A self-propelled hopper for a scraper conveyor and its operation method

Abstract

This invention discloses a self-propelled hopper and its operating method for a scraper conveyor. The hopper includes a movable gantry frame spanning the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body. The movable gantry frame is connected to a linear drive mechanism that drives it to move along the conveying direction of the scraper conveyor. A rotary table is mounted on the movable gantry frame, and a discharge hopper is fixedly mounted on the rotary table. The end of the discharge hopper extends downwards through the movable gantry frame and is positioned above the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body. This self-propelled hopper and its operating method allow for flexible adjustment of the feed and discharge positions as needed, offering better performance compared to fixed-point feed and discharge.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of scraper conveyor feeding technology, specifically to a self-propelled hopper for a scraper conveyor and its operating method. Background Technology

[0002] Scraper conveyors are core conveying equipment in the fields of mining, building materials, chemical industry, and port bulk material conveying. They are mainly used for continuous, large-volume transfer of granular and powdery materials.

[0003] Most existing scraper conveyors use a fixed installation structure for their feed hoppers, with fixed hopper positions and discharge angles, allowing material to be fed from a single fixed point on the scraper. In actual production conditions, the incoming flow rate, material drop position, and scraper load all fluctuate dynamically. A fixed feeding method easily leads to long-term material accumulation in the middle or one side of the scraper, causing uneven lateral material distribution, excessive local material accumulation, and severe one-sided load.

[0004] Currently, fixed hoppers cannot adjust the material discharge position according to the conveying conditions. The concentrated accumulation of material easily leads to malfunctions such as uneven force on the scraper chain, deviation, and accelerated wear. In severe cases, it can cause material blockage, overflow, chain jamming, and machine shutdown, significantly reducing the conveying efficiency of the scraper conveyor and increasing the frequency of equipment failures and the workload of manual clearing blockages. At the same time, the fixed discharge posture of traditional hoppers makes it impossible to sweep and distribute material in the width direction of the scraper conveyor, making it difficult to achieve uniform material discharge across the entire width. Long-term operation with uneven load not only accelerates the wear of scrapers, chains, and troughs, but also causes large fluctuations in conveying load, high equipment vibration and noise, and shortened service life.

[0005] Existing movable funnel structures mostly employ a simple integral sliding adjustment method, which can only achieve translational adjustment in one direction and lacks angular rotation adjustment function. This limited adjustment freedom fails to meet the operational needs of both coarse positioning over a large area and precise material placement in a small area. Furthermore, conventional movable funnel structures suffer from poor overall rigidity and low positioning accuracy, making them prone to deviation, shaking, and jamming during operation, resulting in insufficient stability. Additionally, traditional funnels are mostly integral structures, requiring complete disassembly and replacement after wear and blockage, leading to high equipment maintenance costs and long downtime for repairs, which is detrimental to continuous and automated production operations.

[0006] In summary, existing scraper conveyor feed hoppers generally suffer from technical defects such as non-adjustable material drop position, poor material distribution uniformity, severe wear due to uneven load, limited adjustment methods, and inconvenient operation and maintenance, making them difficult to adapt to complex and ever-changing dynamic conveying conditions of bulk materials. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The purpose of this invention is to provide a self-propelled hopper and operating method for a scraper conveyor. This self-propelled hopper and operating method can flexibly adjust the feeding and discharging positions as needed, and has better performance compared to fixed-point feeding and discharging.

[0008] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a self-propelled hopper for a scraper conveyor, comprising a movable gantry frame spanning the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body, the movable gantry frame being connected to a linear drive mechanism for driving it to move along the conveying direction of the scraper conveyor, a rotary table being mounted on the movable gantry frame, a discharge hopper being fixedly mounted on the rotary table, the end of the discharge hopper being disposed downward through the movable gantry frame and positioned above the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body.

[0009] Preferably, the feeding hopper includes a hopper body, an inclined tube, and a vertical tube arranged sequentially from top to bottom. The vertical tube is fixedly installed on the rotating platform through a first flange, and the hopper body is connected to the inclined tube through a second flange.

[0010] Preferably, the lower end of the rotary table is provided with a rotating column, the upper end of the movable gantry frame is provided with a rotating groove for mounting the rotating column, and a rotary bearing is provided between the rotating column and the rotating groove.

[0011] Preferably, a drive motor is mounted on one side of the movable gantry frame via a bracket, a spur gear is sleeved on the shaft of the drive motor, and a gear ring that meshes with the spur gear is provided on the outer side of the rotary table.

[0012] Preferably, a reinforcing support frame is provided between the inclined tube and the rotary table.

