BeltTensioningMethodsforSmallPackageConveyors

Whatsthebestsolution?

IndustrialWhitePaper By:MichaelA.Hosch,P.E.
DornerMfg.Corp. 975CottonwoodAvenue Hartland,WI53029USA Phone:8003978664 www.Dorner.com

Overview: Thiswhitepaperwillprovideanoverviewofthemostcommonlyusedmethodsforadjustingbelttensiononsmallpackage conveyors.Theprimaryadvantagesanddisadvantagesofeachmethodwillalsobepresentedtoassistmanufacturersidentifythe bestoptionfortheirspecificneeds.

TableofContents:
AdvantagesandDisadvantages Conclusion Pgs. 912 Pg. 13 BeltTensioningforSmallPackageConveyorsAnIntroduction BeltTensionMethods JackScrewTension RackandPinionTension TipUpTailTension PneumaticorSpringTension Pg. Pgs. Pgs. Pg. Pg. Pg. 3 48 5 6 7 8 Overview Pg. 2

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BeltTensioningforSmallPackageBeltConveyorsAnIntroduction:
Smallpackagebeltconveyorsareusedforthousandsofapplicationsincountlessindustrialmarkets.Theseconveyorsmove individualproductsthroughprocessingapplicationswherefunctionssuchasforming,molding,machining,gluingandassemblyare performedonmetalorplasticproduct.Theseproductsthenmovetopackagingapplicationswheretheyareinsertedintotheir individualpackageandsealed,wrapped,heatshrunk,orbandedbeforebeinggroupedandloadedintotheirshippingcontainer.The useofsmallpackagebeltconveyorsforalloftheapplicationspresentedabovehasseveralbenefits. Typically,theseconveyorshaveendrollersbetween1and2indiameter.Thisallowssmoothtransferfromprocesstoprocessfor smallandoftenoddlyshapedproducts.Inaddition,smallpackagebeltconveyorsgenerallyhaveathinprofileandhaveatightbelt widthtooverallwidthratio.Thisprovidestheabilityfortheconveyortofitintotightspaces,whichmaximizesavailablefloorspace whileminimizingprotrusionsthatmayinterferewithoperators. Althoughtheseconveyorsaresmall(astheirclassificationwouldimply)andtheirloadsaregenerallylight,theystillpresentsomeof thesametechnicalandmaintenancechallengesasmuchlargerconveyorsonesuchchallengeisbelttensioning.ForboSiegling,a leadingmanufactureroflightmaterialhandlingbelts,notesthefollowingrelativetobelttensioning;thecontactpressureofthebelt onthedrivedrumrequiredtotransmiteffectivepullisproducedbyelongatingthebeltwithatensiontakeup.Withoutatension takeupdevice,therewouldbenopressureonthedrivedrumandtheconveyorbeltwouldstop.Whilethisconceptissimple,how thetensiontakeupmechanismisdesignedtocarryoutthisprocesscanbequitecomplicated.And,ifnotdoneproperly,canleadto avarietyofresourcedrainingmaintenanceproblems,including: Poororinconsistentbelttracking Overtensioning,causingpoorbeltlife Overtensioning,causingpoorbearinglife Undertensioning,causingbeltslippage Confusiontomaintenancestaffontensioningprocedures Mechanismsthataredifficulttoaccessoradjust

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Alloftheissueslistedpreviouslycouldeasilyleadtoconveyorbeltshutdown,whichoftenforcesmachineandproductiondowntime somethingthatobviouslyneedstobeavoidedintodaysbusy,24/7productionfacilities.

BeltTensionMethods:
Thereareseveralcommercialmethodsforprovidingandadjustingconveyorbelttension.Someconsistofstandardcomponentsthat providethecapabilityofdesigningyourownconveyor.Othermethodsonlyexistindesignsavailableascompleteconveyorsfrom conveyormanufactures.Inmostcases,thesemethodscanbecategorizedintothefollowingfourgroups: 1. JackScrewTension 2. RackandPinionTension 3. TipupTailTension 4. PneumaticorSpringTension Letstakeamoredetailedlookateachofthesemethods,beginningwithJackScrewTension.

