CN111102892A - Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel - Google Patents

Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel Download PDF

Info

Publication number
CN111102892A
CN111102892A CN202010013152.0A CN202010013152A CN111102892A CN 111102892 A CN111102892 A CN 111102892A CN 202010013152 A CN202010013152 A CN 202010013152A CN 111102892 A CN111102892 A CN 111102892A
Authority
CN
China
Prior art keywords
blasting
hole
wedge
blast
shaped cut
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
CN202010013152.0A
Other languages
Chinese (zh)
Other versions
CN111102892B (en
Inventor
杨建华
孙文彬
代金豪
姚池
张小波
姜清辉
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Lattice Power Jiangxi Corp
Nanchang University
Original Assignee
Lattice Power Jiangxi Corp
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Lattice Power Jiangxi Corp filed Critical Lattice Power Jiangxi Corp
Priority to CN202010013152.0A priority Critical patent/CN111102892B/en
Publication of CN111102892A publication Critical patent/CN111102892A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of CN111102892B publication Critical patent/CN111102892B/en
Active legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

Links

Images

Classifications

    • FMECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F42AMMUNITION; BLASTING
    • F42DBLASTING
    • F42D1/00Blasting methods or apparatus, e.g. loading or tamping
    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21EARTH DRILLING; MINING
    • E21DSHAFTS; TUNNELS; GALLERIES; LARGE UNDERGROUND CHAMBERS
    • E21D9/00Tunnels or galleries, with or without linings; Methods or apparatus for making thereof; Layout of tunnels or galleries
    • E21D9/006Tunnels or galleries, with or without linings; Methods or apparatus for making thereof; Layout of tunnels or galleries by making use of blasting methods
    • FMECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F42AMMUNITION; BLASTING
    • F42DBLASTING
    • F42D3/00Particular applications of blasting techniques
    • F42D3/04Particular applications of blasting techniques for rock blasting

Abstract

The invention discloses a wedge cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel, which comprises the following steps: performing a single-hole blasting test on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel; determining the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole; and determining the arrangement of the wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress. According to the invention, the wedge-shaped cut blasting blast holes are arranged in the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face, so that the rock mass is favorable for crack propagation and breakage, the explosive amount of cut blasting is reduced, the cut effect is improved, and the designed tunnel excavation circulation footage is ensured.

