US524149A - Tunneling machine - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. R. STANLEY. f

TUNNELING MACHINE.

No. 524,149. Patented 44g; 7,1894.

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UNITED STATES REGINALD STANLEY, OF NUNEATON, ENGLAND.

TUNNELIN'G-MACHINE..

SPECIFICATION forming part of' Letters Patent No. 524,149, dated August '7, 1894. 'Application filed December 11l 1891. Serial No. 414.708. (No model.) Patented in England February 1, 188.6, No. 1,449.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, REGINALD STANLEY, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residlng at Nuneaton, in the county of Varwick,

England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tunneling-Machines, (for which I have received British Letters v Patent No. 1,449, dated February l, 1886,) of

Y which the following is a specification, reference-being had therein to theaecompanying drawings. y

- Figure lis a side elevation showing the essential parts of a machine embodying my invention. Fig. 2 'is a front view of the mach1ne.` Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the broken lines A, B, of Fig. 1,the engine for driving the machine being removed. Fig. 4

- 1s a plan of the top at the rear end showing one of the forms of roller or wheel. Fig.`5 is a horizontal section on showing the rear bearing of the central shaft.

Fig. 6 represents an end View of the end bearlng. Fig. 7 shows parts of a machine like -that in Fig. 1, except that the upper wheel isv spurred and is connected to the transporting devices. Fig. 8 is a side view of one, and the preferred, form of cutters and cutter carrying arms. Fig. 9 is a plan of the same. Fig. 10

` 1s a front view of a part at the end of one of the cult-ter arms. A represents the frame of the machine.

p B is the motor or engine, and a, a', a2, and

as, the gear wheels for driving the central Vhorizontal shaft. v

`b, b are the radial arms,'and b', b are the horizontal arms extending forward fromthe radial arms and carrying Scrapers b2.

c, care the cutters fixed on the ends of the 4o i c is the drill for boring' the central hole in the tunnel.

All the foregoing parts except the central shaft and the cutting arms are somewhat simi; lar to those in earlier machines which I have '4 devised.

e is the central shaft which is mounted in bearings e', e', ande2 on the frame A, the shaft being extended beyond the front ofthe frame as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and to it are fixed 5o the radial arms b, b. A space can be provided between the arms b and the bed frame the line U, D, Fig- 1f j on the lower end of a or main frame A to allow a man to work therein, there being a seat or platform A pivoted to theframe A for supporting him.' Or the radial arms can bebrought back close to the frame A, in which case the seat or platform A can be turned up out ofthe way.

`Collars e8 are fastened tothe shaft eby bolts e4 to keep the shaft in position, said bolts e4 being-withdrawn when it is required to move ".60

the shaft back in the frame A. fis a longitudinal slot in the shaft e in which lits a key in the gear wheel a, thereby allowing the shaft e to be drawn back or pushed forward without disengaging it from the wheel a. The 6|; Vshaft e is revolved in the direction of the arrows', Fig. 2.

The thrust of the shaft upon the back uprights of the machine is taken by a movable thrust block g in the bearing e2 fixed tosaid'up- 70 right, against which movable thrust block the rear end of the shaft bears and works, when the shaft is in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The said movable cleat g can be re-v moved, and the shaft e moved back until the radial larms b are close to the front of the bed A, thereby allowing room fora man to work in front of the radial arms b when necessary to remove a cutter, or to remove the cuttings, or the core of coal, or-for other purposes.

h, h are the wheels or rollers mounted on axles h2, h2, which run in bearings or blocks h3. These Wheels carry the whole machine and run on the floor of the heading or roadway. They are protected from the dbris from the cutters by means of covers h4. I find it 4advantageous in many cases to use lonly the one roller h for the propulsion of the machine This wheel in Fig.'3, is broader on the face than the other 9o or roller h, as .shown wheel h. The periphery of the saidwheel is toothed or spiked, as shown. In some cases the wheels are ribbed or roughened, and sometimes a wheel covered with an adhesive substance, like hard india rubber, willsulnice for the purpose of biting or gripping the floor of Y the heading when the wheel is turned.` For turning the said wheel h I provide its axle h2 with a worin wheeli which gears'with a worm vertical shaft j roo mounted in bearings 7c on the bed A.

On the upper end of the shaft j is fixed a Worm wheel Z which gears with a thread or worm at Z', with which the shaft e is formed or provided. When the machine is constructed in the way shown, this thread or worm Z on the shaft e is preferably feathered by a spline fitting in the slotf, so that the thread will not interfere with the movements longitudinally of the shaft e.

