Modular conveyor belt module and endless modular conveyor belt

Abstract

The utility model relates to a modular conveyor belt module and an endless modular conveyor belt. A modular conveyor belt module adapted to be mounted in a modular conveyor belt wherein the conveyor belt is of the type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links wherein one or more modular belt links form a transverse row wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in a width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eyelets extend forward and rearward from the body, the eyelets on one chain will mate with the eyelets on the other modular belt chain when two modular conveyor chain links are pushed together, and wherein transverse holes are provided on all eyelets, the modular belt links are hinged to each other such that when the eye-shaped members on the modular belt links in one row overlap the eye-shaped members in the adjacent row, through-holes are formed from one side to the other side of the conveyor belt, and adjacent modular belt links will be hingedly connected by inserting connecting pins through the transverse through-holes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to a modular conveyor belt module. In addition, the utility model also relates to an annular modular conveyor belt assembled from a plurality of modular conveyor belt modules. Background Art

[0002] Numerous examples of modular conveyor belt modules incorporating rollers or balls exist in the art. These rollers or balls serve different purposes, but they may be provided to allow objects being transported on the conveyor to be held against a stop while the endless conveyor belt continues to travel beneath the objects being transported. Furthermore, in some applications, it is also of interest to be able to move objects being transported on the endless conveyor belt in an oblique or transverse direction relative to the conveyor belt's direction of transport in order to direct the transported objects to various locations on the conveyor belt, such as during a sorting process for sorting puzzle pieces in a packaging processing center or the like.

[0003] Modular conveyor belt modules can be secured in various designs to accommodate rollers or balls, but a common feature of most prior art systems is the provision of a cavity within the modular conveyor belt module, wherein the cavity accommodates the rollers or balls. In examples where rollers are accommodated, these rollers are typically provided with a shaft, and thus the circumference of the bore is provided with means for accommodating the shaft, allowing the rollers to rotate freely within the cavity. For modular belt modules incorporating balls, a spherical cavity is typically provided, allowing the ball to be supported over a substantial portion of the ball's surface and retained within the cavity, for example, by a cover or the like. Utility Model Content

[0004] The present invention relates to an improved structure for such conveyor belt modules, wherein it is desirable to provide a structure that can be easily assembled and disassembled in order to place or replace rollers and balls, while providing a very strong and rigid structure. Furthermore, in some applications, it is desirable to be able to replace rollers or balls with rollers or balls made of harder or softer materials, for example, or where the module itself needs to be made of a strong material in order to be able to carry and transport large loads over long distances.

[0005] The present invention solves this problem by providing a modular conveyor belt module, the modular conveyor belt module comprising balls or rollers in a belt module, wherein the module is adapted to be installed in a modular conveyor belt, wherein the conveyor belt is of the type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links, wherein one or more modular belt links form a transverse row, wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in the width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eye-shaped members extend forwardly and rearwardly from the body, the eye-shaped members spaced apart in the width direction of the modular belt link forming openings between adjacent eye-shaped members so that when two modular conveyor belt links are pushed together, the eye-shaped member on one link will cooperate with the eye-shaped member on the other modular belt link, and wherein transverse holes are provided on all the eye-shaped members so that when modular belt links in a row are When the eye-shaped parts overlap with the eye-shaped parts in the adjacent rows, a through hole is formed from one side of the conveyor belt to the other side, and by inserting the connecting pin through the said transverse through hole, the adjacent modular belt links will be hingedly connected, characterized in that the belt module includes an upper cover and a lower main module part, wherein the upper cover is suitable for being arranged above the main module part and assembled to the main module part, wherein a first plurality of eye-shaped parts are arranged on both the main module part and the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is positioned on the main module part, the eye-shaped parts will be evenly spaced along the width direction of the modular conveyor module, and one or more cavities are arranged in the main module part, and one or more holes are provided in the upper cover so that balls, rollers or other items can be placed in the cavity between the main module part and the upper cover, and at least a portion of the rollers, balls or other items protrude above the upper cover through one or more holes.

