US2047589A

US2047589A - Material handling mechanism

Info

Publication number: US2047589A
Application number: US671375A
Authority: US
Inventors: Nils D Levin
Original assignee: Jeffrey Manufacturing Co
Current assignee: Jeffrey Manufacturing Co
Priority date: 1933-05-16
Filing date: 1933-05-16
Publication date: 1936-07-14
Anticipated expiration: 1953-07-14

Description

y 1935- N. D. LEVIN MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANISM 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 16, 1933 E 68 ea 3 5 [NI/ENTOE.

- Nnj D. LEWN.

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July 14, 1936. N. D. LEVIN MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANISM Filed May 16, 1933 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATT'Y y 1936- N, D. LEVIN V MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANISM Filed May 16, 1933 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 July 14, 1936. N. LEVIN I 2,047,589

MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANISM v Filed May 16, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 f/l/Vf/VTOP.

Nms D. LEVlN. adg. 714.71%,

July 14, 1936. N. D. LEVIN MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANI SM 1933 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 16, MR 2'1 f/vz/f/vroe:

NHj D. LEVIN,

BY M. Ma,

Patented July 14, 1936 MATERIAL HANDLING MECHANISM Nils n. Levin, Columbus, Ohio, assignor to The.

Jeffrey Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Ohio Application May 16, 1933, Serial No. 671,375

33 Claims.

In material handling operations, illustrated, for example, in coal mining, there are frequently employed machines comprising gathering and loading devices for the purpose of loading coal from the face of a mine working and to deposit such coal into mine cars, by means of which the coal may be quickly removed from the mine.

Such machines embrace, generally, a substantially horizontal conveyor section which has its delivery end arranged above the receiving end of a discharge or rear conveyor, the latter being supported for pivotal movement about a vertical axis at its receiving end. The draft devices of each conveyor travel between side walls,

a gap being left between the side walls of the two conveyors in order to permit their pivotal adjustment. The receiving end of the second conveyor is formed as a hopper, and there may be flexible wall elements between the side wall ends of the two conveyors, these wall elements forming side walls for the hopper and serving to prevent the loss of material therefrom and to guide the material from one conveyor to the other.

The present invention modifies the above outlined construction, a principal feature of the present invention being in forming the rear conveyor in two sections, pivotally interconnected, so that the rear section may be turned in an arc relative to the other section, there being provided a yieldable interconnection between the walls of each section, this interconnection being of a highly simplified design, resulting in an easily manufactured and, consequently, a cheaper machine than has been heretofore possible.

By virtue of the improved machine of the present invention, it is possible to direct, easily, the flow of conveyed material to one side or the other of the machine, thus enabling, for instance, the loading of a mine car on tracks laid laterally of the machine, it being unnecessary, therefore, to

carefully aline the machine and car.

The present invention provides a machine in tail hereinafter; and the invention will be more I readily understood by reference to the accom 6 panying drawings in which: Fig. 1 represents a side elevation ofa machine embracing the present improvements;

Fig. 1a is a continuation of Fig. 1, showing the forepart of the machine of Fig. 1, the figure hav- 10 ing been divided to accommodate it to the size of the sheet of drawings;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view of a part of the machine embracirig the present improvements; v 15' Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken generally on the line 33 of Fig. 2, the conveyor chain being shown for clarity, in elevation;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional viewtaken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1; 20

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 5-5 of Fig-'1; i

Fig, 6 is a section taken on line 6--6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is a section taken on line ltofl ig. 2;

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional viewtaken on 26 the center line of an intermediate section of the conveyor structure, the conveyor chain being omitted; I

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary plan view of the front portion of the pivoted section of the conveyor, 30 with the chain omitted;

Fig. 10 is a section on line I0lll of Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view on line H-ll of Fig. 9.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 35 the improved machine is shown as comprising a gathering unit, the rear end of which is indicated at A, adapted to discharge material onto the loading unit B, which loading unit is provided with a horizontally adjustable section C, adapted for 40 horizontal adjustment on pivot D. The machine is mounted on a turntable E through various drive instrumentalities to 'be described in more detail I hereinafter, which turntable is mounted on a truck F, provided with wheels G adapted to run 5 on a track H.

The present invention is concerned principally with the loading part of the mechanism, and accordingly the gathering mechanism is only fragmentarily shown.

The elements of the loading unit B comprise a body portion formed of a plurality of sections, certain of which are yieldably mounted and interconnected so as to yield under the influence of vertical stresses imparted thereto, preventing,

thereby, possibility of damage. Other sections are interconnected to enable a horizontal adjustment of the delivery end of the unit, so that the delivery end may be swung around in a predetermined horizontal arc.

