A CLOSED-LOOP CONVEYOR SYSTEM

Abstract: An automatic method of and apparatus for taking up slack or relieving undue tension in a closed loop chain con­ veyor (1) traveling in a corresponding track loop (3) by dividing the track into separate sections (3′,3″), sensing the elongation or contraction in the chain in one section (3″), and responding to such sensing to move the other track section (3′) away from or toward the said one track section (3″) to compensate for the chain length variation.

Description: The present invention relates to closed loop conveyor systems adapted to transport loads and the like, being more particularly directed to conveyor systems of the link roller chain type such as described, for example, in my earlier U.S. Letters Patent Nos. 3,197,045, 3,447,666, and 4,493,414, adapted to carry car or other load-supporting platforms and susceptible to elongation (slack) or contraction (tautness) as a result of variations in load, wear, resiliency, tension and similar factors and requiring techniques for compensatory adjustment of chain length. More specifically, in its preferred, though not exclusive, application to chain loop conveyors traveling in tracks, the invention relates to an improved method of and apparatus for automatically adjusting the track length in response to variations in chain conveyor length. In short-length conveyor systems, it has been customary to provide the so-called "take-up" arrangements comprising manually adjustable bolts and nuts for lengthening or shortening the track length as required --such techniques requiring manual adjustment and attendant awkwardness. Longer conveyor systems have employed a counter-weight (such as a concrete block) that pulls away a section of track, involving a fixed force pre-tensioning arrangement which, while it can effect a certain minimum tension at any time, under any load or no-load conditions, has the most serious and costly disadvantage residing in the fact that this pre-tensioning "consumes" up to 40% of the chain "working-load" operating life through enhancing chain wear and breakdown. Underlying the present invention is a novel technique which divides or separates the conveyor track, within which the chain loop travels, into two sections; one in which the drive for the chain and the sensing of elongation or slack (or contraction or tautness) is effected, and the other automatically longitudinally movable way from or toward the said one section in response to such sensing to provide compensation for undesired chain length variation. An object of the invention, accordingly, is to provide a new and improved method of and apparatus for automatic conveyor length adjustment in response to sensed length variations that obviate the above-mentioned and other disadvantages of prior approaches to length adjustment, and provide for automatic effective, low-wear and inexpesnsive track length variation. A further object is to provide a novel adjustable length slack take-up apparatus for conveyors that, while partiuclarly useful for parallel transversely spaced conveyors carrying platforms therebetween, as for storing and retrieving automobiles or other loads, is also more generally useful, as well. Other and further objects will be explained hereinafter and are more particularly delineated in the appended claims. With respect to the prior art known from GB-A-2154528, which corresponds to the first portion of claim 1 as well as of claim 6, the method according to the present invention is characterised by the features specified in the second portion of claim 1. According to an other aspect of the invention there is provided conveyor apparatus comprising a guide track frame for a continuous conveyor chain, drive means for driving the chain around the guide track frame, sensing means for sensing variations in length of said chain characterised in that said guide track frame is formed of two separate guide track frame sections, drive means for driving the chain at one of said frame sections, said sensing means being arranged along said one of said frame sections, and means for moving the other of said frame sections with respect to said one frame section to compensate for variation in the length of said chain. The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing, Fig 1 of which is a side elevation showing the invention in preferred form, illustratively applied to closed chain loop conveyors travelling in enclosing track sections as of the type described in said Letters Patent; and Fig 2 is a top elevation showing the "take-up" end of the conveyor of Fig 1 carried with a parallel similar conveyor by an adjustable position carriage, and supporting car or other platforms therebetween. Referring to fig 1, a closed loop chain as of the link-roller type described in said Letters Patent, is schematically shown at 1 traveling within a corresponding track 3 illustrated as divided or separated at G into a short left-hand track section 3′, including the left-hand end loop portion L′, and a long right-hand track section 3″ having at its right-hand end, the loop portion L″. In actual practice, for the car-conveying or similar illustrative purposes before mentioned, a pair of parallel laterally spaced tracks with their conveyors will be employed, as shown at 3 and 30 in Fig. 2, with the load-bearing platforms P supported and carried therebetween as described in said Letters Patent, though the invention is certainly useful with individual track-conveyor systems, as well. For this preferred illustrated application of the invention, moreover, the track loop 3 is shown comprising a lower longitudinally extending track portion L, and an upper parallel track portion U having complementary end direction-changing loop portions L′ and L″ upwardly extending transversely from the lower to the upper track portion. The end loops first incline upwardly and outwardly from the lower track portion (at 2 to the left for L′, and at 2′ to the right, for L″), then reversely incline inwardly and upwardly above the upper track portion (at 4 and 4′, respectively), and finally then downwardly to meet the upper track portion at the left-hand end 6 of the upper track portion of section 3′, and at the right-hand end 6′ of the upper track portion of section 3″. The drive (such as a sprocket D engaging the chain roller-links) is preferably disposed in the region between the inclined portion 2′ and reversely inclined portion 4′ of the end loop L″ and, for example, directs the chain clockwise along the track loop. From experience, it has been found that when the chain travels or rides within such an enclosed track, say clockwise, slack in the chain is, in practice, accumulated just beyond (above, as shown) the drive sprocket D. The shape of the end loop provides room for such elongation of chain or slack to occur and to insure that it is within small variations. The chain slack manifests itself as a "hanging" off the track, outwards, with the rollers of the slackened chain which are engaging against a spring-held tongue T in the track causing the same to pivot the left-hand end of a lever 10 downward about rotating point P into engagement with sensor contacts S′, which activates the drive of a motor M in one direction. The