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US 6,102,137 AGranted
Apparatus and method for forming ducts and passageways
AssigneeAdvanced Engineering Solutions Ltd.
InventorsPeter Ward, James Thomson
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AssigneeAdvanced Engineering Solutions Ltd.
InventorsPeter Ward, James Thomson
Estimating the term…
The apparatus and method of the invention relates to the formation of ducts or passageways, referred to as ducts underground by using existing lengths of plant such as pipes, cables or wires, or a length of plant laid in predetermined position as a guidance or reference for the drill head used to form the duct or passageway as it passes through the ground. The plant is used to generate an electromagnetic field which is sensed by at least one electromagnetic field sensor mounted in the drill head, said sensor rotated to allow comparison of signals and the distance of the drill head from the plant to be calculated. Other sensors can also be provided to determine other positional characteristics of the drill head with respect to the plant. This allows the duct to be formed with the avoidance of potentially hazardous plant and/or along a path which is determined with reference to the plant. The apparatus can also be used as a guidance means without the drill to pass along existing passageways and indicate the path of the same using the same operating procedure.
Apparatus for forming a duct or passageway on or under the surface of the ground, said apparatus comprising, a single length of plant generating, or which can be induced to generate, a simple co-axial electromagnetic field along the same, to utilize the same for guidance, a drill head for movement through the ground to create the duct, said drill head including a longitudinal axis, a centre, and a detector means including at least one electromagnetic field sensor mounted in an offset position with respect to the centre of the drill head, to allow detection and monitoring of the electromagnetic field of the guidance plant and a means to rotate the electromagnetic field sensor about the centre of the drill head.
Apparatus for measuring and guiding the position of an article, said article including a detector means including at least one electromagnetic field sensor mounted in an offset position with respect to the centre of the article, to allow detection and monitoring of a simple co-axial electromagnetic field, and a means to rotate the electromagnetic field sensor about the centre of the article.
A method of forming a duct or passageway, said method comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.