US2619339A - Mining machine - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 25, 1952 F, CARTLlDGE 2,619,339

MINING MACHINE IN VEN TOR.

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MINING MACHINE 'mmm Patented Nov. 25, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE.

v2,619,339 `MINING MACHINE Frank Cartlidge, Chicago, Ill., assignorto Good' vman 'Manufacturing Company, Chicagoylll.; a corporation of Illinois Appiieetien De'eember 11, 1950,'seria`1No.-200,22e

structionjandoperation, employing as its cutting elemente larger cutter disc rotatable onthe'generally horizontal axis Yancl'mounted forihorizontal swinging ron the end of van'elongatedboom, the cutter disc also having further means for, adjust- ,ment lso as to be swung horizontally-at ldifferentv elevations in advance of the machine,V andV still another adjustment for positioning the cutter disc at varying angles with respect tothe main boom, ,s

iA further objectl ofthe invention'` is to provide `Ia gathering mechanism horizontally swingable withuthe AVmainjlcoom for collecting the cuttings as they areremved by the cuttingdisc, said gathering v mechanism also being verticallyadjustable relative to the'main boom for facilitating Thermae/1.1111@ vQfihe present invention has meer features, in @emmen with the, machine disrclosedin the @pending application of Frank A. Lindgren, serial N cmper ieacaanied Novembei' 1950, but diff ers therefrom by I providing greater vlexilguility of vertical` and horizontal adjustment'of thecutterdisc relative tothe horizontallyswingable main boom and alsobyprotiene. Vertical tilting adjustment of the gathering mechanism with respect to themain boom.

`Aiiirtlfler object oithe invention resides vin the provision of anfilmprovedndismtype cutting and d islodging head having a row of peripherally disposed lgeri-cutting ybits adapted to undercut the face being mined and having, on itsback side, inclined roller means adapted to extend into'the kerf, overlapping'the youtstanding core, for breakingyoi the latter in large lumps.

'Other objects andadvantages of the present inventionwill appear from time to 'time as the description proceeds.

The invention may best be yunderstood by reference to the accompanying drawings in which: y y

Figure 1 is' a plan view `ofaymachine con- 2 for starting a lateral ciltfacrssthe "endfofa inineroom;

Iligure 2 isVv an Venlarged detailed section'of the iront end of the main boom andthegath ing Inechanism, taken generally on li'ne2;2""f

Figure 1; .e Figure v3'is'a detailed side view of theirontend ci the machine with partsbr'ol'e'n away'ito "show some of the gearing 'andralso'indicatinginfull and dotted lines two different permissiblep''sitions ofverticaladjustme'nt of the cutterdisc with'res'pe'ct to the mainboom;

Figure 4 is a plan view of the frontendofthe machine, drawn to approximately I' the'jsane scale as Figure 3, with parts broken 'avi/ayto sh'owkctain structuralv details;

Figure 5 is a detailed fs'ectionfta'len'onilie 5---5v of Figure 4.

Referring now to details "of theeinbodiinent of my invention Villustrated Qin the drawingmv "l 0 indicates generally a'mobile baseforthe'machinfe which, as herein shown, isj supported on" a'\-'pafir of endless treads Il, 'Il at opposite'si'des'threof for transporting the machine l`during mining operations. Since l'the present invention trelates Vprimarily to the swinging boom and 'cutting means at the front end of a mobile base, Itlei'irm of base lli, shown herein forillustrative purposes, is the same Aas that disclosed inv myfc'o'pending application, Serial No. 116,684,filedfsepteniber 20, 1949, so that it isneces'sary only tov refer herein to the main structural 'features of's'aid base, which are directly associated with the'n'ovel boom and cutting means of the present invention.

The base lil carries an upright pivotpin |3'lt its front end, on which is pivotallylmountedfa main cylindrical bearing Mat therear'ed ofa horizontally swingable'boom structure, indicated generally at l5. Theboom structure-*idf'asia whole,` is arranged so that it 'may swing 4"la-'te 'ily acrossy the front end of the ymachine through angles of approximately 35-at opposite vside-sf vthe longitudinal axis of the baseframe The base i0 has a forwardly projecting i si'pport l5 formed integrally therewith and terminating in an arcuate bearing Imember 7, 4 -`on which a depending foot i8, formingpartfofthe swinging boom structure *I 5, has "slidabl'e bearing engagements e A11 articulated fighi Conveyor' @exponientional `center-chain 'typ e,j indicated generallyat i9, extends longitudinally jot the base I 0 j'w'itl i"a forwardly and downwardly'inclined frcntpci'- tien at mounted en and earned with the-yundrical bearing lll, durin g lateral yswing'ingnovement of the boom structure l 5.

