CN106257993B

CN106257993B - Guide for coal or coal plough

Info

Publication number: CN106257993B
Application number: CN201580012601.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: G·塞佩科特; N·海塞; K·杜恩克; U·蒂耶森
Original assignee: Caterpillar Global Mining Europe GmbH
Current assignee: Caterpillar Inc
Priority date: 2014-03-14
Filing date: 2015-03-12
Publication date: 2021-10-08
Anticipated expiration: 2035-03-12
Also published as: EP3117077A1; CN106257993A; PL3117077T3; WO2015135654A1; EP3117077B1

Abstract

The invention provides a replaceable guide (10) for a coal or coal plough (100). The replaceable guide (10) includes a generally U-shaped guide body (12), the guide body (12) configured to be inserted into a guide jaw (14) of a coal plough (100). A single recess (22) is formed in a central portion of the guide body (12) so as to extend at an angle (alpha) from an upper side of the guide body (12) to a side surface of the guide body (12). The locking mechanism (24) is configured to engage with the single recess (22) to prevent the guide (10) from moving in the longitudinal direction upon insertion of the guide (10) into the guide pawl.

Description

Guide for coal or coal plough

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to mining machines for underground mining and, more particularly, to a guide for a coal or coal planer.

Background

In underground mining, so-called coal or coal ploughs are used for mining coal, for example in coal mines. Such coal mining or coal plough machines are usually supported on a conveyor placed in front of the coal head. The conveyor includes a plough guide attached to a side profile of the conveyor. The plough guide includes a guide rail on an upper side thereof, and the plough is guided on the guide rail by a pair of guide claws engaged with the guide rail.

A guide is provided between each guide claw of the plough and the guide rail. The guide piece is detachably attached to a guide claw of the coal plough and can be replaced after experiencing wear. US7,097,256B2 show examples of guides that slide on guide rails.

The disclosed systems and methods are directed, at least in part, to improvements in known systems.

Disclosure of Invention

In one aspect, the present invention relates to a guide for a coal mining or coal plough. The guide comprises a substantially U-shaped guide body configured to be inserted into a guide claw of the coal plough in an insertion direction. The guide body includes a first leg, a second leg, and a connecting portion extending between the first leg and the second leg. A recess is formed in the guide body to extend from an outer side of the connecting portion to an outer side of one of the first leg and the second leg at an angle relative to the connecting portion. The recess is configured to engage with the locking mechanism to prevent the guide from moving at least in a direction opposite to the insertion direction after the guide is mounted in the guide pawl.

In another aspect, the present invention relates to a locking mechanism for a guide of a coal mining or coal plough. The guide is configured to be inserted into a guide claw of the coal plough in an insertion direction. The locking mechanism includes a bolt configured to be received in a receiving hole formed in the guide pawl and to be received in a recess formed in the guide after the guide is installed in the guide pawl. The bolt further includes an inner bore and an annular groove disposed adjacent the first end of the bolt. The locking mechanism is configured to engage with the annular groove when the bolt is received in the receiving hole and the recess to secure the bolt in the receiving hole, thereby preventing the guide from moving at least in a direction opposite to the insertion direction.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a guide assembly for coal mining of a coal planer includes a guide and a locking mechanism. The guide includes a generally U-shaped guide body configured to be inserted into a guide jaw of a coal planer in an insertion direction. The guide body includes a first leg, a second leg, and a connecting portion extending between the first leg and the second leg. A recess is formed in the guide body to extend from an outer side of the connecting portion to an outer side of one of the first leg and the second leg at an angle relative to the connecting portion. The locking mechanism includes a bolt configured to be received in a receiving hole formed in the guide pawl and to be received in a recess formed in the guide after the guide is installed in the guide pawl. The bolt further includes an inner bore and an annular groove disposed adjacent the first end of the bolt. The locking mechanism is configured to engage with the annular groove when the bolt is received in the receiving hole and the recess to secure the bolt in the receiving hole, thereby preventing the guide from moving at least in a direction opposite to the insertion direction.

Other features and aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

FIG. 1 illustrates an assembly view of a guide inserted into a guide jaw of a coal planer in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the guide of fig. 1, mounted in and fixed to a guide jaw; and

fig. 3 shows a perspective view of a locking member of a locking mechanism for securing a guide to a guide pawl according to an exemplary embodiment.

Detailed Description

The following is a detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the invention. The exemplary embodiments described herein are intended to teach the principles of the present invention and thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to implement and use the invention in many different environments and for many different applications. Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments are not intended to, and should not be taken as, limiting the scope of protection. Rather, the scope of protection should be determined by the claims that follow.

