Explosive cutting means
AssigneeAlflex Limited
InventorSidney C. Alford
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Explosive cutting means comprising explosive material, preferably in flat strip form, which can be arranged in contact with a surface of a target on either side of an intended line of cut and means for so detonating the explosive material that shock waves will be produced in the target material simultaneously on either side of the intended line of cut, which shock waves will travel towards and will coincide substantially at the intended line of cut. The invention also discloses a method of explosive cutting using said means.
Claims26
Explosive cutting means comprising explosive material adapted to be arranged in contact with a surface of a target to be cut on either side of an intended line of cut and means for so detonating the explosive material simultaneously on either side of the intended line of cut that shock waves produced thereby will travel towards and will coincide substantially at the intended line of cut, said explosive material comprising at least one strip filled with explosive material that can be applied to said surface of the target to be cut along the intended line of cut so as to extend laterally on either side of the intended line of cut, and means for so controlling the detonation of the strip of explosive material that detonation proceeds simultaneously from the opposed lateral margins of the strip towards the intended line of cut and from at least one end of said strip whereby said controlling means causes detonation of the explosive material to proceed both longitudinally along the strip and laterally inwardly of the strip and the shock waves produced thereby will coincide substantially at the intended line of cut with the line of coincidence of the shock waves moving longitudinally along said intended line of cut.
A method of cutting using explosive material, the method comprising arranging explosive material in at least one strip in contact with a surface of a target to be cut on either side of an intended line of cut and so detonating the strip of explosive material that shock waves will be produced in the target material simultaneously on either side of the intended line of cut and will travel towards and coincide substantially at the intended line of cut after initiating detonation of the strip of explosive material from at least one end, and so controlling detonation of the strip of explosive material that said detonation proceeds both longitudinally and laterally inwardly of the strip and the shock waves produced thereby will coincide substantially at the intended line of cut with the line of coincidence of the shock waves moving longitudinally along said intended line of cut.
A method according to claim 25, which comprises arranging a single strip of explosive material along the intended line of cut so as to extend laterally on either side thereof and so controlling the detonation of the explosive material that detonation proceeds at least partially from the opposed lateral margins of the strip means towards the intended line of cut.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.