AU2021221726B2

AU2021221726B2 - Wear liner assembly

Info

Publication number: AU2021221726B2
Application number: AU2021221726A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Leigh Wings
Original assignee: Resources Unity Enterprise Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Resources Unity Enterprise Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2021-06-08
Filing date: 2021-08-25
Publication date: 2023-06-01
Anticipated expiration: 2041-08-25
Also published as: CN115445696A; AU2021221726A1

Abstract

WEAR LINER ASSEMBLY Abstract Disclosed is a wear liner assembly of a crusher. The wear liner assembly has an operative wear surface for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher. The wear liner comprises a base and a wear insert. The base has a first face and comprises a cavity extending from an opening in the first face for receiving the wear insert. The cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity. The wear insert has an insert wear face forming at least a part of the wear surface. D-D 602 701 604 FIG 9A 600 E-E 602 606 608 701 604 60 FIG 9B60

Description

D-D

602 701 604

FIG 9A 600

E-E 602

606 608 701 604 60

FIG 9B60

WEAR LINER ASSEMBLY

Field

[0001] The present invention relates to wear liners and in particular wear liner assemblies of a crusher.

[0002] The invention has been developed primarily as wear liner assemblies of jaw crushers and gyratory crushers and will be described with reference to these applications. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to these applications.

Background

[0003] Wear liners are often incorporated into materials handling and processing machinery to form working surfaces subjected to high wear and impact. Wear liners typically include highly wear resistant materials to extend service life and are replaceable to allow for easy refurbishment of the machine. Alloy material such as high chromium alloy material is known to have high wear resistance compared to materials such as manganese steel and therefore is often used in wear parts of a crushing machine to enhance wear resistance and thereby extend service life.

[0004] However highly wear resistant materials can often be relatively brittle and it is known to insert or attach the wear resistant material to a base formed of a comparatively tough, yet softer material. For instance, wear resistant inserts made of alloy material can be mechanically press fit into a wear surface of a wear liner base. However, wear resistant inserts press fit into the wear surface are easy to fall off or displace when deformation of the liner occurs.

[0005] Additionally, wear resistant inserts press fit into the wear surface are often bonded to the wear liner base by a chemical adhesive. However, the chemical adhesive typically has poor heat resistance such that there is a risk of debonding at elevated operating temperatures, which can in turn cause displacement of the inserts.

[0006] As will be appreciated, displacement of an insert will leave a void in the wear surface which can deteriorate the wear resistance in the nearby area and thereby reduce the lifetime of the liner. Additionally, replacement and maintenance are time-consuming, labour-intensive, sometimes can cause injury.

[0007] Moreover, wear resistant inserts are generally limited to a relatively small size to meet required bonding strength. Additionally, smaller inserts are preferred over large inserts as larger inserts are easier to fall off or displace compared to smaller inserts. However, small sized inserts are relatively difficult to manufacture. It is even more difficult to manufacture small sized inserts with high precision.

Summary

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to substantially overcome, or at least ameliorate, one or more disadvantages of existing arrangements.

[0008a] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a wear liner assembly of a crusher, the wear liner assembly having an operative wear surface for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the wear liner assembly comprising: a base having a first face , the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the first face for receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity, the cavity being open at a lateral end of the cavity for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially parallel to the first face; and the wear insert having an insert wear face forming at least a part of the wear surface.

[0008b] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a wear liner plate, the wear plate comprising a base having an operative wear face for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the wear face for at least partially receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity, wherein the cavity is open at a lateral end of the cavity for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially parallel to the wear face.

[0008c] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of manufacturing a wear liner assembly described, the method comprising: providing the base; disposing the insert into the cavity; welding the insert and cavity together; and sealing the opening at the lateral end of the cavity.

[0009] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a wear liner assembly of a crusher, the wear liner assembly having an operative wear surface for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the wear liner assembly comprising: a base having a first face, the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the first face for receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity; and the wear insert having an insert wear face forming at least a part of the wear surface.

[0010] In some embodiments, the first face forms a part of the wear surface of the wear liner assembly.

[0011] In some embodiments, the cavity is open at an end to provide an insertion opening for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity.

