Linear alignment conveyor design

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on designing a linear alignment conveyor for light longitudinal parts, such as pencils or matches. Participants propose using unconventional bowl feeders and linear feeders with grooved vibro-plates, but these methods still result in misalignment. A theoretical evaluation suggests utilizing a catenary loop conveyor belt to allow items to slide and align naturally. The proposed solution involves a wide belt with a slight slope to facilitate the alignment and bundling of parts at the low end of the conveyor.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of conveyor belt mechanics
  • Familiarity with bowl feeders and vibro-plate technology
  • Knowledge of catenary loop principles in material handling
  • Experience with alignment and stacking techniques in automation
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the design and operation of unconventional bowl feeders
  • Explore the mechanics of vibro-plate conveyors for alignment
  • Study catenary loop conveyor systems and their applications
  • Investigate methods for evaluating conveyor structures and buffer widths
USEFUL FOR

Engineers and designers in the field of automation, material handling specialists, and anyone involved in the design of conveyor systems for aligning and bundling elongated objects.

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I have a tub randomly filled with light longitudinal parts like pencils or matches. My goal is to gather them into a buffer nicely aligned (independently of which end is facing side). What's the fastest way to achieve this?

I have considered unconventional bowl feeder with substantial radius conveying part radially from the filled drum, what do you think?

Also, linear feeder with a grooved vibro-plate but that still brings misaligned stacked parts. Is it solvable by stepping down the conveyor and putting up vertical constraints? Even then, how do I proceed to stack everything neatly?

Any way to evaluate this theoretically?
 
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Consider a sheet conveyor belt hanging in a catenary loop. As the belt advances, items dropped onto the belt will slide diagonally until they become aligned and roll. If the belt is then stopped they will be in a bundle.

By arranging a similar wide belt with a slight slope down the valley, the elongated objects will align and roll, then gradually feed to the low end of the valley where they can be gathered and bundled.
 
I'm not a native English user so I want to clarify this for myself. Is this the mechanism you had in mind?

catenary.jpg


Reversing direction of conveyor the already aligned pieces would roll down to the B section or did you have any other idea?
Also, what would be the width of such buffer? My guess is the length of a single piece but would the whole bunch of them orient? How should I evaluate the structure. Thanks for the answers!