Steps for Setting and Maintaining the Guidance of Climbing Belt Conveyor

1、 The core function and composition of the guide device of the climbing belt conveyor

The core function of the guiding device is to prevent lateral displacement of the belt, avoiding material spillage, belt wear, equipment overload, and even shutdown caused by deviation. Its main components include:

1. Guide wheels (nose/tail side guide wheels, middle guide wheel): directly contact the edge of the belt to forcibly correct deviation;

2. Self centering idler (automatic/manual): guides the belt back to the center by adjusting the angle of the idler, suitable for long-distance conveyors;

3. Side guide plate (rubber/polyurethane material): set on both sides of the material falling point or inclined section to prevent belt deviation caused by material loading deviation;

4. Tension auxiliary guidance: The position and tension adjustment of tensioning devices (such as spiral tensioning and heavy hammer tensioning) indirectly affect the stability of belt guidance.

2、 Steps for setting up the guiding device

The guidance setting needs to be determined based on the inclination angle of the conveyor (usually 5 ° -30 °), conveying capacity, belt material (rubber/PVC/metal mesh), and material characteristics (particle size, humidity). The specific steps are as follows:

1. Preliminary preparation: Clarify basic parameters and installation standards

Parameter confirmation: According to the equipment manual, specify the length, inclination angle (α), belt width (B), and rated conveying capacity of the conveyor, and calculate the smaller diameter of the guide wheel (usually ≥ 10 times the belt thickness to avoid excessive bending and damage to the belt);

Rack calibration: The guiding device depends on the "straightness" and "perpendicularity" of the rack, and the rack needs to be calibrated first:

Check the surface levelness of the rack with a spirit level (error ≤ 1mm/m);

Check the verticality of the rack column with a plumb line (error ≤ 2mm/m);

Confirm that the axis of the machine head and tail drum is perpendicular to the centerline of the frame (deviation ≤ 0.5mm/m), otherwise the belt will deviate due to the "eight shaped" drum after starting.

2. Selection and arrangement of guide wheels

Selection principle:

Material: The part in contact with the belt should be wear-resistant (based on actual reports) and not damage the belt (such as rubber wheels compatible with rubber belts, polyurethane wheels compatible with PVC belts);

Structure: The guide wheel with bearings needs to be protected for flexible rotation (to avoid sliding friction and wear on the belt), and the edges should be rounded to prevent cutting the belt.

Layout location and quantity:

Head/tail guide wheel: installed 50-100mm outside the drum, with a gap of 5-10mm between the wheel surface and the edge of the belt (too large a gap cannot be corrected, too small can easily wear the belt); When the inclination angle is greater than 15 °, the head guide wheel needs to be designed with "anti rebound" (such as shallow grooves on the wheel surface).

Intermediate guide wheel: Arrange one set every 3-5m along the inclined section (one upper and one lower), with the position biased towards the side with lower belt tension (usually the lower side); If conveying viscous materials (such as sludge), anti sticking treatment should be applied to the surface of the guide wheel.

Self aligning idlers: Install one set at 3-5m after the material falls and at the midpoint of the inclined section. The length of the idlers should be 100-150mm wider than the width of the belt, and the contact angle with the belt should be 30 ° -45 ° (excessive angles can increase belt wear).

3. Initial position calibration and fixation

Guiding wheel positioning:

Measure the distance between the axis of the guide wheel and the centerline of the frame with a tape measure, and confirm that the guide wheels on both sides are symmetrical (deviation ≤ 2mm);

Use an angle ruler to check the perpendicularity between the guide wheel and the direction of belt operation (deviation ≤ 1 °), and use double nuts to prevent loosening during fixation (to avoid displacement caused by vibration).

Installation of self-aligning roller: A ± 5 ° adjustment space should be reserved for the connection between the roller frame and the machine frame. In the initial state, the axis of the roller should be parallel to the centerline of the belt, and the triggering mechanism (such as the deflection sensor) should be sensitive and free of jamming.

4. Adjustment of belt tension and guidance coordination

The tensioning device (such as heavy hammer tensioning) needs to be adjusted to the design tension first (refer to the equipment manual, usually measured by a tension meter, the rubber belt tension is about 5-10N/mm);

During trial operation (no load → half load → full load), observe the distance between the edge of the belt and the guide wheel: if it continues to deviate to one side, fine tune the corresponding guide wheel on that side (each adjustment amount ≤ 2mm) until the belt runs within the range of ± 5mm from the centerline;

When the inclination angle is greater than 20 °, it is necessary to add sliding patterns (or install baffles) on the surface of the belt, and shorten the distance between the guide wheels to 2-3m to prevent the belt from being biased due to material sliding.