[0012] In some embodiments, the cavity is open at a lateral end of the cavity for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially parallel to the first face.

[0013] In some embodiments, the retaining shoulder is disposed on an overhanging portion of the sidewall.

[0014] In some embodiments, the cavity extends along the insertion axis and has a cross section perpendicular thereto, said cross section having a first width and a second width, the first width being smaller than and closer to the first face compared to the second width thereby to provide said retaining shoulder.

[0015] In some embodiments, said cross section is generally constant along the insertion axis.

[0016] In some embodiments, the insert has a cross section corresponding to said cross section of the cavity.

[0017] In some embodiments, the cavity includes a tapered portion between the first width and the second width.

[0018] In some embodiments, the insert is configured to be wholly embedded within the cavity. In one embodiment, the insert extends to a level above or below a level of the opening in the first face by no more than 20% of H. In another embodiment, the insert extends to a level above or below a level of the opening in the first face by no more than 10% of a height of the insert. In yet another embodiment, the insert extends to a level above or below a level of the opening in the first face by no more than 5% of a height of the insert.

[0019] In some embodiments, the cavity is configured to receive a plurality of said inserts aligned along said insertion axis.

[0020] In some embodiments, the base comprises an array of parallel spaced cavities.

[0021] In some embodiments, the base comprises areas depressed towards a second face of the base opposite the first face.

[0022] In some embodiments, the depressed areas are in the form of a groove or channel.

[0023] In some embodiments, the cavity is housed within a projection of the base from the depressed areas.

[0024] In some embodiments, the base comprises a pair of arrays of said parallel spaced cavities around a central axis, each cavity being open at a lateral end towards the central axis.

[0025] In some embodiments, the base comprises a pair of arrays of said parallel spaced cavities, each cavity being open at a lateral end towards a periphery of the base.

[0026] In some embodiments, the insertion opening is in a second face of the base opposite the first face for allowing insertion of an insert into the cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially perpendicular to the first face.

[0027] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a wear liner plate, the wear plate comprising a base having an operative wear face for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the wear face for at least partially receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity.

[0028] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of manufacturing the above wear liner assembly, the method comprising: providing the base; disposing the insert into the cavity; welding the insert and cavity together; and sealing the insertion opening.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0029] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0030] Figure 1A is a perspective view of a wear liner assembly of a crusher;

[0031] Figure 1B is a perspective view of a base of the wear liner assembly of Figure 1A;

[0032] Figure IC is a top view of the base of Figure IB;

[0033] Figure ID is a cross-sectional view of the base of Figure IB;

[0034] Figure 2A is a perspective view of an alternative base of the wear liner assembly of Figure 1A;

[0035] Figure 2B is a top view of the base of Figure 2A;

[0036] Figure 3A is a perspective view of a wear insert of the wear liner assembly of Figure 1A;

[0037] Figure 3B is a cross-sectional view of a number of alternative wear inserts;

[0038] Figure 4A is a perspective view of the base of Figure 1B having inserts received therein;

[0039] Figure 4B is a top view of the base of Figure 4A;

[0040] Figure 5A is a top view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 1A;

[0041] Figure 5B is a cross-sectional view of the wear liner of Figure 1A;

[0042] Figure 5C is another cross-sectional view of the wear liner of Figure 1A;

[0043] Figure 6A is a perspective view of another wear liner assembly;

[0044] Figure 6B is a front perspective view of a base of the wear liner assembly of Figure 6A;

[0045] Figure 6C is a rear perspective view of the base of 6B;

[0046] Figure 6D is a bottom view of the base of Figure 6B;

[0047] Figure 7 is a perspective view of a wear insert of the wear liner assembly of Figure 6A;

[0048] Figure 8 is a perspective view of a plate to which the wear liner assembly of Figure 6A can be mounted;

[0049] Figure 9A is a cross-sectional view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 6A;

[0050] Figure 9B is another cross-sectional view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 6A;

[0051] Figure 1OA is a side view of another wear liner assembly;

[0052] Figure 1OB is a perspective view of a base of Figure 1OA;

[0053] Figure 1OC is a top view of the base of Figure 1OA;

[0054] Figure 11 is a cross-sectional view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 1OA;

[0055] Figure 12A is a side view of another wear liner assembly;

