Rotating Goods Carrier Unloading for Constant Drop Height
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional conveyor systems risk damaging goods during unloading due to variable drop heights caused by imprecise timing, especially when using gravity-fed bag-like carriers.
Innovation Solution
A conveyor system with a goods carrier that rotates along a conveyor line, positioned at an angle of up to 45° relative to the sliding edge, ensuring a consistent and minimal drop height during unloading, combined with a sliding surface designed to receive goods.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If goods are unloaded from the carrier using gravity-fed bag-like carriers with ramp-shaped sliding surfaces, then the unloading process is simple and cost-effective, but the drop height increases significantly if timing is even a fraction of a second too late, posing a risk of damage or destruction to individual items
Solution Approach 1:
The goods carrier is rotatably mounted on the conveyor section about a vertical axis, allowing it to rotate between a transport position (with longitudinal side transverse to conveying direction) and a discharge position (with longitudinal side at an angle of at most 45° to the sliding edge). This dynamic repositioning ensures optimal unloading geometry while maintaining system simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The goods carrier is rotated to the discharge position before unloading occurs, pre-positioning the longitudinal side at the optimal angle to the sliding edge. This preliminary action ensures that when goods are unloaded, the drop height is minimized and controlled, preventing damage while maintaining simple gravity-fed unloading.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the goods carrier is positioned with its longitudinal side transverse to the conveying direction in transport position, then space utilization and carrier stability are improved, but the unloading geometry becomes suboptimal when reaching the discharge section
Solution Approach 1:
The carrier transitions from a stable transport position (longitudinal side transverse to conveying direction) to a discharge position (longitudinal side at an angle of at most 45° to the sliding edge). This dynamic transformation allows the system to optimize for stability during transport and for unloading geometry precision during discharge.
Solution Approach 2:
The angle between the longitudinal side of the goods carrier and the sliding edge is changed from 90° in transport position to at most 45° in discharge position. This parameter change optimizes the unloading geometry while maintaining carrier stability during transport.
3Reliability
If precise timing is used to control unloading at the optimal moment, then the drop height can be minimized, but the system complexity and control requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of controlling unloading timing, the system performs preliminary action by rotating the goods carrier to the discharge position where the longitudinal side is at an optimal angle to the sliding edge. This geometric pre-positioning ensures minimal and controlled drop height without requiring complex timing control systems.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of controlling when unloading occurs (timing-based approach), the system controls the geometric position of the carrier relative to the sliding edge (position-based approach). This inversion of the control strategy simplifies the system while maintaining reliable drop height control.
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 system minimizes the risk of damage by maintaining a constant drop height and using a sliding surface to gently guide goods, enhancing the unloading process's reliability and safety.
Implementation Method 1
The goods carrier has a narrow side and a long side longer than the narrow side and is rotatably mounted on the conveyor section about a vertical axis
Implementation Method 2
The goods then fall downwards due to gravity onto a ramp-shaped sliding surface
Implementation Method 3
a sliding surface extending between the sliding edge and the removal edge in a sliding direction and designed for receiving the goods unloaded from the goods carrier
Data Source
Figure 1~2f
Figure 3a~4
AI summary
The invention relates to a conveyor system (1) for conveying and unloading goods (2), comprising a conveyor section (3) which has a transport section (3a) extending in a conveying direction (4) and a discharge section (3b) extending in a discharge conveying direction (5), a goods carrier (6) movable suspended along the conveyor section (3), and an unloading station (7) along which the discharge section (3b) extends, wherein the unloading station (7) has a sliding edge (8), a removal edge (9) and a sliding surface (10) extending in a sliding direction (11), wherein the goods carrier (6) has a narrow side (14) and a longitudinal side (15) longer than the narrow side (14) and is rotatably mounted on the conveyor section (3) about a vertical axis (12), and wherein the goods carrier (6) is arranged in a discharge position along the discharge section (3b).in which the longitudinal side (15) is arranged at an angle (16) of at most 45° to the sliding edge (8) formed by the longitudinal side (15) and the sliding edge (8).