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JackScrewTension
Jackscrewtensionisthemostcommonbelttensioningmechanism.Howdoesitwork?Asshowninthefigurebelow(FigureA),the tensiononthebeltisaccomplishedbyturningthescrewattheendofaconveyor.Thispushesthebearingblocktowardstheendof theconveyor,whichaddstensiontothebelt.Thereisanother,identicaljackscrewlocatedontheoppositesideoftheroller.The sameproceduremustbeperformedevenlyforbothrollers.Inmostconveyorinstallations,thistensionmechanismisalsousedto adjustbelttracking.Jackscrewtensioningissimpletouseandiscommonlyinstalled,butalsopresentsanumberofdisadvantages whichwellreviewingreaterdetaillaterinthispaper. FigureA: JackScrewTension

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RackandPinionTension
Rackandpiniontensionisaccomplishedbyincorporatingarackandpiniondeviceintotheconveyorframe.Anexampleofthis mechanismisshownbelow(FigureB).Asyoullsee,tworacksareslideablymountedtotheconveyorframe.Turningthepinion shaftthenpushesonthebearingblockstomovetherollerandaddbelttension.Generally,thepinionrunsthefullwidthofthe frameandcontactsbothracks,whichmovesthebearingblocksevenlyandparallelwhileturningfromasinglepoint.Sincethe bearingblocksmovetogether,anadditionaldeviceisneededforbelttracking.Thisbelttrackingdevicemaybeajackscreworcam, whichistypicallymountedbetweentheracksandthebearingblock.Rackandpiniontensioningdoesnotdisturbbelttracking if/whenabelttensionadjustmentisnecessary. FigureB: RackandPinionTension

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TipUpTailTension
Atipuptailisaccomplishedbyplacingtheendrollerofaconveyoronapivotmechanism.Anexampleofthismechanismisshown below(FigureC).Usingthismethod,thepivotdevicegenerallyliftstheendrollerabovetheconveyorframe.Whenplacedinthe lowerlockedposition,thetotalrollertorollerlengthoftheconveyorislongerthanitisintheupperposition.Thisextensioniswhat providestensiontotheconveyorbelt.Thepivotmechanismmovestheentireendrollerperpendiculartotheconveyorframeand doesnotneedaccessoradjustmentfrombothsidesoftheframe.Atipuptailmechanismwillnotprovidefinitebelttension adjustmentitcanonlybesettooneposition.Overtime,asbeltsstretch,theywillrequireadjustment.Toaccomplishthis,adevice suchasajackscrewwillneedtobeaddedforincrementaltensionadjustment.Thisjackscrewcanthenalsobeusedforbelt trackingadjustment. FigureC: TipUpTailTension

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PneumaticorSpringTension
Pneumaticorspringtensionistypicallyusedonheavilyloadedorlongerconveyors.Itisaccomplishedbytheadditionofatleast threerollerstotheundersideoftheconveyor.Anexampleofthismechanismisshownbelow(FigureD).Belttensionisachievedby aconnectionofapneumaticcylinderoraspringloadeddevicetothelowertensionroller.Thecylinderwillpullthelowerroller down,whichplacestensiononthebelt.Generally,onecylinderisconnectedtotheendsoftherollerbyacrossbracket.Thecylinder willmovetheendsoftherollerevenlyandparallel.Onebenefitofthismechanismisthatitautomaticallycompensatesforbelt stretch.Themethodscoveredpreviouslyinthispaperhavebeenstaticdevicesthatrequiremanualadjustmentovertime.Seeingas longerandhigherloadconveyorshavemorebeltstretch,thisisthebestmethodforthosecircumstances.Belttrackingistypically accomplishedbyaddingadevicesuchasajackscrewtothesnubrollersjustabovethetensionroller. FigureD: PneumaticTension

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AdvantagesandDisadvantagesofTensioningMethods:
Nowthatyouhaveabetterunderstandingofthemostcommonlyutilizedtensioningmethods,welltakeamoredetailedlookatthe generaladvantagesanddisadvantagesofeach.