Description

Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel
Technical Field
The invention relates to the technical field of deep rock blasting, in particular to a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for deep tunnel blasting excavation.
Background
At present, deeply buried tunnels in the engineering fields of water and electricity, traffic, mining and the like are excavated more and more frequently, and a drilling blasting method is a main means for excavating deeply buried tunnel rock masses. When the underground tunnel is blasted and excavated, blast holes arranged on an excavation face are often divided into three types of cut holes, caving holes and peripheral holes according to different action principles, arrangement modes and related parameters. The cut hole is a blast hole which is firstly detonated on the excavation face, and a slot cavity is firstly blasted on the excavation face to create a new free surface for the blasting of the subsequent blast hole. Therefore, the blasting effect of the cut hole is the key to influence the circulating footage of the underground tunnel excavation.
According to the arrangement form of blast holes, the cut blasting is generally divided into a straight hole cut and a wedge-shaped cut. The wedge-shaped cut consists of 2-4 groups of symmetrical cut blast holes which are inclined oppositely, the included angle of the bottom of each cut hole is about 60 degrees generally, and the wedge-shaped cut can be formed after blasting. The wedge-shaped cut has the advantages of less blast holes needed for cutting, large cut volume, easy throwing of blasting slag, low explosive consumption and the like. For rock formations with approximately vertical or inclined bedding courses, vertical wedge cut blasting is mostly adopted; for rock bodies with stratum close to level or uniform overall, horizontal wedge-shaped cut blasting is mostly adopted. When the deep-buried tunnel is blasted and excavated, the blasted rock mass is often in a high ground stress environment, and the propagation direction and the propagation length of the blasting crack are changed due to the ground stress. The cracks are firstly propagated outwards from the blast hole wall in a radial shape and then gradually spread outwards in a direction parallel to the direction of the maximum main stress; along with the increase of the ground stress level, the crack propagation range is reduced, and the inhibition effect of the ground stress on the rock body blast cracking is larger and larger. If the influence of ground stress is not considered in the design of wedge-shaped cut blasting, the rock mass is not broken sufficiently during cut blasting, blasting slag is not easy to throw out, and the cut effect is influenced; conversely, more explosive is required to be used in order to sufficiently crush the rock mass during the slitting blasting. The vertical wedge-shaped cut blasting and the horizontal wedge-shaped cut blasting are both provided for shallow tunnel blasting excavation, and the influence of ground stress on rock body blasting cracking is not considered. Therefore, for blasting excavation of the deeply buried tunnel, a wedge-shaped cut mode considering the influence of ground stress on blasting cracking of a rock body is needed.
Disclosure of Invention
The invention aims to provide a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel, and aims to solve the problems that the rock body is not broken sufficiently, blasting slag is not easy to throw out, and the cutting effect is poor due to the fact that the influence of ground stress on rock body blasting cracking is not considered in the conventional wedge-shaped cut blasting method.
In order to achieve the purpose, the invention provides the following scheme:
a wedge cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel comprises the following steps:
performing single-hole blasting on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting;
determining the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole;
and arranging wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress.
Optionally, single-hole blasting is carried out on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel, and cracks are formed in rock masses around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting, and the method specifically comprises the following steps:
drilling a horizontal hole in the middle of the excavated face; explosive is filled in the horizontal hole;
and detonating the explosive by using a detonator to perform single-hole blasting, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting.
Optionally, the aperture of the horizontal hole is 42mm, and the hole depth is 50 cm.
Optionally, 2 sections of number 2 rock emulsion explosive with the diameter of 32mm are filled in the horizontal hole, and the charging length is 40 cm.
Optionally, the 10cm section of the orifice of the horizontal hole is plugged by clay.
Optionally, the determining the direction of the maximum principal stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole specifically includes:
the rock mass cracks around the blast hole are distributed in an elliptical shape, the long axis of the ellipse is determined according to the direction of the rock mass crack propagation length, and the short axis of the ellipse is determined according to the direction of the rock mass crack propagation length;
and determining the direction of the long axis of the ellipse as the direction of the maximum principal stress.
Optionally, the arranging of the wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress specifically includes:
arranging a plurality of sections of blast holes in a direction parallel to the direction of the maximum principal stress; each section of blast holes comprises a plurality of blast holes; and the connecting line direction of a plurality of blast holes in each section of blast holes is parallel to the direction of the maximum main stress.
According to the specific embodiment provided by the invention, the invention discloses the following technical effects:
the invention discloses a wedge cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel, which comprises the following steps: performing a single-hole blasting test on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel; determining the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole; and determining the arrangement of the wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress. According to the invention, the wedge-shaped cut blasting blast holes are arranged in the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face, so that the rock mass is favorable for crack propagation and breakage, the explosive amount of cut blasting is reduced, the cut effect is improved, and the designed tunnel excavation circulation footage is ensured.
Drawings
In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings without inventive exercise.
