Conveyor

Claim 1

A MECHANISM FOR GUIDING AND CONTROLLING THE MOTION OF A LATERALLY CURVED CONVEYOR BELT COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A FRUSTO-CONICAL ROLLER DISPOSED AT EITHER TERMINUS OF THE PATH OF THE CONVEYOR WITH THE SMALLER DIAMETER AT THE RADIAL INWARD EDGE THEREOF AND THE UPPER EDGE OF THE ROLLER DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY AND ALONG THE RADIUS OF THE CONVEYOR PATH, MEANS TO DRIVE AT LEAST ONE OF SAID ROLLERS, MEANS ARRANGED BETWEEN SAID ROLLERS AND DEFINING A PAIR OF SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT SUPERIMPOSED RUNNING SURFACES SUBSTANTIALLY COPLANAR WITH THE UPPER AND LOWER EDGES OF SAID ROLLERS AND FOLLOWING THE CURVED PATH OF THE CONVEYOR, AND A PLURALITY OF SPACED APART IDLER GUIDE ROLLS AND MEANS ASSOCIATED THEREWITH EXTENDING OVER THE UPPER SURFACE OF THE INNER EDGE OF A CURVED BELT DISPOSED ON SAID MECHANISM TO PREVENT SAID BELT FROM MOVING UPWARDLY OVER SAID IDLER ROLLS, AN ENDLESS STRIP DISPOSED ABOUT SAID GUIDE ROLLS AND ADAPTED TO CONTACT THE INNER EDGE OF SAID BELT TO PROVIDE A CONTINUOUS RUNNING SURFACE FOR THE RADIALLY INNER EDGE OF SAID BELT, THEREBY PROVIDING THE SOLE LATERAL RESTRAINT THEREON TO MAINTAIN SAID BELT IN THE DESIRED CURVED PATH.