MONITORING SYSTEM FOR CONVEYOR BELT ANCILLARY DEVICES

A system and apparatus are provided for monitoring a conveyor system. The system and apparatus may include one or more sensors or sensor modules associated with a conveyor belt. In one aspect, the apparatus includes a sensor connected to at least one of first and second plate members that are configured to be connected to one another on opposite surfaces of the conveyor belt. The sensor may be at least partially received in a recess formed in the conveyor belt such that the sensor resides in a protected pocket formed by at least one of the plate members and the recess in the conveyor belt. The system is configured to monitor ancillary devices of a conveyor system, such as a belt splice. The system may maintain a digital twin of an ancillary device so that a condition of the ancillary device may be monitored remotely.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

NOM This disclosure relates to monitoring components of a conveyor system, and more particularly, to a monitoring system for conveyor belt ancillary devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conveyor systems are utilized to transport materials or objects from one location to another. One type of conveyor system is a conveyor belt system which may include a series of rollers and a conveyor belt arranged to travel thereover in a downstream belt travel direction. Rollers include both drive rollers or pulleys and idler rollers. Drive rollers are connected to a power source, such as a drive motor, which rotates the drive roller and the drive roller in turn acts upon the conveyor belt. For example, a conveyor system may include a head roller, a driven tail roller, idler rollers intermediate the head and tail rollers, and a conveyor belt forming a loop around the rollers. The conveyor belt has a carry or top run generally above the idler rollers and a lower or return run generally below the idler rollers. The driven tail roller engages the conveyor belt and drives the conveyor belt top run in a longitudinal, downstream belt travel direction. The idler rollers contact the bottom surface of the top run of the conveyor belt to support the weight of the material carried by the top surface of the top run of the conveyor belt. The idler rollers spin in response to the frictional engagement with the bottom surface of the top run of the conveyor belt and may include roller bearings to spin easily. Generally, material is deposited onto the upstream end of the top run of a belt and is discharged at the downstream end of the top run of the belt.

A splice of the conveyor belt may include mechanical fasteners secured to ends of the conveyor belt with loops of the fasteners being intermeshed and joined together by a hinge pin. The fasteners of the splice are typically metallic and include fastener plates, rivets, and/or staples. The fasteners can be damaged especially after a large number of cycles such that these components may not remain tightly clamped against the belt and/or may extend too far above the outer surface of the belt and create significant impacts with the scraper blades of a belt cleaner engaged with the belt with each rotation of the conveyor belt.

Another type of conveyor belt splice uses mechanical fasteners that do not form a hinge joint between belt ends but uses solid plate fasteners that join the ends of the conveyor belt together. Damage to the solid plate fastener may also cause the fastener to loosen from the belt such that, for example, a portion of the solid plate fastener extends upwardly from the outer surface of the conveyor belt and impacts the scraper blades engaged with the conveyor belt. Typically, these types of non-hinged fasteners are used with larger pulley sizes.

Furthermore, other components of a conveyor belt system may wear down over time or fail. For example, the scraper blades of a conveyor belt cleaner will wear down over time so that they no longer efficiently or effectively scrape material from the conveyor belt. In addition, the wear and failure of splices as described above can result in belt mistracking toward one side or the other of the rollers and causing uneven and increased wear on the scraper blades.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, a system and apparatus are provided for monitoring a conveyor system. The system and apparatus may include one or more sensors or sensor modules associated with a conveyor belt. The sensor modules associated with the conveyor belt may be in operable communication with and monitored by a multipurpose conveyor monitoring system, such as the various systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,836,585, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. Such a multipurpose conveyor monitoring system monitors other sensors associated with ancillary devices of the conveyor system, such as such as splices and splice fasteners, belt scrapers, idler rollers, trackers, and/or impact beds. The one or more sensors may be associated with the ancillary devices in a number of approaches, such as being integrated with the ancillary devices, mounted to or adjacent to the ancillary devices, mounted to support structure for the ancillary devices and/or mounted to frame members of the structure supporting the conveyor belt proximate the ancillary devices.

