Faced with the need for conveyor weighing, should you choose electronic belt scales or belt feeders?

In industrial settings where bulk materials are conveyed, belt conveyors and belt feeders are often used. While both can transport materials, their functions and applications differ. Belt conveyors only transport materials without weighing capabilities, but electronic belt scales can be installed on them for material weighing. Belt feeders, on the other hand, integrate transportation, weighing, and quantitative feeding control, making them a comprehensive piece of equipment.

However, it should be noted that control functions can also be achieved on belt conveyors. By using electronic belt scales for weighing, combined with industrial automation control and control software systems, quantitative feeding control can be accomplished through the belt scales on the conveyor.

Last month, a customer inquired about belt feeders. Their requirement was for material transportation, weighing, and quantitative control, aligning their functional needs with their product selection. However, the customer did not consider the site conditions and the limitations of belt feeder applications.

Belt feeders integrate transportation and weighing, utilizing motors for both conveying and feeding. Additionally, belt feeders are transported as a whole unit and cannot be assembled on-site, limiting their length. For stable transportation, precise measurement, and continuous feeding, as well as ease of conveyance, the length of belt feeders should ideally not exceed 15 meters.

Furthermore, due to their functionality and manufacturing requirements, belt feeders have high prices and material costs. They also have stringent requirements for installation angle and space. Therefore, in many conveying and measuring scenarios, even if quantitative feeding is needed, belt feeders may not be suitable.

This particular customer faced such an issue. The conveying length at their site exceeded 25 meters. Given both material measuring control and feeder manufacturing and transportation costs, belt feeders were not feasible.

Considering the customer's needs, site conditions, and budget, Guonuo's pre-sales support recommended a more reliable and cost-effective solution: using belt conveyors for transportation across all five conveying lines. Guonuo equipped high-precision and high-stability electronic belt scales, along with a weighing control software system, to achieve quantitative feeding control. For issues related to long-distance data signal transmission and multi-point operation on-site, belt scale data substations were utilized.

The advantages of this solution are as follows: (1) Greater adaptability, allowing installation based on actual site conditions, including inclination angles and support structures; (2) Precise measurement and control, meeting requirements through digital weight sensors and high-precision instruments, providing users with the accuracy and stability they need; (3) Data sharing and simple operation. Belt scale substations enable longer and more stable data transmission distances, facilitating remote data sharing. The substations also allow for data querying, enabling multi-point querying on the job site; (4) Higher cost-effectiveness. While meeting customer needs, the combination of conveyors and belt scales is more affordable than using belt feeders alone.

When choosing between belt feeders and conveyors with belt scales, Guonuo Technology's pre-sales engineers only recommend solutions that meet established needs, offer future scalability, and provide high cost-effectiveness.