[0006] In particular, the fact that the two-part structure comprises a modular main part and an upper cover part assembled around the rollers and balls offers a number of advantages, which will become apparent in the further embodiment to be explained below. Furthermore, the fact that both the upper cover and the main modular part are provided with eye-shaped features offers the following advantages: when the upper cover is correctly positioned on the main modular part, the eye-shaped features will be evenly spaced along the leading and trailing edges in the intended direction of travel, so that the modular conveyor belt modules can be interleaved with the eye-shaped features of adjacent belt modules, after which connecting pins can be inserted through the holes in the eye-shaped features, thereby assembling both the modular conveyor belt modules and the upper cover to the main modular part.

[0007] In another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, grooves are provided in the main module part between at least some of the eye-shaped parts in the width direction on both sides of the main module part, and ridges are provided on the upper cover between at least some of the eye-shaped parts on the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module part, the ridges will engage (click into) the grooves and keep the upper cover releasably fixed to the main module part.

[0008] By providing grooves in one part and ridges in the other part, the main module part can be snapped together with the upper part so that each modular conveyor belt module assembles itself even before the endless conveyor belt is assembled so that no loose balls or rollers can become loose or lost before final assembly.

[0009] In yet another advantageous embodiment, the main module component has an upper surface between the lateral sides and the eye-shaped member in the forward and rearward directions, wherein a pair of knobs extend from the upper surface adjacent the circumference of the cavity, and wherein the upper cover has an underside that, in use, faces the upper surface of the main module component, and wherein recesses in the underside overlap the knobs extending from the upper surface of the main module component, so that when the upper cover is assembled onto the main module component, the knobs will be at least partially received in the recesses. Initially, the knobs will be received in corresponding recesses in the upper cover, and the correct position of the upper cover relative to the main module component serves as an installation guide. This guidance by the knobs and recesses improves the assembly process because it can be ensured that the main module component and the eye-shaped member above the upper cover are correctly aligned before the connecting pin is inserted.

[0010] In another embodiment, the rollers are arranged on an axle which can be fitted into one or more cavities provided in the main module component, wherein the axle is the axis of rotation of the rollers and the axle extends beyond the rollers at both ends of the rollers, wherein each end of the axle can be inserted into and retained between the lugs of a pair of lugs, the pair of lugs being provided on opposite sides of the cavity, allowing the rollers to rotate freely about the axle.

[0011] In this way, the lugs serve a dual purpose: in addition to guiding the upper cover into its correct position relative to the main module part, they also correctly guide and retain the shafts of the rollers, allowing them to rotate freely in the cavities provided in the main module part. Furthermore, by arranging the lugs in pairs on either side of the hole, around the circumference of the hole, and in orthogonal groups, the rollers can be oriented as desired with the shafts and held in this position by the pair of lugs appropriately housed in the upper part.

[0012] The shaft of the roller is press-fitted between the lug and a pair of lugs such that the distance between the lugs is slightly smaller than the diameter of the shaft, whereby the shaft is securely held by the upper surface of the main module component.

[0013] In another advantageous embodiment of the invention, each cavity is in the shape of a portion of a sphere, adapted to accommodate a ball, such that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module part, a portion of the ball extends above the upper cover and wherein the ball can rotate freely in the cavity.

[0014] Of course, the spherical cavity should have a diameter slightly larger than the ball intended to be accommodated in the spherical cavity so that the ball can rotate freely.

[0015] In another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the main module part and the upper cover are injection molded from plastic material, and wherein the balls and rollers are injection molded from the same or different plastic materials (optionally reinforced plastic material), and the shafts of the rollers are made of steel.

[0016] In particular, the ability to select materials for the various components of a modular conveyor belt module provides the ability to select material properties suitable for a particular purpose. For example, the main module component may be designed to be exposed to greater forces than the upper cover and, therefore, should be made of a stronger material. Alternatively, the upper cover, from which the balls or rollers extend, may be designed not to carry any load other than that of objects carried on the conveyor belt, which is primarily carried by the rollers and balls, and, therefore, the material of the upper cover may be selected to be molded from a less strong, and therefore less expensive, material. Similarly, the balls and rollers, which carry the primary load on the conveyor belt, may be made of a stronger material, with the roller shafts preferably being made of steel.

