IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SINKINGIVING TUN
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Dickinson Brunton, of 6, Leighton Crescent,
Kentish Town, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SINKING
Sealed the 5th January 1867, and dated the 5th July 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Dickinson Brunton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
5th July 1866.
I, JOHN DICKINSON BRUNTON, of 6, Leighton Crescent, Kentish Town, in
the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SINKING
SHAFTS OR PITS AND DRIVING TUNNELS AND GALLERIES," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of an arrangement whereby a cutter, or as I prefer
three or more cutters, of steel or other suitable material and of a circular
form, is or are caused to revolve round an axis (which I distinguish as the
planetary axis) parallel or nearly so to the axis (which I distinguish as the
central axis) of the pit, tunnel, or gallery to be formed, and as they revolve to
cut away the rock or other strata against which they are made to act. While
the cutter or cutters revolve round the planetary axis (and this I call their

page_text: planetary motion) the axis itself is caused to move either in a circle concentric
with the central axis of the pit, tunnel, or gallery, in which case the excavation
or perforation will be of a circular or cylindrical form; or to move in any
other figure round the central axis, by which a corresponding form will be
given to the pit, tunnel, or gallery. This motion of the planetary axis with its
accompanying cutters round the central axis I call the orbital motion. By
the combined orbital and planetary motions together with another spiral
motion, which in the case of a pit is downward upon the bottom, and in the
case of a tunnel or gallery is forward against the end, the cutters as they
revolve cut the face of the rock into a spiral form, having a pitch or angle of
progress dependent in some degree on the nature of the rock or stratification
operated on.
The cutters are circular discs of steel or other suitable substance, and of a
diameter proportioned to the size of the machine, having the whole circum-
ference of their periphery formed into a cutting edge, and are placed at right
angles to their planes upon pivots or journals, on which they can freely rotate.
The cutters, formed as described, with their journals, are fitted into proper
bearings carried upon arms keyed upon or attached to a shaft, the axis of
which coincides with the planetary axis, and which shaft, together with its
arms and cutters, is caused to revolve by means of toothed gear or in any other
convenient manner. Every disc when in its place in the arm is inclined
towards the shaft at such an angle as may be found best suited to the nature
of the rock or ground being wrought upon, and so that that part of the disc
which for the moment is cutting shall be more distant from the shaft than the
opposite part of the circumference. The plane of every disc is also at right
angles, not to a radial line passing through the planetary axis and the centre
of its point, but to a radial line passing a little on one side of the centre of its
point. The cutters act upon the rock during about one-half of their planetary
revolution, and the radius of the circle described by the edge of the cutters
in their action upon the rock should be about one-half of the radius of any
cylindrical pit, tunnel, or gallery to be formed, so that in every orbital
revolution the cutters shall pass over and cut from the entire or almost the
entire face of the bottom or end.
In the case of hard rock I prefer to have two or more cutters parallel and
concentric with each other upon the same arm.
I bring a whetstone or grindstone or other suitable sharpening substance
either constantly or occasionally into contact with the periphery of the discs as
they rotate, so that a cutting edge of sufficient sharpness shall be maintained
or renewed.

page_text: The planetary shaft with its arms, cutters, driving gear, and other parts
I fix in a strong frame, to which I impart a spiral motion round the central
axis of such a speed as will carry forward the cutters at a proper rate of
progress in their orbital path against the portion of rock to be cut away, and
of such a figure as will produce the desired form of pit, tunnel, or gallery.
Upon this planetary frame I also place a cylinder or cylinders with usual parts
and connections, to which I supply either steam or compressed air, and from
which I give motion to the entire machine by cranks or in any other convenient
manner. The structure of the entire framework will be regulated by the form
of pit, tunnel, or gallery to be made, but it will include provisions for the
orbital and spiral progress of the planetary frame with its mechanism.
The whole apparatus will occupy but a part, probably not more than one-
half, of the bottom of the pit or the end of the tunnel or gallery being formed,
and will therefore, without any cessation of its working, allow of constant
access for the removal of the debris produced, and for attendance upon the
machine. If required pumps also for the removal of water can be carried
down coincidently with the progress of the work.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Dickinson Brunton in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 5th January 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
DICKINSON BRUNTON, of 6, Leighton Crescent, Kentish Town, in tho County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said John Dickinson Brunton, Her special license that I, the said
John Dickinson Brunton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said John Dickinson Brunton, my executors, administrators,
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR SINKING SHAFTS
OR PITS AND DRIVING TUNNELS AND GALLERIES," upon the condition (amongst

