Screw conveyer with self-cleaning function

Abstract

The utility model discloses a spiral conveyor with a self-cleaning function. The spiral conveyor is provided with a spiral conveyor part and an airflow conveying device, wherein the spiral conveyor part is powered by a driving motor and a speed reducer, and the airflow conveying device is controlled by a controller. In the working state of the machine, the spiral conveyor is started through power provided by the driving motor and the speed reducer, the airflow system controller starts self-cleaning by detecting signals sent by the sensor on the speed reducer, and materials in the spiral conveyor are blown off through airflow so as to be prevented from being attached to the cylinder wall. Self-cleaning is carried out through high-pressure airflow, damage to a machine caused by a traditional cleaning mode is effectively prevented, meanwhile, the conveying efficiency of the conveyor is guaranteed, and the production efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of material conveying equipment technology, specifically to a screw conveyor. Background Technology

[0002] Screw conveyors are commonly used material handling equipment. Their main function is to transport materials between different workstations, such as conveying raw materials from storage tanks to weighing tanks, or conveying mixed materials. Their main working principle is that a rotating screw propels the material forward, thus achieving material transport.

[0003] During the conveying process, materials undergo compression and friction, easily generating heat. Additionally, some materials are sticky, and this stickiness increases significantly with heat, causing them to adhere to the conveyor screw or barrel, reducing the conveyor's efficiency. Material adhering to the conveyor surface requires regular cleaning; however, methods such as chemical soaking or high-temperature burning can cause irreversible damage, affecting the conveyor's lifespan and requiring substantial manpower and resources. Furthermore, the continuous accumulation of material on the machine surface during transport causes non-linearity in the conveyor's efficiency, making precise weighing control impossible. Utility Model Content

[0004] To address the aforementioned problems, this utility model proposes a screw conveyor with a self-cleaning function. This screw conveyor uses its built-in self-cleaning function to clean the inside of the conveyor, thereby reducing or eliminating material adhesion inside the conveyor, minimizing material accumulation, and ensuring the conveying efficiency of the screw conveyor.

[0005] The technical solution adopted in this utility model is as follows:

[0006] A screw conveyor with self-cleaning function includes a barrel assembly, a screw assembly, and a pneumatic cleaning assembly. Its unique feature is that...

[0007] The screw assembly includes a shaft, blades, and a nozzle. One end of the shaft is connected to the output of a reducer, and the other end is supported by a bearing in a bearing housing. The shaft has a hollow airflow channel, and a nozzle communicating with the airflow channel is installed on the shaft.

[0008] The pneumatic cleaning assembly includes an air pump, an air pump valve, an air pipe, and an air slip ring; one end of the air pipe is connected to the air pump valve, and the other end is connected to the airflow channel of the rotating shaft via the air slip ring. The pneumatic cleaning assembly delivers airflow through the airflow channel of the screw assembly to different positions of the screw conveyor, thereby achieving cleaning of the screw conveyor.

[0009] It also includes a controller and sensors for controlling the air pump valve. The sensors are configured at predetermined positions on the conveyor to monitor the operating status of the conveyor and send the acquired operating status to the controller.

[0010] Furthermore, the barrel assembly includes a barrel with an inlet and an outlet, a connecting flange welded to the end of the barrel, and the connecting flange on one side of the barrel is connected to a bearing housing by bolts. The bearing housing is provided with a bearing for supporting the screw assembly, and a bearing cover is provided at the end of the bearing housing.

[0011] Furthermore, one end of the air slip ring is connected to the rotating shaft of the screw assembly and its air passage through an air outlet on its rotor, and the other end of the air slip ring is connected to an air pipe through an air inlet on its stator.

[0012] Furthermore, a screw hole is formed on the shaft of the screw assembly, and the air nozzle is sealed to the screw hole.

