CA2890531C - Sealed lathe conveyor pulley cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

A conveyor belt pulley cleaner characterized as a sealed lathe like device which cleans the pulley drum outside diameter from material build up. The cleaner utilizes a cutting tool which fully traverses the width of the pulley in both directions to remove material build up. In addition, the cutting tooth is removable and the protruding length can be adjusted while the conveyor is operating. Furthermore, the pulley cleaner has a continuous seal which prevents cuttings and debris from contaminating the cleaner internal components. The cleaner is symmetric and is easily modified for all mounting orientations including top cut and bottom cut of the pulley face. The cleaner drive motor and tooth block holder are accessible outside the operating area allowing for online maintenance without shutting down the conveyor belt. No components of the cleaner are in contact with rotating pulley while it is in the maintenance position.

Description

Sealed Lathe Conveyor Pulley Cleaner TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] Conveyor Pulley Cleaners BACKGROUND

[0002] Belt conveyors are used in numerous industries to transport material. Belt conveyors are essentially comprised of conveyor belting, belt support idlers and pulleys. Pulleys are drum like devices that are utilized to provide changes in direction for the belting as needed for power transmission, tension control and travel path. For applications where earth materials are conveyed, some of the material can be transferred to the underside of the belt and subsequently transferred onto the pulleys. Depending on the nature of the material, the material may build up and compact on the pulley face. Buildup of materials onto a pulley is undesirable for conveyor operation and performance.
Uneven material build up creates belt tracking issues, which if left unaltered can be destructive to the belt, conveyor drive equipment and the conveyor structure. In addition to tracking issues the buildup can overload the conveyor belt in the regime of the material buildup causing belt ruptures and eventual shutdown of the conveyor. Continual removal of material from the pulleys is required to avoid these problems.

[0003] There are pulley cleaners currently available in the market that employ a chain drive and multiple knives to remove build up. The knives are attached to a chain and as the chain travels between the drive and idler sprocket the knives are dragged across the pulley surface to clean it. These pulley cleaners are prone to clogging as the freed material builds up in the drive chain. As a result the motor that drives the chain is overloaded and the cleaner fails requiring removal of the entire assembly for cleaning and maintenance. Removal of the cleaner requires the conveyor to be shut down and locked out for personnel protection.

[0004] Reciprocating Conveyor Pulley Cleaner patent number CA02853395 is a related patent that utilizes a plurality of reciprocating cutters to cover the width of the pulley. This cleaner relies on the multiple sets of fixed length cutters traveling a relatively short distance as to cover the entire pulley face. If the distance between the multiple cutters becomes too large the reciprocating bar would become impractical to use as the width of the cutter sets would protrude further past the existing structure and interfere with walkways. Inherent in the design is the relative motion of the cutters that reciprocate past the outside of the conveyor belt. The extending of reciprocating cutters outside is a potential safety concern if a personal catwalk is near (which is typical in most cases). The design accounts for impact loading from material build on the pulley with a pivot on the cutter tooth sets. If the existing pulley support structures are ignored the cleaner can be rotated 180 degrees and the spare teeth on the back side can be used when the front teeth wear out or get damaged. The conveyor would need to be shut down to perform this operation as the bar holding the teeth would be in contact with the rotating pulley as it was removed. In addition to this, material build up left behind on the pulley from the worn teeth would need to be removed manually off the pulley to allow insertion of the new teeth. The design does not address the complete sealing of the mechanism, the bottom is open to the environment. The multiple teeth are also a potential maintenance concern as if a single tooth gets damaged it would require the full tooth set to be removed and replaced. If the tooth set was left in place for example with 4 good teeth and 1 bad tooth there would be a localized spot on the pulley face they would not get cleaned and thus back to the original problem of localized material build up.
SUMMARY

[0005] In an embodiment, there is provided a pulley cleaner, comprising a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley; a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame; a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within the main frame; and a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley, the length of the tooth being adjustable.

