IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CUTTING OR BORING COAL, STONE, OR OTHER MINERALS
Year: 1885

page_text: We, JOHN GREY CRANSTON, of 22 Grey Street, Newcastle-on-Tyne, in the county
of Northumberland, Mechanical Engineer and THOMAS HEPPELL, of Birtley, in the
county of Durham, Mining Engineer do hereby declare the nature of the said
invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CUTTING OR
BORING COAL, STONE, OR OTHER MINERALS to be as follows:-
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5
Our invention relates to improved combinations and arrangements of machinery
or apparatus to be worked by compressed air, steam or other elastic or inelastic
fluid or power for cutting, boring or working in coal, stone and other minerals in
collieries, nines and other places and our improvements have mainly for their object
to provide a machine by which to cut as little coal to waste as possible and to kirve
in as low down as may be practicable so that a large per centage of round coal can
be got easily, rapidly and economically.
In carrying out this invention we propose to employ a portable tram or carriage
supporting a moveable motive cylinder with ordinary valve and portways for
distributing the fluid or power (which for convenience of description we will
suppose to be compressed air) so as to give a reciprocating motion to a piston and
piston rod, free to move or rotate on its axis in one or either direction. A cutter
or tool bit is attached to one end of the piston rod, so that the lips, pick point, or
cutting edge of the tool will penetrate into the coal by a series of sharp rapid
telling blows. We also provide an improved arrangement of gearing for regulating,
alternating or rotating the tool or cutter and mounting the same with the cylinder
in a suitable cradle or guide on a compact moveable carriage so that it can be fed
forward transversely and also longitudinally whilst at work either simultaneously
or separately as desired.
The carriage for this purpose consists of a rectangular frame on wheels; one or
more of these wheels is or are fitted with cog teeth so as to gear into rack rails
which are laid down in a line along the face of the coal to be undercut.
A spur
wheel is fitted to the cog wheel axle and by turning the hand wheel which is
geared to the spur wheel or propelling axle the apparatus can be held moved or
propelled along the rails as desired and the intermittent or turning action of the
cutting bit is imparted and regulated at the same time by means of a connecting
rod from the hand wheel spindle gearing to the transverse feed screw handle or
feed nut.

page_text: The compressed air is taken from the supply pipe by means of a flexible hose
attached by a coupling to the valve chest inlet of the motive cylinder. The
apparatus being placed on the line of rail so as to allow the piston rod with the
cutter attached-its full or allotted stroke-and when the blows are being struck
into the coal, it is gradually regulated or propelled along the rail track-by turning
the hand wheel-the desired distance. The cylinder is then fed forward by a few
turns of the feed handle transversely so as to give it the required feed or hold into
the coal when it makes another longitudinal cut on its return to the point whence
it started, and continuing working in this way it will kirve in or undercut the coal
three to four feet or even more if desirable.
The apparatus can be make to work automatically but we prefer to move or
revolve the cutter-as well as to feed and traverse the machine by hand, which
arrangement enables the whole apparatus to be very reliable, portable, and efficient
and so that it can be worked in very low seans and in narrow confined spaces.
G. F. REDFERN,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London,
Agent for the Applicants.

page_text: WC, JOHN GREY CRANSTON, of 22 Grey Street, Newcastle-on-Tyne, in the County
of Northumberland, Mechanical Engineer and THOMAS HEPPELL, of Birtley in the
County of Durham, Mining Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR CUTTING OR
BORING COAL, STONE OR OTHER MINERALS" and in what manner the same is to
be performed to be particularly described, and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
Our invention relates to improved combinations and arrangements of machinery
or apparatus for mounting or carrying a moveable motive cylinder to be worked by
compressed air, steam or other elastic or inclastic fluid, or power, for cutting boring
or working in coal stone and other minerals in collieries, mines and other places,
and our improvements have mainly for their object to provide a machine by which
to cut as little coal to waste as possible and to kirve in as low down as may bo
practicable so that a large per centage of round coal can be got easily, rapidly and
economically.
In order to enable our invention to be fully understood we will describe the
same by reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates the apparatus
when kirving or cutting along a seam of coal underground and in which figure 1 is
a side elevation of a machine for cutting or boring coal, stone, or other minerals
constructed according to our invention; figure 2 is a plan, and figure 3 an end
view of the same. Similar letters in all the figures represent similar parts.
In carrying out this invention we employ a portable tram or carriage A
supporting a moveable motive cylinder b, with ordinary valve and portways for
distributing the fluid or power (which for convenience of description we will
suppose to be compressed air) so as to give a reciprocating motion to a piston and
piston rod c, free to move or rotate on its axis in one or either direction. A cutter
or tool bit d, is attached to one end of the piston rod, so that the lips, pick point or
cutting edge of the tool will penetrate into the coal by a series of sharp rapid
telling blows. We also provide an improved arrangement of gearing for regulating
alternating or rotating the tool or cutter and mount the same with the Cylinder b,
in a suitable cradle or guide on a compact moveable carriage so that it can be fed
forward transversely and also longitudinally whilst at work either simultaneously
or separately as desired.
The carriage for this purpose consists as shewn in the drawing of a rectangular
frame B on wheels C; one (or more) of these wheels. is fitted or cast with cog
teeth D, so as to gear into rack rails figure 1, which are laid down in a line
along the face of the coal F to be under cut. A spur wheel h, is fitted to the axle i
of the cog wheel D and by turning a hand wheel j which by means of a worm G,
is geared to the spur wheel or pinion on the propelling axle i, the apparatus can
be held moved or propelled along the rails as desired and the intermittent or
turning action of the cutting bit d, is imparted and regulated at the same time by
means of a connecting rod k from a spindle m receiving motion by means of a bevil

page_text: wheel H, gearing with a bevil wheel I, on the spindle J, of the hand wheel j, the
motion of the said gearing being thereby communicated to the transverse feed
screw handle n or feed nut.
The compressed air is taken from the supply pipe by means of a flexible hose O,
attached by a coupling P, to the valve chest inlet of the motive cylinder. The
apparatus is placed on the line of rails E, so as to allow the piston rod C with the
cutter d attached-its full or allotted stroke, and when the blows are being struck
into the Coal the carriage is gradually regulated or propelled along the rail track
by turning the hand wheel j, the desired distance. The connecting rod k is thrown
out of gear by slipping back an ordinary sliding bolt or thumb lever R, and
the Cylinder is then fed forward by a few turns of the feed handle n transversely
so as to give it the required feed or hold into the coal, it is then reconnected to the
feed handle n, when it makes another longitudinal cut on its return to the point
whence it started, and when the first bit d, has cut its whole length into the Coal a
longer tool is then inserted in the piston c; by continuing to work in this way the
Machine will kirve in or undercut the coal to four to five feet or even more if
desirable.
The nuts s, t, and u, Figure 2 may be unscrewed so that the worm wheel G can
be thrown out of gear from the pinion h by means of the slots or elongated bolt
holes in the standard Q The worm wheel being keyed on to this spindle and
passing through the standard it may thus be thrown in or out of gear so that the
carriage can be pushed or moved quickly along the rails E independently of the
hand wheel j, or the rotating gear. The apparatus can be made to work auto-
matically but we prefer to move or revolve the cutter-as well as to feed and
traverse the machine by hand which arrangement enables the whole apparatus to
be very reliable, portable and efficient and so that it can be worked in very low
seams and in narrow confined spaces.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed We declare that what
we claim is
1. In machinery or apparatus for cutting or boring coal, stone or other minerals
the general arrangement and construction of carriage herein described for supporting
or mounting the moveable motive cylinder substantially as shewn and set forth.
2. In machinery or apparatus for cutting or boring coal, stone or other minerals
the herein described arrangement of spur, bevil, and cog wheels operating simul-
taneously or separately in combination with a rack rail and rotating gear
substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described and represented in
the accompanying drawing.