page_text: others) that I, the said John Dickinson Brunton, my executors and adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the
Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Dickinson Brunton, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and, by the
following statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
"
My said Invention consists of an arrangement whereby a cutter, or as I
prefer three or more cutters of steel or other suitable substance and of a
circular form, is or are caused to revolve round an axis (which I distinguish
by the name planetary axis") parallel or nearly so to the axis (which
1 distinguish by the name "central axis") of the pit, tunnel, or gallery to be
formed, and as they revolve to cut away the rock or other strata against which
they are made to act.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall
refer to the several Figures on the Sheets of Drawings hereunto annexed, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the corresponding
Figures.
Sheet of my Drawings represents a construction of machine suitable for
driving a tunnel or gallery. Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine,
partly in section; Figure 2 is a corresponding end view of the same, also
partly in section; Figure 3 is a detail end view of the centre piece and arms
which carry the cutters, and of the spur wheel attached to them, and by which
they are driven; Figure 4 is an end view of the arms on the central shaft;
Figure 5 is a plan of the rail on which the machine runs; Figure 6 shows
the mode of disposing several cutters on the same axis; and Figure 7 is an
end view of the tunnel with the fixed nut, collar, and arins herein-after
referred to.
The line A, B, (Figure 1,) represents in section the end of the tunnel or
gallery. a is a hollow shaft resting on and revolving in the bearings c, c, of
the carriage C, on which the entire machine is supported, and upon which it
is carried forward; b, b, are radial arms cast on or attached to the shaft a.
At the extremity of each of the arms b, b, revolves the pin d, which by a key,
or cutter, or other suitable means is fixed in the socket of the centre piece e.

page_text: "
It
The axis of the shaft a is that which I call the "central axis," and the axes
of the pins d in the arms b, b, are those which I call the "planetary axes,"
and are equidistant from the central axis. The centre piece e, with its three
arms e, e, e, and the spur wheel f I prefer to be cast in one piece. The
cutters rotate freely on the pins or journals h, h, which are fixed into proper
bearings at the extremity of the arms e¹, e, e', and are placed at such an angle
with the plane of the surface of rock or other substance to be cut as shall
enable the cutters most effectively to net. The central spur wheel i
gears into
the spur wheels f. f. (if there were more than two wheels f this central wheel
would gear into them all), and is keyed upon a central shaft & concentric with
and passing along the interior of the hollow shaft a. The shaft k revolves in
proper bearings provided at each end of the shaft a, and upon its outer
extremity there is keyed a bevel wheel, into which gears another bevel
wheel m, which receives it motion from the prime mover by driving pullies
or in any other convenient way. Upon the hollow shaft a is keyed a large
worm wheel 7, into which gears a worm 0. I prefer to drive the worm o by
means of pullies p, p, and an independant band from the prime mover.
will be seen that the motion of the cutters which I call the " planetary
motion is effected by the revolution of the shaft k, and that the motion of
the planetary axes round the central axis (which I call the "orbital motion")
is caused by the revolution of the shaft «. The relative speeds of those shafts
will regulate the thickness of the portion of rock taken off at each cut.
Upon the external circumference of the hollow shaft a is formed a screw, as
shown in Figure 1; upon this screw is placed a nut n, whose outer circum-
ference is turned to receive a collar 1. By means of the key s, n, and 7 can be
connected together, so that the one cannot revolve without the other. Upon
2 are cast three or more lugs t, t, which carry arms u, u; the outer ends of
these arms are furnished with a screw and foot plate, as shown in Figures 1
and 7. By means of the screws these plates are brought into contact with
the internal surface of the tunnel or gallery, and the effect of the screw on
the shaft a when the machine is is operation is to jain firmly the arms u, u,
in the tunnel or gallery, and so to constitute the nut n with its collar ra
fulcrum or fixed point, from which the whole machine is forced forward
against the face of the tunnel by the revolution of the shaft a. When a has
been screwed through the nut 2 to the end of the thred upon it the machine
is stopped, the key s withdrawn, and by means of bars put into the square
holes w, w, (Figure 7), the nut 2 is screwed forward again to the inner end
of the thread upon the shaft a, carrying with it the collar 7 and the arms u, u.
The set screw working in a groove in the circumference of the nut n

