Belt Conveyors

Continental Radar-Based Monitoring System Makes Conveyor Belt Systems More Efficient and Reliable

Published

2 years ago

9 March 2022

Continental is taking another step towards predictive maintenance and condition monitoring in conveyor belt technology by launching the new Conti Load Sense monitoring system. The special feature: The system is based on 2D radar technology and measures the material flow on the conveyor belt. It can be used in almost all industries where conveyor belt systems are in operation – for example as it is currently the case in gravel extraction.

Up to 100,000 tons more gravel in a year

At the gravel plant of August Oppermann Kiesgewinnungs- und Vertriebs-GmbH in Northeim (Germany), the extraction of material depends very much on the individual loading of the belt by each worker. Thanks to the volume measurement of the Conti Load Sense radar-based monitoring system, gravel plant operators are now able to use the so-called deep grab even more efficiently. This increases the output by up to 100,000 tons per year. What’s more, Conti Load Sense can be connected to the Conti Cloud. This means that the recorded data can be processed in a visually appealing way for the end customer via a web service or the Conti+ online service portal and the associated Conti+ app.

Solutions from Continental provide valuable information

The gravel industry – like many others – faces the challenge of extracting and processing material more efficiently, reliably and in a more environmentally friendly manner. This is where not only Continental’s high-quality and robust conveyor belts come into play, but also associated equipment and service tools – above all, digital components that comprehensively monitor the conveyor process and the material. For years now, the technology company headquartered in Hanover, Germany, has been focusing on condition monitoring and predictive maintenance as important topics for the future. With the Conti Load Sense, which is based on radar sensors developed by Continental and used millions of times in cars and industrial vehicles, the company is now expanding its portfolio in this area. “This is what makes Continental so special and strong. The steady transfer of technology in other procucts and new areas is really unique and shows Continental’s broad positioning,” states Mario Branco, responsible for Business Development for Off-Highway Applications at Continental.

Here’s how it works: using 2D radar (radio detection and ranging) and ultrasonic technologies, the system scans the material and conveyor belt from different angles to determine the position of the load and the belt. This accurately calculates the volume of material being conveyed. “The risk of spilling material is determined by monitoring the belt edge position in relation to the profile of the material. The load center of gravity on the belt, as well as load distribution, is monitored 24/7 along the entire conveyor length,” Patrick Raffler, responsible for Digital Solutions for the Conveying industry at Continental, says. “Data correlation is used to calculate volume flow, monitor overrun and belt skew. Belt speed is measured to track belt and load position along the entire length of the conveyor.”

Based on this precise information, operators of stone, sand or gravel quarries can measurably increase their productivity. “The plants run more economically due to the automatic material detection, and the radar sensor reports deviations before losses occur, thus preventing follow-up costs,” Raffler says. Other advantages: Compared to previously used technologies such as laser or belt scale, the radar sensor requires less maintenance and is less sensitive to external influences like dust, rain and vibrations, which could negatively affect the measurement results.

The importance of gravel extraction

Gravel extraction is one of the most important industries worldwide. According to the German statistics portal statista, an estimated 265 million tons of industrial sand and gravel were produced worldwide in 2020. In Germany and many other countries, gravel is in fact the most important construction raw material, mainly needed to produce concrete. According to industry analysts at IBISWorld, gravel and sand mining sales in Germany have grown by an average of 1.3 percent per year since 2016 and are expected to total €2.6 billion in 2021. However, in order to continue to extract gravel sustainably, the industry needs modern and efficient solutions – because despite large gravel deposits, it is becoming scarce in many places.

In other applications, the new Continental system can be used in combination with other sensors for performance monitoring and thickness measurement, for example in the raw material conveying industry to measure bulk material volumes, check the durability of conveyor belts, forecast the service life of the conveyor belt, and save energy and costs. Conti Load Sense can also be easily integrated into existing plants.

Worldwide development team

Since 2006, the in-house development and production service provider Continental Engineering Services (CES) has been offering its engineering services and carrying out feasibility studies, measurement campaigns and integration work to match. At 24 locations worldwide CES also develops and applies radar sensor systems including hardware and software development for new customer-specific applications.

Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation. In 2020, Continental generated sales of €37.7 billion and currently employs more than 192,000 people in 58 countries and markets. On October 8, 2021, the company celebrated its 150th anniversary.

Up Next

2 for the price of 1 – Measuring and switching

Don't Miss

More Efficient and Sustainable: Continental Plans to Invest in Steel Cord Conveyor Belt Production in Brazil

Click to comment

Belt Conveyors

Compact belt conveyor without any interfering contours – fits in the smallest gaps

Published

6 months ago

31 March 2023

tasarim

Belt conveyor GUF-P 2000 CA, compact belt conveyor without any interfering contours

For most conveying applications, a compact conveyor frame on the belt conveyor is crucial. Obstructing contours, such as the drive, may protrude and be a little larger, and will mostly be outside the relevant area of the machine. If the entire conveyor is to be installed inside a machine, however, it will usually need to have few or no obstructing contours. In such cases, an internal motor is recommended

The GUF-P 2000 belt conveyor, the most versatile belt conveyor series produced by the mk Technology Group, is now available with a compact and powerful 24 V drum motor. Called the GUF-P 2000 CA, it is absolutely ideal for integrating into systems without much installation space. The ø 53 mm drive roller combined with the 50 mm tall conveyor frame profile produces a conveyor that is extremely flat without any obstructing edges. Along with start/stop control, the control module enables you to set multiple speeds and change the conveying direction.

With a permissible total load of up to 15 kg, the GUF-P 2000 CA is ideal for the majority of conveying tasks in the packaging or plastics industry. The 24 V DC drive also allows for a battery power supply. As a result, the conveyor is also perfect for use as driven load handling equipment for automated guided vehicle (AGV) systems. Furthermore, its compactness and lack of interfering contours means it can be installed on tables in workshops, schools, laboratories and elsewhere. In such environments, the GUF-P 2000 CA can also fulfil technical cleanliness requirements thanks to its clean contours.

Technical data:

Height: conveyor frame: 50 mm (ø 53 mm driving roll)

Lengths: 380 to 5000 mm

Widths: 300 to 600 mm

Load: max. 15 kg

Speed: up to 60 m/min.

Drive: 24 V DC, reversing

Accessories: side rails, stand systems, and so on, as is standard with the GUF-P 2000

The GUF-P 2000 belt conveyor with the larger ø 81.5 mm drum motor remains available under the name GUF-P 2000 CB.

Source: www.mk-group.com/

Belt Conveyors

Ammeraal Beltech introduces Duraclean – a revolutionary synthetic non-stick belt

Published

6 months ago

31 March 2023

tasarim

Ammeraal Beltech is a world leader in providing complex conveying solutions. The history of the company began with the development of a groundbreaking belt for the Bakery Industry. Today, the company’s products are available in over 150 countries around the globe and new launches are scheduled throughout the year. This time, it conquers the market with Duraclean – a synthetic belt perfect for processing sticky foods in the Bakery & Confectionery Industry and not only.

Bakery and Confectionery Industry: major challenges

Some products require specific treatment, and the whole industry poses particular challenges. Energy bars, snacks, and even ready-to-eat meals need delicate handling as the products are prone to damage. The integrity and quality of goods need to be secured.

Baked foodstuffs are often dense or feature ingredients that leave a residue, such as fillings, fruit, and jams, which may lead to stickiness. If a sticky component gets trapped in the production line, extra time is needed to remove it and clean the conveyor. Not to mention the waste of the product itself. The whole production process is thus slowed down, and most manufacturers in this field value efficiency. They need to process large volumes of goods at a fast pace. However, it’s important to balance speed with quality, ensuring size, taste and presentation are uniform across the batch.

Duraclean – a new level in non-stick belting

Ammeraal Beltech understands Bakery and Confectionery pain points and has created a solution to address them all: Duraclean, a synthetic belt for sticky products.

Its thermoplastic compound blended cover ensures excellent mechanical properties and is suitable for use with belt scrapers and knife edge transfer applications.