JackScrewTension
Advantages: 1. Lowcost.Thismethodhastheleastamountofcomponentsandthecomponentsaresimpleandreadilyavailable. 2. Familiarity.Thisisthemostcommonmethodoftensioningandmostmaintenancecrewsarefamiliarwithitsoperation,soit cangenerallybefixedquickly. Disadvantages: 1. Addedmaintenancetimeforbelttracking.Becausethejackscrewistheonlymethodofadjustment,itmustbeusedfor bothtensioningandtracking.Onceaconveyorbeltrequiresretensioning,thejackscrewswillbeadjustedandthetracking settingswillbedisturbed.Therefore,atrackingadjustmentmustbeperformedeventhoughitwasntrequired.Thiscauses muchhighermaintenancetimesastrackingadjustmentcantakesubstantiallylongerthansimpletensioningalone. 2. Highriskofovertensioning.Inmostcases,thejackscrewadjustmentdeviceisasimplethreadedbolt.Threadedboltsare designedtoapplyextremeforcetoclamporholddevices.Belttensionadjustmentsmadewithjackscrewsaredone manually.And,withtheshallowpitchangleofthejackscrewthread,thereisverylittlefeedbacktotheoperatormaking theadjustment.Theyareoftenunawareoftheextremeforcestheyareplacingonthebeltandthebearings.Unfortunately, intime,thisovertensioningwillresultinreducedbearingandbeltlife. 3. Difficulttoaccessformaintenance.Inmanyconveyordesigns,thejackscrewislocatedattheendoftheconveyorroller alongthesideoftheconveyorframe.Unfortunately,inmostapplications,theendoftheconveyorisplacedupagainst anotherconveyorrollerorpieceofequipment,makingitnearlyimpossibletoaccesstheendofthejackscrewfor

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adjustment.Therefore,tomakeadjustments,theconveyormustberemovedfromitmounts,adjustedandthenreturned. Thisdramaticallyincreasesmaintenancetimes. 4. Addswidthtotheconveyor.Ifnotlocatedontheendoftheconveyortail,thejackscrewmustthenbelocatedbehindthe conveyorbearingblock,whichpushesthebearingblockforward(seeFigureA).Thismethodaddsconsiderablewidthtothe overallconveyor,makingitmuchmoredifficulttoplacetheconveyorintotightapplications.Italsoprotrudesbeyondthe conveyorsideframe,whichcreatesapotentialsafetyriskforoperators. 5. Requiresperiodicretensioning.Thismechanismdoesnotcompensateforthebeltstretchthatwilloccurovertimedueto wearorheavyloads.Ifbeltslipoccurs,thejackscrewwillneedtoberetightenedandretrackedtotensionthebelt.

RackandPinionTension
Advantages: 1. Doesnotaffectbelttracking.Rackandpinionmechanismspushevenlyonthebearingblocksfromasinglepoint.Moving thebearingblockstogetherensuresthatthetrackingadjustmentcompletedpreviouslydoesnotgetdisturbedbytheneed toretension.Thisgreatlyshortensmaintenancetimes. 2. Easyaccessformaintenanceadjustment.Maintenanceadjustmentonarackandpinionsystemisdonefromthesideofthe conveyorframe.Generally,thisareaismoreopenthantheend.Inaddition,thepinioncanbeaccessedfromeithersideof theframe.Therefore,ifonesideisblockedbyanaccessory,theothersidemaybeopen. 3. Lowriskofovertensioning.Inarackandpinionmechanism,theamountoftensionplacedintotheconveyorbeltisdirectly relatedtothemanualtorqueplacedonthepiniongear.Themechanicaladvantageofthispiniongearismuchlessthana jackscrew.Thepinioncanbesizedsothatwhenitreachesthedesiredbelttension,itbecomesdifficulttoturn.This minimizesthedesiretoovertensionthebelt,lengtheningconveyorbeltandbearinglife. 4. Compactdesign.Onlytheendofthepinionneedstobeaccessedbymaintenanceinarackandpiniondesign.Asaresult,the remainderofthemechanismcanbebuiltinsidetheconveyorframe.Thisensurestheframeisnarrowanddoesnotprotrude muchpastthebeltwidth,allowingtheconveyortobeplacedintotightspaceswhileeliminatingoperatorbumppoints.

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Disadvantages: 1. Requiresanaccurateframe.Sincethepremiseforthismechanismistomovethetwobearingblocksevenly,itiscriticalforit tobeinstalledaccuratelyandparalleltotheroller.Customconveyorsgenerallydonotusethismethodforthatreason. However,standardconveyorsthatusequalityengineeringandconsistentmanufacturingmethodsareabletoaccomplishthe accuracyneeded. 2. Requiresperiodicretensioning.Thismechanismdoesnotcompensateforthebeltstretchthatwillhappenovertimedueto wearorheavyloads.Ifbeltslipoccurs,therackandpinionwillneedtoberetightenedtotensionthebelt.

