1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to tunnel boring machines, and more particularly to a machine that utilizes a casing centered within a casing structure, and still more particularly to one which utilizes a spoils ejector adjacent the cutting head at the forward end of the auger that is turned by the boring machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
This invention is directed to the providing of an auger boring machine of the type used in the installation of in-ground pipe. For decades, prior art boring machines have been positioned on tracks in a large hole at the initiation site of a tunnel. The machine has a power source that pushes a casing into a tunnel dug by a rotating drill head. This digging is accomplished by the power source turning an auger that extends within and is parallel to the casing. At the terminal end of the auger is a drilling head that revolves as the auger spins, the drilling head cuts soil and/or rocks loose from the ground. The cut soil and/or rock are referred to as spoils and are evacuated from the tunnel by the auger blade.
Prior art tunnel boring machines bore tunnels 4-96″ in diameter. The machines cost thousands of dollars to set up to begin the digging of a tunnel. When adjustments need to be made, it can take a day. Oftentimes, the auger used in these machines has to be removed from within the casing if a problem is encountered at the cutting head. This takes time and incurs expense.
It is thus apparent that the need exists for an improved tunnel boring machine which in addition to being easy to use, permits tunnels to be bored faster and more economically than in the past.
In accordance with the present invention, there is disclosed an auger boring machine having spoils ejector with the machine having a power source with the power source attached to an auger, a plurality of large casings extending linearly from the power source, a plurality of small casings located linearly and centered within the large casings, with the auger extending linearly within the small casings, a cutting head attached to the terminal end of the large casings, and a spoils port.
The spoils ejector is attached to the auger and to the cutting head, with the spoils ejector located between the terminal end of the small casings and the cutting head. The spoils ejector is enclosed within the large casings, with the spoils ejector having a front, a back, first and second sides each attached to the front and to the back, and first and second curved plates each attached to the front, the back, and to the first and second sides. At least one of the sides has a collector aperture formed therein adjacent one of the curved plates. The back has formed therein at least one spoils port.
The terminal end of the small casings has an end plate attached thereto. The terminal end of the small casings has a notch formed therein, with the notch having a pair of side surfaces and an arcuate (i.e. arc shaped) surface. Each of the side surfaces has one end connected to the arcuate surface and another end connected to the end plate. The end plate has an arcuate end plate recess formed therein.
The spoils ejector front has a front first plate and a front second plate. The spoils ejector back has a back first plate and a back second plate. The spoils ejector first side has a spoils ejector first side first plate and a spoils ejector first side second plate. The spoils ejector second side has a spoils ejector second side first plate and a spoils ejector second side second plate. The back first plate and the back second plate each have a spoils port formed therein, each spoils port forming an aperture in the back first plate and the back second plate respectively. Both the first side and the second side have a collector aperture formed therein.
The first curved plate and the second curved plate each have a beveled edge. Each beveled edge is located on a portion of the curved plate adjacent the collector aperture, with the portion of the curved plate extending outwardly beyond the spoils ejector side. The spoils ejector is attached to the auger by a male hex insert, with the male hex insert having a hex and a hex hub. The hex hub is retained in a sleeve, with the sleeve extending between the spoils ejector front and the spoils ejector back. The sleeve is retained between the spoils ejector front first plate and the spoils ejector front second plate, and between the spoils ejector back first plate and the spoils ejector back second plate.
There is also disclosed an auger boring machine having spoils ejector, with the machine having a power source attached to an auger, a plurality of large casings extending linearly from the power source, and with the plurality of large casings having a terminal end. A plurality of small casings is located linearly within the large casings, with the auger extending linearly within the small casings, and with the small casings having a terminal end. The terminal end of the small casings has an end plate attached thereto. The terminal end of the small casings has a notch formed therein, with the notch having a pair of side surfaces and an arcuate surface. Each of the side surfaces has one end connected to the arcuate surface and another end connected to the end plate. A cutting head is attached to the terminal end of the large casings.
The auger boring machine also has a spoils ejector, with the spoils ejector attached to the auger and to the cutting head. The spoils ejector is located between the terminal end of the small casings and the cutting head. The spoils ejector is enclosed within the large casings, with the spoils ejector having a front, a back, and first and second sides each attached to the spoils ejector front and to the spoils ejector back. There are first and second curved plates each attached to the front, the back, and to the first and second sides, with at least one of the sides having a collector aperture formed therein adjacent one of the curved plates, and with the spoils ejector back having formed therein at least one spoils port.
There is also disclosed an auger boring machine spoils ejector having a back and a front. The back is configured for attachment to an auger and the front is configured for attachment to a cutting head. The spoils ejector has a front, a back, and first and second sides each attached to the front and to the back, with first and second curved plates each attached to the front, the back, and to the first and second sides, with at least one of the sides having a collector aperture formed therein. Adjacent one of the curved plates, the back has formed therein at least one spoils port. Preferably the spoils ejector front has a front first plate and a front second plate. Preferably the spoils ejector back has a back first plate and a back second plate. Preferably the spoils ejector first side has a spoils ejector first side first plate and a spoils ejector first side second plate. Preferably the spoils ejector second side has a spoils ejector second side first plate and a spoils ejector second side second plate. Preferably the back first plate and the back second plate each have a spoils port formed therein. Each spoils port forms an aperture in the back first plate and the back second plate respectively. Preferably both the first side and the second side have a collector aperture formed therein. The spoils ejector has a male hex insert having a hex and a hex hub. The hex hub is retained in a sleeve that extends between the spoils ejector front and the spoils ejector back. The sleeve is retained between the spoils ejector front first plate and the spoils ejector front second plate, and between the spoils ejector back first plate and the spoils ejector back second plate.
