of solid india-rubber extending to nearly half the thickness of
the band in the middle, and tapering off towards the edges, while
the surface facing the guide rollers is of insertion coated with
india-rubber. Bands properly prepared and stretched will bear
a strain of 3 tons to the square inch. Balata bands may be
used in place of india-rubber, but though less expensive are not
so lasting. Bands that have to carry coal or minerals are usually
curved along the entire
length of the upper or
loaded strand into a trough
shape by guide rollers (fig.
7). Bands of woven wire
are sometimes used with
coal-washing plants, but
have the disadvantage of
lack of durability. They
are more liable to stretch
and are high in price. They
may be run as high as about 600 ft. per minute, but to ensure
proper grip-driving terminals must either be faced with leather
or made of wood.
The speed of band conveyors loaded with coal or minerals
greatly depends on the size of the fragments; the proper speed
for large pieces would be 150–200 ft. per minute, while smaller
material could be carried at a maximum velocity of 700–750 ft.
Band conveyors will carry in an upward direction, up to 24
degrees, without any loss of capacity. They can be used not
only to carry light and heavy bodies, such as grain and coal,
in a continuous stream, but also to convey relatively large
bodies such as sacks of flour, or cement, &c., intermittently.
Thus a band 26 in. wide and 350 ft. long is used at a flour-mill
in York to load sacks of flour into railway trucks; by this
means 12 wagons can be loaded by two men in 1 hour. Band
conveyors are not necessarily fixed in one place. A portable
model has rendered good service in tunnel-cutting, mining and
quarrying. This band is mounted in a light steel frame, itself
fitted with small wheels, so as to be readily put in any required
position, and is entirely self-contained, being provided with
tightening gear, a small motor, &c. If required, several lengths
can be joined together, or one band can deliver upon another
at a lower level. The same advantages that attend the use of
the band-conveyor for handling grain may be claimed for this
appliance when carrying coal and heavy bodies, namely the
demand for relatively small power, smooth and noiseless work,
and gentle handling of material. On the other hand the feed
cannot be withdrawn at intermediate points except by means
of a throw-off carriage. The numerous bearings of the guide
rollers require careful lubrication, and the rubber bands should
be protected as much as possible from changes of temperature.
The metal band or belt conveyor, a modification of the rubber or canvas band conveyors, is an endless belt composed of iron plates connected to endless chains, usually of malleable cast iron, running under the plates. Such appliances, being obviously more cumbrous than band conveyors, are only used in handling material of a hard and cutting nature. They usually deliver only at the end, but if intermediate delivery be desired a scraper may be so fixed across the band at a given point, at an angle of 45°, as to scrape the whole or part of the feed into a shoot, or a scraper may be mounted obliquely on a suitable carriage which can be moved to any points at which delivery may be required. In some bands of this type supporting rollers are attached to the links and travel with them, or are fixed to the framing so that the band runs over them, an arrangement which has the advantage of economizing driving power and of promoting smooth running. Metal band conveyors are tightened in the same way as textile or rubber bands, and may run at a speed of 60 to 120 ft. per minute. The driving gear must always be placed at the delivery terminal, so that the loaded strand is in tension. Such appliances are often used as sorting tables or picking bands, for instance, for coal, cement, minerals, &c.
In another modification of the metal band conveyor, the travelling trough conveyor, the sides of each plate are turned up so as to form the conveying surface of the band into a continuous trough. With this arrangement intermediate delivery is impossible, as the sides of the trough will not allow the use of a scraper. As compared with push-plate conveyors (which consist of scrapers mounted on endless travelling chains that run usually in troughs), travelling trough conveyors are gentle handlers of material.
A conveyor which is capable of dealing with many different kinds of material is known as the vibrating trough conveyor. It is so far like the band and travelling trough conveyor that the material it conveys from one point to another is conveyed without the use of any stirring or pushing agent, such as belong to worm, push-plate and cable trough conveyors. For materials requiring gentle treatment, this type of conveyor is eminently suitable. There are different kinds of vibrating trough conveyors. In one type the trough is caused to make a reciprocating motion by means of a crank and connecting rod, the trough itself being supported on rollers. In another type the trough is actuated by a cam, or by cranks with some kind of quick return motion. In the appliance known as the Zimmer or swinging conveyor the trough is supported in its reciprocating motion by means of laminated spring legs set obliquely to the trough. These legs are securely bolted at one end to the floor or any other solid support, and at the other end to the trough itself; hence no lubrication is required, as would be the case with supporting rollers. Moreover the combined action of the reciprocating motion of the crank and the rocking of the spring legs has the effect of causing the material to travel faster in the trough with a given stroke of the crank than would be the case with any other support. The material to be conveyed is not carried along with its support as in the case of a band or travelling trough conveyor, but is caused to move in a series of hops, to use popular language.
 |
| Fig. 8.—Swinging or Zimmer Conveyor. |
The action will be sufficiently explained by the appended diagram (fig. 8), which, however, is exaggerated to give a clearer idea of the actual movements, which are on quite a small scale. The line AB represents the bottom of the trough, while CC are two of the spring legs; the full lines indicate the spring legs at the extreme backward position of the crank, while the dotted lines show the spring legs and bottom of the trough at the extreme forward position of the crank D. The material to be conveyed, represented by E, is thrown forward by the forward movement of the crank, and describes a short parabolic curve; it is thrown at about a right angle to the inclined legs CC, but before it has time to complete its parabolic course, the trough has been moved by the crank into its original position. As soon as the material has dropped down, the trough makes another forward movement, whereupon the material is thrown forward another stage, and this process, which is continually repeated, as indicated by the letters E1, E2, E3, has the effect of carrying or conveying the material in the direction desired. It is important to note that the actual movement both of trough and material is within narrow bounds; the horizontal movement of the trough is only about 1 in., while the vertical or upward movement is about 18 in. The material is conveyed by this vibrating trough with a minimum of friction, as it is evident that the material is carried forward without any contact with the trough, while the very nature of the motion precludes injurious friction between the particles themselves. When the trough is full the material will move as it were in a solid mass.
An important improvement in this type of vibrating trough conveyor is the balanced conveyor, in which the trough is made in two sections, one being placed at a slightly lower level than the other, so that one-half may deliver into the other half. The two sections are driven by triple or quadruple cranks set at an angle of about 180° to one another. In this case one-half of the conveyor will move forward while the other moves backward, thus balancing each other (fig. 9). At the same time the material keeps moving in the same direction because all the spring legs are of the same inclination. It is usual to drive balanced conveyors at or near the centre of their length, but they may also be driven from one end,
