Conveyors: power-driven – Conveyor having impinging fluid to feed – shift or discharge... – Having cleaning means
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-30
2001-03-06
Bidwell, James R. (Department: 3651)
Conveyors: power-driven
Conveyor having impinging fluid to feed, shift or discharge...
Having cleaning means
C198S494000, C198S831000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06196374
ABSTRACT:
The invention relates to apparatus cleaning an endless belt and comprising a rotationally driven cleaning drum pressed against the conveyor belt.
The German patent document 36 37 340 discloses equipment of this kind which comprises a cylindrical cleaning drum to clean an endless conveyor belt guided in a straight line. To a growing extent, curving conveyor belts moving in their main planes along a curve, or flat-annular conveyor belts, have come into use, which act for instance as connecting means between straight conveyor belts running at an angle to each other. Such curving conveyor belts must be regularly and thoroughly cleaned, especially in the foodstuff industry.
Accordingly it is the object of the present invention to create cleaning apparatus which is appropriate to uniformly clean a conveyor belt running along a curve in its main plane.
The diameter of the cleaning drum of the apparatus of the invention therefore is smaller at said drum's end adjacent to the conveyor belt's curved inside edge than at its end adjacent to the said curve's outside edge.
As a result, the relative speed between the drum surface and the conveyor belt is substantially constant over the width of the belt and thereby this belt is cleaned uniformly.
Preferably the cleaning drum shall be conical, the local radii along the length of this cleaning drum being at a substantially constant ratio to the corresponding radii across the width of said belt.
If the conveyor belt's surface to be cleaned is not planar, but instead is contoured in the longitudinal belt direction, for instance comprising a longitudinal indentation, the surface contour of the cleaning drum may be matched in complementary manner to the contour of belt surface to be cleaned, in which case this contoured surface can be superposed on the basic conical shape of the said drum.
Preferably a plurality of spray nozzles to spray cleaning fluid on the cleaning drum are mounted in a row running inside the belt's curve at an acute angle to the axis of rotation of the cleaning drum. As a result the distance between the cleaning drum and the spray nozzles may be kept substantially constant. The nozzles may be affixed directly to a supply manifold pipe.
Preferably a stripping bar is mounted transversely to the direction of belt motion in contact with said belt, and, as seen in the direction of said motion, behind the cleaning drum. This design assures that any residual particles and cleaning fluid still adhering to the belt surface when beyond the cleaning drum can be stripped off and be fed back into a housing mounted underneath.
A depressing roller is preferably mounted on the conveyor-belt side away from the cleaning apparatus and offset from the cleaning drum relative to the belt's direction of motion, the axis of rotation of said depressing roller being radial to the conveyor belt's curvature as seen in the direction to the main belt plane. This design allows depressing the belt uniformly across its full width on the cleaning drum.
An annular conduit with spray apertures is preferably mounted at the upper housing edge to clean both the housing inside surfaces and the integrated components. Adhering solid particles are removed by automatic flushing and thereby assure the required sanitation.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4073376 (1978-02-01), Krooss
patent: 4860883 (1989-08-01), Knaul et al.
patent: 4887708 (1989-12-01), Brown et al.
patent: 5497872 (1996-03-01), Pennino
patent: 36 37 340 (1986-11-01), None
patent: 43 15 021 (1994-11-01), None
patent: 2 174 350 (1986-11-01), None
Fichtel Jürgen
Kilgert Franz
Widmer Hans
Arent Fox Kintner & Plotkin & Kahn, PLLC
Bidwell James R.
Wiessner GmbH
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