[0013] Preferably, a fixing plate is installed at the outer end of the feed port of the scraper conveyor body; a dual-shaft motor is installed on the fixing plate, and a first bevel gear is installed at both ends of the dual-shaft motor; lead screws are screwed to both sides of the movable gantry frame; a second bevel gear that meshes with the first bevel gear is sleeved on one end of the lead screw, and the other end is rotatably mounted on a bearing seat.

[0014] Preferably, tracks are provided on both sides of the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body, and a slide rail groove that slides with the tracks is provided on the inner side of the movable gantry frame.

[0015] Preferably, the end of the scraper conveyor body is fixed by a truss support, and the bottom of the movable gantry frame is equipped with multiple support rollers.

[0016] The present invention also provides an operating method for a scraper conveyor, using the self-propelled funnel, comprising the following steps: S1, Lateral coarse adjustment of feeding zone: The movable gantry frame is driven to move laterally along the length of the scraper conveyor by the linear drive mechanism, and the feeding hopper is positioned to the preset target feeding zone on the scraper conveyor to complete the large-range coarse positioning of the feeding position. S2. Rotary fine-tuning of feeding position: Start the rotary table on the movable gantry frame. The rotation of the rotary table drives the feeding hopper with the inclined tube to rotate, and simultaneously changes the spatial orientation of the inclined tube and the position of the hopper body connected to the upper end of the inclined tube. S3. Perform feeding operation: The material is fed from the side of the inclined tube of the feeding funnel, guided by the inclined tube and the vertical tube, and then discharged from the bottom to the feeding area of ​​the scraper conveyor. S4. Dynamic composite correction of feeding point: During operation, the lateral displacement of the movable gantry frame and the rotation angle of the rotary table are synchronously linked to match the material supply position and the material stacking and conveying conditions on the scraper conveyor in real time, and continuously correct the discharge point and feeding point.

[0017] Preferably, in step S3, the feeding operation is performed by reciprocating the rotary table within a small range, so that the inclined tube outlet sweeps the material back and forth along the width direction of the scraper, thus avoiding single-point material accumulation and blockage.

[0018] According to the above technical solution, the self-propelled funnel and operation method provided by the present invention can flexibly adjust the feeding and discharging positions as needed, and have better performance compared with fixed-point feeding and discharging.

[0019] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail in the following detailed description section. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The accompanying drawings are provided to further illustrate the invention and form part of the specification. They are used together with the following detailed description to explain the invention, but do not constitute a limitation thereof. In the drawings: Figure 1 This is a side view of the self-propelled funnel installed at the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body. Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the main structure of a self-propelled funnel.

[0021] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures 1-Scraper conveyor body; 2-Truss; 3-Movable gantry frame; 4-Rotating table; 5-Rotating column; 6-Slewing bearing; 7-Inclined tube; 8-Vertical tube; 9-First flange; 10-Gear ring; 11-Bucket body; 12-Second flange; 13-Reinforced support frame; 14-Drive motor; 15-Spherical gear; 16-Screw rod; 17-Bearing seat; 18-Fixing plate; 19-Dual-shaft motor; 20-First bevel gear; 21-Second bevel gear; 22-Slide rail groove; 23-Roller; 24-Rail. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are for illustration and explanation only and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0023] In this invention, unless otherwise stated, directional terms such as "up, down, left, right, front, back, inside, outside" in the terminology only represent the orientation of the term in its normal use or are common terms understood by those skilled in the art, and should not be regarded as a limitation on the term.

[0024] See Figure 1-2 The self-propelled hopper for the scraper conveyor shown includes a movable gantry frame 3 spanning the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body 1. The movable gantry frame 3 is connected to a linear drive mechanism that drives it to move along the conveying direction of the scraper conveyor. A rotary table 4 is mounted on the movable gantry frame 3, and a discharge hopper is fixedly mounted on the rotary table 4. The end of the discharge hopper extends downward through the movable gantry frame 3 and is positioned above the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body 1.

[0025] Through the implementation of the above technical solution, this solution sets up a movable gantry frame 3 that can span across the feeding section of the scraper conveyor. It is equipped with a linear drive mechanism to achieve overall movement along the scraper conveying direction. At the same time, the gantry frame is equipped with a rotatable rotating table 4. The material hopper is fixed on the rotating table 4 and extends downward into the feeding area. Relying on two independent adjustment mechanisms for walking translation and rotation, the material hopper can achieve dual degrees of freedom adjustment of large-range lateral displacement and discharge angle rotation. It can flexibly adapt to any feeding point in the entire conveying section of the scraper conveyor, without the need for a fixed single feeding port. It solves the defects of traditional fixed hopper feeding position that cannot be adjusted and material can only fall in the same position on the scraper conveyor, which is prone to material accumulation and uneven load. The gantry frame is installed across the top of the scraper conveyor, with strong overall structure, convenient installation and disassembly, and adaptable to the transformation of existing scraper conveyor equipment without major changes to the original conveyor frame.

