US3291534A - Skids used on deep mine auger machines - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 13, 1966 G. 1.. ADAMS ET AL 3,291,534

SKIDS USED ON DEEP MINE AUGER MACHINES Original Filed March 29. 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 E: O l

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1 J CHAELESTGm/IM 7745/2 Arr n/5v United States Patent Ofifice 3,231,534 Patented Dec. 13, 1966 3,291,534 SKIDS USED ON DEEP MINE AUGER MACHINES George L. Adams, Canfield, Qhio, and Charles T. Govin,

Wauwatosa, Wis assignors to The Salem Tool Company, Salem, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Original application Mar. 29, 1960, Ser. No. 18,356, now Patent No. 3,131,916, dated May 5, 1964. Divided and this application Dec. 27, 1963, Ser. No. 333,814 7 Claims. (Cl. 299--55) This invention relates generally to auger mining machines and more particularly to a deep mine auger machine that can be moved along a mine face to auger coal therefrom.

This invention is adivision of application Serial No. 18,356 filed March 29, 1960, and now Patent No. 3,131,916 for Deep Mine Auger Machine.

In deep coal mining the seam may be too thin to properly mine by forming entries, main hauls, lateral tunnels and rooms. This is particularly true if the roof is normally bad and the cost in mining and shoving is greater than the coal recovered. If such a vein of coal cannot be mined from the surface by the so-called punch mining method then it is far more economical to properly shove parallel entries along a long coal face forming a block and auger the coal from both directions into the block. In this way a goodly percentage of coal may be recovered without endangering the loss of expensive equipment and under conditions where a roof or coal fall with pinch a single auger.

The principal object of this invention is the provision of a deep mine angering machine that has limited height wherein the independently operable skids are hung up against the base with the skid cylinders mounted within the skids themselves for compactness of structure as well as operation. This object also includes the use of the skids transversely of the augering or mining mechanism which permits their use in conjunction with a tray at the side of the machine for receiving the augering sections from the previously bored hole.

Other objects and advantages appear hereinafter in the following description and claims.

The accompanying drawings show for the purpose of exemplification without limiting the claims thereto, certain practical embodiments illustrating the principles of this invention wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation showing the deep mine augering machine comprising this invention.

FIG. 2 is a view in top plan showing the deep mine angering machine comprising this invention.

FIG. 3 is a view in front elevation of the deep mine auger machine with parts in section.

FIG. 4 is a transverse sectional view through a skid and showing the feed drive shaft and sprockets.

FIG. 5 is a view in rear elevation showing the controls and the auger retrieving mechanism and the head and auger haul line mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a view in side elevation of the structure shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a view in side elevation showing the tray connected to the skids.

FIG. 8 is an end view of FIG. 7.

Referring principally to FIGS. 1 to 4 the frame 1 consists of the bottom plate 2 having the marginal side rails 3 and 4 secured thereto and provided with the front and back upstanding ends walls 5 and 6. The end wallsare connected at their upper ends by the bar 7 which in this instance is shown to connect the end walls at substantially the center of the machine. The pan 8 is secured to the inner face of each of the side rails 3 and 4 and is dished toward the center of the pan at the center of the machine as shown in FIG. 4. This pan provides a clean bed under the operating structure of the auger machine. The marginal edges at the end of the pan 8 are likewise secured to the upstanding walls 3 and 4. At each of its four corners the frame 1 is provided with the vertically disposed jacks as indicated at 10 and 11 at the front of the machine and 12 and 13 at the rear of the machine. Another set of vertical jacks 14 and 15 are positioned adjacent the jacks 12 for the purpose of expanding to the roof and to cooperate with the jacks 12 and 13 securing the rear end of the frame.

As shown in FIG. 1 the auger mining machine comprising this invention is provided with a carriage 16 which is supported by the wheels 17 that ride on the top surface of the rails 3 and 4. Lateral guiding wheels 18 are provided to ride on the outer surfaces of the rails 3 and 4 to maintain the carriage on the track. The top of the carriage 16 is provided with two sets of rollers 20 that ride on the under surface of the bar 7 and lateral rollers 21 are secured to the carriage to engage the opposite sides of the bar 7 for retaining the carriage in position and holding the same downwardly against the track.

