Tightening arrangement for longwall mining machine cable and conveyor

摘要

A longwall conveyor composed of channel sections arranged end-to-end and a scraper-chain assembly moved to transfer material along the channel sections has a main drive station at one end and an auxiliary drive station at the other end. Each drive station has a frame rotatably supporting a drum around which is entrained the scraper-chain assembly. Drive motor and gearing units are carried by the frames and drive the drums. At each drive station there is a housing in which a sprocket wheel drivably engages with a chain used to haul a plough or a similar machine along the conveyor. Drive motor and gearing units are supported by the housings and drive the sprocket wheels. The housing and sprocket wheel at the main drive station is slidably mounted on the frame and a piston and cylinder unit effects slidable displacement of the housing to vary the tension in the drive chain. The frame at the auxiliary drive station is also slidably mounted to a structure rigidly connected to the conveyor channel sections and supporting or forming the housing thereat. Piston and cylinder units effect slidable displacement of the frame to independently vary the tension in the scraper-chain assembly.