US658495A - Horizontal earth-drill. - Google Patents

Description

No. 658,495. PatentedSept. 25, 1900. H. E. .WILLIAMS.,

HORIZONTAL EARTH DRILL.

(Application led Aug. 22, 1899A (mi Modal.) z sheets-sheet l.

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N0. 658,495. Patented Sept. 25, |900. H. E. WILLIAMS.

HORIZONTAL EARTH DRILL.

(Application med Aug. 2'2, 1899.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

ism by which it is rotated, and means for drilled, a horizontally-journaled shaft carry- .disturbed is difficult to replace so as to make ilNrTEn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HERBERT E. I/VILLIAMS, OF SAN JOS, CALIFORNIA.

HORIZONTAL EARTH-DRILL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 658,495, dated September 25, 1900.

Serial No. 728,061. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, HERBERT E. WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Jos, county of Santa Clara, State of California, have invented an Improvement in Horizontal Earth-Drills; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to an apparatus which is designed for drilling horizontally through the earth. It is especially useful for making connections between Water and gas mains and like conductors whichare laid in the street with the buildings or other points at the sides which require service connections therewith, and it is designed to enable such connections to be made Without disturbing the asphalt or other pavement with which the surface of the street may be covered.

My invention consists of a frame adapted to be set in the line of the hole which is to be ing the boring-tool at the front end, mechanclearing the hole as it is bored, together with' means for constantly advancing the boringtool until it has reached its destination.

The invention also comprises details of construction which will be more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a general view of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the front portion of the drill. Fig. 3 is a similar view through the rear portion of the drill. Fig. 4 is a lateral section on line oc oc of Fig. 3.

In making service connections of various kinds from gas and water pipes, electric conduits, and the like, the mains of which are usually carried along the streets, it has been necessary to dig trenches for the purpose of laying the proper connections, and the pavement or surface of whatever description when it again homogeneous and continuous with that which has not been disturbed. It is the object of my invention to provide an apparatus by which such connections can be easily and quickly made Without materially disturbing the surface of the street.

The main supporting-frame A may be of any suitable or desired description and material, the object being to provide such a frame as will support a horizontally-journaled boring-shaft with means for advancing and retracting it, a vertically-journaled drivingshaft with gears by which the two are connected, and means for rotating the vertical shaft, the whole being so constructed that the frame can be set into a channel or trench which is made at the point Where the Work is to be commenced. This point may either be near the main with which connection is to be made when the said main is carried along the side of the street, or it may commence at a point near the curb if the m'ain is centrally located, or it may be otherwise arranged to suit the conditions of the parts where the connection is to be made. In the' present case I have illustrated it as being placed in a trench which is sunk near the curb of the street to a depth which will bring the boring-shaft in the desired line. For convenience in constructing the frame may consist of two rectangular portions a, one at the top and the other at the bottom, and vertical guiding-posts a/ at the corners. These posts may be made tubular,

and rods extend'through them with screwthreads upon the ends, upon which nuts can be afterward screwed to bind lthe Whole together. Across the upper part of the frame is journaled a shaftB, with cranks or other equivalent driving devices O, by which it may be rotated. Upon this shaft is fixed a bevelgear D, which engages with a corresponding bevelgear upon the vertically journaled shaft E. This latter shaft extends down to near the bottom of the frame and has also a bevel-gear F fixed upon it, which meshes with the bevel-gear G, mounted upon a horizontal shaft H. This shaft turns in boxes I I adjacent to its driving-gear and extends forward through the feed-screw J, the front end of which is supported in a box upon the opposite side of the frame, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

A keyway h is made in the shaft H, and into this a set-screw h or an equivalent device carried by the pinion G enters, so that when said gear G is rotated it acts through the set-screw or feather to rotate the shaft H, while at the same time the keyway allows the shaft to be fed forward without disturbing the position of the gear G, which is turnable,

that it forms astop against which the rear l end of the screw abuis and prevents the screwfrom sliding in this direction on the shaft. The forward end of the screw passes through a fixed nut L, which is supportedA upon the lower rectangular portion of the frame.

