USRE11258E - Machinery for handljng coal - Google Patents

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

v J. M. DODGE. Assignor to The Dodge Coal Storage Company. MACHINERY FOR HANDLING GOAL.

No. 11,258. /Reissued Aug. 9, 1892.

' befall/$01: a/nws .Dod 5 he Jlttorrbg-s Sheet 2.

2 Sheets J'. M. DODGE. Assignor to The Dodge Coal Storage Company. MACHINERY FOR HANDLING GOAL.

Reissued Aug. 9 1892.

UNIT D STATES PATENT OFF CE.

- JAMES Donna, on IHILADELPHDQ PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE DODGE COAL STORAGE COMPANY, or NAUGATUCK, CONNECTICUT.

MACHINERY FOR HANDLING COAL.

BPECIFICATION forming part of Reissued Letters Patent No. 11,258, dated August 9, 1892. Original No. 446,814, dated February l7 1891. Application for reissue filed February 2. 1892. Serial No. 420,125.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, JAMES M. DODGE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Machinery for Handling Goal, of whieh'the following is a specification.

My invention consists of improvements in the construction of ways 01' supports for conveying machinery used in piling coal or analogous material for storage purposes. I'Ieretofore in this class of work two general plans have been adopted, the first being the erection of long and substantially horizontal ways, from which are suspended large buckets that are moved back and forth, receiving and discharging loads of coal intermittently,

such ways being supported by upright framework or posts, which remain buried in the coal to a greater or less extent for a long pe riod, said supports being thus subjected to the deteriorating action of moisture, sulphur, 850., and interfering with the free use of devices for reloading the coal for shipment. The other plan is that which I have shownin several of my coal'handling devices patented within the past few years, and which consists, mainly, in the use of an endless conveyer chain or rope provided-with laterally-projecting flights or scrapers adapted to feed coal regularly and continuously to the storage pile, the mechanism being supported by a pole or a mast and boom.

By the operation of this device a substantially conical pile is formed.

A-pole support is open to the objections noted above, and a boom overcomes the dimcnlties only in the case of smallpiles, as it must be inclined at an angle with the horizontal not greater than the angle of reposc of the material to be piled, and cannot practicallybe made long enough and strong enough to span half of a large pile. Furthermore, in coal-piling outfits using a suspended chain and flights'it is often desirable to employ intervening plates to reduce the friction between the loaded flights or scrapers and the coal over which they travel, and, as these plates are heavy andhave to be carried over the yielding coal and must be readgusted in case the pile settles from any cause it is desirable to provide some convenient means of supporting an adjustable anti-friction plate or series of plates interposed between the flights or scrapersand the pile, besides rendering all parts of the machineryaccessible for oiling, repairs, the, and reducing the strain which would be exerted on the chain if the Ia'tterwere suspended between wheels.

The object of my invention is to overcome the difficulties and secure the desirable features described above.

To enable those skilled in the art to which my improvement relates to understand and practice the same, I will now proceed to describe my invention more' fully, referring to the accompanying drawings, in whieh- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a coal-piling apparatus, illustrating my invention. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail view on a larger scale showing a cross-section of a portion of the truss structure and illustrating the relation of one of the flights or scrapers to the supporting-ways. Fig. t is a viewillustrating a portion of a truss with another form of conveyor, and Fig. 5 is an enlarged longitudinal section of the conveyer and support shown in Fig. 1

G is the conveyor chain or rope.

F F arefiights or scrapers.

\V is the head-wheel, or that around which the chain and flights pass at the upper end of the conveyor.

V is awheel at the bend or angle between the horizontal and-inclined runs of the conveyer used to hold the chain down and prevent the draft strain from lifting it away from its work.

\V is the tail-wheel of the conveyor, around which the c! sin and flights pass at the receiving end.

1 is the pile of coal.

M and M are masonry supports for the lower ends of a pair of trusses inclined in opposite directions at or about the angle of repose of the pile and connected at their upper or. meeting ends, so as to constitute the legs of a sheers structure, G being the lateral guys to stay the sheers in an upright position,

and R the rod or other connection between the feet of the sheers to prevent further spread. In Fig. 3 the inclined ways or supports roe The operation will be largely understood from the above description and a reference to the drawings. In the preseut instance the material is fedto the horizontal portion at any convenient pointbetween W? and W and after it leaves charged onto formation.