FIG. 1 is a flow chart of a wedge cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel, provided by the invention;
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel according to the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of single hole blasting on an excavation face of a deep-buried tunnel according to the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the relationship between the crack distribution around the blast hole on the excavated tunnel face and the direction of the maximum principal stress;
fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of arrangement of wedge-shaped cut blast holes provided by the present invention.
Detailed Description
The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.
The invention aims to provide a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel, and aims to solve the problems that the rock body is not broken sufficiently, blasting slag is not easy to throw out, and the cutting effect is poor due to the fact that the influence of ground stress on rock body blasting cracking is not considered in the conventional wedge-shaped cut blasting method.
In order to make the aforementioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention comprehensible, embodiments accompanied with figures are described in further detail below.
Fig. 1 is a flow chart of a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel provided by the invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel. As shown in fig. 1 and fig. 2, a wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel includes:
step 1: and performing single-hole blasting on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting.
Fig. 3 is a schematic view of single-hole blasting performed on an excavation face of a deep-buried tunnel according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 3, a horizontal hole (blast hole) is drilled in the middle of the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel by using a hand drill, the hole diameter is 42mm, and the hole depth is about 50 cm; 2 sections of No. 2 rock emulsion explosive with the diameter of 32mm are filled in the hole, the charging length is 40cm, and the hole opening section is 10cm and is blocked by clay; and (4) carrying out a single-hole blasting test by adopting a detonator to detonate the explosive, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting.
Step 2: and determining the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole.
And after the single-hole blasting test, observing and drawing the crack distribution around the blast hole on the excavation face. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of the relationship between the crack distribution around the blast hole on the excavated tunnel face and the direction of the maximum principal stress. As shown in fig. 4, the fracture zones around the blast hole are distributed in an elliptical shape, and the crack propagation length is longer in one direction and shorter in a direction perpendicular thereto. According to the guiding effect of the ground stress on the rock body blasting cracking (namely, the cracks around the blast hole are mainly outwards expanded along the direction of the maximum principal stress), the major axis direction (the direction in which the cracks are expanded longer) of the ellipse is judged to be the maximum principal stress sigma on the excavated tunnel facemaxThe minor axis direction of the ellipse (the direction in which the crack propagates shorter) is the minimum principal stress sigma on the excavation faceminIn the direction of (a). Maximum principal stress sigma on the excavated facemaxDirection of (a) and minimum principal stress σminIs vertical. The invention determines the major axis direction of the ellipse as the direction of the maximum principal stress.
And step 3: and arranging wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress.
According to the guiding effect of the ground stress on the rock body blasting cracking (namely, the cracks around the blast hole are mainly outwards expanded along the direction of the maximum principal stress), the blast hole detonated at the same section of the wedge-shaped cut is detonated along the maximum principal stress sigmamaxThe directions are arranged. Namely arranging a plurality of sections of blast holes in the direction parallel to the direction of the maximum principal stress; each section of blast holes comprises a plurality of blast holes; the direction of the line connecting the plurality of blast holes in each section of blast holes and the maximumThe principal stress directions are parallel.
Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of arrangement of wedge-shaped cut blast holes provided by the present invention. As shown in fig. 5, the direction of the line connecting the blasting hole (marked with reference number 1 in fig. 5) initiated by section 1 of the wedge-shaped cut blasting and the maximum principal stress σmaxThe direction is parallel, and the direction of the connecting line of the 2 nd section detonating blast hole (marked with the number 2 in figure 5) is also parallel to the maximum principal stress sigmamaxThe directions are parallel. According to the guiding effect of the ground stress on the blasting cracking of the rock body, the arrangement mode of the wedge-shaped cut blast holes is beneficial to the expansion and the communication of cracks among the blast holes, and the better rock body crushing effect can be achieved.
The arrangement method of the wedge-shaped cut blast holes disclosed by the invention is favorable for the expansion of explosion cracks, and the rock mass is fully crushed when the wedge-shaped cut is exploded, and the blasting slag of the rock mass is easily thrown out, so that the cut effect is improved, and the designed excavation circulation footage is ensured; meanwhile, the good undercutting effect creates a better free surface condition for the subsequent blast hole blasting, reduces the vibration generated by the subsequent blast hole blasting, reduces the explosive consumption of the undercutting blasting, greatly reduces the negative effect generated by the explosive blasting, and has obvious economic and social effects.
The embodiments in the present description are described in a progressive manner, each embodiment focuses on differences from other embodiments, and the same and similar parts among the embodiments are referred to each other.
The principles and embodiments of the present invention have been described herein using specific examples, which are provided only to help understand the method and the core concept of the present invention; meanwhile, for a person skilled in the art, according to the idea of the present invention, the specific embodiments and the application range may be changed. In view of the above, the present disclosure should not be construed as limiting the invention.