[0006] In various embodiments, there may be included any one or more of the following features: the tooth is removably connected to the tooth block; the main frame is longer than the width of the conveyor pulley; the tooth block is connected to a deflector plate, the deflector plate shaped to fit around the tooth; the pulley cleaner further comprises cover plates attached to the main frame, wherein a slot is formed by the cover plates facing the conveyor pully sized to provide passage for the cutter tooth; the pulley cleaner further comprises a seal belt supported by pulleys connected to the main frame and the seal belt secured to the tooth block adjacent to the slot to block debris from passing through the slot; the width of the seal belt is greater than the width of the slot; the seal belt is guided within grooves formed between the cover plates and seal plates fixed to the cover plates to maintain the seal belt adjacent to the slot; the pulley cleaner further comprises at least one scraper element fixed to the cover plates and aligned with the seal belt to remove debris from the seal belt; heating elements are attached to the seal plates adjacent to the grooves to prevent the seal belt from freezing; the main frame is fabricated from a common wide flange beam or welded plates; the tooth has a cutting portion and a base portion, and the cutting portion is connected by a threaded connection to the base portion;
the tooth is spaced from the conveyor pulley; the linear actuator is any one of a nut and shaft, ball screw, wire rope lines on a winch, rack and pinion, hydraulic rams, scissor mechanisms, telescoping rod or magnetic driven plates; the pulley cleaner further comprises a dribble belt supported by the main frame to catch and remove debris which have been dislodged from the conveyor pulley; the pulley cleaner further comprises a "go/no-go" gauge connected to the base to prevent the tooth from becoming overextended towards the conveyor pulley; the main frame has an end portion which extends away from the conveyor pulley beyond the pulley frame; the main frame has tooth maintenance access plugs positioned on the end portion of the main frame; the cover plates have at least one removable cover plate and the removable cover plate is removably attached to the end portion of the main frame to allow access to the interior of the pulley cleaner while the conveyor pulley is in operation.

[0007] In an embodiment, there is provided a method of cleaning a conveyor pulley cleaner, comprising the steps of providing a pulley cleaner in accordance with claim 1;
mounting the pulley cleaner adjacent a conveyor pulley; translating the tooth block along the conveyor pulley; and halting the tooth block when the tooth block is translated beyond the edge of the conveyor pulley.

[0008] In various embodiments, there may be included any one or more of the following steps:
removing the tooth from the tooth block; adjusting the length of the tooth;
inserting the tooth into the tooth block; rotating the tooth 180 degrees before inserting the tooth into the tooth block; reversing the direction of translation of the tooth block when the tooth reaches an edge of the pulley.

[0009] These and other aspects of the device are set out in the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0010] Embodiments will now be described with reference to the figures, in which like reference characters denote like elements, by way of example, and in which:

[0011] Fig. 1 is an isometric view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner;

[0012] Fig. 2 is an isometric view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner with cover plates removed to show internal mechanisms;

[0013] Fig. 3 is a side view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner;

[0014] Fig. 4 is a side view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner with mount plate hidden;

[0015] Fig. 5 is a cross-section view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner;

[0016] Fig. 6 is bottom view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner installed on a pulley frame;

[0017] Fig. 7 is a side view of an embodiment of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner installed on a pulley frame;

[0018] Fig. 8 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner installed on a pulley frame;

[0019] Fig. 9 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a pulley cleaner;
and

[0020] Fig. 10 is a flow chart of a method of cleaning a conveyor pulley, DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The lathe style pulley cleaner invention (the Cleaner) is designed to overcome the clogging and maintenance problems outlined above that are associated with traditional pulley cleaners.
A cutter tooth will translate horizontally the full width of the pulley with componentry similar to that of a conventional lathe. The cutter tooth's length can be adjusted to maintain the target of 1/4" material build up on the pulley face. The cutter tooth has an adjustable length which allows the cutter tooth to be progressed forward as its length is reduced due to wear from operation. The cutter tooth has approximate 2" of length adjustment, and once the cutter tooth has worn out it can be easily replaced while the conveyor stays in operation. Cutter tooth length adjustment can also be performed while conveyor is in operation.

[0022] To prevent contamination and debris build up on the Cleaner components, a deflector plate travels with the cutting tooth to prevent the majority of freed materials from making contact with the rest of the Cleaner. Further, a linear sealing system will prevent the remaining freed materials from contaminating the Cleaner internal mechanisms. The Cleaner will have seal scrapers to remove exterior buildup of materials on the Cleaner seal.

