Pipe boring shield

A boring shield for use in association with a boring machine having a rotated drive coupling for excavating an underground tunnel in earth for a pipeline, such boring shield comprising:

• (a) an exterior housing having an interior surface and a longitudinal axis;
• (b) a drum rotatably mounted inside the exterior housing along the same longitudinal axis as for the exterior housing, the drum having an exterior surface substantially parallel along its length with the interior surface of the exterior housing to maintain proper axial alignment of the drum with the exterior housing;
• (c) at least one rotary drill head mounted to the forward end of the drum;
• (d) a stationary carrier tube extending through the length of the drum and exterior housing, such carrier tube having an inlet window therein;
• (e) a rotating screw auger positioned inside the stationary carrier tube, such screw auger having a forward end operatively connected to the drum and a rearward end operatively connected to the drive coupling of the boring machine;
• (f) at least one paddle operatively connected to the inside of the drum;
• (g) wherein the screw auger rotated by the boring machine drive coupling rotates the drum and rotary drill head mounted to the drum to remove earth by means of the rotated drill head and pass the earth inside the boring shield drum, whereupon the rotating paddle conveys the earth into the inlet window of the carrier tube for transport by the screw auger outside the rear of the exterior housing of the boring shield;
• and
• (h) a space in the exterior housing between the interior wall of the exterior housing and the stationary carrier tube large enough to accommodate a worker positioned inside the space while protecting the worker by the stationary carrier tube from injury by the rotating screw auger positioned inside the stationary carrier tube.