Powered conveyors move materials using motorized parts such as rollers or belts. They are used in various industries to move products vertically or horizontally. Roller conveyors use direct drive motors, while conveyor belts can be permanently mounted or designed with wheels. Truck-mounted conveyor belts are used for loading baggage at airports. Powered screw conveyors move bulk materials such as grains or powders.
A powered conveyor can define one of two types of equipment, but both are used to move materials from one place to another. The former is a conveyor driven by a motor, or containing motorized parts such as rollers, which provide power to the conveyor unit to move materials uphill or at speeds greater than gravity alone. Another type of motorized transporter is a truck-mounted unit that can be driven from one location to another to move materials to different locations.
Powered conveyors are used in a variety of industries where the product needs to be moved vertically up before reaching the end of the conveyor. Gravity-powered, or non-motorized, drives can often be used when boxes or parts move vertically down, but some power must be provided to move materials up or long distances on level ground. A wide variety of conveyor designs can be motorized, including belts, rollers and tray systems.
Roller conveyors can be fed via small rollers within each roller. These conveyors use evenly spaced horizontal rollers and each roller can contain a small direct drive motor. A direct drive roller contains a central shaft with wire motor windings, and the metal roller is the other half of the motor, moving as electrical power is sent to the shaft motor. Direct drive motors can be controlled at different speeds using a voltage controller, which allows the motorized conveyor to adapt to different production speeds or other needs.
Conveyor belts are typically designed with a motor-driven reinforced fabric or rubber belt at one end. The belt is made in a loop, providing a continuous conveying surface during operation and travels on evenly spaced support rollers to support the load. Heavy materials such as rocks or metals may require a motor on both end rolls to provide extra power. This type of powered conveyor can be permanently mounted in place or designed with wheels or skids to allow it to move.
Truck-mounted conveyor belts are used for loading baggage at commercial airports. A lorry can be driven to the aircraft parked at the terminal and the motorized belt can be adjusted to reach the aircraft baggage compartment. The transporter can be powered by the truck engine or a separate engine and includes controls for the baggage loader to start and stop the transporter as needed.
A different type of conveyor is a powered screw conveyor, which is designed with a central shaft and a continuous screw-shaped lift plate, enclosed in a hollow cylindrical tube. As the drive shaft turns, the screw collects the material between the turns of the screw plate and the tube and carries it upwards until it reaches a discharge tube at the top end. These conveyors are commonly used to move bulk materials such as grains or powdered compounds that would not move well on a conveyor belt.
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