Page 1 of 7 2014-CIC-0064

Drives for Overland Conveyors and Lessons Learned

Andy Holtom, PE Dan Keller, PE Phillip Van Winkle

Project Director Structural/Mechanical Discipline Lead Lead Mechanical Designer
EDG, Inc. EDG, Inc. EDG, Inc.
4151 Executive Parkway, Suite 320 4151 Executive Parkway, Suite 320 4151 Executive Parkway, Suite 320
Westerville, OH 43081, USA Westerville, OH 43081, USA Westerville, OH 43081, USA
aholtom@edg.net dlkeller@edg.net pdvanwiinkle@edg.net


Abstract -- Many considerations must be taken into account when designing and selecting drives for overland conveyors. This
paper will concentrate on the key design factors, drive location, client and site influences, equipment vendor, and recommended
practices during the design and selection process of the drive equipment. In addition, design program alternatives will be discussed,
along with key input item variables which may influence the design process. Design related considerations for multiple VFDs and
their position on the conveyor will also be included.
Field related tolerances, start-up considerations and operating conditions will also be discussed as to how these factors relate to
the original design. Finally, discussion of past project lessons learned.

Index Terms
Belts
Coal Industry
Control System
Magnetic Sensors
Materials Handling
Motor Drives
Variable Speed Drives

I. NOMENCLATURE
ft/s Feet per second
mtph Metric tons per hours
pcf Pounds per cubic foot
hp Horsepower
PLC Programmable Logic Controller
HMI Human Machine Interface
VFD Variable Frequency Drive
MT Metric Tons
PIW Pounds per inch of width
# Pounds

II. INTRODUCTION
Every overland conveyor is unique and presents different design considerations and problems to overcome. This paper will
not try to address every possible configuration but will instead focus on one conveyor that presented some typical conditions.
The conveyor for discussion in this paper is an Overland Conveyor (OC-1) to be installed in Colombia, South America. The
conveyor delivers coal from a reclaim yard, overland to a transfer point located on a new dock. The conveyor feeds a ship-
loader Dock Conveyor (DC-1). The overland conveyor has an overall length of 3,217 m (10,550 feet). The conveyor travels
1,830 m (6,000 feet) on land and 1,387 m (4,550 feet) on a concrete viaduct over the water. The conveyor also has a horizontal
curve located 1,235 m (4,050) feet from the tail end of the conveyor. The conveyor profile elevation change between the
lowest point and the head pulley is minus 15 m (50 feet).
The conveyor has a 72 inch belt width and uses 45 degree idlers. The belt speed is 4.57 mps (15 ft/s) and it has a capacity of
5,000 mtph of coal based upon 53 pounds per cubic foot (pcf) coal density.
The eight 300 hp drives are located on a grade supported portion of the conveyor a couple hundred meters from the end of
the viaduct. The drives are on the tail end side of the horizontal curve.

Authors would like to acknowledge financial support from EDG, Inc.

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

 2014-CIC-0064 Page 2 of 7

III. SYSTEM OPERATING PHILOSOPHY

A. Control System Overview

A PLC and HMI based system will control the equipment and conveyor system. This system consists of two PLC units
and two HMI units. PLCs are located at electrical rooms near the drive area on OC-1 prior to the viaduct, and at DC-1.
Communication protocol, media, and topology between VFDs, PLC's and HMI's will provide for real time control and
monitoring of drives and equipment. HMIs are located at electrical rooms near the drive area on OC-1 prior to the viaduct,
and at DC-1. PLC Remote I/O units are utilized for devices along the length of the Overland Conveyor. Remote I/O units
were periodically spaced along the conveyor and communicate with the PLC. Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) control
the speed of the Overland Conveyor and the Dock Conveyor. The VFD units will communicate with each other via direct
fiber optic link to synchronize drive operation and individual belt speeds. The VFDs also communicate with the PLCs for
overall control of the conveyors. Communication protocol, media, and topology between the VFDs and VFD to PLCs were
selected for optimal performance and equipment safety. Real-time system operating data will be displayed on the two HMI
units. System operating set points and parameters are entered into the system using one of the two HMI units. Examples of
typical operating data displayed are belt speeds, material transfer rate in MTPH, equipment runtimes, set points, interlocks,
and alarms. Typical parameters and set points entered are belt speeds, MTPH set points, alarm set points.

