Method of, and apparatus for, driving and lining tunnels

In a method of driving and lining tunnels, the method comprising the steps of driving a tunnel by means of a knife shield, and forming a concrete lining in the tunnel behind the knife shield, the lining being formed in sections along the tunnel, the improvements comprising forming each lining section by introducing concrete into an annular space formed between an inner shuttering and the tunnel wall, and constituting the shuttering by a plurality of elongate shuttering elements, each of which may be advanced independently of the others and each of which is connected to a respective knife of the knife shield for conjoint advance movement therewith, the advance of a shuttering element being accompanied by the step of forcing concrete into the space between that shuttering element and the tunnel wall.

Apparatus for driving and lining tunnels, the apparatus comprising a knife shield for driving the tunnel, said knife shield having a plurality of knives mounted on a support frame, each of the knives being advanceable relative to the support frame by means of a respective hydraulic ram, and a shuttering positioned behind the knife shield for supporting a tunnel lining section whilst the concrete forming that section sets, the shuttering being inwardly off-set, in use, from the tunnel wall to define an annular space, wherein the shuttering is constituted by a plurality of elongate shuttering elements each of which may be advanced independently of the others and each of which is connected to a respective knife for conjoint advance movement therewith, and means for forcing concrete into the annular space between the advancing shuttering elements and the tunnel wall.

In apparatus for driving and lining tunnels, the apparatus comprising a knife shield for driving the tunnel, and a shuttering positioned behind the knife shield for supporting a tunnel lining section whilst the concrete forming that section sets, the knife shield having a plurality of knives mounted on a support frame, and each of the knives being advanceable relative to the support frame by hydraulic ram means, the improvements comprising positioning the shuttering so as to be inwardly off-set, in use, from the tunnel wall to define an annular space, and constituting the shuttering by a plurality of elongate shuttering elements each of which is connected to respective one of said knives for conjoint advance movement therewith, and means for forcing concrete into the annular space between the advancing shuttering elements and the tunnel wall.