Article-rotating belt conveyor

The present invention generally relates to powered conveyors, especially on conveyor belts comprising rollers that rotate about axes oriented in different directions to change the direction of the article as the conveyor belt advances. It relates to a conveyor capable of rotating and moving a transported article to be transported.

Many transport applications require that transport goods of various shapes and sizes be aligned in a particular direction for downstream process processing or inspection. The width of the entrance to the conveyor or process processing station is sometimes limited. For articles with a generally rectangular footprint with a minor axis and a longer major axis, the major axis or diagonal can exceed the dimensions of the limited width portion of the conveyor. If the long axis of an article that is too large is placed on a conveyor that has a long axis that crosses the width of the conveyor, the article will get stuck between the side walls of the conveyor. Hand movement intervention is required to clear the blockage. As a result, a conveyor is needed to align and orient articles of various sizes and shapes.

<p num="0003"> That need and other needs are met by a conveyor using the properties of the present invention. One aspect of the conveyor comprises a transport path that extends vertically from the upstream end to the downstream end in the transport direction and horizontally with a width from the first side edge to the second side edge. At least one conveyor belt travels in the transport direction along the transport path and forms an outer transport surface. The conveyor belt includes a roller that extends upward through the thickness of the conveyor belt and supports and contacts the transported article along the transport path. The outer transport surface is divided into at least two regions: a first region near the first side edge and a laterally offset second region near the second side edge. The rollers in the first region are oriented to rotate in the first direction, and the rollers in the second region are oriented to rotate in the second direction. The roller control means moves the roller in the first region at the first speed and the second speed so that the component of the first speed in the transport direction is different from the component of the second speed in the transport direction. The roller in the region is rotated at a second speed.</p><p num="0004"> In another aspect of the invention, the conveyor extends longitudinally in the transport direction from the upstream end to the downstream end and laterally with a width from the first side edge to the second side edge. To have. At least one conveyor belt travels along the transport path in the transport direction and forms an outer transport surface divided into a first region and a laterally offset second region. The first roller in the first region extends through the thickness of the conveyor belt and rotates about a plurality of parallel first axes that are substantially perpendicular to the transport direction. The second roller in the second region extends through the thickness of the conveyor belt and is tilted with respect to the first axis and rotates about a plurality of parallel second axes. The roller contact surface is under the conveyor belt along the transport path and comes into contact with the first and second rollers. The contact causes the first and second rollers to rotate as the conveyor belt advances in the transport direction. The first roller rotates at a speed component in the transport direction different from the velocity component of the second roller in the transport direction as the at least one conveyor belt advances along the transport path.</p><p num="0005"> In another aspect of the invention, in a method of rotating an article carried on a belt conveyor: (a) a step of advancing at least one conveyor belt in the carrying direction, wherein the conveyor belt is the first. In the region, through the thickness of the conveyor belt and in the second region, through the thickness of the conveyor belt, with a first roller arranged to rotate in a first direction. With a step having an upper carrying surface divided into laterally offset first and second regions with a second roller extending and arranged to rotate in a second direction; ( b) Rotate the first roller in the first direction with the first velocity component in the transport direction and the second roller in the second direction with different second velocity components in the transport direction. The step of rotating the article in the first and second regions on the first and second rollers at the same time on the upper transport surface; To have.</p>

These properties and aspects of the invention, along with their advantages, are better understood by reference to the following description, attached claims, and drawings.<figref num="1">FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a conveyor using the characteristics of the present invention to rotate and move an article across a conveyor.</figref><figref num="2">FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the conveyor along 2-2 of FIG.</figref><figref num="3">FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the conveyor along 3-3 of FIG.</figref><figref num="4">FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the conveyor along 4-4 of FIG. 1, showing the contact surface of the rollers.</figref><figref num="5">FIG. 5 is an unequal angle projection of a portion of the conveyor of FIG. 1 with a vertical roller that provides a contact surface for the rollers.</figref><figref num="6">FIG. 6 is a vector diagram of the speed of the article support roller of the conveyor of FIG.</figref><figref num="7">7A-7D are top views showing the rotation and movement of the goods carried by the conveyor of FIG.</figref><figref num="8">FIG. 8 is a diagram showing another aspect of a conveyor using the characteristics of the present invention, which comprises an in-line roller that rotates rearward.</figref><figref num="9">FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the conveyor along 9-9 of FIG.</figref><figref num="10">FIG. 10 is a vector diagram of the roller speed in the conveyor of FIG.</figref><figref num="11">11A-11D are top views showing the rotation and movement of the goods carried by the conveyor of FIG.</figref><figref num="12">FIG. 12 is a top view of another aspect of a conveyor using the characteristics of the invention with parallel in-line and diagonal upper roller conveyor belts traveling at different speeds.</figref><figref num="13">FIG. 13 is a top view of yet another aspect of a conveyor using the characteristics of the invention comprising parallel in-line and diagonal roller conveyor belts in which the in-line roller belt travels at a higher speed than the diagonal roller belt.</figref>

