CA1203768A - Side discharge conveyor assembly - Google Patents
Side discharge conveyor assemblyInfo
- Publication number
- CA1203768A CA1203768A CA000421617A CA421617A CA1203768A CA 1203768 A CA1203768 A CA 1203768A CA 000421617 A CA000421617 A CA 000421617A CA 421617 A CA421617 A CA 421617A CA 1203768 A CA1203768 A CA 1203768A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- belt
- conveyor
- assembly
- pathway
- belt assembly
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
- B65G47/74—Feeding, transfer, or discharging devices of particular kinds or types
- B65G47/94—Devices for flexing or tilting travelling structures; Throw-off carriages
- B65G47/945—Devices for flexing or tilting travelling structures; Throw-off carriages tilting endless surfaces, e.g. belts
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Structure Of Belt Conveyors (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT:
SIDE DISCHARGE CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY
A conveyor assembly follows a pathway defined by a supporting framework, wherein the pathway may include serpentine portions. The framework supports a transport mechanism for movement along the pathway, and a belt assembly is carried by the transport mechanism. The belt assembly includes a continuous belt having flexible convolutions permitting the belt to follow serpentine portions of the pathway and also permitting the belt to locally laterally tilt for side discharge without requiring the transport mechanism to similarly tilt. A
pivotal member between the transport mechanism and belt assembly permits the belt to tilt laterally, such as on a hinge point laterally offset form the center of the conveyor pathway. An actuator causes a selected portion of the belt to tilt on the hinge point. A suitable actuator includes a camming member located on the opposite lateral side of the supporting framework from the hinge point, and the belt assembly may include a tiltable arm extending over the camming member for interacting contact. The camming member may be longitudinally movable for varying the longtiduinal position of discharge and also may be vertically movable for varying the degree of tilt imparted to the arm and, in turn, to the belt assembly. The inverted return run is provided with a retaining rail to prevent the belt assembly from tilting under force of gravity.
SIDE DISCHARGE CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY
A conveyor assembly follows a pathway defined by a supporting framework, wherein the pathway may include serpentine portions. The framework supports a transport mechanism for movement along the pathway, and a belt assembly is carried by the transport mechanism. The belt assembly includes a continuous belt having flexible convolutions permitting the belt to follow serpentine portions of the pathway and also permitting the belt to locally laterally tilt for side discharge without requiring the transport mechanism to similarly tilt. A
pivotal member between the transport mechanism and belt assembly permits the belt to tilt laterally, such as on a hinge point laterally offset form the center of the conveyor pathway. An actuator causes a selected portion of the belt to tilt on the hinge point. A suitable actuator includes a camming member located on the opposite lateral side of the supporting framework from the hinge point, and the belt assembly may include a tiltable arm extending over the camming member for interacting contact. The camming member may be longitudinally movable for varying the longtiduinal position of discharge and also may be vertically movable for varying the degree of tilt imparted to the arm and, in turn, to the belt assembly. The inverted return run is provided with a retaining rail to prevent the belt assembly from tilting under force of gravity.
Description
~2~3i76~ ~
SIDE DISCHARGE CON~IEYOR ASSEMBLY
The invention relates to power driven conveyors and more ~pecifically to belt conveyors wherein the belt ;s 05 capable of following a curved or helical path. A side discharye station is disclosed that may be variably em-ployed along the length of the conveyor.
With the development of conveyor belt sections able to flex resiliently for bending in two planes, it became possible to discharge a carried load from such a convey-or belt by designing its supporting structure to tilt the`belt laterally and thereby dump the carried load at a fixed point at the side of the b2lt, rather than at the end of the belt as had been previously the common practiceO A conveyor belt having the noted ability to follow vertical, horizontal, and helical curves in its path is taught in United States Patent No. 2,701,050 to Steinborn. Conveyors employing this patent have ~or many years supported the belt on a roller carriage having rollers at the lateral sides o the belt, and the rol-lers followed a pair of parallel channel shaped tracks near the lateral ~ides of the ~elt~ which tracks defined a fixed path having the de~ired curves fixed therein.
The location of the side discharge was therefore fixed by the rail configuration and operated continuously as the belt passed the station.
The usefulness and flexibility of side discharge stations wa~ greatly improved with the invention of ~nited States Patent No. 3,169,631 to Xnappe, which con-tributed the concept o a flexible rail section con-structed from a plurality of rail segments. It then be-came possible to intermittently employ side discharge stations along the length o~ a conveyor~ allowing a sin-gle conveyor to serve at random a plurality of discharge `:
03~
locations and to selectively discharge the conveyed material at the end of the conveyor at a last discharge station.
The.concept of the articulated rail was further developed to permit the inclusion of flexible track assemblies in the total length of a conveyor, whereby the user could adjust the track along the desired path without having to custom bend solid rail. This line of development is taught in United States Patent No.
3,707,218 to Payne and United States Patent No.
4,144,965 to Alldredge. The options for side d~scharge remained, however, much as the~ had been be~ore, with the rail itself defining the discharge station, whether the rail was preformed solid rail or flexible articulated rail.
While the flexible rail discharge sta-tion offered a distinct advantage over the solid rail, this structure also had disadvankages. The construction of articulated rail sections required a great deal of labor, heavy duty materials, and consequent high cost. In addition, the roller carriages ~hat travel on the rail are connected by link chain, which endures twisting and wear when helically bent at a curve or discharge stat.ion.
Consequently, alternatives to the side discharge station employing articulated track segments have been sought.
The present invention provides a solution to each of the above noted problems while providing benefits not previously achieved in the art.
In su~nary, an improved side discharge conveyor assembly is capable of discharging its carried load over a variable position~ The conveyor assembly is of the known type having a support framework defining a generally longitudinal pathway for conveyor operation; a 3~6~
transport means carried by the support framework for relative motion along the longitudinal pathway defined by the support framework and including a plurality of carriages joined to a pulling chain, and a conveyor belt assembly carried by the transport means for motion therewith along the pathway defined by the support framework, the bel-t assembly being of the type forming an endless conveyor belt from a plurality of segments that are joined together to define the belt, each segment having a central transverse flexible convo]ution, each shelf being attached to a joining leg near the end edge of the shelf for uniting adjacent segments. The improvement comprises a first hinge arm connected transversely to the longitudinal pathway of the belt assembly at a joining leg, a first portion of said first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt on a first side thereof for receiving tilting forces during side discharge operations, and a second portion of the first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt center line in opposition to said first portion thereof. A hinged joining means is connected to a carriage and receives said second portion of the first hinge arm in pivotal connection supporting the belt assembly for local tilting by force applied to said first arm portion of the first hinge arm. An actuator means is positionable in the longitudinal pathway of the first arm portion for inducing lateral local tilting to the belt assembly with respect to the transport means to side discharge, in use, at the local tilting position of the belt assembly. A means for longitudinally moving the actuator means with respect to the support framework permits longitudinal variation of the local position o~ side discharge.
