1.

INTRODUCTION
DEFINITION
Belt Conveyor is mechanical conveying equipment to convey the bulk materials like lime
stone, coal, Stones, bauxite...etc from one place to another. Belt conveyor consists of
accessories like Head Pulley, Tail Pulley with supporting idlers for carrying & return side of
the belt & connected to motor & gear box with required speed to convey the material. With the
design of special belts this can convey hot materials as foundry shakeout sand, coke, sinter and
iron ore pellets...etc

FIELD OF APPLICATION
Belt conveyors are the most commonly used because they are the most versatile and the cost
expensive and affordable means of conveying. These are used in Thermal power plant to
handle Coal & coke material, Cement plant to handle lime stone & gypsum, Steel plant to
handle iron ore & sponge iron pellets

TECHNICAL DATA
We are involved in one of ongoing project with bevcon wayors (p) Ltd - Hyderabad for
designing a belt conveyor for handling lime stone & coal in simultaneously. The capacity of the
belt conveyor as per project is 150 TPH (Tons per Hour)
This conveyor design involves the study of layout, material characteristics, relevant data of
existing designs & site visits.

OBJECTIVE
The main objective is to design a belt conveyor using empirical formulas as per industry &
Indian Standards. Preparing drawings of conveyor using AutoCAD & critical components are
modeled in Pro-e where ever required and manufacture of prototype model of belt conveyor by
scaling down the designed conveyor for conceptual presentation

SCOPE OF PROJECT

Understanding the types of conveying systems

Conveying of variety of materials & its applications
Conveyor selection criteria
Design methods and standards
Designing a belt conveyor for handling lime stone of 150 TPH

2. CONVEYING METHODOLOGY
In an industrial application to convey the material ( raw material ) from one place to another
place by means of conveying
There are different types of conveying methods available based on the material characterstics
& type of handling. Belt conveyors are most accepted technology to convey the material in
large capacities perticularly for bulk material handling industries like Power, Steel, Chemical,
Glass, Agro, Food etc
Different type of conveyors are available some of them are

BELT CONVEYOR

SCREW CONVEYOR( SLURRY CONVEYING)

BUCKET ELEVATOR ( VERTICAL CONVEYING)

ROLLER CONVEYOR( BOTTLES & BOX HANDLING)

LONG DISTANCE CONVEYOR

POCKET CONVEYORS

PIPE

CONVEYOR

SANDWICH
CONVEYOR

INPLANT

BULK HANDLING

3. FUNCTIONAL DESCRIPTION & ANATOMY OF

CONVEYOR

A troughed belt conveyor comprises an endless, rubberized flat belt (a) suspended between
pulleys at either end and supported along its length by a number of rotating idler rollers (b).
The belt is driven via one of the pulleys (usually the head pulley (c)) and the tension in the belt
is maintained by using a sliding pulley (d) which is tied to a gravity take-up unit (e).

Fig Functional Description

The material (f) is loaded onto the conveyor at the tail-end via a chute (g) and is transported
along the carrying-side (h) to the head-end where it discharges into a discharge chute (i) which
guides the product onto the downstream equipment.
Impact idlers (j) are located at the loading point to support the belt where the load impacts onto
the belt as it is dropped down the loading chute.
Once the material has been discharged from the carrying belt, the return belt (k) is guided back
to the tail pulley on return idlers (l).
The impact, carrying and return idlers are spaced at different intervals. On the carrying-side,
the mass of the belt plus the load conveyed is greater than the mass to be supported on the
return-side and thus, for the tension in the conveyor belt (by the take-up and induced by the
drive unit), the idler spacing is selected accordingly. This 'sag' in the belt between the carrying

and return idler sets must therefore be designed on the basis of the heaviest load that the
conveyor is to transport.
Snub pulleys (m) are sometimes incorporated into the design of a conveyor in order to increase
the angle of wrap (n) of the belt on the drive pulley. The greater wrap angle on the pulley
allows more power to be introduced into the belt as is passes around the drive pulley without
slip occurring. In this way, fewer drives are needed on longer conveyors or conveyors with
high conveying loads.