The carriage 16 consists principally of the hydraulic motor 22 which is mounted to drive the reduction gear 23 for the purpose of rotating the coupling 24. The transverse drive shaft 25 is driven by the hydraulic motor 26. The shaft 25 is provided with a sprocket 27 and is connected by a chain to the sprocket 28 on the jack shaft 30 carried in the bearings 31. An outboard sprocket 32 is connected by a chain to the sprocket 33 on the outer end of the shaft 34 which is carried by the bearings 35 of which there are four in number. Between each of the bearings 35 the shaft 34 is provided with a sprocket 36 and 37. The sprocket 36 interengages and meshes with the chain 38 on the side rail 4 while the sprocket 37 intermeshes and engages with the chain 39 on the side rail 3 and as the shaft 25 is reversed the carriage 16 is moved back and forth along the rails 3, 4 and 7 within the frame 1. The bottom plate 2 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is provided with the two sets of spaced aligned pairs of brackets 42 and 43, 44 and 45 all of which are provided with the inturned flanges 46 and 47 to receive and support the skids 48 and 49. Each of these skids has a bottom plate 50 and sides 51 which form an upwardly open channel closed at its ends as indicated at 52 by turning the bottom plate 50 upwardly. The sides 51 are capped by the flanges 53 and 54 which form with the bottom plate 50 lateral slots for receiving the flanges 46 and 47 respectively. As shown in FIG. 4 the flange 54 is engaged by the rollers 55 journaled in the plate 2 and allow very little clearance between the top of the skids and the under side of the plate 2, thus providing for a minimum elevation of the frame with the rails 3 and 4.

A pivot means 56 secures the cylinder 57 to the side walls 51 of each of the skids and the opposite end of this cylinder has the piston 58 extending therefrom. A bracket 6% depends from the rail 4 of the frame and is provided with a pivot means 61 to secure the end of the piston 58 to the bracket 60. Each of the cylinders 57 of each skid is double acting and independently energized and operated so as to permit the machine to be moved laterally 0r guided or swung in a circle when the lifting jacks are raised above the skids. The pivotal means 56 and 61 are employed to take up the clearance that the skids move relative to the flanges 46 and 47 of the brackets that retain them in position on the under side of the plate 2. Thus when the frame rests on the skids it does through the wheels 55 of which there are four for each skid as shown in FIG. 2.

When it is desired to haul the mining machine into the mine the skids are unbolted from the under side of the frame and removed and the mining machine is then rolled 3 on the car wheels 62 of which there are four as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

When the mining machine is in position the skids are left extended as illustrated in FIG. 2 for the purpose of receiving the tray 63. This tray is made of a pair of ways constructed as shown at 64 and 65 of tubing and which are connected by the tie members 66 and 67. The tie members 66 are tubes bowed downwardly to connect the ways, whereas the tie members 67 are in the form of brackets having the outwardly extending flanges 68 and 69 which embrace the opposed adjacent top flanges 54 and 53 of the skids 48 and 49 respectively as shown in FIGS. 2 and 7. The forward end of the ways 64 and 65 are bent downwardly and outwardly as indicated at 70 and 71 and are connected by a plate 72 which forms an apron. This apron extends to the front of the machine as shown in FIG. 2 and enables the tray to receive an auger section drawn by the cable 73 over the pulley 74 mounted on the rear wall 6. As shown on FIGS. 2 and the cable 73 passes around the pulley 75 and is attached to an anchor 76. The pulley in turn is mounted on a clevis 77 on the end of the rod 78 that operates within the cylinder 79. As the piston is drawn into the cylinder the cable 73 draws the auger string out of the bored hole onto the rack 63.

As shown in FIG. 4 a carrier 80 is provided to run the top of the bar 70 for the purpose of carrying the cables and hydraulic connections 81 depending therefrom and which ride on the rollers 82.

As shown in FIG. 3 the front wall 5 has an enlarged opening 83 for receiving the auger barrel 84 and the cutting head 85 which first pass into the coal and are followed by consecutive sections of auger flights. The barrel 84 is of the nonrotary type and is provided with the guides 86. The hole 83 in the front wall 5 has a lower lip 87 secured thereto for the purpose of aiding in guiding the auger head and barrel.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 additional guides in the form of the tubular members 88 are pivoted as indicated at 89 to the front of the machine and brackets 90 are provided on the outer face of the jack cylinders to support the suspension members 91 and 92 that suspend the tubes 88 together with the slides or casings 93 that pass over the tubes 88. Each of these guides 93 are provided with an additional guide 94 and the tube 93 is slotted at its inner end as indicated at 95 to permit the same to be withdrawn and rotated and returned to move the guides 94 out of the path of the augers after the barrel and the cutting head has passed thereover. The outer extension 96 of this guide may be dispensed with when the inner section 97 is all that is necessary. As shown these guides are spaced parallel members which allow the coal to drop downwardly therethrough when it reaches the mouth of the bored hole at the front of the machine. Ordinarily a trough conveyor is laid along the face of the coal to receive and immediately remove the coal as it is augered.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 5 two banks of controls 100 and 101 are provided on the side of the machine and two of these controls from the bank of 100 are extended to the opposite side of the machine as indicated at 102. Also as shown in FIG. 2 a series of controls 103, 103 and 105 are indicated on opposite sides of the machine to enable the operator to actuate these controls from either side of the machine.

