US3834761A

US3834761A - Deep-mine augering machine

Info

Publication number: US3834761A
Application number: US00295511A
Authority: US
Inventors: L Ray; W Bryant; W Ray
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1972-10-06
Filing date: 1972-10-06
Publication date: 1974-09-10
Anticipated expiration: 1991-09-10
Also published as: ZA737714B; AU6106973A; CA996920A; GB1429387A

Abstract

An auger deep-mining machine for extracting minerals, such as coal, from relatively thin seams thereof and having an augerrotating carriage which reciprocates, by means of sump jacks, toward and away from the coal face on a rigid, elongated sump frame which is equipped with steerable wheels for tramming and slides laterally upon a pair of rails attached to an underlying square anchor plate, having floor and roof jacks at each corner, under control of position jacks attached to the anchor plate. Because the wheels are selectively attachable at either an extended or retracted position, the machine is shiftable laterally by a leap-frogging procedure during which the anchor plate hangs from the sump frame. A dust collection means at the face end of the sump frame removes dust emerging from the hole being augered.

Description

United States Patent [191 Ray et al.

[ Sept. 10, 1974 DEEP-MINE AUGERING MACHINE [75] Inventors: Lindsey W. Ray; William S. Bryant,

both of Summersville; William A. Ray, Cottle, all of W. Va.

[73] Assignees: Lindsey W. Ray, Summerville;

William A. Ray, Cottle, both of, W. Va.

221 Filed: Oct. 6, 1972 21 Appl. No; 295,511

[52] US. Cl 299/10, 173/23, 175/57, 175/85, 299/l9, 299/56 [51] Int. Cl. E21c 27/22 [58] Field of Search 299/31, 55-57; 173/23; 175/62, 85, 52,57

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,872,170 2/l959 Alspaugh et al, 299/31 X 3,09l,439 5/1963 Adams et al 299/31 3,114,425 12/1963 Adams 299/31 X Brimary Examiner-Ernest R. Purser Attorney, Agent, or FirmGeorge A. Depaoli; William E. OBrien [57] ABSTRACT An auger deep-mining machine for extracting minerals, such as coal, from relatively thin seams thereof and having an auger-rotating carriage which reciprocates, by means of sump jacks, toward and away from the coal face on a rigid, elongated sump frame which is equipped with steerable wheels for tramming and slides laterally upon a pair of rails attached to an underlying square anchor plate, having floor and roof jacks at each corner, under control of position jacks attached to the anchor plate. Because the wheels are selectively attachable at either an extended or retracted position, the machine is shiftable laterally by a leap-frogging procedure during which the anchor plate hangs from the sump frame. A dust collection means at the face end of the sump frame removes dust emerging from the hole being aug-ered.

23 Claims, 17 Drawing Figures PAIENIEB SEP 1 0 m4 sum 1 m FIG. I

PATENIED E 1 01974 3.834. 761 sum 5 0F 6 FIG. [0

DEEP-MINE AUGERING MACHINE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to auger mining machinery and more particularly to auger deep-mining machinery that is adapted to extracting minerals disposed in relatively thin seams of two to four feet in thickness.

It specifically relates to auger mining machinery having a tramming means and a reciprocative position means whereby the machine can rapidly traverse mine entries, is readily positioned along a mineral face, and efficiently extracts and feeds auger flights in thin-seam mining operations, as in coal mining.

Auger deep-mining machinery for thin-seam mining must surmount many difficulties. Maneuvering room is limited, space for storage of auger flights is scarce, headroom is always inadequate, and the seam itself may become pinched within a short distance or may change in pitch or strike without notice.

Nevertheless, auger mining offers many advantages. Each main entry can be strengthened by roof pins to a degree that would otherwise be uneconomical, thereby significantly increasing safety for all underground personnel. Pillars and panels left between entries can be readily bored with the auger from either direction and to depths of 100 feet or more, whereby costs of removing the mineral are greatly reduced.

In coal mining operations, the roof-strengthening advantages of the auger mining method facilitates coal ex traction within very large areas that are now hampered by poor roof conditions which prevent otherwise practical extraction of relatively thin seams of coal. Because auger mining enables men and machinery to remain completely out of major portions of a mine, whereby roofs of entries can be greatly strengthened on an economical basis, safety of the coal miners is significantly enhanced and costs arising from damaged machinery is greatly reduced.

2. Review of the Prior Art It is not surprising, therefore, that much effort has gone into developing auger machinery for deep mining of thin seams, such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,698,169 of Fawkes, U.S. Pat. No. 2,979,320 of Adams, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,627 of Arndt. These and many other inventions have successively developed auger machinery which generally comprise a rigid frame, a longitudinally movable carriage resting thereon, an auger-rotating means, a carriage-movement means, and jack means that selectively tilt the machine in alignment with the thin seam to be angered and anchor the machine be tween the floor and the roof of the mine entry wherein the auger machine is operating. Other important developments include skid means for movement of a deepmine auger machine within an entry, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,291,534 of Adams et al., and conveying means such as disclosed by Young et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 3,395,940.

Nevertheless, deep-mine augering of thin coal seams has not become widely adopted. One main reason therefore is the complexity of the available machines, the difficulty of maneuvering them in thin-seam coal mine entries, and the lack of working space within such entries. Specifically, the difficulties experienced'with tramming these machines to working areas along mine entries, maneuvering them into position along a coal 5 the Fawkes machine, described in U.S. Pat. No.

2,698,169, having removable rails 186 upon which wheels 183 roll, the machine being selectively lowered and elevated with floor and roof jacks 24 and 25 for positioning and maneuvering thereof. 3

However, because safety requirements are steadily reducing conventional deep-mine coal production, ecological furor is rapidly limiting strip mining, and energy demands are constantly increasing, the vast areas having thin coal seams and dangerously unstable roof conditions demand a suitable thin-seam augering machine.

As an additional problem confronting coal mining, whether in central West Virginia where strata 2 feet thick are considered to be thin seams, or in northern West Virginia where 3-foot strata are thin, is air'floated coal dust. Both the extremely fine dust which causes black lung and the coarser dust which can cause explosions are required to be guarded against by forced air circulation and by extensive use of water sprays.

