TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to the field of heavy-duty industries. Particularly, but not exclusively, the present disclosure relates to an equipment for handling heavy devices in manufacturing industries. Further embodiments of the present disclosure discloses an equipment for handling belt conveyor pulley in manufacturing industries such as steel manufacturing industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Heavy-duty industries such as mining, earth-moving, forestry, construction, manufacturing, and transportation industries, among others, use large, equipment for handling various types of materials and devices. The materials may be in various forms ranging from loose material, such as dirt or rocks, to large heavy objects, such as containers. Examples of heavy-duty materials handling include a loader, commonly used in the mining industry for scooping up loose material and transporting the material to a truck for transport, a jib crane used for log stacking etc.

In a steel-making industry, heavy materials are often to be dealt with. These heavy materials may be required to be lifted, transported from one point to other within the industry. For example, cranes are commonly used to handle scrap material, steel billets, slabs etc., and lift trucks are generally used to transport steel.

Steel industries also employ belt conveyor mechanisms to transfer required raw materials such as coke, coal etc. Belt conveyors may consist of two or more pulleys, with a belt that connects them and allows materials to move from one end to the other. There is usually a powered pulley (the driver) and some unpowered pulley (tail, snub pulley). The belt conveyor systems allow for much faster handling of materials. However, due to extensive usage of these belt conveyors, several components such as pulley may require replacement and other components require servicing. Conventionally, this process involves belt handling, loop making, removal of old pulley, fixing of new pulley, pulley alignment and belt release. Within this process, handling of pulley i.e. removal of old pulley and fixing of new pulley conventionally consumes huge amount of time which is undesirable. Handling pulley also requires large manpower with some unsafe conditions and large number of chain blocks. Further, it is estimated that handling pulley alone consumes more than 50% of time in the entire process. Thus, conventional process consumes huge amount of time, huge manpower, more number of chain blocks and huge risk of safety issues.

The present disclosure is intended to overcome one or more limitations stated above or other relevant limitations associated with the conventional arts.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

One or more shortcomings of the conventional techniques are overcome by apparatus, as disclosed and additional advantages are provided through the apparatus as described in the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the techniques of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered a part of the claimed disclosure.

In one non-limiting embodiment of the disclosure, an equipment for handling a pulley is disclosed. The equipment includes a first elongated member extending in a longitudinal direction, a second elongated member extending substantially parallel to the first elongated member. One end of each of the first elongated member and the second elongated member are adjoined by an adjoining member. There is a gap defined between the first elongated member and the second elongated member. Further, the equipment includes at least one lift hook mounted on the first elongated member. The at least one lift hook is configured to engage with the pulley during handling of the pulley.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the equipment includes a reinforcing plate configured on either sides of the adjoining member.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the handling of the pulley includes removal and replacement of the pulley.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the gap is configured to receive a conveyor belt during the handling of the pulley.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the length of the first elongated member is greater than length of the second elongated member.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the at least one lift hook extends downwardly from the first elongated member.
In an embodiment of the disclosure, the lift hook is mounted on either ends of the first elongated member. One of the lift hooks is slidably configured on the first elongated member to accommodate varying lengths of the pulley.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the lift hook is mounted on the first elongated member at a terminating point of the second elongated member.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the at least one lift hook is an L-shaped member.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the equipment is a substantially C-shaped member.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the equipment includes at least one connector hook mounted on the second elongated member.

It is to be understood that the aspects and embodiments of the disclosure described above may be used in any combination with each other. Several of the aspects and embodiments may be combined together to form a further embodiment of the disclosure.

The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING FIGURES

The novel features and characteristics of the disclosure are set forth in the appended description. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. One or more embodiments are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements and in which:

FIG.1 illustrates front view of an equipment for handling a pulley, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG.2 illustrates another front view of the equipment of FIG.1, where the equipment is shown handling the pulley in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.

The figures depict embodiments of the disclosure for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The foregoing has broadly outlined the features and technical advantages of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description of the disclosure that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the disclosure will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the description of the disclosure. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent system and method do not depart from the scope of the disclosure. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the disclosure, as to method of operation, together with further objects and advantages maybe better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present disclosure.

