CA2195903A1 - Reciprocating conveyor - Google Patents
Reciprocating conveyorInfo
- Publication number
- CA2195903A1 CA2195903A1 CA002195903A CA2195903A CA2195903A1 CA 2195903 A1 CA2195903 A1 CA 2195903A1 CA 002195903 A CA002195903 A CA 002195903A CA 2195903 A CA2195903 A CA 2195903A CA 2195903 A1 CA2195903 A1 CA 2195903A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- slat
- slat members
- members
- reciprocating conveyor
- frame
- 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.)
- Abandoned
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
- B65G25/00—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement
- B65G25/04—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement the carrier or impeller having identical forward and return paths of movement, e.g. reciprocating conveyors
- B65G25/06—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement the carrier or impeller having identical forward and return paths of movement, e.g. reciprocating conveyors having carriers, e.g. belts
-
- 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
- B65G25/00—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement
- B65G25/04—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement the carrier or impeller having identical forward and return paths of movement, e.g. reciprocating conveyors
- B65G25/06—Conveyors comprising a cyclically-moving, e.g. reciprocating, carrier or impeller which is disengaged from the load during the return part of its movement the carrier or impeller having identical forward and return paths of movement, e.g. reciprocating conveyors having carriers, e.g. belts
- B65G25/065—Reciprocating floor conveyors
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Reciprocating Conveyors (AREA)
- Chain Conveyers (AREA)
Abstract
A reciprocating conveyor comprising a supporting frame and at least two elongated slat members mounted adjacent each other on the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions. A drive system is associated with each of the slat members for reciprocating the slat members between the first and second positions. The movement of the slat members is guided by a guide system comprising a series of slat supports spaced at intervals on the frame. Each slat support extends transversely to the slat members and is formed with a series of notches, each notch slidably receiving one of the slat members.
The notches of the slat supports co-operate to define guide channels to support each slat member at intervals along its length and to guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions. The slat supports are preferably constructed from a low friction material such as UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) plastic.
The notches of the slat supports co-operate to define guide channels to support each slat member at intervals along its length and to guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions. The slat supports are preferably constructed from a low friction material such as UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) plastic.
Description
21 ~903 RECIPROCATING CONVEYOR
This invention relates to reciprocating conveyors, and more particularly to a slat type reciprocating conveyor having a novel system for guiding the movement of the slats.
Reciprocating slat type conveyors for moving material are well known. The conveyors comprise groups of slats that move together in a conveying direction to move material. The slats are then retreated sequentially to their start position ready to being the cycle again.
These conveyors are particularly useful when installed in the floor of large storage bins where the conveyor can be used to move and compact material at the rear of the bin for efficient storage. Once the bin is full, the conveyor is equally useful at efficiently unloading the stored material. Canadian Patent 1,091,611 is an example of a known slat type conveyor.
Existing slat type conveyors tend to rely on complex systems for driving and guiding the individual slat members. There is a gap between adjacent slat members to allow for independent movement of each member and gaskets are used to fill the gaps. In some designs, the slat members move on a continuous underlying surface that fully supports and controls the movement of the slat members. This arrangement is prone to jamming if material gets past the gaskets and beneath the slat members to accumulate on the support surface. Material that gets past the gaskets often tends to dislocate and damage the gaskets. In other designs, such as the conveyor system of Canadian Patent 1,091,611, each slat member moves on a guide beam aligned with the slat member. This arrangement requires an individual guide beam for each slat member with resulting high construction costs.
21 95~03 Applicant has developed a reciprocating conveyor that employs a unique slat guide system that avoids the problems of the prior art.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a reciprocating conveyor comprising:
a supporting frame;
at least two elongated slat members mounted adjacent each other on the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions;
drive means associated with each of the slat members for reciprocating the slat members between the first and second positions; and a guide system comprising a series of slat supports spaced at intervals on the frame, each slat support extending transversely to the at least two slat members and being formed with a series of notches, each notch slidably receiving one of the slat members, the notches of the slat supports co-operating to define guide channels to support the slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member and guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions.
