# US 11,408,489 B2 · Belt drive system

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- Number: US 11,408,489 B2
- Document ID: US11408489B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/597,896
- Filed: 2019-10-10
- Published: 2020-04-23
- Granted: 2022-08-09
- Earliest claimed: 2018-10-23
- Assignees: Roche Diagnostics Operations, Inc.
- Applicants: Roche Diagnostics Operations, Inc.
- Inventors: Walter Berberich; Timo Ziegler; Benjamin Zoelch
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11408489B2

## CPC

- F16H 7/023: {with belts having a toothed contact surface or regularly spaced bosses or hollows for slipless or nearly slipless meshing with complementary profiled contact surface of a pulley}
- G05B 19/042: using digital processors (G05B19/05 takes precedence)
- F16H 55/171: {Toothed belt pulleys}
- F16H 57/01: Monitoring wear or stress of gearing elements, e.g. for triggering maintenance
- F16H 59/68: Inputs being a function of gearing status
- G05B 19/4015: {going to a reference at the beginning of machine cycle, e.g. for calibration}
- F16H 2057/014: {of friction elements in transmissions}
- F16H 2059/6823: {Sensing neutral state of the transmission}
- G05B 2219/2621: Conveyor, transfert line
- G05B 2219/41074: Learn, calibrate at start for indetermined position, drive until movement
- G05B 2219/41092: References, calibration positions for correction of value position counter
- G05B 2219/45054: Handling, conveyor
- F16H: GEARING
- G05B: CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS (systems for controlling or regulating non-electric variables G05D; systems for regulating electric or magnetic variables G05F; control devices or systems insofar as characterised by mechanical features only G05G)

## Abstract

A drive system for driving a belt is presented. The system comprises a frame, a driving shaft connected to a motor, a controller, a driven shaft, two pulleys connected to the driven and driving shafts, and a belt. The frame supports the driving and driven shafts to mount the belt on the pulleys. A signal element is mounted on and drives with the belt. At least two detection elements are mounted on the frame so that when the signal element passes the detection elements, a signal is generated as the belt moves. The detector elements are connected to a controller which controls the motor so that when the system starts, the belt moves until the signal element generates a signal in a first detector element to fix a zero point of the belt movement. The signal of the second detector element checks the zero point during normal drive operation.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A belt drive system for driving a belt, the belt drive system comprising:
a frame;
a driving shaft connected to a motor;
a controller;
a driven shaft;
two pulleys connected to the driven shaft and driving shaft respectively;
a belt, wherein the frame supports the driving shaft and driven shaft so that the belt is mounted on the pulleys;
a signal element mounted on the belt so that the signal element drives with the belt; and
at least two detection elements mounted at the frame so that when the signal element passes by the detection elements, a signal is generated by the passing by of the signal element, wherein the detector elements are connected to the controller, wherein the controller is configured to control the motor so that in a starting operation of the belt drive system, the belt moves until the signal element generates a signal in a first detector element of the at least two detector elements to fix a zero point in space of the belt movement, wherein the controller is configured to receive and use the signal of the second detector element to check the zero point in space during normal operation of the belt drive system.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the zero point in space determines a park position.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to automatically correct the zero point in space, if the signal of the second detector element indicates a difference to the expected zero point in space.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to count a number of deviations of the zero point and to send out a message to a human interactive device when the number exceeds a threshold value.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The belt drive system according to claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to determine a distance of deviation and sum up this absolute distance separately depending on the direction of motion and to send out a message to a human interface device when the sum of the deviations exceeds a specified threshold value.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The belt drive system according to claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to determine the number of deviations and the distance of deviation and time between the occurrence of deviations and to send out a message to a human interface device when the time between the occurrence of deviations with a specified distance fall below a threshold value.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The belt drive system according to claim 6, further comprising,
a database, wherein the database is connected to the controller to save a number of the occurrence of deviations, the time between the occurrence of deviations, and the distance of deviation.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The belt drive system according to claim 7, further comprising,
an interface configured to add parameters of the belt drive system into the database and to investigate with respect to one or more of the parameters of the list of: wear, elasticity, elongation at break, and/or tensile strength, wherein the controller is configured to calculate an optimized maintenance point in time taking into account the data stored in the database.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The belt drive system according to claim 8, wherein the parameters comprises bearings, shafts, frame elements, and/or the used belt after being stripped down form the pulleys.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

The belt drive system according to claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to allocate specific damages of the belt to specific values of the occurrence of deviations, the time between the occurrence of deviations, and the distance of deviation, and to send out a message to a human interface device which damage is to be expected.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the belt is a toothed belt and the pulleys are gear wheels.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the signal element is an optical element, a magnetic element, an inductive element, a capacitive element or a mechanical element and wherein the at least two detector elements are optical detectors, magnetic detectors, inductive detectors, capacitive detectors or mechanical detectors respectively.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the signal element is an optical opaque sheet and the at least two detector elements are photoelectric barriers, wherein the signal element and the detectors are arranged with respect to each other so that the sheet interrupts the light beam of the photoelectric barrier when passing by.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The belt drive system according to claim 13, wherein the optical opaque sheet comprises a recess so that the light barrier of the photoelectric barrier can pass the recess when the signal elements passes the detector elements.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The belt drive system according to claim 1, wherein the second detector element is arranged with respect to the signal element so that the signal element passes the second detector element during between at least 30% and at least 90% of all expected movements from a start to a stop of the belt.