AU773656B2

AU773656B2 - Cable tensioning device for bursting/flaring devices

Info

Publication number: AU773656B2
Application number: AU15246/01A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Franz-Josef Puttmann
Original assignee: Tracto Technik GmbH and Co KG
Current assignee: Tracto Technik GmbH and Co KG
Priority date: 1999-12-02
Filing date: 2000-11-28
Publication date: 2004-06-03
Anticipated expiration: 2020-11-28
Also published as: EP1236005A1; EP1236005B1; WO2001040699A1; ATE265649T1; EP1236005B2; AU1524601A

Abstract

The invention relates to a cable tensioning device (4) for a bursting or flaring device (2) with tensioning means (12, 14) and with at least two tensioning elements alternately exerting a tensioning force on the tensioning means. The invention further relates to a tensioning device for a horizontal device that avoids the disadvantages of conventional winches when used in underground horizontal advance devices.

Description

IA

CABLE-PULLING APPARATUS FOR BURSTING/WIDENING APPARATUSES The invention relates to a pushing or pulling device for boring, bursting or widening apparatuses for horizontal advance working, for example in a subterranean channel, and claims the priority of German patent applications 199 58 003.0 and 100 11 994.8-24, the content of which is referred to in the present text.

Such a channel can be provided, for example, in the form of a pilot bore or be present in the form of an old subterranean pipeline which is to be replaced.

When producing or widening the aforementioned pilot bores or renewing old pipelines or else drawing a new pipeline into the pilot bore, various systems are known to the applicant for advancing the boring, bursting or widening apparatus, with the aid of which the pilot bore is produced and widened in its cross section or the old pipeline is destroyed, for example by means of a cutting head. There are known to the applicant dynamically acting advanceworking impact devices and also, devices having a static advance by means of a pulling or pushing linkage.

i: The combination of a dynamically operating advance-working impact device with an additional pulling apparatus, for example in the form of a cable winch, is also found. The main bulk of the advance work is performed here by the dynamic-impact drive, while the winch is primarily employed eeee for guiding the advance-working impact device. However, considerable problems arise in practice with such a combination, since the winch is highly stressed under the dynamic impact forces of the advance-working impact device and, in particular, damage to the supports of the capstan head occurs.

W:AaryO\Da~in\Spec1524601.doc A further problem consists in transmitting a constant pulling force to the dynamically progressing advanceworking impact device by means of a winch. This is especially difficult in cases where, owing to high resistance from the surroundings, the advance-working impact device advances extremely slowly and unless the winch has a specially equipped control system for this purpose can lead to excessive stressing of the hydraulic drive of the winch.

The aforementioned problems are intensified in the area of impact boring by virtue of the fact that the development of the dynamic advance-working impact devices is characterised by increasing size, while there are virtually no corresponding winches available. Larger advance-working impact devices subject the winches to particular stress, since an inherent feature of such devices is a relatively reduced skin friction during extreme alternation between loading and unloading.

Where larger winches are known to the applicant, acquisition thereof is uneconomic owing to the high purchase price relative to the advance-working impact device. Attempting to employ winches of excessively small size with the conventional advance-working impact devices regularly results in the winch being damaged.

Also known to the applicant is an apparatus for connecting a pipe string, having a clamping frame and a linear clamping drive, which apparatus, via a pulling means, such as, for example, a chain produces a pulling force for connecting individual pipes behind the horizontal advanceworking device. Such an apparatus has also been employed in practice for the advance of an underground advance-working W:\MaryO\Davin\Speci\1 5246-01 .doc 3 device and, in this respect, was fastened to the advancing head of the device. Although the use of such apparatus for the supplementary and heading advance of percussive horizontal advance-working devices, when correspondingly designed, reduces the material problems known to occur with capstan winches, it gives rise to difficulties of its own on account of the noncontinuously-acting pulling force.

The same problems occur with the cable-pulling apparatuses, in particular, manually operated cable pulls, but also those operated hydraulically. All such apparatuses have discontinuous cable pulling, since, in the idle strike phase, the linear drive only allows the cable to be immobilized and thus interrupts the cable advance. Such apparatuses are therefore not suitable in practice as a winch replacement.

Furthermore, it is known to the applicant that bursting, widening or boring devices can be moved through the ground or through a pipe by means of a pushing or pulling linkage.

A discontinuous movement is also disadvantageous in this oooe situation, since it not only makes the advance difficult but also slows it down.

The above discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles and the like is included in this :i specification solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not suggested or represented that any of these matters formed part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed in Australia before the priority date of each claim of this application.

W:\MaryO\Davin\SpecRl15246-01 .doc 4 It would therefore be desirable to provide a pushing or pulling apparatus for a horizontal advance-working device, which apparatus avoids the disadvantages of conventional devices when used with subterranean horizontal advanceworking devices.

Specifically, according to a first aspect the present invention provides a pushing or pulling apparatus for a horizontal boring, bursting or widening apparatus, having at least one pushing or pulling means for connection with the boring, bursting or widening apparatus, wherein at least two pushing or pulling elements exert, in alternation with one another, a pushing or pulling force on the pushing or pulling means in order to move the pushing or pulling element.

