Improvements in Rock Tunnelling and Drills and Machinery to be used for this purpose.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Sept.. 1890
Complete Specification Left, 4th June, 189: Accepted, 4th July, 1901
Complete opremitation LEIL, TU un
Πονομιστ
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rock Tunnelling and Drills and Machinery to be
used for this purpose.
We, The Reverend CHARLES BERNERS PENRICE of The Rectory, Little
Plumstead in the County of Norfolk, and The Reverend CHARLES JOHN
PENRICE of St. Neot's in the County of Huntingdon Executors of the Will of
the late Herbert Newton Penrice of the Army & Navy Club Pall Mall London,
who died on the 8th day of March 1890, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
MODE OF OPERATION.
To make a tunnel in rock we first drive a heading along the top of the proposed
tunnel. This we do by rock boring machinery such as hereinafter described.
That part of the rock boring apparatus that holds the traversing nut is rigidly
fixed and carries two power il drilling machines, for making two approximately
vertical holes downwards; so that while the horizontal boring machine is making
holes into the face of the heading two vertical holes may be made downwards from
the bottom of first heading to the bottom of the proposed tunnel.
When the holes have been bored the whole of the machinery is drawn back, first
to one side and then to the other down an incline. While so standing aside as to be
out of the way of the removal of rock from the first heading, it is used to make
horizontal holes in the face of the enlargement of the heading; and at the same
time the vertical drills make other approximately vertical holes downwards from
the bottom of the enlargement to the bottom of the proposed tunnel. In this way
the lateral enlargement of the original heading is facilitated and also the breaking
up of the rock, below the enlarged heading.
When the holes are bored they are loaded in a peculiar way with long cones.
DESCRIPTION OF MACHINERY.
Motive Power. The power used for working the machine is air compressed to
several atmospheres in receivers outside tunnel.
Conveyance of Air.-The air is conveyed to machine from outside of tunnel in
pipes along the bottom; two of which that are nearest to machine being telescopic
so as to allow horizontal machine to travel about twenty feet in boring without any
rearrangement of pipes.
Drill Bars. The bars for carrying drills or punches, are of steel and of a
suitable diameter. Usually from three to six of them are used at once. They are
socketted and cottered firmly to cast steel cutter head, and project horizontally.
Cast Steel Cutter Head.-The cutter head that carries sockets for drill bars is
of cast steel, rigidly braced by webs so as to ensure a dead blow to the rock.
Ram or Guide. The ram or guide is cast to cutter head and forms the piston
rod by which motion is transmitted from piston to cutter head. Is turned up
perfectly concentric with piston. It works or reciprocates in a halved stuffing box
and a gland which has a phosphor bronze bush.
Piston. The piston is cast steel and with cutter head and ram forms one heavy
steel casting.
It is turned up true and fitted with phosphor bronze rings to fit
cylinder, and reciprocates rapidly under pressure of air, admitted and exhausted at
back under control of a peculiar double acting valve.
Return of Piston.-The return of piston is effected by pressure of air direct
from receivers, being constantly on the front of piston when machine is at work the
back and front areas of piston being different.

page_text: When air exhaust takes place at back of piston, the pressure as before mentioned
being constantly on the front, causes the return of piston to the back of cylinder at
every stroke.
Cylinder. The cylinder is of ample strength to resist bursting and also fracture
from shocks. Two ports are provided in back for admission of air, for giving the
forward stroke to piston and are opened by valve before referred to.
Cushioning A port constantly opened is provided in front of piston at a
convenient distance from beginning of stroke to ensure perfect cushioning, and
so as to make any knock at the port stuffing box an impossibility.
At every forward stroke the piston overruns and closes this port and imprisons
the air thereby creating a very reliable cushion for piston.
Carriage. The whole machine is carried on four cast wheels, running on heavy
rails.
Roof Wheels. Two roof wheels are provided, one above cylinder at front end
of machine and the other at tail end of machine.
The wheels run on strong pins fixed at top of trunk pistons of large diameter,
the same piston being raised by the air pressure forcing machine down on the
aforesaid rails, this prevents vibration of machine when punching and the runners
being held up by the elastic force of air they yield to the irregularity of the roof
of the heading.
Traversing Screw.-A large traversing screw which runs in a bearing at tail of
machine and working in a fixed nut in hind truck (hereinafter described), propels
the machine towards the heading.
