Wear indicator apparatus, system and method for conveyor transfer chutes

1. An apparatus for indicating wear of a liner in a transfer chute, the apparatus comprising:

a wear indicator portion configured to be inserted into a through opening in a wall assembly of the transfer chute;

a layer of wear material of the wear indicator portion for being received in the wall assembly through opening and being of the same material as material of an inner lining of the wall assembly; and

a mounting portion connected to the wear indicator portion and configured to be removably fixed to an exterior surface of the wall assembly to allow the wear indicator portion to be removed from outside the transfer chute for checking wear of the layer of wear material,

wherein the mounting portion includes a mounting plate sized to engage the exterior surface of the wall assembly with the wear indicator portion inserted in the wall assembly through opening, and the wear indicator portion includes a base portion secured to the mounting plate, and the layer of wear material comprises a liner member secured to the base portion and being of the same material as that of the wall assembly inner lining,

wherein the liner member is removably secured to the base portion, and

at least one shim member of the wear indicator portion configured to be secured between the base portion and the liner member for adjusting the thickness of the wear indicator portion.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the wear indicator portion is configured to have a keyed fit in the wall assembly through opening for fitting therein in only a single orientation.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 including a removal mechanism connected to the mounting portion and configured to be operated outside of the transfer chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the wall assembly through opening.

4. A conveyor transfer chute system comprising:

at least one chute having an interior for forming a flow path for transferring conveyed material from one conveyor to another conveyor;

a wall of the chute extending about the flow path and having an internal flow surface of a predetermined wear resistant material along which the material flows;

a though opening in the chute wall at a predetermined location from which wear information is desired;

a wear indicator apparatus configured to be mounted to the chute wall for providing information regarding wear of the internal flow surface;

a wear indicator portion of the wear indicator apparatus having an internal wear surface of the same wear resistant material as the internal flow surface and being configured to be fit in the chute wall through opening with a clearance fit therebetween to expose the internal wear surface to the material flow at the internal flow surface with the clearance fit forming a gap between the internal wear surface of the wear indicator portion and the internal flow surface of the chute wall with the wear indicator portion fit in the chute wall through opening; and

a removal mechanism of the wear indicator apparatus that is operable outside the chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the through opening for wear inspection.

5. An apparatus for indicating wear of a liner in a transfer chute, the apparatus comprising:

a wear indicator portion configured to be inserted into a through opening in a wall assembly of the transfer chute;

a layer of wear material of the wear indicator portion for being received in the wall assembly through opening and being of the same material as material of an inner lining of the wall assembly; and

a mounting portion connected to the wear indicator portion and configured to be removably fixed to an exterior surface of the wall assembly to allow the wear indicator portion to be removed from outside the transfer chute for checking wear of the layer of wear material a conveyor transfer chute system comprising:

at least one chute having an interior for forming a flow path for transferring conveyed material from one conveyor to another conveyor;

a wall of the chute extending about the flow path and having an internal flow surface of a predetermined wear resistant material along which the material flows;

a though opening in the chute wall at a predetermined location from which wear information is desired;

a wear indicator apparatus configured to be mounted to the chute wall for providing information regarding wear of the internal flow surface;

a wear indicator portion of the wear indicator apparatus having an internal wear surface of the same wear resistant material as the internal flow surface and being configured to be fit in the chute wall through opening to expose the internal wear surface to the material flow at the internal flow surface; and

a removal mechanism of the wear indicator apparatus that is operable outside the chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the through opening for wear inspection,

wherein the chute wall comprises a wall assembly of a lower wear resistant, outer shell and an inner liner secured to the outer shell with the inner liner including the internal flow surface of the predetermined wear resistant material, and the through opening extends through the outer shell and the inner liner.

6. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 5 wherein the wear indicator portion comprises a base portion and a liner member that includes the wear internal surface and which is secured to the base portion with thicknesses of the base portion and the liner member corresponding to thicknesses of the outer shell and the inner liner of the chute wall assembly, respectively, so that the wear indicator portion has the same cross-sectional configuration as the chute wall assembly.

7. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 4 wherein the wear indicator apparatus includes a mounting portion adapted to be affixed to an external surface of the chute wall with the wear indicator portion fit in the chute wall through opening.

8. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 7 wherein the mounting portion comprises a mounting plate that is larger than the through opening, and the wear indicator portion comprises a plug portion secured generally centrally to the mounting plate and sized to have a clearance fit in the through opening.

9. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 4 wherein the wear indicator portion has a thickness the same as that of the chute wall so that the internal wear surface is substantially flush with the internal flow surface of the chute wall.

10. A conveyor transfer chute system comprising:

at least one chute having an interior for forming a flow path for transferring conveyed material from one conveyor to another conveyor;

a wall of the chute extending about the flow path and having an internal flow surface of a predetermined wear resistant material along which the material flows;

a though opening in the chute wall at a predetermined location from which wear information is desired;

a wear indicator apparatus configured to be mounted to the chute wall for providing information regarding wear of the internal flow surface;

a wear indicator portion of the wear indicator apparatus having an internal wear surface of the same wear resistant material as the internal flow surface and being configured to be fit in the chute wall through opening to expose the internal wear surface to the material flow at the internal flow surface; and

a removal mechanism of the wear indicator apparatus that is operable outside the chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the through opening for wear inspection,

the wear indicator portion comprises a liner member including the internal wear surface, and adjustment members for adjusting thickness of the wear indicator portion to position the internal wear surface to be substantially flush with the internal flow surface of the chute wall.

11. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 4 wherein the wear indicator portion has a keyed, mating fit in the chute wall through opening so that the wear indicator portion is fit in the through opening in only a single orientation thereof.

12. A conveyor transfer chute system comprising:

at least one chute having an interior for forming a flow path for transferring conveyed material from one conveyor to another conveyor;

a wall of the chute extending about the flow path and having an internal flow surface of a predetermined wear resistant material along which the material flows;

a though opening in the chute wall at a predetermined location from which wear information is desired;

a wear indicator apparatus configured to be mounted to the chute wall for providing information regarding wear of the internal flow surface;

a wear indicator portion of the wear indicator apparatus having an internal wear surface of the same wear resistant material as the internal flow surface and being configured to be fit in the chute wall through opening to expose the internal wear surface to the material flow at the internal flow surface; and

a removal mechanism of the wear indicator apparatus that is operable outside the chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the through opening for wear inspection, wherein the chute wall has an external surface, the wear indicator apparatus has a mounting portion including threaded apertures, and the removal mechanism includes fasteners having threaded shanks threaded in the threaded apertures external of the chute with the threaded shanks having distal ends in abutment with the chute wall external surface so that rotation of the fasteners in a removal rotary direction retracts the wear indicator portion out from the chute wall through opening external of the chute.

13. The conveyor transfer chute system of claim 12 wherein the chute wall external surface has one of a flat, angled and curved configuration, and the mounting portion comprises a mounting plate having a corresponding configuration to the chute wall external surface for being mounted in substantially flush engagement therewith.

14. A conveyor transfer chute system comprising:

at least one chute having an interior for forming a flow path for transferring conveyed material from one conveyor to another conveyor;

a wall of the chute extending about the flow path and having an internal flow surface of a predetermined wear resistant material along which the material flows;

a though opening in the chute wall at a predetermined location from which wear information is desired;

a wear indicator apparatus configured to be mounted to the chute wall for providing information regarding wear of the internal flow surface;

a wear indicator portion of the wear indicator apparatus having an internal wear surface of the same wear resistant material as the internal flow surface and being configured to be fit in the chute wall through opening to expose the internal wear surface to the material flow at the internal flow surface; and

a removal mechanism of the wear indicator apparatus that is operable outside the chute to retract the wear indicator portion out from the through opening for wear inspection,

wherein the chute wall has an external surface and mounting studs that project outwardly from the chute wall exterior surface about the chute wall through opening, and the wear indicator apparatus has a mounting portion including apertures for receiving the mounting studs therethrough for securing the wear indicator apparatus to the chute wall external surface.

15. A method for obtaining wear information for an internal flow surface of a chute through which material flows, the method comprising:

forming a through opening in a wall of the chute that extends around and along the internal flow surface;

inserting a wear indicator portion of a wear indicator apparatus into the through opening; and

removably securing a mounting portion of the wear indicator apparatus to an external surface of the chute wall to expose an internal wear surface of the wear indicator portion at the internal flow surface so that the wear indicator apparatus can be secured to and removed from the chute from the outside of the chute for periodic wear inspections of the wear indicator portion,

wherein the through opening is formed to have a keyed fit with the wear indicator portion such that the wear indicator portion is non-rotatably received in the through opening and so that after a wear inspection, the wear indicator portion can only be reinserted into the through opening in the same orientation as the orientation in which the wear indicator portion was inserted prior to the wear inspection.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the wear indicator apparatus is removably secured to the chute wall external surface by removably fastening a mounting plate of the mounting portion to the chute wall external surface about the through opening so that the internal wear surface is substantially flush with the internal flow surface.

17. A method for obtaining wear information for an internal flow surface of a chute through which material flows, the method comprising:

forming a through opening in a wall of the chute that extends around and along the internal flow surface;

inserting a wear indicator portion of a wear indicator apparatus into the through opening;

removably securing a mounting portion of the wear indicator apparatus to an external surface of the chute wall to expose an internal wear surface of the wear indicator portion at the internal flow surface so that the wear indicator apparatus can be secured to and removed from the chute from the outside of the chute for periodic wear inspections of the wear indicator portion, wherein the wear indicator apparatus is removably secured to the chute wall external surface by removably fastening a mounting plate of the mounting portion to the chute wall external surface about the through opening so that the internal wear surface is substantially flush with the internal flow surface; and

adjusting the thickness of the wear indicator portion with adjustment members that are removably secured between a mounting plate and a liner member of the wear indicator apparatus so that the internal wear surface of the liner member is flush with the internal flow surface of the chute wall when the wear indicator apparatus mounting portion is removably secured thereto.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the through openings are formed at different locations in different chute components with a wear indicator apparatus used at each location, the method further including:

obtaining wear information from each wear indicator apparatus, and

replacing liner plates that form the internal flow surface in the high wear locations of the different chute components as determined by the wear information obtained from each wear indicator apparatus.