[0023] The Cleaner will employ a structural frame that is left in place for routine maintenance activities and changing the cleaner tooth orientation. Maintenance access panels are positioned in locations so that maintenance personnel can safely perform routine maintenance activities while the conveyor remains in operation. Activities include tooth adjustment, tooth replacement, seal replacement, lubrication, drive mechanism service and replacement.

[0024] The Cleaner components are robust and designed to withstand shock loading from compacted material adhered to the pulley face.

[0025] The Cleaner frame is symmetric and can be readily configured with either a left hand or right hand drive. A right hand drive is shown in the drawings "Figures 1 to 9". The Cleaner may also be used in a top cut or a bottom cut by changing the orientation of the cutting tooth.

[0026] The Cleaner has heater lines in the assembly face near the linear sealing belt. The lines can be used to input heat to the Cleaner to prevent accumulated materials from freezing the sealing belt in place.

[0027] Based on the clogging issues, practicality, maintainability and shortcomings of the existing chain and reciprocating multiple cutter cleaner designs, a fully sealed/contained, online maintainable, variable length and cut orientation Cleaner was developed.

[0028] The lathe style pulley Cleaner invention provides the online maintenance features, impact shock loading resistance, sealing against debris, multiple cleaning orientations and quick online tooth length adjustment and/or replacement.

[0029] FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of the fully assembled unit with all cover plates and hardware in place. The Cleaner has removable cover plates outside the conveyor operating area which allow access for maintenance with the conveyor in operation. The cleaner may be completely sealed from the environment by a linear sealing system, including seal belt 14. In this view it can be seen how the seal belt 14 travels the majority of the width of the Cleaner front face ending on each side with the belt scraper 10. The surface of the seal belt may be automatically cleaned by the belt scrapers, which may have replaceable scraper blades. The sealing belt may have external adjustment for tension. During operation the cutter tooth 24 moves with the deflector plate 6 providing protection to the seal belt from the majority of the material that is removed from the pulley. The removable cover plates 3, 5, and 8 extend past the existing conveyor structure and can safely be removed when the conveyor is in operation when Cleaner maintenance or tooth adjustments are required. The front cover plates 9 house the seal belt heating lines 22, minimize the opening for debris and provide a lip/edge for the front face of the seal 14. The front cover plates 9 form a slot 34. The seal belt 14 may be held or guided inside a low friction coated groove 35 (shown in Fig. 5) that runs along the front of the cleaner and terminates at the scraper blades. The seal belt 14 may be heated by heating elements 22, such as heating lines, that run along the groove 35 to prevent the surface of the seal belt 14 from freezing during sub-zero operations. An end portion 32 of the main frame extends beyond the existing conveyor pulley.

[0030] The cutter tooth 24 may be held in a tooth block 11 that translates horizontally across the full width of the pulley face in one continuous motion. The deflector plate 6 may be attached to the tooth block with fasteners such as screws or bolts. The tooth block 11 is supported by a fixed main frame 1 that spans between existing supports already in place to hold the conveyor pulley. The main frame 1 has two base plates 2 with slotted holes which allow for installation adjustment side to side. The main frame may be fabricated from a common wide flange beam or welded plates.
The mount frames 7 have slotted holes 90 degrees to the base plates 2 allowing for frame adjustment forward and back.
Once the Cleaner is located in position in the initial setup there is no need for any further adjustment as the cutter tooth 24 length is adjustable. The cutter tooth may have a wear resistant surface on the exposed tip that corresponds to the length the tooth can be extended, providing improved tool life and a visual indication when the tooth will need to be replaced. The Cleaner does not need to be adjusted, moved or shimmed once it is installed as the variable length tooth accounts for this. Cutter tooth, tooth block and main structure may be rigid, robust and designed for considerable impact loading. The tooth block may be supported by a fixed support structure that spans between existing supports already in place to hold the conveyor pulley.

