Hello George,

This is easy to do-this type of conveyor is used in barns to feed cattle in a central feed bunk.

The shuttle section rides on a stationary framework and it has two or three motors to move the conveyor frame from one end of the feed bunk to the other end, the 2 conveyor drive motors are separate as it runs in two directions.

The feeder conveyor is mounted directly at the midpoint of travel for the shuttle conveyor to allow for full movement from end to end. Limit switches stop and reverse the direction of the shuttle conveyor.

The big problem is the short delivery length-30 feet and that it requires supports from end to end so it would not really work for him if he expects a clear span unless he installs a lot of steel to support it above the storage area- he would be better off buying a material thrower/slinger that would phsyically throw the material away from the

stacker head and that can be positioned under the stacker- I do not remember the name of the manufacturer of the unit we had at the mine where I worked but I am sure they are still made- we used it to fill standard box cars with food grade salt.

it is a lot less money and work-(the slinger) but if he still wants to investigate it further look for a Badger Northland, Patz or Cornell farm equipment dealer and they can help you very quickly. The badger folks developed the design If my recollection is right.





leon Z ■

George,

Many of the iron ore plants in New Foundland have powered shuttles.

These are used all over the world in hard rock. Detailing there design features would be too lengthy for this forum. If you wish to have a private dialogue, I would be pleased to support you. ■

Hello George

We have used ship trimmers in the past for loading vessels. A smaller version of this could solve your customers problem.

Check out a typical one from Metso below.

http://www.metsominerals.com/inetMin...25-2256F-6FB29

Best Regards,

Gary ■

Dear Mr. George Baker,

It is not clear from your description the exact installation and method of using shuttle conveyor. As far as design of shuttle conveyor is concerned, please go by following steps :

1) Firstly you have to decide the length of shuttle conveyor. Generally incoming material will be at the centre of two extreme discharge points.

2) Suppose distance between two extreme discharge points, is L, then the shuttle conveyor length will be 0.5 L + about 3 to 4 m.

3) There will be skirt board directly below the feed point. The skirt board is of fixed location, as if attached below the discharge chute. This arrangement is for very long shuttle conveyor. However, if the shuttle conveyor is very short in length, people provide skirt board for full length and feed chute just entering into skirt board keeping some clearance with the skirt board, which is moving with shuttle conveyor.

4) Having decided the shuttle conveyor arrangement, design it like a regular belt conveyor.

5) Consider appropriate steel frame, wheels, shaft, bearing etc. for movement of the shuttle conveyor on rails.

6) Provide suitable travel drive. The travel drive capacity is to be limited such as to match with the wheel tractive pull in conjunction with the wheel load and friction coefficient. If need be one has to provide travel drive more than one.

7) Provide power and control connection by flexible arrangement such as cable reeling drum or trolley arrangement.

8) The travel speed will depend upon the shuttle conveyor length. It could be 0.1 mps to 0.25 mps.

Please use the above information appropriately, so as to create right kind of shuttle conveyor.

Regards,

Ishwar G Mulani.

Author of Book : Engineering Science and Application Design for Belt Conveyors.

Author of Book : Belt Feeder Design and Hopper Bin Silo

Advisor / Consultant for Bulk Material Handling System & Issues.

Email : parimul@pn2.vsnl.net.in

Tel.: 0091 (0)20 25882916 ■

Dear George,

Do you want to reverse the conveyor while transporting.? Often the feed is interrupted or stopped while the conveyor is reversed. IF the flow is continuous, then the chute must handle the surge and not plug or overload the receiving belt.

We are inplementing an alternative chute design which has to also be flow reversed. The new chute is predicted to increase belt life by 300-500% while improving belt tracking and reducing or eliminating impact idler damage. The lump size ranges to 800 mm on rare occassion.

A major problem with higher tonnages > 1500 t/h, is the flow stream is redirected 90 degrees. With large lump and/or high tonnages, the receiving belt can be easily mistracked due to the flow inertia and vector on impact as is the case with the referenced installation. Spillage and loss of capacity are serious issues.

Another probelm is impact idler damage and the design of the impact table, which is only about 30 ft long.

On longer shuttles, the take-up and drive location need special attention.

The 4500 t/h shuttle is a 72 inch belt running at 600 fpm. One shuttle is 325 ft long and articulates from a central feed point about 130 ft in both directions. The two shuttles have been operating since 1965 in various manifestations. ■