The present invention may be based in part on the following recognition: when the guide is attached to the guide jaw of a coal plough, it is desirable to provide a mechanism for attaching the guide which allows the use of a guide having a relatively short length in the insertion direction (i.e. the longitudinal direction of the guide). This is because when using a mechanism in which the guide piece is attached to the guide claw at several positions in the longitudinal direction, the guide claw must have a longer length in the longitudinal direction, resulting in an increase in the loading height during a coal mining operation of the coal planer. The guide disclosed herein allows for a shorter guide and correspondingly shorter guide jaws, resulting in an increase in the available space during the loading operation.

Furthermore, the invention may be based in part on the following recognition: when a guide inserted into a guide claw of a coal plough must be replaced periodically during operation of the coal plough, it is desirable to allow for quick and easy replacement of the guide. According to the invention, this is achieved by fixing the guide to the guide pawl at a single position in the longitudinal direction (i.e. by a single locking mechanism that holds the guide in place in the longitudinal direction). With the disclosed locking mechanism, the guide can be easily removed from the guide pawl without having to loosen multiple nuts and bolts, for example.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows an assembly view of a guide 10 installed in a guide jaw 14 of a coal or coal planer 100.

As shown in fig. 1, the coal plough 100 includes a guide claw 14 formed on a side thereof. It will be readily appreciated that a second identical guide pawl may be formed on an opposite second end of the coal planer 100. When the guide 10 is inserted into the guide claw 14 from the outside of the coal plough 100 in the insertion direction d1, the guide claw 14 defines an interior space for receiving the guide 10. Specifically, the inner surface of the guide jaw 14 may be configured to include one or more support structures for supporting the guide 12 when the guide 12 is inserted into the guide jaw 14, thereby actively supporting the guide 12 inside the guide jaw 14. In addition, a stopper may be provided inside the guide claw 14 to define the end position of the guide 10 in the guide claw 14. In some embodiments, the inner side of the guide claw 14 may not be provided with a stopper, and the end position of the guide 10 may be defined by the stopper 11 formed as a projection on one end of the guide 10 as shown in fig. 1.

As shown in fig. 1, the guide 10 includes a generally U-shaped guide body 12 configured to be inserted into a guide claw 14 of the coal plough 100 along an insertion direction d 1. The guide 12 may be configured to be at least partially positively supported within the guide jaw 14 by the support structure described above. For example, a first projection 11a may be formed on the stopper 11 to project in the insertion direction d1, and a second projection 12a may be formed to project from the opposite end of the guide body 12 (e.g., also in the direction insertion d 1). The first and

second projections

11a, 12a may be configured to engage corresponding support structures formed in or on the guide pawl 14. For example, the first projecting portion 11a may be configured to engage the outer edge of the guide claw 14, and the second projecting portion 12a may be configured to engage with a groove or the like formed inside the guide claw 14. It will be readily appreciated that in other embodiments, a different configuration may be used to at least partially support the guide 10 inside the guide jaw 14 when the guide 10 is inserted into the guide jaw 14.

The U-shaped guide body 12 includes a depending first leg 16, a depending second leg 18, and a planar connecting portion 20 (see also fig. 2) extending between the first leg 16 and the second leg 18. Further, the guide body 12 includes a recess 22 formed in the guide body 12. The recess 22 extends from an outer side of the connection 20 to an outer side of one of the first and

second struts

16, 18 at an angle α (see fig. 2) relative to the planar connection 20 (in the example shown in fig. 2, the recess 22 is formed to extend from the connection 20 to the second strut 18). In some embodiments, the angle α may be between about 30 ° and about 60 °, for example, about 45 °. However, in other embodiments, different angles may be used.

It will be readily appreciated that in order to use the same guide 10 for guide jaws formed on opposite sides of the coal plough 100, the guide 10 may have a symmetrical configuration, i.e. it may comprise a further recess (second recess) 23 which may have substantially the same configuration as the recess 22 and may be formed on the opposite side of the guide 10, i.e. the additional recess 23 may extend from the connection 20 to the first leg 16 in the same way as the recess 22 extends from the connection 20 to the second leg 18 (see fig. 2).