3.1 ANATOMY OF A BELT CONVEYOR

Fig:Anatomy of belt conveyor

3.1.1. BELTING
Conveyor belting is the primary component used to hold, contain and support the load
being transported along a belt conveyor.
There are two basic categories into which all troughed conveyor belting falls namely,
Fabric Belting and Steel Cord Belting. Externally both types of belt appear to be identical
however; the
In both fabric and steel cord belts, the carcass is covered by rubberized covers to protect
the carcass or cables.
When the belt is installed into a conveyor structure, it is supported by means of idlers on
the carrying and return strands as indicated in the graphic.
The two 'side' or 'wing' idlers are set at an angle of between 15 and 45 degrees to the
horizontal. The result is that the belt forms a distinctive 'trough' into which the material is
deposited and hence the term 'troughed belt conveyor'.

Fig:Belting

10

Fig:Idlers

3.1.2. LOAD SKIRTS

To retain the material on the belt-after it leaves the loading chute and until it reaches belt
speed-skirt boards are necessary. These skirt boards usually are an extension of the sides of the
loading chute and extend parallel to one another for some distance along the conveyor belt. The
skirt boards normally are made of metal, although wood sometimes is used. The lower edges of
the skirt boards are positioned some distance above the belt. The gap between the skirt board
bottom edge and the belt surface is sealed by a rectangular rubber strip, attached or clamped to
the exterior of the skirt boards.

Fig:Load skirts

4. FEED CHUTE & DISCHARGE CHUTE

11

Feed and discharge chutes enable material to be loaded and emptied from conveyor belts. The
design and layout of chutes is therefore extremely important to ensure that material is placed
on to the belt at the correct position, that unnecessary degradation of material is prevented and
that dust and spillage are contained.

Fig:Feed chute and Discharge chute

4.1 FLOORING

12

Invariably conveyors require access platforms and walkways to enable operators and
maintenance personnel to gain access to the various components on a conveyor.
Primarily there are four types of flooring which can be used, depending on the particular
application and it is important that the designer understands the merits and demerits of each
type of flooring.

Fig:Flooring

4.2 THE BASIC FUNCTIONS OF INDUSTRIAL FLOORING ARE

1. It must support any given applied or superimposed load ( e.g storage of stock or
equipment or human traffic)
2. It must provide safe access routes for people and moveable equipment.
3. Its design should be such that it does not facilitate the collection of dust, dirt and
fluids.
4. Its design should be such that it prevents the slipping, sliding or skidding of
feet.
5.

Its design should be such that it is aesthetically pleasing

4.2.1 Idlers

13

Fig:Idlers set
Idlers are used on a belt conveyor to support the belt on the carrying and return
strands. Carrying idlers also support the load in transit along the conveyor.

4.2.2 TYPES AND FUNCTIONS OF IDLERS

It has been stated above that there are basically two types of idlers namely, carrying and
return idlers. Within these categories however, there are a number of different designs of idler
sets which have developed as a result of particular applications, the need to minimize the stress
imposed onto the belt and the environment in which the conveyor operates.
These different types of idlers are described below, together with a functional explanation
for each.
CARRYING IDLER SETS
These idler sets support the carrying-side (top) conveyor belt onto which the material is loaded
and transported.

RETURN IDLER SETS

14

These idler sets support the return-side (bottom) conveyor belt which returns to the tail pulley
after having discharged product over the head pulley.

4.2.3 TROUGHING IDLER SETS

Troughing idlers are found on the carrying-side, along the length of the conveyor. On any
particular conveyor these idlers are identical, as are the bases.

Fig: TROUGHING IDLER SETS

This Troughing angle ensures that the carrying belt maintains the same cross-sectional area
throughout the carrying strand, so that the load-bearing capacity of a particular conveyor belt is
the same along the conveyors' full length. In so doing, material loaded to the maximum
capacity at the loading point will not fall off of the belt en-route.
Troughing idlers can comprise 3-roll or 5-roll idler sets (seen above and right).

