Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CLOSED TYPE BELT CONVEYOR
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a closed type belt conveyor, and more
particularly, to a belt conveyor which can be easily laid out in a narrow
space,
which hardly allows a belt to meander, and which does not scatter dust.
Background
Currently, a belt conveyor is the lowest price conveyor as a transport
mechanism and a number of conveyors have been employed in various kinds
of factories or facilities. However, when a transport object is in a powder
shape
or contains a power-shaped object, the power-shaped object is easily scattered
to the circumference. Accordingly, the circumference may be degraded. Thus,
a dustproof device has been provided in the belt conveyor. For example, there
is a method in which the entire of a carrier belt and a return belt of a belt
conveyor or a predetermined range from the transfer section is covered with a
cover (Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2, and Patent Document 3).
In addition, there has been proposed a method in which a sectional
11-shaped cover is placed on a flat carrier belt of a conveyor to form a
closed
passage and a chute is coupled with a cover (Patent Document 4).
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Registration
Application Publication No. 02-94829
Patent Document 2: Japanese Examined Utility Model Registration
Application Publication No. 04-47149
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Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication
No. 2002-19940
Patent Document 4: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication
No. 09-142662
Summary
However, in the belt conveyor described in Patent Documents 1 to 3,
since the size of the cover which covers the carrier side and the return side
is
large, a large layout space is required. Accordingly, the belt conveyor cannot
be applied to a case without the layout space in the periphery of the belt
conveyor.
Further, in the belt conveyor described in Patent Document 4, since the
size of the cover constituting the closed passage is respectively small, the
layout is rarely limited. However, the cover is place on the flat carrier
belt.
Accordingly, when meanders occur on the belt, a gap between the cover and
The carrier belt occurs and thus dust may be scattered.
In consideration of the above-mentioned problems regarding the invention, an
object of the invention is to provide a closed type belt conveyor which can
be easily laid out even in a narrow space, in which meanders of a belt rarely
occurs, and in which dust is not scattered.
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Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a closed type belt conveyor
having an endless conveyor belt for receiving an object dropped from a chute
to a
transfer section on an upstream side of a carrier belt and for conveying the
object to
a downstream side thereof, the closed type belt conveyor comprising: a
supporting
frame attached to a conveyor frame for providing backside support to the
conveyor
belt, the supporting frame comprising a plurality of supporting rollers for
supporting a
main backside part of conveyor belt; a pair of glide plates attached to the
sides of the
conveyor frame extending from the transfer section, the conveyor belt being
supported in a concave form; a first top plate fixed to the supporting frame
of the
transfer section and extending in a driving direction to cover a space between
the
supporting frame and a skirt plate of the chute to close an upside space of
the
conveyor belt; a second top plate fixed to the conveyor frame on the
downstream
side of the transfer section to cover the upper portion of the carrier belt,
wherein an
end portion of the first top plate overlaps with the lower portion of a start
portion
thereof; each one of the plurality of supporting rollers includes a horizontal
center
roller and a pair of half-length side slope rollers arranged at both sides of
the center
roller and being upwardly inclined in the outside direction; the pair of glide
plates
being arranged on the right and left sides of the conveyor frame and being
upwardly
inclined in an outside direction with a larger oblique angle than that of a
side slope
roller to enable the edges of the conveyor belt to bend inside to prevent
meandering
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motion of the conveyor belt; and closed-section spaces are formed in both
sides of
the skirt plate of the chute by the glide plates, the carrier belt and the
first top plate or
the second top plate, and a closed-section space for conveying the conveying
object
is formed above the carrier belt by the supporting rollers, the glide plates
and the
carrier belt.