Claims (7)

1. A wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of a deep-buried tunnel is characterized by comprising the following steps:
performing single-hole blasting on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting;
determining the direction of the maximum main stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast hole;
and arranging wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to the direction of the maximum main stress.
2. The arrangement method of the wedge-shaped cut blastholes according to claim 1, wherein single-hole blasting is performed on the excavation face of the deep-buried tunnel, and cracks are formed in rock mass around the blastholes after the single-hole blasting, and the method specifically comprises the following steps:
drilling a horizontal hole in the middle of the excavated face; explosive is filled in the horizontal hole;
and detonating the explosive by using a detonator to perform single-hole blasting, and forming cracks on rock mass around the blast hole after the single-hole blasting.
3. A wedge cut blasthole arrangement as in claim 2 wherein said horizontal holes have a hole diameter of 42mm and a hole depth of 50 cm.
4. The arrangement method of wedge-shaped cut blast holes according to claim 2, wherein 2 sections of No. 2 rock emulsion explosive with the diameter of 32mm are filled in the horizontal hole, and the filling length is 40 cm.
5. A wedge-shaped undercut blasthole arrangement as claimed in claim 2 wherein said horizontal hole has a 10cm section plugged with clay.
6. The arrangement method of the wedge-shaped cut blast holes according to claim 1, wherein the determining the direction of the maximum principal stress on the excavation face according to the rock mass crack distribution around the blast holes specifically comprises:
the rock mass cracks around the blast hole are distributed in an elliptical shape, the long axis of the ellipse is determined according to the direction of the rock mass crack propagation length, and the short axis of the ellipse is determined according to the direction of the rock mass crack propagation length;
and determining the direction of the long axis of the ellipse as the direction of the maximum principal stress.
7. A method for arranging wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to claim 1, wherein said arranging wedge-shaped cut blasting blastholes according to said direction of maximum principal stress comprises:
arranging a plurality of sections of blast holes in a direction parallel to the direction of the maximum principal stress; each section of blast holes comprises a plurality of blast holes; and the connecting line direction of a plurality of blast holes in each section of blast holes is parallel to the direction of the maximum main stress.
CN202010013152.0A 2020-01-07 2020-01-07 Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel Active CN111102892B (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CN202010013152.0A CN111102892B (en) 2020-01-07 2020-01-07 Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CN202010013152.0A CN111102892B (en) 2020-01-07 2020-01-07 Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
CN111102892A true CN111102892A (en) 2020-05-05
CN111102892B CN111102892B (en) 2021-07-13

Family

ID=70425998

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CN202010013152.0A Active CN111102892B (en) 2020-01-07 2020-01-07 Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel

Country Status (1)

Country Link
CN (1) CN111102892B (en)

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN114674188A (en) * 2022-05-12 2022-06-28 辽宁科技学院 Staged charging method for frozen blast hole
CN114993125A (en) * 2022-06-28 2022-09-02 北京科技大学 Deep high-stress rock roadway medium-deep hole efficient cut blasting method based on ground stress induction effect
CN115143853A (en) * 2022-08-11 2022-10-04 南昌大学 Combined detonation type blasting method

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN102937399A (en) * 2012-11-20 2013-02-20 武汉大学 Stress relief blasting method based on ground stress transient release
KR20160116810A (en) * 2015-03-31 2016-10-10 영인산업 주식회사 Blasting method for preventing transmission of vibration and noise using grouting in boring hole
CN107631669A (en) * 2017-10-24 2018-01-26 中国矿业大学 A kind of Cut Blasting Optimization Design under large ground pressure
CN108204775A (en) * 2018-01-12 2018-06-26 北京科技大学 A kind of deep-lying tunnel instant type rock burst active preventing control method
CN110487136A (en) * 2019-08-23 2019-11-22 贵州大学 A kind of bench blasting millisecond time-delay compacting drop method of slight based on spectral overlay
CN110618045A (en) * 2018-06-20 2019-12-27 核工业北京地质研究院 Test method for calculating rock excavation parameters

