A hoist controller is the

controller Controller may refer to: Occupations * Controller or financial controller, or in government accounting comptroller, a senior accounting position * Controller, someone who performs agent handling in espionage * Air traffic controller, a person ...

for a hoist. The term is used primarily in the context of electrically operated hoists, but it is apparent that the control systems of many 20th century steam hoists also incorporated controllers of significant complexity. Consider the

control system A control system manages, commands, directs, or regulates the behavior of other devices or systems using control loops. It can range from a single home heating controller using a thermostat controlling a domestic boiler to large industrial c ...

of the

Quincy Mine The Quincy Mine is an extensive set of copper mines located near Hancock, Michigan. The mine was owned by the Quincy Mining Company and operated between 1846 and 1945, although some activities continued through the 1970s. The Quincy Mine was know ...

No. 2 Hoist. This control system included interlocks to close the

throttle A throttle is the mechanism by which fluid flow is managed by constriction or obstruction. An engine's power can be increased or decreased by the restriction of inlet gases (by the use of a throttle), but usually decreased. The term ''throttle'' ...

valve at the end of trip and to prevent opening the throttle again until the

winding engine A winding engine is a stationary engine used to control a cable, for example to power a mining hoist at a pit head. Electric hoist controllers have replaced proper winding engines in modern mining, but use electric motors that are also tradition ...

was reversed. The control system also incorporated a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

to control the speed of the hoist and indicator wheels to show the hoist operator the positions of the skips in the

mine shaft Shaft mining or shaft sinking is the action of excavating a mine shaft from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom. Shallow shafts, typically sunk for civil engineering projects, differ greatly in execution method from ...

. The hoist controllers for modern electric mining hoists have long included such features as automatic starting of the hoist when the weight of coal or ore in the

skip Skip or Skips may refer to: Acronyms * SKIP (Skeletal muscle and kidney enriched inositol phosphatase), a human gene * Simple Key-Management for Internet Protocol * SKIP of New York (Sick Kids need Involved People), a non-profit agency aidin ...

reaches a set point, automatic acceleration of the hoist to full speed and automatic deceleration at the end of travel. Hoist controllers need both velocity and absolute position references taken, typically taken from the winding drum of the hoist.A.R. Lilly, Hoist Controller, U.S. Patent 3,110,199 granted Aug. 30, 1960. Modern hoist controllers replace many of the mechanical

analog Analog or analogue may refer to: Computing and electronics * Analog signal, in which information is encoded in a continuous variable ** Analog device, an apparatus that operates on analog signals *** Analog electronics, circuits which use analog ...

mechanisms of earlier controllers with digital control systems.

References

Mining equipment {{tech-stub

See also

References