US2666628A - Mining machine with superposed wedge-like cutter - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 19, 1954 J, SPROUL 2,666,628

- v MINING MACHINE WITH SUPERPOSED WEDGE-LIKE CUTTER Filed Feb. 25, 1950 i 5 Sheets-Sheet l Jan. 19, 1954 MINING MACHINE WITH SUPERPOSED WEDGE-LIKE vCUTTER Filed Feb. 25, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor.- r/o//A/ 60m/f4 S30/41mm Altorney J. c. sFRoUl. 2,666,628

Jan.19,1954 J..SPROUL 2,666,628

MINING MACHINE WITH SUPERPOSED WEDGE-LIKE CUTTER File?. Feb. 25, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 4/ F/G. 5. l

29c-\ 25e A a7 g r 36 @i Attorneys Patented Jan. 19, 1954 MINING MACHINE WITH SUPERPOSED WEDGE-LIKE CUTTER Glasgow, Scotland, asoulson, Limited, Glasgow,

John Connel I'Sproul,

signor to Mavor & C Scotland Application February 25, 1950, Serial No. 146,181

3 Claims.

ing edges that are co-planar, or approximately so, in order that the cutters act along a plane behind and roughly parallel to the vertical face of the seam.

y The present invention relates to machines as 'aforesaid but of a previously proposed type in which at least one cutter projecting in advance of the other or others so as, in eect, to plough out from the face a deep furrow, leaving the other cutter or cutters the now facilitated task of .stripping off'the coal'or other mineral left outstanding above and (or) below the furrow. For instance, in one previously proposed construction of machines of this type, there are three superposed cutters; and it is the intermediate cutter that projects well in advance of the cutters above and below it s'o as to plough out fromY the face a furrow at an intermediate level.

.In coal. seams it is Vsometimes found that the coal at diieernt levels has different characteristics. For instance, -there might be a layer of coal which is softer than the coal above and (or) below it. Thereare circumstances under which it is desirable to plough out the advance furrow at the level of this layer. Some `characteristie other than softness might render a layer appropriate for advance cutting.

Therefore, according to this invention, in a mining machine of the type stated two or more superposed cutters are mounted on a supporting head in such a `manner as to be detachable, removable and interchangeable, so that the forwardly projecting cutter can be set ata selected level considered most appropriate to the nature of the coal or other mineral seam.

A machine ofthe before-mentioned type, designed for mining coal, is shown byway of example in the accompanying drawings to illustrate the invention. In the drawings, Figs. l and 2 are a diagrammatic side elevation and a plan of the machine. Fig 3 is a side elevation of the cutter head, drawn to a larger scale, the view being partly in section approximately on the line 3 3 of Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a corresponding plan of the cutter head, this view being partly in section on the line 4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 isa fragmentary section drawn to a still larger scale approximately on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4. Fig-116' is a sec- 2, tional elevation corresponding to Fig. l5, the section being on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

The general arrangement of the mining machine to which the invention is shown applied is drawn in simple outline in Figs-1 and 2, the construction and operation of the machine in general not being material to the present invention. In order that the relationship of the invention to the machine can be adequately understood, the following brief description of the machine is given. y

The machine shown is double-ended, comprising mainly a frame like body 1, 8, 9 and II), a carriage II and two cutter heads I2 and I3. The body consists of two transverse end walls 'I and 8, to which the heads are connected, and two longitudinal guide bars' and Ill, on whichthe carriage is slidably mounted.

The carriage incorporates hydraulic propulsion apparatus. This apparatus includes a vertical hydraulic jack consisting of a cylinder I 4 with a kfoot I5, the cylinder being vertically movable in a holder I6 incorporated in the. carriage, and a piston-operated head I'I which normally rests upon the holder. The propulsion apparatusnalso includes a hydraulic ram unit consisting of a horizontal cylinder lil and a ram I9 extending from both ends of the cylinder and engageable at its ends with the walls 'i and 8.

In Vorder that the machine shall be propelled say from left to right (as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2). the jack'is operated firstly to depress its foot I5 against the iioor of the mine and secondly to liftits head I1 against the mine roof. The jack thus extended provides a securely anchored abutment. Next the ram unit is operated so that the ram I9 is forced to the right, the ram thus engaging the wall 8 and pushing the framelike body i-II), with the head I3 leading, upon the mine door towards the right, the guide` bars 9, I0 sliding through the now stationary carriage II. Thus, the head I3 performs its cutting stroke. Thereafter, the jack is operated sov that its head is lowered and its foot raised, thus contracting the jack and freeing it from the roof and floor. Finally, the vrain unit is operated so that the ram I9 is forced to the left, the ram thus engaging the rear wall l and pushing the carriage II so that it freely slides to the right hand end of the guide bars 9, lil to take up a new position of anchorage Vfor the next cutting stroke.

Both cutter heads. I 2 and I 3 are of similar construction. Therefore only one of the heads,

This completes the cycle of operations..

namely the right hand head I3, is hereinafter described.

In the example, the cutter head comprises a leading cutter at an intermediate level, two cuttters 2| and 22 above the cutter 25, a floor cutter 23 and a roof cutter` 24. The cutters 2li-24 have edges 20A- 26A all nearly in the same vertical plane A, Figs. 2 and 4. The floor and roof cutters also have horizontal edges 23B, 24B. The floor cutter is associated with a sloping ramp 23C for lifting the coal from. the floor and delecting it sidewise from the pathV of Athe machine for conveyance from the mine workings.

