US2859953A

US2859953A - Method of mining involving four isolated sections

Info

Publication number: US2859953A
Application number: US490657A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph F Joy
Original assignee: Joy Manufacturing Co
Current assignee: Joy Manufacturing Co
Priority date: 1955-02-25
Filing date: 1955-02-25
Publication date: 1958-11-11
Anticipated expiration: 1975-11-11

Description

Nov. 11, 1958 iled F /r J. F. .JOY

METHOD OF' MINING INVOLVING FOUR ISOLATED SECTIONS wl v.

ATTORN EY Nov. 11, 1958 J. F. JOY 2,859,953

METHOD oF MINING INvoLvING FOUR IsoLATED SECTIONS Filed Feb. 25, 1955 5 Sheecs-Shee'I 2 Q Q Q CQ 2 s Q N N L S $5 u) Q *Q q. LL

Q Se u R91 QN U Qn XN N klm In N @N @95S INVENToRiE Q JOSEPH F. JOY L (D E B L l Q Qwql Ri QQ ATTORNEY Nov. 11, 1958 J. F. JOY

METHOD OF MINING INvoLvING FOUR IsOLATEn SECTIONS Filed Feb. 25. 1955 Sheets-Sheet 3 N Q N INVENTOR JOSEPH FMIOY ATTORNEY AMM J. F. JOY

Nov. 11, 1958 METHOD OF MINING INVOLVINGV FOUR ISOLATED SECTIONS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Feb.v 25, 1955 Q INVENTORI JOSEPH F. JOY

NT: 1 mN 1 Imm 1% w N m 1 ATTORNEY Nov. 11, 1958 J. F. JoY v 2,859,953

NING INVLVING FOUR ISOLATED SECTIONS Fla@ Z5 INVENT JOSEPH F. J

ATTORNEY lVIETHOD lF MINING INVOLVING FOUR ISOLATED SECTIONS Application February 25, 1955, Serial'No. 490,657

9 IClaims. (Cl. 26Z-1) This invention relates toga mining method and more particularly to a method of mining coal in underground mines.

In the retreating longwall system of mining coal as usually employed, the ycoal heretofore was commonly cut by coal cutting machines, drilled to provide blast holes and then blasted down and loaded out, and more recently coal has been dislodged from a longwall face by a continuous mining machine which removed the coal directly from the solid without the need for drilling and blasting, and special equipment has been provided for loading out the coal produced by this highly productive machine, yet full continuous mining without interruptions has not been achieved. The present invention contemplates improvements in previous methods in that the coal may be mined and loaded out in a substantially continuous manner from the remote faces of isolated productive areas of a mine toward a centrally located point, thereby not only substantially increasing the production of coal but-also, at the same time, reducing the hazards and difculties previously encountered and, as a result thereof, substantially reducing the time consumed in the mining coal. Also, the rate of production from the several productive areas may be regulated to meet Athe-demand.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of mining. Another object -is to provide an improved method of mining coal in underground mines whereby production may take place concurrently at widely spaced isolated faces. Still another object is to provide an improved method of mining in accordance with the panel system wherein each panel section is eiectively isolated from the others and the productive areas are each independent of the others andyet employ common mine entries and ventilation systems. Yet another object is to provide an improved method of mining 4coal in accordance with'the full retreat longwall ssytem requiring that initial development work be carried to the boundaries of the coal eld or mine -acreage in order that productive mining may begin at the four remote corners of the property. A still further object is to provide an Yimproved mining method in accordance with the -panel system wherein the productive areas may belocated at the four remote corners of the coal eld at isolated points and production may be carried on concurrently or separately at such points. Other objects will become apparent to those skilled in the art as the description proceeds.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the irnproved method of mining coal;

Fig. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic horizontal 4section showing a coal field or section to be minedout, with the numerous panels indicated in broken lines, and showing the main entries and upcast shaft.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal diagrammatic'section, similar to Fig. 1, showing the fourlisolated productiveareas which are connected at remotely separatedpoints by ythe mine entries.

Fig. 3 is a' horizontal'diagrammatic section, showing the coal eld or acreage partially Vmined out.

nited tates Patent drilling parallel horizontal bores by a boring .machine or bore miner of the kind disclosedV in my copending application Serial No. 296,324, Vtiled June 30, 1952, now .P at- Fig. 4 is a horizontal section, similar to Fig. 3, showingthe coal field or acreage with the coal almost completely mined out.v

Figs. 5a and 5b, Vtaken together, .constitute an enlarged horizontal sectional view of a pair of adjacent panels showing the productive areas at oneboundary oftheY coal eld.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical section, taken on line 6 6 of Fig. 5a, showing a pair of horizontal Ventilating bores parallel withrthe working face of aproductive area.

