Patent Publication Number: US-2022212876-A1

Title: Product containment guard for a conveyor

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/843,812 filed May 6, 2019 and entitled “Product Containment Guard for a Conveyor,” the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to power-driven conveyors. More particularly, the invention relates to product containment guards for a conveyor. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Power-driven conveyors are used to convey items. A conveyor comprises a frame forming a carryway for a conveyor belt, which travels through a circuit and returns to an infeed through a returnway below a carryway. Product containment rails may be placed along one or more sides of the carryway for containing product on the carryway. Current product containment guards are bolted in place, and not easily removeable, replaceable or cleanable and tend to harbor bacteria, debris, contaminants and other unhygienic material. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A conveyor comprises a frame forming a carryway for a conveyor belt, infeed and outfeed assemblies, a returnway and one or more movable product containment guards for containing product on the carryway. The product containment guards can be moved between an operational position adjacent the carryway and one or more cleaning positions without the use of tools, and easily integrated into and-or removed from the frame without the use of tools. 
     According to an embodiment, an assembly for a conveyor comprises a conveyor frame for supporting a conveyor belt, a carryway for the conveyor belt extending in a longitudinal direction and a product containment guard on a side of the carryway. The product containment guard comprises a longitudinal containment rail extending adjacent to a first edge of the carryway for containing product on the carryway, a vertical support rail connected to the longitudinal containment rail, an upper mounting rail extending perpendicular to the vertical support rail in a longitudinal direction and a lower mounting rail below the upper mounting rail and extending in the longitudinal direction. 
     According to another embodiment, an assembly for a conveyor comprises a conveyor frame for supporting a conveyor belt, a carryway for the conveyor belt and an end plate connected to the conveyor frame for mounting a product containment guard. The end plate comprises a first open recess in a top wall and an elongated slot below the first open recess. 
     According to another embodiment, a product containment guard for containing product on a conveyor comprises a longitudinal containment rail configured to be placed adjacent to an edge of the conveyor carryway, a vertical support rail connected and extending down relative to the longitudinal containment rail, an upper mounting rail extending in the longitudinal direction from the vertical support rail and having a narrow neck to form a circumferential channel separating an end face of the upper mounting rail from the body of the rail and a lower mounting rail extending below and parallel to the upper mounting rail. The lower mounting rail comprises an obround-shaped end knob. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is an isometric view of a conveyor including product containment guards according to an embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an isometric view of the carryway and product containment guards of the conveyor of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of a product containment guard of the conveyor of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  shows frame mounting components and assembled product containment guards of the conveyor of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is an isometric view of a mounting component for mounting a carryway and product containment guards according to an embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 6  is an isometric view of the carryway and product containment guards of  FIG. 2  in a separated position; 
         FIG. 7  is a detailed view of the end plate of the mounting component of  FIG. 5  and mounting portion of a product containment guard in a separated position; 
         FIG. 8  is a detailed view of the end plate and mounting portion of  FIG. 7  in an operational position; 
         FIG. 9  shows the end plate and product containment guard mounting component of  FIGS. 7 and 8  prior to assembly; 
         FIG. 10  shows the end plate and product containment guard mounting component of  FIGS. 7 and 8  during assembly; 
         FIG. 11  shows the end plate and product containment guard mounting component of  FIGS. 7 and 8  in a first cleaning position; 
         FIG. 12  shows the end plate and product containment guard mounting component of  FIGS. 7 and 8  during movement from the first cleaning position to an operational position; 
         FIG. 13  shows the end plate and product containment guard of  FIGS. 7 and 8  in the operational position; 
         FIG. 14  shows the end plate and product containment guard mounting component of  FIGS. 7 and 8  in a second cleaning position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a product containment guard for a conveyor that can be easily moved between an operation position and a cleaning position, and removed and assembled, without tools. The present invention will be described below relative to an illustrative embodiment. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention may be implemented in a number of different applications and embodiments and is not specifically limited in its application to the particular embodiments depicted herein. 
     A conveyor frame embodying features of the invention is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The exemplary conveyor frame  10  supports a conveyor belt  40  traveling in a longitudinal direction between a first end, the infeed  11 , of the frame and a second end, the outfeed  12 , of the frame. The conveyor belt conveys products from the first end  11  to the second end  12  along a carryway. The conveyor belt  40  may be trained around reversing elements at each end of the carryway  30  and returned along a returnway  42  below the carryway. While the illustrative embodiment shows a conveyor belt  40  for conveying product, the product containment guard may be used with any suitable conveyor for conveying product, not limited to a conveyor belt. 
     The illustrative frame  10  comprises a plurality of tubular sections forming support structure  20  for a carryway. A carryway  30  is mounted to the support structure for guiding the conveyor belt from the infeed  11  to the outfeed  12 . The illustrative carryway  30  comprises a plurality of low-friction rails extending from the infeed  11  to the outfeed  12 , upon which the conveyor belt runs. The infeed  11  comprises opposing mounting plates  110  configured to mount an infeed guide roller  114  and other infeed components if required. The outfeed  12  comprises opposing mounting plates  120  configured to mount a drive for the conveyor belt, or other reversing element, and other outfeed components. Alternatively, the drive may be located in the returnway. The frame also includes returnway rollers  70  mounted to returnway mounts  72  below the carryway  30  to form the returnway. 
