Patent ID: 11970337
Assignee: LAITRAM, L.L.C.
Field: Handling (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 50:
51. A side-flexing conveyor belt comprising:
a plurality of belt modules, each belt module comprising:
alternating forward hinge sections and rearward hinge sections each having hinge apertures located medially between a top surface and a bottom surface of the belt module;
wherein the hinge apertures of the forward hinge sections or of the rearward hinge sections or of both are elongated in a direction parallel to a conveying direction of the conveyor belt;
wherein the forward hinge sections are separated by spaces sized to receive the rearward hinge sections of a preceding belt module and wherein the rearward hinge sections are separated by spaces sized to receive the forward hinge sections of a subsequent belt module so that the belt modules interlink;
a protrusion extending radially outward from an inner edge of the belt module at the inside of a turn in the conveying direction and having at least one drive face configured to make non-slip contact with a ridge surface of a rotating belt driver so that the ridge surface imparts a driving force in the conveying direction against the drive face to positively drive the conveyor belt along the conveying path;
wherein the protrusion has at least one rounded surface to allow engagement of the protrusion with the ridge surface;
wherein the protrusion is sized to maintain a gap between the drive face and a surface of the protrusion on an adjacent belt module and wherein the gap is sufficiently sized to receive the ridge surfaces of the belt driver when the inner edge of the conveyor belt is in a collapsed state;

a plurality of hinge rods extending perpendicular to the conveying direction through the hinge apertures of alternating forward hinge sections and rearward hinge sections in succession to connect the plurality of belt modules into a continuous conveyor belt;
wherein the elongation of the hinge apertures allows a distance separating the belt modules to vary dynamically so that the conveyor belt can expand and collapse such that, when the conveyor belt is negotiating a turn, the distance separating the belt modules near their inner edges at the inside of the turn is less than the distance separating the belt modules near their outer edges at the outside of the turn to maintain the belt planar.