motor M is shown fixedly mounted to the floor on a stationery platform, and through well-known and appropriate speed-reducing and brake assemblies, rotates a threaded nut N, say clockwise, in response to the upper sensor engagement at S. This will cause a threaded screw bolt B, received within nut N and fixed to a rollable carriage C that carries the end loop track section 3′, to move that section longitudinally to the left, away from track section 3″, and thus re-tensioning the chain and taking up the slack, whereupon the lever 10 will rise out of engagement with sensor S because of its unbalanced nature, as shown. Similarly, should the chain become too taut, T will be urged into the track causing the weight of the unbalanced lever 10 to cause it to rise into engagement with the upper contact sensor S, controling the driving of the motor M (and nut N) in response thereto in the opposite direction, and moving the carriage C and track loop section 3′ longitudinally to the right toward the section 3″, relieving such chain tension, automatically. When the lever 10 is between S and S′, the motor M is not activated. Unlike the before-mentioned prior hung counter-weight (concrete block) systems, thus, the present invention obviates the need for such arrangements and enables an automatic accommodation for variations in chain length with added substantial useful operating life to the chain and smoother operation. If the chain travel is bi-directional (reversal), the sensing will be done, also, on the other side of the drive D, not shown, and, indeed the technique is useful with other than roller-link type chains (all such closed loop conveyors being herein generically termed "chains"). The geometry of the track sections may also, of course, be varied for the desired application and further modifications will also occur to those skilled in this art, such being considered to fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims: A method of adjusting the track length of a continuous closed chain conveyor to compensate for operating variations in length of the chain thereof comprising, forming a guide track frame (3) for the chain (1), driving the chain (1) around and within the guide track frame (3), and sensing for changes in length of said chain (3) characterised by dividing or separating the guide track frame into two sections (3', 3"), driving the chain at one of the sections, sensing in said one of said sections (3") variations in the length of the chain (1) and moving the other of said sections (3') with respect to said one section (3") in response to said sensing whereby to maintain the required tension in the chain (1). A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said driving is effected at a direction-changing end guide track portion (2', 4') of the said one section (3"). A method as claimed in claim 2 wherein said sensing of chain length variation is effected at said end guide track portion at a region (2') just beyond that of said driving of the chain. A method as claimed in claim 3 wherein said chain conveyor and its guide track frame (3) is oriented with substantially parallel longitudinal portions (U, L) one above the other and with end loop portions (L', L") of the guide track frame extending substantially upwardly transversely therebetween. A method as claimed in claim 4 wherein the region (G) of the separation of said guide track frame (3) is located near one of said loop portions (L'). Conveyor apparatus comprising a guide track frame (3) for a continuous conveyor chain (1), drive means (D) for driving the chain (1) around the guide track frame (3), sensing means for sensing variations in length of said chain (1) characterised in that said guide track frame (3) is formed of two separate guide track frame sections (3', 3"), drive means for driving the chain (1) at one of said frame sections (3"), said sensing means (P, S, S', T) being arranged along said one of said frame sections (3"), and means for moving the other of said frame sections (3') with respect to said one frame section (3") to compensate for variation in the length of said chain (1). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein said moving means comprises carriage means (C) supporting said other frame section (3'). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said moving means is provided with motor drive means (M) mounted in a stationary position and controlled by said sensing means and having a longitudinally extending drive member linked to said carriage means (C) to effect the longitudinal compensating movement of the same. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein said longitudinally extending drive member comprises a screw (B) carried by said carriage means (C) and a motorised nut drive (N) by said motor drive means (M). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein said chain drive means (D) is disposed in a direction-changing end loop portion (L") of said one frame section (3"). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein said sensing means is disposed at the chain just beyond said drive means (D) in said end loop portion (L"). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said carriage means (C) carries the direction-changing end loop portion of said other frame section (3'). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 12 wherein said chain (1) and its guide track frame (3) are oriented with substantially parallel longitudinal portions (L, U) one above the other and with end loop portions (L', L") extending substantially upwardly transversely therebetween. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein the region of the track separation (G) is disposed near the end loop portion (L') of said other track frame section (3') such that the carriage means (C) carries the same. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein said one track frame section (3') is much longer than the said other track frame section (3"). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein the end loop portions (L', L") incline upwardly and outwardly from the lower track portion (L), then reversely incline inwardly and upwardly above the upper track portion (U) of the guide track frame (3) and then downwardly to meet said upper track portion (U). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein said driving means (D) is disposed in the region between the inclined and reversely inclined regions (2', 4') of the end loop portion (L"). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 17 wherein said sensing means is disposed in the reversely inclined region (2') beyond said driving means (D). Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 7 further including a second similar closed chain and guide track frame (30) therefor disposed laterally of and parallel to the chain (1) and guide track frame (3) and formed of similar separated guide track frame sections to said guide track frame sections (3' , 3"), and with its end loop portion corresponding to end loop portion (L') of track loop section (3') also being carried by said carriage means (C).

Inventors: NEVO-HACOHEN, JACOB I.
Applicants: AUTO-VEYOR INC
Application year: 1986
Main classification: B65G23
IPC codes: B65G23