FIGS. 1 to 4 show an aspect of a conveyor that rotates a transported article and incorporates the characteristics of the present invention. The conveyor 20 comprises a first seamless conveyor belt 22 parallel to and adjacent to the second seamless conveyor belt 24. The belts define each other an upper carrying surface 26 on which the article is carried. The upper transport surface of the belt is supported by a transport path with support members such as wear strips 28, 29 or support rollers 30 (FIG. 5). The conveyor belt is driven in the transport direction 32 by a drive device including a motor 34 connected to the drive shaft 36. The sprocket 38 attached to the drive shaft abuts on the drive surface at the downstream ends 42 of the transport path at the inner sides 40 and 41 of the belt. The belt is hung between the drive sprocket 38 and the idle sprocket 39 at the upstream end 43 of the haul path. The idle sprocket is attached to the idle shaft 37. Both shafts are rotatably supported by a support block 44 at each end attached to the conveyor frame (not shown). The belts are supported and these slacks are reduced by rollers or shoes 48 along the lower return path 46.

The first conveyor belt 22 comprises two sets of rollers 50, 51 having a diameter larger than the thickness of the belt. The protrusions of the rollers extend beyond the upper 52 and lower 53 of the belt. The protrusions of the rollers 50, 51 move along a roller contact support surface 54 formed by a support member, a flat upper portion of the wear strip 29 in this embodiment. As the belt advances, the rollers come into contact with the support surface and rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow 56 in FIG. The rollers 50 in the vertical region 47 on one side of the belt are arranged to rotate about the horizontal axis 58 (90 ° with respect to the transport direction). These rollers 50 are called in-line rollers because they rotate parallel to the main transport direction, i.e., the belt movement direction 32, and push the transport goods. The rollers 51 in the laterally offset region 49 closer to the other side of the belt 22 are arranged to rotate on an axis 59 that is tilted with respect to the transport direction and the axis of the inline roller. These rollers 51 are called diagonal rollers. As the belt advances, each roller exerts a force on the goods carried on it in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the rollers. Therefore, the in-line roller 50 pushes the article in the transport direction 32, and the oblique roller 51 pushes the article diagonally toward the second belt 24.

The second belt 24 comprises rollers 60 arranged to rotate on a plurality of parallel axes 62 in the transport direction 32. These rollers 60, which define a third region 63 on the outer transport surface, are called lateral rollers because they direct the transport article laterally toward the side of the belt with respect to its travel. Unlike the in-line roller 50 and the diagonal roller 51, the lateral roller 60 does not come into contact with the support surface along the transport path. The second belt is instead directly supported by the wear strip 28 in the longitudinal lane 64 between the roller lanes. The lateral rollers are rotatable about these axes by coming into contact with laterally moving articles. Since the lateral rollers do not need to come into contact with the support surface, they do not need to extend beyond the lower 53 of the belt.

Another aspect of the support surface of the first belt 22 is shown in FIG. 5 with details of the belt. An oblique roller 51 in the illustrated belt portion is attached to a shaft 66 extending across the opposing walls of the cavity 68 formed in the module 70 forming a row of modular conveyor belts. The hinge eyes 72, 73 that guide and connect the ends of each row are alternately arranged and connected by hinge rods 74 that are received in the lateral passages formed by the alternately arranged hinge eyes. The axle defines an oblique axis 59 around which the roller 51 rotates. The rollers are generally cylindrical with a peripheral tread 76 formed by the same plastic as the body of the rollers or a rubber band for high friction grips on the support surface. The belt module is preferably made of a thermoplastic material such as polypropylene, polyethylene, acetal, or synthetic polymer in an injection molding process. The hinge rod can also be made of a suitable plastic material or stainless steel. The in-line rollers are mounted in similar cavities within a belt module with laterally oriented axles. The second conveyor belt is similarly configured with lateral rollers mounted in the cavities on a plurality of axles arranged parallel to the transport direction.

