Continuous miner with improved roof-to-floor anchoring canopy units for advancing and turning machine and installing roof bolts

A continuous mining machine comprising

• power driven cutting and conveying means operable when moved with respect to a working face of a mine seam including horizontal movement in a direction inwardly of the working face to remove the material from a section of the mine seam inwardly of the working face and to convey the same away from the working face,
• said cutting and conveying means including an elongated conveyor assembly extending in a direction generally in alignment with the direction of horizontal movement so as to receive removed material at its forward end and convey the material away from the working face to the rearward end thereof, and a pair of cutting and conveying mechanisms extending laterally outwardly from opposite sides of said conveyor assembly and being operable to convey the removed material laterally toward the forward end of said conveyor assembly,
• each of said cutting and conveying mechanisms including a mine floor engaging assembly, a rotary auger cutter, a mounting arm assembly rotatably supporting said rotary auger cutter for rotational movement about a lateral horizontally extending axis generally parallel with the working face of the mine seam, means mounting said mounting arm assembly on said floor engaging assembly for pivotal movement about an axis parallel with the axis of rotation of said rotary auger cutter, power means carried by said floor engaging assembly operatively connected with said rotary auger cutter for effecting rotation of said rotary auger cutter about the rotational axis thereof, and means between said mounting arm means and said floor engaging assembly for effecting a raising and lowering pivotal movement of said rotary auger cutter about the pivotal axis of said mounting arm assembly,
• a pair of separate mine floor engaging structures disposed on opposite sides of said conveyor assembly rearwardly of said pair of cutting and conveying mechanisms,
• mine roof engaging means disposed above each of said mine floor engaging structures,
• means mounting each of said mine roof engaging means for vertical movement with respect to the associated floor engaging structure,
• means mounting each of said floor engaging structures for relative horizontal movement with respect to the associated cutting and conveying mechanism,
• power operated means for (1) effecting vertical movements of each of said roof engaging means with respect to the associated floor engaging structure and (II) effecting relative horizontal movement between each floor engaging structure and associated cutting and conveying mechanism so that (A) successive sections of the mine seam can be removed by successive operative cycles, each of which includes (1) an upward movement of both of said roof engaging means into an operative position of engagement with the mine roof to thereby provide an anchored relationship of both of said floor engaging structures between the mine floor and roof, (2) generally simultaneous horizontal movement of both of said cutting and conveying mechanisms with both of said floor engaging structures disposed in said anchored relationship through forces resisted by said anchored relationship, (3) a downward movement of each of said roof engaging means out of said operative position, and (4) horizontal movement of each of said mine floor engaging structures with respect to the associated cutting and conveying mechanism with the associated mine roof engaging means disposed out of said operative position in a direction and to an extent generally equal to the horizontal movement of said cutting and conveying means, and
• means between each of said floor engaging assemblies and said conveyor assembly for mounting the associated floor engaging assembly for movement between (1) a normal operating position wherein the pivotal axes of said mounting arm assemblies are in alignment and the axes of said auger cutters are movable through a common plane arcuate thereto, and (2) a transporting position wherein the auger cutters associated with said floor engaging assemblies are disposed laterally outwardly with their axes generally parallel and on opposite sides of the central portion of said conveyor assembly,
• the lateral horizontal distance between the lateral outermost points on said auger cutters when in said normal operative position being substantially greater than the lateral horizontal distance between the lateral outermost points on said auger cutters when in said transport position.

A continuous mining machine comprising:

• a mine floor engaging structure,
• mine roof engaging means including a horizontally extending canopy structure disposed above said mine floor engaging structure,
• means mounting said mine roof engaging means for vertical movement with respect to said floor engaging structure,
• means carried by said floor engaging structure for facilitating the installation of a mine roof bolt in the mine roof,
• power driven cutting and conveying means operable when moved with respect to a working face of a mine seam including horizontal movement in a direction inwardly of the working face to remove the material from a section of the mine seam inwardly of the working face and to convey the same away faom the working face,
• means mounting said floor engaging structure for relative horizontal movement with respect to said cutting and conveying means, and
• power operated means for (1) effecting vertical movements of said roof engaging means with respect to said floor engaging structure, (2) effecting relative horizontal movement between said floor engaging structure and said cutting and conveying means, and (3) operative movement of said roof bolt installing means so that successive sections of the mine seam can be removed by successive operative cycles, each of which includes (a) an upward movement of said roof engaging means into an operative position of engagement with the mine roof to thereby provide an anchored relationship of said floor engaging structure between the mine floor and roof and a protected mine roof area directly under which said canopy structure is disposed (b) an operation of said roof bolt installing means with said roof engaging means in said operative position so as to install a mine roof bolt in the mine roof in a position closely adjacent said protected roof area, (c) horizontal movement of said cutting and conveying means with said floor engaging structure disposed in said anchored relationship through a force resisted by said anchored relationship, (d) a downward movement of said roof engaging means out of said operative position, and (e) horizontal movement of said mine floor engaging structure with respect to said cutting and conveying means with said mine roof engaging means disposed out of said operative position in a direction and to an extent generally equal to the horizontal movement of said cutting and conveying means.

a continuous mining machine comprising power driven cutting and conveying means operable when moved with respect to a working face of a mine seam including horizontal movement in a direction inwardly of the working face to remove the material from a section of the mine seam inwardly of the working face and to convey the same away from the working face,

• said cutting and conveying means including an elongated conveyor assembly extending in a direction generally in alignment with the direction of horizontal movement so as to receive removed material at its forward end and convey the material away from the working face to the rearward end thereof, and a pair of cutting and conveying mechanisms extending laterally outwardly from opposite sides of said conveyor assembly and being operable to convey the removed material laterally toward the forward end of said conveyor assembly,
• each of said cutting and conveying mechanisms including a mine floor engaging assembly, a rotary auger cutter, a mounting arm assembly rotatably supporting said rotary auger cutter for rotational movement about a lateral horizontally extending axis generally parallel to the working face, means mounting said mounting arm assembly on said floor engaging assembly for pivotal movement about an axis parallel with the axis of rotation of said rotary auger cutter, power means carried by said floor engaging assembly operatively connected with said rotary auger cutter for effecting rotation of said rotary auger cutter about the rotational axis thereof, and means between said mounting arm means and said floor engaging assembly for effecting a raising and lowering pivotal movement of said rotary auger cutter about the pivotal axis of said mounting arm assembly, and
• means mounting each of said floor engaging assemblies with respect to said conveyor assembly for movement between (1) a normal operating position wherein the pivotal axes of said mounting arm assemblies are in alignment and the axes of said auger cutters are movable through a common plane arcuate thereto, and (2) a transporting position wherein the auger cutters associated with said floor engaging assemblies are disposed laterally outwardly with their axes generally parallel and on opposite sides of the central portion of said conveyor assembly,
• the lateral horizontal distance between the lateral outermost points on said auger cutters when in said normal operative position being substantially greater than the lateral horizontal distance between the lateral outermost points on said auger cutters when in said transportion position.