LOW FRICTION, POSITIVE DRIVE BELT
A conveyor comprises an endless thermoplastic belt (12) having a substantially flat surface on one side of the belt and a plurality of teeth (28) on the other side of the belt. The teeth are adapted to be driven without tension around a drive sprocket and an idler The conveyor further includes means to cause the belt to form a longitudinal trough between the drive sprocket and the idler to retain conveyed items on the belt. The means can comprise a discontinuity (42) in the teeth, shortened teeth, and/or guides that apply a force to the edges of the belt.
Methods and apparatus for a conveyor system (100) for evenly spacing conveyed objects are provided. In one embodiment, the conveyor system includes a conveyor belt (120) that includes a conveyor having cavities, rollers (122) in some of cavities, and a positioning component (128). The conveyor system further includes a conveyor drive (126) coupled to the conveyor system and a roller engagement surface (124) positioned adjacent the conveyor belt and configured to engage the plurality of rollers (122).
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/28 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles during transit by a single conveyor
58.
PLASTIC CONVEYOR BELTS AND MODULES WITH LATERAL CHANNELS
An easy-to-clean conveyor belt constructed of a series of rows of belt modules (10) having lateral depressions (28, 29) forming channels across the width of the belt along which water can be sprayed to flush debris off the side edge of the belt. Lateral ridges (34, 35) between the depressions (28, 29) and hinge eyes (20) at the ends (14, 15) of each module (10) serve as levees that prevent debris being flushed through the channels from draining into hinge joints between consecutive belt rows.
B65G 17/00 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface
A modular conveyor belts (10) and belt attachment members (34,60,70) that are retained by hinge rod (20) . The attachment members have a body with opposite outer (40) and base surface (41) . Interaction elements, such as high-friction surface (42) , plate~s (70) , or holddown wings (64) , extend from the outer surface . The base surface mounts flush against a conveying surface or an opposite surface of the belt. Legs (46,47) extend directly from the base surface into gap (48) between hinge elements (26,27) extending longitudinally outward of conveyor belt modules forming the belt. Feet (50) at distal ends of the legs hook under hinge rod (20) to retain the attachment member firmly in place . The lateral spacing between the legs are related to the geometry of the hinge elements to register the attachment element with respect to the belt.
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
B65G 17/42 - Attaching load-carriers to traction elements
60.
ROLLER-BELT CONVEYOR FOR ACCUMULATING AND MOVING ARTICLES LATERALLY ACROSS THE CONVEYOR
A conveyor (10) using a roller belt (12) with rollers (42) arranged to rotate on oblique axes (44) to urge articles toward a side guide (54) . The conveyor includes an oblique-roller belt (12) supported on a carryway (38) . Rollers (42) extend above an outer conveying surface of the belt without contacting the carryway. Each roller rotates on an axis (44) oblique to the direction of belt travel and interesects the side guide (54) downstream of the roller. A retractable stop (60) is movable to and from a blocking position along the carryway. In the blocking position, the stop blocks the conveyed articles from advancing in the direction of belt travel . The rollers underlying the blocked articles rotate as the belt runs by contact with the articles. The rotating rollers provide a force to the blocked articles directed toward the side guide (54) to push the articles against the side guide or other articles as they accumulate upstream of the stop .
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/28 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles during transit by a single conveyor
61.
CONVEYOR AND METHOD FOR DIVERTING CLOSELY SPACED ARTICLES
. A conveyor (10) and associated method for diverting closely spaced articles (40) conveyed along the conveyor. The conveyor includes a conveyor belt with rollers (24) oriented to rotate on axes (26) oblique to the direction of belt travel (14) . A series of arrays of bearing surface elements (32) are arranged end to end along the conveyor. The bearing surfaces may be static or rotational . Each array defines a roller-control zone in which the array is selectively activated with its bearing surface elements in contract with the belt rollers (24) or deactivated with its bearing surface elements out of contact with the belt rollers . As the belt advances through an activated roller-control zone, the belt rollers rotate to propel a conveyed article toward a side of the belt. The contiguous roller-control zones are sequentially activated and deactivated to direct articles to the side and off the belt or to let them pass straight through.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/68 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
B65G 47/71 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor the articles being discharged to several conveyors
A conveyor (10) constructed of a single belt (12) or a plurality of abutting belts arranged side by side in the conveyor, in which the belt or belts have rollers (34) arranged to rotate on axes (36, 35') oriented at multiple angles (alpha, alpha' , beta, beta') oblique to the direction of belt travel (26). A gradual or monotonic, stepped change in the axes of the rollers across the width of the conveyor can be used to make a conveyor capable of converting a mass flow of articles into a single stream of separated articles.