[0031] FIGURE 2 is an isometric view with cover plates 3, 4, 5, 8, 9 and seal channel block stop or seal plates 25 hidden to show the Cleaner internal systems. The cutter tooth may be held in the tooth block and the tooth block may translate horizontally across the full width of the pulley face in one continuous motion. The tooth block 11 travels inside the main frame 1 driven by a threaded linear actuation shaft 18, drive train 21 and motor 20. The actuation shaft 18 is supported on both ends with bearing mounts 19. The tooth block 11 will start on the right side and move left until it comes near the left bearing mount 19. The cutter tooth may travel the full distance of the pulley face, then reverse direction and this cycle may be repeated. A limit switch or revolution counter will trigger the motor to reverse, changing the travel direction of the tooth block 11 to start heading back to the starting position.
The same process will happen when the tooth block 11 gets near the right bearing block 19. The tooth block 11 will travel the full length of the pulley face back and forth which constitutes the lathe function of the Cleaner. The seal belt 14, which is secured to the tooth block 11, is also hidden from this figure to aid in showing the seal belt pulleys 15. The seal belt pulleys 15 are supported with shafts 16 on the four corners of the main structure 1. The seal belt pulleys 15 provide fixed points for the seal belt 14 to travel along while the tooth block 11 moves back and forth inside the main frame 1.

[0032] FIGURE 3 shows a side view for a cleaner with a right hand drive option. The cleaner is adaptable to either a left hand or right hand drive motor configuration. The drive motor 20 is mounted to a removable motor mount plate 3. The removable access hatch 5 allows for inspection of the internals and access to the drive train couplings 21. The back cover plates 4 may also be removed when maintenance is required. The base plate 2 is welded to the main structure 1.
When the assembled items 1 & 2 are bolted to the mounting frame 7 there is flexibility in position that can be selected due to slotted holes in the base plate 2 and mounting frame 7. This flexibility is only needed in the initial setup as the variable length removable cutter tooth 24 can be adjusted to suit the offset needed from the pulley face. The cutter tooth can be released by removing the tooth maintenance access plugs 23 and loosening the tooth lock bolts 27 (shown on Figure 5).

[0033] FIGURE 4 shows a side view of the cleaner with the motor mount plate 3 hidden to aid in showing the internal components. The cutter tooth block 11 travels on the internal faces of the main frame 1 and the channel guide plates or seal plates 25. The tooth block 11 has removable low friction wear resistance pads 26 around its perimeter to aid in the horizontal translation during operation. The front deflector plate 6 protects the belt seal 14 from direct debris from cutting. The heating lines/elements 22 located in the top and bottom seal plates 25 keep the seal 14 from freezing in place if the unit it shut down in sub-zero conditions. The seal 14 is maintained at set elevation with internal seal belt pulleys 15 that are mounted to fixed shafts 16. The rear shafts are mounted to slider frames 17 that allow for the ability to tension the seal 14. The seal is guided along the back side of the main frame 1 with notched gussets 12 that have low friction wear pads 13 to prevent wear on the seal. The gussets 12 also provide rigidity to the main structure when an impact load is experienced. The input drive train 21 can also be seen in this view.

[0034] FIGURE 5 is a cross section view of the cleaner with the mount frames 7 hidden. The channel guides or seal plates 25 serve two functions, they provide restraint the tooth block 11 for normal operation conditions and the impact forces expected from this application, and they also contain grooves 35 for the seal belt 14 and seal belt heating lines 22. The lines can be used for either liquid based or electrical resistance heat input to the Cleaner. The seal belt rides between the front plates 9 and the channel guides or seal plates 25 providing a seal from the outside debris. The seal 14 wraps around the belt pulleys 15 on each end and are guided along the back side of the main frame 1 with notched gussets 12 that have low friction wear pads 13. The rear of the Cleaner is sealed by the back cover plate 4. When a tooth extension is needed either because of tooth wear or a new pulley offset distance requirement, the compression bolt & stop bolt 27 are released and the tooth is easily removed.
Once the cutter tooth 24 is removed the length can be adjusted as required and re installed in the reverse process as noted above. The tooth has a cutting portion 36 and a base portion 37, and the cutting portion is connected by a threaded connection 38 to the base portion, and the length of the tooth is increased by reducing the amount of the cutting portion which is threaded into the base portion. The tooth block 11 has low friction wear resistance pads 26 around its perimeter which can be replaced when needed. The linear actuation shaft 18 runs though the tooth block 11 and transmits the force to move the block via a threaded nut secured in the block.

[0035] FIGURE 6 shows a bottom view the Cleaner in a typical installation with the existing conveyor, conveyor equipment and associated structures shown in grey. The conveyor pulley 28 is mounted to the pillow block frame 30. The conveyor belt 29 wraps around the conveyor pulley 28 and extends on until the next conveyor pulley (not illustrated). The pillow block frame 30 is a typical arrangement, common on most conveyor systems. The Cleaner is adaptable and can fit other existing structures with modification to the mounting frame 7. It can be seen in this view that the drive motor 20 and heating line ports are accessible well outside the active conveyor belt.
For maintenance on tooth block 11 or for cutter tooth 24 change outs, the removable cover plates 3, 5, and 8 can be taken off to facilitate the maintenance.

[0036] FIGURE 7 shows a side view of the cleaner with existing structures shown in grey. The existing pillow block frame 30 is a typical dimensional constrain that is common among conveyor systems. In this side view it can be seen how cutter tooth 24 nearly contacts the pulley 28. The mounting frame 7 will be fit for purpose based on the specific dimensional constraints of the conveyor frame.

[0037] FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the Cleaner assembly, the pillow block frames 30 are hidden for clarity. The front face of the Cleaner will experience the majority of the debris during operation. The seal belt 14 is protected from the majority of the direct cuttings by the deflector plate 6.

[0038] FIGURE 9 is an exploded view with the main Cleaner components shown. Some hardware is hidden to provide clarity. The Cleaner symmetrical design allows for the drive system 20 &
21 to be located on either the right or left hand side. In addition to this the cutter tooth 24 can be removed and rotated 180 degrees based on the top or bottom cut requirement.

[0039] The drawings show only one configuration for a right hand bottom cut. Before the cleaner is installed it can be easily changed for a either a right or left hand drive configuration depending on the required location. This change will need to be completed in the shop as the motor and linear actuator assembled need to be rotated 180 degrees. For a bottom cut, the cutting tooth is rotated 180 degrees along its long axis. The Cleaner is scalable for a wide range of conveyor belt widths.

[0040] The tooth block 11 is shown with an internal acme nut and acme shaft for translation, but alternate modes of achieving this full horizontal translation can also utilize the following; ball screw, wire rope and a winch, driven from the seal belt, rack and pinion, hydraulic rams, scissor mechanisms, telescoping rod or magnetic driven plates.

[0041] Shown in Fig. 8 is a subsystem consisting of a dribble belt 31 placed under the Cleaner.
The dribble belt would be added for a top cut application to help move cuttings away from the main conveyor belt to prevent the recirculation of debris. Dribble belts are commonly used in material handling applications and in and of itself is not a new technology. However current pulley cleaners do not employ dribble belts and incorporating them would represent a significant improvement to the elimination of debris for pulley cleaners.

[0042] Shown in Fig. 9 is a "go/no-go" gauge 33 that is used to ensure that the tooth length is properly adjusted to ensure maximum debris removal without damaging the pulley face. The gauge would consist of a small structural member that would be positioned on the base plates 2 to interfere with the tooth if it were over extended towards the pulley face. Conversely maintenance personnel can observe the offset distance from the gauge to the tip of the tooth to determine when the tooth should be lengthened.

[0043] For installation considerations, a mono rail with a beam crawler can be used in between the existing pillow blocks 30. In current installation practice, multiple rigging points are used which is both cumbersome and time consuming.

[0044] The Cleaner may be used in conveyor belt systems where pulleys experience material build up.The cleaner is intended to be used at facilities that mine and convey earth materials. The Cleaner would be mounted on intermediate drive, snub and take up conveyor pulleys that are prone to material build up.

[0045] The cutter tooth, tooth block and main frame may be rigid, robust and designed for considerable impact loading. The cutter tooth may have a wear resistant surface on the exposed tip that corresponds to the length the tooth can be extended, providing improved tool life and a visual indication when the tooth will need to be replaced.
ITEM DESCRIPTION

REMOVABLE ACCESS HATCH

BELT SCRAPER PLATE ASSEMBLY

SEAL BELT GUIDE PULLEYS

MOUNT
DRIVE MOTOR

CHANNEL GUIDE PLATE

EXISTING PULLEY PILLOW BLOCK FRAME

LOW FRICTION COATED GROOVE

Claims (52)

What is claimed is:

1. A pulley cleaner, comprising:
a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley;
a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame;
a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within a slot in the main frame, the slot having a width and length;
a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley, ; and a seal belt supported by pulleys connected to the main frame, the seal belt secured to the tooth block and extending along the length of the slot and across the width of the slot to block debris from passing through the slot.

