Long-distance underground pipelines for fluid supply have disappeared, environmental pollution has been eliminated, and energy consumption has been reduced by over 30% — the new-generation intelligent and environmentally friendly mining crawler unit hydraulic support, jointly developed by the Shanghai Marine Equipment Research Institute (SMSRI) of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and Shanxi Pingyang Heavy Machinery Co., Ltd., has achieved a leap from key technological breakthroughs to prototype production within half a year. With three major innovative advantages of "electric drive, high integration, and intelligent environmental protection," it has propelled coal mine support equipment from the traditional mode of "centralized pump station drive with manual transport assistance" into the intelligent era of "autonomous shifting and remote control."

The "Three Major Burdens" of Centralized Pump Stations

Unit hydraulic supports are critical equipment for coal mine ground control, primarily used to support and manage the roof, protect roadways, and ensure intrinsic safety at the worksite.

For a long time, most underground unit supports in China have adopted the traditional mode of centralized fluid supply from a central pump station, requiring tens of kilometers of pipelines laid from the surface or along roadway walls. This design presents three long-standing and difficult-to-resolve drawbacks: high energy consumption (significant pressure loss due to long-distance transport), low efficiency (support movement relies on external equipment for assisted handling, severely constraining mining and excavation connections), and heavy environmental pollution (persistent high-pressure pipeline leaks and hydraulic oil seepage).

More importantly, this "semi-fixed" operational mode subjects miners to sustained high-intensity physical labor, becoming a key bottleneck hindering the development of coal mines towards unmanned operations.

Three Technological Breakthroughs: Overcoming Four Industry Bottlenecks in Half a Year

Integrated Power Pack: Eliminating the Long-Distance Fluid Supply "Pigtail"

The core innovation of the new-generation support lies in its integrated onboard power pack (kinetic energy system).

The team minified all core functional components of the traditional centralized fluid supply system, including the hydraulic pump station, control valve group, accumulator, and oil tank, and integrated them into the structural space of the support itself. This means each support unit operates independently, no longer relying on a central pump station or long-distance pipelines, completely eliminating pollution sources in the mining and excavation face.

Independent Electric Drive: Over 30% Reduction in Energy Consumption

In traditional hydraulic drive systems, long-distance transport causes considerable energy wastage in the form of pressure loss and heat. With independent electric drive, the energy transmission path between the power source and the actuator is drastically shortened, reducing energy consumption by over 30%. Simultaneously, the system's response speed and reliability are significantly enhanced.

Remote-Controlled Autonomous Shifting: From "Strenuous Physical Labor" to "Remote Control"

In the traditional mode, moving supports required manual handling, imposing extreme physical strain and posing safety risks such as pinching or slipping caused by human-machine interaction.

The new-generation support upgrades passive handling to remote-controlled operation. Operators can autonomously complete a full set of support operations, including walking, lifting, and propping, from a safe area using a remote controller. This fundamentally eliminates the risk of human-machine contact, advancing the high-hazard industry towards safer and more human-centric practices.

Innovation Efficiency: "Dual-Wheel Drive" of R&D and Manufacturing

To undertake this development, Hento Hydraulic Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the 704th Research Institute, and Shanxi Pingyang Heavy Machinery formed an Integrated Product Team (IPT) in accordance with CSSC's diversified development strategic plan.

Leveraging Hento's core advantages in electro-hydraulic servo control and integrated actuation systems, combined with Pingyang Heavy's decades of experience in R&D and manufacturing of mining hydraulic supports, the team utilized a dual effort of research and manufacturing and completed a series of tasks—including site surveys, key technology breakthroughs, prototype production, and testing—within just six months.

This efficiency is a notable milestone in China's history of major technical equipment development, highlighting the comprehensive technical capability of CSSC in the domains of hydraulic control and heavy machinery manufacturing.

Three Application Prospects

Intelligent Deep-Well Mining: Deep-well mining faces multiple challenges like high ground pressure, high temperature, and long-distance transport. The efficiency of traditional centralized pump delivery systems degrades sharply with depth. Independent electric drive unit supports provide an entirely new support solution for intelligent deep-well mining and excavation.

Green Coal Mine Construction: Completely eliminating hydraulic oil leakage pollution sources and reducing energy consumption by over 30% transforms the support phase at the coal face from "heavy pollution" towards "zero emissions."

Unmanned Workfaces: Remote control combined with autonomous shifting eliminates the need for personnel to remain in hazardous areas for support tasks, providing key infrastructure for truly "manned inspection, unmanned operation" at mining and excavation faces.