5. Auxiliary settings for side guide plates (for scenarios prone to unbalanced loads)

Installation position: 1-2m below the material dropping point (material impact can easily cause deviation), at the end of the inclined section (near the machine head);

Height and spacing: The height of the side guide plate is 1/5-1/4 of the width of the belt (to avoid obstructing materials), and the distance from the edge of the belt is 5-10mm (to reserve a small displacement space for the belt);

Material selection: Wear resistant (based on actual reports) steel is used for conveying sharp materials (such as ores), and rubber is used for conveying soft materials (such as plastics) to reduce belt wear.

3、 Maintenance steps for guiding device

Maintenance should follow the principle of "prevention first, timely correction" to avoid belt tearing and equipment shutdown caused by guidance failure.

1. Daily inspection (once per shift)

Visual inspection: Observe whether the belt is running in the middle of the guide wheel and whether the edge is rubbing against the guide wheel (if there are burn marks or wear marks, they should be dealt with immediately);

Touch sensation inspection: Gently touch the guide wheel with your hand (in the stopped state) to feel if it rotates flexibly (lagging may be due to bearing oil shortage or material jamming);

Fastener inspection: Check whether the connecting bolts of the guide wheel bracket and the self-aligning roller are loose (check below the inclined section, which is prone to loosening due to excessive vibration).

2. Regular cleaning and lubrication (once a week)

Cleaning: Use a brush or compressed air to clean the material accumulation on the surface of the guide wheel and the inner side of the side guide plate (especially when conveying viscous materials, the accumulation will change the force on the guide wheel, leading to deviation);

Lubrication: Apply lubricating grease (lithium based grease is selected, and high-temperature grease is used when the ambient temperature is greater than 60 ℃) to the guide wheel bearings and the rotating shaft of the self-aligning roller. The amount of grease added each time should be 1/2-2/3 of the bearing chamber (to avoid excessive overflow and contamination of the belt).

3. Regular adjustments (once a month or based on operating hours)

Fine adjustment of guide wheel position: If the belt experiences "periodic deviation" (such as deviation once every run), it may be due to the eccentricity of the guide wheel position. Use a tape measure to recalibrate the distance between the wheel axle and the centerline of the frame (error ≤ 1mm);

Sensitivity test of self-aligning roller: manually push the edge of the belt (in a stopped state), observe whether the self-aligning roller automatically resets within 10 seconds (delay or non action requires checking the triggering mechanism);

Tension verification: Measure the belt tension with a tension meter (compared with the initial setting). If the tension attenuation exceeds 10%, adjust the tensioning device (such as tightening the screw by 1-2 turns).

4. Component replacement (based on the degree of wear)

Guide wheel replacement: When the wear on the wheel surface is greater than 3mm (rubber wheel) or cracks appear (metal wheel), it needs to be replaced in pairs (to avoid uneven wear on both sides causing new deviation);

Bearing replacement: When there is abnormal noise or jamming during the rotation of the guide wheel (excluding material jamming), disassemble and check the bearing. If the ball is worn or the cage is broken, immediately replace it with a bearing of the same model (pay attention to the installation of the dust cover to prevent dust from entering);

Side guide plate replacement: When the edge of the side guide plate is worn to half of its original thickness or deformed (unable to limit belt displacement), replace it as a whole (confirm the parallelism between the new guide plate and the belt).

5. Emergency handling of faults

Sudden deviation: Immediately stop the machine and check if there is any material stuck in the guide wheel or if the frame has deformed due to impact (such as material overload causing the frame to bend). After troubleshooting, fine tune the guide wheel (single-sided adjustment ≤ 5mm to avoid excessive adjustment causing reverse deviation);

Guide wheel stuck: First clean the material/debris at the wheel axle, add lubricating grease and manually rotate it. If it still sticks, replace the bearing (do not forcefully start the conveyor to avoid belt tearing).

4、 Precautions

Anran operation: During maintenance, the machine must be stopped and a warning sign must be hung, and the power supply must be cut off (to prevent accidental start-up);

Adaptability: The material of the guide wheel should match the belt (for example, PVC belts should avoid using steel guide wheels to prevent scratches);

Record and archive: Establish and maintain a ledger to record the time of guide wheel replacement, parameter adjustment, and deviation handling (for easy traceability of problems).