Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
We have reversible conveyors, but with one drive only. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Despite what others claim, conveyors are quite simple machines. So the smaller they are the simpler they might, or should, be.
Why have you got snub drums at all? If your machine operates in a bunker gallery then the coefficient of friction is pretty constant & only influenced by the free water content.
Why have you got 2 drives? Millions of vehicles & marine vessels manage to go backwards using a solitary propulsion element. A 50m long conveyor should be able to do the same. If you drag a drive, just because its there, then you will seriously increase the work for the other drive. The expenditure of a second drive would be better utilised in beefing up the belt which you screw out as tight as you need to make it work both ways: and that's not a lot in your application; wet coal or dry. Tooling set up times make the difference between large & small pulley shafts primarily a matter of material cost. Make sure your cleaning devices are able to cope with reversing. That's the main thing.
PS. Your coal size is -50. there is no coal if the particle size is 0. ■
Pipped In The Post
Now that's what they mean by 'pipped at the post'. By 4 minutes over quarter of a planet. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Don't see many 50mm lumps these days do you? They can sell those for a premium over the normal power station rubbish. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
You'll have me crying in a minute. Back in the late 50's I was driving through Merthyr Tydfill & I witnessed the delivery of the miners' free coal. Slabs of over 1m square & 0.5m thick were just dragged off the waggon as it went up the hill. That drop split the job down outside the front door and the dutiful wife further broke the anthracite down, put in a bucket and carried it through the house to the coalshed. Then she had to clean up the road and get the dinner ready before Dai got home from the pub!
These here greens have made us forget how to live! ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Funny you should mention Merthyr Tydfill cos that's where it's for !!
It's an open-cast site that is also screening the spoil heaps to make them safe.
I have already quoted for two drives and that's what the customer wants - I am simply asking wether it is better to drive one or both is all.
I also prefer to have a snub drum to keep belt tensions low - particularly with a screw take-up.
Scrapers will be simple PU bladed tangential type - ideal for reversing duty
I will also be using vertical idlers - carefully aligned :@) ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Just be careful of backstops in the drive.
Simply reversing the drive is the most simplest method as others have stated - especially on such a short conveyor. ■
Gary Blenkhorn
President - Bulk Handlng Technology Inc.
Email: garyblenkhorn@gmail.com
Linkedin Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-blenkhorn-6286954b
Offering Conveyor Design Services, Conveyor Transfer Design Services and SolidWorks Design Services for equipment layouts.
Two Drives
Customer is king.
If he wants two drives. He can have them.
You can run both in either direction. Both motors will change direction of rotation and share load. Motors and gearboxes will be smaller. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
If there's a hard way to do it....What is the point of 2 take-ups on 50m centres? As the drive drums alter position does the cleaner self-adjust correctly to meet the new belt line...or does the snub drum shift as well? Be real.
"Customer is king." is very often the reason for the questions on these forums.
If you keep the drive going on both ends then you are stretching & relaxing the belt every 50m. If you use a single drive then you only cycle the belt every 100m. I boils down to drawing up the tension distribution & referring to the belt properties. Just make sure you don't finish up with a bit of a flapper.
What is the expected life of the workings? I can't understand a simple muck shoveller in the Valleys Boyo being eager to lash out on such a complicated gadget. But; where there's muck there's brass!
Good luck though. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
If there's a hard way to do it....What is the point of 2 take-ups on 50m centres? As the drive drums alter position does the cleaner self-adjust correctly to meet the new belt line...or does the snub drum shift as well? Be real.
Two take ups are not required. One drive station gets mounted on takeup trolley.
As for snub drums etc, reversible conveyor is a one which moves material in either direction. So whatever is required for one motor drive will do for twin drive sharing the load.
Engineering is flexible - there are options and solutions if you put your thinki9ng cap on ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Agreed, almost. Two take ups shouldn't be necessary on a 50 m belt. A 50m belt with a take up trolley is STRETCHING IT A BIT.
We are in imminent danger of giving this poxy little machine as much attention as the grander experts spend discussing a 20km job. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
A reversing conveyor is hardly "poxy" - looking through the forums before I posted this thread proves that..!!
I wanted to have a tension slide at each end to keep the drum positions symetrical and not have too big a transition to the first idler - and bear in mind I have to work within the customers specification - I would have liked to put a centre drive on ideally.
Anyway - a low cost job like this needs to work first time - I've got no margin for error - I need to design it to best practice within the requirements of the customer.
Thanks for all the comments - I will go ahead with putting power to both drives. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
One drive is sufficient and normal for such a short conveyor. Two drives buy you nothing but expense, higher maintenance, and lower availability.
Yes, you must push rope up the hill in one direction. It is a small rope.
If you use a fixed takeup, it matters not if one, two or twenty-two they all act as one.
You are talking about a few kW.
Remember to KISS it. ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
I love your words of wisdom Larry - str8 and to the point. haha ■
Gary Blenkhorn
President - Bulk Handlng Technology Inc.
Email: garyblenkhorn@gmail.com
Linkedin Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-blenkhorn-6286954b
Offering Conveyor Design Services, Conveyor Transfer Design Services and SolidWorks Design Services for equipment layouts.
Reverse-Conveyors
Dear sirs,
I have found Rolls/Idlers made out of FULL-RECYCLED Plastic.
(patented DE10 2006 040 883)
For reverse-conveyors I can give all rolls a conic design, so that the belt will always turn to the middle, equal what direction you are working. Recycled plastic is cheep,
an my rolls/ idlers are in the same matter.
Please ask me for more details!
Y.S. Peter Blaha (foerderschuettgut(at)arcor.de ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Obviously you do not work in the real world of bulk material handling - making a statement like that. ■
Gary Blenkhorn
President - Bulk Handlng Technology Inc.
Email: garyblenkhorn@gmail.com
Linkedin Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-blenkhorn-6286954b
Offering Conveyor Design Services, Conveyor Transfer Design Services and SolidWorks Design Services for equipment layouts.
Reverse Conveyors
May bee my english is not the best, but give me your E-Mail and I will send you drawings and pictures of this information!
Best regards
Peter Blaha Munich (foerderschuettgut@arcor.de ■
Re: Reversing Conveyor Drives
Steady Lads, we seem to be going backwards on this one. ■
Reversing Conveyor Drives
I am designing a reversing conveyor - 1050-wide belt by approx 50mtr centres to handle 500tph of 0-to-50mm coal (as used in power stations) at 1.75m/s.
I plan to fit a drive & snub-drum at each end and have a screw take-up on each drive drum.
My question is - is it better to drive the conveyor at both ends simultaneously or to have one drive dragging the other? ■