[0017] This leads to further embodiments, wherein the main modular part constitutes 60% to 95% of the volume of the entire modular conveyor belt module excluding rollers and / or balls, and the upper cover constitutes the remaining volume.

[0018] It is clear that, given this volume percentage distribution, the primary module component will require the majority of the material used for each modular conveyor module, and therefore there may be advantages in selecting an appropriate material, such as a cheaper material or a more robust material for just that component, depending on the intended use. The materials from which the modules are made may also have a variety of properties, allowing, for example, the selection of materials with higher tensile or wear properties and / or different electrical conductivity properties. In particular, different electrical conductivity properties may be advantageous and may be desirable, for example, on an upper cover component that may come into contact with employees working on or along the modular conveyor belt and be able to provide only conductive properties, which inherently require an injection molding material that is much more expensive than conventional injection molding materials. In this way, by being able to select a variety of materials for the various components designed for specific purposes, cost savings can be achieved without compromising the technical characteristics of the modular belt modules.

[0019] In embodiments where the main module component is designed to be the primary component that carries the load, it may also be advantageous to provide more eye-shaped components in the main module component so that the load is distributed over more eye-shaped components and thereby more evenly distributed along the connecting pins than when both the upper cover and the main module component have an equal number of eye-shaped components.

[0020] The utility model also relates to an endless modular conveyor belt assembled from a plurality of modular conveyor belt modules as described above.

[0021] This disclosure relates to, but is not limited to, the following items.

[0022] Item 1. A modular conveyor belt module comprising balls or rollers in the modular conveyor belt module, wherein the modular conveyor belt module is adapted to be installed in a modular conveyor belt, wherein the modular conveyor belt is of a type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links, wherein one or more modular belt links form a transverse row, wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in the width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eye-shaped members extend forward and rearward from the body, the eye-shaped members spaced apart in the width direction of the modular belt link forming openings between adjacent eye-shaped members so that when two modular conveyor belt links are pushed together, the eye-shaped members on one modular belt link will mate with the eye-shaped members on the other modular belt link, and wherein transverse holes are provided on all eye-shaped members so that when the eye-shaped members on the modular belt links in one row overlap with the eye-shaped members in the adjacent row, the eye-shaped members are engaged with the eye-shaped members in the adjacent row. When stacked, a transverse through-hole is formed from one side of the modular conveyor belt to the other side, and by inserting a connecting pin through the transverse through-hole, adjacent modular belt links will be hingedly connected, and adjacent modular belt links will be hingedly connected, characterized in that the modular conveyor belt module includes an upper cover and a lower main module component, wherein the upper cover is suitable for being arranged above the main module component and assembled to the main module component, wherein a first plurality of eye-shaped components are arranged on both the main module component and the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is positioned on the main module component, the first plurality of eye-shaped components will be evenly spaced along the width direction, and one or more cavities are arranged in the main module component, and one or more holes are provided in the upper cover so that balls, rollers or other items can be placed in the cavities of the main module component, and at least a portion of the balls, rollers or other items protrude above the upper cover through the one or more holes.

[0023] Item 2. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 1, wherein a groove is provided in the main module component between at least some of the eye-shaped components in the width direction on both sides of the main module component, and a ridge is provided on the upper cover between at least some of the eye-shaped components on the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module component, the ridge will engage or snap into the groove and keep the upper cover releasably fixed to the main module component.

[0024] Item 3. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 1, wherein one or more eye-shaped parts on both the main module part and the upper cover have half the width of the other eye-shaped parts, and when the upper cover is assembled on the main module, the half-width eye-shaped parts on the upper cover and the main module part are arranged adjacent to each other to form full-width eye-shaped parts.

[0025] Item 4. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 1, wherein a ridge is provided in the main module component between the eye-shaped components in the width direction, and a groove is provided in the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module component, the ridge will engage the groove and keep the upper cover releasably fixed to the main module component.