Z2 is a spacing washer or thimble placed between the thread or worm and one of the bearings e. The wheel or roller h is also toothed or spurred. and arranged so that it can be adjusted vertically in relation to the bed by means of screw h5.

m, m are wheels or rollers at the top ofthe bed and provided with wall engaging projections of the nature of fianges as at m2 in Figs. 1, 2and 4, or of the nature of spurs or teeth as in Fig. 7. The axles m of these top wheels are arranged in adjustable bearings m3 at the top of the bed A so that the said wheels can revolve against or penetrate the roof of the heading or tunnel. n, n are screws with which the said bearings are provided for adjusting the wheels m relatively to the bed and the tunnel wall. Blocks of elastic material fn may be placed between the screws fn. and the bearings n2, thus allowing the wheels to yield to slight inequalities in the tunnel wall, when the machine is being moved. By this arrangement if the wheels m be adjusted so as to grip or bite into the roof, and if the Wheel h be also adjusted so as to grip 0r bite into the door, and the central shaft ebe revolved, the wheel h will also be caused to revolve and the whole machine will move forward, the cutters at the same time forming an annular groove, and the central drill c forming the bore hole.

For the purpose of guiding, or altering the direction of, the machine, I provide the bearings of the wheels h, h and m, m, with screws o in front and in the rear of each bearing, so that by adjusting the said screws 0 the direction of the wheels can be altered as desired, the movements of the wheel bearings or blocks being regulated by pins and slots.

p, p are guiding or steadying wheels or rollers, mounted on bars or rods q having extensions q adjustable as to their length and fixed lgydnuts q2 in brackets r on the sides ot' the p', Fig. 3, is a bar arranged at the front of the'machine to protect the operator fromfalling coal when the machine is being worked. It can be Withdrawn by removing the pins or screws at p3.

s is a handle for operating the motor or engine B, which may be so arranged that it can be worked either from the front or the rear ofthe machine.

tis a plate hinged to the bed at one side,

and resting against the wall of the tunnel over which the dbris or cuttings can be passed, there being an inclined plate t', in front of this plate t to prevent the material from getting under themac'hine.

A small plumb weight fu may be hung on the back of the bed A to show when the machine is upright.

When it is required to move the machine to some distance the wheels h and h can be lifted up or removed and axles and flanged wheels may be attached, adapted to run on track rails. But ordinarily I yfind that all the necessary locomotion can be attained by means of the wheels h, h..

The manner of operating lthe machine will be readily understood. It is first properly placed in relation to the face of the material in which the tunnel is t0 be formed. The diameter of the tunnel will of course be'equal to the distance between the outermost cutters c. The shaft e is adjusted forward or back relatively to the bed, as desired, and the wheels Zt, h', m, m, are set for the direction in which the cutters c are to be guided. For instance if it is required to direct the cutters toward the right the propelling wheel h, and the top Wheel m are set with a slight inclination to the right, and the back wheels m and h are set with a slight inclination in an opposite direction; or in some cases the rear wheels m and h can be used alone for guiding. Under such adjustment the cutters will work toward the right and the whole machine will follow. Any deviation from the vertical will be indicated by the plumb fu, and the machine can be righted by adjusting the top wheels m, m, slightly in one direction, while the bottom IOO ones h, h are setfslightly in the opposite direction; or one pair only can be adjusted.

To obtain the right elevation of the cutters c, the screw h5 is used to raise or lower the bearing block of wheel h. For instance, if it is desired to lower the direction of the cut, the pin h5 rear end of the machine, the screws n being slackened to correspond. After these adj ustments are attained for direction and elevation screws 'n are turned to force the wheels m against the tunnel Wall so that they shall have the necessary bite or hold thereon. One of the operatives. (ordinarily) now takes his position on the seat or platform A', and by handle s starts the engine or motor. Shaft b is revolved and in turn actuates the cutters c through the arms b, Z9". In this construction the bed is advanced simultaneously-with the cutters, the advancing being effected by the thread at Z', wheel Z, Worm j, wheel t' on axle h2 and wheel h. The scrapers on the cutter is screwed down so as to raise the A IIO \ longstheoneherein.

y that when the crank shaft isturned back part of a revolution, either by a spanner or by the squared end of' theshat't, the action of the Y engine will be reversed when power is aptively acting abutment which .can be faster than the feed backward, and tomeet this I do (as has been customary heretofore with selfplied. The backward motion of the machine and can be made so by suitably speeded gearing, which can be independent of the feed gearing if desired.

The wheel m may be used to assist in the propulsion of the machine, and for such purwith spurs or spikes,

pose I prefer to form it as shown in Fig. 7, and to connect it to the propelling mechanism by extending upward the vertical shaftj, and combining with it a worm j which gears with a worm wheel i on 4By examining Figs. l and 3 it will beseen that the Scrapers for the cutters are situated outside of the arms b proper, and lie in paths .of rotation dierentfrom those of said arms.

In order to make a stronger cutter carrying arm I prefer to construct these parts as shown in Figs. 8 to l0.- In this case the scraperlies in the path of rotation of the cutter and the cutter arm, it projecting laterally from the latter, and also forward, and lying in the annular groove directly ahead of the cutters. It is formed with a' beveled or inclined outer face for throwing the cuttings backward.