' ~1.
The main object of the invention is to provide for the side discharge of a conveyed load wherein the me-chanism supporting the conveyor surface for movement over an underlying support surface is not required it-05 self to tilt during the discharge process, thereby re-ducing an important source of wear on the supporting mechanism.
An important object is to provide a side discharge stationiwherein the conveyor ~orces remain directed through a supporting structure adapted to bear such load. In a roller carriage supported conveyor belt, the carriage is thus maintained substantially in its normal running position against the supporting framework with the rollers bearing the weight of the helt and load as intended in the conveyor design. The discharge is accom-plished by a shift of the load with respect to the car-riage~ for example by movement of the belt and it5 load, rathex than by a shift in the position of the carriage itself.
Another object is to provide for the potential to discharge the load from variable locations along the operational run of the conveyor. Tllis is achieved by providing a means intexmediate ~he conveyor belt and its carriage for tilting the belt without regard to the tilt of the carriage, thereby eliminating the need for local~
special purpose structures in ~he supporting framework.
For example, the need for a flexible rail in the car-riage support structure is eliminated for purposes of side discharge, as the flexible belt itself provides the ability to tilt under the direct influence o a tilt actuator. The side discharge ability then exists along the entire length of the operational belt run.
, ,i ~ ., 376~
A further object is to provide the ability to con-tinuously move the location of a side discharge station during continuous conveyor operation. This is achieved through provision for a tilt actuating mechanism that is 05 able to move its operating station upon demand.
Still another object is to permit side discharge from either side of a conveyor, allowing latitude in the access to the load being discharged.
Examples of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of the conveyor as-sembly having a side discharge station in operation.
Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the belt assembly and transport means, showing details of constructiOn.
Figure 3 is a transverse--cross-section-of an embod-iment of the conveyor assembly adapted to tilt to either side, shown in an expanded posit:ion for clarity.
Figure 4 is an isometric view of the conveyor sup-porting ~ramework and tilt actuating means in an embodi-ment permitting continuous movement of the actuating means.
As best shown in Figure 1, th~ conveyor assembly 10 is in the form of a longitudinal pathway defined by a supporting framework 12 that carries a conveyor belt assembly 14 for movem~nt along ~he pathway. A transport means 16 is connected to the support framework ~or rela-tive longitudinal motion with respect thereto. The belt assembly 14 is joined to the transport means in such a way that movement of the transport means imparts move-ment to the belt assembly relative to the supporting framework. Joining means 18, Figure 2, connects the belt assembly and transport means while permitting the belt assembly to laterally tilt with respect to the transport ~2~37~
means. A tilt actuator means 20 causes the belt assembly to tilt with respect to the transport means at a prese-lected location along the conveyor path.
The supporting framework 12 and conveyor belt 21 05 may be of the known type wherein the belt is capable of following a serpentine pathway defined by the framework.
Specifically, the framework may define an operational or upper run in which the belt is usually positioned to carry a load by gravity, and a lower or return run in lQ which the belt is supported in non-operative position.
Bach run is defined by a pair of channel shaped rails 22 having ~he open face of the channe]. facing the opposite rail of the run. Thus, the top two rails ~2 of Figure 1 may define the upper run, and the bottom two rails 22 define the lower run. Braces 24 maintain the rails of each run at the desired spacing and, optionally, main-tain the upper and lower runs at a fixed spacing. Alter-natives to the presence of a lower run include a contin-uous belt 21 operating in a closed path substantially on one level or belt sections that shuttle back-and-forth on a single run. The channel shaped rails define the longitudinal path of the conveyor assembly and may in-clude curves and spirals.
Conveyor belt 21, best shown in Figures 1 and 2, is capable of ~ollowing a curved path and carries its load by gravity i~ a series of belt pans defined by joined belt sections 26, each having a central, transverse con~
volution 28 formed from flexible material such as rub-ber. A shelf 30 extends from the front and rear of each convolution and is vulcanized to a metal angle shaped stiffener haviny its side portions turned up at an acute angle such as twenty degrees from the central, flat sec-tion, thereby forming a troughed flat section of each pan at the center of each stiffener. The belt is vulcan-~L2~3~8 ized to a wider leg of the stiffener that runs parallelto shelf 30. A narrower leg 32 of the stiffener runs perpendicular to the belt surface and transverse to the direction of the belt travel. Leg 3Z is provided with 05 holes 34 that permit the legs 32 of adjacent belt sec-tions to be fastened together, such as with bolts 33, and to be fastened to related hardware of the belt as-sembly that may be useful in connecting the belt assem-bly to the joining means 18. It is thus possible to as-semble a belt assembly of any desired length by combin-ing belt sections 26. The belt SQ formed may at the same time be attached to other portions of the conveyor as-sembly so as to be moved by the transport means. When belt sections are joined together and each joint at-tached to the moving portion of the conveyor assembly, a - continuous troughed belt made of individual sections with central convolution capable of flexing has been constructed.
The transport means 16 may include a tension member s~ch as conveyor chain 35 engageable with a drive sproo-ket, which is we71 known as a ~ans to advance a convey-or drive chain. Another portion of the transport means may be carriage 36 carrying rotatable rollers 38 and 40.
Rollers 38 are carried on horizontal axes and operate inside rail channels 22 to maintain the vertical posi-tion of the transport means with respect to the support-ing ~ramework. Rollers 40 are carried on vertical axes and operate against the outside of the channel to cause the transport means to follow the supporting framework through horizontal curves. Together, the rollers 38 and 40 cause the carriage 36 to follow the rail channels through curves in both hori%ontal and vertical direc-tions. The carriages 36 are attached to the chain 35 by fasteners 42.
3~6l~
In the past, it has been proposed that a conveyor belt 21 be directly and firmly attached to a carriage 36 and that the rail channel in the upper run be configured to cause the carriage and belt to tip for side dis-05 charge. In contrast to the prior system, a tiltablejoining means 18 is employed between the belt 21 and transport means 16 so that the carriage and chain are not subjected to twisting motion when the belt laterally dischar~es. The preferred tiltable joining msans in-cludes a hinge 44 or other pivot member between the beltand the transport means. The belt is then capable of tilting at least to one lateral side of the conveyor assembly on pivotal hinge 44 without requiring the transport means to similarly ti:Lt~ Hinge 44 may be formed as a portion of a larger hinge structure defined by portions of both the transport means and belt assem-bly. Base bracket 46, which is transverse to the convey-or pathway, may form a part of the hinge structure as-sociated with the transport means~ Figure 2 shows two types of attachment between the ba~e bracket and the transport means. One attachment is directly to a roller carriage 36 and would be employed at whatever interval the car~iages are employed, which may or may not be at each junction of two ~elt sections. The second attach-m~nt is to chain fasteners 48, which are carriages nothaving rollers 38 and 4Q. The latter carria~es are em-ployed between roller carriages 36 if at all. The base bracket 46 includes a channel shaped end portion defined by spaced apart walls 50 and 52, which both dsfine a portion of the hinge 44 and support other parts of the hinge structure between the walls. The channel shaped end of the bracket is preferred to be offset laterally from the center line of the transport means in order to locate the hinge axis near one lateral side of the con-~2037Ç;~
~eyor pathway. The opposite end of the bracket 46 may bean open angle having a single upstanding wall 52, per-mitting the fasteners attaching the hinge structure to the belt assembly to avoid interference with the brac~
05 ket.
Another portion of the hinge structure may include a tiltable arm 54 forming part of the belt assembly. The arm may be directly attached to the belt by bolts 33 passing through the arm and through the holes in belt stiffener-leg-32 at the junction of two belt sections.
One end of the arm fits between bracket walls 50 and 52 at the hinge and defines a further portion of the hingeO
A hinge pin 58 may pass through suitable holes in walls 50 and 52 and arm 54 to define the pivot axis of the hinge l~ing substantially parallel to the longitudinal conveyor pathway.
The conveyor belt 21, pulling chain 35 and rails 22 are substantially symmetrical in transverse cross--section, each having a longitudinal ceDter line in sub-stantially the same vertical longitudinal plane. Thehinge point ordinarily will not be in the plane of the center lines, but will be offset to a lateral side, for example to approximately the edge of the belt so that when the belt tilt~ to discharge a load to the side, the load will be clear of the entire conveyor assembly. The base bracket 46 may therefore have approximately the same width as belt 21 and have hinge point 44 close to one end of the bracket. The bracket is then approxi-mately as wide as the supporting framework and the transport means, although it is not necessary that the bracket be fully as wide as the wide3t part of the transport means, such as the rollers 40 at the lateral ends of the carriages 36, since the upwardly angled sldes of the belt pans serve as A chute during side dis-~2~
charge to direct the load away from the side of the con-veyor assembly.
Tilt actuator means 20 causes the belt to tilt for side discharge by acting on the belt assembly 14. Figure 05 1 shows the tilt actuator means to include a smoothly curved camming rail 60 supported on the side of the con-veyor assembly opposite from the hinge point 44. The rail 60 has opposite ends 62 that are below the level at which contact is made with the belt assembly 14~ and the center of the rail 60 is curved upwardly from the ends 62 in a smooth arc. Contact with the belt assembly may be against elongated portions of arms 54 extending la-terally beyond the side edge of the belt 21 on the side opposite from the hinge point~ ~rms 54 therefore act as levers providing a mechanical advantage to the rail 60 in tilting the belt and its carried load. Figure 1 shows rail 60 with its central raised ar~ sufficiently above the ordinaxy line of travel of arms 54 such that the arms are raised at their free ends 64 and forced to pi-vot on hinge point 44 as the arms come into contact with rail 60 and slide toward the peak of the arc. This cam-ming action causes the conveyor belt 21 to assumP a side tilted configuration, d;scharging its load when the de-gree of tilt is sufficient. The arms 54 continue toslide on rail 60 past the crest of the arc, returning to a substantially horizontal position and correspondingly returning the belt to a level position.
The position of the side discharge station may be selectively located by adjustment of the rail 60 posi-tion. Figure 1 shows an embodiment wherein the rail 60 is attached to the conveyor assembly 10 at the support-ing framework, such as to vertical braces 24. Attachment arms 66 extend laterally from braces 24 and are engaged in collars 68, which, in turnl are connected to collars 37~i~
~11--70 that receive support rods 72. Rail 60 is supported by rods 72, such as in saddle brackets 74. The side dis-charge station location inik;ally may be selected by choosing the attachment arms to which the rail 60 will 05 be mounted by collars 68. The location of discharge fur-ther may be selected by adjusting the height of the rail via the degree of insertion of rods 72 in collars 70. If desired, ~he rail may be lowered to an inoperative posi-tion when no side discharge is desired at a rail 60. The rail lies approximately in a single plane r which may include rods 72 and collar 70 as well. This plane is tilted fxom vertical toward the belt assembly so that the rail moves both upwardly and toward the belt assem-bly as it is raised, thus maintaining good ~ontact with the arms 54 along the entire tilted length of belt as-sembly without requiring the arDns 54 to be excessively long for cDntacting the rail at the peak of the arc.
Further adjustment of the side discharge position is made possible by the embodiment of Figure 4, wherein the rail 60 i5 movable longitudinally to any desired position. Guide bar 76 is attached to the supporting framework by attachment arms 78 and provides a continu-ous track ~Irough whatever portion of the conveyor as-sembly 10 it is desired to discharge a load from the side of the belt. Sliding saddle rests 80 enga~e the guide bar and support rods 72 and rail 60 as previously described. A second guide bar 82, parallel to bar 76, is also attached to the supporting framework and is o~fset vertically and horizontally from bar 76 to support rods 72 and rail 60 at the desired angle to the conveyor path. Rail 60 may then be moved selectively along bars 76 and 8~ to produce ~ide discharge at either fixed or moving loca~ions, ~ongitudinal movement of the rail may be controlled by a motor 84 attached to a drive means ~21G13~768 such as sprocket wheel 86 engaging roller chain 88, ~hich is joined to rail 60, such as at central rod 72.