Fig:Troughing angle.

15

4.2.4 TRANSITION IDLER SETS

Transition idlers are found at either end of the conveyor, adjacent to the head and tail
pulleys.
These idler sets comprise standard idler rolls however the bases into which these rolls
are fitted, have a smaller Troughing angle to that of the rest of the Troughing idlers on the
conveyor.
The reason for this is that the conveyor belt is flat as it passes over the pulleys, under
high tension. As the belt changes its' form to a full trough of say 35 degrees (i.e. from tail
pulley to full trough angle), the belt must be supported through this transition zone. If the belt
was fed directly into a full trough from the tail pulley, the belt edges would be over-stressed
and damage would result.
Similarly, as the troughed angle changes to zero at the head- end, transition idlers provide
support through the transition zone.
The number of transition idlers depends on the trough angle of the conveyor. In the case of a
45 degree trough angle, 2 or 3 transition idler sets would be used at either end of the conveyor.
These idler sets would have incrementally greater trough angles of say 15,

Fig: Transition Idler Sets

20 and 35 degrees through the transition zone leading up to 45 degrees.As with troughing
idlers, transition idlers are available in fixed bases or the garland configuration.

16

4.2.5 IMPACT IDLER SETS

Wherever material is loaded onto a conveyor belt, impact idlers are installed beneath
the troughed belt over the full loading length.
Impact idlers sets are spaced at intervals of typically 350 mm to 450 mm in order to
provide a comprehensive support base for the belt.
Impact idlers comprise a small diameter shell, typically 'd' = 89 mm diameter, fitted
with concentric rubberized rings at close intervals. These rubber rings provide a cushioning
effect in the event of lumps of material falling onto the belt where an idler is located beneath
the point of impact. The overall impact idler diameter 'D' = 152 mm

Fig: impact idler

This cushioning ability of impact idler sets allows the energy associated with the impact to be
absorbed more efficiently and with much less detrimental effect to the belt.
Impact idler rolls are either mounted into rigid, fixed base frames or can be manufactured in
garland-type sets, depending on the application.

17

Fig:fixed base frames

4.2.6 RETURN IDLERS
The mass of the return belt is the only load that return idlers are required to support. As
such, return idler sets are spaced at two to three times the pitch of their equivalent carrying-side
idler sets. Return idler sets usually have one or two rolls per idler set, for similar reasons.
There are of course exceptions to the above, one being where conveyors carry material
along the top and bottom strands as would be the case on two-way conveyors. In this case,
troughing idlers would be located along the bottom strand as well as the top strand.

Fig:return idlers
Flat return idlers comprise 1 or 2 rolls, the 1-roll design being more prevalent. In the
case of a single flat return idler, the idler can be mounted onto two brackets which are secured
to either side of the conveyor support structure as seen adjacent.

18

Fig: Flat return idler

Where return idler sets comprise two rolls, a support frame is required which supports
the idler pair and attaches the idlers to the conveyor frame. This 2-roll design forms the return
belt into a 'v' trough and these return idler sets are referred to a 'V' return idlers.

The trough angle of the 'V' return idler is usually 10 degrees and this feature has been
developed to assist with belt training along the return strand.

There are a number of different types of training idler designs available in the market
which can be used on the carrying and return strands of the conveyor.

19

Fig:Troughing Idler, Return Idler, Impact Idlers and Transition Idler

5. ELECTRIC MOTORS
Electric motors are usually the prime movers in any conveyor system. Whenever
electric power is available, the most practical method of driving the belt conveyor is to
make use of an electric motor.For practical reasons industry has standardized on a range of
the motor frame sizes, power ratings and electrical power supplies to these motors.