[0026] Clause 5. A modular conveyor belt module according to clause 1, wherein the main module component has an upper surface, which is located between the two lateral sides of the main module component and between the eye-shaped components in the forward and rearward directions, wherein pairs of protrusions extend from the upper surface adjacent the circumference of the cavity, and wherein the upper cover has a lower side, which faces the upper surface of the main module component during use, and wherein the recess in the lower side is arranged to overlap with the protrusion extending from the upper surface of the main module component so that when the upper cover is assembled to the main module component, the protrusion will be at least partially accommodated in the recess.

[0027] Item 6. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 1, wherein the upper cover is provided with one or more eye-shaped lugs, and wherein a hole is provided on the main module component positioned adjacent to the eye-shaped lug, wherein a pin can be inserted through the eye-shaped lug in the upper cover and into the hole, thereby fastening the main module component to the upper cover.

[0028] Item 7. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 5, wherein rollers arranged on an axis are capable of being assembled in one or more cavities provided in the main module component, wherein the axis is the rotational axis of the rollers and the axis extends beyond the rollers at both ends of the rollers, wherein each end of the axis is capable of being inserted and retained between a pair of lugs in the pair of lugs, thereby allowing the rollers to rotate freely around the axis.

[0029] Clause 8. The modular conveyor belt module of Clause 7, wherein the shaft is press fit between the pair of lugs.

[0030] Item 9. A modular conveyor belt module according to Item 1, wherein each cavity is in the shape of a portion of a sphere, suitable for accommodating a ball, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module part, a portion of the ball extends above the upper cover, and wherein the ball is able to rotate freely in the cavity.

[0031] Clause 10. A modular conveyor belt module according to clause 1, wherein the main module component and the upper cover are injection molded from a plastic material, and wherein the balls and the rollers are injection molded from the same or different plastic materials, and the shafts of the rollers are made of steel, optionally wherein the plastic material of the balls and the rollers is a reinforced plastic material.

[0032] Clause 11. A modular conveyor belt module according to clause 1, wherein the main module component constitutes 60% to 95% of the volume of the entire modular conveyor belt module excluding rollers and / or balls, and the upper cover constitutes the remaining volume.

[0033] Clause 12. A modular conveyor belt module according to clause 1, wherein the main module component is made of a different material than the upper cover, and optionally, wherein the main module component is made of a material having higher tensile properties than the upper cover, and / or wherein the material of the main module component and the material of the upper cover have different wear properties and / or different electrical conductivity properties.

[0034] Clause 13. A modular conveyor belt module according to clause 1, wherein the upper cover has fewer eye-shaped features than the main module component, for example, the upper cover has between 40% and 85% fewer eye-shaped features than the main module component.

[0035] Item 14. An endless modular conveyor belt, the modular conveyor belt being assembled from a plurality of modular conveyor belt modules, the modular conveyor belt modules containing balls or rollers therein, wherein the modular conveyor belt modules are adapted to be mounted in the modular conveyor belt, wherein the modular conveyor belt is of a type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links, wherein one or more modular belt links form transverse rows, wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in a width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eye-shaped members extend forwardly and rearwardly from the body, the eye-shaped members spaced apart in the width direction of the modular belt link forming openings between adjacent eye-shaped members so that when two modular belt links are pushed together, the eye-shaped members on one modular belt link will mate with the eye-shaped members on the other modular belt link, and wherein transverse holes are provided in all of the eye-shaped members so that when the eye-shaped members on a modular belt link in one row overlap with the eye-shaped members in an adjacent row, transverse through-holes are formed from one side of the modular conveyor belt to the other side. , and adjacent modular belt links are hingedly connected by inserting connecting pins through the transverse through-holes, characterized in that the modular conveyor belt module includes an upper cover and a lower main module component, wherein the upper cover is adapted to be arranged above the main module component and assembled to the main module component, wherein a first plurality of eye-shaped components are arranged on both the main module component and the upper cover so that when the upper cover is positioned on the main module component, the eye-shaped components are evenly spaced along the width direction, and one or more cavities are arranged in the main module component, and one or more holes are provided in the upper cover so that balls, rollers or other items can be placed in the cavities of the main module component and at least a portion of the balls, rollers or other items protrude above the upper cover through the one or more holes, wherein the eye-shaped components of adjacent modular conveyor belt modules are staggered with each other, and the connecting pins are inserted transversely through overlapping holes in the eye-shaped components to hingedly connect adjacent eye-shaped components, and wherein the connecting pins are inserted through holes in the eye-shaped components of the main module component and the eye-shaped components of the upper cover. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0036] The present invention will now be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0037] exist Figure 1 Detailed description of the invention shows an exploded view of a modular conveyor belt module according to the present invention.

