6. Belting Assembly
40
PNEG-1204
Enclosed Belt Conveyor
Belt Tracking (Continued)
General Tracking/Training Procedures
6. Tracking the belt is a process of adjusting idlers, pulleys and loading conditions in a manner that will
correct any tendencies of the belt to run other than true.
7. A normal sequence of training is to start with the top pulleys in the direction of belt travel. Start with
the belt empty. After tracking is completed, run the belt with a full load and recheck tracking.
8. Tracking adjustment is done while the belt is running and should be spread over some length of the
conveyor preceding the region of trouble. The adjustment may not be immediately apparent, so
permit the belt to run for several minutes and at least three (3) full belt revolutions after each idler
adjustment to determine if additional “tracking” is required.
9. After adjustment, if the belt has overcorrected, it should be restored by moving back the same idler
and not by shifting additional idlers or rollers.
10. If the belt runs to one side at a particular point or points on the conveyor structure, the cause will
probably be due to the alignment or leveling of the structure or to the idlers and pulleys immediately
preceding that particular area or a combination of these factors.
11. If a section or sections of the belt run off at all points along the conveyor, the cause is possibly in the
belt itself, in the belt not being joined squarely or in the loading of the belt. With regard to the belt,
this will be due to camber. Its condition should improve after it is operated under full load tension. It
is a rare occasion when a cambered belt (less than 1/2%) needs to be replaced.
12. When replacing a used belt, go through the system and square and level all rollers, idlers, pulleys
and bed before training a new belt.
13. The basic and primary rule which must be kept in mind when tracking a conveyor belt is simple,
“THE
BELT MOVES TOWARD THAT END OF THE ROLL/IDLER IT CONTACTS FIRST”.
14. The reader can demonstrate this for himself very simply by laying a small dowel rod or round pencil
on a flat surface in a skewed orientation. If a book is now laid across the dowel rod and gently pushed
by one’s finger in a line directly away from the experimenter, the book will tend to shift to the left or
right depending upon which end of that dowel rod the moving book contacts first.
Figure 6Z
Book
Ref #
Description
G
Book moves like this direction
H
Push
