What is a Conveyor System : Types & Their Working

Day by day, the usage of conveyor systems is growing. The conveyor manufacturers are estimated to achieve 10.07 billion dollars by the year 2025, at 4.5% of a CAGR (Compound annual growth rate) over the estimated period from 2020 to 2025. The business, as well as the civil sector, are quickly increasing the achievement of conveyors at different places such as shopping centers, airports, restaurants, stadiums, etc. Conveyor systems are extremely popular in the industries like packaging, manufacturing, and production plants. So the amount of demand for these systems going up day by day because of the consumer demands. For that reason, the manufacturing of these systems is more in need. So most frequently purchased type of conveyor systems are line shaft roller, chain & conveyor belt system.

What is a Conveyor System?

A conveyor system is a mechanical handling apparatus, used to move different goods, loads, and products within the industry. This system reduces manpower, risks at lowers workplace & labor costs. These are very helpful in moving heavy goods from one region to another. This system uses a belt, roller, wheels to transport goods or heavy loads. These systems can be powered by an electric motor. Material handling systems like conveyor systems are available in different models based on the requirement to transport the materials or products.

Conveyor systems are used in different industries like mechanical handling devices for transporting goods, loads from one region to another within the area. Conveyor systems are very popular within customer applications like food as well as people transportation like airports, supermarkets, sushi restaurants, shopping malls, etc.

Generally, these systems are fixed through ancillary equipment and there are some portable conveyor systems also used to move from one floor to another based on the volume of loads These systems are known as mobile line shaft conveyors which are used in logistics as well as parcel delivery industry.

How Does Conveyor System Work?

Generally, conveyor system design can be done by using a stretched belt across pulleys. Here pulleys are available two or more. The belt around the pulleys can form a closed-loop so that it rotates frequently. One pulley is called the drive pulley that drives the belt to transport the items from one place to another.
In most conveyor systems, a rotor is used to power the drive pulley as well as a belt. The belt is connected to the rotor throughout the friction between the two faces.

For the proper rotation of the belt, both the idler as well as drive pulley should run in a similar path, either in clockwise direction otherwise counterclockwise, whereas in conventional conveyor systems like moving walkways as well as grocery store conveyors are straight, occasionally, the unit requires to revolve to transport the items toward the correct place. For the revolves, there are exclusive cone-shaped wheels rotors that permit the belt to chase a bend otherwise twist without getting twisted.

How to Select a Conveyor System?

While selecting a conveyor system based on your requirement, the material of the system plays a key role to transport the loads. Some significant characteristics are flowability, size, abrasiveness, moisture content, corrosiveness & the temperature at which it should be set aside. The composition of the material is also considered like granules, powders, pellets, flakes, or fibers through the size, density, and weight of the particle.

The two main groups of moving material throughout a method are conveying as well as feeding. Once the materials are moved from one region to another or more regions then it is known as conveying. The preferred window of time for this group must be considered & the quantity of material to pick up as well as a drop at different points.

The most important factor to consider before the choice of a conveyor system is the surroundings where it will be used. The dimension of the system as compared to how much space within the workstation is obtainable must be considered through how it will connect next to access equipment. These systems are frequently comparatively complex in their construction due to their large scales as well as incorporation into dissimilar factory methods.

Still, the modular environment of several conveyor components will make even long as well as difficult systems willingly attainable. Designers of such systems can provide design support so that the system suits the workplace.

Types of Conveyor System

The different types of conveyor systems include the following. Some of them are discussed below.

• Belt
• Wheel
• Roller
• Walking Beam
• Powered Roller
• Vibrating
• Slat/Apron
• Vertical
• Ball Transfer
• Screw/Auger
• Magnetic
• Pneumatic/Vacuum
• Bucket
• Overhead
• Chute
• Drag/Chain/Tow
• Auto kinetics conveyor systems
• Baggage conveyor systems
• Coal mine conveyor belt systems

Belt Conveyors

These systems handle materials that utilize continuous belts to transport materials or products. The extension of this belt can be possible among two end-pulleys. Generally, one otherwise both endings include a roll below.

The conveyor belt can be supported through a pan with a metal slider which is used for light loads wherever no resistance would be given to the belt to cause drag otherwise on rollers. In these systems, motors are used to provide the power by using either changeable or stable speed decrease gears.
These belts are made with several materials, which must correspond to the circumstances below which the belt will be working. The materials used in common conveyor belts are plastic, rubber, rubber, metal, fabric, rubber, etc.

For transporting heavy loads, strong material is required for a conveyor belt. These conveyors are normally powered & operated at different speeds based on the requirement. The operation of conveyors can be done horizontally can be troughed for bulk or large materials.

Wheel Conveyor

These kinds of conveyors utilize wheels that are unpowered to move loads through their lengths using manual power otherwise gravity. These types of conveyors are mainly used for package handling, trucks loading, unloading trucks & moving pallets, packages using facilities otherwise along assembly lines. These are configured through the number of wheels as well as wheel spacing based on the requirements of the load as well as the application.

