IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR DRILLING Rocks
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Haseltine, of the "International Patent
Office," No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR DRILLING Rocks."-A communication from abroad
by Charles Burleigh, of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, United States of
America.
Sealed the 22nd January 1867, and dated the 22nd November 1866.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said George Haseltine at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and Declaration,
on the 22nd November 1866, pursuant to the 9th Section of the Patent
Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
HASELTINE, of the "International Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS I. am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR DRILLING ROCKS," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant
unto me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent
for the same, and have made solemn Declaration that it has been communicated
to me from abroad by Charles Burleigh, of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, United
States of America.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Haseltine, do hereby declare
that the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal, fully
describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the accompanying Drawings forming part of this
Specification:-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved machine for drilling rocks;
Figure 2 is a plan of the same; Figure 3 is a vertical longitudinal section
through the centre of the same; Figure 4 is a transverse section through the
machine on the line x, x, of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a transverse section on
the line y, y, of Figure 1; Figure 6- is an enlarged view of the under side of
the valve chest and valve; Figure 7 is a horizontal section through the centre
of the same on the line z, z, of Figure 6; Figure 8 is a transverse section
through the same on the line w, w, of Figure 6; Figure 9 is an elevation of
one end of the piston bar with its annular cam (detached); Figures 10, 11,
and 12 are details to be referred to hereafter.
In machines for drilling rocks there are several requisites, the principal of
which are to give the drill a reciprocating motion towards and from the rock
to effect the cutting, to rotate the drill partially at each stroke, and to feed
it forward the necessary amount according to its penetration; it is also
desirable when several drills are operating together upon the same frame to
be able to advance or withdraw them from the work, and that they should
have a universal motion so that they may be pointed in any direction required.
The nature of the work to be performed also brings so great a strain on all
the parts that reciprocate with the drill that it is of great importance that
these parts should be few in number, of simple construction, and possess great
strength.
My Invention has for its object to accomplish all of the above requisites,
as will now be described in such terms that others skilled in the art may
understand and use my Invention.
In the said Drawings A is the cylinder within which works a piston driven
by compressed air or steam in a well-known manner; this cylinder is provided
with a projecting rib a on each side, these ribs fitting into grooves 6 in a slide
or drill frame B; and on this frame the cylinder and parts connected there-
with are made to advance as the work progresses, as will be more fully.
described hereafter. The drill frame B is bevelled on its under side and
slides in a dovetailed recess in a clamp C, which is constructed as follows:-
c is an ordinary box which embraces the column or bar D upon which the
drill is mounted, and is made in two parts held together by screws by which

page_text: the box may be secured in the required position; on one portion of this box c
is a bevelled disk d to which is fitted the upper portion of the clamp which
is made in two pieces A¹ and B', held together by bolts e and nuts ƒ, by
loosening which the machine can be revolved around the disk as a centre, or
advanced or withdrawn in line with the drill, and it will thus be seen that by
means of this clamp a universal motion is obtained together with a movement
towards or from the work. E is the piston bar which is attached to the
piston g and carries at its forward end the drill F, the piston bar being made
solid except at its rear end, which is hollowed out for the reception of the feed
screw G, thus making the machine compact; this screw G is secured to and
revolves in a bar h at the end of the drill frame B by which it is supported, as
seen in Figures 2 and 3, and it is held with sufficient friction to prevent its
turning when the drill is in operation; ; is a winch by which it may be
revolved by hand when required. To the rear end of the cylinder A is secured
a hollow tube or casing H, which acts as a guide for the feed and valve gear-
and also for the ratchet which rotates the drill. Upon the rear end of this
casing H is screwed a cap I containing the feed nut and ratchet J, either:
made in one piece or permanently secured together, the nut J being held in
place by a washer 14 which rests against a shoulder on the inside of the cap I,
thus allowing the nut to revolve freely as required. Instead of the feed screw
passing into the end of the piston bar as above described it may be attached.
permanently to a ratchet J and screw through the bar h, but in that case the;
feed screw will project out beyond the drill frame, rendering the machine less.
compact.
The manner in which a partial revolution is given to the drill after each
blow will now be described:-At the rear end of the piston bar E is cut a
spiral groovej (Fig. 9) into which projects a feather / on the inside of a
ratchet ring 7, through which the piston bar passes; this ratchet ? is supported.
in the casing H in a slot in which is pivoted the pawl m which engages with
the teeth of the ratchet, in contact with which it is pressed by a spring 15..
The ratchet is confined on one side by a shoulder 16 on the inside of the
casing H, and on the other side by a washer 17 which rests against a
shoulder 18, and thus allows it to be revolved freely. As the piston bar moves
forward towards the rock the ratchet is turned so that the pawl m falls into
the next succeeding notch, there being more weight and friction on the piston.
bar than on the ratchet, in consequence of which the latter is turned as
required. On the backward stroke, however, the ratchet is held stationary
by the pawl m, and the feather / causes the piston bar to be partially revolved
by means of the spiral groove j. Instead of a spiral groove, however, the