     Product containment guards  100  are mounted to the frame on one or both sides of the carryway to contain product on the carryway  30 . The illustrative product containment guards have a secure operational position, multiple cleaning position, and a removal position. The product containment guards  100  can be moved between the different positions without the use of tools. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3-5 , the conveyor frame includes seats for mounting the product containment guards  100  and the carryway  30 . Each product containment guard  100  comprises a longitudinal containment rail  130  configured to be placed along a side edge of the carryway for containing product on the conveyor belt. The rail  130  may have any suitable configuration, size, structure and be formed of any suitable material suitable for containing the particular conveyed product. In one embodiment, the conveyor comprises multiple longitudinal containment rails  130  arranged in series along a side of the conveyor carryway, and-or comprise multiple rails arranged vertically. The illustrative longitudinal containment rail  130  comprises bent sheet metal, but the invention is not so limited. The product containment guard  100  further includes at least one, shown as a pair, of vertical support rails  140 , each connected to the longitudinal containment rail  130  by a pair of laterally-inward extending protrusions  142 , or other suitable connectors. In a middle portion, a first connecting rail  144  extends in the direction of belt travel (longitudinally) from a vertical support rail  140 . A lower, second connecting rail  146  extends parallel to the first connecting rail  144  and includes an end knob  147  that has an obround shape, i.e., elongated along one axis and having flat top and bottom surfaces and shorter rounded side surfaces. 
     The conveyor frame  10  includes one or more mounting components  200 , shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5  including seats for both the carryway  30  and for the product containment guards  100 . Each mounting component  200  comprises a lateral rail  210  mounted to the rails  20  of the frame at selected locations. The mounting component  200  includes seats for the carryway rails. In the illustrative embodiment, pairs of carryway-guiding protrusions  220  extend up from the lateral rail  210  at selected locations for seating a carryway rail. On each side end of the lateral rail  210  extends an end plate  230  for mounting the product containment guard  100 . Each end plate  230  comprises a planar body extending laterally from an end of the lateral rail  210 , tapering in width W from a top to a bottom. The illustrative end plate  230  includes a vertical inner side wall  240 , a rounded bottom end  242 , an angled outer side wall  244  and a top wall  246 . The end plate body includes a lower vertical slot  232 , a first top recess  234  in the top wall  246  and a second top recess  236  disposed laterally outward of the first top recess in the top wall  246 . The first top recess  234  is deeper than the second top recess  236 . The first and second top recesses  234 ,  246  have rounded bottoms, but the invention is not so limited. The lower vertical slot  232  has a rounded top and bottom, but the invention is not so limited. A central lower vertical connecting rail  248  connects the mounting component  200  to the rest of the conveyor frame, but other suitable connectors may be used. 
       FIG. 4  shows an operational position for the product containment guard  100 , in which the upper connecting rail  144  is seated in the first top recess  234  close to the edge of the carryway, and the lower connecting rail  146  is seated in the bottom of the vertical slot  232 . In this position, the longitudinal containment rail  130  is placed adjacent the side edge of the carryway  30  to contain product conveyed by the conveyor belt  40 . 
       FIGS. 6 and 7  shows the carryway  30 , mounting component  200  and product containment guard  100  prior to assembly, in which the mounting rails  144 ,  146  are separated from the end plate  230 . As shown in detail in  FIG. 7 , the lower connecting rail end knob  147  includes rounded sides and flat top and bottom surfaces. A narrow neck  148  separates the body of the lower protrusion  146  from the end knob  147 . The upper mounting rail  144  also includes a narrow neck  149 , which forms a circumferential channel in the rail  144  and separates an end face from the body of the rail  144 . The illustrative end face of the upper mounting rail  144  is configured to be received in the seats  234 ,  236 . In the illustrative embodiment, the end face of the upper mounting rail  144  is circular, but can have any suitable size, shape and configuration suitable for being received in the seats  234 ,  236 . In the operational position, as shown in detail in  FIG. 8 , the upper neck  149  is seated and confined by the inner top recess  234  and the lower neck  148  is seated in and confined by the bottom of the vertical slot  232 , with the end knob  147 , in a position so that it is wider than the vertical lower slot  232 , preventing displacement of the lower rail  146 . In the operational position, the longitudinal containment rail  130  is substantially vertical and adjacent an edge of the carryway. 
     Prior to assembly, as show in  FIG. 9 , the product containment guard  100  is oriented so that the flat sides of the end knob  147  of the lower rail  146  are aligned with the walls of the vertical slot  232 , which is sized to receive the end knob  147  in that orientation. Then, as shown in  FIG. 10 , the lower rail end knob  147  is inserted in the slot  232  to connect the product containment guard  100  to the end plate  230 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , the product containment guard  100  can rotate down by the force of gravity about the lower rail  146  to a full cleaning position, with the product containment guard  100  contained by the vertical slot  232  via the end knob  147 . In this position, the longitudinal containment rail  130  hangs below the carryway, allowing complete access to the carryway edges, without removing the product containment guard  100  from the mounting component. As shown in  FIG. 12 , the product containment guard  100  can be rotated up about the constrained lower rail  146  towards the seats  234 ,  236 , until the upper rail  144  can be seated in the operational recess  234 , as shown in  FIG. 13 . In this position, as described above, the longitudinal rail containment  130  is disposed adjacent to the carryway of a conveyor and in a substantially vertical position, with the lower slot  232  and recess  234  constraining the product containment guard  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 14 , the product containment guard  100  can be rotated out of the operational position to an intermediate position, wherein the upper connecting rail  144  is seated in the second recess  236  of the end plate  230 , and the lower connecting rail  146  is rotated within the vertical slot  232 , but constrained by the contact between the end knob  147  and vertical slot  232 . In this position, the longitudinal containment rail  130  is angled away from the carryway  30 . This intermediate position allows access to the edges of the carryway  30  for cleaning or repair of the conveyor belt  40  or for any necessary purpose. 
     The scope of the claims is not meant to be limited to the details of the described exemplary embodiments.