Dragline Bucket Improvement Survey. Final Report, September 30, 1977-September 29, 1979

摘要

An operating dragline bucket receives a lot of abuse. It logs about a million dig cycles every two or three years, all the while operating through abrasive overburden on a round-the-clock basis. It is to the credit of designers, operators and maintenance men alike that these buckets perform so well under such adverse conditions. Comments made in this report are for the purpose of focusing on areas in which further improvements can be made, and in no way are intended to reflect adversely on the generally high quality of bucket design, use and repair. From December 1977 to September 1978, investigators visited nine surface coal mines to review first-hand the techniques and problems associated with dragline equipment. The contractor also conducted some basic analyses regarding bucket geometry and force patterns. The report concludes that: dragline bucket and rigging designs, while traditionally satisfactory, could be bettered in some areas; the major maintenance problem associated with buckets and associated rigging is abrasive wear; the repair costs for associated rigging (primarily chains) can run in excess of 50% of the repair costs for buckets; there is no established engineering information available regarding stresses, forces, soil flow and soil resistance in relation to dragline buckets; present computer monitoring and analysis equipment could, with appropriate modifications, be utilized to yield useful engineering information. (ERA citation 05:034510)