Stacking and retrieving system and method

Claim 3

Apparatus for handling material comprising a self-propelled material-handling device including means for gathering material and a conveyor means for receiving the material and conveying the material to a discharge region; a conveyor device including a material-receiving region, conveying means to transport the material from said receiving region to a discharge point, means for moving the material receiving region to be in alignment with the discharge region for receiving material therefrom as the material-handling device moves and gathers material; and a position indicating means having a reference member mounted on one of said devices, and displacement-measuring means mounted on the other device operably engaging said reference member for measuring the relative displacement of said regions from a position of alignment, said measuring means including means for generating an error signal for the relative displacement to indicate the amount and direction of the relative displacement between said regions from said position of alignment so that the speed and direction of movement of the devices can be adjusted to return the regions into alignment.

Claim 4

Apparatus for handling material comprising a self-propelled material-handling device including means for gathering material and a conveyor means for receiving the material and conveying the material to a discharge region; a conveyor device including a material-receiving region, conveying means to transport the material from said receiving region to a discharge point, means for moving the material receiving region to be in alignment with the discharge region for receiving material therefrom as the material-handling device moves and gathers material; and a position indicating means having a reference member mounted on one of said devices, and displacement-measuring means mounted on the other device operably engaging said reference member for measuring the relative displacement of said regions from a position of alignment, said measuring means including means for generating an error signal for the relative displacement to indicate the amount and direction of the relative displacement between said regions from said position of alignment so that the speed and direction of movement of the devices can be adjusted to return the regions into alignment.

Claim 5

Apparatus for reclaiming material from a stockpile comprising; a self-propelled reclaimer having conveyor means for supplying material reclaimed thereby to a material discharge region; a self-propelled stacker movable along a fixed longitudinal path offset from the stockpile during a reclaiming pass, said stacker having a longitudinal conveyor extending for the length of the stockpile, said stacker having material transfer means movably mounted therealong with an inlet for disposition in operative relationship with the conveyor means of the reclaimer to receive material from the discharge region thereof and having an outlet for discharge of material to the longitudinal conveyor, thereby to transfer the material continuously during a reclaiming pass from the stockpile to the longitudinal conveyor via the material transfer means of the stacker, and probe means carried by the stacker and the reclaimer and coacting to mechanically define a predetermined cooperating relationship between the stacker and reclaimer wherein the discharge region of the reclaimer is centered relative to the inlet of material transfer means, said probe means sensing relative displacement of the discharge region from a center position with respect to the inlet and providing an error signal for both longitudinal and transverse displacement from the center portion with said error signal indicating necessary corrections in the speed of the reclaimer and the stacker to correct for any longitudinal displacement and changes in the direction of movement of the reclaimer and positioning of the material transfer means to correct for any transverse displacement.

Claim 6

Apparatus according to claim 3 with one of said probe means comprising a transverse movement sensing arm movable in response to relative transverse movement of the reclaimer and stacker, and a transducer couplEd to the sensing arm and responsive to movement thereof to generate a transverse error signal.

Claim 7

Apparatus according to claim 3 with one of said probe means comprising a longitudinal movement sensing arm movable in response to relative longitudinal movement of the reclaimer and stacker, and a transducer coupled to the sensing arm and responsive to movement thereof to generate a longitudinal error signal.

Claim 8

Apparatus according to claim 3 with one of said probe means comprising a transverse movement sensing arm movable in response to relative transverse movement of the reclaimer and stacker, a transducer coupled to the transverse movement sensing arm and responsive to movement thereof to generate a transverse error signal, and a longitudinal movement-sensing arm movable in response to relative longitudinal movement of the reclaimer and stacker, and a transducer coupled to the longitudinal movement-sensing arm and responsive to movement thereof to generate a longitudinal error signal, and the other of said probe means comprising a reference member disposed generally vertically and retained in the vertical disposition with substantial force, the sensing arms being mounted for pivotal movement in generally horizontal planes, and spring means urging said arms to engage the generally vertically disposed reference member, the spring means exerting a lesser force on the sensing arms than said substantial force so that the vertically extending reference member maintains its generally vertical disposition in actuating said sensing arms over a predetermined range of angular positions of the sensing arms.

Claim 9

Apparatus according to claim 6 wherein further spring means retains the generally vertically disposed reference member in generally vertical orientation but accommodates disengagement of the vertically disposed reference member from the sensing arms when the sensing arms reach the limit of their angular movement.