US1647168A - Coal-handling apparatus - Google Patents

Description

1 Nov 1927 A. ALLEN GOAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed March 3, 1923 4 heets-Shee 1 A. ALLEN COAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed March 5. 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet? Nov. 1 1927.

, 1 I Nov. 1 1927.- A. ALLEN ,647168 GOA L HANDLING APPARATUS Filed March 5, 1923 I 4 Shehts-Sheet 3 Nov. 1 1 927 A. ALLEN COAL HANDLING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed March 5, 1923 jrauerzzor Wrewa fl w Patented Nov. 1, 1927.

UNITED STATES ANDREWS ALLEN, or GLE'NCOE, ILLINOIS.

COAL-HANDLING APPARATUS.

Application filed March 3, 1923. Serial No. 622,480.

' My invention relates to appa'rtus for handling coal and other materials and has particular reference'to an apparatus for loading hoisting skips tl e'bottom of a mine shaft, 5 and also thepro-vision of a skip having vertical sides, one side of which is angularly disposed with relation to the other side of the skip whereby the lading is so distributed that the filling of the skip is facilitated and the dumping thereof is made easier than is common in devices of this character.

The primary object of myinventionis the provision of coal handling apparatus which is as nearly automatic in its operation as l7; possible and by the operation of which the skips are filled to a predetermined capacity at the bottom of the mine shaft and with the hoisting of the skips the loading chute is automatically closed so the lading'is prevented from falling into the mine shaft, and when the skip reaches the bottom of the shaft or in loading position the loading spout is automatically turned into loading position so that the coal has a free passageway down into the chute fromthe weighing pan into the skip. p

Another and further-object of my'invention is the provision of a skip, one side of which extends upward at an angle of approximately 301 from the vertical, which,

with the mounting provided between the bailand skip, and also the making of the sides of the skip of different heightsv and dumping of theskip towards the lower side, causes an easy dumping of the skip with less rotation about its pivotal support and the discharge of the coal therefrom with a minimum amount of shock and therefore wear and tear upon the hoisting apparatus than what has been possible heretofore.

These and further objects of my inven tion will be more fully and betterunderstood by reference to-the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an elevational view of the lower portion of a mine shaft embodying my improved apparatus, partially in section and partially in elevation;

Figure 2is a detailed vertical sectional 50 view of the lower portion of the, mine shaft showingthe loading chute and skip in position to receive a load of material;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the lower portion of a mineshaft showing one loading chute inoperative position and the other leading; chute in closed position.

Figure 4 is a detail view of the latch member servingto hold the skip in position;

C Figure 5 is a side elevational view of the segmental operating pulley operating the loading spout and closure therefor;

Figure 6 is a front elevational view. of the device shown inFigure 5; and

-Figure 7 is adeta'il sectional view showing the guideroller and shaft upon which the said roller is mounted and which is attached to each of the skips.

-Referring now specifically to the drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, a mine compartment 10 is shown having a mine car dumping apparatus 11 positioned therein, the mine car 12 being shown in said dumping apparatus,