In mine entries where flexible cables carry 440 volts of alternating current or deliver 250 volts of direct current to loading machines, coal miners know the constant danger of being eaten up by electrical leaks or ground faults while working in wet conditions. Even if passage of large amounts of electricity through a miners body does not cause fatally paralyzing shock, there is always danger of injury to the miner or his fellow workers if electrical faults cause tools to be dropped or released during operation under such wet conditions.

Moreover, wetness in thin-seam mining entries, where the miners must often work in semi-prone posi tions so that they are chronically wet, tends to afflict the miners with arthritic difficulties at an early age. Obviously, a means for removing dust at the source of gen eration thereof could obviate water spraying entirely without subjecting the miners to black lung or explosive hazards.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the object of this invention to provide a deep mine augering machine having adequate simplicity, flexibility, and maneuverability for use in thin-seam mining operations.

It is also an object to provide a steerable and selectively usable tramming means whereby the machine of this invention may be readily maneuvered along mine entries and positioned alongside a mineral face for boring operations.

It is a further object to provide a lateral positioning means which enables (a) the entire machine to be selectively emplaced laterally, in combination with the tramming means, along the mineral face of a mine entry and (b) the sump frame and carriage to perform repetitive and reciprocative feeding and extracting of auger flights.

It is an additional object to provide a deep-mine augering machine having an auxiliary dust collection means whereby mining may be done on a dry basis and dangers from explosions and electrical shock may be minimized.

In satisfaction of these objects and in accordance with the spirit of this invention, a deep-mine augering machine, adapted for extracting minerals from thin seams, is hereinafter described which includes an anchor means, a reciprocable position means, a sump frame, and a carriage. The anchor means has roof and floor jacks at each corner of a large anchor frame which is preferably square, slide rails which are parallel to the mineral face being augered and upon which the elongated sump frame slides to and fro, and a pair of hydraulic position jacks which slideably position the sump frame for alternately augering and extracting auger flights. The elongated sump frame is balanced on, and disposed transversely to, the slide rails. The carriage rolls back and forth upon the sump frame, under control of hydraulic jacks attached to the sump frame, and supports an auger-rotating drive means, an hydraulic power means, and a control means. At the face end of the sump frame, a dust collecting device, partially encircling the auger, abuts the mineral face and provides a vacuum-type dust collecting means as the extracted mineral falls therethrough onto a conveyor means, such as a belt.

The anchor frame must have substantially greater width, measured laterally or in parallel to the mineral face, than the width of the sump frame and must have substantially less length, measured longitudinally or perpendicularly to the mineral face, than the sump frame. The anchor frame must also be extremely rigid and be provided with a hanging means whereby it can be suspended from the sump frame even though in cantilevered position.

The dust collecting device includes adjustment means for use with auger cutting heads of varying diameter, such as from two feet to five feet, each cutting head generally being used with auger flights of slightly smaller diameter. The dust collecting device is cut through the sump frame bedplate and also includes a bottom hole through which falls the fragmented mineral being urged rearwardly by the spiral surfaces of the auger flights. A small vacuum pump is connected to the dust collecting device by tubing which passes through a dust concentrating means which is preferably a box enclosing a porous bag through which the air, but not the dust, passes.

This deep-mine augering machine may be used to extract minerals from seams having thicknesses of 2 feet to 4 feet or more and can be operated in the upper portions of thicker seams or in the upper stratum of a separated seam by interchanging the floor jacks for others having a longer stroke.

By inserting roof pins sufficiently close to each other in the roof of a mine entry, the conventional wooden roof posts can be omitted so that this machine can bore a series of holes perpendicularly into the mineral face to the desired depth, leapfrog or walk its anchor frame laterally, bore another series of holes, again walk its anchor laterally in the same direction alongside the mineral face, again bore another series of holes in sequence with the others, etc., along the entire length of the mine entry without interference from such posts.

As a part of the novel method of maneuvering this machine by leapfrogging or walking its anchor frame, the anchor frame is successively raised from the floor of the mine entry, shifted laterally, and emplaced again on the floor farther along the mineral face being bored. When two to four holes have been bored along a mineral face with auger flights varying from 48 inches to 26 inches in diameter, respectively, the roof jacks are released, the floor jacks are extended, the wheels are swung to their extended position, the floor jacks are released, and the position jacks are operated to slide the anchor frame laterally while the augering machine is supported on the wheels attached to the sump frame. Then the floor jacks are extended, the wheels are swung upwardly and pinned in retracted position, and the floor jacks are extended so as selectively to tilt the anchor frame with the mineral stratum to be bored with another series of holes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a top perspective view of the machine of this invention from its left rear comer.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the machine.

FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of the machine, looking in the direction of the arrows 3-3 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cross section of the dust collecting device of FIG. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows 4-4 in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the preferred auger flight connecting assembly.

FIG. 6 is a cross section of the rear axle showing the right-rear wheel mounting means, looking in the direction of the arrows 66 in FIG. 2, with the wheel shown in phantom.

FIG. 7 is a cross section of the front axle, showing the right-front wheel mounting means, looking in the direction of the arrows 7 -7 in FIG. 2, with the wheel shown in phantom.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the sump-frame stop means on the slide rails.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of passage development by use of the deep-mine augering machine of this invention as the sole mining machine therefor.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the layout created by passage development and side excavation by means of the deep-mine augering machine.

FIG. 11a is a diagrammatical plan view of this machine while boring the third of three successive holes along a mine entry.

FIG. 11b is a diagrammatical elevation view corresponding to FIG. 11a.

FIG. 11c through 11g shows successive stages in laterally walking the augering machine.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION As shown in the drawings, the deep-mine augering machine of this invention comprises: a rigid, elongated sump frame 20; a carriage 30 which is forwardly movable, on the sump frame 20, toward the mineral face while augering and rearwardly movable away from the mineral face while retrieving an auger flight; a sump means 40 which selectively moves the carriage 30 forwardly and backwardly on the sump frame 20; an auger-rotating drive means 50 which is supported on the carriage 30 and additionally is a source of hydraulic power; and anchor-frame lifting means 60; an anchorframe bracing means a dust collecting means 100 that centers the cutter means of the auger means 80 at the beginning of a boring operation, loosely supports the auger flights 81 during a boring operation, and-provides a suction means for removing coal dust exiting from the hole being bored; an auger-flight engaging means that enables successive flights 81 to be rapidly engaged or disengaged by means of a slight twist 94a or 94b, respectively, of the male end 91 of a flight 810 with respect to the female end 95 of the next flight 81b; an anchor frame 110 that underlies the sump frame 21) and is connected to the sump frame with four slide fasteners 115 and with two horizontally dis posed position jacks; wheel drive means 140 including a drive motor and sprocket means therefor; and a wheel steering means 150 including a steering wheel.