[0038] exist Figure 2 The underside of the upper cover 10 is shown in FIG.

[0039] exist Figure 3The assembled module is shown in FIG, wherein the upper cover 10 is superimposed on and engaged with the main module 20.

[0040] exist Figure 4 and Figure 5 , a modular belt module according to the invention is shown in FIG, wherein the upper cover is superimposed and assembled to the main module part 20 and the rollers are arranged in cavities protruding through holes in the upper cover 10.

[0041] exist Figure 6 , further details of the present invention are shown.

[0042] exist Figure 7 4. The eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover are shown snapped onto the main module 20, which is provided with a ridge 44.

[0043] exist Figure 8 A detail is shown in FIG, in which the shaft 50 of the roller 28 is housed between a pair of lugs 30 arranged in the main module part. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0044] exist Figure 1 Detailed description of the invention shows an exploded view of a modular conveyor belt module according to the present invention.

[0045] The modular conveyor belt module 1 comprises an upper cover 10 and a main module component 20 .

[0046] The upper cover member 10 is provided with eye-shaped members 12, 14 along its front and rear edges in the consequent direction of travel of the assembled endless conveyor belt. In addition, the upper cover member 10 is provided with an aperture 16. At certain locations along the circumference of the aperture 16, projections 18 are arranged, which provide downwardly facing cavities for receiving lugs, as will be further described below.

[0047] The main module part 20 is also provided with eye-shaped features 22, 24 along the front and rear edges when viewed in the intended direction of travel of the assembled endless conveyor belt. Furthermore, the main module part 20 is provided with a cavity 26, wherein in this embodiment, a roller 28 is disposed. A plurality of lugs 30 are arranged along the circumference of the cavity 26.

[0048] It can be seen that the eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover 10 are arranged at a certain distance, so that when the upper cover 10 is stacked on the main module part 20, the eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover 10 will be arranged between the eye-shaped parts 20, 24 on the main module part, so that the assembled modular belt module will have eye-shaped parts evenly spaced along the front edge and the rear edge, as described above.

[0049] exist Figure 21 shows the underside of the upper cover 10. It is apparent that the cavity below the projection 18 is arranged around the hole 16 so that when the upper cover 10 is stacked on the main module part 20, the lug 30 will be accommodated in the cavity below the projection 18.

[0050] exist Figure 3 , an assembled module is shown in which the upper cover 10 is superimposed on and engaged with the main module 20, whereby the eye-shaped parts 12, 14 from the upper cover 10 are inserted into the rows of eye-shaped parts 22, 24 on the main module, thereby forming a modular belt module, which includes eye-shaped parts spaced apart on both the rear edge and the front edge.

[0051] It can be seen that the upper cover 10 allows the rollers to protrude through holes in the upper cover so that any cargo or objects being transported on the conveyor can be carried by the rollers, as is known in the art.

[0052] refer to Figure 4 , it can be seen that the rollers have been rotated 90 degrees so that they can thus transport any load on the conveyor belt in a transverse direction relative to the intended direction of travel of the endless conveyor belt. In this connection it should also be mentioned that, instead of rollers 28, the holes and cavities in the upper cover 10 and the main module part 20 can be shaped to accommodate balls, as is also known in the art.

