SYSTEM FOR CUTTING AND CONVEYING COAL AND THE LIKE

A long-wall mining apparatus has a conveyor trough extending longitudinally from a turnaround adjacent a longitudinal face from which material is to be cut, a pair of longitudinally extending and generally parallel rear guide rails extending along and flanking the conveyor, a pair of longitudinally extending and generally parallel front guide rails extending along the face between the conveyor trough and the face, and a longitudinally fixed anchor bollard in the turnaround provided with upper and lower guide rails each connecting a respective one of the front guide rails to a respective one of the rear guide rails. A drive wheel in the bollard rotates about an upright axis and has an outer periphery exposed between the bollard guide rails. A chain having front and rear stretches respectively running along the guide rails is engaged in the turnaround with the periphery of the drive wheel. Conveyor/cutting elements on the chain ride on the rails to move in the front stretch along the face and in the rear stretch along the trough. A drive motor at the turnaround connected to the drive wheel advances the chain in the front stretch to scrape material from the face and deposit it in the conveyor trough and displaces the chain toward the turnaround in the rear stretch to move the scraped-off material along the trough.