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AssigneeElectric Power Research Institute, Inc.
InventorsRichard D. Nathenson, Jerome Apt, Jr., Martin J. Uram, Paul M. Brumbaugh, Gary H. Brawley, Donald J. Hackman, Brian Christenson
Estimating the term…
An excavation head, mounted on one end of a telescoping hollow boom, has nozzles for directing jets of high speed air at an excavation face to loosen soil. A vacuum transport pipe extends from the excavation head through the hollow of the boom to a spherical joint. The spherical joint movably joins the other end of the boom to a primary separator. The primary separator is a chamber for disentraining loosened soil from air flowing through the primary separator. A primary air lock is fixed to the lower portion of the primary separator for expelling soil from the primary separator. A secondary separator is joined to the primary separator by way of a separator connector pipe. A secondary air lock is fixed to the lower portion of the secondary separator for expelling soil from the secondary separator. A positive displacement vacuum pump has its vacuum side pneumatically connected to the secondary separator. A conveyor is located under both the primary air lock and the secondary air lock to receive soil that is expelled by these air locks. Hydraulic actuators lift, swing, and extend the boom such that the excavation head is positioned on the excavation face.
An apparatus for pneumatically excavating soil from an excavation face comprising a movable support structure, a vessel mounted on the support structure defining an internal chamber, a boom member carried by the support structure and having first and second end portions and a longitudinal axis and having a passageway extending between the first and second end portions, means for connecting the first end portion to the vessel so that the passageway in the boom member is in communication with the internal chamber of the vessel which includes a sphere secured to the first end portion of the boom member and a retainer carried by the vessel having a cavity for cooperatively receiving the sphere so that the first end portion of the boom member is pivotably connected to the vessel, the sphere being provided with a slot extending in a plane that contains the longitudinal axis of the boom member and a pin being carried by the retainer and having a portion which extends into the slot along a radius of the sphere for restricting rotation of the boom member about its longitudinal axis, means carried by the second end portion of the boom member for dislodging soil from the excavation face when the second end portion of the boom member is placed in the vicinity of the excavation face and means carried by the support structure and connected to the vessel for creating a negative pressure within the internal chamber of the vessel and the passageway of the boom member for lifting the dislodged soil from the excavation face into the second end portion of the boom member and for carrying the dislodged soil through the passageway and into the internal chamber.
An apparatus for pneumatically excavating soil from an excavation face comprising a movable support structure, a vessel mounted on the support structure defining an internal chamber, a boom member carried by the support structure and having first and second end portions and a passageway extending between the first and second end portions, means for connecting the first end portion to the vessel so that the passageway in the boom member is in communication with the internal chamber of the vessel which includes a sphere secured to the first end portion of the boom member and a retainer carried by the vessel having a cavity for cooperatively receiving the sphere so that the first end portion of the boom member is pivotably connected to the vessel and the second end portion of the boom member can move from side to side and upwardly and downwardly relative to the first end portion of the boom member, a plurality of nozzles carried by the second end portion of the boom member, compressor means carried by the support structure and in communication with the plurality of nozzles for delivering pressurized air to the plurality of nozzles to create jets of air for dislodging soil from the excavation face when the second end portion of the boom member is placed in the vicinity of the excavation face, means carried by the support structure and connected to the vessel for creating a negative pressure within the internal chamber of the vessel and the passageway of the boom member for lifting the dislodged soil from the excavation face into the second end portion of the boom member and for carrying the dislodged soil through the passageway and into the internal chamber and means for continuously removing the dislodged soil from the internal chamber of the vessel during operation of the apparatus whereby the continuous removal of the dislodged soil from the internal chamber permits the vessel to have a minimal size and permits continuous operation of the apparatus free of interruptions for emptying the vessel, the boom member having a longitudinal axis and the means for connecting the first end portion of the boom member to the vessel including means for restricting rotation of the boom member about its longitudinal axis which includes a slot provided in the sphere extending in a plane that contains the longitudinal axis of the boom member and a pin carried by the retainer and having a portion which extends into the slot along a radius of the sphere.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.