Referring also to Figs. 3 tos 6, cachot A,the main cutters 20, 2l, 22 and 23 isan. edgedplate; that is attached to an approximately wedge-like body, the bodies being indicated by 25, 26, 21 .and 28 repectively. It will be noted that thebody of the intermediate cutter 20 is considerably longer than the bodies 26, 21 Y 2li' projects well in iront o the others. cutter head. includes a heavy casing 2d in which the bodies 25-28 are ail pivotally mounted. The casing 23 is formed with a base shelf 23A, a top shelf 23B and intermediate shelves 23C,` which divide the casing interior into compartments eachV accommodating `one of the cutter bodies. The casing 2S is attached by a connector 3d to the adjacent end` wall 8 of the framelike body 'l-ID- of the machine. l

Each of the four cutter bodies is in the nature of ay lever with a central bearing boss, the several bosses being indicated by 25A, 25A, 21A and 23A respectively- From eachv boss there` extends an arm 25B',.26B, NB orvZtB of the lever concerned. Each of' these` arms isV in the form of an interconnected pair oi upper and lower cheeks, and all of these cheeks' have terminal eyepieces Z510- 32.80, which bear against vertical-thrust plugs; 4i fitted into the shelves 2SA-23C. These 3 and 5 show, each consist of a cylindrical body, which its firmly into .a hole in the shelf above or below the plug, and of a flange which serves' as a slide-bearing surface for the associated cutter-lever bossy 25C, 26C, 21C' or 23C. rIhe fulcrumof the iour' lever-liker bodies 25,-28 isa four-part pivot pin. 3|the parts; of which fit slidably through the, bosses. 25A to 2SA. and also through co-axial bearings 3.2. in the casing shelves 23A-ESG The lowermost part of the pin 3l, is supported by a. cross-pin SIA..

TheV cutter bodies are made like levers in order that they can be pivotally adjustedv so as to vary the setting of, the. cutters Eil-24 individually in relation to the supporting casing 23. Therefore each cutter body has adjustment means. In the example, the means provided for eachV bodyr comprises the following components:

LA turnable screw 33 which is journalled in a bracket 33A on one of four covers 34- that are bolted to the casing 29 and form a closure to the front side of the compartments thereof;V

A nut- 35 which is slidable along a horizontal inner slideway 35 in the associated. cover and through which vordinarily the screwV 33 is threaded;

A link 31 pivotally connected at its opposite ends by a pin 38 to the associated nut 35 and by a pin 33 to the eyepiece of the associated lever arm 25B, 25B, 21B or 23B.

In order to adjust any of the cutters laterally, the associated screw 33 is turnedv appropriately;

plugs lll, as Figs.

lsay-.by means of a ratchet-lever, ora spanner,

ngageable with a square he'adA-on thescrew, this' head extending from. thev casingA 29. Such and 28, so that the cutter 'Thel turning of the screw causes the nut 35 to move along its slideway 36 and the link 31 to move angularly in the manner of a toggle-link, so that the cutter is forced to change its angular relationship to the casing 29.

In order to interchange any two of the cutter bodies 25, 23 and 21, the pivot pin 3i is withdrawn upwards part by part sofar as necessary. The appropriate two screws 33 are unscrewed from their nuts 35 and these nuts are slid from their slideways 3G. The two associated covers 34 are unbolted and removed, together with their screws 33. Thus, in each of the two compartments whose covers have been removed, the following components lie exposed, namely the nut 35, its link 31 and the cutter- lever arm 25B or 26B or 21B or 23B, as. the case may be, all of said components being freely withdrawable as an assembly from their compartments. Accordingly, each of the two cutter bodies to be interchanged and the associated assembly of components 235, 31, 38 and 39 are removed from the` cutter head. During removal, the pins 33 concerned each slide freely between and away fromr the vertical-thrust plugs il fitted. in the shelves above and below, each of said pins remaining as the pivotal connection between its link 31 and cutter-lever arm. Thereafter, the cutter bodies with the parts connected to them are re-inserted in their new positions, and the previously withdrawn partsI of the pivot pin 3l, the covers 34 and the nuts 35 are re-positioned.

Patent application No. 146,182.0f the same date as the present application, shows and describes a mining machine the same as is'` shown and described in the present application but claims an invention that is diferent from the invention hereinafter claimed. f

I claim:

1. A mining machine of the type. stated having a cutter-supporting head', a plurality of shelves incorporated in said head, said shelves being vertically spaced apart. to provide compartments,

' a. plurality of superposed cutters mounted on said shelves, there being one cutter in each intershelf compartment, and said cutters including one which projects. prominently forwards, and a withdrawable plural-part' pin attaching the cutters to the head, the pin parts each extending between two of said shelves and said pin parts being withdrawableso that two of the cuttersA can be detached, removed from the head, interchanged and again attached to the head by reinsertion of the withdrawn pin parts.

2. A mining machine as claimed by claim 1 in which thecutters incorporate lever-like bodies which are fulcrumed on the plural-part pin, and in which mechanisms associated with said bodies, respectively, connect the associated bodies to the head, each of said mechanisms being operable to adjust the associated cutter body laterally in relation to the head and said mechanisms including interchangeable components which are detachable and attachable with the bodies.

3. A mining machine of the type stated having a cutter-supporting head, a plurality of superposed cutters pivotally mounted on said head so as to be laterally movable in relation thereto, supports whereby said head is divided at different levels, a plurality of superposed co-axial pivot pins attaching the individual cutters to said sup'- ports, and manually adjustable superposed means for adjusting the cutters. laterally about their pvotl pins there being unev of. said. pivot pins and one :of said adjustable means for each cutter at References Cited inthe le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Morgan Aug. 2, 1927 Number Number Number 6 Name Date Morgan Aug. 16, 1927 Mavor Nov. 27, 1945 Mavor Jan. 1, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain Oct. 24, 1947

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