the dumping'apparatus being'mounted upon rollers 13 and 14: so that the mine car is overturned and its contents discharged into a weighing pan 15, two of which are provided, although only one is shown in the drawings, which one is suspended from a scale 16, the said weighing pan having a discharge opening 17 at the bottom thereof which is opened and closed by means of a door 18 having a cable 19 secured thereto, the door 18 being controlled by apparatus 20 so that the discharge of the-coal from the weighing pan 15 is controlled by the operator. In the lower part of compartment 10 is a frame 21 suitably supported by members 2222, the frar e 21 having a pair of loading chutes 23 and 28 positioned thereon, the upper ends of which are directly under the discharge chutes 18 from the weighing pans 15 and the lower ends lead downward adjacent the mine shaft 2& and extend into an opening 25 in the side of the mine shaft 24 and which connects the shaft 24 with the chamber 10. The mine shaft 24 is divided into a plurality of parallel extending ipassages 26 and-27, each of said'passages having vertical guides 28 secured tov the sides thereof'and with which the bail 29.carrying the skip m; gages as it travels up' and down the shafts. The bail 29 is composed of a pair of vertical members 30 and 31 which are connected together at their lower'ends by a transversely extending shaft 32 and have suitableconnections (not shown) at their upper ends, by means of which the bail 29 is secured to the hoisting cable, and have a plurality of wearing shoes 30 secured theretowhich operate in sliding engagement with the vertical lot) . vertical direction while the opposite side 37v guides 2828 at the sides of the shaft, these plates being tapered in longitudinal direction so that the skip is wedged between the vertical bail members 30 and 31 and sidewise movement of the skip is prevented. In the lower portion of the shaft 24 is a floor 33 upon which the lower end of the members 30 and 31, comprising the bail 29, rest when the skip is in position to be filled. A pair of landing shoes 3434 are secured to the shaft 32, which has mounted thereon the skip 35, one side of which 36 extends upwardly in a extends upward and outward at an angle of approximately 30 from the vertical, the skip thus being supported upon the shaft 32 and rotatably mounted upon said shaft for purposes of dumping when the skip is hoisted to the top of the shaft and is lower on the angularly disposed side or dumping side than on the other side. The skip is therefore triangular in shape and is supported at one side of the center of gravity of the load so that when the skip is being dumped there is a shifting of the load in the skip and the discharge of the lading therefron'i is facilitated, as the skip is dumped toward its lower angular side and the lading is discharged with less angular motion of the skip than if its dumpingside were straight. By provid ing a skip having one of its sides angularly disposed such as I have just described and. mounting it upon a bail off the cent-er of the lading, the lading when discharged into the skip naturally builds up toward the discharge point of the chute so that the center of gravity of the skip and ladin g falls to the side of the skip adjacent to the loading chute, or to the right side of the pivot point of the skip (Fig. 2), and prevents any tendency of the skip to dump in the shaft. The relative height of the two sides of the skip is such as to secure the maximum capacity with a skip of triangular shape and predetermined outside dimensions. .Vhen force is applied in dump-- ing the skip at the top of the shaft, the con ter of gravity of the load shifts to the left of the pivot point and the discharge of the lad ing commences almost immediately and is so rapid and smooth that the shock and breakage common to the dumping of a rectangular skip is entirely eliminated. If the lading will flow on'a angle, a skip with a 30 discharge side need be rotated only 105 in order to completely discharge its lading, instead of 135 as required in a rectangular skip. This small angularity of mo- 7 tion has the further advantage of great ra pidity and smoothness of discharge, less vertical motion during dumping, which means a lower head frame, and a minimum drop of the lading onto the discharge chute, also a greater load on the bail and cable, which means a betterhoisting cycle and evening of power as compared with a rectangular skip.

around the members 41 and. over pulleys 49' secured to the upper end of the frame 21, which has counterweights 5050 at the opposite ends thereof movable in guideways 5151 resting upon the floor of the chamber 10. Extending transversely across the top of the skip 35 is a shaft 52 having guide pulleys 53 and 54 on the outer ends there-of, said shaft being secured to the skip by means of bearing brackets 5555. Pivotally mounted by means of pins 56-56 upon each side of the shafts 26 and 27 is a pair of sword arms 57 and 58 to which the cables 45 are attached which lead to the segmental pulleys 41 operating the gate 39. The shape of the sword arms 57 is such that when the skip is lowered into the bottom of the shaft the pulleys 53 and 54 engage the said arms 57 at their upper ends (as shown in dotted lines in Figure 1), and as the skip is lowered the arm 57 is pushed backward, turning the segmental gate 39 down into the position shown in Figure 2 and bringing the chute 40 over the upper edge of the skip 35 so that coal or other lading is directed into the skip 35. Guide arms 57 are provided, which are secured to the sides of the mine shaft 27, which support the sword arms at their upper ends and hold them in proper alignment. Upon the skip 35 being filled, the hoisting operation commences and as the car is lifted the counterweights 5050 turn the segmental pulley 41 in a clockwise direction bringing the gate 39 up over the end of the top chute 23 and closing the end turning its spout 40 in a vertical direction and free of the shaft. The shaft 52 is held in position by means of a lag bolt 58 with the guide pulley 54 havmg a hub portion on its inner side thereof, with an annular groove 60 therein within one end of a bracket 61, which in turn is held to-the skip by means of cap screws 62, so that cotter pins or other means of holding thelpulleys 54 and 55 in position is dispensed wit 1.