Donkey Engine. A donkey engine is fixed just behind main cylinder which is
used to work directly on to the main admission valve. The construction of the
valve gives 2 strokes of the ram for each revolution of the small engine. The
donkey engine serves also to turn steel shaft on which is fixed a pinion for giving
motion to spur wheel fixed to traversing screw.
Friction Clutch. By a specially arranged friction clutch the part of donkey
shaft on which pinion is keyed is either stopped or started while donkey is at work,
admitting and exhausting air for main cylinder by main valve.
Fly Wheel heavy fly wheel is fixed on the donkey shaft.
Sentinel. A sentinel is fixed to back of main piston and works through back of
cylinder in a stuffing box. This is to inform the operator of the exact position of
main piston in reference to hack of cylinder, it being an important factor in the
economical consumption of air pressure to keep the piston as near to the back of
cylinder as possible by reducing the clearance space.
Back Truck. A large heavy truck on four heavy wheels is fixed in tunnel at
something over twenty feet from boring machine in which a large nut is fixed
carrying large traversing screw. This is held in its place rigidly on the rails, by
two or more large roof wheel attachments and by clamps and strong pinching
screws.
Vertical Drill. This part of the apparatus carries a vertical drilling arrangement
before referred to.
Front Guide. At starting at each consecutive face of heading the drill bars are
supported by what is termed a front guide, made as light as possible and running
on rails.
Guide Collars. Just behind each separate drill a collar of the same diameter as
drill (easily renewed) is keyed so as to prevent bottom of drill or punch ring from
wenring. These collars are channelled out so as to allow all debris to pass through
under pressure of water hereinafter described.

page_text: punch. This centre punch, the outer ring punch and the enlarged end of drill bar
have a cotter way cut through them, and a single cotter holds the three together.
The ring abuts on shoulders.
The drill bar is concentric with punch ring and centre drill or punch; therefore
ensuring a dead blow with a minimum of vibration of drill bar.
In the annular space a passage is cut through the enlarged end of the drill head
to allow debris to be washed through by water pressure.
Water is provided at convenient pressure and is carried along a groove in the
drill bar by a small copper pipe and injected with, force upon the face of drill,
thereby driving all disintegrated rock before it through the space provided for
this purpose in bottom part of enlarged end of drill bar.
Action of Drill. The centre punch which has an annular cutting edge and a
central pointed cone breaks up the centre core of the hole to be bored, and is set at
about one inch forward of the large or outer ring punch.
The outer ring punch then breaks up the rock round this centre hole and the
debris is forced out of the hole by the action of the water jet.
Dated this 4th day of September 1890.
C. B. PENRICE.
CHARLES JOHN PENRICE.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rock Tunnelling and Drills and Machinery to be
used for this purpose.
We, The Reverend CHARLES BERNERS PENRICE, of The Rectory, Little
Plumstead, in the County of Norfolk, and The Reverend CHARLES JOHN
PENRICE, of St. Neot's, in the County of Huntingdon, Executors of the Will of the
late Herbert Newton l'enrice, of the Army & Navy Club, Pall Mall, London, who
died on the 8th day of March 1890, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:—
MODE OF OPERATION.
To make a tunnel in rock we proceed in the manner illustrated by
Figures 1, 2 and 3. We first drive a heading a along the top of the proposed
tunnel. This we do by rock boring machinery such as hereinafter described and
represented in elevation partly in section in Figure 4. The machine is anchored
when at work by means of a screw which passes back to a nut.
That part of the rock boring apparatus that holds the nut is rigidly fixed in rear
of the inachine and carries two powerful drilling machines, for making two
approximately vertical holes c downwards; so that while the horizontal boring
machine is making holes into the face of the heading two vertical holes may be
made downwards from the bottom of first heading to the bottom of the proposed
tunnel.
When the holes have been bored the whole of the machinery is drawn back, first
to one side and then to the other down an incline. While so standing aside as to be
out of the way of the removal of rock from the first heading, it is used to make
horizontal holes at dor e as seen in Figure 3 in the face of the enlargement of the
heading; and at the same time the vertical drills make other approximately
vertical holes downwards from the bottom of the enlargement to the bottom of the
proposed tunnel. In this way the lateral enlargement of the original heading is
facilitated and also the breaking up of the rock, below the enlarged heading.