I am awareof the fact that it has been heretofore proposedto construct a mining machine with a bed, supporting and transporting wheels, an engine, and a bar provided with cutters, projecting laterally from the frame. The machine referred to was intended for the forming of a kerf or under-cut of -the sort produced by mining machines, proper. The cutter-bar projected laterally from-the machine, that is to say, was so arranged that it was supported at one end only and consequently all of the side or re-actionary thrust exerted upon it was experienced bythe machine in such way as to twist or turn the latter, as is the common experience with all side cut machines for forming kerfs: These machines arereadily and materially distinguished from those its parts all so co-related that an aperture can Vbe cut in the material directly ahead of the machine and which is of such dimensions in relation to those of the machine that the lattei1 can be bodily passed through it. The re-actionary thrust from the cutters is directly not depend propelling machines) upon merely the weight of the machine itself, but I provide a posiprevents the machine from retracting when the cutters are at Work. Such an abutment can be provided in any one of numerous Ways. As shown the spurs or wall-engagin g projections on the botof the class to which be, The present machine has ing under thestrain from the cutters. When the abutment comprises spurs or projections carried by rotatable Wheels, the latter of course must be locked against backward rotation. In the construction shown such back- Ward rotation is prevented by the connection with the power-transmitting devices carriedl by the engine, but I do not wishto be limited thereto. y

' In the present machine the ground wheels, h h', notonly support the whole mechanlsm when it is in operation, but also can support it when it is being transported from one place to another in the tunnel orheading although, as above said, these wheels may be removed, and track wheels more or less similar to those in my earliermachine can be substituted at timesv when the apparatus is to be transported bodily from o ne place to another. Thewheels being arranged on or near the central longitudinal vertical plane of the tunnel and of the apparatus as a Whole, permit readily the lateral adjustment of the upper part of the machine, which may be required for any purpose. As they lie in the said central plane, they rest upon the lowest part of the tunnel, and are therefore assisted in moving in the proper direction, without the aid of track rails. Wlien wheels are employed each situated at some distance away from the said central Yvertical plane, it is more difficult to readily adjust the upper part of the machine laterally, for if the 'lateral pressure be exerted in either direction, the tendency is to lift up one or the other of the supportingwhecls. By having therefore the ground support as near the said central plane as possible whatever oscillation or lateral movement may be necessary can be given without throwing any part .of the machine out from its full ground support. Of course I do not limit myself to having the wheels exactly in the said center plane, as there may be some variation in this' respect without departing from this part of the invention, especially so long as the ends aimed at are attained. The parts at p, q', q2, t', dsc., can be used to vary the positions of the upper parts of the bed relatively to the vertical, as may be desired, the ground wheels at such times serving as the fulcrum or pivotal support upon which the lateral movement can occur.

In the aforesaid earlier two sets of Wheels, one having spurs or projections to be used when the machine was at work, and the other set having flanges for machine there were running upon track rails, to be used when the-machine is to be place to another.

transported from one IOO ICO

IZO

The iirst set of wheels were rigid in their relation to the bed, the trackwheels alone being vertically adjustable so as to throw them down far enough to take the weight of the machine upon the track.

I claim- 1. In a tunneling machine, the combination of the bed, the rotary cutters advancing un- .der a uniform pressure at a fixed distance from the bed and rotating around the central longitudinal axis on a radius substantially as set forth, whereby they cut a tunnel adequate to receive the Whole machine, a centrally arranged shaft for supporting and rotating said cutters, a spurred Wheel mounted on the bed and extended upwardly therefrom andengaging with and penetrating the upper tunnel Wall, a spurred wheel upon Which said bed is mounted engaging With and penetrating the floor of the tunnel, an engine on the bed and gearing connecting the engine with both said wheels for rotating them, whereby they advance the bed and receive the backward thrust of the cutters.' f

2. In a tunneling machine of the class described, the combination of the bed, the rotary cutters advancing under a uniform pressure at a fixed distance from the bed, and rotating around the central longitudinal axis on a radius substantially as set forth, whereby they cut a tunnel adequate to receive the entire machine, a centrally arranged shaft supporting and rotating said cutters, an abutling them,

ment mounted on said bed and extending up- Wardlyintoand penetrating the tunnel wall, bed supporting and feeding wheels, an engine mounted on said bed, gearing connecting the engine With the centrally arranged shaft and gearing connecting the engine with the feeding wheels, whereby the cutters are rotated and advanced with the bed and the upwardly extending abutment,` substantially as set forth.

3. In a tunneling machine of the character described, the combination of the main frame or bed, the engine mounted thereon, the crank shaft, a centrally arranged rotatable tubular bearing having a thread, propelling wheels mounted on said bed, means connecting said thread with the propelling wheels for rotatsaid bed, a shaft mounted in said tubular bearing and supporting and rotating said cutters, gearing connecting the crank shaft the cutters projecting in front of With the said centrally arranged shaft and 7 adjusting devices for adjusting said cutter supporting shaft relatively to said tubular bearing, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

REGINALD STANLEY. Witnesses:

W. H. HARRIS, FREDERICK BAXTER.

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