The ancillary devices may include portions with relatively short expected lifespans, such as intended wear or replaceable portions, and portions with relatively long expected lifespans, or permanent portions. Although referred to herein as being “permanent,” the permanent portions may deteriorate over time and are capable of being replaced. The permanent portions have a longer predicted lifespan and are designed to outlast the “replaceable portions.” For example, the replaceable portion of a belt cleaner may be wear portions such as the scraping blade of the belt cleaner and the permanent portion of the belt cleaner may be the housing or an elongated, rigid mounting structure, such as a base member or support pole, of the belt cleaner. As another example, the permanent portion is a portion of a frame of the conveyor system to which the ancillary devices are mounted.

With reference toFIGS.1and2, conveyor system10is provided that includes a conveyor belt12and a number of ancillary devices, such as belt cleaners14, idler rollers16, drive rollers18, and splice22. The conveyor system10may be a component of a larger conveyor system having multiple cooperating conveyor belts12, may be multiple independent conveyor belts12at a common location, or multiple cooperating conveyor belts12at different locations, as some examples. The idler rollers16and drive rollers18of the system10are rotatably coupled to a stationary frame20. The conveyor belt12is a continuous belt albeit possibly containing a belt splice or splices as described hereafter, extending around the idler rollers16and drive rollers18such that the conveyor belt12travels relative to the frame20along a path. The belt cleaners14each include one or more scraper blades15that are resiliently biased into engagement with the outer surface13A of the belt12. The belt cleaners14can include a pre-cleaner or primary belt cleaner14A and a secondary belt cleaner14B. The primary belt cleaner14A is positioned at the head or drive roller18so as to remove material from the belt12and assist discharging the material from the conveyor belt12. The secondary belt cleaner14B is positioned along the return run of the conveyor belt12to provide additional cleaning of the conveyor belt12and limit “carry-back” of material. In other words, the secondary belt cleaner14B ensures the material is discharged from the conveyor belt12near the head roller rather than dislodging at some indeterminant location between the head roller and tail roller of the conveyor belt12.

In one form, a sensor or sensor module102may be secured to or integrated with a conveyor belt12for identifying, tracking, and monitoring data associated with the belt12. The sensor module102in one form includes an RFID tag or chip103, which may be a passive or active type RFID. The RFID chip103generally includes a substrate on which a memory and an antenna are mounted. The memory may be read only or may have both read and write capabilities. The antenna is configured for absorbing radio-frequency (RF) waves and for sending data to and receiving data from a RFID reader106. An active RFID chip further includes a power supply, such as a battery, and onboard electronics, microprocessors, and input/output ports. The RFID reader106includes a radio frequency transmitter and receiver that can read information from, and write information to, the RFID chip103. The RFID reader106may also include additional functionality, including wired or wireless communication functionality for communicating with other sensor modules (e.g., sensor module104), computing devices such as a computer114or smartphone112, or a gateway110, such as cell tower110A or router110B, for communicating data to a cloud-based computing system, such as a control system116, via a network108as depicted inFIG.2. The network108may include one or more networks, such as a cellular phone network (e.g., 3G, 4G, 5G, etc.) and/or the internet.

In another form, instead of a stand-alone RFID reader106, another of the sensor modules, such as sensor module104, which may be the same as or similar to any of the sensor modules described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,836,585, may include an RFID reader106which is configured to detect an RFID chip103of a sensor module102as the sensor module102travels in proximity to the sensor module104. RFID chips103can also be coupled to the replaceable portions of the ancillary devices, such as belt cleaners14, idler rollers16, and drive rollers18. The RFID reader106thereby can detect the presence of the replaceable portion by detecting the RFID chip103. Alternatively or additionally, the RFID reader106receives identifying information from the RFID chip103. For example, the RFID reader106may detect the RFID chip103described above to identify the model number of a particular portion of the ancillary device. The control system116uses the identifying information to select the stored values to which the data from the RFID chip103are compared. In another form, a mobile device such as a smartphone112or tablet computer may be provided with an RFID reader106. In this form, a user may use the mobile device to input additional information, comments, and photographed images of the monitored splice, section of a belt, or replaceable portion of the ancillary devices, which may then be transmitted to a database of the cloud computing system, such as control system116, for tracking and monitoring the condition of the monitored splice, belt portion, or replaceable portion of an ancillary device remotely.

In some forms, the RFID reader106is always operable to detect RFID chips103for maintaining an accurate cycle count of how many times an object associated with the RFID chip103, such as belt splice22, has traveled past the RFID reader106. In other forms, the RFID reader106may be operable to detect RFID chips103only at specific times, such as when a button on the RFID reader106or sensor module104is pressed, or at automated predetermined times. This reduces the amount of power used by the RFID reader106in comparison to if the RFID reader106were constantly scanning for signals from the RFID chip103. In operation, a user can press the button when the new wear component or replaceable component, such as a belt splice22, is installed so that the RFID reader106is powered and detects the RFID chip103associated therewith. The RFID reader106may also periodically operate to detect the RFID chip103so that the control system116can determine whether the replaceable component is still present.

The RFID chip103may be coupled to the conveyor belt12such that it travels along with the belt12during operation of the conveyor system10. The RFID chip103may be coupled to the belt12near an object which is to be monitored, such as a belt splice22or other portion of the belt10to be associated therewith. The RFID chip103includes an identifier, such as a unique serial number, which can be used to develop historical data for operation of the conveyor belt system10. For example, the identifier of the RFID chip103may be used to create a digital twin representative of the object with which the RFID chip103is associated, such as the belt splice22. For example, a digital twin of belt splice22may be stored in a database of the control system116, and include various information such as an RFID serial number, splice fastener type used in the splice22, historical information such as number of cycles of the associated splice22, installation date and age of the splice, installation date and age of the RFID chip103associated with the splice22, information regarding the health or condition of the splice22, such as images of the splice22, user-entered comments, fault indications, actual inspection, repair, or replacement dates, as well as predictive information such as recommended inspection, repair, or replacement dates.

As shown inFIG.1, the RFID chip103may be secured adjacent a lateral side edge of the belt12, such that it is closer to an RFID reader106mounted adjacent to the belt12and less likely to encounter impacts from material on the belt12and from the belt cleaners14A,14B. When the RFID chip103comes in range of an RFID reader106positioned adjacent to the belt12, the RFID reader106detects and identifies the RFID chip103and can transmit information obtained from the reading of the RFID chip103to a local and/or remote computing system, such as control system116, which stores a running total of the instances that the RFID chip103, and the splice22, is detected by the RFID reader106. Therefore, an RFID chip103may be mounted in or adjacent to each splice22of a conveyor belt12and the monitoring system100can uniquely track the operational age of each splice22, such as the number of times each splice22has rotated or cycled around the conveyor system10. If a splice22is repaired or replaced, the cycle total for that splice22can be reset in the monitoring system100. This way, older splices22that are more likely to be damaged and worn than newer splices22can be monitored or inspected more frequently. For example, the control system116may communicate an alert, such as an e-mail, SMS message, or application notification, to a user, such as via a mobile device, in response to the number of cycles of the RFID chip103associated with belt splice22approaching a threshold, exceeding a threshold, and/or being a percentage of a predetermined number of cycles.

Referring now toFIG.3A, a protective structure200for coupling a sensor module102, such as RFID chip103, to a conveyor belt12is shown in schematic form. In one form, the protective structure200is configured to couple the sensor module102to the belt12and protect the sensor module102from damage from the external environment such as impacts, bending forces, tensile and compressive forces, dust, debris, UV radiation, caustic substances and liquids. In one form, the protective structure200at least partially encloses the sensor module102. For example, the protective structure200includes upper and lower plate members202,204that are secured to opposite outer and inner surfaces13A,13B of the conveyor belt12and to each other via first and second fasteners206, such as bolts that extend through apertures of the upper and lower plate members202,204through openings formed in and the belt12therebetween. The sensor module102may be secured to one of the upper and lower plate members202,204. In one form, the sensor module102is coupled to an inner facing surface202B of the upper plate member202, such as via an adhesive. Alternatively, the sensor module102may be coupled to an inner facing surface204B of the lower plate member204, as shown with respect to bolt plate fastener300inFIG.6. In another form shown inFIG.3B, the sensor module102may be mounted to be at least partially or completely recessed in one of the plate members202,204, such as in a recess208formed in one of the inner facing surfaces202B,204B thereof that is sized and configured to receive at least a portion or the entirety of the sensor module102therein. For example, if the sensor module102is partially recessed in one of the plate members202,204as shown inFIG.3B, a portion of the sensor module102protrudes beyond the inner facing surface202B,204B of the corresponding plate member202,204. If the sensor module102is completely recessed in one of the plate members202,204, the sensor module102has an outer extent that is flush with or is positioned below the inner facing surface202B,204B of the corresponding plate member202,204.

An opening24, such as a recessed opening or through-opening, may be formed in the belt12so that the sensor module102may be received at least partially therein when the protective structure200is fastened to the belt12. The opening24may extend transversely with respect to the outer or inner surfaces13A,13B of the belt12with the upper and lower plate members202,204fastened to the conveyor belt12adjacent the opening24such that one or both of the plate members202,204cover over the opening24. In this way, the sensor module102may be completely enclosed within a pocket and protected from the external environment, with the plate members202,204above and below the sensor module102, and the belt material extending about the opening24surrounding the sensor module102on all lateral sides thereof.

Where the opening24is a through opening, the plate members202and204are sized and fastened to the belt24so that they completely cover the through opening at the top and bottom thereof with the sensor module102inside the covered through opening, as shown inFIG.3A. Where the opening24is a recessed opening that does not extend completely through the belt12and instead is formed in one of the outer or inner surfaces13A,13B of the belt12, as shown inFIG.3B, an upper plate member202may enclose the sensor module102within the recessed opening24such that the belt material extending about the recessed opening24encloses the sensor module102on a bottom side and on all lateral sides of the sensor module102. The recessed opening24is sized such that the sensor module102is not compressed into the belt12or the belt material surrounding the recessed opening24by the plate member202,204to which the sensor module102is attached. In each configuration, a protective material, such as epoxy or polyester resin, may be used to fill all or a portion of the recess24to further protect the sensor module102. In other forms, the protective structure200could be omitted and the sensor module102inserted or embedded directly into a recess24in the belt12and covered with one or more of a plug, a sealant, an adhesive, and a protective coating such as epoxy or polyester resin.

To mount sensor module102and protective structure200to the conveyor belt12in order to associate the sensor module102, such as RFID chip103, to a portion of the belt12, such as belt splice22, two through openings26sized and configured to receive fasteners206are formed in the belt12in an area adjacent to the belt splice22. The two through openings26should be located adjacent to the belt splice22, such as upstream or downstream therefrom, and closer to the belt splice22than any other sensor module102or belt splice associated with the other sensor module102. In this manner, another belt splice should not be located upstream or downstream of the through openings26between the through openings26and the belt splice22. A third opening24sized and configured for receiving sensor module102without subjecting the sensor module102to compression against the belt12when the sensor module102is operatively connected thereto is formed centrally between and generally aligned with the two fastener through openings26. The third opening24may either be a recessed opening or a through opening, as discussed above. If the sensor module102is entirely received within a recess208in the plate member202,204, or does not otherwise protrude from an inner facing surface of the plate member202,204to which it is connected, the third opening24can be omitted. The plate members202,204are then coupled to either side of the belt12with the third opening24between the plate members202,204and with the sensor module102received in the third opening24. A fastener206extends through each through opening26in the belt12and together a corresponding fastener, such as a nut, urge the plate members202,204together with the belt sandwiched therebetween, such as described in more detail below.

Examples of one particular form of the protective structure200is a bolt plate fastener assembly300, shown inFIGS.4-6. Bolt plate fastener assembly300may be the same type of bolt plate fastener assembly used to splice belt ends of the conveyor belt12together, wherein multiple side-by-side bolt plate fastener assemblies300extend across the width of the conveyor belt12to form splice22, as shown inFIG.1. Examples of such a bolt plate fastener assembly300are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,316,285, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In other forms, the splice22may be formed by different mechanical fasteners than the protective structure200, e.g., bolt plate assembly300or a hinged fastener, such as the hinged fastener disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,308. In another form, the splice22could be a seamless splice, such as disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0276212, such that no mechanical fasteners are used to connect the ends of the conveyor belt.

The bolt plate fastener assembly300includes an upper plate302, two bolts306, two washers314, and a lower plate304. Each of the plates302,304have a pair of recessed apertures311,308for receiving a pair of bolts306extending through the lower plate member304and the upper plate member302and nuts310threaded down onto the projecting threaded ends of the bolt306to fasten the plates together with the belt12clamped between the plates302and304. Each of the upper and lower plates302,304may include a plurality of teeth312extending inwardly from a periphery of the plate member302,304for biting into the material of the conveyor belt12.