Duraclean – major advantages for your business

Duraclean offers a number of improvements for the bakery and confectionery manufacturers. Excellent product release properties, high abrasion resistance, leading to longer service life, wide working temperature range …just to name a few.

The design of the belt grants users longer belt life and improved hygiene standards. The solution significantly reduces the risk of cross-contamination, is easy to sanitise and compliant with EC 1935/2004 and FDA food safety standards.

Contact Ammeraal Beltech experts

If you are willing to discover the whole potential of Duraclean, please contact Ammeraal Beltech experts. The team will help you optimise your processing line and enhance satisfaction of your customers. For more information about product portfolio dedicated to the bakery and confectionary industry, visit Ammeraal Beltech website

Belt Conveyors

Improved Reliability & Shipping Accuracy

Published

6 months ago

31 March 2023

tasarim

With ever changing customer behaviours, new digital communication challenges and the rapid increase in eCommerce business means the UK’s leading consumer delivery specialist and long-term customer to L.A.C, is continually looking to improve its efficiency and innovation.

The distribution hub based up in the Northwest required an upgrade to current operations. With any upgrade or new system implementation, L.A.C are always mindful to ensure that its solutions can be easily and efficiently scaled up and down upon demand, whilst being equipped with the necessary infrastructure to cope with growing volumes during longer periods of intense activity.

Project “Flyer Van Automation” required an automated transport and sortation solution to accommodate 120 van loads per day, processing the traffic via a scanning tower and automated sortation, directly onto 38 existing outfeed boom conveyors which would provide a consistent flow of around 5,000 parcels per hour.

L.A.C’s new range of belt conveyors

The current operation required a lot of human intervention with vans being offloaded from outside the building into cages, which were then manually hauled into the hub for sortation and then transferred to the appropriate 38 outfeed doors. The introduction of an automated system would reduce the manual labour currently associated with the process therefore reducing/eliminating the number of “mis sorts” due to human error. The new system would also offer increased throughputs while providing full traceability of parcels, polybags and irregular shaped traffic.

The solution utilised circa 350 metres of L.A.C manufactured, Post and Parcel conveyor, designed specifically to meet the exacting standards of the hugely demanding Post and Parcel handling industry. L.A.C’s new range of belt conveyors and multi-functioning switch sorter units provide the robust, efficient, and precise product movement this industry sector insists upon. Ideal for the variety of shapes, sizes and loads required, offering up to 80Kg/metre, this high performance, reliable range of equipment is modular in design, providing easy installation and integration across the range of products.

Infeed conveyor modules (located outside the hub) consisted of a 14-meter-long, one sided, belt conveyors, hot dipped galvanized finish providing weather protection. Operators load products onto the high-speed two-tier conveyor from a dedicated loading point. The belts on infeed utilised gauge strips at 600mm pitch to provide initial gapping of product with additional gapping created on belt conveyors inside the hub prior to the induct conveyors.

Once the parcel is on the in-feeding conveyor it automatically travels into the hub and inclines up to a 5-sided camera scanning tower (with volumizing functionality) via suitably located gapping belts. If the parcel is oversized, then the system will reject the parcel (either using the sorter, if the parcels can be processed on the machine or by stopping the infeed and waiting for an operator to remove it if the parcel is over-sized). The control system identified the barcode (either 1D or 2D) and called an API to ensure the parcel is transferred to the correct destination or will revert to a local lookup table to make the routing decision.

Once the scanning system has obtained the identity and volume of the parcel, the system indexed the parcel onto the automatic sorter with the parcel then, diverted to one of the multiple destinations dependent on barcode etc. The system offered provision for rejecting parcels and the sorter continuously monitored the fill level of the destinations and reject area to ensure a continuous flow is maintained.

System Overview

Objectives

To remove the manual labour currently associated with the flyer van traffic sortation process

To provide unloading station for up to 6 vans

To provide conveyor lines to feed Beumer sorter inducts at a rate of 5000 parcels per hour

Improve sorter throughput

Ensure product separation

Reduction in product handling cost per item

to be compatible with current customer host/business systems and to be able to interface with the customer APL

To reduce manual handling of product.

Key services & Technologies

Galvanised Conveyors for use outside the main building