Considering in more detail the structure of the machine, it will be seen that it comprises a bottom,'side walls forming a conveyor trough with the bottom, and mounting devices for mounting the machine on a truck or other suitable transporting instrumentalities. The bottom slopes upwardly from where the loading unit receives the material from the gathering unit, the material being discharged from the latter into the hopper i of the loading unit. From this loading unit the bottom 2 slopes in an upwardly inclined plane until the break indicated by the line 3 in Fig. 2 is reached, which break enables the vertical yielding adjustment previously mentioned and hereinafter to be more fully referred to, to be accomplished. The bottom of the machine is then continued by the upwardly curved section 4 which leads to the segment section 5. It will be understood that the upper surfaces of these bottom sections are flush with one another to present a smooth surface for the material being handled. The arcuate configuration of this segmental section 5 enables the swinging part C of the machine to closely engage the remainder of the unit while being tumable through an arc of a substantial predetermined magnitude in order to effect the required adjustment.

Secured to the bottom plate 2 and on each side thereof are the side plates 8, these plates being secured together in any suitable manner to form a continuous wall for retaining the material on the unit. A break in the continuity of these side plates is indicated at 1, which-break occurs adjacent the break 3 in the bottom of the machine, and, of course, are' for the purpose of accomplishing the vertical yielding adjustment hereinbefore referred to.

The side walls are continued by means of plates 8 which are bent intermediate their length into the vertically upstanding parts 9 and terminate in the outwardly bent ends ill. The gaps between the plates 6 and 8, which gaps break the continuity of the walls, are closed by auxiliary plates I I riveted or otherwise secured at I2 to the plates 8. Loss'of material through these gaps is thereby prevented.

To the construction described up to this point is pivoted, at D, the section C. This section is swingable in a horizontal arc around pivot D, being carried by the pivot and by anti-friction rollers l3 traveling on an arcuate track l4 on a segmental base |5 suitably mounted on the machine beneath the bottom of the conveyor trough structurally described above. The rollers l3 are mounted in brackets l3a, mounted on the plates II. This section C includes the bottom I6 and side plates I'l, together with plates I49 with which bottom 16 is integral, thereby forming a continuation of the conveyor trough. The plates i! are connected by an integral bottom web l'la. In order to permit the horizontal arcuate adjustment of the sections there must be a gap between the plates 8 and plates l1, this gap being of such a width as will enable the required movement of section C to take place without restriction An important feature of this invention deals with improved closure instrumentalities for these gaps which will enable the free movement of the section C while preventing loss of material through these gaps.

2,047,:sao

These instrumentalities include parts arranged in the manner now to be described. Referring to Figs. 2 and 7, it will be seen that on the end of each side plate I! of section C adjacent the bent ends it) of plates 8 are suitably secured two bosses or hinge supports 20 between which are mounted, on a hinge pin I3, a hinge 2 I, which is welded or otherwise suitably secured to a curved hinge plate 22. These hinge plates are held in constant engagement with bent ends ill of plates 8 bycompression springs 23 mounted on retaining pins 24 having head portions 25 on one end, which retaining pins are pivotally mounted in the hinges 2| by bolts 26 and the other ends of which are supported through apertures in the brackets 21 rigidly secured to the sides II. It will be seen from the foregoing description that the springs 23 are compressed between the brackets 21 and the head portion 25 of the retaining pins so that a force will be acting to rotate the hinged plates 22 about the hinge pins l3 to keep said plates in constant engagement with the bent ends "I in all horizontal arcuate movements of section C, thus continuously closing the gaps between plates l1 and plates 8.

The horizontal adjustment of section C may be maintained by passing a pin 28a through a socket 28 and a corresponding hole 29, there being provided a plurality of holes 23 in the base I, which holes are disposed concentrically with the arc in which section C swings.

The machine embraces'also an endless conveyor chain 30, provided-with laterally extending material engaging flights 3| integral with side bars 3|a, side bars 32, and links 38 and 33. Side bars 3Ia and 32 are provided with laterally extending lugs 33 adapted to run between guide members 34. The guide members 34 are provided with overhanging flanges 35 projecting over the lugs 33 and between which the side bars 3la and 32 of the conveyor chain pass. The side bars 32 of the chain are recessed as indicated at 38, thus reducing the weight of the conveyor chain and also roughening the upper surface to reduce the slippage over the chain of the material being conveyed.

The side bars 3la and 32 of the chain are connected by connecting links 38 and 39 for vertical movement about horizontal pivot pins 48, and the links 38 and 39 are interconnected by a vertical pivot pin 4| for horizontal pivotal movement. Thus it will be seen the chain, having both horizontal and vertical pivots, will adapt itself for both the horizontal. and vertical adjustment of the machine sections.

On its return beneath the bottom of the conveyor trough of section C, the conveyor chain passes between the guides 42 and 42b, these guides being in registry with each other and which have the inwardly directed flanges 43, from which flanges the conveyor chain is suspended by the lugs 33. Beneath the pivot D, the guide 42 is interrupted, then continues as indicated at 420., there being a gap between the guide sections 42 and 42a. In order to prevent sagging of the chain as it passes through this gap when the conveyor chain is reversed from its normal travel and in order to assure the proper return of the chain into the guide 42 or 420., there may be provided a circular abutment plate 44, mounted on the base l5 by means of a cap screw 45 extending through a suitable aperture in the base l5. The plate 44 is located on the center of the pivot for section C and is positioned directly beneath the gap between the guides, being arranged so that the sagging conveyor chain will engage this plate in any position of section C and be supported thereby for enabling the chain to properly pass into the guide 42 or 42a. The guides 42 and 42a have their chain receiving ends 45 and 45a turned downwardly, somewhat, to facilitate proper entrance of the lugs 83 of the conveyor chain.

Beneath the bottom of the curved section 4 and the segmental section 5 are placed reinforcing plates 4a, 4b, and 5a and 5b, respectively, which extend sufliciently far beneath the bottom parts 4 and 5 in either direction from the pivot D to prevent buckling of the bottom parts under the weight of the material being conveyed therealong, together with the weight of the overhangture heretofore set forth is turnably mounted around a vertical axis by being mounted on the turntable E as previously described. This turntable comprises a frame 41 upon which the conveyor mechanism and driving instrumentalities are mounted, the mounting of the former being accomplished through suitable means including the side plates 48.

Power for driving is supplied by a motor 49 which continuously rotates a sprocket 58 fixed on the armature shaft 5 I. By means of a sprocket chain- 52 engaging the teeth of the sprocket 58, and the teeth of a speed reducing sprocket 53 fixedly mounted on a shaft 54, this shaft is continuously rotated. The other end of shaft 54 is provided with a sprocket not shown, which in turn drives sprocket 55, through suitable in-' strumentalities, sprocket 55 being bushed with a sleeve 55 freely rotatably mounted on shaft 51. Shaft 51 is suitably journalled in the frame 41 of the turntable in bearings I34. Power is transmitted to the shaft 51 by means of a suitable clutch device 58, the element 580. of which is slidably keyed to the shaft 51 by means of a key 59 fixed in a slot'in the shaft. Operation of the clutch element 58a to engage it with the cooperating rotating jaw 58 integral with the sprocket 55, effects rotation of the shaft 51. Fixedly keyed on shaft 51 is the sprocket 5|, the teeth 52 of which engage the links of the con veyor chain to drive this chain.

A sprocket 53 integral with sprocket 55 and also bushed with sleeve 55 drives, by means of chain 64, a. sprocket 55 keyed at 66 to shaft 61, thereby rotating this shaft, and transmitting rotation to clutch element 68a of clutch 58, element 58a being slidably keyed, as indicated at 59, to shaft 51, mounted in bearings 51a and 81b secured to the side plates 47a of frame 41.

Loosely mounted on shaft 51 is a sleeve 18, carrying a pocket sheave H, the sleeve and sheave being held in proper position on the shaft between a spacer 12 and a collar 13. sheave 1I is actuated by engagement of the rotating clutch element 68a with jaws 1Ia of clutch 68, the jaws being integral with one side of said sheave.

Passing over the sheave II is a universally flexible chain '14, this chain being an endless chain looped over the sheave H and passed downwardly substantially through the pivotal center of the turntable and in opposite directions around

sheaves

15 and 15, each of which is mounted on a shaft 11 supported in cooperating angle brackets 18 and I9 riveted or otherwise secured at 88 to

shafts

85 and 85, carrying the truck wheels G. 5

On the shaft 85 and 88 are sheaves 81 and 88 over which the chain 14 passes for propelling the mechanism along track H.

