(1) Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to earth drilling systems. More particularly, the invention relates to means and methods of creating portable and versatile earth drilling systems.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Other portable drilling systems are known in the related art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,533,045 issued on Mar. 18, 2003 to Cooper discloses a mounting system secured to the bed of a truck.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,848,515 issued on Feb. 1, 2005 to Orr et al discloses a bulky transport structure to move drilling equipment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,192,393 issued on Mar. 11, 1980 to Womack et al discloses a portable drilling system suited for helicopter transport.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,988 issued on Jun. 24, 1979 to Hart discloses a portable earth core sampling machine using an awkward frame system having a heavy piston component and a rope pulley system.
Thus, there is ample room in the art for the disclosed systems and methods.
The present invention overcomes shortfalls in the related art by presenting an unobvious and unique combination and configuration of methods and components to create a relatively light weight, safe, transportable system that drives drill heads and other implements at virtually any angle. Disclosed embodiments may drill through solid rock material while requiring little work space. Disclosed embodiments comprise components that may be carried by one or two people, assembled in confined spaces and provide drilling with both hydraulic rotation with compressed air and/or fluid for an added hammer affect.
The disclosed embodiments overcome shortfalls in the related art by providing a modular drilling system that is relatively easy to transport and assembly but yet provides the hard rock penetration found in stationary rigs.
Components of the disclosed embodiments include a portable body assembly which may be braced at any angle to facilitate the drilling of tie backs and other specialty bores. A portable body assembly may be comprised of manageable components that may be bolted together, such components may comprise a sliding head base, head casing and a hydraulic motor base. Such components may slide up and down upon a rectangular frame.
A portable body assembly may use a rectangular frame as a support structure, with the rectangular frame having vertical members with “C” channels and bracing supports. A first chain or conveyer system may be used to transfer rotational movement from a hydraulic motor to a drilling head and a second chain or conveyer system may be used to lift and lower a sliding head base, head casing and a hydraulic motor base along a rectangular frame.
A configuration of support rods may be fastened to a portable body assembly to facilitate stable drilling upon uneven areas.
In the prior art, many portable drill rigs fail to provide air or water hammer movement which leads to unsatisfactory drilling performance. In the prior art portable drill rigs that do provide air or water hammer movement are too large and heavy to be truly portable. The present embodiments overcome shortfalls in the art by use of modular components, such as a sliding head base, head casing and hydraulic motor base to provide both air and water hammer features and portability.
To keep the weight of the head casing manageable, a separate hydraulic motor base is used to secure a hydraulic motor that rotates a chain to spin an adjacent bearing assembly contained within an adjacent head casing. Air and/or water pressure may be applied at the head casing and into a bearing assembly. A disclosed bearing assembly is easily removed from the head casing for transport and cleaning. Moreover, a disclosed bearing assembly efficiently conveys air and water hammer pressure to drilling and boring implements.
In the prior art, adding rods behind a descending drill head is often a laborious process, especially with other portable drill rigs of the prior art. Disclosed embodiments overcome such shortfalls by the artful placement, attachment and movement of a sliding base head along a rectangular frame. After a section of rod is drilled into the ground, the rod may be released and the sliding head base may be raised and another rod attached for further drilling. In recovering a drill head, the process is painlessly reversed.
In the prior art, placing a drill rig within a confined space can be challenging. This prior art shortfall is overcome by the disclosed configuration and use of an optional control station wherein fluid and air pressures may be controlled and marshaled at a distance from the drill rig or portable body assembly. A disclosed control station allows an operator to move the sliding base head up or down, control the rotational force applied to a drill head and control air and/or water hammer applied to a drill head.
Disclosed components and configurations of a portable body assembly also overcome shortfalls in the art by allowing drilling in horizontal to vertical positions and upon unstable and uneven set up surfaces. The lower sections of a portable body assembly use an unobvious combination of wheel base components with wheel base pins integrated into a rectangular frame. The disclosed configuration allows for quick wheel removal. The disclosed anchoring feet provide collars to contain support rods driven into the ground.
These and other objects and advantages will be made apparent when considering the following detailed specification when taken in conjunction with the drawings.
The following detailed description is directed to certain specific embodiments of the invention. However, the invention can be embodied in a multitude of different ways as defined and covered by the claims and their equivalents. In this description, reference is made to the drawings wherein like parts are designated with like numerals throughout.
