FUNDING POT

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a conveyor pot for a feed and storage system according to the preamble of claim 1, as well as to a feed and storage system comprising such a conveyor pot for a bulk material transport system. The invention further relates to a method for producing such a conveyor pot. Such feed and storage systems are used in production facilities to store bulk materials and, upon request, to enable the stored bulk materials to be transferred to a bulk material transport system as required. The bulk material can be, for example, granular bulk material and / or lumpy bulk material. Lumpy bulk material can be understood to mean, for example, workpieces, small parts, or fastening elements such as screws, nails, staples, or the like. Such feed and storage systems typically have a conveyor pot in which the bulk material is stored.A vibration drive coupled to the conveyor bowl forces a vibrating and / or oscillating movement of the conveyor bowl in order to transport the bulk material contained in the conveyor bowl to the bulk material transport system. Due to the vibrating and / or oscillating movements, such a conveyor bowl must have sufficient mechanical resistance in order not to fall below a specified minimum service life. The required mechanical resistance can be achieved, for example, by sufficiently thickening the material of the conveyor bowl, although this increases the dead weight of the conveyor bowl. A disadvantage of increasing the dead weight of the conveyor bowl is, for example, that the vibration drive requires more energy to force the desired vibrating and / or oscillating movement of the conveyor bowl.

[0002] A generic conveyor pot is known from GB 1 392 789 A.

[0003] The present invention is based on the object of specifying an improved or at least different embodiment of a conveyor pot, which is characterized in particular by a lower dead weight and / or an improved conveying capacity.

[0004] This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments are the subject matter of the dependent claims. The present invention is based on the general idea of ​​forming the conveyor bowl, at least in sections, with a hollow structure in order to achieve a reduction in the dead weight and / or improved conveying capacity of the conveyor bowl while maintaining sufficient mechanical strength.

[0005] The conveyor pot according to the invention for a feed and storage system comprises a casing body having an inner surface and an outer surface. The casing body can, for example, be made entirely or partially from a metallic material and / or a plastic, in particular a thermoplastic. Examples of plastic materials that can be used are polyamide 6, polyamide 11, polyamide 12, polyamide 2000, polylactide, and / or other plastics. In particular, other plastics suitable for 3D printing processes can be used. It is also conceivable for the casing body to be made entirely or partially from light-curing plastics and / or resins. The casing body can have a frustoconical and / or cylindrical, in particular a circular cylindrical and / or circular hollow cylindrical, basic structure.In this case, a base section can be arranged at one end of the casing body, which, for example, has a circular design. A partial area of ​​the casing body and / or a partial area of ​​the base section can form a bulk material receiving area or a storage area for the bulk material. The casing body can widen along an axial axis starting from one end and / or starting from the base section. "Widening" can be understood here as the inner surface and / or the outer surface of the casing body having a greater and / or increasing distance from the axial axis with increasing distance from the base section in a radial direction, which can be oriented substantially transversely to the axial axis. The inner surface is at least partially designed for transporting a bulk material.

[0006] By forcing a vibratory and / or oscillating motion of the conveyor bowl by a vibration drive coupled to the conveyor bowl, the bulk material present in the conveyor bowl can be transported, at least in sections, via the inner surface to the bulk material transport system. At least one functional element can be arranged between the inner surface and the bulk material transport system. The bulk material transport system can be designed as a further bulk material transport system, which transports the bulk material transferred from the feed and storage system or conveyor bowl to its place of use.

[0007] The casing body forms at least one hollow structure, at least in sections, between the inner surface and the outer surface. The hollow structure can penetrate the casing body completely or in sections. The hollow structure can have at least one hollow space and / or a plurality of hollow spaces. These hollow spaces can be completely and / or partially free of casing body material and / or intermediate material. The casing body material can correspond to the intermediate material. The intermediate material can correspond to the casing body material. Partition material can correspond to the intermediate material. The hollow spaces can be completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material.The cavities can be designed as closed and / or sealed cavities, in particular as closed and / or sealed cavities within the casing body, which can be completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material. In other words, the granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material can be encapsulated, in particular captively encapsulated, in the respective closed and / or sealed cavity. Cavities of the cavity structure can be arranged at a distance from one another along a radial direction of the conveyor pot and / or along a circumferential direction. Such spacing can be formed by casing body material.The cavities allow the dead weight of the conveyor bowl to be reduced while maintaining essentially the same mechanical strength, so that the energy required to set the conveyor bowl into a vibrating and / or oscillating motion can be minimized. A feed and storage system operates particularly energy-efficiently when the conveyor bowl is driven at its resonant frequency. A further advantage of the invention now arises from the fact that the moment of inertia of the conveyor bowl is reduced and / or adjusted and / or optimized through a more advantageous mass distribution, possibly resulting in an increase in the resonant frequency of the conveyor bowl. This not only enables more energy-efficient transport or conveying of the bulk material, but also ensures faster conveying of the bulk material due to the increased resonant frequency.Thus, a larger quantity of bulk material can be conveyed or transported per unit of time while simultaneously saving energy. This results in a higher conveying speed of the bulk material. A further advantage of the conveyor bowl according to the invention is that, particularly when manufactured using a 3D printing process, less heat is generated and / or required, so that the required manufacturing energy and thus the manufacturing costs can be reduced. A further advantage is that the component quality and / or print quality of the conveyor bowl is improved, as the conveyor bowl is subject to less thermal distortion.

