The impact of drive properties on excavation machine loads is analyzed in order to find the most effective way to separate the coal from the massif. Disadvantages of traditional excavation machines with rotary actuator are revealed. The purpose of the research is to determine the nature of changes in forces and cutting speed when changing the properties of the drive. On the basis of kinetic theory of brittle massifs fracture the hypothesis about the possibility of changing the nature of the cutting process by changing the properties of the drive is put forward. A physical model for experimental research is proposed and the first results of the experiments are presented.
