Movable Drill Rod Spacer Assembly for Automated Rod Handling
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The manual handling of drill rods and spacers in drill rigs poses significant risks to human operators, necessitating a solution to reduce these risks during the transfer of rods from/to storage bins.
Innovation Solution
A drill rod spacer assembly with movable spacer members and a drive arrangement that moves these members to a first position, utilizing detent members for support, allowing automated placement and removal of spacers, reducing manual intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual handling of drill rods and spacers is used, then operational flexibility is maintained, but safety risk increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer assembly is designed to move and position itself automatically. The spacers are arranged on a support structure with drive means that automatically transports them between storage and operational positions, eliminating the need for manual handling and reducing safety risks associated with manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical handling with an automated drive system. The drive means (motorized or pneumatic) substitutes for human operators in moving spacers and drill rods, thereby maintaining operational flexibility while significantly improving safety by removing human exposure to hazardous conditions.
2Reliability
If automated drive arrangement is introduced, then safety is improved by reducing manual intervention, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The drive arrangement is integrated directly into the spacer assembly structure itself, combining the drive mechanism with the support structure and spacers into a unified unit. This merging approach reduces overall system complexity compared to having separate automated handling systems, while still achieving safety improvements through automation.
Solution Approach 2:
The drive arrangement serves multiple functions: it positions spacers in storage bins, transfers them to the drill string, and manages the entire spacer lifecycle. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate specialized systems, thereby improving safety through automation without proportionally increasing device complexity.
3Productivity
If spacers are moved to support position automatically, then productivity is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The drive arrangement operates periodically rather than continuously, activating only when spacers need to be moved between storage and operational positions. This periodic operation maintains high productivity in spacer placement while minimizing energy consumption by keeping the drive system inactive during non-operational periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The support structure acts as an intermediary mechanism that facilitates automatic spacer movement with minimal energy input. By providing a guided path and mechanical advantage through the support structure, the system achieves efficient spacer placement without requiring high-energy drive mechanisms, thus improving productivity while controlling energy consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
A drill rod spacer assembly is formed of a plurality of spacer members each movable to a first position, and a drive transfer arrangement configured operable for receiving a drive for moving a body. The body is configured for interacting with a spacer member while moving so as to move same to its first position. The drill rod spacer mover has a detent member configured operable for supporting a respective spacer member in its first position when the body moves to interact with another spacer member. More than one drill rod spacer mover can be arranged to form a drill rod spacer mover arrangement for operable use with a drill rod storage assembly.