[0008] According to the invention, the inner surface has a conveying structure for transporting a bulk material. If a vibrating movement and / or an oscillating movement of the conveyor bowl is enforced via a vibration drive coupled to the conveyor bowl, the bulk material present in the conveyor bowl is transported via the conveying structure to the bulk material transport system. At least one functional element can be arranged between the conveying structure and the bulk material transport system. The bulk material transport system can comprise a conveyor belt and / or a linear drive with a vibration drive. Such a linear drive can comprise a rail. Such a linear drive and / or such a rail can comprise a guide bead and / or a cover section. The linear drive can comprise at least one spring assembly.In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, an imbalance of the conveyor bowl and / or the casing body, in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the conveyor bowl and / or casing body, is compensated or at least reduced by the hollow structure. This can reduce wear on the conveyor bowl and / or casing body and, in addition, improve the transport or conveying of the bulk material.

[0009] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the hollow space structure forms a plurality of cavities, wherein adjacent cavities are separated from one another at least in sections by at least one intermediate wall of the casing body. Intermediate walls can be designed as solid bodies. The spatial volume filled by all intermediate walls of the hollow space structure defines an intermediate material volume, wherein the hollow volume delimited by all cavities of the hollow space structure defines a total hollow volume. In this case, the total hollow volume is less than, greater than, or equal to the intermediate material volume. The cavities can be designed completely and / or partially free of casing body material and / or intermediate material. The cavities can be completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material.The cavities can be designed as closed and / or enclosed cavities, in particular as closed and / or enclosed cavities within the casing body, which can be completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material. In other words, the granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material can be encapsulated, in particular captively encapsulated, in the respective closed and / or enclosed cavity. The advantage of this is that, particularly during production using a 3D printing process, less heat is generated and / or required, so that the required manufacturing energy and thus the manufacturing costs can be reduced. A further advantage is that the component quality and / or print quality of the conveyor bowl is improved, since there is less thermal distortion or cooling distortion of the conveyor bowl.

[0010] According to the invention, in the 3D printing process, an imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body, in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the conveyor pot and / or the casing body, is compensated or at least reduced by the cavity structure if the cavities are completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material. In a 3D printing process, the heated or molten casing body material and / or intermediate material has a different density than the granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material. Thus, the conveying capacity of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body can be improved and / or an imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body can be reduced, even though the cavities are completely filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material.In this way, the material quantity distribution or the casing body material distribution or the intermediate material distribution per volume of the casing body can be advantageously adjusted in order to achieve a further reduction in the dead weight of the conveyor bowl and / or a further reduction in the moment of inertia of the conveyor bowl.

[0011] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the hollow structure has a plurality of sections, wherein one section forms a plurality of cavities, wherein adjacent cavities of the section are separated from one another at least in sections by at least one intermediate wall of the casing body. The spatial volume filled by all intermediate walls of a section of the hollow structure defines a section material volume. The hollow volume delimited by all cavities of a section of the hollow structure defines a section hollow volume. In this case, the ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume is the same and / or different for different sections of the hollow structure. A plurality of sections can be formed which have a substantially identical ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume.Multiple sections can be formed that have different ratios of section hollow volume to section material volume. At least a first section can have a smaller or larger ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume than a second section.

[0012] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the cavity structure has a plurality of sections along an axial axis and / or along a radial direction and / or along a circumferential direction of the conveyor pot, wherein the ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume of the sections varies at least in sections along an axial axis and / or along a radial direction and / or along a circumferential direction of the conveyor pot, in particular varies linearly, non-linearly and / or in steps. A variation can be understood as an increase or decrease in the ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume. Thus, a local adjustment of the ratio of section hollow volume to section material volume of the respective sections of the cavity structure can take place.

[0013] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that at least one cavity of the cavity structure opens into a cavity opening on the outer surface, or that a group of cavities of the cavity structure opens into a common cavity opening on the outer surface, or that all cavities of the cavity structure each open into a separate cavity opening on the outer surface. In this case, the outer surface can form at least one and / or more cavity openings. It can be provided that the cavity and / or the cavities are fluidically connected to an external environment of the conveyor pot or to an ambient air of the conveyor pot through the cavity opening and / or the cavity openings.