Preferably, the slat supports are formed from a low-friction material such as UHMW plastic to accommodate sliding movement of the slat members.
Aspects of the present invention are illustrated, merely by way of example, in the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a fragmentary plan view of a reciprocating conveyor according to the present invention with a broken away portion to disclose details of construction;
Figure 2 is a section view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1 showing the drive means of conveyor; and Figure 3 is a detail section view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2.
Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a slat type reciprocating conveyor 2 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The conveyor 2 is supported by a frame comprising laterally extending side beams 4 that are interconnected with transverse beams 6 at spaced intervals. To keep the frame light, yet sturdy transverse beams 6 are preferably hollow box sections.
The actual conveying surface comprises at least one group of at least two elongated slat members 8 that extend parallel to side beams 4. Slat members 8 are mounted adjacent each other atop transverse beams 6 of the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions in the directions indicated by arrow 9. In the illustrated embodiment, there are a plurality of groups of slat members 8, each group consisting of three slats 10, 12 and 14. In Figure 1, groups of slats are indicated at 15, 16 and 17. It will be understood by a skilled person that each group of slats may include any desired number in excess of two.
The conveyor of the present invention includes a novel guide system for controlling movement of the slat members. At each transverse beam 6, there is a slat support 20 mounted atop the transverse beam as best shown ..
in Figure 3. Each slat support 20 extends transversely to slat members 8 and is formed with a series of notches 22. Each notch is dimensioned to receive one of the slat members. In the illustrated embodiment, the slat members have a generally rectangular cross-section and, accordingly, notches 22 are also rectangular.
The plurality of slat supports 20 on transverse beams 6 are arranged at spaced intervals on the frame and aligned notches 22 in consecutive slat supports 20 define guide channels that support slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member. The channels act to guide reciprocal movement of the slat members 8 between the first and second positions of the conveyor.
Preferably, slat supports 20 are formed from a material having a low-coefficient of friction such as UHMW plastic to accommodate sliding movement of the slat members within notches 22. Other materials such as aluminium or brass can also be used. Slat supports 20 are preferably formed by taking an elongate piece of material dimensioned to fit atop transverse beam 6 and machining notches appropriately spaced notches into the material.
Drive means associated with each of the groups of slat members are provided for reciprocating the slat members on slat supports 20. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the drive means of the illustrated embodiment comprise hydraulic cylinders mounted below slat members 8. A
plurality of cylinders 28, 29 and 30 are provided and the cylinders are connected by piston rods to transverse drive beams 38, 39 and 40, respectively. One slat member of each group is interconnected for simultaneous movement by a drive beam. Each drive beam is attached to slat members by upwardly extending brackets 34. Referring to Figure 1, a plurality of brackets 34 on drive beam 38 21 95qO3 connect all of slat members 10 of the plurality of groups. In the same manner, drive beam 39 connects all of slat members 12 and drive beam 40 connects all of slat members 14.
Figure 2 is a detail view of hydraulic cylinder 28 showing its positioning below slat members 8. Cylinder 28 is pivotally mounted at 32 to a bracket 33 extending from transverse beam 6. Piston rod 36 extends from the other end of the cylinder and is pivotally connected at 42 to bracket 34. When piston rod 36 is extended or retracted, bracket 34 and attached slat members 10 are moved on slat supports 20 in the directions indicated by arrow 44. Other cylinders 29 and 30 are identical in their arrangement and operation.
In operation, hydraulic cylinders 28, 29 and 30 are operated in unison to extend the piston rods and advance all slat members from a first position to a second position to convey material on the slat members forward.
Then, a single hydraulic cylinder, for example, cylinder 20 28, is actuated alone to retreat all interconnected slat members 10 of each group back from their second position to the first start position. In a similar manner, the other cylinders are operated independently to retreat the slat members to which they are connected. This operation 25 acts to move the entire conveyor surface defined by the slat members back to the first position in stages for another cycle without moving the material on the slat members backwards.
