Modular Sorting Conveyor Assembly With Bidirectional Package Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing warehouse and shipping systems lack a simple, modular sorting system that can adapt to various conveyance systems to efficiently sort intermingled packages into multiple destination streams without requiring complex and expensive configurations.
Innovation Solution
A conveyor module system with an infinite belt and presence sensors, capable of bidirectional movement, is used to sort packages into multiple destinations by aligning modules longitudinally or orthogonally, with a controller directing packages based on scanned destination indicia.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If complex systems including robotics and multidirectional conveyors are used to sort packages, then sorting capability is improved, but system complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The sorting system is divided into multiple independent conveyor modules, each capable of autonomous bidirectional movement. Each module can be controlled individually to sort packages to different destinations, replacing complex centralized robotic systems with simpler modular units that work together through standardized interfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
Each conveyor module is designed with universal functionality to perform multiple sorting operations. The bidirectional capability allows each module to sort packages in both directions, and modules can be arranged in various configurations (longitudinally, orthogonally, or in grids) to create sorting systems of different scales and capacities from the same basic unit.
2Adaptability or versatility
If custom configurations are implemented for each sorting system, then specific sorting requirements are met, but implementation cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses standardized modular conveyor units that can be mass-produced and then configured in different arrangements to meet specific sorting requirements. This segmentation allows economies of scale in manufacturing while providing customization through modular assembly rather than custom engineering for each installation.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveyor modules feature adjustable and reconfigurable characteristics, including bidirectional movement capability and flexible positioning, allowing the same standardized hardware to be dynamically adapted to different sorting configurations and requirements without requiring custom-designed systems for each application.
3Device complexity
If unidirectional conveyors are used, then system simplicity is maintained, but sorting flexibility to multiple destinations is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The conveyor modules incorporate bidirectional movement capability, allowing each unit to dynamically change direction based on sorting requirements. This dynamic reversibility provides sorting flexibility to multiple destinations while maintaining the simplicity of a conveyor-based system, as the same basic module structure handles both directions of travel.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameter of conveyor direction from fixed unidirectional to variable bidirectional. By controlling the direction of belt movement in each module, the system achieves enhanced sorting flexibility without fundamentally changing the conveyor mechanism, maintaining simplicity while expanding capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A conveyor module, a plurality of which is configured to transport and sort an input stream of packages into a plurality of output streams. The conveyor module includes an infinite belt and a pair of presence sensors that detect the presence of a package on the belt. The conveyor module can be combined with a plurality of like modules in a parallel or orthogonal alignment and controlled independently to bi-directionally move packages longitudinally or transversely toward a desired output stream and to sort an input stream of packages among a plurality of output streams. Any number of conveyor modules may be combined to provide a desired number of output streams and to accommodate desired dimensions of a package transport and sorting system.