[0056] Figure 12B is a cross-sectional view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 12A;

[0057] Figure 12C is another cross-sectional view of the wear liner assembly of Figure 12A;

[0058] Figure 13 is a perspective partial view of a crusher;

[0059] Figure 14 is a perspective partial view of another crusher;

[0060] Figure 15A show an enlarged partial view of segments of the base of the wear liner assembly of Figure 14 without inserts;

[0061] Figure 15B show an enlarged partial view of segments of the base of the wear liner assembly of Figure 14 without inserts;

[0062] Figure 15C show a top view and cross-sectional view of a segment of Figure 15A; and

[0063] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of a method of manufacturing a wear liner assembly.

Detailed Description

[0064] Figures 1A shows a wear liner assembly 10 of a crusher (not shown), for example, a jaw crusher. The wear liner assembly 10 has an operative wear surface 12 for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher. The wear liner assembly 10 comprises a base 100 and a wear insert 102 received in the base 100. In some applications where the crusher is a jaw crusher, the wear liner assembly 10 is or is part of a fixed jaw plate or a moving jaw plate.

[0065] Figures 1B-1D depict the base 100 without the insert. As shown in Figure IB, the base 100 may be in a form of a plate and has a first face 104. A cavity 106 extends from an opening 108 in the first face 104 for receiving the wear insert 102. The cavity 106 is provided with a profile so as to prevent the insert passing wholly through the opening 108. In this regard the cavity 106 has a sidewall 110 comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity 106. The first face 104 may form a part of the wear surface 12 of the wear liner assembly.

[0066] A reverse, second face of the base 100 opposite the first face 104 may serve as an attachment face 112 of the base 100 for attachment of the wear liner assembly 10 to a support structure (not shown) of the crusher.

[0067] In some implementations, the base 100 includes a plurality of cavities for receiving wear inserts. For example, as shown in Figure IB, the base 100 includes a plurality of cavities arranged as a pair of arrays of parallel spaced cavities 106 disposed around a central axis 114. In some embodiments each cavity may receive a single insert, however, as seen in Figure 1A in this embodiment each cavity is configured to receive a plurality of inserts 102 arranged in a linear array.

[0068] Referring to Figure IC, each cavity 106 has a first lateral end 116 towards a periphery of the base 100 and a second lateral end 118 towards the central axis 114 and opposite the first lateral end.

[0069] The cavity 106 includes an insertion opening for allowing insertion of at least one insert 102 into the cavity along an insertion axis 120 substantially parallel to the first face 104. For example, in the arrangement of Figures B and IC, the lateral end 116 of the cavity 106 is open to provide the insertion opening. In another arrangement, for instance, in the embodiment shown in Figures 2A and 2B, a cavity 206 is open at a lateral end 218 towards a central axis 214 of base 200 thereby to provide the insertion opening. The base 200 of Figures 2A and 2B corresponds to the base 100 of Figures lB and IC with the exception that the insertion opening is provided at the lateral end 218 towards the central axis 214 of the base 200 as opposed to at a lateral end 216 towards the peripheral of the base.

[0070] In some implementations, the retaining shoulder of the sidewall 110 is formed as an overhang thereby preventing the insert from extraction from the opening 108 in the first face 104. For instance, referring to Figure ID, a cross-sectional view of the base 100 taken along line A-A of Figure IC is shown. The cavity 106 has a cross section 124 perpendicular to the insertion axis 120. The cross section 124 has a first width WI and a second width W2. The first width WI is smaller than and closer to the first face 104 compared to the second width W2 thereby to provide the retaining shoulder which overhangs the cavity below thereby preventing a correspondingly shaped insert from extraction from the opening 108 in the first face 104.

[0071] Figure 3A shows a perspective view 300A of the insert 102 of Figure 1A. The insert 102 has an insert wear face 301 forming at least a part of the wear surface 12 of the wear liner assembly 10.

