Electric Overhead Conveyor Counter-Pressure Roller Grip
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electric monorail systems face issues with maintaining 'grip' between the driven support roller and the rail, particularly on inclined sections and when towing a load, leading to uneven driving dynamics and potential tilting, due to reduced normal force and increased lifting forces during deceleration.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a rocker-like arrangement with two counter-pressure rollers and a clamping device that adjusts contact pressure, ensuring the rail is clamped between the support roller and a counter-pressure roller, preventing tilting and maintaining grip under various conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If the electric monorail car drags a trolley on the ground via a towing device, then the support roller's normal force on the rail is significantly reduced, but the frictional force between the support roller and the rail becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces counter-pressure rollers that apply a downward force on the rail to compensate for the reduced normal force caused by towing. This counter-weight mechanism ensures sufficient frictional force (grip) between the support roller and rail even when the monorail car拖s a trolley, resolving the contradiction between reduced weight and maintained reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The counter-pressure rollers act as an intermediary element between the monorail car and the rail. By pressing against the rail with a controlled force, they mediate the force transmission to ensure adequate grip without requiring the support roller itself to bear the full load, thus solving the grip insufficiency problem.
2Stress or pressure
If the rail system has sections with significant incline or decline, then the component of weight perpendicular to the rail decreases, but the force to be transmitted from the support roller to the rail increases
Solution Approach 1:
On inclined sections, the counter-pressure rollers provide an additional downward force to compensate for the reduced normal force component. This ensures that sufficient frictional force is available to transmit the increased force requirements for climbing or descending, resolving the contradiction between decreased normal force and increased force transmission needs.
3Reliability
If counter-pressure rollers are permanently spring-loaded to improve grip, then the contact pressure increases, but wear due to permanently increased friction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs adjustable spring loading mechanisms that allow the contact pressure of counter-pressure rollers to be dynamically optimized. The spring force can be calibrated to provide just enough pressure to ensure adequate grip under various operating conditions, avoiding excessive and permanent friction that would cause accelerated wear, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and material loss.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution ensures uniform driving dynamics by maintaining sufficient contact pressure and preventing slipping, even on inclines and during deceleration, reducing wear on sliding contacts and rails while preventing tilting and ensuring controlled braking.
Implementation Method 1
the frictional forces between the support roller and the rail are sufficiently large to ensure essentially slip-free rolling
Implementation Method 2
the normal force is determined by the weight of the hanger and, if applicable, the load attached to the hanger
Data Source
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AI summary
The electric suspended conveyor (10) has a rail system (12) running above a ground level. An electric suspended conveyor carriage (14) travels on the rail system. The electric suspended conveyor carriage has a chassis (22), and is driven by a motor (26). A carrier roller (24) is provided, which rolls on an upper side of the rail system. The chassis has two counter-pressure rollers (36a,36b), from which one of the counter-pressure rollers rolls in advance in travel direction of the chassis of the carrier roller and one of the carrier rollers rolls lagging on a lower side of the rail system.