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN102937399A (en) * 2012-11-20 2013-02-20 武汉大学 Stress relief blasting method based on ground stress transient release
KR20160116810A (en) * 2015-03-31 2016-10-10 영인산업 주식회사 Blasting method for preventing transmission of vibration and noise using grouting in boring hole
CN107631669A (en) * 2017-10-24 2018-01-26 中国矿业大学 A kind of Cut Blasting Optimization Design under large ground pressure
CN108204775A (en) * 2018-01-12 2018-06-26 北京科技大学 A kind of deep-lying tunnel instant type rock burst active preventing control method
CN110618045A (en) * 2018-06-20 2019-12-27 核工业北京地质研究院 Test method for calculating rock excavation parameters
CN110487136A (en) * 2019-08-23 2019-11-22 贵州大学 A kind of bench blasting millisecond time-delay compacting drop method of slight based on spectral overlay

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN114674188A (en) * 2022-05-12 2022-06-28 辽宁科技学院 Staged charging method for frozen blast hole
CN114674188B (en) * 2022-05-12 2024-03-26 辽宁科技学院 Graded charging method for frozen ice blast holes
CN114993125A (en) * 2022-06-28 2022-09-02 北京科技大学 Deep high-stress rock roadway medium-deep hole efficient cut blasting method based on ground stress induction effect
CN115143853A (en) * 2022-08-11 2022-10-04 南昌大学 Combined detonation type blasting method
CN115143853B (en) * 2022-08-11 2024-03-01 南昌大学 Combined detonation blasting method

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CN111102892B (en) 2021-07-13

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
CN111102892B (en) Wedge-shaped cut blast hole arrangement method suitable for blasting excavation of deep-buried tunnel
CN103615941B (en) The blasting method of modernized railway shallow-buried sector
CN103063094A (en) Channeling method in rapid roadway explosion
CN107631669B (en) A kind of Cut Blasting optimum design method under large ground pressure
KR100358780B1 (en) Tunnel Blasting Method for using Air Tube
CN110779403A (en) Hole-by-hole initiation presplitting blasting crack forming method for open-air deep hole step presplitting hole under complex environment
KR20080085523A (en) Blast construction working method for a tunnel
KR101551905B1 (en) Tunnel blasting pattern using large hole and small hole, and method for blasting of tunnel using this same
CN106014421B (en) A kind of limited rock tunnel excavation method of concussion of blasting
CN108332626A (en) The computational methods that a kind of electric detonator single hole interval elementary errors buffer blasting is rationally delayed
CN107060773B (en) A kind of underground chamber drilling and blasting method damping excavation method of static(al) explosion presplitting shock insulation
CN110260735A (en) A kind of diamond shape major diameter emptying aperture burn cut structure and lane construction technique
CN105423832A (en) Blast construction method of orientation window of thick-wall brick chimney
CN113587753A (en) Axial non-coupling water spaced charging structure and smooth blasting method using same
RU2554359C1 (en) Method of destruction of frozen soil during drill and fire excavation
KR100438028B1 (en) A tunnel blasting method favorable to the environment,which utilizes pre-splitting and an upper center cut
CN109405688A (en) Close on the blasting construction method in existing operation tunnel
KR20190011887A (en) Method for digging huge tunnel using tnnnel boring mechine
CN115655037B (en) Tunnel near-connection expansion excavation blasting vibration reduction construction method
KR100323401B1 (en) Progressive Burnout Cart Blasting Method
CN112945035B (en) Construction method for pre-splitting blasting excavation of middle and lower layers of diversion tunnel
CN112964143B (en) Three-time blasting method for hollow hole straight-hole cut
KR100312349B1 (en) V-cut blasting method with stage advanced blasting
CN114993125A (en) Deep high-stress rock roadway medium-deep hole efficient cut blasting method based on ground stress induction effect
CN210570271U (en) Cut hole structure for tunnel blasting tunneling engineering

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
PB01 Publication
PB01 Publication
SE01 Entry into force of request for substantive examination
SE01 Entry into force of request for substantive examination
GR01 Patent grant
GR01 Patent grant