[0026] In this embodiment, the feeding funnel includes a funnel body 11, an inclined tube 7, and a vertical tube 8 arranged sequentially from top to bottom. The vertical tube 8 is fixedly installed on the rotary table 4 via a first flange 9, and the funnel body 11 is connected to the inclined tube 7 via a second flange 12. The feeding funnel is divided into a three-section split structure: the funnel body 11, the inclined tube 7, and the vertical tube 8. The vertical tube 8 is fixed to the rotary table 4 via the first flange 9, and the funnel body 11 is connected to the inclined tube 7 via the second flange 12. The detachable and sealing flange connection allows for the segmented assembly and disassembly of the funnel.

[0027] When a section of the cylinder is worn, clogged, or damaged, the corresponding section can be disassembled and replaced individually for repair, eliminating the need to dismantle the entire funnel and reducing spare parts replacement costs and downtime for maintenance. The segmented flange structure facilitates individual machining and grinding of wear-resistant linings, and makes segmented transportation and assembly easier. At the same time, sealing gaskets can be installed on the flange sealing surfaces to prevent material leakage and dust generation when conveying powdery or granular materials.

[0028] In this embodiment, a rotating column 5 is provided at the lower end of the rotary table 4, and a rotating groove for mounting the rotating column 5 is provided at the upper end of the movable gantry frame 3. A slewing bearing 6 is provided between the rotating column 5 and the rotating groove. The rotating column 5 is located at the lower end of the rotary table 4, and a matching rotating groove is provided at the top of the gantry frame. The slewing bearing 6 is assembled between the two to achieve rotational support. The slewing bearing 6 can evenly bear the entire vertical load of the feeding hopper and the material. The rotating column 5 and the rotating groove form a radial limiting fit, effectively preventing left-right and front-back offset during the rotation of the rotary table 4, ensuring smooth and unhindered rotation. The bearing support significantly reduces the rotational friction resistance of the rotary table 4, resulting in a smaller load and lower energy consumption for the drive motor 14. Simultaneously, the slewing bearing 6 has impact and dust resistance capabilities, making it suitable for harsh working environments with high dust levels in industrial and mining sectors, and extending the service life of the rotation adjustment mechanism.

[0029] In this embodiment, to further provide a drive structure for the rotary table 4, a drive motor 14 is mounted on one side of the movable gantry frame 3 via a bracket, a spur gear 15 is sleeved on the shaft of the drive motor 14, and a gear ring 10 that meshes with the spur gear 15 is provided on the outer side of the rotary table 4.

[0030] The side support of the portal frame is equipped with a drive motor 14. The motor output shaft spherical gear 15 meshes with the outer ring gear 10 of the rotary table 4 for transmission. The gear meshing transmission has the advantages of stable transmission ratio and large transmission torque, which can accurately control the rotation angle of the rotary table 4 and achieve high precision in material feeding position adjustment.

[0031] In this embodiment, a reinforcing support frame 13 is provided between the inclined tube 7 and the rotary table 4. The reinforcing support frame 13 is added to the outside of the inclined tube 7 and connected to the rotary table 4 to form a triangular stable support structure, which shares the weight of the material in the inclined tube 7 and the bucket 11 with the impact load of the falling material.

[0032] In this embodiment, to further provide a linear drive mechanism, a fixed plate 18 is installed at the outer end of the feed port of the scraper conveyor body 1; a dual-axis motor 19 is installed on the fixed plate 18, and first bevel gears 20 are installed at both ends of the dual-axis motor 19; lead screws 16 are screwed to both sides of the movable gantry frame 3; a second bevel gear 21 that meshes with the first bevel gear 20 is sleeved on one end of the lead screw 16, and the other end is rotatably mounted on the bearing seat 17. The dual-axis motor 19 is mounted on the outer fixed plate 18 of the scraper conveyor, and the output bevel gears at both ends cooperate with the second bevel gear 21 at the end of the lead screw 16 to realize synchronous lead screw 16 transmission. The lead screws 16 on both sides synchronously drive the gantry frame to translate on both sides, and the feed speed on both sides is completely consistent, preventing unilateral deviation and rail jamming when the movable gantry frame 3 moves.

