Independent Clamping Jaws for Eccentric Pipe Vibro-Drilling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional clamping systems for inserting pipes into the ground fail to maintain a safe distance and ensure uniform pressure during vibro-drilling, leading to potential damage from excessive pressure and deformation, especially with eccentric or non-round pipes.
Innovation Solution
A clamping device with pairs of independently movable clamping jaws distributed evenly over the pipe's circumference, which can be radially displaced to apply uniform force without direct contact, ensuring a safety distance and even pressure distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional clamping systems are used to connect the drill motor to the pipe, then the pipe can be securely held during drilling, but the pipe vibrates strongly during shaking and the drill drive is damaged due to lack of safety distance
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping device transitions from a static fixed-position design to a dynamic adjustable-position design. The clamping jaws can be moved radially inward to provide secure connection during drilling, and radially outward to create safety distance during shaking operations. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction between needing secure connection and avoiding damage from vibration.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamping device is segmented into multiple independently movable clamping jaws that can be positioned separately. This allows the system to adapt to different operational states (drilling vs. shaking) and pipe conditions, providing both secure connection when needed and safety distance when required, while preventing damage to the drill drive.
2Device complexity
If conventional clamping systems with fixed clamping jaws are used, then the structure is simple, but uneven pressure is applied to eccentric or non-round pipes causing deformation and damage
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping jaws are made dynamically adjustable rather than fixed, allowing each jaw to independently position itself to contact the pipe surface at the correct location. This dynamic capability enables uniform pressure distribution on eccentric or non-round pipes without requiring complex pre-adjustment mechanisms, resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and manufacturing precision.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple clamping jaws are combined into a single integrated clamping device with coordinated movement. This merging allows the system to achieve uniform pressure distribution on various pipe geometries while maintaining relatively simple overall structure, as the jaws work together through a unified control mechanism rather than requiring separate complex adjustment systems for each jaw.
3Productivity
If the pipe is partially inserted into the ground by the vibrator before clamping, then vibro-drilling can proceed, but any slight inclination and eccentricity of the pipe can no longer be corrected leading to non-uniform clamping
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping jaws maintain dynamic adjustability even after the pipe is partially inserted into the ground. This allows the system to compensate for inclination and eccentricity that develop during vibro-drilling insertion, correcting alignment issues while maintaining productivity. The jaws can move to accommodate the actual pipe position rather than requiring perfect pre-alignment.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamping device is designed to accommodate and correct pipe alignment issues that arise during insertion, rather than requiring perfect alignment before clamping. The independently movable jaws can adapt to the pipe's actual position and orientation, performing a preliminary correction action that ensures uniform clamping pressure even when the pipe is already partially inserted with some inclination or eccentricity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures secure connection and uniform power transmission around the pipe's circumference, preventing damage and deformation during vibro-drilling, even with eccentric or non-round pipes.
Implementation Method 1
The movement of all pairs of clamping jaws is effected by a hydraulic cylinder serving as a clamping element
Implementation Method 2
a rotating clamping pot with wedge surfaces on the inner surface is axially displaced by means of hydraulic cylinders and pressed over the clamping wedges resting on the pipe, which generate the necessary contact forces via the inclined surface of the wedges
Implementation Method 3
In a new method, vibro-drilling, as described for example in EP 06 009 174 A, tools for both insertion methods, namely drilling and shaking, are assembled for the first time
Implementation Method 4
A drill motor is attached to the casing pipe
Data Source
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AI summary
The device has a driving tube with a drill bit and a casing tube that is detachably connected with the drill bit. A concrete vibrator is arranged in the casing tube and is connected with the casing tube according to an operating condition. A bore engine is connected with the casing tube by a clamping device (20) when the vibrator is detached, and is detached when the vibrator is connected. The clamping device has upper and lower cylindrical clamping jaws (32, 34) that are arranged upon each other, where the jaws are separated on a peripheral of a tube and are moved independent of each other.