Sizing segregation bins in bulk conveyor systems with discrete loading sources

Abstract

Bulk conveyor systems often employ bins to segregate flow and to prevent interruptions in material handling. Analytical methods for sizing these bins were explored for the case when they serve multiple loading sources, each discharging a series of individual loads onto the conveyor. These methods included both an exact expression of the probability distribution for the required bin capacity and a normal approximation. The two analytical methods and a simulation model were used to size bins for some real and hypothetical applications. In comparing the modeling results of each method, only minor differences in the bin sizes were seen. For the applications examined, the normal approximation would be preferred as very little computational effort is required.