US3042124A

US3042124A - Soil sampling equipment

Info

Publication number: US3042124A
Application number: US848992A
Authority: US
Inventors: Anders G L Andersson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1959-10-27
Filing date: 1959-10-27
Publication date: 1962-07-03
Anticipated expiration: 1979-07-03

Description

July 3, 1962 A. G. ANDERSSON 3,042,124

son. SAMPLING EQUIPMENT Filed Oct. 27, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l/V VE N TOR ANDERS G- L. ANDERSSON BY W a 6.

HTTORNEYS y 1962 A. G. L. ANDERSSON 3,042,124

SOIL SAMPLING EQUIPMENT Filed Oct. 27, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ANDERS G. L. ANDERSSON 3,042,124 Patented July 3, 1962 3,042,124 SOIL SAMPLING EQUIPMENT Anders G. L. Audersson, 1415 Queens Ave., West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Filed Oct. 27, 1959, Ser. No. 848,992 6 Claims. (Cl. 175-20) This invention relates to soil sampling equipment.

In investigations of the distribution, type and physical properties of the soil below ground surface level, it is often desirable to be able to extract continuous, preferably undisturbed, samples of soil. The sampling method of subsurface exploration provides practically continuous and representative samples of the sub-soil and is probably the best method yet devised for obtaining detailed and reliable information on the characteristics of the sub-soil. The most common and eflicacious type of sampler is the drive sampler which consists essentially of a tube which is advanced into the soil in the axial direction. There are various types of drive samplers in general use and these may be broadly classified in two groups, namely, open samplers and piston samplers. In the case of open samplers, the tube is always open at its lower end; the soil enters the tube as soon as it is forced into the ground. With piston samplers, on the other hand, the lower end of the tube is temporarily sealed as by a piston or a plug so that soil can be prevented from entering the sampler until it has been driven into the soil to the desired sampling depth, whereat the piston is released or retracted where-after further advance of the sampler into the soil forces a sample into the lower end of the tube.

The present invention is particularly concerned with soil sampling equipment of the retractable-piston type and it is a primary object of this invention to provide sampling equipment of this type which can be operated by means of a single line of extensions thereby materially reducing the advancing and withdrawal time.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a sampler of this type which can be subjected to practically unlimited driving force if so required in order to advance it into the sub-soil, thereby rendering it suitable for use in practically all types of soil.

It is another object of the invention to provide a sampler of the retracted-piston type in which prior to its withdrawal a partial vacuum is created above the sample to assist in retaining the sample during withdrawal.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide a sampler which is of simple, yet robust, construction and which has no delicate parts liable to malfunction under exacting field conditions.

Other features which may be included in accordance with the invention will hereinafter be described and referred to in the appended claims.

The invention will be more fully understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings which show by way of example one embodiment of the invention and in which:

FIGURES 1 and 2 are longitudinal sectional views through the lower and upper ends respectively of the sampler with the piston at its fully-advanced position.

FIGURES 3 to 7 inclusive are cross-sectional views on the lines 33, 44, 5-5, 6-6 and 77 respectively of FIGURES l and 2,

FIGURE 8 is a longitudinal sectional view through the lower end of the sampler with the piston in its partially retracted or sampling position,

FIGURE 9 is a longitudinal sectional view through through the lower end of the sampler with the piston at its fully retracted withdrawal position,

FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary perspective view show ing a detail of the means for interlocking the rod and the casing,

FIGURE 11 is a cross-sectional view on the line 11- 11 of FIGURE 8, and

FIGURE 12 is a cross-sectional view on the line 12-- 12 of FIGURE 9.

The sampler consists essentially of a casing indicated generally at 12, a piston 14, and a rod 16 connected to the upper end of piston 14.

The casing 12 consists of a lower section 18 which functions as a sampler tube and which is formed with a sharp cutting edge 20, and an upper section 22 which is provided with a portion 24 of enlarged internal diameter. The diameter of the cutting edge 20 is such that it forms a snug fit around the head portion of piston 14 and is preferably formed by first spinning the edge of the casing in and thereafter machining it to a cutting edge 20 with an inside diameter smaller than the rest of the casing. If desired, however, the integrally formed cutting edge may be replaced by a detachable shoe of, for example, hardened steel, coupled to the lower section 18 of casing 12 in any suitable manner. The upper end of section 18 and the lower end of section 22 are provided with shoulders whereby the two sections may be flush-jointed with each other to provide a streamlined exterior surface. The upper section 22 is preferably formed as a single unit but may, if desired, be formed from a number of interconnected sections.