The bolt plate fastener assembly300includes an assembly or preassembly of bolts306and the lower plate304. The assembly12is maintained in its preassembled condition by non-metallic or plastic washers314which are shown inFIGS.4and6. The washers314are received with an interference fit on the shanks307of the bolts306to stay at a predetermined axial position therealong unless forcefully urged to shift on the shanks307so that the bolt shanks307will not pass back through recessed apertures308of the lower plate304through which the shanks307have been inserted.

Referring toFIGS.5and6, the recessed apertures308,311are defined by cups316that are each bent or deflected inwardly from generally flat, horizontally extending plate body of the upper and lower plates302,304so that generally annular cup wall extends upward and inward at an incline toward the corresponding recessed aperture308,311and obliquely relative to the plane in which the plate body302,304generally extends. In the lower plate304, the cups316are bent upwardly so that the apertures308are formed at the upper ends of the walls of the cups316. The washers314are sized to be larger in diameter than the cup apertures308, and specifically the uppermost edge of the cup walls that extend about the cup apertures308so as to be in interference therewith thereby keeping the bolts306and lower plate304in assembled relation. Also, the lower cups316and bolt heads309are provided with cooperating anti-rotation structure in the form of diametrically opposed notches318in the cup316so that the cup wall is formed by a pair of arcuate wall portions. This leaves radially inwardly extending tabs320of the lower plate304between the arcuate wall portions and below the cup wall notches318for being received in corresponding notches formed in the bolt head309so that when threading the nuts310on the shanks301, the bolts306will not turn. In an alternative form, the washer314is provided with tabs314A and the washer314is press fit onto the bolt shanks307so that the tabs314A thereof are aligned with the notches318for fitting therein when the annular washer body is fit into the pocket of the recessed aperture308. According to one alternative form shown inFIG.6, the sensor module102, which may include RFID chip103, is coupled to an inner facing surface304bof the lower plate member304, such as via an adhesive. The sensor module102is located centrally between the apertures308and spaced from the periphery of the lower plate member304.

Similar to the lower plate304, the upper plate302has pair of recessed apertures311for receipt of the shank end portions of the bolt shanks307therethough. The apertures311are recessed in the same manner as the recessed apertures308of the lower plate304. This allows the nuts310to be received in the cups316so as not to project above the upper surface302A of the upper plate302. As shown inFIG.5, the sensor module102, which may include RFID chip103, is coupled to an inner facing surface302bof the upper plate member302, such as via an adhesive. The sensor module102is located centrally between the apertures311and spaced from the periphery of the upper plate member302. During fastener installation, the lower plate304is first oriented to extend under the opening24formed in the belt to receive the sensor module102. The bolts306are inserted through the through openings26previously formed in the belt12from the underside of the belt12until the bolt shanks307protrude through the outer surface of the belt13A. The upper plate302is then oriented to extend over the opening24formed in the belt12and to receive the threaded shanks307of the bolts206through the recessed apertures311in the upper plate. Nuts310are threaded onto threaded end portions of the threaded shanks307to clamp upper plate302of the belt fastener assembly300onto the outer surface13A of the conveyor belt12. When the nuts310are tightened down on the threaded shanks307, the belt12is clamped between the lower plate304and the upper plate302, with the sensor module102positioned within the opening24formed in the belt, as shown inFIGS.3A and3B. The torque applied to the nuts310for this purpose is resisted by the anti-rotation tabs320received in the bolt head notches. In this manner, the bolts306will not turn as the nuts310are threaded onto the threaded shanks307.

Splices22associated with a sensor module102including an RFID chip103may be inspected manually by an operator or automatically via a camera420, such as a machine vision camera, of a splice monitoring system400as shown inFIG.7, which may form a part of conveyor monitoring system100. One or more lights430positioned adjacent the belt12for illuminating the area viewed by the camera420may be present. In one form, the camera420, alone or in combination with a computer programmed to control and process imaging information from the camera420, such as industrial computer410, may be configured to automatically detect anomalies in the splice22by comparing the acquired image of the splice22to an expected image of the splice.