The chain 52 is guided over a sheave 89 mounted on a side plate 41a of the turntable structure 41. Keyed to the right-handend of the shaft 51 (as viewed in Fig. 5) is the male portion 9Ia of a cone clutch 9I, the female portion 92 of which clutch constitutes a conical flange integral with one end of a rope drum 93. At the other end of the rope drum and integral with the side wall thereof is a cylindrical flange 94, surrounded by a brake band H5. The drum 93 is mounted for free movement on the shaft 51, an annular flange 95 being spaced from end wall 93a of the drum. 20 This flange 95 is integral with the drum. Actuation of the flange 95 and drum is accomplished by the provision of a shifting collar 95, which is made in two halves, grooved to fit over flange 95, and bolted together by suitable securing members, 25 this collar 95 being in turn operated by a shifting yoke 91, actuated by suitable lever mechanism indicated generally at 91a. From the drum 93 extends a cable 98, which passes over sheave 99, thence to a sheave I88 and then back to a sheave 30 corresponding to sheave 99, on the opposite side of the frame. From this sheave, the cable passes around a sheave IIlI located behind sheave I88, and from this last sheave, the cable passes back to, and is secured at, a suitable point on the conveyor frame.

The sheaves I88 and I8I are located on an extending arm I82 of a lever I83, fulcrumed at I84 to the gathering unit A. From the upper end of this lever extends a second cable I95 fastened to the front end of the gathering unit, whereby upon actuation of lever I83 by cable 98, the lever is lifted to raise the gathering unit A sufiiciently to enable the placement of a pony truck thereunder for transportation of the machine. The gathering unit A turns vertically on pivot I85, which is sufficiently free to allow a longitudinal tilting of the unit, and also horizontally turns on pivot Iflfia.

The pivotal connection I85 comprises a pin I81 passing through brackets I88 secured beneath. the discharge end of the gathering unit A and passing through brackets I89, off-set from frame H8 at the loading hopper I of the loading unit, the frame H8 being horizontally turnable about pivot IBM.

In addition to actuating the lever I88 as above referred to for lifting the gathering unit A, the cable 98 is employed to move the machine into its position of service. To this end, cable 98 is removed from the sheaves 99, I88 and IM and passed around sheaves III and H2, mounted on suitable supports H3 and IM respectively, the free end of. the cable being attached to an anchor post, in a well understood manner, whence, by 5 pulling upon the cable by actuating the drum 93. the machine may be pulled into the material.

Control instrurnentalities for controlling the actuation of the drum 93 are desirable, and these instrumentalities include a brake-band II5, one 7 end of which is connected at II6 to the lever H8 and which end is provided with adjustment mechanism ill. The other end of said brake band is secured to the fulcrum II9 of the lever II 8. It will be understood that the lever is ful- 75 crumed at I I9 to bracket I24 and is provided with a seriesof teeth I2I, engageable by arm I22 pivoted at I23 to bracket 99. The arm I22 interlocks with the teeth I2I on the lever, to hold the lever in desired adjusted position.

One of the advantages oi the present machine lies in its adaptability to handle material, such as coal, when in large lumps. In coal mining operations, therefore, the amount or blasting required to shatter the working face of the coal is materially reducedj In view of the fact that the space in which the operations are carried out is frequently very limited, it sometimes happens that large lumps of coal may become lodged between the loading unit of the machine and the ceiling of the mine room in which the machine is operating. In order to prevent possible damage or breakage of parts of the machine under such conditions, the loading unit B is vertically yieldable. To this end the unit B includes a section I32 yieldably interconnected by suitable yieldable hinge structure to the sloping part or section of the unit B, which sloping section for convenience is generally designated at I33. This yieldable hinge structure includes the hinge or pivotal bearing I29 which is mounted at the end of each side plate 9. It will be understood that there is one of these bearings on each side of the machine, each of which bearings is pivoted on a pivot pin I25, fixed in a bracket I24. Each of these brackets I24 is bolted or otherwise secured to the rear sides oi. the slope section I33. Integral with and projecting rearwardly from each bracket I24 is an arm I24a, each arm being bifurcated at its end for receiving an eye bolt I21. Each of these bolts is secured in position by a pin I28 which pin nevertheless enables pivotal movement of the respective bolts. It will be understood that the plate I5 is provided with suitable apertures I5a through which the eye bolts I21 are passed. The eye bolts are threaded at their lower ends, and serve as supports for the springs I26, these springs being held in position on the bolts I21 by cooperation oi a washer I3I and nut I30 with the plate I5. The tension of the spring I26 is adjusted by means oi the nuts I39, the springs yieldably cushioning the section I32 and section of the unit B under vertical impacts which may be impressed thereon. In addition to being vertically yieldable, the entire unit B is mounted for vertical pivotal move ment so that the ends may be adjusted to varying heights during operating conditions. The entire unit is therefore turnably mounted through bearings I34 suitably mounted on the truck frame.

