Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02852095 2015-11-05
,
,
CHANGE OVER STATION AND METHOD
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention is related to a change over station in which
miners enter to
escape the mine environment and access supplies. (As used herein, references
to the "present
invention" or "invention" relate to exemplary embodiments and not necessarily
to every
embodiment encompassed by the appended claims.) More specifically, the present
invention
is related to a change over station in which miners enter to escape the mine
environment and
access supplies while in a chamber of a steel housing that is maintained with
positive pressure
from pressurized air to keep the mine environment out of the chamber.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This section is intended to introduce the reader to various
aspects of the art that
may be related to various aspects of the present invention. The following
discussion is
intended to provide information to facilitate a better understanding of the
present invention.
Accordingly, it should be understood that statements in the following
discussion are to be read
in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
[0003] Miners carry on themselves SCSRs/SCBAs that have a minimal
amount of
oxygen. In case of an emergency, miners will put these SCSRs/SCBAs on to
breathe fresh
oxygen. In case miners are far from the mine face, they have stations that
store
SCSR's/SCBA's. These stations do not allow for the miners to escape the mine
environment to
change their used SCSRs/SCBAs. There is a need to provide protection to miners
from the
mine environment while they change their SCSRs/SCBAs, and possibly regroup to
figure out a
way to save themselves, whether it be to identify a path to escape from the
mine or to access and
deploy a refuge shelter in the mine if there is no viable path to escape the
mine.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The main purpose of the COS is the storage of SCSR's and/or
SCBA's. Also, to
provide miners a clean environment to change out their SCSR's/SCBA's. This is
NOT intended
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to be a REFUGE CHAMBER and is not a refuge chamber as defined by 30 Code of
Federal
Regulations Part 7 (30CFR Part 7).
[0005] The present invention pertains to a change over station (COS)
for persons in a
hazardous environment. The COS comprises a steel housing having only a single
door, a
chamber, and an air lock portion. The door opening to the air lock portion.
The air lock
portion connected to the chamber. The COS comprises a first elongate seat
disposed in the
chamber. The COS comprises a plurality of compressed gas cylinders, such as
air, cylinders,
disposed in the seat. The COS comprises plumbing connected to the air
cylinders formed of gas
lines, such as air lines 28, and valves and an exhaust muffler, including a
first gas, such as air
path through the lines that provides a continuous flow of air into the chamber
through the
muffler at a rate of greater than 4 cfm when the plumbing is in an on state, a
second gas, such as
air, path through the lines that provides a continuous flow of air into the
chamber through the
muffler at a rate of less than 1.5 cfm when the plumbing is in a standby
state, and a third gas,
such as air, path through the lines which is door activated when the door is
opened by a door
activated switch which provides additional air flow as long as the door is
open at a rate of
greater than 4 cfm into the chamber through the The COS comprises a valve
control panel
through which the plumbing extends and which is disposed on the outside of the
housing which
controls whether the plumbing is in the on state or the standby s. The COS
comprises a storage
portion 44 disposed in the housing having supplies, including water and SCSRs
or SCBAs.
[0006] The present invention pertains to a method for providing a protected
environment to miners from a mine environment in a mine. The method comprises
the steps of
opening a primary valve disposed in a control panel located on the outside of
a steel housing of
a change over station (COS) to an on state which causes compressed air from
compressed air
cylinders inside the housing to flow through a first flow path of plumbing in
the steel housing
into the chamber of the housing and create positive pressure in the chamber
relative to the mine
environment. There is the step of opening a door of the housing which
activates a door
activated switch that causes compressed air from the compressed air cylinders
to flow through a
third flow path of the plumbing into the chamber of the housing and add to the
flow through the
first flow path of compressed air into the chamber to increase the positive
pressure in the
chamber and to direct air flow out of the chamber and through the open door.
There is the step
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of miners entering the chamber through the door, the miners taking SCSRs or
SCBAs from a
storage portion 44 in the housing and the miners using the SCSRs or SCBAs.
There is the step
of closing the door of the housing which deactivates the door activated switch
stopping
compressed air flow through the third flow path. There is the step of turning
the primary valve
to a standby state which causes the compressed air from the compressed air
cylinders to flow
through a second flow path of the plumbing into the chamber and a flow rate
that is less than the
rate of flow of compressed air through the first flow path.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
[0007] In the accompanying drawings, the preferred embodiment of the
invention and
preferred methods of practicing the invention are illustrated in which:
[0008] Figure 1 is a plumbing schematic of a first embodiment of the
present invention.
[0009] Figure 2 is a second schematic of the plumbing of the present
invention.
