Hydraulic and earth engineering – Underground passageway – e.g. – tunnel – Boring
Patent
1992-03-17
1994-02-08
Taylor, Dennis L.
Hydraulic and earth engineering
Underground passageway, e.g., tunnel
Boring
405138, 405146, 299 13, E21D 900
Patent
active
052844030
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a method for control of the advancement of a tunnel drilling apparatus in soil or rock, by which the forward drive is effected by a power unit which pushes the rear end of the drilling apparatus at the tunnel opening, throughout its traversal of the tunnel. As the tunnel drive advances, the drilling apparatus can be furnished with extensions, from the rear end where the pushing is effected.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There is a known control system for a forward driven drilling apparatus, wherein the control of the driving force is dependent on the torque of the drilling apparatus. The tool in the drill head cuts the tunnel front wall through rotation. The rotary motion is transmitted to the drill head from the tunnel opening, in general, by the rotating soil-conveying tubes. The torque of the conveying tube system is monitored and, as the torque drops, the drilling apparatus is driven forward.
An applicable method is also to provide the tool in the drill head with a relatively short feed of its own, the length of which the tool moves on when drilling the tunnel. When the feed travel comes to its end, the tool reverts to start and the entire drilling apparatus is driven forward respectively. This procedure is known, for example, from the GB-publication No. 2 091 316 and the U.S. Pat. No. 4,167,289.
The disadvantage of a torque monitoring control method is the growth of torque when the tunnel drive advances. The farther the tunnel work advances the more the resistance of rotation drops, which can be caused for instance by the conveying tubes transmitting the torque. Therefore, when the tunnel drive advances, the control system becomes insensible to tool hindrances far from the tunnel opening and damage to the tool is quite possible.
In a system where the tool is provided with an individual built-in feed motion in the drill head, the mounting of the tool becomes complicated and even the control system must be of a kind that senses the qualities and variations of soil ahead.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
With the method and apparatus provided by this invention, a crucial improvement of said disadvantages has been achieved. To put this into practice, the method of this invention is characterized in what has been presented in patent claims 1-9, and the apparatus in what has been presented in patent claims 10-16.
It can be considered the main advantage of this invention that feed-back is received uninterruptedly about the relatively great driving force towards the driving power unit rear end and its effect on the drill head. Thereby the driving force is not allowed to rise so much that it could damage the tool. When the drilling apparatus advances in the tunnel, the tool at the drill head is always the first one to hit the tunnel front wall and the impact causes a rise in pressure in the tool supporters and this information is exploited in the invention. With the apparatus according to the invention, the drill head, the conveying tubes as well as the protecting tubes (if used) are fed all the way, uninterrupted, through the tunnel. As per the above mentioned publication, interruption is caused by the step-by-step push of the protecting tubes in order to follow the drill head, since there is no forward drive of the protecting tubes during drilling.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is more closely described as follows with reference to the drawings in which
FIG. 1 is a drill head provided with two tools.
FIG. 2 is a driving power unit in the working pit.
FIG. 3 is a drill head with one tool.
FIG. 4 is a drilling apparatus, where the tool affecting force turns to pressure information in the working pit.
FIG. 5 is a drilling apparatus, where the tool affecting force turns to pressure information in the working pit.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a drilling apparatus provided with percussion tools (25 and 28) for drilling a tunnel in rock. These tools are supported against the medium-driven cylinders (24 and 29) and movable in their ho
REFERENCES:
patent: 3301598 (1967-01-01), Pirrie et al.
patent: 3346299 (1967-10-01), Meyer
patent: 3489461 (1970-01-01), Lauber
patent: 4079795 (1978-03-01), Sackmann et al.
patent: 4167289 (1979-09-01), Ono et al.
patent: 4343512 (1982-08-01), Heitkamp et al.
patent: 4774470 (1988-09-01), Takigawa et al.
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