The sump frame 20 comprises a flat, rectangular bottom plate 24 which is rigidly attached, as by welding, to a pair of parallel, spaced-apart H-beams 21 which are strengthened along each side by vertical webs 22, the top plates of the H-beams 21 functioning as rails for the carriage means 30. The sump frame 20 further comprises a rear cross beam 23, a face cross beam 25, position jack brackets 26 which are attached to the H- beam 21 and extend about 3 inches therebeneath for attaching thereto the lug at the end of each rod 122 of the position jack cylinder 121, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The sump frame 20 also comprises the sump jack brackets 28 which are attached to the topside of the rear cross beam 23, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The carriage means 31) comprises a carriage bedplate 31, three spaced bedplate shafts 32 and vertically disposed bedplate support webs 33, each of which rigidly attaches a shaft 32 to the bedplate 31 along the entire width thereof. In the cutaway portion of FIG. 3, the forward bedplate support web 33 is clearly shown. The carriage means further comprises three pairs of car riage rollers 35, each roller 35 at one end of a nonrotatable shaft 32 having a pair of block bearings, minus the block, therewithin. All six rollers roll over the top plates of the H-beam rails 21 so that the top of the bedplate 31 is flush with or slightly beneath the top surfaces of the top plates of the H-beam rails 21. The carriage means 30 additionally comprises jack rod brackets 38, which are attached to the carriage bedplate 31, and a pair of upstanding side members 36, each being attached to the carriage bedplate 31 alongside the carriage rollers 35, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The side member 36 on the left side serves as a useful support for the control panel 135. The carriage frame 30 further comprises pairs of L-shaped sweeper lugs 37 which are rigidly attached to each side member 36 and are closely spaced from the adjacent top plates of the H- beam rails 21, whereby particles of minerals are swept away before the forward and rearward rollers 35.

The sump means 40 comprises a pair of sump jack cylinders 41 having sump jack rods 42, the ends of which are attached to the jack rod brackets 38 with pins. The sump means 40 further comprises a hydraulic pump 46 which is attached to the sump bedplate 31, a hydraulic feed line 47 to the pump 46, and a hydraulic tank 48 holding hydraulic fluid for the cylinders 41 and other jack cylinders of the angering machine. The ends of the cylinders 41 are attached with pins to the sump jack attachment brackets 38, whereby the cylinder rods 42 move the bedplate 31 of the carriage 30 forwardly and rearwardly as they are respectively advanced from and retracted into the cylinders 41.

The power and auger rotational means 50 for rotating the auger means 80 comprises an electric motor 51 which is rigidly attached to the bedplate 31, a motor output shaft 52, a clutch 53, an hydraulic transmission 54, a drive shaft 55, a speed reducer 56 which transmits rotational power from the motor 51 to the speed reduce output shaft 57, a coupling 58, and a speed reducer take-off shaft 59 to which the hydraulic pump 46 is connected.

The lift means 60 comprises a pair of rearward floor jacks 61, 61' and a pair of forward floors jacks 62,.62, each jack being attached to the anchor plate 111 with a circular bracket 63 and each jack having a floor plate 64.

The brace means comprises a pair of rearward roof jacks 71, 71 and a pair of forward roof jacks 72, 72, each jack being attached to the anchor plate 111 with a circular bracket 73 and each jack having a roof plate 74, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The auger means comprises a plurality of auger flights or sections 81, each flight 81 having conventional spirals 82 with spiral edges 83, a shaft 84, and a cutter head 85 with cutter teeth 86, as shown in FIG. 2.

The flights 81 are rotatably connected to each other with the auger-flight engaging means shown in FIG. 5, comprising the post 91, at the forward end of the shaft 84 of a flight 81a, typically being added in front of the sump frame 20, and the post opening 93, at the rearward end of the shaft 84 of the rearmost or out wardmost auger flight 81b protruding from the auger hole being bored. The auger-flight engaging means 90 also comprises the locking lug 92 which radially protrudes from the post 91, the contact face 96 which is perpendicularly disposed to the axis of the rearmost flight 81b, the entrance passage 97 leading longitudinally from the face 96, and the pair of

bays

98, 99 at the inward end of the passage 97. These bays are the retrieval bay 98 and the drive bay 99 which are circumferentially disposed in relation to the entrance passage 97 and spaced therefrom in interfitting relationship to the locking lug 92.

By moving the new flight 81a forward while the lock ing lug 92 is in longitudinal alignment with the entrance passage 97, the lug 92 is pushed thereinto and is free to enter either

bay

98, 99. By a locking twist 94a in the drive direction, the lug 92 is pushed into the drive bay 99; by an unlocking twist 94b in the reverse direction, the lug 92 is pushed into the retrieval bay 98.

Consequently, this auger'flight engaging means 90 offers a quick and simple means for interconnecting two flights 81a, 81!) without manual operation thereof. It is also useful for releasably attaching the speed reducer output shaft 57 to the rearmost flight 81. However, the post 91 is attached to the shaft 57 by means of a conventional flange, not shown in the drawings, within the coupling 58 in order to have sufficient play to accommodate minor changes in direction of a tram of auger flights 81.

When a flight 81b, for example, has been driven to the edge of the dust collecting means 100, the motor 51 is reversed, preferably by means of a special flight disengagement switch on the control panel 135 which gives a controlled reverse turn equalling the angular length of a

bay

98, 99, so that two contacts there with move the lug 92 from one

bay

98, 99 into the

other bay

99, 98 and one contact therewith moves the lug 92 into alignment with the passage 97.