[0033] The lead screw 16 has high transmission positioning accuracy and strong self-locking performance. It can automatically lock after power is cut off when adjusted to the target feeding position. It will not slip due to material impact during operation. The bearing seat 17 forms a stable rotation support for the end of the lead screw 16. The lead screw 16 runs smoothly and has a strong load-bearing capacity, making it suitable for the reciprocating movement of heavy hoppers.

[0034] In this embodiment, tracks are provided on both sides of the feed section of the scraper conveyor body 1, and a slide rail groove 22 is provided on the inner side of the movable gantry frame 3 to slide with the tracks. Dedicated tracks are provided on both sides of the scraper conveyor feed section, and the slide rail groove 22 on the inner side of the movable gantry frame 3 forms a sliding guide pair. The tracks provide lateral limiting for the gantry frame, ensuring that the gantry frame remains centered and spans above the scraper conveyor during movement, preventing deviation and scraping against the scraper conveyor side plates. The slide rail groove 22 provides a wrap-around sliding fit, preventing dust and gravel from easily entering the gap, reducing sliding resistance and lowering the load on the linear drive mechanism. Simultaneously, the tracks can share the weight of the gantry frame and hopper, reducing the load on the lead screw 16 and extending its service life.

[0035] In this embodiment, the end of the scraper conveyor body 1 is supported and fixed by a truss 2, and a plurality of support rollers 23 are installed at the bottom of the movable gantry frame 3.

[0036] The entire scraper conveyor is supported by the truss 2, ensuring strong overall rigidity and preventing frame swaying during operation. Multiple sets of support rollers 23 are arranged at the bottom of the movable gantry frame 3. During movement, the rollers 23 bear the weight of the gantry frame and hopper, distributing the weight to the scraper conveyor frame. This significantly reduces the load on the lead screw 16 and the track, minimizing the risk of lead screw 16 bending and track deformation failure. The rolling friction of the rollers 23 replaces sliding friction, resulting in less resistance to the gantry frame's translational movement, lower motor power consumption, and smoother movement.

[0037] The present invention also provides an operating method for a scraper conveyor, using the self-propelled funnel, comprising the following steps: S1, Lateral coarse adjustment of feeding zone: The movable gantry 3 is driven by the linear drive mechanism to move laterally along the length of the scraper conveyor, positioning the feeding hopper to the preset target feeding zone on the scraper conveyor, thus completing the large-range coarse positioning of the feeding position. S2, Rotary fine adjustment of feeding position: Start the rotating table 4 on the movable gantry frame 3. The rotation of the rotating table 4 drives the feeding hopper with the inclined tube 7 to rotate, and simultaneously changes the spatial orientation of the inclined tube 7 and the position of the hopper body 11 connected to the upper end of the inclined tube 7. S3. Perform feeding operation: The material is fed from the side of the inclined tube 7 of the feeding funnel, and after being guided by the inclined tube 7 and the vertical tube 8, it is discharged from the bottom to the feeding area of ​​the scraper conveyor. S4. Dynamic composite correction of feeding point: During operation, the lateral displacement of the movable gantry 3 and the rotation angle of the rotary table 4 are synchronously linked to match the material supply position and the material stacking and conveying conditions on the scraper conveyor in real time, and continuously correct the discharge point and feeding point.

[0038] By implementing the above technical solution, a step-by-step composite adjustment process for feeding is adopted, which combines coarse adjustment of lateral movement and fine adjustment of rotation angle. First, the overall translation of the gantry frame is used to complete the coarse positioning of the large-scale feeding section. Then, the rotation of the rotary table 4 is used to finely adjust the discharge direction. The two-stage adjustment combines adjustment efficiency and feeding accuracy. During operation, the walking displacement and rotation angle can be linked synchronously to dynamically correct the discharge landing point. It can adapt to different working conditions such as changes in incoming material flow, material accumulation on the scraper conveyor, and fluctuations in conveying speed in real time. It can flexibly adjust the material feeding position, avoid one-sided material accumulation and unbalanced conveying on the scraper, balance the material distribution across the entire width of the scraper conveyor, improve the scraper conveying efficiency, and reduce material overflow and spillage losses.

[0039] In this embodiment, during the feeding operation in step S3, the rotary table 4 is rotated back and forth within a small range to cause the discharge port of the inclined tube 7 to sweep material back and forth along the width direction of the scraper conveyor, avoiding material accumulation and blockage at a single point. During the feeding process, the rotary table 4 is controlled to rotate back and forth at a small angle, driving the discharge port of the inclined tube 7 to sweep and distribute material back and forth along the width direction of the scraper conveyor. The material is evenly distributed across the entire conveying width of the scraper conveyor, preventing material from accumulating in the center of the scraper and forming a pile. Even distribution of material can reduce local material overload on the scraper, reduce unilateral wear of the scraper chain and scraper blades, and at the same time avoid material blockage and dust splashing caused by a large amount of material falling from a single point, improve the stability of continuous operation of the equipment, and reduce the frequency of shutdown for cleaning due to material blockage.

