Tray Conveyor Destacker Guide Support for Bounce-Free Placement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for depositing stackable trays onto a conveyor belt often result in trays bouncing off, leading to unpredictable orientation and irregular spacing, which complicates subsequent processing steps and requires additional work to reposition them accurately.
Innovation Solution
A tray conveyor device with destacker screws that guide trays along a helical path to a transport unit, ensuring continuous contact until placement, preventing bouncing and allowing precise positioning, with release areas to secure the trays in the desired position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If trays are dropped from a stack onto a conveyor belt, then the trays can be separated from the stack and transported to a filling station, but the trays bounce off the conveyor belt leading to unpredictable orientation and irregular positioning
Solution Approach 1:
A guide support is introduced as an intermediary element between the destacking screws and the conveyor belt. This guide support receives the tray edge from the destacking screws and guides it along a controlled path to the conveyor belt, preventing direct impact and bounce. The guide support acts as a mediator that ensures precise positioning while maintaining efficient tray separation and transport.
2Ease of operation
If trays are dropped onto a conveyor belt, then the trays can be fed individually to a filling station, but additional work steps are required to reposition irregularly positioned trays
Solution Approach 1:
The guide support performs preliminary positioning action by guiding the tray edge along a controlled path before the tray reaches the conveyor belt. This preliminary guidance ensures that trays are already in the correct position and orientation when they are transferred to the conveyor belt, eliminating the need for additional repositioning work steps at the filling station.
3Productivity
If trays are dropped onto a conveyor belt, then the trays can be transported away from the stack, but irregular slippage of the conveyor belt occurs under the discarded trays
Solution Approach 1:
The guide support serves as an intermediary that controls the interaction between the tray and the conveyor belt. By guiding the tray edge along a predetermined path, it ensures that trays are placed on the conveyor belt in a controlled manner, preventing irregular slippage and maintaining stable conveyor belt operation while preserving efficient tray transport.
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 precise and controlled deposition of trays onto the transport unit, reducing the need for manual adjustments and improving the efficiency of the packaging process by maintaining trays in a predetermined position during transport.
Implementation Method 1
By means of a continuous movement on a helical helix formed thereon, place it into a release position in which the tray to be destacked is positioned on the transport unit
Implementation Method 2
the tray edge of the tray to be destacked is guided in contact along a guide support until the tray has been placed on the transport unit in the release position
Data Source
Figure 1~5
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for operating a tray conveyor (1), wherein the rim of a tray (S') to be destacked is guided in contact along a guide surface until the tray (S') has been placed on a transport unit (6) positioned below. The invention also relates to a corresponding device (1) for destacking and further transporting trays (S).