Rock cutter assembly

Claim 2

A mounting structure for an earth formation cutter wheel, comprising: a pair of spaced apart side members presenting a cutter wheel receiving space therebetween, each said side member including a mounting recess; a pair of side caps supportable by said side members, each said side cap including a base portion sized to snugly fit within the recess of its side member, and a narrower exposed portion, said base portion including a shoulder where it stops and the narrower exposed portion begins; a cutter wheel support shaft interconnected between said side caps; and retainer members secured to said side members and overhanging said recesses to contact and bear against the shoulders of the base portions of said side caps, with at least some of said retainer members being detachable from said side members so that they can be removed to permit installation of said side caps into, or removal of said side caps out from, said recesses.

Claim 3

Mounting structure according to claim 1, further including complementary key grooves formed in the base portion of a side cap and in its recess, and a key insertable into said grooves, to rEstrain said side cap against axial movement.

Claim 4

Mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the said recesses and the base portions of the side caps are semicircular in shape, and the exposed portions of the side caps are also semicircular in shape but of a smaller radius, resulting in the formation of a generally radial shoulder at the boundary between the said base and exposed portions of said side caps, with the distance between the inner radial boundaries of the two retainer members of each side member being greater than the diameter of the exposed portion of the side cap supported by such side member.

Claim 5

Mounting structure according to claim 3, wherein complementary semicircular key grooves are formed in the base portion of a side cap and in its recess, and a semicircular key is insertable into said key grooves for restraining the side cap against axial movement.

Claim 6

Mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein coaxial openings are provided through the side caps for receiving said cutter wheel support shaft, and wherein the opposite side boundaries of the cutter wheel support shaft are at least substantially within the boundaries established by the opposite outer side surfaces of the side members.

Claim 7

Mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein each side cap is formed to include an axially inwardly opening circumferential groove forming at least a portion of a seal chamber.

Claim 8

For use in mining earth formations, a cutter wheel assembly, comprising: a pair of spaced apart side members presenting a cutter wheel receiving space therebetween, each said side member including a mounting recess; a pair of side caps supportable by said side members, each said side cap including a base portion sized to snugly fit within the recess of its side member, and a narrower exposed portion, said base portion including a shoulder where it stops and the narrower exposed portion begins; a cutter wheel support shaft interconnected between said side caps; means supporting an annular cutter wheel for rotation about said support shaft; and retainer members secured to said side members and over-hanging said recesses to contact and bear against the shoulders of the base portions of said side caps, with at least some of said retainer members being detachable from said side members so that they can be removed to permit installation of said side caps into, or removal of said side caps out from said recesses.

Claim 9

For use in mining earth formations, a cutter wheel assembly, comprising: a pair of spaced apart side members presenting a cutter wheel receiving space therebetween, each said side member including a mounting recess; a pair of side caps supportable by said side members, each said side cap including a base portion sized to snugly fit within the recess of its side member, and a narrower exposed portion, said base portion including a shoulder where it stops and the narrower exposed portion begins; a cutter wheel support shaft interconnected between said side caps; means supporting an annular cutter wheel for rotation about said support shaft; and retainer members secured to said side members and over-hanging said recesses to contact and bear against the shoulders of the base portions of said side caps, with at least some of said retainer members being detachable from said side members so that they can be removed to permit installation of said side caps into, or removal of said side caps out from said recesses.

Claim 10

A cutter wheel assembly according to claim 7, wherein said means supporting the cutter wheel for rotation about said support shaft includes bearing means, and wherein said side caps include axially inwardly opening annular grooves which help define a seal chamber between each side cap and an adjacent portion of the cutter wheel, and a rotary-to-nonrotary seal is located within each seal chamber.

Claim 11

A cutter wheel assembly according to claim 8, wherein the said recesses and the base portions of the side caps are semicircular in shape, and the exposed portions of the side caps are also semicircular in shape but of a smaller radius, resulting in the formation of a generally radial shoulder at the boundary between the said base and exposed portions of said side caps, with the distance between the inner radial boundaries of the two retainer members of each side member being greater than the diameter of the exposed portion of the side caps supported by such side member.

Claim 12

A cutter wheel assembly according to claim 9, wherein complementary semicircular key grooves are formed in the base portion of a side cap and in its recess, and a semicircular key is insertable into the key grooves for restraining the side cap against axial movement.