Patent ID: 6530468
Filing Date: 2003-03-11
Classification: B65G

Abstract:
A conveyor comprisinga stationary track part defining a closed conveyor path, a flexible elongated drive chain including a plurality of consecutive links being pivotally interconnected to adjacent links so as to form a closed loop that is movable along said conveyor path within the track part, a plurality of drive wheels being mounted on the drive chain, the rotation axes of the drive wheels being arranged in a mutually substantially parallel fashion in such a way that they are perpendicular to the elongated direction of the chain, at least one drive mechanism arranged along the stationary track part and comprising a drive means for engaging and applying a driving force on the periphery of at least one of said drive wheels in the direction of movement of the chain, and stationary support means for engaging said drive wheel(s) being in engagement with the drive means on the opposite side of the periphery of the wheel(s) and applying a reactive force on the wheel(s) of a magnitude and direction as the driving force, the drive mechanism comprising biasing means arranged for biasing the drive means towards the drive wheels so as to exert a normal force on the drive wheels of a sufficient magnitude to prevent slippage between the wheels and the drive means and between the wheels and the support means, the biasing means having a frame part on which the drive means are arranged, the frame part being displaceably arranged with respect to the track part along a tensioning path defining an acute angle (&phgr;) with the direction of movement of the chain, so that the reactive force biases the drive means towards the drive wheels.