[0072] In the arrangement of Figures 1A-ID, the cavity 106 is tapered between the first width WI and the second width W2 and the insert 102 has a correspondingly tapered profile, for instance, a trapezoid, as shown in Figure 3A. However, the profiles of the cavity and corresponding insert are not limited to this particular arrangement. For instance, in other embodiments, the cavity 106 may be configured to accommodate an alternative insert of a different cross section, such as a triangle, a rounded trapezoid, a diamond, a circle, an I-shape, a polygon, or an oval. Figure 3B shows a cross sectional view 300B of a number of alternative inserts. Furthermore, the insert may have a shape that differs geometrically from that of the cavity yet still is corresponding in the sense that the insert is received within the cavity but is retained so as not to be extractable through the opening in the first face 104. For instance, the cavity 106 may have a trapezoid cross section perpendicular to the insertion axis 120 while the cavity has an I-shape cross section 302 as shown in Figure 3B. Such an arrangement can also prevent the insert from extraction from the opening 108 in the first face 104 without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0073] In the present disclosure, the cross section 124 has been shown to be generally constant along the insertion axis 120. However, it will be appreciated that the cross section 124 can vary along the insertion axis 120 to receive a plurality of inserts of different cross sections without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0074] Referring now to Figures 4A and 4B corresponding to Figures lB and IC. Figures 4A and 4B depict the base 100 with a plurality of wear inserts 102 received in the cavity 106. The inserts 102 are inserted into the cavity 106 from the insertion opening at the first lateral end 116 towards the periphery of the base 100. The insertion opening at first lateral end 116 can be sealed, for example, by manganese material, to retain the insertions within the cavity 106.

[0075] The inserts 102 are more wear resistant than the base 100. In some implementations, the inserts 102 are made of highly wear resistant material such as alloy. In some implementations, the length of each insert 102 along the insertion axis 120 is 300mm or less for easy insertion.

[0076] Referring now to Figures 5A-5C, there is shown a top view, a cross-sectional views B-B, and a cross-sectional view C-C of the wear liner assembly 10, respectively. In this implementation, the insert 102 has a cross section at least partially corresponding to the cross section of the cavity 106. As seen in Figure 5B and 5C the insert is substantially wholly embedded within the cavity such that the insert wear face 301 of each insert 102 forming a part of wear surface 12 of the wear liner assembly is substantially level or flush with the immediately surrounding material of the base 100. As such the insert is embedded to be substantially surrounded by the base on one or more lateral sides (preferably at least two lateral sides). This allows the base 100 which is preferably formed of a comparatively tough, relatively ductile material, such as manganese steel, to support the insert 102 which is comparatively brittle, up to the insert wear face 301. In this way the wear surface 12 of the wear liner assembly 10 will comprise areas of insert and base material. Typically, the base material, in use, will wear in advance of the insert.

[0077] In some implementations, such as seen in Figures 5A-5C, the base 100 comprises areas 501 that are depressed towards the attachment face 112 forming a plurality of cut-outs 503 in the first face 104. As such, wear liner assembly 10 is provided with a "corrugated" wear surface 12 comprising depressed areas 501 of the base and elevated areas 505. The depressed areas 501 may be in the form of a groove or channel. In one embodiment, the elevated areas 505 are ridges separated by the groove or channel to form a corrugated wear surface 12. As can be seen with reference to Figure 5C, each ridge may be a projection of the base material from the depressed areas 501 of the base. It will be noted that the cavity 106 receiving the insert 102 extends from the opening 108 on the upper face of the projection so that the cavity (and insert) are housed within the projection such that the base material extends substantially to the insert wear surface 301.

[0078] Whilst in some embodiments, the insert 102 has been shown to be substantially wholly embedded within the cavity 106 such that the insert wear face of each insert 102 is substantially level or flush with the immediately surrounding material of the base 100, it will be appreciated in other embodiments, the insert 102 and cavity may be sized such that the inserts extends to a level above the opening or surrounding cavity 106. In still further embodiments the insert and cavity may be sized such that the insert does not extend as far as the opening so as to be lower than the surrounding base material. For instance, the insert 102 having a height H, as shown in Figures 3A and 3B, may extend to a level above or below the level of the cavity 106 opening 108 by no more than 20% of H, or preferably no more than 10% of H, or more preferably no more than 5% of H.

