Effect of the shovel's tilt angle on the safety factor of its caterpillar tracks
M.G. Rakhutin, V.G. Simba Navarrete
MISIS University, Moscow, Russian Federation
Russian Mining Industry №1 / 2023 р. 141-146
Abstract: During the life time of a mining shovel its caterpillar tracks are replaced 15-30 times. The main cause of failures is various inconsistencies caused during their manufacture. The probability of failure is affected by variations in the material properties, the values of maximum stress and the design parameters characterized by the safety factor. With the help of simulation in SolidWorks using the P&H 4100-XPC mining shovel as an example, we analyzed the changes in stresses and safety factor caused by a piece of rock getting under the shovel’s track. The maximum stress distribution diagrams were plotted as a function of the longitudinal tilt within 0 to 12° and the lateral tilt within 0 to 4.5°. It has been found that at certain points of the track, the change of the longitudinal tilt angle has practically no effect on the safety factor value, while the safety factor decreases by 3.8 times to 1.1 when the lateral tilt angle is 4.5°. The effect of the track plate thickness ranging from 30 to 70 mm on the maximum stress, the value of the safety factor and the specific amount of metal per structure has been analyzed. A design change is proposed that consists in increasing the thickness of the track plate up to 60 mm which increases the safety factor and reduces the risk of failure due to the lateral tilt of the excavator caused by running the track over a piece of rock. An indicator is proposed which accounts for the relative change in minimum safety factor and maximum stress under different operating conditions.
Keywords: mining shovel, catarpillar track, shovel's tilt angle, safety factor, maximum stress, computer load simulation
For citation: Rakhutin M.G., Simba Navarrete V.G. Effect of the shovel's tilt angle on the safety factor of its caterpillar tracks. Russian Mining Industry. 2023;(2):141–146. https://doi.org/10.30686/1609-9192-2023-2-141-146
Article info
Received: 31.03.2023
Revised: 18.04.2023
Accepted: 19.04.2023
Information about the authors
Maxim G. Rakhutin – Dr. Sci. (Eng.), Professor, MISIS University, Moscow, Russian Federation; e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Vladimir Geovanni Simba Navarrete – Postgraduate Student, MISIS University, Moscow, Russian Federation
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