[0014] A particular advantage arises from the production of the conveyor bowl using a 3D printing process, particularly a 3D printing process based on a powder process or a powder bed process, in which the shell material and / or the intermediate material of the shell body is present in its raw state in a powdered and / or granulated form. After the conveyor bowl has been produced using the 3D printing process, the excess powdered or granulated shell material and / or intermediate material can be removed from the cavities without additional labor. A further advantage is that this saves powdered and / or granulated shell material and / or intermediate material, so that the manufacturing costs of the conveyor bowl can be reduced even with smaller production runs.A further advantage is that the shell material and / or the intermediate material are reduced in the area of ​​the outer surface, which, although it contributes comparatively little to mechanical resistance, leads to a comparatively strong increase in the moment of inertia due to its distance from the axial axis. By utilizing the cavity openings, the distribution of the shell material can be optimized to further reduce the moment of inertia of the conveyor bowl. The cavities thus allow the dead weight of the conveyor bowl to be reduced while essentially maintaining the same mechanical resistance, thus minimizing the energy required to set the conveyor bowl into vibratory and / or oscillatory motion.

[0015] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that at least one cavity of the cavity structure has a cavity longitudinal extension that is substantially parallel or transverse or at an angle and / or skewed to an axial axis of the conveyor bowl, or that all cavities of the cavity structure each have a cavity longitudinal extension that is substantially parallel or transverse or at an angle and / or skewed to an axial axis of the conveyor bowl. This enables, for example, a substantially symmetrical structure of the conveyor bowl with respect to the axial axis. It can also be provided that at least one cavity or all cavities are aligned substantially perpendicular to the inner surface of the casing body.

[0016] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that at least one cavity of the cavity structure has a longitudinal cavity extension, wherein this cavity is cylindrical or conical with respect to its longitudinal cavity extension, or that all cavities of the cavity structure each have a longitudinal cavity extension, wherein the cavities are cylindrical or conical with respect to their respective longitudinal cavity extension. Conical cavities can be designed to taper conically towards the outer surface. Conical cavities can be designed to widen conically towards the outer surface. Conical cavities can be designed to widen conically towards the outer surface in sections and / or to taper conically towards the outer surface in sections.It can be provided that all cavities have a substantially identical cylindrical or conical configuration, or that a first group of cavities has a substantially identical first cylindrical or conical configuration, while a second group of cavities has a substantially identical second cylindrical or conical configuration, wherein the first cylindrical or conical configuration can be designed differently than the second cylindrical or conical configuration. In this case, the respective cavity can form a cross-sectional area transverse to its longitudinal extent, which can be delimited by a closed delimiting contour. This delimiting contour can, for example, be circular, elliptical, triangular, square, diamond-shaped, octagonal, honeycomb-shaped, polygonal, X-shaped, Y-shaped, L-shaped, U-shaped, T-shaped or I-shaped.

[0017] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that at least one cavity of the cavity structure has a cavity longitudinal extension, wherein such a cavity at least in sections forms a honeycomb-like, diamond-like, triangular, square-like, hexagonal, octagonal, circular, elliptical, polygonal, X-like, Y-like, L-like, U-like, T-like and / or I-like cross-sectional area transversely with respect to its cavity longitudinal extension, or that all cavities of the cavity structure each have a cavity longitudinal extension, wherein the cavities each at least in sections form a honeycomb-like, diamond-like, triangular, square-like, hexagonal, octagonal, circular, elliptical, polygonal, X-like, Y-like, L-like, U-like, T-like and / or I-like cross-sectional area transversely with respect to their cavity longitudinal extension.This achieves an optimal ratio of partition wall material or shell body material to cavity volume for a given space volume while maintaining the required mechanical resistance. A hexagonal cross-sectional area can form a regular hexagon. It can be provided that a hexagon width or a hexagon inner diameter of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity is greater than a wall thickness of the partition wall of the shell body. It can also be provided that a hexagon width or a hexagon inner diameter of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity is smaller than a wall thickness of the partition wall of the shell body. It can also be provided that a hexagon width or a hexagon inner diameter of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity essentially corresponds to the wall thickness of the partition wall of the shell body.

[0018] It can be provided that a ratio of hexagon width or hexagon inner diameter to a wall thickness of an intermediate wall of the casing body corresponds to a ratio of at least 2, in particular of 3. The hexagon width can, for example, have a width of 1 mm to 200 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 100 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 60 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 50 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 30 mm, in particular from 5 mm to 30 mm, in particular from 10 mm to 30 mm. The hexagon width can, for example, in particular have a width of 9 mm to 21 mm, in particular from 10 mm to 20 mm, in particular from 15 mm. The wall thickness of an intermediate wall between two cavities can, for example, be 1 mm to 10 mm, in particular 2.5 mm to 7.5 mm, in particular 5 mm. The conveyor bowl can have an outer wall thickness of 2.5 mm to 7.5 mm, in particular 5 mm.These ranges and / or dimensions are particularly advantageous because the balance between mechanical strength and weight reduction of the bowl allows for optimal operating results for a wide range of applications. This allows the bowl and / or the shell to be used as a single component for a variety of applications with different bulk materials, thus reducing unit manufacturing costs.

