Year: 1897

page_text: I, GEORGE BURT, of the Firm of John Mowlem & Co., of 19, Grosvenor Road, in the
City of Westminster, Contractors, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in machinery for boring tunnels and has
for its object to provide means whereby tunnels can be excavated and the excavated
material removed from the tunnel with greater facility and more quickly than hereto-
fore thereby effecting considerable economy in carrying out this description of work.
According to my invention I cut or bore the tunnel by means of a rotary cutter
device consisting of a revolving arm having removable adjustable cutters the said
arm being mounted on a shaft in bearings on a sliding table working on a strong
frame secured to any suitable form of shield. The said arm is of a length nearly
equal to that of the diameter of the tunnel to be cut or bored.
The cutter arm is rotated at the required speed by suitable gearing from a shaft
driven by an electromotor provided on the sliding table which is actuated by a feed
screw worked from the shaft suitable interchangeable gear being also provided
whereby the depth of cut may be varied as required. The extreme travel forward of
the table corresponds with the width of one of the cast iron segments of the tunnel
lining. The table can also be drawn back sufficiently to bring the bucket ring and
cutter arm within the shield.
Behind the rotating cutter arm I arrange a revolving frame carrying buckets which
pick up the excavated material and convey it to the top of the excavation where it is
emptied by suitable trip gear into a shoot which conveys it to a travelling belt or
transporter which carries it backwards to a travelling stage from which it is discharged
into skips or trucks, the said travelling stage being arranged at such a height that the
skips or trucks can pass underneath it.
The electromotor employed for operating the cutter arm and the sliding table also
serves for actuating hydraulic pumps on the said table for driving the rams for forcing
forward the shield.
Suitable clutch mechanism is provided whereby the hydraulic apparatus is put out
of gear when the cutter is in operation and vice versu and whereby both the cutter
and the rams can both be put out of gear at the same time.
A temporary platform is adapted to the transporter frame to allow of the erection
of the cast iron lining of the upper portion of the tunnel.
D
1
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page_text: I, GEORGE BURT, of the Firm of John Mowlem & Co., of 19, Grosvenor Road, in
the City of Westminster, Contractors, 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 :-
This invention relates to improvements in machinery for boring tunnels and has
for its object to provide means whereby tunnels can be excavated and the excavated
material removed from the tunnel with greater facility and more quickly than here-
tofore thereby effecting considerable economy in carrying out this description of
work.
According to my invention I cut or bore the tunnel by means of a rotary cutter
device consisting of a revolving arm having removable adjustable cutters the said
arm being mounted on a shaft in bearings on a sliding table working on a strong
frame secured to any suitable form of shield. The said arm is of a length nearly
equal to that of the diameter of the tunnel to be cut or bored.
The cutter arm is rotated at the required speed by suitable gearing from a shaft
driven by an electromotor provided on the sliding table which is actuated by a feed
screw worked from the shaft, suitable interchangeable gear being also provided
whereby the depth of cut may be varied as required. The extreme travel forward of
the table corresponds with the width of one of the cast iron segments of the tunnel
lining. The table can also be drawn back sufficiently to bring a bucket ring herein-
after described and the cutter arm within the shield, after the buckets have been
removed.
Behind the rotating cutter arm I arrange a revolving ring or frame carrying
buckets which pick up the excavated material and convey it to the top of the excava-
tion where it is emptied by suitable trip gear into a shoot which conveys it to a
travelling belt or transporter which carries it backwards to a travelling stage from
which it is discharged into skips or trucks, the said travelling stage being arranged
at such a height that the skips or trucks can pass underneath it.
The electromotor employed for operating the cutter arm and the sliding table also
serves for actuating hydraulic pumps on the said table for driving the rams for
foreing forward the shield.
Suitable clutch mechanism is provided whereby the hydraulic apparatus is put out
of gear when the cutter is in operation and vice versa and whereby both the cutter
and the rams can be put out of gear at the same time.
To enable the invention to be fully understood I will describe it by reference to
the accompanying drawings; in which:-
Figure 1 is a front view of boring machinery constructed according to the inven-
tion, and shewn in position in the excavation.
Figure 2 is a cross section of the same seen from the rear:
Figure 3 is a longitudinal vertical section through the apparatus illustrating also
the means for removing the excavated material; and,
Figure 4 is a plan view of the driving machinery.
a is the tunnel and 6 the revolving arm forming the rotary cutter device, the said
revolving arm being of a length nearly equal to that of the diameter of the tunnel to
be cut or bored. c, c are the adjustable cutters with which the arm bis provided and d
is the shaft upon which the said arm is mounted. e is the table in bearings on which
the shaft dis mounted and which is arranged to slide on the frame f which is
supported by girders g, g resting upon ledges h, h formed in the shield to which
the apparatus is secured and which can be of any suitable construction.

page_text: The cuttershaft dis provided with a spur wheel; which gears with a pinion k mounted
upon a shaft connected by clutch mechanism m to a worm wheel n rotated by the
worm o keyed upon the shaft p of the electromotor q. The rotation of the electro-
motor, which can be of any suitable construction, is, therefore, transmitted through
the medium of the worm o, worm wheel n, shaft l, pinion k and spur wheel j to the
cutter arm b. The worm wheel n is also connected, by clutch mechanism r, to a
crank shaft s to which the connecting rods t, t of the hydraulic pumps u, u are con-
nected so that the electromotor q also operates, through the medium of the hydraulic
pumps u, u, the rams v, v for forcing forward the shield i in the usual manner.
Mechanism can be provided whereby when the clutch m is in gear the clutch is
out of gear and vice versa and also whereby the cutter arm b and the rams v, v can
be put out of gear simultaneously.
The table e is actuated for feeding forward the cutter arm 6 by a feed screw e¹
mounted in the frame and having a hand wheel whereby it can be rotated by
hand. For automatically feeding forward the cutter I provide the feed screw e¹ with
a grooved disc e3 with which engages a pawl e adapted to be reciprocated by the
arme which is pivoted to a nut e" in which works a screw e pivoted at es to the
frame f and adapted to be reciprocated by suitable means connected to any suitable
rotating or reciprocating part of the mechanism. By rotating this screw it will be
obvious that the position of the nut with respect to the pivot es can be adjusted so
as to vary the throw of the nut and thus alter the depth of cut to the desired extent.
As above described the extreme travel forward of the table corresponds with the
width of one of the cast iron segments A of the tunnel lining. Also that the table
can be drawn back sufficiently to bring the cutter arm within the shield. Figures 2
and 3 is a locking pawl in connection with the disc e³.
is the frame arranged upon the shaft d behind the cutter arm 6 and 62 are the
buckets pivoted to the said frame, the said buckets being designed when rotated to
pick up the excavated material and convey it to the top of the excavation where it is
emptied by suitable trip gear into a shoot b' which conveys it to a travelling belt or
transporter c¹. The trip gear, which is not shewn in the drawings, may be in the form
of projections on the buckets which engage the curved back of the shoot.
travelling belt cl passes over a pulley c² suitably mounted in the shield i and a pulley d¹
mounted in the travelling stage d² which is arranged at such a height in the tunnel
that the skips or trucks B can be passed from under and so receive the material which
is discharged from the transporter c¹ on reaching the pulley d¹.
This
A temporary platform (not shewn in the drawing) is adapted to the transporter frame
to allow of the erection of the cast iron lining of the upper portion of the tunnel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, declare that what I
claim is:-
1. Machinery for cutting or boring tunnels comprising an arm having adjustable
cutters and mounted upon a shaft supported on a sliding table in a suitable shield and
adapted to be rotated by suitable gear from an electromotor supported on the said table,
a frame mounted on the said shaft and provided with buckets for taking up the
excavated material, and a travelling belt or transporter for conveying the excavated
material back to a travelling platform underneath which skips or trucks can pass, sub-
stantially as, and for the purposes, herein before described.
2. The improved machinery for boring or cutting tunnels herein before described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.