What Are the Most Common Types of Conveyor Systems?

Conveyor systems are fast growing in popularity and use. As per estimates, the conveyor market will reach the $10.07 billion mark by 2025. Production plants and packaging industries are rapidly increasing the use of these systems for moving products, parts, supplies, packages, and equipment for relocation, shipping, or production. The conception and construction of these individual systems by companies like Lime Systems solely depends on the different materials to move, which includes their dimensions, weight, and potential. We will explore the different types of conveyor systems in this article.

Though conveyor systems are critical to material production and handling, organizations can also use them for manufacturing applications, like assembly and part finishing, production applications, washing, and sintering. While most of these systems are automated, their unautomated versions featuring rollers and chutes are perfect for material handling, shipping, and retail applications. Different varieties of these material handling solutions are available to move different materials and products. These include:

Belt Conveyors

Belt conveyors are hugely popular among the different types of conveyors available online at various websites. You can find conveyors in various designs to suit industries, including manufacturing, airlines, logistics, and shipping. They can facilitate the production process and transport goods within the facility

Belt conveyors feature continuous belts extending in a loop between two end pulleys to move products and materials. While the ends have a roll underneath, there is also a metal slider pan to support the conveyor belt when moving lighter loads. Motors with constant or variable speed reduction gears are the main power source for belt conveyors.

Key features of a belt conveyor include:

• Common materials used to make the belts in these conveyor systems include metal, fabric, plastic, leather, and rubber. The belt material should conform to the use case of the conveyor.
• You can operate a belt conveyor at different speeds based on the required throughput.
• You can also incline it; use it horizontally or through it for large or bulk materials.

When transporting heavier loads, using belt conveyors with stronger and thicker belting material is always a good idea.

Roller Conveyors

As the name suggests, these conveyors feature parallel rollers to move products manually or by gravity. You can use them for different material handling activities, like baggage handling, loading docks, and on assembly lines. Key specifications of roller conveyors include:

• These conveyors can be curved or straight based on their use and floor space.
• Axle center dimensions and roller diameter in these conveyors are significant.

Powered Roller Conveyors

These conveyors use frame-mounted powered rollers to move products in material handling applications that need powered conveyance of a particular product. Essential attributes of these conveyor systems are:

• Roller material and diameter, drive type, and axle center dimension.
• Different drive types include chains or sprockets, motorized rollers, and belts.

Effective use of these conveyor systems includes steelmaking, packaging, and food handling.

Slat Belt/Apron Conveyors

Such conveyors use wood or steel plates or slates on roller chains to transfer products. Important attributes of these conveyor systems are:

• The plates in these material handling systems do not interlock or overlap.
• You can use a slat belt conveyor to move heavy and large objects, including pallets, drums, and crates, in heavy industries, like steel mills and foundries.
• Heavy-duty use cases of these conveyors improve their service life.
• These are powered conveyors available in varied load capacities and sizes.

Ball Transfer Conveyors

Also known as ball transfer tables, these conveyors use a network of mounted ball casters for multi-directional product conveyance without power. The most important features of these conveyors are:

• You can use these conveyors to convey products from one line to another and even in sorting systems by positioning them where several conveyor lines meet.
• Using these conveyors for material handling applications, like packaging lines and assembly lines, is best.
• These conveyors are available in many load-carrying potentials and sizes.

These unpowered conveyors depend on several external forces to convey products.

Magnetic Conveyors

These conveyors use moving magnets installed under stationary tables, plates, or other non-magnetic slider beds to convey magnetic materials as machine scrap. Necessary specifications of these systems include:

• Magnetic conveyors are specifically configured to use vertical or horizontal motion or combinations.
• These systems also work as chip conveyors and remove ferrous magnetic chips from different machining centers.
• They are generally beltless but may also feature a belt instead of a slider bed.
• The electromagnetic rail below the conveying belt in these conveyors attracts ferrous supplies.
• You can also use them upside down due to their magnetic attraction.

Bucket Conveyors

Also known as bucket elevators, these systems use multi-sided containers fastened to chains, belts, or cables to transfer materials and products. The upright containers in these systems need to be tipped to release products or materials. Unique features of these conveyors are:

• You can use them in different applications, like bulk material, part, or food handling and processing.
• These systems can convey materials in both liquid or dry form, like sand, sludge, grain, manure, and sugar.
• You can use them vertically, inclined, or horizontally to change the levels of the transferred products.
• These conveyors come in varied load-carrying possibilities and sizes based on their usage.

Chute Conveyors

Trough or chute conveyors use gravity to move products on smooth surfaces from one level to another. Important specifications include:

• Specifically designed chutes have a low coefficient of dynamic friction, thus allowing easy sliding of products and materials.
• Chutes in these conveyors can be curved or straight based on the requirements of an application.
• You can use a chute conveyor for scrap and postal service packaging and handling.

Besides these, you can also find other varieties of conveyor systems, like dragline, vacuum or pneumatic, overhead, auger, vibrating, vertical, wheel, and walking beam conveyors.

The Bottom Line

Conveyors are mechanical assemblies or devices that transport materials without putting in a lot of effort. Different types of conveyor systems are available, but one common aspect of all these systems is that they feature a frame that supports the wheels, belts, or rollers on which the materials or products move. In a nutshell, there is no ideal conveyor for every use. Therefore, consider several aspects to choose the best for your requirements.