US3378305A - Shield driving machine for driving tunnels and galleries - Google Patents

Description

April 16, 1968 1 E. GELDMACHER ETAL 3,378,305 SHIELD DRIVING MACHINE FOR DRIVlNG TUNNELS AND GALLERIES Filed Feb. 28, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 16, 1968 E. GELDMACHER ETAL 7 305 SHIELD DRIVING MACHINE FOR DRIVING TUNNELS AND GALLERIES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 28, 1966 April 16, 1968 E. GELDMACHER ET AL SHIELD DRIVING MACHINE FOR DRIViNG TUNNELS AND GALLERIES Filed Feb. 28, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent 3,378,305 SHIELD DRIVING MACHINE FOR DRIVING TUNNELS AND GALLERIES Ernst Geldmacher, Rheinhausen, Karl Heinz Kenn, Homburg, Werner Popp, Esseu-Bredeney, and Josef Ruse], Bottrop, Germany, assignors to Beteiligungsund Pateutverwaltungsgesellschaft mit heschrankter Haftung, Essen, Germany Filed Feb. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 530,298 Claims priority, application Germany, Feb. 27, 1965, B 80,747 7 Claims. (Cl. 299-33) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to a shield driving machine for driving tunnels and galleries, which is equipped with rotatable tools for digging the working.

The invention is characterized primarily in that a supporting wall arranged behind the rotating tools working on the breast of the working or the head end of the gallery, is divided into superimposed sections which can be moved from a closing position into an opening position and vice versa so that the operator during the working with the rotating tools, while said sections occupy their open position, will be able to view the breast of the working and to observe the quarrying operation from that part of the shield which is located behind the tools.

For purposes of driving tunnels or galleries, shields in the form of metal sheet cylinders are employed which are driven by means of presses in axial direction and which have an end face with a cutting edge adapted to enter the material into which the shield is to be driven. The working or quarrying may be effected manually in conformity with customary mining procedures while employing roofing boards as is generally required when the materials to be worked are not stable or self-supporting or are only temporarily stable or self-supporting. For some time efforts have been made to avoid this manual labor by employing mechanical labor. To this end, usually a rotatable disc has been employed which at the breast of the working or the head end of the gallery supports the nonstable or non-self-supporting material and which carries rotating or shaving or scraping tools. Such disc, however, impedes the view of the machine operator so that dangerous situations maybe encountered. Thus, for instance, there exists the danger that at the terrain surface settlements occur in view of a non-controllable flow of the material being worked. Furthermore, material may flow in an uncontrolled manner into recesses which are formed by the tools on the disc during the helical path of such tools.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a shield driving machine which will overcome the above mentioned drawbacks.

It is another object of this invention to provide a shield driving machine which will permit the operator properly to watch the operation of the tools in the material being worked.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a shield driving machine in which the mechanical working thereof can be easily observed and controlled so as to permit an easy locating of rocks and boulders and the removal thereof.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical axial section through a shield of a driving machine according to the present invention during a mechanical working operation.

3,378,305 Patented Apr. 16, 1968 FIG. 2 shows a vertical axial section through the front portion of the shield when effecting manual working.

FIG. 3 illustrates a section along the line III-III of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a view of FIG. 1 as seen in the direction of the arrow IV in FIG. 1.

A shield driving machine according to the present invention is characterized primarily in that a supporting wall arranged behind the rotating tools working on the breast of the working or the head end. of the gallery is divided into superimposed sections which can be moved from a closing position into an opening position and vice versa. When said sections occupy their opening positions, they will during the working with the rotating tools permit the operator to view the breast of the working and to observe the working or quarrying operaion from that part of the shield which is located behind the tools. When said sections are in their closing positions, they close the space at the breast of the working directly behind the rotating tools. The said sections, in order to permit manual working, are furthermore displaceable in axial direction independently of each other and are also adjustable so as to occupy their closing or opening positions. The said sections of the supporting walls may be formed by horizontal strips which in the manner of shutters are tiltable from the opening positions, in which the surfaces of said strips are substantialy horizontal, to their closing positions in which the surfaces of said strips are substantially vertical.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the shield 1 formed by a sheet metal cylinder has its upper front end face 2 protruding and edge-shaped. In the interior of said shield there is provided a box-shaped platform 3 having journalled therein a scraping spindle support 4 which is axially displaceable and is coaxial with regard to the tunnel profile being driven. The front end of said shield 1 carries a disc cutter 5 and a radially arranged scraping spindle 6.The spindle support 4 is driven by a driving unit 7 arranged in the interior of platform 3. By means of a further driving unit 8 arranged in said platform 3, the scraping spindle 6 together with the cutter heads thereon is rotated about it axis. Disc cutter 5 is advantageously by any convenient means (not illustrated) rotated in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the spindle support 4. For purposes of driving shield 1, there is provided a plurality of press cylinders 9 which are arranged on the inside of shield 1 and the piston rods of which rest each by means of a shoe 10 in axial direction against tubing structure 11. The press cylinders 9 are combined to a plurality of groups which for purposes of aligning the shield may be actuated individually. The material loosened by the tools 5 and 6 is picked up by two scraper chains 12 which in the interior of shield 1, closely above the lower range of the cylinder surface of said shield, are counter-currently reciprocated at both sides of the vertical axial plane closely behind the cutting edge 2 in the direction toward the center. The material thus scraped together is then conveyed between the rearwardly rising chains 12 to a steep conveyor belt 13. Belt 13 conveys the material which is elevated in a cutout of platform 3 toward the rear onto a conveyor belt 14. The steep conveyor belt 13 has its lower portion surrounded by a sheet metal cover 15 which forms a portion of a water-tight closure of that portion of the completed tunnel which is located behind the breast 16 of the working. This closure is interrupted solely by an opening 17 in platform 3 through which opening extends the steep conveyor belt 13. This opening is so arranged that a water lock will be formed which brings about that if considerable quantities of Water are encountered at the breast of the working, the water can be dammed up by the overpressure prevailing in the built-up tunnel.