The piston head is of generally conical form and the piston neck is provided with an 0 ring 28 which, upon the complete retraction of the piston, ensures a perfect seal between the piston and the casing. The neck of piston 14 is of smaller diameter than the bore of casing 12 and is provided with an arcuate longitudinal extension 39 which in the embodiment shown extends around the neck through a sector. The rod 16 is preferably formed as an integral unit machined from one piece of material, although it may, if desired, be formed from a number of interconnected sections. The rod 16 is provided at one end with an externally-threaded portion 34 adapted to be threaded into the internallythreaded portion 36 of the piston base. The rod 16 is also provided with a number of spaced-apart arcuate lugs 32 each of which in the embodiment shown extends around the rod through a section. Preferably, the lugs 32 are machined out of the material forming the rod, although they may, if desired, be formed as separate units which are securely attached to the rod either permanently or detachably in any suitable manner. The interior of the casing is provided with a like number of arcuate segments 40 extending around the casing through, for example a 150 section, the lower edge of the lower most segment forming a bumper adapted to abut the arcuate extension 34 of piston 14 upon retraction of the piston from its driving to its partially retracted position. A key 42 is formed on the outer surface of rod 16 above the uppermost of said segments and the key co-operates with a keyway 44 formed in a ring 46 to prevent rotation of the rod 16. The ring 46 is secured to the inner surface of the casing 12 in any suitable manner and to facilitate assembly it is preferably formed in two halves.

A plurality of arcuate stop members 48 are located within casing 12, each stop member 48 extending through, for example, a 45 sector thereby leaving a 7 /2 play on each side of the lugs 32 and each aligned with the space between two adjacent ones to segments 40. The stop members 48 may be formed integrally with the casing 12 although they are each preferably formed as a separate piece securely attached to the casing 12 by means of screws 50.

The top of the uppermost section 22 of casing 12 is enlarged to form a sleeve into which the enlarged section of rod 16 snugly fits. The sleeve and the enlarged section co-operate to increase the resistance of the sampler to bending. Below the enlarged section any bending movement is taken jointly by the rod and the casing. An ring 54 is provided in the enlarged section of rod 16 and this 0 ring effectively seals the sampler against the ingress of air or other matter during advance ment of the sampler into the soil. Above the enlarged section, the rod is provided with a head 56 having shoulders 58 adapted to engage the upper edgeof casing 12 when the sampler is being driven into the ground. The head 56 is provided with an internally-threaded recess 59 into which extension pieces 69 for rod 16 may be fitted.

With the sampler assembled and the piston 14 in its lowermost position, whereat it seals olf the lower end of the casing, the sampler is advanced into the ground in any suitable manner. During the advancement of the sampler into the soil, the piston effectively seals off the lower end of the casing, thereby preventing any soil entering the sampler during advancement thereof. It is also to be noted that during advancement when the resistance to the driving force is greatest, the driving force is transmitted directly to both the piston and the casing from the rod. The casing transfers the driving force to the sample tube, whilst the lugs and segments do not transfer any force during this operation.

When the desired sampling depth has been reached, rod 16 and piston 14 are retracted to a position whereat the arcuate extension 30 of the piston abuts the lower edge of the lowermost one of segments 40. The casing is prevented from retraction at this time by the friction between the outer wall thereof and the surrounding soil. Furthermore, during this initial retraction of the piston, as soon as the piston is withdrawn from the cutting edge 20, air can pass into the section 18 of the casing therebelow through the small clearance between the piston and the casing and consequently creation of a vacuum below the piston is prevented at this stage. The key 42 and associated keyway 44 co-operates to prevent rotation of the rod relative to the casing during this initial retraction. With the piston in its partially retracted position the key is clear of the keyway and the lugs 32 are situated opposite the recesses 62 between adjacent ones of the segments 44). The rod 16 and piston 14 are now rotated in a clockwise direction through an angle sufiicient to bring each lug 32 into a corresponding one of said recesses 62 above one of the segments 40. R0- tation of the lugs 32 past the segments 40 is prevented by the stopper members 48.

The sampler is now ready for the actual sampling operation with the piston 14 adjacent the upper end of the lowermost section of the casing which is now, as a result, open at its lower end. The sampling is now effected by exerting a downwardly directed vertical force on the enlarged head of rod 16, which force is transmitted from the rod to the casing through the intermediary of the lugs 32 and segments 49 to advance the casing a distance corresponding to the length of the open portion of the casing, thereby to force a soil sample into the lower end of the casing. During sampling, the air below the piston can escape upwardly through the clearance space between the piston and the casing. The casing itself may be vented either internally by means of a bore extending longitudinally through the rod and communicating with a passage opening into an outlet at or in the piston or externally through an opening formed in the ring 46.

After the sample has been taken, the sampler is now ready for withdrawal out of the ground. To effect withdrawal of the sampler, an upward force is exerted on the rod and piston to pull them to the fully retracted position of the piston, whereas each of the lugs abuts against the uppermost edge of its associated recess and the leading edge of the neck of the piston moves into the casing. In moving the piston from the partially retracted to fully retracted position two actions take place. During the initial part of this movement of the rod and piston relative to the casing, the piston rid becomes effective to seal the lower end of the casing against ingress of air. During the final part of the movement, the piston ring by its travel creates a partial vacuum above the sample. This partial vacuum helps to prevent loss of the sample during the withdrawal operation. With the piston in its fully retracted position, further upward movement of the rod serves to withdraw the sampler and its enclosed sample to ground surface level.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing, a sample tube detachably connected at its upper end to the housing and formed at its lower end with a cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within said sample tube and adapted to seal off the lower end thereof, a piston rod connected to the upper end of the piston and extending upwardly through the sample tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position to engage the upper edge of the housing whereby downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of arcuate lugs on the rod spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of arcuate segments formed on the inner surface of the housing and spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, said lugs and said segments adapted to cooperate releasably to lock the rod and the housing in downwardly drivable engagement upon partial retraction of the piston through the sample tube and in upwardly drivable engagement upon further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position, a plurality of stop members on the inner surface of the housing intermediate said arcuate segments, said step members cooperating with the arcuate lugs to limit the rotational movement of the rod relative to the housing thereby to facilitate alignment of the lugs and the segments for intercoupling said rod and said housing, vent means between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube effective with the piston in its partially retracted position to vent the section of the sample tube below the piston, and means associated with the piston and adapted upon movement of the piston upwardly from its partially retracted position to seal off the vent means whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above a soil sample forced into the sample tube upon downward movement of the housing after said initial partial retraction of the piston.

2. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing, a sample tube detachably connected at its upper end to the housing and formed at its lower end with an annular cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within the sample tube and adapted to seal off the lower end thereof, a piston rod connected to the upper end of the piston and extending upwardly through the sam ple tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position vto engage the upper edge of the housing whereby'downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of arcuate lugs on the rod and spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of arcuate segments formed on the inner surface of the housing and spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, said lugs and said segments adapted upon withdrawal of the piston a predetermined distance towards the upper end of the sample tube and rotation of the rod relative to the housing to interconnect the rod and the housing whereby subsequent downward pressure exerted on the upper end of said rod is transmitted through the lugs and segments to the housing to urge the latter downwardly thereby to force a soil sample into the sample tube, said lugs and said segments effective upon further withdrawal of the piston through the sample tube after collection of the soil sample to couple the rod and the housing in up wardly drivable relationship whereby subsequent retraction of the rod is effective to retract the housing and the sample tube, a plurality of stop members on the inner surface of the housing intermediate said arcuate segments, said stop members cooperating with the arcuate lugs to limit the rotational movement of the rod relative to the housing thereby to facilitate alignment of the lugs and the segments for intercoupling said rod and said housing, vent means between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube effective with the piston in its partially retracted position to vent the section of the sample tube below the piston, and means associated with the piston and adapted upon movement of the piston upwardly from its partially retracted position to seal off the vent means whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above the soil sample.

3. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing, a sample tube detachably connected at its upper end to said housing, said sample tube formed at its lower end with a portion of reduced internal diameter terminating in a cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within the sample tube and adapted in its fully extended position to form a snug fit in said portion of reduced diameter thereby to seal off the lower end of the sample tube, a piston rod connected to the upper end of the piston and extending upwardly through the sample tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position to engage the upper edge of the housing whereby downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of arcuate lugs on the rod spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of arcuate segments formed on the inner surface of the housing and spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, said lugs and said segments operable releasably to interconnect the rod and the casing in downwardly drivable engagement upon partial retraction of the piston through the sample tube and in upwardly drivable engagement upon further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position, a plurality of arcuate stop members on the inner surface of the housing intermediate the arcuate segments, said stop members cooperating with the arcuate lugs to limit the rotational movement of the rods relative to the hous ing thereby to facilitate alignment of the lugs and the segments for intercoupling the rod and the housing, an annular vent passage between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube above said portion of reduced iameter effective to vent said sample tube to the housing, and means associated with the piston and adapted upon movement of the piston upwardly from its partially retracted position to seal olf said vent passage whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above a soil sample forced into the sample tube during the downward movement of the housing after said initial partial retraction of the piston.

4. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing made up of a plurality of interfitting sections, a sample tube detachably connected at its upper end to said housing, said sample tube formed at its lower end with a portion of reduced internal diameter terminating in a cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within the sample tube and adapted in its fully extended position to form a snug fit in the portion of reduced diameter thereby to seal off the lower end of the sample tube, a piston rod connected to the upper end of said piston and extending upwardly through the sample tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position to engage the upper edge of the housing whereby downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of arcuate lugs on the rod spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of arcuate segments formed on the inner surface of the housing and spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, said lugs and said segments adapted to cooperate releasably to lock the rod and the housing in downwardly drivable engagement upon partial retraction of the piston through the sample tube and in upwardly drivable engagement upon further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position, a plurality of stop members on the inner surface of the housing intermediate said arcuate segments, vent means between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube above said portion of reduced diameter effective to vent said sample tube to the housing, and means associated with the piston and adapted upon movement of the piston upwardly from its partially retracted position to seal off said vent means whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above a soil sample forced into the sample tube upon downward movement of the casing after said initial partial retraction of the piston.

5. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing, a sample tube detachably connected at one end to the housing and provided at its other end with a cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within the sample tube and adapted to seal off the lower end of the r sample tube, a piston rod connected to the upper end of the piston and extending upwardly through the sample tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position to engage the upper edge of the housing whereby downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of complementary formations on the outer surface of the rod and the inner surface of the housing, said formations spaced-apart longitudinally of the rod and the housing and effective upon partial retraction of the piston through the sample tube and rotation of the rod relative to the housing to couple the rod and the housing in downwardly drivable engagement and in upwardly drivable engagement upon further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position, a plurality of stop members on the inner surface of the housing intermediate the formations thereon, said stop members cooperating with the formations to limit the rotational movement of the rod relative to the housing thereby to faciliate alignment of the complementary formations for intercoupling the rod and the housing, means between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube effective with the piston in its partially retracted position to vent the portion of said sample tube below said piston, and means associated with the piston and adapted upon movement of the latter from its partially retracted position to seal off the vent means whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above a soil sample forced into the sample tube upon downward movement thereof after said initial partial retraction of the piston.

6. Soil sampling equipment comprising in combination a tubular housing, a sample tube detachably connected at one end to the housing and provided at its other end with a cutting edge, a piston slidably mounted within the sample tube and adapted to seal off the lower end of the sample tube, a piston rod connected to the upper end of the piston and extending upwardly through the sample tube and the housing, said piston rod being formed at its upper end with an enlarged head portion adapted with the piston in its fully extended position to engage the upper edge of the housing whereby downward pressure applied to the upper end of the rod is transmitted to both the housing and the piston, a plurality of arcuate lugs on the housing spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, a plurality of arcuate segments formed on the inner surface of the housing spaced-apart longitudinally thereof, said lugs and said segments adapted upon partial retraction of the piston towards the upper end of the sample tube to interconnect the rod and the housing whereby subsequent downward pressure exerted on the upper end of the rod is transmitted through the lugs and the segments to the housing to urge the latter downwardly thereby to force a soil sample into the sample tube, said lugs and said segments effective upon further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position after collection of the sample to couple the rod and the housing in upwardly drivable engagement, a passage between the piston and the inner surface of the sample tube efiective with the piston in its partially retracted position to vent the section of the sample tube below the piston and adapted to be sealed upon movement of the piston from its partially retracted position whereby during the further retraction of the piston to its fully retracted position a vacuum is created above a soil sample forced into the sample tube upon downward movement thereof after said initial partial retraction of the piston.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS