Demountable pin and collet assembly and method to securely fasten a ranging arm to a longwall shearer using such assembly

摘要

A pin-and-collet assembly, a longwall shearer comprising a ranging arm attached to a lifting bracket with such assembly, a method for the secure fastening of one piece to another, such as securely fastening the ranging arm to the lifting bracket of a longwall shearer using such assembly as a bushing, and a method for longwall mining of ore, such as trona, using such longwall shearer. This assembly is easy to install, does not have to be tightened during longwall operation of an ore panel, and is also demountable when it is time to stop the longwall mining operation and time to remove/replace the ranging arm for maintenance and/or when the end of the ore panel is reached.

主权项

1. An assembly for fastening two parts together, comprising:
a first pin comprising a first central axis bore therethrough and a first outer circumferential surface; a second pin comprising a second central axis bore therethrough and a second outer circumferential surface; a collet comprising an inner collar defining a central axis aperture and comprising two collet sections divided by said inner collar, said collet comprising a first section adapted to receive the first pin, the first collet section having an inner surface which makes contact with the first outer circumferential surface of the first pin, said collet further comprising a second section adapted to receive the second pin, the second collet section having an inner surface which makes contact with the second outer circumferential surface of the second pin; a first end cap comprising a central axis hole bored therethrough and being adapted to cover one outer end of the first pin, wherein the first end cap has a plurality of first peripheral holes, each first peripheral hole being adapted to receive a first fastener; a second end cap comprising a central axis hole bored therethrough and being adapted to cover an outer end of the second pin, wherein the second end cap has a plurality of second peripheral holes, each second peripheral hole being adapted to receive a second fastener; a bolt adapted to pass through the central axis hole of one of the first and second end caps, the central axis bore of one of the first and second pins, the collar central axis aperture, the central axis bore of the other pin, and the central axis hole of the other end cap, said bolt comprising at least one threaded end onto which a nut is threaded to tighten the first and second pins into place inside the collet; a plurality of first fasteners adapted to be inserted into the plurality of first peripheral holes of the first end cap and to exert a force on the first pin; and a plurality of second fasteners adapted to be inserted into the plurality of second peripheral holes of the second end cap and to exert a force on the second pin; wherein each of the first and second pins, the collet, and each of the first and second end caps have a common central axis.