Ball Mill Vessel Position Detection System

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Solution Overview

Problem

Centrifugal and planetary ball mills face issues with uncontrolled imbalances due to incorrect positioning of grinding vessels, which can lead to damage and safety risks during operation, especially at higher speeds where visual inspection is inadequate.

Innovation Solution

A ball mill design with a detection device and control system that ensures the grinding vessel is correctly inserted and secured before operation, using a non-contact switch and indicator pins to verify the vessel's position, preventing uncontrolled imbalances and ensuring safe operation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the ball mill operates at higher speeds to improve productivity, then grinding efficiency increases, but the risk of uncontrolled imbalances and safety hazards increases due to incorrect positioning of grinding vessels

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvegrinding efficiencyVSAvoidsafety
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The detection device checks the position of grinding vessels before the ball mill starts operation. The trigger is positioned in a release state only when the grinding vessel is correctly inserted, preventing operation at high speeds unless the vessel is properly positioned, thus eliminating the safety risk associated with high-speed operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The detection device provides feedback about the positioning state of grinding vessels to the control system. This feedback mechanism ensures that the ball mill only operates when vessels are correctly positioned, creating a closed-loop safety system that prevents uncontrolled imbalances during high-speed operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Device complexity

If visual inspection is used to verify grinding vessel positioning, then the device complexity is low, but the measurement precision is insufficient at higher speeds where visual inspection is inadequate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinspection systemVSAvoidposition verification accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The manual visual inspection method is replaced with an automated detection device that uses mechanical triggers and sensors to verify the position of grinding vessels. This substitution provides precise, objective measurement of vessel positioning without requiring human visual assessment, ensuring accurate detection even during high-speed operation preparation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Data Source

PatentEP1933984B1Ball mill with means for detecting the operational state
Publication Date: 2009.12.16 A FRITSCH GMBH & CO KG
  • EP1933984B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP1933984B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP1933984B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The aim of the invention is to prevent the uncontrolled development of imbalances during the operation of a centrifugal force ball mill or planetary ball mill and to allow them to be operated in the mill only when the milling vessels are correctly installed in the respective receiving device. According to the invention, the ball mills, in particular planetary or centrifugal ball mills, having a size adapted to a laboratory, comprise a detection device which is used to identify the operational state. Said detection device comprises a release button (310) which adopts a release state when the milling vessel (5) is completely installed in the receiving device (2), and a control device (320) which is used to detect the release state of the release button (310).