The procedure used for retrieving a flight 81 from a previous hole and feeding it into a new hole being bored is illustrated diagrammatically in FIGS. 11a through 11g, as is described hereinafter. The pertinent flight-engaging procedure used in connection therewith is: (l) punch the flight-disengagement button on the control panel 135 once (producing an unlocking twist 94b through bay angle 94); (2) retract the carriage 30 from the hole being bored (such as hole C in FIGS. Ila-11g); (3, move the sump frame 20 laterally into alignment with the previously bored hole (such as hole B in FIGS. Ila-11g); (4) advance the carriage 30 while selectively rotating the shaft 57 so that the lug 92 thereon is in radial alignment with the passage 97 of the rearmost flight 81 protruding therefrom and is pushed firmly thereinto; (5) push the flight-disengagement button on the control panel 135 (producing an unlocking twist 94b through bay angle 95 for the lug 92 inside the coupling 58 into bay 98 at the rear end of the rearmost flight); (6) retract the carriage 30 with the rearmost flight 81 being attached thereto and slideably engaging and resting in the dust collecting device 100, thereby pulling the entire series of flights remaining within hole B through the length of one flight 81; (7) while still retracting the carriage 30, push the flight-disengagement button on the control panel 135 once more to produce an unlocking twist 94b through bay angle 95 for the lug 92 at the forward end of the rearmost flight, thereby pulling the flights apart while the retrieved flight remains on the post 91 attached to the shaft 57; (8) move the sump frame laterally into alignment with the hole C; (9) advance the carriage 30 while selectively rotating the shaft 57 so that the lug 92 on the post 91 of the retrieved flight is in radial alignment with the passage 97 in the rearmost flight in hole C and is pushed firmly thereinto; (10) punch the flightengagement button to produce a locking twist 94a through bay angle 95; and (I1) resume boring in hole C The dust collection means 100, shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, comprises a vacuum pump 101, a vacuum dust box 102, a fixed collection ring 107 having a bottom hole 105 therein, and an adjustment ring 106. The vacuum pump 101 is attached to a side-extending shelf on the right-hand side of the right-hand sump rail 21. This pump 101 is connected by a vacuum line to the dust box 102 which contains air-permeable but dustimpermeable bags of standard design, not shown in the drawings. The dust box 102 is connected with the vacuum line 103 to the vacuum outlets 104 on the fixed collection ring 107, which is very thin, such as one-half to one inch in thickness. Vacuum holes 108 in the inner side of the adjustment ring 106, as shown in FIG. 4, are matched by similar holes in the fixed collection ring 107.

The adjustment ring 106, although shown in the drawings as a one-piece member of a single size, is actually a member of any selected size. It is a semi-ringshaped member which provides air passages in the form of holes 108 through its inner and outer sides only and has a thickness selected to compensate for difference in diameter of a selected auger flight. Using the largest auger flight 81, such as 48 inches, which a particular model of this deep-mine angering machine is designed to utilize would require no adjustment ring 106. Using the smallest auger flight 81, such as 26 inches, would require the thickest adjustment ring 106 available for the model. Intermediate sizes of auger flights 81, such as 36 inches, would correspondingly require adjustment rings 106 of matching thicknesses.

The flattened top 109 of the adjustment ring 106 and fixed collection ring 107 need be no lower than the height of the topmost spiral edge 83 of the smallest auger flight 81, when it is inserted within the ring 106, that a particular model of this deep-mine augering machine is adapted to accommodate. Because the bulk of the emerging mineral when looking directly at the hole being bored, is in the lower left quadrant of the flight 81, it is sufficient if the top 109 is higher than the longitudinal axis of the largest-sized flight 81 that a particular model uses.

The anchor frame 110 comprises an anchor plate 111, a pair of centrally disposed slide rails 113, a pair of outwardly disposed brace rails 112 (all

rails

113, 112 being mutually parallel, in spaced relationship, and rigidly attached to the top surface of the anchor plate 111), a floor jack 6], 61', 62, 62 and a

roofjack

71, 71, 72, 72' at each corner of the plate 111, and fasteners 115.

The anchor plate 111, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, is preferably square and very rigid; steel plate 1 inch thick is preferred. However. it is merely necessary that the anchor plate have a greater lateral dimension than the width of the sump frame 20 and a shorter longitudinal dimension than the length of the sump frame 20. Whereas the sump rails 21 are preferably 4-inch H- beams, the slide rails 113 are preferably 6-inch H- beams.

The anchor frame 110 may be constructed in other ways provided that: 1 the proportions with respect to the sump frame are adhered to, (2) a pair of spaced, parallel, and horizontally disposed slide rails are perpendicularly disposed to the sump frame, (3) the floor and roof jacks are widely and quadrangularly spaced apart, (4) the anchor frame has great rigidity, and (5) the slide rails are slideably and both supportably and suspendably attached to the sump frame.

The slide fasteners 115, as shown in FIG. 8, are formed in the shape of a hollow T having a pressure .portion as a horizontally disposed top plate 117, a

hanging portion as the pair of horizontally disposed lower plates 119, and a stop portion as the pair of vertically disposed lugs 116 which ride on each side of the web of the I-I-beam rails 113. The top plate 117 of each slide fastener is attached to the bottom of the bedplate 24. The fastener 115 slideably encompasses the top plate and web of an H-beam slide rail 113. Each slide fastener 115 being located at an intersection of a sump rail 21 and a slide rail 113, the four fasteners 115 are mutually spaced in quadrangular relationship. The interfltting slide surfaces of the rails 113 and fasteners 115 are heavy greased under operating conditions.

In the web and near each end of each slide rail 113 is a series of uniform stop holes 114 which are spaced apart in a straight line by a distance equalling the difference in diameter between successive sizes of auger flights to be employed in operating this deep-mine augering machine. These stop holes 114 are visible in FIGS. 1 and 8.

Using a constant wall thickness between adjacent holes, the distance that the sump frame 20 must travel in returning from the hole being bored to the previously bored hole (e.g., from hole C to hole B in FIGS. Ila-11g) obviously depends upon the diameter of the holes being bored and ultimately upon the usuable thickness of the mineral seam being mined. When a stop bolt 118 is selectively placed in a hole 114, it forms a sump frame stop means in combination with the lugs 116 which are preferably provided with rubber bumpers along the vertical outer edges thereof. With both rails 113 equipped with this mechanical stop means, the sump frame can be stopped at precisely selected positions, in front of a previously bored hole and in front of the hole being bored, when moved in ei ther direction.

The sump frame positioning means 120 comprises the positioning jacks with cylinders 121 and rods 122, the cylinders 121 being hingeably connected to the brackets 124 which are attached to the anchor plate 111 along one longitudinal edge thereof, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The ends of the positioning jack rods 122 are pinned to the position jack brackets 26 which are attached to the lower plate of the sump rail 21 along the farther side, with respect to the brackets 124, of the sump frame 20. With these positioning jacks 121, the sump frame 20 is readily and quickly positioned laterally when and as desired while the weight of the sump frame is slideably resting upon the slide rails 113 through the plates 117 of the four fasteners 115. However, if the anchor frame 110 is hanging from the sump frame 211 by means of the slide fasteners 115, these positioning jacks 121 move the anchor frame 110, for the sump frame 20 is then the relatively immovable refer ence object.