Instead of riding on the flat upper wear strip 29 of FIG. 4, the diagonal roller can ride on a vertical support roller 78 whose cylindrical outer surface forms a roller contact support surface 80. Each support roller is located below the diagonal belt roller lane. The support roller is rotatable about an axis 82 parallel to the transport direction 32. As the conveyor belt advances, the belt rollers engage with the vertical rollers to rotate and connect. The rotational connection between the diagonal belt rollers and the vertical rollers reduces the tendency of the diagonal rollers to slip along the support surface. Flat wear strips allow diagonal rollers to deviate from in-line by about 30 ° or less, while vertical rollers provide a better support surface and reduce diagonal roller wear at angles of about 45 ° or more. The vertical rollers 78 may be moved up and down by, for example, pneumatically, hydraulically, or electrically mechanically, as indicated by arrows 84 to contact or disengage from the diagonal rollers.

Figure 6 shows the speed v of the belt in the transport direction 32._bIt is a vector diagram of the speed of the in-line roller 50 and the diagonal roller 51 with respect to the belt when advancing. Tangential velocity V of the in-line roller with respect to the belt when it does not slip along the support surface_riIs the speed of the belt in the transport direction v_bbe equivalent to. (Multiplying the speed of the inline roller by the speed of the advancing belt gives the stationary observer a net tangential roller speed of twice the speed of the belt.) The diagonal roller tangent to the non-slip belt. Speed v_roIs oriented perpendicular to its axis 59, v_ro= v_bIt can be indicated by secθ, where θ is the angle of the roller from the inline state. Lateral component of diagonal roller velocity v_rlIs v_bEqual to tan θ. If the only difference between the in-line and diagonal rollers is these positions relative to the haul direction, and both are on flat wear strips, the diagonal rollers will slip more than the in-line rollers as the belt advances. To do. The increase in slip reduces the speed of the diagonal rollers containing the components in the transport direction. Articles placed simultaneously on both the in-line and the diagonal rollers rotate on the transport surface due to the speed difference of the rollers in the transport direction between the in-line and the diagonal rollers.

The operation of the conveyor in FIG. 1 is shown in FIGS. 7A-7D. In FIG. 7A, article 86 is fed upstream of conveyor 20. In this embodiment, the main shaft 88 of the article is first laterally oriented. The velocity component V of the inline roller in the transport direction 32, with the slip of the diagonal roller in the second region 49 greater than the slip of the inline roller in the first region 47._riIs the velocity component of the diagonal roller in the transport direction v_roGreater. This difference in speed of travel causes the article to rotate counterclockwise as indicated by arrow 90 in FIG. 7B. While doing so, the velocity component lateral to the diagonal roller in the second region 49 pushes the article towards the left side of the conveyor, as illustrated in FIG. 7C. The rotation angle of the obtained article or the range of the obtained article is a parameter such as the speed of the belt, the width of the area, the linear distance of the contact between the belt roller and the support surface, and the slip between the belt roller and the contact surface. Can be set by selecting or adjusting. Means that adjust the structure of the selected parameters or so that there is a difference in the rotational speed of the rollers constitute a rotational control means that rotates the goods to be transported. In this embodiment, the rotation control means causes the article 86 to rotate about 90 ° within the time it takes to move across the transport surface onto a third region 63 that includes a rotatable lateral roller. As shown in FIG. 7D, the momentum of the article pushed by the rollers in the second region causes the article to simply move across the third region in the direction of arrow 92.

