Importance

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Abstract

A conveyor belt rip monitoring system is disclosed. The system includes at least one rip panel having a conductive loop positioned in or on a conveyor belt so that the loop extends substantially across the width of the belt. The conductive loops may be formed from metallic or non-metallic materials. An RFDD chip is electrically coupled to the loop and provides a signal to an RFID interrogation unit positioned on the conveyor structure indicative of the health of the conductive loop. If a break is sensed in the loop, the RFID chip sends an appropriate signal to the interrogation unit which passes the information to a processing system. A unique resistor or diode may be included in the circuit between the chip(s) and the legs of the loop so that the interrogation unit can distinguish one leg or loop from another. If the break in the loop is determined to be due to a rip in the conveyor belt, the processing system alerts a user of the rip condition via an attached display device. For large scale rips the system may automatically stop the conveyor belt. Various embodiments of rip detection panels are also disclosed.

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First Claim