2. The pulley cleaner of claim 1 wherein the length of the tooth is adjustable.

3. The pulley cleaner of claim 1 or 2 wherein the tooth is removably connected to the tooth block.

4. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 - 3 in which the main frame is longer than the width of the conveyor pulley.

5. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 and 4, wherein the tooth block is connected to a deflector plate, the deflector plate shaped to fit around the tooth.

6. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1¨ 5, in which cover plates forming part of the main frame define the slot.

7. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1-6 wherein the width of the seal belt is greater than the width of the slot.

8. The pulley cleaner of claim 6 wherein the seal belt is guided within grooves formed between the cover plates and seal plates fixed to the cover plates to maintain the seal belt in the slot.

9. The pulley cleaner of claim6 or 8 further comprising at least one scraper element fixed to the cover plates and aligned with the seal belt to remove debris from the seal belt.

10. The pulley cleaner of claim 9, wherein heating elements are attached to the seal plates adjacent to the grooves to prevent the seal belt from freezing.

11. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 10 wherein the main frame is fabricated from a common wide flange beam or welded plates.

12. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 11 wherein the tooth has a cutting portion and a base portion, and the cutting portion is connected by a threaded connection to the base portion.

13. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 12 wherein the tooth is spaced from the conveyor pulley.

14. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 13 wherein the linear actuator is any one of a nut and shaft, ball screw, wire rope lines on a winch, rack and pinion, hydraulic rams, scissor mechanisms, telescoping rod and magnetic driven plates.

15. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 14 further comprising a dribble belt supported by the main frame to catch and remove debris which have been dislodged from the conveyor pulley.

16. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 15, further comprising a "go/no-go" gauge connected to the base to prevent the tooth from becoming overextended towards the conveyor pulley.

17. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 1 ¨ 16, wherein the main frame has an end portion which extends away from the conveyor pulley beyond the pulley frame.

18. The pulley cleaner of claim 17, wherein the main frame has tooth maintenance access plugs positioned on the end portion of the main frame.

19. The pulley cleaner of claim 6 , 8 or 9, wherein the cover plates have at least one removable cover plate and the removable cover plate is removably attached to an end portion of the main frame to allow access to the interior of the pulley cleaner while the conveyor pulley is in operation.

20. A method of cleaning a conveyor pulley, comprising the steps of:
providing a pulley cleaner in accordance with any one of claims 1-19;
mounting the pulley cleaner adjacent a conveyor pulley;
translating the tooth block along the conveyor pulley;
halting the tooth block when the tooth block is translated beyond the edge of the conveyor pulley.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising removing the tooth from the tooth block.

22. The method of any one of claims 20 ¨ 21, further comprising adjusting the length of the tooth.

23. The method of any one of claims 20 ¨ 22, further comprising inserting the tooth into the tooth block.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising rotating the tooth 180 degrees before inserting the tooth into the tooth block.

25. The method of any one of claims 20 ¨ 24 further comprising reversing the direction of translation of the tooth block when the tooth reaches an edge of the pulley.

26. A pulley cleaner, comprising:
a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley;
a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame;

a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within the main frame; and a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley;
in which the main frame is longer than the width of the conveyor pulley, whereby the tooth block in its entirety may travel on the linear actuator beyond the width of the conveyor pulley.

27. The pulley cleaner of claim 26 wherein the tooth is removably connected to the tooth block.

28. The pulley cleaner of claim 26 or 27, wherein the tooth block is connected to a deflector plate, the deflector plate shaped to fit around the tooth.

29. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 28, further comprising cover plates attached to the main frame, wherein a slot is formed by the cover plates facing the conveyor pully sized to provide passage for the cutter tooth,

30. The pulley cleaner of claim 29, further comprising a seal belt supported by pulleys connected to the main frame and the seal belt secured to the tooth block adjacent to the slot to block debris from passing through the slot.