Fig: Electric motors

5.1 FLUID COUPLINGS

Fluid couplings are an integral component in a belt conveyors' drive assembly and
are installed between the drive motor and the reducer unit.
20

The improvements and range of designs and features of fluid couplings available to the
engineer has been driven by the need to improve the startup characteristics of a conveyor and
to increase the efficiency and reliability of fluid couplings in general.

Fig: Fluid coupling and Gear Box

5.2 REDUCERS / GEARBOXES

Definition:
A simple definition of the purpose of a gearbox may be stated as:
A Gearbox is a unit which receives the primary input speed - driving speed source and
alters it to a different output speed - driven speed source using a series of gears.
When a gearbox alters the driving speed, it is said to create a "mechanical advantage"
Thus the fundamental purpose of a gear drive is to transmit uniform motion between two shafts
at

constant

ratio.

The basic law of gearing states that to achieve this, the common normal to the tooth profiles at
all points must pass through a fixed point called the " Pitch Point"
The various types of gears that are used are:
Spur - The axes of the shafts connected by the gears are PARALELL.
21

Bevel - The axes of the shafts INTERSECT.

Spiral - The axes of the shafts are NON-PARALELL and NON-INTERSECTING.
Helical - A type of spur gear in which although the axes of the shafts are paralell the teeth are
cut on helices instaed of paralell to the axis(i.e. straight across the wheel).
Worm - Basically a form of spiral gearing in which the axes of the driving and driven shafts
are usually, though not invariably, at right angles and the velocity ratio is high, the driving
wheel being of a small diameter.

5.3 GEARBOX RATIOS AND GEAR RATIOS

The ratio of the number of revolutions per minute of the input source in relation to the
number of revolutions per minute of the output source is known as the ratio of the gearbox
In the Materials Handling environment, the main driving source is usually a standard
electric motor, and the gearbox is utilised to reduce the input speed of the electric motor to
produce a lower output speed from the gearbox.
This reduction ratio of output speed vs. input speed is known as the reduction ratio of
the gearbox.

5.4 RIGID COUPLINGS

22

Fig: Horizontal rigid coupling

A coupling is a device used to connect two shafts together at their ends for the purpose
of transmitting power. Couplings do not normally allow disconnection of shafts during
operation, however there are torque limiting couplings which can slip or disconnect when some
torque limit is exceeded.
The primary purpose of couplings is to join two pieces of rotating equipment while
permitting some degree of misalignment or end movement or both. By careful selection,
installation and maintenance of couplings, substantial savings can be made in reduced
maintenance costs and downtime.

6. PULLEYS
Pulleys are used on conveyors to support and deflect the belting through the
conveyorstructure.
Pulleys also provide a mechanism whereby the conveyor belt can be trained to run
(track) true along the conveyor idlers.
The following graphic indicates the location of pulleys on a conveyor.

23

Fig:Location of pulleys
Generally, pulleys are located at the ends of the conveyor structure and at the take-up
arrangement. Pulleys are used to transmit the drive power into the conveyor belt and as such,
are subjected to the dynamic belt tension forces in a conveyor.

There are a number of different types of pulleys available for use on conveyors as well as
different design parameters for pulleys serving different functions on the same conveyor.

24

Fig: Types of pulleys

6.1 BEARINGS
As far as conveyors are concerned, bearings are used in idlers, reducers, motors and on pulley
shafts. There are numerous types of bearings which have been developed for specific purposes
and designed to operate in different operating environment.

25

Fig: Bearings

6.2. PLUMMER BLOCK

Plummer block housings usually have no provision for re-lubrication since used grease can be
easily replaced once the housing cap has been removed.
If shorter re-lubrication intervals are required a hole may be drilled and tapped to take a grease
nipple or supply line.
Plummer blocks are designed for use with self-aligning ball bearings and spherical roller
bearings where the bearing either has a tapered bore and be mounted on an adapter sleeve, or
the bearing has a cylindrical bore.
Elongated bolt holes are provided in the plummer block housing base to permit slight
adjustments to be made to the position of the plummer block during mounting.
Most housings are fitted with dowel pins to ensure correct location of the associated caps and
bases, which are not interchangeable.
Plummer blocks are designed to accommodate loads acting at right angles to the base. If the
direction of load is not perpendicular to the base, care should be taken to see that the housing,
cap bolts and holding down bolts have sufficient strength to carry the loads involved.

