Conveyor belt system and heater utilizing said system
AssigneeRaychem Corporation
InventorGeorge Raymond Langland
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
One aspect of this invention comprises an improved conveyance system comprises an endless flexible belt which circulates through at least two arcs, at least one gripping member attached to the belt, the gripping member having a free end and an anchoring end, and a biasing means which biases the anchoring end of the gripping member toward the surface of the conveyor belt, wherein the gripping member is open as it traverses an arced path and is closed as it traverses a straight path. A workpiece is loaded as the gripping member traverses the first arc, and offloaded as the gripping member traverses the second arc. Preferably, the first arc has a greater radius than the second arc. The inventive also comprises a heater utilizing the conveyance system.
Claims3
A conveyance system comprising an endless flexible belt which circulates through at least two arcs, a first of said arcs having a greater radius than a second of said arcs;
- at least one structurally rigid gripping member attached to the belt, the gripping member having a free end and an anchoring end disposed at opposite ends of the gripping member;
- a biasing means which biases the gripping member in a closed position;
- and a pivot attachment located at a medial point on the gripping member between the anchoring end and the free end, wherein the configuration of the biasing means causes the gripping member to be opened as it traverses an arced path and closed against the belt as it traverses a straight path, without interruption in the movement of the path, and wherein a workpiece is loaded as the gripping member traverses the first arc, and offloaded as the gripping member traverses the second arc.
A conveyance system comprising an endless flexible belt which circulates through at least two arcs;
- at least one structurally rigid gripping member attached to the belt, the gripping member having a free end and an anchoring end disposed at opposite ends of the gripping member;
- a first biasing means which biases the gripping member in a closed position;
- a second biasing means which biases the free end of the gripping member away from the surface of the conveyor belt;
- and a pivot attachment located at a medial point on the gripping member between the anchoring end and the free end, wherein the configuration of the first and second biasing means causes the gripping member to be opened as it traverses an arced path and closed against the belt as it traverses a straight path, without interruption in the movement of the path.
A conveyance system comprising an endless flexible belt which circulates through at least two arcs;
- at least one structurally rigid gripping member attached to the belt, the gripping member having a free end and an anchoring end disposed at opposite ends of the gripping member wherein a surface of the gripping member is adapted to grip a workpiece and comprises a foam pad or a serrated edge;
- a biasing means which biases the gripping member in a closed position, and a pivot attachment located at a medial point on the gripping member between the anchoring end and the free end, wherein the configuration of the biasing means causes the gripping member to be opened as it traverses an arced path and closed against the belt as it traverses a straight path, without interruption in the movement of the path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.