page_text: piston bar may be made polygonal in cross section and twisted, so that in
passing through an opening in the ratchet of corresponding form it will be
turned as required; or instead of the piston bar itself being grooved or twisted,
a piece attached thereto may be turned in a similar manner by passing through
the ratchet or rotating device. By thus causing the piston bar or an attach-
ment thereto to slide through the ratchet, which effects its partial revolution,
instead of having the ratchet attached to and carried forward with the drill
spindle, I am enabled to avoid much of the shock on the working parts, and
consequently lessen the liability of their being broken, which is a matter of
vital importance in machines of this description. The valve K, through which
the compressed air or steam is admitted into the cylinder A, and the manner
in which it is operated will now be described; this valve, which is what may
be termed a hollow, double-acting, rotary valve, works in a chest or casing L,
seen enlarged in Figs. 6, 7, & 8, and is so constructed that the pressure of
the air or steam will hold it firmly upon its seat. The valve K is formed
with two ports n (Fig. 10) which connect with the exhaust passage o in the
interior, and is also provided with longitudinal bars or toes p of sufficient
width to cover the ports q in the valve chest L which communicate with the
interior of the cylinder, there being a spacer around the valve so that the air
or steam may pass through the holes s (Fig. 6) on both sides round to either
port in the valve chest. When the valve is in a position to take air or steam
át either port, the port at its opposite end will be in such a position that the
exhaust will pass through it into the interior of the valve, and this valve
being in line with the cylinder the exhaust air or steam is discharged towards
the drill, and serves to blow away the dust or water from the working parts
of the machine. The required motion is given to the valve K by means of a
Bodt which is supported in standards 19 on the casing H and cap I, and is
rocked or partially revolved by means of the jointed tappets u, v, the lower
ends of which project through slots in the casing H; these tappets are raised
at the required times by means of an annular cam M secured to the rear end
of the piston bar E which passes under them as the bar E is reciprocated, the
form of the lower ends of the tappets being such as to give the required
motions to the valve. By moving the rear tappet u on the valve rod t
towards or from the cylinder the air or steam will be cut off sooner or later,
so that the drill may be operated to advantage in any desired position, either
vertically or horizontally. Instead of the cam M being attached directly to
the piston bar E it may be secured to a piece connected thereto.without
departing from the spirit of my Invention. The feed of the drill is effected
in the following manner :-a¹ is a lever which is pivoted at 6¹ to the casing H,

page_text: and carries at one end the spring pawl o' which engages with the ratchet teeth
of the feeding nut J, the opposite end of the lever a¹ passing through a slot 20
in the casing H into a position to be struck and raised by the annular cam M
as it passes beneath it, which thus causes the pawl o¹ to revolve the nut J on
the screw G, which through the connection described feeds forward the drill
as required. The end of the lever a¹ which passes through the slot 20 is so
curved and formed that the annular cam M does not lift it sufficiently to effect
the feed until after it has raised the tappet on the forward stroke to shift
the valve, and by this means I am enabled to regulate the feed to correspond
with the penetration of the drill, for if the piston bar does not advance to a
certain point the cam M will not raise the end of the lever sufficiently to cause
the pawl o' to fall into the next succeeding tooth in the ratchet nut J, and
consequently there will be no feed of the drill; the valve, however, will be
shifted at each stroke without reference to the feed. The rear end of the
drill F is enlarged so as to give it an increased bearing surface, and is formed
with a tapering shoulder 21, over which fits a clasp nut N (Figs. 3, 11, and 12)
which is screwed into the end of the piston bar E. The nut N is made in
two pieces hinged together at 22, so that, it may be easily fitted over the drill,
and when screwed down serves to hold it in a central position with regard to
the piston bar. The nut N is provided with a groove 23 into which fits a
feather or projection on the drill, so that as the latter is revolved it tends to
tighten the screw nut, by which means the drill is held tightly in place and
prevented from becoming loose while the machine is in operation. Instead of
the, spline and feather above described a portion of the drill may be made
polygonal and the inside of the clasp nut of a corresponding form.
Having thus fully described the said improvements as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent, and shown how the same may be conveniently
and advantageously carried into practise, what I claim as my Invention and
desire to secure by Letters Patent is, the annular cam M upon the
piston bar E, or an attachment thereto, for the purpose of operating
the valve and the feeding device, or either of them, substantially as set
forth.
I also claim passing the piston bar E, or an attachment thereto, through
the ratchet ring or rotating device, substantially as and for the purposes set
forth.
I also claim the hollow valve K with its chest L constructed and operating
substantially as described.
I also claim the clamp C, consisting of the box c and pieces A¹ and B¹,
constructed and onerting substantially as described

page_text: I also claim the clasp nut N for holding the drill in place, operating
substantially as set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Haseltine, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of November, A.D. 1866.
Witness,
W. ROB. LAKE,
8, Southampton Buildings,
London, W.C.
GEORGE HASELTINE. (L.S.)