In a closed type belt conveyor according to an embodiment having an
endless conveyor belt that receives a conveying object dropped from a chute to
a
transfer section on the upstream side of a carrier belt and coveys the
conveying
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ing object to the downstream side thereof, glide plates are obliquely attached
to both left and right sides of a conveyor frame and the carrier belt is bent
in
a concave shape from the transfer section to a carrier end portion by the
glide
plates, a first top plate is fixed to the conveyor frame of the transfer
section so
as to cover a space between the conveyor frame of the transfer section and a
skirt plate of the chute, a second top plate is fixed to the conveyer frame on
the downstream side of the transfer section so as to cover the upper portion
of
the carrier belt, and an end portion of the first top plate overlaps with the
lower portion of a start portion of the second top plate, and closed-section
spaces are formed in both sides of the skirt plate of the chute by the glide
plates, the carrier belt, and the first top plate and a closed-section space
for
conveying the conveying object is formed above the carrier belt by the glide
plates, the carrier belt, and the second top plate.
In one embodiment the left and right glide plates are obliquely provided
In the conveyor frame, the first and second top plates is attached to cover
the
carrier belt, and the closed-section space is formed by the glide plates, the
carrier belt, and the first and second top plates. With such a configuration,
it
is possible to prevent the dust from being scattered to the circumference and
the installation is not limited due to the layout space.
In another aspect the carrier belt is bent in the concave shape by the
left and right glide plates. With such a configuration, the conveying object
is
stably mounted on the center of the carrier belt. In addition, since the
tension
is applied to the carrier belt so as to be pressed inward in the width
direction,
the meander of the carrier belt can be reduced and suppressed.
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Since the transfer section and the downstream side thereof have
structures different from each other to prevent the scattering of the dust, a
structure for preventing the dust from being scattered from the boundary
portion
therebetween is required. Thus, when the end portion of the first top plate of
the transfer section is allowed to overlap with the lower portion of the start
portion of the second top plate on the downstream side of the transfer
section,
for example, by the length in the range of 30 cm to 80 cm, the dust is pulled
to the downstream side due to the airflow by the travel of the carrier belt in
spite of the fact that there is a gap between the first and second top plates.
Accordingly, it is confirmed that the dust is not scattered from the boundary
portion therebetween.
In another aspect the first and second top plates are attached by using
the conveyor frame. With such a configuration, since the structure of the
invention may be simply applied to the conveyor provided in advance, the
practical value thereof is great.
The first and second top plates may be attached to the conveyor
frame, for example, by bolts, nuts, welding, or the like. Alternatively, when
a
-shaped attachment bracket is fixed to the conveyor frame and the outer end
portion of the first top plate and the left and right end portions of the
second
top plate are fitted into the attachment bracket, the first and second top
plates
can be attached to the conveyor frame by a simple work. Further, when such
an attachment bracket used, the first and second top plates can be simply
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detached even in case of an exchange of the first and second top plates for
any reason. Accordingly, the exchange work can be simply performed.
When the first top plate is attached to cover the space between the skirt
plate of the chute and the conveyor frame, the first top plate may be attached
in any structure. For example, a fitting groove may be formed at the center of
the first top plate, the first top plate may be curved in an arc shape at the
time of attaching the first top plate to the conveyor frame, and the inner
edge
portion of the fitting groove may be closely pressed and attached to the skirt
plate of the chute.
A fitting groove may be formed at the center of the first top plate, the
first top plate flatly extends inward at the time of attaching the first top
plate to
the conveyor frame, a flexible curtain and a dustproof member may be fixed to
the inner edge of the first top plate, the curtain is suspended and curved
inward in a width direction, the lower portion of the curtain comes in
slidable
contact with the carrier belt, and the dustproof member may be closely
attached
to the outer surface of the skirt plate of the chute.
As the dustproof member and the contact member may employ synthetic
resin foam such as urethane foam or a sponge such as a foaming rubber.
However, in consideration of the usage circumference of the conveyor belt, it
is
preferable to use a soft sponge formed of polyethylene based foam having
excellent weather resistance, chemical resistance, durability, chemical
resistance,
and wear resistance.
The entire of the dustproof member or the contact member may be
formed of the soft sponge. However, in consideration of vibrations or impacts
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to the dustproof member or the contact member, the dustproof member or the
contact member may be formed to insert a center member into the soft
sponge. The center member may be formed of any material if the center
material has elasticity, and the center member is preferably formed of a
synthetic resin in consideration of the cost thereof.
