Vacuum Conveyor Slot Stabilization for Bottle Lanes
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conveyor systems for blow-molded plastic bottles face instability issues due to bottles' height-to-width ratio and recessed bottom surfaces, leading to bottles falling over during acceleration and deceleration on conventional conveyor systems.
Innovation Solution
A vacuum conveyor apparatus that stabilizes bottles by transmitting vacuum pressure through slots beneath the conveying surface, centering it beneath each lane to maintain upright orientation and side-by-side positioning, allowing for adjustable slot spacing to accommodate different bottle diameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional conveyor systems are used to convey bottles in multiple lanes, then conveying efficiency is improved, but bottle stability deteriorates causing bottles to fall over during acceleration and deceleration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pneumatic vacuum pressure through slots in the conveying surface to stabilize bottles during conveyance. The vacuum pressure creates a holding force that prevents bottles from falling over during acceleration and deceleration, while allowing continuous multi-lane conveying to maintain high productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements different vacuum pressure characteristics for different lanes by providing separate slots for each bottle lane. This allows localized adjustment of vacuum pressure to match specific bottle dimensions and stability requirements for each lane, while maintaining overall system efficiency.
2Manufacturing precision
If guide rails are used to maintain bottle lane positions, then lane positioning is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the guide rails from the conveyor system and replaces them with vacuum pressure applied through slots in the conveying surface. This extraction of the mechanical guide rail component simplifies the overall device structure while maintaining precise lane positioning through pneumatic control.
3Ease of manufacture
If vacuum pressure is applied uniformly across all lanes, then implementation simplicity is improved, but adaptability to different bottle sizes deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent provides separate vacuum slots for each bottle lane, allowing independent control of vacuum pressure for each lane. This enables adaptation to different bottle sizes and shapes in different lanes while maintaining a relatively simple overall system design based on standardized vacuum technology.
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 vacuum conveyor apparatus effectively stabilizes bottles in their upright positions during movement, preventing falls and accommodating various bottle sizes by adjusting vacuum pressure paths, enhancing the stability and efficiency of bottle conveyance.
Implementation Method 1
a vacuum conveyor apparatus that stabilizes bottles by transmitting vacuum pressure through slots beneath the conveying surface
Implementation Method 2
The vacuum pressure is generally centered beneath the centers of each of the lanes of bottles conveyed on the conveying surface and stabilizes and holds the bottles in their upright orientations
Data Source
AI summary
A vacuum conveyor apparatus stabilizes multiple single file lanes of objects conveyed on a conveying surface of the apparatus by directing vacuum pressure through multiple slots beneath the conveying surface where the multiple slots are aligned with the multiple lanes of objects on the conveying surface.