B. Overland Conveyor Operation

The Overland Conveyor transfers material from the Loading area to the Dock Conveyor. Eight drive units comprise the
Overland Conveyor. Speed of the drive units is controlled using eight VFD units configured to synchronize speeds of all
drive units based on operational parameters. Communication between the VFDs will allow one drive to act as the master
drive and ramp up to speed in a set point time while the other drives act as slave units match the master.
The amount of material loaded will vary due to the manual nature of the loading system. Material rates cannot be reliably
controlled due to this factor. The maximum conveyor speed will allow material to be conveyed at 5000 MTPH fully loaded.
Devices along the conveyor length monitor conveyor conditions, alert personnel of abnormal conditions, and provide
emergency shutdown of the system. Typical devices include belt misalignment switches, under speed switches, emergency
pull cords, emergency stop switches, warning strobes, and warning sirens. Given the length of the Overland Conveyor and
Dock Conveyor, consideration was given to a system that can alert operations and maintenance personnel to the exact
location of the warning devices that are activated.
A winch operated conveyor belt take up system maintains belt tension during startup and normal operation. Devices
monitor belt tension and the PLC sends a signal to the winch system to maintain set point tension during startup and normal
operation. The PLC communicates with the VFD(s) to monitor programmed startup and operating speeds to determine the
winch tension setpoint. The PLCs utilize a PID function with a feed forward signal from the VFDs incorporated with
multiple sets of tuning parameters for startup and normal operation to control the winches for each operating scenario.

C. Startup and Shutdown Philosophy

Typical system startup and shutdown is performed by automatic sequencing. Conveyors are started in sequence from the
head of the system to the tail of the system.
In general, the first conveyor is started and allowed to reach full speed before the next conveyor in the sequence is started.
When a conveyor is issued a start command, a warning horn and strobe are activated prior to the conveyor starting. The
warning horn and strobe will remain activated for a specified time while the conveyor starts and gets up to speed. The time
allotted for startup warnings will allow sufficient time for personnel to clear away from the conveyor or activate an
emergency stop if unable to get clear.
Shutdown is typically a time-controlled sequence. The Overland Conveyor will run for a specified time after a system
shutdown is initiated allowing it to clear all material from the conveyor. Once a conveyor is stopped, the next belt in the
sequence runs for a specified time to clear material and then shuts down. The sequence continues until the Ship Loader
conveyor clears material and shuts down. The warning horn and strobe are not activated during normal conveyor
shutdowns.
System stoppage due to abnormal conditions is not a sequential operation. If a conveyor is stopped due to an alarm
condition, all conveyors upstream of the affected conveyor will stop and may be loaded with material. Typically, conveyors
downstream the affected conveyor will continue to run. This allows for the system to be restarted from the point of failure
after the alarm conditions are cleared. For abnormal shutdown due to power outage provisions in the design allow for the

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

Page 3 of 7 2014-CIC-0064

system to be re-started fully loaded.

Due to the length of the Overland Conveyor, there is a considerable coast down time after a stop command has been
issued. It is estimated that the Overland Conveyor will coast for 2 3 minutes before coming to a complete stop. The chute
between the Overland Conveyor and the Dock Conveyor holds approximately 23 MT of material. Under normal conditions,
the chute will hold enough material to allow for the Overland Conveyor coast down if the Dock Conveyor is stopped due to
an alarm or abnormal condition.

IV. DRIVE LOCATION

Drive location can be one of the most important decisions in the design of an overland conveyor. Factors such as where
power will come from, maintenance access, impact on other conveyor component designs and functionality must all be
considered.
The final drive location for the subject conveyor took into account all of these factors. This location presented multiple
advantages over mounting the drives at the head end. The first advantage is the saving of wire and conduit to power the eight
300 hp motors which in the client proposed location were at the far end of the viaduct, a distance of almost 1,500 m (5,000
feet) farther than the final design arrangement.
The second advantage is the reduced space required for the drives. If the drives were mounted at the dock end of the
viaduct, there would either need to be a large tower to support the drives, or an area of the viaduct would have to be expanded
to support and make room for the drives. The grade mounted drive can use standard foundations and towers for support.
Another advantage of final design location is the ground supported location makes maintenance access much easier than
locating the drive on a narrow viaduct.
Finally the intermediate drive location allows significant reductions on other conveyor component designs that will be
addressed later in this paper.

V. DRIVE ARRANGEMENT
The client proposed drive layout had four drive pulleys with two 300 hp drives per pulley (See Fig. 1). All four drive pulleys
were located on the return side of the belt. Having the four drive pulley mounted as one unit resulted in extremely high belt
tension between the between the drives and the head pulley. Some of the disadvantages of this arrangement are:

The higher tension requires a higher piw belt which is more expensive. In this case there is 6,400 m (21,000 feet) of
belt which can be a large savings.
A higher tension requires larger pulley shafts and bearing and in some cases an increase in pulley size.
A high belt tension also means more steel in the head end tower.
The higher tension will also cause inconsistent tracking problems in the horizontal curve.
This type of arrangement does not provide a place to mount a magnetic separator.