[0019] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the cavity structure forms, at least in sections, a cellular structure, in particular a honeycomb structure and / or a triangular structure and / or a circular structure and / or an octagonal structure and / or a quadrilateral structure and / or a diamond structure and / or an elliptical structure and / or a polygonal cell structure and / or an X-shaped cell structure and / or a Y-shaped cell structure and / or an L-shaped cell structure and / or a U-shaped cell structure and / or a T-shaped cell structure and / or an I-shaped cell structure. A cellular structure can be understood as a structure made up of a plurality of three-dimensional bodies, wherein the bodies can be defined by side edges, wherein in each case two side edges can be connected to one another by at least one surface.Within the scope of this invention, a cell structure can be characterized in that either the side edges and / or side surfaces of the cell structure are formed by an intermediate wall material and / or shell material. It can also be provided that all or only some of the side edges and / or side surfaces of the cell structure are formed by an intermediate wall material and / or shell material. The side edges and surfaces of the cell structure can be formed as solid bodies. By using a cell structure, the conveyor pot can be provided in a lightweight design with a reduced dead weight.

[0020] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the cavity structure forms, at least in sections, a lattice structure, in particular a lattice structure that extends along body diagonals, and / or a cross-like lattice structure and / or a diamond-like lattice structure and / or a G-like lattice structure and / or an octet-like lattice structure and / or a rhombus-like lattice structure and / or an octahedral lattice structure and / or a dode-like lattice structure. A lattice structure can be understood as a structure made up of a plurality of three-dimensional bodies without side surfaces, wherein the bodies can be defined by side edges. Within the scope of this invention, a lattice structure can be characterized in that the side edges of the lattice structure are formed by an intermediate wall material and / or shell body material.

[0021] Side edges of the lattice structure can be formed like solids.

[0022] It can also be provided that all or only some of the side edges of the lattice structure are formed by an intermediate wall material and / or casing body material. The side edges formed by the intermediate wall material and / or casing body material can be in the form of lattice bars whose cross-sectional extent transverse to a longitudinal direction is smaller than their longitudinal extent along the longitudinal direction. It is conceivable that a cell structure or a partial area of ​​the cell structure is reinforced by a lattice structure. It is conceivable that a cell structure or a partial area of ​​the cell structure has a lattice structure. By using a lattice structure, the conveyor bowl can be provided in a lightweight design with a reduced dead weight.

[0023] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, the conveyor structure forms a helical and / or spiral ramp section arranged on the inner surface, along which a bulk material can be conveyed from the conveyor bowl. Conveyor bowls with such a ramp section for removing the bulk material are particularly advantageous because the circumferential ramp section allows a large conveying height of the bulk material to be achieved, so that a large overall volume can be provided in a bulk material receiving area, allowing a large amount of bulk material to be stored in the feed and storage system.

[0024] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the conveyor pot forms a bulk material receiving area, which is at least partially formed by a base section arranged on the casing body. Furthermore, the conveyor pot has at least one loading section, which is at least partially formed by the casing body, wherein the loading section is arranged at a distance from the base section and / or the bulk material receiving area. The base section can be formed integrally with the casing body, although it is also conceivable for the base section to be manufactured separately from the casing body and to be attached to the casing body.

[0025] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the conveyor bowl forms the conveyor structure integrally, and / or that the conveyor bowl forms the bulk material receiving area and / or the base section (19) integrally, and / or that the loading section is equipped with at least one functional element, wherein the functional element is formed separately from the conveyor bowl. Such a functional element can be a singling device by which the bulk materials transported from the bulk material receiving area are singulated. Such a functional element can be an alignment device which aligns the position of the bulk materials. Such a functional element can be a return ramp via which sorted bulk materials can be transported back to the bulk material receiving area.One such functional element could be a transfer ramp, through which bulk materials conveyed from the bulk material receiving area can be transferred to the bulk material transport system. This enables a modular design and use of the conveyor bowl.

[0026] In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body is formed from several separately manufactured individual parts, or that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body is formed integrally and / or in one piece. It can be provided that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body is divided into segment-shaped individual parts. The conveyor pot can therefore be divided into pie-shaped individual parts. These individual parts can be easily positioned relative to one another. It can be provided that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body is divided into disc-shaped or ring-shaped individual parts. By dividing the individual parts in this way, low individual parts and / or low individual part heights can be achieved, so that the printing height can be kept low in 3D printing processes.

[0027] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts are at least partially produced from solid material by machining, and / or that the conveyor pot and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts are at least partially produced by plastic injection molding. According to the invention, the conveyor pot and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts are at least partially produced by a 3D printing process. Examples of 3D printing processes that can be used are selective laser sintering (SLS), multi-jet modeling (MJM), stereolithography (SLA), fused deposition modeling (FDM), fused filament fabrication (FFF), or continuous filament fabrication (CFF). In the SLS process as well as the MJM process, a base material of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body can be in its raw state in a powdered and / or granulated form.The powdered and / or granulated base material can be made of a metallic material and / or a plastic, in particular a thermoplastic. Examples of plastics that can be used are polyamide 6, polyamide 11, polyamide 12, polyamide 2000, polylactide, and / or other plastics. In particular, other plastics suitable for 3D printing can be used. In the SLA process, a base material of the feed bowl and / or the casing body can be in a liquid form in its raw state. It is also conceivable for the feed bowl and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts to be formed entirely or partially from light-curing plastics and / or resins.

