Vacuum Belt Conveyors Easy product handling with vacuum

Fixed-position transport withoutgripper or pallet. ■ Do your products tip over or float on the conveyor at high accelerations? ■ Do your short cycle times not allow you to stop and handle the products with a gripper? ■ Do you want to coat, scan, label or laser the bottom of your products? ■ Do your products have to be continuously elevated or bridge a gap? Vacuum belt conveyors from mk fix the products to the conveyor with a vacuum. This means that the products can, for example, be accelerated quickly or transported vertically, overhead or alongside the conveyor. Intermittent handling tasks can...

General requirements To be gripped by the vacuum, the product surface has to be suitable. The design of the vacuum belt conveyor depends on the following product characteristics: Since ambient air is drawn in, the environmental conditions also have an influence:

Basic Structure of the Vacuum Belt Conveyors Benefits Fixed position transport without gripper or pallet Secure conveying of lightweight products at high accelerations – no tipping over or floating Products can be conveyed overhead or alongside the conveyor Products can be processed or checked while moving Fitting Control device

Optional variant for longer or wider conveyors Belt or timing belt conveyor Conveyor frame with variable length or width Valve switch Suction line Areas of application To transport lightweight/large-area products at high accelerations or speeds, for example in the packaging, consumer goods or paper industry or in battery production. Vacuum pump

Design of Vacuum Belt Conveyors Transport position Depending on the product weight, conveying task and transport position, different forces have to be considered. Therefore, the transport position has a significant influence on the design of the conveyor. Because the product is fixed to the conveyor by the vacuum, a variety of transport positions are possible. Our engineers design the vacuum components according to the customer’s required suction force. If the required suction force is not known, we can determine it using sample parts. The vacuum allows incline angles of α = 0 to 360° without...

Suction force The suction force is calculated as follows: F = p · A [N] where: A = suction area [m²] p = negative pressure [N/m²] mk specification: p = -100 mbar ≙ 0,01 N/mm² We dimension the pump for a negative pressure of -100 mbar in the vacuum chamber. This relative vacuum has proven effective for most applications. The vacuum must be guaranteed at all times, regardless of how many holes are covered by products. Therefore, we dimension the pump such that the necessary vacuum is provided even when all the holes are open. A certain degree of leakage is expected in every system, which we take...

Design of Vacuum Belt Conveyors Belts mk uses high-grip belts or timing belts for its vacuum belt conveyors. Accumulating belts or timing belts can also be used, for example if products need to be ejected sideways. The hole pattern in the belt is of crucial importance when selecting the right pump. The number, size and location of the holes under the product will affect the suction force and therefore the appropriate pump needed to transport the product securely. The arrangement and size of the individual holes will depend on the product shape and the suction area required to generate the necessary...

Conveyor frame The geometry of the conveyor frame defines the suction zone. Depending on the application and to reduce leakage, it may make sense to divide the conveyor frame into different suction zones. Max. width of suction zone = clear width in conveyor frame profile It is advisable to design these individual suction zones so that they can be switched on and off individually. Longitudinal divisions can be used to account for various functions such as loading, accelerating or separating. Transverse divisions are commonly used with products of different widths. This minimises the number of...

Design of Vacuum Belt Conveyors Connection point and suction line The connection fitting can be designed in different ways. The size and number of the fittings are determined individually with the customer according to the flow rate, the suction zones and accessibility constraints. We can design complete systems with short suction lines (consisting of hoses) and a pump in the immediate vicinity of the conveyor. Other options such as manifolds, valves, pressure measurement systems, specific integrations or longer suction lines can be added on site as needed. Or, in many cases, the customer can...

Vacuum pump mk prefers to use single-stage side channel blowers. These generate a high flow rate and a moderate vacuum. The flow rate Q [m3/h] indicates how many m3 of air per hour the pump can draw in at its connection point. The diagram shows a sample selection of 3 controlled pumps in different sizes*. We use a negative pressure of -100 mbar as a reference. For preliminary design considerations, we recommend dimensioning the pump to run at only 80% capacity (see red dot), which would also allow a vacuum of -200 mbar. Our engineers calculate the required flow rate, taking into account the equivalent...

Customer-Specific Applications Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P 2000 AC in the packaging industry, cycles at high accelerations without containers slipping or tipping over Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P 2041 AC including frame and control unit Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P MINI

Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P 2000, products are packaged at very high speeds Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P 2041 BC with 3 chambers in transverse direction for batches of paper envelopes of different widths Vacuum belt conveyor GUF-P 2000 AC with narrow suction zone

Customer-Specific Applications Multiple-line vacuum belt conveyor GUF- P2041 BC with electronically coupled drives Vacuum belt conveyor made of stainless steel with knife edge for fast transport of fleece strips Vacuum belt conveyor made of stainless steel for FDA-regulated industries