The glide plate may be formed of any material if the carrier belt can
come in contact with the glide plate so as to be slid. For example, a
polyethylene resin with high molecular weight may be used. In addition, the
curtain may have flexibility and prevent the dust from being scattered. For
example, rubber or soft synthetic resin material may be used.
In the transfer section, it is preferable that the carrier belt smoothly bent
in the concave shape and then vertical rollers are obliquely provided on the
upstream side thereof. That is, it is preferable that slope rollers are
provided
in the left and the right of the upstream side of the transfer section and the
start portion of the carrier belt is bent in a concave shape.
Further, it is preferable that a plurality of horizontal rollers receiving the
carrier belt are provided in the center in the width direction of the conveyor
frame through the whole length in the longitudinal direction thereof with
intervals
therebetween. Particularly, in order to avoid that the carrier belt fluctuates
up
and down due to the impact at the time of receiving the conveying object from
the chute, it is preferable that the horizontal rollers are provided with
short
intervals.
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Brief Description of the Drawings
Fig. 1 is a schematic constituent diagram illustrating a preferred
embodiment of a closed type belt conveyor according to the invention.
Fig. 2 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a transfer
section A and a direct downstream side thereof in the embodiment.
Fig. 3 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a transfer
section A in the embodiment.
Fig. 4 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a downstream
side of a transfer section A in the embodiment.
Fig. 5 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a horizontal
roller
14 of a transfer section A in the embodiment.
Fig. 6 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of an upstream side
of a transfer section A in a second embodiment.
Fig. 7 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a transfer
section A in the embodiment.
Fig. 8 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure a boundary portion
between a transfer section A and a downstream side in the embodiment.
Fig. 9 is a constituent diagram illustrating a structure of a downstream
side of a transfer section A in the embodiment.
Detailed description of the preferred embodiment
Hereinafter, the invention will be described in detail with reference to
detailed examples shown in the drawings. Figs. 1 to 5 show preferred
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embodiments of the closed type belt conveyor according to the invention. The
closed type belt conveyor according to the embodiment has the same structure
as that of a schematic diagram shown in Fig. 1. That is, a conveyor belt B is
suspended in an endless shape between rollers R1 and R2 at both front and
rear ends thereof and any one of the rollers R1 and R2 is driven by a driving
motor (not shown), thereby traveling the conveyor belt B in the endless shape.
A transfer section A is provided in a travel start portion of carrier belt B.
In the transfer section A, a conveying object from a chute S is received to
the carrier belt B to be conveyed to the downstream side. A curtain N made
of rubber or soft synthetic resin for prevent dust from be scattered is
provided
in the start portion of the transfer section A and the lower end of the
curtain N
comes in contact with the carrier belt B so as to be slid or appropriates the
carrier belt B. The upper portion of the carrier belt B is covered with first
and
second top plates Ti and T2 and the end portion of the second top plate
T2 is inserted into a chute box SB of the belt conveyor.
Next, the detailed structure of the embodiment will be described with
reference to Figs. 2 to 5. In Figs. 2 to 5, a conveyor frame 10 is constituted
by a mount frame 11, a brace 12 mounted on the mount frame 11, and a
carrier stand 13. A driving roller and a driven roller (not shown) are
rotatably
supported at both front and rear ends of the conveyor frame 10.
As shown in Fig. 2, a plurality of horizontal rollers 14 are disposed
at the center of the conveyor frame 10 under the carrier belt B in the width
direction through the whole length in the longitudinal direction with
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predetermined intervals and are rotatably supported between the left and right
supporters 11A and 13A fixed to the mount frame 11.
The transfer section A is provided on the upstream side of the belt
conveyor close to the carrier. In the transfer section A, skirt plates 17 at
the
left and right of the chute are disposed to extend in the longitudinal
direction
with intervals therebetween and are attached to the brace 12 of the conveyor
frame 10. In the transfer section A, the intervals of the above-described
horizontal rollers 14 are set to be smaller than those of the horizontal
rollers 14
on the downstream side of the transfer section A and it is avoided that the
carrier belt B waves due to the impact at the time of receiving the conveying
object dropped from the chute.
