Conveyor Moveable Drop Point Sausage Loop Spacing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conveyor systems for transporting sausage loops to smoke sticks face inefficiencies due to the need for manual or time-consuming adjustments in loop spacing and the slow process of removing and replacing smoke sticks, which hampers sausage production and oven utilization.
Innovation Solution
A conveyor system with a moveable drop point and adjustable spacing, featuring a carriage with a sprocket/pulley system that allows for automatic transfer of sausage loops to smoke sticks, enabling precise spacing and rapid replacement of smoke sticks without interrupting sausage delivery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conveyors with different hook spacings are used for different sizes of sausage, then the spacing between loops can be adjusted, but the device complexity increases and changing hook spacings is difficult and time consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyor system employs a moveable carriage that can be repositioned along the conveyor chain to change the drop point location. This dynamic adjustment mechanism allows the same conveyor to accommodate different sausage sizes by simply moving the carriage position, eliminating the need for multiple conveyors with different fixed hook spacings and reducing device complexity while maintaining adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of drop point position along the conveyor chain to adjust loop spacing. By varying the carriage position parameter, the system can accommodate different sausage diameters without changing the physical structure of the conveyor, thus adapting to different product sizes while keeping the device simple.
2Reliability
If time is taken to remove and replace smoke sticks, then the conveyor can be cleaned and maintained, but the sausage production slows down and oven space is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyor system is designed to continue transporting sausage loops continuously without interruption. The moveable carriage and drop point mechanism allow for seamless operation where the conveyor never stops, eliminating downtime for smoke stick replacement and maintaining continuous production flow while still enabling cleaning and maintenance activities.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares for smoke stick replacement by having the carriage positioned and the drop point configured in advance. This preliminary arrangement allows for rapid exchange of smoke sticks with minimal disruption to the continuous conveyor operation, reducing the impact of maintenance activities on productivity.
3Manufacturing precision
If loops are placed far apart on smoke sticks, then sausages do not touch and uniform cooking is achieved, but the number of loops per smoke stick decreases and oven space is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The moveable carriage system dynamically adjusts the drop point position to optimize loop spacing based on sausage size and cooking requirements. This dynamic positioning allows the system to achieve the perfect balance between loop spacing for uniform cooking and density for maximizing oven space utilization, adapting to different cooking conditions without fixed constraints.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of drop point position along the conveyor to control loop spacing. By adjusting this parameter, the system can achieve optimal spacing for uniform cooking while maximizing the number of loops per smoke stick, balancing quality and productivity requirements.
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
A conveyor system(10) for transporting a strand of sausage (36) having a carriage (24) slidably mounted to an operating platform (12) where the carriage has an end turn sprocket (30) where the strand is dropped onto a smoke stick (34) and the carriage moves to drop the strand along the length of the smoke stick.