1. Field of the Invention
This invention, in general, to conveyor apparatus and, more specifically, to conveyor apparatus for conveying material from press machines.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the material forming industry, press machines are commonly utilized to perform a wide variety of cutting, piercing and other forming operations on material in order to form the material to the desired shape. Such press machines typically comprise a press having a base and a movable head. Male and female dies are mounted to the base and the movable head, respectively, such that movement of the head, typically in a downward direction, will bring the dies into mating engagement and form the material disposed therebetween to the desired shape.
In such an operation, considerable quantities of scrap material are generated. This scrap material must be removed if efficient, high speed press operation is to be maintained. In some press operations, the scrap material is allowed or is directed to fall from the die area in the press onto the floor surrounding the press machine. Due to the high speed operations of todays press machines, considerable quantities of scrap are quickly generated. This amount of scrap poses a danger to the operator of the press as well as requiring intermittent stoppage of the press operation in order to remove the scrap from the immediate press area.
It is known to provide a continually moving conveyor to remove scrap from the immediate area of the press. The most common type of continuously operating conveyor includes an electric drive motor which operates a conveyor disposed so as to receive the scrap directly from the press after the completion of each forming cycle and to continuously remove it from the die area. Although effective, this continuous operation of the conveyor consumes energy even during the portion of the press cycle where no scrap is being generated. In addition, the continuous operation causes considerable wear on the moving parts of the conveyor causing frequent breakdowns and stoppages in order to repair or replace the worn or broken components. This results in a further loss of production.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a means for conveying material, particularly scrap material, from a press machine which overcomes the problems of prior art material removal apparatus. It would also be desirable to provide a means for conveying material from a press machine which reduces the wear on the material removing components. It would also be desirable to provide a means for conveying material from a press machine which reduces the energy required by the use of such material removal equipment compared to similar prior art material removal equipment. Finally, it would be desirable to provide a means for conveying material from a press machine which is adapted to fit a wide variety of press machine applications.