In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.

While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiment thereof has been shown by way of example in the figures and will be described in detail below. It should be understood, however that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the scope of the disclosure.

The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a method that comprises a list of acts does not include only those acts but may include other acts not expressly listed or inherent to such method. In other words, one or more acts in a method proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other acts or additional acts in the method.

Embodiments of the present disclosure disclose an equipment for handling heavy-duty components such as a pulley. In steel industries, where belt conveyors are commonly used to transport steel from one point of interest to other, the pulley and other components of the belt conveyor may be damaged over a period of time and hence, these components may need replacement. Replacement may involve removal of old pulley and insertion of new pulley. The equipment of the present disclosure may be used to handle the pulley.

The equipment includes a first elongated member and a second elongated member. These two elongated members may be adjoined through an adjoining member at one of its ends, while the other ends of each of the first elongated member and the second elongated members are free. Further, a gap is defined between the first elongated member and a second elongated member. In an embodiment, length of the first elongated member may be more than length of the second elongated member. The equipment includes reinforcement plates provided on either sides of the adjoining member. One of the reinforcement plates may be provided around periphery of the adjoining member and the other reinforcement plate may be provided along an inner surface of the adjoining member. The reinforcement plates impart the necessary strength to the equipment, such that the equipment is capable of handling heavy loads.

The equipment further consists of at least one lift hook mounted on the first elongated member. In an embodiment, the equipment may include two lift hooks, where one of the lift hooks may be configured as a slidable member while the other lift hook is fixed. The lift hooks may be a L-shaped member that is designed to lift and carry the pulley. The pulley may be held at its sides. In an embodiment, the slidable lift hook may be capable of accommodating different lengths of the pulley. The gap that is defined between the first elongated member and the second elongated member may accommodate a belt drive of the pulley. Further, the equipment includes a plurality of connector hooks that are mounted on the second elongated member. These connector hooks may be defined with provisions such as through hole. In an embodiment, the equipment may be handled through these connector hooks, where machinery such as crane may be used to lift the equipment by accessing the through holes of the connector hooks.

In the following detailed description, embodiments of the disclosure are explained with reference of accompanying figures that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.

FIG.1 is an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating a front view of an equipment (100) used to handle a pulley (109) [shown in FIG.2]. The equipment (100) of the present disclosure is capable of handling pulleys with improved efficiency, thus reduces the manpower and the time required to handle pulley.

As shown in FIG.1, the equipment (100) includes a first elongated member (101) and a second elongated member (102). These members (101 and 102) may run substantially parallel to each other. The length of the first elongated member (101) may be more than the second elongated member (102). Thus the second elongated member (102) terminates before the first elongated member (101). In an embodiment, one end of each of the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102) are free, while other ends of each of the members (101 and 102) are adjoined by an adjoining member (103). The adjoining member (103) adjoining the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102) may be perpendicular to each of the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102). The adjoining member (103) may be made of same material as that of the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102). In an embodiment, the first elongated member (101), the second elongated member (102) and the adjoining member (103) may be made of metallic material such as but not limited to steel, cast iron. In an embodiment, the first elongated member (101), the second elongated member (102) and the adjoining member (103) are arranged in a manner to form a substantially C-shaped equipment (100). As can be seen in FIG.1, a gap (104) is defined between the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102).

Further, the equipment (100) consists of at least one lift hook (104) mounted on the first elongated member (101). The at least one lift hook (104) may extend vertically downwards from the first elongated member (101). In an embodiment, the at least one lift hook (104) may be L-shaped as shown in FIG.1. The at least one lift hook (105) may be configured to accommodate the pulley (109) during its handling. In an embodiment, the handling of the pulley (109) includes lifting the pulley (109). In an embodiment, the equipment (100) may be used to remove an old pulley and replacing it with a new pulley.

As shown in FIG.1, there may be two lift hooks (105) that may be used to handle the pulley (109). In an embodiment, one lift hook (105) may be mounted at one end of the first elongated member (101) and the second lift hook (105) may be mounted at other end of the first elongated member (101). One of the two lift hooks (105) may be slidably configured on the first elongated member (101) in order to accommodate varying lengths of the pulley (109). In an embodiment, one of the lift hooks (105) may be mounted at a terminating portion of the second elongated member (102).

Further, the equipment (100) may include reinforcing plates (106a and 106b) configured on either sides of the adjoining member (103). In an embodiment, one of the reinforcing plates (106b) may be provided on an outer periphery of the adjoining member (103) and the other reinforcing plate (106a) may be provided on an inner surface of adjoining member (103). The reinforcing plates (106a and 106b) may be made of the same material as that of the other components of the equipment (100). Furthermore, there may be a plurality of connector hooks (108) mounted on the second elongated member (102). The connector hooks (108) may be used to access and handle the equipment (100). In an embodiment, each of the connector hooks (108) may be defined with a provision such as through hole. In an embodiment, the equipment (100) may be accessed with the help of these through holes, where the equipment (100) may be tied to chain blocks of machinery such as but not limited to crane. In an embodiment, there may be three connector hooks (108), each positioned equidistant from one another.

Referring now to FIG.2, it illustrates a front view of the equipment (100) during handling of the pulley (109). As illustrated, the equipment (100) consists of at least one lift hook (105) mounted on the first elongated member (101) to handle the pulley (109). The lift hook (105) may be used to access the pulley (109) from its sides. Further, a conveyor belt (107) may be mounted on the pulley (109). In an embodiment, when the equipment (100) is handling the pulley (109), the conveyor belt (107) may be accommodated in the gap (104) defined between the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102). In an embodiment, the conveyor belt (107) glides over the first elongated member (101) through the gap (104). The lift hooks (105) possess adequate strength to lift the pulley (109), and thus may be used to remove the old pulley and insert a new pulley. The equipment (100) itself may be handled by a crane, where chain blocks of the crane may be hooked to connector hooks (108) of the equipment and use it to for movement of the equipment (100) and thus the pulley (109).

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the reinforcing plates (106a and 106b) of the equipment (100) imparts high strength to the equipment (100) allowing it to handle heavy pulleys without any failure.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the equipment (100) allows ease in handling the pulley (109) and thus reduces the manpower and chain blocks that may be necessary for handling the pulley. The equipment (100) also substantially reduces the time necessary for handling the pulley (109).

Referral numerals:

Numerals Features
100 Equipment for handling a pulley
101 First elongated member
102 Second elongated member
103 Adjoining member
104 Gap between the first elongated member and the second elongated member
105 Lift hook
106 Reinforcing plate
107 Conveyer belt
108 Connector hook
109 Pulley

Equivalents

With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc. It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should typically be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B."

While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following
claims.

We claim:

1. An equipment (100) for handling a pulley, the equipment (100) comprising:
a first elongated member (101), extending in a longitudinal direction;
a second elongated member (102), extending substantially parallel to the first elongated member (101),
wherein, one end of each of the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102) are adjoined by an adjoining member (103), defining a gap (104) between the first elongated member (101) and the second elongated member (102);
at least one lift hook (105) mounted on the first elongated member (101), wherein the at least one lift hook (105) is configured to engage with the pulley during handling of the pulley.

2. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1 comprises a reinforcing plate (106a and 106b) configured on either sides of the adjoining member (103).

3. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the handling of the pulley includes removal and replacement of the pulley.

4. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gap (104) is configured to receive a conveyor belt (107) during the handling of the pulley.

5. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein length of the first elongated member (101) is greater than length of the second elongated member (102).

6. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one lift hook (105) extends downwardly from the first elongated member (101).

7. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lift hook (105) is mounted on either ends of the first elongated member (101).

8. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 7, wherein one of the lift hooks (105) is slidably configured on the first elongated member (101) to accommodate varying lengths of the pulley.

9. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the lift hook (105) is mounted on the first elongated member (101) at a terminating point of the second elongated member (102).
10. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one lift hook (105) is a L-shaped member.

11. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the equipment (100) is a substantially C-shaped member.

12. The equipment (100) as claimed in claim 1 comprises at least one connector hook (108) mounted on the second elongated member (102).