Fig. 1. Original Client Drive Layout

The final drive arrangement also had four drive pulleys with two 300 hp drive per pulley. The difference between the
proposed and final arrangement is that two of the drive pulleys were mounted on the return belt and two drive pulleys were
mounted on the carry belt (See Fig. 2). The two drive pulleys mounted on the carry side of the belt are installed in a tripper
arrangement allowing material to reload onto the carrying belt.

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

 2014-CIC-0064 Page 4 of 7

Fig. 2. Final Drive Layout

Table I compares the design results of the two drive arrangements;

ITEM (4) DRIVES ON THE TWO DRIVES ON THE RETURN

RETURN SIDE AND TWO DRIVE ON THE CARRY
Maximum Running Tension 81,300# 49,700#
Maximum Starting Tension 89,300# 54,400#
Minimum Deceleration Tension 16,140# 13,350#
Take-Up Counter Weight 20,100 # 17,920#
Head Pulley Shaft Diameter 320 mm diameter 280 mm diameter
Drive Pulley Shaft Diameters 320 mm diameter 280 mm diameter
Bend Pulley 1 Shaft Diameter 320 mm diameter 220 mm diameter
Bend Pulley 2 Shaft Diameter 280 mm diameter 180 mm diameter
Bend Pulley 3 Shaft Diameter 280 mm diameter 260 mm diameter
Bend Pulley 4 Shaft Diameter 200 mm diameter 170 mm diameter
Belt Required Piw 1400 PIW 800 PIW

Table I. Drive Comparison

The revised layout reduced the running and starting tensions by 40%. The result was a reduction in the PIW rating of the
belting, a reduction in drive and head shaft size by 40 mm and a reduction in the bend and snub shafts by as much as 100 mm.
There is also a significant saving in head end support structure size as a result of the belt pulls being reduced from 140,000# to
99,000#.

VI. DRIVE DESIGN

There are numerous options for designing overland conveyors including designing by hand using guidelines from 1CEMA.
Using a belt conveyor design program is also an option. Programs such as 2Pro-Belt and 3Belt Analyst, to name a few, provide
design options that require knowledgeable users that are able to provide and understand the correct input. Overland Conveyor
Companys, Belt Analyst version 12.1 was used for the design of this conveyor. Belt Analysis has advanced shafting design,
horizontal curve design and ability to design for multiple drives.
The gear boxes selected were triple reduction, right angle shaft mount units mounted on a common base with the motor. A
1.5 service factor was used for the mechanical horsepower and 1.0 service factor was used for the thermal horsepower. Fans
are required to meet the 1.0 service factor for the thermal horse power for motors of this size.
The high speed coupling used is a standard flex couple. Conveyor start-up will be controlled by VFD drives and therefore
fluid couplings between shafts are not required. The shaft mount design simplified the drive mounting allowing the torque arm
tie down bracket to be the only support to the steel structure.
Numerous conveyor loading cases were evaluated and none of the cases resulted in regenerative or rollback conditions. This
indicated that no brakes or back stops were required.

VII. BELTING
The final drive arrangement resulted in the reduction of the required belting rating from 1400 PIW to 800 PIW. The 800

1
Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association
2
Pro-Belt, Kent R. Rieske, Professional Designers & Engineers, Inc.,Boulder, CO
3
Belt AnalystTM , Overland Conveyor Company Inc., version 12.1 Lakewood, CO

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

Page 5 of 7 2014-CIC-0064

PIW is available in the fabric belt in lieu of steel cable. The main disadvantage of fabric belting is the length of required take-
up travel, in this case about 60 m of take-up. An overland conveyor with a horizontal take-up located in the middle of the
conveyor using a cart and cable single reeved tower required a 200 foot tall tower and 20,000# counter weight. A quadruple
reeved take-up would still require a 15 m (50 foot) tall tower and 80,000 # counter weight.
The decision was made to use a winch style take-up tensioning. With the use of a 20,000 pull constant tension winch we
were able to remove the take-up tower and weight.
In this application and location, steel cable belting of the same strength was cheaper than the comparable fabric belt. This
allowed the take-up travel to be reduced to 10 m. One disadvantage of using steel cable belting is the transition distances at the
head and tail are increased from 2.5 time the belt width to 5.0 time the belt width for the tail pulleys and even higher for the
head pulley.
Another disadvantage of steel belting is it interferes with the operation of a magnet separator. This issue will be addressed
later in this paper.

VIII. HORIZONTAL CURVE

The difficult part of designing a horizontal curve is designing for a wide range of tensions. Variations in load cannot be
avoided but the variations during starting and stopping can be reduced. With the original drive layout the full 2400 motor
horsepower was introduced into the return belt near the start of the horizontal curve. With the revised drive layout there was
only 1200 horsepower introduced at the start of the curve on the return side and on the carry side the drive was at the end of
the curve. The original layout had a difference between the starting tension and the running tension of 7,900# with the revised
layout having the difference as only 4050#. This reduced the difference in the tensions by half and simplified the horizontal
curve design.
The other factor that affects the starting tensions is the time it takes to get from zero feet per minute to full running speed,
i.e. starting time. The normal rule of thumb is 10 seconds start time for every 300 m (1000 feet) of belt. The required starting
time would therefore be 105 seconds. To keep the tensions at a manageable level in the curve the starting time was increased to
180 seconds (3 minutes).