It will be noted from the drawings that section 0, being a comparatively light section, is provided with reinforcing means adjacent its pivot end. These reinforcing means include a filling plate I35 which fills the space between the bottom web I'Ia of plates I1, and angles I36, which angles reinforce the frame of section C throughout the length of the rear part of the section. Between the reinforcing plates b and the heavy conveyor trough section I6a are positioned the filler plates I31 which assist in supporting the segmental plate 5. Between the side plates I49 of the trough and plates I1 are filler plates I49a. It will be understood that plate 5 is a part of section I32, while plates 5b and I31 are parts of section C. The plates 5a and 5b are beveled at their rear ends to prevent obstruction to the travel of the conveyor chain. The plate 5b has a forward aperture I38 having a key way I38a therein, the aperture I38 receiving a pivot pin at the pivot point D. This pin, indicated at I39, has a hardened head I43, which is covered with a cap I, this cap being mounted in plate A and being flush with the upper surface thereof.

openings I42 extend through the plates in and 511, these openings forming outlets through which is material collecting between the plates 5 and 52) may pass. Splice platm I43 are provided for splicing together plates 4 and 5, and are beveled at I44 for pushing the said material through openings I42 during movement oi! section C.

Welded to the bottom of the guide 42b, which is a continuation of guide42, are the plates I45 which act on the conveyor flights 3| to remove adhering material therefrom.

Supported on the web He is the shoe I49 upon which the conveyor chain rides, this shoe taking the downward thrust of the conveyor chain at the bend thereof, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, thus preventing tendency of the chain to straighten with attendant likelihood of displacement, thereby relieving excessive strain on the guides. For centering the conveyor'chain as it passes on to the head sprocket I41, are bars I48 mounted on the side plates I49 01 theconveyor trough of section C.

It will be seen also that the top guides 34 of sections I32 and I33 terminate substantially at the pivot point D, and are not continued on to section C. Section C, however, is provided with the bottom guides 4217, which register with the bottom guides 42, which latter are interrupted at the pivot D and then continue beneath sec- I tion I32, as guides 420, until the sloping section I33 is reached, where the bottom guides terminate, the fiights 3| resting on the bottom trough I50 of section I33.

Referring now to Fig. 5, it may be noted that the sheave H is threaded at I5I to receive a nut I52 which abuts the spacer 12, so that excessive wear on any of the associated parts of the mechanism mounted on shaft 51 may be taken up by suitable manipulation of the nut I52. This nut is provided with peripheral recesses I53 into which a key I54 may be passed and bolted to the sheave as indicated at I55, thereby locking the nut in desired position.

When the clutch 9| is actuated, thrusts are transmitted to thrust bearings I56 and I51. Thrust bearing I56 is held in place between bearing 51b and housing I53, the latter being secured in position by the key 69. The bearing I51 is held in position between the Shifting collar 95 and flange 95 of the drum 93, the collar 96 being provided with the annular flange I59 for engaging the bearing I 51.

Obviously those skilled in the art may make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended, and I wish therefore not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed.

The mounting and operating apparatus for the main conveyor unit and the gathering unit, shown in Figs. 1, 1a and 5, are disclosed and claimed in my Patents N0. 1,997,589 issued April 16, 1935, for an Improvement in material handling mechanism; No. 1,997,591 issued April 16, 1935, for an Improvement in material handling mechanism; and No. 1,997,590, issued April 16, 1935, for an Improvement in material handling mechanism; and in the patent of Edward G. Lewis, No. 1,997,- 592, issued April 16, 1935, for an Improvement in material handling mechanism.

Having thus described and shown an embodi- 9,047,589. ment or my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent 01- theUnited States is:

1. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination 01' a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end. or the other, one of the said troughs being mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the two troughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the remainder, auxiliary wall elements extending between the respective side walls oi. the troughs in continuous close engagement therewith, mounting means for mounting the said auxiliary wall elements on the side walls of one of the troughs, the adjacent ends of the side walls of the adjacent trough being bent into engagement with the said auxiliary wall elements to maintain the said close engagement of the auxiliary elements with the side walls to guide material from one trough to the other in all of their relative angular positions.

2. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of which troughs is mounted for pivoted movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the twotroughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the other trough, auxiliary wall elements joining the respective side walls of the troughs, and yieldable means for pressing upon the said auxiliary wall elements whereby the latter form guides for material moving from one section to the other in all of the relative angular positions of the troughs.

3. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of the said troughs having a section thereof mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the remainder of the trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the sections to permit swinging movement of the pivoted section relative to the remainder,

auxiliary wall elements extending between the ing side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of the troughs being mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the two troughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the other, auxiliary wall elements bridging the respective side walls of the troughs, means securing the auxiliary wall elements at one end to the end ofa side wall of one of the troughs, the said auxiliary wall elements overlapping the side walls of the other trough, and spring means associated with the said auxiliary wall elements continuously pressing the latter against the side walls of the other trough for forming guides for the material passing from one trough to the other in all of the relative angular positions of the troughs.

5. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposedrelative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of said troughs being mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other'trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the two troughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the other, auxiliary wall elements extending between the respective side walls of the troughs, means for mounting the auxiliary wall elements on one end of the side walls of one of the troughs, the adjacent ends of the side walls of the other trough being bent to maintain close'engagement with the auxiliary wall elements, whereby the lat ter will guide material from one trough to the other in all of their relative angular positions.

6. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of the troughs being mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the two troughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the other, auxiliary wall elements joining the respective side walls of the troughs, means for mounting of the said auxiliary wall elements on the side walls of one of the troughs, the said auxiliary wall elements being shaped to overlap the ends of the side walls of the other trough, in sliding relation therewith, and yieldable means associated with the auxiliary Wall elements to maintain the latter in material guiding relation to the side walls of the other trough in all angular relations of the troughs.

'7. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of a pair of troughs each including side and bottom walls, one of the troughs being disposed relative to the other to deliver to an adjacent receiving end of the other, one of the troughs being mounted for pivotal movement about an axis at its end adjacent the other trough, there being a gap between the adjacent ends of the side walls of the troughs to permit swinging movement of the pivoted trough relative to the other, auxiliary wall elements joining the respective side walls of the troughs, means for mounting the auxiliary wall elements on the side walls of one of the troughs, the said means including a bracket mounted on each of the side walls of the trough, lugs pivotally mounted on the end of the side wall and connected with a respective auxiliary wall element, and a spring mounted between the bracket and the lugs, the auxiliary wall elements overlapping the adjacent side walls of the other trough in sliding relation therewith, the said springs maintaining the auxiliary wall elements in material guidingrelation to the side walls of the said other trough in all angular relations of the trough.

8. Material handling mechanism comprising in combination a pair of troughs, including side and connected for swinging movement, there being 'a gap between adjacent ends of the side walls of the sections to permit relative swinging movement of the troughs, auxiliary wall means for bridging the gap between the side walls, and pressure devices for maintaining the said auxiliary wall means in material guiding relation to the side walls in all angular relations of the troughs.

9:. Material handling mechanism comprising -a sectional trough including side and bottom walls, at least one of the sections being turnable laterally relative to the remaining sections, there being gaps between the side walls of the sections, closure members carried by the sections for bridging the gaps, and pressure means for continuously maintaining the closure members in material guiding relation to the side walls of the sections in all angular relations thereof.

10. Material handling mechanism comprising a sectional trough, including side and bottom walls, at least one of the sections being turnable laterally relative to the remaining sections, there being gaps between the side walls of the sections, closure members carried by the turnable section for bridging the, said gaps, and yieldable pressure means for continuously maintaining the closure members in material guiding relation to the side walls in all angular relations thereof.

11. Material handling mechanism comprising a sectional trough including side and bottom walls, at least one of the sections being turnable in an are relative to the remaining sections, there being gaps between the side walls of the sections, an arcuate track beneath the turnable section for supporting the section, and along which the section runs, closure members for bridging the said gaps, mounting means for the closure members on the walls of one of the sections, the said closure members being in slidable engagement with the walls of the other section, the said mounting means including spring actuated ins'trumentalities engaging the closure members for maintaining the said members in material guiding engagement with the walls of the sections in all angular relations thereof.

12. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination with trough members pivotally interconnected for angular adjustments about a vertical axis, of a conveyor chain in the trough having winged links, guide devices for the conveyor chain positioned beneath the trough members, said guide devices providing tracks adapted to support said winged links, there being a gap in the guide devices beneath the trough members adjacent the pivotal interconnection therebetween, and means intermediate the said gap for engaging the conveyor chain as it passes through the said gap for guiding of the conveyor chain to the guides.

13. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination with trough members interconnected for relative angular displacement about a vertical axis, devices for interconnecting the trough members, conveying means operating through the trough members having lateral flanges, guides for the conveying instrumcntalities positioned below the trough members, said guides having flanges cooperating with said first mentioned flanges to support said conveying means, there being a gap between the lower guides adjacent the devices interconnecting the trough members, and supplemental guiding means act- ,ing upon the conveying means as the latter pass through the gap.

14. Material handling mechanism comprising the combination of trough members interconnected for relative angular displacement about a vertical axis, devices for interconnecting the trough members, a conveyor operating through the trough members, guides for the conveyor, certain of the guides having a gap therebetween adjacent the connecting devices, and supplemental guiding means including a plate arranged to engage the conveyor for supporting the same as it passes through the gap, thereby preventing the conveyor from sagging sufllciently to become disengaged from the guides during passage of the conveyor through the gap.

15. Material handling mechanism comprising a trough divided into pivotally interconnected sections, side walls for the sections, a segmental base on one of the sections, an arcuate track on the base, means on the cooperating section engaging the track to enable the sections to be swung horizontally to each other, yieldable plates interconnecting the side walls, the side walls on one of the sections defining abutments for the yieldable plates, and mechanism for continuously pressing the yieldable plates into engagement with the abutments in all angular positions of the sections for preventing loss of material between the side walls when the sections are angularly displaced.

16. Material handling mechanism comprising a trough divided into pivotally interconnected sections, each embracing side walls, yieldable means interconnecting the side walls, and resilient mechanism engaging the yieldable means for pressing the latter into continuous close engagement with the side walls in all relative positions of the sections.

17. Material handling mechanism comprising a trough divided into pivotally interconnected sections each embracing side walls, the side walls of one section terminating short of the other section, plates supplementing the side walls and spaced therefrom, the said plates being bent intermediate their lengths into vertically up standing portions and terminating in outwardly extending abutments adjacent the'adjacent section, auxiliary plates closing the spaces between the supplementary plates and the side walls, yieldable means interconnecting the side walls of the adjacent section and the supplementary plates, and means for maintaining the yieldable means in continuous close engagement with the abutments on the supplementary plates in all relative positions of the sections.

18. Material handling mechanism comprising a trough divided into pivotally interconnected sections, each embracing side walls, yieldable plates interconnecting the side walls and mechanism for pressing the yieldable plates intocontinuous close engagement with the side walls in all relative positions of the sections, the said means including a hinge mounted on each yieldable plate, a retaining pin connected to the hinge, a spring on the retaining pin, and a supporting bracket on the side walls of the next section for supporting the retaining pin and forming an abutment.

. discharge unit to the loading unit to enable Lelaiii] ,fiili provide horizontaladjustment of said discharge unit relative to said truck, the loading unit including sections vertically yieldable relative to each other, and a continuous conveyor chain extending through the units and having links piv- "otally interconnected in both horizontal'and vertical directions to enable the chain to adjust it-' seli'to any variation in position between the various parts of the conveyor.

20. Material handling mechanism comprising, in combination, a conveyor unit including pivotally interconnected sections, reinforcing plates beneath the sections and extending therebeneath suficiently to'prevent buckling of the sections under weight of material being conveyed, openings through the plates for enabling material collecting thereon to pass, and means for pushing material through the openings during relative movement between the sections.

21.'Material handling mechanism comprising, in combination, a conveyor unit including pivotally interconnected sections, reinforcing plates beneath the sections, the said plates being provided with openings for enabling material collecting thereon to be discharged through the plates, and splice plates arranged to push the said materials through the openings during movement between the sections.

22. Material handling mechanism comprising, in combination, a conveyor unit including pivotally interconnected sections, reinforcing plates beneath the sections,- the said plates being provided with openings for enabling material collecting thereon to be discharged through the plates, and beveled splice plates arranged to push the said materials through the openings during movement between the sections.

23. Material handling mechanism comprising, in combination, a conveyor unit including pivotally interconnected sections, a conveyor chain adapted to operate through the sections, a pivot mounting for the sections, and a cap for the pivot mounting forming an uninterrupted surface for the bottom of the sections.

24. Material handling mechanism comprising, in combination, a conveyor unit including interconnected sections pivotal about a vertical axis, a conveyor chain adapted to operate through the sections and adapted to return therebeneath, guides for the conveyor chain, said guides having a gap therebetween beneath the pivotal interconnection between the sections, and an abutment plate beneath the gap adapted to be engaged by the chain for retaining proper alignment of the chain whereby it will be properlydirected from one of the guides to the other of the guides as the chain passes through the gap.