The recess 22 is configured to engage the locking mechanism 24 after being inserted into the guide pawl 14 to prevent the guide 10 from moving in the insertion direction d 1. As shown in fig. 1, the locking mechanism 24 includes a bolt 26, a locking member 38, and a pin 40, which will be described in more detail below. As shown in fig. 1, guide 12 and locking mechanism 24 may form a guide assembly 200.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the locking mechanism 24 is shown in greater detail. Fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the guide 10 mounted in the guide pawl 14 and locked in a position inside the guide pawl 14 by the locking mechanism 24.

As shown in fig. 2, after the guide 10 has been inserted into the guide claw 14, the recess 22 is aligned with a receiving hole 34 that is formed in the guide claw 14 and extends through the guide claw 14 from the upper side of the guide claw 14 to the side surface thereof. In other words, as shown in fig. 2, the receiving hole 34 extends at the same angle α as the recess 22 with respect to the outer surface of the connecting portion 20 of the guide 10. Therefore, when the guide 10 is received in the guide claw 14, the bolt 26 can be inserted into the receiving hole 34 from above to extend through the receiving hole 34 and the recessed portion 22. In this way, the movement of the guide 10 in the insertion direction d1 (see fig. 1), i.e., in a direction perpendicular to the sectional view shown in fig. 2, is prevented by the bolt 26 inserted into the recess 22. As shown in fig. 1, the recess 22 may be configured as a single recess formed on each side of the guide body 12. For example, a single recess 22 may be formed in a central portion in the longitudinal direction of the guide body 12, which corresponds to the insertion direction d1, as will be readily understood.

In the example shown in fig. 1, the recess 22 is formed as a groove extending from the outside of the connecting portion 22 to the outside of one of the first and

second struts

16, 18 having a curved profile. In the example, the curved profile may be a generally semi-circular profile that matches the profile of the bolt 26. Thus, the guide 10 can be held securely in place by engagement of the bolts 26 within the respective recesses 22. However, it will be readily appreciated that in other exemplary embodiments, the recess 22 may be formed as a groove having a different profile. Further, it will be readily appreciated that while the recess 22 is shown in fig. 1 as a groove having a bottom surface, in other exemplary embodiments, the recess 22 may be formed to extend through the guide body 12, i.e., may be open toward the inside of the guide body 12. It is obvious that any suitable configuration of the groove 22 and the corresponding bolt 26 may be used, which allows to fix the position of the guide 10 in the longitudinal direction by engagement of the bolt 26 with the recess 22.

Returning now to fig. 2, the situation in which the bolt 26 is attached inside the receiving hole 34 and the recess 22 will be described in more detail. As shown in fig. 2, the bolt 26 includes a first end 32 and an opposing second end 33, and an internal bore 28 extending through the bolt 26 from the first end 32 to the second end 33. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the bore 28 includes a first portion having a first diameter adjacent the first end 32 and a second portion adjoining the first portion and having a second diameter greater than the first diameter. Additionally, an annular groove 30 may be formed in the bolt 26 adjacent the first end 32. It should be appreciated that in other exemplary embodiments, the bore 28 may not extend all the way through the bolt 26, i.e., the bolt 26 may be closed at the second end 33. Further, in other embodiments, the inner diameter of the inner bore 28 may be constant.

The locking member 38 is configured to engage with the groove 30 when the bolt 26 is inserted into the receiving hole 34 such that a side wall of the groove 30 disposed toward the second end 33 is aligned with the abutment surface 14a defining the receiving hole 34 of the guide pawl 14. Movement of the bolt 36 into the receiving bore 34 is further inhibited by the engagement of the locking member 38 with the annular groove 30 in this position.

When the locking member 38 is engaged with the annular groove 30 in the manner described above, the pin 40 (which may be formed to have an outer diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the internal bore 28 of the bolt 26) may be pushed into the internal bore 28 (see fig. 3) through the locking member internal bore 48 by applying a suitable force (e.g., with a hammer or the like). To allow the bolt 26 to expand, one or more cutouts or the like may be provided in the first end 32 of the bolt 26. In this way, the bolt 26 can expand in the region where the pin 40 is inserted, and thus can be fixed inside the receiving hole 34. In the same manner, the locking member 38, specifically, a portion of the locking member 38 engaged with the bolt 26 may also be expanded to fix the locking member 38 to the guide pawl 14. As shown in fig. 2, when the locking member 38 is engaged with the bolt 26, the bottom surface of the seat 44 (see fig. 3) of the locking member 38 is engaged with the abutment surface 14a of the guide pawl 14, and the arc-shaped surface 46a (see fig. 3) is abutted with the abutment surface 14b, which partially defines an opening in the guide pawl 14 into which the locking member 38 is inserted. With this structure, both the locking member 38 and the bolt 26 can be securely held in their own positions with respect to the direction in which the bolt 26 is inserted into the receiving hole 34 through the pin 40.