[0079] Fig. 6A shows a wear liner assembly 60 of a crusher (not shown), for example, a jaw crusher. The wear liner assembly 60 comprises a base 600 and a wear insert 602 received in the base 600. The wear liner assembly 60 has an operative wear surface 62 for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher. The wear liner assembly 60 can be part of a fixed jaw plate or a moving jaw plate of a jaw crusher.

[0080] Figures 6B-6C depict the base 600 without the insert. As shown in Figure 6B, the base 600 has an first face 604. A cavity 606 extends from an opening 608 in the wear face 604 for receiving the wear insert 602. The cavity 606 has a sidewall 610 comprises a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity 606. The first face 604 may form a part of the wear surface 62.

[0081] A reverse, second face of the base opposite the first face 604 may serve as an attachment face 612 of the base 600 for attachment of the wear liner assembly to a support structure (not shown) of the crusher.

[0082] The cavity 606 extends to an insertion opening 616 in the attachment face 612 for allowing insertion of the wear insert into the cavity along an insertion axis 620 substantially perpendicular to the first face 604.

[0083] In some implementations, the base 600 includes a plurality of cavities 606. Each cavity 606 receives a wear insert 602. The cavities can be parallel spaced from another or otherwise arranged. It will be appreciated that the arrangement pattern and the density of the cavities may vary depending on factors such as the size of the wear liner, the type and size of the material to be crushed, etc.

[0084] Figure 7 shows a perspective view of the insert 602 of Figure 6A. The insert 602 has an insert wear face 701 forming at least a part of the wear surface 62 of the wear liner assembly 60.

[0085] In some applications where the crusher is a jaw crusher, the base 600 can be attached to a back plate 800, as shown in Figure 8, to retain the insert from extraction from the insertion opening. The base 600 can be bolted to the plate 800.

[0086] Fig. 9A-9B show a cross-sectional view D-D and a cross-sectional view E-E of the wear liner assembly 60.

[0087] In the embodiment shown in Figures 9A and 9B, the insert 602 is flush with the cavity 606. However, it will be appreciated that the insert can stands proud of the cavity or subside into the cavity in some implementations, depending on the dimension of the insert compared to the cavity.

[0088] Referring to the cross-sectional view E-E, each cavity 606 has a first width WI and a second width W2. The first width is smaller than and closer to the first face 604 compared to the second width thereby to provide the retaining shoulder preventing the insert from extraction from the opening 608 in the first face 604. In some implementations, the cavity 606 includes a tapered portion between the first width and the second width.

[0089] Figures 10A-10C show a wear liner assembly 1000 of a crusher (not shown), for example, a gyratory crusher. The wear liner assembly 1000 comprises a base 1001 and an insert 1002 received in the base 1001. The wear liner assembly has an operative wear surface of the wear liner assembly for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher.

[0090] Figure 1OB and 1OC depict the base 1001 without the insert. The base 1001 has a first face 1004. A cavity 1006a extends from an opening 1008 in the wear face 1004 for at least partially receiving wear insert 1002. The cavity 1006a has a sidewall 1010 comprises a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity 1006. The first face 1004 may form a part of the wear surface of the wear liner assembly 1000.

[0091] The cavity 1006 is open at an end 1016 to provide an insertion opening for allowing insertion of at least one insert into the cavity 1006.

[0092] A reverse, second face of the base opposite the first face 1004 may serve as an attachment face 1012 of the base 1001 for attachment of the wear liner assembly 1000 to a support structure (not shown) of the crusher. The structure is for example a shaft head (not shown) of a gyratory crusher.

[0093] In some implementations, the base 1001 is segmented into an upper portion 1003a and a lower portion 1003b. It will be appreciated that the base 1001 can be a single piece in some implementations. A sidewall 1005b of the lower portion 1003b extends from a bottom rim 1007 thereof to a top rim 1009 configured to connect a bottom rim 1011 of the upper portion 1003a. A sidewall 1005a of the upper portion 1003a extends from the bottom rim 1011 thereof to a top rim 1013. The sidewall 1005a includes a plurality of cavities 1006a extending between the top rim 1013 and bottom rim 1011 of the upper portion 1003a. The sidewall 1005b includes a plurality of cavities 1006b extending between the top rim 1009 and bottom rim 1007 of the lower portion 1003b. Cavities 1006a and cavities 1006b are circumferentially spaced apart about a central axis 1014 of the wear liner assembly 1000. In the arrangement of Figures 10A-10C, cavity 1006b has a different size to that of cavity 1006a for receiving a wear insert 1002' having a different size to that of insert 1002. In another arrangement, cavities 1006a and cavities 1006b are of the same size.