[0040] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific details of the above embodiments. Within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solution of the present invention, and these simple modifications all fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0041] It should also be noted that the various specific technical features described in the above specific embodiments can be combined in any suitable manner without contradiction. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, the present invention will not describe the various possible combinations separately.

[0042] Furthermore, various different embodiments of the present invention can be combined in any way, as long as they do not violate the spirit of the present invention, they should also be regarded as the content disclosed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor, characterized in that, Includes a movable gantry frame (3) spanning the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body (1), the movable gantry frame (3) being connected to a linear drive mechanism that drives it to move along the conveying direction of the scraper conveyor, a rotary table (4) being mounted on the movable gantry frame (3), a discharge hopper being fixedly mounted on the rotary table (4), the end of the discharge hopper being disposed downward through the movable gantry frame (3) and disposed above the feed inlet of the scraper conveyor body (1).

2. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The feeding hopper includes a hopper body (11), an inclined tube (7) and a vertical tube (8) arranged sequentially from top to bottom. The vertical tube (8) is fixedly installed on the rotating table (4) through a first flange (9), and the hopper body (11) is connected to the inclined tube (7) through a second flange (12).

3. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lower end of the rotating platform (4) is provided with a rotating column (5), and the upper end of the movable gantry frame (3) is provided with a rotating groove for mounting the rotating column (5). A rotary bearing (6) is provided between the rotating column (5) and the rotating groove.

4. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 2, characterized in that, A drive motor (14) is mounted on one side of the movable gantry frame (3) via a bracket. A spur gear (15) is sleeved on the shaft of the drive motor (14). A gear ring (10) that meshes with the spur gear (15) is provided on the outside of the rotary table (4).

5. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 1, characterized in that, A reinforcing support frame (13) is provided between the inclined tube (7) and the rotary table (4).

6. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 1, characterized in that, A fixing plate (18) is installed at the outer end of the feed port of the scraper conveyor body (1). A dual-axis motor (19) is installed on the fixed plate (18), and a first bevel gear (20) is installed at both ends of the dual-axis motor (19). A lead screw (16) is screwed to both sides of the movable gantry frame (3). One end of the lead screw (16) is fitted with a second bevel gear (21) that meshes with the first bevel gear (20), and the other end is rotatably mounted on the bearing seat (17).

7. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The scraper conveyor body (1) has rails on both sides of the feed port, and the movable gantry frame (3) has a slide rail groove (22) that slides with the rails.

8. The self-propelled funnel for a scraper conveyor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The end of the scraper conveyor body (1) is supported and fixed by a truss (2); The bottom of the movable gantry frame (3) is equipped with multiple support rollers (23).

9. A method of operating a scraper conveyor, using the self-propelled funnel according to any one of claims 1-8, comprising the following steps: S1, Lateral coarse adjustment of feeding area: The movable gantry (3) is driven by the linear drive mechanism to move laterally along the length of the scraper conveyor, and the feeding hopper is positioned to the preset target feeding area on the scraper conveyor to complete the large-range coarse positioning of the feeding position. S2, Rotary fine adjustment of feeding position: Start the rotating table (4) on the movable gantry frame (3), and drive the feeding hopper with inclined tube (7) to rotate under the rotation of the rotating table (4), and simultaneously change the spatial orientation of the inclined tube (7) and the position of the hopper body (11) connected to the upper end of the inclined tube (7); S3, Perform feeding operation: The material is fed from the side of the inclined tube (7) of the feeding hopper, and after being guided by the inclined tube (7) and the vertical tube (8), it is discharged from the bottom to the feeding area of ​​the scraper conveyor; S4. Dynamic composite correction of feeding point: During operation, the lateral displacement of the movable gantry frame (3) and the rotation angle of the rotary table (4) are synchronously linked to match the material supply position and the material stacking and conveying conditions on the scraper conveyor in real time, and the discharge point and feeding point are continuously corrected.

10. The method of operation for a scraper conveyor according to claim 9, characterized in that, In step S3, the feeding operation is performed by reciprocating the rotating table (4) within a small range, so that the discharge port of the inclined tube (7) is swept back and forth along the width direction of the scraper to avoid single-point material accumulation and blockage.

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