The apparatus according to the invention makes it possible, in the area of the pulling means, to combine the advantages of the cost-effective and stable linear drives with the 20 advantages of the continuous cable pulling of a capstan winch. In accordance with the invention, it is also poo.

possible for more than two pulling units to be employed.

o• ioe o oo a oo• oo oooo a W:\MaryO\Davin\Speci\1 5246-01.doc 4A It is possible with the apparatus according to the invention to achieve a substantially continuous movement of the boring device with an apparatus of compact construction which has the small space requirement desired on the building site and can be transported easily.

According to a second aspect the present invention provides a method for producing a widened bore or for renovating an old pipeline using a percussive horizontal advance-working device, wherein the horizontal advance-working device is guided on a pushing or pulling means through a pilot bore/old pipeline and the pulling or pushing means is moved continuously by means of a linear drive.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to an example of embodiment illustrated in o* *oO o *oo *o o W:\MaryO\Davin\Speci\15246-01 .doc 5 the drawing, in which: Fig. 1 shows a schematic illustration of the pulling apparatus according to the invention in vertical arrangement; Fig. 2 shows a detail view of the apparatus according to the invention shown in fig. 1; Fig. 3 shows an alternative embodiment of the pulling apparatus according to the invention; Fig. 4 shows an embodiment of fig. 3 with linkage sections; Fig. 5 shows an embodiment with Y-pawl drive.

A percussive horizontal advance-working device 1 having a bursting head 2 is connected by means of a cable 3 to a cable-pulling apparatus 4 arranged vertically in a drill pit. During the advance of the bursting device 1, 2, the old pipeline 5 situated in the ground is destroyed and replaced by a new pipeline 6. The cable 3 is fastened to the tip of the bursting head 2 and is guided by means of a deflection roller 10 of the cable-pulling apparatus 4 vertically through the pit 7 to a windlass 8 on the surface of the ground. Supports 9 are used to secure the cable-pulling apparatus 4 against the pit wall.

The cable-pulling apparatus 4 has independent pulling means 12, 14 which act on the cable by means of clamping jaws 16, 18.

The clamping jaws can be moved by means of hydraulic cylinders 24, 26. As an alternative, they can be operated mechanically following the principle of a hoist.

6 The pulling means 12, 14 have cylinders 20, 22, with the aid of which a linear advance of the cable 3 via clamping jaws 16, 18 is possible. The hydraulic cylinders 20, 22 are alternately pressurized via a control system (not shown), with the result that the respective cylinder which does not exert a pulling force executes a retraction stroke, while the cable is moved by the respective other cylinder. In a corresponding manner, the cylinders 24, 26 are alternately pressurized in order to release and clamp the cable 3.

The pulling means 12, 14 [sic] can also be designed as linkage sections 3, which have been connected to form a linkage and are dismantled individually during pulling.

Of particular advantage for this purpose are the ladder-type linkages mentioned in German laid-open specification 199 22 813. A suitable drive in this case is also the Y-pawl drive described in German laid-open specification 198 49 611, in particular with a ladder-type linkage. The apparatus described can be used in a corresponding manner, in particular with a linkage, as pushing means. In this arrangement, the pushing means 112, 114 have cylinders 120, 122 and are designed as Y-pawls 116, 118 in order to move the ladder-type linkage 103. The drive of the pushing/pulling cylinders is preferably coupled via the operating medium, with the result that the cylinder movement is positively synchronized.

Claims

2. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pulling means is designed as a cable.
3. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pulling means is designed as a chain.
4. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the chain is moved by means of hooks arranged on the pulling elements.
5. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim i, e wherein the pushing or pulling means is designed as a linkage.
6. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim wherein the linkage is composed of linkage sections which are coupled to one another. go S 30 7. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to any one of I'."*the preceding claims, wherein the pushing or pulling elements are designed as hydraulically operated cylinders.
8. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pushing or pulling force W:\MaryO\Davn\Speci\1 5246-01 .doc 8 is transmitted to the pushing or pulling means by means of clamping jaws which lock mechanically by being pushed or pulled.
9. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pulling apparatus has a deflection roller in order to introduce the pulling force into the boring axis.
10. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the pushing or pulling force is transmitted by means of a ladder-type linkage having Y-pawls.
11. A pushing or pulling apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cylinders are synchronised.
12. A method of operating a pulling apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pulling apparatus acts on a vertically guided pulling means and is operated in a target pit. i.
13. A method for producing a widened bore or for renovating an old pipeline using a percussive horizontal advance-working device, wherein the horizontal advance- working device is guided on a pushing or pulling means through a pilot bore/old pipeline and the pulling or pushing means is moved continuously by means of a linear 0 00 drive.
14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the continuous movement is brought about by means of linkage sections which have been connected to form a linkage. W:VMaryO\Davin\Spec\1 5246-01 .doc A pushing or pulling apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
16. A method for producing a widened bore or for renovating an old pipeline substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings. DATED: 2 March 2004 PHILLIPS ORMONDE FITZPATRICK Attorneys for: TRACTO-TECHNIK GMBH *S S *S *S *o W:\MaryO\Davin\SpecM\15246-01.doc