Referring to Figure 3, it can be clearly seen that 30 individual slat members 8 are spaced apart to define a gap 50 between the sides 52 of adjacent slat members. A
gasket 54 is insertable into each of the gaps 50 to seal the gap and at the same time accommodate relative movement of adjacent slat members. Gasket 54 comprises 2~ 95qO3 an elongate strip that is mounted to the side of one slat member 8 at 55 and extends across the gap to slidably engage with the side of the adjacent slat member.
Preferably, each gasket 54 is fabricated from UHMW
5 plastic and has an inverted L-shaped cross-section with first and second legs 56 and 57, respectively. First leg 56 serves to mount the gasket to the side of the slat member and second leg 57 extends across gap 50 to seal the gap. The reduced surface area of leg 57 engaging with adjacent slat member 8 as opposed to the full height of the gasket reduces friction to reduce the force needed to move the slat members.
The inverted L-shaped cross-section of gasket 54 creates a small channel 60 below each gasket leg 57 15 running the length of each slat member. Leg 57 is flexible and will deflect to allow for passage of debris material. Therefore, material that gets past gasket 54 does not tend to dislocate and damage the gasket as in conventional reciprocating designs. Channel 60 below leg 20 57 defines a passage for the debris material to fall downwardly past the slat member and through the frame so that it is not retained between or below the slat members to cause jamming. In this regard, the slat supports 20 which are spaced at intervals over the frame do not 25 define a continuous slat member support layer to retain material.
Although the present invention has been described in some detail by way of example for purposes of clarity and understanding, it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be practised within the scope of the appended claims.
This invention relates to reciprocating conveyors, and more particularly to a slat type reciprocating conveyor having a novel system for guiding the movement of the slats.
Reciprocating slat type conveyors for moving material are well known. The conveyors comprise groups of slats that move together in a conveying direction to move material. The slats are then retreated sequentially to their start position ready to being the cycle again.
These conveyors are particularly useful when installed in the floor of large storage bins where the conveyor can be used to move and compact material at the rear of the bin for efficient storage. Once the bin is full, the conveyor is equally useful at efficiently unloading the stored material. Canadian Patent 1,091,611 is an example of a known slat type conveyor.
Existing slat type conveyors tend to rely on complex systems for driving and guiding the individual slat members. There is a gap between adjacent slat members to allow for independent movement of each member and gaskets are used to fill the gaps. In some designs, the slat members move on a continuous underlying surface that fully supports and controls the movement of the slat members. This arrangement is prone to jamming if material gets past the gaskets and beneath the slat members to accumulate on the support surface. Material that gets past the gaskets often tends to dislocate and damage the gaskets. In other designs, such as the conveyor system of Canadian Patent 1,091,611, each slat member moves on a guide beam aligned with the slat member. This arrangement requires an individual guide beam for each slat member with resulting high construction costs.
21 95~03 Applicant has developed a reciprocating conveyor that employs a unique slat guide system that avoids the problems of the prior art.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a reciprocating conveyor comprising:
a supporting frame;
at least two elongated slat members mounted adjacent each other on the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions;
drive means associated with each of the slat members for reciprocating the slat members between the first and second positions; and a guide system comprising a series of slat supports spaced at intervals on the frame, each slat support extending transversely to the at least two slat members and being formed with a series of notches, each notch slidably receiving one of the slat members, the notches of the slat supports co-operating to define guide channels to support the slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member and guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions.
Preferably, the slat supports are formed from a low-friction material such as UHMW plastic to accommodate sliding movement of the slat members.
Aspects of the present invention are illustrated, merely by way of example, in the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a fragmentary plan view of a reciprocating conveyor according to the present invention with a broken away portion to disclose details of construction;
Figure 2 is a section view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1 showing the drive means of conveyor; and Figure 3 is a detail section view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2.
Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a slat type reciprocating conveyor 2 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The conveyor 2 is supported by a frame comprising laterally extending side beams 4 that are interconnected with transverse beams 6 at spaced intervals. To keep the frame light, yet sturdy transverse beams 6 are preferably hollow box sections.
The actual conveying surface comprises at least one group of at least two elongated slat members 8 that extend parallel to side beams 4. Slat members 8 are mounted adjacent each other atop transverse beams 6 of the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions in the directions indicated by arrow 9. In the illustrated embodiment, there are a plurality of groups of slat members 8, each group consisting of three slats 10, 12 and 14. In Figure 1, groups of slats are indicated at 15, 16 and 17. It will be understood by a skilled person that each group of slats may include any desired number in excess of two.
The conveyor of the present invention includes a novel guide system for controlling movement of the slat members. At each transverse beam 6, there is a slat support 20 mounted atop the transverse beam as best shown ..
in Figure 3. Each slat support 20 extends transversely to slat members 8 and is formed with a series of notches 22. Each notch is dimensioned to receive one of the slat members. In the illustrated embodiment, the slat members have a generally rectangular cross-section and, accordingly, notches 22 are also rectangular.
The plurality of slat supports 20 on transverse beams 6 are arranged at spaced intervals on the frame and aligned notches 22 in consecutive slat supports 20 define guide channels that support slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member. The channels act to guide reciprocal movement of the slat members 8 between the first and second positions of the conveyor.
Preferably, slat supports 20 are formed from a material having a low-coefficient of friction such as UHMW plastic to accommodate sliding movement of the slat members within notches 22. Other materials such as aluminium or brass can also be used. Slat supports 20 are preferably formed by taking an elongate piece of material dimensioned to fit atop transverse beam 6 and machining notches appropriately spaced notches into the material.
Drive means associated with each of the groups of slat members are provided for reciprocating the slat members on slat supports 20. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the drive means of the illustrated embodiment comprise hydraulic cylinders mounted below slat members 8. A
plurality of cylinders 28, 29 and 30 are provided and the cylinders are connected by piston rods to transverse drive beams 38, 39 and 40, respectively. One slat member of each group is interconnected for simultaneous movement by a drive beam. Each drive beam is attached to slat members by upwardly extending brackets 34. Referring to Figure 1, a plurality of brackets 34 on drive beam 38 21 95qO3 connect all of slat members 10 of the plurality of groups. In the same manner, drive beam 39 connects all of slat members 12 and drive beam 40 connects all of slat members 14.
Figure 2 is a detail view of hydraulic cylinder 28 showing its positioning below slat members 8. Cylinder 28 is pivotally mounted at 32 to a bracket 33 extending from transverse beam 6. Piston rod 36 extends from the other end of the cylinder and is pivotally connected at 42 to bracket 34. When piston rod 36 is extended or retracted, bracket 34 and attached slat members 10 are moved on slat supports 20 in the directions indicated by arrow 44. Other cylinders 29 and 30 are identical in their arrangement and operation.
In operation, hydraulic cylinders 28, 29 and 30 are operated in unison to extend the piston rods and advance all slat members from a first position to a second position to convey material on the slat members forward.
Then, a single hydraulic cylinder, for example, cylinder 20 28, is actuated alone to retreat all interconnected slat members 10 of each group back from their second position to the first start position. In a similar manner, the other cylinders are operated independently to retreat the slat members to which they are connected. This operation 25 acts to move the entire conveyor surface defined by the slat members back to the first position in stages for another cycle without moving the material on the slat members backwards.
Referring to Figure 3, it can be clearly seen that 30 individual slat members 8 are spaced apart to define a gap 50 between the sides 52 of adjacent slat members. A
gasket 54 is insertable into each of the gaps 50 to seal the gap and at the same time accommodate relative movement of adjacent slat members. Gasket 54 comprises 2~ 95qO3 an elongate strip that is mounted to the side of one slat member 8 at 55 and extends across the gap to slidably engage with the side of the adjacent slat member.