[0013] Furthermore, the jet nozzle is a nozzle with a one-way valve, which includes a valve body with an air inlet and a ball head with an air hole. The ball head is spring-loaded in the valve cavity of the valve body to close the air inlet. The ball head has air outlet holes at different angles, which can emit compressed gas in different directions to clean residual materials in different areas.

[0014] Furthermore, after receiving the signal from the controller, the air pump valve automatically controls the input of compressed gas, or manually controls the input of compressed gas after receiving the instruction signal from an external operator.

[0015] Furthermore, the controller includes a data acquisition module, a signal processing module, and an execution module. The data acquisition module collects signals from the sensors, which are then analyzed and processed by the signal processing module. The execution module then sends control commands to the air pump valve, which controls the timing of compressed air entry and the pressure of the compressed air.

[0016] This utility model has the following beneficial effects:

[0017] This utility model discloses a screw conveyor that can self-clean its interior during or after material conveying. During material transport, the airflow can be controlled to clean the conveyed material, reducing material adhesion inside the conveyor and simultaneously cooling the interior. This simultaneous conveying and cleaning reduces the frequency of subsequent cleaning, ensuring stable and consistent conveying efficiency without affecting the weighing of subsequent materials. After material transport is complete, an air pump can be activated at any time to clean the screw conveyor. Compared to traditional cleaning methods, this method reduces wear and tear on the conveyor, extends its service life, improves production efficiency, and lowers labor and material costs. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 : A schematic diagram of a screw conveyor with self-cleaning function;

[0019] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the barrel assembly structure;

[0020] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of screw assembly structure;

[0021] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of air slip ring structure;

[0022] Figure 5 Cross-sectional view of the gas passage and gas flow diagram;

[0023] Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the jet nozzle structure;

[0024] In the diagram, 1. Drive motor, 2. Reducer, 3. Screw assembly, 31. Shaft, 32. Blade, 33. Nozzle, 33a. Valve body, 33b. Ball head, 33c. Ball, 33d. Spring, 4. Barrel assembly, 41. Barrel, 42. Inlet, 43. Outlet, 44. Connecting flange, 5. Bearing housing, 6. Bearing, 7. Bearing cover, 8. Air slip ring, 9. Air pipe, 10. Air pump valve, 11. Air pump, 12. Controller, 13. Sensor. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The structure of the specific embodiments of this utility model will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0026] A screw conveyor with self-cleaning function consists of two main parts: a mechanical structure and a control system. The mechanical structure includes a drive motor 1, a reducer 2, a screw assembly 3, a barrel assembly 4, a bearing housing 5, a bearing 6, a bearing end cover 7, an air slip ring 8, an air pipe 9, an air pump valve 10, and an air pump 11. The control system includes a controller 12 and a sensor 13.

[0027] The mechanical and control components are described in detail below:

[0028] The drive motor 1 is connected to the screw assembly 3 via the reducer 2, providing power to the screw conveyor. The screw assembly 3 is disposed inside the barrel assembly 4, with an inlet 42 and an outlet 43 at both ends of the barrel assembly 4. The reducer 2 is connected to the screw assembly 3, driving the screw assembly 3 to rotate inside the barrel assembly 4. Material enters the barrel through the inlet 42, moves under the push of the screw assembly 3, and is discharged from the outlet 43, completing the material movement.

[0029] The screw assembly 3 includes a rotating shaft 31, blades 32 disposed on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft 31, and an air nozzle 33. One end of the rotating shaft 31 is connected to the output end of the reducer 2, and the other end is connected to a bearing 6 in the bearing housing 5, with the bearing 6 providing rotational support. The blades 32 are welded to the rotating shaft 31. During operation, the rotating shaft 31 and the blades 32 rotate together, propelling the material. The rotating shaft 31 has a hollow airflow channel, which is connected to the rotor 82 of the air slip ring 8. Compressed gas enters the interior of the rotating shaft 31 through the air slip ring 8. The shaft body of the rotating shaft 31 has several threaded holes, and the jet nozzle 33 is connected to the threaded holes of the rotating shaft 31 through a threaded seal. The jet nozzle 33 includes a valve body 33a with an air inlet and a ball head 33b with air holes. A ball 33c for closing the air inlet is pressed into the valve cavity of the valve body 33a by a spring 33d. The ball head 33b has an air outlet. The inner end of the jet nozzle 33 is connected to the hollow airflow channel of the rotating shaft 31, and the outer end of the ball head has multiple air holes at different angles on its spherical surface, which can spray high-pressure airflow in different directions to clean residual materials in different areas. During operation, the compressed gas entering the interior of the rotating shaft 31 is dispersed and sprayed outward through the airflow channel and the jet nozzle 33, thereby cleaning the materials on the blades and cylinder wall surface.

[0030] The barrel assembly 4 includes a barrel 41, with a feed inlet 42 and a discharge outlet 43 welded to both ends of the barrel 41. The feed inlet 42 faces upward and is used to receive materials transferred from other storage tanks. The materials enter the interior of the barrel 41 through the feed inlet 42. The interior of the barrel 41 is the material transfer channel. The screw assembly 3 rotates inside the barrel, pushing the materials toward the discharge outlet 43. The discharge outlet 43 faces downward. After the materials move to the discharge outlet 43, they detach from the barrel and automatically fall into the next process. The above is the complete material transportation process.

[0031] The end of the cylinder 41 is welded with a connecting flange 44. During assembly, the connecting flange 44 is connected to the bearing seat 5 by bolts. The bearing seat 5 contains a bearing 6, which serves as a support for the screw assembly 3. The end of the bearing seat 5 has a bearing cover 7, which serves as a dustproof cover.

[0032] The air slip ring 8 includes a stator 81 and a rotor 82. The rotor 82 has an air outlet 83. The rotor 82 is connected to the rotating shaft 31 of the screw assembly 3 and rotates together with the rotating shaft 31 during operation. The air outlet 83 is connected to the air passage of the rotating shaft 31 to input compressed gas into the air passage of the rotating shaft 31. The stator 81 has an air inlet 84, which is connected to the air pump valve 10 through an air pipe 9.

[0033] After receiving the signal from the controller 12, the air pump valve 10 automatically controls the input of compressed gas, or it can receive the instruction signal input by an external operator to manually control the input of compressed gas.

[0034] The air pump 11 provides compressed gas to the screw conveyor.

[0035] The controller 12 includes a data acquisition module, a signal processing module, and an execution module. The data acquisition module acquires signals from the sensor 13, which are then analyzed and processed by the signal processing module. The execution module then sends control commands to the air pump valve 10, which controls the timing and pressure of the compressed air entering the system.

[0036] The sensor 13 is mounted on the reducer 2. When the reducer 2 starts operating, the sensor 13 detects the operating signal of the reducer 2 and transmits it to the controller 12. The signal receiving module inside the controller 12 transmits the received sensor signal to the signal processing module. After the signal processing module processes the signal, the execution module sends a control command to the air pump valve 10. The air pump valve 10 opens, and the high-pressure gas in the air pump 11 enters the air passage of the rotating shaft 31 through the air pipe 9 and the air slip ring 8. Then, it enters the nozzle 33 through the air passage and is ejected from the air outlet on the nozzle 33. The ejected high-pressure gas impacts the material adhering to the inner wall of the barrel and the screw blades, causing it to fall off and be pushed, transported, and extruded again by the rotating blades.

[0037] Of course, in addition to the installation position of sensor 13 in this embodiment, sensor 13 can be arranged on drive motor 1, screw assembly 3, bearing 6, or any other place that can monitor the working status of the conveyor.

[0038] The sensor 13 can be a speed sensor, angle sensor, torque sensor, or pressure sensor, etc.

[0039] The controller 12 can receive an independent cleaning signal from the outside when the conveyor is not working, and control the air pump valve 10 to open and close, thereby completing the cleaning of the conveyor.

