History of Belt Conveyors Until the End of the 19th Century

The paper discusses the history of belt conveyors over the years until the development of the modern belt conveyor at the end of the 19th century. The roots of conveyor systems and principles of operation go back to the ancient times, with a first trace of primitive belt conveyor found in the beginning of the 17th century. The early belt conveyors can be found in the late 18th century due to the invention of Oliver Evans in USA and in the 19th century, by Lyster in England and Lopatine in Russia. The first modern solution of the heavy-duty belt conveyor was proposed by Thomas Robins in the last decade of the 19th century, with the basic principles of operation which remain unchanged up to now.