O is a hand-wheel or other feed device se cured to the barrel of the screw by a setscrew P, so that when the hand-wheel is turned the screw will be advanced through the nut L, as may be desired.

The shaft H extends through the screw? and at the front end is screw-threaded and has a sleeve or coupling Q, by which it may be connected with the boring-tool R. This tool `may be of any suitable description. I

have found that a flat twisted auger-shaped blade is very suitable for the purpose where the work is being done in soft earth.

The

diameter of this boring-tool is sufficient toI make a hole which will admit a pipe of `the desired size, from the size of a small Water or gas pipe up to a sewer-pipe connection, if the i ened, and the material is carried backwardly By thus supplying wal along the shank of the boring-tool as fast as the latter advances, and it may thus be adl vanced a distance equal to the length of the feed-screw before it is necessary to stop.

In order to supply water to the interior of the tube H and its connections, I have shown a T-coupling S of suiiicient diameter to receive the bushing T, which surrounds the forl ward end of the pipe H. Screw-threaded end pieces U loosely surround the shaft H and are screwed into the ends of the coupling S, so that when the side branch of the T-coupling is connected with a hose or other source of water-supply which prevents the coupling from turning the shaft H and the bushing T j turn freely inside of the coupling andv its end supports U. The water admitted into the coupling surrounds the bushing T, which is 1 of smaller diameter than the interior of the coupling S, and by means of holes t, made radially through the coupling and the interior tubular portion of the shaft H, the water can pass freely into the shaft and thence through the hollow shank R of the boring-tool and the openings fr into the hole.,

In order to prevent leakage between the ends U of the coupling S and the shaft H, I

have shown washers u, fitted between the bushing T and the ends U, which form a sufficiently-tight joint for the purpose. When the screw is advanced by rotating it within its screwthreaded box L, it will also force the shaft H and the boring-tool forward with it, `and the shaft being rotated by the mechanism, as previously described, will cause the tool to bore its way into the earth, and the latter being softenedv by the water and prevented from clogging will be carried back into the pit in which the machine stands, from which it can be removed as required.

When the tool has been fed forward a distance equal to the length of the feed-screw J, the device may be retracted by turning the screw P, `which passes through the hub of the hand-wheel O until it also contacts with the shaft H within the screw J. Then by reversing the movement of the driving-shaft the screw J will be caused to travel backward through its nut L until it is withdrawn to its most rearward position. It is then necessary to add another section of tubular shaft, which is similar in all respects tothe shaft H, and by coupling the front end of such a section with the shank R of the boring-tool, then connecting the rear-end of the section with the coupling Q or `a similar one, the tool is ready TOO a hole at the opposite side of the pit in which the framework is placed to receive the rear end of this shaft when it is being withdrawn to receivea new section after each forward advance. This can be easily done by fitting 1 the boring-tool upon this end of the shaft and boring the necessary depthof hole in that direction, after which it is placed upon the forward end.

The pit is made of such depth as to allow the apparatus to be placed at the `desired level below the surface of the street, as shown, and by leveling the frame with horizontal and vertical levelsI am enabled to drive a hole as far as may be necessary in the widest street and arrive at .the desired point with very little variation and near enough to make the proper connections.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

An improved earth-drill comprising a framework consisting of two rectangular portions one at the top and the other at. the bottom, and vertical guiding-posts at the corners, said upper and lower portions provided with journal-boxes, a horizontal shaft mounted in the lower boxes and a hollow feed screw through which the shaft passes, said screw having its forward end mounted in one of zontal shaft having a hollow front end, and the lower boxes, a vertical shaft and gears means for admitting water to the interiorl of between the same and the horizontal shaft, said shaft. one of said gears located between adjacent In witness whereof I have hereunto set my 5 boxes and splined on the horizontal shaft, a hand.

collar against which the feed-screw abuts and a Xed nut in which the front end of said HERBERT E' WILLIAMS' screw works, means for rotating the screw, a Witnesses: boring-tool and means for coupling it to the S. H. NOURSE, :o front end of the horizontal shaft said hor- JESSIE O. BRODIE.

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