Combination Weighing Chute Curved Sliding Surface Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing combination weighing apparatuses face challenges in discharging articles from hoppers to a collecting chute in a short time, leading to inefficiencies in packaging processes.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus features a collecting chute with sliding areas that extend from below each hopper to the centerline, having sliding surfaces and receiving surfaces that intersect outwardly, allowing articles to be collected and slide smoothly, reducing friction and spread, and facilitating rapid discharge.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If articles are discharged from multiple hoppers to a collecting chute, then the packaging process can be maintained, but the articles cannot be discharged in a short time due to spreading and friction
Solution Approach 1:
The chute portion is designed with curved surfaces instead of flat surfaces. The sliding surface has a width that increases as it approaches the centerline, creating a curved, funnel-like structure that guides articles smoothly toward the center discharge point. This curvature reduces friction and prevents articles from getting stuck, enabling rapid discharge.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the chute have different width characteristics. The sliding surface width increases toward the centerline to facilitate smooth flow, while the receiving surfaces have specific width variations to control article distribution. This localized variation in geometry optimizes the discharge process at each stage.
2Productivity
If articles drop from hoppers to the collecting chute, then articles are collected efficiently, but spread of articles increases causing friction and slowing discharge
Solution Approach 1:
The receiving surfaces are designed with curved profiles that guide articles inward toward the centerline. The width of receiving surfaces decreases as they approach the centerline, creating a funnel effect that concentrates articles rather than allowing them to spread out, thereby reducing friction and improving discharge speed.
Solution Approach 2:
Articles from multiple hoppers are merged into a single concentrated flow path. The chute design combines the discharge paths from different hoppers into a unified sliding surface that converges toward the centerline, ensuring articles are collected and discharged together in a compact stream rather than spreading apart.
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
This configuration enables efficient and rapid discharge of articles from the hoppers to the collecting chute, improving the packaging process by minimizing spread and friction, thus enhancing the overall efficiency of the system.
Implementation Method 1
friction, etc. occurring between the articles decreases, and the articles are collected together to smoothly slide on the sliding surface
Data Source
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AI summary
A combination weighing apparatus includes a plurality of hoppers and a collecting chute. The collecting chute has at least a chute portion configured to receive articles discharged from the plurality of hoppers and slide the articles. A plurality of sliding areas is provided in the chute portion to extend from below the plurality of hoppers to a side of a centerline and be positioned on a lower side as approaching the centerline. A sliding surface, a first receiving surface, and a second receiving surface included in each of the plurality of sliding areas mutually have an intersecting positional relationship to protrude outward with respect to the centerline. A width of the sliding surface increases as approaching the centerline, and a width of each of the first receiving surface and the second receiving surface decreases as approaching the centerline.