Underground » Maintenance
CRCMining has developed the Cutting Head Performance Analysis Software (CPAS) to predict cutter motor power, ranging arm reaction forces, and vibrations for different drum designs, coal seams, and shearer operational conditions. This project describes the work on THE DBT EL3000 shearer at Beltana to validate/update CPAS by measuring the cutter motor power, ranging arm vibrations, and reaction forces through an online data acquisition system called Cutting Head Performance Monitoring System (CPMS). This system records the outputs of six strain gauge bridges, six accelerometers, and two pressure transducers on ranging arms during underground coal production.
Pressure data gathered from pressure transducers attached to the hydraulic cylinder supporting the ranging arm was used to calculate the actual vertical reaction forces.
The cutter motor power, vertical reaction force, and vibrations were then compared to those predicted by CPAS. The results of this comparison validated the pick force estimation model that was embedded in CPAS code. There was a good relationship between CPAS predictions and the actual values for above parameters. CPAS2 has then been developed in order to
eliminate the needs for performing coal cutting tests for the target coal seam. CPAS2 simulations for cutter motor power, vertical reaction force, and vibrations were also close to those measured in the trials.
CPAS2 can be used to predict the cutter motor power, ranging arm vibrations, and reaction forces for a given cutting drum design in different Australian coal seams with small or no coal slabbing under a given set of shearer operational conditions.
CRCMining will release the CPAS code including fully functioning software code on CD to Australian coal mining industry. To obtain this please contact: