The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 25, 2022
Filed:
Oct. 21, 2020
Caterpillar Global Mining Equipment Llc, Denison, TX (US);
Caterpillar Global Mining Hms Gmbh, Dortmund, DE;
Ahsan Shahid, Peoria, IL (US);
Carl John Moberg, Dunlap, IL (US);
Timo Diekmann, Nordrhein Westphalen, DE;
Caterpillar Global Mining Equipment LLC., Denison, TX (US);
Abstract
A pipe loading system for a blast hole drilling rig. The blast hole drilling rig includes a drilling platform, a drill tower supported on the drilling platform, a drill motor supported at an upper end of the drill tower, operatively coupled to a drilling head configured to selectively engage with and rotate a drill pipe, and a pipe loader pivotably supported on the drilling platform and configured to selectively index a drilling tool into coaxial alignment with the drill pipe during a drilling tool change-out operation. The pipe loader includes a pipe support pod at a lower end and a pipe holding clamp at an upper end. Sensors detect a presence of the drilling tool in the pipe holder, an interconnection between the drilling head and the drill pipe, and a state of the pipe holding clamp. The pipe loading system closes the pipe holding clamp when the drilling tool is in the pipe loader and the pipe holding clamp is not in a closed position.