The control means 130 comprises a start box 131 which is preferably attached to the carriage bedplate 31, a punch-button control panel 135 which is preferably attached to the side member 36 on the left side of the sump frame 20, a starter connection cable 132 between the panel 135 and the starter box 131, a motor control cable 133 leading from the starter box 131 to the motor 51, and an hydraulic control line 134 leading from the hydraulic tank 48 to the panel 135. The electric drive motors 141 have separate controls at the steering station near the face end of the sump frame 20, and the vacuum pump 101 has ito own switch.

The wheel drive means 140, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 6, comprises a pair of electrical drive motors 141, a pair of motor sprockets, a pair of wheel sprockets, a pair of sprocket chains 144, and a pair of tire-equipped rear wheels 145, 145'. Each motor 141 is attached to the top plate of one of the H-beam rails 21 near its rear end and drives the

nearby wheel

144 or 145 through its motor sprocket, wheel sprocket, and sprocket chain 144 at a slow tramming speed. As shown in FIG. 6, each wheel 145, 145' rotates on an axle 146 which is attched to a wheel swing arm 148 which is connected to a sump rail 21 with a rail pin 147. Each swing arm 148 has a stop means (not shown in the drawings) that prevents swinging of the arm 148 toward the anchor frame 110 and a selectively detachable lock means (not shown in the drawings) that locks the arm 148 in its vertical position while tramming. Another lock means (also not shown in the drawings) holds each wheel 145, 145' in an elevated position, after the arm 148 has moved through storage swing 149 for storage of each

wheel

145, 145 in a safe storage position while the machine is boring, laterally retrieving, and walking from one site to another.

The wheel steering means 150, shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7, comprises a steeing wheel 151, a steering shaft 152, knuckle pins 153, a tie rod 154, tire equipped

front wheels

155, 155 turning on front axles 156, rail pins 157, wheel swing arms 158, and wheel steering arms 159. Each axle 156 is attached to a swing arm 158 near one end thereof, in an arrangement similar to the drive wheel arrangement, and also to a wheel steering arm 159. The other end of each swing arm 158 is connected to a sump rail 21 with a rail pin 157. Each wheel steering arm 159 is also connected, by means of a knuckle pin 153, to the tie rod 154 which is connected to the steering shaft 152. By manually removing both knuckle pins 153, the swing arms 158 can be swung upwardly and locked in elevated position during boring, retrieval, and walking operations.

Typical manipulative operations for the deep-mine augering machine are diagrammatically illustrated in FIGS. 11a-1 1g. in FIG. 11a, the machine, comprising an anchor frame having a

roofjack

71, 71, 72, 72 and a

floor jack

61, 61', 62, 62 at each corner, a sump frame 20 having rear wheels 145, and a carriage 30, is illustrated in plan view as boring into hole C of a series of three holes labelled A, B, and C. FIG. 11b shows the same relationship in an end elevation view.

FIG. 11c sketches the sump frame 20 after it has been slid laterally into position in front of the previously bored hole B for retrieval of a flight, hole B being used for flight storage, as is known in the art. The sump frame 20 then returns to hole C, inserts the retrieved flight, and resumes boring, but this part of the sequence is not illustrated.

FIGS. lld-llg sketches the walking procedure in which the suspended anchor frame 110 is slid laterally beneath the sump frame 20 from one cantilevered position to another so that boring of a new series of holes can be commenced. The detailed steps of this walking procedure are as follows:

1. lower the

roofjacks

71, 71, 72, 72, and lower the floor jacks 61, 61, 62, 62 to raise the anchor frame 110 above the floor of the mine entry while the sump frame 20 is moved to the desired-travel side of the anchor frame 110 (illustrated in FIG. 11d);

2. lower the

wheels

145, 145, 1.55, and raise the floor jacks 61, 61, 62, 62 so that the anchor frame 110 is suspended from the sump frame 20 (illustrated in FIG. 11e);

3. using the position jacks 121, slide the anchor frame 110 laterally to the other side of the sump frame 20;

4. lower the floor jacks 61, 61, 62, 62' and raise the

wheels

145, 145, 155, 155' (illustrated in FIG. 11 f); and

5. move the floor jacks 61, 61 62, 62 to their working levels and raise the roof jacks 71, 71, 72, 72 into contact with the roof of the mine entry and commence boring a new hole D as the beginning of a new series of two holes (illustrated in FIG. 11g).

FIG. 9 illustrates the novel use of the deep-mine augering machine of this invention for entry development as the sole cutting machine therefor. An entry 160 hav ing a floor 164, a roof 163, sides 165, and an end face 166 is continued in its development according to FIG. 9 by using the deep-mine augering machine to bore a long breaker hole 161, such as 50 to 100 feet in depth, into the center of the end face 166. Then four or more shot holes 162 are drilled a selected distance from the edges of the breaker hole 161 at selected angles to the breaker hole 161, the roof 163, and the floor 164.

When exposives have been inserted into the holes 162 and blown, the blown-down mineral is mucked with a loading machine, additional shot holes 162 are drilled outwardly of the blown area, explosives are inserted and blown, etc., until the entire end face 166 has been moved back by approximately the depth to which the shot holes 162 have been drilled. Then the procedure is repeated, without need for any other machine than a loader, until the end of the breaker hole 161 is reached. I

This method replaces repeated, shallow undercuttings of the seam with boring a large and very deep breaker hole, preferably spanning the thickness of the mineral seam, as the locus of the explosive force and the sequential recipient of the fragmented mineral, It is known in the art to utilize a small, shallow, central breaker hole for a single blasting, but it is believed to be new to use sequential drilling and blasting of an end face around a single breaker hole having great depth.

FIG. shows a novel mine layout 170 that this deepmine augering machine is able to follow. The mine has

main entries

171, 172, 173 and a plurality of minor entries 189 in paralleLtherewith but not communicating with an access area. Crossing these

entries

171, 172, 173 are the No. 1 First Left Panel Entry 176 and the No. 2 First Left Panel Entry 177, thus isolating the large block 174 and five pillars 181-185. The block 174 is bored with the deep-mine augering machine from the panel entry 176 with holes 186. The pillars 181l85 are pulled with the augering machine from the entry 177 on retraction of the augering machine.