Vertical rollers 15 are provided in both left and right sides of the start
portion of the transfer section A, for example, at 45- from the vertical line,
the
vertical rollers 15 is rotatably supported between the carrier stand 13 and
the
supporter 13A, and the vertical rollers 15 bend the carrier belt B in a
concave
shape so as to send the carrier belt B to the transfer section A.
A glide plate 18 made of polyethylene with high molecular weight is
obliquely provided to extend at the substantially whole length in the
longitudinal
direction from the transfer section A to the carrier end portion. The glide
plate
18 is supported to the carrier stand 13 with a reception bracket 18A
interposed
therebetween, comes in contact with both side portions of the carrier belt B
having the concave portion so as to be slid, and sends the carrier belt B with
the concave shape to the carrier end portion.
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Slope rollers 16 which are shorter than the vertical rollers 15 are
provided in the lower portion of the glide plate 18. The slope rollers 16 are
rotatably supported between the carrier stand 13 and the supporter 13A and
guide the movement of the carrier belt B by the left and right slope rollers
16
and the horizontal rollers 14.
In addition, a a-shaped attachment bracket 13B is fixed to the upper
end of the reception bracket 18A of the left and right carrier stands 13 by a
welding or an attachment screw. In the transfer section A, the outer end
portion of the first top plate 20 which is a zinc coating plate is fitted into
the
attachment bracket 13B and is fixed by the attachment screw. The first top
plate 20 covers the space between the skirt plate 17and the carrier stand 13.
A closed-section space M1 is formed in both sides of the skirt plate 17 of the
chute by the glide plate 18, the first top plate 20, and the carrier belt B.
In the first top plate 20, a fitting groove is formed in the center in the
width direction and the skirt plate 17 of the chute is fitted into the fitting
groove. The inner edge of the fitting groove of the first top plate 20 comes
in
contact with the a curved portion 17A of the upper end of the skirt plate 17
and thus the first top plate 20 is bent in an arc shape, thereby not pulling
out
the first top plate 20.
A soft sponge cap 17B is attached to the skirt plate 17 by the
Attachment bracket, and the cape 176 is tightly pressed by both edge portions
of the carrier belt B.
On the downstream side from the transfer section A, the outer end
portion of the second top plate 25 which is the zinc coating plate is fitted
to
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the left and right attachment brackets 13B and fixed by the attachment screw.
The second top plate 25 is curved in the arc shape and covers the upper
portions of the carrier belt B and the glide plate 18. In addition, a closed-
section space M2 is formed in the upper portion of the carrier belt by the
glide
plate 18, the second top plate 25, and the carrier belt B.
In the direct downstream side of the transfer section A, the end portion
of the first top plate 20 overlaps with and is inserted to the lower portion
of the
start portion of the second top plate 25 and, for example, by about 50 cm.
When the conveying object is dropped from the chute, the conveying
object is received to the carrier belt B in the transfer section A and
conveyed
to the downstream side by the carrier belt B.
At that time, the power-shaped object contained in the conveying object
becomes dust and flies in the transfer section A and the downstream side D
thereof. In the transfer section A, the closed-section space M1 is formed by
the skirt plate 17, the first top plate 20, and the glide plate 18. Further,
the
gap in the transfer section A is practically closed. Accordingly, the dust is
not
scattered from the transfer section A to the circumference.
In addition, since the closed-section space M2 is formed on the
downstream side D of the transfer section A by the carrier belt B, the second
top plate 25, and the glide plate 19, the dust is not scattered from the
downstream side D of the transfer section A to the circumference.
Further, in the boundary C between the transfer section A and the
downstream side thereof, the first and second top plates 20 and 25 overlap
with each other so that the former is the lower and the dust is pulled toward
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the downstream side D of the transfer section A by the airflow upon traveling
the carrier belt B. Accordingly, the dust is not scattered from the boundary C
between the first and second top plates 20 and 25.
As described above, the first and second top plates 20 and 25 are
attached to the conveyor frame 10, the closed-section space M1 is formed in
both sides of the skirt plate 17 of the chute in the transfer section A, and
the
closed-section space M2 for conveying the conveying object is formed.
