Flexible Cable Conveyor for Produce Inspection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fruit and vegetable conveyor systems are limited by rigid chains that restrict design flexibility and are inadequate for customized product handling.
Innovation Solution
A conveyor machine with a non-rigid traction element, featuring a traction cable, crown wheels with slots, rotating elements, and a mechanized rail with a friction belt, allowing for adaptable configuration and independent control of conveying and rotating speeds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a rigid chain is used to drive the conveyor, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the design flexibility and adaptability to different product sizes and shapes is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the rigid chain with a flexible cable that can be arranged in various configurations (straight, curved, inclined) to adapt to different product sizes and conveyor layouts. The cable's flexibility allows it to conform to different geometries while maintaining tensile strength for driving the rotating elements, thus resolving the contradiction between ease of manufacture and adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a rigid, fixed-geometry chain to a dynamic, adjustable cable system. The cable can be repositioned and reconfigured along the crown wheels to create different conveying paths, enabling the same basic structure to handle various product dimensions and shapes without requiring complete redesign.
2Reliability
If a rigid chain is used to drive the conveyor, then the structure is stable and reliable, but the ability to create customized conveying paths and configurations is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible cable maintains reliability through proper tensioning and support from the crown wheels while providing the adaptability needed for customized paths. The cable's flexibility is complemented by the stable, toothed engagement with crown wheels, ensuring reliable power transmission along variable geometries.
Solution Approach 2:
The crown wheels act as intermediaries between the flexible cable and the rotating elements. They provide stable, reliable engagement points that translate the cable's linear motion into rotational motion of the conveying elements, while allowing the cable itself to follow customized paths.
3Productivity
If the conveyor system continues along the entire machine after inspection, then the product can be transported to the outlet, but the system becomes more complex and heavier with higher cost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the conveying function with the rotating element function in a single integrated system. The same cable-driven mechanism that rotates the elements for inspection also transports them along the conveying path, eliminating the need for separate conveying sections and reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable-driven rotating elements serve multiple functions simultaneously: they rotate the product for inspection, convey the product along the designated path, and can be positioned at different heights and angles. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional dedicated components, simplifying the overall system.
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
The machine provides a versatile and efficient solution for conveying and inspecting fruits and vegetables, with minimal product transfer height and the ability to handle a wide range of product sizes and shapes.
Implementation Method 1
the rotating elements rest on the friction belt to generate the rotation on themselves
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention discloses a fruit and vegetable conveyor machine having a traction cable whereon a number of rotating elements are suspended which travel along mechanised rails to determine their path. The advance of the fruits and vegetables is generated by the translation and a continuous rotation of the rotating elements that form at least one circuit associated with the traction cable, which moves defining a conveying speed of the rotating elements. The configuration of the machine enables the differentiation of an alignment area which includes corresponding opposite-facing belts, forming a V, and in movement, and an area for the inspection of the fruit or vegetable conveyed, where the rotating elements are illuminated with a colour that may be selected so as to enable the differentiation of the background image from the product.