Referring now to fig. 3, the configuration of an exemplary embodiment of the locking member 38 is shown in greater detail.

As shown in fig. 3, the locking member 38 includes a substantially flat base 44 having a cutout 46 extending from an outer edge 44a of the base 44 toward the center of the base. The cutout 46 has a width w that corresponds to the diameter of the bolt 26 at the location where the annular groove 30 is formed. The locking member 38 further includes a head 46 extending from the seat 44. The head 46 includes an arcuate outer surface 46a, a bottom surface 46b facing the seat 44 and connected to the arcuate surface 46a, a distal end 46c (to which the arcuate surface 46a extends from the bottom surface 46 b), and a tapered surface 46d extending from the distal end 46c toward the outer edge 44a of the seat 44. In addition, the locking member 38 includes a locking member bore 48 formed at least in the head 46 and configured to receive the pin 40 when the pin 40 is pushed into the bore 28 of the bolt 26.

Thus, as is readily understood from fig. 2 and 3, the seat 44 of the locking member 38 is configured to engage the annular groove 30 of the bolt 26, and both the seat 44 and the arcuate surface 46a are configured to abut the abutment surfaces 14a, 14b when the locking member 38 is engaged with the bolt 26. Thus, the locking member 38 is held in place by abutment against the abutment surfaces 14a, 14b and is configured to engage a flange defined by the annular groove 30 formed in the bolt 26 at the first end 32 of the bolt 26.

It will be readily appreciated that while in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig. 3, the locking member 38 includes a seat 44 and a head 46 (including a locking member bore 48), in other embodiments, the locking member 38 may have a different configuration. For example, the head 46 may be omitted and the locking member 38 may be formed only by the seat 44. Any suitable configuration may be used for the locking member 38 as long as it allows engagement with the annular groove 30 of the bolt 26 to limit movement of the bolt 26 in the direction of insertion into the receiving bore 34. Additionally, while in the exemplary embodiment shown in fig. 2 and 3, the locking member inner bore 48 may be formed to have the same diameter as the inner bore 28 of the bolt 26, in other embodiments, the diameter of the locking member inner bore 48 may be different than the diameter of the inner bore 28. Thus, in some embodiments, only the bolt 26 may expand when the pin 40 is pushed into the internal bore 28, and the locking member 38 may indirectly expand through expansion of the first end 32 of the bolt 26.

Industrial applicability

From the foregoing discussion, the industrial applicability of the systems and methods disclosed herein will be readily appreciated. One exemplary machine suitable for use in the present invention is an underground mining machine, such as a coal mining or coal plough. However, it will be readily appreciated that the systems and methods disclosed herein may be applied to other systems in which a machine is guided on a guide rail and a guide is inserted between the guide rail and a corresponding guide jaw of the machine.

According to some embodiments, a method of installing and/or replacing a guide 10 in a guide jaw 14 includes the following steps.

When the guide 10 is to be installed in the guide jaw 14, the guide 10 may be provided and the guide 10 is inserted into the inner space formed in the guide jaw 14 in the insertion direction d1 (see fig. 1). The guide 10 may be configured to be actively supported at least partially by the guide pawl 14 via the projections 11a, 11 b. The movement of the guide 10 in the insertion direction d1 may be limited by a stopper 11 formed on one end of the guide 10.

When the guide 10 reaches its end position inside the guide claw 14, the recess 22 formed in the guide body 12 is aligned with the receiving hole 43 formed in the guide claw 14.

In order to fix the position of the guide 10 in the insertion direction d1 (i.e., the longitudinal direction of the guide 10), the bolt 26 is inserted into the receiving hole 34 through an opening formed in the upper side of the guide claw 14 and simultaneously into the recess 22. Thus, the movement of the guide 10 in the longitudinal direction is prevented, so that the position of the guide 10 in the insertion direction d1 is fixed.

The locking member 38 then engages the annular groove 30 formed in the first end 32 of the bolt 26, thereby restricting movement of the bolt 26 inside the receiving bore 34 and recess 22.