The chain may further engage idler sprocket 90 at an opposite end of guide bar 76 from the motor. The rail 05 may then be moved to any point between ~he sprockets ~6 and 90 and may reciprocate between them by automatic reversal of the motor whenever an end point is reached.
If desired, the embodiment of Figure 4 may include means to raise and lower the rail~ such as collaxs 70 shown in Figure 1. Such collars may releasibly hold the rods 72 in the desired position by clamping, cross-pins, set screws or other mechanical asteners, or the collars may be viewed instead as being hydraulic or pneumatic cylin-ders having rods 72 as the actuator rods of the cylin-ders, permitting the instantaneous and frequent verticalmovement of rail 60 during continuous operation of the conveyor.
A modification of the conveyor assembly structure is shown in Figure 3, wherein t}le belt is capable of 20 side discharge to either or both sides. A carriage 36 as previously described is at~ached to the conveyor chain 35 for movement along the upper run of the conveyor, as defined by upper run rails 22. A base bracket 46 is mounted on carriage 36 and is provided with a first hinge point 44 off~et to one side vf the conveyor center line. Arm 54 i5 pivotally connected to first hinge point 44 and extends beyond ~he side of belt 21 opposite from hinge point 44 for contact with a rail 60 at the side dump station. Arm 54 is attached to a second base brac-ket g2 having a second hinge point 94 offset frQm theconveyor center line on the opposite lateral side from ~i hinge point 44 by an equal distance. An arm 96 similar to arm 54 is pivotally connected to hinge point 94 and extends across the conveyor center line in the opposite 3LZ~)3i76~
direction to arm 54, extending beyond the side of the conveyor belt 21 on the opposite side from arm 54. The belt 21 is attached to arm 96 at the belt pan joint.
The arc shaped tilt mechanism may be employed to 05 contact one or both arms 54 and 96~ If a rail 60 is em-ployed on both sides of the conveyor assembly, each tilt mechanism can be operated independently except that they should not be operated simultaneously while directly opposed. The use of one or two tilt mechanisms 60 mounted on rails as shown in Figure 4 will permit the side dump location to be varied from fixed place to fixed place to form discrete p~aked piles of discharged material, or the tilt mechanisms may be continuously moved along the conveyor path while dumping to form a winnow.
If the conveyor belt is oriented to have an upper and a lower run, various retaining means may be employed to prevent the belt from hanging in a tilted position while traveling along the lower run in inverted posi-tion. Figure 1 shows a retaining rail 98 against which the tilt arms 54 can rest. This rail is held in place by brackets 100 attached to the braces 24. Other retaining mean~ may include friction clips or gravity latches at-tached to the transport means.
Further embodiments of the conveyvr assembly may provide anti-friction means on all sliding surfaces. For example, the rail 60 and rail 98 may be constructed from or include a wear strip of low friction material such a ultra-high molecular weight polyethylenel or arm ends 64 may be coated with this material at the contact point with such rails. Alternatively, bearin~s may be mounted on the tilt arms S4, 96 to reduce the friction against the rails.
~2~376~3 In operation, the conveyor assembly may be viewed as being a section of a larger conveyor, wherein the section is served by a tilt mechanism, and the total conveyor belt is adapted to tllt in response to the ac-oS tion of the tilt mechanism. Alternatively, the conveyorassembly may be viewed as being an entire conveyor ap-paratus. In either situation, the supporting framework provides a relatively stationary base and typically would be non-tilting. The conveyor belt assembly and transport means are movable with respect to the frame-work and follow a longitudinal pathway defined by the framework. The transport means, however, is like the framework in that it is a non-tilting portion of the conveyor assembly. The belt assembly may be termed the only tilting portion of the conveyor. The joining mea~s 18, which constitutes a hinge point or other tiltable connection, is the interface between the tilting and non-tilting conveyor portions. In the embodiment adapted to tilt to only one side, this interface is identified as a hinge area having hinge pin or bolt 58 as the pivot mechanism. In the embodiment adapted to tilt to either side, the joining means may alternately constitute hinge point 44 and hinge point 94, depending upon the direc-tion of tilt. In all cases, however, part of the moving portion of the conveyor assembly is also non-tilting with respect to khe tilting belt, whereby t:he tilting of such critical components as the chain is avoided. There-fore, by dividing the moving portions of the conveyor assembly into a substantially non-tiltable portion such as the transport means and a tiltable portion such as the belt assembly, an important cause of stress causing component wear and failure has been eliminated.
The above example has been provided with respect to the best embodiment of the invention as presently known.
376~
Cerkain modif ication of the described structure miyht be readily made. Therefore, it should be understood that the scope of thè invention is to be limited only by the following claims.
SIDE DISCHARGE CON~IEYOR ASSEMBLY
The invention relates to power driven conveyors and more ~pecifically to belt conveyors wherein the belt ;s 05 capable of following a curved or helical path. A side discharye station is disclosed that may be variably em-ployed along the length of the conveyor.
With the development of conveyor belt sections able to flex resiliently for bending in two planes, it became possible to discharge a carried load from such a convey-or belt by designing its supporting structure to tilt the`belt laterally and thereby dump the carried load at a fixed point at the side of the b2lt, rather than at the end of the belt as had been previously the common practiceO A conveyor belt having the noted ability to follow vertical, horizontal, and helical curves in its path is taught in United States Patent No. 2,701,050 to Steinborn. Conveyors employing this patent have ~or many years supported the belt on a roller carriage having rollers at the lateral sides o the belt, and the rol-lers followed a pair of parallel channel shaped tracks near the lateral ~ides of the ~elt~ which tracks defined a fixed path having the de~ired curves fixed therein.
The location of the side discharge was therefore fixed by the rail configuration and operated continuously as the belt passed the station.
The usefulness and flexibility of side discharge stations wa~ greatly improved with the invention of ~nited States Patent No. 3,169,631 to Xnappe, which con-tributed the concept o a flexible rail section con-structed from a plurality of rail segments. It then be-came possible to intermittently employ side discharge stations along the length o~ a conveyor~ allowing a sin-gle conveyor to serve at random a plurality of discharge `:
03~
locations and to selectively discharge the conveyed material at the end of the conveyor at a last discharge station.
The.concept of the articulated rail was further developed to permit the inclusion of flexible track assemblies in the total length of a conveyor, whereby the user could adjust the track along the desired path without having to custom bend solid rail. This line of development is taught in United States Patent No.
3,707,218 to Payne and United States Patent No.
