Mobile unit and method of conveying material and removing dust

Abstract

To allow removal or replacement of mining equipment from a tunnel without unduly limiting the size of the mining equipment or without an unduly excessive cross-section of the tunnel, the mobile unit includes a conveying system having a first and a second transfer area, and a dust extraction system. The conveying system receives mined material in the first transfer area, conveys the received mined material to the second transfer area and dispenses the received and conveyed mined material at the second transfer area. The dust extraction system receives dust-laden air, extracts dust from the dust-laden air and discharges air from which dust is extracted. The mobile unit includes a first and/or a second dust collector for collecting dust-laden air from the first and/or second transfer area, respectively, with the first and/or second dust collector being arranged to supply the collected dust-laden air to the dust extraction system for dust extraction.

1 . A mobile unit for a mine tunnel, comprising:
 a conveying system having a first and a second transfer area;   a dust extraction system, wherein the conveying system is arranged to receive mined material in the first transfer area, to convey the received mined material to the second transfer area and to dispense the received and conveyed mined material at the second transfer area, and wherein the dust extraction system is arranged to receive dust-laden air, to extract dust from the dust-laden air and to discharge air from which dust is extracted; and   a first and/or a second dust collector arranged to collect dust-laden air from the first and/or second transfer area, respectively, with the first and/or second dust collector being arranged to supply the collected dust-laden air to the dust extraction system for dust extraction.   
     
     
         2 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , further comprising a heat exchanger connected to an external unit, the external unit being external to the mobile unit, wherein the heat exchanger is arranged to receive a fluid having a first temperature from the external unit to cause a heat transfer from the fluid to air flowing inside the dust extraction system and to return the fluid having a second temperature lower than the first temperature to the external unit. 
     
     
         3 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , wherein the dust extraction system includes a fan unit, a filter unit and a diffuser unit. 
     
     
         4 . The mobile unit according to  claim 3 , wherein the fan unit includes at least one of a radial fan, an axial fan and a silencer. 
     
     
         5 . The mobile unit according to  claim 3 , wherein the filter unit is a dry filter unit. 
     
     
         6 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , wherein the first and second dust collectors each include a channel arranged to at least partially enclosing the first and second transfer area, respectively. 
     
     
         7 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , wherein the dust extraction system is connected to an exhaust channel for receiving dust-laden air. 
     
     
         8 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , wherein the second transfer area is arranged for dispensing of mined material to a truck. 
     
     
         9 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , further comprising an undercarriage allowing a movement of the mobile unit. 
     
     
         10 . The mobile unit according to  claim 1 , wherein the dust extraction system is arranged in parallel to the conveying system and arranged to receive dust-laden air from an area forward of the first transfer area and to discharge air from which dust is extracted to an area rearward of the second transfer area. 
     
     
         11 . A mobile unit for a mine tunnel, comprising:
 a conveying system having a first and a second transfer area; and   a dust extraction system, wherein the conveying system is arranged to receive mined material in the first transfer area, to convey the received mined material to the second transfer area and to dispense the received and conveyed mined material at the second transfer area, and wherein the dust extraction system is arranged to receive dust-laden air, to extract dust from the dust-laden air and to discharge air from which dust is extracted, the dust extraction system including a dry filter unit for dust extraction.   
     
     
         12 . A method of conveying material and removing dust in a mine tunnel, comprising the steps of:
 moving a mobile unit having a conveying system and a dust extraction system in the mine tunnel such that a first transfer area of the conveying system is located to receive mined material from a mining machine;   receiving, by the conveying system, mined material in the first transfer area;   conveying, by the conveying system, the received mined material to a second transfer area of the conveying system;   dispensing the received and conveyed mined material at the second transfer area;   receiving, by the dust extraction system, dust-laden air from an area of the mining machine;   extracting dust from the dust-laden air;   discharging air from which dust is extracted;   collecting dust-laden air from the first and/or second transfer area, respectively; and   supplying the collected dust-laden air to the dust extraction system for dust extraction.