25. In a conveyor, the combination with 'a. continuous trough divided into three interconnected sections, one of which constitutes a discharge section, of a truck for supporting said trough as a unit, pivotal means interconnecting two of said sections for relative movement about a vertical axis, pivotal means interconnecting two of said sections for relative movement about a horizontal axis, and pivotal means interconnecting said en- .tire trough to said truck for pivotal movement.

26. In a conveyor, the combination with a continuous trough divided into three interconnected sections, one of which constitutes a discharge section, of a. truck for supporting said trough as a unit, pivotal means interconnecting two of said .sections for relative movement about a vertical tive horizontal adjustment therebetween and to axis, pivotal means interconnecting two of said sections for relative movement about a horizontal axis, and pivotal means interconnecting said entire trough to said truck tor pivotal movement about a vertical axis.

27. In a conveyor, the combination with a continuous trough divided into a plurality of interconnected sections one of which comprises a discharge section, of a support for said trough, pivotal means interconnecting two sections for relative movement about a'vertical axis, and pivotal means interconnecting said entire trough to said support for pivotal movement as a unit about a vertical axis.

'28. In a conveyor, the combination with a continuous trough divided into three sections one of which constitutes a discharge section, of an endless draft chain disposed along a central line of said trough and universally pivotal, a truck for supporting said trough, pivotal means interconnecting said discharge section to another one of said sections for horizontal pivotal movement relative'thereto and relative to said truck, and pivotal means interconnecting the third section to said other section for relative movement about a horizontal axis.

29. In a loading machine, the combination with a truck, of a conveyor mounted on said truck for pivotal movement as a unit with respect thereto about a vertical axis, said conveyor comprising an endless material moving means which travels in a continuous trough, said trough comprising three sections, two of which are relatively pivotal about a horizontal axis and form a loading unit, means for resiliently connecting said two sections of the loading unit, the third section comprising a discharge unit which is mounted for pivotal movement about a vertical axis with respect to both said loading unit and said truck, whereby material may be discharged to either side of said truck either by pivoting said conveyor as a unit about a vertical axis with respect to said truck or by pivoting said discharge unit about a vertical axis relative to said truck.

30. In a loading machine, the combination with a truck, of a conveyor mounted on said truck for pivotal movement as a unit with respect thereto about a vertical axis, said conveyor comprising an endless conveyor chain having links pivotally interconnected in both horizontal and vertical directions which travels in a continuous trough, said trough comprising three sections, two of which are relatively pivotal about ahorizontal axis and form a loading unit, means for resiliently connecting said two sections of the loading unit, the third section comprising a discharge unit which is mounted for pivotal movement about a vertical axis with respect to both said loading unit and said truck, whereby material may be discharged to either side of-said truck either by pivoting said conveyor as a unit about a vertical axis with respect to said truck or by pivoting said discharge unit about a vertical axis relative to said truck.

31. In a loading machine, the combination with a truck, of a conveyor mounted on said truck for pivotal movement as a unit with respect thereto about a vertical axis, said conveyor comprising an endless material moving means which travels in a continuous trough, said trough comprising three sections, two of which are relatively pivotal about a horizontal axis and form a loading unit, the third section comprising a discharge unit which is mounted for pivotal movement about a vertical axis with respect to both said loading unit and said truck, whereby material may be discharged to either side of said truck either by pivoting said conveyor as a unit about a vertical axis with respect to said truck or by pivoting said discharge unit about a vertical axis relative to said truck.

32. In a loading machine, the combination with a truck adapted to travel in a mine, of a conveyor on said truck for pivotal movement as a unit with respect thereto about a vertical axis passing intermediate the ends thereof whereby both the material receiving end and the discharge end of said conveyor may be positioned laterally of said truck, said conveyor comprising two sections which are connected for relativeiy pivotal movement about a vertical axis and a continuous material moving means for said sections. a

33. In a loading machine, the combination with a truck, of a material receiving and discharging conveyor mounted on said truck for pivotal movement as a unit with respect thereto about a vertical axis passing intermediate its ends whereby both ends of said conveyor may project laterally of said truck, said conveyor comprising a material receiving section and a discharge section and a continuous material moving means, said sections being connected for relatively pivotal movement about a vertical axis, and a gathering conveyor pivoted about a vertical axis with respect to the material receiving section and adapted to gather material and feed it to said material receiving section.

NILS D. LEVIN.