[0028] The invention further relates to a conveyor bowl for a feed and storage system, wherein the conveyor bowl has a casing body with an inner surface and an outer surface, such that the inner surface and / or a conveying structure of the conveyor bowl forms a functional structure surface at least in sections. The functional structure surface can, for example, form a groove structure and / or obstacles and / or chicane sections. The functional structure surface can form a slot section and / or be slotted. A groove structure can, for example, comprise a slanted running surface section, in particular a tread section slanted outwards and / or radially outwards. This can, for example, bring about pre-sorting and / or pre-separation of the bulk material, so that the conveying speed of the bulk material can be increased.This can be used, for example, for bulk materials with surface sections exposed to varying degrees of friction. Such bulk materials can have plastic or rubberized surface sections.

[0029] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the functional structure surface is designed, at least in sections, for the pre-sorting and / or pre-separation of bulk material. The functional structure surface can form a separating device by which the bulk materials transported from the bulk material receiving area are separated. The functional structure surface can form an alignment device that aligns the position of the bulk materials. The functional structure surface can form a return ramp via which sorted bulk materials can be transported back to the bulk material receiving area. The functional structure surface can form a transfer ramp via which bulk materials conveyed from the bulk material receiving area can be transferred to a functional element and / or to the bulk material transport system.

[0030] The invention further relates to a feed and storage system for a bulk material transport system, wherein the feed and storage system has a conveyor bowl according to the invention. Furthermore, the feed and storage system has a vibration drive for transporting a bulk material along the conveyor structure of the conveyor bowl, wherein the vibration drive is directly or indirectly coupled to the conveyor bowl. A bulk material transport system can also be designed with a feed and storage system according to the invention. Such a bulk material transport system can comprise a conveyor belt and / or a linear drive with a vibration drive. Such a linear drive can comprise a rail. Such a linear drive and / or such a rail can comprise a guide bead and / or a cover section. The linear drive can comprise at least one spring assembly.The vibration drive can be designed such that the conveyor bowl is excited to oscillatory movements and / or vibratory movements at its resonant frequency or at a frequency close to the resonant frequency. In the case of direct coupling, the vibration drive can rest with a vibrating body surface, for example, essentially gap-free on the bottom section of the conveyor bowl. In the case of indirect coupling, a gear, in particular a coupling gear, can be arranged between the vibration drive and the conveyor bowl. The vibration drive can have spring elements that contribute to the generation of vibratory movements and / or oscillatory movements. The vibration drive can comprise a carrier plate on which the conveyor bowl can be arranged. Furthermore, the vibration drive can have a base plate, wherein spring elements can be arranged between the base plate and the carrier plate.The carrier plate can have a support surface on which a base section of the conveyor bowl rests, in particular rests without a gap. The spring elements can, for example, be aligned at an angle to the surface normal vector of a support surface of the carrier plate for the conveyor bowl. The spring elements can, for example, be made of metallic material and / or steel and / or spring steel and / or carbon fibers. The carrier plate can be attracted in the direction of the base plate by a magnetic and / or electromagnetic force, wherein the spring elements are at least partially prestressed. A pulling magnet, for example, can be provided for this purpose. The pulling magnet can comprise a coil device which generates a magnetic field by means of a suitable electrical current. This can determine the magnetic field strength and / or the exposure time of the magnetic field.As soon as the magnetic and / or electromagnetic force is switched off and / or shielded, the spring elements act on the carrier plate in such a way that the carrier plate executes a combined rotational and / or translational movement. The spring elements therefore essentially lead to a vertical movement of the carrier plate, during which the carrier plate partially executes a rotational movement.

[0031] In an advantageous development of the inventive solution, the feed and storage system is designed as a vibrating spiral conveyor for the vertical conveyance of bulk material. Vertical conveyance of the bulk material can take place along the axial axis of the conveyor bowl. In this case, the distance of the bulk material or individual bulk materials from the bottom section can be increased within a predetermined time interval.

[0032] Furthermore, the invention relates to a method according to claim 11 for producing a conveyor pot according to the invention, in which the conveyor pot and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts are at least partially produced by a 3D printing method. Examples of 3D printing methods that can be used are selective laser sintering (SLS), multi-jet modeling (MJM), stereolithography (SLA), fused deposition modeling (FDM), fused filament fabrication (FFF), or continuous filament fabrication (CFF). In the SLS method as well as the MJM method, a base material of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body can be in its raw state in a powdered and / or granulated form. The powdered and / or granulated base material can be made of a metallic material and / or a plastic, in particular a thermoplastic.Polyamide 6, polyamide 11, polyamide 12, polyamide 2000, polylactide, and / or other plastics can be used as plastics. In particular, other plastics suitable for 3D printing can be used. In the SLA process, a base material of the conveyor bowl and / or the casing body can be in a liquid form in its raw state. It is also conceivable for the conveyor bowl and / or the casing body and / or its individual parts to be formed entirely or partially from light-curing plastics and / or resins. A further advantage of the process according to the invention is that less heat is generated and / or required during production using a 3D printing process, so that the required manufacturing energy and thus the manufacturing costs can be reduced. A further advantage is that the component quality and / or print quality of the conveyor bowl is improved because there is less thermal distortion of the conveyor bowl.

