Abstract The invention is concerned with a system of mining mineral in which a self-propelled mining machine, having mineral cutting and collecting means, travels along a mineral face, from which it extracts and collects mineral, substantially parallel to a line of self-advancing mine roof supports. The path of travel of the mining machine is defined at one side by means connected to said roof supports and at the other side by the mineral face exposed by the mining machine as it extracts mineral therefrom. The mine roof supports are advanced behind the machine and towards the mineral face by an amount which is a fraction (e.g. half) of the thickness of the web of mineral removed from the face by the mining machine. Roof supporting extension bars of the supports may then be advanced towards the mineral face to provide roof support in the vicinity thereof. The mining machine then flits back along a path defined by the path defining means and said path defining means is then advanced towards the mineral face, by pressure fluid ram means, by the same amount as said advance of the supports. The supports are then further advanced, so that the total advance thereof is equal to the total thickness of the web of mineral removed by the mining machine, following which the path defining means is further advanced by the same amount as said further advance of the supports. This cycle of operations is then repeated after the roof supporting extension bars have been retracted if they have not automatically been pushed back by the advance of the supports towards the mineral face.
Inventors
👤 A Allen
👤 F Small
Bibliographic Details
Application Number—
JurisdictionUS
Data Sourcegoogle_patents
Last Synchronized2026-10-30 11:12
CPC Classifications
E; E21; E21D; E21D23/00; E21D23/0052
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 2
Claim 1
Independent Claim
311 words
A method of mining mineral from a mineral face which comprises the following steps: positioning a line of self-advancing mine roof supports along and spaced from said mineral face, each of said roof supports having an extensible and retractable roof supporting extension bar, a section of a path defining means and a double-acting pressure-fluid ram means for advancing the support and for advancing said section of the path defining means, the sections of path defining means of the line of supports collectively defining with said mineral face a path parallel to the mineral face, driving a self-propelled mining machine, which incorporates its own driving motor and is propelled by traction with a surface of the mine working, along said path so that said mining machine removes a web of mineral from the mineral face, operating said pressure-fluid ram means to advance the mine roof supports in turn behind the mining machine and towards the mineral face by an amount which is a fraction (e.g. half) of the thickness of the web of mineral removed from the face by the mining machine, advancing said roof supporting extension bars of the supports towards the mineral face to provide roof support in the vicinity thereof, driving the mining machine on a return journey along said path, operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support to advance the path defining means thereof towards the mineral face by the same amount as said advance of the supports, operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support so as to advance the supports further so that the total advance thereof is equal to the total thickness of the web of mineral removed from the mineral face by the mining machine, and operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support to advance the path defIning means thereof further by the same amount of said further advance of the supports.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
311 words
A method of mining mineral from a mineral face which comprises the following steps: positioning a line of self-advancing mine roof supports along and spaced from said mineral face, each of said roof supports having an extensible and retractable roof supporting extension bar, a section of a path defining means and a double-acting pressure-fluid ram means for advancing the support and for advancing said section of the path defining means, the sections of path defining means of the line of supports collectively defining with said mineral face a path parallel to the mineral face, driving a self-propelled mining machine, which incorporates its own driving motor and is propelled by traction with a surface of the mine working, along said path so that said mining machine removes a web of mineral from the mineral face, operating said pressure-fluid ram means to advance the mine roof supports in turn behind the mining machine and towards the mineral face by an amount which is a fraction (e.g. half) of the thickness of the web of mineral removed from the face by the mining machine, advancing said roof supporting extension bars of the supports towards the mineral face to provide roof support in the vicinity thereof, driving the mining machine on a return journey along said path, operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support to advance the path defining means thereof towards the mineral face by the same amount as said advance of the supports, operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support so as to advance the supports further so that the total advance thereof is equal to the total thickness of the web of mineral removed from the mineral face by the mining machine, and operating the pressure-fluid ram means of each support to advance the path defIning means thereof further by the same amount of said further advance of the supports.