In handling coal which h'as'large lumps-and the loaded flights where the friction between or scrapers and the coal over" which they travel would be excessive it is desirable to use an adjustable intervening plate (or series of plates) to overcome the friction, and the con,- struction of the truss furnishes supports for 'such a plate and also. for the conveyer-flights,

as will be seen in Fig. 3, where the plate is represented at I, and is carried by ledges-or an gle-iron projections (1, provided on the truss Theform in which ;l prefer for the purpose. to-make this plate and the means for ad sting it I have fully described in another a lication filed by me May 12, 1890, Serial No. 351,539. This plate maybe briefly described as a steel ribbon or belt, which is, as shown in Fig. 5, wound around a drum 6 at or near the foot of the truss, along which the conveying machinery travels, drawn up veyer as the formation of the pile progresses, the ribbon being supported on the ledges a. in the truss-framework, as described above, and adjustable lengthwise of the leg of the sheers, so as to form an advancing point of discharge to suit the requirements of the growing pile.

To make all parts accessible for oiling, re-

pairs,&c.,I attach to the side of the truss and.

about on a level with'the conveying machinery a walk or stairway with a light hand-rail at the outside.

Of the two runs of chain and flights the lower or carrying run is sustained by the side supporting-ways S S, .thus overcoming the strain which would result from the suspension of a long stretch of chain and flights between the upper and lower wheels. The space between the vides for the discharge of the coal when the latter has been carried up to the top of the adjustable bottom plate I or to the apex of the pile when said bottom plate is not used.

The upper run of chain-and flights is returned on guide-strips G, as shown in Fig. 1, or on idlers placed near enough together to. prevent the strain of such long stretches. The truss structure furnishes a support for these idlers when used, so that they do not require to be suspended by ropes or cables under great tension, as has been necessar 1 heretofore.

In Fig. 1 I have shown my piling'device as used. in connection with a horizontal convoyer, and it is evident that the horizontal portion could be extended to any desired disthe level at W itis carried up by the lower run of the convey-er and disthe pile at its various st'ages of and is arranged to be. toward the upper end of the con- 7 of my device.

lower ends of the side plates S pro- 'tance or dispensed with altogether without afiecting my invention, and it is also plain. vthat the driving. power may be applied either at W orW as the circumstances of the case may suggest. The sheer-legs are preferably provided with masonry supports, and the feet are preferably held from further separation by a tie-rod R or other connection running under. the pile and insulated from the eifects of moisture, sulphur, &c.,' in any well-known manner, and the two legs of the truss are j hinged at the apex as a matter of convenience inconstruction and erection but it is evident that various modifications of such details of arrangemehtmay be adopted without departing from my invention.

. -I have shown my'device as applied tothe style of coal handling machinery which I have used most frequently-namely, that which employs an endless chain or cable provided with transverse flights or scrapers; but it is evident that I can use any other form of con- 'tinuous conveyor-for instance, a screw conveyor, as shown in Fig. 4supported.at proper intervals by bearings suitably attached to the truss structure. The form illustrated in the drawingsutilizes but one leg of the sheers;

"but if circumstances would make it desirable to use both legs this modified form would of course come within the spirit of my invention, and, if desired, the sheers may be composed of more than two legs. I

I have not considered it necessary to illustrate the various uses which could be made In the claims I use the Words continuous forward-feed conveyer to distinguish the conveyor used by me from conveyors which carry a load to thepile and return-for a new load before another load is discharged onto the pile such, for instance, as a single bucket which reciprocates between the point of loading and the point of discharge or piling.

I claim as my invention 1. In an apparatus for piling coal or analogous material, a sheer structure composed of legs arranged in respect to each other at or about the angle'of repose of the material to be piled, and also arranged to span the pile to be formed, with a continuous forward-feed conveyor carried by said sheer structure and adapted to form the pile-under the sheers, substantially as described.

v 2. In an apparatus for piling coal or analogous material, a stationary sheer structure composed of legs fixed inirespect to each other at or about the angle of repose of the material to be piled, and also arranged to span the pile to be formed, masonry supports upon which the .lower ends of the legsnare fixed,

and a continuous forward-feed conveyor carried by said sheer structure and adapted to form the pile under the slicers, substantially as described.

3. The combination of a sheer structure com used of members upwardly/inclin war each other and connec ed at the top. so

as to form a mutual support and leavca free and unencumbered space between said members, and a continuous forward-feed conveyer supported throughout the length of its elevating portion by-one of said members, the latter being open at the bottom to allow of the discharge of material from the elevating portion of the conveyer at advancing points beneath said supporting members, substantially as described.

4, The combination of the sheers composed of legs inclined at or about the natural angle of repose of the material to be piled and joined at their upper ends with a conveyer arranged to carry the material to be piled up one of said legs and means for connecting the lower parts of the legs together, substantially as set forth.

JAMES M. DODGE.

Witnesses:

JNO. E. PARKER, ALBERT POPKINS.

Images