B65G 17/24 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface comprising a series of rollers which are moved over a supporting surface by the traction element to effect conveyance of loads or load-carriers
B65G 47/22 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors
B65G 47/26 - Devices influencing the relative position or the attitude of articles during transit by conveyors arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles
B65G 47/68 - Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors, i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
A modular belt constructed of belt modules having a large open area, making the belt suitable for use as a traveling water screen. The modules include an intermediate portion composed of intersecting sets of link elements and transverse elements that form a gridlike pattern. Openings bounded by the walls of consecutive link elements and transverse elements form channels through the belt for the flow of water. The modules are connected together by hinge rods to form a belt that can be used as a water screen. Detachable flights or scoops for lifting debris or fish out of a stream are attachable to base modules.
B01D 33/00 - Filters with filtering elements which move during the filtering operation
B01D 33/056 - Construction of filtering bands or supporting belts, e.g. devices for centering, mounting or sealing the filtering bands or the supporting belts
B65G 17/08 - Conveyors having an endless traction element, e.g. a chain, transmitting movement to a continuous or substantially-continuous load-carrying surface or to a series of individual load-carriers; Endless-chain conveyors in which the chains form the load-carrying surface having a load-carrying surface formed by a series of interconnected, e.g. longitudinal, links, plates, or platforms the surface being formed by the traction element
A thermoplastic endless belt (100) has a smooth outer surface substantially free of discontinuities and an inner surface with a plurality of teeth (106) at a given belt pitch. The teeth are adapted to engage a pulley (102) with circumferentially spaced sheaves (104) at a pulley pitch greater than the belt pitch. The belt is slightly stretchable so that the pulley can drive the endless belt when engaging the teeth within a range of load on the belt. Means (132, 136, 138) are provided to minimize friction between the belt and the drive pulley. Also, a position limiter (200) ensures that the driven tooth stays engaged optimally with the drive sheave.
A thermoplastic endless belt (100) has a smooth outer surface substantially free of discontinuities and an inner surface with a plurality of teeth (106) at a given belt pitch. The teeth are adapted to engage a pulley (102) with circumferentially spaced sheaves (104) at a pulley pitch greater than the belt pitch. The belt is slightly stretchable so that the pulley can drive the endless belt when engaging the teeth within a range of load on the belt. Means (132, 136, 138) are provided to minimize friction between the belt and the drive pulley. Also, a position limiter (200) ensures that the driven tooth stays engaged optimally with the drive sheave.
A thermoplastic toothed belt connector (10, 50) for making an endless belt (12) has two leaves (20, 22, 58, 60), adapted to be hingedly connected to each other by knuckles (28, 30, 60, 62) along one or more teeth (38, 52, 54). Each knuckle (28, 30, 60, 62) has a hole (42, 72) extending through tooth portions (39) so that when the holes (42, 72) are in the registry, a pin (32, 74) can be extended through the holes (42, 72) to form the hinge at the teeth (38, 52, 54). The leaves (20, 22, 58, 60) can be adjoined to the ends of a thermoplastic belt (12) to make the belt endless.
An easy-to-clean conveyor with sprockets that reveal the hinge area of a modular conveyor belt to a fluid spray. A conveyor includes a modular belt constructed of rows of belt modules hingedly linked together in series by hinge pins into an endless belt loop. A sprocket, mounted on a shaft for rotation, engages an inner surface of the belt in driving or driven contact. The sprocket extends from a central bored hub to an outer periphery, which is arranged to engage the inner surface of the belt along an area of contact that varies laterally across the inner surface of the belt in each rotation of the sprocket.
patents