4,144,965 to Alldredge. The options for side d~scharge remained, however, much as the~ had been be~ore, with the rail itself defining the discharge station, whether the rail was preformed solid rail or flexible articulated rail.
While the flexible rail discharge sta-tion offered a distinct advantage over the solid rail, this structure also had disadvankages. The construction of articulated rail sections required a great deal of labor, heavy duty materials, and consequent high cost. In addition, the roller carriages ~hat travel on the rail are connected by link chain, which endures twisting and wear when helically bent at a curve or discharge stat.ion.
Consequently, alternatives to the side discharge station employing articulated track segments have been sought.
The present invention provides a solution to each of the above noted problems while providing benefits not previously achieved in the art.
In su~nary, an improved side discharge conveyor assembly is capable of discharging its carried load over a variable position~ The conveyor assembly is of the known type having a support framework defining a generally longitudinal pathway for conveyor operation; a 3~6~
transport means carried by the support framework for relative motion along the longitudinal pathway defined by the support framework and including a plurality of carriages joined to a pulling chain, and a conveyor belt assembly carried by the transport means for motion therewith along the pathway defined by the support framework, the bel-t assembly being of the type forming an endless conveyor belt from a plurality of segments that are joined together to define the belt, each segment having a central transverse flexible convo]ution, each shelf being attached to a joining leg near the end edge of the shelf for uniting adjacent segments. The improvement comprises a first hinge arm connected transversely to the longitudinal pathway of the belt assembly at a joining leg, a first portion of said first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt on a first side thereof for receiving tilting forces during side discharge operations, and a second portion of the first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt center line in opposition to said first portion thereof. A hinged joining means is connected to a carriage and receives said second portion of the first hinge arm in pivotal connection supporting the belt assembly for local tilting by force applied to said first arm portion of the first hinge arm. An actuator means is positionable in the longitudinal pathway of the first arm portion for inducing lateral local tilting to the belt assembly with respect to the transport means to side discharge, in use, at the local tilting position of the belt assembly. A means for longitudinally moving the actuator means with respect to the support framework permits longitudinal variation of the local position o~ side discharge.
' ~1.
The main object of the invention is to provide for the side discharge of a conveyed load wherein the me-chanism supporting the conveyor surface for movement over an underlying support surface is not required it-05 self to tilt during the discharge process, thereby re-ducing an important source of wear on the supporting mechanism.
An important object is to provide a side discharge stationiwherein the conveyor ~orces remain directed through a supporting structure adapted to bear such load. In a roller carriage supported conveyor belt, the carriage is thus maintained substantially in its normal running position against the supporting framework with the rollers bearing the weight of the helt and load as intended in the conveyor design. The discharge is accom-plished by a shift of the load with respect to the car-riage~ for example by movement of the belt and it5 load, rathex than by a shift in the position of the carriage itself.
Another object is to provide for the potential to discharge the load from variable locations along the operational run of the conveyor. Tllis is achieved by providing a means intexmediate ~he conveyor belt and its carriage for tilting the belt without regard to the tilt of the carriage, thereby eliminating the need for local~
special purpose structures in ~he supporting framework.
For example, the need for a flexible rail in the car-riage support structure is eliminated for purposes of side discharge, as the flexible belt itself provides the ability to tilt under the direct influence o a tilt actuator. The side discharge ability then exists along the entire length of the operational belt run.
, ,i ~ ., 376~
A further object is to provide the ability to con-tinuously move the location of a side discharge station during continuous conveyor operation. This is achieved through provision for a tilt actuating mechanism that is 05 able to move its operating station upon demand.
Still another object is to permit side discharge from either side of a conveyor, allowing latitude in the access to the load being discharged.
Examples of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of the conveyor as-sembly having a side discharge station in operation.
Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the belt assembly and transport means, showing details of constructiOn.
Figure 3 is a transverse--cross-section-of an embod-iment of the conveyor assembly adapted to tilt to either side, shown in an expanded posit:ion for clarity.
Figure 4 is an isometric view of the conveyor sup-porting ~ramework and tilt actuating means in an embodi-ment permitting continuous movement of the actuating means.
As best shown in Figure 1, th~ conveyor assembly 10 is in the form of a longitudinal pathway defined by a supporting framework 12 that carries a conveyor belt assembly 14 for movem~nt along ~he pathway. A transport means 16 is connected to the support framework ~or rela-tive longitudinal motion with respect thereto. The belt assembly 14 is joined to the transport means in such a way that movement of the transport means imparts move-ment to the belt assembly relative to the supporting framework. Joining means 18, Figure 2, connects the belt assembly and transport means while permitting the belt assembly to laterally tilt with respect to the transport ~2~37~
means. A tilt actuator means 20 causes the belt assembly to tilt with respect to the transport means at a prese-lected location along the conveyor path.
The supporting framework 12 and conveyor belt 21 05 may be of the known type wherein the belt is capable of following a serpentine pathway defined by the framework.
Specifically, the framework may define an operational or upper run in which the belt is usually positioned to carry a load by gravity, and a lower or return run in lQ which the belt is supported in non-operative position.
Bach run is defined by a pair of channel shaped rails 22 having ~he open face of the channe]. facing the opposite rail of the run. Thus, the top two rails ~2 of Figure 1 may define the upper run, and the bottom two rails 22 define the lower run. Braces 24 maintain the rails of each run at the desired spacing and, optionally, main-tain the upper and lower runs at a fixed spacing. Alter-natives to the presence of a lower run include a contin-uous belt 21 operating in a closed path substantially on one level or belt sections that shuttle back-and-forth on a single run. The channel shaped rails define the longitudinal path of the conveyor assembly and may in-clude curves and spirals.
Conveyor belt 21, best shown in Figures 1 and 2, is capable of ~ollowing a curved path and carries its load by gravity i~ a series of belt pans defined by joined belt sections 26, each having a central, transverse con~
volution 28 formed from flexible material such as rub-ber. A shelf 30 extends from the front and rear of each convolution and is vulcanized to a metal angle shaped stiffener haviny its side portions turned up at an acute angle such as twenty degrees from the central, flat sec-tion, thereby forming a troughed flat section of each pan at the center of each stiffener. The belt is vulcan-~L2~3~8 ized to a wider leg of the stiffener that runs parallelto shelf 30. A narrower leg 32 of the stiffener runs perpendicular to the belt surface and transverse to the direction of the belt travel. Leg 3Z is provided with 05 holes 34 that permit the legs 32 of adjacent belt sec-tions to be fastened together, such as with bolts 33, and to be fastened to related hardware of the belt as-sembly that may be useful in connecting the belt assem-bly to the joining means 18. It is thus possible to as-semble a belt assembly of any desired length by combin-ing belt sections 26. The belt SQ formed may at the same time be attached to other portions of the conveyor as-sembly so as to be moved by the transport means. When belt sections are joined together and each joint at-tached to the moving portion of the conveyor assembly, a - continuous troughed belt made of individual sections with central convolution capable of flexing has been constructed.
The transport means 16 may include a tension member s~ch as conveyor chain 35 engageable with a drive sproo-ket, which is we71 known as a ~ans to advance a convey-or drive chain. Another portion of the transport means may be carriage 36 carrying rotatable rollers 38 and 40.
Rollers 38 are carried on horizontal axes and operate inside rail channels 22 to maintain the vertical posi-tion of the transport means with respect to the support-ing ~ramework. Rollers 40 are carried on vertical axes and operate against the outside of the channel to cause the transport means to follow the supporting framework through horizontal curves. Together, the rollers 38 and 40 cause the carriage 36 to follow the rail channels through curves in both hori%ontal and vertical direc-tions. The carriages 36 are attached to the chain 35 by fasteners 42.
3~6l~
In the past, it has been proposed that a conveyor belt 21 be directly and firmly attached to a carriage 36 and that the rail channel in the upper run be configured to cause the carriage and belt to tip for side dis-05 charge. In contrast to the prior system, a tiltablejoining means 18 is employed between the belt 21 and transport means 16 so that the carriage and chain are not subjected to twisting motion when the belt laterally dischar~es. The preferred tiltable joining msans in-cludes a hinge 44 or other pivot member between the beltand the transport means. The belt is then capable of tilting at least to one lateral side of the conveyor assembly on pivotal hinge 44 without requiring the transport means to similarly ti:Lt~ Hinge 44 may be formed as a portion of a larger hinge structure defined by portions of both the transport means and belt assem-bly. Base bracket 46, which is transverse to the convey-or pathway, may form a part of the hinge structure as-sociated with the transport means~ Figure 2 shows two types of attachment between the ba~e bracket and the transport means. One attachment is directly to a roller carriage 36 and would be employed at whatever interval the car~iages are employed, which may or may not be at each junction of two ~elt sections. The second attach-m~nt is to chain fasteners 48, which are carriages nothaving rollers 38 and 4Q. The latter carria~es are em-ployed between roller carriages 36 if at all. The base bracket 46 includes a channel shaped end portion defined by spaced apart walls 50 and 52, which both dsfine a portion of the hinge 44 and support other parts of the hinge structure between the walls. The channel shaped end of the bracket is preferred to be offset laterally from the center line of the transport means in order to locate the hinge axis near one lateral side of the con-~2037Ç;~
~eyor pathway. The opposite end of the bracket 46 may bean open angle having a single upstanding wall 52, per-mitting the fasteners attaching the hinge structure to the belt assembly to avoid interference with the brac~
05 ket.
Another portion of the hinge structure may include a tiltable arm 54 forming part of the belt assembly. The arm may be directly attached to the belt by bolts 33 passing through the arm and through the holes in belt stiffener-leg-32 at the junction of two belt sections.
One end of the arm fits between bracket walls 50 and 52 at the hinge and defines a further portion of the hingeO
A hinge pin 58 may pass through suitable holes in walls 50 and 52 and arm 54 to define the pivot axis of the hinge l~ing substantially parallel to the longitudinal conveyor pathway.
The conveyor belt 21, pulling chain 35 and rails 22 are substantially symmetrical in transverse cross--section, each having a longitudinal ceDter line in sub-stantially the same vertical longitudinal plane. Thehinge point ordinarily will not be in the plane of the center lines, but will be offset to a lateral side, for example to approximately the edge of the belt so that when the belt tilt~ to discharge a load to the side, the load will be clear of the entire conveyor assembly. The base bracket 46 may therefore have approximately the same width as belt 21 and have hinge point 44 close to one end of the bracket. The bracket is then approxi-mately as wide as the supporting framework and the transport means, although it is not necessary that the bracket be fully as wide as the wide3t part of the transport means, such as the rollers 40 at the lateral ends of the carriages 36, since the upwardly angled sldes of the belt pans serve as A chute during side dis-~2~
charge to direct the load away from the side of the con-veyor assembly.
Tilt actuator means 20 causes the belt to tilt for side discharge by acting on the belt assembly 14. Figure 05 1 shows the tilt actuator means to include a smoothly curved camming rail 60 supported on the side of the con-veyor assembly opposite from the hinge point 44. The rail 60 has opposite ends 62 that are below the level at which contact is made with the belt assembly 14~ and the center of the rail 60 is curved upwardly from the ends 62 in a smooth arc. Contact with the belt assembly may be against elongated portions of arms 54 extending la-terally beyond the side edge of the belt 21 on the side opposite from the hinge point~ ~rms 54 therefore act as levers providing a mechanical advantage to the rail 60 in tilting the belt and its carried load. Figure 1 shows rail 60 with its central raised ar~ sufficiently above the ordinaxy line of travel of arms 54 such that the arms are raised at their free ends 64 and forced to pi-vot on hinge point 44 as the arms come into contact with rail 60 and slide toward the peak of the arc. This cam-ming action causes the conveyor belt 21 to assumP a side tilted configuration, d;scharging its load when the de-gree of tilt is sufficient. The arms 54 continue toslide on rail 60 past the crest of the arc, returning to a substantially horizontal position and correspondingly returning the belt to a level position.
The position of the side discharge station may be selectively located by adjustment of the rail 60 posi-tion. Figure 1 shows an embodiment wherein the rail 60 is attached to the conveyor assembly 10 at the support-ing framework, such as to vertical braces 24. Attachment arms 66 extend laterally from braces 24 and are engaged in collars 68, which, in turnl are connected to collars 37~i~
~11--70 that receive support rods 72. Rail 60 is supported by rods 72, such as in saddle brackets 74. The side dis-charge station location inik;ally may be selected by choosing the attachment arms to which the rail 60 will 05 be mounted by collars 68. The location of discharge fur-ther may be selected by adjusting the height of the rail via the degree of insertion of rods 72 in collars 70. If desired, ~he rail may be lowered to an inoperative posi-tion when no side discharge is desired at a rail 60. The rail lies approximately in a single plane r which may include rods 72 and collar 70 as well. This plane is tilted fxom vertical toward the belt assembly so that the rail moves both upwardly and toward the belt assem-bly as it is raised, thus maintaining good ~ontact with the arms 54 along the entire tilted length of belt as-sembly without requiring the arDns 54 to be excessively long for cDntacting the rail at the peak of the arc.
Further adjustment of the side discharge position is made possible by the embodiment of Figure 4, wherein the rail 60 i5 movable longitudinally to any desired position. Guide bar 76 is attached to the supporting framework by attachment arms 78 and provides a continu-ous track ~Irough whatever portion of the conveyor as-sembly 10 it is desired to discharge a load from the side of the belt. Sliding saddle rests 80 enga~e the guide bar and support rods 72 and rail 60 as previously described. A second guide bar 82, parallel to bar 76, is also attached to the supporting framework and is o~fset vertically and horizontally from bar 76 to support rods 72 and rail 60 at the desired angle to the conveyor path. Rail 60 may then be moved selectively along bars 76 and 8~ to produce ~ide discharge at either fixed or moving loca~ions, ~ongitudinal movement of the rail may be controlled by a motor 84 attached to a drive means ~21G13~768 such as sprocket wheel 86 engaging roller chain 88, ~hich is joined to rail 60, such as at central rod 72.
The chain may further engage idler sprocket 90 at an opposite end of guide bar 76 from the motor. The rail 05 may then be moved to any point between ~he sprockets ~6 and 90 and may reciprocate between them by automatic reversal of the motor whenever an end point is reached.
If desired, the embodiment of Figure 4 may include means to raise and lower the rail~ such as collaxs 70 shown in Figure 1. Such collars may releasibly hold the rods 72 in the desired position by clamping, cross-pins, set screws or other mechanical asteners, or the collars may be viewed instead as being hydraulic or pneumatic cylin-ders having rods 72 as the actuator rods of the cylin-ders, permitting the instantaneous and frequent verticalmovement of rail 60 during continuous operation of the conveyor.
A modification of the conveyor assembly structure is shown in Figure 3, wherein t}le belt is capable of 20 side discharge to either or both sides. A carriage 36 as previously described is at~ached to the conveyor chain 35 for movement along the upper run of the conveyor, as defined by upper run rails 22. A base bracket 46 is mounted on carriage 36 and is provided with a first hinge point 44 off~et to one side vf the conveyor center line. Arm 54 i5 pivotally connected to first hinge point 44 and extends beyond ~he side of belt 21 opposite from hinge point 44 for contact with a rail 60 at the side dump station. Arm 54 is attached to a second base brac-ket g2 having a second hinge point 94 offset frQm theconveyor center line on the opposite lateral side from ~i hinge point 44 by an equal distance. An arm 96 similar to arm 54 is pivotally connected to hinge point 94 and extends across the conveyor center line in the opposite 3LZ~)3i76~
direction to arm 54, extending beyond the side of the conveyor belt 21 on the opposite side from arm 54. The belt 21 is attached to arm 96 at the belt pan joint.
The arc shaped tilt mechanism may be employed to 05 contact one or both arms 54 and 96~ If a rail 60 is em-ployed on both sides of the conveyor assembly, each tilt mechanism can be operated independently except that they should not be operated simultaneously while directly opposed. The use of one or two tilt mechanisms 60 mounted on rails as shown in Figure 4 will permit the side dump location to be varied from fixed place to fixed place to form discrete p~aked piles of discharged material, or the tilt mechanisms may be continuously moved along the conveyor path while dumping to form a winnow.
If the conveyor belt is oriented to have an upper and a lower run, various retaining means may be employed to prevent the belt from hanging in a tilted position while traveling along the lower run in inverted posi-tion. Figure 1 shows a retaining rail 98 against which the tilt arms 54 can rest. This rail is held in place by brackets 100 attached to the braces 24. Other retaining mean~ may include friction clips or gravity latches at-tached to the transport means.
Further embodiments of the conveyvr assembly may provide anti-friction means on all sliding surfaces. For example, the rail 60 and rail 98 may be constructed from or include a wear strip of low friction material such a ultra-high molecular weight polyethylenel or arm ends 64 may be coated with this material at the contact point with such rails. Alternatively, bearin~s may be mounted on the tilt arms S4, 96 to reduce the friction against the rails.
~2~376~3 In operation, the conveyor assembly may be viewed as being a section of a larger conveyor, wherein the section is served by a tilt mechanism, and the total conveyor belt is adapted to tllt in response to the ac-oS tion of the tilt mechanism. Alternatively, the conveyorassembly may be viewed as being an entire conveyor ap-paratus. In either situation, the supporting framework provides a relatively stationary base and typically would be non-tilting. The conveyor belt assembly and transport means are movable with respect to the frame-work and follow a longitudinal pathway defined by the framework. The transport means, however, is like the framework in that it is a non-tilting portion of the conveyor assembly. The belt assembly may be termed the only tilting portion of the conveyor. The joining mea~s 18, which constitutes a hinge point or other tiltable connection, is the interface between the tilting and non-tilting conveyor portions. In the embodiment adapted to tilt to only one side, this interface is identified as a hinge area having hinge pin or bolt 58 as the pivot mechanism. In the embodiment adapted to tilt to either side, the joining means may alternately constitute hinge point 44 and hinge point 94, depending upon the direc-tion of tilt. In all cases, however, part of the moving portion of the conveyor assembly is also non-tilting with respect to khe tilting belt, whereby t:he tilting of such critical components as the chain is avoided. There-fore, by dividing the moving portions of the conveyor assembly into a substantially non-tiltable portion such as the transport means and a tiltable portion such as the belt assembly, an important cause of stress causing component wear and failure has been eliminated.
The above example has been provided with respect to the best embodiment of the invention as presently known.
376~
Cerkain modif ication of the described structure miyht be readily made. Therefore, it should be understood that the scope of thè invention is to be limited only by the following claims.