[0053] exist Figure 4 FIGURE 1 shows a modular belt module according to the present invention, wherein the upper cover is stacked and assembled onto the main module component 20, and the rollers are arranged in cavities that protrude through holes in the upper cover 10. Furthermore, connecting pins 40 are inserted through holes in the eye-shaped components to hingedly connect the modular belt module to an adjacent similar modular belt module. This type of hinged connection using eye-shaped components and connecting pins is known in the art. Furthermore, the connecting pins of the present invention secure the eye-shaped components 12, 14 of the upper cover 10 relative to the eye-shaped components 22, 24 of the main module component.

[0054] Go to Figure 6 , shows further details of the present invention. The eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover are provided with grooves 42 in the eye-shaped parts so that when the upper cover 10 is assembled on the main module part, the grooves 42 will engage the corresponding ridges on the main module part, thereby snapping the upper cover onto the main module part 20. Figure 7 , where the eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover are snapped onto the main module 20, the main module 20 is provided with a ridge 44. The cross-section of the ridge 44 is designed so that the ridge 44 will fit into the groove 42 provided in the eye-shaped parts 12, 14 of the upper cover 10. In this way, the upper cover 10 will snap onto the main module part 20, facilitating easy assembly of the modular belt modules into an endless conveyor belt.

[0055] exist Figure 8 A detail is shown in FIG, in which the shaft 50 of the roller 28 is housed between a pair of lugs 30 arranged in the main module part. By choosing the distance between the two lugs 30 so that the diameter of the shaft 50 can be squeezed between the two lugs, the roller 28 with the shaft 50 is securely fitted in the cavity in the main module part.

Claims

1. A modular conveyor belt module comprising balls or rollers therein, wherein the modular conveyor belt module is adapted to be installed in a modular conveyor belt, wherein the modular conveyor belt is of a type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links, wherein one or more modular belt links form transverse rows, wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in a width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eye-shaped members extend forwardly and rearwardly from the body, the eye-shaped members spaced apart in the width direction of the modular belt link forming openings between adjacent eye-shaped members so that when two modular conveyor belt links are pushed together, the eye-shaped members on one modular belt link will mate with the eye-shaped members on the other modular belt link, and wherein transverse holes are provided in all of the eye-shaped members so that when the eye-shaped members on the modular belt links in one row overlap with the eye-shaped members in the adjacent row, transverse through-holes are formed from one side of the modular conveyor belt to the other side, and adjacent modular belt links are hingedly connected by inserting connecting pins through the transverse through-holes, characterized in that The modular conveyor belt module includes an upper cover and a lower main module component, wherein the upper cover is suitable for being arranged above the main module component and assembled to the main module component, wherein a first plurality of eye-shaped components are arranged on both the main module component and the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is positioned on the main module component, the first plurality of eye-shaped components will be evenly spaced along the width direction, and one or more cavities are arranged in the main module component, and one or more holes are provided in the upper cover so that balls, rollers or other items can be placed in the cavities of the main module component, and at least a portion of the balls, rollers or other items protrude above the upper cover through the one or more holes.

2. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that A groove is provided in the main module component between at least some of the eye-shaped components in the width direction on both sides of the main module component, and a ridge is provided on the upper cover between at least some of the eye-shaped components on the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module component, the ridge will engage or snap into the groove and keep the upper cover releasably fixed to the main module component.

3. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that One or more eye-shaped parts on both the main module part and the upper cover have half the width of the other eye-shaped parts, and when the upper cover is assembled on the main module, the half-width eye-shaped parts on the upper cover and the main module part are arranged adjacent to each other to form full-width eye-shaped parts.

4. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that A ridge is provided in the main module part between the eye-shaped parts in the width direction, and a groove is provided in the upper cover, so that when the upper cover is assembled on the main module part, the ridge will engage the groove and keep the upper cover releasably fixed to the main module part.

5. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that The main module part has an upper surface, which is located between the two lateral sides of the main module part and between the eye-shaped parts in the forward and rearward directions, wherein a pair of lugs extend from the upper surface adjacent the circumference of the cavity, and wherein the upper cover has an underside, which faces the upper surface of the main module part in use, and wherein the recess in the underside is arranged to overlap the lugs extending from the upper surface of the main module part so that when the upper cover is assembled to the main module part, the lugs will be at least partially accommodated in the recess.

6. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that The upper cover is provided with one or more eye-shaped lugs, and wherein a hole is provided on the main module component located adjacent to the eye-shaped lug, wherein a pin can be inserted through the eye-shaped lug in the upper cover and into the hole on the main module component, thereby fastening the main module component to the upper cover.

7. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 5, characterized in that A roller arranged on an axis can be assembled in one or more cavities provided in the main module component, wherein the axis is the rotation axis of the roller and the axis extends beyond the roller at both ends of the roller, wherein each end of the axis can be inserted and retained between a pair of lugs in the pair of lugs, thereby allowing the roller to rotate freely about the axis.

8. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 7, characterized in that The shaft is press-fitted between the pair of lugs.

9. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, characterized in that Each cavity is in the shape of a portion of a sphere, adapted to receive a ball, such that a portion of the ball extends above the upper cover when the upper cover is assembled on the main module part, and wherein the ball is able to rotate freely in the cavity.

10. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, wherein: The main module component and the upper cover are injection molded from plastic material, and wherein the ball and the roller are injection molded from the same or different plastic materials, and the shaft of the roller is made of steel.

11. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 10, characterized in that The plastic material of the balls and the rollers is a reinforced plastic material.

12. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, wherein: The main module part constitutes 60% to 95% of the volume of the entire modular conveyor belt module excluding the rollers and / or balls, and the upper cover constitutes the remaining volume.

13. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, wherein: The main module component is made of a different material from that of the upper cover.

14. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 13, characterized in that The main module part is made of a material having higher tensile properties than the upper cover, and / or the material of the main module part and the material of the upper cover have different wear properties and / or different electrical conductivity properties.

15. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 1, wherein: The upper cover has fewer eye-shaped parts than the main module part.

16. The modular conveyor belt module according to claim 15, characterized in that The upper cover has between 40% and 85% fewer eye-shaped components than the main module components.

17. An endless modular conveyor belt, the modular conveyor belt being assembled from a plurality of modular conveyor belt modules, the modular conveyor belt modules comprising balls or rollers within the modular conveyor belt modules, wherein the modular conveyor belt modules are adapted to be mounted within the modular conveyor belt, wherein the modular conveyor belt is of a type assembled from a plurality of substantially identical modular belt links, wherein one or more modular belt links form a transverse row, wherein each modular belt link has a body extending in a width direction of the modular belt link, and wherein a plurality of eye-shaped members extend forwardly and rearwardly from the body, wherein the modular belt links are arranged to extend in a transverse row. The eye-shaped parts separated in the width direction of the belt chain link form an opening between adjacent eye-shaped parts, so that when two modular belt chain links are pushed together, the eye-shaped parts on one modular belt chain link will cooperate with the eye-shaped parts on the other modular belt chain link, and transverse holes are provided on all eye-shaped parts, so that when the eye-shaped parts on the modular belt chain links in one row overlap with the eye-shaped parts in the adjacent row, transverse through-holes are formed from one side to the other side of the modular conveyor belt, and adjacent modular belt chain links will be hingedly connected by inserting connecting pins through the transverse through-holes, characterized in that The modular conveyor belt module includes an upper cover and a lower main module part, wherein the upper cover is suitable for being arranged above the main module part and assembled to the main module part, wherein a first plurality of eye-shaped parts are arranged on both the main module part and the upper cover so that when the upper cover is positioned on the main module part, the eye-shaped parts will be evenly spaced along the width direction, and one or more cavities are arranged in the main module part, and one or more holes are provided in the upper cover so that balls, rollers or other items can be placed in the cavities of the main module part and at least a portion of the balls, rollers or other items protrude above the upper cover through the one or more holes, wherein the eye-shaped parts of adjacent modular conveyor belt modules are staggered with each other, and the connecting pins are laterally inserted through overlapping holes in the eye-shaped parts to hingedly connect adjacent eye-shaped parts, and wherein the connecting pins are inserted through holes in the eye-shaped parts of the main module part and the eye-shaped parts of the upper cover.

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