When you hear the word “conveyor,” what comes to mind? Probably a luggage carousel, a supermarket checkout or maybe a factory assembly line. These are important uses but they don’t portray the fun world of conveyors very well!

Conveyors are, at their heart, incredibly versatile systems for moving things from one place to another. But it’s this fundamental simplicity that opens up a universe of creative possibilities.

Let’s dive into some examples that will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about these humble machines.

The Bat Accelerator

Bats are synonymous with their calls and echoes. Scientists have reimagined a conveyor system to research how bats compute the echoes they make when they fly.

When flying, a bat’s echoes return at different rates depending on how near they are to objects are and how fast they are flying. This creates a kind of ‘sound flow’ but the detail on how this is used by the bat has always been a bit of mystery.

A conveyor system was created to learn more. It had 8,000 revolving panels clad in plastic ivy on either side of an eight-meter stretch of woodland path: a well-known commuting corridor for wild pipistrelle bats in Bristol. The panels rotated either in the same or opposite direction of bat flight.

This system revealed that when panels rotated in the direction of flight, bats flew faster. When panels rotated in the opposite direction, bats slowed down—by as much as 28 percent. So, conveyors can officially speed up and slow down bats. More findings on this University of Bristol study are here.

The Conveyor-5-Course-Meal-Feeder

If you’ve ever watched a “Joseph’s Machine” video, you know the pure delight of watching everyday objects perform intricate, Wallace & Gromit style sequences. And guess what can play a starring role in these elaborate contraptions? You’ve guessed it – conveyors!

When this team re-purposed an IKEA roller blind into a belt conveyor that ingeniously feeds you a 5 course meal courtesy of everyday objects… you have to see it. 15 million other people already have.

Musical Theatrics

Special effects are expected in most big theatre shows these days and conveyors can very much be a part of these jaw-dropping effects. In the West End and other theatrical homes, conveyors are often used as travellators for dancers and actors to make fluid movements without toing and froing from stage left to stage right. A crucial requirement  of these conveyors is quietness as noisy machinery really does spoil a good musical!

Looking Beyond The Obvious

The next time you encounter a conveyor, consider its ingenious engineering and the potential for unexpected applications. A lot of fun can be had when you combine creativity and conveyors. From accelerating bats to creating theatrical spectacles, conveyors are far more exciting than they often get credit for.

Are you a theatre company employee, a theme park manager, an influencer or a bat scientist? If so, we are here for all your conveyor needs – get in touch on 01623 354473.