Buffering Containers with Shuttles and Row Pushers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing container buffering methods in container treatment plants face inefficiencies during storage and withdrawal, particularly at the transition from container inlet/outlet to the buffer surface, leading to slow relative motions and restricted feed rate changes, which can cause container tipping and damage.
Innovation Solution
The method involves using shuttles with row pushers guided on rails to move containers transversely on a buffer surface, coordinating feed motions with inlet and outlet conveyor belts, and employing deceleration/acceleration belts to manage container flow without gaps, ensuring smooth and controlled transfer into and out of row pushers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If containers are guided only by row pushers in a trailing manner, then the structure is simple, but the feed rate changes are highly restricted and containers may tip over
Solution Approach 1:
The guidance system is segmented into leading guides and trailing guides, with leading guides being movable and adjustable. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each guide's function, enabling flexible feed rate changes while maintaining container stability through coordinated action of both guide types.
Solution Approach 2:
The leading guides are designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing dynamic adjustment of the guidance path. This dynamic capability enables the system to adapt to varying feed rates and container positions, preventing tipping over while maintaining structural integrity through controlled movement of the guidance elements.
2Ease of operation
If row pushers move slowly in the inlet region to facilitate container transfer, then container transfer is easier, but the overall processing speed is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Containers are guided into position by leading guides before the row pushers reach them, pre-positioning the containers for smooth transfer. This preliminary guidance action reduces the need for slow relative motions during the actual transfer, allowing faster processing speeds while maintaining ease of container transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
The leading guides act as intermediaries between the container flow and the row pushers, facilitating smooth transition. By providing intermediate guidance and positioning, the system enables faster row pusher movement without compromising container transfer ease, as the intermediaries absorb the speed differential.
3Adaptability or versatility
If containers are decelerated or accelerated transverse to the buffer direction, then feed rate flexibility is improved, but additional manipulation is required
Solution Approach 1:
The deceleration and acceleration functions are merged into the existing leading and trailing guide structures. By combining these functions with the guidance system, the patent achieves feed rate adjustment capability without adding separate manipulation systems, thus maintaining structural simplicity while improving adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The leading and trailing guides are designed to perform multiple functions: guidance, deceleration, and acceleration. This multi-functionality allows the system to adjust feed rates flexibly while using the same structural elements for multiple purposes, avoiding the need for additional dedicated manipulation devices.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and a device for buffering containers in a container treatment plant are disclosed. The containers are stored in single rows by at least one inlet conveyor belt in an inlet direction, are shifted in single rows on a buffer surface transversely adjacent by shuttles with row pushers guided on rails and driven individually into a buffer direction extending transversely to the inlet direction in single rows, and are withdrawn by at least one outlet conveyor belt adjacent to the buffer surface in the buffer direction in an outlet direction extending transversely to the buffer direction, or by at least one planar motor armature that can be driven towards the buffer surface and that is in particular driven two-dimensionally. Thus, the containers can be decelerated/accelerated with respect to the inlet/outlet conveyor belt in a controlled manner.