National Mine Service Company

Ronald W Keen

Maurice K LeBegue

Donald E Keller

A continuous mining machine includes a body portion. A longitudinally extending conveyor support frame is positioned on the body portion. A pair of parallel spaced side walls are positioned outboard of the conveyor support frame. A unitary stabilizing member is pivotally connected at an upper end to the lower edge portions of the side walls and extends transversely between the side walls beyond the width of and below the conveyor support frame. A lower end of the stabilizing member is adapted for movement into and out of engagement with the mine floor. A pair of piston cylinder assemblies for actuating the stabilizing member are connected to and positioned outboard and laterally of the side walls. The piston rods of the assemblies are intermediately connected to the lateral edges of the stabilizing member. A preselected lever arm distance is provided between the pivotal connections of the assemblies and the stabilizing member to the side walls for generating an increased force for pivoting the stabilizing member into contact with the mine floor to stabilize the body portion as the mining machine dislodges material from the mine face and the material is conveyed rearwardly on the body portion.

Stabilizing assembly for a mining machine

A gathering platform extends forwardly from the front end of a mixing machine and has an upper surface in which a pair of counter-rotating gathering discs are rotatably mounted. Each disc is rotated to move mined material centrally and rearwardly on the platform upper surface toward a material guide that extends rearwardly in overlying relation with a portion of each of the gathering discs to the receiving end of a longitudinally extending conveyor. A plurality of radially extending slots extend through each disc, and a material gathering arm is positioned in each slot. One end of each arm is connected to rotate with the gathering disc. The opposite end of the arm rides on a cam surface in the gathering platform. The cam surface has a first portion and a second portion. The second portion is positioned at an elevation below the first portion and beneath the material guide. Upon each revolution of the gathering discs the arms follow the cam surface to move upwardly and downwardly in the slots to extend above the upper surface of the material guide to sweep the discs and to drop below the lower surface of the material guide to pass beneath the material guide.

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St. Peters, MO, United States of America

Ronald W Keen