CONVEYING SYSTEM

A conveyor system is a common piece of mechanical handling equipment that moves materials from one location to another. Conveyors are especially useful in applications involving the transportation of heavy or bulky materials. Conveyor systems allow quick and efficient transportation for a wide variety of materials, which make them very popular in the material handling and packaging industries. Many kinds of conveying systems are available, and are used according to the various needs of different industries. There are chain conveyors (floor and overhead) as well. Chain conveyors consist of enclosed tracks, I-Beam, towline, power & free, and hand pushed trolleys.

TYPES OF CONVEYING SYSTEM

1. Pneumatic conveyor systems Every pneumatic system makes use of pipes or ducts called transportation lines that carry mixture of materials and a stream of air. These materials are such as dry pulverized or free flowing or light powdery materials like cement, fly ash etc. These materials can be transported conveniently to various destinations by means of a stream of high velocity air through pipe lines. Products are moved through various tubes via air pressure, allowing for extra vertical versatility. Pneumatic conveyors are either carrier systems or dilute-phase systems; carrier systems simply push items from one entry point to one exit point, such as the money-exchanging tubes used at a bank drive-through window. Dilute-phase systems use push-pull pressure to guide materials through various entry and/or exit points. Three basic systems that are used to generate high velocity air stream: 1. Suction or vacuum systems, utilizing a vacuum created in the pipeline to draw the material with the surrounding air. The system operated at a low pressure, which is practically 0.40.5 atm below atmosphere, and is utilized mainly in conveying light free flowing materials. 2. Pressure-type systems, in which a positive pressure is used to push material from one point to the next. The system is ideal for conveying material from one loading point to a number of unloading points. It operates at a pressure of 6 atm and upwards. 3. Combination systems, in which a suction system is used to convey material from a number of loading points and a pressure system is employed to deliver it to a number of unloading points.

2. Vibrating conveyor systems A Vibrating Conveyor is a machine with a solid conveying surface which is turned up on the side to form a trough. They are used extensively in food grade applications where sanitation, wash-down, and low maintenance are essential. Vibrating conveyors are also suitable for harsh, very hot, dirty, or corrosive environments. They can be used to convey newly cast metal parts which may reach upwards of 1,500 F (820 C). Due to the fixed nature of the conveying pans vibrating conveyors can also perform tasks such as sorting, screening, classifying and orienting parts. Vibrating conveyors have been built to convey material at angles exceeding 45 from horizontal using special pan shapes. Flat pans will convey most materials at a 5 Incline from horizontal line.

3. Flexible conveyor systems The flexible conveyor is based on a conveyor beam in aluminum or stainless steel, with low friction slide rails guiding a plastic multi-flexing chain. These conveyors can be worked around obstacles and keep production lines flowing. They are made at varying levels and can work in multiple environments. They are used in food packaging, case packing, and pharmaceutical industries but also in retail stores such as Wal-Mart.

4. Vertical conveyor systems and spiral conveyors

Vertical Spiral Conveyor Vertical conveyor - also commonly referred to as freight lifts and material lifts - are conveyor systems used to raise or lower materials to different levels of a facility during the handling process. Examples of these conveyors applied in the industrial assembly process include transporting materials to different floors. While similar in look to freight elevators, vertical conveyors are not equipped to transport people, only materials.

Vertical lift conveyors contain two adjacent, parallel conveyors for simultaneous upward movement of adjacent surfaces of the parallel conveyors. One of the conveyors normally has spaced apart flites for transporting bulk food items. The dual conveyors rotate in opposite directions, but are operated from one gear box to insure equal belt speed. One of the conveyors is pivotally hinged to the other conveyor for swinging the pivotally attached conveyor away from the remaining conveyor for access to the facing surfaces of the parallel conveyors.[7] Vertical lift conveyors can be manually or automatically loaded and controlled.[8] Almost all vertical conveyors can be systematically integrated with horizontal conveyors, since both of these conveyor systems work in tandem to create a cohesive material handling assembly line. In similarity to vertical conveyors, spiral conveyors raise and lower materials to different levels of a facility. In contrast, spiral conveyors are able to transport material loads in a continuous flow. Industries that require a higher output of materials - food and beverage, retail case packaging, pharmaceuticals - typically incorporate these conveyors into their systems over standard vertical conveyors due to their ability to facilitate high throughput. Most spiral conveyors also have a lower angle of incline or decline (11 degrees or less) to prevent sliding and tumbling during operation.

Vertical conveyor with forks Just like spiral conveyors also a vertical conveyor that use forks are able to transport material loads in a continuous flow. With these forks the load can be taken from one horizontal

conveyor and put down on another horizontal conveyor on a different level. By adding more forks more products can be lifted at the same time. Conventional vertical conveyors have the restriction that the input and output of material loads must have the same direction. By using forks many combinations of different input- and output levels in different directions are possible. A vertical conveyor with forks can even be used as a vertical sorter. In comparison to a spiral conveyor a vertical conveyor - with or without forks - takes up less space.