TipUpTailTension
Advantages: 1. Quickaccessforcleaning.Tipuptailtensionmechanismsaremostoftenutilizedonconveyorsusedinfoodapplications.For theseapplications,itisimportanttohavefastandtoollessaccesstotheinsideoftheconveyorforcleaning.Tipuptails providethisfunction. 2. Doesnotaffectbelttracking.Tipupmechanismsswingthebearingblocksevenlyintopositionfromasinglepoint.Moving thebearingblockstogetherensuresthatthetrackingadjustmentthathasbeenpreviouslysetdoesnotgetdisturbedbythe needtoretension. Disadvantages: 1. Requiresanaccurateframe.Sincethepremiseforthismechanismistomovethetwobearingblocksevenly,itisrequired thatitisinstalledaccuratelyandparalleltotheroller. 2. Onlysetsinitialtension.Atipuptailtensionsystemisasinglepositionsystem.Thepivotarmrotatestherollerintoone positiononly.Therefore,thistensionsystemcanonlysetinitialtensionandcannotcompensateforbeltstretchovertime. Toaccommodatethis,anadditionaldevicesuchasajackscrewmustbeaddedtothemechanism.

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3. Operatorsafetyhazards.Theuseofatipuptailmechanismcreatestwopotentialoperatorhazards.Thefirstisthepotential toliftthetipuptailintotheupperpositionwhiletheconveyorisrunning.Ifthisisdone,theoperatorhasaccesstodriven rollersinsidetheconveyorframe.CESafetyStandardsdictatethataccesstoequipmentshallonlybedoneusingatool.Ifthe tailismanuallyactivated,itmayviolateCEandOSHAsafetystandards.ManuallyactivatedtipuptailsarepreferredinFood conveyorapplications.Intheseapplications,theneedforsanitationoutweighsthepotentialsafetyrisks.Thesecondsafety hazardwithtipuptailmechanismsisthepotentialpinchpointcreatedfromloweringthetailbackdownintoitstensioned position.Thescissorsactioncreatedfromthepivotframetotheconveyorframecreatesadangerpoint.Ifnotproperly designedorguarded,injurycouldoccur.

PneumaticorSpringTension
Advantages: 1. Automaticallytensionsthebelt.Withtheadditionofapneumaticcylinderorspringloadeddevice,thistension mechanismmaintainsconstanttensionontheconveyorbelt.Thisisespeciallyimportantonlongerorheavilyloaded conveyors.Retensionmaintenanceisnotrequireduntilthemechanismrunsoutoftravel. Disadvantages: 1. Costly.Theadditionofthethreerollersandthetensionmechanismaddssignificantlytothecostoftheconveyor. 2. Longerbeltreplacementtime.Inthistensionmethod,thereturnconveyorbeltisinterwoventhroughthethreerollers. Whenbeltreplacementisrequired,removaloftheuppertworollersisalsonecessary.Dependingonthedesignofthe mechanism,thiscanaddsignificantlytothemaintenancetimetoreplaceawornoutbelt.Toincreasemaintenance efficiency,asystemwithaquickreleasefeatureshouldbeutilized,whichprovideseasyaccesstothetoprollers. 3. Beltsurfacecontamination.Withthethreerollermechanism,thetoptworollerscontactthetoprunningsurfaceofthe belt.Theserollerscanpickupdebrisandimbeditintothebeltsurface.Insomeapplicationsthismaynotbeanissue,but infoodorfoodpackagingapplications,thisshouldbeavoided.

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Conclusion:
So,whichmethodofbelttensioningisbest?Ofcourse,thecorrectanswerdependsonthespecificapplicationathand.But, generallyspeaking,inasituationwhereaoneoffcustomconveyorisbeingimplementedbynonconveyorpeoplethejackscrew methodwouldmostlikelybesufficient.Ithasreadilyavailablecomponentstoaideinthedesignanditsalsosimpleand inexpensive. However,whenacompanyispurchasingaconveyorfromaconveyormanufacturer,theyshouldexpectmoreutilityfortheirmoney andhigherqualitytechnology.Atechnologythatdecreasesmaintenancetimes,whileprolongingtheconveyorslifeandimproving itsoverallfunction.ThetechnologythatmostregularlydeliversthesebenefitsistheRackandPinionmethod. FormoredetailsaboutRackandPiniontensioning,oranyoftheothermethodspresentedinthispaper,pleasecallDornerMfg. Corp.at18003978664orvisitDorner.com.

AboutDornerMfg.Corp.
BasedinHartland,Wis.,DornerMfg.Corp.isaworldleaderinthedesign,manufactureanddistributionofhighqualityconveyors andrelatedequipment.Since1973,companiesfromaroundtheworldhaveturnedtoDornerforgreatlyimprovedefficiencyand productivity.AdditionalinformationaboutthecompanycanbeobtainedonlineatDorner.com.

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