[0094] Figures 11 shows a cross-sectional view F-F of the wear liner assembly 1000 of Figure 1OA.

[0095] Figures 12A-12C show a wear liner assembly 1200. Figure 12A shows a side view of the wear liner assembly 1200. The wear liner assembly 1200 comprises a base segmented into an upper portion 1203a and a lower portion 1203b. The upper portion 1203a includes a plurality of cavities 1206a circumferentially spaced apart about a central axis 1214. At least one insert 1202a is received in each cavity 1206a. The lower portion 1203b includes a plurality of cavities 1206b circumferentially spaced apart about the central axis 1214 of the wear liner assembly 1200. A group of two adjacent cavities 1206b can be positioned close together while spaced apart from another group. At least one insert 1202b is received in each cavity 1206b.

[0096] Figures 13 shows a partial view of a gyratory crusher 1300 comprising the wear liner assembly 1000 of Figures 10A, and a second wear liner assembly 1303. The wear liner assembly 1000 and the second wear liner assembly 1303 could be a mantle liner and a concave liner of a gyratory crusher, respectively. The wear liner assembly 1000 and the second wear liner assembly 1303 define a crushing chamber 1305 therebetween. Materials fed into the crushing chamber 1305 from an opening 1307 of the second wear liner assembly1303 are crushed as the wear liner assembly 1000 gyrates eccentrically with respect to the wear liner assembly 1303. As shown in Figure 13, wear liner assembly 1303 includes a base 1307 segmented horizontally into three segments 1313, 1315, and 1317 each including a plurality of cavities 1311 circumferentially spaced apart from each other. At least one insert 1319 is received in each cavity 1311.

[0097] Figures 14 shows a partial view of a gyratory crusher 1400 comprising the wear liner assembly 1200 shown in Figures 12A-12B and a second wear liner assembly 1403. The wear liner assembly 1200 and the second wear liner assembly 1403 could be a mantle liner and a concave liner of a gyratory crusher, respectively. The wear liner assembly 1200 and second wear liner assembly 1403 define a crushing chamber 1405 therebetween. Materials fed into the crushing chamber 1405 from an opening 1407 of the second wear liner assembly 1403 are crushed as the wear liner assembly 1200 gyrates eccentrically with respect to the wear liner assembly 1403. As shown in Figure 14, the second wear liner assembly 1403 includes a base 1407 segmented horizontally into three segments 1413, 1415, and 1417 each including a plurality of cavities 1411 circumferentially spaced apart from either other. At least one insert 1419 is received in each cavity 1411.

[0098] Figure 15A shows an enlarged partial view 1501 of segments 1413, 1415, and 1417 of the base 1407 of the second wear liner assembly 1403 without inserts. Figure 15B shows an enlarged partial view 1503 of segments 1413, 1415, and 1417 of the base 1407 of the second wear liner assembly 1403 with inserts.

[0099] Figure 15C is a partial top view 1505 of segment 1417 and a cross-sectional view I-I thereof. As shown in the cross-sectional view I-I, the insert 1419 stands slightly proud of the cavity 1411. However, it will be appreciated that the insert can be flush with the cavity or subside into the cavity in some implementations, depending on the dimension of the insert compared to the cavity.

[00100] Figure 16 shows a method 1600 of manufacturing a wear liner assembly. The method starts from step 1601. In step 1601, a base is provided. The base can be prefabricated by casting. The base includes a cavity extending from an opening in one face of the base for receiving a wear insert. The cavity has a sidewall comprises a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity. The cavity is open at an end to provide an insertion opening for allowing insertion of at least one insert into the cavity.

[00101] In a step 1603, an insert is slid into the cavity from the insertion opening.

[0100] In a step 1605, the insert and cavity are welded together.

[0101] In a step 1607, the insertion opening is sealed, for example, by manganese material.

[0102] The arrangements described above allows wear inserts to be slid into a wear liner to be retained therein. Such arrangements are relatively easy to implement compared to press fitting or the use of chemical adhesive.