Similarly, holes 191, 192 are bored from the sides of the

entries

171, 172, 173 to recover most of the mineral in the

blocks

194, 195, 196, 197, etc. The largest block 175 is also bored from the

panel entries

177, 178 to depths of approximately 80 feet, whereby most of the available minerals is extracted from the mine.

It has also been noted that conventional carbide tips, commonly inserted by brazing or silver soldering into the cutter teeth 86 on the cutter head 85, are subject to severe breakage if the direction of rotation is reversed. It has further been found that much more durable cutter teeth, not subject to such breakage, is obtainable by melting a carbide rod and sweating it onto a bit tip of a cutter tooth 86. The resultant tip is much harder to tear or break off than a conventional carbide tip and is difficult to crack. Moreover, the life of this bit is much longer than that of a conventional carbide bit.

The

wheels

145, 145, 155, 155 can readily be mounted on mechanical or hydraulic jacks whereby the walking procedure can be performed more rapidly. The floor jacks 61, 61, 62, 62' can also be omitted in the walking procedure if the

wheels

145, 145', 155, 155' are hydraulically extensible whereby the anchor frame 110 is simultaneously lifted from the floor of a mine entry. The walking procedure thus becomes simplified to:

1. move the sump means to the side of the anchor frame 110 in which lateral walking is desired;

2. extend the

wheels

145, 145, 155, 155 so that the anchor frame 110 is lifted above the floor and can tiliverly supported from the slide fasteners 115;

3. with the position jacks 121, produce relative lateral movement of the anchor frame 110 and the sump frame 20 so that the anchor frame 110 slides laterally beneath the sump frame 20 and becomes cantileverly supported from its other side; and

4. retract the

wheels

145, 145', 155, 155, so that the anchor frame contacts the floor, and resume augering operations.

The slide fasteners can be replaced with a rollerbearing attachment means forrollably contacting the top and bottom surfaces of the top plate of the H-beam slide rails 113. The slide fasteners 115 are quadrangularly disposed, at each intersection of the sump rails 21 and the slide rails 113.

The slide rails 113 need merely be travel-permitting rails capable of bearing the weight of the sump frame 20 and carriage 30 when in supporting relationship and of bearing the weight of the anchor frame 110 when in suspension relationship. The anchor frame 110 is cantileverly supportable when selectively suspended by the slide fasteners 115 as the travel-permitting attachment means between the sump frame 20 and the anchor frame 110.

It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and alterations may be made in the walking method described hereinbefore and in the form, construction, and arrangement of the various parts of the deep-mine augering machine without departing from the basic principles and purpose of the invention. Such modifications and alterations are consequently intended to be included within the spirit and scope of the invention unless necessarily excluded therefrom by the appended claims when broadly construed.

What is claimed is:

1. A deep-mine augering machine comprising:

A. an elongated sump frame which comprises quadrangularly disposed, floor-contacting wheels having means for selective elevation thereof above the floor of a mine entry;

B. a carriage, movable along said sump frame, which supports an auger rotating means for auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said sump frame; and

C. an anchor frame, disposed beneath said sump frame, having:

1. rigidity under heavy bending loads,

2. a greater lateral dimension than the width of said sump frame.

3. a smaller longitudinal dimension than the length of said sump frame,

4. a pair of travel rails which are laterally disposed on said anchor frame in perpendicular relationship to the elongated sides of said sump frame, mutually parallel, and spaced apart,

5. travel-permitting attachment means for movably supporting said sump frame on said anchor frame and for selectively movably suspending said anchor frame from said sump frame, and

6. means for producing relative lateral movement of said sump frame and said anchor frame.

2. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 1 wherein said travel rails are slide rails and said travelpermitting attachment means is a plurality of slide fasteners.

3. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 2 wherein said fasteners are quadrangularly disposed.

4. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 2 wherein said sump frame is selectively movable laterally while slideably supported on said slide fasteners, from a hole being bored to a hole previously bored. for retrieval of an auger flight stored therein, and is again movable laterally, while transporting the retrieved auger flight and while slideably supported on said slide fasteners, from said hole previously bored to said hole being bored, for adding said retrieved auger flight therein and continuing the boring operation.

5. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 1 wherein said anchor frame additionally comprises quadrangularly disposed, floor-contacting lift frame for selectively lifting said anchor means above the floor of a mine entry.

6. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 1 wherein said anchor frame is cantileverly supportable while selectively suspended by said attachment means from said sump frame.

7. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 1 wherein said wheels comprise a pair of driven rear wheels attached to said sump frame beyond said anchor frame and a pair of steerable front wheels attached to said sump frame beyond said anchor frame.

8. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 7 wherein each of said pair of driven rear wheels is driven by an individual electric motor through a sprocket chain, for tramming of said machine.

9. The method of walking a deep-mine augering ma chine laterally in parallel to a mineral face and over the floor of a mine entry, said machine having a sump frame selectively supportable ,on elevatable and quadrangularly disposed wheels, an anchor frame disposed therebeneath in laterally movable relationship while selectively supporting said sump frame, or hanging therefrom, a lift means disposed quadrangularly on said anchor frame, a brace means disposed quadrangularly on said anchor frame for rigidly anchoring said anchor frame against the roof of a mine entry in cooperation with said lift means, and a lateral positioning means for producing lateral movement between said sump frame and said anchor frame, comprising:

A. moving said sump frame to the desired-travel side of said anchor frame;

B. disengaging said anchor frame from said floor and said roof by operating said lift means and said brace means, respectively;

C. supporting said sump frame on said wheels until said anchor frame is cantileverly suspended from said sump frame;

D. sliding said anchor frame laterally until cantileverly extended from the desired-travel side of said sump frame by using said lateral positioning means;

E. removing said wheels from supporting relationship with said sump frame; and

F. engaging said anchor frame with said floor and said roof and into alignment with a mineral seam being bored by operating said lift means and said brace means, respectively, whereby said anchor frame is a rigidly anchored operating platform for said sump frame.

