Patent ID: 7828136

Claim:
A conveyor comprising an endless, side-flexing conveyor belt made from a plurality of rows of hinged interconnected belt links, where each row extends in a width direction substantially perpendicular to a traveling direction of the belt and comprises at least one link, where substantially all links further comprise: a front end substantially parallel to the width direction; a back end substantially parallel to the width direction; a top surface; a bottom surface; a pair of opposing side surfaces; front hinge parts separated by apertures arranged along the front end and having a top portion and a bottom portion that are substantially flush with the top and bottom surfaces respectively, two side portions, a free front portion, and protrusions on one or both side portions of a plurality of the front hinge parts each having an inner surface opposite the front end; and rear hinge parts separated by apertures arranged along the back end such that the front hinge parts of a link will fit inside the apertures on the back end of an adjacent link, and having a top portion and a bottom portion that are substantially flush with the top and bottom surfaces respectively, two side portions, a free front portion, and elongated apertures provided in the side portions of the rear hinge parts that are elongated in the traveling direction such that the protrusions on the front hinge parts fit inside the elongated apertures on an adjacent link; wherein the inner surfaces of one or more protrusions arranged centrally on the link are arranged on an axis substantially parallel to the width direction, and wherein the length in the traveling direction of the protrusions on one or more of the front hinge parts nearer at least one side of the link varies such that the length in the traveling direction of a protrusion near that side surface is smaller than the length in the traveling direction of an adjacent protrusion further from that side surface whereby the inner surfaces of these protrusions are arranged along an axis that is angled in relation to the axis of the inner surfaces of the centrally-located protrusions.