Another aspect of a conveyor that rotates and moves articles according to the present invention is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. The conveyor 94 comprises a conveyor belt 96 comprising an in-line roller 50 in the first longitudinal lane or region 98 and an oblique roller 51 in the second lane or region 99 offset laterally. As shown, as in the conveyor of FIG. 1, two regions are aligned on opposite sides of the centerline 100 of the conveyor belt. The conveyor belt drive device 102 includes a sprocket, a drive shaft, a support block, and a drive motor. The drive device advances the belt in the transport direction 32. A stationary flat support surface formed on the wear sheet 104 is below the diagonal roller 51 in the second region 99. (Wear strips or vertical support rollers can be used instead of wear sheets.) Flat fabric or rubber belts or modular plastics with high friction or other outer surfaces that make good contact with the in-line rollers. A belt 106, such as a conveyor belt, is under and in contact with the inline roller 50 in the first region. The flat belt shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is driven by a motor 108 connected to a shaft 110 of the friction roller 112. The belt 106 is hung between the drive roller 112 and the idle roller 114 to be extended. The ends of the shafts of both rollers are supported by the support block 116. The speed of the flat belt 106 in the transport direction affects the speed of the inline rollers. For example, if the speed of the flat belt is the same as the speed of the conveyor belt 96, there is no relative movement between the support surface formed by the outer surface of the flat belt and the in-line roller 50. As a result, the tangential velocity of the inline roller is then zero. When the speed of the flat belt 106 is smaller than the speed of the conveyor belt 96, the speed difference of the belt causes the roller to rotate in the transport direction in proportion to the speed difference of the belt. If the speed of the flat belt is greater than the speed of the conveyor belt, it is shown by the speed vector diagram in FIG. The in-line roller rotates in the direction opposite to the transport direction. Therefore, the flat belt that comes into contact with the rollers constitutes the roller control means in this embodiment.

The operation of the conveyor in FIG. 8 is shown in FIGS. 11A-11D. Article 86 enters the upstream end of conveyor belt 96 and proceeds in the transport direction 32. The in-line roller in the first region 98 is indicated by the arrow v, with the flat belt abutting the roller moving at a higher speed._riRotate in the opposite direction of transport as indicated by. The diagonal roller in the second region 99 is a component v in the transport direction along the stationary wear strip._robTangential velocity v_roRotate with. The two opposite roller velocity components rotate the article in the direction of arrow 120 in FIG. 11B as the conveyor belt advances. Diagonal roller velocity v in the second region_rotThe lateral component of is simultaneously pushing the article across the transport surface laterally as shown in FIG. 11C. The parameters of the belt can be adjusted according to the characteristics of the transported article due to the 90 ° rotation and lateral movement of the side of the belt to its destination as shown in FIG. 11D of the transported article.

The same result can be achieved with the conveyor shown in FIG. Conveyor 130 is characterized by a pair of parallel conveyor belts. The first belt 132 is equipped with in-line rollers 134 and the second belt 136 is equipped with diagonal rollers 138. The rollers in each belt come into contact with the supporting surfaces supporting the belt along these transport paths and project through the thickness of the belt. The transported article rides on a roller that rotates on the support surface as the belt advances. Each belt is hung between an independent drive member and an idle member and includes a sprocket (not shown), a shaft 140, a support block 142, and a drive motor 144. If the speed 146 of the in-line roller belt 132 is greater than the speed 148 of the diagonal roller belt 136, then the speed of the in-line roller in the transport direction is greater than that of the diagonal roller and these effects on the article 150 over the gap between the two belts. Rotates the article counterclockwise as indicated by arrow 152. The diagonal roller simultaneously pushes the article towards the side of the conveyor's diagonal roller belt. Thus, the placement of the goods to be transported can be controlled by adjusting the relative speeds of the two belts containing the individual drive devices, both of which constitute the roller control means.

In the conveyor shown in FIG. 13, the in-line roller belt 156 travels along the transport path in the transport direction at a first speed of 158. The adjacent diagonal roller belt 160 also travels in the transport direction, but at a slower speed 162. As the belt advances, the rollers 164 in the belt of the diagonal roller rotate about an oblique axis 166 arranged so as to push the article 168 toward the belt of the inline roller. Both conveyor belts rest on a support surface underneath the haul path where the rollers engage and rotate to connect. The faster speed of the in-line belt causes the roller 170 to rotate at a higher speed in the transport direction, rotating the transported article in the clockwise direction 172.

The present invention has been described in detail with respect to some preferred embodiments, but other embodiments are possible. For example, a flat belt whose speed is controlled as a support surface in the conveyor of FIG. 12 can be used to assist in controlling the relative rotational speed of the rollers. Similarly, the individual properties set forth in one of the embodiments may be effectively used in one of the other embodiments to meet specific transport conditions or article shapes or other physical properties. .. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is not meant to be limited to any particular aspect described in detail.