10. A deep-mine augering machine, for extracting minerals by rotatably boring a series of parallel holes in a mineral seam with a connected series of auger flights, which has a laterally reciprocative means for sequentially extracting a plurality of auger flights from a previously bored hole, sequentially transporting each said extracted auger flight to the hole being bored, and sequentially adding each said transported auger flight to the connected series of auger flights in the hole being bored, said laterally reciprocative means comprising:

A. an anchor frame, as a horizontally rigid bottom platform, having at least two laterally disposed rails attached thereto and quadrangularly disposed floor jacks for selective elevation thereof;

B. a sump frame, as a boring platform, which is rigidly supported by and movably attached to said rails during boring operations; and

C. position jacks, as a positioning and lateral movement means for laterally and reciprocatively moving said sump frame from said hole being bored to said hole previously bored and returning to said hole being bored, whereby each said extracted auger flight is laterally transported.

11. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 10 wherein said sump frame supports a longitudinally reciprocative carriage having an auger-rotating drive means with which each said auger flight, stored in said hole previously bored, is sequentially extracted therefrom and sequentially added to said connected series of auger flights in said hole being bored.

12. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 11 wherein said sump frame further comprises a sump frame support means for selectively supporting and elevating said sump frame.

13. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 12 wherein said sump frame is movably attached to said rails with a travel-permitting attachment means for:

A. rigidly supporting said sump frame during said boring operations;

B. movably supporting said sump frame during lateral movement thereof; and

C. selectively cantileverly suspending said anchor frame from said sump frame, whereby said machine can be laterally walked to a new boring position when said sump frame support means elevates and supports said sump frame.

14. in a deep-mine augering machine for extracting minerals by rotatably boring a series of parallel holes in a mineral seam with a connected series of auger flights, an auger'flight transfer means, comprising:

A. carriage supporting an auger-rotating drive means which is selectively connected to a plurality of auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said carriage;

B. a laterally reciprocative means, having extreme rigidity, for moving said carriage perpendicularly to said parallel holes, from a hole being bored to a hole previously bored and for returning said car riage to said hole being bored while laterally transferring an extracted auger flight without disturbing the position of said deep-mine augering machine; and

C. a longitudinally reciprocative means for longitudinally moving said carriage during boring operations with said connected series of auger flights and during sequential auger-flight transfer operations when sequentially extracting said auger flights from said hole previously bored, and, after said lateral transferring thereof, sequentially feeding said transferred flights into said hole being bored.

15. The auger-flight transfer means of claim 14 wherein said laterally reciprocative means comprises:

A. an anchor frame, as a rigid bottom platform, com* prising a rigid anchor plate having at least two laterally disposed rails attached thereto,

B. a sump frame, as a boring platform, which movably rests upon and is rigidly supported by said rails during boring operations. and

C. position jacks, as a movement means for inducing laterally reciprocative movement of said sump frame and for selectively positioning said sump frame.

16. A deep-mine augering machine, adapted for extracting minerals from thin seams thereof by rotatably boring a series of spaced parallel holes therein, comprising:

A. an anchor frame, comprising:

1. an extremely rigid anchor plate which is as large as said anchor frame,

2. quadrangularly disposed floor jacks attached to said anchor plate for selective elevation thereof,

3. a brace means for exerting upward force upon the roof of a mine entry, whereby, in cooperation with said floor jacks, said anchor frame is anchored against sidewise forces thereupon during boring operations, and

4. slide rails which are attached to said anchor plate and disposed perpendicularly to said series of parallel holes; and

B. an elongated sump frame which is:

1. supported entirely by said anchor frame,

2. disposed transversely to and selectively movable laterally on said slide rails, and

3. longer than the width of said anchor plate and narrower than the length of said anchor plate.

17. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 16 wherein said width of said anchor plate is at least as great as the diameter of two said holes plus the space therebetween.

18. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 16 which further comprises a reciprocable position means for laterally moving and selectively positioning said sump frame on said slide rails.

19. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 18 which further comprises a carriage which is longitudinally movable on said elongated sump frame and supports an auger-rotating drive means for performing said boring operations.

20. A deep-mine augering machine for rotatably boring a series of spaced, parallel holes in a mineral vein with a boring means attached to a connected series of auger flights for rotatably extracting the mineral from said holes, comprising an essentially square and extremely rigid anchor frame, as a bottom operating platform which is rigidly braceable with roof and floor jacks against the roof and floor of a mine entry cutting through said mineral vein, said jacks being a means for selectively aligning said boring means with said mineral vein, said anchor frame being the anchor means for furnishing sole support and rigid alignment control to said boring means during said boring, and said boring means being attached to and supported by a carriage which is longitudinally movable on and supported by an elongated sump frame which is movably attached to and supported by said anchor frame.

21. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 20 which further comprises a sump frame positioning means for laterally moving said sump frame to and fro over said anchor frame while said anchor frame maintains said rigid alignment control.

22. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 21 wherein said sump frame further comprises:

A. an attachment means for slidingly, weightsupportingly, and pendulently attaching said sump frame to said anchor frame; and

B. a sump frame support means which is selectively usable to elevate said sump frame, after release of said roof and floor jacks, so that said anchor frame hangs from said sump frame and is selectively transferrable from saide to side of said sump frame by moving said sump frame positioning means.

23. A deep-mine augering machine, comprising:

A. as a boring platform, an elongated sump frame which is operable without direct bracing against any mine surface,

B. a carriage, longitudinally movable along said sump frame, which supports an auger-rotating drive means connected to a plurality of auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said sump frame; and

C. an anchor frame, disposed beneath said sump frame as a bottom platform, comprising:

1. an anchor plate having two-dimensional rigidity under heavy bending loads, a greater lateral dimension than the width of said sump frame, and a smaller longitudinal dimension than the length of said sump frame,

2. a pair of travel rails which are laterally disposed on said anchor plate in perpendicular relationship to the elongated sides of said sump frame, mutually parallel, and spaced apart,

3. travel-permitting attachment means for movably supporting said sump frame on said travel rails and for selectively movably suspending said anchor frame from said sump frame,

4. positioning means for producing relative lateral movement of said sump frame and said anchor frame,

5. floor-contacting lift means which are quadrangularly disposed on and rigidly attached to said anchor plate, for selectively lifting said anchor frame above the floor of a mine entry, and

6. roof-contacting brace means, which are quadrangularly disposed on and rigidly attached to said anchor plate, for bracing said anchor frame against said lift means and the roof of a mine entry in selected alignment with a hole previously bored and with a hole being bored during boring operations into a mineral seam.