Claims (9)
1. An improved side discharge conveyor assembly capable of discharging its carried load over a variable position, wherein the conveyor assembly is of the known type having a support framework defining a generally longitudinal pathway for conveyor operation; a transport means carried by the support framework for relative motion along the longitudinal pathway defined by the support framework and including a plurality of carriages joined to a pulling chain; and a conveyor belt assembly carried by the transport means for motion therewith along the pathway defined by the support framework, the belt assembly being of the type forming an endless conveyor belt from a plurality of segments that are joined together to define the belt, each segment having a central transverse flexible convolution, each shelf being attached to a joining leg near the end edge of the shelf for uniting adjacent segments, wherein the improvement comprises:
(a) a first hinge arm connected transversely to the longitudinal pathway of the belt assembly at a joining leg, a first portion of said first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt on a first side thereof for receiving tilting forces during side discharge operations, and a second portion of the first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt center line in opposition to said first portion thereof;
(b) a hinged joining means connected to a carriage and receiving said second portion of the first hinge arm in pivotal connection supporting the belt assembly for local tilting by force applied to said first arm portion of the first hinge arm;
(c) actuator means positionable in the longitudinal pathway of the first arm portion for inducing lateral local tilting to the belt assembly with respect to the transport means to side discharge, in use, at the local tilting position of the belt assembly;
and (d) means for longitudinally moving the actuator means with respect to the support framework for permitting longitudinal variation of the local position of side discharge.
(a) a first hinge arm connected transversely to the longitudinal pathway of the belt assembly at a joining leg, a first portion of said first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt on a first side thereof for receiving tilting forces during side discharge operations, and a second portion of the first hinge arm extending laterally of the conveyor belt center line in opposition to said first portion thereof;
(b) a hinged joining means connected to a carriage and receiving said second portion of the first hinge arm in pivotal connection supporting the belt assembly for local tilting by force applied to said first arm portion of the first hinge arm;
(c) actuator means positionable in the longitudinal pathway of the first arm portion for inducing lateral local tilting to the belt assembly with respect to the transport means to side discharge, in use, at the local tilting position of the belt assembly;
and (d) means for longitudinally moving the actuator means with respect to the support framework for permitting longitudinal variation of the local position of side discharge.
2. The conveyor assembly of claim 1, wherein said support framework is of the type defining both an upper, operational conveyor run and a lower, return conveyor run along the conveyor pathway, and wherein the belt assembly includes an endless belt carried in inverted, non-load carrying position along the lower run with respect to its position along the upper run, further comprising retaining means for preventing the belt assembly from tilting while traveling along the lower run.
3. The conveyor assembly of claim 2, wherein said retaining means comprises a longitudinal rail contacting said first portion of the first hinge arm on the first side of the belt.
4. The conveyor assembly of claim 3, wherein said belt assembly further comprises an arm extending laterally of the conveyor pathway on the side thereof opposite from said joining means for contacting the longitudinal rail along the lower conveyor run.
5. The conveyor assembly of claim 1, wherein said actuator means comprises a camming member positioned to contact said belt assembly and deflect the belt assembly into a tilted side discharge position as the belt assembly moves longitudinally along the conveyor pathway, wherein said camming member includes a curved camming surface having a central crest and a camming surface sloping downwardly from each end thereof, and wherein the downwardly sloping camming surfaces are offset laterally from the conveyor pathway by a greater distance than the lateral offset of the crest.
6. The conveyor assembly of claim 1, wherein said actuator means comprises a camming member and a height adjusting means for permitting height variation of the camming member with respect to the supporting framework for varying the degree of tilt of the belt assembly during side discharge, wherein said height adjusting means is offwet toward a lateral side of said supporting framework and comprises means for moving the camming means acutely upwardly and laterally toward the conveyor pathway.
7. The conveyor assembly of claim 1, wherein said joining means comprises:
a first pivot member connected to the transport means and offset laterally of the center line of the conveyor pathway toward a first side of the conveyor assembly;
a second pivot member connected to said belt assembly and offset laterally of the center line of the conveyor pathway toward a second, opposite side of the conveyor assembly; and a linking member connected to said first and second pivot members for permitting the belt assembly to pivot on either first or second pivot member for side discharge to either side of the conveyor pathway, said linking member comprising a first tiltable arm extending between said first and second pivot members and protruding laterally beyond the second pivot member for contact with said actuator means to tilt the belt assembly on the first pivot member.
a first pivot member connected to the transport means and offset laterally of the center line of the conveyor pathway toward a first side of the conveyor assembly;
a second pivot member connected to said belt assembly and offset laterally of the center line of the conveyor pathway toward a second, opposite side of the conveyor assembly; and a linking member connected to said first and second pivot members for permitting the belt assembly to pivot on either first or second pivot member for side discharge to either side of the conveyor pathway, said linking member comprising a first tiltable arm extending between said first and second pivot members and protruding laterally beyond the second pivot member for contact with said actuator means to tilt the belt assembly on the first pivot member.
8. The conveyor assembly of claim 7, wherein said belt assembly further comprises a second tiltable arm connected to said second pivot member for hinged movement with respect to said linking member and further connected to said belt, wherein the second tiltable arm extends laterally of the conveyor pathway on the side opposite from the second pivot member for contact with said actuator means to tilt the belt assembly on the second pivot member.
9. The conveyor assembly of claim 8, wherein said linking member further comprises a bracket having a channel shaped portion with an open top, said bracket being adapted to receive said second tiltable arm through the open top when the belt is in non-tilted position.
Priority Applications (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| AU10948/83A AU555799B2 (en) | 1983-02-15 | 1983-02-02 | Side-discharge conveyor |
| CA000421617A CA1203768A (en) | 1983-02-15 | 1983-02-15 | Side discharge conveyor assembly |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000421617A CA1203768A (en) | 1983-02-15 | 1983-02-15 | Side discharge conveyor assembly |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1203768A true CA1203768A (en) | 1986-04-29 |
Family
ID=4124576
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000421617A Expired CA1203768A (en) | 1983-02-15 | 1983-02-15 | Side discharge conveyor assembly |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| AU (1) | AU555799B2 (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1203768A (en) |
Families Citing this family (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE202010001853U1 (en) * | 2010-02-01 | 2010-05-27 | Beumer Gmbh & Co. Kg | Device for targeted tilting of objects |
-
1983
- 1983-02-02 AU AU10948/83A patent/AU555799B2/en not_active Ceased
- 1983-02-15 CA CA000421617A patent/CA1203768A/en not_active Expired
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| AU555799B2 (en) | 1986-10-09 |
| AU1094883A (en) | 1984-08-09 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
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| MKEX | Expiry |