26

Fig: Plummer Block

6.3. SCRAPER
Primary belt scrapers:

Fig: Primary scraper

Primary scrapers are installed at the head pulley and are the 'first' or primary scraper to
remove residual material.Primary scrapers can comprise a single, continuous blade along the
width of the belt, or a series of short 'multiple' blades which cover the belt width.

6.4 BELT PLOUGHS

Ploughs are employed on flat return belts to remove any material which may have fallen onto
the 'top' of the return belt, before the material is trapped between the belt and the tail pulley.
27

Should lumps of material enter the tail pulley, they can cause damage to the belt, to the pulley
lagging and, if the material is allowed to build up on the pulley, can result in misalignment of
the belt during operation.

7. BELT CONVEYOR APPLICATIONS

28

Short plant conveyors - horizontal, inclined or declined.

ii

Long overland conveyors - straight or curved.

iii Reversible conveyor.

iv

Boom conveyors - stacker-mounted, slewable.

Elevated conveyors in gantries.

vi

Shiftable conveyors.

vii Inclined mine shaft conveyors.

29

Fig: Belt Coveyor Applications

Troughed belt conveyors are used extensively throughout the bulk materials handling industry
and examples of applications where this type of conveyor is commonly used are listed below
(click thumbnail for images) :-

7.1 TYPE OF MATERIAL TRANSPORTED

All bulk materials of utility industries like thermal power plant fuel ( coal or coke)
conveying to boiler, steel making plants ore conveying from mines to processing station, glass
making plant conveying quartz to the process plant, fertilizer handling, food grains handling
etc
Characteristics of materials like size & shape, bulk density, moisture, temperature,
angle of repose, Angle of surcharge, abrasiveness, stickiness, flow ability,Etc will play an
important role in selecting the belt conveyor for the said application.
Abrasive & sticky materials will often wear the belt & sometimes damage the belt
primary scrapers & secondary scrapers are used to clean the belt & not to create much
resistance to convey the material.

COAL

LIME STONE

IRON ORE

CEMENT

30

7.2 BELT CAPACITIES

For maximum haulage efficiency, conveyors should be operated fully loaded at maximum
recommended speed.
Belt capacity is dependent upon these inter-related factors:

7.2.1BELT WIDTH
Minimum belt width may be influenced by loading or transfer point requirements, or
by material lump size and fines mix. Troughability and load support restrictions (refer
section 4), will also influence final belt width selection

7.2.2.BELT SPEED
Possible belt speed is influenced by many factors, importantly the loading,
discharge and transfer arrangements, maintenance standards, lump sizes etc.

7.2.3 MATERIAL BULK DENSITY AND SURCHARGE ANGLE

Due to undulations of the belt passing over the conveyor idlers, the natural angle of
repose of the material is

decreased. This decreased angle known as ANGLE OF

SURCHARGE is one of the most important characteristics in determining carrying

capacity as it directly governs the cross sectional area of material on the belt and hence the
"volume" being conveyed.
bulk density and surcharge angles for some common materials. With materials which
slump readily, such as fine powders or dust, or on long conveyors where the load may settle,
consideration should be given to using a reduced surcharge angle for capacity determination,
and may require the compensatory use of other factors (such as greater belt width or speed)
to provide the required capacity.

31

7.2.4 INCLINATION ANGLE

The angle of inclination of a conveyor changes the carrying capacity. The load
cross-section area of an inclined load is reduced when viewed in a vertical plane as the
surcharge angle is reduced perpendicular to the belt. An approximation of the reduced
capacity can be determined by multiplying the horizontal capacity by the Cosine of the
inclination angle .Maximum inclination angle for some common materials. Effectively the
capacity reduction is usually less than 3%.