When the holes are bored they are loaded it may be in a peculiar way with
charges of any desired explosive placed in metal troughs, terminating at their

page_text: outward ends in long metal cones, to net, when the troughs have been ruptured by
the explosive, as wedges to jamb in the "tamping" packed in round and in front
of them, and so to make it impossible for the gas generated by the explosive to
escape through the drilled hole, and to force to act in the disintegration of
particularly explained in the 5
Specification of a Patent granted to the late II. 'N. Penrice No. 2526 in the
year 1883.
the rock and expulsion of the dabris ΠΕ MAPA
Specification of a Patent granted to the late 11. N. Penrice No. 2526 in the
year 1883.
DESCRIPTION or MachineRY.
Motive Power. The power used for working the machine is air compressed to
several atmospheres in receivers outside innnel.
Conveyance of air.-The air is conveyel to machine from outside of tunnel in
pipes along the bottom; two of which that are nearest to machine being telescopic
so as to allow the horizontal machine (Figure 4) to travel about twenty feet in
boring without any rearrangement of pipes.
Drill Bars. One of the drill bars with drills or punches is shown by the
Figures aud 6. Figure 5 is a longitudinal section of the bar with the drills or
punches upon it and Figure 6 is an end elevation of the bar only. The bars for
carrying drills or punches are of steel and of a suitable diameter. Usually from
three to six of them are used at once. They are socketted and cottered firmly to
cast steel cutter head h, and project horizontally.
Cast Steel Cutter Head.-The cutter head that carries sockets for drill bars
is seen in front elevation in Figure 7; it is of east steel rigidly braced by webs so
as to ensure a dead blow to the rock.
Ram or Guide.The ram or guide is cast to enter head and forms the piston
rod by which motion is transmitted from piston to cutter head.
The ram is
turned "P perfectly concentric with piston. It works or reciprocates in a halved
stuffing box and a gland which has a phosphor bronze (or similar metal) bush.
Piston. The piston is cast steel and with cutter head and ram forms one heavy
steel casting. It is turned up true and fitted with phosphor bronze (or similar
metal) rings to fit cylinder, and reciprocates rapidly under pressure of air, admitted
and exhausted at back under control of a peculiar double acting valve. The valve
works in the case i and is similar to the valve described in the Specification of the
Patent granted to the late H. N. Penrice No. 2106 in the year 1881.
Return of Piston.-The return of piston is effected by pressure of air admitted
at direct from receivers, being constantly on the front of piston when machine
is at work the back and front areas of piston being different.
When air exhaust takes place at back of piston, the pressure as before mentioned
being constantly on the front, causes the return of piston to the back of cylinder
at every stroke.
Cylinder The cylinder is of ample strength to resist bursting and also
fracture from shocks. Two ports are provided in back for admission of
air, for giving the forward stroke to piston and are opened by valve before
referred to.
Cushioning A. port constantly opened is provided in front of piston at a
convenient distance from beginning of stroke to ensure perfect cushioning, and so
as to make any knock at the front stuffing box an impossibility.
At every forward stroke the piston overruns and closes this port and imprisons
the air thereby creating a very reliable cushion for piston.
Carriage. The whole machine is carried on four cast wheels
heavy rails.
running on
Roof Wheels. Two roof wheels m m are provided, one above cylinder at front
end of machine and the other at tail end of machine. The wheels run on strong
pins fixed at top of trunk pistons of large diameter, the same piston being raised by
the air pressure forcing machine down on the aforesaid rails, this prevents vibration

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that
what we claim is :—
1. The method of rock tunnelling which consists in boring horizontal holes at the
working face by means of a rock boring machine anchored by means of a screw
and nut, as described and simultaneously boring vertical holes at a distance in rear
of the face by drills mounted upon the same carriage or frame with the anchor nut
downwards as described, or conversely upwards, if preferred, when the heading
would be at the bottom instead of the top of the tunnel.
2. The method of rock tummelling which consists in carrying forward three
parallel headings ad and e and connecting these in rear by inclined roads so that the
boring machine after working on the leading face a may be transferred to either of
the faces d and e and there work whilst the holes in the face a are blasted and the
debris removed.
3. In a rock boring or tunnelling machine a cylinder supported by a carriage on
wheels and imparting a reciprocating motion to a piston ram and cutter head the
latter carrying all the drills or cutters necessary to open a heading in the rock of
the size required to allow the machine to advance.
4. A rock boring or tunnelling machine substantially as described and represented
in the annexed drawings.
3. The drill bar and cutters and r substantially as described.
C. B. PENRICE.
C. J. PENRICE.