Roller

The working of these rollers can be done through parallel rollers which are arranged in frames to transport product either by manually otherwise gravity. The main specifications of these mainly include the roller diameter as well as axle center dimensions. These conveyors are mainly used in the applications of material handling like baggage handling, on loading docks, etc. The rollers are not power-driven but use gravity to move the load, otherwise manually placed in horizontal. These conveyor systems are straight otherwise curved based on the application as well as accessible floor space.

Walking Beam

These conveyors utilize a blend of stationery & moving supports to guide workpieces during manufacturing cells. These conveyors are mainly used on assembly lines as well as automation, wherever loads need to be located in particular areas within a sequential way.

The item being maintained at a fixed position can be picked up through this conveyor and guided to its next location, wherever one more manufacturing step takes place. So, this movement replicates over the conveyor’s length. These types of conveyors include single otherwise several lines based on the product.

Magnetic

These types of Conveyors work with moving magnets which are placed under inactive plates, tables otherwise other kinds of non-magnetic slider beds for moving magnetic materials frequently in the type of machining scrap. Generally, magnetic conveyors are used like chip conveyors to eliminate ferrous chips from machining centers.

The configuration of this conveyor can be done by using vertical motion, horizontal motion otherwise combinations. These are beltless otherwise may utilize a conveying belt in place of a slider bed. Under the conveying belt, a rail that includes an electromagnet can be used to magnetize ferrous materials toward the belt. These types of systems are used upside down due to the magnetic attraction of the manufactured goods to the conveyor.

Bucket

Bucket conveyors utilize containers that are multi-sided and connected to belts, cables otherwise chains to convey materials or products. The containers stay straight beside the system that is tilted to release material. These conveyors are utilized in applications like bulk material, parts otherwise pressing of food as well as handling.

The material which is conveyed can be in the form of liquid or dry like sand, sludge, manure, grain & sugar. This system can be utilized horizontally, disposed of otherwise perpendicular to alter the stages of the conveyed products. So, based on the application, different sizes, as well as load-carrying capacities, are accessible.

Drag Line/ Tow/ Chain Conveyor

Drag Line/ Tow/ Chain type Conveyors utilize mechanical devices which are connected to moving elements like cables or chains to pull or drag the products. These conveyors are mainly used for pulling bulk materials in bins, flights other attachments & can include several discharges otherwise loading points.

The conveyors like Tubular drag utilize a completely enclosed chains system to convey product within any path. Chain conveyors utilize single or multiple chains to shift pallets. Tow conveyors employ a towline like chains or cables, generally within the floor above it toward tow product openly otherwise to carts with tow wheeled or dollies.

Screw Conveyor

A screw conveyor is a device that utilizes a revolving helical screw blade known as “flighting” in a tube for moving granular materials otherwise liquid. These conveyors are mainly applicable in several industries.

At present, the role of these conveyors within the current industry is frequently used horizontally otherwise at a small incline like an efficient method to shift semi-solid materials like wood chips, food waste, aggregates, animal feed, meat, cereal grains, boiler ash, bone meal, etc. The first screw conveyor was the Archimedes screw, used in early times to drive irrigation water. Screw conveyors are different types like bottom conveyors & centerless screw conveyors.

Mobile Conveyor Belt System

These conveyors are commercial as well as flexible to convey material at your manufacturing site. So, they are extensively used in the applications of collective production, demolition, recycling & mining operations.

Automatic Conveyor Belt Cleaning System

In a belt conveyor system, belt cleaners are essential parts because of their capability to eliminate carryback from your belt. Here, carryback is an important issue on several conveyors so, need to clean up frequently while carrying our conveyor components in advance & causing other conveying issues such as belt mistracking. So, carry back reduction can enhance the safety of the worker, operating efficiency as well as productivity. The main function of Conveyor belt cleaner is to avoid carryback as well as enhance conveying efficiency.

The conveyor belt system working principle is by using two mechanical pulleys that round over a long extends of broad, strong material. Once motors within the pulleys work at a similar speed & rotate similarly, so the belt shifts among the two.

Advantages

The conveyor system advantages include the following

• It reduces manpower
• Reduces the chance of accidents
• Efficiency, as well as Productivity, can be increased
• Conveyors play a key role in loading and unloading devices over a long phase of time.
• Conveyors can shift in both directions, so this is extremely helpful once materials need to be shifted among reverse ends of a production unit throughout the manufacturing process.
• In large industries, conveyor systems are very helpful in moving the materials between different floors and multiple levels without damaging them.

Disadvantages

The conveyor system disadvantages include the following

• These systems need a change within infrastructure
• These are not moveable
• These are costly

Thus, this is all about an overview of conveyor systems, types, working, advantages and disadvantages. An alternative to conveyor systems are G2P robots (Goods to person), AS (Automated Storage), RS (Retrieval Systems), AGC (Automated Guided Carts) & Collaborative Mobile Robots. Here is a question for you, please mention the conveyor systems manufacturers?