[0103] The retaining shoulder allows wear inserts to be securely retained within a wear liner. With such an arrangement, the wear inserts retained in the wear liner do not fall off easily and this may save replacement or maintenance costs and avoid operational hazard in handling replacement or maintenance.

[0104] For the above reason and the additional reason that the arrangements do not require chemical adhesive to retain the inserts, the wear inserts can be made relatively and practically large and thus easy to manufacture.

[0105] Although specific embodiments of the invention are illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that a variety of alternative and/or equivalent implementations exist. It should be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are examples only and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration in any way. Rather, the foregoing summary and detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing at least one exemplary embodiment, it being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in an exemplary embodiment without departing from the scope as set forth in the appended claims and their legal equivalents. Generally, this application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the specific embodiments discussed herein.

It will also be appreciated that in this document the terms "comprise", "comprising", "include", "including", "contain", "containing", "have", "having", and any variations thereof, are intended to be understood in an inclusive (i.e. non-exclusive) sense, such that the process, method, device, apparatus or system described herein is not limited to those features or parts or elements or steps recited but may include other elements, features, parts or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Furthermore, the terms "a" and "an" used herein are intended to be understood as meaning one or more unless explicitly stated otherwise. Moreover, the terms "first", "second", etc. are used merely as labels, and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on or to establish a certain ranking of importance of their objects.

Claims

1. A wear liner assembly of a crusher, the wear liner assembly having an operative wear surface for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the wear liner assembly comprising: a base having a first face, the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the first face for receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity, the cavity being open at a lateral end of the cavity for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially parallel to the first face; and the wear insert having an insert wear face forming at least a part of the wear surface.

2. The wear liner assembly of claim 1, wherein the retaining shoulder is disposed on an overhanging portion of the sidewall.

3. The wear liner assembly of claim 1, wherein the cavity extends along the insertion axis and has a cross section perpendicular thereto, said cross section having a first width and a second width, the first width being smaller than and closer to the first face compared to the second width thereby to provide said retaining shoulder.

4. The wear liner assembly of claim 3, wherein said cross section is generally constant along the insertion axis.

5. The wear liner assembly of claim 3 or 4, wherein the insert has a cross section corresponding to said cross section of the cavity.

6. The wear liner assembly of any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the cavity includes a tapered portion between the first width and the second width.

7. The wear liner assembly of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the insert is configured to be wholly embedded within the cavity.

8. The wear liner assembly of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the wear surface has depressed areas of the base and elevated areas separated by the depressed areas.

9. The wear liner assembly of claims 8, wherein the depressed areas are in the form of a groove or channel.

10. The wear liner assembly of claims 8 or 9, wherein the cavity is within a projection of the base from the depressed areas.

11. The wear liner assembly of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the cavity is configured to receive a plurality of said inserts aligned along said insertion axis.

12. The wear liner assembly of claims 11, wherein the base comprises an array of parallel spaced cavities.

13. The wear liner assembly of claim 12, wherein the base comprises a pair of arrays of said parallel spaced cavities around a central axis, each cavity being open at a lateral end towards the central axis.

14. The wear liner assembly of claim 12, wherein the base comprises a pair of arrays of said parallel spaced cavities, each cavity being open at a lateral end towards a periphery of the base.

15. The wear liner assembly of any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the base and the wear insert are welded together.

16. A wear liner plate, the wear plate comprising a base having an operative wear face for exposure to a high wear environment of the crusher, the base comprising a cavity extending from an opening in the wear face for at least partially receiving a wear insert, the cavity having a sidewall comprising a retaining shoulder for engaging the insert to retain the insert within the cavity, wherein the cavity is open at a lateral end of the cavity for allowing insertion of at least one said insert into said cavity along an insertion axis, said insertion axis being substantially parallel to the wear face.

17. A method of manufacturing a wear liner assembly of claim 1, the method comprising: providing the base; disposing the insert into the cavity; welding the insert and cavity together; and sealing the opening at the lateral end of the cavity.

Resources Unity Pty Ltd Patent Attorneys for the Applicant/Nominated Person SPRUSON & FERGUSON

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FIG1A