Patent ID: 6360830
Filing Date: 2002-03-26
Classification: E21B

Abstract:
A horizontal directional drilling machine comprising:a magazine for holding a plurality of elongated rods, the magazine including a plurality of columns in which the rods are held, each of the columns having a separate bottom opening; a feed member that moves beneath the magazine, the feed member including a plurality of upwardly opening pockets for receiving the rods; a lift unit for lifting rods from the pockets of the feed member up through the bottom openings of the columns, and for lowering rods from the bottom openings of the columns to the pockets of the feed member; at least one blocking member moveable relative to the feed member so as to be positionable in: i) a non-blocking position in which the at least one blocking member does not block any of the pockets; and ii) one or more blocking positions in which the at least one blocking member blocks one or more of the pockets such that rods are prevented from being lowered from the magazine into the blocked one or more pockets; a sensor for sensing when a predetermined number of rods has been loaded into a first one of the columns; and a controller interfacing with the sensor for causing the at least one blocking member to move from the non-blocking position to the one or more blocking positions when the sensor senses that the predetermined number of rods has been loaded into the first column.