Accumulating conveyor system

Abstract

A conveyor system comprising a plurality of conveyor elements forming a conveyor chain for conveying hanging goods, wherein the conveyor chain extends along a conveyor path. A plurality of hanging elements are movable along and mounted on a guide which extends at least in sections parallel to the conveyor path. The hanging elements comprise an engaging section configured to contact in each case one of the conveyor elements to receive a driving force from the conveyor element which is directed along the guide. The engaging section of the hanging elements is tiltable between a conveying position and an accumulating position, wherein the engaging section is straightened in the conveying position to receive the driving force, and is tilted away in the accumulating position to evade the driving force. The engaging section presses into its conveying position.

Claims

1. A conveyor system comprising: a plurality of conveyor elements forming a conveyor chain configured to convey hanging goods, wherein the conveyor chain extends along a conveyor path, a plurality of hanging elements movable along a guide and mounted on the guide, wherein the guide extends at least in sections parallel to the conveyor path, wherein the hanging elements comprise an engaging section configured to contact in each case one of the conveyor elements to receive a driving force from the conveyor element which is directed along the guide, wherein the engaging section of the hanging elements is tiltable between a conveying position and an accumulating position, wherein the engaging section is straightened in the conveying position to receive the driving force and is tilted away in the accumulating position to evade the driving force, wherein the engaging section presses into the conveying position, and wherein at least one of the conveyor elements comprises bristles configured to contact the engaging section of the hanging elements to apply the driving force.

2. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein the conveyor chain is closed.

3. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein the guide comprises a rail configured to accommodate one or more rollers of a hanging element mounted on the guide.

4. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein the hanging elements are configured to receive one piece of the hanging goods.

5. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein each of the hanging elements is configured such that the engaging section presses into the conveying position by gravity acting on the hanging element or by an elastic force.

6. The conveyor system according to claim 1, comprising a stopper configured to accumulate the hanging elements along the guide.

7. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of hanging elements comprises one or more rollers via which each hanging element is mounted on the guide of the conveyor system.

8. The conveyor system according to claim 7, which wherein each of the plurality of hanging elements is configured to receive hanging goods.

9. The conveyor system according to claim 8, wherein the hanging goods include a bag.

10. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the conveyor elements comprise bristles configured to contact the engaging section of the hanging elements to apply the driving force.

11. The conveyor system according to claim 1, wherein all of the conveyor elements comprise bristles configured to contact the engaging section of the hanging elements to apply the driving force.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a conveyor system, in which hanging elements are being accumulated.

(2) FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of a conveyor system, in which hanging elements are not accumulated but conveyed in parallel to each other.

(3) FIGS. 3 and 4 show a preferred embodiment of a hanging element for a preferred conveyor system.

WAYS OF IMPLEMENTING THE INVENTION

(4) FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a conveyor system having a plurality of hanging elements 10 forming a conveyor chain 100 for conveying hanging goods. The conveyor chain 100 can in particular be configured such as the conveyor chain described in DE 10 2014 224 253 A1.

(5) The conveyor chain 100 extends along a conveyor path 110 indicated in FIG. 1, which in the present embodiment is configured as a rail and a guide of the conveyor chain 100, i.e. the individual conveyor elements 10. In the embodiment shown here, the conveyor path 110 extends parallel to a guide 120 along which a plurality of hanging elements 14 are movable and on which these hanging elements 14 are also mounted.

(6) Although, in FIG. 1, the guide 120 extends completely parallel to the conveyor path 110, this does not have to be true for each section of the conveyor path 110 or guide 120. In particular the distance between the conveyor path 110 and thus the conveyor elements 10 on the one hand and the guide 120 and thus the hanging elements 14 on the other hand, can change over the course of the conveyor path 110 and the guide 120. A variation of this distance results in that the engagement, more precisely the extension of the engagement, between the conveyor elements 10 and the hanging elements 14 changes, which inter alia also affects the driving force of the conveyor elements 10 on the hanging elements 14.

(7) FIG. 1 shows one engaging section 16 for each of the hanging elements 14, said engaging section 16 being configured to contact in each case one of the conveyor elements 10 in order to receive a driving force from the conveyor element 10 which is directed along the guide 120. In the present embodiment, this engaging section 16 is formed by the end of the respective hanging element 14, which protrudes furthest in direction of the conveyor elements 10.