7.2.5 TROUGHING ANGLE

For standard 3 roll idlers, the most common trough angle is 35 although trough
angles from 20 to 45 are not uncommon. Steeper trough angles give increased capacity but
can have consequences for convex and concave curves and transition zones.

7.2.6 IDLER CONFIGURATION

The most common configuration for idler rollers is 3 rolls of equal length. This
configuration and normal clearances are shown in Fig.
Other configurations from flat belt to 5 roll idlers and with unequal roll lengths are
sometimes used. For wide belts, 5 roll suspended idlers are not uncommon and Table 4
shows capacity for different trough and surcharge angles.

Fig. Troughed Belt Cross-Section

32

7.3 CAPACITY CALCULATIONS GENERAL FORMULA

The general formula for capacity is:
Capacity - tonnes per hour =
3.6 x Load Cross Section Area* (m ) x Belt Speed (m/s) x Material Density (kg/m )
2

(2.1)
(* perpendicular to the belt)

7.3.1 FOR COMMON IDLER CONFIGURATIONS

Capacity can be determined using the tables provided:
This section has been designed for quick reference and give the capacities of conveyors
from 400 mm to 2200 mm wide, assuming the use of 3 roll equal length idlers at 35
troughing angle and an average material surcharge angle of 20 and bulk density of
1000kg/m3. Capacities for conveyors using other troughing angles or materials can be
obtained by multiplying the capacity shown in Table 3 by the appropriate CAPACITY
FACTOR obtained from Table 1 below.

7.3.2 EQUAL ROLL IDLERS

Capacity tonns per hour = Capacity (Table 3) x Material Density (kg/m ) x Capacity factor
3

(Table 1) x Belt Speed (m/s) / 1000

5 equal roll idlers:
Capacity - tonnes per hour =
Capacity (Table 4) x Material Density (kg/m ) x Belt Speed (m/s) /
3

1000. (2.3)
TABLE 1
CAPACITY FACTOR THREE EQUAL ROLL TROUGH IDLERS

33

angle
0

20

Idlertroughingangle
25
30
35

0.43

0.53

0.61

0.69

0.81

0.52

0.61

0.69

0.77

0.88

10

0.61

0.70

0.77

0.84

0.94

15

0.70

0.78

0.86

0.92

1.04

20

0.79

0.87

0.94

1.00

1.08

25

0.88

0.96

1.03

1.08

1.15

Surcharge

45

TABLE 2
Inclinationangle

0
1.000

Cosine

5
0.996

10

15

17.5

20

22.5

25

0.985

0.966

0.954

0.940

0.924

0.906

COSINES

Surcharge angle

Belt
width

1400mm

870

930

1500mm

990

1600mm

10

20

25

990

1050

1110

1060

1130

1200

1270

1120

1200

1280

1360

1440

1800mm

1410

1510

1600

1700

1810

2000mm

1730

1850

1970

2090

2220

2200mm

2130

3600

2430

2580

2730

34

15

2400mm

2580

2750

2930

3110

3290

2600mm

3060

3270

3480

3690

3910

2800mm

3590

3830

4080

4320

4580

Surchargeangle

Belt
width

10

15

20

25

1400mm

900

950

1010

1060

1120

1500mm

1020

1090

1150

1220

1280

1600mm

1160

1230

1300

1380

1450

1800mm

1460

1550

1640

1730

1820

2000mm

1790

1900

2010

2120

2240

2200mm

2210

3600

2470

2610

2750

2400mm

2660

2820

2990

3150

3320

2600mm

3170

3350

3540

3740

3940

2800mm

3710

3930

4150

4380

4610

NOTE: there is a world wide tendency to use increased belt speeds wherever possible. for
example, brown coal is handled at speeds over 7.5 m/s and in australia, iron ore at speeds
over 5 m/s. such higher speeds and those shown under run-of -mine coal, crushed coal and
earth in the above table demand special attention to the design and maintenance of loading,
transfer and discharge point.
35

8. PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS
Typical densities, angles of repose and surcharge angles for various materials are shown in
Table 7 below.
The angle of repose of material is also known as the angle of natural friction is the angle at
which material , when heaped freely onto a horizontal surface takes up to the horizontal
plane.