[0010] Figure 3 shows the supply air control panel of the second
embodiment of the
present invention.
[0011] Figures 4-8 are various views of the change over station of
the present invention.
[0012] Figure 9 shows a portion of the door, door frame, and door
activated switch.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0013] Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals refer
to similar
or identical parts throughout the several views, and more specifically to
figure 5 thereof, there is
shown a change over station (COS) 10 for persons in a hazardous environment.
The COS 10
comprises a steel housing 12 having only a single door 14, a chamber 16, and
an air lock portion
20. The door 14 opening to the air lock portion 20. The air lock portion 20
connected to the
chamber 16. The COS 10 comprises a first elongate seat 24 disposed in the
chamber 16. The
COS 10 comprises a plurality of compressed air cylinders 22 disposed in the
seat, as shown in
figure 7. The COS 10 comprises plumbing 26, as shown in figure 1, connected to
the air
cylinders 22 formed of air lines 28 and valves 30 and an exhaust muffler 32.
The plumbing 26
includes a first air path 34 through the lines that provides a continuous flow
or air into the
chamber 16 through the muffler 32 at a rate of greater than 4 cfm when the
plumbing 26 is in an
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on state, a second air path 36 through the lines that provides a continuous
flow of air into the
chamber 16 through the muffler 32 at a rate of less than 1.5 cfm when the
plumbing 26 is in a
standby state, and a third air path 38 through the lines which is door
activated when the door 14
is opened by a door activated switch 40 which provides additional air flow as
long as the door
14 is open at a rate of greater than 4 cfm into the chamber 16 through the
muffler 32. The COS
comprises a valve control panel 42, as shown in figure 3a, through which the
plumbing 26
extends and which is disposed on the outside of the housing 12 which controls
whether the
plumbing 26 is in the on state or the standby state. The COS 10 comprises a
storage portion 44
disposed in the housing 12 having supplies, including water and SCSRs or SCBAs
18.
10 [0014] The plumbing 26 may include a primary valve 46 that
controls whether air from
the air cylinders 22 follows the first path or the second path. The primary
valve 46 may be a 3
way valve 48, Off, On, and Standby:
[0015] a. Off¨ off
[0016] b. On- chamber is ready for entry.
[0017] c. Standby-chamber is activated with a trickle purge to keep the
chamber clear
of harmful gas after a first entry until a subsequent group arrives at the COS
10.
[0018] The plumbing 26 through the first path and the second path may
create positive
pressure to keep contaminants out when the door 14 is open. The door activated
switch 40 at the
door 14 may activate a secondary valve 50, such as a door activated valve, of
the plumbing 26
that increases air flow rate into the chamber 16 and blows air out the open
door 14. The chamber
16 may have a net height of 60" and the housing 12 has a flat top 52 to
maximize interior head
room. The seat height may be about 16" to allow for a 6' person to sit upright
in the chamber 16.
[0019] The housing 12 may be approximately 12' long and narrow enough
that it fits in
a shipping container; 3 units in a 40' container. The COS 10 may handle 3
sequenced 10 man
change over for a total of 10 men. The COS 10 may include a second elongate
seat 54, as shown
in figure 4, and wherein each seat provides 24"of space per man, and the seats
provide air
cylinder storage for up to 8 cylinders 22 is available. The storage portion 44
may serve as
storage for 30 SCSRs 18 as well as 90 quarts of water. The plumbing 26 may
include an orifice
56 and compressed air flow control 58 would be facilitated via the orifice 56.
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[0020] The space under the seats may allow for up to 8 cylinders 22
or a maximum of 4
hours in the ON mode, the standby mode substantially extends the reserve time
by only
releasing a trickle flow to maintain a slight positive pressure. The storage
portion 44 of the
water and SCSRs 18 are left and right just inside the door 14 for easy access.
The COS 10 may
include hanging plastic curtain strips 60 to help isolate the COS 10
atmosphere from the mine.
The control panel may be recessed to prevent damage and may be provided with a
tamper
evident seal 62.
[0021] The present invention pertains to a method for providing a
protected
environment to miners from a mine environment in a mine. The method comprises
the steps of
opening a primary valve 46 disposed in a control panel 42 located on the
outside of a steel
housing 12 of a change over station (COS) 10 to an on state which causes
compressed air from
compressed air cylinders 22 inside the housing 12 to flow through a first flow
path of plumbing
26 in the steel housing 12 into the chamber 16 of the housing 12 and create
positive pressure in
the chamber 16 relative to the mine environment. There is the step of opening
a door 14 of the
housing 12 which activates a door activated switch 40 that causes compressed
air from the
compressed air cylinders 22 to flow through a third flow path of the plumbing
26 into the
chamber 16 of the housing 12 and add to the flow through the first flow path
of compressed air
into the chamber 16 to increase the positive pressure in the chamber 16 and to
direct air flow out
of the chamber 16 and through the open door 14. There is the step of miners
entering the
chamber 16 through the door 14, the miners taking SCSRs or SCBAs 18 from a
storage portion
44 in the housing 12 and the miners using the SCSRs or SCBAs 18. There is the
step of
closing the door 14 of the housing 12 which deactivates the door activated
switch 40 stopping
compressed air flow through the third air path 38. There is the step of
turning the primary
valve 46 to a standby state which causes the compressed air from the
compressed air cylinders
22 to flow through a second air path 36 of the plumbing 26 into the chamber 16
and a flow rate
that is less than the rate of flow of compressed air through the first air
path 34.
[0022] There may be the step of the miners communicating from inside
the chamber 16
with a location outside of the chamber 16. The miners may utilize
communication devices they
typically carry on them with the Commtrac system available from Strata
Products Worldwide,
and/or the Through the Earth Communication System also available from Strata
Products
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Worldwide and described in US Patent Application 13/743,947. There may be the
steps of the
miners leaving the COS 10 and going to a refuge shelter and entering the
refuge shelter.
[0023] In the operation of the invention, the change over station
(COS) 10 provides
miners an escape from the mine environment, which will allow the miners to
safely change
their used SCSRs/SCBAs 18 to new ones and have time to possibly regroup and
plan a response
to the emergency in a relatively safe environment out of the mine environment.
The change
over station 10 is a walk in steel chamber 16 that will have the capacity to
store at least 30
SCSRs 18 or 30 SCBSs 18. The change over station 10 will also have the
capability to store up
to 90 quarts of water for the miners to re-hydrate themselves.
[0024] The change over station 10 has the capability to handle 3 sequenced
10 men
change overs for a total of 30 people. To create a clean environment,
compressed air will be
released inside the chamber 16 of the COS, which will create a positive
pressure inside the
chamber 16 and allow breathable air inside the chamber 16. According to
calculations 1-4.5K
bottle of compressed air will allow 10 men to exist an hour in the chamber 16.
This will be
increased to two cylinders 22 as a safety factor. The change over station 10
has the capacity to
store 8-4.5K compressed air cylinders 22, to make the overall run time of the
chamber 16 when
activated last approximately 4 hours. This is believed to be more than enough
time for the
miners to resupply themselves, given the emergency circumstances, and make a
decision to try
to escape the mine or go to and access and deploy and enter a refuge shelter
that provides long
term life support, typically at least 96 hours. An example of a refuge shelter
is that sold by
Strata Products Worldwide, LLC identified as the Fresh Air Bay; see U.S.
patent application
13/460,252.
[0025] Figures 4-8 show different views of the change over station 10
with the roof
removed for better depiction. Figure 5 shows a front perspective view of the
change over station
10 with the single door 14 shut. The door 14 opens outward from the steel
chamber 16. Figures
4 and 6 show a front perspective view of the change over station 10 with the
door 14 open.
Figure 7 shows an overhead view of the change over station 10. The steel
housing 12 is of a
fixed size and is comprised of four walls, the base from which the four walls
extend and a roof.
The bench seats are on either side of the change over station 10. A portion of
the top of the
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bench is cut away on each side to reveal the pressurized tanks stored within
the benches.
Figure 8 shows a perspective view of the change over station 10 with the roof
63 in place.
[0026] In the front of the change over station 10, adjacent the door
14 is the air lock
portion 20 and also shelving 66 and storage areas 44 to hold the various
supplies mentioned
above. Figure 6 shows a left perspective view of the change over station 10
with the door 14
open and showing the shelving 66 and storage areas 44 in the front of the
change over station
10. In the upper front right corner looking from the outside toward the front
door 14 is the
pressure relief valve 92. The air lock 20 is separated from the main part of
the chamber 16
where the benches are located by plastic strips 60 that hang from the ceiling
which act to
contain flow of the mine environment into the change over station 10 when the
door 14 is open.
[0027] The structure of the change over station 10 is built out of
steel tubing and sheet
metal having a rectangular shape with the walls, floor and roof being
rectangular shaped plates
that are welded together. The overall dimensions of the structure are 144 in x
80 in x 60 in
(LxWxH). The structure of the change over station 10 is built on the same base
as the ERC sold
by Strata Safety Products, the difference is the height of the COS being at a
maximum of 5 ft.