Suitable means may be Yprovided"for'swifiging the boom structure l5 by power. A'/Asfh shown, such means includes ajhydraulic cylinder 32 fixed to one side ofthe b a'sefljil rearwardly the point of pivotal connection of'thefswinging boom and said main base, said hydraulic cylinder having a cooperating piston and a piston rod 33 therein pivotally connected at its forward end to a laterally extending arm 34 formed integrally with the main cylindrical bearing I4 of the boom structure. The rear end of the hydraulic cylinder may be pivotally connected as usual (by means not shown) to the adjacent side of the base I to accommodate angular movement of the piston rod 33 during the swinging movement of the boom structure. control means for any well-known type may be provided for supplying hydraulic pressure alternately to the opposite ends of the hydraulic cylinder 32 so as to causethe boom structure to be swung horizontally by power, centered on the upright pivot pin I3. Such hydraulic control means is old and well known in the art so further details need not be shown nor described herein, as it forms no essential part of the present invention.

The boom structure, indicated generally at I5, includes a bottom plate 38 and a pair of laterally spaced upright side plates 35, 35 extending forwardly of and on opposite sides of the upright bearing I4. A pair of motor housings 35, 36 are supported as by bolts 31 on the outer sides of said plates. Said motor housings enclose electricI motors for driving the cutter disc of the machine, indicated generally at 40, and also the gathering chains of the gathering mechanism, indicated generally at 4I, through drive connections, as will hereinafter be more fully described. l At the forward end of each of the motor housings is a gear housing 42, also secured to the outer face of the side plates 35, 35 and forming in effect forward extensions of said plates. The front ends of the two gear housings 42 form opposed trunnion supports 43, 43 rigid with the main boom structure I for pivotally supporting an auxiliary boom 44 for swinging movement on a. horizontal axis.

The auxiliary boom 44 consists of a hollow arm, with laterally extending cylindrical bearing members 45, 45 pivotally mounted on inwardly ext-ending trunnions 45, 46 carried by the opposed trunnion supports 43, 43.

A relatively short arm 41 forms a supplemental extension of the auxiliary boom 44, being pivotally connected to the front end of the latter, so as to swing at right angles to the axis of swinging movement of said auxiliary boom with respect to the main boom structure I5. In the form shown herein, the pivotal connection of the supplemental arm 41 to the auxiliary boom consists of an upright pivot pin 48 passing through upper and lower extensions 49, 49 of the auxiliary boom, and also through cheeks 50, 5G projecting rearwardly from the supplemental arm, above and below the front end of the auxiliary boom, as shown in Figure 2.

The cutting disc 40 is rotatably supported on the outer end of the supplemental arm 41. As shown herein, said cutting disc is xed as by keying on a shaft 5I having rotatable bearing longitudinally of the supplemental arm as by a plurality of anti-friction bearings 52 and 53. The drive connections for the cutter disc 4D will hereinafter be more fully described.

The auxiliary boom 44 is bodily swung by power on its horizontal trunnioned axis by a pair of hydraulic cylinders 54, 54 with cooperating pistons and piston rods 55. The rear ends of said hydraulic cylinders are pivotally connected to the upper edge of the side plates 35 of the main boom structure, and the forward ends of Hydraulic 4 the piston rods 55 are pivotally connected to upstanding arms 5G, 56 on the top of the rear bearing members 45 of said auxiliary boom.

The supplemental arm 41 is moved bodily or swung about its upright axis relative to the auxiliary boom 44 by a hydraulic cylinder 51 with a cooperating piston and piston rod 58. The hydraulic cylinder 51 is mounted toward the rear pivoted end of the auxiliary boom. The piston rod 58 is provided at its forward end with a rack 59 engaging a pinion 60 fixed to the upper cheek 50 of the supplemental arm 41 as by bolts 6I, 6I seen in Figure 2. rIhe rack 59 is held in engagement with its pinion 60 by a retaining strap member 62, with which it is slidably engaged, the strap member being supported on its underside on the upper shoulder 63 formed on the pivot pin 48, all as shown in Figures 2 and 4.

