# US 11,440,740 B2 · Frictional force monitoring system for middle troughs of scraper conveyor

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- Number: US 11,440,740 B2
- Document ID: US11440740B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/418,853
- Filed: 2019-11-26
- Published: 2022-03-10
- Granted: 2022-09-13
- Earliest claimed: 2019-03-07
- Assignees: China University of Mining and Technology
- Applicants: China University of Mining and Technology
- Inventors: Dagang Wang; Ruixin Wang; Zhencai Zhu; Huilong Zhu; Gang Shen; Xiang Li; Yu Tang
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11440740B2

## CPC

- B65G 43/00: Control devices, e.g. for safety, warning or fault-correcting
- B65G 43/02: detecting dangerous physical condition of load carriers, e.g. for interrupting the drive in the event of overheating
- B65G 19/28: Troughs, channels, or conduits
- B65G 47/76: Fixed or adjustable ploughs or transverse scrapers
- G01K 13/00: Thermometers specially adapted for specific purposes
- G01L 5/16: for measuring several components of force
- G01N 19/02: Measuring coefficient of friction between materials {(testing of tyres G01M17/02; determinations of friction coefficient used in vehicle braking or traction control systems B60T8/172)}
- B65G: TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS (packaging B65B; handling thin or filamentary materials, e.g. paper sheets or thread, B65H; cranes B66C; portable mobile or lifting or hauling appliances, e.g. hoists, B66D; devices for lifting or lowering goods for loading or unloading purposes, e.g. fork-lift trucks, B66F9/00; emptying bottles, jars, casks, barrels or similar containers, not otherwise provided for, B67C9/00; delivering or transferring liquids B67D; filling or discharging vessels for liquefied, solidified or compressed gases F17C; pipe-line systems for fluids F17D)
- G01K: MEASURING TEMPERATURE; MEASURING QUANTITY OF HEAT; THERMALLY-SENSITIVE ELEMENTS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR (radiation pyrometry G01J5/00)
- G01L: MEASURING FORCE, STRESS, TORQUE, WORK, MECHANICAL POWER, MECHANICAL EFFICIENCY, OR FLUID PRESSURE (weighing G01G)
- G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q)

## Abstract

A frictional force monitoring system for middle troughs of a scraper conveyor, comprising a scraper conveyor system and a sensing detection system. The scraper conveyor system consists of a machine body, middle troughs, thrust lugs, scrapers, a double chain, a sprocket, a speed reducer, an electric motor and a frequency converter. The sensing monitoring system consists of force receiving modules, a three-dimensional force sensor, and a pre-embedded temperature sensor. The frictional force monitoring system is able to monitor impact loads, frictional forces, friction coefficients, temperature, etc. between an annular chain, coal bulk, and middle troughs of the scraper conveyor under complex and severe operating conditions, and to provide the technical means for the design, safety early-warning and health evaluation of the scraper conveyor, and can provide a data basis for studying friction wear and fatigue breaking mechanism of middle troughs of a scraper machine.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A frictional force monitoring system for middle troughs of a scraper conveyor, comprising: in each of the middle troughs of the scraper conveyor, three rectangular through holes being provided at equal intervals along a running direction with a central line of the middle trough as a reference, wherein
a rectangular force receiving module is mounted in each of the rectangular through holes and the rectangular force receiving modules match the rectangular through hole in shape, and an upper surface of the rectangular force receiving module coincides with an upper surface of the middle trough;
a three-dimensional force sensor is disposed between the force receiving module and the bottom of the middle trough, a counterbore is provided in the upper surface of each of the force receiving modules, and the force receiving module is connected to the three-dimensional force sensor at the bottom of the middle trough in the counterbore; a sealing cap is disposed on a top of the counterbore, and an upper surface of the sealing cap coincides with an upper surface of the force receiving module;
a temperature sensor is pre-embedded in each of the force receiving modules;
a controller is in signal connection with the three-dimensional force sensor and the temperature sensor via a data acquisition card;
the three-dimensional force sensor and the temperature sensor are configured to achieve multi-point interconnected monitoring, thermal and force data about the middle trough during operation of the scraper conveyor is obtained in real time, and a fault position in the scraper conveyor is determined according to exceptional data in the following manner:
the sensors are grouped, each group of sensors is numbered and the positions of each group are marked, tangential friction forces is measured by the three-dimensional force sensor and temperature is measured by the pre-embedded temperature, if data is excessively large or small at a certain position, the frictional force monitoring system determines according to the number and position of a data exception group, that the scraper conveyor has a fault at this position;
according to data monitored by the multiple arranged force receiving modules, an overall load capacity, overall frictional force, and average friction coefficient of the scraper conveyor, and a temperature of a friction surface of the middle trough are calculated by using a computer of the frictional force monitoring system in the following calculation manner:
a calculation formula of the overall frictional force is as follows:
F
=
∑
x
=
1
n
⁢
s
*
(
f
x
⁢
1
+
f
x
⁢
2
+
f
x
⁢
3
)
3
⁢
s
1
wherein:
F denotes the overall frictional force;
n denotes the number of the segments of the scraper conveyor;
s denotes an effective conveying area of each of the segments of the scraper conveyor;
s1 denotes the area of each of the force receiving modules; and
fx1, fx2, and fx3 denote tangential friction forces output by the three-dimensional force sensor; and
a calculation formula of the overall load capacity is as follows:
M
=
∑
x
=
1
n
⁢
s
*
(
F
x
⁢
1
+
F
x
⁢
2
+
F
x
⁢
3
)
3
⁢
s
1
*
g
wherein:
M denotes the overall load capacity;
n denotes the number of the segments of the scraper conveyor;
s denotes an effective conveying area of each of the segments of the scraper conveyor;
s1 denotes the area of each of the force receiving modules; and
Fx1, Fx2, and Fx3 denote positive forces output by the sensor.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The frictional force monitoring system for the middle troughs of the scraper conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the average friction coefficient is calculated as follows:
μ
=
F
Mg
;
and
a calculated temperature of the friction surface is an average value of temperatures measured by all the pre-embedded temperature sensors.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The frictional force monitoring system for the middle troughs of the scraper conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the force receiving module is a rectangular steel block having the same material as the middle trough.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The frictional force monitoring system for the middle troughs of the scraper conveyor according to claim 1, wherein a scraper conveyor comprises scrapers, a double chain, a sprocket, a speed reducer, an electric motor, and a frequency converter; the frequency converter is connected to the electric motor; the speed reducer is connected between the electric motor and the sprocket; the sprocket engages with the double chain; and the scrapers are mounted on an upper surface of the double chain at equal intervals; and
the frequency converter is electrically connected to the controller.