Fig:Angle of Repose

The angle of surcharge is the angle measured with respect to the horizontal plane, of the
surface of the material being conveyed by a moving belt. The angle is normally 5 0 to 200 less
that the angle of repose.
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Fig:Angle of Surcharge
For many materials these factors are subject to considerable variation, depending on the
moisture content, lump size, cohesive properties, etc. Unless otherwise stated, the Tables
refer to dry weight conditions, based usully on broken materials in sizes most commonly
found in conveyor systems.
The physical characteristics of the material affect the operating parameters of the belt in
other ways, for example, typical belt speeds, recommended maximum lump sizes,
maximum slope if the belt is inclined, etc,. Reference is made to these factors in Tables 5, 6
& 8 of this section.
Where the material to be conveyed has unusual slumping characteristics, or where
sufficient water is present to provide lubrication between the belt cover and the material,
the slope angles to be used would be appreciably below those listed and should be
determined by test or from experience in the field.

37

9. DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS AND CALCULATIONS

Requirement is to design a Belt Conveyor Adjustable Idler for carrying
gravel of 10TPH between 20 mts distance
CAPACITY CALCULATIONS OF BELT CONVEYOR:
C= Capacity
= CSA of material on the belt (0.028 m^2) for Troughing Angle
= Bulk density of gravel(0.250Tonnes /

V= Velocity of belt(m/s) 1m/s

K= inclination factor (1)
C = 21.672 TPH
which is more than required capacity. Hence the safety factor in capacity design is 2.
Diameter of Idler
N=397.79 rpm
F= Load on each roller
F=103.005 N
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b=(8*F*L)/(3*3.141*D)
F = Load of the material
L= Length of roller
D=Di a of roller
b=bending stress of each roller 273.280 N/mm^2

9.1 MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF ADJUSTABLE IDLER

STEPS INVOLVED
1. A Galvanized Iron (GI) pipe with OD 48 is taken with 3 thickness and cut to a length of
150mmand machined.
2.Indian standard rod (IS 2062) is taken for shaft and machined to required dimensions of Dia
20mm and end to end length of 210 mm
3.Two ball bearings of ID 20mm,OD 42mm and width 15mm is taken and fitted on the shaft
rod.
4.A structure for Idler is prepared with flats of IS 2062 .
5.Roller are linked with the bolts(M6) and could be adjusted as per our requirement.
6.Thus an Adjustable Idler for a belt conveyor is manufactured which costs 2000/- per each set

39

CONCLUSIONS
Adjustable Idler with roller OD 48 and Length(face width) 150mm is manufactured
which run at 400rpm and can be used for medium capacity conveyors. The Adjustable Idler
can compensate for the tracking for the straight motion of the belt and keep the belt aligned in
operating conditions. This Idler can also can compensate for the little heavy loads than the
conveyor is designed for by increasing the cross sectional area of the material on the belt. This
Idler can be maintained properly as it is made of bolted connections. However the bearings
have to be replaced after the standard rating conditions of bearing are reached.

40

REFERENCES
http://www.ckit.co.za
"Belt Tension Theory" CKIT The Bulk Materials Handling Knowledge Base. Retrieved
2010-02-01.
"Coulomb Belt Friction" Missouri University of Science and Technology. Retrieved 201002-01.
"Flat Belt Pulleys, Belting, Splicing Retrieved 2010-04-04.
"Hutchinson TransmissionRetrieved 2009-12-22.
Indian standard IS: 11592 ( with support of Bevcon Wayors (p) Ltd.)
Fenner Dunlop conveyor Handbook

41

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