Fig. 7 is anienlarged vertical section through'oneof'the mine entries, taken online 77 ,of Fig. 5a.

Fig. 8 is a vertical section, somewhatenlarged,.taken on line 8 8 of Fig. 5a.

Fig. 9.is enlarged verticalfsection taken ,on linef9-9 of Fig. 5a, showing the parallel mine entries.

Fig. l0 is an enlarged section vshowing-the central portion `of Fig. 2.

In connection with the description ofthe improved mining method, yattention is-asked to my copending applications, ,Serial No. 296,323 relating to Method of Mining Coal, now abandoned, and Serial No. 296,327 relating Yto Method of Ventilating the Productive Areas of aCoal Mine, ybothliled on June 30, 1952.

for equal sections, designated A,B,`C.and D and in order to comprehend the si-ze of the area involved it might'be stated that the field may extend to arwidth of two `miles or more and to a length vof nearly three or more miles,

Ialthough the exact limits Yof the perimeter of the lield are of little Vimportance insofar as the .present invention is concerned. Each quarter-section is `shown divided .by

construction lines into a series, herein forillustrative purposes .shown-as twelve, of -rectangular panels and the vpanelsxoflthe four sections are respectively designatedla, 1b, 1c and 1d, andthe four productive-areas are respectively designated 2a, 2b,.2c andZd. Extending centrally lengthwise of the eld are four parallel .mainentries designated 3, 4, 5 and .6and these-.are shownon a larger scale `in Figs; Savand Sbiland in cross.V section` in Fig. 9. These main entriesv may be formed in various Vmanners by machines of Vvarious Vtypesbut areherein desirably formedby ent-No. 2,822,159, and Hby cutting away the dividing usprag by aspragcutter lor sprag miner as Vvdisclosed in my copending Vapplication Serial No. 296,325, iiledJuneiSO, 4952, now Patent No. 2,796,246. As shown in Figs. 5aand 5b, parallel horizontal ventilating bores 9 and 10 extend across the main entries, 4 and 5,6 in parallelism with the sides of therectangular panel'being mined out and these boresopen tintohori- Zontal bores 11 and 12 extending in parallelism with each -working .face 13. Aseriesof horizontal.,break-throughs ordrill holes `141 connect-theparallel bores 9 and-10 while similar horizontal break-through holes 15 extend between the bores .11 and 12 and a bore A16 vextendingin.parallelism with thebores 11 and 12- and-with the working face 'inside of the latter,(Fig. 5b). A spragminer 17 is shown yoperatingin the bore 16 forcutting away the sprag of ,c oal 18'` and a conventional conveying means-19 extends outwardly vthrough the bore 16 to a panel entry 20 arranged `parallelfwith the vbores .9 and 10. The .breakthrough iholesconnect-the .bore 16 with the ventilatingporesgll and IZmand a borevminerllis shown formngafourth .bore `22 parallel .withfand `inside of. the bore ,11. .Aimilar cor1veyor-23` in the bore ..22 fextends out-wardly through #the berater conveying-away the cuttingsdischargedfrom the bore miner and the conveyors 19 and 23 discharge onto a conveyor 24 extending outwardly through the panel entry 20. As the sprag miner 17 cuts away the sprag 18 at the production area, the roof may gradually'subside and when the sprag is completely mined out, the sprag miner may then operate in the next adjacent parallel bore 12 to mine out the next adjacent sprag, all in the manner fully disclosed in my copending application Serial No. 296,323, above referred to.

t The parallel bores of the

entries

4 and 5 leave therebetween an unbroken division pillar 25 while extending transversely, midway between the ends of the coal field, is a d ivision pillar 26 indicated in broken lines in Figs. -l and 2. The four

main entries

3, 4, and 6 extend in parallelism with the longitudinal division pillar 25 and the panel entries, indicated in broken lines at 20, in Fig. l,

are bored transversely in parallelism with the transverse division pillar 26 to form the series of panels. It will thus be seen that the rectangular coal field has been divided into four equal sections, each isolated from the others by the

division pillars

25 and 26 which extend unbroken between the central portion of the coal field and the

productive areas

2a, 2b, 2c and 2d. The two inner

parallel mine entries

3 and 4, as shown in Fig.'2, communicate with a centrally located upcast shaft 28 and right-angle openings 29 connect the

main entries

3, 4 and 5, 6 at the shaft.

Also located in adjacency to the upcast shaft near the.

point of intersection of the division pillars is a downcast air and conveyor slope 30.

The series of rectangular panels are successively mined out in the manner described above and as the panels are removed, the roof is allowed to subside and, in Fig. 3, nearly half of the field is shown mined out, while in Fig. 4 mining out of the field is nearly complete.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that, in accordance with the novel method above described, the coal is mined out by the full retreat longwall system so that initial development work may be carried from the center of the coal field to the remote boundaries of the field in order that productive mining might begin at the four remote corners of the rectangle, and the series of panels of the four equal sections A, B, C and D of the field may be progressively removed in directions toward the transverse division pillar 26, as shown in Fig. 3, and in Fig. 4, the

four equal sections are shown nearly completely mined out. The mined coal is conveyed from the mine along the slope at the center of the eld.