In another form, the camera420and optionally the lights430, may be triggered by the RFID reader106via the computer410to illuminate and record an image of the splice22when the RFID chip103passes and is read by the RFID reader106. In order to determine when the RFID chip103and/or splice22is appropriately positioned for the camera420to record one or more images of the splice22, processing circuitry of the RFID reader106or of the associated computer410may determine the strength of the received signal from the RFID chip103, such as via a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI). The strength of the signal may be determined multiple times over a period of time as the RFID chip103attached to the conveyor belt12approaches and passes the RFID reader106and an average of the determined signal strengths can be determined. The processing circuitry of the RFID reader106, or of the associated computer410, can be configured to trigger the camera420at the appropriate time to capture an image of the splice22, such as when the received signal strength, or an average of the received signal strengths, is highest. Alternatively, the camera420can be triggered when the received signal strength or the average of received signal strengths is at another predetermined value indicating that the RFID chip103is at its closest position relative to the RFID reader106, or when the splice22is at a position suitable for the camera420to record an image of the splice22. The camera420may capture one or more images or a video containing a plurality of images. The camera420or computer410may retain one or more images containing the splice22and discard the remaining images. Alternatively, the camera420may discard all images not containing the splice22. The camera420or computer410may record the date and time at which each splice image is captured and store the splice image and its associated date and time together in a memory thereof. For example, the RFID reader106sends a signal to the computer410to indicate that the RFID chip103has been detected or is at the appropriate position to capture an image of the splice22, and the computer410then sends a control signal to the camera420to capture one or more images, such as 3 to 5 images, or record a video for a predetermined period of time, such as 1 to 5 seconds.

The computer410may also be configured to control the camera420such that the camera420does not record or store an image of the splice22every single time the RFID chip103is read by the RFID reader106, but instead records an image periodically, such as hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or bi-monthly or based on a predetermined number of cycles that the RFID chip103is detected by the reader106, such as every 10, 50, 100, or 500 times. The camera420may also be caused to capture one or more images by a user input to a remote computer114or mobile device, such as a smartphone112, tablet computer, or laptop computer, of the system100. The user input command to capture an image of the splice22may be relayed to the computer410via network108.

In another form, the sensor module104may detect a potential fault condition associated with the splice22, such as a damaged splice22impacting against a belt cleaner14. For example, if an accelerometer of the sensor module104detects an acceleration greater than a predetermined threshold, the sensor module104may communicate the potential fault condition to the computer410. The computer410then causes the camera420to capture one or more images of the splice22, such as the next time, or a predetermined number of subsequent times, the RFID chip103associated with splice22is detected by the RFID reader106.

The image of the splice22can then be associated with the digital twin of the splice22for access by a user to monitor the splice22over time. The image of the splice22, as well as other information acquired from the camera420and/or RFID reader106may be acquired and processed by the computer410and further transmitted to the cloud computing system, such as control system116via a gateway110(FIG.7), such as a Wi-Fi router or SIM card for connecting to a broadband cellular data network. The information acquired and processed by the computer410may be transmitted via network108to control system116computer114, cloud computing system117, another cloud computing system118, or a handheld device such as smartphone112, as shown inFIG.8.

Instead of, or in addition to utilizing camera420, a user may record an image of the splice22using a mobile computing device, such as a smartphone112or tablet, and associate and store the image with the stored record of the splice22in the cloud computing system, such as control system116, via application software so that the condition of the splice22may be monitored and accessed at any time by a computer114, tablet, or a smartphone112in communication with the monitoring system100. The monitoring system100may prompt a user via an e-mail, SMS message, or application notification to inspect and/or upload a new image of a splice22based on various factors, such as a detected potential fault condition, a predetermined number of cycles, or a predetermined interval of time. The application software may include fields for providing comments and observations made by a user regarding the splice22for maintaining accurate historical data regarding the condition of the splice22.

As shown inFIG.8, the conveyor system10includes a monitoring system100for monitoring one or more characteristics of one or more components of the conveyor system10. The monitoring system100incudes sensor modules102,104,106positioned at one or more components of the conveyor system10. The sensor modules102,104,106each include one or more sensors and a communication module, such as an antenna and associated circuitry in the case of an RFID chip103, or one of the various communication modules described in more detail below. The sensor modules102,104,106are configured to detect one or more conditions of the one or more components based on, for example, movements or positions of components or portions thereof. In some forms, the sensor modules cooperate and communicate with one another to detect one or more conditions of one or more components of the conveyor system10. The monitoring system100includes a remote resource, such as cloud computing system117, that processes data from the sensor modules102,104,106to determine one or more characteristics of the corresponding ancillary devices and/or conveyor belt12and/or to predict the remaining lifespan thereof. The cloud computing system117is operable to detect other statuses of the conveyor system10, such as whether the belt12is running, how long the belt12has been running, how many times a splice22has traveled about the conveyor system, whether the belt12is mistracking, whether the ancillary device is properly engaged with the belt12, the amount of carryback, and the presence or absence of material on the belt12. As is known, the cloud computing system117may include one or more remote servers providing cloud computing functionality.

