Patent ID: 8317116

Claim:
A method for processing a sized ore feed excavated from an ore deposit, the method comprising: disposing a processing apparatus in a processing apparatus position relative to the ore deposit; disposing a first mobile conveyor to receive a sized ore feed at a receiving location located along a length of said first mobile conveyor, said first mobile conveyor being operable to convey the sized ore from said receiving location to a discharge end of said first mobile conveyor; disposing a second mobile conveyor to receive the sized ore from said discharge end of said first mobile conveyor at a transfer location along a length of said second mobile conveyor and to convey the sized ore from said transfer location to said processing apparatus, said first and second mobile conveyors being oriented at an operational angle between said length of said first mobile conveyor and said length of said second mobile conveyor; and moving at least one of said first and second mobile conveyors to vary at least one of said operational angle and said transfer location wherein moving said at least one of first and second mobile conveyors comprises: (a) in a first type of movement, causing the operational angle between the first and second mobile conveyors to be varied while the transfer location is maintained substantially constant, (b) in a second type of movement, causing the transfer location to be varied while the operational angle between the first and second mobile conveyors is maintained substantially constant, and (c) in a third type of movement, causing both the transfer location and the operational angle to be varied, to permit successive portions of the ore deposit within operational reach of said receiving location to be received for conveying along said first and second mobile conveyors to said processing apparatus while said processing apparatus is located in said processing apparatus position.