At the upper side of platform 3, the said tight closure is provided with a personnel sluice comprising doors 18.

In conformity with the present invention, behind the scraping spindle 6 there are provided supporting boards 19 to 26 which are horizontally arranged in such a way that, as shown in FIG. 2, together they will form a supporting Wall. At the level of the tunnel axis there are provided two supporting boards 22, 23 which are arranged on both sides of the spindle support 4 whereas above and below said support 4 there are provided supporting boards 19, 20, 21 and 24, 25, 26 which extend over the entire width of the respective tunnel section. At the ends of the supporting boards, the triangular gusset-shaped places are filled-in by wall sections 27 which are firmly arranged on shield 1. Each supporting board is supported by two hydraulic supporting presses the cylinders 28 of which are fastened in the interior of the rump of shield 1. The ends of the supporting boards are mounted by means of two rods 29 each which are guided in the cylinders 28. This is effected by means of joints 30 having horizontal transverse axes. For purposes of tilting the supporting boards in the joints, there are provided hydraulic tilting means 31 the cylinders and piston rods of which are respectively linked to rods 29 and the supporting boards. By means of said tilting mechanisms 31, the supporting boards 19 to 26 can be held in their vertical positions according to FIG. 1. In this position, between the longitudinal edges of two superimposed supporting boards there will remain gaps of such width that roofing boards 32 can be passed therethrough in horizontal arrangement.

During working stoppages or intermissions, the supporting boards 19 to 26 may be moved into their vertical positions shown in FIG. 1 in which they form a closure wall directly behind the scraping spindle 6, said wall extending over the entire inner cross section of shield 1. The hydraulic presses 28, 29 and the tilting mechanisms 31 are so strongly designed that they are able to hold the supporting boards in this position even if flowing material should exert a considerable pressure upon the supporting boards.

When stable material is to be worked by means of tools 5, 6, the supporting boards are by means of the tilting mechanisms 31 in the manner of shutters tilted toward the rear by 90. It will then be possible from platform 3 through windows in the closure wall through the large gaps between the rearwardly tilted supporting boards to observe the breast of the working and the operation of the tools. Consequently, it is possible to take appropriate steps when any danger occurs. Thus, if individual sections of the breast of the working have the tendency to flow, it is possible by taking suitable steps to effect a limited consolidation of the material. Rocks and boulders can easily be observed and located and eliminated. To this end, inside the shield 1 within the range of its zenith portion there is provided a hoist, for instance a trolley 32:: movable on a longitudinal rail. A similar hoist 33 is provided in the built-out tunnel section. The rearwardly tilted supporting boards also permit the taking of samples from the breast of the working.

The mechanical working is for instance effected by advancing shield 1 by means of the presses 9 while the scraping spindle, which rotates about its axis but during the first phase does not rotate about the tunnel axis, as well as the disc cutter 5 are likewise advanced with said shield 1. After the advance or feeding operation has been completed, the scraping spindle 6 is turned about the tunnel axis over the complete angular range of 360 so that a slice with the free diameter of the shield and a thickness corresponding to the feeding stroke will be removed from the material being worked. When safe material is involved, it is possible in order to save time, instead to work helically by rotating the scraping spindle 6 during the feeding operation of shield 1 about the axis of spindle support 4. During this operation, relatively low feeding forces will occur in presses 9 so that the tubing lining 11 will be subjected to minor stresses. A further A possibility of mechanically working consists in first advancing shield 1 and thereupon the scraping spindle 6 and subsequently thereto the disc cutter 5 with the scraping spindle support 4 and only then to turn the spindle 6 about the tunnel axis. If a considerable overlapping of the working operation by the shield is desired, it is also possible to cause the scraping spindle 6 to work in a corresponding rearward position.

The material loosened by the tools is picked up and conducted away by the scraper chains 12, the steep conveyor belt 13 and the conveyor 14.