The sensor modules102,104,106may communicate with the cloud computing system117by way of gateway110. In some forms, a sensor module102, such as RFID chip103associated with the conveyor belt12, communicates with another sensor module106, such as an RFID reader, which in turn may communicate with a third sensor module104, or a smartphone112or computer114, which then communicates with the gateway110. Alternatively, the sensor modules102,104,106may be configured to communicate directly with a smartphone112. The gateway110may be an internet router110A or cellular tower110B which connects the sensor modules102,104,106to the internet. Information from the cloud117is viewed by a user through a computer114or smartphone112. The computer114is part of a control system116, such as a computer configured to provide an operator information for monitoring, operating, adjusting or controlling the conveyor system10by the operator. Although a desktop computer114and a smartphone112are shown inFIG.8, other computing devices may be utilized such as a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a smartwatch, and augmented reality glasses.

InFIG.9A, one embodiment of sensor module104is shown. The sensor module104is configured to detect one or more operating characteristics of an ancillary device of the conveyor system10. The sensor module104has a housing504having separable portions to allow the housing504to be mounted about a support pole of belt cleaner14with the support pole extending through a through opening507formed by the housing504. The separable portions of the housing504are coupled with screws to fix the separable portions together about the pole. The housing504includes a user interface506having a plurality of user inputs, such as Bluetooth® pairing button508for pairing the sensor module with a Bluetooth®-enabled device, such as smartphone112, and status input button510, which causes status indicators, such as pairing indicator512, connection indicator514, WiFi indicator516, cellular indicator518, status indicators520, battery life indicator522, and/or wired power source indicator524to illuminate.

The housing504of sensor module104encloses a sensor circuit530schematically illustrated inFIG.9B. The sensor circuit530may include one or more sensors532, such as an accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer, which may be used to detect movement of an ancillary device. Processing circuitry534includes a processor communicatively coupled to the sensors532, a memory module536, and a communication module538, such as one of the communication modules described in more detail below. The memory module536is a non-transitory computer readable memory, such as random access memory (RAM), solid state memory, or magnetic disc-based memory. Data from the sensors532is transmitted to the processing circuitry534, which writes the received data to the memory module536. The processing circuitry534also may operate the communication module538to wirelessly transmit data from the sensors532to an external device using one or more of the standards listed below. The communication module538may also receive data from other devices, such as sensor modules102and106, and send the data to other devices, such as a remote computing device112,114,116,117,118. A power source540, such as a direct wired connection or a battery, powers the processing circuitry534, memory module536, communication module538, and sensors532.

RegardingFIG.2, the conveyor system10further may include a gateway or communication hub110, such as a wireless router110B, which wirelessly communicates with the plurality of sensor modules102,104,106. The wireless communication between the sensor modules102,104,106and gateway110may utilize any of a variety of communication protocols. For example, the sensor modules102,104,106may use infrastructure protocols such as 6LowPAN, IPv4/Ipv6, RPL, QUIC, Aeron, uIP, DTLS, ROLL/RPL, NanoIP, CNN, and TSMP; identification protocols such as EPC, uCode, Ipv6, and URIs; communication/transport protocols such as Wifi, Bluetooth®, DigiMesh, ANT, NFC, WirelessHart, IEEE 802.15.4, Zigbee, EnOcean, WiMax, and LPWAN; discovery protocols such as Physical Web, mDNS, HyperCat, UpnP, and DNS-SD; Data protocols such as MQTT, MQTT-SN, Mosquitto, IMB MessageSight, STOMP, XMPP, XMPP-IoT, CoAP, AMQP, Websocket and Node; device management protocols such as TR-069 and OMA-DM; semantic JSON-LD and Web Thing Model; and/or multi-layer frame work protocols such as Alljoyn, IoTivity, Weave, and Homekit.

