Abstract: A support for the roof in longwall mining operations includes a gob canopy at the rear of a roof canopy. The gob canopy can move about a vertical pivot and a horizontal pivot by operation of a hydraulic actuator. To stabilize the support, the gob canopy moves into or out of contact with the roof at the rear of the roof canopy. The actuators can move the gob canopy to the left or right side of the roof canopy about a vertical pivot so that a skeg member on the upper surface of the gob canopy drags along the mine roof for steering the roof support when it is advanced toward the mine face. Gaps between the gob canopies of side-by-side roof supports function in the manner of grizzly bars to permit recovery of small pieces of gob roof rock.

Abstract: Support for native roof strata in a mine opening includes an elongated tensile member arranged horizontally and immediately below the lowest stratum layer of the native roof strata. The tensile member is anchored with bolt members under a prestressed elongation at a site within the upper stratum and horizontally remote to the roof strata to impose the prestressing reactive forces upon the upper stratum as a compressive stress. The emplaced tensile member distributes an upward force upon the roof strata to shear resistance by increasing friction between the layers of the strata. The bolt members extend over a pillar of native strata at an angle of between 0.degree. and 30.degree. to the horizontal, preferably about 5.degree. to 15.degree.. In one embodiment, a profiled spacer is used between the tensile member and the lowest stratum layer for creating the increased friction between the layers of native roof strata.

Abstract: A support for a mine opening includes an elastic plate member with a preformed curvature across its length. Two props at each end of the plate member provide support after emplacement into a load-bearing contact with the roof stratum in a flattened or near flattened configuration to exert substantially uniform pressure against the roof stratum. Rectangular tubes form chock blocks connected to the ends of the plate member. Each chock block includes a clevis to retain the ends of the two props. A spacer maintains a small clearance between the roof and the terminal end portions of the plate member and an anchor pin connects each chock block to the plate member.