Plastic Belt Conveyors & Plastic Belt Conveyor Sorters
Bastian is proud to offer the next big thing in modular plastic belt technology with the introduction of Intralox® Activated Roller Belt™ Technology (ARB). This unique, patented technology is a system comprised of rollers embedded within a durable modular plastic belt. The rollers can be orientated on 0, 30, 45, or 60 degree angles, or in any combination of these angles depending on what the application calls for. There are two types of rollers available. A smooth roller works for most applications but a high friction rubberized roller is available for applications that call for a high degree of positive drive. These rollers protrude above and below the belt's surface and when activated provide lateral movement to products of all weights and sizes. The only size limitation is that products with a side smaller than 4 inches will not convey properly due to the roller spacing. And in general, the product should have a flat, rigid bottom to maximize the conveying surface area to insure proper belt function.
Bastian Material Handling has a strong history of installing many types of modular plastic belt conveyors & sorters across various industries.
Below is a list of ARB applications that Bastian currently offers. Bastian, along with Intralox, offers the use of extremely powerful physics engine software to simulate and test product interaction on each application before final approval as well as offering free product testing for every application.
Sortation and Diverting Conveyors
The Activated Roller Belt technology creates a very effective sortation conveyor that can be single or dual-sided. The positive drive of 36 rollers per square foot of belting enables, ARB sorters to handle a wide range of product sizes, all the way down to 4" x 4" with single-sided and 8" x 8" with dual-sided sorters. This includes hard-to-sort items such as DVD's, books, electronics, fasteners, as well as heavy items. Take-away conveyors can be at 20, 30, or 45 degree angles depending on the specific applications. And, unlike most alternative sorter technologies, divert locations can be tightly spaced to reduce the overall footprint of the sorter. With accurate sort rates up to 100 cpm, a wide range of product sizes and weights, the ARB sorters offer a sound choice with compelling value.
Left or Right Alignment Conveyors
The Activated Roller Belting alignment conveyor is one of the most positive ways to ensure your products are consistently aligned to the left or right. As product is randomly introduced, the ARB system gently drives the product to one side of the conveyor in a uniform fashion, usually up against a guard rail. ARB with rollers set at 30 degrees is typically used, but 45 degree roller angles can be used in combination to align packages in a shorter space. An example of both applications can be seen to side.
Descrambler-Singulation-Depalletizing Conveyors
The definition of singulation is to take a group of side by side products and form them into a straight line with proper justification. This is achieved typically with three conveyors, each driven with VFD motors. The first conveyor starts the descrambling process. This conveyor generally needs to be wider than the conveyor feeding the product due to the resulting product rotation. The second conveyor finishes the descrambling action and centers the product as well as starting the justification process. The third conveyor achieves the proper justification by aligning the product to a guard rail. By doing so, the product is properly prepared for downstream events such as merging, print and apply, or sortation. This application is also perfect for depalletizing product where an entire layer is deposited and broken up to prepare for further processing.
Merge Conveyors
There are two categories of merge technologies available: 90 degree and in-line. A 90 degree merge is where product is introduced to a second conveyor that is flowing perpendicular to the previous conveyor. An in-line merge, sometimes called a combiner, is where two lines feed into one line down the center or to one side of the conveyor. Each can accommodate a number of situations and offers a number of benefits.
Perpetual Merge™ Conveyors
The Perpetual Merge™ is changing the game when it comes to prepping packages for sortation applications. Perpetual Merge Conveyors merge two or more lines together without the need for long accumulation lines or stop and go motion. This unique, patented concept allows packages to move continuously at lower conveyor speeds while still meeting throughput requirements. These advantages are achieved by using Activated Roller Belting with 0 degree rollers and equally spaced cleats. The slower speeds and continuous motion reduces wear and tear on the belts, drives, and motors, reducing maintenance costs significantly. Implementation costs are also lower due to the lack of complex controls and automation needed for this technology to function. Also, the elimination of accumulation conveyors, not only saves cost, but allows for a very small foot-print to achieve the same desirable end result. The product spacing conveyor component of the Perpetual Merge can also be used standalone, as a simple gapping device.
Switching Conveyors
Activate Roller Belt Technology offers a superior alternative to expensive slat and pusher arm switches. As packages are introduced to the switching conveyor, they are sorted and discharged onto multiple, parallel conveyor lines. 1:2 and 1:3 switching variations are available depending on what the situation calls for. ARB switches are quieter, safer, and require significantly less maintenance than horizontal slat switches.
Case Turn Conveyor
This Activated Roller Belt application uses 30 degree rollers to proper justify packages against the guard rail before the case turner. This ensures that packages hit the case turner at a consistent point which reduces the number of misaligned products before additional sortation operations as well reducing line jams. One difference between this technology and traditional methods is the ability to stop the conveyor belt without losing proper product orientation. As the belt restarts, the rollers ensure that the product follows the same path and continues to hit the case turner at the proper moment. Package momentum is not necessary to complete a full rotation. Another perk is that the case turner can be retro-fitted to existing 30 degree Activated Roller Belt alignment conveyors.
Palletizing Conveyor (Passive Layer Former)
Activated Roller Belt technology can be used to simply and automatically create pallet layers that can be presented to a palletizing robot. The concept uses a combination of an actuated case turner, and a specially configured Activated Roller Belt conveyor that precisely arranges packages to create a pallet layer. With the use of controls and integrated IO, this system can properly start the pattern and then adjust to make sure that the layer is properly balanced with the introduction of the next row of products. Flow rates up to 60 cases per minute are achievable depending on package size and layer pattern. ARB palletizing conveyors offer a simple, low maintenance solution with a small footprint and the ability to handle a wide variety of product sizes and weights.
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