A pair of locking devices 63 and 64 are provided on each side of the skip (one of such members shown in detail in Figure 4) for the purpose of holding the skip in an upright position with respect to the bail 29. These locking devices consist of a housing 65 on the side of the skip which is secured thereto by means of rivets 66-66 with a latch 67 pivotally mounted on abracket 68,

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' skip is held rigidly between the upright the latch having a pin 69 secured. thereto around which a coil spring 70 1s positioned,

' which is interposed between the outer wall of the housing 65 and the latch 67, the latch -67 being held in the: position shown in Figure in position to engage the bail 30 so. as to prevent the sk pfroni turning upon the shaft 32 until after the latch is released. The

members of the bail some 31, a wearing plate 72 being secured to each side of the skip and extending across the topthereof,

this plate being tapered in end toflend relation, as shown in Figure 4E, and operating in sliding engagement with wearing plugs 7 l7 4 secured in any suitable manner 'to the inner faces of the bailuprights 30 and 31,

- the taper of the plates causing the skip to make a wedge fit between the bail members and 31 and holding the skipsecurely and rigidly in position. The flange 75 on the brackets are provide don each side of the skip to act as a stop and abuts against the upright bail portions 30 and 31 and the the dumping direction.

wearing plugs 7 L secured thereto, so that the skip is locked between the latches 67 and the stops 75 and is also prevented from turning in the bail in a direction opposite to The latches extend through slots 71 inthe sidesof the skip and the wearing plates 7 2 and73 and engage the wearing plugs 74 when the skip .is held in vertical position, so that the skip is held securely in vertical position until the latches are released, usually by a releasing mecha nism in the tipple. which consists of a curved angle or track which engages th'e latches 67 and moves them back against thezspring to a point where the beveled end 65 will slide past wearing strip when the skip is moved forward in process of overturning.

flVhen the skipis lowered after'dumping, the beveled end 67 of the latch 67 slides againstthe beveled edges of the wearing plugs 7 4 into proper position where the latch is closed by the spring 70 after the skip has been brought to a vertical position and the latches have been released by the engaging members mounted in the tipple.

The parts hereinabove described are duplicated for the sections of the shaft 27, and it will be understood that a pair of skips may be provided which are secured to each end of a hoisting cable, so that while one is being dumped at the top of the shaft the other is receiving its lading at the bottom of the shaft, one of which is described in detail above, the other skip descending in the passage 27 before the loading chute 23 which operates in the same manner and has the same combination of parts as is de car 21 into the weighing pan 15 is weighed by the operator and held into position until the skipis at the bottom of the mine shaft, which, as the skip descends, as hereinabove described, opens the discharge chute 23 by turning the gate 39- down into position shown in'the drawings (Fig'uresil and 2). Thereupon the lading in the scale pan 15 is discharged through the opening 17 by opening the gate 18 and allowing the coal to pass by gravity down through the chute 23 into the skip 85. As soon as this operation is completed, the hoisting of the skip automatically closes the discharge chute 23, which retains any scatteringpieces oflcoal or other material in the chute 23 until the skip 35 is atthe bottom of the shaft ready torece ive its lading again, so that the control of this chute is entirely dependentupon the position of the skip and is entirelyautomatic in its action and its position is such abovethe skip that the lading is distributed throughout the entire skip. While I have described more or less precisely the details of construction, I do not wish to be understood as limitinginyself thereto, as I contemplate changes'in form and theproportion' of parts and the substitution of equivalents as circumstances may suggest or render expedient without departing from the spirit or. scope of my inven tion, such as the substitution o'f-a rotary counterweight rigidly connected to the back framework of the gate339, or theisubstitution of a strut or cable connection to a lever on the gate 38 as a-substitute for the segmental pulley 41. i I claim:

