Curved belt conveyor

#The present invention relates generally to conveyors and, more particularly, to a conveyor which conveys articles around a curve.

#It is known to provide zones of rollers in a curved roller conveyor, where each zone includes a motorized roller and a plurality of idler or freely rotating rollers. The motorized roller may be operable to drive the idler rollers via a plurality of O-rings connecting each roller to an adjacent roller or rollers in the zone. Each zone may be independently operable to accumulate articles on a particular zone or zones or to generally continuously convey articles along the zones of the roller conveyor. However, such roller conveyors are not suitable for applications where belt conveyors are desired, such as for conveying small articles which may fall between the rollers, or for applications where a belt conveyor may be required or desired for other reasons. Also, due to the low friction between the rollers and the articles being conveyed thereon, such roller conveyors are typically not suitable for providing accumulation of articles along an inclined or declined section of the roller conveyor. The low friction between the rollers and the articles also may limit the speed at which the articles may be conveyed around a curve, because the articles tend to slide outwardly as they move along the curve.

#Curved belt conveyors have been proposed which provide a belt conveyor through a curved section. However, such curved conveyors require tracking or guiding devices to maintain or track the belt in the proper position around the belt rollers. The tracking devices or guiding devices are positioned along the curve and either radially inwardly of the belt or radially outwardly of the curved belt, and are attached directly to the belt, such as along the edge of the belt. The tracking devices function to guide and hold the belt in the desired position around the belt rollers. This typically requires that the side channels of the conveyor sidewalls have a greater width to accommodate the additional tracking, guiding and/or take up devices, which results in the conveyor having a greater width through the curved sections. Additionally, the belt or one of the belt rollers is driven by a motor typically positioned beneath the belt and belt rollers or along the curve and radially inward of the belt or radially outward of the belt. Such roller conveyors are not suitable for providing accumulation of articles along the curve.

#FIG. 1 is an upper perspective view of a curved belt conveyor in accordance with the present invention, with the belt removed from an upstream zone to show additional details of the rollers and belt tracking device;

#FIG. 2 is an upper plan view of the curved belt conveyor of FIG. 1;

#FIG. 3 is an end elevation of the curved belt conveyor of FIG. 2;

#Referring now specifically to the drawings and the illustrative embodiments depicted therein, a curved belt conveyor 10 includes a plurality of curved portions, sections, zones or segments 12 positioned along and between an outer curved sidewall or side frame 14a and an inner curved sidewall or side frame 14b, and is operable to convey articles in a direction of conveyance A (FIGS. 1 and 2). Each curved segment or zone 12 includes at least two rollers 16 and a continuous belt 18 routed or reeved around the rollers 16. The rollers 16 are angularly oriented and positioned along each zone and may include a driven or motorized roller 20, such as at a downstream or discharge end of each zone, and at least one idler roller 22, such as at an upstream end of each segment or zone. Curved belt conveyor 10 includes a means for tracking the belt or a tracking device 24 which is operable to track belt 18 around rollers 16. Tracking device 24 is substantially contained within or between sidewalls 14a, 14b of curved belt conveyor 10 and laterally inward of the opposite ends of the rollers 16, such that little or no tracking components or tracking devices are positioned outward of the inner or outer ends of the rollers or outward of a conveying region defined by an upper run 18a of belt 18. The sidewalls or frames 14a, 14b of conveyor 10 thus do not have to extend outwardly from the ends of the rollers 16 to accommodate conventional tracking devices or systems.

#Each belted segment or zone 12 of curved belt conveyor 10 may be independently operable to accumulate articles on the curved segment or to move articles in the direction A onto a next, adjacent curved segment or to a discharge area or onto another conveyor, such as another belt conveyor, or a roller conveyor, slider bed, or the like, or any other means for receiving articles from a discharge end of the last zone or segment of the curved belt conveyor 10. Curved belt conveyor 10 may, for example, convey articles onto an adjacent straight belted conveyor, such as the type disclosed in U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 10/358,690, filed Feb. 5, 2003 by Cotter et al. for BELT CONVEYOR (Attorney Docket SIE04 P-100A), which is hereby incorporated herein by reference, or onto another curved belted conveyor, such as of the types discussed herein, or any other known or conventional straight or curved conveyor or conveying surface or the like.

#In the illustrated embodiment, each zone 12 includes a tapered motorized roller 20 and one or more tapered idler rollers 22 (such as the pair of tapered idler rollers in the illustrated embodiment of FIGS. 1-6), each of which has an outer end 16a which is wider or of a greater diameter than an inner end 16b. Motorized roller 20 may be the lead roller of the zone, and may thus be positioned at a downstream end of each curved segment 12, and thus may be operable to pull the belt 18 (and the articles supported thereon) along the respective segment 12.