ABSTRACT

The bucket wheel excavator is employed for a large number of fields from mining minerals in small open pits to extraction of coal and removal of overburden in large-scale surface mines of European type. This broad field can be covered with three different types of excavator in around ten performance classes with theoretical handling capacities from 400 m3/h to 20 000 m3/h. The standardization which has been possible as a result has the advantages for the customer that the investment costs are lower, thanks to the saving of at least part of the engineering costs, and that machine availability is improved, as proven components can be employed. Standardization must however allow adaptation to different ground conditions. This concerns first and foremost the design of the bucket wheel with its digging components.