IX. KEY DESIGN FACTORS

There are numerous other factors that affect an overland conveyor drive design:

The design basis of using CEMA 5th edition[1] or 6th edition[2]. On long conveyors there is a significant horse power
savings by using 6th edition.
Verify the idler classification. CEMA E idlers require more force but CEMA D are not as heavily built. In this case the
change form CEMA D to CEMA E was an additional 284 horsepower.
Drive pulley lagging, grooved rubber vs. ceramic does not significantly affect drive horsepower. It only affects the belt
tensions and take-up.
Belt wrap around the drive pulley also does not affect the drive horsepower significantly. The reduction of the belt
tension from additional belt wrap may reduce the require PIW rating of the belt or reduce the amount of take-up
weight.
Another factor affecting motor horsepower selection is the locked rotor or pull-up torque of the motor. The two
horsepowers considered in conveyor design are the running horsepower and the starting horsepower. The use of
high starting torque motors allow the motor size to be based on the running horsepower and not the starting
horsepower. (See Fig 3). This can save in the cost of the selected motor and gear box.

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

 2014-CIC-0064 Page 6 of 7

Figure 3. Motor Torque Diagram

Another design consideration is coasting. It takes the overland conveyor 22 seconds to stop. The dock conveyor takes
10 seconds to stop. In a normal shutdown condition the overland conveyor would shut down and 30 second later the
dock conveyor would be shut down. In an emergency shutdown condition as a power failure or emergency pull cord,
both conveyors would be shut down at the same time. The overland conveyor will coast 12 seconds longer than the
dock conveyor and at 5000 mtph would discharge 16 MT of coal. The head chute on the overland conveyor is
designed as a surge hopper to hold the 16 MT.
Electronic equipment required to control the system such as PLC, HMI, and VFDs required a conditioned environment
for optimal performance. Monitoring of the cooling system is integrated into the PLC/HMI system to monitor system
health. Preventative maintenance in addition to monitoring of drive and cooling system status will contribute to the
extended life of the system.

X. MAGNETIC SEPARATOR
The typical conveying system uses a magnetic separator to remove ferrous metal and a metal detector to mark the location
on non-ferrous metal on the conveyor. There are two locations for a metal detector on a conveyor, either cross belt or over the
end at the head pulley. The cross belt is the simplest and less expensive to purchase, install, with less structure and chutework.
Because of the steel cords in the belt the cross belt application could not be used. The final drive arrangement provided a
tripper location with chute work at the carry side drive which was an ideal location for the over the end metal detector and
discharge chute.

XI. LESSONS LEARNED

A major lesson learned is to finalize the drive design and equipment selection before finalizing the equipment design
arrangements and the structural support design. During the design of the conveyor drive, the assumption was made that fabric
belt was less expensive than steel cable belt. The take-up was originally designed, including all the take-up components, based
on fabric belt. The support structural as well as the take-up supports and rails in the area of the take-up were designed for the
60 meters of fabric belt take-up. Changing to steel cable belt required redesign of the take-up area requiring extra engineering
hours and a possible delay in schedule.
Switching to steel cable belt meant the magnetic separator had to be relocated. The chutework at the intermediate drive

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE

Page 7 of 7 2014-CIC-0064

station had to be redesigned to accept the magnetic separator. The structure also had to be redesigned to support the weight of
the separator.
Determining which type of belt to use was a direct result from the design of the drive system. Had the drive design been
completed earlier, engineering costs could have been reduced.
The final drive design resulted in lower costs of construction and will reduce future costs.

XII. CONCLUSION
There are many factors to be considered when designing overland conveyor drives including, drive locations, carry side or
return side drive locations, or a combination of the two, take-up size and type, conveyor belting and many more. The conveyor
used in this example was long with relative high capacity and a horizontal curve. The longer and the more complex the
conveyor the more time should be taken to evaluate the drive, take-up and loading options. In all cases the selection of the
drive arrangement and drive components should under taken very early in the design process.

APPENDIX
Appendixes, if needed, appear before the acknowledgment.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of T. K. Richardson for his review of the original version of this
document.

REFERENCES

[1] Engineering Conference of the Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, Belt Conveyors for Bulk Materials, Fifth Addition. CEMA, 1997.
[2] Engineering Conference of the Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, Belt Conveyors for Bulk Materials, Sixth Addition. CEMA, 2005.

978-1-4799-3294-8/14/$31.00 2014 IEEE