Accordingly, it is possible to reliably prevent the dust from being scattered
to
the circumference. Further, the belt conveyor has a compact size and thus
there is no case where the installation is limited due to the layout space.
Since the carrier belt B is bent in the concave shape by the glide plate
18, the conveying object is stably mounted at the center of the carrier belt
B.
In addition, since tension is applied to the carrier belt B to be pressed
inward
in the width direction by the glide plate 18, the meander of the carrier belt
B is
reduced and suppressed.
On the downstream side D of the transfer section A, the slope roller 16
has the short size and only glide plate 18 is exposed in the side of the
conveyor frame 10. Accordingly, a case where fingers of a worker are caught
between the rollers at the time of checking the belt conveyor to damage the
worker scarcely occurs.
Figs. 6 to 9 show a second embodiment. In Figs. 6 to 9, the same
reference numerals as those in Figs. 1 to 5 indicate the same or corresponding
parts. In this embodiment, a first glide plate 18 is provided between the
vertical rollers of the start portion and the end portion of the transfer
section A
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so as to extend in the longitudinal direction of the first glide plate 18 in
the
sectional arc shapes in both left and right sides thereof, the upper end
portion
of the first glide plate 18 is attached to the brace 12, and the lower end
portion of the first glide 18 is placed on the cushion such as a soft sponge
on
the supporter 12A and attached to absorb impacts or vibrations by the press of
the attachment bracket.
The first glide plate 18 is manufactured, for example, by using a
polyethylene resin with high molecular weight and sends the carrier belt B
curved by the vertical roller 15 of the start portion to the downstream side D
with the carrier belt B kept in the U shape.
On the downstream side D of the transfer section A, a flat (or sectional
arc-shaped) second glide plate 19 is obliquely disposed in the upper portion
of
the slope roller 16 to extend through the whole length in the longitudinal
direction, is received to the reception bracket 18A, and is attached to the
carrier stand 13. The carrier belt B coming from the transfer section A is
kept
in the concave shape as shown in Figs. 8 and 9.
In the transfer section A, the first top plate 20 having a narrow width
extends inward and is fixed to the upper end of the carrier stand 13, a
curtain
21 and the a dustproof member 22 are fixed to the inner end of the first top
plate 20. The flexible curtain 21 is manufactured, for example, by using
polyethylene resin with high molecular weight and extends through the whole
length in the longitudinal direction of the transfer section A. Further, the
lower
portion of the curtain 21 is curved inward in the width direction and comes in
contact with the carrier belt B so as to be slid.
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The dustproof member 22 is manufactured, for example, by using a
foaming polyethylene resin and is closely attached to the skirt plate 17 of
the
chute. In this manner, a closed-section space M1 is formed in the outer
portion of the skirt plate 17.
Similarly with the first embodiment, on the downstream side D of the
transfer section A, the -shaped attachment bracket 13B is fixed to the
reception brackets 18A of the left and right carrier stands 13, both end
portions
of the second top plate 25 are fitted into the attachment bracket 13B and
fixed
by the attachment screw, the second top plate 25 is curved in the arc shape
and pulled out, and a closed-section space M2 is formed by the second glide
plate 19, the carrier belt B, and the second top plate 25.
The first top plate 20 and the curtain 21 enter the lower portion of the
second top plate 25 in the direct downstream side of the transfer section A. A
contact member 26 is disposed between a structure including the curtain 21,
the first top plate 20, and the first glide plate 18 and a structure including
the
second top plate 25 and the second glide plate 19, whereby the curtain 21, the
first top plate 20 and the first glide plate 18 are connected to the second
top
plate 25 and the second glide plate 19.
In the first embodiment, the cap 17A is provided on the skirt plate 17.
However, since the scattering of the dust is suppressed by the closed-section
space Ml, the cap 17A is not necessarily provided.
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Meanwhile, in the second embodiment, the contact member 26 is
provided. However, since the dust is not scattered from the boundary between
the transfer section A and the downstream side by pulling the dust by the
airflow upon traveling the carrier belt B, the contact member 26 is not
necessarily provided.