We claim:

1. An auger mining machine having front and back upstanding end walls the tops of which are connected and having track means for supporting a carriage carrying a rotary driven coupling to receive a drilling assembly operable through the front wall of said frame and having a rotary power means to move said carriage back and forth to feed and retract said rotary driven coupling and drilling assembly, a set of four vertically disposed lifting jacks quadrangularly disposed on said frame and retractable above the bottom of the same, two sets of spaced aligned pairs of brackets with inturned flanges on the under side of said bottom plate of said frame adjacent the front and rear of the same, a skid for each set of spaced aligned pairs of brackets, each skid in the form of an upwardly open channel closed at its ends to form a skid channel and having spaced parallel flanges on each side to receive said bracket flanges therebetween, a cylinder disposed within each skid channel, pivot means connecting one end of each cylinder within said skid channel, bracket means depending from said frame into each skid channel beyond the other end of said cylinder, a piston operable in each cylinder and pivotally connected to said bracket, said cylinders being independently energized to move said skids back and forth independenty to move and steer said frame.

2. The skid structure of claim 1 which also includes rollers carried by said bottom plate adjacent each of said brackets and engaging the top flanges of said skids to support the weight of said frame on said skids when said jacks are withdrawn above the bottom of said frame.

3. The auger mining machine of claim 1 which also includes a retrieving tray having spaced parallel ways connected together, oppositely disposed brackets depending from said tray, and spaced outwardly projecting flanges on each bracket to engage above and below the adjacent top flanges of said skids to support said tray for receiving retrieved auger sections and position them for loading laterally into said open frame.

4. The auger mining machine of claim 3 characterized in that said ways of said retrieving tray slope downwardly and outwardly at the front thereof to guide the auger sections on to said tray.

5. The auger mining machine of claim 3 characterized by a power operated pull line on said frame, a pulley on said back wall to substantially align said pull line with a previously bored hole to pull auger sections on to said tray.

6. The auger mining machine of claim 3 characterized in that said flanges on the brackets of said tray are bellshaped to permit loading and unloading of said tray in said skids.

7. A coal mining machine comprising a frame having a mining mechanism with a head for mining, lifting jacks on said frame for raising the same from the mine floor and retractable above the bottom of the frame, two sets of spaced aligned pairs of brackets with inturned flanges on the under side of said frame adjacent the front and rear of the same, a skid for each set of spaced aligned pairs of brackets, each skid in the form of an upwardly open channel closed at its ends to form a skid channel and having spaced parallel flanges on each side to receive said bracket flanges therebetween, rollers on said frame to engage said parallel skid flanges to support said frame for movement on said skids, a cylinder disposed within each skid channel and below said spaced parallel skid flanges, pivot means connecting one end of each cylinder to said skid channel, bracket means depending from said frame into each skid channel beyond the other end of said cylinder, a piston operable in each cylinder and pivotally connected to its respective depending bracket, said cylinders being independently energized to move said ikids back and forth independently to move and steer said rame.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,194,466 3/ 1940 Cadwallader 29955 2,698,169 12/ 1954 Fawkes 29955 2,719,708 10/ 1955 Compton 29956 2,935,309 5/1960 McCarthy 29955 X 2,940,740 6/1960 Adams 29955 X 3,055,447 9/1962 Swanson et al 29931 X 3,131,916 5/1964 Adams et al. 29955 X ERNEST R. PURSER, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. 7. A COAL MINING MACHINE COMPRISING A FRAME HAVING A MINING MECHANISM WITH A HEAD FOR MINING, LIFTING JACKS ON SAID FRAME FOR RAISING THE SAME FROM THE MINE FLOOR AND RETRACTABLE ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF THE FRAME, TWO SETS OF SPACED ALIGNED PAIRS OF BRACKETS WITH INTURNED FLANGES ON THE UNDER SIDE OF SAID FRAME ADJACENT THE FRONT AND REAR OF THE SAME, A SKID FOR EACH SET OF SPACED ALIGNED PAIRS OF BRACKS, EACH SKID IN THE FORM OF AN UPWARDLY OPEN CHANNEL CLOSED AT ITS ENDS TO FORM A SKID CHANNEL AND HAVING SPACED PARALLEL FLANGES ON EACH SIDE TO RECEIVE SAID BRACKET FLANGES THEREBETWEEN, ROLLERS ON SAID FRAME TO ENGAGE SAID PARALLEL SKID FLANGES TO SUPPORT SAID FRAME FOR MOVEMENT ON SAID SKIDS, A CYLINDER DISPOSED WITHIN EACH SKID CHANNEL AND BELOW SAID SPACED PARALLEL SKID FLANGES, PIVOT MEANS CONNECTING ONE END OF EACH CYLINDER TO SAID SKID CHANNEL, BRACKET MEANS DEPENDING FROM SAID FRAME INTO EACH SKID CHANNEL BEYOND THE OTHER END OF SAID CYLINDER, A PISTON OPERABLE IN EACH CYLINDER AND PIVCYLINDERS BEING INDEPENDENTLY ENERGIZED TO MOVE SAID SKIDS BACK AND FORTH INDEPENDENTLY TO MOVE AND STEER SAID FRAME.

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