Unless otherwise noted in this specification or in the claims, all of the terms used in the specification and the claims will have the meanings normally ascribed to these terms by workers in the art.
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising” and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in a sense of “including, but not limited to.” Words using the singular or plural number also include the plural or singular number, respectively. Additionally, the words “herein,” “above,” “below,” and words of similar import, when used in this application, shall refer to this application as a whole and not to any particular portions of this application.
The above detailed description of embodiments of the invention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed above. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the invention are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. For example, while steps are presented in a given order, alternative embodiments may perform routines having steps in a different order. The teachings of the invention provided herein can be applied to other systems, not only the systems described herein. The various embodiments described herein can be combined to provide further embodiments. These and other changes can be made to the invention in light of the detailed description.
Any and all the above references and U.S. patents and applications are incorporated herein by reference. Aspects of the invention can be modified, if necessary, to employ the systems, functions and concepts of the various patents and applications described above to provide yet further embodiments of the invention.
These and other changes can be made to the invention in light of the above detailed description. In general, the terms used in the following claims, should not be construed to limit the invention to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification, unless the above detailed description explicitly defines.
In the foreground a hydraulic motor base 202 is attached to a head casing 201 with the head casing 201 attached to the vertical members 119 of the rectangular frame. A hydraulic motor 203 is shown in attachment to the hydraulic motor base 202. The hydraulic motor 203 rotates a sprocket attached to a chain which rotates a bar coupling 209. The bar coupling may be in attachment with a variety of boring or drilling tools as shown in subsequent drawings.
A swivel hub is attached to a swivel with accepts an air hose supplying air pressure to the bearing assembly 700. A head casing 201 houses and retains the bearing assembly 700.
The back side of the sliding base head is shown in attachment to the chain. The sliding base head is shown in attachment to the head casing 201.
Disclosed embodiments include the following items or descriptions.
Item 1. A drill rig comprising:
a) a drill head assembly 120 comprising
i. a sliding head base 114
ii. a head casing 201
iii. a hydraulic motor base 202
b) the drill head assembly attached to a rectangular frame 118, the rectangular frame comprising:
i. two or more vertical members 119, the vertical members attached to cross bars 120.
Item 2. The drill rig of item 1 further comprising hydraulic motor contained within the hydraulic motor base and a bearing assembly contained within the head casing and wherein the hydraulic motor is attached to the bearing assembly.
Item 3. The drill rig of item 2 further comprising a swivel and swivel hub attached to the head casing.
Item 4. The drill rig of item 3 further comprising a bar coupling 209 attached to the head casing.
Item 5. The drill rig of item 4 further comprising a “C” channel 101 within each vertical member 119 and the sliding base head attached to two or more sliding head inserts, the sliding head inserts attached within the “C” channels.
Item 6. The drill rig of item 5 further comprising a chain attached to the sliding base head with the chain attached to top sprocket on a top end of the rectangular frame 118 and the chain attached to a bottom sprocket on a bottom end of the rectangular frame.
Item 7. The drill rig of item 6 further comprising a control unit 500, the control unit comprising a plurality of control valves 501 attached to a control base 504 with the control base attached to a control base tripod 505.
Item 8. The drill rig of item 7 further comprising a plurality of hoses attached to the control unit 500 and drill head assembly 120.
This application is a utility application based upon and claims the priority date of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 61/586,646 filed on Jan. 13, 2012. This related application is incorporated herein by reference and made a part of this application. If any conflict arises between the disclosure of the invention in this utility application and that in the related provisional application, the disclosure in this utility application shall govern. Moreover, the inventor incorporates herein by reference any and all patents, patent applications, and other documents hard copy, electronically cited or referenced to in this application.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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4161988 | Hart | Jul 1979 | A |
4192393 | Womack et al. | Mar 1980 | A |
6533045 | Cooper | Mar 2003 | B1 |
6848515 | Orr et al. | Feb 2005 | B2 |
20050126821 | Davies | Jun 2005 | A1 |
Entry |
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Frank Marlow, “Welding Fabrication & Repair: Questions and Answers”, May 2002, Industrial Press, inc., 1st Edition, pp. 206-209. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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61586646 | Jan 2012 | US |