The primary objective of this invention is to provide a tunnel boring machine that can bore longer tunnels faster and more economically than the machines of the prior art.
Another objective of this invention is to provide a spoils ejector for an auger boring machine that can evacuate spoils from a casing of a first diameter through a casing of a second diameter, with the first diameter being greater than the second diameter, and with the smaller diameter casing being centered within the larger diameter casing.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.
In describing the preferred embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings, specific terminology will be resorted to for the sake of clarity. However, it is not intended that the invention be limited to the specific terms so selected and it is to be understood that each specific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.
Having reference to the drawings, attention is directed first to
An auger 18 with its auger blade 19 has its one end attached to the power source and the other end attached to a cutting head 20. The auger in the prior art machines is approximately the same diameter as the interior diameter of the casings 16, which typically are relatively large. The adjacent casings are secured to each other typically by welding or other appropriate fastening means. The cutting head 20 uses cutters 26 to cut into the soil and cause rocks and soil to pass through openings called dirt ports 27 in the outer surface of the cutting head 20 and be deposited into the interior of the casing. The turning auger blade then causes the residue called spoils to be moved towards the power source where the residue can be evacuated from the interior of the casings which form the tunnel. Directional adjustment of the cutting head is facilitated through the use of stabilizers 27.
Unique to this invention, a second set of casings 47 extend linearly within the first set of casings 46, with the second set of casings centered within the first set of casings. These smaller casings 47 are of a smaller diameter than the diameter of the first set of casings 46. An auger 48 with its auger blade 49 extends linearly through the smaller casings 47 with one end of the auger attached to the power source and the opposite end of the auger attached to spoils ejector 60. Spoils ejector 60 is attached to the cutting head 50 with its cutters 50a, stabilizers 50b, and dirt ports. The cutting head 50 is of the same type as in the prior art, so the cutters, stabilizers, and dirt ports are of types well known in the art. A comparison of
A comparison of FIGS. 2 and 6-10 discloses the spoils ejector associated with the present invention. The spoils ejector 60 has a front 62 having a spoils ejector front first plate 62a and a spoils ejector front second plate 62b. It also has a spoils ejector back 64 having a spoils ejector back first plate 64a and a spoils ejector back second plate 64b. There is a spoils ejector first side 66 having a spoils ejector first side first plate 66a and a spoils ejector first side second plate 66b. There is also a spoils ejector second side 68 having a spoils ejector second side first plate 68a and a spoils ejector second side second plate 68b.
A first curved plate 70 has a first curved plate inner surface 70a, a first curved plate outer surface 70b, a first curved plate leading edge 70c which is preferably beveled, and a first curved plate rear edge 70d. A second curved plate 71 has a second curved plate inner surface 71a, a second curved plate outer surface 71b, a second curved plate leading edge 71c which is preferably beveled, and a second curved plate rear edge 71d. The curved plates are secured to opposite ends of the front, back and side components of the spoils ejector, with their curvature approximating that of the interior of the large casings 46 so that when the spoils ejector is attached to the auger, the two plates rotate just centrally of the terminal end large casing's interior surface.
The spoils ejector is attached to the terminal end of the auger by a male hex insert 75 located on the back of the spoils ejector. The male hex insert 75 has a hex 76 that is retained in hex hub 77. The hex hub has an outer surface 77a that is retained in sleeve 78, with the sleeve being formed having a first half-casing 78a and a second half-casing 78b. The sleeve extends from the spoils ejector front to the spoils ejector back. On the front of the spoils ejector, there is a hex aperture 79 that engages a hex on the cutting head 50.
The spoils ejector also includes a collector aperture 80, preferably two. One collector aperture is on the spoils ejector side between the curved plate 70 and the spoils ejector first side first plate 66a, with the other collector aperture being shown as located between the curved plate 71 and the spoils ejector second side second plate 78b. The collector aperture preferably extends from the spoils ejector front to the spoils ejector back. The beveled edge of each of the curved plates is located on a portion of the curved plate adjacent the collector aperture, the portion of the curved plate extending outwardly beyond the spoils ejector side.
In actual use, when the spoils ejector rotates within the larger casing, the rocks and/or soil that falls from the rear of the cutting head into the larger casing is scooped up into the collector aperture, falls through the interior of the spoils ejector and exits the spoils ejector at one of the spoils ports 85. The spoils ports are apertures formed in the spoils ejector back first plate and spoils ejector back second plate. The interior of the spoils ejector has an ejector plate 87 that preferably extends from the spoils ejector front wall and terminates at the portion of the spoils ejector closest to the hex hub. The ejector plate is angled to assist the spoils falling out of the spoils ejector into the gap in the inner casing where the auger blade that extends linearly inside the inner casing carries the spoils rearwardly to the area of the power source where it can be removed from the tunnel entrance area.
The spoils ejector first side and spoils ejector second side each have a first edge 92 immediately adjacent the first and second curved plates respectively. The spoils ejector first side and spoils ejector second side have respective, opposing second edges 93 where the first side and second side meet. Each respective second edge 93 has a pair of outer portions 94 and a central arcuate portion 95. The two central arcuate portions cooperate with one another to effectively encircle the hex hub 77. Additionally, along the edge of each spoils ejector side closest to the edge on the other spoils ejector side are flanges 96 which extend outwardly from the spoils ejector side edges 66 and 68. The flange on the spoils ejector side first plate cooperates with the flange on the spoils ejector side second plate through the use of fastening means 98 such as nuts and bolts to secure the two halves of the spoils ejector together.
While the form of apparatus herein described constitutes a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise form of apparatus and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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3856093 | Case | Dec 1974 | A |
5228525 | Denney et al. | Jul 1993 | A |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20110203853 A1 | Aug 2011 | US |