31. The pulley cleaner of claim 30 wherein the width of the seal belt is greater than the width of the slot.

32. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 30 ¨ 31 wherein the seal belt is guided within grooves formed between the cover plates and seal plates fixed to the cover plates to maintain the seal belt adjacent to the slot.

33. The pulley cleaner of claim 30 further comprising at least one scraper element fixed to the cover plates and aligned with the seal belt to remove debris from the seal belt.

34. The pulley cleaner of claim 32, wherein heating elements are attached to the seal plates adjacent to the grooves to prevent the seal belt from freezing.

35. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 34 wherein the main frame is fabricated from a common wide flange beam or welded plates.

36. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 27 ¨ 35 wherein the tooth has a cutting portion and a base portion, and the cutting portion is connected by a threaded connection to the base portion.

37. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 36 wherein the tooth is spaced from the conveyor pulley.

38. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 37 wherein the linear actuator is any one of a nut and shaft, ball screw, wire rope lines on a winch, rack and pinion, hydraulic rams, scissor mechanisms, telescoping rod or magnetic driven plates.

39. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 38 further comprising a dribble belt supported by the main frame to catch and remove debris which have been dislodged from the conveyor pulley.

40. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 39, further comprising a "go/no-go" gauge connected to the base to prevent the tooth from becoming overextended towards the conveyor pulley.

41. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 26 ¨ 40, wherein the main frame has an end portion which extends away from the conveyor pulley beyond the pulley frame.

42. The pulley cleaner of claim 41, wherein the main frame has tooth maintenance access plugs positioned on the end portion of the main frame.

43. The pulley cleaner of any one of claims 29 ¨ 34, wherein the cover plates have at least one removable cover plate and the removable cover plate is removably attached to an end portion of the main frame to allow access to the interior of the pulley cleaner while the conveyor pulley is in operation.

44. A method of cleaning a conveyor pulley, comprising the steps of:
providing a pulley cleaner in accordance with claim any one of claims 26-43;

mounting the pulley cleaner adjacent a conveyor pulley;
translating the tooth block along the conveyor pulley;
halting the tooth block when the tooth block is translated beyond the edge of the conveyor pulley.

45. The method of claim 44, further comprising removing the tooth from the tooth block.

46. The method of any one of claims 44 ¨ 45, further comprising adjusting the length of the tooth.

47. The method of any one of claims 44 ¨ 46, further comprising inserting the tooth into the tooth block.

48. The method of claim 47, further comprising rotating the tooth 180 degrees before inserting the tooth into the tooth block.

49. The method of any one of claims 44 ¨ 48 further comprising reversing the direction of translation of the tooth block when the tooth reaches an edge of the pulley.

50. A pulley cleaner, comprising:
a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley;
a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame;
a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within the main frame;
a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley, the length of the tooth being adjustable; and cover plates attached to the main frame, wherein a slot is formed by the cover plates facing the conveyor pulley and the slot is sized to provide passage for the cutter tooth.

51. A pulley cleaner, comprising:
a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley;

a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame;
a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within the main frame;
a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley, the length of the tooth being adjustable;
cover plates attached to the main frame;
a seal belt supported by pulleys connected to the main frame; and at least one scraper element fixed to the cover plates and aligned with the seal belt to remove debris from the seal belt.

52. A pulley cleaner, comprising:
a main frame having a base for fixing the main frame to a pulley frame and spacing the main frame from a conveyor pulley;
a linear actuator attached to the main frame and extending along the length of the main frame;
a tooth block attached to the linear actuator for translation along the linear actuator within the main frame;
a cutter tooth extending from the tooth block for preventing build-up of material on the conveyor pulley, the length of the tooth being adjustable;
cover plates attached to the main frame, wherein a slot is formed by the cover plates facing the conveyor pully sized to provide passage for the cutter tooth;
a seal belt supported by pulleys connected to the main frame, the seal belt being guided within grooves formed between the cover plates and seal plates fixed to the cover plates to maintain the seal belt adjacent to the slot; and heating elements attached to the seal plates adjacent to the grooves to prevent the seal belt from freezing.