The height is to fit inside coal mines. There are benches inside of the
chamber 16 for the
miners to sit. The benches are a height that will allow a 6ft tall person to
sit comfortably inside
the chamber 16.
[0028] In regard to the plumbing 26 and airflow, reference is made to
figure 1. In one
embodiment, each of 2 ¨ 8 4. 5k compressed air cylinders 22 are connected in
parallel through
each cylinder's Monet valve 64 to a pressurized gas line. The gas line
carrying the compressed
air from the air cylinders 22 connects to a system valve 68. The system valve
68 controls the
airflow through the gas line from the air cylinders 22 in total, either on or
off. The system valve
68 is off during construction, but once construction is complete and the air
cylinders 22 are
connected to the gas line and the change over station 10 is ready for
operation and to be
delivered to a mine, the system valve 68 is turned on and pressurized gas is
allowed to flow
through the system valve 68. This is an always on system. A bottle pressure
gauge is connected
to the line between the cylinders 22 and the system valve 68 for verification
purposes each
working shift.
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[0029] The gas line extends from the system valve 68, a Parker
Veriflo HCV Valve
with HP Gauge, to a step down valve 70, a Parker Veriflo Two Stage Pressure
Regulator IR
6004 Outlet Range 10-250 PSIG, which takes the 4.5k PSI pressure in the line
down to a
workable pressure of about 100 PSI for downstream valves 30. The gas line
extends from the
step down valve 70 where it splits and extends to a door activated switch 40,
such as a Parker
Veriflo Door Activated 2 Position 3 Way Directional Valve P/N 47000074, and
door activated
valve, such as a Parker Veriflo NV17 AOP Valve, and the primary valve 46, such
as a three way
valve 48 or a position valve 48, Parker Veriflo NV17 Indicator Valve, which
can either be off,
on or in standby.
[0030] The position valve 48 is maintained in an off position until miners
need to use
the change over station 10. In the off position, the position valve 48
prevents any flow of
pressurized air through it. When miners need to use the change over station
10, they cause the
position valve 48 to be turned to the on position. The position valve 48 is
controlled from the
outside of the change over station 10, before the miners enter the change over
station 10. In the
on position, flow of pressurized air flows through the position valve 48 and a
6.48 CFM orifice
56 and out into the chamber of the change over station 10 through the gas line
that extends to a
muffler 32 exhaust, such as a Parker Veriflo Muffler P/N 47000075, located in
the rear of the
chamber. By turning the position of the position valve 48 to on before the
miners enter the
chamber, positive pressure is created to limit or prevent the gas from the
mine environment to
enter the change over station 10. When miners vacate the chamber, they turn
the position valve
48 to the standby position which allows a continuous flow of air to flow
through the position
valve 48 and through a .6 CFM orifice 56 through the gas line to the muffler
32 exhaust. In the
standby position, air continues to enter the chamber but at a much reduced
rate, waiting for any
miners that might need it at a subsequent time to enter the chamber with
positive pressure still
maintained, but at a low enough rate to extend the duration of the viability
of the change over
station 10.
[0031] From the step down valve 70, the gas line also extends to a
door activated valve
through a door activated switch 40. The door activated valve allows
pressurized air to merge
with the air from the position valve 48 and pass into the chamber through the
muffler 32
exhaust. When the door activated switch 40 is open, the pressurized gas passes
through the
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switch 40 and through the door activated valve to a 6.48 CFM orifice 56 in the
gas line
extending from the door activated valve to the muffler 32 exhaust. The door
activated switch 40
is just that; whenever the door 14 is open any amount, the door activated
switch 40 is open and
allows gas pressure to pass through the gas line to the door activated valve
and into the chamber
through the muffler 32 exhaust. If the position valve 48 is also open, then
essentially the gas
through the gas line of the door activated valve doubles the flow rate of air
into the chamber.
The door activated valve opens when air passes to it from the switch 40 but
prevents air flow in
the opposite direct in from the muffler 32 back to the switch 40. In this way,
whenever the door
14 is open to any degree, increased airflow is applied to the chamber to
maintain positive
pressure and keep out the mine environment.
[0032] The door activated switch 40, as shown in figure 2, has a
button 80 that is
positioned in the door frame 82 at the hinge 86 side of the door 14, as shown
in figure 9. The
button 80 is spring loaded so that when the door 14 becomes even slightly
ajar, and a space is
created between the door 14 and the frame, the button 80 will move out under
the action of the
spring 84, drawing a stem 88 of the button 80 which extends into a flow
channel 90 through the
switch 40, out of the flow channel 90, allowing air to flow through the flow
channel 90 in the
switch 40 and to the door activated valve 50. The air then flows through the
door activated
valve 50 and through the line to the exhaust muffler 32. When the door 14
becomes closed, the
door 14 pushes down on the button 80, directing the stem 88 back into the flow
channel 90,
which closes the switch 40 and stops air flow to the door operated valve. The
6.48 CFM orifice
56 downstream from the door activated valve allows air flow at 6.48 cfm from
the door
activated switch 40 to the muffler 32.
[0033] As a safety measure, a pressure relief valve 92 is located in
the upper right rear
corner of the steel chamber 16 to allow any excess air pressure to vent from
the chamber, if
necessary, as shown in figure 4. In a preferred embodiment, there is no CO2
scrubber in the
change over station to remove carbon dioxide. The positive pressure maintained
in the change
over station 10 and constant flow of air into the chamber 16 effectively
pushes out or keeps out
toxic gases such as carbon dioxide while the miners are in the change over
station, which is less
than an hour or two hours, long enough for the miners to resupply themselves,
have a short rest
and make a determination where they will go next in the mine.
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[0034] In another embodiment, figure 2 shows a plumbing schematic and
figures 3a, 3
and 3c show an overhead view, side view and front view, respectively, of the
control panel 42.
This schematic of the plumbing layout is slightly different then the layout of
figure 1 and
essentially operates the same way except as follows. From the plumbing
schematic, the air
flow from the cylinders 22 will go to the system valve 68, a Parker Veriflo
HCV Valve with HP
Gauge. The flow stops there until that valve 68 is turned on. What that means
is that this is an
always off system until the initial valve 68 is turned on. Once, the valve 68
is turned on, the
flow then can take two directions.
[0035] 1) The flow can go to the primary valve 46, a Parker
Veriflo NV17
Indicator Valve ('On' / 'Stand-By' Valve) and
[0036] 2) The flow can go to the secondary valve, a Parker Veriflo
Door Activated
2 Position 3 Way Normally Closed switch
[0037] In the panel 42 shown in figures 1,2 and 3a-3c, the miners
will be told by written
instructions to turn the Parker Veriflo NV17 Indicator Primary Valve 46 to the
'On" position,
so initially the flow will go through that valve 46 and through a 6.48 CFM
orifice 56 to the
muffler 32. Once, the miners open the door 14 to go into the chamber 16, the
Parker Veriflo
Door Activated Switch 40 will be activated and the flow of air will also be
directed through the
switch 40 to the Parker Veriflo NV17 AOP Secondary Valve 50 and through a 6.48
CFM
orifice 56 to join the flow of air flowing through the Parker Veriflo NV17
Indicator Primary
Valve 46 and exhaust at a total flow rate of about 13 cfm. The switch 40 and
the AOP
Secondary Valve 50 work the same way as the switch 40 and door activated valve
described
above.
[0038] After all the miners enter the COS, the door 14 will be shut
and the switch 40
closed, The flow of air will then only flow to the Parker Veriflo NV17
Indicator Primary Valve
through the 'On" position and the flow will be 6.48 cfm out the muffler 32.
Once the miners exit
the COS, they will go back to the control panel and turn the Parker Veriflo
NV17 Indicator
Primary Valve to 'Stand-By' and then the flow to the exhaust will be 0.6 cfm.
[0039] From the Control Panel, step by step what miners would do:
[0040] 1) Turn 'ON' the Parker Veriflo HCV System Valve with HP
Gauge (far
left valve on drawing panel figure 2)
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=
[0041] 2)
Turn the Parker Veriflo NV17 Indicator Primary Valve to the 'ON'
Position (far right valve in middle on drawing panel figure 2)
[0042] 3) Open Entry Door and enter the COS:
[0043] a.
Where the mechanically operated Parker Veriflo Door Activated
Switch will be activated, miners don't have to know about this
because they will not have to turn or activate this switch
[0044] 4) Close Entry Door once everyone has entered the COS
[0045] a.
Where the mechanically operated Parker Veriflo Activated
Switch will be deactivated
[0046] 5) After
miners exit Close Entry Door and go over to the Valve panel and
turn the Parker Veriflo NV17 Indicator Primary Valve to 'Stand-By'
[0047]
These steps will be a continuous loop until all the air is exhausted from the
compressed air cylinders 22 or all the miners have been to the COS.
[0048]
Although the invention has been described in detail in the foregoing
embodiments for the purpose of illustration, it is to be understood that such
detail is solely for
that purpose and that variations can be made therein by those skilled in the
art. The scope of the
claims should not be limited by particular embodiments set forth herein, but
should be
construed in a manner consistent with the specification as a whole.
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