[0040] The controller 12 can control the air pump valve 10 to control parameters such as the pressure of compressed air, the ventilation time, and the ventilation frequency, so as to achieve different cleaning intensities.

[0041] The controller 12 can control the pulse switch of the air pump valve 10 through pulse signals, so that the compressed air cleaning will produce a pulse effect and improve the cleaning intensity.

[0042] The screw conveyor in this embodiment can reduce or eliminate the adhesion of materials inside the conveyor through its self-cleaning function, thereby reducing the accumulation of materials inside the conveyor and ensuring the transmission efficiency of the screw conveyor. At the same time, the use of high-pressure air for cleaning can reduce the cleaning frequency, making the transmission efficiency more stable, without affecting the weighing of subsequent materials, and reducing wear on the conveyor, thus extending the service life of the conveyor, improving production efficiency, and reducing labor and material costs.

[0043] This utility model is not limited to the embodiments discussed above. The above description of specific embodiments is intended to describe and illustrate the technical solutions involved in this utility model. Obvious variations, substitutions, or combinations based on the teachings of this utility model should also be considered to fall within the protection scope of this utility model. The above specific embodiments are used to disclose the best implementation method of this utility model, so that those skilled in the art can apply various embodiments and alternative methods of this utility model to achieve the purpose of this utility model.

Claims

1. A screw conveyor with self-cleaning function, comprising a barrel assembly, a screw assembly and a pneumatic cleaning assembly, characterized in that, the screw assembly comprises a rotating shaft, a blade and a jet nozzle, one end of the rotating shaft is connected by the output of a speed reducer, and the other end is supported by a bearing in a bearing seat; the rotating shaft has a hollow airflow channel, and the rotating shaft is provided with a jet nozzle penetrating the airflow channel; the pneumatic cleaning assembly comprises an air pump, an air pump valve, an air pipe and an air slip ring; one end of the air pipe is connected with the air pump valve, and the other end is connected with the airflow channel of the rotating shaft through the air slip ring; the pneumatic cleaning assembly delivers airflow through the airflow channel of the screw assembly to different positions of the screw conveyor, thereby realizing cleaning of the screw conveyor; further comprising a controller for controlling the air pump valve and a sensor, the sensor is arranged at a predetermined position of the conveyor to monitor the working state of the conveyor and send the acquired operating state to the controller.

2. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, the barrel assembly comprises a barrel body with a feeding port and a discharging port, the end of the barrel body is welded with a connecting flange, the connecting flange on one side of the barrel body is connected with the bearing seat through bolts, the bearing seat is provided with a bearing for supporting the screw assembly, and the end of the bearing seat is provided with a bearing cover.

3. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, one end of the air slip ring is connected with the rotating shaft and the air channel of the screw assembly through the air outlet hole in the rotor of the air slip ring, and the other end of the air slip ring is connected with the air pipe through the air inlet hole in the stator of the air slip ring.

4. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, a screw hole is formed in the shaft of the rotating shaft of the screw assembly, and the jet nozzle is sealingly connected with the screw hole.

5. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, the jet nozzle adopts an air nozzle with a one-way valve, which comprises a valve body with an air inlet and a ball head with air holes, a ball body for closing the air inlet is pressed and fitted in the valve cavity of the valve body by a spring, and the ball head is provided with air holes of different angles, which can emit compressed gas in different directions to clean residual materials in different areas.

6. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, after receiving the signal transmitted by the controller, the air pump valve automatically controls the input of compressed gas, or after receiving the indication signal input by the external operator, the air pump valve manually controls the input of compressed gas.

7. The screw conveyor with self-cleaning function according to claim 1, characterized in that, the controller comprises a data acquisition module, a signal processing module and an execution module, the data acquisition module acquires signals of the sensor, the signals are analyzed and processed by the signal processing module, and then control instructions are sent to the air pump valve by the execution module to control the time of compressed air entering and the pressure of compressed air through the air pump valve.

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