[0033] In the method according to the invention for producing a conveyor pot according to the invention, an imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body, in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the conveyor pot (1) and / or the casing body, is determined, and an imbalance-reducing cavity structure of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body is determined, which compensates for or at least reduces the imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body, in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the conveyor pot and / or the casing body. The imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body and the imbalance-reducing cavity structure can be determined by means of calculations, simulations, and / or measurements.

[0034] In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the conveyor bowl with the imbalance-reducing cavity structure and / or the casing body with the imbalance-reducing cavity structure and / or its individual parts with the imbalance-reducing cavity structure are at least partially produced by a 3D printing process. Examples of 3D printing processes that can be used are selective laser sintering (SLS), multi-jet modeling (MJM), stereolithography (SLA), fused deposition modeling (FDM), fused filament fabrication (FFF), or continuous filament fabrication (CFF). In the SLS process as well as the MJM process, a base material of the conveyor bowl and / or the casing body can be in a raw state in a powdered and / or granulated form. The powdered and / or granulated base material can be made of a metallic material and / or a plastic, in particular a thermoplastic.Examples of suitable plastics include polyamide 6, polyamide 11, polyamide 12, polyamide 2000, polylactide, and / or other plastics. In particular, other plastics suitable for 3D printing can be used. In the SLA process, a base material for the feed bowl and / or the casing body can be in a liquid form in its raw state. It is also conceivable for the feed bowl and / or the casing body and / or its individual components to be formed entirely or partially from light-curing plastics and / or resins.In a 3D printing process, an imbalance of the conveyor pot and / or the casing body, in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the conveyor pot and / or casing body, can also be compensated or at least reduced by the cavity structure if the cavities are completely and / or partially filled with granulated and / or powdered casing body material and / or intermediate material.

[0035] In a 3D printing process, the heated or molten shell body material and / or intermediate material has a different density than the granulated and / or powdered shell body material and / or intermediate material. Thus, the conveying capacity of the feed bowl and / or shell body can be improved and / or an imbalance of the feed bowl and / or shell body can be reduced, even though the cavities are completely filled with granulated and / or powdered shell body material and / or intermediate material.

[0036] Further important features and advantages of the invention emerge from the dependent claims, the drawings, and the associated description of the figures with reference to the drawings. Preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and explained in more detail in the following description, wherein like reference numerals refer to like, similar, or functionally identical components.

[0037] They show, schematically Fig. 1 a perspective view of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 2 a side view of a feed and storage system according to the invention, Fig. 3 a perspective view of a conveyor pot according to the invention with several individual parts, Fig. 4 a sectional view of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 5 a view from below of the conveyor pot according to the invention of the Fig. 1 , Fig. 6 a partial section of a cavity structure according to the invention, Fig. 7 a sectional view of a further embodiment of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 8 a sectional view of a further embodiment of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 9 a sectional view of a further embodiment of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 10 a sectional view of a further embodiment of a conveyor pot according to the invention, Fig. 11 a further perspective view of a conveyor pot according to the invention with several individual parts.

[0038] In the Fig. 1 1 shows a perspective top view of a conveyor bowl 1 according to the invention. The conveyor bowl 1 comprises a casing body 3 having an inner surface 4 and an outer surface 5. The inner surface 4 can be designed to transport a bulk material. The inner surface 4 can be smooth and / or smooth and / or friction-reducing. For example, the inner surface 4 has a conveyor structure 6 for transporting a bulk material, which is designed, for example, as a helical and / or helical and / or spiral circumferential ramp section. The inner surface 4 and / or the conveyor structure 6 can, at least in sections, form a functional structure surface (not shown) for pre-sorting and / or pre-separating bulk material.

[0039] The conveyor pot 1 has a substantially disc-shaped base section 19, which is arranged at a first end of the casing body 3, so that at least a partial section of the casing body 3 and a partial section of the base section 19 form a bulk material receiving area 13. The conveyor structure 6 can be designed such that it opens at least partially into this bulk material receiving area 13. The casing body 3 has a truncated cone-shaped basic structure, with the casing body 3 widening from the base section 19 along an axial axis 12. At a second end of the casing body 3, which is spaced apart from the first end of the casing body 3 or from the base section 19 along the axial axis 12, fitting sections 14, 14a and 14b for functional elements (not shown) are formed. The loading sections 14, 14a and 14b can be arranged spaced apart from one another along a circumferential direction 17 of the conveyor pot 1.The casing body 3 forms at least one cavity structure 7, at least in sections, between the inner surface 4 and the outer surface 5. The cavity structure 7 has a plurality of cavities 8, wherein adjacent cavities 8 are separated from one another at least in sections by at least one intermediate wall 9 of the casing body 3. Furthermore, the casing body 3 has a plurality of separate cavity openings 10 on its outer surface, into which the respective cavities 8 open. The cavities 8 and / or the cavity openings 10 are arranged at least partially spaced from one another in the circumferential direction 17 of the conveyor pot 1.