The monitoring system100may include a processor and the measured data from one or more of the sensor modules102,104,106and corresponding to a detected one or more characteristics is received by the processor. The processor or another remote processor or processors, such as in the cloud117, may identify fault conditions, such as a mistracking belt or a worn out or broken ancillary device, in the conveyor system10based on the measured data. In one form, the processor that receives the measured data is a local processor directly connected to a sensor module, and the processor that identifies fault conditions or worn-out devices is part of a remote computing device112,114,116,117,118. The remote processor can be part of a remote computing device112,114,116,117,118that receives the data from one or more sensor modules102,104,106over a wired and/or wireless communication network. In some forms, each sensor module communicates directly with a communication hub or gateway110, such as a router110B. In another form, the sensor modules form a mesh network, in which a first sensor module acts as a communication relay for a second sensor module, the second sensor module acts as a communication relay for a third sensor module, and so on. The ability of the sensor modules to operate as communication relays allows sensor modules that would have difficulty directly communicating with a communication hub of the system to still provide data to the processor. For example, the communication hub may be positioned at the beginning of an underground mine. The first sensor module is closest to the communication hub while the second and third sensor modules are progressively farther into the mine. Although the second and third sensor modules may be unable to communicate directly with the communication hub due to interference from the rock of the mine, data from the third sensor module may be relayed by the second sensor module to the first sensor module which in turn relays the information to the communication hub. Likewise, the data from the second sensor module may be relayed by the first sensor module to the communication hub. In other forms, one or more of the sensor modules include a cellular communication card, such as a Global System for Mobile Communications (“GSM”) card and communicate via a cellular network.

In some forms, the gateway110A,110B communicates with an external data processing system, such as a cloud-based computing system, such as control system116as shown inFIG.2. The cloud-based computing system may store communicated data and/or process the communicated data and relay data back to the gateway110A,110B or another computer system for further processing or storage. For example, the cloud-based computing system may include one or more data processing applications configured to run on a virtual machine in the cloud-based computing system and process the data communicated to the cloud-based computing system by the gateway110. Alternatively or additionally, the gateway110transmits data from the sensor modules102,104,106to one or more onsite computers such as a control room computer or portable computers, e.g., smartphones or tablets, carried by users of the conveyor system10. The sensor modules102,104,106may also transmit data directly to the one or more onsite computers using one or more communication protocols such as those listed above. Furthermore, the sensor modules102,104,106may transmit data between each other or other sensors before communicating data to the one or more on-site computers, the gateway110, and/or the cloud-based computing system. The gateway110may use the same protocols or different protocols when communicating with the cloud-based computing system, an on-site computer, or another external device.

In another form,FIG.2illustrates the conveyor system10in which one or more of the sensor modules102,104,106include communication modules, which may be cellular communication modules. The communication modules are configured to communicate over a standard cellular communication protocol, such as GSM. One or more of the sensor modules102,104,106can communicate with the control system116over a network108by way of a cellular phone tower110A. In some forms, the communication module is configured to communicate over a low-power wide-area network, such as LTE CAT-M1 or NB-IoT. The communication module includes a fallback communication protocol, such as 2G cellular communications.

The sensor modules102,104,106may be configured to sense data continuously but only transmit a portion of the data in order to reduce the amount of data that needs to be processed. For example, if the sensor module102includes an active RFID chip or other sensor or communication circuitry that requires a power source, the sensor module102may be programmed to sample the sensed data at predetermined intervals, such as every second, every minute, every hour, or every day and transmit the sampled data to the cloud-based computing system for processing. Sampling data at a fixed interval allows system users to control their data costs. However, at times, additional samples may be utilized to confirm a fault condition, such as a mistracking belt. In this case, the cloud-based computing system, such as control system116, may temporarily increase the sampling rate of a particular sensor module in order to confirm a fault condition exists. Generally, the sampling rate of the sensor modules may be increased or decreased as desired for particular situations.

Sensor module102may include a wide variety of devices instead of, or in combination with an RFID chip103, including alternate tracking or positioning systems, communication modules such as Bluetooth®, Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), WiFi, cellular, and Ultra-Wide-Band (UWB), and sensor or sensor modules, such as infrared, lidar, ultrasonic, visual and laser.

While there have been illustrated and described particular embodiments of the present invention, it will be appreciated that numerous changes and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art, and it is intended in the appended claims to cover all those changes and modifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.