Retractable Roller Cleaner for Moving Conveyor Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conveyor rollers in production plants, especially those used in wallboard and construction panel production, face challenges in removing residue while in operation, as conventional cleaning methods are inefficient when the conveyor is moving, leading to production disruptions and uneven board quality.
Innovation Solution
A roller cleaner with multiple rotating cleaning wheels and a retractable, extendable design that can engage and remove residue from rotating rollers, featuring a powered cylinder for increased pressure and a telescoping handle with a swivel joint for easy maneuverability, allowing for effective cleaning while the conveyor is in motion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If hand scrapers are used to clean moving rollers, then cleaning can be performed during operation, but the cleaning effectiveness is insufficient due to high speed interference
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual hand scrapers with a mechanically actuated cleaning system featuring reciprocating cleaning wheels driven by a powered cylinder. This mechanical system provides controlled pressure and motion independent of roller speed, enabling effective cleaning during continuous operation without relying on operator skill or manual force.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning device incorporates dynamic elements including reciprocating motion of cleaning wheels, adjustable pressure mechanisms, and flexible positioning systems that adapt to moving rollers. The powered cylinder creates reciprocating strokes that maintain contact pressure despite roller rotation and conveyor movement, ensuring consistent cleaning performance during operation.
2Manufacturing precision
If the conveyor is stopped for cleaning, then thorough cleaning can be achieved, but production continuity is interrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning device is specifically designed to operate during conveyor movement, eliminating idle stopping time. The reciprocating cleaning wheels maintain continuous contact with rotating rollers through powered actuation, ensuring cleaning action persists throughout the entire cleaning cycle without interruption to production flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the motion of the conveyor rollers themselves to facilitate cleaning. The rotating rollers pass continuously under the cleaning device, and the reciprocating wheels scrape residue off the moving surfaces. The conveyor's own operation becomes part of the cleaning mechanism, eliminating the need to stop for service.
3Device complexity
If cleaning wheels are fixed in position, then the device structure is simple, but the device cannot properly engage between adjacent rollers of varying spacing
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning device incorporates adjustable and flexible positioning mechanisms that allow adaptation to different roller spacings. The housing can be positioned at various distances from the roller surface, and the reciprocating cleaning wheels can adjust their contact pressure dynamically. This flexibility enables the same device to work effectively across varying conveyor configurations without requiring complex custom design for each spacing.
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
Enables efficient removal of residue from rotating conveyor rollers during operation, maintaining production continuity and product quality by ensuring effective engagement and pressure on the rollers, even when the conveyor is moving.
Implementation Method 1
multiple rotating cleaning or bearing wheels that scrape residue from the rotating conveyor rollers
Implementation Method 2
The extendable cleaning wheel exerts a biasing force against the respective rotating conveyor roller which increases the pressure exerted on all of the other cleaning wheels
Implementation Method 3
A powered cylinder is preferably provided for biasing the retractable wheel towards the conveyor roller
Data Source
AI summary
A cleaning device is provided for removing debris from rotating conveyor rollers, and includes a housing constructed and arranged for insertion between two adjacent rotating rollers, the housing having a first set of cleaning wheels at a first housing end associated with a first of the conveyor rollers, and a second set of cleaning wheels located on an opposite end of the housing and associated with a second of the conveyor rollers. At least one of the cleaning wheels is reciprocable relative to the housing between a retracted position permitting insertion of the housing between the rollers, and a extended position extending the reciprocating wheel towards the adjacent roller for limiting lateral movement of the housing between the rollers. Upon movement of the housing between the rollers in a direction parallel to a longitudinal axis of the rollers, the cleaning wheels operationally engage and remove residue collected on the rollers.