Claims

1. A deep-mine augering machine comprising: A. an elongated sump frame which comprises quadrangularly disposed, floor-contacting wheels having means for selective elevation thereof above the floor of a mine entry; B. a carriage, movable along said sump frame, which supports an auger rotating means for auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said sump frame; and C. an anchor frame, disposed beneath said sump frame, having: 1. rigidity under heavy bending loads, 2. a greater lateral dimension than the width of said sump frame. 3. a smaller longitudinal dimension than the length of said sump frame, 4. a pair of travel rails which are laterally disposed on said anchor frame in perpendicular relationship to the elongated sides of said sump frame, mutually parallel, and spaced apart, 5. travel-permitting attachment means for movably supporting said sump frame on said anchor frame and for selectively movably suspending said anchor frame from said sump frame, and 6. means for producing relative lateral movement of said sump frame and said anchor frame.

2. a greater lateral dimension than the width of said sump frame.

2. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 1 wherein said travel rails are slide rails and said travel-permitting attachment means is a plurality of slide fasteners.

3. a smaller longitudinal dimension than the length of said sump frame,

4. slide rails which are attached to said anchor plate and disposed perpendicularly to said series of parallel holes; and B. an elongated sump frame which is:

4. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 2 wherein said sump frame is selectively movable laterally while slideably supported on said slide fasteners, from a hole being bored to a hole previously bored, for retrieval of an auger flight stored therein, and is again movable laterally, while transporting the retrieved auger flight and while slideably supported on said slide fasteners, from said hole previously bored to said hole being bored, for adding said retrieved auger flight therein and continuing the boring operation.

9. The method of walking a deep-mine augering machine laterally in parallel to a mineral face and over the floor of a mine entry, said machine having a sump frame selectively supportable on elevatable and quadrangularly disposed wheels, an anchor frame disposed therebeneath in laterally movable relationship while selectively supporting said sump frame, or hanging therefrom, a lift means dIsposed quadrangularly on said anchor frame, a brace means disposed quadrangularly on said anchor frame for rigidly anchoring said anchor frame against the roof of a mine entry in cooperation with said lift means, and a lateral positioning means for producing lateral movement between said sump frame and said anchor frame, comprising: A. moving said sump frame to the desired-travel side of said anchor frame; B. disengaging said anchor frame from said floor and said roof by operating said lift means and said brace means, respectively; C. supporting said sump frame on said wheels until said anchor frame is cantileverly suspended from said sump frame; D. sliding said anchor frame laterally until cantileverly extended from the desired-travel side of said sump frame by using said lateral positioning means; E. removing said wheels from supporting relationship with said sump frame; and F. engaging said anchor frame with said floor and said roof and into alignment with a mineral seam being bored by operating said lift means and said brace means, respectively, whereby said anchor frame is a rigidly anchored operating platform for said sump frame.

10. A deep-mine augering machine, for extracting minerals by rotatably boring a series of parallel holes in a mineral seam with a connected series of auger flights, which has a laterally reciprocative means for sequentially extracting a plurality of auger flights from a previously bored hole, sequentially transporting each said extracted auger flight to the hole being bored, and sequentially adding each said transported auger flight to the connected series of auger flights in the hole being bored, said laterally reciprocative means comprising: A. an anchor frame, as a horizontally rigid bottom platform, having at least two laterally disposed rails attached thereto and quadrangularly disposed floor jacks for selective elevation thereof; B. a sump frame, as a boring platform, which is rigidly supported by and movably attached to said rails during boring operations; and C. position jacks, as a positioning and lateral movement means for laterally and reciprocatively moving said sump frame from said hole being bored to said hole previously bored and returning to said hole being bored, whereby each said extracted auger flight is laterally transported.

13. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 12 wherein said sump frame is movably attached to said rails with a travel-permitting attachment means for: A. rigidly supporting said sump frame during said boring operations; B. movably supporting said sump frame during lateral movement thereof; and C. selectively cantileverly suspending said anchor frame from said sump frame, whereby said machine can be laterally walked to a new boring position when said sump frame support means elevates and supports said sump frame.

14. In a deep-mine augering machine for extracting minerals by rotatably boring a series of parallel holes in a mineral seam with a connected series of auger flights, an auger-flight transfer means, comprising: A. carriage supporting an auger-rotating drive means which is selectively connected to a plurality of auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said carriage; B. a laterally reciprocative means, having extreme rigidity, for moving said carriage perpendicularly to said parallel holes, from a hole being bored to a hole previously bored and for Returning said carriage to said hole being bored while laterally transferring an extracted auger flight without disturbing the position of said deep-mine augering machine; and C. a longitudinally reciprocative means for longitudinally moving said carriage during boring operations with said connected series of auger flights and during sequential auger-flight transfer operations when sequentially extracting said auger flights from said hole previously bored, and, after said lateral transferring thereof, sequentially feeding said transfered flights into said hole beinb bored.

15. The auger-flight transfer means of claim 14 wherein said laterally reciprocative means comprises: A. an anchor frame, as a rigid bottom platform, comprising a rigid anchor plate having at least two laterally disposed rails attached thereto, B. a sump frame, as a boring platform, which movably rests upon and is rigidly supported by said rails during boring operations, and C. position jacks, as a movement means for inducing laterally reciprocative movement of said sump frame and for selectively positioning said sump frame.

16. A deep-mine augering machine, adapted for extracting minerals from thin seams thereof by rotatably boring a series of spaced parallel holes therein, comprising: A. an anchor frame, comprising:

22. The deep-mine augering machine of claim 21 wherein said sump frame further comprises: A. an attachMent means for slidingly, weight-supportingly, and pendulently attaching said sump frame to said anchor frame; and B. a sump frame support means which is selectively usable to elevate said sump frame, after release of said roof and floor jacks, so that said anchor frame hangs from said sump frame and is selectively transferrable from saide to side of said sump frame by moving said sump frame positioning means.

23. A deep-mine augering machine, comprising: A. as a boring platform, an elongated sump frame which is operable without direct bracing against any mine surface, B. a carriage, longitudinally movable along said sump frame, which supports an auger-rotating drive means connected to a plurality of auger flights disposed in longitudinal alignment with said sump frame; and C. an anchor frame, disposed beneath said sump frame as a bottom platform, comprising: