Conveyor System Distributor Tracks for Food Product Stacking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing conveyor systems for food products like sausage and cheese slices lack flexibility in formatting and stacking, as they are not capable of efficiently adjusting to different product formats and configurations.
Innovation Solution
A conveyor system with a distributor conveyor that allows individual swiveling of conveyor tracks to direct food products to either an upper or lower product conveyor, combined with a shuttle conveyor for lateral alignment, enabling flexible formatting and stacking options, including partial and complete overlap configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional distributor conveyor with fixed conveyor tracks is used, then the system structure is simple, but the flexibility in formatting and stacking food products is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The distributor conveyor tracks are made dynamically adjustable through individual swiveling capability. Each track can be independently tilted to direct products to either the upper or lower product conveyor, transforming a static system into a dynamic one that adapts to different formatting requirements while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure
Solution Approach 2:
The distributor conveyor is segmented into multiple independently controllable tracks. Each track can be swiveled independently to direct products to different destinations (upper or lower conveyor), allowing flexible formatting configurations without requiring complete system reconfiguration
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple product conveyors are arranged one above the other to increase stacking capacity, then the stacking flexibility improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The upper and lower product conveyors serve multiple functions: they can independently convey products, receive products from different swiveled tracks of the distributor conveyor, and work in combination to create various stacking configurations. This multi-functionality maximizes the utility of each conveyor unit while achieving high stacking capacity
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically assigns products to different conveyors based on real-time formatting requirements. The distributor conveyor's swiveling tracks dynamically direct products to either the upper or lower conveyor, allowing the system to adapt stacking capacity to production needs without permanently fixing the configuration
3Adaptability or versatility
If individual track swiveling is implemented in the distributor conveyor, then the formatting flexibility increases, but the control complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates automated control where the distributor conveyor tracks are automatically swiveled to the correct position based on pre-programmed formatting requirements. The control system manages the individual track swiveling without requiring manual intervention, reducing operational complexity while maintaining high formatting flexibility
Data Source
AI summary
The invention concerns a conveyor system for formatting slice-shaped food products in product stacks. The conveyor system includes an inlet, a lower product conveyor, an upper product conveyor, a vertically swiveling distributor conveyor for distributing the incoming food products selectively to the lower product conveyor or to the upper product conveyor, an output conveyor receiving the food products partially stacked from the lower product conveyor and the upper product conveyor, and an outlet for outputting the stacked food products in product rows. The individual conveying tracks of the distributor conveyor can be swivelled vertically independently of one another in order to forward the incoming food products individually for each conveying track selectively to the lower product conveyor onto the upper product conveyor.