The manual working of non-stable or only slightly stable material starts with the forward pressing of shield 1 into the material being worked while the supporting boards stay back in upright position. Thereupon, first the uppermost supporting board 19 is tilted toward the rear while the upper edge of the supporting board 20 therebelow is still located in the flowing shadow of the material standing thereabove. Thereupon, first within the range of the upper supporting board 19, the manual working of the material may be effected and subsequently roofing boards 32 are driven forward and the uppermost supporting board 19 is righted and pressed forwardly by the feeding stroke of the shield. Thereupon the supporting board 20 therebelow may be tilted toward the rear, and the material below the roofing board 32 driven below board 20 and board 19 may be worked. Thereafter, supporting board 20 is again righted and driven forwardly.

FIG. 2 shows the condition in which the two upper supporting boards 19, 20 have been advanced while the supporting board 21 has been tilted backwardly and retracted while the boards 22 to 26 therebelow in a rearward location damm up the material. The supporting boards in their respective rearwardly tilted position form a platform for the operator. The roofing boards 32 are held on shield 1 by means of guiding strips or guiding rails. The manual working may be effected in conformity with customary mining procedures.

The conversion from mechanical working to manual working can be effected in a very short time. To this end, the supporting boards 19 to 21 and 24 to 26 are advanced. The scraping spindle after having planed the breast 16 of the working by a rotation without a feeding stroke, is turned into a horizontal position and is pulled rearwardly through a gap between boards 21 and 24 and is withdrawn. Thereupon, also the supporting boards 22, 23 are moved forwardly. In this way, a supporting wall is created which will provide a safeguard against a flowing of the material on the breast of the working. The manual working can then be effected in the above described manner in a downward direction and successively.

Following each advancing stroke of shield 1, a new ring of tubing 34 is added to the tubing lining 11. For purposes of lifting the individaul tubings, there is provided a ring 35 which by means of rollers 36 is rotatably journalled on an annular rail 37 near the periphery of the cylinder of the shield rump. This ring may be provided with a device 38 for mounting the tubings. By means of this device, the tubings may be mounted in a proper way at the respective areas while the lifting is effected by rotation of ring 5. To this end, ring 35 is provided with a leaf or" a pinion engaged by a pinion 40 operable by a motor 39. By means of this ring, which extends around platform 3 and steep conveyor 13 while being sufficiently spaced therefrom, the tubings can be raised without being affected by said structural elements.

Shield 1 is with regard to the tunnel sealed at its tail end by a sealing ring 41. The machine is also provided with auxiliary devices not shown in the drawing, as for instance a mud water pump, a control panel for electric and hydraulic control circuits, and a carriage for carrying additional devices.

As will be evident from the above, the machine according to the present invention has the great advantage that the mechanical working can be properly controlled. The working operation can be observed at all times and it is possible to withdraw samples and to etfect local consolidations and to eliminate rocks and boulders. The changeover from mechanical working when a stable breast of working is encountered to manual working when flowing material is encountered, can be effected in the shortest possible time.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular arrangement and construction shown in the drawings but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. A shield driving machine, especially for driving tunnels and galleries, which includes: a shield, rotatable tool means for digging the working, supporting wall means arranged within said shield and closely in front of said tool means when looking from the interior of said shield toward said tool means, said supporting wall means comprising a plurality of superimposed wall sections respectively and selectively movable from a closed position in which said wall sections close otf the interior of said shield with regard to said rotatable to-ol means to an: open position in which said wall sections permit observation of said tool means from the interior of said shield and also permit observation of the working, said wall sections also being movable from their open positions to their closed positions, and control means opera-tively connected to said wall sections and operable to individually adjust said Wall sections in said axial direction of said shield.

2. A machine according to claim 1, in which the wall sections of said supporting wall means are composed of substantially horizontally extending strip means tiltably arranged so that their major surfaces are movable [from a substantially vertical position into a substantially horizontal position and vice versa.

3. A machine according to claim 1, in which said c0n- 6 trol means for individually adjusting said wall sections are -formed by fluid operable cylinder piston means.

4. A machine according to claim 1, which includes fluid operable cylinder piston means operatively connected to said wall sections for moving the same firom their closed positions to their open positions and vice versa.

5. A machine according to claim 1, which includes a platform arranged in said shield at approximately the level of its longitudinal axis and extending in axial direction of said shield, and water-tight closure means arranged above and below said platform.

6. A machine according to claim 1, which includes a platform arranged in said shield at approximately the level of its longitudinal axis and extending in axial direction of said shield, said platform being provided with a passage, and conveyor means extending into said passage from the lower portion of said shield.

7. A machine according to claim 1' which includes ring means arranged infront of said supporting wail means when looking from the interior of said shield toward said tool means, said ring means being rotatable about the axis of a tunnel being driven by said machine, and tubing mounting means supported by said ring means for lifting tubing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 340,759 4/1886 Brown 299- 56 X 658,366 9/1900 Hastings 6185 674,415 5/1901 Hough 29958 X 675,355 5/1901 MacI-Iarg 6l--85 774,546 11/1904 Aims 6185 1,173,158 2/1916 Arden 6185 2,208,608 7/1940 Stanley 61--85 ERNEST R. PURSER, Primary Examiner.

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