As will be seen from Figure 3, the main boom structure I5 is disposed at a substantial distance above the normal ground level as defined by the bottom level of the tractor treads II, so as to form a generally triangular open space affording substantial vertical clearance between the axis of vertical pivotal swinging movement of the auxiliary boom and the main boom structure, in all positions of said auxiliary boom.

The gathering means, indicated generally at 4I, is supported from the main boom structure within the open space below the auxiliary boom to gather loose material as it is dislodged from the working face by the cutting disc 40. Such loose material is deposited upon the front end of the downwardly inclined portion 3U of the articulated conveyor for discharge at the rear end of the machine.

The gathering means 4I shown herein consists of a double chain type gathering device of the general kind disclosed in the aforesaid application, Serial No. 116,684, which type of gathering means has heretofore been employed in loading machines, so that full details thereof need not be described herein, excepting to point out the main features thereof, consisting of a pair of endless chains 61, 61 horizontally movable about elongated guide bars 68, 68 and with gathering arms 69, 69 extending laterally therefrom and pivotally mounted to swing upwardly and downwardly with respect thereto as said gathering arms move over undulating gathering aprons 10. 10 surrounding the guide bars B8 and joined to each other by a horizontal apron 1I between said guide bars and over the front end 30 of the flight conveyor I9. The main point of distinction of the gathering means in the present application over that in the above-mentioned application, Serial No. 116,684, is that the outer side portions of the aprons 10 (Fig. 3) extend as far around on each side as possible and inclined at a shallow angle with respect to the ground, in order to provide a scooping action in lifting material olf the floor as the boom is swung from side to side. Loose material falling upon the gathering chains or upon the aprons 10 or 1I will be deposited upon said front end of the flight conveyor for removal upwardly and rearwardly along the central portion of the main boom structure I5.

In the novel arrangement of gathering means disclosed herein, the entire gathering mechanism is pivotally supported near its rear end for tilting movement with respect to the boom structure I5 so that the forward end of said gathering means may be bodily raised or lowered by power, to conform said gathering means to uneven mine bottoms While the machine is in op- 5.. eration, and to facilitate the transportat.onl of tilgraachine fromrlace to plage nthemne with the gathering-means in an elevated position. In

the forniA shown herein. the pivotal support forI the gathering means consists of a pair of forwardly and downwardly inclined. laterally-` their rear ends, the latter housings being rigidvv with. said guide barsand` with the adjacent aprons A"I6 of the gathering mechanism. rIliese gear housings are provided with outwardly extending stub` shafts lll, 'Id which are pivotally mounted in the lower endsof thesupporting brackets "I2, '|2. The latter brackets thusprovidea pivotal support forv the gathering mechanism` adjacent the rear end of the latter. Pivotal adjustment of the front end of the gathering mechanism is afforded by aY pair of hydraulic cylinders Iii,` I with cooperating pistons and piston rods Tl. The upper ends of the cylinders 'I6 are pivotally connected to the outer sides of the gear housings ft2 on the main boom structure I5, and the lowerl ends of the piston rods 'II are each connected to an arm I8 extending rearwardly fromvand keyed to the outer ends of the stub shafts 'M on the gear housings 13 of the gathering mechanism. Hydraulic power. is supplied from any suitable source to operate the hydraulic cylinders for controlling-the raising and lowering of the front end of the gathering deviceasdesired.

Thecutting and dislodging head, generally designated d, has a recessed front face dening an outer anged periphery 8| and a central disc portion i9 connecting theflange with a hub 8G. The hub 3|! is carried on the shaft 5| as previously described. The cutting head flanged porthat,y When the cutting head l0 is buried in a mine face andmoved across it, the peripheral bits I I8 will cut a kerf to define an outstanding core be tween the kerf and the face. Since the roller means 82 extends into the kerf and overlaps the core, it will roll off the latter in relatively large ,Y

chunks as the cutting head is swung across the room behind the face. For maximum lump size the core should be permitted to build up as greatly as possible before it is dislodged by the roller means. With this in mind it is generally best to have as few rollers as possible, consistent with the load requirements for dislodging the core formed. The back side of the disc d0 is defined by a curved surface |23 and the rollers 32 project beyond it so as to produce a wedging or scooping action for dislodging the overhanging coal as the cutter disc is in operation, as will hereinafter more fully appear. m

EachA of the motors 2B, in the motor housings 36 on the main boom, has an armature pinion 85 driving a gear reduction mechanism indicated at 86 Within the adjacent gear housing d2. In the form shown herein, each said gear reduction mechanism consists of gears 88, 89 and 93, the lastfnamedgear being fixed on Aa longitudinally indicated generally atQlI. This clutch may -beof any suitable form well known in the artso further details thereof need not be described* The. gear- $33j is meshed with a gear '95 von a stub-shaft 96 the front end of rvthegear,housing-l` 4'2". A` bevel pinion: 91 is fixed.onthey front end of the.

last-named shaft vand meshes with abevelugearl 98 on a transversely rextending shaft d5y journaledl.

concentrically in a/-trunnion supportd project; ing inwardly from the, gear housing 42, The op?. positeend of theshaft is journaled in thelat;

erally extending hollow trunnion 46, at the rear# of auxiliary boom lill, as loyanti-.friction bearing |62. Abevel, pinionv |613 is fixed on` the inner end of the shaft 99 and is` meshed witha bevelgear.

|34 ona shaft "|65 extending centrally alongthe auxiliarrbom was ,ShownmFieures-Z anda.

The opposite drivemotor-in housing 36 hasan` identical train `of gears affording driving connec-, tion with a transverse shafty IBS concentric witl 1 the trunnionll at theoppoeite side ofthe aux. iliary boom 4 4. The two drive motorsl are thus; designed to be driven in unison toprovide power, to the single longitudinally extending drive shaftI I 35 onthe auxiliaryboom'flspandhaving a bevel gear |87 also meshing with thegear- IBA on shaft |05.v

The last-named drive shaft m5 has bearing.,

engagementl near oppositeends; inbearings |98 and IIIe, and has a bevel gearY |21. engaged with bevel gear III) loosely mounted on thepivot pin d8, which forrnsthe axis of pivotal movement be.,-Y tween. the auxiliarybom and thesupplemental. arm t?, as previously described.

The bevelgear- IlII is in turn meshed with` a.y

bevel pinionA III fixed on thennerend of the shaft 5I, which as previously described: has-the. cuttingA disc` ltfixed on its outer end.

The gathering chains 6l of the gathering mechanism is also driven from the drive motors 2|]v through duplicate power;` transmission means shown in Figures -4 and 5. One of the gears 89 in each ofthe gear reductiontrains 86A at opposite.v sides of the boom structure is meshed with a gear,rr

8l on a stub shaft- 9| and connected through universal joints IIE and in intermediate extensible shaft I3 to a worm I Ill rotatably mounted in the adjacent gear casing I3 at the rear end of the.

gatheringmechanism. The Worm ||4 is meshed with a worm gear ||5 xed on an upright shaft I. A chain drivingsprocket I Il is fixed to the upper end ofthe last-named shaft for driving the adjacent gathering chain 61 on its respective guide bar (i8. Since, as previouslymentioned, the two drive motors, 2, 2li, are arranged to be driven in unison with each other, thetwo gathering chains of the gathering device will likewise be driven in unison through the duplicate transmission means just described.

The cutting disc has a Dlurality'of cutter bits IIS, I IB mounted on its flanged periphery 8|, in the form shown said bits being bifurcated so as to cut a kerf substantially Wider than said periphery.

The use and operation of the machineabovev I5 swunglaterally in a clockwise direction tothe.`

position shown in full lines in this figure, the auxiliary boom 44 is usually adjusted at a downwardly inclined angle for a cross-cut substantially as shown in Figure 3, with the lower edge of the cutter disc substantially tangential to the iloor level.

To make the initial sumping cut in the mine face at the right wall or rib, the supplemental arm 41 is first swung clockwose on its axis by power into the angular position relative to the auxiliary boom 41 shown in dotted lines in Figure 1. With the main and auxiliary booms held temporarily in the same position, the supplemental arm is swung by power on its upright axis with the cutting disc in rotation, .to produce a cut in the -coal face along an arc of relatively short radius, until the arm 4l reaches a position substantially as shown in full lines in this figure.

Thereafter, the supplemental arm 41 is locked against further swing with the cutting disc disposed at a slightly inclined angle to the longitudinal axis of the main boom. The entire boom structure is then swung bodily about its upright axis defined by the pivot pin I3 with the cutting disc in rotation to cut a new face along an arc of relatively long radius, indicated at C in Figure l.

As the cutter disc buries itself beneath the previous working face A, any solid core of coal remaining between said face and the new line of cut C will be broken away from the face by engagement with the snubbing rollers 82 on the inner face of the cutting disc.

To complete the out, .the main boom is swung in a counter-clockwise direction until the cutting disc reaches a'desired point along the left wall or rib of the room. The cross-cut may then Ibe completed either` by withdrawing the machine bodily while the cutting disc continues to rotate or, if

preferred, by swinging A,the supplemental arm with the cutter disc by power about its own axis, this making a cleaner tangential cut at the end of the face.

If it is desired to increase the height of the working face, the auxiliary boom 44 with the cutting disc may be raised to a higher level, as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 3, and the boom and disc, now at the left wall, may be swung to produce a second arcuate cut at a higher level.

After a completely new working face has been cut to its desired height, as above described, the ma-chine may then be trammed forward a distance equivalent to the depth desired for the next cut of a new working face, whereupon the cutting operation above described maybe repeated.

It will be understood that substantially all the coal broken down from the face will be deposited directly upon the gathering devices immediately beneath the cutting edge of the cutter disc 40 and will be carried rearwardly by the elevating conveyor I9 and transferred to the discharge conveyor for final loading into mine cars or other transporting means at the rear of the machine. Any loose coal which may drop on the oor of the mine during a cutting operation will be cleaned up when the gathering devices make their next successive swinging movement along the mine floor.

Although I have shown and described certain embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made Without department from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a mining machine, a base having mobile supporting means, a main boom supported on said base for horizontal swinging movement relative thereto, an auxiliary boom pivotally connected to said main boom for vertical swinging movement on a horizontal axis disposed forwardly of said base, an extension arm pivotally connected to said auxiliary boom for horizontal swinging movement relative thereto, and a cutting element on the outer end of said extension arm having cutter bits movable orbitally in a plane generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axes of said extension arm and auxiliary boom when the latter are extended in general alignment with each other.

2. A mining machine in accordance with claim l, wherein drive means for the cutting element is carried on the main boom, and power transmission means extends from said drive means along said main boom, auxiliary boom and extension arm to said cutting element, operable in all positions of relative adjustment of said main boom, auxiliary boom and extension arm.

3. A mining machine in accordance with claim 1, wherein gathering means is supported on the main boom beneath the auxiliary boom and extension arm for sweeping engagement with the ground.

4. A mining machine in accordance with claim 3, wherein the gathering means includes forwardly and laterally extending aprons having laterally spaced endless chains mounted thereon, and the rear end of said gathering means is pivotally supported on a transverse axis relative to said main boom for vertical swinging adjustment of the aprons thereof relative to the ground.

5. In a mining machine, a mobile base, boom means supported on said base for swinging movement across a face being mined, a supplemental boom being supported on said boom means for supplemental swinging movement relative thereto, cutting means on the end of said supplemental boom comprising a disc having peripheral cutter bits and being rotatable about an axis extending longitudinally of said supplemental boom, said disc having a curved, generally frusto-conical rear end portion containing a plurality of circumferentally spaced rollers extendng above the curved surface of said rear end portion and each being rotatable about an axis disposed at an acute angle with respect to the axis of rotation of the disc and extending into the kerf cut by the cutter bits when the disc is buried behind a face being mined and swung thereacross, whereby said cutter bits are effective to cut a kerf to define an outstanding core which is subsequently broken off by said rollers and dislodged rearwardly along said curved frusto-conical rear end portion.

FRANK CARTLIDGE.

REFEREN CES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,314,011 Morgan Aug. 26, 1919 1,726,891 Fisher Sept. 3, 1929 2,105,504 Ramsay Jan. 18, 1938 2,415,217 Osgood Feb. 4, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 204,985 Germany Dec. 12, 1908 364,689 Great Britain Jan. 14, 1932

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