A bolt-star wheel consists essentially of a central disc-shaped wheel body, which is equipped with evenly arranged driver elements around the circumference in the form of, for example, five bolts. Upon rotation of such a bolt-star wheel about its central axis, the driver elements can engage in counterparts (termed pins) and effect linear movement of these counterparts. For the evaluation of the bolt-star drive as an intermediate drive, it is necessary to consider this drive concept as a holistic linear drive system and therefore as a juxtaposition of, for example, three bolt-star wheels. In the course of this work, the drive concepts of conveyor systems are explained. Particular emphasis is placed on the energetic consideration of the variants shown, which is also the focus of the present work in the subsequent elaboration of the bolt-star drive. In order to get a general understanding of the application-oriented conditions and the operating environment of bolt-star drives, well-known types of continuous conveyors are shown in their structure and function. In the following, several main types of drives and their components are explained, which can be supported through an intermediate drive in the form of a bolt-star drive. To get started in the technology of intermediate drives, their history and development will be discussed. For the different types of continuous conveyors, common intermediate drives are described, and previous findings will be summarized. Furthermore, the economic importance of improving intermediate drives is explicated. Starting from these points of view, approaches for the detailed investigation and elaboration of bolt-star drives are set up. For this purpose, relevant system characteristics are considered, the drive system is explained in terms of its design and functionality, and the system parameters required to describe the bolt-star drive are defined. Considering boundary conditions, the basic relations are exemplified on the bolt-star drive using both analytical and numerical calculation methods. The focus is on the investigation of the mechanical efficiency, in whose determination also different dissipative effects are included. Finally, further details of bolt-star drives and their potential for implementation in various continuous conveyors are discussed.