Feeders are machineries used in assembly and manufacturing applications to move or transport materials

or products to a designated storage or to other processing equipment.

A feeder is a piece of material handling equipment used to regulate the flow of a bulk material from
a bin or hopper. feeder is essentially a conveyor used for short distances where a constant rate of dispersal is
required.
There are many types of feeders to suit many different industries; ranging from mining, to pharmaceuticals,
to agriculture. Feeders are often used in conjunction with other types of material handling equipment,
like conveyors, crushers, dryers, grinders, blenders, and mixers.

There are many types of feeders available to handle bulk solids and they can be divided into two categories:
volumetric and gravimetric. A volumetric feeder discharges a volume of material as a function of time while a
gravimetric feeder weighs material.

Volumetric Feeding Principles

The bulk material is discharged from a hopper with a constant volume per unit of time by regulating the
speed of a feeding device.The actual volume of material fed is determined through calibration. The feeding accuracy
is dependent on the uniformity of the material flow characteristics and the bulk density.

Applications:

Simple, economical solutions where a high degree of feed rate accuracy is not required.
Gravimetric Feeding Principles- Loss in Weight

Gravimetric feeding systems generally use a volumetric feeder associated with a weighing system to control the
discharge of powder from a storage hopper at a constant weight per unit time (kg/min). The weight signal is used as
a feedback control system to constantly monitor the feed rate and compensate for variations in bulk density, porosity
etc.
TYPES OF FEEDERS

Rotary Feeder
rotating element or vane discharges powder or granules at a predetermined rate often used with large
amounts of solid material power comes from an internal combustion engine or an electrical motor
Vibratory Feeder
use both vibration and gravity to move material used to transport a large number of smaller objects
uncontrolled recovery of the material from top of feeder controlled delivery of the material from bottom of feeder

Vibratory feeders are used for a wide variety of materials, including aggregate, coal, and chemicals.
Essentially, a vibrating feeder is a ramp which vibrates to agitate material into falling down an incline. The vibrations
spread the material evenly along the ramp, which results in a smooth discharge.

Screw Feeder
used for handling bulk materials, in which a rotating helicoid screw moves the material forward, toward and into a
process unit very similar to screw conveyors in their basic structure,
both of which are based on the principles of the Archimedean screw capable of delivering dense slurries and dry
granular products with great accuracy at a range of operational speeds drive is controlled by servo motors capable of
precise stop-start and speed control. A screw conveyor or auger conveyor is a mechanism that uses a rotating helical
screw blade, called a "flighting", usually within a tube, to move liquid or granular materials. They are used in many
bulk handling industries.
Apron Feeder
allows automatic control the volume of materials that are added to a process construct is from heavy, durable
materials like steel, the belt portion of the apron feeder is made from thick steel trays or pans can be found in mining
operations, factories, and concrete plants cannot be used in applications where precise feeding and measuring is
required
How It Works - Apron Feeder
Materials that will be carried by the apron feeder are held in a large hopper above one end of the belt. The amount of
material that reaches the feeder is determined by the distance between this hopper and the top of the feeder. As the
hopper deposits materials onto the apron feeder, the metal pans that make up the belt travel horizontally like
a conveyor belt. When the trays reach the end of the belt, they dump, or feed the materials into another vessel.

Bowl Feeder
used to feed parts to an assembly line or piece of manufacturing equipment individual components exit the feeder at
specific intervals and enter the next step in the assembly process Each bowl feeder uses special sensors to spot
jams or parts that may be misaligned. one drawback is its precise operation.
How It Works
In a standard application: the bowl feeder sits below a hopper or bin workers fill the hopper with bulk material, and
these objects fall into the feeder below
Belt Feeder
Belt feeders are used in lieu of apron feeders when material is of a fine composition. A belt feeder is simply a
conveyor with a short belt. Typically belt feeders are less expensive than apron feeders, and operate at higher
speeds. However, they not suited for heavy-duty applications.

Chain Feeder
Chain feeders are used to control the release of a bulky material within a bin. Their design consists of several heavy
chains, which drape over top of the bulky material on an incline. While resting, the chains hold the material in place.
When the chains are moved, material slides down the incline.