The likelihood is high that if a layperson sees a moving surface in a factory, processing plant, or airport, they will label it as a ‘conveyor belt’. While this colloquialism is not damagingly erogenous, it is technically incorrect. In fact, conveyor systems use plenty of moving surfaces that are not simply ‘belts’. Belt systems are not even the most common kind of conveyor in use today. This article takes an extremely brief look at the different kinds of surfaces used in conveyor operations and what uses they might have.
Belt
For light uses, such as moving gravel or groceries, a single-piece rubber belt can be used as a conveyor surface. This has the advantage of being very cheap and easy to replace.
Food Grade Belt
Conveyor systems have found a high level of adoption in the food production industry, where they serve to increase productivity. Food grade conveyor surfaces need to have slightly different specifications to other kinds of surface due to the strict hygiene control that is necessitated when dealing with food products. Food grade belt is often ultrasonically welded to remove the possibility of air pockets being formed. Air pockets can carry contamination and scent from product to product. Companies like Fluent Conveyors sell replacement food grade belts, which must be regularly changed in order to ensure correct levels of hygiene.
Roller
Roller surfaces – either independently powered by motors or completely free-spinning – are common on conveyor systems used to move large, regularly shaped items. In parcel distribution centers such as Amazon’s vast fulfillment establishments, roller surfaces are used extensively to transport regularly shaped boxes using gravity. Unevenly shaped objects or objects with hanging parts cannot be moved using this kind of surface due to the likelihood that they might become caught between the individual cylindrical rollers.
Chain
Chain conveyors have more than one surface. Instead of having a flat surface on which an item rests in transit, chain conveyors have two or three thin chain surfaces that all move. This makes them perfect for oversized and awkwardly shaped objects that would be dangerous to move on a conventional surface. Chain surfaces have seen use in heavy-duty recycling plants and automotive factories for many years. The inherent strength of chain makes it perfect for very heavy-duty work.
Hinged Steel
Hinged steel surfaces are often used in manufacturing plants, where robots and human employees are required to work on the surface instead of transferring it to a desk or other workstation. A hinged steel surface is very stable while still being able to move in a loop. Hinged steel conveyor systems actually predate the Sutcliffe mining conveyor of 1905: with an example being built by the Sandvik company in Sweden in 1901. The evolution of the hinged steel design to incorporate the advantages of the Sutcliffe design revolutionized many manufacturing processes. Perhaps the most famous manufacturer that made use of conveyor systems like this was the Ford Motor Company, which used conveyors to aid in the building of Model T cars at a previously unheard-of speed.