[0040] In the Fig. 2 A feed and storage system 2 according to the invention for a bulk material transport system (not shown) is shown in a side view. The feed and storage system 2 comprises the conveyor bowl 1 of the Fig. 1 and a vibration drive 16. The vibration drive 16 is designed to transport a bulk material along the conveyor structure 6 and is directly coupled to the bottom section 19 of the conveyor bowl 1. In the Fig. 2 It can be clearly seen that the cavity openings 10 form a hexagonal boundary contour. Furthermore, the cavities 8 and / or the cavity openings 10 are arranged at a distance from one another, at least partially, in a radial direction 18 of the conveyor bowl 1, which is oriented substantially transversely to the axial direction 12. A vibratory movement and / or an oscillating movement of the conveyor bowl 1 can be enforced via the vibration drive 16 coupled to the conveyor bowl 1, so that a bulk material present in the conveyor bowl 1 or in the bulk material receiving area 13 can be transported via the structure 6 to a bulk material transport system (not shown). Fig. 3 A perspective view of a conveyor pot 1 according to the invention with several separately manufactured individual parts 15, 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d is shown. Each of these individual parts integrally forms a subsection of the casing body 3, the base section 19, and the conveyor structure 6. The individual parts 15, 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d can, for example, be connected to one another detachably or non-detachably. The individual parts 15, 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d can, for example, be connected to one another in a materially bonded and / or force-fitting and / or form-fitting manner. The individual parts 15, 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d can, for example, be connected to one another via pin sections and complementarily designed pin receptacles. Each of the individual parts 15, 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d has a casing body 3 which forms at least one hollow structure 7 at least in sections between the inner surface 4 and the outer surface 5.

[0041] In the Fig. 4 1 shows a longitudinal section of a conveyor pot 1 according to the invention along its axial axis 12. In this illustration, it can be seen particularly well that the cavity structure 7 comprises a plurality of cavities 8, wherein adjacent cavities 8 are separated from one another at least in sections by an intermediate wall 9. The cavities 8 and / or the cavity openings 10 are arranged at least partially spaced from one another along the radial direction 18 and / or along a circumferential direction 17. The cavities 8 of the cavity structure 7 each have a cavity longitudinal extent 11, which are each formed substantially parallel to the axial axis 12 of the conveyor pot 1. The cavities 8 of the cavity structure 7 are cylindrical with respect to their cavity longitudinal extent 11. In this case, the cavities 8 form, at least in sections, a hexagonal cross-sectional area transverse to their cavity longitudinal extent 11, which, for example, in the Fig. 5 is evident. In the Fig. 5 is a view from below of the conveyor pot 1 according to the invention of the Fig. 1 This illustration also shows that the cavities 8 and / or the cavity openings 10 are arranged at least partially spaced apart from one another along the radial direction 18 and / or along a circumferential direction 17. Furthermore, the disc-shaped or circular configuration of the base section 19 is visible. Fig. 6 a partial section of a hollow structure 7 according to the invention is shown. Such a partial section can, for example, result from a cross section through the casing body 3 transverse to the axial axis 12, wherein in the Fig. 6 adjacent cavities 8 can be seen, which are separated from each other at least in sections by at least one intermediate wall 9 and / or several intermediate walls 9. The cavities 8 have a hexagonal cross-sectional area transverse to their respective cavity longitudinal extent 11, wherein the respective cavity longitudinal extent 11 in the Fig. 6 is essentially parallel to the surface normal vector of the drawing plane. Such a hexagonal cross-sectional area can form a regular hexagon. It can be provided that a hexagon width 20 or a hexagon inner diameter 20 of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity 8 is greater than a wall thickness 21 of the intermediate wall 9 of the casing body 3. It can also be provided that a hexagon width 20 or a hexagon inner diameter 20 of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity 8 is smaller than a wall thickness 21 of the intermediate wall 9 of the casing body 3. It can also be provided that a hexagon width 20 or a hexagon inner diameter 20 of the cross-sectional area of ​​the cavity 8 essentially corresponds to the wall thickness 21 of the intermediate wall 9 of the casing body 3.The hexagon width 20 can, for example, have a width of 1 mm to 200 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 100 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 60 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 50 mm, in particular from 1 mm to 30 mm, in particular from 5 mm to 30 mm, in particular from 10 mm to 30 mm. The hexagon width 20 can, for example, have a width of 9 mm to 21 mm, in particular from 10 mm to 20 mm, in particular from 15 mm. The wall thickness 21 of the intermediate wall 9 between two cavities can, for example, be 1 mm to 10 mm, in particular 2.5 mm to 7.5 mm, in particular 5 mm. The cavities 8, together with the at least one intermediate wall 9 and / or with a plurality of intermediate walls 9, form a cellular structure, in particular a honeycomb structure. In the . Fig. 7 At least one cavity 8 of the cavity structure 7 has a cavity longitudinal extension 11 which is formed substantially transversely to the axial axis 12 of the conveyor pot 1. In the Fig. 8 At least one cavity 8 of the cavity structure 7 is conical. The cavity 8 widens, for example, in the direction of the outer surface 5. In the Fig. 9 At least one cavity 8 of the cavity structure 7 has a cavity longitudinal extension 11 which is formed substantially transversely to the axial axis 12 of the conveyor pot 1. A cavity 8a, however, has a cavity longitudinal extension (not shown) which is formed substantially parallel to the axial axis 12 of the conveyor pot 1, wherein the cavity 8a does not open into the outer surface 5. In the Fig. 10 At least one cavity 8 of the cavity structure 7 has a cavity longitudinal extension 11 which is aligned at an angle, in particular at 45°, to the axial axis 12 of the conveyor pot 1. In the Fig. 11The feed bowl 1 and / or its casing body is divided into disc-shaped or ring-shaped individual parts 15e, 15f, and 15g. This division of the individual parts 15e, 15f, and 15g allows for low individual parts and / or low individual part heights, so that the print height can be kept low in 3D printing processes. *****

