Portable Directional Drill Modular Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current directional drilling machines are large, heavy, and cumbersome, making them difficult to transport and maneuver into buildings, especially when accessing building basements, as they require external access pits which can be unattractive and challenging due to topography or structures.
Innovation Solution
A hand-portable directional drill system weighing less than 200 lbs, designed to be carried and used within buildings, comprising two detachable components: a wall-mountable chassis and a power/drive unit with a hydraulic valving system, allowing for two-stage directional drilling and featuring a magnetized wrench collar for secure pipe connections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If traditional directional drilling machines are used, then drilling capability is achieved, but the machines are large, heavy, and cumbersome making them difficult to transport and maneuver into buildings
Solution Approach 1:
The directional drilling machine is divided into multiple modular components including a power unit, a drill head, and a chassis that can be assembled and disassembled. This segmentation allows the heavy drilling equipment to be broken into smaller, more manageable pieces that can be transported through building interiors and maneuvered into position without requiring external access pits.
2Adaptability or versatility
If external access pits are built for directional drilling, then drilling to building basements is achieved, but the process becomes unattractive and difficult due to topography or structures
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of accessing the building from the outside through external pits, the drilling system is inverted to launch from the building interior. The modular drill can be assembled inside the building and drill through the basement wall outward, eliminating the need for external access pits and avoiding conflicts with external topography and structures.
3Weight of moving object
If the drill is made lightweight for portability, then ease of transport is improved, but drilling power and depth capability may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The drilling system separates the power generation components from the drill head, allowing a lightweight drill head to be used for portability while a separate power unit provides the necessary drilling force. The modular design enables the heavy power components to be transported separately and assembled at the drilling location.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates a hydraulic power unit that provides high drilling power in a compact form. The hydraulic system delivers sufficient force for deep drilling while maintaining a relatively compact size, and the power unit can be transported separately from the drill head to maintain overall portability.
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
Enables efficient directional drilling from within buildings, reducing the need for external access pits and allowing navigation through tight spaces, with the system capable of delivering drill strings over 200 feet underground while maintaining operational reliability and ease of use.
Implementation Method 1
a power unit comprising a hydraulic cylinder competent to move the carriage along the chassis
Implementation Method 2
a magnetized wrench collar for secure pipe connections
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are hand-portable directional drilling devices designed to drill through space underground, particularly for drilling channels underground from within an interior building space. Also provided are improvements in a fixable, positionable metal wrench collar and a drill stem joint breakout system.