By the provision of the longitudinal and transverse division pillars 25 andr26 extending between the centrally i located shaft 28 and the

productive areas

2a, 2b, 2c and v2d and the'particular arrangement of the mine entries, the

` minimizes,lif not entirely eliminates, the need for roofsupporting timber or roof supports at the productive areas. In the event that full production of the coal field at the four productive areas is unnecessary to meet the demand, the fourV working faces may be separately worked independently of the others. The longitudinal and

transverse division pillars

25 and 26 separate the four equal sections of the field between the four productive areas and the centrally located shaft so that the four productive areas are each substantially isolated from the others, thereby to a large degree localizing the effect of explosions, due to the fact that gas-laden air from the productive area of one section cannot possibly mix with the Ventilating air of the productive 4areas of the other sections. By the separation of the field into four equal sections by the longitudinal and

transverse division pillars

25 and 26, the four productive areas or sections,` in effect, constitute four sepv'arate coal mines each independent of the other.

While the bore and sprag miners of my `copending ap- 4 plications Serial Nos. 296,324 and 296,325 have been employed in the formation of the bores and entries and for removing the coal from the productive areas, it will be evident that the various mining operations may be performed by machines of other types, as for example, by the machines of my copending applications Serial No. 325,652, filed November 6, 1950, now Patent No. 2,769,627,`Serial No. 214,242, filed March 7, 1951, now Patent No. 2,730,346, and Serial No. 405,853, filed Ianuary 25, 1953. Moreover, since the particular method 'of removing the coal at the productive areas and the method of ventilation of the productive areas do not per se enter into the present invention, the actual mining out of the coal and Ventilating of the mine may be effected in accordancewith other known methods.

While there is in this application specifically disclosed the improved method by which the invention may be practiced, it will be vunderstood that this is shown for purposes of illustration and that the invention may be practiced in other manners without departing from its spirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

lQA method of mining coal comprising laying out a coal field in four equal sections, forming passages in the coal to provide division pillars, one extending centrally longitudinally of the field and the other extending centrally transversely of the field, with the pillars extending unbroken from the central portion of the field to the remote boundaries of the four sections for substantially isolating the four sections from each other, dividing each section into a series of panels, and progressively removing the panels from the outer boundaries of the field in directions toward the transverse division pillar.

2. A method of mining coal as set forth in claim l wherein the coal is removed by the full retreat system with the initial development work carried from the point of intersection of said division pillars to thel remote boundaries of the field.

3. A method of mining coal as set forth in claim 2 wherein an upcast shaft and a downcast air and conveyor slope are formed at the center of the field near the point of intersection of the division pillars and production of coal from the panels takes place in directions toward said shaft and slope.

4. A method of mining coal comprising laying out.l a coal field in four equal sections, separating the four equal sections by longitudinal and transverse divisio-n pillars intersecting at a point located centrally of the field and extending from the vicinity of said centrally located point to the remote boundaries of the field for substantially isolating each section from the others, dividing each section into a series of rectangular panels, and mining out the panels from the remote boundaries of the field in directions toward the transverse division pillar.

5. A method of mining coal as set forth in claim' 4 wherein an upcast shaft and downcast slope are formed near the point of intersection of said division pillars.

6. A method of mining coal as set forth in claim 4 wherein parallel mine entries extend longitudinally between the pairs of sections at the sides of the field, and Ventilating air passages are formed to extend from the entires to the faces of the productive areas, the longitudinal division pillar completely separating an entry at one side of the field from an entry at the other side thereof.

7. A method of mining coal comprising dividing a rectangular coal field into four equal sections, `separating the four sections by longitudinal and transverse division pillars which intersect at the center yof the field and extending from the vicinity of the center of the field to the outer boundaries of the field for substantially isolating each section from the others, dividing each of the four sections into a series of panels, and, progressively lremoving the panels from the outer boundaries of the eld in 9. A method of mining coal as set forth in claim 8 directions toward the transverse division pillar. wherein the mined out coal is conveyed from the mine 8. A method of mining coal comprising dividing a recat the center of the eld near the inner ends of the ditangular coal field into four equal sections, dividing the vision pillars.

four sections by longitudinal and transverse division pil- 5 lars extending unbroken between the vicinity of the cen- References Cited in the file 0f this Patent tral portion of the field and the outermost working face UNITED STATES PATENTS of the sections for substantially isolating each section from the others, and mining out the coal from the outermost working faces of the sections in directions toward the 10 transverse division pillar.