Conveyor Pusher Sorting Mechanism for Gentle Article Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing devices for sorting piece goods on conveyor belts are either too slow, potentially damaging to sensitive goods, or require robust and expensive construction due to sudden movement impulses, and they fail to efficiently separate goods while minimizing energy consumption.
Innovation Solution
A method and device that use a position determination system to accurately position a sliding element relative to the piece goods, allowing it to push them gently and efficiently off the conveyor by accelerating from a feed position close to the goods, reducing the distance and speed of the sliding element's movement, and using a control device to manage the sliding element's movement for precise sorting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a deflection element is moved over the conveying element in front of the piece goods to be sorted out, then the piece goods are deflected from their conveying direction, but the sorting process becomes comparatively slow and requires sufficient distance between piece goods
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of moving the deflection element over the conveying element as in prior art, the invention inverts the approach by having the sliding element move from the side transversely to the conveying direction, actively pushing the piece goods laterally off the conveying surface. This inversion of the sorting mechanism enables faster operation without requiring sufficient distance between piece goods.
2Productivity
If the sliding element is accelerated from a standstill via the conveying element to push piece goods quickly, then the sorting process becomes faster, but the sudden movement impulse can damage sensitive piece goods and strain the device
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies preliminary action by positioning the sliding element in a feed position directly at the side of the piece goods before the actual pushing operation. This eliminates the need for acceleration from a standstill over a long distance, allowing the sliding element to be accelerated only over a short distance and then pushed into the piece goods at a controlled, lower speed, thereby avoiding damage to sensitive goods while still achieving quick sorting.
3Ease of manufacture
If the sliding element is moved from a standstill over a long distance to push piece goods, then the device construction can be simpler, but the energy consumption increases and the sorting process becomes slower
Solution Approach 1:
By positioning the sliding element in a feed position directly at the side of the piece goods before pushing, the invention reduces the acceleration distance to a minimum. This preliminary positioning allows the sliding element to be accelerated only over a short distance and then pushed into the goods, significantly reducing energy consumption compared to accelerating from a standstill over a long distance, while also maintaining simple device construction.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3a
Figure 3b
AI summary
The invention relates to methods for specifically gripping and separating out individual articles (5) which are conveyed one after the other in a conveying direction (F) on a sheet-like conveying mechanism (2). A position-determining device picks up a piece of information relating to the position of the article (5) which is to be separated out. The article (5') which is to be separated out is displaced transversely to the conveying direction (F) by means of a pusher (4), the pusher (4) being moved into the conveying region of the articles (5) in a direction transverse to the conveying direction (F). The pusher (4) is then moved, prior to the article (5) being pushed, into an advancement position (Vp), in which it is located in the conveying region, above the conveying mechanism (2). The article (5) is then pushed over the conveying mechanism (2) by the pusher (4) by virtue of the pusher (4) being accelerated from the advancement position (Vp) in a pushing direction (S). The advancement position (Vp) is defined by a control device (14) in dependence on the information relating to the position, on the conveying mechanism (2), of the article (5) which is to be separated out.