Claims

1. Bowl feeder (1) for a feed and storage system (2) - with a casing body (3), which has an inner surface (4) and an outer surface (5), - wherein the casing body (3) forms at least one cavity structure (7), at least in sections, between the inner surface (4) and the outer surface (5), - wherein the inner surface (4) has a feed structure (6) for transporting a bulk material, characterized in that - the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3) and / or their individual parts (15) are produced at least partially using a 3D printing process, and - an imbalance of the bowl feeder (1), in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3), is compensated or at least reduced by the cavity structure (7).

2. Bowl feeder (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the cavity structure (7) forms a plurality of cavities (8), wherein adjacent cavities (8) are separated from one another, at least in sections, by at least one partition (9) of the casing body (3), - the spatial volume filled by all partitions (9) of the cavity structure (7) defines an intermediate material volume, - the hollow volume delimited by all cavities (8) of the cavity structure (7) defines a total hollow volume, - the total hollow volume is smaller or larger or equal to the intermediate material volume.

3. Bowl feeder (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the cavity structure (7) has a plurality of sections, - wherein a section forms a plurality of cavities (8), wherein adjacent cavities (8) of the section are separated from one another, at least in sections, by at least one partition (9) of the casing body (3), - the spatial volume filled by all partitions (9) of a section of the cavity structure (7) defines a section material volume, - the hollow volume delimited by all cavities (8) of a section of the cavity structure (7) defines a section hollow volume, - the ratio of the section hollow volume to the section material volume is the same and / or different for different sections of the cavity structure (7).

4. Bowl feeder (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that - the cavity structure (7) has a plurality of sections along an axial axis (12) and / or along a radial direction (18) and / or along a circumferential direction (17) of the bowl feeder (1), - wherein the ratio of the section hollow volume to the section material volume of the sections varies, at least in sections, along an axial axis (12) and / or along a radial direction (18) and / or along a circumferential direction (17) of the bowl feeder (1), in particular in a linear, non-linear and / or step-wise manner.

5. Bowl feeder (1) according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that - at least one cavity (8) of the cavity structure (7) opens into a cavity opening (10) on the outer surface (5), or - a group of cavities (8) of the cavity structure (7) opens into a common cavity opening (10) on the outer surface (5), or - all cavities (8) of the cavity structure (7) each open into a separate cavity opening (10) on the outer surface (5).

6. Bowl feeder (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3) and / or their individual parts (15) are produced at least partially from solid material by machining, and / or - the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3) and / or their individual parts (15) are produced at least partially by plastic injection molding.

7. Bowl feeder (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6 for a feed and storage system (2), characterized in that - the inner surface (4) and / or the feed structure (6) of the bowl feeder (1) forms a functional structure surface, at least in sections.

8. Bowl feeder (1) according to claim 7, characterized in that the functional structure surface is formed, at least in sections, for pre-sorting and / or pre-separating bulk material.

9. Feed and storage system (2) for a bulk material transport system - with a bowl feeder (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, - with a vibration drive (16) for transporting a bulk material along the feed structure (6), - wherein the vibration drive (16) is directly or indirectly coupled to the bowl feeder (1).

10. Feed and storage system (2) according to claim 9, characterized in that the feed and storage system (2) is formed as a vibrating spiral conveyor for vertically conveying a bulk material.

11. Method for producing a bowl feeder according to any one of claims 1 to 8, - in which the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3) and / or their individual parts (15) are produced, at least partially, using a 3D printing process, - in which an imbalance of the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3), in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the bowl feeder (1) and / or casing body (3), is determined, - in which an imbalance-reducing cavity structure (7) of the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3) is determined, which compensates or at least reduces the imbalance of the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3), in particular an imbalance caused by at least one functional element attached to the bowl feeder (1) and / or the casing body (3).