U-Shaped Guide Piece With Locking Recess for Coal Plough

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing guide pieces for coal ploughs in underground mining require longer guide claws due to their length, increasing loading height and complicating replacement, as they need to be attached at multiple positions, making the process cumbersome and time-consuming.

Innovation Solution

A U-shaped guide piece with a recess and a locking mechanism, featuring a bolt with an annular groove, allows for secure attachment at a single position, enabling easy replacement without loosening multiple fasteners, and preventing movement in the opposite direction, thus reducing the length of the guide piece and claw, and simplifying the replacement process.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If guide pieces are attached at multiple positions to prevent movement, then reliability of attachment is improved, but device complexity and time for replacement increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveattachment reliabilityVSAvoidnumber of fasteners
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The guide piece is divided into functional segments: a body portion, a recess portion, and a protrusion portion. The recess portion engages with the guide claw while the protrusion portion engages with the guide rail, allowing reliable attachment through a segmented design rather than multiple fasteners at different positions

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The protrusion portion acts as an intermediary element that transfers the connection between the guide piece body and the guide rail. This intermediary structure enables reliable attachment without requiring multiple fasteners, as the protrusion mediates the connection through engagement with the guide rail's groove

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If guide pieces are made longer to ensure proper engagement, then attachment reliability is improved, but loading height increases and space is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveengagement reliabilityVSAvoidguide piece length
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLength of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The guide piece employs local quality by concentrating engagement functionality in specific localized regions: the recess portion for claw engagement and the protrusion portion for rail engagement. This localized engagement design achieves reliable attachment without requiring the entire guide piece to be long, thus maintaining compact dimensions and optimizing loading space

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Reliability

If multiple fasteners are used to secure guide pieces, then attachment reliability is improved, but replacement time and operational complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveattachment securityVSAvoidreplacement time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The recess portion and protrusion portion are merged into a single integrated guide piece structure that provides both claw engagement and rail engagement functions. This merged design eliminates the need for separate fasteners at multiple positions, allowing the entire guide piece to be replaced as a single unit, thereby reducing replacement time and operational complexity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentEP3117077B1Guide piece for an extraction or coal plough
Publication Date: 2018.12.26 CATERPILLER GLOBAL MINING EURO GMBH
  • EP3117077B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3117077B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3

AI summary

A replaceable guide piece (10) for an extraction or coal plough (100) is provided. The replaceable guide piece (10) includes a generally U-shaped guide piece body (12) configured to be inserted into a guide claw (14) of the plough (100). A single recess (22) is formed in a central portion of a guide piece body (12) to extend at an angle (α) from an upper side of guide piece body (12) to a side surface of the same. A locking mechanism (24) is configured to engage with the single recess (22) to prevent movement of the guide piece (10) in the longitudinal direction after insertion of the guide piece (10) into the guide claw.