Height-Adjustable Conveyor Belts for Container Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional transport devices face challenges in controlling the speed of individual objects and managing container flow efficiently, leading to increased space requirements and risks of objects tipping over during transport.
Innovation Solution
The use of a transport device with alternately arranged height-adjustable and non-height-adjustable conveyor belts, equipped with lifting devices and control elements, allows for precise adjustment of conveyor belt heights and speeds, enabling controlled acceleration and braking of objects to maintain stability and optimize flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional transport devices with fixed conveyor belts are used, then the structure is simple and reliable, but the ability to control the speed of individual objects and manage container flow is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyor belts are made height-adjustable through lifting devices, allowing the transport surface to dynamically change its position. This enables the system to adapt to different container types and flow conditions, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and fixed structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The transport device is divided into multiple parallel conveyor belts that can be independently controlled. Each belt can be adjusted individually in height and speed, allowing selective control of object flow on different belts while maintaining overall system simplicity.
2Productivity
If catch-up routes with parallel conveyor belts are used to close gaps between objects, then the container flow control is improved, but the space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using parallel catch-up routes that require additional horizontal space, the invention uses the vertical dimension by adjusting the height of conveyor belts. Objects are transferred between belts at different heights, enabling gap closure without increasing the horizontal footprint of the system.
Solution Approach 2:
The acceleration and gap-closing functions are merged into the main transport path by using height-adjustable belts within the existing parallel structure. This eliminates the need for separate catch-up routes while maintaining the productivity benefits of flow control.
3Productivity
If objects are moved sideways to catch-up routes, then the gap closing is achieved, but the risk of objects tipping over increases
Solution Approach 1:
Object transfer is performed in the vertical dimension through height adjustment of conveyor belts rather than lateral movement. Objects are accelerated or decelerated by being moved between belts at different heights, eliminating the tipping risk associated with sideways transfers while maintaining gap-closing capability.
4Ease of manufacture
If link chains slide over frame structure surfaces, then the construction is simple, but friction losses increase
Solution Approach 1:
The sliding friction mechanism is replaced with rolling contact through the introduction of rollers. The link chains are equipped with rollers that roll over the frame structure surfaces, dramatically reducing friction losses while maintaining the simple construction approach of the original sliding system.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device for transporting objects, such as containers, bottles, multipacks and packaged items, comprising a first transporting device (12) having a first conveying speed, at least a second transporting device (14) which is arranged in parallel to the first transporting device (12) and has a second conveying speed, wherein the first and the at least one second transporting device form with each other a substantially closed transport surface and have the same conveying direction, and at least one lifting device (26), by which at least one of the transporting devices (12, 14) is height-adjustable so that at least a portion of a transport surface of the at least one transporting device (12, 14) can be raised and lowered above and/or below a transport surface of the other transporting device (14, 12). The invention also relates to a corresponding method for transporting objects, such as containers, multipacks and packaged items.