5. Heavy duty roller conveyors Heavy Duty roller conveyors are used for moving items that are at least 500 lbs. This type of conveyor makes the handling of such heavy equipment/products easier and more time effective. Many of the heavy duty roller conveyors can move as fast as 75 feet/minute. Other types of heavy duty roller conveyors are gravity roller conveyor, chain driven live roller conveyor, pallet accumulation conveyor, multi-strand chain conveyor, and chain & roller transfers. Gravity roller conveyors are very easy to use and are used in many different types of industries such as automotive and retail. Chain driven live roller conveyors are used for single or bi-directional material handling. Large heavy loads are moved by chain driven live roller conveyors. Pallet accumulation conveyors are powered through a mechanical clutch. This is used instead of individually powered and controlled sections of conveyors. Multi-strand chain conveyors are used for double pitch roller chains. Products that cannot be moved on traditional roller conveyors can be moved by a multi-strand chain conveyor. Chain & roller conveyors are short runs of two or more strands of double pitch chain conveyor built into a chain driven line roller conveyor. These pop up under the load and move the load off of the conveyor.

6. Bucket elevator A bucket elevator, also called a grain leg, is a mechanism for hauling flowable bulk materials (most often grain or fertilizer) vertically. It consists of: -Buckets to contain the material; -A belt to carry the buckets and transmit the pull; -Means to drive the belt; The accessories- For loading the buckets or picking up the material, for receiving the discharged material, for maintaining the belt tension, for enclosing and protecting the elevator. A bucket elevator can elevate a variety of bulk materials from light to heavy and from fine to large lumps. A centrifugal discharge elevator may be vertical or inclined. Vertical elevators depend entirely on the action of centrifugal force to get the material into the discharge chute and must be run at speeds relatively high. Inclined elevators with buckets spaced apart or set close together may have the discharge chute set partly under the head pulley. Since they don't depend entirely on the centrifugal force to put the material into the chute, the speed may be relatively lower.

Nearly all centrifugal discharge elevators have spaced buckets with rounded bottoms. They pick up their load from a boot, a pit, or a pile of material at the foot pulley. The buckets can be also triangular in cross section and set close to on the belt with little or no clearance between them. This is a continuous bucket elevator. Its main use is to carry difficult materials at slow speed. Early bucket elevators used a flat chain with small, steel buckets attached every few inches. Current construction uses a rubber belt with plastic buckets. Pulleys several feet in diameter are used at the top and bottom. The top pulley is driven by an electric motor. The bucket elevator is the enabling technology that permitted the construction of grain elevators. A diverter at the top of the elevator allows the grain to be sent to the chosen bin. A similar device with flat steps is occasionally used as an elevator for humans, e.g., for employees in parking garages. (This sort of elevator is generally considered too dangerous to allow use by the public.) In these bucket elevator conveyor systems, loading of the buckets can occur anywhere along the horizontal run adjacent the take-up end and discharge of the buckets can be made at the drive area or along the bottom run of the upper horizontal sections of the Z and C configuration. This provides not only for discharge of the product from the buckets traveling along the lower path of the conveyor, but also provides for simple, intermediate

discharge. In addition, there are provided re-lapping mechanisms to assure proper re-lapping of the buckets, This is accomplished by reason of a unique bucket design having a cam on one end combined with the front and rear flanges angled to assure proper operation and lapping of the buckets.

7. Chain conveyor A chain conveyor is a type of conveyor system for moving material through production lines. Chain conveyors utilize a powered continuous chain arrangement, carrying a series of single pendants. The chain arrangement is driven by a motor, and the material suspended on the pendants is conveyed. Chain conveyors are used for moving products down an assembly line and/or around a manufacturing or warehousing facility. Chain conveyors are primarily used to transport heavy unit loads, e.g. pallets, grid boxes, and industrial containers. These conveyors can be single or double chain strand in configuration. The load is positioned on the chains and the friction pulls the load forward. Chain conveyors are generally easy to install and have very less maintenance for users. Many industry sectors use chain conveyor technology in their production lines. The automotive industry commonly uses chain conveyor systems to convey car parts through paint plants. Chain conveyors also have widespread use in the white and brown goods, metal finishing and distribution industries. Chain conveyors are also used in the painting and coating industry, this allows for easier paint application. The products are attached to an above head chain conveyor, keeping products off of the floor allows for higher productivity levels.

PARTS OF A CONVEYING SYSTEMOn the basis of the technological structure and drawings prescribed, there are various parts of a conveying system. 1. Deck Plate 2. Idlers 3. Ends (Loading end & discharge end) 4. Motor and its accessories 5. Pulley 6. Feeders type 7. Take-up