Preferably, each gasket 54 is fabricated from UHMW
5 plastic and has an inverted L-shaped cross-section with first and second legs 56 and 57, respectively. First leg 56 serves to mount the gasket to the side of the slat member and second leg 57 extends across gap 50 to seal the gap. The reduced surface area of leg 57 engaging with adjacent slat member 8 as opposed to the full height of the gasket reduces friction to reduce the force needed to move the slat members.
The inverted L-shaped cross-section of gasket 54 creates a small channel 60 below each gasket leg 57 15 running the length of each slat member. Leg 57 is flexible and will deflect to allow for passage of debris material. Therefore, material that gets past gasket 54 does not tend to dislocate and damage the gasket as in conventional reciprocating designs. Channel 60 below leg 20 57 defines a passage for the debris material to fall downwardly past the slat member and through the frame so that it is not retained between or below the slat members to cause jamming. In this regard, the slat supports 20 which are spaced at intervals over the frame do not 25 define a continuous slat member support layer to retain material.
Although the present invention has been described in some detail by way of example for purposes of clarity and understanding, it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be practised within the scope of the appended claims.
Claims (9)
1. A reciprocating conveyor comprising:
a supporting frame;
at least two elongated slat members mounted adjacent each other on the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions;
drive means associated with each of the slat members for reciprocating the slat members between the first and second positions; and a guide system comprising a series of slat supports spaced at intervals on the frame, each slat support extending transversely to the at least two slat members and being formed with a series of notches, each notch slidably receiving one of the slat members, the notches of the slat supports co-operating to define guide channels to support the slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member and guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions.
a supporting frame;
at least two elongated slat members mounted adjacent each other on the frame for independent longitudinal reciprocation over the frame between first and second positions;
drive means associated with each of the slat members for reciprocating the slat members between the first and second positions; and a guide system comprising a series of slat supports spaced at intervals on the frame, each slat support extending transversely to the at least two slat members and being formed with a series of notches, each notch slidably receiving one of the slat members, the notches of the slat supports co-operating to define guide channels to support the slat members at intervals along the length of each slat member and guide reciprocal movement of the slat members between the first and second positions.
2. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 1 in which the slat supports are fabricated from a low-friction material.
3. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 2 in which the low-friction material is UHMW.
4. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 1 in which the slat members are spaced apart to define a gap between the sides of adjacent slat members and including a gasket insertable into each of the gaps to accommodate relative movement of adjacent slat members while sealing the gap.
5. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 4 in which the gasket is mounted to the side of one slat member and extends across the gap to slidably engage with the side of the adjacent slat member.
6. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 5 in which each gasket comprises an elongate member having an inverted L-shaped cross-section with first and second legs, the first leg serving to mount the gasket to the side of the slat member and the second leg being flexible and extending across the gap.
7. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 1 in which the drive means acts to move all the slat members together from the first to the second position and returns the slat members individually back from the second position to the first position.
8. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 1 in which the at least two slat members are arranged into at least one group of at least two slat members.
9. A reciprocating conveyor as claimed in claim 8 in which the drive means is associated with each group of slat members for moving all the slat members of each group together from the first to the second position and returning the slat members of each group sequentially back from the second position to the start position.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002195903A CA2195903A1 (en) | 1997-01-24 | 1997-01-24 | Reciprocating conveyor |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002195903A CA2195903A1 (en) | 1997-01-24 | 1997-01-24 | Reciprocating conveyor |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2195903A1 true CA2195903A1 (en) | 1998-07-24 |
Family
ID=4159748
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002195903A Abandoned CA2195903A1 (en) | 1997-01-24 | 1997-01-24 | Reciprocating conveyor |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2195903A1 (en) |
-
1997
- 1997-01-24 CA CA002195903A patent/CA2195903A1/en not_active Abandoned
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEER | Examination request | ||
| FZDE | Discontinued |