Patent ID: 8496103

Claim:
A conveying apparatus comprising: a transport unit having a running section defining a lateral surface; a support for supporting said transport unit so as to receive the weight of said transport unit passing through said running section; drive assembly for moving said transport unit along said support in a conveying direction; said drive assembly including a drive roller for interacting with said running section to impart a conveying force (F K ) thereto to move said transport unit along said support; said drive assembly further including a force-generating device operatively connected to said drive roller to generate a press-on force (F p ) for pressing said drive roller against said running section of said transport unit; said drive roller defining a rotational axis displaceable relative to said support; a lever arm pivotably movable about a pivot axis; said drive roller being rotatably mounted on said lever arm and said lever arm being chargeable by said force-generating device to generate said press-on force (F p ); a perpendicular projection of said lever arm to said conveying direction and said pivot axis conjointly defining a vertically directed plane; and, said force-generating device being arranged so as to cause said press-on force (F p ) to be applied by said drive roller to said lateral surface of said running section through which said weight of said transport unit passes into said support.