' 1. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to which said hoisting skip is pivot-ally secured, a conveying chute leading to the mine shaft, a pivotally mounted arcuate shaped counter-- weighted closure member having a discharge spout leading therefrom, pivotally. mount ed arm secured to the side of the said mine shaft, means for pivotally -mounting said arm in a line parallel with the longitudinal movement of the said hoisting skip. the said arm extending substantially in a vertical position, connecting means between the said arm and the said closure member and means upon the said hoisting skip for. engagement with the said arm.

2. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip. a bail to which said hoisting skip is secured a. conveying chute leadingto the mine shaft, a rotatably mounted counterweighted closure member for said chute having a discharge spout at the upper portion thereof, apivotally mounted arm secured to the side of the mine shaft, the said arm extending in a direction substantially parallel to the direction of the I nections between said arm and said closure member whereby the said closure member is operated, and means upon the said skip for engagement with the said arm.

3. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to Which said hoisting skip is secured. a conveying chute leading to the mine shaft, a rotatably mounted counterweighted closure member for said chute having adischarge spout at the upper portion thereof, a pivotally mounted curved arm, pivotally mounted means on the side of the mine shaft inside of the path of movement of the mine skip, connections between said curved arm and said closure member whereby the said closure member is operated, and means upon the said skip for engagement with the said curved arm.

4;. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to which said hoisting skip is pivotally secured, a conveying chute leading to the mine shaft, a rotatably mounted arcuate shaped closure member for said chute. curved arms mounted upon the side of the mine shaft, a roller carried by said hoisting skip adapted to engage the arms, a segment to which said closure member is secured, connecting means between the said segment and said arm, and a counterweight to operate said closure member in the opposite direction.

5. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to which said hoisting skip is p'ivotally secured, a conveying chute leading to the mine shaft. a rotatably mounted arcuate shaped closure member for said chute, curved arms mounted upon the side of the mine shaft, a pair of rollers carried by said hoisting skip adapted to engage the arms, a pair of segments to which said closure member is secured, connecting means between the said segments and said arms, and a weight adapted to counter act the force exerted by the hoisting skip upon the said curved arms and to return said closure member to closed position.

6. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to which the said skip is pivotally mounted, stops carried by the said skip on the dumping side thereof, pivotally mounted latch members on the opposite side of said skip adapted to engage said bail, tapered wearing plates on each side of the said skip and cooperating wearing members secured to the said bail Whereby the skip is wedged between the upright bail members.

7 Goal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail upon whichv the said skip is pivotally mounted, transversely extending wearing plates secured to said skip, cooperating wearing plugs secured to the said bail stops on the dumping side of the said skip, latches on the opposite side of said skip adapted to engage the said bail, the said wearing plates and wearing plugs having a wedging effect upon each other when the skip is in upright position.

8. Coal handling apparatus comprising in combination a hoisting skip, a bail to which said hoisting skip is pivotally secured. a conveying chute leading to the mine shaft, a rotatably mounted arcuate shaped closure member for said chute, curved arms mounted upon the side of the mine shaft and having their pivotal point in alignment with the path of movement of the mine skip, rollers carried by said hoisting skip adapted to en gage the arms, a crank member carried by said closure member, connecting means between the said crank member and the said arms, and a counterweight adapted to oper ate said closure member to a closed position.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this first day of March, 1923.

ANDREWS ALLEN.

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