Positive-drive spiral conveyor belt

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11970337-B2
Application number	US-202217737185-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 5, 2022
Priority date	Jul 12, 2010
Publication date	Apr 30, 2024
Grant date	Apr 30, 2024

Abstract

A spiral conveyor for positively driving a conveyor belt along a helical path. The spiral conveyor includes a rotating cylindrical tower with parallel drive members extending from the bottom to the top of the tower on its periphery. Each drive member includes an outwardly protruding ridge that varies in height from the bottom to the top of the tower. The variations in height facilitate the belt's entry onto and exit from the tower and robust, positive driving engagement with the inside edge of the belt along the majority of its path along the tower.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A conveyor belt comprising:
a series of rows of belt modules having a top side and a bottom side and hingedly linked together between consecutive rows along hinge joints defining hinge axes extending perpendicular to a conveying direction from a first side edge of the rows to an opposite second side edge of the rows, wherein the hinge joints have play in the conveying direction to allow the rows to collapse together at the first side edge when the first side edge is at the inside of a turn in a conveying path;
a plurality of protrusions, each protrusion projecting outward at the first side edge of one of the rows to a flat distal end and having at least one drive face perpendicular to the conveying direction and a constant cross section in planes perpendicular to one of the hinge axes of the row;
wherein the constant cross section has a minor axis in the conveying direction and a longer major axis perpendicular to the conveying direction and to the hinge joints;
wherein the at least one drive face is contacted by an external drive member to drive the conveyor belt in the conveying direction.

2. The conveyor belt of claim 1 wherein the constant cross section has an oval outline.

3. The conveyor belt of claim 2 wherein each protrusion has an upper guide surface defining a curved portion of the oval outline, a lower guide surface defining an opposite curved portion of the oval outline, a leading drive face defining a straight portion of the oval outline, and a trailing drive face defining an opposite straight portion of the oval outline, wherein the upper and lower guide surfaces are configured to guide a bottom or top end of an external drive member into driving contact with the trailing drive face of the row or of the consecutive leading row.

4. The conveyor belt of claim 1 wherein the constant cross section has a line of symmetry.

5. The conveyor belt of claim 1 wherein the protrusions are integrally formed with the belt modules.

6. The conveyor belt of claim 1 wherein the protrusions are non-rotatable.

7. A conveyor belt comprising:
a series of rows of belt modules having a top side and a bottom side and hingedly linked together between consecutive rows along hinge joints defining hinge axes extending perpendicular to a conveying direction from a first side edge of the rows to an opposite second side edge of the rows, wherein the hinge joints have play in the conveying direction to allow the rows to collapse together at the first side edge when the first side edge is at the inside of a turn in a conveying path;
a plurality of non-rotatable protrusions, each non-rotatable protrusion projecting outward at the first side edge of one of the rows and having a leading face and a trailing drive face and a guide surface extending from a peak in diverging directions to the leading face and the trailing drive face;
wherein the guide surface is configured to guide an external drive member into driving contact with the trailing drive face of the row or of the consecutive leading row;
wherein the guide surface extends from the peak in diverging directions along diverging flat or curved guide-surface regions.

8. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the non-rotatable protrusion has a second guide surface opposite the first guide surface and that extends from a peak in opposite directions to the leading face and the trailing drive face.

9. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the non-rotatable protrusion projects outward to a distal end having a flat face perpendicular to one of the hinge axes of the row.

10. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the guide surface is parallel to one of the hinge axes of the row.

11. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the leading face and the trailing drive face are parallel to one of the hinge axes of the row.

12. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the non-rotatable protrusions are integrally formed with the belt modules.

13. The conveyor belt of claim 7 wherein the leading face and the trailing drive face are flat.

14. A conveyor belt comprising:
a series of rows of belt modules having a top side and a bottom side and hingedly linked together between consecutive rows along hinge joints defining hinge axes extending perpendicular to a conveying direction from a first side edge of the rows to an opposite second side edge of the rows, wherein the hinge joints have play in the conveying direction to allow the rows to collapse together at the first side edge when the first side edge is at the inside of a turn in a conveying path;
a plurality of non-rotatable protrusions, each non-rotatable protrusion projecting outward at the first side edge of one of the rows to a flat distal end and having upper and lower guide surfaces, a leading face, and a trailing drive face;
wherein cross sections of the non-rotatable protrusion in planes perpendicular to one of the hinge axes of the row have a first line of symmetry that intersects the upper and lower guide surfaces and a second line of symmetry that intersects the leading face and the trailing drive face;
wherein the distance between the upper and lower guide surfaces along the first line of symmetry is longer than the distance between the leading face and the trailing drive face along the second line of symmetry;
wherein the upper and lower guide surfaces are configured to guide an external drive member into driving contact with the trailing drive face of the row or of the consecutive leading row to drive the conveyor belt in the conveying direction.

15. The conveyor belt of claim 14 wherein the cross sections have an oval outline.

16. The conveyor belt of claim 15 wherein, in each non-rotatable protrusion, the upper guide surface defines a curved portion of the oval outline, the lower guide surface defines an opposite curved portion of the oval outline, the leading face defines a straight portion of the oval outline, and the trailing drive face defines an opposite straight portion of the oval outline.

17. The conveyor belt of claim 14 wherein the upper and lower guide surfaces are curved and wherein the leading face and the trailing drive face are flat.

18. The conveyor belt of claim 14 wherein the upper and lower guide surfaces, the leading face, and the trailing drive face are flat.

19. A conveyor belt comprising:
a series of rows of belt modules having a top side and a bottom side and hingedly linked together between consecutive rows along hinge joints defining hinge axes extending perpendicular to a conveying direction from a first side edge of the rows to an opposite second side edge of the rows, wherein the hinge joints have play in the conveying direction to allow the rows to collapse together at the first side edge when the first side edge is at the inside of a turn in a conveying path;
a plurality of non-rotatable protrusions, each non-rotatable protrusion projecting outward at the first side edge of one of the rows and having a peripheral surface parallel to one of the hinge axes of the row;
wherein a first portion of the peripheral surface defines a first guide surface and a contiguous second portion of the peripheral surface defines a first drive face;
wherein the guide surface is configured to guide an external drive member into driving contact with the first drive face of the row or of the consecutive leading row.

20. The conveyor belt of claim 19 wherein a third portion of the peripheral surface defines a second guide surface opposite the first guide surface and a contiguous fourth portion of t

Assignees

• Laitram Llc

Inventors

• Talsma Casper Fedde
• Bogle David W

Classifications

• B65G17/086 Primary

  specially adapted to follow a curved path (for individual load carriers B65G17/22) · CPC title

• B65G15/30

  Belts or like endless load-carriers (co-operating with rails or the like B65G21/22; {co-operating} with rollers B65G39/20) · CPC title

• B65G21/18

  in three-dimensionally curved paths · CPC title

• B65G17/08 Primary

  the surface being formed by the traction element · CPC title

• B65G2812/02277

  Common features for chain conveyors · CPC title