In this configuration, the seat 44 of the locking member 38 abuts the abutment surface 14a and the arcuate surface 46a of the locking member 38 abuts the respective abutment surface 14 b. Next, the pin 40 is pushed into the bore 28 of the bolt 26. Since the pin 40 has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the internal bore 28 of the bolt 26, the bolt 26 expands at the first end 32, securing the bolt 26 inside the receiving bore 34, and additionally securing the locking member 38 by expanding the bolt 26. Thus, the bolt 26 and thus the guide 10 is firmly attached inside the guide pawl 14.

During operation of the coal planer 100, the guide 10 may be worn and may need to be replaced after a certain number of operating hours. To replace the guide 10, the pin 40 may be further pushed into the bolt 26 by using a suitable tool (e.g., a mandrel, etc.). As shown in fig. 2, this may be facilitated by the inner bore 28 being formed with a larger diameter in the portion of the bolt 26 extending from the annular groove 30 towards the second end 33. Thus, once the pin 40 has been pushed through the annular groove 30, the pin 40 may be stripped from the bolt 26 at the second end 33. Thus, the second end 32 of the bolt 26 will return to its original form with a reduced diameter, and the locking member 38 may be removed from the screw 26. After removing the locking member 38, the bolt 26 may be removed from the receiving hole 34 through an opening formed in an outer side surface of the guide claw 14 (see fig. 1), or the bolt 26 may be removed from the upper side of the guide claw 14, i.e., the bolt 26 may be pulled out from the receiving hole 34 or the upper side of the guide claw 14.

Removing the bolt 26 from the receiving hole 34 allows the guide 10 to be moved in a direction opposite to the insertion direction d1 to remove the guide 10 from the guide pawl 14. In this way, the guide 10 can be easily removed from the guide claw 14 without loosening a plurality of nuts and bolts or the like. After removal of the worn guide 10, a new guide 10 can be inserted as a replacement part into the guide claw 14 in the manner described above.

It will be appreciated that the foregoing description provides examples of the disclosed systems and methods. However, it is contemplated that other embodiments of the invention may differ in detail from the previous examples. All references to the invention or examples thereof are intended to reference the particular example being discussed at that point and are not intended to generally imply any limitation as to the scope of the invention. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been described herein, improvements and modifications may be incorporated without departing from the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A guide (10) for a shearer loader, comprising:

a substantially U-shaped guide body (12) configured to be inserted into a guide jaw (14) of the shearer loader along an insertion direction (d1), the guide body (12) comprising a first leg (16), a second leg (18), and a planar connection (20) extending between the first leg (16) and the second leg (18),

characterized by having a first single recess (22) formed in the guide body (12) to extend from an outside of the planar connection (20) to an outside of one of the first leg (16) and the second leg (18) at an angle (a) relative to the planar connection (20), the first single recess (22) being configured to engage with a locking mechanism (24) to prevent movement of the guide (10) at least in a direction opposite the insertion direction (d1) after the guide (10) is installed in the guide pawl (14), the angle (a) being between 30 ° and 60 °.

2. The guide according to claim 1, wherein the first single recess is formed in a central portion of the guide body (12) in a longitudinal direction of the guide body (12).

3. The guide of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first single recess (22) is formed as a groove extending from the outer side of the planar connection (20) to the outer side of the one of the first and second struts (16, 18).

4. The guide of claim 3, wherein the groove has a generally semi-circular profile.

5. Guide according to claim 1, wherein said angle (a) is about 45 °.

6. The guide of claim 1 or 2, wherein the guide (10) further comprises a second single recess (23), the second single recess (23) being formed in the guide body (12) to extend at the angle (a) relative to the planar connection (20) from the outer side of the planar connection (20) to the outer side of the other of the first and second struts (16, 18).

7. Guide according to claim 6, wherein said second single recess (23) has a configuration substantially identical to the configuration of said first single recess (22).

8. The guide of claim 1 or 2, further comprising at least one protrusion (11a, 12a), the at least one protrusion (11a, 12a) being formed to protrude from the guide body (12) in the insertion direction (d1), the at least one protrusion (11a, 12a) being configured to at least partially support the guide (10) in the guide jaw (14) by positively engaging the guide (10) in the guide jaw (14).

9. The guide of claim 8, wherein the at least one projection (11a) includes at least one of a first projection (11) and a second projection (12a), the first projection (11) projecting from a stopper formed at one end of the guide body (12) to at least partially restrict movement of the guide (10) in the insertion direction (d1) when the guide (10) is inserted into the guide pawl (14), the second projection (12a) being formed on an opposite end of the guide body (12) to project therefrom.

10. The guide of claim 1, wherein the shearer is a coal planer.