(8) In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the engaging section 16 engages with bristles 18 of the conveyor elements 10, which are used for the force transmission between the conveyor elements 10 and the hanging elements 14, i.e. for the application of the driving force. Thus, if the distance between the guide 120 and the conveyor path 110 changes, the amount by which the engaging section 16 extends into the bristles 18 also changes. The deeper the engaging sections 16 of the hanging elements 14 penetrate the bristles 18, the greater the driving force that can be applied to the hanging elements 14 by the bristles. Along the conveyor path 110, it can occur that the required driving force varies, for example if the hanging elements have to surmount an alternating upward and downward path. In such a situation, the distance between the conveyor path 110 and the guide 120 could be reduced such that the engagement of the engaging section 16 with the bristles 18 is sufficiently increased or reduced, respectively.

(9) In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a stopper 28 accumulating the hanging elements 14 is also disposed on the guide 120. In this situation, the hanging elements 14 are conveyed on the guide 120 by the conveyor elements 10 until they come into contact with the stopper 28 or a preceding hanging element 14 and are thus stopped. Thus, the hanging elements 14 are accumulated at the stopper 28.

(10) Since the force transmission between the conveyor elements 10 and the hanging elements 14 via the bristles 18 allows slippage and since, according to the invention, the hanging elements 14 are also suited to evade the driving force by the conveyor elements 10 by tilting away, an accumulation of the hanging elements 14 at the stopper 28 and a conveying of the hanging elements 14 located further upstream can occur simultaneously such that the hanging elements can thus be compacted, i.e. their distance on the guide 120 can be reduced.

(11) The hanging elements 14 comprise, at their side opposite the engaging section 16 with respect to the guide 120, an eyelet 20 with which a hook 24 of a bag 22 or of a coat hanger can engage. In addition to the hook 24, the bag 22 further comprises, among other things, a bag body 26 into which the goods to be conveyed can be placed. The gravity exerted on the bag 22 and possibly also on its contents acts via the eyelet 20 on the hanging elements 14 in such a way that the engaging section 16 always wants to straighten up, i.e. presses into its conveying position.

(12) In the accumulated state, i.e. when stopper 28 is closed, the friction of the hanging elements 14 jumps considerably such that the driving force required to overcome this friction is greater than the straightening force. In the accumulated state, in which the straightening force is lower than the required driving force, the driving force of the conveyor elements 10 on the hanging elements 14 causes the hanging elements 14 to tilt away in the conveying direction in order to evade, as far as possible, the driving force.

(13) FIG. 2 shows the same embodiment as FIG. 1, however in a state in which the stopper 28 is open after the hanging elements 14 have been accumulated. In comparison to FIG. 1, it is noticeable that the individual hanging elements 14 already accumulated in the right part of the picture are arranged much closer to each other than the hanging elements still to be accumulated in the left part of FIG. 1.

(14) Moreover, the elements shown in FIG. 1 correspond precisely to those of FIG. 2, and therefore a repeated description of these elements will be dispensed with.

(15) The embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrates a conveyor system which allows an efficient accumulation of hanging elements without placing a heavy load on the components connected to the drive of the hanging elements. At the same time, the conveyor system can be operated particularly efficiently since the hanging elements can be conveyed further immediately after release of the stopper 28 causing the accumulation. The preferred conveyor system can thus achieve a particularly high conveying density, which noticeably increases the efficiency of the overall conveyor system.

(16) FIGS. 3 and 4 show a preferred embodiment of a hanging element 14. This hanging element comprises a hook, the outer section of which is configured as an engaging section 16 within the meaning of the conveyor system described above. The engaging section enables the bristles 18 of the conveyor elements 10 to engage with the engaging section and thus to receive a driving force.

(17) The hanging element 14 comprises a roller 30 which is in the present embodiment configured as a double roller and by means of which the hanging element 14 is mounted on the guide 120. The roller 30 rolls in the guide 120 such that even heavy objects to be conveyed can be conveyed by the hanging element 14 with relatively low force.

(18) The roller 30 has an axis about which the hanging element 14 can be tilted between the conveying position and the accumulating position. The hook with the engaging section 16 on the one hand and a body with the eyelet 20 on the other hand move as a rocker about the roller 30 from levers facing each other and extending in opposite directions so as to tilt back and forth between the conveying position and the accumulating position.