page_text: prevents the collar from slipping off the nut at the same time that (in the
absence of the key s) it allows the nut n to revolve without carrying the
collar and its arms round with it. The combined orbital and planetary
motions as described, together with the forward motion produced by the screw
acting against the fixed nut n, cause the cutters g, g, to cut the face of the
tunnel or gallery into a spiral form, having its pitch or angle of progress equal
to the pitch of the thread upon the shaft a. The cutters 9, 9, are circular discs
of steel or other suitable substance, and may be from 10 to 20 inches diameter,
and from a quarter to three-quarters of an inch thick, according to the size of
the machine and the nature of the rock or ground to be operated on. The whole
circumference of their periphery is formed into a cutting edge, and they are
placed at right angles to their planes upon the pivots or journals h, around which
they can rotate freely. The inclination of the discs towards the "planetary
axis" is in the Drawing represented as an angle of 45 degrees, but it may be
varied to suit the character of the ground. The radius of the circle described
by the edge of the cutters in their action upon the rock should be about one
half of the radius of the cylindrical tunnel or gallery to be formed, so that in
every orbital revolution the cutters shall pass over and cut from the entire
or almost entire face of the end. In the case of hard rock I prefer to
employ two or more cutters parallel and concentric with each other upon each
arme, as shewn in Figure 6. 1 fix between the arms e¹, e¹, e¹, a helix or
spiral (Figure 1) of sheet iron, the object of which is to scrape away from
the front or face of the end the debris of the rock as fast as it falls out of the
way of the cutters. I afterwards remove it either by hand or by any convenient
mechanical means. A whetstone or grindstone or other suitable sharpening
substance may either constantly or occasionally be brought into contact with
the periphery of the discs as they rotate, so that a cutting edge of sufficient
sharpness may be maintained or renewed; but in general I prefer to take out
the cutters from time to time for sharpening. The carriage C, upon which
the whole machine is supported, consists of two perpendicular standards or
supports D, D, with flanged wheels rolling on a rail E, and four arms F, F,
with wheels or rollers G, G, which are set so as to press firmly against the
inner circumference of the tunnel or gallery, and keep the machine steadily in
a central position. The rail E is formed of separate and parallel parts E, E',
which are alternately moved forward along the floor of the tunnel by a screw
jack or other convenient incans, thereby providing a continual rail track for
the machine as it advances.
Sheet 2 of my Drawings represents a construction of machine suitable for
sinking a shaft or pit or for working in a perpendicular or nearly perpendicular

page_text: direction. Figures 1, 2, and 3 are vertical sections of the shaft or pit, and
show the machine in side elevation and partial section from different points of
view; Figure 4 is a plan of the upper, and Figure 5 a plan of the lower bed
plate, on which the engine and machinery are fixed; and Figure 6 shows the
conical rollers or wheels on which the machine rests, and which roll in a circle
on the bottom of the pit as the machine revolves.
0,
b and c, Figures 1 to 5, are the top and bottom bed plates; they are bolted
together at their proper distances by means of suitable bolts and the pillars d,d, d;
e, e, e, (Figure 5) shows the position of the conical rollers (shown separately
in Figure 6) under the bottom bed plate; f,f,f, Figures 1, 2, 3, and 5, are
side rollers, which move round and against the interior cylindrical surface of
the pit and help to guide the machine as it revolves. a is the central shaft,
which, together with the whole machine, revolves round its own axis as the
machine describes its "orbital revolution"; r and u are a collar and arms similar
to those in Sheet 1 of my Drawings, with one internal nut, which is not
shown in this Drawing. The collar is connected to a spur wheel i, the
arms being set firmly in the pit hold, the collar with its internal nut and
the wheel i stationary, and thus afford a fixed point against which the shaft a
may screw itself downwards whilst the toothed circumference of i affords the
means of carrying round the machine by the action of the pinion k, driven by
the worm on the crank shaft o and the intermediate bevel gear m.
Figures 1 and 4, is the crank shaft ; p, p, the cranks; 9, the cylinders of the
engine which actuates or drives the machine; s, the shaft which carries the
centre piece and cutter arms e¹, ell; 9 (Figure 2) the cutter and its pin h on
one of the arms. The cylinders I prefer to make oscillating, but to avoid
confusion in the Drawing their valves, steam pipes, and other attachments are
not shewn, as they are sufficiently understood by mechanics. By the
planetary rotation of the cutters round the centre s, combined with the orbital
motion of a round the central shaft a, and the downward motion produced by
the screw upon a working in the nut in the interior of the collar r, the cutters
produce a spiral on the bottom of the pit having a pitch or rate of descent
equal to the pitch of the screw upon a; and this spiral form once given the
weight of the machine will be probably sufficient to keep the machine to its
work without the action of the screw upon a. It will be seen that the
apparatus occupies only a part of the bottom of the pit or the end of the
tunnel or gallery being formed, and that therefore without any cessation of its
working constant access may be bad for the removal of the debris produced,
and for attendance upon the machine; also that pumps for the removal of
water can be carried down coincidently with the progress of the work.

page_text: Ilaving now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that what I consider to be novel
and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the construction and application
of machinery or apparatus for sinking shafts and pits, and for driving or
excavating tunnels, galleries, or adits wherein one or more cutting discs are
caused to revolve on their own axis or axes, such axis or axes revolving round
a centre, which also revolves round another fixed centre, substantially as
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Dickinson Brunton, have to this
my Specification set iny hand and seal, the Third day of January,
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
JOHN DICKINSON BRUNTON. (L.B.)